The present study attempted to discover the effect of critical thinking on the improvement of the speaking ability of Iranian EFL learners. After administrating a TOEFL proficiency test 48 advanced EFL learners were selected as the subjects of the study . Right after an oral-interview pre-test, the experimental and control groups received the instruction in 6 sessions, each 90 minutes. In both groups, similar topics were proposed for group discussion such as air pollution, education, friendship, drug addiction, unemployment, etc. In the experimental group, in addition to having discussion on the given issues, the teacher devoted some time for teaching critical thinking techniques during the class time and gave learners time to practice these skills. After the treatment, both groups took part in an oral interview post -test. After analyzing the data, the obtained results showed that the performance of the subjects in the experimental group was significantly better than that of the control group, supporting the argument that if learners get involved in critical thinking techniques their speaking ability would improve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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