Rationale of the study
Over the course of time, there have been traditional and long-standing views of both the nature of language and the nature of learning Firth and Wagner (1997 and revisited in 2007) challenged existing conceptualisations of learning Firth and Wagner argues that learning should be seen as a social process and that language should be viewed as a complex, dynamic system that is locally managed by interactants in response to emerging communicative needs Under this view, learning can be traced in the moment- by-moment co-construction of meanings and by using conversation analysis (CA) The relatively new, emergent field known as CA-for-SLA quite clearly views learning as participation and maintains that we can measure and track learning through the interactions that take place (Markee 2008)
One can hardly deny that learning, as a social process, is more effective if it is comfortable Excessive stress can damage memory capacity and thought processes Therefore, the teachers‘ duty, which is to accommodate learning, is to make students‘ learning experience more enjoyable and motivating One way to do this is to create a learning environment in which all students are motivated to work and feel comfortable with other members of the group If learners are hostile to each other or resist any cooperation, the effectiveness is likely to plummet, making the learning experience rather tense and unsuccessful In contrast, a friendly and comfortable learning atmosphere stimulates students to enjoy exploring new knowledge If a group member feels attracted towards and accepted by the others, they will likely form a strong bond that help each individual override negative feelings during the course of learning This accepting climate is the base of group cohesiveness The necessity and importance of a language class as a social group has been realized (Brumfit, 1984; Hadfield, 1992;Senior, 1997;
Group cohesiveness (also called group cohesion and social cohesion) arises when bonds link members of a social group to one another and to the group as a united entity Although cohesion is a multi-faceted process, it can be broken down into four main components: social relations, task relations, perceived unity, and emotions (Forsyth, 2010) Members of strongly cohesive groups are more inclined to participate readily and to stay with the group
Group cohesiveness brings a number of advantages, including motivation, performance or member satisfaction This is why there are activities to boost group cohesiveness in almost every field, from team building sessions to boost employees‘ morale to fraternities and sororities in American universities
According to Cummins and Davison (2007), group cohesiveness refers to the closeness and the ―we‖ feeling of a group, that is, the internal gelling force that keeps the group together Enhancing group cohesiveness, therefore, can be very beneficial to the teacher and their students, especially in Asian culture One typical trait of Chinese or Vietnamese students is the concept of
―keeping face‖, which can be subjected to the group‘s judgment and can be demotivated very quickly if they do not feel accepted in the group
In ELT, group cohesiveness certainly proves its significance in motivating students to learn, socialize and make learning a social activity that is enjoyable The process of exchange information and helping each other prove to be more effective if the students are willing to cooperate with their friends and their teacher Since cohesiveness affect participation greatly, it is vital to look at how teacher facilitate the development of group cohesiveness in class Even though there have been a lot of research carried out in this field, not much research is conducted in the context of Vietnamese education
Therefore, the author wants to take a closer look at this matter in Vietnam with the hope to offer another perspective of cohesiveness and motivation in ELT.
Scope and aims of the study
The study focuses on the interaction between teachers and students in English language lesson The centre question of this research is how teacher and students interact with each other Furthermore, the author intend to determine whether the interaction observed is effective and if they inhibit or enhance group cohesiveness The study‘s scope narrows down into the context of two universities in Vietnam with Vietnamese trainers and Vietnamese students Six lessons were recorded and analyzed
The study aims to find out evidences of enhancing and inhibiting group cohessiveness in the conversations among teacher and students in the classroom.
Significance of the study
As indicated by the title of the research “Enhancing group cohesiveness and motivation in EFL classrooms” , the author hopes to understand which technique may boost cohesiveness and which one suppresses it From then on, modification can be made to the teacher‘s classroom management skill Furthermore, this study also offers a more detailed observation into the matter by analyzing conversation and interaction in class with a more ad hoc method Since ad hoc method in conversation analyses are more flexible and attentive to details, readers are provided with a closer look into English lessons in Vietnam Therefore, this research paves way for more possible comparison with other country and improvement in motivating students in ELT.
Research questions
With the stated premises, this study is designed to examine these questions from the perspectives of the teachers:
1) In what ways may group-management techniques enhance group cohesiveness?
2) In what ways may group-management techniques inhibit group cohesiveness?
4.1 The setting of the study and participants
The study was conducted at University of Languages and International Studies and the Academy of Policy and Development Each classroom has the capacity of 30 students and all rooms are fully equipped with a projector, a television and a board
In terms of teachers, there are six novice teachers of English All of them have achieved the certificate of C1 in English They work with the class once a week for 4 hours Teachers are active to choose their own teaching methods as long as they find students satisfied with their teaching and make progress
The students in the two chosen institutions are of different level of proficiency with the former are in B2 level while the latter are approaching B1 level in CEFR scale
4.2 Data collection instruments and procedures
This research use observation as the instrument for data collection Six novice teachers were chosen to participate Then, one lesson of each teachers is recorded by means of the camera and microphone
Data-gathering was planned largely around the teachers‘ course schedules, with efforts being made to avoid observations on days when lessons centered around in-class writing, oral presentations, or other evaluative measures that might reduce the possibility of experiencing teachers‘ group-management techniques After the observations, the class video recordings were reviewed by the author The observed classes were then analyzed with the teachers in recorded interviews The data was partially transcribed as three common themes regarding what generally ―worked‖ in terms of group-management techniques promoting group cohesiveness were identified:
1) Encouraging the cooperation of the students
2) Developing and encouraging the experience of a good group and organizing group cohesiveness opportunities inside the classroom
4) Evidence of group cohesiveness inhibition
Six recordings of the lessons are then analyzed in term of the interactions between the teachers and students The Interaction Analysis approaches are followed In detail, the recordings are analyzed in an ad hoc method This instrument is designed to answer only the question of how the teachers can enhance interaction and group cohesion through different management techniques rather than study a large variety of the matters The reasons why this method is chosen for this study will be discussed in Part B.
Design of the thesis
This study consists of three main parts: introduction, development adn conclusion
The introduction provides rationale, scope, aims, significance, research questions, methods, and design of the study
The development contains three chapters Chapter one deals with literature review of theoretical framework related to the study Chapter two is devoted to the methodology used in the study Chapter three discusses the findings of the study
The conclusion provides a brief summary of all main parts presented in the study, the conclusion which encloses practical suggestions for teaching and further research.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Group cohesiveness and motivation
A group is the integration of two or more individuals who are connected to each other through social relationships Several important factors associated with the formation of a group are communication, influence, interaction, interdependence, interrelation, shared identification, shared tasks and goals, structure and system (Forsyth, 2006) A study group is essentially all group efforts to help each other learn optimally Thus, at least four crucial elements must be considered for the effort of cooperative learning to function: motivation, social cohesion, development and cognitive elaboration In the first aspect, in view of Slavin (2014), motivationalists found that a group bonding may forster the group's performance and ultimately success will be the success of the group together Moreover, it motivates learners to be more persistent against adversity to optimize their performance in the group The second aspect, named social cohesion includes the importance of cooperative learning impact against a strong desire to help others, especially members of other groups who did not master Here we find the existence of a good social cohesion and quality where members are less able to get help from the others who are better able to jointly achieve group goals The third and fourth aspects, cognitive development and learning, can be explained as when learners undertake cooperative partnership, this will automatically lead to the development of critical analysis of each group member This critical development happens because they continuously encounter problem solving and task completion requirements
Students‘ motivation to learn is influenced by a variety of interrelated elements including the teachers, the assignments, and their working groups
Because they have already been confident, their perception of classroom learning and attitudes foster their efforts to attain achievements Intrinsic motivation has a positive tendency in language learning towards an increase in the level of proficiency (Colibaba, 2009) The positive relation between group work and student motivation in a constructive teaching model for adult learners is also shown in Anwar‘s (2015) study, indicating that interaction in group work activities can strengthen students‘ motivation to master the teaching materials Thus, grouping and student motivation are inter-related to gear prospective attitudes to learn English and finally achieve better language proficiency (Kalvodova, 2008; Kuo, 2009)
In cooperative learning, Slavin (2006) asserts that members of the group consists of a variety of learners who have a diversity of skills to work together to achieve the learning objectives Therefore, in cooperative learning, learners may construct several skills to maximize the cooperation to succeed in the group work, which involve the ability to listen actively, the ability to be a good speaker, the ability to always avoid demeaning other members, and the ability to always accept others as new members Furthermore, he explains that the cooperative learning activities can be conducted in at least three forms/ stages The first phase of which is the learning group that aims to discover where each member is to understand each other and the theory or a particular application After that the group discussions are geared to ensure the best findings The final step is to make sure that all groups had finished working and to acquire something from the lesson by following the quiz from the teacher
Other researchers also look into how to enhance group cohesiveness
According to Ronald and Rivas (2005), the strategies needed to maximize the group dynamics are as follows:
- Identify the group dynamics during the group interaction
- Assess the impact on the group dynamics and members as part of the entire group
- Assess the impact of group dynamics of members from various ethnic backgrounds and social and economic
- Assess the impact of group dynamics today on the utilization of the group in the future
- Facilitate and guide the development dynamics of the group members
In the study group, cohesiveness or group cohesion is the key to sustain the success of the group task Group performance is definitely linked and influenced by the success to create cohesion of all the interests and contributions of group members, which in turn can result in learning achievement in the group task As noted by Dornyei (2009), there are three main elements that can affect group cohesiveness in learning, namely:
1) Interpersonal attraction: There is a strong desire to love the members of the group naturally with rational and realistic objectives to promote common goals
2) Commitment to task: A strong desire to have and be a member of the group because of the interest in completing the task, in other words, the feeling of individual involvement of the group is more due to the bonding strength of the group's goals
3) Group pride: A strong desire to join the group because of the prestige that comes as part of the membership of the group
Although it can be any one of these three elements in the group, ideally the blend of more than one elements or even coherence of all these components becomes a driving force of better and stronger group cohesion In this case, group cohesiveness is also highly supported by effective leadership of the teachers as well To succeeding in maintaining group cohesiveness, they need to be able to focus their students on a common goal and encourage them to work as a team Thus the teacher should be an effective facilitator and leader to understand the different models of leadership of the group of which the success depends on the group support to lead independent learning (Gałajda, 2012; Burke, 2011)
To affirm the cohesion of the group, Dornyei (2009, 273-277) describes the characteristics of a group that has a strong cohesion as follows:
1) The learning atmosphere of mutually-welcomed and appreciate one another so that shows signs of strong mutual desire and sharing;
2) Mutual to pay attention to one another;
3) Insist on and loyal to his group but also welcome and convince others to join;
4) Pay attention to group norms and oppose efforts that lead to the destruction of the group;
5) Participate in group voluntarily and pleased to work with others
6) Easy to cooperate with anyone who is in the group members, so that the group task can be changed flexibly
7) Actively participate in group activities and always ready to share personal experiences with others
8) Frequently use the term ―we‖ when conveying the idea and can even produce a special group jargon
9) Have a competitive relationship with parties outside the group as well
10) Easy to express satisfaction of group experience; and
11) Participate more easily with one another within the group or outside the group
In general, it appears that all the above characteristics of the learning atmosphere will flourish in communicative situations in which all members of the group provide optimal contribution to the completion of the group tasks
Thus, the choice of interactive and communicative learning methods presents a good opportunity to increase the cohesiveness of the group, so that the ultimate goal of learning can be well-achieved
The next concern is considering the optimal application of communicative learning strategies, especially in learning the language because the chances of cohesion in the group to learn more is influenced by the varieties and types of learning activities undertaken by language learners
Some ways that need to be taken into consideration in the implementation of cohesion that optimizes learning group to complete the tasks are:
1 Learning from each other in the group and the class;
2 Providing a frequent interaction touch to fellow learners;
3 Encouraging the cooperation of the students
4 Developing and encouraging the experience of a good group and organizing group cohesiveness opportunities inside and outside the classroom
5 Developing a competition between groups; and
6 Provision of models and total support of teachers as a whole is necessary
The six types of activities above may increase group cohesion in the classroom, yet some of them signaled the group's activities both inside and outside the classroom Outdoors activities, in particular, may potentially enhance cohesion
The above brief review indicates the importance of group cohesiveness in optimizing the role of assignments in study groups so as to provide optimal impact of learning outcomes Therefore, this study aimed to identify the level of group cohesiveness after the application of group work activities.
Review of previous studies
1.2.1 Review of previous studies on group cohesiveness
In the past, there has been other studies on the matter of group cohesiveness in different countries In ―Working with group tasks and group cohesiveness‖, Khoirul Anwar aimed at exploring the connection between the use of group task and group cohesiveness in Indonesia Subjects of this study are 28 students on the course Teaching English for Young Learners at the University of Muhammadiyah Gresik After the application of group work activities during the learning process, all subjects are given questionnaires and some are interviewed to make sure the group cohesiveness The results showed that the group work activities had settled the group cohesiveness mainly to the dominance of group pride, interpersonal attractions, and commitment to tasks of the group
In ―Group dynamics in the EFL classroom: The role of the cohesive group of Syrian tertiary learners‖, Mohammad Musaab WAZZAN endeavors to explore factors with the potential to develop a cohesive language classroom environment in Syria In this environment, initializing and sustaining co- operation and commitment is primarily sought 10 Syrian tertiary learners, aged 18-24, from different academic departments in the University of Aleppo, Syria, taking a general English course have been chosen to constitute the context of the study The paper highlights particular techniques utilized by the learners and pinpoints particular problems they encountered It has been clearly noticed that learning is likely to be more fruitful when the group is cohesive, flagging the importance of raising the EFL teachers‘ full cognizance about the efficacy and effectiveness of establishing cohesiveness in the EFL classroom Subsequent to collecting and analyzing the data, the results strongly indicate that students‘ classmates play an essential part in their learning and in their motivation as well
In Japan, Katsuko Matsubara‘s paper presents the results of a study exploring the relationships of L2 motivation, willingness to communicate (WTC), and classroom group dynamics among a group of 237 rural Japanese non-English-major university students Two questionnaires were administered—one for L2 motivation and classroom group dynamics, and another for WTC Among the several classroom group dynamics components that emerged, Student-centered Approach and Intergroup Approach Tendency showed significant influences on students‘WTC
In China, the frequently discussed notion of Chinese students‘ supposed reticence and passivity in the English as a Foreign Language classroom was discussed Using the concept of group dynamics as a starting point, the study ―Group Dynamics and Student Participation in a Chinese Setting: Teacher and Observer Perspectives‖ examines teachers‘ classroom- management techniques in terms of promoting (or not promoting) active student participation The study, using a grounded theory of research, analyzed classroom data obtained from class observations and from class filmings and supplemented these data with post-lesson interviews with the four involved teachers Findings suggested that Chinese students were not necessarily reticent or passive but rather engaged actively when given a learning environment conducive to active engagement The study pointed to three practical implications for classroom teachers: (1) promoting participation by working toward group cohesion, (2) promoting participation by providing effective teacher-student scaffolding and by providing opportunities for student-student scaffolding, (3) promoting participation by actively replacing textbook materials in order more effectively to offer students adequate support in terms of both language and affect
1.2.2 Review of previous studies on classroom interaction using Conversation analysis
There has been a number of research that applies CA to the analysis of second language interactions, which aims to promote language learning
Seedhouse (2011) states that ―CA provides a means of exploring the variable ways in which competence is co-constructed in particular contexts by the participants involved‖ Hellermann (2008) and Cekaite (2007), offer two of the most systematic analyses of interactional development They combine CA with a framework of language socialization with a longitudinal perspective
Similar studies include Young and Miller (2004), Brouwer and Wagner
(2004), and Hellermann (2006, 2007) Brouwer (2003), examines word search sequences between native and nonnative speakers and develops a distinction between word search sequences that act as language learning opportunities and those which do not (also see Lazaraton, 2004 and Mondada and Pekarek Doehler, 2004 for other examples of cross-sectional studies)
In this chapter, we have just reviewed the definitions group cohesiveness and motivation We also reviewed recent studies on classroom interaction and motivation in other Asian countries Finally, current trend of using CA for SLA is discussed.
METHODOLOGY
Restatement of the research questions
The research question has clearly been shown in part A already
Nevertheless, for the sake of highlighting the selected research method, the research question is restated here again:
1) In what ways may group-management techniques enhance group cohesiveness?
2) In what ways may group-management techniques inhibit group cohesiveness?
The setting of the study and participants
The study was conducted at University of Languages and International Studies and the Academy of Policy and Development Each classroom has the capacity of 30 students and all rooms are fully equipped with projectors, tv and board
In terms of teachers, there are six novice teachers of English All of them have achieved the certificate of C1 in English They work with the class once a week for 4 hours Teachers are active to choose their own teaching methods as long as they find students satisfied with their teaching and make progress
The students in the two chosen institutions are of different level of proficiency with the former are in B2 level while the latter are approaching B1 level in CEFR scale.
Research types
The study employs action research to investigate how teacher‘s management techniques can enhance or inhibit group cohesion and motivation The research goals are achieved by means of qualitative data Six lessons were observed and recorded The tapes are then analyzed.
Implementation of the Action Research
In education action research is certainly very popular This is due to the fact that teachers often stumble upon numerous problems while teaching To solve those problems, teachers need to identify the problems and test out different means to solve it Denscombe (2010, p 6) writes that an action research strategy's purpose is to solve a particular problem and to produce guidelines for effective practices
Kurt Lewin, then a professor at MIT, first coined the term "action research" in 1944 In his 1946 paper "Action Research and Minority Problems" he described action research as "a comparative research on the conditions and effects of various forms of social action and research leading to social action" that uses "a spiral of steps, each of which is composed of a circle of planning, action and fact-finding about the result of the action"
The procedure of an action research obeys step by step As stated by Eileen Ferrance (2000), an action research is carried out with five main steps The first step is to identify the problem Then, data is collected through means of interviews, questionnaires, observation and so forth After that, the data is analyzed to find out the problems Designing a plan of action is the next step so that the researcher can make a change and study that change After the interference has been carried out, it is time for the researcher to evaluate its effects to see whether the action worked or not Then, if it had not happened effectively as expected, another method should be considered to improve the situation
Among kinds of methods, the researcher chose an action research for this study because of the problem-focused nature of action research As can be observed, all of the six novice teachers employ a lot of group activities in class However, a common problems that the teachers as well as the research face is that the students are not always willing to work together Even in cases where they are more enthusiastic, the lack of cohesiveness still prevent students from producing a better outcome under the limited time Therefore, the research wishes to find out the more desirable technique to improve group cohesiveness and point out the less effective ones This action research also brought the researcher a good opportunity to evaluate the teachers‘ intervention to find out the rising problems and give decision for changing.
Data collection instruments and procedures
This research use observation as the instrument for data collection Six novice teachers were chosen to participate Then, one lesson of each teachers is recorded by means of the camera and microphone
As mentioned above, the study reported here was based on the data gathered from six videos In each video, an entire 45-minute lesson was observed by the author of this paper and filmed by an assistant crew
Teacher T‘s lessons were filmed on the the 29th of Ferbuary and 7th of March
2017, 2017, which are marked as video 1 and video 2
Teacher D‘s lessons were filmed on the 7th and the 9th of March, which are marked as video 3 and video 4
Teacher P‘s lessons were filmed on the 10 th of March and 16th of March, where are marked as video 5 and video 6
Data-gathering was planned largely around the teachers‘ course schedules, with efforts being made to avoid observations on days when lessons centered around in-class writing, oral presentations, or other evaluative measures that might reduce the possibility of experiencing teachers‘ group-management techniques After the observations, the class video recordings were reviewed by the author The observed classes were then analyzed with the teachers in recorded interviews The data was partially transcribed as three common themes regarding what generally ―worked‖ in terms of group-management techniques promoting group cohesiveness were identified:
1) Encouraging the cooperation of the students
2) Developing and encouraging the experience of a good group and organizing group cohesiveness opportunities inside the classroom
Data analysis methods
Six recordings of the lessons are then analyzed in term of the interactions between the teachers and students The Interaction Analysis approaches are followed In detail, the recordings are analyzed in an ad hoc method This instrument is designed to answer only the question of how the teachers can enhance interaction and group cohesion through different management techniques rather than study a large variety of the matters
The main advantage of this approach to IA is that it allows the researcher to focus on specific details in the interaction that can be then describe and attempt to explain The whole process is much more from the inside looking out and less from the outside looking in In other words, an ad hoc system is more likely to promote understanding and generate explanations than the system-based approaches discussed above
Steve Walsh (2011) summarizes the main advantages of ad hoc approaches to interaction analysis as follows:
• Ad hoc approaches to classroom observation give participants ownership of the research design process and greater insights into the issues under investigation
• By focusing on the detail of the interaction, such approaches allow practitioners to access and understand complex phenomena that might otherwise take years of class experience to acquire
• Ad hoc systems enable observers to focus on the microcosms of interactions that might so easily be missed by the ‗broad brush‘ descriptions provided by systems-based approaches
Due to the above mentioned advantages of the ad hoc approach toward conversation analysis, the research decided to adopt this method for the study
Throughout the chapter, the methodology of the study, which is the qualitative method, was fully shown First, the research context, the participants and materials were clearly described, and after that the reasons for choosing an action research was stated Following with those sections was the thorough description of data collection instruments Also, the chapter was finally concluded by a full account of the methods and procedure of data analysis.
RESULTS
Encouraging the cooperation of the students
In the class analyzed from the video 1, the teacher promoted the cooperation of the students She set up a rule that each time a student hear her friend using the wrong tense of the verb, he/she will gently smack her friend‘s hand as an alert or punishment
This activity can be considered as instant peer feedback, which encourages the students to pay attention to the friends‘ speech and help their friends correct themselves Since the students take turn to speak, they are supposed to help each other correcting the mistakes that they are not fully aware of when they speak English
Another activity that the teacher used in this class to promote cooperation was to encourage student to ask more open-ended questions
Teacher: “In case you need to work in pair but you don’t know what to say, what do you do? For the listeners, when your friends are talking, they may be stuck and don’t know what else to say, then you have to suggest questions for them to answers You do this by asking questions with What When Why anything else Who ”
Teacher: “Yes I’ll show you an example right away.”
Teacher: “Ok Lan, what did you do last weekend?”
Student: “ I went out with my friend.”
Teacher: “ Where did you go?”
Student: “ I went to Hoan Kiem Lake”
Teacher: “ What did you do there?”
The teacher continues until she uses all the questions words Then, the teacher reminds the students to give clear and detailed answers
This scaffolding technique gets students to help their friends talk more during speaking session This, hence, promotes more communication and collaboration during group work since there is continuous exchange of conversation Furthermore, students get to know their friends better if the task require students to share information about themselves This will promote cohesiveness between the members of the class
Present the conversation example from the textbook to the students and assign them the task of creating their own conversational skit work in groups to perform a skit in front of the class based on the example given in the textbook
Form groups for the students monitor and assess student performance present in front of the class
During the observed class from video 6, the teacher use drama as a group activity The process of preparing and staging a play bind the group member together
3.2 Developing and encouraging the experience of a good group and organizing group cohesiveness opportunities inside the classroom
Divide the class into six groups and tasks them with rearranging and organizing slips of paper containing sentences into cohesive a paragraph
Rearrange the slips of paper in groups and answer the questions written on the slips of paper
Write answer slots for questions on the board answer questions pertaining to the paragraph on the board
During the observed class from, the teacher instructs the students to close their books and separate into groups of 5 or 6 She assigns them the task of rearranging and organizing slips of paper containing sentences and putting them into cohesive paragraphs If the group finishes their task, they are encouraged to write the answer on the board
This activity encourages communal sharing of knowledge as the students are compelled to help each other to fill in the missing information in the absence of the textbook This activity also allows the teacher to observe how the groups interact with each other and influence adjustments to the cohesiveness if necessary
Teacher: “To start with our lesson today, I’d like to divide you into 6 groups, alright?”
Teacher: “Each group will receive this piece of paper (holds up slips of paper)‖
Teacher: “On each piece of paper you will have a sentence, alright?
And your task is to reorganize this sentence and then make a meaningful paragraph.[And] while you reorganize the sentences to make a paragraph, you will have to do two things.”
Teacher: “First one, you’ll have to rearrange that and you’ll have to answer these three questions (points to the board).‖
Teacher: “You’ll have five minutes for this activity Close every book, please.
Developing a competition between groups
The teacher prepares students for a listening exercise She separates the class into 2 groups and has them choose the best representative for each group The representatives are given headphones choose the best representative their group give representatives headphones to block any outside noise and send them outside of the classroom listen to a topic based audio file only once and take notes give students 3 minutes to compare notes in small groups work in smaller groups to compare notes instruct students to compare notes in a larger group work in a larger group to compare notes
Call back group representatives in the class present compiled information to group representative instruct the first group representative to present their findings followed by the second group representatives present their findings in front of the class one group at a time
In the class analyzed from the video 3, the teacher promoted competition between two groups Two representatives were chosen and given headphones to block any outside noise The rest of the group members were instructed to listen to topic based audio file only once and take notes Students were given 3 minutes to compare notes in smaller groups and then one larger group respective to each side competing The representatives were brought back into the class and are verbally presented with the compiled information from their groups The representatives were given some time to absorb the information before presenting it to the class
Teacher: So for today’s lesson, we’re going to listen to a recording about food riots and then you’re going to have to listen to the causes and also the solution [for] food riots
Teacher: but we do not open the book I would like you to work in two big groups, alright?
Teacher: So this one will be group 1 Big group one (gestures to left side of the class)
Teacher: and this one is big group 2 (gestures to the right side of the class)
Teacher: Now, let’s take out a piece of paper.[so that] you can write on it
Teacher: Now big group 1, I want you to send me one representative, a boy or girl, you think is the best student in your group And also group two… the best Send me one representative that you think is the best
Teacher: (helping the students to choose a representative) Teacher: so these two people over here (the representatives) These two will have the chance to listen to songs.(hands them headphones and media devices)
Teacher: Ok, while these two people are enjoying the songs, you guys
(the rest of the class) will have the chance to listen to the recording
You will only listen once and have to take notes You’ll list out the causes and solutions for food riots And then, you’re going to work in small groups first and discuss for three minutes to come up with an outline, ideas, and other relevant information And then you’ll have another 2 minutes to form into a big group and then you’ll come up with the final outline of your big group
Teacher: And then two representatives over there, they will come in and you will have to tell them what you’ve just listened and then they will come here and give us a presentation related to causes and solutions of food riots Alright? Are you clear?
This activity demonstrated the effects of competition on group cohesion As the teams scrambled to piece together the information they acquired through listening to the audio track, a binary relationship was formed Without a middle ground to disperse cohesion, students developed a strong cohesive group identity, making them to focus on the task at hand rather than individual recognition
Slap the board – Teacher P – Video 5
Teacher Students instruct students to work in groups to find the meanings of the vocabulary words in the lesson and memorize them work together in groups to memorize words
Put the vocabulary items on the board in any order
Form groups and choose a representative to come up the front of the class and face their back to the board call out word turn around and slap the correct word on the board mark student score on the board reset position or rotate representative
In the class observed in video 5, the teacher conducted a game activity in which the students must work in groups to look up the Vietnamese meanings of the vocabulary words listed in the lesson This is an example of total physical response The students then chose representatives from their groups to come up to the front of the classroom and participate in a game The rules of the game involved the students standing with their backs facing the board On the board were pictures representing the vocabulary words The rules involved the teacher calling out a vocabulary word with the aim of students quickly turning around to snatch the corresponding picture from the board
Teacher: Look at the box of new words over here (points to book) Try to find the Vietnamese meaning of every word, alright? You have 5 minutes, alright? And after that we will have a game!
Teacher: You don’t need to write them down! Just try to remember them! You can use any kind of dictionary
[students work in groups for five minutes]
Teacher: Now we will have a game Each time, for each turn I will need one person to come from each group
Teacher: Each time I will name one type of clothes For example what is this (shows picture of a dress)
Teacher: Yes, that’s right So four of you will be here! 1 2 3 4!
Group 1, group 2, group 3, and group 4
Teacher: I will say dress and you will have to be the fastest one to grab this, ok? and take it to your group, ok?
Teacher: so in the end, the group with the biggest number of pieces of paper will win the game, ok?
[students come up to the front of the class while the teacher writes an impromptu scoreboard for the groups]
Teacher: ok, ok ,ok! Turn your backs to the board! Ready? Tights!
[the students scramble to the board One student grabs the picture representing ―tie‖ and the class falsely celebrates]
[Student quickly adjust to the new information and scurry to grab the picture representing ―tights‖ from the board]
Teacher: everyone sit down Tights! (writing ‖tights‖ on the board and marks group 1 with a point)
Teacher: Ok other people come up to the board Ok, gloves!
[a student quickly grabs gloves, the teacher awards a point to the group]
This competitive activity shows how points and scoring can also affect group cohesion The students began to focus more intently when the first question was misunderstood by all the groups, thus influencing how students selected their representatives Ego was set aside for greater good of the group and the most capable students were chosen to go up to the board while the rest acted in a supporting role; calling out clues and gesturing as though they were one entity Students in this class also displayed an eagerness for the success of their group by moving quickly and doing their best despite the odds against their group; neither group wanted to end the activity without a point for their team.
Evidence of group cohesiveness inhibition
The teacher prepares students for a listening exercise She separates the class into 2 groups and has them choose the best representative for each group The representatives are given headphones choose the best representative their group give representatives headphones to block any outside noise and send them outside of the classroom listen to a topic based audio file only once and take notes give students 3 minutes to compare notes in small groups work in smaller groups to compare notes instruct students to compare notes in a larger group work in a larger group to compare notes
Call back group representatives in the class present compiled information to group representative instruct the first group representative to present their findings followed by the second group representatives present their findings in front of the class one group at a time
In the class analyzed in the video 3, the teacher choose two leaders to represent two halves of the class respectively At this stage, expectations of the duties involved with this leadership role where yet to be disclosed by the instructor, leaving students unaware of the possible responsibilities to be faced or impact their actions could have on the group
It is in this environment of uncertainty and instability that group cohesion is impeded In this environment, natural cohesion has yet to be formed and students are reluctant to participate willingly due to simple lack of information Without clear guidelines and expectations, students are less likely to volunteer or even choose a representative for their group This reluctance due to premature cohesiveness can be observed in this excerpt:
Teacher: food riots happen when there is a shortage of food or maybe it is the food is equally distributed So it would cause food riots Food riots happen in a lot of countries like even in the united states, it would have food riots in even New zealand it would have food riots And The cause, the possible cause maybe be like harvest failure So for today's lesson we're going to listen to a recording about food riots and then you're going to have to listen to the causes and also the solution to food riots But we do not open the book I would like you to work in two big groups…
Teacher: so this one, will be big group one and this one will be big group two So now let's take out a piece of paper Take out a piece of paper and you can write on it Yeah? Alright so now big group one, I want you to see me one representative You think that that girl or boy is the best student in your group and also is group two, the best Send me one representative you think is the best
Teacher: [gestures to group one] Now! One person
[two student arrive to class late Other students giggle]
Teacher: come on [gestures to group two] this one, these five Quan right? Come here
Teacher: you can not talk? Are you sure? [gestures to next student] how about you? [both students nod]
Teacher: You do not have to do many things I promise You even have the chance to relax outside (insists with Quan) Still no? Ok Quan come on Come here
[The teacher focuses on group one.]
Teacher: Ok now another representative from this side
Teacher: Minh? Ok come here
[The student readily stands up and makes her way to the front of the class]
Upon review of this excerpt, we can observe how cohesion is influenced by unified consciousness and willingness to participate in self-less activities for the benefit of the group as well as how it is inhibited The first group to choose a leader was group two Group 2 had initially implied to the teacher that they chose Quan to represent them; however, despite knowing his duty and the role he was required to play in the success of his group, he made excuses to get out of his responsibilities, losing face in the process Quan's display of individualism created tension and feelings of doubt among his fellow team members It can be observed in the video portion of the extract that his group‘s body language displays signals of depression the moment he says ―I cannot talk‖
With Group Two‘s morale at a low point, Group one‘s cohesion has spiked and they are given a head start to develop a cohesive bond for the remainder of the activity While a clear explanation has yet to be given at this point, it is clear that group one is expected to not make the same mistake as group two Therefore, these new status quo dictates that the next leader must be bold and selfless for the success of the group
As Minh is chosen by the teacher, she volunteers with confidence; allowing her group to become more cohesive and confident as well This information is useful to educators as it illustrates how expectations can tip the balance in a severe way when it comes to group cohesion among students
When clear instructions and expectations are given before an activity, it allows students to make assessments of themselves as well as their other classmates and builds strong cohesive study groups Without proper time to assess themselves, students can remain hesitant which can lead to further problems in pedagogy
Divide the class into six groups and tasks them with rearranging and organizing slips of paper containing sentences into cohesive a paragraph
Rearrange the slips of paper in groups and answer the questions written on the slips of paper
Write answer slots for questions on the board answer questions pertaining to the paragraph on the board
In this analysis from the video 4 the teacher organizes the students into six groups and tasks them with arranging and organizing slips of paper containing sentences into cohesive a paragraph Then, the students answer questions pertaining to the paragraph on the board while the teacher walks around to give feedback The allotted time given for the activity proved inadequate for the development of group cohesion and therefore inhibits it
While normally a benign gesture, too much monitoring and attention was the inhibiting factor that led to a loss of group coherence Once both groups were tasked with the activity, the teacher immediately began to survey the room and scour for finished groups Since cohesion requires some time to obtain, this lead to some groups not being able to develop into an efficient cohesive unit The conditions of proper cohesion such as awareness of members' strengths and weaknesses, homogenous thought process, and recognition of common goals were inhibited as observed in this extract:
Teacher: oral sharing presentation right, so what do you think? How can you make that presentation? Oral sharing presentation? What are the steps? First one, you have to…
Teacher: yeah, right the material You have to go online, right? And you have to search for the article, right? And then?
Ss: the summary Teacher: yeah and then you do summarize the article and then ?
Teacher: you make the presentation, that's all
Teacher: Actually when you find the information you collect information and then you gonna do the summary and then you will have to do some kind of comparison and contrast to see whether the information is consistent or not What information is right and what is wrong, right? And then you have to do a comparison, kind of that And yeah that is when you do the comparison if you are doing a presentation like the talking and now today we're going to learn how to write a comparison paragraph, ok? Alright? Ok?
Ss:(laughter) Teacher: ok, so to start Ok a compare and contrast paragraph alright so to start with our lesson today I'd like you I'd like to dive you into
6 groups alright? Each group will receive this piece of paper on each piece of paper you will have a uh sentence, alright? And your task is to reorganize these sentences and then to make a meaningful paragraph, alright? And while you reorganize the sentence to make a paragraph you will have to do 2 things First one, you will have to rearrange that and then you have to answer these 3 questions The first one is: what is the topic of the paragraph, the second one is what is the conclusion of the paragraph and the last one is what are the purposes of the paragraph, alright? Ok, so I think that 5 of you will be one group, so the 3 of you turn around and face this 1 girl 2 of you can you turn around and join these 3 girls And you, can you turn around and face these 4 girls Ok, that's for you and one for you Alright 2 of you turn around, your going to join these 3 girls You, can you turn around? Hmm alright can you join this group You 4 turn around you can join this group, ok You have 5 minutes for this activity Five minutes Close the book please, close the book Close every book!
Close every book! Can you close the book please Close the book ok
Can you close the book? Ok If your finished, go to the board and use the chalk and to write on the board, write the answer If you're done let's use the chalk to write the answer on the board, ok? If you're done go to the board and write the answer down on the board Yeah ABCD yeah You do not need that Right, if your done, go to the board and write the answer down now On the board alright (2X) You are group
Recommendation
In this paper, we have seen the ways may group-management techniques both enhance and inhibit group cohesiveness This study was limited to predominantly female Vietnamese University students with a few male students between the ages of 18 to19 years old The major findings of this research showed that when conducting these activities, cohesion was both encouraged and at times unintentionally inhibited When researching into how group cohesion can encourage the cooperation of the students, we found that students were encouraged to participate in the activities when given a task with clear expectations Students who were granted enough time to develop as a cohesive group, were keen on developing and encouraging the experience of a good group and organizing group cohesiveness opportunities inside the classroom When studying into developing a competition between groups, Cohesion was found to be strengthened when groups were winning; but weakened when groups are losing We found that simulating a controlled group environment were students are not pressured by points but instead shared a homogenous goal proved to be optimal on this occasion Group cohesion was inhibited mainly due to excesses in teacher talking time, hesitation among group members also proved to inhibit group cohesion, over competition discouraged group cohesion as it created in imbalance in the classroom Future research should include students at varied age groups and ethnically diverse demographic.
Limitations and suggestion for further study
Within the limited scope of this study, there is unavoidable limitations
Firstly, the study was conducted on college students It is advisable that more study is conducted on different age groups Secondly , the majority of the students were female Therefore, a more varied demographic is certain to bring more accurate result Finally, more research is needed on a larger population since this study can only cover six lessons in two universities.
Implication
From this study, two implication for teaching managment have been derived Firstly, it is advisable that the teacher reduce their teacher talking time As can be seen in the research, too much teacher talking time confuses students and make it more difficult for student to focus on the activity
Secondly, teachers should avoid excessive competiveness Teachers should use more activities that are less competive and more goal-oriented or production-oriented.
Conclusion
In this paper, we have seen the ways may group-management techniques both enhance and inhibit group cohesiveness This study was limited to predominantly female Vietnamese University students with a few male students between the ages of 18 to19 years old The major findings of this research showed that when conducting these activities, cohesion was both encouraged and at times unintentionally inhibited Therefore, teachers should reduce their teacher talking time and avoid excessive competitiveness
Finally, more research on the subject is needed but with a larger population and a more varied demographic
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APPENDIX Images from videos video 1