Exploring University Students’ Critical Thinking Development through Speaking Activities

Abstract

This study explores the development of university students’ critical thinking skills through speaking activities in an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom at Universitas Kuningan. Although previous studies have examined the relationship between speaking activities and critical thinking, limited qualitative research has focused on students’ perceptions and challenges in Indonesian EFL contexts. This study employed a descriptive qualitative research design involving fifteen undergraduate students. Data were collected through open-ended questionnaires administered in Bahasa Indonesia to capture students’ experiences, perceptions, and challenges related to speaking activities. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings indicate that speaking activities such as discussions, debates, presentations, and opinion-sharing tasks contribute positively to students’ critical thinking development by encouraging idea organization, logical reasoning, evaluation of different perspectives, and reflective thinking. Additionally, students generally perceive speaking activities as effective in helping them express critical opinions, particularly when implemented in a supportive and low-anxiety classroom environment. However, challenges such as speaking anxiety, limited vocabulary, grammatical difficulties, and time pressure were also identified. These findings suggest that speaking activities can function as effective pedagogical tools for fostering critical thinking in EFL higher education when supported by appropriate instructional and affective strategies.