Stuttering in EFL Classroom Communication: An Autoethnographic Study of Insider and Peer Perspectives

Abstract

Students who stutter are often judged by the smoothness of their speech in EFL speaking activities, yet little is known about how stuttering is experienced from the inside and how it is perceived by the peers who share the classroom. This autoethnographic study examines how stuttering shaped the first author's experience of communicating in EFL classroom activities in an English education program at an Indonesian university and how two classmates perceived and evaluated that communication. Data comprised retrospective self-reflective autobiographical writing and semi-structured interviews with two purposively selected peers, analyzed through reflexive thematic analysis and interpreted with the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF). Four findings emerged. First, stuttering shaped self-evaluation more strongly than it reflected an actual gap in communicative ability. Second, speaking difficulty varied with preparation, spontaneity, and audience pressure. Third, word substitution and reformulation served as active communicative adjustments. Fourth, visible participation did not always reflect willingness or ability to communicate, particularly under time pressure in whole-class interaction. The study concludes that stuttering affects EFL classroom communication through self-evaluation, communicative management, and classroom conditions rather than through speech disruption alone. EFL speaking pedagogy and assessment should therefore distinguish speech fluency from communicative ability and provide sufficient response time for learners who stutter.