absence of conversation in an oral class

[melouka]

How can i enhance communication among my students who do not want to speak during the oral lecture?

[Horsa]

First can you answer the following questions? Then I'll be better able to give you suggestions.

How old are they?
What level are they?
What have you already tried?

[melouka]

Hello.Well my students are aged from 19 -30.And so far I have tried different approaches to make them speak , but without success.First i gave them them situations and they had to perform dialogues in pairs,then,I asked them to speak about a free topic, and here again only the good one participated.My third attempt was to ask them to built up a storyi.e each one gives a sentence and the other follows the construction of a short imaginary story.Unfortunately , just a few of them were interested!What can I do?
Melouka

[Horsa]

Ok you haven't given me a level but try this activity as a warmer at the beginning of class and let me know the result. It's a very simple activity and works with most levels. Follow the instructions given. Hopefully it's culturally acceptable.

If students aren't speaking, it may be for a number of reasons. They may be afraid to make mistakes in front of each other - especially if the group is relatively new. You may find that drilling language useful for the activity before you start it helps. Essentially, you need to get them to relax and laugh.