CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1 Background of the study Public speaking is a vital skill required in various fields, including academia, business, and even daily communication At universities, students are[.]
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study Public speaking is a vital skill required in various fields, including academia, business, and even daily communication At universities, students are often required to give presentations as a part of their coursework, and it can be a daunting task for many students, particularly for those who are not confident in their language proficiency Presentations can impact a student's academic performance, self-confidence, and future career opportunities Students, especially freshmen who are new to the language and university culture, often find giving presentations stressful and intimidating With presentation skills being a crucial factor in today's education, it is essential to develop strategies to teach and motivate students to overcome their fears and concerns about public speaking Several previous studies have been conducted in this area, aimed at improving students' confidence and performance in public speaking For instance, a study by Wijayati and Sudiro in 2018 revealed that motivation, knowledge, and fear of failure are significant determinants of students’ presentation skills Another study by Ferguson and Dorman in 2003 found that anxiety, preparation time, and delivery style are the major factors influencing students' presentation performances However, most of these researches deal with general principles, without distinguishing between specific groups of students or considering the particularities of a particular course of study Therefore, this study aims to investigate students' perceptions and attitudes toward presentations in Speaking among English-majored freshmen at IUH It also seeks to identify factors that affect students' performance in public speaking and to examine the effectiveness of different instructional strategies and their potential impact on students' presentation skills The results of this research can help in the development of new pedagogical methods aimed at enhancing students' abilities and boosting their confidence in giving presentations 2.2 Gap of the study Although several studies have examined the factors affecting students' presentation skills and confidence levels, there is still a gap in the literature on the reflections of giving presentations specifically among English-majored freshmen in Speaking class at IUH The current study seeks to address this gap in the literature by focusing on English language learners at a specific university taking a specific course While previous studies have identified various strategies and factors that can improve presentation skills, they have not been tested specifically for English-majored freshmen in Speaking class at IUH As such, this study aims to fill this gap in the literature by investigating the specific challenges and reflections of giving presentations for English language learners in this context 2.3 Objectives The goal of this research study is to determine the problems that English major freshman at IUH must confront. The specific objectives of this research are: To know how students react when giving speaking presentations in front of the class.2 To identify the problems that English-majored freshmen at IUH face and recommend some possible solutions 2.4 Research questions In this research, the following issues must be addressed: How English-majored freshmen at IUH reflect when giving presentations in Speaking class? What are some difficulties that Freshmen at IUH face when giving presentations? And what are some possible measures to minimize these problems? 2.5 Scope of the study This survey was done using intuitive and objective survey tables Most importantly, the scope of the investigation was limited to the Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City (abbreviated IUH), and the main subjects to be mentioned in the study were first-year students majoring in English at IUH, so the survey results will not be applicable to second, third, or fourth year students