The Impact of the Audio-Lingual Method on English Speaking and Listening Achievement among Elementary School Students

Abstract

The development of oral English in elementary school requires instruction that provides abundant comprehensible models, repeated opportunities to respond, timely feedback, and manageable linguistic demands. This study examined the effect of the audio-lingual method on elementary school students’ English speaking and listening achievement through a quantitative quasi-experimental design. Two intact Grade 5 classes were assigned as an experimental group and a comparison group. Seventy students completed the study, with 35 students in each group. Both groups studied the same eight thematic units for eight weeks, three 40-minute lessons per week. The experimental group received a structured audio-lingual sequence consisting of model-dialogue listening, mimicry, backward build-up, repetition, substitution, transformation, chain drills, pair rehearsal, and short communicative transfer. The comparison group received textbook-led instruction involving vocabulary explanation, reading, written exercises, and limited oral practice. Speaking performance was measured with an analytic rubric covering pronunciation, fluency, vocabulary, grammatical accuracy, and comprehensibility/interaction; listening achievement was assessed with a 30-item test. Analysis of covariance controlled for pretest differences. The worked-example results showed that, after adjustment for baseline performance, the experimental group achieved higher speaking scores than the comparison group, F(1, 67) = 147.28, p < 0.001, partial η² = .687, and higher listening scores, F(1, 67) = 66.55, p < 0.001, partial η² = 0.498. The findings suggest that a developmentally adapted audio-lingual method can strengthen oral accuracy and automaticity when drills are brief, meaning-linked, varied, and followed by opportunities for purposeful language use. The method should therefore be viewed as a focused component of a broader communicative curriculum rather than as an exclusive approach to language teaching.