VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THI ̣PHƢƠNG AN EVALUATION OF THE COURSEBOOK “SOLUTIONS UPPER- INTERMEDIATE” FOR TENTH-GRADE ENGLISH MAJORS AT FOREIGN LANGUAGE SPECIALIZED SCHOOL, ULIS, VNU (Đánh giá giáo trình “Solutions Upper-intermediate” dùng cho học sinh chuyên Anh lớp 10 tại trƣờng THPT Chuyên Ngoại Ngữ, Đại học Ngoại Ngữ, Đại học Quốc Gia Hà Nội) M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 6014.0111 HANOI – 2016 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THI ̣PHƢƠNG AN EVALUATION OF THE COURSEBOOK “SOLUTIONS UPPER- INTERMEDIATE” FOR TENTH-GRADE ENGLISH MAJORS AT FOREIGN LANGUAGE SPECIALIZED SCHOOL, ULIS, VNU (Đánh giá giáo trình “Solutions Upper-intermediate” dùng cho học sinh chuyên Anh lớp 10 tại trƣờng THPT Chuyên Ngoại Ngữ, Đại học Ngoại Ngữ, Đại học Quốc Gia Hà Nội) M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 6014. Nguyễn Hòa HANOI - 2016 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com CANDIDATE'S STATEMENT I, Nguyen Thi Phuong, hereby certify that the thesis entitled: An evaluation of the coursebook “Solutions Upper-intermediate” for tenth- grade English majors at Foreign Language Specialized School, ULIS, VNU is the results of my research for the degree of Master of Arts at University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi and the thesis has not been submitted for any degrees at any other universities or tertiary institutions.
Hanoi, 2016 Nguyễn Thị Phƣơng i LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDEGEMENT A thesis costs every researcher a lot of time to complete and mine does, too. However, I could not finalize this study with personal efforts and without the assistance of some enthusiastic people who I want to send my deep thanks to. The first one, I want to sincerely thank is Prof. He is my supervisor.
His constructive comments helped me realize my mistakes and have the reasonable corrections. In addition, his enthusiasm made each step in my research process easier and made me feel more comfortable and be under less stress caused by the great amount of work. Nothing can totally and exactly express my gratitude to him. I also acknowledge my gratitude to Dr.
Tran Thi Tuyet for her useful lectures on materials evaluation and development. She also gives me valuable instructions, comments, and her kindly encouragement during the development of this thesis. Additionally, I would like to express my appreciation to many teachers, especially Tran Thi Lan, (M.A), who is a head of English Division at FLSS and tenth-grade English majors at FLSS, ULIS, VNU for their cooperation as well as their help in the survey. Without their support, the questionnaires and interviews which orientate the suggestions – the heart of my thesis – could not be completed as expected.
Lastly, I want to thank my parents who gave me the life and stand by me on each step I take in this life. The completion of my research could not be achieved without their spiritual supports. ii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to gauge the suitability of a coursebook titled “Solutions Upper-intermediate” for students‟ levels of English and general expectations in terms of the content and language skills. Following that, the teaching-listening situation can be identified and unsuitable content will be adapted.
Quantitative and qualitative data are obtained through questionnaires with 70 students and semi-structured interviews with 4 teachers, in which survey questions are developed based on the students‟ general expectations and MOET‟s criteria. Quantitative data in the questionnaires are calculated manually into rounded percentages to answer two research questions. Qualitative data from “Comments” in the questionnaires with the students and from interviewed teachers are used to contribute more information to the answers to the research questions. The results reveal that the coursebook is partly appropriate to students‟ levels and expectations.
Firstly, it could be affirmed that this coursebook partly suits their levels. Reading passages are fully appreciated by the respondents. Speaking, writing, and vocabulary relatively match students‟ levels. In contrast, listening skills and grammar are unsuitable for them.
It is recommended to find more difficult listening passages and grammar for the students. Although vocabulary is somewhat suitable for them, it is better for several lessons with many technical terms or complex words to have more guidance and activities. Secondly, as regards the appropriateness for the students‟ expectations, in general, the survey results indicate that the coursebook meets their expectations in terms of the content and language skills to a certain extent. The topics are various and impressive but it is advisable that more contemporary and compelling topics should be added.
Reading and writing are two parts which are appreciated by both the students and the teachers. Listening and speaking are unable to meet the expectations of the students, which means more activities and tasks on developing these skills should be added. The language content including vocabulary and grammar are generally suitable. iii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS CANDIDATE'S STATEMENT.
iii LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES. viii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION. Aims and objectives. Organization of the thesis .3 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.
Definition of coursebook. Definition of evaluation. Definition of materials evaluation. Types of materials evaluation.
Pre-use evaluation. In-use evaluation or whilst-use evaluation. Post-use evaluation. Purposes of materials evaluation.
Methods of textbook evaluation. The impressionistic method. The checklist method. The in-depth method.
Criteria for materials evaluation. Previous studies on materials evaluation .18 iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. THE CONTEXT OF THE STUDY. The coursebook “Solutions Upper-intermediate” – Student‟s book.
Data collection instruments. Procedure of data collection. Data analysis procedure and presentation of data .28 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. Findings for the first research question.
Findings for the second research question. The appropriateness of general content to students‟ expectations. The appropriateness of listening skills to students‟ expectations. The appropriateness of speaking skills to students‟ expectations.
The appropriateness of reading skills to students‟ expectations. The appropriateness of writing skills to students‟ expectations. The appropriateness of language content to students‟ expectations. Suggestions for further studies.
I v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. XIX vi LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ELT: English Language Teaching FLSS: Foreign Language Specialized School MOET: Ministry of Education and Training ULIS: University of Languages and International Studies VNU: Vietnam National University vii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES Figure 1: Four basic components of evaluation .5 Figure 2: Macro and micro-evaluation in language teaching .8 Table 1: Adaption from MOET‟s checklist .25 Table 2: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of the content and language skills to their levels.31 Table 3: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of general content to their expectations .33 Table 4: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of listening skills to their expectations .35 Table 5: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of speaking skills to their expectations .36 Table 6: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of reading skills to their expectations .37 Table 7: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of writing skills to their expectations .38 Table 8: Students‟ evaluation on the appropriateness of vocabulary and grammar to their expectations .39 viii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale In Vietnamese high schools, textbooks or coursebooks are an indispensable part in English teaching and learning. For non-specialized high schools, they have used the standard textbooks set by Ministry of Education and Training (MOET).
Nevertheless, in addition to the use of piloted textbooks, other schools like specialized high schools have selected coursebooks for their own students. With the current numerous number of books, the decision to choose one coursebook cannot be taken lightly and whether it is acceptable or not is one challenging question. Hence, teachers need to be knowledgeable enough to opt for the most suitable ones for their students through evaluating these materials based on the guidelines and criteria. Foreign Language Specialized School (FLSS) is a specific instance which has chosen the coursebooks for their own students in learning English.
Teachers at English Division held a meeting and came to the conclusion that they selected “Solutions Upper-intermediate” as the core material for tenth-grade English major students, and this material has been used for three years. A question that plagues the researcher is just whether this coursebook suits the students or not. Nevertheless, there have been no strict criteria established or research on evaluating this coursebook carried out so far. For that reason, the current research is undertaken to gauge this coursebook and it specifically seeks to see how far the main factors - the content and language skills suit the students‟ levels of English and general expectations of the coursebook.
In other words, the researcher will conduct a study titled An evaluation of the coursebook “Solutions Upper-intermediate” for tenth-grade English majors at FLSS, ULIS, VNU. This research will acquaint teachers and administrators at FLSS with a general picture about the content and language skills of this material in the eyes of their students after collecting and analyzing data. Following that, the impetus for improvements which suit students‟ levels and expectations is evident. 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.
Aims and objectives Aims By doing this study, the author wishes to find out students‟ and teachers‟ evaluation on the coursebook with the focus on the suitability of the content and language skills for the students‟ language levels and general expectations. From that, the learning and teaching situation will be identified and some recommendations about adaptation appropriate to the learners will be made, which aims at improving the quality of language teaching at FLSS. Objectives The achievable goal of the study is to answer the following research questions: “To what extent does the coursebook suit tenth-grade English majors‟ levels in terms of the content and language skills?” “To what extent does the coursebook match tenth-grade English majors‟ general expectations of the coursebook in terms of the content and language skills?” 1. Significance The undertaking of this research has a profound significance for FLSS.
Evaluative feedback from the students and the teachers will help teachers and those in positions of authority at FLSS have a better understanding about the learning and teaching situation. From that, they will have necessary improvements for English course in the future. Scope Firstly, this paper will highlight the suitability of the content and language skills for students‟ levels and expectations of the coursebook. Due to this, other criteria to evaluate the coursebook and other factors relating to learners will not be referred to.
Secondly, the study is carried out with tenth-grade English majors at FLSS of the 2014-2015 school year and teachers who are teaching them. Finally, the study is limited to judging the coursebook “Solutions Upper-intermediate” – Student‟s book so that its companying teacher‟s book and workbook will not be mentioned. 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Methodology In order to achieve the objectives of this thesis, qualitative and quantitative research methods are employed.
Data are collected from the students through questionnaires and from the teachers through interviews. The questionnaire is designed to gather data about the students‟ ideas on the intended criteria. Information gained from interviews with the teachers will be taken notes, analyzed and used for providing more information. Organization of the thesis Chapter 1 “Introduction” is an overview of all main contents of this study.
Chapter 2 “Literature review” presents a review of literature concentrating on the definitions of coursebook, evaluation, and materials evaluation. After that, types of and purposes materials evaluation, textbook evaluation methods, and criteria for evaluating coursebook are shown. Finally, some previous studies are mentioned.