MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE HO THI NGOC THUY AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE USE OF GAMES FOR CHILDREN TO LEARN ENGLISH AT SOME PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN HUE CITY MA THESIS IN EDUCATION HUE, 2011 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ---------- HO THI NGOC THUY AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS OF THE USE OF GAMES FOR CHILDREN TO LEARN ENGLISH AT SOME PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN HUE CITY FIELD OF STUDY : THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE : 60.10 MA THESIS IN EDUCATION SUPERVISOR: Assoc. TRUONG VIEN HUE, 2011 BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ ---------- HỒ THỊ NGỌC THỦY NGHIÃN CÆÏU NHÁÛN THÆÏC CUÍA GIAÏO VIÃN VÃÖ VIÃÛC SÆÍ DUÛNG TROÌ CHÅI CHO TREÍ EM HOÜC TIÃÚNG ANH TAÛI MÄÜT SÄÚ TRÆÅÌNG TIÃØU HOÜC ÅÍ THAÌNH PHÄÚ HUÃÚ CHUYÊN NGHÀNH : LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY-HỌC MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ : 60.10 LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ GIÁO DỤC HỌC NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: PGS. TRƯƠNG VIÊN HUE, 2011 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I hereby acknowledge that this study entitled “An investigation into teachers‟ perceptions of the use of games for children to learn English at some primary schools in Hue city” is my original work. The data and findings discussed in the thesis are true, used with the permission from the participants and have not been published elsewhere.
Author Ho Thi Ngoc Thuy I would like to express my deepest thanks and gratitude to my supervisor, Assoc. Truong Vien, who has provided me with the constant encouragements and invaluable guidance and support during the time I wrote the study. I am grateful to the teachers who took time out of their busy schedules to complete questionnaires and those who allowed me to observe their classes. Special thanks go to the teachers as well as all the pupils who were enthusiastic about answering the questions in the informal interviews.
I am greatly thankful to my friend, Ms Sarah Gardiner for giving me the valuable advice, reference books and materials. I am also grateful to the staff of librarians working in the college of Foreign Languages, who helped me access the necessary and valuable materials for the fulfillment of the study. My deepest love and grateful acknowledgement go to my family, friends for their endless support, love, encouragements and care help me overcome all difficulties during the time I conducted this study. TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS .1 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.4 LIST OF TABLES .5 LIST OF CHARTS .1 Background of the study .5 Scope of the study .6 Structure of the thesis .12 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL BACKGROUND .1 Review of previous studies .2 Characteristics of young language learners .3 Definition of games .4 Features of games for young learners .5 Types of games .1 Code-control games .6 The advantages of games .7 How to use games in teaching language for young learners .1 Choosing appropriate games .2 When to use games .8 The teacher‟s roles in language games .9 Forms of class organization .3 Instruments for data collection .4 Data collection procedure .38 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION.
Results from the questionnaires .1 Teachers‟ perceptions of games.1 Necessity of games .2 Benefits of games. 2 How games were organized for language lessons .1 Practice of organizing games .1Games being frequently used .2 Aspects of language and skills are mostly focused on.3 Teacher‟s roles in games .2 How to organize games effectively for language lessons .1 Choosing appropriate games .2 When to use games .3 Difficulties of using games faced by teachers. Results from teacher interviews .4 Teachers‟ perceptions of games.5 How games were organized for language lessons .1 Practice of organizing games .1 Games being frequently used .2 Aspects of language and skills are mostly focused on.3 Teacher‟s roles in games .2 How to organize games effectively for language lessons .1 Choosing appropriate games .2 When to use games .6 Difficulties of using games faced by teachers .2 Obstacles from pupils. Results from pupil interviews .7 Pupils‟ attitudes towards games.8 Pupils‟ responses on benefits of games .9 Difficulties pupils often encounter when playing games .73 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS .1 Summary of the findings .3 Some suggested games .4 Limitations of the study .84 APPENDICES 3 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CLT Communicative Language Teaching EFL English as a Foreign Language L2 English as a Second Language MOET Ministry of Education and Training TC Teacher SPSS Statistical Package for the social Science 4 LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1: Background Information on Teacher Participants .2: Summary of the questionnaire .1: The reliability of the piloted questionnaire .2: The reliability of the questionnaire .3 Teachers‟ perceptions of games .4: Games motivate children to learn English in a fun environment.5: Games are considered as a useful tool to capture learners‟ attention to language learning.6: Teachers‟ perceptions of benefits of games .7: Practice of organizing games .8: Suggestions for organizing games effectively.9: Aims and rules of games should be explained clearly .55 before playing games.10: Comments should be given at the end of each game .56 to encourage players.
11: Difficulties of using games faced by teachers .12: Children like participating in games focusing .59 on linguistic aspects.13: Children like participating in games focusing .59 on communicative activities.14: Children are often aware of the purposes of playing games.60 5 LIST OF CHARTS Chart 4.1: Necessity of games .2: Games being frequently used .3: Aspects of language and skills are mostly focused on .4: Teacher‟s roles in games .6: Choosing appropriate games .7: When to use games.57 6 ABSTRACT This study aims at exploring teachers‟ perceptions of the use of games for children to learn English at some primary schools in Hue City. The study mainly focuses on (a) teachers‟ perceptions of the use of games for children to learn English in classroom, (b) how games are organized for language lessons, and (c) difficulties in using games faced by teachers. The participants were 32 primary school teachers and 38 pupils in some Hue primary schools. Both of the quantitative and qualitative research methods were employed in this study.
The collected data from the questionnaires were processed by means of SPSS and were presented in tables and charts quantitatively, while the results from the interviews were quoted and analyzed qualitatively. The results of the study provided encouraging evidence to indicate that Hue primary school teachers highly appreciated the necessity and benefits of games in teaching and learning English language. Several games were organized, but games focusing on language aspects were emphasized more than communicative games for reasons such as learners‟ multi-levels, lack of vocabulary and the teachers‟ time- consuming preparation. The findings also suggested that when organizing language games for young learners, teachers should be aware to take their interests and characteristics, proficiency level, and the content of lessons into account.
However, the survey teachers encountered a number of difficulties when they incorporated games into their lesson plan. They are limitation of time, class size and lack of materials and facilities. Based on the findings, some recommendations for these problems were implicated for teachers and administrators.1 Background of the study “English may become one tool that opens windows to the world, unlocks doors to opportunities, and expands our minds to new ideas”, Hasman (2000, p. English is one of important languages in globalization and an essential means to the path of international integration, development and the world of knowledge.
It is principal means of making sense of our experience and communication with other. Therefore, the significance of English in the world in general and Vietnam in particular has an important position in which provides people with opportunities for higher education, professional employment, and promotion prospects in society nowadays. Our country, nowadays, in the age of industrialization and modernization requires human resources who possess a high intellect. The process of regional integration and international trend of globalization is a challenge for the country since it requires the state and education to have a strategy for developing talent.
Therefore, in national education system, primary education takes a very important position in training personnel and fostering talents for the country. Primary education is the first level of the education system and builds a sustainable foundation, which helps children further study at higher level later and forms the initial basis of their personality as well. Consequently, recognition of the power of English as a means of communication with the outside world is widely accepted by nations throughout the world. The government of Vietnam is set to introduce English at primary school level.
The teaching of English in primary schools has been expanded nationwide, initially from big cities to many other towns, localities and even to rural areas. According to Decision No. 50/2003 QD-BGD & DT on 30 October 2003 until the present, pupils in primary schools are to learn a foreign language as an elective subject from grade 3 to grade 5 for two 40-minute periods per week, where there are adequate teaching conditions as well as demand pupils and parents (Nguyen, 2007, p. 8 Primary education requires a special pedagogical methodology.
Therefore, teachers play a very important role in assuring the quality of English teaching and learning at primary level because they can have a great contribution to motivating children to learn English. Moreover, learning English at the primary level is not only the beginning of the education system but also an ongoing process throughout one‟s life. It is not easy to teach younger children successfully, teaching children a foreign language may be more demanding at primary level than higher levels because of the children‟s greater reliance on oral language (Cameron, 2003). However, in reality, the shortage of primary school teachers is an obstacle of conducting primary education system all the whole of country.
The most serious problem is that primary school teachers of English have not been trained in professional skills to teach English to primary age children. They owe limited professional qualifications and teaching methods. The methodology currently used by primary teachers found that the teaching methods are „adult-oriented‟. It was identified by many delegates at the workshop on “Training and retraining of teachers in English primary education to meet the social needs of the local Central- Highlands” held in Da Nang on March 5 th, 2011 (Doan, 2011).
Communication is “at the heart of modern ELT”, “the goal of language teaching” and “part of the learning process” (Edge, 1993, p. The dominant role of English in current international communication increases the status of English teaching and learning and prompts English education starting at an early age. Hence, current second language teaching methods intend to develop learners‟ communicative competence, which enables them to communicate effectively in a second language (Larsen-Freeman, 2000). Addittionally, Ministry of Education and Training (MOET), Vietnam (2003), takes a favorable towards Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) with specific objectives to English learning for primary school pupils.
They are “basic communicative skills”, “positive attitudes to English”, and “better understanding and love for Vietnamese through learning English” (cited in Nguyen, 2007, p. MOET introduced an English curriculum for primary schools. The curriculum emphasizes the development of the four skills, in which speaking and listening are initially stressed.2 Rationale This study was conducted by the following reasons: Firstly, nowadays, Audio-lingual method is considered to be out-of-date. Teaching young learners is, however, different from teaching adults learners; thus, repetition and drills are significant to language learning since they help young learners get the correctness of target language, which is the first step forehead of reaching fluency.
As Edge (1993) states, “repetition is useful for beginners because it gives them a chance to try out something new without being listened individually” (p. For young learners, drilling is one effective teaching technique as long as it is applied with communicative activities (Shin, 2006, p.