A Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree "Licence en Pédagogie Appliquée, Agrégé de l'Enseignement secondaire en Anglais

RESUME,

This study aims at identifying factors affecting learners' performance in the English speaking skill. The research questions were to know how teachers' and learners attitude, the lack of adequate teaching materials, the sociolinguistic environment, parents' socioeconomic status, fear, shyness and aggression affect learners' performance in the the English speaking skill. This work is based on the following hypotheses: the attitude of learners and teachers, the lack of adequate teachung materials, the sociolinguistic environment, the socioeconomic status of parents and family, fear, shyness, aggression affect learners' performance in the English speaking skill. We based on the case of First Form Arts of some selected secondary school in Bujumbura city. First Form Arts learners still have a lot of difficulties to express themselves in English though they have covered at least six years of leaening English. In this study, First Form Arts pupils and teachers of the same classes are the target population. Eighty-four pupils and five teachers are treated as objects of the study and five schools were selected. The instruments used to get the useful data were questionnaires, that is, learners' and teachers' questionnaires. In orders to come up with answers to our research, the answers to the specific questions were presented ans analysed separately in tables which showed the frequencies and percentages of esch answer. The following findings were reveales: learners' ^performance is affected by learners' attitude towards English, teachers attitude vis-à_ vis learners errors, teaching materials,, environment,socioeconomic status of parents and family of the learner, fear, shyness and aggression. The study was organised around five chapters: General introduction, Literature Review, research Methodology, Data Presentation, analysis and findings, General Conclusion and Recommentations. Some recommendations were consequently formulated to the govenment, to the curriculum designers, to the teachers, to the learners; to parents of the learners and other researchers.