VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES ***************** TRAN THI GIANG THE CHALLENGES OF TEACHING ENGLISH AT PRIMARY SCHOOLS: A SURVEY IN ONE PROVINCE (Những thách thức trong việc dạy tiếng Anh tại các trường tiểu học: Khảo sát tại một tỉnh) M. Thesis Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01 Hanoi – 2019 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 ***************** TRAN THI GIANG THE CHALLENGES OF TEACHING ENGLISH AT PRIMARY SCHOOLS: A SURVEY IN ONE PROVINCE (Những thách thức trong việc dạy tiếng Anh tại các trường tiểu học: Khảo sát tại một tỉnh) M. Thesis Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.Le Van Canh Hanoi – 2019 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DECLARATION I, Tran Thi Giang, declare that the thesis entitled “The challenges of teaching English at primary schools: A survey in one province” reports the result of the study conducted by myself. The thesis is submitted to College of Foreign Languages-Vietnam National University for Degree of Master in TESOL.
It has not been published anywhere. Signature Student Tran Thi Giang i LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to those who gave me the possibility to complete this thesis. Furthermore, I am grateful to his close guidance and generous help, which have been great encouragement to me during the process of writing and completion of thesis. I wish to take this opportunity to express my heart-felt thanks to Mr.
Le Van Canh whose lectures provided me with a great deal of pedagogical knowledge in language teaching. His initial suggestion inspired me conduct this study. I am deeply indebted to the teachers who were willing to give me information via survey questionnaire, face-to-face and facebook interview. My thanks also go to my colleagues, officers in Ninh Binh Provincial DOET, who gave me favorable condition of time for pursuing MA course and completing the research.
Last but not least, I would like to offer my deepest thanks to my family whose affection and support enable me to complete this work. ii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT The research aimed to identify the challenges that faced teachers in teaching English at the primary schools, the challenges learners encounter. Set of questionnaire is designed and the survey is launched in primary schools in a province. The samples of the study were 100 teachers from 100 public schools throughout the province, interview with 8 selected teachers from districts, and observational data collected in 10 schools.
The results of the study indicated that the low motivation and the shallow, negative, and passive teaching, learning strategies lead to the low outcome. In addition, from the results of the study, some pedagogical suggestions related to creating a classroom atmosphere, praises and rewards, opportunities of success, activities and techniques, and more learning strategies, are offered for teachers of English. iii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Teachers’ advantages in teaching Table 3 Teachers' difficulties in teaching English at primary schools Table 4 Teachers’ solutions to their difficulties Table 5 Teachers’ proposals iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF APPREVIATION MOET Ministry of Education and Training DOET Department of Education and Training PELT Primary English Language Teaching EBE English Bilingual Education PEFLTs Primary English foreign language teachers TESOL Teaching English as a foreign language v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION. iii LIST OF TABLES.
iv LIST OF APPREVIATION. v TABLE OF CONTENTS. vi PART 1: INTRODUCTION. Significance of the study.
Aims of the study. Scope of the study. Organization of the thesis. 6 CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW.
Teaching English to primary school children as a global phenomenon. Challenges in teaching English to primary school learners. How do young learners learn English?. Challenges on the part of teachers.
Previous studies on primary school English teaching in Vietnam. 18 CHAPTER 2: THE CONTEXT OF TEACHING ENGLISH TO PRIMARY SCHOOL CHILDREN IN THE PROVINCE. English instruction to primary children in Vietnam. 19 vi LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.
The way forward. Introduction to the province context of teaching-learning English at primary schools. Teachers and their background. 23 CHAPTER 3: THE STUDY .The data collection instruments .Data collection procedure.
Teachers’ experience of English teaching at primary school level. Teachers’ self-judgement of training workshops they have attended. Teachers’ advantages in teaching. Teachers’ difficulties in teaching at primary schools.
Teachers’ solutions to their difficulties. Teachers’ performance in the classroom. 41 APPENDIX vii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com PART 1: INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale English is the increasingly offered at primary level (Enever & Moon, 2009; Nikolov, 2009b) because of the following major reasons: (i).
The widespread assumption that earlier language learning is better (Y. The response to the ever-increasing demand for English as a result of economic globalization (Enever & Moon, 2009; Gimenez, 2009; Hu, Y. Such a demand leads to pressure on governments from international economic forces to ensure there is an English-speaking workforce. The pressure from parents in the national context who want their children to benefit socially and economically from learning English (Brock-Utne & Holmarsdottir, 2004; Enever & Moon, 2009; Gimenez, 2009).
In an effort to become more competitive in the global market, Vietnam, as many other countries in South Asia, has declared English the dominant foreign language to be taught in schools across the country. As a result, in the last 10 years, the government has launched out the project teaching and learning foreign languages – Project 2020, in the 3321 decision, the primary curriculum has been revised and emphasis has been given on learning English. English is being taught in almost primary schools from grade 3 all over the country. The main objectives of teaching English in primary level education in Viet Nam are to enable students to understand simple commands, requests and instructions in English and carry them out.
The students can speak and converse in simple English and also can read to comprehend the textbooks set for their age group and level. They also write words, simple sentences, passages, paragraphs, informal letters and numbers according to their age group and level. 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com Unfortunately many students, especially students of the rural primary schools are unable to attain the primary English language competencies due to prevailing challenges in our education system. A survey is intended to do at primary schools in a province to find out: challenges that teachers, students encounters; what strategies they use to deal with those challenges and how effective they are.
Teaching English to primary children did not receive little concern in Vietnam, it was introduced to grade 3 students. National and local education professionals, now, have a more serious look at the situation. Teaching English to primary children is by nature far different from teaching to other groups of learner. Thus, if teachers are not qualified to work with primary children, they may not be able to motivate the children to study, or to use appropriate, effective tasks to develop students’ communicative competence.
As a foreign language specialist in a Provincial Department of Education and Training, the author saw a great number of challenges of teaching English to primary children in her province. To successfully manage the English teaching- learning throughout the province, the researcher feels the urge to study the challenges perceived by the teachers so that some feasible solutions to the problems can be employed. Significance of the study Since this study is concerned the researcher hope that it will contribute to the province’s duty people a general review of difficulties in teaching English at primary schools after some years to do the Decision 3321, therefore there will be policies to help to solve the problems. For the researcher: With the deputy of English Specialist in Teaching English to primary school students of the province, the researcher can have better understanding about the difficulties of teaching, learning English in 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com primary schools and can be the consultant for teachers, for schools, can propose some methods to have better out come.
For the teacher: This study can support the teacher to develop their teaching abilities. They can adjust strategies to teach the students. In order students will be interested in learning process. For the students: New teaching strategies can help to motivate students to learn English better.
This study points out challenges of teaching English at primary schools. Although the survey was conducted in one province, the author believes the challenges are similar in other provinces throughout the country. Thus, the results of the study will be of some contribution to education management regarding teacher development and language policy implementation. Professionally, the findings and comments of this study are believed to be relevant to improving the primary English teachers’ quality in Vietnam in general and in the province in particular.
The study may be of great suggestions for the enhancement of primary English education in Vietnam. Aims of the study This study aims to investigate challenges of teaching English at primary schools as perceived by the teachers. To be more specific, the objectives of this study are: - To find out the challenges that English teachers at primary schools are facing with. - To explore the challenges in learning English that children at primary schools are encountered.
- To suggest solutions to reduce the problems and challenges of teaching English at primary schools. These aims are formulated into 2 following research questions: 3 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. What challenges are teachers facing when teaching English at primary schools? 2. What challenges do children at primary schools have in learning English? 4.
Research methods This study is a survey study. Three main instruments of data collection are: - Questionnaire administers to 100 teachers of English from 100 primary schools within the province to find out the challenges they are faced with as well as the strategies they use to deal with those challenges. - Interviews with selected teachers to gain more in-depth information about issues raised in the questionnaires responses. - Classroom observations to find out the challenges learners have in learning English.
Participants Participants are 100 teachers from 100 primary schools throughout the province and their students. Data collected from questionnaires were analyzed quantitatively. Data from interviews and class observation were qualitatively analyzed into corresponding topics for triangulation and for answering questions. Scope of the study Dealing with challenges of all types is too broad for a study of this size.
Therefore, the focus of this study is to investigate some challenges relating to professional supports that primary teachers receive from local and national level in their teaching of English at primary schools. Organization of the thesis This minor thesis consists of four chapters. The first part is the introduction which reveals the rationale, significance, aims, methods, participants, scope and organization of the study. 4 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com The second part includes chapters.
Chapter 1 is the literature review centering on Teaching English to primary school children as a global phenomenon, challenges in teaching English to primary school learners, how do young learners learn English, challenges on the part of teachers, privious study on primary school English teaching in Viet Nam and a brief introduction of teaching English to primary students in Vietnam context. Chapter 2 provides information about the research context which is the teaching of English to primary school children in one province.