(LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ) Integrating language and work skills through project-based learning - A case of English for tourism

1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES PHẠM THỊ MINH PHƯƠNG INTEGRATING LANGUAGE AND WORK SKILLS THROUGH PROJECT-BASED LEARNING – A CASE OF ENGLISH FOR TOURISM (KẾT HỢP DẠY NGÔN NGỮ VÀ PHÁT TRIỂN KỸ NĂNG NGHỀ NGHIỆP CHO SINH VIÊN THƠNG QUA HÌNH THỨC HỌC TẬP SỬ DỤNG CÁC BÀI TẬP LỚN – ÁP DỤNG TRONG GIẢNG DẠY TIẾNG ANH DU LỊCH) M.A Minor Programme Thesis Field: English Methodology Code: 601410 HANOI, 2010 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES PHẠM THỊ MINH PHƯƠNG INTEGRATING LANGUAGE AND WORK SKILLS THROUGH PROJECT-BASED LEARNING – A CASE OF ENGLISH FOR TOURISM (KẾT HỢP DẠY NGÔN NGỮ VÀ PHÁT TRIỂN KỸ NĂNG NGHỀ NGHIỆP CHO SINH VIÊN THƠNG QUA HÌNH THỨC HỌC TẬP SỬ DỤNG CÁC BÀI TẬP LỚN – ÁP DỤNG TRONG GIẢNG DẠY TIẾNG ANH DU LỊCH) M.A Minor Programme Thesis Field: English Methodology Code: 601410 Supervisor: Nguyễn Thu Lệ Hằng, M.A HANOI, 2010 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i KNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vi Part I INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale for the study Aims and objectives Scope of the study Significant of the study Method of the study Organization of the study Part II DEVELOPMENT Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 An overview of ESP 1.1.1 Definition of ESP 1.1.2 Essential issues in teaching ESP 1.1.2.1 Needs analysis 1.1.2.2 Methodology for teaching ESP 1.2 The teaching and learning of English for Tourism as an ESP 1.2.1 English for Tourism as an ESP 1.2.2 Challenges in teaching English for Tourism 1.2.3 Towards an appropriate syllabus for English for Tourism 10 1.3 Project-based approach and the learning and teaching of EfT 11 1.3.1 An overview of PBL 11 1.3.1.1 What is a project? 11 1.3.1.2 What is PBL? 11 1.3.1.3 Merits and challenges of PBL 12 1.3.2 PBL approach and the ESP classroom 13 1.3.2.1 Rationale for implementing PBL in the ESP classroom 13 1.3.2.2 Process of project work 15 1.4 Summary 16 Chapter 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 17 2.1 Background of the study 17 2.1.1 The course 18 2.1.2 The students 18 2.1.3 The teacher 18 2.2 Research questions 18 2.3 Research approach 19 2.4 Participants 19 2.5 Instrument 19 2.6 Procedure of data collection 20 2.7 Data analysis procedure 20 2.8 Summary 21 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com Chapter 3: THE PRACTICAL STUDY 22 3.1 Preliminary investigation 22 3.1.1 Data presentation of the preliminary questionnaires 22 3.1.2 Findings 26 3.2 Intervention 27 3.2.1 The design and aims of the travel guide project 27 3.2.2 Procedure of the project 28 3.3 Evaluation 29 3.3.1 Data presentation of the evaluation questionnaires 29 3.3.2 Findings 33 Chapter 4: DISCUSSION OF THE FINDINGS 35 4.1 Research question 35 4.2 Research question 36 4.3 Research question 38 4.4 Summary 40 Part III CONCLUSION 41 Conclusion 41 Recommendations 41 Limitations of the study and suggestions for further study 42 REFERENCES 44 APPENDICES TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ESP: English for Specific Purposes GE: General English EFL: English as a Foreign Language CLT: Communicative Language Teaching PBL: Project-based Learning HTTC: Hanoi Teacher Training College EfT: English for Tourism Part I: INTRODUCTION Rationale for the study From early 1960s, ESP, or English for Specific Purposes, has grown to become one of the most prominent areas of EFL teaching today and gained a well-established position as a component of applied linguistics research (Dudley-Evans & St Johns, 1998) As the word “specific” suggests, the nature of ESP is different from that of general English in a sense that ESP learners learn English for a certain professional or occupational purpose Therefore, teaching/learning ESP includes much more than the teaching of English through specific materials and content In fact, it combines the development of linguistic skills together with the acquisition of specific information Consequently, to ensure the success of ESP learning, the materials should be wisely selected and adapted and learning activities should be carefully designed, and more importantly, an appropriate teaching method should be adopted With regard to language learning approaches and methods, the concept of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) have been developed and adopted by a number of scholars since 1970s Closely allied to CLT are a number of concepts which reflect certain types of learning and teaching such as interactive learning, learner-centred instruction, task-based learning, content-based learning, and cooperative learning (Brown, 2001) These variations of CLT prove effective in many contexts as students can not only learn the language but also develop certain TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com personal and social skills through learning Also originated from these learning types, Projectbased Learning is a “flexible methodology allowing multiple skills to be developed in an integrated, meaningful, on-going activity” As Thomas J W (2000) summarizes, research on PBL have shown clearly the benefits of PBL: (i) gains in student achievement, (ii)gains in students’ problem-solving capabilities, (iii) gains in students’ understanding of the subject matter, and (iv) gains in understanding relating to specific skills and strategies introduced in the project Given these merits and the nature of ESP, PBL will be an ideal choice for ESP teaching and learning In the recent years, the ESP movement in Vietnam has been rapidly developing due to the existence of diverse needs of the learners Currently, all university students must learn the ESP that suits their learning branches For example, students at economics universities have to learn English for commerce, while students from the Information Technology universities have to learn English for IT However, a lot of questions have been raised over the quality of ESP teaching and learning at university as many students studying ESP show quite poor performance on four language skills and a lot of graduates can not use ESP in their work This results in an unsolved problems that ESP teachers are encountering: How to design appropriate syllabus and authentic learning activities to enhance ESP learning? English for Tourism is a new ESP for a relatively new course in Hanoi Teacher Training College, thus it is not surprising that both the administrators and the teachers are experiencing some teething pains In search of an effective teaching method, the researcher of this study, also as a teacher of this subject, has formed a hypothesis that: “Project-based learning would help students not only learn the language but also develop their future work skills” and this is the reason why this study is carried out Aims and objectives As mentioned in the rationale, the study is aimed at exploring the benefit of project-based learning in the teaching and learning of English for Tourism: whether or not this learning activity would allow teachers to integrate language and students‟ work skills in their teaching The objective of the study is to work out the answers to the following research questions:  What are the benefits of project work in learning EfT, as perceived by the teachers and the students involved? TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 10  How can work skills be integrated in the syllabus for EfT at the department of Foreign Languages, Hanoi Teacher Training College, by means of PBL method?  What are the suggestions for effective project work in learning EfT, as recommended by the teachers and students involved? Scope of the study Due to time constraint as well as the author‟s ability and working conditions, the study is limited to the following extents: 3.1 Participants:  Students: One class of second-year English major students at Department of Foreign Languages, HTTC Their main field of study is English for Business and Tourism  Teacher: The team of English for Tourism staff consists of only members including the author of this study Therefore, only one teacher can take part in the interview conducted for the study 3.2 Form of project-based learning method: PBL can have numerous variations in practice but the one studied in this thesis is group investigation and presentation 3.3 Work skills: Working in the tourism industry calls for a great number of skills However, in this study, only some most typical soft skills such as presenting, communicating, problem-solving and group work skills, etc, are mentioned Significance of the study The research, first of all, would enable the teaching staff at English Department, HTTC to grasp the real situation of their students‟ language competence and needs in learning EfT With such a deep insight, they would be able to evaluate their current teaching method and thus make necessary changes to improve the effectiveness of the teaching and learning of this subject Moreover, if successful, the study would prove that PBL is a suitable and effective method and it would be introduced to other teachers at the college Hopefully, PBL would be adopted and implemented at larger scales with the purpose of developing students‟ future work skills TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 11 Method of the study This is a qualitative action research carried out in the researcher‟s own class at HTTC, Hanoi The data was collected from preliminary questionnaire and evaluation questionnaire for students, semi-structured interview with another teacher from EfT team and the teacher’s notes and diary Data for the study was collected in the first term of the school year 2009 – 2010 and then analysed by means of descriptive statistic devices and content analysis method Hopefully, with the combination of these instruments, the study would yield reliable findings Organisation of the thesis The thesis consists of three main parts: Introduction which provides an overview of the study, Development which is the main part and consists of chapters, and Conclusion which includes summary of the study, implication, limitations and suggestions for further study Four chapters in the main part are as follows: Chapter 1: Literature review In this chapter, various research on English for Specific Purposes in general and English for Tourism in particular, as well as Project-based Learning approach is reviewed to provide the theoretical background for the study Chapter 2: Research methodology The methods and procedures of the study such as participant selection, data collection methods, data analysis methods, etc, are presented in detail in this chapter Chapter 3: The practical study Under this heading, the main stages of the study: Preliminary investigation, Intervention, Evaluation are presented Chapter 4: Discussion of the findings In this chapter, the findings from the evaluation questionnaires, the teacher‟s reflection and teacher interview will be integrated and discussed so as to find out the answer to the research questions TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 12 PART II: DEVELOPMENT Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter will briefly present a theoretical background of the study which includes an overview of English for Specific Purposes, the teaching and learning of English for Tourism as an ESP, and an overview of Project-based Learning approach 1.1 An overview of ESP 1.1.1 Definition of ESP ESP, or English for Specific Purposes, has become a vital and innovative activity within the Teaching of English as a Foreign or Second Language movement (Howatt, 1984) since 1960s as a result of the increasing recognition of the communicative role of English and its functional styles There are a great number of definitions approaching the nature of ESP as found in literature, each of which may focus on different aspects Hutchinson and Waters (1987) see ESP as an approach rather than a product In this sense, ESP does not involve a particular kind of language, teaching material or methodology This suggests that „the foundation of any ESP course, undoubtedly, is based on learner needs or the simple question: why does the learner need to learn a foreign language?‟ (pp 18-19) The answer to this question has raised the importance of needs analysis in ESP teaching and ESP is then an approach to language teaching in which “all decisions as to content and method are based on the learner’s reason for learning.” (p 19) Strevens (1988) proposes a definition of ESP which makes a distinction between four absolute characteristics and two variable characteristics He thinks that ESP consists of English Language Teaching which possesses some certain absolute characteristics and variable characteristics Likewise, being aware of the current confusion among the ESP community, Dudley-Evans (1997) proposes an extended definition in terms of absolutes and variable characteristics by improving Strevens‟ definition substantially On the whole, each of these definitions has both validity and weaknesses; thus it would be hard to find a satisfactory definition of ESP However, in general, most of these authors have come to an agreement that an ESP course would have the following features: TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 13 It is purposeful and aimed at the successful performance of occupational or educational roles by an individual or a group It is based on an analysis of the students‟ needs and is tailor-made to meet these needs It may differ from another language course in its selection of skills, themes, topics, situations, functions, language and methodology 1.1.2 Essential issues in teaching ESP 1.1.2.1 Needs analysis The five key stages in ESP teaching include needs analysis, course (and syllabus) design, materials selection (and evaluation), teaching and learning, and evaluation Among these, needs analysis is the very first and perhaps the decisive factor in the success of any ESP courses According to Johns, while teaching ESP, “all language teaching must be designed for the specific learning and language use purposes of identified groups of students.”(Johns, 1991, p.67) Teaching ESP is therefore determined by different - professional/ occupational, social and other - needs of the learners In Nunan‟s view, needs analysis is the initial process for the specification of behavioral objectives It is from these objectives that detailed aspects of the syllabus such as functions, topics, lexis and structures are derived Dudley-Evans and St John believe that it is the “corner stone of ESP and leads to a very focused course” (p.122) Likewise, in a definition of ESP course, Hutchinson and Water (1987) state that ESP is an approach to language teaching which aims to meet the needs of particular learners Richards (1984) also points out the significance of NA as follows: “Needs analysis serves three main purposes: it provides a means of obtaining wider input into the content, design and implementation of a language program; it can be used in developing goals, objectives and content; and it can provide data for reviewing and evaluating an existing program.” (p.5) Dudley-Evans and St John in their “Development in ESP” (1998) suggest that needs analysis can be done through a variety of means such as pre-course information questionnaires, structured interviews, observation, analysis of authentic texts, discussion, and record-keeping These suggested methods have their own strengths and weaknesses but if utilized appropriately, they can provide useful and reliable data for the process of needs analysis Hopefully, with a smooth beginning, the whole ESP course will run successfully TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 57 What would you like to add to the course? A, A content subject (provides background knowledge in Vietnamese) B, Written assignments C, Research tasks D, Group presentations E, Nothing III Project-based approach in learning English for Tourism Please tick one box that best indicates your opinion How familiar is project work (group investigation and presentation) to you at your department? A, I have done some and I know how to carry out a project now B, I have done some but still don‟t know how to carry out a project C, I have never heard of it but I would like to try it D, I have never heard of it and I don‟t want to try it How would you like to carry out the project for the subject “English for Tourism”? A, individually B, in pairs C, in groups 10 How would you like to demonstrate your final product? A, By a written assignment B, By an oral presentation with wall posters C, By an oral presentation with PowerPoint slides - The end Thank you very much for your collaboration! TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 58 Appendix 2: Evaluation questionnaire for students AN EVALUATION QUESTIONNAIRE ON PROJECT-BASED LEARNING APPROACH IN LEARNING “ENGLISH FOR TOURISM” I would like to ask you to help me by giving your sincere opinion about the following statements concerning the use of project work in learning “English for Tourism” This is not a test, so there’s no “right” or “wrong” answers I am really interested in your personal opinion, so please give your answers sincerely as only this will guarantee the success of this study Section A: Evaluation of the Travel Guide Project Read the following statements and tick the box that best indicates the extent to which you agree or disagree with these statements 5: Definitely agree 4: Mostly agree 3: Neither agree nor disagree 2: Mostly disagree 1: Definitely disagree 1 I am now quite familiar with project work in learning and I know how to carry out such a project After finishing the travel guide project, I feel more interested in the subject “English for Tourism” I would like to more projects on tourism in the future Section B: The benefits of project work in learning EfT The travel guide project help(s) me to imagine what a job in tourism industry would be like (please indicate your opinion by ticking one box) A, greatly B, partly C, doesn‟t TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 59 For statements from to 7, you can tick all appropriate boxes that best indicate your choice In different stages of the project, I also had chance to practise such language skill(s) as A, speaking B, listening C, reading D, writing E, none In general, the important benefit(s) of project-based learning in learning English for Tourism is/are A, Learning is more fun and students are more motivated B, Students can enrich their background knowledge through research work C, Students can develop some soft skills such as groupwork, presentation, communication, etc D, Students can be exposed to and learn how to deal with real-life situations E, Others: (Please specify either in English or Vietnamese) Through doing the project, my skill(s) has/have improved A, communication B, presentation/public speaking C, groupwork D, problem-solving E, research F, none of the above Part C: Suggestions for effective implementation of PBL in learning EfT During the implementation of the project, I myself met some difficulties such as (tick all appropriate boxes that indicate your choice) A, Time and energy consumption B, Ineffective groupwork C, Limited access to necessary materials and technology D, Lack of instructions and guidance from the teacher E, Other ideas:…… In my opinion, the most important factor that can ensure the success of the project is (please tick one box only) TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 60 A, Group cooperation B, Individual research and presentation skills C, Teacher‟s clear and careful instruction and continuous feedback D, The availability of needed materials 10 I’ll be happy to more project work in the future if it… (tick all appropriate boxes that indicate your choice) A, covers a wider range of topics B, involves more real-life communication in English C, includes some authentic activities such as interviews with foreigners or visits to the companies or institutions in the tourist industry D, Others: (Please specify either in English or Vietnamese) - The end Thank you very much for your collaboration! TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 61 Appendix 3: A semi-structured interview with a teacher from EfT team Q1: How long have you been teaching English? A: years Q2: What is your highest qualification? A: Masters degree in ELT and applied language studies Q3: How long have you been teaching the subject EfT? A: Two semesters Q4: Have you ever received any education or training in the field of tourism? A: Not yet Q5: What is your opinion of this subject? A: English for tourism lies in the stream of English for vocational purposes The subject is important because there has been an increase in vocational training and learning in Vietnam and throughout the world Q6: Are you in favour of PBL approach? A: In general, I am in favour of PBL If applied successfully, PBL stimulates students’ critical thinking and provides opportunities for collaborative investigation I like the idea that the teacher plays the role of facilitator and students take ownership of their success Q7: Have you ever implemented PBL in teaching EfT? A: Yes Q 8: How often you ask your students to project work? (in a school year) A: I am just applying project work once in this semester with students of K1 A and K1B this semester Q 9: How you organize the project? A: I divide the class into groups Each group research on one country of their choice, download from internet a video clip introducing about that country, and prepare a powerpoint presentation on different aspects of the country such as customs and traditions, famous tourist attractions, people and history, etc Each group member is also asked to write a short reflection essay on the video clip chosen by their group Q10: Do your students like project work? Why/ Why not? TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 62 A: Hard-working students like the project because they take full responsibility for their learning They also appreciate the chance to work together to accomplish a common goal However, many still show their indifference Q11: Have you met any difficulties in teaching EfT? What are they? ( e.g: time, background knowledge, college facilities, etc) A: Honestly, I met all the above-mentioned difficulties Q12: What you think may be possible challenges when implementing PBL in teaching EfT? A: - Teachers are not very interested in the subject area - Designing and implementing a project is time-consuming for both teachers and students - Teachers have little experience in the approach - Students’ English proficiency is low Q13: Do you think that PBL can be implemented in teaching EfT at our department? Why/ Why not? A: Yes, PBL can be successfully implemented in teaching EFT at our department if teachers not have to teach many subjects at the same time A lot of time and energy is needed for a successful design and implementation of tourism projects Q14: Have you got any recommendations on how to carry out tourism projects successfully? (with regard to the teacher, the students, the college, etc) A: Teachers: - should be interested in the subject area - should be familiar with necessary stages for developing a project in ESP classroom - should be willing to move their role from knowledge providers to facilitators who guide students in their own learning - should encourage collaborative and cooperative class atmosphere Students: - should be proactive learners - should be willing to work in groups The College: - should make library resources and internet more accessible to students - should provide teachers with encouragement and support TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 63 Appendix 4: A reflection of teacher’s diary and notes Throughout the whole semester, the researcher has been carefully observing her students‟ reactions and behaviour in the EfT classroom These observations are recorded in the form of diary notes and then transformed into a narrative reflection to serve the study Here is the reflection: … Before having lessons with class 2B, I was a bit nervous as I had been told by the former teacher that I might encounter a lot of difficulties The students in this class are not very active and their language competence is not very good However I had had my own plan and I had decided to try an experiment on this class Week 1: On the first day at school I had a friendly talk with them and encouraged them to speak out their difficulties and their needs in learning EfT Then I asked them to fill the questionnaires and assured them that this would be useful for them in the sense that I would know how to adapt the materials and adjust teaching method They appeared very happy and did the job with great care Then I introduced the travel guide project that they were going to during the semester Most of them were surprised and showed their curiosity However, one boy seemed uninterested and did not pay attention to my instruction Week 2: I asked the students to work out and register the name, slogan, logo, etc of their company Students eagerly discussed in their groups and asked for my comment of their choice I came near the “uninterested” boy and asked him “can you be the manager of the company, my dear?” He smiled with me and began working with his group After the discussion, I was really surprised at the students’ imagination and creativity in choosing the name, slogan and designing logo for their companies Week 3: As I knew that my students’ presentation skills are not good due to a number of reasons, I decided to spend one period of class time instructing them how to give a presentation with PowerPoint slides They listened and noted down carefully and practiced enthusiastically I was happy that they really appreciated my support TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 64 Week 4, 5, 6, 7, 8: This is the implementation stage and students had to work on their own However, I knew that I had to lead them into the right direction Therefore, every week, I collected their weekly reports and asked them if they needed any help In fact, they did encounter lots of difficulties Group told me that they could not agree on the final outline and I had to have a short discussion with them at break time The trouble that Group got into is limited access to necessary material They complained to me that they could find very little information on the topic I then sent them some website address where they can find the information and lent them a travel guide book They were happy and grateful to me One day I got a call from group 5’s leader She told me that one student did not anything and asked me if they could their own parts leaving that girl’s part away I explained to her that they could but their final mark would not be as high as they should since the final mark also depended on the success of the whole group I told her that they should encourage and help the girl with her assigned job Throughout these weeks, the students constantly emailed to me, asking for my advice and even my support when necessary At times, I saw that they even worked together at break time All groups appeared very serious in their group work and they were successful in working out a good outline At the end of this stage, I had got all their final products, including the Word and PowerPoint versions I thought they were all ready for their presentation Week 9, 10: There were group presentations each week In the first week, we got into some troubles: their punctuality and their technical preparation As we moved to another room in a different area of the campus for overhead project use, some students came late The first group to give presentation didn’t come earlier to prepare for it, so we had to wait about 15 minutes Group even did not have their hard copy and handouts for audience in their hands and had to go to the photocopy shop at break time I was a bit worried and told myself that I needed to take these into consideration in the coming presentations However, I soon got excited when group started their presentation Their topic is “traditional gifts in Vietnam” and they played very melodious songs praising the beauty of the country during their presentation The first presenter looked so charming in her Aodai (long dress) and Non la (conical leaf hat) as she introduced these items to the audience We were then really allured by lots of traditional products with attractive introduction and beautiful TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 65 illustrations Other groups’ presentations were also very interesting but many presenters still had serious problems with their pronunciation and accuracy in language use However, as regard their presentation skills, I could see very clearly their progress They knew how to make a good slide, how to use visual aids and they could use relevant connecting phrases/ sentences in giving a presentation The last presentations were given in the following week This time, we did not encounter the same trouble as the previous week However, we did not have a smooth beginning when group with three boys and one girl was not successful in giving their presentation One was absent and the others were quite cumbersome in their performance They got a number of mistakes with their slides and their pronunciation, fluency and accuracy are quite poor Fortunately, the other groups’ performance was much better We even had chance to enjoy some special candy and cakes when group proposed their tourism development plan in Duong Lam Ancient Village Most students appeared quite confident and enthusiastic However, there still remained some drawbacks that I was really concerned about During class time, I noticed that some girls at the back were not very attentive They did not take notes and sometimes they chatted together When I gave feedback and checked their understanding of the matters, some could not answer my questions while most of their classmates responded enthusiastically Luckily, when it came to the assessment session, all students showed their eagerness and concern Most of them were quite satisfied, some with regret when their marks were not as high as they should due to some problems When I told them that their projects had been successfully carried out and now it was time for enjoying themselves, they were excited and had a small party with candies and snacks while some video clips from their presentations were played again When class time is up, we were all happy and we knew that all, including me, had learned something from these presentations TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 66 Appendix 5: A sample of travel guide project guidelines TRAVEL GUIDE PROJECT GUIDELINES Project instructor: Pham Thi Minh Phuong Cell phone: 0975 537 599 E-mail: phuongptm_nb@yahoo.com Objectives:  Students can enrich their background knowledge of Vietnam‟s culture and tourism through their own research task and by attending other groups‟ presentations  Students can make the habit of self-studying and improve their language skills considerably through the process of project implementation  Students can develop some soft skills focusing on the use of English in their future work such as presentation, communication, group work, problem-solving in dealing with tourists, etc Requirements: Students work in groups of on a given topic and they are to give a presentation in the form of a travel company‟s presentation to the tourists Each member must be responsible for a certain part and assessment will be as follows:  The success of the whole group‟s project: 60%  Individual presentation skills: 40% Also, students are asked to complete the weekly review individually and have it signed by the teacher every week Sources of information: - Websites - Travel/ hotel brochures - Books/ magazines, etc Criteria for evaluation TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 67 * Group work: - Clear and good organisation: 20% - Informative content: 40% - Persuasive and creative presentation: 30% - Effective use of visual aids: 10% * Individual work (presentation skills)  Pronunciation and intonation: 30%  Fluency: 30%  Accuracy: 20%  Body gestures: 10%  Contact with the audience: 10% Topics for group projects Topic 1: Typical gifts in Vietnam (Unit 8) Write descriptions of what to buy when visiting Vietnam Your descriptions should answer the following questions: - What are they? - Where can you buy them? - Who are they suitable for? - Are they expensive? - What can they be used for? NB: Photos and drawings should be included to illustrate the gifts Topic 2: Air travel in Vietnam (Unit 9) Your project should include: * Brief introduction of some popular airlines in Vietnam: logo and slogan, pictures for illustration, etc * A brief explanation of check-in procedures and necessary information about dos and don’ts for passengers when travelling by air in Vietnam Topic 3: Hanoi by night (Unit 10) Suggestions and recommendations for going out at night in Hanoi - Brief introduction about nightlife in Hanoi - Places to visit to satisfy different tastes TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 68 - Places that tourists should avoid Topic 4: Putting Vietnam on a map (Unit 11) - Draw or find a map of Vietnam - Write a description of its location and geographical features - Introduce regions in Vietnam with regard to location and distinguishing features Topic 5: Etiquette and customs in Vietnam (Unit 13) Your project should cover the following aspects:  Greeting people  Body language  Public behaviors Topic 6: Changes and development in tourism in Vietnam (Use suggestions in Speaking 14, Unit 15) - Major achievements in tourism industry in Vietnam - Shortcomings/ problems - Possible future plan for tourism development in Vietnam Topic 7: A tourism development project (Unit 15) Choose an area in Vietnam that hasn‟t been developed yet/properly for tourism Use the following suggestions to prepare a tourism development plan * An analysis of the region‟s potentials and drawbacks/weaknesses * The development project: Your project may cover the following aspects: - Tourists profile: What types of customers are you aiming at? - Main resorts/ atractions - Transport - Accomodation and catering: hotels, restaurants, etc - Environmental protection TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 69 Timeline and milestones Stages Week Orientation Tasks/Activities - Answer the questionnaires about Project-based learning - Form groups (each will act as a tourist company) and and Planning choose the topics - Groupwork 1: work out and register the name, slogan, logo, etc of the company - Listen to T‟s instruction on how to carry out a project and explanation of assessment and evaluation Research and Implementation - Listen to T‟s explanations on presentation skills - Search for information on the given topic individually - Groupwork 2: Share and agree on an outline - Hand in/email to teacher for comment and suggestions - Get back the outline (with comment/suggestions from the T) - Assign individual tasks to members - Work individually on the assigned task - Contact the teacher regularly for guidance and suggestions - Groupwork 3: Share and comment in groups on individual work - Hand in a hard copy of the final presentation (for more comment and approval) - Groupwork 4: Prepare for the final presentation: editing, typing the final product, preparing handouts, designing visual aids, etc Sharing results - Give presentations in class (Group 1,2,3,4) 10 - Give presentations in class (Group 5,6,7,8) TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 70 Appendix 5: Students’ weekly review WEEKLY REVIEW Name: Class: Dates: What new vocabulary and structures have you learned this week? Which of these new words and structures can you use with confidence? Which of these you feel unsure about? What fact(s) about your topic have you found? What can you say/do this week that you could not say/do last week? Which language skill(s) have you practiced during the implementation of your project this week? Speaking: to whom? Listening: to whom/what? Reading: what?(textbook, magazines, etc) Writing: what? Any comment or questions? TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com LXXI Appendix 6: Evaluation form EVALUATION FORM Group: Class: I Group performance Organisation (2 points) Content (4 points) Presentation (3 points) Visual aids (1 point) Total (10) II Individual performance Name Pronunciation and Fluency Accuracy Body gestures Contact with Total intonation (3pts) (3pts) (2pts) (1pts) audience (1pts) (10pts) III Final marking TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com ... VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES PHẠM THỊ MINH PHƯƠNG INTEGRATING LANGUAGE AND WORK SKILLS THROUGH PROJECT-BASED. .. students and an educator (pp 3-4 ) TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com 18 1.3 Project-based approach and the teaching and learning of English for Tourism 1.3.1 An overview of PBL 1.3.1.1 What... organisation of ideas and identification of areas of enquiry; research and information gathering; compilation and analysis of information; publication, presentation and evaluation of project Hedge