VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS AND LITERATURE A SURVEY OF STRATEGIES IN FORMULATING SPEAKING IDEAS AMONG ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY A thesis submitted to the Faculty of English Linguistics and Literature in partial fulfillment of the Master‟s degree in TESOL By QUACH YEN LINH Supervised by LE HOANG DUNG, PH.D HO CHI MINH CITY, July 2017 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby declare this thesis entitled “A SURVEY OF STRATEGIES IN FORMULATING SPEAKING IDEAS AMONG ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY” is the result of my own work except as cited in the references. The thesis has not been accepted for any degree and it is not currently submitted in candidature of any other degree. Ho Chi Minh City, July 2017 Signature: _________________ Name: QUACH YEN LINH i RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS I hereby state that I, QUACH YEN LINH, being the candidate for the degree of Master in TESOL, accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of Master‟s Theses deposited in the Library. In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin copy of my thesis deposited in the Library should be accessible for purposes of study and research in accordance with the normal conditions established by the Library for the care, loan and reproduction of theses.
Ho Chi Minh City, July 2017 Signature: _________________ Name: QUACH YEN LINH ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I am deeply indebted to my supervisor, Dr. Le Hoang Dung, for his invaluable guidance and support during the preparation and completion of this thesis. Without his wholehearted assistance throughout the research, I would not have finished this thesis successfully. Secondly, I would like to express my deep gratitude to all my teachers in my postgraduate program for their dedication and useful instructions through my time as a master student.
Thirdly, I am obliged to my colleagues and students at Thu Dau Mot University for their precious time in providing data for the study. This thesis would not have been completed if it had not been for their sincere cooperation. Fourthly, my special thanks are extended to my fellow master students – TESOL 2013 class – who are my good friends as well as good colleagues. I highly appreciate the understanding and knowledge they shared with me during the course.
Fifthly, I would like to express my appreciation to the English Resource Center (ERC) of the Faculty of English Linguistics and Literature for helping me access to valuable sources of materials for the research. Last but not least, my heartfelt gratitude are reserved for my parents and sisters who have always supported and encouraged me, especially in my gloomy days. Their unconditional care and continuous encouragement motivated me to burst with full energy and effort. iii ABSTRACT Difficulties in speaking have become major concerns for teachers and learners.
However, main focuses of research papers are commonly given to grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation which are considered as students‟ main problems, resulting in disregard for other elements, especially formulating speaking ideas. This is really challenging for students to finish a speaking task successfully with no ideas or opinions to express. This study, therefore, surveyed the strategies in formulating speaking ideas among English major students at Thu Dau Mot University (TDMU). It analyzed the causes to difficulties, the strategies in formulating speaking ideas as well as offering some suggestions for students and teachers.
The study employed non- experimental design and its data were collected via means of (a) questionnaire to 116 second-year students of English major, (b) interview with 6 teachers and 18 students, and (c) think-aloud protocol to 8 students. The analysis was carried out by measures of counting frequency, calculating percentage, and interpreting comments from the respondents. The findings of the study indicated that all of the student respondents did encounter difficulties in formulating speaking ideas due to a number of major causes such as lack of vocabulary, no background of knowledge, lack of confidence and lack of time to prepare ideas. This paper provided useful strategies for students to overcome difficulties in formulating speaking ideas.
The results, although tentative, give a better understanding of the reality of using strategies in formulating speaking ideas at TDMU and offer suggestions for both teachers and learners in this institution. The thesis closes by identifying some ideas for further research in relation to this study. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP. i RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS.
iv TABLE OF CONTENTS. v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS. ix LIST OF FIGURES. x LIST OF TABLES.
xi CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION. Background to the study. Aims of the study. Significance of the study.
Scope of the study. Structure of the thesis. 7 CHAPTER II LITERATURE REVIEW. The nature of the speaking skill.
Importance of the speaking skill in EFL classrooms. Functions of speaking. The speaking process. What speakers need to know.
Problems with speaking activities. Factors influencing EFL learners‟ speaking skill. Characteristics of a successful speaking activity. The roles of the teacher in a speaking activity.
Teaching methodology of the speaking skill. A basic methodological model for teaching speaking. Other models of teaching speaking. Formulating speaking ideas.
Pre-speaking activities. Strategies in formulating speaking ideas. Related local studies. Conceptual framework of the study.
38 CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY. Teacher respondents‟ profile. Think-aloud protocol. Summary of the research instruments.
Data collection procedures. Procedures for distributing the questionnaire. Procedures for conducting the interview. Procedures for conducting the think-aloud protocol.
Data analysis procedures. 50 CHAPTER IV RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. Analysis of data collected from the questionnaire to students‟ respondents. Difficulties encountered by students‟ respondents in formulating speaking ideas among second-year students at Thu Dau Mot university.
Causes to difficulties in formulating speaking ideas among second- year students at Thu Dau Mot university. Strategies in formulating speaking ideas used by second-year students at Thu Dau Mot University. Analysis of data from the interviews. Data analysis from the interviews with student respondents.
Data analysis from the interviews with teacher respondents. Analysis of data from the think-aloud protocols. Discussion of results. Causes to difficulties in formulating speaking ideas.
Strategies in formulating speaking ideas. Pedagogical implications for teachers and solutions for students. Pedagogical implications for teachers. Solutions for students.
Causes to difficulties in formulating speaking ideas. Strategies in formulating speaking ideas. Suggestions for teachers. Suggestions for learners.
Limitations of the study. Recommendations for further study. 106 APPENDIX D: THINK-ALOUD PROTOCOL. 107 APPENDIX E: LETTER TO TEACHER RESPONDENTS.
110 APPENDIX F: LETTER TO STUDENT RESPONDENTS. 111 APPENDIX G: LETTER TO ADMINISTRATOR. 112 viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL: English as a Foreign Language TDMU: Thu Dau Mot University L2: Second Language ELT: English Language Teaching ix LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: A basic model for teaching productive skills suggested by Harmer (2007). 21 Figure 2: Frequency of difficulties in formulating speaking ideas encountered by students.
52 x LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Some taxonomies of language learning strategies. 2 Table 2: Taxonomies of communication strategies as cited in Dornyei & Scott (1997), pp. 3 Table 3: Strategies in brainstorming suggested by Cullen (1998). 32 Table 4: Strategies in formulating speaking ideas from Cohen et al.
36 Table 5: A compiled list of strategies of formulating speaking ideas as the conceptual framework. 37 Table 6: Number of classes and students in the Faculty of Foreign Languages. 40 Table 7: Demographic characteristics of student respondents. 41 Table 8: Demographic characteristics of teacher respondents.
42 Table 9: A summary of the research tools. 47 Table 10: Causes to difficulties in students‟ formulating speaking ideas. 53 Table 11: Strategies in formulating speaking ideas used by second-year students at Thu Dau Mot University. 55 Table 12: How students have the strategies in formulating speaking ideas.
56 Table 13: How teachers can help students overcome difficulties in formulating speaking ideas. 63 Table 14: Causes to difficulties in formulating speaking ideas through the think-aloud protocols. 72 Table 15: Strategies in formulating speaking ideas as reported in the think-aloud protocols. 73 Table 16: Pedagogical implications for teachers in formulating speaking ideas.
78 xi Table 17: Solutions for students in formulating speaking ideas. 81 Table 18: A summary of causes to difficulties in formulating speaking ideas from the study‟s results. 89 Table 19: A summary of strategies in formulating speaking ideas from the study‟s results. 90 xii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION 1.
Background to the study Speaking is one of the two productive skills which many learners of English find difficult to master. The researcher of this current study, as a lecturer at Thu Dau Mot University (TDMU), has observed that speaking skill brings up many weighty matters to English learners as well as EFL teachers. At TDMU, both teachers and learners tend to make every effort to primarily enhance grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation for students‟ perfect speaking skill by feeding more grammar and vocabulary (idioms, useful phrases), and drilling their pronunciation. Theories and experiments have proved that the causes of the difficulty are because of the lack of grammar, vocabulary, confidence, etc.
The purpose of speaking is primarily to achieve effective communication. In order to communicate well, learners are usually advised to use language learning strategies which are the so-called speaking strategies and communication strategies. As reported by Anderson (2005), serious concentration on the significance of language learning strategies have been increasing since the mid-1970s and 1980s. It is evident that language learning strategies have been researched and classified by many theorists, such as O‟Malley et al.
Name of Taxonomy of language learning strategies researcher 1 O‟Malley et al. Metacognitive strategies, Cognitive strategies, Socio- (1985) affective strategies 2 Rubin (1987) Learning strategies (including Cognitive strategies and Metacognitive strategies), Communication strategies, Social strategies 3 Oxford (1990) Direct strategies (including Memory strategies, Cognitive strategies, Compensation strategies, and Communication strategies), Indirect strategies (including Metacognitive strategies, Affective strategies, and Social strategies 4 Stern (1992) Management and planning strategies, Cognitive strategies, Communicative – Experiential strategies, Interpersonal strategies, and Affective strategies 5 Anderson (2005) Memorization strategies, Clarification strategies, Communication strategies, Monitoring strategies, and Prior knowledge strategies 6 Zhang & Goh Use-focused learning strategies, Form-focused (2006) learning strategies, Comprehension strategies, and Communication strategies Table 1: Some taxonomies of language learning strategies However, “most of them come up with more or less the same classification,” Razmjoo & Ardekani (2011) concluded, and they “represent very general language learning strategies.” There are hardly any taxonomies which barely target strategies for speaking skill, especially how to formulate speaking ideas. Oxford (1990) compiled a table of “Strategy applications listed according to each of the four language skills,” which has become “the most widely used inventory for L2 strategy research” (Anderson, 2005, p.760) but it also failed to explore the ways to obtain speaking ideas nevertheless. Communication strategies are, according to Corder (1981), “a systematic technique employed by a speaker to express his [or her] meaning when faced with 2 some difficulty.” Stern (1983) also shared the same point of view towards the definition of communication strategies which are defined as the “techniques of coping with difficulties in communicating in an imperfectly known second language.” Communication strategies, nevertheless, have been used by Oxford (1990) “in a very restricted sense, referring to strategies which compensate for missing knowledge only during conversational speech production.” To outline the history of communication strategies, Dornyei & Scott (1997) summarized nine taxonomies of communication strategies, as follows: Name of No.