VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ********************** IELTS READING TEST-TAKING STRATEGIES EMPLOYED BY HIGH SCORE CANDIDATES IN ACADEMIC TRAINING MODULE (Chiến thuật làm bài đọc EL S được sử dụng bởi những thí sinh đạt điểm cao trong kỳ thi học thuật EL S) M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 HANOI – 2017 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ********************** IELTS READING TEST-TAKING STRATEGIES EMPLOYED BY HIGH SCORE CANDIDATES IN ACADEMIC TRAINING MODULE (Chiến thuật làm bài đọc EL S được sử dụng bởi những thí sinh đạt điểm cao trong kỳ thi học thuật EL S) M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Supervisor: Dr. ư ng c inh HANOI - 2017 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DECLARATION I hereby declare that this thesis is my own original research and written entirely by myself.
Any citing in the thesis is followed by references and acknowledgement. I also hereby state that I agree to the requirements of the University of Languages and International Studies in terms of using as well as preserving my M. This condition means that any access to my thesis for study purpose should be allowed. Hanoi, 2017 Phí Thị Mùi i LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENT This research is one of the most challenging academic tasks that I had to face.
I could not have been able to complete without the wholehearted help and guidance of my supervisor, my family, my friends, and my students. First and foremost, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor Dr. Duong Duc Minh for his useful comments, remarks and engagement throughout the process of researching and completing my thesis. With patience and knowledge, he always steers in the right direction and encourages me to overcome many difficulties or problems when conducting the study.
Furthermore, I would also like to thank the participants in the research, who contributed greatly to the success of the research and provided a great deal of useful information during collecting data stage. Last but not least, my sincere thanks also go to my family and friends for always supporting me and giving me confidence when I needed most. ii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT This thesis aims to illuminate how the successful IELTS takers perform their IELTS reading test and provide a useful guidance for anyone concerning about IELTS reading test. This study is motivated by three research questions: (1) What test-taking strategies frequently used by Vietnam test takers in performing IELTS reading tasks? (2) How are those English test-taking strategies related to test takers‟ performance? (3) To what extent do the uses of English test-taking strategy of successful candidates vary significantly with their gender and learning experience? If yes, what are the main patterns of variation? The research employed multiple methods including a broad survey questionnaire of 100 participants and a thorough interview of 06 English language learners who had taken the IELTS test and gained at least 7.0 for reading skill to point out the common reading strategies used by high score test takers and indicate the influence of them on the test takers‟ performance.
Moreover, further suggestions on how the strategy use differs among successful candidates are also concluded in the study. The findings from the research illustrate the variety in application of test-taking strategies and the impact of strategies on the results when taking the test. The findings also prompt an encouragement to learn and sharpen basic approach when taking the reading test, especially in IELTS reading which examine learners‟ proficient language skill. iii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS IELTS: International English Language Testing System SPSS: Statistical Package for the Social Sciences IDP: International Development Program P1: Interviewee 1 P2: Interviewee 2 P3: Interviewee 3 P4: Interviewee 4 P5: Interviewee 5 P6: Interviewee 6 iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: The number of participant according to gender.18 Figure 2: English experience of participants .19 v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Characteristics of good language learners (Brown, 2007: 259-260) .8 Table 2: IELTS: Guide for Teachers (British Council, 2008) .18 Table 3: IELTS Reading test-taking strategies .25 Table 4: Reliability of General Strategies .26 Table 5: Reliability of Text-related Strategies .26 Table 6: Reliability of Question-related Strategies .27 Table 7: George and Mallery‟s cronbach α value range .27 Table 8: Means and Standard Deviations Indicating Test-taking Strategy Use .30 Table 9: Correlation between English Test-taking Strategy Use and Students‟ Test Performance .33 Table 10: Means and Standard Deviations Indicating Test-taking Strategy Use of Male and Female .37 Table 11: Correlation between gender and IELTS test score.38 Table 12: Means and Standard Deviations Indicating Test-taking Strategy Use based on English learning experience.42 Table 13: The correlation between English learning experience and IELTS score.42 vi LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION.
iii LIST OF ABBRIVIATIONS. iv LIST OF FIGURES .v LIST OF TABLES. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS. vii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION.
Statement of the problem. Purpose of the study. Expected outcome and significance of the study. 3 CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW.
Definition of reading. Purposes of reading. Language learning strategies. Strategies of successful language learners.
Reading comprehension and test-taking strategies. Reading comprehension strategies. Test-taking strategies. The IELTS test.
IELTS reading test. Summary of previous studies. 12 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY. Participants and setting.
16 vii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Data analysis procedure. Data collection procedure. Data analysis procedure .23 CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION.
Reading test-taking strategies used by IELTS candidates in performing IELTS reading tasks. Testing the reliability of data. Reading test taking strategies used by IELTS candidates. How are those English test-taking strategies related to test takers‟ performance?.
Is there any difference in English test-taking strategy use among successful candidates?. Summary of the major findings. Implications for IELTS test takers and IELTS trainers. Limitations and suggestions for further study.
III APPENDIX 3……………………………………………………………………III viii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION Test-taking strategies have been playing a crucial role for language learners as nowadays test is used as a reliable way of checking and evaluating learners‟ knowledge. The International English Language Testing System (IELTS), which is the world‟s leading English language proficiency test, with over 2.5 million IELTS tests taken annually, has been recognized as one of the most secure, valid and reliable means in assessing English language proficiency for education, immigration and professional accreditation. IELTS test, which is a high stake test, success or failure, can have a life changing impact on candidates. As a result, smart and critical reading and thinking strategies need to be used sufficiently in order to be successful or achieve the best possible score in the test (Bachman & Palmer, 1996; Rogers & Harley, 1999).
There are numerous factors affecting the candidates‟ results except for knowledge and ability. One of the most important factors is learning and test-taking strategies (Bachman & Palmer, 1996; O‟ Malley & Chamot, 1990). Test-taking strategies are simply defined as specific actions or techniques taken by users to aid them overcome the test easier, faster and more accurate. As Oxford defines, learning strategies are “specific actions taken by the learner to make learning easier, faster, more enjoyable, more self-directed and more transferrable to new situations” (Oxford, 1990).
Reading is considered as a complex cognitive process of decoding, deriving and receiving message from the writer. It is a complicated and meaningful skill of language acquisition, of communication, and of sharing information and ideas, which requires continuous practice, development, and refinement, especially creativity and critical analysis. Statement of the problem IELTS test, which serves as a testimonial system, has been gaining its popularity in many countries around the world. For many candidates, IELTS plays 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com an important role for their future career or further study.
IELTS is the test of language ability, it concerns with the capacity to use various aspects of language including vocabulary, structure, grammar efficiently so having clear and strategic skills to handle the task would certainly helpful. Test-taking strategies have been the focus of many studies. In spite of many attempts have made towards learning and test-taking strategies, few was devoted to test-taking strategies used in reading modules of IELTS while for many Vietnamese candidates, reading is regarded as the most challenging one. All of these reasons stated have become the motivations that stimulate the researcher to carry out the study named “IELTS reading test-taking strategies employed by high score candidates in academic training module”.
Purpose of the study Test taking strategies are considered as keys to success for not only researchers, teachers but also for learners, especially test takers. For globally difficult standardized test like IELTS, it is necessary to have clear strategies to deal with the test best. The study will examine the test taking strategies used by high score candidates in the reading module of IELTS and evaluate the effectiveness of those techniques, further indicate the differences in English test-taking strategies use among winning candidates. The research will provide helpful guidance, example and assistance for readers in order to achieve their greatest potential.
Scope The study is aimed to document the test-taking strategies of 100 Vietnamese English foreign language (EFL) learners who had already attended the IELTS test and gained their latest IELTS band score for reading module of at least 7. Furthermore, exclusive interviews among chosen candidates (06 people) who show diversity in their reading strategies are carried out. 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Research questions The study is going to answer the following research questions: 1.
What test-taking strategies frequently used by Vietnam test takers in performing IELTS Reading tasks? 2. How are those English test-taking strategies related to test takers‟ performance? 3. To what extent do the uses of English test-taking strategy of successful candidates vary significantly with their gender and learning experience? If yes, what are the main patterns of variation? 1. Expected outcome and significance of the study By conducting this research, the researcher expects to find out the most commonly efficient used test-taking strategies among IELTS candidates and evaluate the effectiveness of those techniques.
Furthermore, an analysis of the difference in test-taking strategy among users will be revealed to answer the question how much is the variable? Once finished the paper could serve as a good reference for those who wish to have a closer view into the test-taking strategies employed by students in response to some specific comprehension tasks. Both IELTS candidates and IELTS trainers could refer to the findings of the study to have more effective using as well as teaching reading IELTS strategies. 3 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW 2. Definition of reading According to Longman Dictionary of Applied Linguistics (1986), reading can be defined as the process of “perceiving a written text in order to understand its contents.
This can be done silently. The understanding that result is called reading comprehension.” Collins English Learner‟s Dictionary describes reading as “an act of looking at and understanding point”. On the other hand, Anderson (1985) considered reading as a complex process in which the reader had to construct the meaning of the text and used various interconnected informative sources to understand the real meaning of the passage. Moreover, skilled reading needed to be constructive, fluent, strategic, motivated and a lifelong pursuit.