VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THANH THỦY A STUDY ON 10 GRADERS’ MOTIVATION IN SPEAKING ACTIVITIES AT SON TAY HIGH SCHOOL, HA NOI (NGHIÊN CỨU ĐỘNG CƠ TRONG CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG NÓI TIẾNG ANH CỦA HỌC SINH LỚP 10, TRƢỜNG THPT SƠN TÂY, HÀ NỘI) M. MINOR THESIS Field: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY Code: 60.10 Hanoi, 2013 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THANH THỦY A STUDY ON 10 GRADERS’ MOTIVATION IN SPEAKING ACTIVITIES AT SON TAY HIGH SCHOOL, HA NOI (NGHIÊN CỨU ĐỘNG CƠ TRONG CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG NÓI TIẾNG ANH CỦA HỌC SINH LỚP 10, TRƢỜNG THPT SƠN TÂY, HÀ NỘI) M. MINOR THESIS Field: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY Code: 60.10 Supervisor: Trần Xuân Điệp, Assoc. Hanoi, 2013 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com DECLARATION I hereby certify that the minor thesis entitled “A Study on 10 Graders‟ Motivation in Speaking Activities at Son Tay High School, Ha Noi.” is the result of my own work in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts at Faculty of Post- Graduate Studies, Hanoi University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University.
The material in this research has not been submitted to any other university or institution wholly and partially. Nguyen Thanh Thuy i TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc. Trần Xuân Điệp, whose insightful comments, criticism, direction and kind support were of great assistance to me in carrying out this study. My sincere thanks also go to all the lecturers and staff of the Faculty of Post- Graduate Studies, Hanoi University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, for their valuable knowledge and invaluable guidance and help during my two years of study at the Faculty.
I am also indebted to my colleagues as well as my students at Son Tay High School, who have helped me a lot in my data collection to fulfill this paper. Last but not least, I would like to express my appreciation to my family for their understanding and strong encouragement to me throughout the study. Nguyen Thanh Thuy ii TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com ABSTRACT Success in language learning can be ascribed to many factors among which is motivation. However, it is students‟motivation to speak that does exist as a problem.
In order to improve the quality of speaking classes, the work entitled “A Study on 10 Graders‟ Motivation in Speaking Activities at Son Tay High School, Ha Noi.” has been intended. The study was aimed at investigating the motivation in speaking lessons of 10 graders at Son Tay High School (STHS) to find out: (1) types of motivation possessed by 10 graders at STHS. (2) level of motivation of 10 graders at STHS in speaking lessons. (3) causes leading to the lack of motivation in speaking lessons of 10 graders at STHS.
The research approach undertaken in this study was qualitative and quantitative. The research data collection instruments were survey questionnaires and interviews. The results obtained from the analysis of responses to the questionnaires and interviews for teachers and students revealed the types of motivation of 10 graders, the level of motivation and the causes of students‟ deficiency of motivation at STHS. Finally, this study provided some recommendations for effective application of motivational strategies in enhancing students‟ speaking skills.
It is expected that the results from the study could be of benefit to the teaching and learning of English speaking at STHS. iii TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS. iv LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS .vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.
viii PART 1: INTRODUCTION. Rationale of the study. Aim of the study. Objectives of the study.
Scope of the study. Method of the study. Significance of the study. Design of the study.
4 CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND. Definitions of motivation. The importance of motivation in foreign language learning. Types of motivation in foreign language learning.
Factors affecting motivation in second language learning. Overview of speaking. Definition of speaking skill. Stages in a speaking lesson.
13 iv TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail. Problems with speaking activities. Characteristics of a successful speaking activity. Research setting of the study.
An overview of the research site. The English teachers. The students and their background. The English teaching and learning in Son Tay High School.
Description of the subjects. Data collection instruments. 21 CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS. Analysis of students‟ questionnaires and interviews.
Analysis of teachers‟ questionnaires. Teachers‟ problems and judgement on the success of speaking lessons. Recapitulation of the main ideas. Limitations of the study.
Suggestions for further research. 43 APPENDIX v TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS TABLES Page Table 1 Students‟ reasons for learning English speaking 22 Table 2 Students‟ participation in speaking lessons 25 Table 3 Factors affecting students‟ motivation in class 26 Table 4 Problems students have in speaking lessons 27 Table 5 Students‟ preference for communicative activities 28 Table 6 Teachers‟ techniques to motivate students in speaking lessons 30 Table 7 Teacher‟s encouragement in speaking lessons 32 Table 8 Place teacher stands in speaking class 33 Table 9 Teacher‟s communicative activities 33 Table 10 Problems teachers have in speaking lessons 34 CHARTS Chart 1 Students‟ interest in speaking lessons 24 Chart 2 Activities enjoyed most by students 29 Chart 3 Teacher‟s activities in speaking lessons 31 Chart 4 Teacher‟s responses to unwilling speakers 32 Chart 5 Teachers‟ judgement on the success of speaking lessons 35 vi TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com APPENDICES Appendix 1: Questionnaire for students Appendix 2: Questionnaire for teachers Appendix 3: Questions for interview Appendix 4: Phiếu khảo sát (dành cho học sinh) Appendix 5: Phiếu khảo sát (dành cho giáo viên) Appendix 6: Câu hỏi phỏng vấn (dành cho học sinh) Appendix 7: Interview transcript of students vii TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS M.A: Master of Art STHS: Son Tay High School L2: Second language viii TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com PART 1: INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale of the study Motivation is the key factor to success in English learning. It is undeniably an essential component that decides successful acquisition of an L2.
According to Dornyei (2001), “teacher skills in motivating learners should be seen as central to teaching effectiveness”, which means motivation is the focus of L2 teaching and learning activities. Consequently, theorists have been trying to find out the most effective ways to motivate learners with a view to achieving a long-desired methodology which could be the most productive in the L2 classroom. However, Dornyei (2001) found out that motivation still has a very limited place in the curriculum of L2 teacher education programs worldwide. Teachers are still not equipped with enough necessary skills to motivate their students while motivation‟s central role in L2 acquisition has long been undeniably acknowledged.
Due to the lack of motivation, interaction during speaking lessons at schools is restricted, with few students getting involved in the activities. As a result, it is necessary that this issue be brought up over again so as to keep reminding teachers and teacher trainers of the importance as well as the benefit motivation brings to language learning. The purposes of this study are therefore first of all to review current literature concerning motivation in L2 teaching and learning, then to investigate the motivation at STHC, making suggestions to improve it. “The Study on 10th Graders‟ Motivation for Speaking Activities at Son Tay High School, Hanoi” has been conducted.
Aim of the study The study is aimed to improve the speaking skill of 10 graders at STHC. Objectives of the study The objectives of the research are as follows: - To find out different types of motivation 10 graders at STHC have. - To examine the level of motivation and causes of motivation deficiency of 10 graders at STHC. 1 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.
Research question To achieve the aims and objectives mentioned above, the research questions designed are: Research question 1: What kinds of motivation do 10 graders in Son Tay High School apply in speaking lessons? Research question 2: How motivated are 10 graders in Son Tay High School in speaking lessons? Research question 3: What are major causes of 10 graders‟ lack of motivation? 1. Scope of the study Motivation is so broad a topic that cannot be wholly and thoroughly discussed within the framework of the thesis. This study investigates five different types of motivation as well as the level of motivation 10 graders of the three classes at Son Tay High School possess. There exist a variety of factors affecting students‟ motivation in speaking lessons.
However, because of the limited time and length constraint of a minor thesis, only those factors relating to learners, teachers and teaching and learning environment are discussed. From the findings of the study, suggestions on motivational strategies to be applied in speaking lessons were provided to increase students‟ motivation. Method of the study The study adopts both quantitative and qualitative methods. The tasks involved are: - Collecting data for analysis from 130 grade- ten students and 8 teachers of English of the school.
- Interviewing 8 students randomly among the 130 given questionnaires for further information for the study. - Sorting data by different categories. Analyze and display data. All comments, remarks, recommendations and conclusions are based on the data analysis and interviews.
2 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail. Significance of the study The study when finished will serve as one of the initial studies on speaking skill in general and speaking motivation in particular at STHS. It is expected to be of benefit to both the English teaching and learning at the school. First, the information about types of motivation of grade 10 students in this minor thesis is supposed to provide a thorough understanding of the actual purposes of students‟ speaking learning, helping teachers know their students better.
Second, the findings about the level of motivation in speaking English, helping teachers get to know the importance as well as the urgent need to find ways to solve the problem. Third, the causes leading to low motivation clearly point out teachers‟ drawbacks as well as difficulties in teaching process, which accordingly suggest some solutions to the problem for teachers. The findings and recommendations of the study will be applied so as to improve the language learning in general and speaking skill in particular in STHS. Design of the study The study is divided into 3 main parts as follows: Part 1: Introduction Part 2: Development Chapter 1: Theoretical Background of Motivation Chapter 2: Methodology Chapter 3: Data Analysis and Findings Part 3: Conclusion 3 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com PART 2: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.
Definitions of motivation There is no doubt that motivation plays a key role in second language teaching and closely correlates with second language achievement as well as proficiency. However, "Without knowing where the roots of motivation lie, how can teachers water those roots?" (Oxford & Shearin, 1994:15). A lot of researchers have worked out what motivation means. There have been so far a number of ways to define motivation found out in the literature.
Motivation seams to be the reason for the action. According to Dornyei, “Motivation explains why people decide to do something, how long they are willing to sustain the activity and how hard they are going to pursue it.