ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SAU ĐẠI HỌC ********************* ĐÀO THỊ VÂN ANH FACTORS INFLUENCING TERTIARY STUDENTS’ ENGLISH-SPEAKING MOTIVATION IN THE CLASSROOM: A STUDY AT A UNIVERSITY IN HANOI Các yếu tố ảnh hưởng đến động cơ nói tiếng Anh của sinh viên: Nghiên cứu tại một trường Đại học ở Hà Nội Đề án Thạc sĩ Chuyên ngành: Lý luận và phương pháp dạy học bộ môn Tiếng Anh Mã số chuyên ngành: 8140231.01 HÀ NỘI – 2024 ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SAU ĐẠI HỌC ********************* ĐÀO THỊ VÂN ANH FACTORS INFLUENCING TERTIARY STUDENTS’ ENGLISH-SPEAKING MOTIVATION IN THE CLASSROOM: A STUDY AT A UNIVERSITY IN HANOI Các yếu tố ảnh hưởng đến động cơ nói tiếng Anh của sinh viên: Nghiên cứu tại một trường Đại học ở Hà Nội Đề án Thạc sĩ Chuyên ngành: Lý luận và phương pháp dạy học bộ môn Tiếng Anh Mã số chuyên ngành: 8140231.01 Người hướng dẫn: GS. Hoàng Văn Vân HÀ NỘI – NĂM 2024 CERTIFICATION OF ORIGINALITY I hereby certify that this minor thesis entitled “Factors influencing tertiary students’ English-speaking motivation in the classroom: A study at a university in Hanoi” submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts at Faculty of Postgraduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS), Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) is my own study, and that it has not been submitted for a degree to any other universities or institutions. Signature Đào Thị Vân Anh i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My journey of pursuing the master’s degree would not be undertaken without the tremendous support and encouragement from so many, who deserve more than I can put across on paper. My deep thanks would go first to the Faculty of Postgraduate Studies, ULIS, VNU for granting me permission to carry out this thesis.
My sincere appreciation is expressed to my esteemed supervisor, Prof. Hoàng Văn Vân, for his invaluable guidance and feedback. This thesis would not have been completed without his unwavering support and assistance. My heartfelt gratitude is extended to my cherished seniors and dear friends, Thảo Vi Ô Lẹt, Phanh Phúng Phính, and Hậu Gừ Zin, for their kind provision of consultation, which have been instrumental in the successful completion of this study.
To my beloved colleagues and students, thank you all for your contributions to my collection of data. To my loving family and Son Hoang my sweetheart, thank you, for your generous love and encouragement. The affection and backing you have provided have always been my solid source of upliftment. In closing, I would be remiss in not mentioning my own steadfast determination in traversing this challenging journey without giving up.
Though sudden changes have caused some of my peers to discontinue their pursuits, even as the finish line approaches, I have remained unchanged in my commitment to persevere and see this endeavor through to its conclusion. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS CERTIFICATION OF ORIGINALITY. v LIST OF TABLES & CHARTS. vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION.
Identification of the problems and rationale for the study. Aims of the study and research questions. Significance of the study. Scope of the study.
Method of the study. Structure of the thesis .3 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW. Types of motivation. Model of motivation.
The nature of speaking. Definition of speaking skill. Strategies and techniques in teaching speaking. Previous studies on factors impacting learners’ motivation.
Population and sampling techniques. Data collection procedure. Data from the questionnaire. Data from the interviews.
Data analysis procedure .21 CHAPTER 4: RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION. Factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation. Motivational teaching strategies and techniques. Suggestions for improvement.
Based on the questionnaire. Based on the interviews. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS. Limitations of the study.
Recommendations for further research. I APPENDIX A: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS. I APPENDIX B: INTERVIEW QUESTIONS. XVI APPENDIX C: STUDENTS’ RESPONSES TO THE QUESTIONNAIRE.
XVII APPENDIX D: STUDENTS’ INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT .XXXI APPENDIX E: TEACHERS’ INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT. XXXVII APPENDIX F: CONVERSATION AND TOPIC TALK ACTIVITIES. XLIII iv ABSTRACT This study aimed to examine the factors influencing tertiary students’ English- speaking motivation in the classroom, especially the teaching strategies and techniques employed by lecturers and coursebook activities that can influence students’ English-speaking motivation in the classroom. In determining the factors which influence learners’ motivation, the ‘attention (A), relevance (R), confidence (C) and satisfaction (S) model’ of motivation (the ARCS model), was applied to design the questionnaire and analyze data.
Classroom, teacher-related, peer-related, self-related and career-related factors were studied. To evaluate how the coursebook speaking activities, teaching strategies and techniques influence learners’ speaking motivation, online interviews were delivered to both teachers and students. The results suggested that three most prominent factors affecting learners’ English- speaking motivation are teachers' clear instructions, teachers giving bonus points, and students having time for preparation. To increase students' eagerness to communicate in English, teachers should start by providing clear instructions for easy comprehension and smooth delivery of lesson activities, rewarding active class participation with bonus points, and providing students with sufficient preparation time before tasks.
v LIST OF TABLES & CHARTS Tables Table 1. ARCS Model Categories, Definitions, and Process Questions. Subcategories of ARCS Model & Strategies. Sequence of a lesson.
Classroom factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation. Teacher-related factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation. Teacher-related factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation. Peer-related factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation.
Self-related factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation. Career-related factors influencing learners’ English-speaking motivation.33 vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION This chapter provides background information and rationale of the study. It is divided into six sections, namely identification of the problems and rationale for the study, aims of the study, significance of the study, scope of the study, method of the study and structure of the thesis. Identification of the problems and rationale for the study Motivation is considered the root of success in almost every task because it shows the willingness or enthusiasm for the tasks.
In learning and teaching context, the success of learning relies on the fact that whether learners are motivated. Motivation drives learners in achieving learning goals. Motivated students imply enjoyable learning, and motivation is hence probably the most important element of the learning process. Learning can be highly demanding and stressful, hence successful learning can only occur with motivated learners (Filgona et al.
Nowadays, education is compulsory, however, not all students are motivated, some of them attend schools because they are required to do so. Therefore, the responsibility of motivating learners is mainly for teachers at schools. For students who are not specializing in English at the research location, motivation for learning the language was revealed to be at a low level. Most of the students perceive the process of studying English as daunting and challenging to progress in.
Through primary research, learners frequently struggle to maintain their attention during class time, often becoming easily distracted. The knowledge that is supposed to be learned seems difficult for them because most of them are false beginners. In English lessons, it was observed that these students often performed tasks unrelated to English learning, such as tasks from other subjects, or they would frequently use their phones instead of actively participating in the class. Furthermore, many students hesitated to fulfill the assigned tasks and were not willing to perform in-classroom activities.
Being an instructor, the researcher finds it necessary to examine what factors affect learners’ motivation, thus assisting them to level up their motivation in 1 learning, then gaining better results in the English subject. Besides, non-English majors frequently devalue the importance of it as a subject, triggering a lack of motivation to learn the language. As a result, they often overlook the need for revising and practicing English outside of the classroom, hindering their language acquisition progress. In addition, learners are mostly at the elementary level of English, learning English for occupational purposes is highly challenging for them as it is advisable that learners should have strong knowledge about general English before digging deeply into any professional fields.
Therefore, this study aims at researching factors influencing these learners’ motivation in their English language learning process. Aims of the study and research questions The study aims at finding out the factors which have the predominant influence on tertiary students’ English-speaking motivation in the classroom, as well as the teaching strategies and techniques that teachers found beneficial in enhancing students’ motivation to communicate in English. Specifically, the study tries to answer the following two research questions: 1. What factors influence non-English majors’ motivation to speak English in the classroom? 2.
What teaching strategies are effective to motivate non-English majors’ willingness to speak English in class? 1. Significance of the study The study helps the audience to be aware of the factors which influence Vietnamese tertiary students’ motivation to speak English in the classroom, especially students who are non-English majors. This would also enable teachers to effectively exploit, adapt, or modify the in-class activities if necessary. It is essential that a teacher knows about what motivates and demotivates learners and which strategies and techniques are useful in fostering learners’ motivation.
Therefore, it has been a golden opportunity to review main theoretical knowledge relating to motivation in learning, especially motivation in learning a 2 second language in an ESL classroom. Once equipped with such a basis, the teacher might be capable of forming appropriate activities and using motivating techniques or strategies to give rise to her learners’ motivation. Scope of the study As the title suggested, this study is confined to exploring the factors influencing tertiary students’ English-speaking motivation in the classroom and effective methodologies that aid with learner’s motivation to speak. Specifically, the present study concentrates on investigating the factors which influence the non- English-majoring second-year undergraduates, who are learning the course ‘English for Electrical and Electronics Engineering 4’.
As for the practicality with tertiary students, the classroom, teacher-related, peer-related, self-related and career-related factors are examined. Method of the study In order to find the answer for the above research questions, a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods was applied. Two research instruments were used: (1) a questionnaire designed by the researcher based on the theory of the ARCS model of motivation by Keller (2010) and (2) an interview formed by the researcher for the participants. The questionnaire was for students and the interview was for both the teachers and the students.
Structure of the thesis The study will consist of five chapters. Chapter 1: Introduction – provides a brief description of the identification of problems, rationale for the study, aims of the study and research questions, the scope and significance of the study, and the method of the study. Chapter 2: Literature review – covers the overview of the literature which includes relevant theoretical background and reviews of related studies concerning the factors influencing learners’ motivation in learning. Chapter 3: Research Methodology – describes the research methods, research procedures and data analysis procedures of the study.
3 Chapter 4: Findings and Discussion – presents and analyzes the findings and gives possible explanations. Chapter 5: Conclusion – provides a summary of the study, points out the implications and limitations, and makes some suggestions for further research. 4 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter presents the concept of motivation in terms of its definition, its types, and a model of motivation. It also mentions the nature of speaking, definition of speaking skill, teaching speaking, and strategies and techniques in teaching speaking.
After that, some previous studies on the topic are discussed. Motivation There are different definitions for the term motivation. Gardner (1985) defined motivation as the affiliation of attempts and the desire to attain the objective of learning the language and desirable attitudes towards learning the language.