VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ************* NGUYỄN THỊ HÀ THƢƠNG APPLICATION OF VARK LEARNING STYLES MODEL IN PROMOTING MOTIVATION OF NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS IN ENGLISH CLASS IN A POLICE INSTITUTION (Ứng dụng của mô hình học tập VARK trong việc nâng cao động lực học tập cho sinh viên không chuyên trong giờ học tiếng Anh tại một đơn vị giáo dục của Cảnh sát) M.A THESIS (Applied program) Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231.01 Hanoi - 2019 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ************* NGUYỄN THỊ HÀ THƢƠNG APPLICATION OF VARK LEARNING STYLES MODEL IN PROMOTING MOTIVATION OF NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS IN ENGLISH CLASS IN A POLICE INSTITUTION (Ứng dụng của mô hình học tập VARK trong việc nâng cao động lực học tập cho sinh viên không chuyên trong giờ học tiếng Anh tại một đơn vị giáo dục của Cảnh sát) M.A THESIS (Applied program) Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231. Nguyễn Thị Mai Hƣơng Hanoi - 2019 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ABSTRACT This study was intended to investigate the application of VARK model to promote the motivational state of Non-English major students in a police institution. More specifically, the author strived to implement her treatment within one cycle of an action research and aimed to examine (i) the students‟ opinion towards VARK model, and (ii) the effectiveness of VARK towards the motivational state of the students in learning English. To gain the above mentioned objectives, an action research project was conducted with the participant of 31 non-English major students at an academy in Ministry of Public Security.
The data gathered from pre-treatment and post- treatment questionnaire distributed to the students, and interviews with some of the participants. The duration of the treatment was 12 weeks and all the findings reported in this study reflect the result of one cycle of an action research project. It was shown that the majority of the students benefited from the model and their motivation was positively influenced. The most outstanding evidence was found in the participants‟ remarkable improvement in spending time for English after class hour and their increasing linguistic level in terms of higher expectation in English result and progress.
On the basis of the findings, it is suggested that it is important to adopt a new approach in teaching English to make the learning process more enjoyable. i LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This research paper would not have been completed without the help of people to whom I would like to express my deep gratitude. Firs and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Nguyen Thi Mai Huong, my supervisor, for her wholehearted support, precious guidance which were decisive factor to the completion of my study.
Also, I would like to give extend my special thanks to all the lecturers and officers working at the Postgraduate Faculty, University of Languages and International Studies, for their supporting me while I was studying and conducting this thesis. I would like to give my warmest thanks to all the research participants, my dear students. Without their valuable opinions and ideas in the questionnaires and interviews, the research would not have been accomplished. Last but not least, I owe my colleagues at the Foreign Languages Department of The People‟s Police Academy and my family for their support.
Their patience and care which helped me go beyond what sometimes looks like an enormous task. ii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com DECLARATION I hereby certify that the minor thesis entitled “ Application of VARK learning styles model in promoting motivation of non-English major students in English class in a police institution”, which is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in English Language Teaching Methodology at Faculty of Post-graduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi is the result of my own work. I have provided fully documented references to the work of others. The material in this thesis has not been submitted for any other university or institution wholly and partially.
Hanoi, 2019 Nguyen Thi Ha Thuong iii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CLIL : Content and language integrated learning VARK : Visual, Aural, Read/Write, Kinesthetic iv LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES Table 1: Mean scores of the 8 items on attitudes toward learning English. 41 Table 2: Mean scores of the 8 items on the linguistic self-confidence. 43 Table 3: Mean scores of the 7 items on students‟ classroom behaviors. 45 Table 4: Mean scores of the 5 items on students‟ opinions towards the current teaching styles.
46 Table 5: Mean scores of the 13 items on students‟ attitudes towards the VARK model. 48 Table 6: Mean scores of the 3 items on students‟ attitudes towards learning English after participating in VARK teaching-learning model. 50 Table 7: Mean scores of the 5 items on students‟ linguistic self-confidence after participating in VARK teaching-learning model. 51 Table 8: Mean scores of the 7 items on students‟ classroom behavior after participating in VARK teaching-learning model.
52 Figure 1: Time for English after class. 42 Figure 2: Students‟ willingness to volunteer and ability to understand instructions‟ guideline. 44 Figure 3: Students‟ concentration and desire to take challenging exercises. 45 Figure 4: Understanding about learner's preferences & styles and classroom atmosphere.
47 Figure 5: Time for English after class. 50 v LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT. iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS. iv LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES.
Rationale of the study. Aims of the study. Scope of the study. Methods of the study.
Significance of the study. Structure of the thesis. 8 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW. An overview of motivation.
Definition of motivation. Classifications of motivation. Components of foreign language learning motivation. Dörnyei’s framework for motivational strategies.
Creating the basic motivational conditions. Generating initial motivation. Maintaining and protecting motivation. Rounding off the learning experience: encouraging positive self- evaluation.
An overview of VARK model. What is VARK learning styles?. Understanding a visual preference. Understanding an aural preference.
25 vi LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Understanding a read/write preference. Understanding a kinesthetic preference. Previous studies ………………………………………………………… 27 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY.
Rationale for the use of action research. The action procedure. The academy context. Current learning and teaching of English at the Academy.
Description of the questionnaires. Semi-structured interview. Data collection procedures. Data analysis procedures.
39 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION. The English language learning motivational state prior the treatment. The students‟ opinions towards the current teaching styles. Treatment and Post-treatment.
Research question 1: What are students‟ opinions towards the VARK model?. Research question 2: How does the VARK model affect the students‟ motivational state in learning English?. Summary of the findings. Pedagogical implications from the findings.
55 vii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail. Limitations of the study. XXV viii LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale of the study English is a global language which has been believed to be a vital key leading to success in such an integrated world.
According to Crystal (2006) report, this language is spoken as the first language by approximately 330 to 360 million people and the number of second-language speaker ranges greatly from 470 million to more than 1 billion. When combining native and non-native speakers, English is the most widely spoken language worldwide. In Vietnam, learning English has been a trend and students who are able to communicate fluently in English can gain some certain privilege and their future career can be ensured. However, learners‟ attitude and motivation to learn English as a subject are not the same and differences are found among regions, institutions, and classrooms.
While some learners devote much of their time and effort in learning the target language, many appear to be unwilling and even indifferent to the necessity of mastering English. This fact is a result coming from various factors among which motivation plays a considerably influential effect. As Dörnyei (1994:273) stated, “motivation is one of the main dominants of second/foreign language learning achievement.” Later, Dörnyei (2005: 65) emphasized the role of motivation since “motivation provides the primarily impetus to initiate second language learning and later the driving force to sustain the long and often tedious learning process; indeed, all the other factors involved in second language acquisition presuppose motivation to some extent”. For nearly 5 years working at the institution, the author has talked with many non-major English students most of whom share the same feeling that English course is the most difficult one.
To pass the entrance exam to attend the institution, the students must gain a pretty high result but not all of them are confident in their language competence. Passive classroom, unresponsive learners, silent atmosphere in language class are frequently met; the author even 1 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com finds it uneasy to stimulate the fairly advanced learners and make them have more active participation in the lessons. Although the students are required to gain B1 level as a condition to receive graduation paper, many of them feel reluctant to learn English and little progress is made during the course. As a language teacher, the author understands that she cannot effectively teach the target language if the relationship between motivation and its effect on language acquisition is not recognized and valued.
As Epstein and Rogers (2001) explained, because motivation has a vital role in deciding academic success, teachers need to develop various abilities to promote students‟ motivational level. This notion was agreed by Grolnick and Ryan (1987) when they emphasized the role of motivation which has been linked to higher grades and achievement in school. The department where the author has been working at was assigned by the Directorate Board to design a new English course book for the police students. The title of the course book is “English for Police”, which has been applied in real teaching-learning since 2016.
There are 2 „English for Police‟ course books with the target of A2 and B1 level (in the Common European framework of reference for languages). They provide a wide range of police-works-related topics, all the tasks and activities are designed to enable learners to practice the 4 communicative skills. Since the content of the course books are about police works listed as investigation, surveillance, the penal code of Vietnam and so on, it is challenging for both learners and teachers. There have been many times the author heard about students‟ complaint about the pressure that they have undertaken while studying the English course.
Consequently, there arouses a necessity in employing a teaching-learning model which can help increase the learners‟ motivation and encourage them to participate in English classes. Stimulations will help students to be more attracted to learning sessions and instantly give attention to the lessons instructed by the teachers. It is also true that teachers should be creative in diversifying education techniques in class by 2 LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com addressing students‟ learning needs. Effective learning method can draw students‟ interest and attention to the topic being taught.
Interest is an effective nature and also the key factor that influences students to learn, as Harackiewicz, Smith and Priniski (2016:220) pointed, “interest is a powerful motivational process that energies learning, guides academic and carrer trajectories and is essential to academic success.