The Development of Speaking and Listening Skills Through the Thai Folktale Storytelling in Kindergarten Level 3

Abstract

This research aimed to: 1) develop the listening and speaking skills of Kindergarten 3 children through learning experience activities using Thai folktales; and 2) investigate the effectiveness index of the learning experience activities using Thai folktales. This study employed a quasi-experimental research design. The sample consisted of 15 Kindergarten 3 students from one classroom at Ban Changom Nadon School, Mueang Nakhon Phanom District, Nakhon Phanom Province, during the 2025 academic year. The participants were selected using cluster sampling. The research instruments consisted of: 1) six learning experience activity plans using Thai folktales, with two hours allocated to each story, totaling 12 hours; and 2) a listening and speaking skills assessment for Thai language comprehension among early childhood learners. Data were collected by assessing the children's listening and speaking skills before and after the intervention. The data were analyzed using mean, standard deviation, effectiveness index, and dependent samples t-test. The reliability of the research instrument was examined using Cronbach's alpha coefficient.
The research findings revealed that: 
1) after participating in the learning experience activities using Thai folktales, the children demonstrated significantly higher listening and speaking skills than before the intervention at the .05 level. Improvements were observed in attentive listening, identifying key points, answering questions, sequencing events, and retelling stories. 
The children also showed greater fluency, confidence in speaking, pronunciation, and willingness to express themselves; and 2) the effectiveness index of the learning experience activities using Thai folktales was 0.67, indicating that the children's listening and speaking skills improved by 67.00% of the maximum possible improvement. 
These findings demonstrate that learning experience activities using Thai folktales can effectively promote listening and speaking skills among early childhood learners.