<![CDATA[Speaking English remains challenging for many English as a Foreign Language learners, particularly when they are required to communicate ideas through narrative texts. This study aimed to identify and analyze the speaking difficulties experienced by tenth-grade students when presenting narrative texts at State Senior High School 1 Simpang Empat during the 2025/2026 academic year. The study employed a descriptive qualitative approach with a case study design, involving 30 students from Class X IPA 2 selected through total sampling. Data were collected through classroom observation, speaking tests, and interviews and analyzed using Miles and Huberman’s interactive model. The findings revealed that inhibition was the most prevalent difficulty (67%), followed by mother tongue use (60%), having nothing to say (47%), and low participation (37%). These difficulties were associated with psychological barriers, particularly low self-confidence and fear of making mistakes, as well as linguistic barriers related to limited vocabulary. The findings indicate that students’ speaking difficulties arise from interconnected affective and linguistic factors. Therefore, small-group work, storytelling, and role-play activities can provide more supportive opportunities for students to reduce affective barriers and develop their English-speaking ability.]]>
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