Yabancı dil olarak İngilizce öğrenen Türk öğrenciler ile yabancı öğrencilerin çevrimiçi konuşma aktivitelerinin etkisinin incelenmesi

This study attempts to investigate the impact of incorporating online speaking activities in ELF (English as a lingua franca) communities into language education on student motivation, linguistic proficiency, and speaking performance. Fourteen EFL students from a Secondary School in Ardeşen, Rize constitute the study's sample. Qualitative and quantitative research traditions are combined in this mixed-methods case study. It used a quasi-experimental research design in which participants engaged in online extracurricular speaking activities with 158 overseas EFL students from 14 countries from Asia, Africa, Europe, and America continents. Surveys, questionnaires, journals, follow-up interviews and observation by teachers were used to gather the data, assuring triangulation and consistent data. Thematic analysis was used to evaluate the qualitative data from the interviews, and SPSS (version 22) was used to analyze the quantitative data from the survey and questionnaire. The findings of student reflections reveal that a number of themes were prevalent, such as English as a lingua franca, intercultural communication, and overcoming language anxiety as well as significant correlations among motivation regarding English and language proficiency. Regarding the cultural aspect of this extracurricular online speaking exercise using English as a lingua franca, the findings indicate that Turkish students' interactions with EFL peers from various cultural backgrounds raised their cross-cultural awareness. Keywords: English as Lingua Franca, Intercultural Awareness, EFL, Online Speaking Activities