BANKING ACADEMY FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES GRADUATION THESIS TEACHERS’ PERCEPTION ABOUT USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS TO TEACH LEARNERS AGED 9-10 AT AN ENGLISH CENTER IN HANOI Student: Nguyen Thi Kim Lien Class: K21ATCA Academic year: 2018-2022 Student ID: 21A7510079 Supervisor: Dr. Trinh Ngoc Anh 1 17014128948391000000 BANKING ACADEMY FALCUTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE GRADUCATION THESIS TEACHERS’ PERCEPTION ABOUT USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS TO TEACH LEARNERS AGED 9-10 AT AN ENGLISH CENTER IN HANOI. Student: Nguyen Thi Kim Lien Class: K21ATCA Academic year: 2018-2022 Student ID: 21A7510079 Advisor: Dr. Trinh Ngoc Anh 2 DECLARATION I solemnly declare that the dissertation titled “Teachers' perception about using authentic materials to teach young learners aged 9-10 at an English center in Hanoi.” is my own work to submit for the graduation requirement of Banking Academy of Vietnam All the information derived from previous research has been appropriately accepted in a list of references provided.
No part of this thesis was submitted for a degree of any other institution. Hanoi, May 2022 Lien Nguyen Thi Kim Lien i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I have received significant support and encouragement from a number of people in the undertaking process. I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Trinh Ngoc Anh who followed me in every step of this thesis.
Her clear guidance and wise advice were more than valuable for me - a person who has no basic knowledge of a research before. In the short time I had to read and conduct a study, she provided many useful digital books, sources and feedback. Her experience and expertise improved my logical thinking a lot. My thanks are also due to all four participants who were willing to express opinions and follow up my study.
Their contribution played a significant role in the result of the dissertation. I would like to extend my thankfulness to my faculty due to giving me a intern opportunity in this English center. With much support from brothers and sisters here, I got an experiment in the field of education which I am concerned about. And also, many ideas came up during this time so that I could finish my study.
I would also like to thank my special friend, Vu Hai Nguyen. He always supported and believed in my ability. His constant encouragement was appreciated. Finally, from the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank my family, my parents, my sisters who always encourage me to gain remarkable achievement.
Particularly, I wish to express my expectations to my mom, who is always next to me, cheers me up everytime I face difficulties. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ---------------------------------------------------------------ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ----------------------------------------------------------------- iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS -------------------------------------------------------------- v LIST OF TABLES ------------------------------------------------------------------------- vi LIST OF FIGURES ----------------------------------------------------------------------- vii LIST OF APPENDICES ----------------------------------------------------------------- viii ABSTRACT ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ix CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION --------------------------------------------------------- 1 1. Rationale of the research ------------------------------------------------------------- 2 1. Background of the research --------------------------------------------------------- 2 1.
Methodology of the research--------------------------------------------------------- 2 1. Outline of the research ---------------------------------------------------------------- 3 CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW ----------------------------------------------- 4 2. Definitions of AM --------------------------------------------------------------------- 4 2. Types and sources of AM ------------------------------------------------------------ 5 2.
Positive effects of AM in English Skills ----------------------------------------- 6 2. Positive effects of AM in Speaking ------------------------------------------------- 6 2. Positive effects of AM in Reading -------------------------------------------------- 7 2. Positive effects of AM in Listening ------------------------------------------------- 8 2.
Positive effects of AM in Writing --------------------------------------------------- 9 2. Drawbacks of AM ------------------------------------------------------------------- 10 2. AM in raising intercultural understanding --------------------------------------- 11 2. Strategies in using AM ------------------------------------------------------------- 12 2.
Theoretical Framework -------------------------------------------------------------- 13 CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ---------------------------------- 15 3. Methodological Approach: Qualitative method --------------------------------- 15 3. Rationale of choosing Qualitative method --------------------------------------- 16 iii 3. Procedure, Data Collection and Instruments -------------------------------- 16 3.
Data collection tools ------------------------------------------------------- 18 3. Qualitative Data Analysis ------------------------------------------------------ 19 3. Summary ------------------------------------------------------------------------- 19 CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ------------------------------------ 20 4. Findings and Discussion --------------------------------------------------------------- 20 4.
Teachers’ perception towards the use and the frequency of using AM ---- 20 4. The use of AM in teaching English -------------------------------------- 20 4. The frequency of using AM in teaching English ----------------------- 21 4. How teachers use AM in lessons ----------------------------------------- 23 4.
Teachers’ perception towards issues considered for the use of AM ----- 25 4. Teachers’ perception towards the benefits of AM --------------------------- 26 4. Teachers’ perception towards the challenges of AM ------------------------ 30 4. Teachers’ perception towards the source of AM ---------------------------- 33 4.
Teachers’ perception towards professional training to use AM ----------- 35 4. Conclusion ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 36 CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION, IMPLICATION AND RECOMMENDATION ------------------------------------------------------------------- 37 5. Summary of the findings -------------------------------------------------------------- 37 5. Recommendation for future studies -------------------------------------------------- 39 REFFERENCES --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 41 APPENDICES ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 46 iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AM Authentic Materials LXO Learning Experience Officer CELTA Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages ELF (1) Group Learning Experience Manager (2) Teaching English as a Second Language BA Banking Academy v LIST OF TABLES Table 1.
Background information of the four participants 17 Table 2. How frequently the teachers use AM 21 vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. The Framework of the Study 14 vii LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix 1. Interview Questions 47 Appendix 2.
CONSENT FORM TO TAKE PART IN THE 49 STUDY viii ABSTRACT Title: Teachers' perception about using authentic materials to teach young learners aged 9-10 at an English center in Hanoi. Author: Nguyen Thi Kim Lien, a fourth-year student of Faculty of Foreign Languages in Banking Academy of Vietnam. Key Words: Authentic materials, teachers’ perception, young learner. Trinh Ngoc Anh - a lecturer of the Faculty of Foreign Languages in Banking Academy of Vietnam.
Abstract: While there has been abundant of research on Authentic Materials (AM) in the global literature, but only little has been known about this topic, outside mainstream education contexts like English language centers in a developing country like Vietnam. To deal with the research paucity - a qualitative case study was conducted to explore the perception of Englishteachers towards the use of AM to teach students aged 9 to 10 at an English language center in Hanoi, Vietnam. The participants included four teachers at this center. The data was drawn from four face-to-face in- depth interviews.
The study found that there are differences in teachers’ perception about the use of AM to teach the students aged 9-10, such as using frequency and consideration. They have used AM in many lessons to enhance intercultural knowledge and English skills, taking account of reading, listening, speaking and writing. In addition, the teachers also pointed out their own obstacles to selecting appropriate materials for suitable levels. Based on the findings, some implications and recommendations for future research were presented.
Teachers should raise the awareness of AM positive impacts, select appropriate AM and provide enough support for students when teaching. Moreover, AM also need to be commonly used since they are practical and available. Further study should be conducted by other method in different cases to get objective results. ix CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION This chapter provides researchrationale research background, research aim, research questions, researchscope, research significance as well as the structure of the thesis.
Rationale of the research Nowadays, English has become a widely used language all over the world and recognized as an international communication tool. It can be seen that English plays a particularly important role in the field of education, economics, science, industry, ect. As a result, innovative approaches are important to enhance learners’ skills. Using Authentic Materials (AM) in English has gained interests from a huge number of researchers and educators because theydo benefit learners in communication (Trinh & Pham, 2014; Minaflinou, 2018), listening (Hidayat, 2013; Dewi, 2018), reading (Guo, 2012; Kusumawardani, et al., 2018); and it has positive influences on learners’ motivation in the foreign language classroom (Peacock, 1997).
However, the literature on the use of AM in teaching remains limited in developing contexts like Vietnam. To address this gap, this study explores the teachers’ perception about AM. From the study, teachers and students in ELF context could consider learning with AM as a useful method. In addition, Vietnamese teachers of English at state schools and centers could take into account the use of AM in teaching English with proper kinds and techniques.
Research Background AM have been widely used for access in pedagogical environments as supplementary materials (Minaflinou, 2018) along with textbooks or contrived books. Research shows that AM are useful to enhance English skills, making lessons closer to real-life and providing authentic environments for students to obtain and exerciseknowledge efficiently. On the contrary, teachers have encountered many challenges when using AM in teaching English. The ability of teachers in selecting appropriate materials is the factor that decides students’ efficiency.
This is because these sources can cause culture conflicts, so they need to filter all the materials they plan to bring into class, 1 especially, the younger generation in non-English countries in which the settings are different, even completely different. AM seem easy to find everywhere but hard to be brought to lessons. In addition, technical problems are an obstacle in using AM related to the Internet like videos or online papers (Wildanum, et al. Teaching process might be interrupted due to unpredictable reasons, namely connection loss or power cut.
In Vietnam, AM seem to be used less frequently in both public schools or English centers. Although a wide range of AM have been available in the Internet and everyday life, they are not paid enough attention to (Khang, 2010) because teachers always consider textbooks as the vital tool with their target of transmitting vocabulary and grammar, AM, despite being in formal or informal form, provide much more useful knowledge for students’ real-life situations than just using textbooks alone. From the literature, the information about teacher’s perception is restricted. Hence, in this study, I will explore the perceptions of English teachers, who are at an English center in Hanoi to know how they perceive AM and how they can utilize them in classes.
Research Aim This research aims to explore the teachers’ perception about using AM in teaching young learners aged 9-10 at an English center in Hanoi, Vietnam 1. Research question Two following questions are addressed: 1. How do teachers perceive Authentic Materials in teaching English to younger learners? 2. Why do they hold such perspectives about Authentic Materials? 1.
Research Methodology and Research Scope In this study, qualitative case study research is adopted to explore the perception of four foreign teachers of English towards the use of authentic materials to teach 9- 10 aged students at an English language center in Hanoi. Interviewing with personal interview is the research instrument used to collect data for my study. Personal 2 interviews are one of the most used types of interviews, where the questions are asked personally directly to the respondent (QuestionPro. With this instrument, a researcher can design his/her survey in such a way that they take notes of the comments or points of view that stands out from the interviewee.
The study was conducted in the case of an English center in Hanoi. Outline of the research This study consist of five following chapters: 1. Chapter I - This chapter points out the rationale of the research, the background, the aim, the research questions, the scope, the methodology and the outline of the study. Chapter II - “Literature Review” which serves as a theoretical base deals with reviewing literature relevant to the topic and showing linkages between previous studies with the present one.
Chapter III - “Research Methodology” reports the research methodology used in the study in terms of instrumentation, samplings, procedures of data collection and analysis. Chapter IV - “Findings and Discussion” presents the process of data analysis, presents relevant findings and raises a debate over what has been found above in the light of literature. Chapter V - “Conclusion, Implication and Recommendation” summarizes the results, presents implications inferred from participants’ answers and recommendation for future research.