“Speak Up Please!” Teachers’ Strategies in Teaching Speaking Skills at a Vocational High School in Sidoarjo

Teaching speaking skills is important of foreign language learning. This study aims to find out the student difficulties and to find what strategies use in teaching speaking. This research uses a qualitative method with a case study. The subjects of research were two English teachers. Data collected by observations, interviews, and documentation during and after class. The results showed that teacher 1 found difficulties due to lack of motivation, lack of practice, vocabulary, nervousness, low grammar mastery, and pronunciation challenges. To overcome these difficulties, teacher 1 used 9 strategies including role-playing, presentations, describing pictures, telling pictures, discussions, word walls, brainstorming, interviews, and storytelling. Similarly, teacher 2 found same difficulties. Teacher 2 also used 9 strategies, with some strategies different from teacher 1. They are role-playing, discussion, storytelling, interview, reporting, playing cards, describing pictures, telling pictures, and brainstorming. Thus, teachers can overcome students' difficulties in speaking by using the strategies used.