Speech acts in email communication for international relations at thu dau mot university

BINH DUONG PROVINCIAL PEOPLE’S COMMITTEE THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY NGUYEN HOANG MAI PHUONG SPEECH ACTS IN EMAIL COMMUNICATION FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AT THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY MAJOR: ENGLISH LANGUAGE MAJOR CODE: 8220201 MASTER THESIS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE BINH DUONG PROVINCE – 2021 ỦY BAN NHÂN DÂN TỈNH BÌNH DƯƠNG TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THỦ DẦU MỘT NGUYỄN HỒNG MAI PHƯƠNG HÀNH ĐỢNG NGƠN TỪ TRONG GIAO TIẾP EMAIL QUỐC TẾ TẠI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THỦ DẦU MỘT CHUYÊN NGÀNH: NGÔN NGỮ ANH MÃ SỐ: 8220201 LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC TS NGUYỄN THỊ THANH TÂM BINH DUONG – 2021 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude and appreciation to Ph.D Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam, my research supervisor, for her patient guidance, enthusiastic encouragement, deep knowledge, and useful advice for this thesis Secondly, I gratefully acknowledge Thu Dau Mot University in generally, Faculty of English Language and Office of International Affairs in particular for offering me the most favorable conditions to complete this thesis Furthermore, I would like to express my deep gratitude to my Leaders and colleagues at TDMU for their support and assistance in keeping my progress on schedule Finally, I would like to express my sincerest thanks to my beloved family for their support, sharing, and encouragement throughout my study Without their enthusiastic support and endless love, I would never have completed this thesis Author iii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY I hereby declare that the thesis entitled “Speech Acts in Email Communication for international relations at Thu Dau Mot University” is my original work for the Master Degree of Faculty of English Language, Thu Dau Mot University This thesis does not contain published materials or written by other people except those cited in the references I further certify that this thesis has not been submitted for other degrees or publication in any other education institutions Binh Duong, November 2021 Author NGUYEN HOANG MAI PHUONG iv RETENTION AND USE OF THESIS I hereby state that I, NGUYEN HOANG MAI PHUONG, being a candidate for the degree of Master of English Language accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of Master’s Theses deposited in the Library In this regard, I agree that the original of my Master’s thesis deposited in the Library should be accessible for purposes of study and research Binh Duong, November 2021 Author NGUYEN HOANG MAI PHUONG v TABLE OF CONTENT ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY iv RETENTION OF USE v TABLE OF CONTENT vi LIST OF TABLES x LIST OF FIGURES AND CHARTS xi LIST OF APPENDICES xii ABSTRACT xiii CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the study 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Research objectives and questions 1.3.1 Research objectives 1.3.2 Research questions 1.4 Significance of the study 1.4.1 Practical Significance 1.4.2 Theoretical Significance 1.5 Scope of the study 1.6 Limitations of the study 1.7 Organization of the study 1.8 Summary CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Pragmatics and Speech Acts in Pragmatics 2.1.1 Definition of Pragmatics vi 2.1.2 Speech Acts 2.1.2.1 Definition of Speech Acts 2.1.2.2 Types of Speech Acts 10 2.2 Previous Studies of Speech Acts 15 2.3 Email Communication 17 2.3.1 Parts of Emails 18 2.3.2 Language use in writing emails 19 2.3.3 Types of Emails 25 2.4 Speech Act in Email Communication 26 2.5 Context 27 2.6 Conceptual framework of the study 27 2.7 Summary 29 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 30 3.1 Research Design 30 3.2 Research Questions 31 3.3 Setting 32 3.4 Data source and samples 32 3.4.1 Data sources 32 3.4.2 Samples 32 3.5 Instruments of the Research 32 3.6 Data Collection Method 34 3.7 Data Analysis Method 34 3.8 Data Trustworthiness 35 3.9 Summary 36 CHAPTER RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 38 4.1 Results 38 4.2 Discussion 45 4.3 Summary 78 CHAPTER CONCLUSION 80 vii 5.1 Conclusion 80 5.2 Implications of the research 81 5.2.1 For OIA’s staff and others who work in the field of international relations: 81 5.2.2 For students of English Language 82 5.2.3 For lecturers of English Language 82 5.2.4 For other researchers 82 5.3 Recommendations for further study 82 5.4 Summary 83 REFERENCES 84 APPENDICES 90 viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS TDMU Thu Dau Mot University OIA Office of International Affairs MOU Memorandum of understanding EAIM East Asia Institute of Management SUT Suranaree University of Technology UNISMA University of Islam Malang HNU Hannam University TAU Tarlac Agricultural University RSU Rangsit University CJCU Chang Jung Christian University GUFL Guangxi University of Foreign Languages CNU Chungnam National University NMIT Nelson Malborough Institite of Technology ix LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1 Data sheet of Speech Acts found in OIA’s emails 33 Table 4.1 Data of Representatives and their functions found in OIA’s emails 39 Table 4.2 Data of Directives and their functions found in OIA’s emails 39 Table 4.3 Data of Commissives and their functions found in OIA’s emails 40 Table 4.4 Data of Expressives and their functions found in OIA’s emails 40 Table 4.5 Data of Declaratives and their functions found in OIA’s emails 41 Table 4.6 The total types of Illocutionary Acts and their functions found in OIA’s emails 41 Table 4.7 List of each functions of the types of Illoctionary Acts 43 Table 4.8 Combinations of Illocutionary Acts’ types and their functions found in OIA’s emails 44 Table 4.9 Structures/Expressions and Sentences of Representatives’ Functions 74 Table 4.10 Structures/Expressions and Sentences of Commissives’ Functions 75 Table 4.11 Structures/Expressions and Sentences of Directives’ Functions 76 Table 4.12 Structures/Expressions and Sentences of Expressives’ Functions 77 Table 4.13 Sentences of the functions of four Illocutionary Acts’ types 94 x again carefully Once again, (e) thank you for letting me know about the possible meeting time (f) I will let our leaders know and respond to you as soon as possible SA/32/2.2020 (a) Dear Prof Marie- (c) Christine HO BA Informing THO, (b) Greetings from the Office of International Affairs, Thu Dau Mot University (c) TDMU is going to organise 5th International Conference on Research in Intelligent and Computing in Engineering on June 03-04, 2020 (d) Our chairman Nguyen Van Hiep would like to invite you to be our Thanking (d) Inviting (e) Requesting (f) Requesting 135 (a) (b) Greeting (g) Thanking (h), (i) Farewell to Dinamika University Dinamika University also replied to TDMU However, TDMU did not receive any mail from Dinamika University This mail is sent to apologize and confirm the information to Dinamika University The email is sent on February 25th , 2020 in order to invite Prof MarieChristine HO BA THO, Universite de technologie de Compiegne, France as the Invited Speaker at the 5th International Conference on Research in Intelligent and Computing in Engineering organized by TDMU SA/33/9.2020 honourable guest (e) Please refer to the attachments of invitation letter (f) We would like to kindly ask for a response via email in order to prepare the programs in advance (g) Thank you so much for your kind cooperation (h) Kindest Wishes, (i) Sincerely, (a) Dear Dr Min-Yu (e) Agreeing (e) Stating of Li, desire (b) Thank you so much (f) Requesting for your email On the behalf of our university and Prof Nguyen Van Hiep, (c) we would like to say thank you for your invitation to join CJCU (d) It sounds as a great program and (e) we would love to participate and know 136 (a) Greeting (b) and (c) Thanking (d) Praising (g) Farewell The email is sent to Dr Min-Yu Li, Dean, Office of Global Engagement, Chang Jung Christian University (CJCU), Taiwan on th September , 2019 CJCU sends an invitaition for TDM to join CJCU and participate the international pilot study on EMI-Ready Rating, developed by AppliedHE, a Singaporebased organization aiming to support employers and SA/34/9.2020 more information about it (f) Please let us know when is the online meeting take place (g) Sincerely, (a) Dear Prof (f) Takahashi Shinichi, Informing (b) Thank you so much for visiting our university this morning (c) It is a great please to meet and discuss with you about the potential collaboration between Thu Dau Mot University and Bukkyo University (d) We would like to send a MOU daft for the cooperation between our universities (e) Please let us know if you have any questions (f) We also attach a MOU between us with educators in recruitment and branding TDMU expresses thanks and agrees to participate the program (d) Stating of (e) Offering desire 137 (a) Greeting (b) Thanking (c) Expressing appreciatio n (g) Farewell The email is sent to Prof Takahashi Shinichi, Bukkyo University on September 8th , 2019 TDMU and Bukkyo University have a meeting to discuss about signing MOU TDMU expresses thanks and sends a draft MOU for the cooperation between two universities SA/35/9.2020 one of the universities in Taiwan for your reference (g) Sincerely, (a) Dear Mr Andy (c) Choo, Informing (b) Warm Greetings from Thu Dau Mot University, Vietnam On behalf of TDMU President, Dr Nguyen Thi Nhat Hang, (c) I am writing this letter to inform you about our plan to send our staff studying for a Master degree at EAIM (d) Please refer to the attached file for our President's letter (e) Please stay safe and healthy (f) We are looking forward to hearing from you soon (g) Yours sincerely, (d) Requesting 138 (a) (b) Greeting (e) Wishing (f) Expressing expectation (g) Farewell The email is sent to Mr Andy Choo, East Asia Institute of Management (EAIM), Korea on September 11th, 2020 TDMU and EAIM signed MOU and now TDMU has a plan to send TDMU’s staff to study Master Degree in International Management and Leadership with Hospitality at EAIM since October, 2020 TDMU hopes to receive support from EAIM UBND TỈNH BÌNH DƯƠNG TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THỦ DẦU MỘT CỘNG HÒA XÃ HỘI CHỦ NGHĨA VIỆT NAM Độc lập – Tự – Hạnh phúc Bình Dương, ngày 12 tháng 01 năm 2022 BIÊN BẢN CUỘC HỌP HỘI ĐỒNG CHẤM LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ Của học viên: Nguyễn Hoàng Mai Phương Về đề tài: SPEECH ACTS IN EMAIL COMMUNICATION FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AT THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY Tại Hội đồng trực tuyến - Trường Đại học Thủ Dầu Một, ngày 12 tháng 01 năm 2022 Hội đồng chấm luận văn thành lập theo Quyết định số, 2025/QĐ-ĐHTDM, ngày 29/12/2021 Hiệu trưởng Trường Đại học Thủ Dầu Một nghe học viên: Nguyễn Hồng Mai Phương trình bày tóm tắt nội dung luận văn thạc sĩ Nhận xét, đặt câu hỏi thành viên Hội đồng chấm luận văn: 1/-TS Trần Thanh Dũ (Chủ tịch hội đồng) - Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét) - Câu hỏi: On what criteria you base to choose the emails for investigation? 2/-TS Nguyễn Kim Loan (Phản biện 1) - Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét) - Câu hỏi: How can this research implications be utilized in teaching and learning English? 3/-TS Lê Thị Thanh (Phản biện 2) - Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét) - Câu hỏi: khơng có 4/-TS Huỳnh Thị Bích Phượng (ủy viên) - Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét) - Câu hỏi: None 5/-TS Trần Ngọc Mai (thư ký) - Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét) - Câu hỏi: You analysed 35 emails Do you think your dataset is rich enough? Are the findings in line with findings from previous studies in the field and what you expected? Sau nghe tác giả trả lời người hướng dẫn khoa học nhận xét luận văn Hội đồng họp riêng thông qua kết luận Khi thông qua kết luận, Hội đồng bầu Ban kiểm phiếu gồm: 1) Trần Thanh Dũ, Trưởng ban 2) Nguyễn Thị Kim Loan, Ủy viên 3) Lê Thị Thanh, Ủy viên Căn vào kết bỏ phiếu Hội đồng chấm luận văn là: + Số thành viên Hội đồng tham gia bỏ phiếu: 05/05 + Tổng số điểm chấm luận văn Hội đồng: 31 + Điểm bình quân: 6.2đ Hội đồng kết luận: 1) Bản luận văn học viên Nguyễn Hoàng Mai Phương đáp ứng yêu cầu luận văn Thạc sĩ 2) Các nội dung đề nghị chỉnh sửa: - TS Lê Thị Thanh The Abstract, the Acknowledgements, and the Statement of Originality include the basic information but language use should be carefully checked to be formally presented There is a mismatch between the title of the thesis (Speech Acts) and the content of the research (Illocutionary Acts) that needs modification 3.Many mistakes and errors grammar or sentence structures distort the meanings of many sentences: For Section 2.1.2.1, Definition of Speech Act, “As for Chailka (1994:153), Speech Acts as “the ways people use language to manage the social interaction This definition indicates clearly the function of Speech Acts in interpersonal communication It means words not only represent their literal meaning, but also various things in various situations based on people’s communication purposes.” 4.When we have the same footnotes at one page we not need to repeat the same sources by using the word “ibid” - TS Huỳnh Thị Bích Phương - Presenting the descriptions of types of Illocutionary Acts employed in emails from OIA on p.35, p.39, p.40, p.42 should be more accurate to avoid confusions - Emails presented in Chapter should be moved to the Appendices - TS Nguyễn Kim Loan - Research topic is about Speech Acts but its content is about Illocutionary Act - No evidence for the statement: Moreover, other researchers also discovers that email writing style is quite diverse (p.20) - In 1.5 Scope of the study … In this study, the researcher tries to find the types of Illocutionary Acts (p.6) But In the framework of this study (p.30), the candidate designed acts: Locutionary acts, Illocutionary acts, Perlocutionary acts During the research, although Illocutionary acts, Perlocutionary acts are in framework, they are not mentioned and studied - In 2.4 Speech Acts in Email Communication, the research can not cover a whole overview about types of Speech acts In this part, the candidate reviews previous studies that are related to the research topic with the concentration in listing the writers’ names and works; there are a few arguments and criticalness from the candidate More over, the last sentence in this part: “In this study, the researcher analyzes each sentence in a single email or in sentence level to clarify the acts and their functions.(p.29)” is not suitable to the mission of Literature review - In 2.6 This study employs Pragmatic Approach, mainly carried out with a combination of Qualitative Method and Quantitative Method There should be an adequate definition of Pragmatic approach, Qualitative Method and Quantitative Method; the plan how they work and combine in this research; the role of Pragmatic approach in this research - In 3.6 Data Collection Method The candidate has no information to support the observation method, and offers no proof of employment it “…the researcher not only employs…purposive sampling method but also the documentary and the observation….” (p.36) - In 3.8 Data Trustworthiness the research data is about Office of International Affairs ’s emails communication, so Data Trustworthiness should also be confirmed by the leaders of that office (not merely by her colleague whose majors in linguistics with the master degrees and her supervisor in order to confirm the research data.) (p.50) Data is not exact in this statement: The meeting between the two universities can be arrange around 2pm … (p.50) - With the function as a concept-driven basement for the study, conceptual framework of the study is not suitable in Chapter Literature review It is better in Chapter as a structure in conducting the methodology applied in carrying the study - No accurate in statistics: Table 4.6: What is Percentage (%) about? (resulted in Figure 4.1) - Lack of page number of citation: “Bogdan and Biklen (1982) say that the researcher is the main instrument of qualitative research.” (p.35) - Lack of scientific basement: In the process of collecting the data, the researcher not only employs the purposive sampling method but also the documentary the observation method …(p.36) - List of Abbreviation is inadequate: lack of MOU, EAIM - Not selectively used words: retention of use (p.vi) (retention: the continued use -Cambridge Dictionary) - Grammar : wrongly …it will help OIA’s staff to use Speech Acts easier and more effective to contact…(p.13); Particularly, OIA has the function of developing international cooperation, managing international conferences seminars, signing and international agreement and strengthening ……… (p.34); In this ….the researcher are responsible for designing,….(p.35) - Ambiguity: In this study, the researcher tries… and their functions expressed in OIA’s emails using the classification of Searle… (p.6) - Run-on: “This research only focuses on the categorization of Speech Acts mainly the types of the Illocutionary Acts and their functions proposed by Searle expressed in OIA’s emails in TDMU from January 2018 to October 2021.” (p.6) “The researcher chooses… with partners” (6 lines) (p.30) - Many spelling errors: funtion (p.x), (p.xii), Illoctionary (p.x) (p.xii), encyclopaedia (p.99)… - TS Trần Ngọc Mai - Update references (The author cited a lot of references that were published fifty or sixty years ago) - Move the contents of the emails to the Appendix section - Remove the sections: Previous studies of speech acts; The advantages and disadvantages of emails because they are irrelevant (They are not the focus of the present study) - Analyse the relevant data only, not everything from the emails the author collected - Discuss whether the results are expected or unexpected - Interpret/explain the results, and show how the results of the present study are similar or different from what have been found in previously published works 3) Đề nghị công nhận học vị Thạc sĩ cho học viên Nguyễn Hoàng Mai Phương sau chỉnh sửa, góp ý theo khuyến nghị/đề nghị thành viên Hội đồng (Học viên phải trình Luận văn chỉnh sửa Bản giải trình cho Chủ tịch Thư ký Hội đồng xem xác nhận trước nộp Viện Đào tạo Sau đại học để hoàn tất thủ tục Bảo vệ LVThS, chậm 01 tháng kể từ ngày nhận Hồ sơ nhận xét Hội đồng)./ THƯ KÝ HỘI ĐỒNG CHỦ TỊCH HỘI ĐỒNG Trần Ngọc Mai Trần Thanh Dũ THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM Independence - Freedom - Happiness M.A THESIS COMMENTS AND EVALUATION Research title: Speech acts in email communication for international relations at Thu Dau Mot University Candidate: Nguyễn Hoàng Mai Phương Supervisor(s): Dr Nguyễn Thị Thanh Tâm Examiner: Dr Nguyễn Kim Loan Role: MA Thesis Reviewer Examiner’s institution: Vietnam Aviation Academy COMMENTS Study significance, scientific and practical implications The research has been in one of the aspects in the field of Pragmatics - Speech Acts It aimed at identifying types of Illocutionary Acts and their functions employed in emails In general, the research has a significance in providing more knowledge and information about Speech Acts, especially Illocutionary Act’ types and their functions in certain contexts It also has scientific and practical implications as a reference for staff, students and lecturers of English Language to get additional knowledge about mastering how to contact and exchange with international partnerships through emails Appropriateness of the research topic Research topic “Speech acts in email communication for international relations at Thu Dau Mot University” is fitted with the English Language Major and its code 8220201 Research methodology The research methodology (both qualitative and quantitative methods) with the description and analysis of data is suitable to the study content Structure and format of the paper The research is fairly well reasonable planned, designed, and organized Its structure is designed with five chapters which are linked and transited smoothly The length of the research is satisfied (98 pages, not counted References and Appendix) The research provides tables and figures suitably to illustrate the results The readers are supported to follow the research phases easily The format of the paper is clear, reasonable, and visible Research findings and contributions Research findings are useful in showing that there are four types of Illocutionary Acts and 28 functions in OIA’s emails From the findings, the research can contribute implications in teaching and learning about Speech Acts, especially Illocutionary Act’ types and their functions in certain contexts Suggestions for research improvement - Research topic is about Speech Acts but its content is about Illocutionary Act - No evidence for the statement: Moreover, other researchers also discovers that email writing style is quite diverse (p.20) - In 1.5 Scope of the study … In this study, the researcher tries to find the types of Illocutionary Acts (p.6) But In the framework of this study (p.30), the candidate designed acts: Locutionary acts, Illocutionary acts, Perlocutionary acts During the research, although Illocutionary acts, Perlocutionary acts are in framework, they are not mentioned and studied - In 2.4 Speech Acts in Email Communication, the research can not cover a whole overview about types of Speech acts In this part, the candidate reviews previous studies that are related to the research topic with the concentration in listing the writers’ names and works; there are a few arguments and criticalness from the candidate More over, the last sentence in this part: “In this study, the researcher analyzes each sentence in a single email or in sentence level to clarify the acts and their functions.(p.29)” is not suitable to the mission of Literature review - In 2.6 This study employs Pragmatic Approach, mainly carried out with a combination of Qualitative Method and Quantitative Method There should be an adequate definition of Pragmatic approach, Qualitative Method and Quantitative Method; the plan how they work and combine in this research; the role of Pragmatic approach in this research - In 3.6 Data Collection Method The candidate has no information to support the observation method, and offers no proof of employment it “…the researcher not only employs…purposive sampling method but also the documentary and the observation….” (p.36) - In 3.8 Data Trustworthiness the research data is about Office of International Affairs ’s emails communication, so Data Trustworthiness should also be confirmed by the leaders of that office (not merely by her colleague whose majors in linguistics with the master degrees and her supervisor in order to confirm the research data.) (p.50) Data is not exact in this statement: The meeting between the two universities can be arrange around 2pm … (p.50) - With the function as a concept-driven basement for the study, conceptual framework of the study is not suitable in Chapter Literature review It is better in Chapter as a structure in conducting the methodology applied in carrying the study - No accurate in statistics: Table 4.6: What is Percentage (%) about? (resulted in Figure 4.1) - Lack of page number of citation: “Bogdan and Biklen (1982) say that the researcher is the main instrument of qualitative research.” (p.35) - Lack of scientific basement: In the process of collecting the data, the researcher not only employs the purposive sampling method but also the documentary the observation method …(p.36) - List of Abbreviation is inadequate: lack of MOU, EAIM - Not selectively used words: retention of use (p.vi) (retention: the continued use Cambridge Dictionary) - Grammar : wrongly …it will help OIA’s staff to use Speech Acts easier and more effective to contact…(p.13); Particularly, OIA has the function of developing international cooperation, managing international conferences seminars, signing and international agreement and strengthening ……… (p.34); In this ….the researcher are responsible for designing,….(p.35) - Ambiguity: In this study, the researcher tries… and their functions expressed in OIA’s emails using the classification of Searle… (p.6) - Run-on: “This research only focuses on the categorization of Speech Acts mainly the types of the Illocutionary Acts and their functions proposed by Searle expressed in OIA’s emails in TDMU from January 2018 to October 2021.” (p.6) “The researcher chooses… with partners” (6 lines) (p.30) - Many spelling errors: funtion (p.x), (p.xii), Illoctionary (p.x) (p.xii), encyclopaedia (p.99)… General evaluation and scoring Although the research contains both strengths and weaknesses, it shows the candidate’s great effort in accomplishing such an academic paper It should be revised after the defense for final submission It is recommended that the research report meets the required standard for the award of the Master of Art Degree on satisfactory completion of the recommended emendations Score: 6.0 (six) Questions How can this research implications be utilized in teaching and learning English? Thu Dau Mot City, 12th January 2022 (Examiner’s signature and full name) Dr Nguyễn Kim Loan THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM Independence - Freedom - Happiness M.A THESIS COMMENTS AND EVALUATION Research title: Speech Acts in Email Communication for international relations at Thu Dau Mot University Candidate: Nguyen Hoang Mai Phuong Supervisor: Dr Nguyen Thi Thanh Tam Examiner: Le Thi Thanh, PhD Role: Second Examiner COMMENTS Study significance, scientific and practical implications This thesis starts with a specific aim at identifying types of Illocutionary Acts and their functions employed in emails of the Office of International Affairs (OIA) at Thu Dau Mot University (TDMU) With that objective the researcher made an investigation into 35 English outgoing emails from January 2018 to October 2021 of OIA, TDMU to clarify how Representatives, Directives, Commissives, and Expressives are mainly used with 28 functions for communication Despite the business mission and the permission granted from TDMU and OIA, that kind of investigation might raise the issue of Information Privacy and Confidentiality Moreover, many statements in the background to the study should be modified or adjusted as they tend to bias the contributions of this study as noted on page “If people who work in the field of international relations not know clearly about Speech Acts or the knowledge of Speech Acts, particularly how Speech Acts perform and how to use Speech Acts, they may misunderstanding the partners’ intended meanings through sentences and cannot use Speech Acts effectively to convey their intentions to the partners as well.” And later, “That will lead to not being able to build a good relationship with partners Moreover, misunderstanding is one of the main reasons for disruption in relationships In TDMU, until now, the study on Speech Acts in emails, especially with foreign partners in international relations has not been conducted yet In consequence, the researcher decides to conduct a study on Speech Acts employed in email messages of OIA in TDMU.” Mai Phuong should avoid making exaggeration of the functions of Speech Act that can be recognized in many parts later About the Introduction and Literature Review of the thesis: With the Introduction the candidate could provide readers with the amount of workload in communication of the international relation aspect of TMDU That means she could provide readers with concrete background of the study with number of mail exchanges in OIA at TDMU In Literature Review, the candidate was able to cite the sources of statements to make the study scientifically based Mai Phuong could cite Yule’s (1996) and Paltridge’s (2006) for theories of Pragmatics studies in relation to the context and functions of Speech Act Mai Phuong could apply Searle’s (1976) Speech Act categories and previous studies to design the theoretical framework for her study However, Mai Phuong may need to analyze some more major studies on Speech Act in emails to highlight the gap to identify the necessity of conducting research on expression of appreciation in a separate part It is obvious the author already personally concluded the findings of the study in the significance of the study in terms of theory and practice Moreover, Chapter does not indicate the discussion of relevant theories about advantages and disadvantages of mails Instead, it simply lists ideas, and the coherence and cohesion within different sections are not well established Research methodology Chapter needs rewriting to properly describe sampling 35 mails chosen from 62 English email messages from January 2018 to October 2021 The researcher just described how she collected those English emails without citing her reason, “Reading and observing English emails carefully and applying the purposive sampling technique, the researcher identifies and selects 35 English emails to analyze.” (p.36) Structure and format of the paper In general, the thesis contains all necessary components of an MA thesis The content in each chapter is appropriately presented The candidate has proved her competence in reaching her goal of study with linguistic and ELT significance and implications The study was presented in the conventional format of an MA thesis with chapters and the required content included in each section However, there is no consistency in format, citations and idea organization that turns the thesis into serious format errors Research findings and contributions Chapter is the longest one from page 39 to page 94 The candidate presented the results and discussion in forms of tables, pie charts and bar charts that illustrate the data for analysis and synthesis The data should have been recorded anonymous by data codes to avoid the violation of privacy When discussing the results, the candidate was able to confirm the pedagogical implications teaching and learning English language She could also point out the limitations of the study in terms of scope and study method which is a good issue in the last chapter because at least that part did not reveal the candidate’s overconfidence as in Chapter However, there was no usage of the observation method as mentioned for the qualitative approach Suggestions for research improvement The Abstract, the Acknowledgements, and the Statement of Originality include the basic information but language use should be carefully checked to be formally presented There is a mismatch between the title of the thesis (Speech Acts) and the content of the research (Illocutionary Acts) that needs modification 3.Many mistakes and errors grammar or sentence structures distort the meanings of many sentences: For Section 2.1.2.1, Definition of Speech Act, “As for Chailka (1994:153), Speech Acts as “the ways people use language to manage the social interaction This definition indicates clearly the function of Speech Acts in interpersonal communication It means words not only represent their literal meaning, but also various things in various situations based on people’s communication purposes.” 4.When we have the same footnotes at one page we not need to repeat the same sources by using the word “ibid” General evaluation and scoring Despite the unavoidable shortcomings, the thesis has proved the candidate efforts in reviewing related literature, examining the Speech Act in the emails International Office to identify the linguistic items The study needs modifications to better represent the candidate’s passion in research At this stage I would like to congratulate Mai Phuong for completing the thesis and presenting it in the oral defense this morning Thu Dau Mot City, 12 January 2022 Le Thi Thanh, PhD ... responsible for developing international cooperation, managing international conferences and seminars, signing international agreements, and strengthening the relationship between TDMU and international. .. Illocutionary Act that tells about a statement of fact This type performs actions including Stating, Informing, Agreeing, Explaining, Complaining, Concluding, Deducing, Hypothesizing, Insisting, and so... study in the form of a thesis entitled ? ?Speech Acts in Email Communication for international relations at Thu Dau Mot University? ?? 1.2 Aims of the study The study aims to investigate the types