Intercultural barriers faced by expatriate teachers of english at foreign language centers in vietnam m a

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY - HOCHIMINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS AND LITERATURE  INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS FACED BY EXPATRIATE TEACHERS OF ENGLISH AT FOREIGN LANGUAGE CENTERS IN VIETNAM A thesis submitted to the Faculty of English Linguistics and Literature In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the completion of the Master’s thesis in TESOL By VO HUYNH THANH Supervised by PHO PHUONG DUNG, Ph.D HO CHI MINH CITY, JUNE 2019 STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY I certify that this thesis entitled “INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS FACED BY EXPATRIATE TEACHERS OF ENGLISH AT FOREIGN LANGUAGE CENTERS IN VIETNAM” is my own work This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any other institution Ho Chi Minh City, June 8th, 2019 Võ Huỳnh Thanh i RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS I hereby state that I, Võ Huỳnh Thanh, being the candidate for the degree of Master in TESOL, accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of Master’s Thesis deposited in the Library In terms of these conditions, I agree that the original of my thesis deposited in the Library should be accessible for the purpose of study and research in accordance with the normal conditions established by the Library for the care, loan or reproduction of the theses Ho Chi Minh City, June 8th, 2019 Võ Huỳnh Thanh ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my valued teacher and supervisor, Dr Phó Phương Dung, for her wholehearted guidance, encouragement and dedication But for her untiring perseverance in the face of my terrible procrastination, her indefatigable support and her precious counsel, this thesis would have never been on completion I am also really indebted to my colleagues and friends, especially Ms Phương Thảo, Ms Bích Hảo, Ms Ngọc Diệp, Ms Thu An, Mr Minh Mẫn, Mr Chí Thành who were willing to help me deliver the questionnaires to expatriate teachers during the data collection process I am also deeply thankful to Mr Ngọc An for his careful proofreading my paper, and Mr Minh Giang and Ms Thị Thảo who were very kind to share with me their valuable research experience I am also grateful for Dr Phương Vũ, whose effective medical treatment has helped me ease my chronic depression, overcome my desperation and get my energy back for the completion of this thesis My heartfelt thanks also go Ms Thu An, whose never-ending source of support and inspiration have led me through the tough times of my thesis I also owe sincere thanks to many other teachers, friends and colleagues for their valuable advice, encouragement and mental support Finally yet importantly, my deepest gratitude goes to my family, my loving mother and father Without the unconditional love, constant care, endless support and relentless drive they gave me, my thesis would have never been completed iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Statement of originality i Retention and use of the thesis ii Acknowledgements iii List of abbreviations ix List of tables x List of figures xiv Abstract xv CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the study 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Significance of the study 1.5 Scope of the study 1.6 Outline of the thesis CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Operational definitions of terms 2.1.1 Expatriate teachers 2.1.2 Intercultural barriers 2.2 Culture and foreign language education 10 2.2.1 Culture and education 10 2.2.2 Culture and English language teaching 12 2.2 Views and approaches of studying culture 13 2.2.1 Viewpoints on culture 13 2.2.2 Approaches of studying culture 14 iv 2.3 Cultural dimensions 14 2.3.1 Concept 15 2.3.2 Models of cultural dimensions 15 2.3.3 Hofstede’s model of cultural dimensions 17 2.4 Contextualization of Hofstede’s model in Vietnam’s educational context 19 2.4.1 Power distance 20 2.4.2 Individualism versus Collectivism 21 2.4.3 Uncertainty avoidance 23 2.4.4 Masculinity versus Femininity 25 2.4.5 Short-term versus long-term orientation 26 2.4.6 Indulgence versus Restraint 27 2.5 Expatriate teachers and their problems working overseas 28 2.5.1 Challenges facing expatriate teachers working overseas 28 2.5.2 Anticipatory factors in expatriates’ intercultural adjustment 31 2.6 Conceptual framework of the study 33 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 36 3.1 Research design 36 3.2 Context of the study 38 3.3 Sampling 40 3.4 Preliminary study 41 3.5 The main study 45 3.5.1 Participants 45 3.5.2 Research instrument 46 3.5.3 Data collection procedure 52 3.5.4 Data analysis procedure 53 3.6 Summary 55 v CHAPTER RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS 56 4.1 Perception of expatriate EFL teachers about the cultural differences 56 4.1.1 Level of cultural differences 56 4.1.2 Challenge level of cultural differences 57 4.2 Expatriate teachers’ encounters with intercultural barriers resulting from Vietnamese students’ characteristics 58 4.2.1 Frequency of expatriate teachers’ encounters 58 4.2.2 Challenge level of expatriate teachers’ encounters with cultural dimensions of Vietnamese students’ characteristics 67 4.2.3 Association between frequency and challenge level of intercultural barriers facing the expatriate teachers 76 4.3 Effects of expatriate teachers’ personal factors on their perception of intercultural barriers in EFL classes 77 4.3.1 Effects of expatriate teachers’ personal factors on frequency of their encounters with intercultural barriers 77 4.3.2 Effects of expatriate teachers’ personal factors on challenge level of their encounters with intercultural barriers 81 4.4 Discussion of results 87 4.4.1 Expatriate teachers’ perception of cultural differences 87 4.4.2 Frequency and challenge level of expatriate teachers’ encounters with intercultural barriers resulting from Vietnamese students’ characteristics 87 4.4.3 Association between frequency and challenge level of intercultural barriers 91 4.4.4 Effects of personal factors on expatriate teachers’ encounters with intercultural barriers 91 4.5 Summary 92 CHAPTER CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 94 5.1 Conclusion 94 5.2 Implications of the study 95 vi 5.2.1 Implications for expatriate EFL teachers 95 5.2.2 Implications for Vietnamese EFL learners 98 5.2.3 Implications for other EFL stakeholder 99 5.3 Limitations and recommendations for future research 101 REFERENCES 102 APPENDICES 112 APPENDIX SUMMARY OF VIETNAMESE STUDENTS’ CHARACTERISTICS ACCORDING TO HOFSTEDE’S CULTURAL DIMENSION 113 APPENDIX CULTURAL VALUE SCORES BETWEEN VIETNAM AND NATIONS OF EXPATRIATE EFL TEACHERS 115 APPENDIX OBSERVATION GUIDE 116 APPENDIX INTERVIEW QUESTIONS 117 APPENDIX QUESTIONNAIRE ON INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS FACING EXPATRIATE ENGLISH TEACHERS IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE CENTERS IN HCMC 118 APPENDIX SPSS OUTPUT OF PARTICIPANTS’ DEMOGRAPHICAL CHARACTERISTICS 125 APPENDIX SPSS OUTPUT OF RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE 128 APPENDIX 7A SPSS OUTPUT OF RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE (PILOTING VERSION) 129 APPENDIX 7B SPSS OUTPUT OF RELIABILITY ANALYSIS OF THE QUESTIONNAIRE (OFFICIAL VERSION) 131 APPENDIX SPSS OUTPUT OF TEACHERS’ PERCEPTION OF CULTURAL DIFFERENCES 133 vii APPENDIX SPSS OUTPUT OF FREQUENCY OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS 134 APPENDIX 10 SPSS OUTPUT OF CHALLENGE LEVEL OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS 140 APPENDIX 11 SPSS OUTPUT OF ASSOCIATION BETWEEN FREQUENCY AND CHALLENGE LEVEL OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS 146 APPENDIX 12 SPSS OUTPUT OF EFFECTS OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIER 147 APPENDIX 12A SPSS OUTPUT OF EFFECTS OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON FREQUENCY OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS 148 APPENDIX 12B SPSS OUTPUT OF EFFECTS OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON CHALLENGE LEVEL OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS 152 viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ELT English Language Teaching TEFL Teaching English as a Foreign Language EFL English as a foreign language TESOL Teaching English to speakers of other languages CELTA Certificate in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages HCMC Ho Chi Minh City SPSS Statistical Package for the Social Sciences ANOVA Analysis of variance ix Uncertainty Avoidance Statistics Item3.22 Item3.23 Item3.24 Item3.25 Item3.26 Item3.27 Item3.28 Item3.29 Item3.30 Item3.31 Item3.32 Item3.33 3.33 3.49 3.53 3.22 3.69 3.78 3.39 3.25 2.57 3.37 3.53 3.47 1.178 1.206 1.120 1.222 1.273 1.238 1.343 1.181 1.204 1.356 1.286 1.286 Mean Std Deviation Item3.22 Item3.23 Item3.24 Item3.25 Item3.26 Item3.27 Item3.28 Item3.29 Item3.30 F Valid P F P F P F P F P F P F P F P F P Not challenging at all 7.8 9.8 5.9 9.8 7.8 5.9 15.7 11.8 12 23.5 Slightly challenging 13.7 5.9 9.8 17.6 7.8 9.8 5.9 Item3.31 F P 9.8 Item3.32 F P Item3.33 F P 11.8 9.8 5.9 13.7 7.8 12 23.5 10 19.6 Somewhat challenging 18 35.3 17 33.3 16 31.4 16 31.4 15 29.4 12 23.5 13 25.5 20 39.2 17 33.3 12 23.5 14 27.5 11 21.6 Moderately challenging 12 23.5 14 27.5 16 31.4 12 23.5 17.6 14 27.5 15 29.4 Extremely challenging 10 19.6 12 23.5 11 21.6 7.8 15 29.4 14 27.5 13 25.5 Total 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 51 100 17.6 11 21.6 15 29.4 13 25.5 17.6 19 37.3 20 39.2 12 23.5 142 15.7 11.8 100 Feminism Statistics Item3.34 Mean Std Deviation Item3.35 2.67 1.244 2.57 1.204 Item3.34 F Valid Item3.36 P 2.73 1.060 Item3.35 F Item3.37 3.37 1.131 Item3.36 P F Item3.38 3.65 1.163 Item3.37 P F Item3.39 Item3.38 P F 3.51 1.027 Item3.39 P F P Not challenging at all 12 23.5 12 23.5 13.7 7.8 7.8 2.0 Slightly challenging 10 19.6 13 25.5 13 25.5 11.8 5.9 15.7 Somewhat challenging 16 31.4 14 27.5 21 41.2 16 31.4 13 25.5 15 29.4 Moderately challenging 17.6 17.6 13.7 17 33.3 18 35.3 18 35.3 Extremely challenging 7.8 5.9 5.9 15.7 13 25.5 17.6 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 Total 143 Long-term Orientation Statistics Item3.40 Mean Std Deviation Item3.41 3.75 1.036 2.49 1.239 Item3.40 F Valid Item3.42 P 1.86 1.200 Item3.41 F Item3.43 2.73 1.234 Item3.42 P F Item3.44 2.22 1.376 Item3.43 P F Item3.45 Item3.44 P F 2.18 1.212 Item3.45 P F P Not challenging at all 5.9 15 29.4 31 60.8 11 21.6 23 45.1 21 41.2 Slightly challenging 2.0 10 19.6 5.9 17.6 17.6 17.6 Somewhat challenging 14 27.5 15 29.4 12 23.5 19 37.3 17.6 15 29.4 Moderately challenging 21 41.2 15.7 5.9 13.7 9.8 5.9 Extremely challenging 12 23.5 5.9 3.9 9.8 9.8 5.9 Total 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 144 Restraint Statistics Item3.46 Mean Std Deviation 2.27 1.201 Item3.48 3.27 1.282 Item3.49 2.67 1.194 Item3.50 2.25 1.278 Item3.51 2.84 1.332 Item3.52 3.45 1.101 2.16 1.189 Item3.46 Item3.47 Item3.48 Item3.49 Item3.50 Item3.51 Item3.52 F P F F F F F F 19 37.3 13.7 11 21.6 21 41.2 11 21.6 5.9 19 37.3 17.6 11.8 10 19.6 15.7 17.6 13.7 15 29.4 Somewhat challenging 15 29.4 13 25.5 19 37.3 13 25.5 15 29.4 13 25.5 10 19.6 Moderately challenging 11.8 16 31.4 13.7 11.8 17.6 20 39.2 7.8 Extremely challenging 3.9 17.6 7.8 5.9 13.7 15.7 5.9 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 51 100 Not challenging at all Slightly challenging Valid Item3.47 Total P 145 P P P P P APPENDIX 11 SPSS OUTPUT OF ASSOCIATION BETWEEN FREQUENCY AND CHALLENGE LEVEL OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS Tests of Normality Kolmogorov-Smirnova Statistic Total_frequency Total_challenge_level 121 122 df 51 51 Sig Shapiro-Wilk Statistic df Sig .061 056 936 51 009 963 51 114 a Lilliefors Significance Correction Correlations Total frequency of intercultural barriers Correlation Coefficient Total frequency Sig (2-tailed) N Spearman's rho Correlation Coefficient Total_challenge_level Sig (2-tailed) N ** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed) 146 TOTAL_CHALLENGE_LEVEL 1.000 762** 000 51 51 762** 1.000 000 51 51 APPENDIX 12 SPSS OUTPUT OF EFFECTS OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIER 147 APPENDIX 12A SPSS OUTPUT OF EFFECTS OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON FREQUENCY OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS Nationality Kruskal-Wallis Test Ranks Total_frequency nationality_re N Mean Rank American 18 29.61 English 22.11 Canadian 26.67 Australian 16.43 Filipino 38.00 Irish 17.75 Chi-Square Italian 25.00 df South African 33.50 New Zealander 23.00 Ukrainian 30.50 Total Test Statisticsa,b Total_frequency Asymp Sig 9.162 422 a Kruskal-Wallis Test b Grouping Variable: nationality_re 51 148 Gender Age Mann-Whitney Test Kruskal-Wallis Test Ranks Ranks Gender_re Total_frequency N Mean Rank Sum of Ranks Female 15 32.93 494.00 Male 36 23.11 832.00 Total 51 Total_frequency age_range_re N Mean Rank under 30 16 31.06 30-40 23 24.43 41-50 20.80 over 50 23.29 Total 51 Test Statisticsa Test Statisticsa,b Total_frequency Mann-Whitney U Wilcoxon W Z Asymp Sig (2-tailed) Total_frequency 166.000 832.000 -2.150 032 Chi-Square df Asymp Sig a Grouping Variable: Gender_re 2.956 399 a Kruskal-Wallis Test b Grouping Variable: age_range_re 149 Teaching experience Interaction types outside of work Kruskal-Wallis Test Kruskal-Wallis Test Ranks Total_frequency Ranks years_teaching_VN_re N Mean Rank "under 2" 14 24.64 2-4 19 30.89 5-7 22.44 - 10 19.20 over 10 24.00 Total Total_frequency interaction_types N Mean Rank Locals 10 25.50 39.60 Both 36 24.25 Total 51 Other expatriates Test Statisticsa,b 51 Total_frequency Test Statistics a,b Chi-Square df Asymp Sig Total_frequency Chi-Square df Asymp Sig 3.810 432 4.695 096 a Kruskal-Wallis Test b Grouping Variable: interaction_types a Kruskal-Wallis Test b Grouping Variable: years_teaching_VN_re 150 Previous intercultural training Mann-Whitney Test Ranks Total_frequency previous_intercutural_training N Mean Rank Sum of Ranks No 36 26.31 947.00 Yes 15 25.27 379.00 Total 51 Test Statisticsa Total_frequency Mann-Whitney U Wilcoxon W Z Asymp Sig (2-tailed) 259.000 379.000 -.227 820 a Grouping Variable: previous_intercutural_training 151 APPENDIX 12B SPSS OUTPUT OF EFFECTS OF PERSONAL FACTORS ON CHALLENGE LEVEL OF TEACHERS’ ENCOUNTERS WITH INTERCULTURAL BARRIERS Nationality Test of Homogeneity of Variances Total_challenge_level Levene Statistic df1 1.092 df2 Sig 41 386 ANOVA Total_challenge_level Sum of Squares Between Groups Within Groups Total df 5.842 21.862 41 27.704 50 Mean Square F Sig .649 1.217 311 533 152 Gender T-Test Group Statistics Total_challenge_level Gender_re N Female Male Mean Std Deviation Std Error Mean 15 3.4227 66528 17177 36 2.8045 70632 11772 Independent Samples Test Levene’s Test for Equality of Variances F Sig t-test for Equality of Means t df Sig (2tailed) Mean Difference Std Error Difference 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Total_challenge_level Equal variances assumed Equal variances not assumed 132 718 2.895 Upper 49 006 61818 21354 18906 1.04730 2.969 27.787 006 61818 20824 19147 1.04489 153 Age ANOVA Test of Homogeneity of Variances Total_challenge_level Levene Statistic 271 df1 df2 47 Total_challenge_level Sum of Squares df Mean Square Sig Between Groups Within Groups Total 846 1.147 26.557 47 27.704 50 F Sig .382 677 571 565 Teaching experience ANOVA Test of Homogeneity of Variances Total_challenge_level Levene Statistic 1.027 df1 df2 46 Total_challenge_level Sum of Squares df Mean Square Sig Between Groups Within Groups Total 403 154 2.112 25.591 46 27.704 50 F Sig .528 949 444 556 Interaction types outside of work ANOVA Total_challenge_level Test of Homogeneity of Variances Total_challenge_level Levene Statistic 115 df1 df2 48 Sum of Squares df Mean Square Between Groups Within Groups Total Sig .892 3.867 23.837 48 27.704 50 Multiple Comparisons Dependent Variable: Total_challenge_level Tukey HSD (I) interaction_types (J) interaction_types Mean Difference (I-J) Std Error Sig 95% Confidence Interval Lower Bound Upper Bound Locals Other expatriates Both Other expatriates -.85028 38598 081 Both Locals Both Locals 08748 85028 93776* -.08748 25190 38598 33633 25190 Other expatriates -.93776* -1.7838 0832 936 081 020 936 -.5217 -.0832 1244 -.6967 6967 1.7838 1.7512 5217 33633 020 -1.7512 -.1244 * The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level 155 F Sig 1.933 3.893 027 497 Previous intercultural training T-Test Group Statistics Total_challenge_level previous_intercutural_training N No Yes Mean Std Deviation Std Error Mean 36 3.0588 61451 10242 15 2.8124 99442 25676 Independent Samples Test Levene’s Test for Equality of Variances F Sig t-test for Equality of Means t df Sig (2tailed) Mean Difference Std Error Difference 95% Confidence Interval of the Difference Lower Total_challenge_level Equal variances assumed Equal variances not assumed 5.010 030 1.079 Upper 49 286 24635 22838 -.21260 70531 891 18.621 384 24635 27643 -.33302 82573 156