USING PICTURES TO TEACH ENGLISH VOCABULARY

1 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING VINH UNIVERSITY TRẦN THỊ THANH TUYỀN USING PICTURES TO TEACH ENGLISH VOCABULARY TO PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENTS Major: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Code: 60140111 MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION SUPERVISOR: Ngơ Đình Phương, Assoc.Prof.,Dr Vinh, 2017 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I certify that the thesis entitled “Using pictures to teach English vocabulary to primary school students” is the result of my own work Vinh, 2017 Author’s signature Trần Thị Thanh Tuyền ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I greatly appreciate supporting from my supervisor, Assoc Prof., Dr Ngo Dinh Phuong He tried his best to guide me, support me in my thesis In addition, my sincere thanks are due to the teachers and the students at Hong Ha primary school where I the research The teachers helped me in arranging the classes where I the surveys The students cooperated well with me in my surveys Moreover, I also want to say a big thanks to my classmates with their encouragement Finally, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my family for their love and encouragement They always give me the advice as I am tired ABSTRACT Vocabulary is very important in learning language It is seen as central to English language teaching because without sufficient vocabulary students cannot understand others or express their own ideas There are many techniques to teach English vocabulary However, in this research, I would like to explore using pictures in teaching English vocabulary to primary schools students The study focuses on the students’ attitudes towards using pictures in teaching English vocabulary and the use of pictures helps students improve their memorization of English vocabulary The research was taken place in Hong Ha primary school in Ho Chi Minh City with 86 third- graders from two classes 3/5 and 3/6 The instruments I used were: pre-questionnaire and post-questionnaire with twenty statements for each, two tests with twelve items for each The data results from questionnaires and tests were treated via Excel program The results showed that the students liked using pictures in learning vocabulary and had a positive attitude towards using pictures in teaching English vocabulary In addition, using pictures could help learners in remembering the words better In conclusion, the students had a positive attitude towards using pictures in learning English vocabulary and it helped learners improve their memorization in learning English vocabulary TABLE OF CONTENT STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT .iii CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Rationale .1 Aims Scope .3 Research Questions .3 Organization of the study CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 English Vocabulary teaching 2.1.1 Vocabulary definition 2.1.2 Kinds of Vocabulary 2.1.3 Techniques for teaching vocabulary 2.1.4 Principle for teaching vocabulary…………………………………… 10 2.1.5 The importance of vocabulary in language learning ………………… 10 2.1.6 Stages to teach vocabulary …………………………………………….11 2.1.7 How to teach and learn vocabulary effectively ………………………12 2.1.8 Presenting vocabulary 13 2.2 Pictures in vocabulary teaching …………………………………………14 2.2.1 Picture definition …………………………………………………… 14 2.2.2 Types of pictures………………………………………………………14 2.2.3 The criteria of a good picture ……………………………………… 17 2.2.4 The advantages of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary … 18 2.2.5 The use of pictures in teaching vocabulary ………………………… 20 2.3 Ways of using pictures as a teaching strategy ………………………… 23 2.3.1 Drills…………………………………………………….…………….23 2.3.2 Communication (games)……………………………………….…… 23 2.3.3 Understanding ………………………………………………….…….23 2.3.4 Ornamentation ……………………………………………………….24 2.3.5 Prediction …………………………………………………………….24 2.3.6 Discussion ……………………………………………………………24 2.4 The textbook Family and Friends-grade 3, special Edition ……………24 2.4.1 The overall design of the textbook ………………………………….25 2.4.2 Family and Friends-grade 3, special Edition The general features of the textbook …………………………………25 2.4.3 2.4.4 Family and Friends-grade 3, special Edition Description of the English Vocabulary section in this textbook ……………………………………………………………………….26 The repetition of vocabulary in each unit in the textbook Family , and Friends- grade special edition…………………………………28 2.5 Activities where pictures are used to teach vocabulary in textbook Family and Friends-grade special edition………………………………….29 2.6 The English learning of primary schools students………………………30 2.6.1 Learners’ problems in vocabulary learning at primary schools .30 2.6.2The current situation and problems of vocabulary teaching at primary schools 31 2.6.3 The characteristics of students at primary schools 31 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY…………………………………………… 33 3.1Participants……………………………………………………………….33 3.2 Instruments to collect data……………………………………………… 33 3.2.1 Questionnaires…………………………………………………………33 3.2.2 Vocabulary tests .35 3.3 Procedures to collect data 37 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 39 4.1 Students’ attitudes towards using pictures in teaching English vocabulary in pre-questionnaire and post questionnaire……………………………………39 4.1.1 Pre-questionnaire…………………………………………………… 40 4.1.2Post-questionnaire …………………………………………………… 42 4.2 Students’ performance through vocabulary tests analysis ………………48 4.3 Discussion on the results of the study ………………………………… 54 4.3.1 What are the primary school students’ attitudes towards using pictures in learning English vocabulary? 54 4.3.2 To what extent may the use of pictures help students improve their memorization of English vocabulary? 55 CHAPTER CONCLUSION……………………………………………… 58 5.1 Conclusion………………………………………………………………58 5.1.1 What are the primary school students’ attitudes towards using pictures in learning English vocabulary? 58 5.1.2 To what extent may the use of pictures help students improve their memorization of English vocabulary? 59 5.2 Recommendation……………………………………………………….59 5.2.1 Teachers………………………………………………………………59 5.2.2 Students………………………………………………………………60 5.3 Suggestion for further study……………………………………………60 5.3.1 Limitation…………………………………………………………….60 5.3.2 Suggestion for further study …………………………………………61 REFERENCES …………………………………………………………….62 APPENDICES …………………………………………………………… 65 TABLES LISTS Table 2.1: Some criteria of a good picture ……………………………… 17 Table 2.2: Advantages of using pictures in teaching English…………… 18 Table 2.3: Description of the English vocabulary section in “Family and Friends-grade special edition” textbook……………………………… 27 Table 2.4: The repetition of vocabulary in each unit in “Family and Friendsgrade special edition” textbook …………………………………………28 Table 4.1: Clusters of the questionnaires………………………………….39 Table 4.2: Descriptive statistic of students’ attitudes on the benefits of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary in pre-questionnaire ……………40 Table 4.3: Descriptive statistic of students’ attitudes on the drawbacks of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary in pre-questionnaire…………… 41 Table 4.4: Descriptive statistic of students’ attitudes on the benefits of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary in post-questionnaire ………… 42 Table 4.5: Descriptive statistic of students’ attitudes on the drawbacks of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary in post-questionnaire ………….43 Table 4.6: Outline of the tests…………………………………………… 48 Table 4.7: Mean and SD of two classes in test 1………………………… 49 Table 4.8: Mean and SD of two classes in test 2………………………….50 Table 4.9: The incidental probability (p) in test and test of two classes53 CHART LIST AND PICTURE LIST Picture 2.1: Techniques for teaching vocabulary Picture 2.2: Pictures of individual animals …………………………………14 Picture 2.3: Pictures of situation…………………………………………….15 Picture 2.4: Sources of Pictures for vocabulary teaching …………………….22 Picture 2.5: Look and Write …………………………………………………29 Picture 2.6: Read and draw the times on the clocks …………………………30 Figure 4.1: The Students’ attitudes on the benefits of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary between pre-questionnaire and post-questionnaire……45 Figure 4.2: The Students’ attitudes on the drawbacks of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary between pre-questionnaire and post-questionnaire ………………………………………………………………………………46 Figure 4.3: Compare about the agreement of students between prequestionnaire and post-questionnaire in cluster and cluster of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary …………………………………………… 47 Figure 4.4: The Mean score of test and test of classes ……………….52 CHAPTER INTRODUCTION In this chapter, it shows the rationale for choosing the title for the master thesis, aims of the study, scope, research questions, and organization of the study 1.1 Rationale English is an international language in the world It is taught in many schools not only in Vietnam but also in almost every country on this earth Vocabulary, as one of the knowledge areas in language, plays a great role for learners in acquiring a language (Cameron, 2001) Vocabulary is very important for learners in learning a language It is seen as an important part of knowledge in learning English In addition, vocabulary is seen as central to English language teaching because without sufficient vocabulary students cannot understand others or express their own ideas Therefore, Wilkins (1972) states the importance of vocabulary that “…while without grammar very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed” (pp.111-112) For example, two friends, native speaker and Vietnamese, talk about their house Although Vietnamese friend does not have the good grammar knowledge, he or she has a great source of vocabulary about “house” topic Therefore he or she can describe about his or her house, and the native speaker can understand what the Vietnamese friend says Vocabulary is very important in learning foreign language If learners want to be successful in learning skills such as listening, speaking, reading, and writing, they need to prepare vocabularies as much as possible They need to practice vocabularies every day For example, with the words related to the topic learners learn, it helps them in learning speaking and writing with the productive vocabulary It also helps learners in learning listening, reading with the receptive vocabulary Therefore, O’Rourke (1974) states that vocabulary development is a 10 vital part of each student‘s life It affects his thoughts, actions, aspirations, and often his success In general, success with words means success in many areas, particularly in academic achievement In a world expanding fast in every field the need to expand and enrich student’s vocabularies is compellingly apparent (p.14) At primary schools, some learners are afraid of learning English vocabulary They can learn new vocabularies quickly, but they also forget them fast as they come home or not use them for a long time Most students tend to learn by heart the meaning new vocabularies to get marks, then they will forget them if they not often use them In addition, the characteristics of young learners are different with the characteristics of adults Young students are young and lose concentration easily in learning language It is very hard for teachers to involve learners in learning English Teachers also face many problems to encourage students to use English at school Moreover, learners at primary school not have opportunities to experience an English environment and they are afraid of making mistakes Teaching English to primary school students are different from teaching adults learning because the characteristics of young learners are different with the characteristics of adults The primary school students are young They can lose their concentration easily and quickly if the learning process and activities are so boring and not interesting It is very hard for teachers to attract their students in learning English language, so they need to find the effective ways to encourage and attract their young learners in learning English language Meanwhile, adults can control their learning because they learn language with their aims Basing on teaching and learning process, the students at primary school require the different treatment and situation that is more attractive, various, and interesting If the teachers teach English vocabulary by writing the words on the board, just say the meaning of the words, and ask students write 71 Nation, Paul & Coady, James (1988), "Vocabulary and Reading" , in Ronald Carter & Michael McCarthy (eds.), Vocabulary and Language Teaching (London: Longman): 97-110 Schmitt, N (2000) Vocabulary in language teaching Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Sime, Daniela (2001) The use and perception of illustrators in the foreign language classroom In Cavé, Christian, Isabelle Guaïtella, & Serge Santi (Eds.) Oralitéetgestualité Interactions etc omportementsmultimodauxdans la communication (pp 582-585) Paris: L’Harmattan Stuart, W (2005) Receptive and productive vocabulary learning : The Effects of Reading and Writing on Word Knowledge, Studies in Second Language Acquisition / Volume 27 / Issue 01 / March, pp 33 – 52 Thornbury, S (2002) How to teach vocabulary New York: Prentice Hall Thorburry, S (2002).How to teach vocabulary England: Pearson Education Limited.Ur, P., (1998) A course in language teaching.Cabridge University Press Thornbury, S (2004) How to teach vocabulary New York: Prentice Hall Wilkins, D A (1972) Linguistics in Language Teaching London: Edward Arnold, p.111 Wright, A (Ed.) (1989) Picture for language learning Cambridge Handbooks for Language Teachers Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Wright, A (1990) Pictures for Language Learning Cambridge University Press 72 APPENDICES APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE Dear students, This research is designed to find out using pictures to teach English vocabulary to primary school students This questionnaire is designed to explore the students’ attitudes towards using pictures in learning English vocabulary Your answer will be very helpful and appreciated and has an important section in my Master of Art thesis This information is used for this research and known by the researcher and her supervisor There is no right or wrong answer in this questionnaire Therefore, please feel free to give your opinions for 20 statements in 15 minutes Before doing the research, please provide your personal information by filling the following blanks in part In part 2, please read and choose your idea: agree, disagree, or neutral Please remember just choose ONE choice by using (x) for your choice Part 1: Participant’s information Name………………………………………… Class………………………………………… Gender: male/female Part 2: Students’ attitudes on using pictures to teach English vocabulary to primary school students Numb er Statements Agre e (1) Disagre Neutral e(2) (3) 73 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Using pictures in learning vocabulary is very helpful I like my teacher to use pictures to teach new words Using pictures in learning vocabulary does not help me to guess the meaning of the words Using pictures in learning new words help me to guess the meaning of words easily I not like learning new words by using pictures I have positive attitude towards using pictures in learning new words Pictures make me actively involved in learning process Using pictures to teach new vocabulary helps me to remember new words longer I feel so stressful when teachers ask me to guess meaning of words by using pictures Learning words by using pictures helps me to develop my guessing skill Pictures make me pay attention to lesson and think more I feel disappointed when I give the wrong answer although my teacher uses pictures and explains Using pictures in learning words makes me more active Using pictures make my motivation in learning vocabulary increase Using pictures in learning vocabulary makes my class funny and interesting When I learning vocabulary with pictures, I often ignore meaning and focus on pictures only Using pictures in learning words is effective way because it helps me remember words easily and in long time Using pictures in learning English just help me remember words in short time, but I 74 19 20 forget if I not practice them I not understand my teacher’s pictures in learning words and teacher’s explanation I like my teacher using pictures in teaching vocabulary because I feel interested in learning and easily learn the words and their meanings BẢNG CÂU HỎI Các bạn học sinh thân mến, Đây nghiên cứu việc sử dụng hình ảnh việc dạy từ vựng Tiếng Anh cho học sinh tiểu học Bảng câu hỏi thiết kế nhằm khảo sát thái độ học sinh việc sử dụng hình ảnh học từ vựng Tiếng Anh Câu trả lời bạn hữu ích, đánh giá cao phần quan trọng luận văn Thạc sĩ Những liệu phục vụ cho nghiên cứu câu trả lời thông tin cá nhân bạn bảo mật Hồn tồn khơng có câu trả lời hay sai bảng câu hỏi nghiên cứu Vì vậy, bạn vui lịng thoải mái thể suy nghĩ cho 20 ý kiến nêu bảng nghiên cứu vòng 15 phút 75 Trước tiến hành trả lời bảng câu hỏi, xin vui lịng cung cấp thơng tin cá nhân bạn việc điền vào ô trống phần Trong phần 2, xin vui lòng đọc chọn câu trả ời bạn: đồng ý, không đồng ý, khơng có ý kiến Xin vui lịng nhớ chọn MỘT lựa chọn cho câu trả lời bạn đánh dấu (x) cho câu trả lời bạn Phần 1: Thông tin người tham gia Tên………………………………… Lớp………………………………… Gioi tính: nam/nữ Phần 2: Thái độ học sinh việc sử dụng hình ảnh để dạy từ vựng Tiếng Anh cho học sinh tiểu học Số Thứ Tự Ý Kiến Sử dụng hình ảnh việc học từ vựng hữu ích Tơi thích giáo viên tơi sử dụng hình ảnh để dạy từ Sử dụng hình ảnh việc học từ vựng khơng giúp tơi đốn nghĩa từ Sử dụng hình ảnh việc học từ giúp tơi đốn nghĩa từ dễ dàng Tơi khơng thích học từ việc sử dụng hình ảnh Tơi có thái độ tích cực việc sử dụng hình ảnh việc học từ Hình ảnh giúp học sinh tập trung vào trình học Sử dụng hình ảnh để dạy từ giúp tơi nhớ từ vựng lâu Tôi cảm thấy áp lực giáo viên u cầu tơi đốn nghĩa từ việc sử dụng hình ảnh Đồng ý Không (1) đồng ý(2) Không có ý kiến(3) 76 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Học từ vựng việc sử dụng hình ảnh giúp tơi phát triển kĩ đốn nghĩa từ Hình ảnh làm tơi tập trung vô suy nghĩ nhiều Tôi cảm thấy thất vọng trả lời sai giáo viên tơi sử dụng hình ảnh giải thích cho tơi Sử dụng hình ảnh việc học từ vựng giúp tơi thêm động Sử dụng hình ảnh làm cho động lực học từ vựng tăng cao Sử dụng hình ảnh việc học từ vựng làm cho lớp học vui vẻ thú vị Khi tơi học từ vựng hình ảnh, tơi thường tập trung vào hình ảnh mà bỏ qua phần nghĩa từ Sử dụng hình ảnh học từ vựng cách hiệu giúp nhớ từ vựng dễ dàng lâu dài Sử dụng hình ảnh học Tiếng Anh giúp nhớ từ vựng thời gian ngắn, tơi qn từ vựng không thực hành thường xuyên Tôi không hiểu hình ảnh giải thích hình ảnh mà giáo viên tơi cung cấp Tơi thích giáo viên tơi sử dụng hình ảnh để dạy từ vựng tơi cảm thấy thú vị học việc học từ nghĩa từ dễ dàng APPENDIX 2: VOCABULARY TEST Time: 15 minutes Part 1: Information of participant 77 Name……………………………… Class………………………………… Gender: Male/female Part 2: Vocabulary test SECTION 1: Connect the pictures with the correct words Jeans Skirt Boots Scarf SECTION 2: Look at the pictures and choose the correct words He’s wearing an orange ……………………… A B Jeans Shoes C Shirt D Pants He’s wearing brown…………………… A scarf C Pants B Boots D T-shirt 78 These are …………………………… A Boots C Dress B Shoes D Socks He’s wearing a A B yellow……………… Shirt Socks SECTION 3: Look at pictures and write down the words 9……………………………………… 10………………………………………… C T-shirt D Dress 79 11 …………………………………………… 12 …………………………………………………… APPENDIX 3: VOCABULARY TEST Time: 15 minutes Part 1: Information of participant Name……………………………… Class………………………………… Gender: Male/female Part 2: Vocabulary test SECTION 1: Connect the pictures with the correct words Horse Goat Donkey Cow 80 SECTION 2: Look at the pictures and choose the correct words There is a …………………….on the field A B Donkey Goat C Goose D Sheep There is a……………………………on the field A Goose C Goat B Sheep D Hen There are two …………………….on the field A Goats B Hens C Elephants D Monkey These are two…………………………… A Monkeys C Elephants B Cows D Hens SECTION 3: Look at pictures and write down the words 9……………………………………… 81 10………………………………………… 11 …………………………………………… 12 ……………………………………………… APPENDIX 4: STUDENTS’ MARKS ON THEIR TEST Grade 3/5 10 11 12 13 Test 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 Grade 3/6 10 11 12 13 Test 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 82 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 8.34 8.34 7.51 7.51 6.68 6.68 5.02 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 8.34 8.34 8.34 8.34 8.34 8.34 7.51 7.51 7.51 6.68 5.02 83 84 APPENDIX 5: STUDENTS’ MARKS ON THEIR TEST Grade 3/5 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 Test 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 9.17 Grade 3/6 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 Test 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 9.17 8.34 8.34 8.34 85 38 39 40 41 42 43 9.17 9.17 8.34 6.68 6.68 6.68 38 39 40 41 42 43 8.34 8.34 7.51 6.68 5.85 5.85 ... two classes without using pictures to teach English vocabulary Second test is applied for two classes, but at this time at the same unit teacher uses pictures to teach English vocabulary in one... in teaching English Vocabulary Secondly, using pictures is not good in teaching English Vocabulary These parts are mixed together in twenty statements For example: ? ?Using pictures is good in teaching... 2.2.4 The advantages of using pictures in teaching English vocabulary … 18 2.2.5 The use of pictures in teaching vocabulary ………………………… 20 2.3 Ways of using pictures as a teaching strategy …………………………