Most ESL speaking lessons give students no choices. The teacher selects the topic, the format, the partner, the timing, and the criteria for success. Students arrive, receive instructions, and produce language on demand. This works - up to a point.
The research on autonomy and motivation in language learning is clear: students who have some agency over their learning produce more, engage more deeply, and develop better self-regulation as learners. The key word is some. Unlimited choice produces paralysis. No choice produces disengagement. A well-designed class gives students meaningful choices within a clear structure.
YapYapGo is a classroom speaking practice tool for ESL and EFL teachers. Here's how to build genuine student agency into speaking practice without sacrificing the structure that makes practice effective.What agency in speaking practice actually means
Agency is not the same as freedom. A student who is told "do whatever you want for the next 20 minutes" has freedom but no agency - because agency requires meaningful choices with real consequences, not just the absence of constraint.
Meaningful agency in speaking practice means:
- Choosing between genuinely different options that produce different experiences
- Understanding why you're making the choice
- Experiencing the consequences of your choice
- Being able to reflect on whether it served you
The choices students find most motivating are specific and bounded: this topic or that topic, this partner or that partner, this format for today's main activity. Not: "do anything you like."
Where to build agency in a speaking lesson
1. Topic selection (within bounds)
The clearest and most impactful form of agency is topic choice. Students who discuss topics they find genuinely interesting produce more language than students assigned topics that don't engage them.
Practical format: give students a choice of three topic areas at the start of the main speaking block. They discuss with their partner which they'd prefer. You then run the session on the most chosen topic. This takes 60 seconds, gives students real agency over content, and increases engagement significantly. Variation: use a brief class vote. Project three options. Students vote by show of hands or a quick poll tool. The majority choice becomes the lesson topic. The brevity and transparency of the decision matters - students should see that their vote actually changes something.2. Partner selection (occasionally)
Random partner assignment is usually pedagogically better than self-selection - it builds wider classroom community and prevents the comfort-zone conversations that self-selected pairs tend toward.
But for higher-stakes activities (a 5-minute presentation practice, a mock exam, an extended debate), allowing students to choose their own partner occasionally reduces the anxiety of the format itself. Students perform better with a partner they trust.
The rule: closed random rotation for standard pair work; occasional self-selection for high-stakes activities.
3. Format choice within the session
Give students a choice between two activity formats for the second speaking block in a lesson. "You can either have a structured debate on this statement, or do an extended discussion using these questions. Talk to your partner for 30 seconds and decide."
This produces genuine reflection: students have to think about which format will help them most, which activates metacognitive awareness about their own learning. The discussion with their partner about which to choose is itself a brief speaking activity.
4. Self-selected vocabulary focus
Before a speaking activity, ask students to identify one or two vocabulary items they want to practise using during the activity. They tell their partner what they're going to try to use. After the activity, they report whether they managed it.
This is a small but powerful agency intervention: students are setting their own micro-goals within your structure. The accountability to their partner (who knows what they were trying to use) adds a social motivation element.
Tool tip: YapYapGo offers multiple speaking modes and topic categories that teachers can navigate in class - showing students the options and inviting a quick class decision about which mode to use creates a moment of genuine agency within the structure. A random student picker can be used to select which student makes the final call if the class is split.
5. Pacing control in timed activities
A subtle but meaningful form of agency: give students control over when they transition between partners within a timed block. Rather than signalling all rotations centrally, tell students "you have 15 minutes for three conversations - move to the next partner whenever you're both ready."
Students who control their own transitions tend to use full conversation time more efficiently because they're not waiting for your signal. The trade-off is less synchrony across the room. Use a visible overall timer so students can self-manage their three conversations within the block.
6. Self-assessment and goal-setting
After every speaking activity, give students 2 minutes to write or tell their partner one thing that went well and one thing they want to do better next time. Then ask them to set one specific goal for the next speaking activity: "I'm going to try to give at least two examples next time."
This closing reflection loop is a form of agency over the learning process. Students who set and track their own goals develop self-regulation that transfers beyond the classroom. A brief activity timer set to 2 minutes for this reflection keeps it efficient.
What agency does not mean
Agency does not mean students direct their own instruction. Students don't know what they need to learn in the way an experienced teacher does. They need teacher expertise for choosing activities, sequencing skills, and diagnosing gaps. Student agency complements teacher expertise - it doesn't replace it. Agency does not mean avoiding difficulty. Students given unlimited agency often choose the easiest path. Meaningful agency includes the experience of choosing something difficult and discovering the benefit. Frame harder choices positively: "Some students find the debate format harder but end up developing more complex language. The discussion format is more natural but produces simpler language. Which do you want today?" Agency does not mean chaos. Clear time structures, defined task outcomes, and explicit criteria for success remain essential. Agency operates within these - not instead of them.For the research on autonomy and language learning motivation, see what ELT research says about improving speaking skills. For building the wider classroom culture that makes student agency meaningful, see how to create a safe space for ESL speaking practice. A classroom countdown timer makes self-paced partner rotation visible to all students.
Sources:
- Deci, E. & Ryan, R. (2000). The "What" and "Why" of Goal Pursuits. Psychological Inquiry. - Self-determination theory: autonomy, competence, and relatedness as drivers of intrinsic motivation.
- Benson, P. (2011). Teaching and Researching Autonomy (2nd ed.). Pearson. - Learner autonomy in language education: theory and practical applications.
- Dörnyei, Z. (2001). Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom. Cambridge University Press. - Agency and choice as motivational tools in language learning contexts.