Language Laboratory and Developing Skills in an Iraqi Secondary School

Abstract

This study aims at determining the relationship between the use of language labs and the effective ways of mastering better performance of the English language. The study raised two questions. They are: “Is a language laboratory useful in teaching English to Iraqi students?” And “How do language labs help in improving students’ performance?” The study tries to measure the difference in pronunciation and listening comprehension between two groups of secondary school pupils. One group has never been to a language lab, while the other used to have their English lessons in the language lab five times a week. The first group consists of 39 pupils out of 41 pupils who are in the fourth scientific secondary stage. Two pupils were excluded because they are from families that were living in the USA. The second group contains 43 pupils who are in the same secondary stage. Both groups are taught by the same teacher. The first group is called (Group A), and the second is called (Group B)