Improving the Speaking Skills of Young Children at Risk of Special Educational Needs through Storytelling Based on Vygotsky's Social Interaction Theory
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: show a risk of special educational needs but have not received a professional diagnosis. This study aims to improve children's speaking skills through storytelling grounded in Vygotsky's Social Interaction Theory. The study used the Kemmis and McTaggart classroom action research model in two cycles. Seventeen children in Group A at TK Negeri Handayani participated in the classroom activities, while the primary assessment focused on three children aged 4-5 years with verbal communication difficulties. Each cycle included planning, action, observation, and reflection. Data were collected through observation, performance assessment, interviews, field notes, and documentation and were analyzed using quantitative and qualitative descriptive techniques. The intervention combined picture stories, interactive dialogue, guiding questions, vocabulary repetition, retelling, and scaffolding adapted to each child's Zone of Proximal Development. The mean speaking score increased from 1.33 at baseline to 2.33 in Cycle I and 3.83 in Cycle II. Teacher activity increased from 85.53% to 97.37%, child activity from 71.67% to 93.33%, and positive responses from 83.33% to 100%. These findings indicate that storytelling designed as guided social interaction can improve speaking fluency, communicative responses, vocabulary mastery, and confidence within the classroom context studied.
Authors: Marini. Ab, Sukinah, Sukinah
Institution: Yogyakarta State University
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7223574566