PHÁT TRIỂN vốn từ VƯNG TIẾNG ANH của học SINH lớp 10 QUA CHƯƠNG TRÌNH đọc RỘNG có HƯỚNG dẫn một NGHIÊN cứu gần NHƯ là THỰC NGHIỆM

Aims and Objectives of the Study The main aim of this study was to experiment a guided extensive reading program GERP in helping grade 10 students develop their English vocabulary... Re

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale

As an effective medium of international communication, English language has been making a considerable contribution to the increasing development of various fields of people’s life such as economy, politics, culture, science, education and international relations Indeed, to meet the increasing demands for the development and integration of the country into the greater English-speaking world, over the last two decades, English language teaching and learning have been carried out throughout the country, not only at tertiary level but also at secondary and primary education Many Vietnamese linguists, educators and researchers have been doing their best in order that the quality of English language learning and teaching at all educational levels will be greatly improved for the time being

However, at upper secondary schools, the teaching and learning of English language in general, English vocabulary in particular are still far from satisfaction as students’ final results in most English examinations remain unchanged at low level In fact, most secondary school students have not paid enough attention to vocabulary learning as they mainly receive basic lessons of grammar together with four skills from their teachers and textbooks It is common knowledge that vocabulary has a very important role to play in the language learning process and in language use as Wilkins (1972: 11) has claimed that “without grammar, very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed” Also, vocabulary can function as the cohesive device that links the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing all together Thus, vocabulary deficiency will lead to deficiency in other language skills

Though vocabulary is vitally important to mastering any foreign languages, in reality, many grade 10 students' English vocabulary is still limited even though they have learned English for four years at the lower secondary schools It is their limited vocabulary that explains their poor performance in using English and in their test performance All these have motivated me to conduct this quasi-experimental research on the topic given, namely developing grade 10 students' English vocabulary through extensive reading

1.2 Aims and Objectives of the Study

The main aim of this study was to experiment a guided extensive reading program (GERP) in helping grade 10 students develop their English vocabulary

To be more specific, the primary objectives of the study were set as follows:

• To experiment the GERP and examine its effects on grade 10 students’ English vocabulary acquisition;

• To investigate the experimental students’ attitudes towards the GERP, and then to make some recommendations for further study

1.3 Research Hypotheses and Questions

To achieve the aims and objectives, the study was designed to test the hypothesis:

H1: Grade 10 students who participate in the GERP will make more significant improvement

in their English vocabulary acquisition as measured by both pre-test and post-test scores than those who do not take part in such a program

If the above hypothesis was fully accepted, the following null hypothesis would be obviously rejected or vice versa:

H0: There is no difference in English vocabulary acquisition as measured by both pre-test and post test scores between grade 10 students who participate in the GERP and those who

do not take part in such a program

In order to identify which hypothesis would be accepted, the following research questions were formulated and needed to be answered satisfactorily:

(1) Does an extensive reading program bring about differences in terms of students’ vocabulary acquisition as measured by their scores in the pre-test and post-test?

(2) What are the students’ attitudes towards the GERP after the experimental period?

1.4 Method of the Study

To test the hypothesis (Grade 10 students who participate in the GERP will make more significant improvement in their English vocabulary acquisition as measured by both pre-test and post-test scores than those who do not take part in such a project), a quasi-experiment was adopted in this study A design of pretest and posttest was employed as the main research method to measure the validity of the hypothesis Two non-random groups of

60 students (one control group and one experimental group, N= 30 each) participated in this experiment The pre-test and post-test scores were analyzed by means of t-test to find out the correlation of the two means to accept or to reject the null hypothesis, namely extensive reading (ER) does not have any effect on grade 10 students' English vocabulary learning Besides, a post-experiment questionnaire was also used as the supplementary instrument to elicit the students’ evaluative attitudes towards the GERP after the experimental period

1.5 Scope of the Study

This quasi-experimental study was designed to measure the effects of the GERP on grade 10 students' English vocabulary acquisition at HTSS Due to the time constraint, the researcher could just carry out an experiment upon a small sample of grade 10 students who were non - randomly assigned to a control class and an experimental class, (30 students per each) The pre-test and post-test scores were used to measure both groups' English vocabulary before and after the trial period of 16 weeks in the first semester of the 2007-

2008 academic year The post-program questionnaire was administered to get more feedback from the experimental students The results of the questionnaire would give the researcher supplementary support for the conclusion drawing Thus, the findings of the research could just reflect the effects of the GERP on the subjects in the context under consideration

1.6 Significance of the Study

The present research was carried out with the hope that it would bring practical benefits

to teaching and learning English vocabulary at upper-secondary schools If the GERP actually helps to develop grade 10 students' vocabulary knowledge, it should be applied to the teaching and learning of English at other grades

1.7 Design of the Study

The study is divided into five chapters, which are presented as follows:

Chapter one provides an overview of the study, consisting of the rationale for the study, aims and objectives, research hypothesis and questions, research method, scope, significance and design of the study Chapter two presents essential literature review relevant to the study including the place of vocabulary in foreign language learning, L2 vocabulary acquisition processes, extensive reading and vocabulary learning Chapter three deals with the methodology underlying the research, which presents the context of the study, the rationale for using quasi-experiment, the background information about the subjects of the study, the procedures as well as the instruments for data collection Chapter four is devoted to a detailed description of the significant findings from data collection, i.e., the presentation of the two groups' pretest and posttest scores and the experimental students' attitudes towards the GERP Chapter five presents the discussion and conclusion which focus on the findings and summary of the major points of the study This chapter also point out several limitations

of the research as well as some recommendations ad suggestions for further study

CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction

In Chapter One, the rationale, aims and the hypothesis to be tested in the present study were presented This Chapter reviews the relevant literature on the relationship between extensive reading and L2 vocabulary acquisition The Chapter begins with a definition of vocabulary, which is followed by the discussion of the role of extensive reading

in L2 vocabulary from both Second Language Acquisition theory and pedagogical perspectives

2.2 Vocabulary in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

2.2.1 What is Vocabulary?

So far, the term vocabulary has been defined quite differently according to its various aspects such as criteria, features and functions According to Ur, P (1996: 60), vocabulary can be defined “as the words we teach in the foreign language However, a new item of vocabulary may be more than a single word: a compound of two or three words or multi word idioms” Lewis, M (1993: 89) states that vocabulary “… may be individual word or full sentences – institutionalized utterances – that convey fixed social or pragmatic meaning within a given community” Pyles & Algeo (1970: 96) also emphasizes that “It is words that sounds and meanings interlock to allow us to communicate with one another, and it is word that we arrange together to make sentences, conversation and discourse of all kinds”

The above quotations have helped us have general look at the notions of vocabulary However, as going into further features, vocabulary can be interpreted as knowledge of words and word meanings Firstly, words are virtually manifested in the two forms: spoken form and written form Oral vocabulary including the words, phrases or sentences are used for listening and speaking, and the words which we recognize and use for reading and writing can be identified as written vocabulary Secondly, our word knowledge is also represented in two forms, receptive and productive The words that we use to write and speak are considered as productive vocabulary and the words that we hear from the people around us and see or read from stories, books, newspapers, etc… are recognized as receptive vocabulary In language learning and teaching, the term vocabulary is used with changing

meanings by the teachers at different levels of education For example, the teachers at nursery or primary schools might regard the word as synonymous with “sight vocabulary"

by which they mean a certain number of the most common words in language that young pupils need to recognize quickly when they see them in print or written materials Meanwhile, for the upper secondary school teachers, vocabulary usually means the “hard” words that students encounter in a subject matter and literature selections Therefore, it is possible to state that the word vocabulary means both the knowledge of words and word meanings in both oral and print language and in productive and receptive forms Of course, lexical meanings vary from context to context In language communication, there are many cases in which the lexical meaning can not be deducted from analysis of the individual components of that word For this reason, in foreign language teaching and learning, helping students to gain vocabulary from the different contexts is a must for all the instructors If this

is regularly done, the learners will not only know how to use appropriate vocabulary in communication, but also develop their vocabulary repertoire themselves

2.1.2 The Place of Vocabulary in Foreign Language Teaching and Learning

Nowadays, more and more people become aware that besides their mother tongue or first language, they need to acquire several foreign languages in order to take full advantages

of the advancements in information technology For many people, the first thing to do in learning a foreign language is to acquire its vocabulary, which is perceived as the building blocks upon which knowledge of language can be built In fact, vocabulary always holds a significant place in foreign language teaching and learning According to Troike (1976: 87),

“vocabulary is most important for understanding and knowing names for things, actions and concepts” Also, vocabulary knowledge can help language users perform and develop language skills since “substantial vocabulary knowledge is always a prerequisite to the performance of language skills Vocabulary enables language use, language use enables the increase of vocabulary knowledge and language use and so on” (Nation and Waring, 2004: 6-19) Therefore, it is undeniable that vocabulary plays an extremely important role in making a success of language learning and that the acquisition of adequate vocabulary is essential for successful second language use

The main objective of language learners is to be able to use their learning language to communicate well with people around them To achieve this objective, they have to master enough vocabulary of that language; if not, they will find it impossible to express themselves

in most circumstances Wallace (1982: 73) has said that “failure to find the words one needs

to express himself is the most frustrating experience in speaking another language” Indeed,

as students succeed in obtaining wide knowledge of vocabulary, they often get more confidence in using language and they can perform other language skills for various communicative purposes Thus, vocabulary knowledge always holds an important role in performing language skills For example, vocabulary has a close relationship with reading skills which in turn have an interconnection with reading comprehension This relationship seems logical because of the fact that when students get meaning from what they read, they also need both many words in their vocabulary repertoire and ability to use various strategies

to establish the meanings of new words when they encounter them It is the case that most of the weak students who don’t have enough vocabulary or effective word-learning strategies often struggle to achieve comprehension in reading Also, as they don’t have sufficient word knowledge to understand what they are reading, they often avoid reading As a result, the students who don’t read very much don’t have the opportunity to see and learn very many new words in various contexts but the students who read more can become better readers and gain more words The very particular relationship between vocabulary knowledge and language skills once again highlights the significant position of vocabulary in language learning and teaching as Wilkin (1972: 110) has summed up “Without grammar, very little can be conveyed, without vocabulary nothing can be conveyed”

2.3 Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition Processes

As examining “vocabulary acquisition: word structure, collocation, word-class, and meaning”, N C Ellis (1997: 122-139) states that language consists of strings of units hierarchically organized into increasingly large chunks He argues that the acquisition of phonological form, collocation and grammatical class results from unconscious analysis of sequence information but the acquisition of semantics and the mapping of form to meaning are accomplished by conscious learning processes Much of language learning is the memorization of strings which results in the formation and retention of patterns in long-term memory These in turn help language learners in the memorization of new strings of language units Knowing a word involves knowing its form, morphological structure, syntactic pattern, meaning, connotation, pragmatics, lexical relations, and collocations According to Nagy, Anderson, & Herman (1985: 233-253), developing understandings

of word meanings is a long-term process that involves many encounters with both spoken and written words in varying contexts On the first encounter with a new word, a student

stores in memory some information about how the word fits into what he is reading This information is reinforced each time he sees or hears the word With each new encounter, the student picks up more information about the word from its use in various contexts As a result, the student gradually acquires “ownership” of the word Thus, L2 vocabulary acquisition is a very complex phenomenon involving several different learning processes The most common distinction between implicit and explicit learning is that implicit or incidental learning is often defined as “accidental learning of information without the intention of remembering that information” (Hulstijn, J., Hollander, M & Greidanus, T., 1996: 327), and explicit learning, on the other hand, refers to the application of vocabulary learning strategies on the part of the learner L2 vocabulary acquisition processes are also presented quiet enough by Krashen (1989: 440-464) in the Implicit Vocabulary Learning Hypothesis and Explicit Vocabulary Learning Hypothesis According to Krashen’s Input Hypothesis, the former holds that meanings of new words are acquired subconsciously as a result of repeated exposures in a range of contexts, where the conscious focus is not on form, but on the message The latter holds that the employment of a range of vocabulary learning strategies can greatly facilitate and enhance vocabulary acquisition; on this view, learners are seen as active processors of information Agreeing to some points in Krashen's Hypothesis, Ellis (1995: 12-16) also claims that both hypotheses are true, but apply to different aspects of vocabulary acquisition According to him, the implicit vocabulary learning hypothesis holds true for simple pattern recognition of surface forms of input and output Explicit learning, on the other hand, is necessary for the mapping of those surface input and output forms to their corresponding semantic or conceptual representation Then, learners can recognize the word meanings via spelling, associations, grammatical information and meaning He, therefore, suggests the following possible explanations for the process of vocabulary acquisition:

• According to the strong implicit vocabulary learning hypothesis, new words are acquired totally unconsciously

• A weak implicit vocabulary learning hypothesis holds that it is at least necessary for learners to notice that a word is new to them

• A weak explicit vocabulary learning hypothesis suggests even when words are learned implicitly, some active processing is also taking place

• A strong implicit vocabulary learning hypothesis holds that learners consciously apply meta-cognitive strategies in acquiring new vocabulary

In sum, each hypothesis explains different aspects of vocabulary acquisition The strong implicit hypothesis can explain a learner's ability to recognize and produce words This

ability is a skill developed through repetition Hence, extensive reading can offer students good opportunities to fortify their vocabulary acquisition

2.4 Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition & Intentional Vocabulary Learning

The fact that incidental vocabulary acquisition takes place in second language learning

is generally acknowledged among researchers Most scholars agree that except for the first few thousand most common words, L2 vocabulary is predominantly acquired incidentally (Huckin & Coady, 1999: 181-193) The terminological clarification visualized in the following figure (adapted from Schmidt, 1990: 138-149; Ellis, 1994: 38) enables us to relate the terms implicit and explicit by viewing incidental vocabulary acquisition as being composed of implicit learning processes which happen without the learner’s awareness and/or of explicit learning processes which take place without learning intention but involve online awareness and hypothesis formation

Figure 1: Incidental vocabulary acquisition as a process involving implicit and/or explicit learning

is achieved by

and/or

With regard to the role of consciousness, however, two complementary viewpoints can

be distinguished An implicit viewpoint would hold that incidental vocabulary acquisition takes place without awareness, involving implicit learning processes only However, the implicit viewpoint fails to take account of the fact that learners are active and strategic information processors An explicit viewpoint would thus argue that incidental vocabulary acquisition also involves explicit (i.e conscious) learning processes, and would consequently characterize it as primarily explicit learning Ellis (1997) claims that both implicit and explicit learning mechanisms are involved in incidental vocabulary acquisition: while the acquisition of a word’s form, collocations and grammatical class information are said to involve implicit processes, acquiring a word’s semantic properties and mapping word form

to meaning are claimed to result from explicit learning processes Furthermore, He also

Incidental vocabulary acquisition

argues for a complete dissociation of implicit aspects and explicit aspects of vocabulary acquisition (see Figure 2)

Figure 2: Ellis’ view of implicit and explicit learning processes in incidental vocabulary

acquisition

2.5 Extensive Reading and Vocabulary Learning

2.5.1 Definition of Extensive Reading

The term “Extensive Reading” was originally coined by Palmer (1968), to distinguish it from “Intensive Reading” Intensive reading focuses mainly on the careful reading of short, complex texts for detailed understanding and skills practice Extensive reading, however, involves the reading of large amounts of longer, easy-to-understand materials, usually done outside the classroom and at each student’s own pace and level According to Lewis and Hill (1992: 109), extensive reading means "students have a general understanding of the text without necessary understanding every word" This definition appears to have some shortcomings as it fails to help the readers see the whole picture of extensive reading The concept extensive reading seems to be clarified through the definition given by Susser and Robb (1990: 161-185) as they see extensive reading as a language teaching or learning procedure is… reading (a) of large quantities of material or long texts; (b) for global or general understanding; (c) with the intention of obtaining pleasure from the text Moreover, because (d) reading is individualized, with students choosing the books they want to read, (e) the books are not discussed in class What makes this definition better than Lewis & Hill's definition is that it can summarize the general characteristics of ER However, as considering the overall context of the present study, this definition is still irrelevant

In this study, extensive reading is defined as a language learning activity that is aimed to getting additional linguistic input for vocabulary acquisition This type of reading is characterized as (a) being graded, (b) student-selected, (c) suitable to the students’ level of proficiency, (d) done beyond the classroom, and having pleasure as primary purpose

Incidental vocabulary acquisition

learning word form

= implicit learning

(without awareness)

learning word meaning

= explicit learning (with awareness)

dissociated processes

2.5.2 Role of Extensive Reading in L2 Vocabulary Acquisition from Second Language

Acquisition Perspectives: Krashen's Comprehensible Input Hypothesis

It is possible for us to claim that extensive reading has a very important role to play in

language learning as it can bring the benefits to learners in acquiring language in general,

vocabulary in particular This is because extensive reading may provide 'comprehensive

input' (Krashen, 1982), which is claimed to result in language acquisition when certain

preconditions are met These include adequate exposure to the language, interesting material,

and a relaxed, tension-free learning environment Moreover, he also claims that the

unconscious process of language acquisition which occurs when reading for pleasure is more

successful and longer lasting than conscious learning There are five main hypotheses in his

theory of second language acquisition Among the five main hypotheses initiated by Krashen

(1982), (the Acquisition-Learning hypothesis, the Monitor hypothesis, the Natural Order

hypothesis, the Input hypothesis, and the Affective Filter hypothesis), the Input Hypothesis is

seen as the corner-stone for the setting up of the guided extensive reading program in the

present study According to Krashen's (1982) book, one acquires language is only one

way-by exposure to Comprehensive Input He claims that exposure to comprehensive input in the

target language will lead to the simultaneous occurrence of comprehension and acquisition

The theory can be illustrated as the following figure (adapted from Krashen, 1982: 16- 32)

The Comprehensible Input Hypothesis is obviously an attempt to explain how the learner

acquires a second language In other words, this hypothesis is an explanation of how second

language acquisition takes place So, the input hypothesis is only concerned with

'acquisition', not 'learning' According to this hypothesis, the learners improve and progress

along the 'natural order' when they receive second language 'input' that is one step beyond

Figure 3: The input hypothesis model of L2 learning and production

Learnt knowledge

Acquired knowledge Output

their current stage of linguistic competence For example, if a learner is at a stage 'i', then acquisition takes place when they are exposed to 'comprehensive input' that belongs to level 'i+1' Since not all of the learners can be at the same level of linguistic competence at the same time, Krashen suggests that natural communicative input is the key to designing a syllabus, ensuring in this way that each learner will receive some 'i+1' input that is appropriate for his/her current stage of linguistic competence For instance, an English language learner may easily understand the message "put the paper in your desk" by slightly changing the message to “put the paper in the garbage", the teacher thus scaffolds new information that increases the learner’s language comprehension From these points, it is comprehensible that a language acquirer who is at "level i" must receive comprehensive input that is at "level i+1" In other words, "we acquire only when we understand language that contains structure that is 'a little beyond' where we are now" This understanding is possibly due to using the context of the language we are hearing or reading and our knowledge of the world

With reference to the impact of extensive reading on language acquisition, Krashen (1982) argues that one of the key elements in language learning is comprehensible input+1, among which extensive reading has a significant role to play He argues that extensive reading will lead to language acquisition and emphasizes the quality of the language to which the learners are exposed is very important if they are to learn from the input In the context of this study, the guided extensive reading program was built up in order that grade

10 students would make the best use of graded readers available in school library and bookshops nearby as well as various reading materials suggested and provided by the researcher and other English teachers at school The selection and formation of graded readers for this experimental research was based on Krashen's input hypothesis which states that learners acquire grammar and vocabulary by getting and understanding language that is slightly beyond their current level of competence By guessing and inferring the meaning of linguistic information embedded in the communicative context, learners are able to comprehend grammar and vocabulary This input is known as comprehensive input, or 'i+1' Thus, learners gradually develop their vocabulary and language fluency by being exposed to 'i+1' in the target language

An extensive reading program is therefore to provide students with comprehensible input

so that they can develop their vocabulary and fluency unconsciously This is becoming more significant in the context of English as a foreign language where students have very limited

access to comprehensible input in the target language In the subsequent section, the pedagogical value of extensive reading will be discussed

2.5.3 Role of Extensive Reading in Vocabulary Acquisition from Pedagogical Perspectives: Paul Nation's Theory of L2 Vocabulary Acquisition

According to Paul Nation (2001), the best practice in vocabulary teaching and learning is

to design or create a well-balanced language course for organizing tasks and class activities

to best facilitate vocabulary acquisition and fluency The best course should contain four major strands of learning activities as follows:

• Learning through meaning -focused input activities or comprehensible input such as listening and reading where 98% of the running words are already known,

• Learning through meaning -focused output activities such as speaking and writing,

• Learning through language-focused study and teaching,

• Developing fluency in listening, speaking, reading and writing where 100% of the vocabulary is already known (Nation, 2001: 97)

Paul Nation writes about different aspects of vocabulary teaching and learning Specifically, with regard to the relationship between vocabulary and meaning- focused input, he states that there is a close relationship between vocabulary growth and the amount and variety of meaning-focused input in which reading is a long major source of vocabulary growth However, vocabulary learning through meaning-focused input still contains some fragility for the following reasons:

- Research with native speakers reveals that the amount of vocabulary learning that occurs during the reading text is rather small

- There is little vocabulary growth through reading while learners gain control of reading skill Thus, to reduce the major barrier to reading, it is better for the teacher to give the students series of graded readings with careful vocabulary control

- Depending too much on meaning-focused input is leaving too much to chance As students just focus on the meaning, they may find it easily to deal with unknown words in the text but they may neglect the form or language items as a part of language system; they will probably not learn the words then So, the best practice in vocabulary teaching and learning is providing large quantities of suitably graded input through a range of generals and common topics, and providing language-focused activities to support it

However, just focusing on form-focused instruction and meaning-focused input isn't sufficient for L2 vocabulary learning and teaching So, a learning course should involve learners in producing meaning-focused output As the production of spoken and written vocabulary items helps learning, it is necessary for the instructor to create spoken and written communicative activities in which the following factors should be examined:

- The written input to a communicative task has a major effect on what vocabulary is used and negotiated during the task

- Vocabulary was learned through being used productively and receptively

- The more the vocabulary is observed or used in contexts which differ from its occurrence in the written input, the better it is learned

- Learners are able to provide useful information to each other on most of the vocabulary

in a typical communicative task

- Only a small amount of negotiation in a communicative task is negotiation of word meaning By carefully designing the handout sheets for spoken tasks, teachers can help students in determining what vocabulary could be learned from such tasks

Besides the above, to make L2 vocabulary teaching and learning more effective, the designed or modified tasks should also focus on a particular feature or property of the second language This makes the learner be aware of the correct form and its use Therefore, a good language course needs to cover vocabulary and language-focused instruction which can direct the learners' attention to language items not only for producing or understanding a particular message, but also for gaining knowledge about the item as a part of the language system Language-focused instruction involves focusing on the pronunciation and spelling, learning the meaning of words, memorizing collocations, phrases and sentences containing a word and being corrected for incorrect use of a word So, students can gain explicit knowledge which can speed up and encourage further progress in the acquisition of implicit knowledge at the same time

Last but not least, some attention should be paid to developing fluency with vocabulary Fluency development tasks have the characteristics of involving no new language items, dealing with largely familiar content and discourse types What the teachers should focus is

to think of easy texts or simplified versions of text which can help students go through the use of repetition, get no time pressure, and revisit texts previously encountered Included in these strategies are the use of graded readers for fluency development, word card construction and consistent review of unlearned vocabulary items, recycling of information

and vocabulary within the same text, generation of sentences, along with written and oral output to facilitate productive usage

2.6 Learning Vocabulary through Input Enrichment

The research is about the idea that extensive reading is good for developing students' L2 vocabulary This view seems uncontroversial because most people would agree that reading

is a useful learning experience Many previous studies have come to show that extensive reading can take language learners beyond themselves and it can help them broaden their perspectives, learn new facts and come to a better understanding of the world and our place

in it Indeed, it is reasonable to assume that extensive reading increases our vocabulary knowledge Obviously, most reading materials introduce us to new words, and in many cases, we can deduce their meanings from the written context We can also remember some

of these new meaning associations if we continue to read and meet the new items in context again According to Nation (2001), the close relationship between vocabulary growth and the large amount of meaning-focused input always exists since reading is a long major source of vocabulary growth Also, Krashen (1989) claims that reading in an L2 is one of the main ways that language learners acquire new vocabulary knowledge However, for extensive reading to be effective, learners must be regularly exposed to large amounts of comprehensible text Since the knowledge gained from a single encounter with a lexical item

is likely to be forgotten unless soon followed by another encounter, repeated contextualized exposures are necessary to consolidate and elaborate word meaning Harmon (1999: 306) also advocates the promotion of extensive reading as an important vehicle for vocabulary development because students learn words from context during reading Teachers can promote repetition and consolidation through the use of some appropriate post-reading activities in which learners first notice the target lexis by highlighting, underlining or circling them, and then processing them by classifying, analyzing, or using the items productively (Hunt & Beglar, 2005: 9)

The main goal of this thesis was to conduct an experiment that the researcher believed would provide a more comprehensive input enrichment for grade 10 students' English vocabulary learning through the GERP The graded readers of generals and common topics were employed as the main sources for students' reading outside classroom The use of graded readers, simplified texts, and interesting reading materials mainly followed the logical basis and development of the vocabulary learning hypotheses which were already proposed

2.7 Other Studies on Extensive Reading and Vocabulary Acquisition

Extensive reading has been empirically been proved as a very effective way of reinforcing, confirming and deepening knowledge of vocabulary, expressions and structures, and of developing an implicit understanding of when and how words are used (see Nation, 1997: 13-16) By reading extensively, students have good experience in noticing how language is used in context Actually, many studies in this area have supported the theories

on vocabulary acquisition that have been presented in the previous sections

Grabe (1991: 391) also emphasizes that extensive reading “can enhance learners' general language competence" since it provides learners with practice in automaticity of word recognition and decoding the symbols on the printed page Extensive reading obviously helps the students increase their exposure to the language The quality of exposure to language that learners receive is seen as important to their potential to acquire new forms from the input

In reference to L2 vocabulary acquisition, extensive reading can increase knowledge of vocabulary According to Nagy & Herman's (1987) survey, children between grades three and twelve (US grade levels) can learn up to 3000 words a year It is thought that only a small percentage of such learning is due to direct vocabulary instruction, the remainder is due to acquisition of words from reading This suggests that traditional approaches to the teaching of vocabulary, in which the number of new words taught in each class was carefully controlled (words often being presented in related sets), is much less effective in promoting vocabulary growth than simply getting students to spend time on silent reading of interesting books The book flood project in Fiji (Elley & Manghubai, 1983), in which Fijian school children are provided with high-interest story books, reveals significant post-treatment gains

in word recognition after one year

These findings are further supported by the study conducted by Krashen & Bribbons (2004), which showed the positive impact of extensive reading on learner's knowledge of vocabulary and grammar Their research involves fourth semester students of Spanish as foreign language at the university level in the US The subjects participate in two kinds of comprehensive-input based instruction, an extensive reading class that combined assigned and self-selected reading, and a 'reading-discussion' class that consisted of assigned reading, debates and discussions Their research results show that students in both classes outperformed those in traditionally taught class on a checklist vocabulary test and grammar test

Besides the obvious benefits of extensive reading mentioned above, many researches into the effects of extensive reading on L2 language acquisition also show that extensive reading not only helps increase and consolidate L2 learners' vocabulary and grammar, but also helps learners develop other language skills One of typical examples is the findings of Robb & Susser's research, which indicate that an input-based, acquisition-oriented reading program based on extensive reading can be seen as an effective means of fostering improvements in students writing In addition, it is also necessary to take more account of other advantages of extensive reading such as motivating learners to read, consolidating previously learned language, helping students to build confidence with extended texts and facilitating the development of other skills (1989: 239-251)

In the context of Vietnamese schools, there have been few studies on the benefits of extensive reading to the students’ acquisition of English as a foreign language For example, Quach Ngoc Anh (2006) conducted an experimental study to identify the impact of extensive reading on the first-year university students’ reading proficiency Her research results also pointed out the positive impact of extensive reading on students’ reading proficiency

2 8 Conclusion

This Chapter has reviewed the literature on the impact of extensive reading on vocabulary acquisition Such an impact has been well justified by both second language acquisition theories and empirical studies in various pedagogical contexts However, the relationship between extensive reading and vocabulary by Vietnamese students of English has been under-researched Worse still, up to now there seems to be very little that has been done with reference to how extensive reading enhances vocabulary acquisition in the context

of Vietnamese high schools This study is an attempt to narrow the gap The following Chapter will present the present study

CHAPTER THREE: THE STUDY

3.1 Introduction

As presented in Chapter One, this study was designed to experiment the relationship between extensive reading and vocabulary acquisition by Grade 10 students In order to achieve the aim of the study, a quasi-experiment was designed and implemented in two intact Grade 10 groups in one high school This Chapter presents the information about the context of the study, the rationale of using quasi-experiment, variables, the GERP, the participants, the procedures as well as the instruments for data collection

3.2 Context of the Study

The study was conducted at Ha Tinh Specialized School (HTSS), which is located right

in the centre of Ha Tinh city, Ha Tinh province The school has 32 clean, beautiful class rooms and a large school yard Moreover, it has two AV rooms and quite a big library which

is housed in a separate building The library has plentiful sources of reference books, magazines and newspapers, which are convenient for all the students to make reference For the 2007- 2008 academic year, the school has more than 730 students (243- grade 10, 245- grade 11 and 242- grade 12), with an average of 30 students per class There are 7 teachers of English and 70 others who are teaching different subjects at school For recent years, HTSS has been the leading upper secondary school of Ha Tinh Training and Educational Service In fact, it has received quite a few awards for being the most effective school in Ha Tinh province

As for the students of the school, about forty three percent of them come from many districts all over the province, so they mainly live in hostels or rented houses where reading materials in English tend to be scare About 57% of them live in the city or near the city These students seem to have more favorable conditions for their learning both at school and

at home Generally, the students are streamed into two major groups: specialized group and non-specialized group With respect to English subject, the English majored group has an average of 7 periods per week (4 periods in the morning, 3 periods in the afternoon) while the non English majored group just receive 3 periods per week, i.e., 4 periods less than the former group The teaching materials for the English majors include the textbooks prescribed

by MOEET and other supplementary materials developed and selected by the classroom teachers These English majors are believed to be more strongly motivated than those who

are not specializing in English as most of them plan to enter university to which English is one of the entrance examinations Indeed, most non English majored students are rarely encouraged to read extensively since opportunities for their teacher to include supplementary classroom activities beyond the content prescribed in nationally authorized textbooks are quite limited

This quasi-experiment was conducted with the group of students who are not specializing

in English with The reason for choosing this group is to improve their current situation of learning English in general, English vocabulary in particular, which has been assumed to be far from being successful or effective for years Also, the research experiment was carried out with the hope that English teachers in input-poor EFL settings should increase reading input within no English majored students’ linguistic levels both inside and outside of the classroom

3.3 The Rationale of Using Quasi-Experiment

According to Christenson's (2004) statement, "The quasi-experimental method can be used in a situation that doesn't meet all the requirements necessary for controlling the influence of extraneous variables" Also, W Borg & M Borg, (1988, p.680) claim that "If you want to make causal statements, you should conduct a true experiment If you cannot use random assignment to design a true experiment, a quasi experiment is the second best choice" Since random assignment of subjects to the experimental and control groups is not always possible, particularly in field studies, quasi-experiments become appropriate for accomplishing the subject assignment in particular contexts In these circumstances, the researcher should pay attention to the specific issues that may arise when subjects are not randomly assigned In comparison with a true experimental design, L H Kidder, (1980: 43) also says that "Quasi-experiments are research designs that do not have randomly assigned treatment and comparison groups … You forfeit control when you do not use random assignment, but you can still conduct research and analyze cause-effect relationships without

a true experiment" Indeed, in a quasi-experiment, the researcher can still examine the effect relationships by observing what happens, when, and to whom; and by deciding what and when to measure Besides the above, the quasi-experimental design is more likely to have external validity as it is conducted under conditions closer to those normally found in educational contexts Furthermore, since this design is less intrusive and disruptive than the true-experimental design, it is easier to gain access to the subject to the population and thus more convenient to conduct such research (Selinger & Shohamy (1989: 149) As a result, it

cause-helps the researcher save a lot of time in grouping the participants, which was impossible under the present conditions

Despite its practical benefits, the quasi-experimental design also has some shortcomings compared with the true-experiment For instance, the pre-assignment to groups of participants makes it hard for the researcher to control the extraneous variables such as gender, group size, age, English readiness, which may threaten the reliability and internal validity of the research To increase the strength of the design, the researcher first attempted

to equate the number of male and female students in the two groups by removing one male student in the control group and one female student in the experimental group from the study before the experiment Then the scores in their school entrance examination were taken into account to see any difference in their English proficiency In this way, some extraneous variables that may affect their extensive reading and L2 vocabulary acquisition can be partly solved

In short, as all above factors are examined, the quasi- experimental design becomes the most practical and feasible for the researcher to conduct the present study.Besides the pretest and posttest design that acts as the main instrument of this study, a multiple-choice questionnaire was used to elicit the experimental students' opinions and attitudes towards the GERP, based on which suggestions for further study or improvement would be made

3.4 Variables

As mentioned above, the quasi-experimental design was used in the study as an appropriate approach to establish the cause-effect relationship between extensive reading and grade 10 students' English vocabulary acquisition Therefore, the study was designed to examine the relationship between the independents variable (the extensive reading) and the dependent variable (the vocabulary test score)

In this quasi-experimental study, the extensive reading could be measured by the amount

of the optional reading materials guided partly by the researcher, the books chosen according

to the students' interest, and the time spent on extensive reading The guided extensive reading was seen as the comprehensive input acquired outside the classroom by students who were encouraged to have extra reading at their disposal Specifically, they had freedom

in spending the time and choosing books according to their interest and reading ability The values of the independent variable were defined from the experimental students' weekly reports which covered the information on the books they had read and the amount of time spent on extensive reading per week

In order to measure students' vocabulary acquisition from the GERP, the pretest and posttest were employed as a valid and reliable means for this study The vocabulary test scores of both control and experimental groups were carefully computed and compared before and after the experiment by a t-test

3.5 Participants

The subjects of the study are the two groups of grade 10 students, non-English majors, who are learning at HTSS These students were selected as a subset of the population by means of cluster sampling Under the present condition, the quasi-experimental design was used so as to be able to obtain control over sources of invalidity and non-equivalent groups which did not involve the random assignment of each subject to both groups The following table presents main background information about participants such as gender, age and their predetermined English proficiency

Table 1: Background information about the subjects of the study

This research took the whole class as a unit in the experiment Two existing classes (Class 10 T and Class 10 L) were already pre-assigned to the experimental group and the control group before the study The total number of students in both groups was 60, 30 per each Their age ranged from 15 to16 There were 24 girls and 36 boys, 73% of them came from the central city, the rest came from the suburbs and other rural districts of Ha Tinh province Judging their results of the school entrance examination in English at the beginning of the 2007-2008 school year, we were able to assume that their English proficiency level was roughly attributed to Elementary Despite the fact that they had spent four years studying English at lower secondary schools the problem, their background knowledge of vocabulary and grammar and other practical skills were still limited as they kept on learning English at an upper-secondary school In fact, many students have spent little time in studying or reading English after school Thus, without any ER program they would be likely to do little reading at home A teaching period of English at school usually

lasts 45 minutes Specifically, grade 10 students receive three 45 minute English classes per week except for the English majored students who study the advanced English program taught at English specialized classes get 4 periods weekly

In this study, both groups regularly received three weekly English classes taught by the researcher according to the school timetable This was an advantage for the researcher to take control over the students' learning process and eliminate other variables coming from the teacher during the treatment Although all the participants were taught by the same teacher, some changes in teaching were made for the experimental group according to the characteristics of the guided extensive reading program The control group still received the conventional teaching which followed the same teaching model employed by the other teachers of English at school for years The reading texts that the control group took frequently were of fixed selections from the textbook Tieng Anh 10, which was designed for 10th form students as a whole Meanwhile, the experimental group who took part in the GERP read texts of their choice at their level and then did several post-reading activities besides their three weekly classes

However, there was a matter of fact that extensive reading had been unfamiliar or even unknown to most of the students involved in this study since this was the first time they had ever had a chance to get familiar with the program Although students had freedom to choose graded readers at their disposal, they still faced quite a few difficulties in selecting and using books, managing their reading time as well employing their reading strategies Without the teacher's guidance, the students' first practice in an extensive reading program would be far from being successful or different

3.6 The Guided Extensive Reading Program

This program was adapted from Hsui's (2000: 31) Guided Independent Reading (GIR) Program, which, as she suggests, "may be used as a supplementary reading program in upper primary (5th and 6th grade) and lower secondary (7th to 9th grade) classrooms….for students who can read with varying degrees of proficiency, but who generally will not read for various reasons, such as failure to develop a love for reading, unavailability of appropriate reading materials, insufficient time to read extensively because of school demands, and lack of motivation to read extensively" We realized that the way in which Hsui's GIR program was structured would benefit students in most upper secondary schools

in Ha Tinh, where English is a foreign language for the majority of the students In the present context, the study, based on a quasi-experiment, attempted to experiment the GERP

on 30 grade 10 students at HTSS in order to examine the effects of extensive reading on their English vocabulary acquisition after a period of 16 weeks in the first semester of the 2007-

2008 academic year The GERP was carried out as the "Home Reading Program" since most

of students' reading activities were done at home The program exploited the collections of simple passages and graded readers available in the school library and on the internet After each reader or passage, students were required to do some follow-up activities related to their home reading A detailed description of reading materials, post reading activities, the teacher's guidance and procedures is presented as follows

3.6.1 Reading Materials

The reading materials were short, simple and easy passages or stories collected from graded readers ranged from level 1 to level 4 About 48 passages were chosen to accord with perceived students' interest and then modified for easy reading (see Appendix 2 for a sample

of extensive passage) Most selected passages had familiar topics such as friendship, education, sports, movies, culture, music, current event, etc These topics were different from those in the authorized textbooks since they easily went out of date The headwords in each passage and story were assumed to be appropriate to students’ proficiency and vocabulary level

In addition to passages distributed in lessons in class, students were also encouraged to read graded readers different genres, such as romance, adventures, science fiction, action thrillers, and biography Graded readers are “extended texts, mostly fiction, written in language reduced in terms of structures and vocabulary” (Hill, 1997: 57) Thus, they are regarded as a major teaching resource for many instructors in language learning In an extensive reading program for elementary and intermediate foreign or second language learners, graded readers need to play an important role (Day & Bamford, 1998; Hill, 1997) This is because the various levels of graded readers provide ideal vocabulary coverage conditions for a range of levels of achievement within the elementary and intermediate levels The selection of graded readers for the GERP in this study followed the principles proposed in Krashen's (1982) input hypothesis, which was discussed clearly in section 2.5

At the beginning of the program, 62 graded readers from Collins English Library (A), Ladder Series Books (B), Longman Structural Readers (C), Oxford Bookworms (D), Oxford Progressive English Readers (E), and Streamline Graded Readers were introduced to participants (see Appendix 6 for list of graded readers used in the GERP)