Enhancing learners communicative competence through task based language teaching a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of master of arts (tes

VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – HCM CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES  MASTER THESIS ENHANCING LEARNERS’ COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE THROUGH TASK – BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (TESOL) Supervisor: Nguyễn Hoàng Tuấn - Ph D Candidate: Nguyễn Thị Mai Hương - 2010 - i STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I certify that this thesis entitled “Enhancing learners’ communicative competence” is my own work This thesis has not been submitted for any award of any degree or diploma in any other institution Ho Chi Minh City, May 30, 2010 Nguyen Thi Mai Huong ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr Nguyen Hoang Tuan, for his explicit guidance and valuable support to the completion of my thesis Without his whole-hearted guidance, I could not have finished the thesis I am also grateful to all of my teachers for valuable and helpful instructions during the three-year Tesol course (2005-2008) I also would like to express my special thanks to the library staff of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities who help me with my research for reference materials Thanks also sent to my colleagues and my students for their cooperation in giving truly responses to the questionnaire Finally, my special thanks to my husband and my family for their unfailing support iii ABSTRACT The purpose of the study was to investigate the factors that hinder the effective implementation of TBLT in teaching Business English at VHU context Due to the limited scope of this paper, the study only focuses on investigating some factors related to three key elements of TBLT implementational process, namely students’ learning needs, learning motivation and attitude toward TBLT, teachers’ perception and attitude toward TBLT and the tasks themselves To this end, two questionnaires were developed for VHU Business English teachers and students Also through observation, the researcher tried to describe the features of the communicative tasks in VHU class The results of the study revealed a number of problems affecting TBTL practice at VHU Relating to students’ learning needs, the preferences in learning activities, learning style and strategies, roles in class and the pattern of learners’ interaction of a big number of the respondents have been proven to impact task based instruction in VHU class Besides, the current teaching practice did not satisfy the learning purpose of a group of the learners that lead to their low motivation This was further added by their problems with task performance which resulted in negative attitude to TBLT in a number of them As for the teachers, the study has found out that a considerable number of teachers still did not have sufficient understanding of it and were skeptical to its merits in enhancing their students’ communicative ability Finally, certain features of the tasks in VHU class such as: uneven frequency of task types, degree of difficulty, type of input, lack of skill integration also affect students’ task performance significantly These factors, undeniably, have hindered the effective implementation of TBLT A number of recommendations were made with the hope to improve the effectiveness of TBLT which, in turn, would enhance VHU learners’ communicative competence iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY 1.2 THE AIMS OF THE STUDY 1.3 LIMITATIONS 1.4 DELIMITATIONS 1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY 1.6 ORGANIZATION OF THE THESIS Chapter LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 TASK BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING 2.1.1 Theoretical background of TBLT 2.1.1.1 The cognitive theory 2.1.1.2 Input and Interactionist hypothesis 2.1.1.3 Communicative Language Teaching 2.1.2 Task definition 10 2.1.3 Task components 14 2.1.4 Task based lesson procedures 17 2.1.4.1 Pre-task 17 2.1.4.2 The task cycle 17 2.1.4.3 Language focus 17 2.1.5 Task types 18 2.2 COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE 19 2.2.1 Definition of communicative competence 19 2.2.2 Components of Communicative Competence 21 2.2.2.1 Linguistic competence 21 2.2.2.2 Discourse Competence 22 2.2.2.3 Strategic Competence 22 v 2.2.2.4 Sociolinguistic competence 22 2.3 THE ROLE OF TBLT IN IMPROVING COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE 23 2.4 SOME FACTORS AFFECT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF TBLT 28 2.4.1 Student factors 28 2.4.1 Students’ learning needs 28 2.4.1.2 Students’ learning motivation and attitude toward TBLT 29 2.4.2 Teacher factors 30 2.4.2.1 Teachers’ perception of TBLT 30 2.4.2.2 Teachers’ attitude 31 2.4.3 Task factor 32 2.5 SOME PREVIOUS STUDIES IN TBLT IMPLEMENTATION 33 Chapter METHODOLOGY 37 3.1 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 37 3.2 RESEARCH DESIGN 37 3.2.1 The setting 39 3.2.2 Characteristics of the subjects 40 3.2.2.1 The student subjects 41 3.2.2.2 The teacher subjects 41 3.2.3 RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS 42 3.2.3.1 Students’ questionnaire 42 3.2.3.2 Teachers’ questionnaire 43 3.2.3.3 Class observation 44 Chapter DATA ANALYSES AND FINDINGS 46 4.1 RESPONSES TO STUDENTS’ SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE 46 4.1.1 Students’ reasons for learning Business English 46 vi 4.1.2 Students’ perception of the role of English in their future profession 47 4.1.3 Students’ learning preference in language area 48 4.1.4 Students’ priority in learning language skills 49 4.1.5 Students’ role preferences in the class 50 4.1.6 Students’ preference of teaching and learning activities 52 4.1.7 Students’ preference of learner interaction pattern 53 4.1.8 Students’ preferred learning styles & strategies 54 4.1.9 Students’ perception of the usefulness of tasks in improving their communicative ability 57 4.1.10 Students’ perception of the tasks in their class 57 4.1.11 Students’ problems with task performance 59 4.2 RESPONSES TO TEACHERS’ SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE 60 4.2.1 VHU teachers’ perception of TBLT 60 4.2.2 VHU teachers’ belief of Business English teaching practice 62 4.2.3 VHU teachers’ view of the value of TBLT in Business English classroom 65 4.2.4 Current implementation of TBLT at VHU 66 4.2.5 VHU teachers’ problems with the implementation of TBTL in their Business English class 69 4.3 THE OBSERVATION RESULTS 70 4.4 FINDINGS 72 4.4.1 Students’ learning needs 72 4.4.2 Students’ motivation and attitude 73 4.4.3 Teachers’ perception of TBLT 74 4.4.4 Teachers’ attitude toward TBLT 75 4.4.5 The features of the currently employed tasks 75 Chapter RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION 77 vii 5.1 RECOMMENDATION 77 5.1.1 Using suitable textbook 77 5.1.2 Changing assessment method 77 5.1.3.Training of Teachers 79 5.1.4 Training of Learners 79 5.1.5 Changing the syllabus 80 5.1.6 Analyzing students’ target needs 80 5.1.7 Designing good tasks 80 5.2 CONCLUSION 81 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 4.1 Students’ reasons for learning Business English 47 Figure 4.2 Students’ perception of the role of English in their future job 48 Figure 4.3 The language areas the students want to improve most 49 Figure 4.4 Students’ preferences of the teachers’ role in the class 52 Figure 4.5 Students’ preference of learner interaction pattern 54 Figure 4.6 Students’ preferences of learning method 55 Figure 4.7 Students’ preferred learning styles 56 Figure 4.8 Students’ perception of the usefulness of communicative tasks in their class 57 Figure 4.9 Students’ perception of the relevance of the tasks in their class for their needs in future job 59 Figure 4.10 Teachers’ belief of the focus of Business English teaching on language use 60 Figure 4.11 Teachers’ belief of the relevance of Business English teaching with students’ practical needs 64 Figure 4.12 Teachers’ belief of the role of real contexts in the classroom 65 Figure 4.13 Teachers’ views of the value of TBLT in Business English classroom 66 ix LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1 The students’ perception of the important language skill 50 Table 4.2 Students’ perception of the current tasks in their class 58 Table 4.3 Students’ opinion of problems with task performance 60 Table 4.4 Teachers’ understanding of TBLT concepts 61 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Aston University, UK Retrieved January 7, 2005 from http://www.jaltpublications.org/tlt/files/98/jul/willis.html 90 Appendix A QUESTIONNAIRE TO THE STUDENTS This questionnaire is designed to explore the Task Based Language Teaching implementation and factors affecting it in teaching Business English at Van Hien University The collected information will be used in an MA thesis Please read all the questions carefully and circle the appropriate choice or choices Thank you very much for your cooperation Part I: PERSONAL INFORMATION Age: …………………… Gender: a Male You have learned English since you were in a University b Senior secondary school c Junior secondary school Others (Please specify)…………………………… Part II: RESEARCH QUESTION Why you learn Business English? a Because it is a compulsory subject b To read professional literature c For my future job d Others ………………………………………… How important is Business English for your future job? b Female 91 a Very important b Important c Not very important d Not important In this Business English course, I most want to improve my …………… a English communicative skills b Grammar c Vocabulary – Terminology d Others ………………………… Which language skill you need to improve most in this Business English course? (please rank in order of importance, for example: - the most necessary) Speaking Listening Reading Writing How you want your English class like? a Teachers give lectures, students listen and take note b Students passively listen to teachers’ questions and answer them c Students actively participate in various communicative activities such as role play, games, projects, discussion, simulation, etc, under the guidance and help of teachers d Others………………………………………………………… What kind of learning activities in class you prefer? a participating in pair/group work, e.g group discussion, role play, etc b working individually How you want to learn your Business English most in your class? a By using it to perform various activities I will in my future profession (e.g present an advertising plan, make a quotation, etc) b By studying from a textbook c By observing my teachers and friends using it communicatively d By listening to my teacher talking e Others………………………… Do you like learning? 92 a by memory b by problem-solving c by getting information myself d by copying from the board e by listening and taking notes f by repeating what you hear g Others…………………… How helpful is the use of tasks in improving your communicative ability? a Very helpful b Helpful d Little helpful e Not helpful 10 What you think of the tasks used in your class (please tick your choices into appropriate boxes)? a Easy Suitable to my English level Difficult b Interesting Not very interesting Boring 11 The tasks applied in your class are relevant to your needs of use in the future job a Strongly agree b Agree c Uncertain d Disagree e Strongly disagree 12 What problems you face with when performing tasks in your class? (you can have more than one choice) a My friends are not cooperative b The time for task is limited c I am not familiar to pair/group work d My English proficiency is limited e Others …………………………… 93 Appendix B QUESTIONNAIRE TO THE TEACHERS This questionnaire is intended to study the implementation of Task Based Language Teaching and factors affecting it in teaching Business English at VHU The collected information will be used in an MA thesis Please read all the questions carefully and circle the appropriate choice or choices Thank you very much for your cooperation Part I: PERSONAL INFORMATION Gender : Age: a Male b Female a 23 – 30 b 31 – 39 c over 40 Qualifications: a BA b MA c MA candidate Others (please specify): ……………… Number of years in teaching English? Number of years in teaching Business English at VHU ………… Part II : ……………………… RESEARCH QUESTIONS Tasks are goal – oriented activities a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree 94 Task completion engages learners in using the language communicatively a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree Task involves a primary focus on meaning a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree A task always has clearly defined outcome a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree There is a close link between the tasks performed by learners in the language classroom and in the outside world a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree TBLT makes use of the principles of student – centred instruction approach a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree A task-based lesson usually has stages: pre-task, task and post task a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree The aim of task – based language teaching is to develop students’ communicative competence in language skills ( speaking, listening, reading and writing) a Strongly agree b Agree c Uncertain 95 d Disagree e Strongly disagree Business English teaching should focus on teaching students how to use English communicatively in various business settings a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree 10 Business English learning and teaching should be relevant to students’ practical needs in their future professional life a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree 11 Real contexts should be brought into class so that students can experiment real use of language in business context a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree 12 TBLT is the best approach to teach Business English a Strongly agree b Agree d Disagree c Uncertain e Strongly disagree 13 How often you apply TBLT in your English class? a All the time (my class is purely task – based) b One task per class c Two tasks per class d Others……………………………… 96 14 How often you use the following tasks in your class? (Please put a tick under your choice) Always Often Sometimes Rarely Never Listing Ordering and sorting Comparing Problem solving Sharing personal experiences Creative tasks 15 The tasks I apply in my class are: ( you can choose more than one answer) a the ones in the course book b the ones adapted from activities in the course book c the ones from other text books which are interesting and useful for my students d the ones I designed by myself 16 How often you use tasks to teach the following skills? (Please put a tick under your choice) Always Often Sometimes Rarely Never Speaking Listening Reading Writing 17 What are the major problems facing you when you employ tasks in teaching Business English at VHU? (You can have more than one choice) 97 a Limited time in class b Limited English proficiency c Students are inactive d The students have different levels of communicative competence g Students are not familiar to group work h Because of fixed syllabus i Students’ limited proficiency j Because of limited business knowledge k Because the exams focus mainly on linguistic aspect of language l Others……………………… Thank you very much for your help! 98 Appendix C Class Observation Checklist – The features of the tasks employed in VHU Classroom Date of Observation Class Observed Content check Yes No The goals of the task are obvious to both teachers and students The task is at appropriate level of difficulty for students The task is interesting, motivating and encourages learners to apply what they have learnt to the real world The input of the task is authentic, appropriate to the goal of the task and should take a variety of forms The activities are suitable and closely related to the goal of the task There is an information gap which might prompt a negotiation of meaning The activities are appropriate to the input data and to the communicative goals of the task They should be designed in a way which allows learners to communicate and cooperate in groups There are means for teachers and students to determine how successfully the learners have performed the tasks There is the integration of a range of macro skills into the sequence of tasks The goal of the task is successfully obtained Note: ………….…………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………… 99 Appendix D TEST FORMAT AT VHU LISTENING TEST Listen and fill in the gaps the missing words in the following conversation (10 missing words) Listen to the following paragraph and decide if the following statements are TRUE or FALSE (5 statements) MID-TERM TEST Part I: Vocabulary and Grammar structure (20 multiple choice items) Part II: Reading Comprehension A Fill in the gaps of one paragraph with 10 multiple choice items B Two paragraphs with multiple choice items for each paragraph Part III: Writing A Put the words in the correct order to make meaningful sentences (5 questions) B Make complete sentences, using works or phrases given (5 questions) END-OF-TERM TEST Part I: Vocabulary and Grammar structure (40 multiple choice items) Part II: Reading Comprehension C Fill in the gaps of one paragraph with 10 multiple choice items D Two paragraphs with multiple choice items for each paragraph Part III: Writing A Put the words in the correct order to make meaningful sentences (15 questions) B Make complete sentences, using works or phrases given (15 questions) C Find the underlined parts in the following statements that need to be corrected (10 multiple choice items)