VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES TRẦN THỊ NGỌC MỸ ESP MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT: USING SITUATION-BASED VOCABULARY IN COMPOSING AN ENGLISH HANDBOOK FOR CUSTOMS OFFICERS IN NORTHWEST REGION Xây dựng tài liệu Tiếng Anh chuyên ngành: Sử dụng từ vựng dựa trên tình huống trong việc soạn thảo Sổ tay Tiếng Anh cho cán bộ Hải quan vùng Tây Bắc M. THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology (Type 1) Field Code: 8140231.01 HANOI - 2018 0 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES TRẦN THỊ NGỌC MỸ ESP MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT: USING SITUATION-BASED VOCABULARY IN COMPOSING AN ENGLISH HANDBOOK FOR CUSTOMS OFFICERS IN NORTHWEST REGION Xây dựng tài liệu Tiếng Anh chuyên ngành: Sử dụng từ vựng dựa trên tình huống trong việc soạn thảo Sổ tay Tiếng Anh cho cán bộ Hải quan vùng Tây Bắc M. Thesis Field: English Teaching Methodology (Type 1) Field Code: 8140231. HUỲNH ANH TUẤN HANOI - 2018 1 DECLARATION I hereby certify that the thesis entitled “ESP materials development: using situation- based vocabulary in composing an English handbook for Customs officers in Northwest region” is entirely my own research work and has not been taken from the work of others save and to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my work.
Hanoi, 2018 Trần Thị Ngọc Mỹ 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am indebted to many whose warm support, cheerful encouragement, and genuine guidance have been deeply appreciated. First and foremost, I would like to express my honor to be a part of the project KHCN-TB.26X/13-18 - Tay Bac Program, which is conducted by University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University. I would like to send my enormous gratitude to Dr. Huynh Anh Tuan, my beloved supervisor, who had patiently guided me throughout the thesis process, for his insightful comments, invaluable guidance, thoughtful suggestions, and inspiration.
I am profoundly grateful to all those who participated, the wonderful Customs officers in Vietnam and English teachers at University of Languages and International Studies - Vietnam National University, who acted as informants in my research. I would also like to thank Ms. Phan Thi Van Quyen, Ms. Le Thi Hong Duyen, and Ms.
Vu Thi Nga, who have given me such many precious support and thorough collaboration during the study. I would like to make special mention of my mother, Ms. Pham Thi Hang who has given me an unending supply of all sorts of help and whose support has made it possible for me to complete this study. Special thanks to my friends including Quynh Trang, Thuy Linh, Thi Linh who have always been my full-time companions.
Thanks also go to family and friends who are not mentioned here for their support and encouragement. ii ABSTRACT In the context of international and regional integration and exchange, English communication for work has become an essential requirement for cadres and civil servants in various professions. It is in places where there is a lot of trade and interaction with foreigners. Among them, the Northwest border customs is considered one of the places where cadres and civil servants have many opportunities to interact with foreigners coming from different countries.
Recognizing the importance of the English language as a tool of trade and exchange in the international environment, and on the basis of practical needs of customs officers at the North West border gate, the Northwest program team decided to compile a handbook of typical English words and situations in Customs with the expectation of supporting the staff here in carrying out daily tasks, thereby improving the efficiency of work and bringing about Economic benefits for the North West area. This study is an attempt to investigate the principles, strategies and procedures to compose an English handbook for Customs officers in Vietnam. The research primarily focuses on the process of selecting situation-based vocabulary for the officers to utilize in their real-life circumstances. In order to develop common situations and select appropriate English vocabulary in Customs, the team investigated the documents that are currently used in Nortwest border gates then conducted observations, interviews at a customs office of the Northwest region, and consulted experts in Linguistics and Customs to better modify the handbook.
In general, the vocabulary in the composed handbook has met the needs of Customs officers in terms of both quantity and quality. The results gained from the finding and data analysis has contributed to the ESP material development process. This study can help ESP developer of other fields know how to start and what to do during materials development procedures. Key words: Northwest Program, ESP materials development, Customs, situation- based vocabulary iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION.
iii TABLE OF CONTENTS .iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .vi LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES.vii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION. The rationale of the study. Aims and objectives of the study. Scope of the study.
Significance of the thesis. Organization of the thesis. 5 CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW. ESP materials development.
Definition of ESP. Principles and procedures of developing ESP materials. Pre-development: Needs analysis. While-development: Developed content and Real content.
Post-development: On-going Evaluation. ESP materials evaluation. Situation-based vocabulary. The importance of vocabulary in ESP teaching and learning.
Situation-based vocabulary. Strategies and principles of selecting situation-based vocabulary in developing ESP materials. Choosing words: how many and which ones. Learning tools for new vocabulary.
Selection of vocabulary for developing ESP materials. Related Studies on ESP material development for Customs Officers. 19 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY. Description of the informants.
Data collection instruments. Data collection procedures. Data analysis procedure. Statement on how results were presented.
34 CHAPTER IV: RESULTS. Pre-development: The needs of Customs Officers in the Northwest region of Vietnam. While-development: The process of selecting situation-based vocabulary in composing an English handbook. Choosing words: how many and which ones.
Learning tools for new vocabulary. Selection of vocabulary for developing ESP materials. Post-development: The modifications of the handbook after reviewed. Evaluation of Language Experts.
Strengths of the handbook. Weaknesses and modification of the handbook. Evaluation of Customs experts. Strengths of the handbook.
Weaknesses and modification of the handbook. The English handbook for Customs officers in Northwest region. Summary of the findings. Contribution of the research and ESP development implications.
Limitations of the study and suggestions. - 1 - Appendix 1: List of most common questions in Customs at Border gate. - 1 - Appendix 2: Observation field note. - 26 - Appendix 3: Questionnaires for reviewers.
- 27 - v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CEFR: Common European Framework of Reference for Languages ESP: English for Specific Purposes EFL: English as Foreign Language ESL: English as Second Language GE: General English L2: The second language ULIS: University of Language and International Studies VNU: Vietnam National University vi LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES TABLES Page Table 1: Procedure of composing the English handbook for Customs 34 Officers Table 2: Feedback from language experts for modification 41 Table 3: Feedback from Customs experts for modification 44 FIGURES Page Figure 1: Process for preparing new materials 11 Figure 2: Process for selecting vocabulary for the handbook 39 vii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION This initial chapter states the research problem and rationale of the study. Aims and objectives of this research are also highlighted together with the three research questions, and then the significance and scope of the study are introduced. Lastly, it provides the organization of the study in order to guide readers into the right track of the paper. The rationale of the study 1.
Northwest Program Northwest Program or Tay Bac Program is a state-level key science and technology program in the 2013 – 2018 period titled "Science and Technology for the Sustainable Development of the Northwest Region" (called in short as the Northwest Program). This program, targeted at Northern midland and mountainous provinces in Bắc Kạn province, involved multiple stakeholders including the Bắc Kạn provincial People’s Committee, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Education and Training in coordination with VNU. The Northern midland and mountainous region has great potential and tremendous advantages for development, but also has to confront with difficulties and challenges in development realities. Along with many target programs, the investment projects of economic, social, cultural and educational development for the Northwest, on 28th June 2013, implementing the directive of the Prime Minister, the Minister of Science and Technology signed Decision No.
1746/QD-BKHCN on approval of the goals, content and expected product of the Northwest Program. VNU was assigned to be in charge of the program and former VNU President Phùng Xuân Nhạ is the Chairman of the program. The Northwest Program is the concretization of the strategic policy of the Vietnamese Party and State: considering Science & Technology as the primary national policy to promote to the highest degree the intellectual resources and create an impetus for the 1 development of knowledge-based economy in the Northwest region of Vietnam. By solving issues in the development realities of the region and of each locality, the program hopes to raise production capacity and competitiveness, promote the advantages, resources and potential, to create an impetus for the raising of overall growth level of the region and bring about the practical benefits to the community of ethnic minority groups living in the Northwest provinces, contributing to ensuring the national defense and security.
The role of English in Customs at the border gate English has been acknowledged by most countries in the world as an international language. Consequently, English has to be used in international communication both orally and in written communication, for general as well as specific needs. English’s role in the early development of modern technology has cemented its global importance. In the context of rapid economic globalisation, Vietnam is now conducting international business with countries across the world.
As a result, English is increasingly used as a lingua franca by Vietnamese people for foreign interactions and communication. The challenge of communicating at border gates is to create cohesion between culturally distinct workforces. English, often considered a relatively neutral language, acts as a bridge that connects people across countries and cultures, providing a pathway for innovation. As a result, English has been chosen as an agent language among countries.
English has all the capabilities to facilitate the innovation economy because it allows individuals and companies and organizations around the world to communicate, and therefore collaborate toward a common vision or goal. The necessity to conduct a study of composing an English handbook for Customs Officers In the context of international and regional integration and exchange, English communication for work has become an essential requirement for cadres and civil servants in various professions. It is in places where there is a lot of trade and 2 interaction with foreigners. Among them, the Northwest border customs is considered one of the places where cadres and civil servants have many opportunities to interact with foreigners coming from different countries.
Recognizing the importance of the English language as a tool of trade and exchange in the international environment, and on the basis of practical needs of customs officers at the North West border gate, the team learn and develop a handbook of typical English words and situations in customs with the expectation of supporting the staff here in carrying out daily tasks, thereby improving the efficiency of work and bringing about Economic benefits for the North West area. Working at the border gate means the major working environment of Customs Officers is international. English becomes an important communication instrument thanks to its globalization. Vietnam has a long border shared with Chinese, the use of English as agent language can limit the superiority of Chinese and Chinese language users in communication.