Total Physical Response as a strategy to improve the speaking skills of beginners EFL students in a rural Ecuadorian school

Abstract

This study explores the transformations in oral skill development through the Total Physical Response (TPR) method among beginning English learners in a rural school in Manabí, Ecuador. In a context marked by the digital divide and high linguistic anxiety, the research adopted a qualitative phenomenological design with six participants from a multigrade institution. Through participant observation and field diaries, the findings demonstrate how the motor-linguistic scaffolding of TPR facilitates the dismantling of the affective filter, transforming initial selective mutism into emergent and spontaneous oral production. It is concluded that movement-based learning acts as a low-cost human educational technology, shaping the transition from the silent period to speech without the need for digital infrastructure. TPR is a strong and comprehensive method for understanding educational experiences in socioeconomically susceptible situations, according to the study.