Abstrak
This research aimed to determine students' difficulties in speaking English and the factors that cause students' difficulties in speaking English in class XI SMA Patra Dharma Tarakan. The type of research is descriptive qualitative. The subjects of this research were class XI SMA Patra Dharma Tarakan with a total sample of 10 students. Data collection techniques used are observation, interviews, and questionnaires. The data analysis technique used were data collection techniques, data presentation, and data conclusions. The results showed that in general, the students' difficulties in speaking English consisted of grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency. The most dominant problem was mastery of vocabulary and pronunciation. Most of them stated that they were afraid to speak because of a lack of vocabulary, so students were afraid of making mistakes in pronouncing English words. Furthermore, the problems encountered in speaking English were lack of confidence, fear of making mistakes when speaking, anxiety when asked by the teacher to speak, and feeling embarrassed when speaking in front of the class. In addition, students lack motivation in learning English because most students only receive learning when learning in the classroom.