Strategies and Models for Teaching English Speaking to Students with Borderline Intellectual Functioning: A Systematic Literature Review
Keywords:
Borderline Intellectual Functioning (BIF); Speaking Skills; English as a Foreign Language (EFL); inclusive education; Systematic Literature Review.Abstract
Students with Borderline Intellectual Functioning (BIF) experience significant challenges in developing English speaking skills due to limitations in working memory, cognitive processing, and linguistic competence. These limitations affect their ability to organize ideas, retrieve vocabulary, and participate effectively in oral communication. Despite the importance of speaking competence in English as a Foreign Language (EFL), research focusing specifically on effective instructional strategies for students with BIF remains limited. Therefore, this study aimed to identify effective instructional strategies, appropriate pedagogical approaches, and implementation challenges in teaching English speaking skills to students with BIF and mild intellectual disabilities.
This study employed a systematic literature review (SLR) following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. A systematic search was conducted across electronic databases, including SciSpace, Google Scholar, ArXiv, and PubMed, covering publications from 2010 to 2026. Studies were screened using predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Nine eligible empirical studies were selected and analyzed using thematic narrative synthesis to identify patterns in instructional strategies, pedagogical approaches, and barriers.
The findings revealed that structured instructional strategies, including direct instruction, visual support, multimedia-assisted learning, communicative speaking activities, and instructional adaptation, significantly improved speaking performance, learner confidence, and participation. Pedagogical approaches such as Direct Instruction, Communicative Language Teaching, and technology-assisted instruction provided structured and supportive learning environments. However, several barriers were identified, including linguistic limitations, heterogeneous classroom abilities, limited instructional resources, insufficient teacher training, and time constraints in assessment and feedback.
These findings highlight the need for structured, scaffolded, and inclusive instructional models to support speaking development among students with BIF
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