Use of Second Life in Teaching Speaking in ELT

Abstract

The work deals with the use of a virtual world Second Life for the purpose of English language teaching with the focus on developing learners’ speaking skill. In the theoretical part of the thesis, the development of communicative competence is discussed with special attention to a recent model of second language speaking competence by Goh and Burns. Specific types of speaking activities are presented as well as the general concept of the speaking skill. The last chapter of the theoretical part defines the virtual environment of Second Life and its specifics. In the practical part of the thesis, speaking activities conducted in the virtual environment of Second Life are evaluated, based on defined criteria for a qualitative observation, in order to determine their benefits and limitations for developing learners’ speaking skill.