The impact of podcasts with imitation technique on Iranian intermediate EFL learners’ four components of speaking performance and willingness to communicate

ABSTRACT In English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, learners do not have many opportunities to communicate in English. Therefore, speaking is usually the most difficult skill in these situations. Even in contexts where there are enough opportunities to communicate in English, some learners may not be willing enough to communicate in the foreign language. Accordingly, this study aimed at investigating the impact of podcasts with an imitation technique on Iranian intermediate EFL learners’ speaking performance, by dividing speaking into four components, and willingness to communicate. Among 100 intermediate students, 60 participants (both genders) were selected. Then they were randomly divided into two groups: one control group and one experimental group, namely a podcast group with an imitation technique. Each group consisted of 30 language learners. Before the treatment, the speaking test (the International English Language Testing System speaking test) and the Willingness to Communicate test were held among these 60 people. After completing the treatment, the researchers made changes in the pre-test (changing the order of questions and options) and administered it as a post-test to the participants. The results showed that the treatment of this study had a significant effect on the performance of language learners in speaking and WTC tests in general. More specifically, the results indicated an improvement in each of the components of speaking, namely pronunciation, grammar, lexical resources, and fluency. Therefore, EFL teachers are recommended to incorporate podcasts with the imitation technique in their EFL classes. Keywords: mobile-assisted language learning, computer-assisted language learning, English as a foreign language