MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING BA RIA-VUNG TAU UNIVERSITY --------------------------- THESIS DO THI NHU NGUYET THE EFFECTS OF MOODLE-PEER FEEDBACK ON STUDENTS’ WRITING PERFORMANCE Ba Ria-Vung Tau University [April 2022] MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING BA RIA-VUNG TAU UNIVERSITY --------------------------- THESIS THE EFFECTS OF MOODLE-PEER FEEDBACK ON STUDENTS’ WRITING PERFORMANCE [Do Thi Nhu Nguyet] Supervisor: Assoc., Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of TESOL Faculty of TESOL School of International Training and Postgraduate Studies Ba Ria-Vung Tau University [April 2022] Abstract In today's era of computer technology, online peer feedback has become more and more popular in the field of education and plays an essential part in enhancing students’ writing skills. The students’ writing performances’ reality at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University suggests that they still repeat common writing mistakes after their writing products are reviewed carefully by the teachers. Besides, the attainable learning advantages of delivering peer feedback in electronic learning environment have not been studied to such a great extent and especially in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, the use of this feedback is necessary. The study is managed to research the effectual aspect of Moodle-peer feedback in writing lessons of non-English majors at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University.
A total of sixty pre-intermediate non-English majors from two classes selected and split up into two groups. The two groups absorbed the same syllabus and curriculum, textbook, methods of teaching, and educational capacity in the traditional class and performed two different separate tasks, in which the experimental group used Moodle, while the other group use paper to write paragraph. A pretest and a post-test were gathered to assess learners' writing paper while questionnaire and an interview are instruments to evaluate the students’ attitudes. The study points out that the experimental group attained a considerable enhancement in post-test scores as a result of the five-week experiment with Moodle-peer feedback and a large number of them will continue to use it in the future.
In addition, the current study provided a new approach for local educators to teaching writing. The outcome demonstrates that Moodle-peer feedback via the forum can be an useful instructional tool. It has the potential to help students improve their writing skills and attitudes regarding Moodle-peer feedback in English writing. Key words: Moodle-peer feedback, attitudes, non-English majors, English writing skills, blended learning, writing performance i Table of Contents Abstract.
i Table of Contents. ii List of Figures. vi List of Tables. vii List of Abbreviations.
viii Statement Of Original Authorship. Background of the study. Purposes of the study. Significance and scope of the study.
Significance of the study. Scope of the study. 7 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW. Writing teaching theories.
Definition of writing. Definition of Moodle. The importance of peer feedback in writing instruction. The role of peer feedback in teaching writing.
Definitions of blended learning. Previous studies on using moodle-peer feedback in writing lesson. The Experimental Group. The Pre- and Post-test.
Instruments used to acquire data: a summary. Main stages of Data Collection. Pre-test and post-test .2 The questionnaire's quantitative analysis .3 Qualitative analysis of the interview. 49 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS.
Research question 1: To what extent does the use of moodle-peer feedback affect the students’ writing performance?. Results of the pre-test. Independent Sample t Test of pretests results. Results of the post-test.
Independent Sample t Test of post-tests results. Research question 2: What are the students’ attitudes towards moodle-peer feedback in English writing skills?. Data collected from questionnaires. An overview of the background information provided by the responders.
Students' participation in peer criticism before and after it is used in class 56 4. The effects of peer criticism on writing performance in Moodle (items 1-5)57 4. Moodle-peer criticism's effects on teamwork and interaction (items 6-9). Attitudes of Moodle-peer feedback in general (items 10-14).
Discussion in Moodle-peer feedback: Attitudes of enjoyment (items 15-20)67 4. Motivational attitudes in Moodle based on peer feedback (items 21-28). Major findings of the study. 74 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.
i v List of Figures Figure 2. A main course page with “view”. A main course page with posts. Conceptual framework: The effects of Moodle-peer feedback on students’ writing performance.
Chat box used in the course. BVU’s Moodle-peer feedback’s homepage. Topic in Moodle forum. Comparison of means of pretest and posttest score.
Students' participation in peer criticism before it is used in class. Students' participation in peer criticism after it is used in class. 57 vi List of Tables Table 3. Prior to therapy, collected participants’ general information.
Data collection instruments’ summary. The syllabus and main stages of data collection. Two raters correlated the EG's pretest scores. Pretest score descriptive statistics.
Two raters correlated the CG's posttest scores. Two raters correlated the EG's pretest results. Post-test scores descriptive statistics. A summary of the respondents’ background information.
The effects of peer criticism on writing performance in Moodle. Moodle-peer criticism's effects on teamwork and interaction. Attitudes of Moodle-peer feedback in general. Discussion in Moodle-peer feedback: Attitudes of enjoyment.
Motivational cognition on peer feedback via Moodle. 69 vii List of Abbreviations EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESL: English as a Second Language L2: Second Language BVU: Ba Ria-Vung Tau University EG: Experimental Group CG: Control Group A: Agree D: Disagree N: Neutral SA: Strongly Agree SD: Strongly Disagree M: Mean S: Student VLE: Virtual Learning Environment SPSS: Statistical Package for the Social Sciences S.D: Standard Deviation viii Statement Of Original Authorship I declare that my thesis, "The effects of Moodle-peer feedback on students' writing performance," is a presentation of my own research and has never been submitted for any other degree at any other university. There is no material authored by others or previously published in connection with this thesis, to the best of my knowledge and belief. This research is being done at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University under the supervision of Associate Professor Pham Vu Phi Ho, Ph.
Signature: _________________________ Date: _________________________ ix Acknowledgements During the process of carrying out this research, I have received a lot of contribution and assistance of a lot of people. Therefore, I would like to show my gratefulness to them. To begin, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc. Pham Vu Phi Ho, Ph., for his unwavering support and useful advise throughout the writing process.
He took the time to attentively study my thesis and provide me with his helpful feedback. His positivity, encouragement, and agreement have also greatly aided me in successfully completing the challenging study. Without it, I won't be able to complete my research. Second, I am grateful to the Rector of Ba Ria-Vung Tau University and the Deans of all faculties at this institution for allowing me to pursue this MA course, complete my thesis, and conduct questionnaires and interviews with their students.
I also want to thank my coworkers who covered for me at work while I was away for this MA course. Overall, I would like to express my gratitude to my family for everything they've done for me. and friends for always being there for me when I was spiritually trapped throughout my life. Background of the study Technology plays an important part in the era of industrial 4.0, and Moodle-peer feedback is being seen as a useful instrument for teaching and researching writing skills.
Writing is seen as an important and necessary productive language skill, according to Hussin et al. In fact, according to Ting (2003), for learners of English as a second language, English as a foreign language, and even native speakers, writing is seen as a knotty skill of linguistic issue. Furthermore, writing is not only a complicated and perplexing duty, but it is also the most difficult talent to acquire of all the linguistic abilities. Providing students with a diversity of writing perspectives and a large amount of written work is one effective strategy to improve writing skills.
Teachers cannot expect learners' writing to produce the desired effects unless they can pique their interest, excitement, enthusiasm, and determination to write more (Adas & Bakir, 2013). English is also considered incredibly important in Vietnam. For many years, Vietnam has been globalizing and integrating by joining and being a member of numerous international organizations; therefore, English has become a vital tool for Vietnamese people to interact with the rest of the world and to learn more from foreign resources. Recognizing the importance of English, the Vietnamese government is focusing on English instruction for Vietnamese nationals who will live and work in a global workplace.
As a result, English is a required subject in the Vietnamese national educational system, and it is included in college and university curricula in order to develop generations with exceptional English skills and meet the country's human resource needs. Formal English instruction for students in grades 3 through 12 is 1 designed to assist students in forming and developing communicative competence through the development of listening, speaking, reading, writing, and language skills (phonics, vocabulary, grammar). The government, particularly the Ministry of Training and Education, considers English to be a mandatory subject and a mandatory graduation exam at all levels in Vietnam's scholastic system, and it is included in college and university curricula to prepare future generations for the era of development, open to the door of globalization with excellent English skills, in order to meet the actual demand for manpower. In Vietnamese teaching context, despite the fact that Moodle has only recently made its way into university language instruction, there is a tremendous desire for research-based information to advise language teachers of best practices (Vu, Nguyen & Due, Vo & Luong, Nguyen & Lien, Nguyen, 2022).
For the purpose of assisting undergraduates update and intensify their professional understanding in the educational process through books, newspapers, and specialized documents in foreign languages; fit students out with understanding and skills to be able to communicate in foreign languages in an international working and communication environment; and help graduates obtain one of the valuable international language certificates at Ba Ria-Vung Tau University (BVU). Teachers provide students with a variety of opportunities to improve these four abilities, as well as their vocabulary and grammar. They get regular English instruction for three semesters, totaling 30 credits (about 338 hours). However, based on the researcher's own practical experience teaching English to non-English major students at BVU for over 5 years, the researcher has discovered that BVU non-English majors find it difficult to brush up on their English writing skills.
Furthermore, the study discovered that most students lacked the capacity or skills to write paragraphs despite learning English for 9 periods, or around 7.5 hours per week at the institution, based on analysis and observation from the most recent final exams. Furthermore, BVU teachers have faced a variety of challenges, including 2 students' general lack of enthusiasm, as well as opportunity and time to write in the target language as much as possible in class on a regular basis. It is further exacerbated by students' familiarity with passive learning, their significant difficulty with vocabulary to express their thoughts and opinions, the strong influence of Vietnamese grammatical structures, and their habit of not making an outline before writing, according to Ly, T. As a result, one of the decisive concerns faced by ESL educators in the Vietnamese environment is expanding students' vocabulary and grammar, as well as understanding in writing.
As can be observed, after obtaining their grades, students are solely interested on how many points they received rather than the problems that the teacher has highlighted and addressed. Worst of all, if students' mistakes are highlighted in red ink, their interest in learning may be diminished, and they may become frustrated (Harmer, 2007:120).