The purpose of this study was to investigate the practice of group work and its role in developing grade 11 studentsâ€™ speaking skills in EFL classes of Selam preparatory School in Addis Ababa. The study employed a descriptive survey design in which a mixed-methods approach that combines both quantitative as well as qualitative data was used. The unit of analysis for this study was Selam Preparatory School from which grade 11 respondents (mainly teachers and students) were selected via availability sampling technique. Instruments employed in this study were questionnaire, classroom observation and interview. A questionnaire was used as the main tool to gather data on what was actually going on in the classroom, and specifically, what students feel about the practices of group work and its role in helping them improve their speaking skills other than questionnaire the researcher employed both interview for teachers and classroom observation The collected data were analyzed and results showed that group work in three of the classes is not fully implemented. What dominates the majority of the classes is a situation where students sit in rows and do whatever they are asked to do individually. Thus group work seems to have been hardly exploited and contributes only very little to the improvement of the studentsâ€™ speaking skills. Based on these findings, the study recommends that teachers should do their best to properly implement group work and actively engage their students to participate in various activities that help them improve their speaking skills and others as well