The use of Youtube to enchace English speaking skills for universitiy students

Abstract

YouTube improves English speaking skills through authentic, engaging, and flexible content. The platform supports fluency, confidence, and collaboration, and encourages independent and contextual learning beyond traditional classroom methods. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of YouTube in improving English speaking skills, identify the most effective types of content, and explore students' perceptions of its use as a learning medium. Using a descriptive qualitative approach, data was collected through semi- structured interviews with ten sixth-semester students to explore their experiences using YouTube. The results indicate that YouTube is effective in improving speaking skills, particularly in terms of pronunciation, vocabulary, fluency, and confidence, through its audio- visual features and shadowing techniques. Students have a positive perception of YouTube due to its flexibility, enjoyable learning environment, and encouragement for self-directed learning driven by both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. However, they also faced challenges such as limited internet access, distractions from other content, and a lack of direct feedback. Therefore, YouTube needs to be combined with direct interaction to optimize learning outcomes. Overall, YouTube remains an effective and flexible medium for supporting the independent improvement of English speaking skills. Keywords: YouTube, Speaking Skills, EFL Student’s Preseptio