Factors Influencing Minority Ethnic High School Students’ Speaking Performance

It has been commonly recognized that many Vietnamese students encounter difficulties communicating and speaking English. This study aims to explore the factors influencing minority ethnic high-school students’ performance in learning English speaking skills. The researchers conducted this research by surveying 76 minority ethnic high-school students at Phu Luong High School. Questionnaires were used as the primary data collection instrument in this study. The findings from the analyzed quantitative data revealed that the respondents’ difficulties mainly came from internal and external factors. The internal factors were categorized into six main aspects: motivation, confidence, anxiety, topical knowledge, listening ability, and fluency in practicing speaking. Some other external factors that have less impact on the students’ speaking performance include practicing time, lack of constructive feedback, lack of access to English language resources, etc. This study was expected to help students overcome their internal problems and suggest recommendations to minimize the undesirable effects of negative factors.