MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ------------ NGUYEN THI KIM ANH OUT-OF-CLASS LEARNING ACTIVITIES FOR DEVELOPING STUDENTS’ AWARENESS OF ENGLISH VARIETIES: A CASE STUDY AT HUE UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 60.11 SUPERVISOR: PHAM HOA HIEP, D. HUE, 2016 BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ -------- NGUYỄN THỊ KIM ANH NHỮNG HOẠT ĐỘNG NGOÀI LỚP HỌC GIÚP PHÁT TRIỂN NHẬN THỨC VỀ CÁC LOẠI TIẾNG ANH CHO SINH VIÊN: MỘT NGHIÊN CỨU TÌNH HUỐNG TẠI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ HUẾ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 60.11 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: T. PHẠM HÒA HIỆP HUẾ, 2016 STATEMENT OF ORIGINAL AUTHORSHIP The work contained in this thesis has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma in any university. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, my thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself.
Signed: ………………………… Nguyen Thi Kim Anh Date: …………………………. iii ABSTRACT This thesis aims to explore students‟ awareness of the existence of the varieties of English and also the opportunities for students to learn them outside the classroom A concurrent mixed methods design was used in this study. Data were collected from 20 surveys with teachers, and 90 surveys with students. In addition, 5 interviews were conducted with teachers and 11 interviews with students.
The results from the data collection instruments were triangulated. The findings reveal that the majority of university English Language (EL) teachers and students in this study were aware of the roles of English varieties in their learning. The teachers also suggested some out-of-class learning activities regarding how to develop the awareness of English varieties appropriately and effectively. The insights from this study confirm the potential of English varieties in EL learning, and provide empirical evidence for the recommendations concerning the appropriate use of English varieties in EL learning as well as the inclusion of English varieties in teacher training syllabi.
iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My sincere thanks go to many people who gave so generously their time and expertise in the support of this research project. First and foremost, I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincerest gratitude to my primary supervisor Dr. Pham Hoa Hiep for his dedication, professional support and guidance as well as valuable comments during the research. His patience and knowledge whilst showing me an academic researcher‟s pathway went beyond the mainstream studies to see the best in me.
Furthermore, I would like to thank all my teachers and classmates who have given the information I needed during my study. My deep appreciation also goes to Hue University of Foreign Languages for providing me with a great opportunity to study in the Postgraduate course of English Language Teaching. This study may not have been completed without this support. I would like to offer my sincere gratitude to all participants in the Department of English in the college who have made significant contributions to the completion of the field research.
Last but not least, I want to thank my mother, sisters, brothers and my family who are always there with motivation, strengths and unconditional love when I am in harsh circumstances and misfortune. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents Pages SUB COVER PAGE. i STATEMENT OF ORIGINAL AUTHORSHIP. v TABLE OF CONTENTS.
vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS. ix LIST OF FIGURES .x LIST OF TABLES. xi CONTENTS OF THESIS. Background of the study.
Rationale for the study. The aim and research questions of the study. Significance of the study. Scope of the study.
Structure of the thesis .4 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW. Definitions of Out-of-class learning Activities. Definition of English varieties. The educational needs of English varieties.
The appropriateness of Out-of-class learning activities in developing the awareness of English varieties in Vietnamese education system. The attitudes of EL learners in different contexts toward English varieties. Activities in developing the awareness of English varieties for EL learners in previous studies. The necessity of Out-of-class learning Activities in developing the awareness of English varieties for EL learners in Vietnam.
Quantitative and qualitative aspects –the mixed methods nature of the research 3. Data collection methods. Interviews as a data collection instrument. The interviews in this research.
Confidentiality and anonymity. Research sites and participants. Data analysis and management. 32 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION.
Background information of research participants. Teachers‟ background information. Students‟ background information. The varieties of English being spoken by teachers and students.
The varieties of English being spoken by teachers. The varieties of English being spoken by students. The reason for speaking a certain variety. The importance of being aware of English varieties.
The difficulties to teach and learn English varieties in the classroom. The possibility to use a mixture of different varieties of English when speaking 4. The activities outside the classroom for Vietnamese students. Research questions and research design.
The popular English varieties in Vietnam among EL teachers and learners 53 5. Vietnamese university EL teachers‟ and students‟ perceptions of the roles of being aware of English varieties. Out-of-class learning activities to develop the awareness of English varieties that Vietnamese university EL teachers suggested students to do. Limitations of the study.
Implications for further research .56 REFERENCES APPENDICES viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CLT Communicative Language Teaching EFL English as a Foreign Language EIL English as an international language EL English Language ELF English as a Lingua Franca ELT English Language Teaching ESL English as a Second Language EV English Varieties NNs Non Native Speakers NSs Native Speakers OLA Out-of-class Learning Activities WEs World Englishes ix LIST OF FIGURES Figure 4.3: The varieties of English adopted by teachers Figure 4.4: Varieties of English spoken by students Figure 4.5: The reasons teachers speak a certain variety Figure 4.6: The reasons students speak a certain variety Figure 4.7: The varieties of English in the textbook Figure 4.8: The importance of being aware of English varieties in teachers‟ opinions.9: The importance of being aware of English varieties in students‟ opinions.10: Teachers‟ answers about the time they teach English varieties in the class Figure 4.11: Students‟ answers about the time they learn English varieties in the class Figure 4.12: Teachers‟ opinions about whether students can use a mixture of English varieties when speaking x LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1: Summary of Studies on Attitudes of Leaners toward English Table 2.2: EIL-inspired knowledge, attitudes, and skills Table 4.1: Background information of teachers Table 4.2: Background information of students xi CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION In this introductory chapter, the background of the present study will be presented. Then, the rationale for the study and the aims of the study will be stated. This is followed with the significance and the scope of the study. Finally, the structure of the study is outlined.
Background of the study In recent years, the concept of English varieties has emerged and been discussed by many educators. It is the tool for many people from different cultures and languages to communicate. That‟s why it is important to change the pedagogical methods based on native-speaker linguistic standards. English language teachers should teach different kinds of Englishes, not just British Standard English or American Standard English (Farrell and Martin, 2009).
Although English varieties have been mentioned and spread worldwide, the perception of English language students and teachers has not changed much. According to a Jindapitak‟s study (2013), the notion of Standard English is still a “political construct rather than a linguistic reality” (p. There is a fact that in Vietnam, native speaker model is still preferred in the education system and considered as a method to test learners‟ English competence. For example, in their research which attempts to investigate the influence of English varieties in Vietnamese context, Ton and Pham (2010, p.
59) noted that “communicating intelligibly in the global market” is necessary for Vietnamese students to focus on. They believe that “intralinguistic variation” always exist in any languages. Rationale for the study This study is carried out for the following reasons: Firstly, it is important for English language students to notice that there is an existence of English varieties, not just Standard English. English is now used as an 1 International language so it does not belong to any particular users, but to anyone (Burns, 2013).
Moreover, teachers should help their students prepare for real world interaction. Marlina (2014) also emphasizes the spread of English varieties around the world with the number of nearly 80 % of today‟s communication in English among bi-/multilingual speakers of English. This is an evidence to show that the monolingual „native-speakers‟ of English have more than likely become „the minority‟. The effect of globalization such as the explosion of advanced information technologies and human mobility in the world has led to uncertainty of the lingua- cultural backgrounds of the interlocutors with whom people communicate in English.
Hence we can conclude that today‟s communicative exchanges are plurilingual in nature and among speakers whose lingua-cultural backgrounds are often diverse and complex. That is why the importance in preparing for English learners the knowledge of English variation is undeniable. Secondly, out-of-class learning activities are the most suitable way to develop students‟ awareness of English varieties in Vietnam. Although the development of World Englishes has been discussed around the world, there is a fact that Standard English still dominates Vietnamese education system.
In addition, it will be easier for students and teachers to carry out the activities outside the classroom as Ton and Pham (2010) suggested in their research. It has been proven that students can communicate more with Non Native Speakers (NNSs) than Native Speakers (NSs) outside the classroom. The importance of teaching or at least familiarizing their students with other kinds of English should be considered. However, teachers are currently solely teaching NS English for many practical reasons.
Moreover, they also mentioned about the reasons which make teachers hesitate to teach other varieties of English are: “Time constraints, lack of materials promoting varieties used outside the inner circle, and particularly a lack of NNS model based tests”. Thus, understanding of the difficulty of implemeting the activities inside the class, the idea of out-of-class activities was used to facilitate both teachers and learners. The aims and research questions of the study This study seeks to understand how much students of English at Hue University College of Foreign Languages are aware of the different varieties and the strategies to promote the use of these varieties. The project particularly aims to answer these questions: 1- To what extent are English language students in Hue University of Foreign Languages aware of English varieties? 2- What can be done to promote students‟ awareness of different varieties of English outside the classroom? 1.
Significance of the study Much attention to the issue of English varieties has been paid. Researchers from all over the world have published many valuable studies discussing this new term. However, English varieties have seemed to be a new concept and have not received adequate attention in Vietnam. Therefore, this study was conducted with the hope to help teachers and students to become aware of the issue and might develop effective ways to address it.
Scope of the study The research was carried out to explore the suitable out-of-class learning activities in order to develop the awareness of English Language (EL) students of English varieties and to explore the perception of EL students of English varieties after these activities have been implemented as well as will provide some suggestions in using the activities to make better effort.