MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES, HUE UNIVERSITY ----------- NGUYEN THI YEN NHI AN INVESTIGATION INTO EFL STUDENTS’ USE OF E-PORTFOLIOS IN PRACTISING LISTENING SKILLS: A CASE STUDY AT QUOC HOC HIGH SCHOOL IN HUE MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, Hue University of Foreign Languages Hue, 2019 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES, HUE UNIVERSITY ----------- NGUYEN THI YEN NHI AN INVESTIGATION INTO EFL STUDENTS’ USE OF E-PORTFOLIOS IN PRACTISING LISTENING SKILLS: A CASE STUDY AT QUOC HOC HIGH SCHOOL IN HUE MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 8140111 SUPERVIOR: Dr. TRAN QUANG NGOC THUY Hue, 2019 BỘ GIÁO DỤC ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ ------------ NGUYỄN THỊ YẾN NHI NGHIÊN CỨU VIỆC SỬ DỤNG HỒ SƠ HỌC TẬP ĐIỆN TỬ ĐỂ LUYỆN TẬP KĨ NĂNG NGHE TIẾNG ANH CỦA HỌC SINH TRƯỜNG QUỐC HỌC HUẾ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SỸ LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 8140111 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: TS. TRẦN QUANG NGỌC THÚY HUẾ, 2019 STATEMENT OF ORIGINAL AUTHORSHIP The work contained in this thesis has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma in any university. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, my thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself.
Signed: Nguyen Thi Yen Nhi Date: 23/10/2019 i ABSTRACT This study investigated EFL students‟ use of e-portfolios in practising listening skills. It aimed at understanding the implementation of e-portfolios in helping non English-majored students practise their English listening skills at Quoc Hoc high school in Hue. In this study, 28 non English-majored grade 10 students and five teachers who teach English language to students ranging from grade 10 to grade 12 at Quoc Hoc high school were selected to take part in the research. To gather data, questionnaire survey, semi-structured interview and also observation were adopted.
The collected data were analyzed and treated statistically. The findings indicated that both of the students and teachers had positive attitudes towards the employment of e- portfolios and there were significant differences in students‟ motivation for learning English listening as well as their improvements in listening skills and language use after practicing English listening with e-portfolios. In the light of those findings, the researcher recommended the necessity of implementing e- portfolios in teaching English listening skills. It was also suggested further research be conducted on the effects of e-portfolios on developing different English language skills.
ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, I would like to express my deep thanks to Ms. Tran Quang Ngoc Thuy, my supervisor, for whole-heartedly guiding me throughout my research. She spent her valuable time instructing me how to write a research paper, how to search for literature and how to collect as well as analyze data. I would not have been able to do the research without her help and support.
Her recommendations and instructions have enabled me to assemble and finish the research effectively. My sincere gratitude will also be sent to all my instructors and teachers for encouraging and providing me with all the necessary facilities for the research. I take this opportunity to thank my participants in my questionnaire survey and individual interviews, who have willingly shared their precious time during the process of doing the questionnaire and interviewing. Last but not least, many thanks will be conveyed to my parents for their unceasing encouragement, support and attention.
I am also grateful to my friends who supported me and helped me through this research. I also place on record, my sense of gratitude to one and all, who directly or indirectly, have lent their hands in my research. Hue, 2019 Nguyen Thi Yen Nhi iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of original authorship. iii Table of contents.
iv List of tables. vii List of figures. viii List of abbreviations. ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .1 Rationale of the study .2 Aims of the study .3 Significance of the study .4 Scope of the study .5 Structure of the study.
4 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW. Definitions of listening .2 The importance of listening .3 The difference between listening and hearing .4 Types of listening.5 Difficulties of listening .3 Teaching listening skills .1 Steps of teaching listening skills in EFL classroom .3 Major problems in teaching listening skills .1 An introduction to e-portfolios .2 Definitions of e-portfolio .3 Types of e-portfolios.4 E-portfolio contents and components .5 Uses of an e-portfolio .6 E-portfolios in EFL classroom.7 Advantages of e-portfolios in teaching and learning .8 Challenges of using e-portfolios .3 Previous studies related to the current thesis .4 Comments on the previous studies. Data collection instruments. Data collection and data analysis procedures.
24 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .1 Students‟ attitudes towards the use of e-portfolios in practicing English listening skills .1 The frequency of students‟ participation in listening e-portfolios .2 Students‟ interest in the implementation of e-portfolios .1 Reasons why students are interested in e-portfolios .2 Reasons why students are uninterested in e-portfolios .2 Students‟ and teachers‟ perceptions on the benefits and difficulties of e- portfolios in practicing English listening skills .1 Students‟ and teachers‟ perceptions on the benefits of e-portfolios in practicing English listening skills .1 English listening skill improvement .2 Language use improvement .3 Peer correction and teacher feedback .4 Self-regulated learning promotion .5 Self-confidence boost .2 Students‟ and teachers‟ perceptions on the difficulties of e-portfolios in practicing English listening skills .1 Students‟ e-portfolio workload .2 E-portfolios‟ level of difficulty .3 The impact of e-portfolios on students‟ listening skills .1 Students‟ improvements in learning listening skills. 46 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS. 50 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1 Reasons why students are interested in e-portfolios.2 Reasons why students are uninterested in e-portfolios.1 Nhan‟s e-portfolio report .2 Huu‟s e-portfolio report .3 Minh‟s e-portfolio report .4 Trang‟s e-portfolio report .5 Thao‟s e-portfolio report. 45 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 4.1 The frequency of students‟ participation in e-portfolios.2 Students‟ interest in the implementation of e-portfolios.1 Students‟ perceptions on their improvement in English listening skills .2 Students‟ perceptions on their improvement in language use 32 Figure 4.1 Students‟ perceptions on their promotion in peer correction .2 Students‟ perceptions on teacher feedback‟s usefulness .4 Students‟ perceptions on their promotion in self-regulated learning .5 Students‟ self-confidence boost in using their listening skills36 Figure 4.1 Students‟ perceptions on the e-portfolios‟ workload .2 Students‟ perceptions on the e-portfolios‟ level of difficulty 39 viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESL: English as a Second Language CEFR: Common European Framework of Reference for Languages GPA: Grade Point Average TOEFL: Test of English as a Foreign Language ix CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study In teaching and learning English as a foreign language (EFL), it is the fact that Vietnamese teachers and students have been focusing a great deal on reading and writing, while listening lessons have not been paid adequate attention.
Nonetheless, it is obvious that listening is one of the most important skills students can have. As pointed out by Wolvin (2010), 50 percent or more of time we spend communicating is spending listening. Also giving an emphasis on the importance of listening, Mcdonagh (2013, p. 87) stated that listening is “the primary means by which incoming ideas and information are taken in”.
It can be seen that both in and out of the classroom, listening consumes more of communication time than other forms of verbal communication and it is thought to be one of the most commonly used skills to complete the process of communication. Nowadays, in order to help students achieve the communicative competence, few high schools in Hue city such as Quoc Hoc, Hai Ba Trung, Nguyen Hue are attempting to engage listening skills in assessment instead of only reading, writing and grammar as before. This has arisen several problems in teaching and learning English, especially English listening. Needless to say, it takes time and efforts to enhance language skills.
Due to the time constraint, practicing English listening skills in the classroom is not feasibly enough. There should be a way to involve students in English listening activities outside the classroom. E-portfolio, along with its enormous benefits demonstrated in ESL/EFL learning, appears to be a great solution to the problem. Electronic portfolios or e-portfolios are derived from paper-based portfolios.
With the emergence of abundant technological advancements in the past few years, especially those affiliated with education, the paper-based portfolios, as a result, necessitated an equivalent of alternative electronic tool in order not to be dated in nowadays technological classrooms. In this context, e- portfolios appeared as one of the effects of this progress. Nowadays, e-portfolios 1 are available in various fields, especially in teaching and learning, and students are encouraged to make use of them for multiple purposes, particularly exhibiting their work. In ESL/ EFL learning, e-portfolio was defined as “a type of composition, an emerging genre” (Cambridge, 2010, p.
8) which “presents a theory, story, or map that articulates the relationships between the different material included and synthesizes their meaning” (p. This definition gives the notion that e- portfolio represents a shift in assessment and self-reflection because they engage a new form of genre accompanied by autobiography, stories, or journals. In another definition, DiBiase (2002) considered them as „personalized, web-based collections that include selective evidence from coursework, artifacts from extra- curricular activities, and reflective annotations and commentary related to these experiences” (p. These two definitions come to an agreement that e-portfolio is a versatile tool that can be used to collect and evaluate the best achievements and also help learners master their self-assessment skills.
Regarding the versatility of e-portfolios, Butler (2006) also affirmed that they can be used for learners while studying, for teachers and institutions while assessing learners‟ work as well as for graduates while searching for a job. Up to now, a wide range of studies have shown the tremendous advantages of using e-portfolios in ESL/EFL learning, especially in writing, reading and speaking. Nonetheless, investigation into the use of e-portfolios in listening, “the first language skill developed” that comes before speaking, reading and writing (Lundsteen, 1981, p.159), have not gained sufficient consideration. At Quoc Hoc high school, one of the most qualified establishments in Hue, Vietnam, non English-majored students, especially at grade 10, in point of fact, tend to get very low scores when it comes to listening tests.
They came from different secondary schools in the area and many of them were not given sufficient practice to acquire English listening skills at their former schools. As a consequence, their English listening skills was not as good as expected. It was even struggling for certain students to make out simple instructions. To curb the 2 problem and enhance students‟ English listening skills in a limited period of time as well as help them pass the final test with flying colors, e-portfolios were employed with a view to giving more practice outside the classroom.
Along with the implementation of e-portfolios in helping non English- majored students practice English listening skills, an attempt was made to investigate how much an alternative assessment tool, in this case study – e- portfolio, as opposed to traditional standardized tests -- is effective in improving students‟ English language proficiency and in particular, their listening skills.2 Aims of the study This study aimed to first figure out students‟ attitudes on the employment of e-portfolios in practicing their English listening‟s skills. Their perceptions along with teachers‟ opinions on the benefits as well as the drawbacks of e- portfolio implementation were also taken into account. Ultimately, the study would like to know whether the use of e-portfolios really made a change in students‟ process of acquiring English listening skills.