Enhancing EFL students' speaking skills through animated movies: A quasi-experimental study in an Indonesian senior high school

Abstract

Speaking is one of the most essential skills in English language learning; however, many EFL learners experience difficulties in developing oral communication due to limited exposure to authentic language input and insufficient opportunities for meaningful interaction. This study investigated the effect of animated movies on students’ speaking skills at SMAK Harapan Denpasar. Employing a quantitative approach, the study adopted a quasi-experimental design with a posttest-only control group design. The participants consisted of 70 tenth-grade students selected through cluster random sampling, with 34 students assigned to the experimental group and 36 students to the control group. The experimental group received instruction through animated movies, whereas the control group was taught using conventional methods. Data were collected through an oral speaking test assessed using an analytic scoring rubric covering fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar. The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that the experimental group achieved a higher mean score (M = 74.41, SD = 12.54) than the control group (M = 66.52, SD = 14.18). An independent-samples t-test indicated a statistically significant difference between the two groups, t(68) = 2.46, p = .017. Furthermore, the effect size analysis yielded a Cohen’s d value of 0.589, indicating a moderate effect. These findings suggest that animated movies can serve as an effective instructional medium for enhancing EFL learners’ speaking skills by providing authentic language exposure and increasing learner engagement. The study recommends integrating animated movies with communicative classroom activities to support speaking development in EFL contexts.