DEVELOPING SPEAKING SKILLS THROUGH FLIPPED CLASSROOM AT A SECONDARY SCHOOL IN SABAH

The English language plays an essential role as it is a medium of communication used internationally. In Malaysia, English is recognised as the second language, and it is pivotal to ensure that young generations are proficient at communicating in the language. In this study, the focus was to introduce the Flipped Classroom approach to develop the speaking skills of second language learners. Hence, the objectives of this study are to investigate the speaking performance of secondary school students and to explore their perceptions following the implementation of the Flipped Classroom approach. The Flipped Classroom is a pedagogical approach that uses class time for learning activities and moves information-transmission teaching out of the class. A qualitative method was employed by using a set of open-ended questionnaires and observation in order to examine the impact of the Flipped Classroom approach on Form 2 students at a secondary school in Sabah. This qualitative study emphasises the participants’ subjective realities, experiences, and viewpoints as the outcomes of the implementation of the Flipped Classroom approach. After four meetings with the students, their speaking skills showed improvement, and they gave positive perceptions toward the approach. This study proved the potential of the Flipped Classroom approach to cultivate classroom interactions using the English language. The application of this approach can foster the development of speaking abilities among Malaysian students.