Output file 1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST GRADUATE STUDIES TEACHINJ VOCABULRY THROUGH LANGUAGE GAMES TO THE 1 ST YEAR NON – EN[.]
1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES TEACHINJ VOCABULRY THROUGH LANGUAGE GAMES TO THE ST YEAR NON – ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT NGHE AN JUNIOR TEACHERS TRAINING COLLEGE HA NOI - z TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Declaration…………………………………………………………………… ………i Acknowledgements…………………………………………………………… …… ii Abstract……………………………………………………………………… ……….iii Table of contents…………………………………………………………………… iv Appendix……………………………………………………………………… …… vi List of tables and figures…………………………………………………………… vii Part A: Introduction……………………………………………………… 1.1 Rationale……………………………………………………………… ………1 1.2 The aims of the study………………………………………………………….2 1.3 Research questions…………………………………………………………….2 1.4 Scope of the study…………………………………………………… 1.5 Methods of study………………………………………………………… z the 1.6 Design of the study…………………………………………………………….3 Part B: Development…………………………………………………………4 Chapter 1: theoretical background……………………………… I.1 Overview of teaching and learning vocabulary……………………………… I.1.1 The roles of vocabulary in language learning………………………………… I.1.2 Principles of the teaching vocabulary………………………………………… Criteria for selection of vocabulary……………………………………………………… What to teach and learn…………………………………………………… .5 How to teach and learn? .7 I.1.3 Techniques of vocabulary teaching currently used ………………………… I.2 Overview of language games ……………………………………………… 11 I.2.1 Definition of language games………………………………………………… 11 I.2.2 Types of game…………………………………………………………12 z language I.2.3 Roles of language games in language teaching…………………………………12 Overview I.3 of language games in vocabulary teaching…………………… 13 I.3.1.Types of vocabulary games………………………………………………………13 Types of vocabulary games for presenting new words………………………………… 13 Types of vocabulary games for revising in teaching vocabulary…………………………………….14 I.3.2 Roles of vocabulary games vocabulary…………………………….14 1.3.3 Related studies……………………………………………………………… 15 1.3.4 Fitness of the study……………………………………………………………16 Chapter 2: Methodology………………………………………………….17 II.1 Background to the study………………………………………………………17 II.1.1 Hypothesis………………………………………………………… 17 II.1.2 Subjects of the study and the textbook……………………………………… 17 II.2 Data collection………………………………………………………………… 18 z II.2.1 The data collection instrument…………………………………………………18 II.2.2 Methods and Procedures of data collection……………………………………19 Chapter 3: data analysis and discussion………………………… 20 III.1 Data analysis………………………………………………………………… 20 III.2 Discussion…………………………………………………………………… 30 III.2.1 Effectiveness………………………………………………………………… 30 III.2.2 Challenges…………………………………………………………………….3 Chapter 4: Suggestions on using vocabulary games to teach vocabulary effectively IV.1 When to use a vocabulary game……………………………………………….34 IV.2 How to organize a vocabulary games ……………………………………… 34 IV.3 How to conduct a vocabulary game in class………………………………….35 Part C: Conclusion………………………………………………………… 36 z Summary…………………………………………………………………… …… 36 Limitations and recommendations for further study…………………………… 36 References………………………………………………………………… …37 z 10 Appendixes Appendix 1: Survey questionnaire for teachers Appendix 2: Survey questionnaire for students Appendix 3: Inteview for teachers Appendix 4: Inteview for teachers Appendix 5: Sample games List of tables and figures Table 1: Data collected from survey questionnaire for teachers Table 2: Data collected from survey questionnaire for students z 11 Figure 1: Situation of using vocabulary games in teaching and learning vocabulary Figure 2: Attitudes towards vocabulary games in teaching and learning vocabulary Figure 3: Purposes of using vocabulary games Figure 4: Kinds of vocabulary games used in teaching and learning vocabulary Figure 5: Benefits and Difficulties when using vocabulary games in class Figure 6: Students‟ participation in vocabulary games Figure Students‟ feeling after playing vocabulary games Figure 8: Students‟ evaluation of effectiveness of vocabulary games towards their vocabulary learning Figure 9: Students‟ expectations towards a useful vocabulary game Figure 10: Actual use of vocabulary games in class Part A: Introduction 1.1 Rationale Nowadays, English has become popular all over the world, and in Viet nam, English also plays a very important role in every field of life This makes English become the common language of communication Thus, the demands for using English as a means of communication make the English teaching and learning more and more necessary Different people study English for different purposes People learn it for communicating with foreigners, for using English as a means which enables them to understand more about English people and country, or for promoting their positions during their lives, etc However, the fact which I have recognized at my college is that non- English major students are not eager in studying English because of some reasons First of all, non- z 12 English major teachers still apply traditional method into teaching English They always teach students the vocabulary, grammar structures of English before practicing it In English lessons, teachers often explain the rules of language by Vietnamese and then ask students to reproduce them Teachers often focus on the aspects of language such as grammar, phonetic and vocabulary so students can only learn what their teacher has, they become passively involved in lessons and bored with English lessons Moreover, many teachers not want to make changes in their teaching process since they will feel nervous and embarrassed when coping with difficulties to which they can not find answers immediately Besides, for non- English major students, English is not their compulsory subject at college so they learn it just for passing exams which they sit for at the end of each semester rather than trying to use English for communication Many of students are lack of effort and desire in learning English; they find English more difficult and less interesting than other subjects Classes of non- major students are often crowded with various levels of knowledge so it is rather hard for teacher to apply new methods of teaching for improving students‟ knowledge of English and get these learners involved in learning English Among many activities in classroom such as pair work, group work, role- play, singing songs, games, etc…games have been shown to be a means which has lots of advantages in motivating students in learning the target language by many researchers and educationists Richard (1988) states that “Games can lower anxiety, thus making the acquisition of input more likely” (p.147) “They are highly motivating and entertaining, and they can give shy students more opportunities to express their opinions and feelings” (Hansen, 1994, p.118) In addition, vocabulary also plays an important role during teaching and learning a foreign language It is difficult for students to enhance other skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing, if they are lack of vocabulary knowledge Nation and Warring (2004) points out that “Vocabulary knowledge is always a prerequisite to the performance of language skills” (p.1) The above reasons lead the researcher to the study “Teaching vocabulary through games to 1st year- non English majors students at Nghe An Junior Teachers Training College” 1.2 Aims of the study For the reasons mentioned above, the study aimed: z 13 Investigating non- English major teachers and students‟ feeling and attitude towards using language games in teaching and learning English Vocabulary - Finding out effectiveness and challenges of using games in teaching and learning English Vocabulary to 1st year- non English major students at Nghe An Junior Teachers Training College” - Providing non- English major teachers with in- depth understanding about games and the ways of conducting games in classroom to make decisions when and how they should organize games to keep their learners interested in learning English vocabulary 1.3 Research questions To achieve the above- mentioned aims, the following research questions were proposed: What are teachers and students‟ perspectives towards using language games in teaching and learning English Vocabulary? What are teachers‟ current ways of using vocabulary games in the lessons? 1.4 Scope of the study The study focuses specifically on using language games in teaching vocabulary to 1st year- non English majors students at Nghe An Junior Teachers Training College Therefore, the study limits itself to teaching and learning vocabulary only The subjects of the study are 80 non- English majors from three classes: K31 Chemistry - Biology, K7A Information- Technology and K16B of The Children Teachers Training Department who are studying “New- Headway – Elementary” and non- English major teachers at Nghe An Junior Teachers Training College 1.5 Methods of the study In the process of carrying out this study, the survey questionnaire is used to collect data for the study Two written questionnaires are administered to the subjects One is for teachers and the other is for students The questions focus on these following points: Teachers and students‟ perspectives towards using language games in teaching and learning vocabulary; teachers‟ the current ways of using games in teaching vocabulary Besides, the observations and interviews are also applied in order to clarify and test the validity of information about using games in teaching vocabulary 1.6 Design of the study The study id divided into three main parts: z ... games and players Language games are games used in language classes The main objectives of language games are developing students‟ language skills and enlarge their knowledge of language Lewis and... also master an adequate knowledge of vocabulary so that they can understand the around world and express by themselves more clearly and appropriately in a wide range of situations Many studies... like “by the way, on the other hand…” we can not omit any words or add other words into these phrases I.1.2.2.2 Meaning Teaching the meaning is another important aspect of vocabulary teaching