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MID TERM TEST Scientific Research Methodology (Time allowance 2 weeks) 1 Research title FACTORS AFFECTING ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS OF THE STUDENTS AT HIGH SCHOOL IN VIETNAM’S URBAN AREAS 2 Researc.
MID-TERM TEST Scientific Research Methodology (Time allowance: weeks) Research title: FACTORS AFFECTING ENGLISH COMMUNICATION SKILLS OF THE STUDENTS AT HIGH SCHOOL IN VIETNAM’S URBAN AREAS Research aim: The study shows the factors affecting communication skills in English, in order to improve English communication skills of the high school students in Vietnam’s urban areas Research objectives: The research objectives of the study are: - To assess whether what difficulties high school students in Vietnam's urban areas in the process of communicating in English -To identify the causes of difficulties of the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas when learning English communication skills -To identify the factors that influence English communication skills of the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas -To propose some recommendations and outline some solutions to improve English communication skills of the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas to overcome difficulties when learning English communication skills Research questions: -Do the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas have difficulties in learning English communication skills? -What are the causes of difficulties of the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas when learning English communication skills? -What are the factors that influence English communication skills of the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas? -What are some recommendations and some possible ways to improve English communication skills of the students at a high school in Vietnam’s urban areas? Literature review: 5.1 An overview of previous studies: Certainly, English language has gained much attention in language-ineducation policies in Asian countries It is a compulsory subject in high school curriculum in some countries in Asian, including Vietnam English language have started to provide access to English language as a foreign language in the national education program in Vietnam However, at the high school level, arising from such implementation were issues associated with foreign language policies for high school education which have been identified in many research studies (Cindy, Naomi & Moon, 2015; Coco et al., 2017; Li, 2018; Chan, 2018) Some of these issues were also reflected in education more generally Currently, in Vietnam, about 55/63 provinces are implementing high school English programs (Nguyen Hoang, 2016); the rest is teaching ethnic minority languages Most provinces have enough resources (teachers, facilities, parents' needs and children's preferences, etc.) to incorporate English into their curricula However, the reality is significantly different The implementation of English education is not as effective as expected although expectations are very high among stakeholders Based on an investigation of the English teaching situation at the upper secondary level, Min suggests that 'conditions are not yet suitable to allow a successful expansion of teaching at the primary level' (Min, 2015: 25) She adds that 'there is no clear perception of the goals, means and outcomes of teaching English to upper secondary students' (Min, 2015: 30) In addition, teachers are not fully trained to teach upper secondary English and not have a good level of English (vocabulary, academic vocabulary, specialization) Existing textbooks and materials are not completely suitable for urban high school students to develop their language communication skills '(Min, 2015: 30) for high school students With those missing conditions, the effectiveness of English education for high school students hardly meets its purpose Professional teachers are one of the most important factors in ensuring the effective implementation of communicative English education at the upper secondary level as they can greatly contribute in motivating students to learn English Besides, it is not easy to teach students effectively, because foreign languages are less required at the upper secondary level than at all educational levels because students still have important university exams Besides other factors depend more on spoken language (Miranda, 2014) Some researchers agree that teachers should have a high level of language proficiency and be truly professional in comparison to their broad knowledge of vocabulary (Miranda, 2014; Lima, 2000; Slattery & Willis, 2001) and understanding good on methods of teaching communicative English to high school students (Lima, 2000) While advocates of English language teaching and foreign language studies praise the growing interest in English language programs, many fear that these efforts are unnecessary The biggest concern is the quality and quantity of professional teachers, who can meet the conditions to teach high school students who can communicate after years of studying at a high schools in Vietnam’ urban areas to practice perform these efforts 5.2 Theoretical frameworks: Communication is a skill that involves a systematic and continuous process of speaking-listening-understanding and feedback Most people are born with the ability to talk, but each must learn to speak well and communicate effectively Speaking, listening and understanding verbal and nonverbal cues are skills by observing others and modeling our behavior based on what we see and perceive We are also taught some face-to-face communication skills through education (Shakira, 2016) In Vietnam, there are now official English textbooks published by the Ministry of Education and Training for each school year Most of the content of academic books is unclear, unattractive, lacks pronunciation exercises, focus on grammar and vocabulary Consistent themes in vocabulary and grammar throughout the three books The cassette attached to the book is not renewed, the quality is not good (Nguyen Hoang, 2016: 38) For English communication, different schools use different materials to teach and learn communicative English These studies are supported by research on high school IELTS in Vietnam conducted by Moon for the British Council in September 2018 which shows that textbooks not match students' needs for English language skills Their focus (grammar, not communication), input type activities, make students learn passively, unable to communicate in English Despite these limitations, these books are still widely used because of their release by the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (Moon, 2018) In my opinion, those comments are absolutely correct and I support them Although the policy of teaching communicative foreign languages in high schools in Vietnam has been widely accepted and supported, more urgent actions are needed to improve the current situation We don't just need to focus on reading, writing or grammar and vocabulary skills, but listening, speaking and communication skills are most important We desperately need good teachers not only in urban areas We need to encourage and support high school students in English communication skills, especially urban high school students, where they are developed and qualified to use communicative English Thus, I this research References: Cindy, Naomi & Moon (2015) English in high education in Vietnam: Policies, outcomes and stakeholders' lived experiences Current Issues in Language Planning, 11(2), 150-162 doi: 10.1080/14664208.2011.584371 Li & Chan, (2018) Success or failure of primary second/foreign language programmer in Asia: What the data tell us? Current Issues in Language Planning, 12(2), 309-323 doi: 10.1080/14664208.2011.609715 Cameron, L (2003) Challenges for ELT from the expansion in teaching children ELT Journal 57 (2), 105-112 Miranda (2014) Teaching English in the High School Classroom- Thailand: Longman Nguyen Hoang (2016) Foreign language education in primary schools in the People's Republic of China Current Issues in Language Planning, 8(2), 148-160 doi: 10.2167/cilp113.0 6 Min (2015) Investigating the teaching of English at High Level in Vietnam: A summary report Paper presented at the Teaching English Language at High Level Conference, Hanoi, Vietnam Lima (2000) High English language education policy in Viet Nam: Insights from implementation Current Issues in Language Planning, 12(2), 225-249 doi: 10.1080/14664208.2011.597048 Shakira, (2016) Importance of English communication skills International Journal of Applied Research (3), 478 480, 2016 Slattery, M and Willis, J (2001) English for Primary Teachers Oxford: Oxford University Press 10 Moon, (2018) The situation of high school IELTS in Vietnam Paper presented at the Teaching English Language at High School Level Conference, Hanoi, Vietnam ... 10.1080/14664208.2011.597048 Shakira, (2016) Importance of English communication skills International Journal of Applied Research (3), 478 480, 2016 Slattery, M and Willis, J (2001) English for Primary Teachers Oxford:... important university exams Besides other factors depend more on spoken language (Miranda, 2014) Some researchers agree that teachers should have a high level of language proficiency and be truly professional... use different materials to teach and learn communicative English These studies are supported by research on high school IELTS in Vietnam conducted by Moon for the British Council in September