Luận văn thạc sĩ VNU ULIS developing students’ critical thinking skills through project based learning – an action research study at a high school in bac giang province

Project- based learning with the development of students’ English skills

Rationale for the study

While the traditional classroom tends to require passive learning, the classroom over the last few decades has taken place a significant shift to meet the demand of the changing workforce It focuses attention on fostering important skills required for 21st-century education: critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity that are developed in the Partnership Forum for 21st-Century Skills

Figure 1: 21 st Century Student Outcomes and Support Systems and Support

Critical thinking has been included in many models of skills that are important for education and workforce success (Trilling & Fadel, 2009)

Understanding and fostering the ability to help students think critically is essential to their educational success Students need to think deeply about global issues, solve problems creatively, work in teams, learn ever-changing technologies and deal with a flood of information Teaching critical thinking in the classroom is vital for students Learning critical thinking leads students to develop other skills, such as a higher level of concentration, deeper analytical abilities It is teachers‟ job as educators to equip students with the strategies and skills which they need to think deeply about global issues, solve problems creatively, work in teams, learn ever- changing technologies and deal with abundant information

Unlike students in Western educational systems, many Vietnamese students, epeciallyespecially students at schools in remote and mountainous areas, have not benefited from the explicit inclusion of developing critical thinking skills as an educational goal over a number of years Critical thinking skills are also the point missed in Vietnamese students In Vietnam, “teachers provide information for the students to learn by heart forexaminationsfor examinations” and “the students are notmotivatednot motivated to learn beyond the exam” (OanhOanh, 2006) As a result, learners emphasiseemphasize repetition, recitation, memorisationmemorization of factual information from the textbook while they are uncritical of the information they receive from their teachers or from the textbook (

One question coming to the researcher‟s mind is “How to develop my students‟ critical thinking skill?”Manyskills? “Many scholartsscholars report that project- based learning provides opportunities for students to learn deep content knowledge and critical thinking skills (Bell, 2010, Blumenfeld et al, 1991) Many benefits of incorporating project work in teaching foreign languages have been suggested The facts above urge the researcher to carry out the action research, which is aimed at developing students‟ critical thinking skills through project-based learning.

Aims of the study

The study aims at exploring the impact of project-based learning on the development of students‟ critical thinking skills, and use project – based learning as a guiding framework for teachers‟ implementation Aware that the goal is to know the effect of project-based learning to scaffold critical thinking, the researcher thinks of activities focusing on developing critical thinking skills.

Research questions

In order to achieve the research objective, the researcher will answer the following questions:

(1) What activities in project-based learning can teachers do to develop critical thinking for students?

(2) What are the students’ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills ?

Significance of the study

The study focuses on exploring how project-based learning influences the development of students‟ citicalcritical thinking skills Hence, once the thesis is completed, it can have both theoretical and practical contributions In terms of theoretical contributions, the research is expected to provide the demonstration of critical thinking skills in foreign language classroom and influences of project- based learning to the development of students‟ critical thinking skills In addition, this thesis is hoped to serve as a realiablereliable and useful reference material about project-based learning in a pedagogical environment for high school teachers in Vietnam.

Scope of the study

The researcher is concerned with the implementation of project-based learning to developing students‟ critical thinking skills The participants of study include 40 students from class 11A1 in Lang Giang 1 High School- a mountainous school in Bac Giang Province.

Method of the study

The method employed in this study is action research, with the use of a number of instruments, namely observation, questionnaires, and interview

Action research has been proved to be the best choice for this study because the study was aimed at improving the students‟ critical thinking skills within a certain context The combination of different instruments used in this research would help the researcher to gain reliable data and have a close investigation into the effectiveness of project-based learning.

Design of the study

The study is divided into three main parts as follow:

Part A: Introduction presents the rationale for study, aims, research questions, the significance, the scope, the method and the design of the study

Part B: Development is organized around three chapters as follows:

Chapter 1- Literature review synthesizes the theoretical framework of the study related to critical thinking skills, project-based learning,theirlearning, their relations as well as the ways project-based learning improve students‟ critical thinking skills

Chapter 2 – Methodology illustrates the context, the methodology used in this study including the subject, the data collection instruments, data collection procedure, and data analysis

Chapter 3 – Findings consists of a comprehensive analysis of the data

Part C: Discussion and Conclusions summarizes the main issues discussed in the thesis, discusses the findings, points out some limitations of the research and implications for teaching and English together with suggestions for further studies

LITERATURE REVIEW

Critical thinking skills

We must have heard at some point in our daily life the concept “critical thinking” It seems to be present in speeches, the mass media and in the syllabus, but it is hard to define, which results in different interpretations in different contexts

The initial ideas to explore the theoretical foundation of modern critical thinking tradition was developed by John Dewey, an American philosopher, psychologist, and educator He defines it as an “active, persistent and careful consideration of a belief or supposed form of knowledge in the light of the grounds which support it and the further conclusions to which it tends” ( Dewey, 1933, p.9)

In this definition, Dewey emphasizes reflective thinking, asking oneself questions about what to believe through evaluating reasoning, and considering the implications of one‟s beliefs As outlined by Glaser (1941), critical thinking involves three main components: (1) an attitude of being disposed to consider in a thoughtful way the problems and subjects that come within the range of one's experiences, (2) knowledge of the methods of logical inquiry and reasoning, and (3) some skills in applying those methods Critical thinking requires an ability to recognize problems, using the knowledge in the light of evidence to draw conclusions and to render judgementsjudgments about specific things and qualities in everyday life The approaches to critical thinking are also subsumed in the perception of Black et al ( 2012) They state that critical thinking is based on analysis and rationality The processes which lead to that end are

“AnalysingAnalyzing arguments; judging the relevance of significance of information; evaluating claims, inferences, arguments and explanations; constructing clear and coherent arguments; forming well-reasoned judgments and decisions.” (Black et al., 2012, p.58)

Although a number of different researchers have defined critical thinking, Bloom‟s Taxonomy (1956) ( See Figure 1) is the most cited work in terms of critical thinking, covering a number of commonalities of frameworks of such skills (Gall, 1970) The six levels within the cognitive domain are divided into two levels of thinking skills:

- Lower-Order Thinking Skills : Knowledge, Comprehension and Application

- Higher-Order Thinking Skills : Analysis, Synthesis and Evaluation (Bloom, 1956)

Table 1: Bloom’s Taxonomy by Bloom (1956)

3 Application Applying knowledge to new situations

4 Analysis Breaking information into pieces

5 Synthesis Integrating parts or elements together into a whole new unit

In this study the definition of critical thinking of Moon (2007) in language learning is proposed, specifically for English language teaching situations Critical thinking is defined as the ability to consider a range of information derived from many different sources, to process this information in a creative and logical manner, challenging it, analyzing it and arriving at considered conclusions which can be defended and justified ( Moon, 2007).

The importance of teaching critical thinking skills in foreign language

The main objective of language education along with other pedagogies is to produce creative and critical learners Critical thinking has been studied by educational scholars for many years and is still gaining ground in terms of its perceived importance by teachers, scholars, and administrators The importance of critical thinking in educational curricula has been extensively researched

Modern societies often require people to possess wide knowledge and strong thinking skills referred to as critical thinking skills as well Parallel to social life, the classroom environment needs to be much more dynamic In such a dynamic environment, critical thinking stands at the very center of the learning process

Critical thinking development provides students with the skills they need to make decisions in a rapidly changing world, discover solutions to social justice problems, and develop into lifelong learners (Ku, 2009)

The reason why students need to develop critical thinking skills also lies in the fact that it is the English language that has taken the role of the lingua franca and is used globally by non-native speakers of English for intercultural communication As Liaw indicates (2007, p.51) “Since higher-order thinking skills are increasingly required for success in a knowledge-based society, it is the responsibility of teachers to assist their students to acquire critical thinking skills while learning English.”

Undoubtedly, there is a consensus among researchers that providing students with opportunities to act on their thinking is essential for students to engage effectively in language learning and thinking.

Project-based learning

Project-based learning is increasingly recognized as a powerful instructional approach In this section, the researcher explores its definition, features, teacher‟s roles, students‟sstudents‟ participation, benefits and process of project-based learning

Thomas (2000) reports that project-based learning is a model that organizes learning around projects It can be described as student-centered instruction that occurs over an extended period, during which students select, plan, investigate and produce a product, presentation, or performance that answers a real-world question or responds to an authentic challenge (Holm, 2011) From the definitions, it can be concluded that project-based learning is suitable to be implemented for students because this approach involves learners in activities that require investigation and put them in the real situation

According to the definitions found in project-based learning handbooks for teachers, projects are complex tasks, based on challenging questions or problems, that involve students in design, problem-solving, decision making, or investigative activities; give students the opportunity to work relatively autonomously over extended periods of time; and culminate in realistic products or presentations (Thomas, 2000) In terms of the final product, Stoller (2006) outlines several variations such as production projects, performance projects, and organizational projects For the purosepurpose of the study, a project is defined as a longtermlong- term ( several weeks) activity that involves a variety of individual or cooperative tasks such as developing research questions, and implementing the plan through empirical or document research that includes collecting, analyzing and reporingreporting data orally

Besides, students‟ participation in project-based learning is active instead of the passive role in traditional approaches Bell (2010) points out that in a project- based learning classroom, students are provided with a topic which they should develop through research or project work for their individual or group learning and teachers should monitor the project performed by students In project-based learning, students collaborate in groups to solve authentic and curriculum-based problems and decide how to approach a question and what activities to pursue (Solomon, 2003) As a result, students are trained to be critical and responsible for their learning (Bell, 2010; Postholm, 2005)

Various authors suggest different ways project-based learning be implemented For the sake of this work there is a model of project-based learning described which is carried out within the framework and documentation of project management alongside four phases advocated by Kriwas (1999)

Stage 1: Speculation: A suitable topic is identified following discussion among the group members

Stage 2: Designing the project activities: Activities are designed and roles are assigned, as well as where information and resources will be sourced from and a structure is devised for the tasks in the projects

Stage 3: Conducting the project activities: At this stage the groups implement the activities designed in the previous stage Students gather information, process and categorize it The next phase is synthesis and processing of information gathered

The final products are displayed in the school or the wider community, and become a stimulus for thought and action for other students, teachers and local community

Stage 4: Evaluation: Evaluation refers to the assessment of the activities from participants and discussion about whether the initial aims and goals have been achieved, implementation of the process, and final products Evaluation includes evaluation from others, as well as self-evaluation

It can be concluded that project-based learning has gained popularity in a number of research based on various theoretical perspective and methodologies with results that indicate the significance to create learning process and environment more enjoyable, meaningful and authentic that is impossible in the traditional classrooms.

Relations between project-based learning and the development of students‟

Researchers have also found that project-based learning is a successful way of teaching 21st-century skills because it increases student engagement and content learning (Bell, 2010)

In 1986, Meyer published a paper in which he suggested four elements for a learning environment to be conducive for the development of critical thinking: (1) stimulating students‟ interest, (2) creating meaningful discussion, (3) exposure to thoughts and views of others, and (4) fostering a trusting and supportive atmosphere When the principles and processes of project-based learning are examined, it seems that this learning strategy encapsulates those four elements proposed by Meyers(1986) This strategy requires students to make connections between existing knowledge and new knowledge acquired in the course of considering the problem Students play an active role in understanding concepts and content, and it enables them to develop 21st-century skills, which fosters an enduring curiosity and hunger for knowledge Since students are able to apply classroom content to real-life phenomena, project-based learning also facilitates career exploration, technology use, student engagement, community connections, and content relevancy (Blumenfeld et al, 1991)

Hence, the synthesis of the literature shows that there are numerous benefits for both teachers and students in using project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills in foreign language learning and teaching environments In practice, what tasks and activities should be employed to promote students‟ critical thinking skills in particular? The issue of project work and its use in language teaching will be dealt with in details in later parts of the thesis.

How can project-based learning improve students‟ critical thinking skills?

So far the author has concentrated on exploring some theoretical ideas of critical thinking and project-based learning, but it might not be an easy task to apply and develop project-based learning that addresses critical thinking Critical thinking is not a natural skill as speaking or running, it is a deliberately developed complex set of skills and features that take years to acquire It is clear that critical thinking skills are difficult to teach and develop, but not impossible Angelo (1995) suggests that teachers improve students‟ critical thinking skills by:

(1) Providing time for well-planned, focused and interactive student discussions that connect prior and subsequent knowledge;

(2) Providing guide practice and then assess students‟ ability to solve problems and explain how they solve problems;

(3) Talking through various strategies to direct and control attention and thinking

When giving projects, teachers should provide students with opportunities to exercise judgment: in gathering and assembling information, in analyzing and synthesizing it, and in formulating and evaluating conclusions ActivitesActivities such as evaluating the realiabilityreliability of sources of information; critical questioning, making connection between prior knowlegeknowledge and topics; collecting , analysinganalyzing and evaluating information; creating the final products; evaluating the project-using rubrics and feedback form also play an important role in developing students‟ critical thinking skills ( Hughes, J 2014)

1.5.1 Evaluating the realiabilityreliability of sources of information

Evaluating information sources is an important part of project-based learning Not all information is reliable or true, nor will all information be suitable for their project “The explosion of information available electronically means students need to be able to judge the credibility of an ever-widening array of sources” (Brookhart, 2010).They will need to make decisions about what to search for, where to look, and once they've found material on your topic, if it is a valid or useful source for their projects.Whenprojects When students evaluate sources of information for research and for other purposes, they become “agents of texts and not victims of texts” ( Harste & Albers, 2010, p123) The ability to locate, question, and validate information allows a student to become an independent, lifelong learner and critical thinker

What is even more important is that the act of thinking is often driven by questions (Elder & Paul, 1998) Therefore, teachers can use questions to help students build understanding and think critically and creatively Elder and Paul

(1998, p.62) strongly advocated that “ thinking is driven by questions, not answer, and “ questions define tasks, express problems and deleneatedelineate issues”

Wiggle (1999) points out that a questioning strategy may involve all students in the learning process; encourage all students to make an effort to prepare a response; allow adequate wait-time for cognitive processing; and facilitate opportunities for students to engage in higher level thinking According to Bloom‟s Taxonomy

(1956), the questions can be divided into six types: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis and evaluation Seen from the functions of each type of questions, knowledge demonstrates remembering previously learned material

Comprehension refers to understanding of facts and ideas Application is the use of principles, formulas, theories, concepts, or procedure in a new context to solve a problem Analysis consists of breaking a piece of material or concepts into component parts and interpreting their interrelated relationship Synthesis is to build a structure or pattern from diverse elements, putting parts together to form a new whole with emphasis on creating a new meaning or structure Evaluation is to make reasoned judgments about the value of ideas or materials In the analysis of Kennedy et al (1991), the three highest levels of skills (analysis, synthesis and evaluation) are often representative of critical thinking Among all types of questions, asking higher order questions is imperative to the development of students‟ critical thinking ability

1.5.3 Making connection between prior knowlegeknowledge and topics

Students go to school with a broad range of pre-existing knowledge, skills, beliefs, and attitudes, which influence how they attend, interpret and organize incoming information How they process and integrate new information will, in turn, affect how they remember, think, apply, and create new knowledge The activity

“making connections between prior knowlegeknowledge and topics” in project- based learning fosters critical thinking skills which is the making, suspending or revising judgment Students connect what they learn to what they already know, interpreting incoming information, and even sensory perception, through the lens of their existing knowledge, beliefs, and assumptions (Vygotsky, 1978 ; National Research Council, 2000 ) In fact, there is a widespread agreement among researchers that students must connect new knowledge to previous knowledge in order to learn (Bransford ,1986 ; Resnick, 1987 )

1.5.4 Collecting , analysinganalyzing and evaluating information

Analytical skills refer to the ability to collect and analyze information, problem- solve, and make decisions McPeck, J E (1990) defines critical thinking as

“The process of actively and skillfully conceptualizing, applying, analyzing, synthesizing and evaluating information to reach an answer or conclusion In project- based learning, it is necessary for students to learn to find, analyseanalyze and evaluate the informaioninformation in order to use high-quality evidence to back up their arguments

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Revised taxonomy by Anderson and Krathwohl (2000) seems to be appropriate for project- based learning, based on the rationale that a finished product will be the final stage after thorough and careful examination The following table provides examples which express how we can foster students‟ critical thinking skills by project-based learning according to Anderson and Krathwohl‟s Taxonomy (2000):

Table 2: Revised taxonomy by Anderson and Krathwohl (2000)

Collection of information – identifying all related information about questionnaire/ report/ poster and the topic Retrieving, recalling, or recognizing knowledge from memory

Remembering is when memory is used to produce definitions, facts, or lists, or recite or retrieve material

Understanding what/ how a/an questionnaire/ report/ poster look like and understand the function Constructing meaning from different types of functions be they written or graphic messages activities like interpreting, exemplifying, classifying, summarizing, inferring, comparing, and explaining

Application of the idea of questionnaire/ report/ poster Carrying out or using a procedure through executing, or implementing

Applying related and refers to situations where learned material is used through products

Analyzing the need and the requirements of questionnaire/ report/ poster, analyzing the items to be included, addition and omission are analysedanalyzed Breaking material or concepts into parts, determining how the parts relate or interrelate to one another or to an overall structure or purpose Mental actions included in this function are differentiating, organizing, and attributing, as well as being able to distinguish between the components or parts When one is analyzing he/she can illustrate this mental function by creating the product

Evaluating the questionnaire/ report/ poster with the certain criteria that was discussed in the class Making judgments based on criteria and standards through checking and critiquing

Critiques, recommendations, and reports are some of the products that can be created to demonstrate the processes of evaluation

Creating the product- questionnaire/ report/ poster ready

Putting elements together to form a coherent or functional whole; reorganizing elements into a new pattern or structure

Formatted through generating, planning, or producing Creating requires users to put parts together in a new way or synthesize parts into something new and different a new form or product

1.5.6 Evaluating the project - using rubrics and feedback form

Evaluation is closely associated with critical thinking Some writers such as Beyer (1985) and D‟Angelo (1971) seem to equate “critical thinking” with

“evaluation.” Most theorists, however, describe critical thinking as including evaluation among several other higher order thinking processes (Ennis 1989; Paul 1992)

Thus, by including critical thinking skills in project-based learning activities, the students are required to master the concepts and think comprehensively by analyze, interpret, evaluate, conclude, and collect information related to the phenomena of life These skills related to the critical thinking skills (Trilling and Fadel, 2009) Through the critical thinking students are expected to have the ability to make-effective reasons, use a thinking system, create and the make decisions, and be able to solve the problems.

Summary

This chapter has highlighted the key issues in project-based learning, critical thinking skills as well as their relation in English language classroom The literature review shows that project-based learning, having quite a lot of potential benefits, can be an effective approach in developing students‟ critical thinking skills A thorough review of the benefits of project-based learning also strongly supports the hypothesis that project-based learning could be utilized as a tool to facilitate language learning and improve students‟criticalstudents‟ critical thinking skills

Critical thinking skills can be developed based on different steps of project-based learning and can be evaluated from the sources they use, from the questions they ask, from the problems they solve, from the product they create, from the way they evaluate the products With this theoretical background, it is hoped that the study would yield satisfactory results.Inresults In practice, how shouldtheshould the activities be employed to promote students‟ critical thinking skills in particular? The

Bold, Font color: Auto issue of project work and its use in language teaching will be dealt with in detail in later parts of the thesis

METHODOLOGY

Context of the study

Lang Giang 1 HighSchoolHigh School - one of the mountainous schools in Bac Giang Province, where the author currently works as an English teacher, was chosen as the venue for this action research From her experience, the researcher has identified some main problems in teaching and learning English in her school

First of all, the teaching of English here is still strongly influenced by the traditional way of teaching, which focuses on teaching grammar in class and the teachers are in tight control of the lesson from the beginning to the end Besides grammatical knowledge, teachers also teach vocabulary, reading skills and techniques for students to take English examinations so that they can ensure their students to get higher scores in the entrance examinations Many of them cannot imagine a situation in which the learners are given autonomy and responsibility for their learning

The second problem is the impact of English examinations on English teaching andor learning in the school Most students in the school place anemphasisan emphasis on learning a certain number of isolated words and structures in ordertoorder to pass English tests such as the fifteen tests, forty five - minute tests and GCSE ( General Certificate of Secondary School) Teachers and their students will be less likely to focus on the development of critical thinking when teaching and leaning English

On the whole, the above possible problems that the researcher has suggested might lead to the fact that students have no chance to improve critical thinking It isveryis very important for language teachers to solve the above learning

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Roman, Font color: Auto problems;thereforeproblems; therefore, the reseacherresearcher decided to use project-based learning to help her students develop their critical thinking skills.

Research questions

This study aims at developing students‟criticalstudents‟ critical thinking by using project-based learning by seeking to the following questions:

1 What activities in project-based learning can teachers do to develop critical thinking for students?

2 What are the students’ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills ?

The study

The main contents of this section include participants of the study, reasons for using action research, action procedures,theprocedures, the implementionimplementation of project-based learning to develop students‟ critical thinking skills

Class 11A1 with 40 students in Lang GiangGang 1 high school in BacBack giangGiang Province was selected from one of the author‟s teaching classes in the school year 2016-2017 Most of students are from the rural areas where their families mainly live on farming Therefore, their out-of-class uses of language were limiedlimited, much of the focus in English language learning has typically been on classroom-based learning Among the sample population, 22 are females and 18 are males They have learnt English for at least 7 years The students have different personalities and their English ability level ranged from upper beginner to intermediate

2.3.2 Reasons for using action research

Regarding the aim of the study, the researcher determined to choose action research as the research approach for the present study since the purpose of the action reseachresearch is to change and improve practice in a certain context Nunan and Bailey (2009) define action research as a systematic, iterative process of:

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(1) identifying an issue, problem, or puzzle we wish to investigate in our own context;

(2) thinking and planning an appropriate action to address that concern;

(4) observing the apparent outcomes of the action;

(5) reflecting on the outcomes and on other possibilities;

Action research is a very useful and practical research methodology for educators and educational researchers Of all the purposes of action research, the most important one is to improve educational practice, especially to enhance teaching in practitioners practice and through that to gain some new understanding of practice that is transferable to other situations

Within the context of English language teaching, the reseacherresearcher took Kemmis and Mc Taggart‟s view ( 1988) which suggests that action research typically involves four broad phrases in a cycle of research: plan, action, observe and reflect Two cycles of research were implemented, thus the the deficiencies in the previous cycle can be addressed and corrected, and is expected in the next cycle of teaching and learning can take place properly as expected Based on this model, the researcher carried out the present study.

Research instruments

The researcher who was a participant- observer collected data using students and researcher artifacts To ensure that the findings were credible, the researcher utilized the process of triangulation Hendricks (2006) claimed that data triangulation will help reduce the likelihood of error in the findings when similar results are reported from two or more of the sources The multiple forms of data instruments included: observations sheet, questionairesquestionnaires and interview

The following sections describe the various methods of data collection and how they were implemented

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Observation is useful means to gather information about phenomena in a second and foreign language classroom, such as types of language, interactions and instructions (Gass&Makey, 2005) In this research, two kinds of observation are used: Pre-observation and classroom observation Pre-observation (See Appendix 4) was used prior to the data collection Classroom observation was conducted to know whether project-basedlearningbased learning activities made any effects on students‟ critical thinking skills Classroom observation (See Appendix 5) was used to assess students‟ participation in activities to develop critical thinking skills of project-based learning during the intervention

The primary purpose of the questionnaires is to gather information from research participants„ respondents so that the researcher can analyze the information collected in order to answer the research questions The design of the questionnaire is also related to the aims of the research project and the research questions

The questionnaire was helpful for including all the students in the class as it was an evaluation of their experience of critical thinking lessons (see Appendix 6)

The questionnaires in the present study were adapted from Critical Thinking QuestionairesQuestionnaires by Castle (2006) who designed it for exploring students‟ perceptions of improvements in critical thinking during a course without making reference to whether they thought their skills were high or low It is somewhat adjusted in order to be appropriate for the aim of the study In details, there are 11 items which are classified into three categories: ( 1) Students’sStudents’ interests about topics of projects; (2) Students’ changes after taking part in the lessons using project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills; (3)Project- based learning with the development of students’ English skills.Theskills The original version consisted two more items to explore students‟ perceptions of the teacher‟s role in the course to develop critical thinking skills

The original version also included one more part which asked for background details of gender, age range, highest level of qualification obtained and

Roman, Font color: Auto, Condensed by 0.3 pt whetherpreviouswhether previous courses involving learning critical thinking skills had been undertaken

With the aim of enhancing the reliability and the validity of the study as well as reducing the observation and questionaire‟squestionnaire‟s limitation, the researcher goes on using semi-structured interview instrument based on Hatch‟s

(2002) framework, which allows the interviewer to ask probing questions and ask interviewees to clarify unclear answers and follow up on interesting one The

“formal, semi-structured, and in-depth interview” allowed her to come to the interview with guiding questions and meanwhile remain open to “following the leads of informants and probing into areas that arise during interview interactions” (Hatch, 2002, p 94) Interviews are conducted with 3 students It consists of five questions with the aims (i) to explore the students‟ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop their critical thinking skills, (ii) to explore the students‟ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop their English skills (iii) to reveal the dificultiesdifficulties that they encountered and (iv) to get some recommendations on how to carry out projects successfully so that the teacher can make some necessary changes for the next project-based lesson plan.Theplan The interviews are prepared in English but in order for students to understand what is needed by the researcher, they are translated into Vietnamese.QuestionsVietnamese Questions for interview can be seen in Appendix

Through the triangulation of the observation, questionairesquestionnaires and semi-structure interview, the researcher was expected to answer research questions addressed.

Data collection procedures

2.5.1 Stage 1: Plan - Plan the action

Modern society requires students to possess strong thinking skills

Witnessing the lack of students‟ critical thinking skills and main problems in teaching and learning English in her school as identified in the context of the study,

Roman, Font color: Auto the researcher tended to take a closer look at the situation and finds out the appropriate method to improve students‟sstudents‟ critical thinking The literature review on project-based learning inspired the researcher that the implementation of project-based learning could be beneficial for enhancing her students‟ English language skills in general and critical thinking skills in particular After getinggetting the permission from Lang GiangGiang 1 High School and Foreign Language Department to conduct the research, she determined the methods and steps that would be used in teaching and learning Besides, she developed the evaluation tool, namely the observation sheets that focused on the teaching and learning process including teachers activities, students‟ activities , the learning atmosphere and class situation

2.5.2 Stage 2: Act- Putting the plan into action 2.5.2.1 The implementation of project-based learning to develop students’ critical thinking skills

The implementation of project-based learning in this action research was tried out at the middle of the second semester ( right after the Lunar New Year) in the academic year 2016-2017 within 2 cycles The primary goal of the projects was to develop critical thinking which consists of skills to critically evaluate the validity and reliability of information sources, question critically, collect, analyseanalyze information, create the final products and evaluate the projects using rubrics.Therubrics The secondary goal was to develop their English skills

The first project “ For a better community” was conducted for 5 weeks in the first cycle In this project, students had to work in groups to identify someone/ a place in their community that need help or a problem in their community needed to be solved then dentifyidentify the problems and make a plan which was neccessarynecessary for community development in the community After that they had to volunteer in their community and reflect on their volunteer experiences in a presentation

In the second project “ The best invention” in the next five weeks in cycle 2, students had to take part in the contest “ Best invention of the year” to design a

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Bold, Font color: Auto poster and make a presentation about an imaginary invention on a large-sized sheet of paper The posters would be hung on the wall of the class and all students of the class would vote for the best invention

2.5.2.2 Stages of project-based learning

A detailed description of how the projects were implemented in this study was as follow: a Speculation

The researcher dedicated the first week to introducing the concepts of critical thinking skills, different kinds of questions in higher order thinking, the way to analyseanalyze the realiabilityreliability of the sources, the influence and the role of these variables in the process of critical practice The researcher tried to simplify the concept of the main research key words and encouraged the students to collaborate to share ideas In the second session, the researcher discussed with the students about project-based learning and how to conduct a project to develop critical thinking skills Finally, the researcher asked the students what they expected from the lesson and emphasized that their views would be important for the development of the lesson plan and for the outcomes of the research Then the teacher divided the class into small groups of four or five students according to their friendship, how much they know each other and were used to work together This stage also involved initial discussion of the topic in the whole class and subtopics in certain groups b Designing the project activities

Activities were adapted and designed from critical thinking ( Hughes, J

2014) ( See Appendix 3) and roles were assigned, as well as where information and resources would be sourced from and a structure was devised for the tasks in the projects.Allprojects All students were involved by brainstorming, sharing ideas related to the topic, making the final decision The group discussed the ideas generated in the brainstorming process in order to clarify their preconceptions The ideas were arranged into prior knowlegeknowledge that emerged through the discussion, and questions corresponding to the learning needs of the group were

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Bold, Font color: Auto formulated Students in each group were responsible for the part of the work they had chosen In this stage, students learned how to evaluate the realiablityreliability of sources of information, learned to question information is presented to them c Conducting the project activities

At this stage the groups implemented the activities designed in the previous stage Students gathered information, processed and categorized it Students discussed their findings, wrote English summaries in groups and made presentations to the whole class d Evaluation

Evaluation refers to the assessment of the activities from participants and discussion about whether the initial aims and goals have been achieved, implementation of the process, and final products Evaluation includes evaluation from others, as well as self-evaluation

2.5 3 Stage 3: Observe – Observing the results of the plan 2.5.3.1 Observation

Throughout the ten weeks the researcher observed how the students‟ critical thinking skills improve through project-based learning To identify critical incidents and emerging themes, the resercherresearcher wrote down her ideas using pen and paper The notes were descriptions of incidents that happened in the class during the lessons The observation was derived from the conceptual framework and focused specifically on critical thinking skills The observation was structured in such a way that critical thinking skills including subskills were link to the steps of project-based learning process This enabled the reseacherresearcher to observe how the participants used the design process to develop critical thinking

Observations were conducted from the perspective of a participant- observer.Theobserver The researcher‟s notebook was used to take notes on classroom observations When observing the class and project exhibit, she recorded using her cell-phone video camera to document the event All planned activities for

Bold, Font color: Auto the project-based learning, along with additional reflection notes, were kept in the researcher‟s diary

The researcher prepared and designed questionairesquestionnaires by referingreferring to research related to the same issue, especially the evaluative criteria of some scholars.Constructive comment from the pilot group of two teachers in the same school with the researcher and two students in grade 11 will be considered to help the ressearcherresearcher make adjustment on questionairesquestionnaires At the end of the second project, 40 printed survey questionairesquestionnaires were distributed to students of class 11A1 at Lang Giang 1 High School in order to elicit responses from the whole class regarding the intervention During the evaluation process, the respondents could comunicatecommunicate directly with the researcher to receive detail instructions to ensure that the items will be fully understood

In order to clarify the selected-response questions in the questionnaire, the researcher conducted a follow-up interview after the questionnaire The questions in the follow-up interviews were basically the same as those of the previous questionnaire, so that the researcher could obtain further data The interviews were held with three learners after introducing the intervention The researcher had friendly chats with students for further information and recommendations The length of interview with each student was approximately 15 minutes due to the relatively smaller number of interview questions In addition, interviews were used to enhance data from the questionnaire rather than gaining completely new information

2.5.4 Stage 4: Reflect – Reflecting and planning for further action

The teacher and students‟ activities during the learning process observed are discussed in this stage.

Data analysis

Comment [NV1]: Gộp hai cái này lại vơi snhau vì em dùng stage là heading chính

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Throughout the ten weeks the researcher observed how the students‟ critical thinking skills improve through project-based learning To identify critical incidents and emerging themes, the researcher wrote down her ideas using pen and paper The notes were descriptions of incidents that happened in the class during the lessons

The observation was derived from the conceptual framework and focused specifically on critical thinking skills The observation was structured in such a way that critical thinking skills including subskills were link to the steps of project-based learning process This enabled the researcher to observe how the participants used the design process to develop critical thinking The evidence was collected from the source they use, from the questions they ask, from the problems they solve, from the product they create, from the way they evaluate their partners‟ products It was based on different steps of each project

Observations were conducted from the perspective of a participant-observer

The researcher‟s notebook was used to take notes on classroom observations All planned activities for the project-based learning, along with additional reflection notes, were kept in the researcher‟s diary

Data gained through classroom observations were analyzed quantitatively

First, event sampling was used for activity “critical questioning” in this study Event sampling is often used when the focus is on a particular event in classroom practice such as activities to develop students „critical thinking skills (Turner, J C., &

Meyer, D K (2000) In event sampling, the investigator tallies the number of times a target action occurs In the activity “ critical questioning”, the investigator entered such a mark when the teachers asked questions (See Appendix 7) Then observed classroom interactions were transcribed based on a partial transcription technique

After transcribing, the transcribed data were coded Questions were categorized into the six categories of Bloom‟s Taxonomy (1956)

Besides, interactions in five other activities were transcribed After a cycle, the researcher reflected on whether she met her objectives, what she thought went well, and where she could show growth for the next circle All of this data helped the researcher to evaluate the opportunity for success in her classroom for all of her students while meeting the requirements set at the beginning of the study

Moreover, data gained through the questionnaire at the end of the second circle were analyzed with the use of descriptive statistics and data obtained from interviews were also analyzed qualitatively Recorded interviews were first transcribed so that the audio data were converted into written data (Dửrnyei, 2007).

Summary

The action research study examined the relationship between two constructs, project-based learning and critical thinking skills The research focus stemmed from the lack of students „critical thinking skills in class 11A1 at a high school in Lang Giang 1 High School in Bac Giang Province, a mountainous area A student- centered strategy such as project-based learning promised to develop critical thinking that the traditional teaching method neglects The researcher conducted the study with the action research methodology consisting of two cycles which involves four broad phrases: plan, action, observe and reflect (Kemmis and Mc Taggart,

1988) During the plan phase of the study, the researcher identified the problem of practice, developed a research focus, and conducted a review of related research and literature During the act phase, she implemented two projects to develop critical thinking skills consisting of the skills to make critical questions, to consider a range of information derived from many different sources, to process this information in a creative and logical manner, challenging it, analyzing it and create the final product

During the observe phase, she used observation, questionnaires and interview to collect and analyze data In the final phase of the action research cycle, namely reflect, she evaluated how effectively she answered the research questions and identified avenues for the future research.

FINDINGS

Findings from the observation

To answer the first research question, the observation during ten weeks of two cycles was conducted on two aspects: students‟ classroom behavior and performances on the project-based learning activities to develop critical thinking skills The researcher did mainly observations during the projects, where she paid attention to the activities to develop students‟ critical thinking skills, students‟ attitudes and performances, their cooperation and support, growing rapport between members of the groups and the whole class who was in the projects She made notes in teacher‟s diary during the work Through the classroom observation, the researcher could see the difference in her students‟ classroom behavior and performance when they conduct the project compared to those of their first semester, for she taught the same class for the whole school year

3.1.1 The first cycle - Project “ For a better community”

3.1.1.1 Critical thinking objectives of the project

The critical thinking objectives of the project are to develop critical thinking which consist of skills to evaluate the reliability of sources of information the and synthesize a variety of information; research background of a topic; plan, create, organize, and present an appropriate product that demonstrates understanding of purpose and audience It goes hand in hand with improving English skills (See Appendix 1)

3.1.1.2 Observing the results of the implementation

Referring to the results of observation, it can be implied that the activities in project-based learning that build student's critical thinking skills are as follows: a Evaluating the reliability of sources of information

At first, when the teacher asked students where they could get realizable information for their project, all of them answered that they would search for information in the Internet They did not know how to evaluate the reliability of sources of information This is an important skill because students need to analyze the quality of the sources that they propose to use To help students evaluate the reliability of sources of information, the teacher gave students a copy of the list of different sources of information they could use for their projects and asked them to evaluate each source using the following scoring between 1-3

2 = It might be credible but I’d have to check the information in another source as well

3 = A very credible source of information

The activity is a short warmer into the topic of how much we could trust certain sources Before we accept information that is presented, it is important to consider whether we trust the source of the information Students reported back their views on the different sources The task drew attention to the fact that students needed to check sources and think about where they took information from b Critical questioning

In this activity, when the teacher asked students to make questions about the topics of the projects, students looked worried and frustrated Teacher had to

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Bold, Font color: Auto scaffold the students to move forward Students learned to question information that is presented to them and this had an important role in developing critical thinking skills In order to develop student's critical thinking, projects structured around a non- Googleable Driving Questions It didn‟t yield to a simple Google or library search Questions like “ What are harmful pesticides for the community?” or “ What is the definition of harmful pesticides?” are all Googleable Compare those questions to:“ What are the most harmful impacts of pesticides on your community?” or “ Can you tell me what your group can do to reduce the impacts of pesticides on your community ?” These questions can cover the same content, but to answer them, students will need to do more than looking something up For higher level, students could make the open more focused to the types of question that might be asked when thinking critically These are:

What evidence is there that your village is polluted?

Why do you think that you need to do voluntary work to help the needy?

What do you think about the saying “ The happiest people are the people who bring happiness to others”?

This activity showed them how closed questions which only require yes/no answers did not help us to question critically and those open questions were much more effective The teacher asked students many questions and fostered their critical thinking skills by encouraging them to generate their own questions At the same time, students reviewed the structures they needed to ask questions

It can be observed that students appeared to be weak critical thinkers in the start of the project Gradually, teacher‟s encouragement and persuasion, to some extent, helped students to remove their ambiguity The most obvious hurdles students faced in the earlier project was the shyness when raising hands to give opinions in front of the class, the habit of being afraid to ask questions in the class, and the language barrier as their subject was English c Making connections between prior knowledge and topics

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To make connections between a new topic and their prior knowledge, the teacher asked students to list at least five themes or topics from their course related to the topic of “For a better community” At first, it worked well with the higher ability students but gradually all students are positively engaged with the process

As they made suggestions, the teacher wrote the topic words on the board then wrote the topic “For a better community” in the middle, afterward, students were asked to read out or say their ideas for connections between the topics such as saving the community from harmful pesticides, protecting the environment, kicking off campaign to reduce use of plastic bags, helping the needy, etc The teacher introduced new topics and concepts by connecting them to those discussed in previous sessions, to similar topics studied as well as to daily life and current event

By doing this level of thinking, students learned to connect to what they already know, and to create a web of concepts that help them gain more clarity and understanding This activity fostered cognitive maturity which is the making, suspending or revising judgment c Collecting, analyzing and evaluating information

Through the class observation, the author could see the difference in the students‟ improvements in critical thinking skills performance when they were in this course compared to that of their first semester They knew how to collect information from sources and they were active in taking notes, discussing with their partners, and checking their understanding The process and study of issues related to the topic “Protecting your community from harmful pesticides” were implemented as follow:

- Search in a variety of information sources ( magazines, newspapers, the Internet, and the libraries)

- Collect images, video clips or articles about the problem in their community

After analyzing the need and the requirements of a talk show, the items to be included, selected appropriate information and discard of irrelevant material, students evaluated the talk show with the standard set of criteria that was designed

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Roman to create a talk show- compared and contrasted this one with some other similar talk show- evaluated to find out if it suited the requirements of a talk show- redesigned or modified if necessary This activity aimed at fostering students' desire to search information and gain the best relevant solutions d Creating the final products

In the final stage, students generated, discovered and reconstructed ideas and imagine alternatives In the first product – “For a better community” one group had their own plan to develop the community with the title “A talk show-Saving our community from harmful pesticides ” Students in this group imagined themselves in the role of someone occupying a different social identity such as a farmer, a representative of FAO ( Food and Agriculture Organization), a representative of Ministry of Health, an environmentalist and a lecturer of Vietnam Academy of Agriculture, etc and ponder the pros and cons surrounding the topics from this other perspectives They played the role of characters: to report the current use of toxic pesticides in their community to manage pest problem; to report on pesticide scientific knowledge: definition, characteristics, classification, effects; to report on the impact of harmful pesticides in agriculture and environment One group made a plan to do charity work Members of the group identified the problems of the child who needed help and did actions to help him ( See Appendix 8) Another group volunteered to kick off a campaign to reduce use of plastic shopping bags ( See Appendix 9) By seeing things from different views, students‟ critical thinking will be improved e Evaluating the project - using rubrics and feedback form

Findings from the questionnaires

The next section reveals the students‟ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills, which is presented in terms of the second research question: “What are the students’ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop critical thinking?"

The findings results are shown in the tables and chart as follows:

3.2.1 Students’ interest about topics of projects

No Topics Strongly agree Agree Not sure Disagree Strongly disagree

Table 3 : Students’ interest about topics of projects

Table 3 presents the information about students‟ interest in topics of projects carried out in the course We can see both topics given in the course were in favorof students 87% of students thought that “For a better community” was an interesting topic and help to promote critical thinking skills and the number of students liked “

The best invention” reached 97 % In general, most of the respondents enjoyed the topics of projects

3.2.2 Students’ changes after taking part in the lessons using project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills

No Changes Strongly agree Agree Not sure Disagree Strongly disagree

Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to judge the value of new information or evidence presented to me

Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to make critical questions and actively engage in critical questioning

Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to make connections between prior knowledge and topics

Through project-based learning, I have improved my ability to collect, analyze and judge the value of information

Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to create solutions or final products

Through project-based learning, rubrics and assessment of projects have stretched my intellectual abilities

I have learnt more about how to justify why certain procedures are undertaken in my projects

I have developed a more focused and systematic way of thinking

LUAN VAN CHAT LUONG download : add luanvanchat@agmail.com

Table 4 : Students’ changes after taking part in the lessons using project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills

As can be seen from the table, the application of project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills has made some changes to students When being asked to evaluate the ability to judge the value of new information or evidence, 87% believed that project-based learning helped them to improve this skill 90% students agreed on the helpfulness of project-based learning to improve the ability to make critical questions and actively engage in critical questioning More than 90% of the respondents thought that they have improved the ability to make connections between prior knowledge and topics as well as the ability to create solutions or final products Furthermore 90% students also agreed that project-based learning have improved their ability to collect, analyze and judge the value of information

3.2.3 Project- based learning with the development of students’ English skills

Chart 1 : Project- based learning with the development of students’ English skills

In term of English ability, 72.5% respondents strongly agreed and 17.5% agreed that project-based learning helped students improve English skills None of the respondents disagreed and 10% were undecided on this questions This could be seen as the success of the action research

As shown in the tables and the chart, the vast majority of respondents agreed that the course had promoted critical thinking skills The percentage of the participants highly appreciated the effectiveness of applying project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills provides us evidence of the fact that teachers can change the situations if they know how to use project-based learning in teaching English effectively

The findings from questionnaires above were represented students „evaluation towards the implementation of project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills as well as English skills However, in order to get further information, it is necessary for the researcher to conduct semi-structured interviews The following is the findings from semi-structured interviews.

Findings from interview

A list of five questions was drawn up to support the findings from teacher‟s observation as well as the questionnaire and to get further information (See Appendix 11) This section discusses the results of the interviews (See Appendix

12) The first question asked whether they had enjoyed the course, the responses were largely positive

Student 1: “ In my opinion, this course is a valuable experience I had chance to widen my knowledge about the topic and also had chance to practice my oral English I shared my ideas with my friends and we worked together to complete the projects.”

Student 2: “ I never took part in so many activities in project-based learning I am proud of my accomplishment in this course When playing the role of a scientist in project 1 I felt like I was a real scientist ”

Student 3: “ I enjoyed the activities in project-based learning This was a rewarding experience It was great to create the final product in project “ The best invention”, to complete the poster and the communication in our group was also all right Thank you for this possibility to have fun during an English lesson I was proud of the product “ the best invention” of my group.”

In the second question, participants reiterated the importance of project- based learning in the development of English skills such as speaking skill, reading skill and they had chance to widen the vocabulary when they collected and analyzed the information related to the topic Projects also help them to learn English with much ease

When the teacher asked the students if project-based learning was improving their critical thinking skills or not and what activity they like most, almost all of the students said that it was effective and their critical thinking skills were improved

They used to search Google to find out information without evaluating, and in this course they learned to look for information from different sources and critically evaluate information based on criteria Before the course, they rarely made critical questions in English to others so at first, they were afraid of asking critical questions and giving comments but gradually they actively took part in this activity and gave their own comments They felt critical thinking skills they developed in project-based learning were helpful and practical for their future jobs

The interviews also revealed some difficulties when students did projects

Student 1: “We spent too long time for the project s I was too busy to complete the second project At that time we were going to take the final examination of the second semester of 2016-2017 school year I want to start earlier and last longer I lack time to finish the project “ The best invention”

Student 2: “In my group, some friends tried to control the group We sometimes even had quarrels as they wanted to proved themselves to be right and wanted others to follow their ideas.”

Student 3: “Presentation of projects is a difficult task I feel stressed to make a presentation in front of the class.”

When being asked what the teacher should do to help them improve their critical thinking skills in the next projects, some suggestions were given They hoped that the teacher should give them the choice of topic of projects In addition, they suggested that the teacher should put good students in groups so that they could complete the task easily The teacher should clear roles for group members at the beginning so that some students cannot dominate the work while others do little work

Overall, the interpretation of the students „answers to the interview questions indicated the improvement of students‟ critical thinking skills and English skills through project-based learning It cannot be denied that all students satisfied with the project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills.

Summary

To conclude, the results demonstrated that there was an agreement on the effectiveness of project-based learning to develop students‟ critical thinking skills

The findings from the observation reveal that activities such as evaluating the reliability of sources of information; critical questioning; making connections between prior knowledge and topics; collecting, analyzing and evaluating information; creating the final products; evaluating the projects- using rubrics and feedback form can foster critical thinking skills among students with the teacher‟ role as a facilitator in the classroom According to the results of questionnaires and interview, almost all students are generally satisfied with project-based learning to develop critical thinking They realized the benefits of activities in project-based learning to enhance their critical thinking as well as their English skills Although this method consumed a lot of time, it was considered as an appropriate strategy to develop students' critical thinking skills Project-based learning really offered a wide range of benefits to students

In this chapter, the summary of the problem, the methodology as well as the discussion of the findings of the research are presented After that, it also outlines the conclusions in light of the research findings This chapter also indicates some implications and possible recommendations for further research in order to improve the educational settings in general and using project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills in particular.

Recapitulation of the research

The idea of carrying out this research has derived from the lack of critical thinking skills of the students in her class where the researcher is teaching With the hope to find ways to enhance critical thinking skills of the students, the researcher read the literature and found that project-based learning is a hopeful solution for her class She has consulted a great deal of references and researches on project-based learning and critical thinking skills in English language teaching The study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of using project–based learning activities in developing students‟ critical thinking skills as well as evaluating students‟ attitudes towards project-based learning to develop critical thinking To achieve the aim, the researcher adopted an action research and used three tools in order to collect data: observation, questionnaires and interview

The researcher prepared lesson plans based on project–based learning strategy to develop students' critical thinking skills through achieving two projects in two circles The study started at the middle of the second semester of the school year (2016-2017) and lasted for ten weeks The researcher used a variety of techniques and activities based on project–based learning The population of the study consisted of all students at class 11A1 at Lang Giang 1 high school in Bac Giang Province

Being aware that the goal is to know the effect of project-based learning to scaffold critical thinking, the author mainly concentrates on analyzing activities to

Bold, Font color: Auto develop critical thinking skills At the same time students have the advantage to practice their English skills according to their current level and they improve their English through its use or as a necessity.

Discussion

The findings of observation and questionnaires of the study show that the activities in project-based learning were effective in enhancing students‟ critical thinking skills Such effectiveness of the project–based learning can be summarized as follows:

First, “evaluating the reliability of sources of information” activity is an important activity as it helps students to determine whether it is worth reading the full text in more depth This is critical thinking skills: careful thinking, done reflectively with attention to criteria

Second, “critical questioning” activity is productive in promoting critical thinking skills among students The potential productivity of intervention is evident in the form of critical thinking skills in which students attained more clarity, accuracy, relevance, logic and fairness of concepts through critical questions

Students will depend on the question, define terms, consider information, weigh multiple explanations, evaluate evidence and compare alternative actions It is worth mentioning that, the previous results of the study are in line with those findings (Elder & Paul, 1998) Because of its difficulty, scaffolding occurs during this activity The teacher has to provide learners support and may need to perform tasks that students cannot yet accomplish as Brown( 1991) suggested

Next, the activity “making connection between prior knowledge and topic”, when teacher links new information to the student's prior knowledge, they activate the student's interest and curiosity, and infuse instruction with a sense of purpose

When students can connect what they are learning to accurate and relevant prior knowledge, they learn and retain more

Moreover, in the activity “collecting, analyzing and evaluating information”, students isolate the author‟s arguments and views and started to

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„higher-order‟ critical thinking skills This can involve asking students to assess how much of the text is fact supported by evidence and how much is the opinion of the author As Solomon (2003, p20) explains, through teacher‟s guidance, students “ gather evidence from a variety of sources and synthesize, analyze, derive knowledge from it.” When students are shown how to gather information, question what appears obvious, and think through possible consequences, they will be able to make decisions based on facts, not myths or propaganda

Especially, “ creating the final products” is central to project-based learning because it requires students to provide the record of the process from conception to realization of the solution The ability to analyze, investigation, plan and evaluate the solutions brings about cognitive skills Thus it offers students opportunities for fostering critical thinking skills In terms of presentations, students‟ performances contributed significantly to their learning During this stage, learners are not only improving their spoken English but their knowledge of social topics and relevant vocabulary as well Creating unique products stimulates deep levels of authenticity relevance ( Grant, 2011)

Last, “evaluating the project using rubrics and feedback form” is the final activity of project-based learning requires students to evaluate each process they engage with while seeking the solution In the assessment step, teacher used rubrics, feedback form, peer, teacher, and learner self-assessments, including group work evaluated in each project to reach an agreement Therefore, there are no problems like learners not paying attention in the presentation group Moreover, students are fully aware of the criteria according to which they were going to be judged The final and crucial piece for project-based learning to foster critical thinking skills is to have “formative assessment and feedback.” Students need to know how they are doing and if their thinking is yielding the desired results Reflections and discussions give the projects the ability to promote critical thinking skills (Dewey,

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According to the results of questionaires and interview, almost all students are generally satisfies with projecxt-bsed learning to develop critical thinking skills

However, the findings from the interview reveal the few negative comments reflected on the timing of the project Students expressed a desire to start earlier and last longer They lacked time to finish the projects Negative feedback was also received regarding the behavior of their group members, some of them try to control the group Others felt stressed to make a presentation in front of the class because they had never done it before These difficulties were given by the experts (Fried- Booth, 2002).

Limitations of the study

The study has some following limitations:

First, this study is prone to lack generalization The research has been done with a rather small number of participants (The number of students participating in the research was only 40) Thus, the intervention has worked quite successfully in the researcher‟s class, but she does not know whether it may be applied to other classes at other levels, and in other contexts Besides, the small number of three interviews cannot be the basis for generalizing from the findings

Second, the study only focuses on developing critical thinking skills based on some activities in project-based learning but in fact there are many other factors in project-based learning can affect the improvement of critical thinking skills such as product assessment, and encouragement of student reflection ( Green& Johnson, 2010).

Recommendations of the study

This section will discuss some implications for institutions, teachers, and students

For institution, teaching critical thinking is more effective if the authorities provide support and guidance for teachers and students especially at the stages of project-based learning implementation Moreover, they should monitor and encourage strategies for implementation project-based learning to develop critical thinking

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For teachers, they should train themselves and do more research about the topic of critical thinking skills and project-based learning in their development

Moreover, teachers should critically apply the findings of the research They should scaffold stages in project-based learning to prepare students on the way to enhance critical thinking skills (e.g how to make critical questions, how to collect and analyze the information, how to create an academic poster, in-class poster sessions/ presentations, how to structure a paper presentation)

For students, it is not just enough to acquire the knowledge and the skills in critical thinking, students should be encouraged to apply such skills in their daily lives.

Suggestions for further study

Further research is needed to examine the implementation of project-based learning to develop critical thinking skills at various levels in different contexts

Besides, future studies may also examine factors analysis that affect the success and failure of project-based learning in developing critical thinking skills.

Conclusion

In brief, this chapter summarizes the results of the study followed by implication, limitations and recommendations for further studies In this study, the author attempts to highlight the concept of critical thinking, the project-based learning, the relations between project-based learning and the development of critical thinking skills as well as the application of project-based learning to develop students‟ critical thinking skills in an actual context The linking chain between project-based learning and critical thinking skills contains the primary aim of the teaching – effective learning, quality knowledge and full development of the personality of the student towards building a person who can face the challenges and needs of the life and work of the 21 st century Critical thinking will not grow by itself but it is theoretical and practical be taught Fostering the development of students‟ mind by engaging them into sophisticated and substantial opportunities for deep understanding of curricular content has been set as a primary goal in education Project-based learning has been highly recommended in education

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2012) The projects conducted by students support them to improve real-world skills such as research, creative and critical thinking skills by working in groups in accordance with their own management skills

It is clear that from the source they used, from the questions they asked, from the problems they solved, from the product they created, from the way they evaluated their products, students had the chance to enhance critical thinking skills

They learnt better by actively constructing their knowledge through projects and became responsible and independent learners and thinkers Project- based learning moves students beyond rote memorization and recall highest levels of the revised taxonomy

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LESSON PLAN Project 1: “ FOR A BETTER COMMUNITY”

Overview of the project: In this project, students have to

- Identify someone/ a place in their community that need help or a problem in their community need to be solved

- Identify the problems and make a plan which are necessary for community development in the community

- Suggest a plan to solve the problem

- Volunteer in their community and reflect on their volunteer experiences in a presentation

1 Language objectives: By the end of the four lessons, the students will be able to obtain:

- General knowledge: some information about activities for community development

- Vocabulary: words related to activities for community development

- Skills: speaking skill - presenting on one activity for community development

- Students will evaluate and synthesize a variety of information

- Students will research background of a topic

- Students will plan, create, organize, and present an appropriate product that demonstrates understanding of purpose and audience

II Materials: projector, laptop, chalk, blackboard, reading materials

III Driving Question: What can you do for your community development?

Formatted: Font: Times New Roman, 13 pt

Formatted: Font: Times New Roman, 13 pt a Speculation:

- Teacher and students agree on the topic “For a better community”

- Teacher divided the class into small groups of four students b Designing the project activities

- Identify someone/ a place in your community that need help or a problem in their community need to be solved

- List some problems of the issue

- Suggest a plan to solve the problem

- Volunteer in their community and reflect on their volunteer experiences in a presentation c Conducting the project activities

- Gather and process information then display the final product in front of the class d Evaluation

- Evaluate the project including activities, aims, achieved goals, implementation of the process and the final product

- Students will be addressed as a whole class during questioning

- Student will work in groups when brainstorm prior knowledge

- Students will work in individually when reading material and evaluate the reliability of sources of information

VI Products: Presentation VII Assessment and Reflection:

2 Other Classroom Assessments For Learning

LESSON PLAN Project 2: “ THE BEST INVENTION”

Overview of the project: In this lesson, students work in groups to create their own invention- something they have wished to have They have to design a poster of their invention on a large – sized sheet of paper and make a presentation about this invention

1 Language objectives: By the end of the lessons, the students will be able to obtain:

- General knowledge: some information about inventions

- Vocabulary: words related to inventions

- Skills: speaking skill - presenting on one inventions, their uses and their benefits

- Students will evaluate and synthesize a variety of information

- Students will research background of a topic

- Students will plan, create, organize, and present an appropriate product that demonstrates understanding of purpose and audience

II Materials: projector, laptop, chalk, blackboard, reading materials

III Driving Question: Why is it the best invention?

- Teacher and students agree on the topic “ The best invention”

- To inspire Ss‟ imagination, teacher gives some examples of imaginary inventions based on objects owned by the characters in a cartoon or story: Harry Porter‟s invisibility cloak, Doraemon‟s magic pocket, Aladdin‟s magic lamp, etc

Formatted: Font: 13 pt, Not Italic b Designing the project activities

- Discuss the inventions and select the best invention in groups

- Prepare a presentation to persuade the benefits of the invention c Conducting the project activities

- Gather and process information then display the final product in front of the class d Evaluation

- Evaluate the project including activities, aims, achieved goals, implementation of the process and the final product

- Students will be addressed as a whole class during questioning

- Student will work in groups when brainstorming prior knowledge

- Students will work in individually when reading material and evaluate the reliability of sources of information

VI Products: Poster and Presentation VII Assessment and Reflection:

2 Other Classroom Assessments For Learning:

APPENDIX 3 ACTIVITIES IN PROJECT-BASED LEARNING TO DEVELOP CRITICAL

1 Activity 1: Evaluating the reliability of sources Critical thinking aim: To evaluate the reliability of sources of information

Language aim: To discuss the topic

Rationale: Before we accept information that is presented it‟s important to consider whether we trust the source of the information

2 Activity 2: Critical questioning Critical thinking aim: To develop students‟ critical questioning skills

Language aim: To practise the language of asking closed and open questions

Rationale: Students need to develop the skill of asking searching questions if they are to become effective critical thinkers This activity shows them how closed questions which only require yes/no answers do not help us to question critically and that open questions are much more effective At the same time, students review the structures they need to ask questions

3 Activity 3: Making connections between prior knowledge and topics Critical thinking aim: To make connections between a new theme and familiar topics as well as the prior knowledge

Language aim: To talk about a topic and use topic vocabulary

Rationale: Sometimes students are required to work with a topic which they feel unfamiliar For example, in an situation they may have to talk or write about a topic and express an opinion about it For some students, especially younger teens, this is difficult because the topic they are discussing may seem distant from their own (sometimes limited) life experience Use this activity to demonstrate how to relate a new topic to their familiar topics and their life experience

4 Activity 4: Collecting, analyzing and evaluating information Critical thinking aim: To know how to collect information from sources, analyze and evaluate the information

Language aim: To read about a topic and use topic vocabulary

Rationale: As part of developing a critical mindset, students need to develop the skill of seeing an argument from all sides They need to know how and to collect the information how to analyze and evaluate the information from various sources

5 Activity 5: Creating the final products Critical thinking aim: To bring together all the stages in critical thinking and apply relevant ideas into a the final products ( presentation, talkshow, poster )

Language aim: To input the language of presenting

Rationale: By seeing things from different views, students‟ critical thinking will be improved

6 Activity 6: Evaluating the projects using rubrics and feedback sheet Critical thinking aim: To assess the arguments and opinions presented

Language aim: To assess the language used in the presentation

Rationale: Rubrics and feedback form help students to understand the different criteria that we are wanting to develop and the levels that they will need to perform to achieve

Date: -Time: - Subject: - Class: - Number of students: -Level of Students: -

1 What is the content and structure of the class you will be teaching?

2 Describe your students in this class

3 What have students been asked to do in preparation for this class?

4 What is your goal for the lesson? What do you hope students learn or be able to do as a result?

5 What are your plans for achieving these goals?

6 What teaching methods/teaching aids will be used?

7 What has been taught in previous lessons in this course? How does this lesson fit into the course as a whole?

8 Will this class be a typical example of your teaching? If not, what will be different?

9 What would you like me to specifically focus on during the observation? (Use this question for formative reviews, in particular)

10 Is there anything else I should be aware of prior to the observation?

Little or no effort shown

Evaluating the reliability of sources of information Critical questioning Making connections between theme and topics Collecting, analyzing and evaluating information Creating the final products

Evaluating the project- using rubrics

In an attempt to investigating the opinions of students toward the application of project-based learning to develop students „critical thinking skills, I would greatly appreciate if you could be willing to respond to the questions below Please answer the questions below by ticking (√) the choice you find most suitable suitable Thank you very much for your cooperation and participation!

In responding to the statements in this table, please put a tick (√) in the appropriate choice as follows:

1 (Strongly agree) 2 (Agree) 3 (Not sure) 4 (Disagree) 5 (Strongly disagree)

1 Topic “ For a better community” is interesting

2 Topic “The best invention” is interesting

3 Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to judge the value of new information or evidence presented to me

4 Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to make critical questions and actively engage in critical questioning

5 Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to make connections between prior knowledge and topics

6 Through project-based learning, I have improved my ability to collect, analyze and judge the value of information

7 Through project-based learning, I have improved the ability to create solutions or final products

8 Through project-based learning, rubrics and assessment of projects have stretched my intellectual abilities

9 I have learnt more about how to justify why certain procedures are undertaken in my projects

10 I have developed a more focused and systematic way of thinking

11 Project-based learning has helped me to develop English skills

Thank you very much for your cooperation!

1 Frequency of questions tally chart Questions asked by the teacher Questions asked by the students

2 Critical thinking tally chart Critical thinking tally chart ( To be used to record the types of questions used in a lesson)

Knowledge ( Questions used to recall facts) Comprehension ( Questions used to seek understand of facts)

Application ( Questions used in a new learning situation, such as problem solving)

Analysis ( Questions that seek to examine detail, or which makes inferences and/or look for answers)

Synthesis ( Questions which see to change or create something new)

Evaluation ( Questions which seek to justify present and/or defend opinions by making judgments)

VOLUNTEERS KICK OFF CAMPAIGN TO REDUCE USE OF PLASTIC

- Nguyen Thao Duyen: The leader

-Nong Thi Kieu Oanh: Power point designer

- Nguyen Nhat Mai, Nguyen Thao Phuong: Contribute content

Nowadays, people are used to using plastic bags to carry things when they go shopping It seems to become bad habit - which happens every day, everywhere

This is one of the reasons why our environment is becoming more and more polluted Therefore, we are giving you some reasons why you should say no with plastic bags:

 Difficult to decompose: Plastic bags are made of petrochemical, a nonrenewable resource A single plastic bag can take up to 1000 years, to decay completely This makes the bags stay in environments longer, in turn leading to great build-up on the natural landscape

That not only makes the view bad but also causes great harm to the environment

 Take on the danger of natural life: Approximately 100,000 sea turtles and other marine animals die every year because they either mistake the bags for food or get strangled in them, says Natural Environment It is really dangerous for animals to eat them Moreover, plastic bags on the landscape prevent the plant from growing and so on

 Harmful to human health Many dangers that can lead to illness or injury exist when food is boiled in plastic bags Besides, when we burn them, toxic gas will appear - which affects to human health…

 The cause of white pollution

OUR TEAM DO ACTIONS TO HELP

 First, we go to the nearby market propagandize for people about the disadvantages of using plastic bags

 Second, we encourage people to use cloth bags instead of plastic bags

Cloth bags are made by organic materials and are less harmful to the environment

 Third, we give some cloth bags for them to try using it

THE RESULT OF VOLUNTARY WORK

THE ADVANTAGES OF OUR VOLUNTARY WORK

 The environment will be cleaner and the atmosphere will be fresher

 People will use cloth bags instead of plastic bags so the pollution can be reduced

 Volunteer work strengthens our skills such as: communication skills; ability to work with others, to take direction and lead others; improve time management and dedication

In short, although our work is not big enough to change all the community, we had interesting and meaningful experience to help the world to be better

SAMPLE PRODUCT 2 Group 2: Nguyen Giang Thanh(leader), Nguyen Ngoc Linh, Duong Thi Thuong, Le Minh Nguyet

Thanh : Hello everyone I‟m Thanh- the leader of team 1 and here are my teammates: Nguyet, Ngoc Linh and Thuong Today, we‟d like to tell you about our plan of doing voluntary work

Tiêu đề	Developing Students’ Critical Thinking Skills Through Project - Based Learning – An Action Research Study At A High School In Bac Giang Province
Tác giả	Ngô Thị Thu Trang
Người hướng dẫn	Dr. Vũ Thị Thanh Nhã
Trường học	Vietnam National University, Hanoi University of Languages and International Studies
Chuyên ngành	English Teaching Methodology
Thể loại	M.A. Minor Thesis
Năm xuất bản	2017
Thành phố	Hanoi

Định dạng
Số trang	87
Dung lượng	1,3 MB