HUE UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES --------------- VO TRAN MINH NHAT ENGLISH MAJORS' PERCEPTION OF BLENDED LEARNING IN SPEAKING CLASSES AT UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, HUE UNIVERSITY MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, University of Foreign Languages and International Studies, Hue University THUA THIEN HUE, 2022 HUE UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES --------------- VO TRAN MINH NHAT ENGLISH MAJORS' PERCEPTION OF BLENDED LEARNING IN SPEAKING CLASSES AT UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, HUE UNIVERSITY MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 8140111 SUPERVISOR: DR. TRAN QUANG NGOC THUY THUA THIEN HUE, 2022 ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ --------------- VÕ TRẦN MINH NHẬT NHẬN THỨC CỦA SINH VIÊN CHUYÊN NGÀNH TIẾNG ANH VỀ HÌNH THỨC ĐÀO TẠO KẾT HỢP GIỮA TRỰC TUYẾN VÀ TRỰC TIẾP TRONG CÁC LỚP HỌC NÓI TẠI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ, ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 8140111 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: TS. TRẦN QUANG NGỌC THÚY THUA THIEN HUE, 2022 STATEMENT OF ORIGINAL AUTHORSHIP The work contained in this thesis has not been previously submitted for a degree 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: ………………………… (Candidate’s full name) Date: ……/ ……/……… i ABSTRACT The continual growth of technology enhances the development of English teaching and learning, especially the use of blended learning method in higher education, which can improve the communicative environments for Vietnamese students. However, the effectiveness of this Blended learning method to students in improving their Speaking skills is not clearly recognized. This paper aims at studying the perception of the use of Blended learning in English Speaking classes for students majoring in English at a university in Hue as well as finding the difficulties which the students have to encounter during learning Speaking skills with Blended learning method, based on which some recommendations were suggested to design a better learning and teaching program. This paper is a survey research project identifying learners’ perception towards the use of Blended learning in English speaking classes as well as evaluation of the program through their learning experience.
The author conducted a survey questionnaire at University of Foreign Languages and International Studies, Hue University with 55 student respondents. Also, the researcher interviewed 5 English majors who have been learning Speaking skills with Blended learning method. The results revealed that the students’ perceptions and attitudes towards the use of blended learning method were positive in terms of the four domains in the questionnaire: (i) online learning parts, (ii) face-to-face lessons, (iii) online and face-to-face integration, and (iv) learners’ outcomes. Also, semi-structured interview is employed as method for collecting the data.
However, regarding the blended learning method when learning Speaking skills for the students in the English department, some challenges must be considered and overcome. In addition, possible suggestions are proposed for enhancing the effectiveness of such approach. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS During the process of completing this thesis, I have received a lot of encouragement from many people. Thus, I would like to express my deep gratitude and appreciation to them.
Without their assistance, the current thesis would not have been accomplished. First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Tran Quang Ngoc Thuy, my supervisor, who graciously provided me with helpful directions. To work on my M.
thesis under her supportive direction and benefit from her knowledge is a great honor and a great opportunity for me. The only thing I can do at the moment is say thanks so much for her supervising, reading, and offering effective feedback on my drafts. Without her careful guidance, critical and insightful comments and great patience during the process of completing the thesis, I would not have finished the study on time. Secondly, I would also like to thank all the lecturers in Hue University of Foreign Languages and International Studies who have provided me with useful knowledge and given me the most favorable condition to learn and research.
Thirdly, I would like to offer my special thank to students from Hue university of Foreign languages and International Studies for their willingness to complete the questionnaire and for truly providing me with useful information during the interviews. Frankly speaking, this study would not have been accomplished without their participation. Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my family and friends for their support, compassion, and inspiration. My family and friends contributed a significant part to the stage of conducting this study.
Thank you for believing in me and supporting me up until this point. iii List of tables Table 4. 1 Students’ evaluation on online learning parts. 2 Students’ evaluation of face-to-face lessons.
3 Students’ evaluation of the integration between online and face-to-face lessons. 4 Students’ evaluation on their outcomes. 52 iv List of figures Figure 3. 1 The homepage of blended course in Public Speaking (after logging in).
2 The End-of-course: Individual speech (the final step). 3 Introduction to Public Speaking. 30 v List of bbreviations EFL. English as a Foreign Language HUFLIS.
Hue University of Foreign Languages and International Studies LMS.Learning Management System HPL. How People Learn IT. Face To Face vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of original authorship. iii List of tables.
iv List of figures. v List of abbreviations. vi Table of contents. vii Chapter 1: Introduction.
Background of the study. Rationale of the study .3 Purposes of the study .5 Significance of Study .6 Scope of the study. Structure of the study. 9 Chapter 2: Literature Review.
Definition of Speaking. Kinds of Speaking. Speaking Accuracy and Speaking Fluency. The Importance of Speaking skills.
Definition of Blended learning and Blended learning application. Design and Implementation of Blended Learning. Importance of Blended learning. Core issues in blended learning.
The educational implications of blended learning in distance and face-to-face contexts 20 C. Perceptions of Blended Learning .4 Data collection instruments. Data collection procedure. Data analysis procedure.
Analysis of the survey questionnaire. Analysis of the interview. 38 Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion. Learners’ perception of the use of Blended learning in English Speaking class.
Online learning parts. Face-to-face lessons. The integration between online learning and face-to-face lessons. The problems encountered when learning Speaking skills with Blended learning method.
The data from interview. Suggestions and implications. The students’ suggestions to improve the use of blended learning in English Speaking classes. 63 Chapter 5: Conclusion and Implication .2 Implications for a better blended learning method in Speaking classes.
Implications for students. Implications for teachers. Implications for university authorities. Limitations and suggestions for further studies.
Suggestions for further studies. 83 ix APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE - ENGLISH VERSION. 83 APPENDIX 2: QUESTIONNAIRE - VIETNAMESE VERSION. 89 APPENDIX 3: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS - ENGLISH VERSION.
95 APPENDIX 4: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS - VIETNAMESE VERSION. 96 x Chapter 1: Introduction This chapter firstly presents the background of the study. It then describes its rationale, the purposes of the study, research questions. Finally, the scope of the study is also presented in the chapter.
Background of the study In today's twenty-first-century civilization, there are substantial changes in all told aspects of life, including education (Almaiah, Al-Khasawneh, & Althunibat, 2020; Malik, 2018; Meyer & Norman, 2020; Rahman, Singh, & Pandian, 2018; Stuchlikova, 2016; Velle, 2020). The COVID-19 epidemic has had a major impact on education. Each day since the initial report of infection, new cases have emerged, and also the new pathogen has spread throughout the planet. The sole method of keeping transmission trapped has been to take care of social distance.
As a result of the rapid rise in infection cases, most countries decided to implement lockdown, which was intended to attenuate social activities to only those necessary for survival. Several limitations, including the shutdown of schools and universities, were imposed by national governments. Every course conducted at the institution, including seminars and workshops, got postponed. The emphasis within the field of education has moved to active learning for students, which is defined as mentally active learning that keeps students engaged, and where the trainer or teacher can select the well-liked method of teaching style supported the student’s needs, rather than merely transferring information, which implies concentrating on the standard of education (Fitzsimons, 2014; Marina & Tatjana, 2020; Rocher, 2018).
In step with constructivist learning theory, the learner creates their own knowledge about social interaction with others and also the environment, similarly to creating new understanding supported existing experience and expertise (Ayse, 2008). As a 1 consequence, educational organizations have begun to hunt out high-quality teaching approaches that encourage students to be engaged and optimistic. The conventional face-to-face classroom is still used in education, but the extraordinary COVID-19 pandemic caused instruction to go online and be conducted digitally. The pedagogical quality is being significantly nourished by digital transformation and technological improvement.
Learner-centered education is required in today's world in order to meet the diverse needs of pupils. One viable method for improving pedagogical quality is pedagogical innovation (Naz and Murad, 2017). Educational policy, objectives, and course content have a big influence on pedagogical innovation. Transformation of pedagogy, learning styles, teaching method, classroom culture, and communication loop could all help to improve pedagogical innovation.
However, a number of recent studies, such as those by Mohd Basar, Norhaini Mansor, Azhar Jamaludin, and Salwana Alias (2021); Ramli, Majid, and Badyalina (2020), show that pedagogical quality in online classrooms is being threatened as a result of the epidemic. The fundamental reason for this is that instructors are increasingly converting established face-to-face curricula into online formats that place less emphasis on intellectual interaction. According to Lytras, Sarirete, and Damiani (2020), the current paradigm shift is to move an educator's role from content deliverer to co-partner in accomplishing meaningful knowledge transfer. To fulfill these needs, a variety of different types of creative classrooms have been established.
At the same time, because blended learning is a combination of traditional and online methods, it is not a unique yet effective teaching technique that appears suited for overcoming such issues. Blended learning is a style of education that mixes face-to-face and online teaching approaches to improve classroom engagement. Two of the many key requirements pertinent to online pedagogy are accessibility and adaptability (Dhawan, 2020). 2 According to Ylmaz and Orhan (2010), a gaggle of constructivist learning strategies has emerged to understand the goals of constructivist theory, which link technology to learning in accordance with structural philosophy and imply cooperative, collaborative learning and social interaction through which individuals construct their own understanding.
Therefore, the blended learning paradigm established, which is an internet-based extension of classroom training. It equips educational institutions, like universities and schools, with cutting-edge teaching methods and approaches to the difficulties they encounter, additionally as innovative new learning methods (Mula, 2015). If online instruction is not any worse than traditional instruction in terms of student outcomes, policymakers reasoned, online education initiatives are often justified on the concept of cost-effectiveness or the requirement to provide access to learners in locations where face-to-face instruction isn't possible (Florida Tax, 2007; Wise & Rothman, 2010). Speaking is the most important skill to master because it is one of the abilities required to hold a conversation.
Speaking English is demanding because speakers must be proficient in many aspects, including pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension. Learners should be able to communicate with others simply and effectively if they have a good command of the English language.