VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY- HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES ------------------------ HUỲNH NGỌC TUYỀN A STUDY ON STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION AND PRACTICES OF CRITICAL THINKING IN ENGLISH READING COMPREHENSION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI (NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ NHẬN THỨC VÀ THỰC TẾ TƯ DUY PHÊ PHÁN TRONG ĐỌC HIỂU TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH VIÊN TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ, ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI ) M. COMBINED PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 HANOI – 2017 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY- HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES ------------------------ HUỲNH NGỌC TUYỀN A STUDY ON STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION AND PRACTICES OF CRITICAL THINKING IN ENGLISH READING COMPREHENSION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI (NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ NHẬN THỨC VÀ THỰC TẾ TƯ DUY PHÊ PHÁN TRONG ĐỌC HIỂU TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH VIÊN TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ, ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI) M. COMBINED PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Supervisor: Assoc.Dr Nguyễn Xuân Thơm HANOI - 2017 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DECLARATION I certify that this minor thesis entitled “A study on students’ perceptions and practices of critical thinking in English reading comprehension at the University of Languages and International studies” is the study of my own research and the substance of this research has not been submitted for a degree to any other university or institution. Ha Noi, March , 2017 Signature Huỳnh Ngọc Tuyền i LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my gratitude to all those who have given me great assistance in the completion of my research work.
In the first place, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Assoc.Dr Nguyen Xuan Thom, who has provided me with insightful discussion, helpful comments, valuable support in the preparation and completion of this thesis. Without his guidance and help, this work would not have been accomplished. Secondly, my sincere thanks also go to all lecturers and staff of the department of Post- Graduate studies for their valuable lessons and precious helps. Thanks to their lessons as well as needed helps, I could overcome enormous obstacles when doing the study.
I also wish to acknowledge the cooperation of lecturers and the third year students at the University of Languages and International Studies in contributing to the data collection presented in this study. Last but not least, I would like to express my deepest thanks to my dear family and friends for their encouragement and great support during my time of fulfilling this thesis. ii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT The purpose of the present study was to explore the perceptions of the third year students about critical thinking and their practices of critical thinking skills in English reading comprehension. The intent was to discover if undergraduate students realize the importance and significance of critical thinking.
This study advances our understanding of critical thinking through a thorough review of literature and from perspectives of learmers. The study was conducted with an deductive approach with the participation of 40 students from the faculty FELT- VNU of the ULIS university. They were both male and female students of Business Administration and Economic classes. Data was collected through interviewing and questionnaire papers.
The findings of the study revealed that there were cognitive skills, reflection and criteria that students perceived to relate to critical thinking. Most of the surveyed students realize and believe in the value of critical thinking as an academic competency that is crucial for their future success and progress. Most students practice these skills of critical thinking to their English reading comprehension. The results also shed light on students‘ perceptions on the developing of critical thinking in the process of enhancing their own critical reading.
This study also provides some suggestions for for teaching and learning about the strategies, techniques and practices of effectively reading comprehension to undergraduate students. iii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLES OF CONTENTS DECLARATION. iii TABLES OF CONTENTS. iv LIST OF ABBREVIATION .vii PART A INTRODUCTION.
Statement of the problem. Aims of the research. Objectives of the study. Scope of the research.
Significance of the research. Structural organization of the thesis. 9 CHAPTER 1 REVIEW OF LITERATURE. Review of models of Critical Thinking in academic research.
Reading comprehension in a foreign language. Importance of Reading Comprehension. Types of reading. Review of relevant studies on the field.
Context of the study. Methods of the study. 39 iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Recruitment of participants and ethical consideration.
Data collection instrument and Analysis. Methods of Data analysis. 44 CHAPTER 3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. Students‘ perceptions of Critical Thinking.
Critical thinking in relation to the ability to boost up a deeper understanding level. Perception of critical thinking with regard to provide an outcome. Students‘ practices of Critical Thinking skills in English Reading. The frequency of students‘practices focusing on sub skills of Analysis in English reading comprehension.
The frequency of students‘ practices focusing on sub skills of Interpretation in English reading comprehension. The frequency of students‘ practices focusing on sub skills of Evaluation in English reading comprehension. The frequency of students‘ practices focusing on sub skills of Inference in English reading comprehension. The frequency of students‘ practices focusing on sub skills of Explanation in English reading comprehension.
The frequency of students‘ practices focusing on sub skills of Self-regulation in English reading comprehension. Perceptions regarding to developing critical thinking skills. Main findings and Discussions. 63 CHAPTER4:SUGGESTIONS TO TEACHING OF READING COMPREHENSION.
Balanced instruction comprehension. 69 v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Introducing students critical thinking skills applied for reading comprehension72 4. Enhancing students‘ application of critical reading at home.
Making students want to read. Guiding students to choose and share good materials. Using reading reflection to enhance undergraduate students‘ critical reading ability. Building a Comprehension Curriculum to encourage critical thinking.
I vi LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATION CT: Critical Thinking FELTE: Faculty of Language Teaching Education ULIS: University of Languages and International Studies VNU: Vietnam National University vii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com PART A INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale The world operates at a swift pace. No longer is one country isolated from another. With the internet and information being attainable in a split second, the need for thinkers who can think about their thinking and synthesize information is imperative for the world to grow into a cohesive community of thinkers.
In a smaller context of an academic world at universities where information is abundant, it is important for students to be able to critically evaluate information and understand their own thoughts and biase. Hence, one of the significant aims of every education is to produce learners who are well informed, that is to say, learners should understand ideas that are important, useful, beautiful and powerful. Another is to create learners who have the appetite to think analytically and critically, to use what they know to enhance their own lives and also to contribute to their society, culture and civilization. On the other hand, the study of assessing the use of these skills is essential in a world where information and decisionmaking is key to the future success of people around the world.
Just as it is in other areas of education that are necessary for creating engaged learners, so is learning to think critically. The continued need for critical thinking to be taught, interpreted and studied remains evident. Critical thinking skills can solve world - wide problems, bond cultures, traditions, and generations by opening meaningful conversations. This shows that critical thinking has an important role in education.
The notions of critical thinking are constantly refered in documentation incorporating desired learning outcomes, benchmark statements and quality indicator at almost all university education. Therefore, it is imperative that citizens of the 20th and 21st centuries think critically and the need for critical thinking skills has been identified as a national and international priority. Critical thinking has been mentioned From Socrates to contemporary scholars. There have been continuous requirement of educated citizens and qualified 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com workforce about the competence to think critically.
The world is consitently moving toward a technology-based economy, facing worldwide competition. As a result, the need for workers with analytical thinking skills to select information from a wide range of sources and competently make fruitful decisions is also increasingly crucial. Within such a complex and swiftly altering world, critical thinking is obviously an essential tool in order to successfully perform in the competitive life. In the twentieth first century, it is argued that learning to think is the fundamental objective of education.
The emphasis has been moved from confering information and content to the learners, to enhancing their thinking skills. Ashraah, AL- Nabrawi, Shdeifat, and Al-Ali (2012) affirmed that education systems in almost all over the world are shifting their focus to improving learners‘ higher mental processes comprising critical thinking, and problem solving. Howie (2011) highlighted that the ability to think critically is one of the highest levels of mental activity. It empowers people to engage in the practices of making decisions and organizing work (Alazzi & Khawaldeh, 2008).
In order to meet marketplace demands and solve societal and modern everyday life problems, it is crucial to develop learners‘ cognitive skills to help them be successful in their upcoming life plans in various fields. Gaining the ability to think critically could assist learners to form their thoughts and ideas instead of just repeating and following those of others, by activating their intellectual abilities to evaluate different perspectives and viewpoints. A critical reason for developing learners‘ mental abilities through the school context, as suggested by Alwadai (2014), is to further develop learner s‘ mental growth by offering them practical chances that could challenge their thinking processes. Thus, it is the teacher‘s role to train learners to think critically and push them to activate their higher thinking abilities.
Concerning to the situation in Viet Nam, although the Vietnamese Ministry of Education has been try to reform both textbooks and teacher training, following effective and efficient learning and teaching approaches of other countries like The United States of America (USA), The United Kingdom (UK), and some European 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com countries, they still lag far behind achieving complete success in reforming their education system with regard to students‘ development of critical thinking. The reason can be realized as that partly most Vietnamese learners show poor abilities and kills of independence, creativeness and activeness in their thinking and beliefs. Most Vietnamese students tend to memorize and rewrite pre-thought information at classes as opposed to thinking out their own ideas and assessing facts and not taking those taught by their teachers for granted. What is more, according to Helmke and Tuyet (1999), repetitive teaching and learning ways were typical cultural features in the Vietnamese classrroms.
When students are at high schools they are in typical Vietnamese classroom with activities that are dominated by lectures with limited questioning or discussion. Therefore, they are still greatly suffering from difficulties in their English language learning skills despite all efforts and costs once they moved to higher education at colleges or universities. Critical thinking skills in English language learning and teaching have not received much attention. Thereby, it can be supposed that the concept of critical thinking still far beyond in mind of most Vietnamese students.