VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES ***************** ĐOÀN THỊ VÂN YÊN USING STIMULATION ACTIVITIES TO ENHANCE 10TH GRADE STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING LESSONS AT LY THUONG KIET HIGH SCHOOL, BAC GIANG Sử dụng những hoạt động khích lệ để tăng cường sự tham gia của học sinh lớp 10 trong các giờ học nói ở Trường THPT Lý Thường Kiệt, Bắc Giang M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Hanoi – 2014 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES ***************** ĐOÀN THỊ VÂN YÊN USING STIMULATION ACTIVITIES TO ENHANCE 10TH GRADE STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING LESSONS AT LY THUONG KIET HIGH SCHOOL, BAC GIANG Sử dụng những hoạt động khích lệ để tăng cường sự tham gia của học sinh lớp 10 trong các giờ học nói ở Trường THPT Lý Thường Kiệt, Bắc Giang M. MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Supervisor: Dr. Hoàng Thị Xuân Hoa Hanoi – 2014 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DECLARATION I certify that the minor thesis entitled “Using stimulation activities to enhance 10th grade students’ participation in speaking lessons” submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts is the result of my own work.
This minor thesis or any part of the same has not been submitted for higher degree to any other university or institution. Signature Đoàn Thị Vân Yên i LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest thanks to Ms Hoàng Thị Xuân Hoa-my supervisor, for her invaluable guidance, great support and patience. The present study would not have been possible without her assistance. I am indebted to all the lecturers of the Faculty of Post – Graduate Studies, University of Languages & International Studies, Vietnam National University-Hanoi, for their valuable teaching and assistance during my study here.
In addition, I would like to send my special thanks to all the participants in the research, whose contributions are very meaningful in the completion of this paper. Last but not least, I also wish to express my sincere thanks to my families, friends and colleagues who have given me so much encouragement and support in conducting this research paper. ii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT A lesson in general, an English speaking lesson in particular can not be said to be successful without students‟ active participation. Second foreign language learners should be offered the opportunity to get involved in the lessons and fulfill their learning orientations.
The aim of carrying out this action research was to enhance students‟ participation in speaking lessons by using stimulation activities. The thesis, therefore, examines the students‟ level of participation in speaking lessons at Ly Thuong Kiet High School. Additionally, the study aims to find out the factors affecting the students‟ participation. The study was conducted in the form of an action research, with the subjects of study being forty students of class 10A2 of Ly Thuong Kiet High School.
Forty students participated in completing questionnaires reflecting their appreciation of learning speaking English and what factor affects negatively their participation. Survey questionnaires and class observation were employed to find answers to the two research questions. The findings of the research revealed that students‟ poor participation resulted from both students themselves and their previous teacher and that using stimulation activities in speaking lessons helped enhance students‟ participation in terms of both quantity and quality. Thanks to stimulation activities, the interaction, especially one between students and students in speaking class developed significantly.
At last, it is hoped that the results of this study could be much of benefit for developing teaching and leaning English at Ly Thuong Kiet High School. iii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION .iii TABLE OF CONTENTS. iv LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS .vii PART A: INTRODUCTION. Rationale of the study.
Aims of the study. Scope of the study. Methods of the study. Design of the study.
4 CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW. Definition of speaking. Stages in a speaking lesson. Characteristics of a successful speaking activity.
Learners talk a lot. Participation is even. Motivation is high. Language is of an acceptable level.
Problems with speaking activities. Students’ participation in speaking activities. Factors affecting students’ participation in speaking activities .1 Students‟ learning styles .2 Students‟ language levels. 9 iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.
Definition of stimulation activities. Types of stimulation activities in teaching speaking skills. Information gap activity(IGA). Previous studies related to how to enhance students’ participation during speaking lessons.
Action research and key elements of an action research. Rationale for the use of an action research. Description of the context of the research. An overview of Ly Thuong Liet High School.
The teaching program and materials. Description of the research. Subjects of the research. Data collection instruments.
Data analysis procedures .Brief description of the three lessons. 21 CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION………………………………………. Findings from questionnaire 1 and observation of the two ordinary lessons. Students‟ level of participation.
23 v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Causes of students‟ low participation in oral activities .Students‟ motivation, learning styles, anxiety in speaking lessons .2 Affecting factors of students‟ low participation. Teacher‟s teaching methods in speaking class .The most influential factor on student‟ participation in class .Students‟ desires of teacher‟s teaching methods to increase their participation in speaking lessons .2 Action research procedures. Discussion of the lessons‟ effectiveness.
Presentation and discussion of class observation data. Presentation and discussion of Questionnaire 2 data. Discussion of the research questions. Limitations of the study.
Suggestions for further research. Recommendations and suggestions .XII vi LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS Table Table 1: Students‟ on-task/off-task behavior Table 2: Students‟ motivation, learning styles, anxiety in speaking class Table 3: Factors that make students hesitant to participate in oral activities Table 4: Students‟ comments on their previous teachers‟ teaching methods Table 5: Students‟ desires to increase their participation Table 6: Students‟ on- task/off-task behavior and their turn of speaking Table 7: Students‟ comment on teacher‟s stimulation activities Chart Chart 1: Students‟ appreciation of English speaking skill and speaking activities Chart 2: Students‟ level of participation in speaking activities motivation Chart 3: Affecting factors on students‟ participation Chart 4: Students‟ level of participation in recent speaking lessons Chart 5: Students‟ feeling when taking part in speaking activities Chart 6: Students‟ evaluation of the effectiveness of stimulation activities vii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com PART A: INTRODUCTION This initial part states the rationale of the study, together with the aims, objectives, the scope of the study, and the design of the rest of the paper. Above all, it is in this part that the research questions are identified to work as clear guidelines for the whole research. Rationale of the study In the era of global integration, knowing and, more important, having ability to use English - an international language - as means of communication has become so important.
It can be said that English is the key for learners to access to the great knowledge of humankinds. Therefore, English has become a compulsory subject in Vietnamese curriculum, its teaching and learning have been paid much attention to. Since the academic year 2006-2007, the teachers and learners have seen an overall renovation in teaching and learning in general and in teaching and learning foreign language in particular. The teaching and learning a foreign language have changed from the traditional approach-grammar translation method, which emphasizes mostly on the ability of using grammar rules precisely, to communicative approach, which focuses on communication ability with four essential skills, reading, writing, listening, and speaking altogether.
Among the four language skills, speaking plays an important role since it helps to identify who knows or does not know a language. Pattison (1992) points out that when people mention knowing or learning a language, they mean being able to speak the language. However, in reality, the teaching and learning of English in Vietnamese high schools have encountered many difficulties in language proficiency, in speaking skills in particular. As a teacher of English at Ly Thuong Kiet Upper Secondary School in Bac Giang for more than ten years, the researcher has been familiar with her students who have good control of structure in written language but are unable to express themselves in oral language.
Some of the students have shared their feelings of passive during speaking lessons: they are afraid of being called to present in front of class; they are fond of listening to others better than saying something; some of the students find safe ways to finish their speaking lessons without punishment by staying silent, listening attentively to or writing down what teacher or their friends say. In other words, the students‟ participation in speaking lessons is low. This may lead to poor speaking performance and the consequence may be that in the future they cannot become global citizens because of their lack of communicative skills in international language- English. The reasons for these are varied depending on each student.
However the most common reasons may lie in that: 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com students have limited vocabulary, little background knowledge of the speaking topic; they have low self-confidence and motivation to express themselves; they do not have stimulus and enough time to practice their speaking; the teachers have not organized speaking activities interesting enough to arouse students‟ interest in speaking lessons… Besides, most of the researcher‟s colleagues have shared they often have difficulties in organizing successful speaking activities and sometimes they are frustrated at their failure in encouraging the students to take part in speaking activities. Only some students get involved in the activities conducted by the teacher while others keep silent or do other things. Thus, one of the challenges to the teacher is to find out the answer to the question “Why don‟t many students of English get involved actively in speaking lessons?” and “What activities will be effective in increasing students‟ participation during speaking lessons?” The above reasons have inspired the author to conduct the research entitled “Using stimulation activities to enhance 10th grade students‟ participation in speaking lessons”. Aims of the study This research is aimed at improving students‟ involvement in speaking lessons at Ly Thuong Kiet High school by using stimulation activities.
In order to achieve that aim, the following objectives are set for the research: to find out factors that limit students‟ participation in speaking activities; to examine stimulation activities used during speaking lessons to increase the learners‟ participation in oral activities and to test the effectiveness of them in the form of an action research. Research questions To achieve the aims mentioned above, the following two research questions are addressed: 1. What are the factors that limit students‟ participation in speaking lessons?. How effective are stimulation activities in enhancing students‟ participation in speaking lessons? 4.
Scope of the study This study is concerned with the using of stimulation activities to enhance students‟ participation in speaking lessons to the students in the researcher‟s own class - grade 10 at Ly Thuong Kiet High School. This paper, therefore, placed strong emphasis on the 10h grade students‟ involvement and the techniques to improve students‟ participation in speaking class. In addition, it is noteworthy that students‟ participation is easily affected by the students‟ factors (attitudes, motivation, language levels,…), teachers‟ factors 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ( characteristics, methodology.) and classroom factors. In this study, the researcher focused on teaching techniques having influence on students‟ participation.