Abstract
To successfully assess how language learners enhance their performance and achieve language learning goals, the four
macro skills of listening, speaking reading and writing are usually the most frequently assessed and focused
areas. However, speaking, as a productive skill, seems intuitively the most important of all the four language skills
because it can distinctly show the correctness and language errors that a language learner makes. Since English
speaking tests, in general, aim to evaluate how the learners express their improvement and success in pronunciation and
communication, several aspects, especially speaking test formats and pronunciation need to be considered. To enhance
Thai learners’ English performance and the quality of the speaking tests, this paper has three principal objectives. First,
this paper presents English language teaching, as well as teaching English speaking in the Thai context. Then, it
highlights the significance of the test format as it is the main tool and indicator for scoring performance and analytic
rating methods. Lastly, the paper addresses major problems found in the speaking tests to elucidate certain facts about
learners’ speaking ability and English instruction in the Thai context. Some pedagogical implications of the study are
discussed for learning and teaching speaking to second or foreign language learners.
Keywords: English speaking ability, Thai learners, Teaching speaking skills