Exploring the Role of Youtube Videos in Teaching English Speaking Skills: A Qualitative Study at Muhammadiyah Elementary School

Abstract

This study explores the role of YouTube videos in teaching English speaking skills at MI Muhammadiyah Al-Haq Palu. The study aims to investigate how YouTube videos are used in speaking instruction, the benefits perceived by the teacher, and the challenges encountered during their implementation. A qualitative research design was employed, involving one English teacher as the sole participant. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews conducted in Indonesian and analyzed using data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing techniques. The findings reveal that YouTube videos serve as an effective instructional medium for teaching speaking, particularly for young learners. The teacher used short, colorful, and age-appropriate videos as warming-up activities, pronunciation models, and stimuli for speaking practice. Follow-up activities such as repetition, question-and-answer sessions, role play, and retelling encouraged students to participate actively and practice English more confidently. The study also found that YouTube videos improved students' pronunciation, vocabulary acquisition, motivation, and confidence in speaking English. However, several challenges were identified, including unstable internet connection, advertisements, and students' tendency to become passive viewers if not guided properly. To address these challenges, the teacher downloaded videos beforehand and actively engaged students through questioning and interactive speaking tasks. Although these findings provide valuable insights into the teacher's experience, they are based on a single participant and therefore should not be generalized to all English teachers or educational contexts. In conclusion, YouTube videos can effectively support the teaching of English-speaking skills when integrated with appropriate material selection, interactive activities, and active teacher guidance.