Abstract:
This classroom-based research study aims to find out in what way using rehearsal and peer feedback helps reduce students' anxiety while giving the presentation. The experiment was carried out with 34 first-year microbiology students at King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi. Before the experiment, all students were informed briefly about the characteristics of effective presentation delivery. They then were trained to provide feedback to the speakers in an especially positive way. After that, the students as a whole class were provided the prepared passages for rehearsing.In the experimental stage, there were four treatments (each preceded by a rehearsal session). For each treatment, the students were divided into a group of four or five and each member rehearsed the things they prepared with peers in the same group according to the provided passages related to each studied lesson. They could do their rehearsing several times, as often as they preferred, so that they could improved their presentations. During this session, peers gave the speaker feedback and also took turns as speakers. In the post-expenmental stage (after each treatment), the students were assigned to do their own tasks for a lesson, the researcher as teacher then drew lots to select five or six students (this numberincluded the two subjects) to present their tasks to the class. And this activity was conducted in the same way for the four treatments. Therefore, the subjects also had to do their presenting for four times as well.The instruments used for data collection were a questionnaire, an observation checklist, transcriptions of video recordings, a teacher's diary, students' diaries, and a semi-structured interview.The findings of this study revealed that rehearsal and peer feedback could help the students improve their presentations, increase theirawareness, and have positive attitudes towards presentations. These factors enabled them to do better presentations. However, it was found that the students had some problems with voice control, making gestures, and visual aids. Thus, a need for remedial and further training was indicated.