Using information gap activities to fromote grade 10 students participation in speaking lessons at viet tri technical high school

HUNG VUONG UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES NGUYEN LAN HUONG USING INFORMATION GAP ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE GRADE 10 STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING LESSONS AT VIET TRI TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL (Sử dụng hoạt động “Điền thông tin” nhằm tăng cường tham gia học sinh lớp 10 học nói trường THPT Kỹ Thuật Việt Trì) RESEARCH PROPOSAL PEDAGOGYY CLASS Phu Tho, 2022 HUNG VUONG UNIVERSITY DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES NGUYEN LAN HUONG USING INFORMATION GAP ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE GRADE 10 STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING LESSONS AT VIET TRI TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL (Sử dụng hoạt động “Điền thông tin” nhằm tăng cường tham gia học sinh lớp 10 học nói trường THPT Kỹ Thuật Việt Trì) RESEARCH PROPOSAL PEDAGOGY CLASS SUPERVISOR: MA NGUYEN THI THU HANG Phu Tho, 2022 i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First and foremost, I would like to Express my deepest thanks to Ms Nguyen Thi Thu Hang – my supervisor, for her invaluable guidance, great support, and patience The present study would not have been possible without her assistance I would also acknowledge my great gratitude to all the lecturers and the organizers of the Foreign Language Department, Hung Vuong University for their support during my study at the college My special thanks are expressed to my friends for their great help and comments Also, my gratefullness goes to teachers and thirty-six students taking part in my research Finally, I also wish to express my sincere thanks to my family and friends who have given me so much encouragement and support in conducting this research paper ii Table of Content PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale Previous study Purpose and significance of the study 4 Research questions Scope of the study Methods of the study Hypothesis of the study Structure of the study PART B: CONTENT CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1 Teaching speaking 1.1.1 Definitions of speaking 1.1.2 Importance of teaching speaking 1.1.3 Teaching speaking in CLT 1.1.4 Characteristic of successful speaking activities 10 1.2 Information gap activities (IGA) 11 1.2.1 Definition of IGA 11 1.2.2 Types of IGA 12 1.2.3 Benefits of implementing IGA in teaching speaking 15 Some previous researchers confirmed that: nobody can deny the helpfulness of IGA brings for speaking lessons 15 1.2.4 Principle and steps in using information gap activities 18 1.3 Students’ participation in speaking activities 20 1.3.1 Definition of students’ participation 20 1.3.3 Benefits of students’ participation 21 1.3.4 Factors affecting students’ participation 22 1.3.4.1 Students’ factors 22 1.3.4.2 Teacher’s factors 22 1.3.4.3 Classroom factors 23 1.4 Summary 24 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 25 2.1 The research methods 25 2.2 Participants of the study 26 iii 2.2.1 Samples for the experimental class 26 2.2.2 Samples for the interviews 26 2.3 Setting of the study 26 2.4 Data collection instruments 27 2.4.1 Students' participation self-checklist (Appendix A) 27 2.4.2 Questionnaire (Appendix B) 28 2.4.3 Teaching videos 28 2.4.4 Interview (Appendix C) 29 2.5 Study procedure 29 CHAPTER 3: EXPERIMENT OF USING INFORMATION GAP ACTIVITIES IN SPEAKING LESSONS FOR GRADE 10 STUDENTS AT VIET TRI TECHNICAL HIGH SCHOOL 31 3.1 Description of experiment 31 3.1.1 Objectives 31 3.1.2 Estimated time 31 3.1.3 Lesson plans and activities design 31 3.1.4 Resources and teaching aids 32 3.1.5 Procedures 33 3.2 Summary 37 CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS, FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 38 4.1 Data analysis 38 4.1.1 Students' participation before the experiment 38 4.1.2 Students' participation at the experimental stage 41 4.1.3 Comparison of participation levels of the students in experimental class before and during the experiment 45 4.1.4 Teachers' and students’ attitudes towards the implementation of IGA in speaking lessons………… 46 4.2 Major findings and discussion 49 PART C: CONCLUSION 53 Summary of the study 53 Implications 54 The limitations of the study 57 Suggestions for further studies 57 REFERENCES 59 iv ABSTRACT A lesson in general, an English-speaking lesson in particular can not be said to be successful without students’ active particular And foreign language learners should be offered the opportunity to get involved in the lessons and fulfill their learning orientations The aim of carrying out this research was to promote students participating in speaking lesson by using information gap activities The thesis, therefore, examines the students’ level of participation in speaking lessons at Viet Tri technical high school In order to achieve the aim, the experimental research was carried out in six weeks which questionnaires, interview, students’ participation self-check and teaching videos as data correction instruments The sample of the study consisted of 36 grade 10 students from class 10A4 The experimental group joined first speaking lessons without the use of information gap activities and last speaking lessons with the intervention of information gap activities The results indicated that experimental group’s participation level increased significantly Hopefully, this study can raise teachers and students’ awareness of using information gap activities in teaching speaking to enhance learners’ involvement v ABBREVIATION CLT: Communicative Language Teaching L2: Second language IGA: Information Gap Activities vi LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS Table 2.1: The result of English on average in the first semester Table 3.1: The content of the non - experimental lessons Table 3.2: The content of the experimental lessons Table 4.1: Students' participation self-checklist before experiment Chart 4.1: Times of students’ participation before experiment Table 4.3: Students' participation self-checklist during experiment Chart 4.2: Times of students’ participation during experiment Chart 4.3: Numbers of students’ participation times before and during experiment Table 4.3 Summary table of results from survey questionnaire vii PART A: INTRODUCTION Rationale This study is being conducted for the following reasons: the growing importance of English in our daily lives, students' lack of speaking skills, the reality of low student involvement, and the motivation provided by information gap activities (IGA) in speaking sessions To begin with, it is obvious that English has played an important part in our modern lives With a dramatic increase in the number of users, it is the most effective way of global communication It also exhibits progressive impacts in a variety of areas Anyone, regardless of where they live, is likely to be aware that having a good command of English facilitates access to the most up-to-date science and technology knowledge As a result, English allows him to improve his studies and work, as well as his current life Second, Viet Tri technical high school’s students appear to be weaker at speaking than other English skills, although being strong at it allows them to earn a good career in the community Viet Tri technical high school is a newly established school in Viet Tri city which is home to a variety of firms and businesses, many of which require employers to have a good command of the English language Young people in the local province receive first priority for job offers if they meet certain criteria, one of which being English proficiency However, despite graduating from high school or even a university, most of Phu Tho students find it difficult to communicate in English In fact, students’ poor participation is one of the factors responsible for their low speaking proficiency Many students keep silent or chat in speaking lessons while others make noise using their mother tongue Thus, teachers need to provide students motivation to use English in class It’s considered that one of the best solutions to improve the quality of students’ participation in oral lessons is the use of information gap activities in speaking lessons In certain ways, using information gap activities in an English speaking class promotes students to use the target language in class To begin, in this activity, one person possesses specific information that must be communicated with others in order to solve an issue, gather data, or make judgments This allows pupils to practice their English for a longer amount of time Furthermore, conversing with a peer is less scary than giving a presentation in front of the class and being graded Another benefit of information gap activities is that they help students to negotiate meaning since they must make what they say understandable to others in order to complete the task The above reasons have inspired the author to conduct the research entitled “Using information gap activities to promote grade 10 students’ participation in speaking lessons” Hopefully, this research will make a minor contribution to the implementation of Information gap activities in improving speaking skills for the students at Viet Tri technical high school Previous study In the last decades, we have recognized substantial research on application of additional activities in teaching and learning speaking skill in both Viet Nam and others countries in the world a In the world The role of speaking skill in language teaching has always caused a bitter controversy around teachers, researchers, or educators Traditionally, speaking skill was not considered as important in grade system, that is by telling people what rules they should know and how they should speak, and this includes many aspects of linguistic knowledge But the teaching of speaking skill for the past decades has undergone a substantial change in people’s attitudes and approaches Some teachers only taught other skills like writing, reading and grammar but other insists that knowing speaking skill is completely unnecessary However, most researchers and educators support the importance and the way to improve teaching speaking skill Defrioka (2009) did a research on "Improving Students' Interaction In Speaking class Through Information Gap Activities" The study aimed to test to what extent applying information gap activities could improve students' interaction in speaking class Classroom action research procedures (plan, act, observe and reflection) were used to study the process and participant outcomes The participants of this research were the third year students of Building Department of SMKN Padang, consisted of (22) students The study was conducted in two Health problems Depletion of Ozone layer Water polllution Worksheet for student A HUMAN ACTIVTIES Disposal of products from companies Plastic/waste in water CONSEQUENCE Lack of potable water Worksheet for student B HUMAN ACTIVITIES Marine duping, soil spill CONSEQUENCE Destroy animal habitat Disrupts food chains Task Soil polution Worksheet for student A HUMAN ACIVITIES Garbage pollution Deforestion CONSEQUENCE Contaminated vegetation Worksheet for student B HUMAN ACTIVITIES Excessive use of fertilizer & pesticides CONSEQUENCE Climate change Poorer harvest Noise pollution Worksheet for student A HUMAN ACTIVITIES Traffic noise CONSEQUENCE Hearing damage Low memory Worksheet for student B HUMAN ACTIVITIES Party, night life Construction sites CONSEQUENCE Physical and psychological Appendix E3 : Lesson plans and IGA activities for unit 10 Lesson plan for unit 10: Unit 10: ECOTOURISM Speaking I OBJECTIVES Knowledge: Know / recall words and phrases related to topic Improve reading, listening and mainly speaking skills (Talking about what tourists can on an eco tour) Targted competences: Increasing students’ communication, self-study skills, critical thinking and creativeness Attitude: Increasing students’ hard work, science awareness, self-study spirit, enthusiasm, challenge acceptation, self-respecting, self-reliant, self-control and overcoming difficulties II TEACHING AIDS Equipments: computer, projector Learning materials: textbook, pictures, videos III TEACHING PROCESS Class organization: Class Date of teaching Attendance Checking: During the lesson New lesson: ACTIVITY 1: INTRODUCTION a) Objectives Introduce the topic of the lesson and to raise students' interest b) Content Show some pictures of famous places in Vietnam and name the places c) Products Suggested answers Mekong delta Ngo dong river in Ninh Binh Ba Be lake Cat Tien national park Cuc Phuong national park d) Implementation Elicit students’ answers Give feedback Lead into new lesson d) Implementation Assign tasks; explain Monitor; help; tutorial Review; Commendation Reported results Conclusion; emphasize knowledge to remember ACTIVITY 2: PRACTICE a) Objectives Taking about an ecotourism destination in Vietnam and tell what tourists can see and there b) Content Task 2: Act out, ask and answer about information of Sapa trip then complete the sheet One will be the tour guide, one will be the guest c) Products Suggested answers TOUR TO SAPA How To Go Sapa From Hanoi? - Passenger car Where To Stay? - Sapa Horizon hotel Where to visit? - Fanxipan mountain - Cat Cat village - Ham Rong mountain What to do? Ham rong mountain: walk there on foot then it takes you another three hours to hike up and down the mountain, but you'll get to reward yourself with the beautiful scenery From the top of the mountain, you can look out to Sapa, Muong Hoa Valley, or Ta Phin Village hidden in the milky white fog Fansipan Mountain: sign up on a hiking trip with a tour agency or go with a local tour guide from the Mong or Dao ethnic groups Cat cat village Visit a village about many traditional handmade crafts like weaved items of clothing from cotton and flax that are planted in the ommunity What To Eat? grilled egg, grilled heart and stomach, grilled chicken, chestnut, etc attractive food such as Lam rice cooked in bamboo pipes, forest vegetables Tao Meo liquor, Ban Pho corn liquor, grilled stream fish, salmon, boiled corn, etc What Is The Weather In Sapa? Average temperature for Sapa town is 15.4ºC, with a maximum of 29.4ºC and a minimum of 7ºC What Should Prepare Before Traveling To Sa Pa? Small money notes and change Personal small water bottle Insect repellent Good shoes, raincoat and umbrella Bread, snack, canned food Personal Torch Camera with backup or rechargeable battery Medicines for popular diseases such as flu, diarrhea, fever, etc d) Implementation - Step 1- Transfer the tasks State the requirements for each activity for the students Make sure the students have a clear understanding of the task for each activity before performing the task - Step 2- Perform tasks Students work individually, in pairs, or in groups in the process of performing tasks Teachers general observations and help if necessary - Step 3- Report, discussion Ask a few students or group representatives to present their answers Other groups comment Teacher general comments - Step 4: Conclusion, judgment Teacher presents specific learning products that the student must complete as required and clarify the problem to be resolved / explained; Learning tasks must be performed next ACTIVITY 3: APPLICATION a) Objectives Students apply the knowledge they have just learned into communicative and practical situations b) Content Task 3: Work in groups Choose one ecotourism destination in Viet Nam and prepare a presentation about what tourists can see and there Then report to other groups c) Products Suggested answers + Where is it located? + What can tourists and see there? + Other interesting activities/ places to or to visit? Cat Ba National Park is situated in Cat Hai District, Hai Phong City The park is quite big with an area of 17,362 It was the first ever national park to be established in Vietnam The Park differs from other national parks in Vietnam because of a great variety of ecosystems, landscapes and seascapes Tourists can go hiking in the forest to explore rare wildlife resources there They can also take a boat to visit Lan Ha Bay, row a kayak to discover bay ecosystems, dive for a coral watch, swim in the sea and sunbathe on isolated beaches Beside, visiting Trung Trang Cave, Thien Long Cave, or Hospital Cave is a must.And it would be a great idea if they spend one or two nights staying with local families in the buffer zone area of the Park d) Implementation - Step 1- Transfer the tasks State the requirements for each activity for the students Make sure the students have a clear understanding of the task for each activity before performing the task - Step 2- Perform tasks Students work individually, in pairs, or in groups in the process of performing tasks Teachers general observations and help if necessary - Step 3- Report, discussion Ask a few students or group representatives to present their answers Other groups comment Teacher general comments - Step 4: Conclusion, judgment Teacher presents specific learning products that the student must complete as required and clarify the problem to be resolved / explained; Learning tasks must be performed next Information gap activities for Unit 10 Worksheet for the tour guild : TOUR TO SAPA How To Go Sapa From Hanoi? Sa Pa town is only 38km from Lao Cai city and 376km from Hanoi Tourists can choose to travel by passenger car or train Where To Stay? You have some choices: - Sapa Horizon hotel have view to Muong Hoa Valley with beautiful rice fields and rivers - Sapa Unique’s biggest asset are the incredible views you get from the gorgefacing balconies - Topas Ecolodge is well-known for its rustic stone bungalows, the eco-friendly aspect of the accommodation and of course for the picturesque views Where To Visit? Here are some places that visitors should never forget to visit: - Fansipan Mountain : Fansipan is branded “the Roof of Indochina” at the height of 3, 143m; Fansipan is to be approved as one of the very few eco-tourist spots of Vietnam, with about 2, 024 floral varieties and 327 faunal species The topography of Fansipan is varied Muong Hoa Valley, at the lowest altitude (950-1, 000m), is created by a narrow strip of land at the base on the east side of the mountain - Cat Cat Village : Cat Cat Village is located on the Muong Hoa Valley, this is the village of the H’Mong hill tribe It’s far from Sapa Town km and takes you 45 minutes to walk here The village is on the slope of the hill and easy walking, rice field and corn are grown here Visiting Cat Cat village, we can have a chance to visit a big waterfall on the stream and the old Hydro Electric Power Station built by the French here That is the image of young women sitting by looms with colorful pieces of brocade decorated with designs of flowers and birds - Ham Rong Mountain: The name of Ham Rong was derived from the legend that, in primitive age there were a couple of dragons which became attached to each other while the deluge was rising high Walking up, they horribly separated from each other but failed They were drifted to different places - Bac Ha Market: Being a minority ethnic people market, Bac Ha market is located in 80 km from Sapa, Bac Ha is famous for its Sunday market which is a trading center and meeting place for couples, friends, and relatives Every Sunday, Bac Ha hosts the biggest fair near the mountainous highlands and the Chinese border It is the largest and most colorful market in the area and attracts throngs of villagers from the surrounding hill tribes - Terraced rice fields: Rice terraces in Sapa are slopes claimed from nature for cultivation in hilly or mountainous areas Due to the steep feature, fertile soil thanks to it was created by weathered granite rock and mountain cliffs often stock water, local ethnic minority people can grow rice and establish terraced rice fields, one after another, from the foot to nearly top of mountains What To Do? - Ham rong mountain: visitors can walk there on foot then it takes you another three hours to hike up and down the mountain, but you'll get to reward yourself with the beautiful scenery From the top of the mountain, you can look out to Sapa, Muong Hoa Valley, or Ta Phin Village hidden in the milky white fog - Fansipan Mountain: You can sign up on a hiking trip with a tour agency or go with a local tour guide from the Mong or Dao ethnic groups - Cat cat village: You can visit a village about many traditional handmade crafts like weaved items of clothing from cotton and flax that are planted in the community What To Eat? Tourists can enjoy many grilled dishes such as: grilled egg, grilled heart and stomach, grilled chicken, chestnut, etc Moreover, there has been attractive food such as Lam rice cooked in bamboo pipes, forest vegetables and some drink such as Tao Meo liquor, Ban Pho corn liquor, grilled stream fish, salmon, boiled corn, etc The Weather In Sapa Average temperature for Sapa town is 15.4ºC, with a maximum of 29.4ºC and a minimum of -7ºC What Should Prepare Before Traveling To Sa Pa? Here are somethings that tourists should bring when going to Sapa: - Small money notes and change - Personal small water bottle - Insect repellent - Good shoes, raincoat and umbrella - Bread, snack, canned food - Personal Torch - Camera with backup or rechargeable battery - Medicines for popular diseases such as flu, diarrhea, fever, etc Worksheet for the guess: TOUR TO SAPA How To Go Sapa From Hanoi? Where To Stay? Where to visit? What to do? What To Eat? What Is The Weather In Sapa? What Should Prepare Before Traveling To Sa Pa? -