Introduction 1
Section Ⅰ Issues in teaching and researching speaking 3
1 Conceptual and historical background 5
1.1 Introduction 5
1.2 The skill of speaking 6
1.3 The nature of speech in contrast to writing 9
1.4 Where does speech fit in language studies? 15
1.5 Summary 25
2 The research space:paradigms and problems 27
2.1 Introduction 27
2.2 Classical research paradigms in relation to researching speaking 27
2.3 Attitudes to speech data 28
2.4 The applicability of research approaches and frameworks to the study of speech 33
2.5 The problem of the status of speech in applied linguistics 35
2.6 Where are the data for research into speech? 36
2.7 Summary 42
Section Ⅱ Issues for teaching and assessing speaking 45
3 Approaches,materials and the problem of'real'speech 47
3.1 Introduction 47
3.2 Spoken interaction in context 49
3.3 Teaching global speaking skills 50
3.4 Teaching spoken grammar 61
3.5 Perspectives on pronunciation and fluency 67
3.6 Bringing the skills together 71
3.7 Summary 71
4 Issues in assessing speaking 73
4.1 Introduction 73
4.2 Language proficiency versus speaking proficiency 76
4.3 The issue of interactivity 78
4.4 The issue of creating authentic conditions for speech testing 79
4.5 The issue of spoken genres and testing 82
4.6 Integrated versus discrete skills testing 83
4.7 A comparison of test paradigms for oral assessment 84
4.8 The criteria for three tests of speaking compared 86
4.9 Summary 88
5 Approaches to researching speech 90
5.1 Introduction 90
5.2 Research into global features of speech 90
5.3 Grammar,structural choices and the spoken language 99
5.4 Research into fluency and pronunciation 108
5.5 Summary 117
6 Some new directions 119
6.1 Introduction 119
6.2 Mode-based research 120
6.3 Theoretical orientations on the role and status of speech 121
6.4 Evidence from speech pathology 124
6.5 Modality,processing and memory 125
6.6 Speaking,writing and teaching spoken/written forms of language 126
6.7 Summary of central issues discussed in relation to new approaches to speech 129
6.8 Summary 130
Section Ⅲ Researching speaking 131
7 Classrooms,research and spoken mode 133
7.1 Introduction 134
7.2 Implications of the nature of spoken discourse on teaching speech 134
7.3 Moving towards your own project on spoken discourse 136
7.4 Sources of inspiration for research 138
8 Research project ideas and frameworks 142
8.1 Introduction 142
8.2 Projects on oral interaction:a discourse analysis approach and an experimental approach 143
8.3 Projects on one particular spoken discourse feature:an action-research approach and a conversation analysis approach 149
8.4 Projects on oral task difficulty:two approaches to quantifying complexity 153
8.5 Projects on differences between mode:two experimental approaches 158
Section Ⅳ Resources and further information 165
9 Research borders and boundaries 167
9.1 Introduction 167
9.2 Speaking and ethnographic or cross-cultural studies 168
9.3 Speaking and psycholinguistics 169
9.4 Speaking and neuro-linguistic studies 169
9.5 Speaking and corpus linguistics 169
9.6 Speaking and new technologies 170
10 Research resources 171
10.1 Traditional library resources 171
10.2 Databases and sound archives(both on-line and on CD-ROM) 172
10.3 Speech corpora 173
10.4 Societies and organisations 173
10.5 Speech recognition and text-to-speech 174
10.6 On-line pronunciation and intonation resources 174
10.7 Research skills summaries 174
10.8 Other on-line resources 178
Glossary 180
References 185
Index 194