Skkn adapting reading tasks in the new textbook tieng anh 11 to improve students’ reading comprehension

NGHE AN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING –––––––––––––––––––––––– ADAPTING READING TASKS IN THE NEW TEXTBOOK “TIENG ANH 11” TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION Subject: English Group: Foreign languages – Literature Vinh, 2022 skkn NGHE AN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING –––––––––––––––––––––––– ADAPTING READING TASKS IN THE NEW TEXTBOOK “TIENG ANH 11” TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ READING COMPREHENSION Subject : English Researcher: Vo Thi Thuy Linh Phone number: 0984359184 Group: Literature – Foreign languages Vinh, 2022 skkn TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTENTS PAGE PART I: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale Aims of the Study PART II: CONTENT I THEORETICAL BACKGROUND Reading skills Definition of reading comprehension 3 Adapting textbooks 3.1 What is textbook adaptation? 3.2 Principles and techniques for adapting textbooks 3.3 Purposes of adaptation II PRACTICAL BACKGROUND An overview of the new textbook “Tieng Anh 11” Situation of teaching and learning reading skills at high school III THE STUDY Situation analysis 1.1 Setting of the study 1.2 Scope of the study 1.3 Participants 1.4 Instrumentation 1.5 Data collection procedures skkn Findings of the study Finding solutions 3.1 Suggested adaptations for some reading tasks in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 11” 3.2 Sample lesson plans 19 Results and Discussion 19 PART III: CONCLUSION 37 A summary of the development of the study 37 Limitations 37 Recommendations 38 REFERENCES 39 APPENDICES Pl-1 skkn C.33.44.55.54.78.65.5.43.22.2.4 22.Tai lieu Luan 66.55.77.99 van Luan an.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.33.44.55.54.78.655.43.22.2.4.55.22 Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationale Of the four language skills, reading seems to have received a great deal of attention from researchers in second language teaching It is considered “the most important of the four skills in a second language, particularly in English as a second or foreign language” (Carrell, 1981:1) Despite its importance, many teachers of English at high schools find it difficult to get students’ enthusiasm in reading texts From students’ responses to the survey questions, it can be seen that many of the students feel frustrated at long reading texts with unfamiliar words Besides, many of them admit that they not have necessary background knowledge about the topic of the reading texts or even they not like the topic itself Consequently, they are not willing to learn reading skill as well as carry out the reading tasks given in the textbook Another factor that should be considered when we mention the quality of teaching and learning reading skill at high school is the reading tasks given in the textbook It can be easily noticed that some of the reading tasks are similarly designed in different units, namely answering the questions, choosing the best title, matching words and phrases with their definitions This, to some extent, causes repetition and boredom to students In addition, there is a lack of teachers’ flexibility in creating a suitable learning environment for students in class Statistics collected from the questionnaire reveal that a large number of students are not confident enough to perform all the given tasks by themselves Instead, they often rely on their friends as well as reference books for correct answers As a consequence, students cannot improve their reading comprehension during the process of learning reading skills In addition, most of the students involved in the survey claim that they prefer working in groups of students with the same level of proficiency in reading classes Thus, flexible work arrangements in reading class should be taken into consideration to boost students’ motivation and the quality of teaching and learning reading skills Last but not least, the outbreak of COVID -19 has forced schools to utilize new ways of learning and teaching, including formal and virtual classes Therefore, adaptations for textbook lessons with the aim of making them easier and more suitable for students’ competence are necessary to reduce their learning pressure Related to these problems, this study was carried out, entitling: Adapting reading tasks in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 11” to improve students’ reading comprehension Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhd 77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77t@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn.Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhddtt@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn skkn C.33.44.55.54.78.65.5.43.22.2.4 22.Tai lieu Luan 66.55.77.99 van Luan an.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.33.44.55.54.78.655.43.22.2.4.55.22 Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an Aims of the study The study aims at suggesting adaptations of some reading tasks given in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 11” to enhance the 11 th graders’ reading comprehension Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhd 77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77t@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn.Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhddtt@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn skkn C.33.44.55.54.78.65.5.43.22.2.4 22.Tai lieu Luan 66.55.77.99 van Luan an.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.33.44.55.54.78.655.43.22.2.4.55.22 Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an PART II: CONTENT I THEORETICAL BACKGROUND Reading skills Reading is known as a receptive process that connected the reader with the text, making comprehension Harmer (2001: 153) states that “reading is an exercise dominated by the eyes and the brain The eyes receive messages and the brain then has to work out the significance of these messages” Thus, although there are different ideas about reading skills, they all focus on two actions: studying with eyes and comprehending with brains, of which the latter is more important since the final goal of reading instruction is comprehension The readers not simply look at and understand the meaning of what is written but also read authors’ thinking In terms of skills required to learn reading effectively, there are many skills in the reading process, namely scanning, skimming, summarizing, paraphrasing, etc However, at the level of high school students, scanning and skimming are two most important ones that matches with their learning ability and goals Definition of reading comprehension In the context of language learning, according to Ur (1996:34), “reading means reading and understanding” In this sense, if a student can read the words but doesn’t know what they mean, it is not reading but “decoding” Sharing this view, Karlin and Kartin (1988:2) also express that “reading without reading comprehension is meaningless.” In other words, reading comprehension is a complicated process in which readers use their own knowledge, experiences and strategies to understand the content of the text Therefore, how to assist students in having efficient reading comprehension is considered to be the most challenging task in teaching reading Adapting textbooks 3.1 What is textbook adaptation? Adapting textbook activities is not just something teachers should as the need arises but also for appealing to the lower, middle and strong student levels Textbook adaptation is performed to make textbook lessons more communicative and incorporate authentic textbook into the lessons Adapting is the ability to create the textbook that introduces and integrates skills in a lively, enjoyable and productive format Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhd 77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77t@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn.Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhddtt@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn skkn C.33.44.55.54.78.65.5.43.22.2.4 22.Tai lieu Luan 66.55.77.99 van Luan an.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.33.44.55.54.78.655.43.22.2.4.55.22 Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an 3.2 Principles and techniques for adapting textbooks Despite the great effort that textbook writers make to meet the needs of the intended users, textbooks are subject to adaptation when they are actually used in the classroom McDonough and Shaw (1993:83) propose that textbooks are internally coherent although they may be, they may not be entirely applicable Although most classroom teachers will not be involved in the production of textbooks, all teachers have the responsibility for textbook evaluation, selection and adaptation It is undeniable that adapting textbook allows teachers to achieve more compatibility and fitness between the textbook and the teaching environment, and therefore maximize the value of the book for the benefit of their particular learners and for the most effective teaching outcomes to achieve Maley (1998:281) suggested the following techniques to adapt textbook: • Omission: the teacher leaves out things seemed inappropriate, offensive, unproductive, etc., for the particular group • Addition: where there seems to be inadequate coverage, teachers may decide to add to textbooks, either in the form of texts or exercise material • Reduction: where the teacher shortens an activity to give it less weight or emphasis • Extension: where an activity is lengthened in order to give it an additional dimension (For example, a vocabulary activity is extended to draw attention to some syntactic patterning.) • Rewriting/modification: teacher may occasionally decide to rewrite material, especially exercise material, to make it more appropriate, more “communicative”, more demanding, more accessible to their students, etc • Replacement: text or exercise material which is considered inadequate, for whatever reason, may be replaced by more suitable material This is often culled from other resource textbook • Re-ordering: teachers may decide that the order in which the textbooks are presented is not suitable for their students They can then decide to plot a different course through the textbooks from the one the writer has laid down • Branching: teachers may decide to add options to the existing activity or to suggest alternative pathways through the activities Textbook adaptation can be done at three levels The first level is macro adaptation, which is ideally done before the language program begins After comparing what is covered in a textbook and what is required by the syllabus or examination, the teacher may find that certain areas or even whole units of the book can be omitted, and certain contents need to be supplemented Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhd 77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77t@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn.Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhddtt@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn skkn C.33.44.55.54.78.65.5.43.22.2.4 22.Tai lieu Luan 66.55.77.99 van Luan an.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.33.44.55.54.78.655.43.22.2.4.55.22 Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an The second level of adaptation is adapting a unit This could be done by reordering the activities, combining activities, omitting activities, rewriting or supplementing exercise material, etc Unit adaptation helps to make the classroom teaching smoother and more cohesive It also helps the teacher to better fulfill the aims of a unit The third level is adaptation of specific activities in a unit Occasionally an activity is regarded as valuable, but it is not well-designed or it is not suitable in a particular class If the teacher does not want to give up the activity, he or she needs to adapt it 3.3 Purposes of adaptation McDonough and Shaw (1993:83) propose that “textbooks are internally coherent although they may be, they may not be entirely applicable” Despite the great effort that textbook writers make to meet the needs of the intended users, textbooks are subject to adaptation when they are actually used in the classroom The teachers may choose to adapt the material they are using with a view to making it more relevant, suitable and useful to their students, which plays a significant role in stimulating students’ motivation and increasing their achievement during the leaning process of reading skills II PRACTICAL BACKGROUND An overview of the new textbook “Tieng Anh 11” Each unit in the textbook “Tieng Anh 11”, which refers to a particular theme, is divided into sections: Getting started, Language, Skills, Communication and Culture, Looking back and Project Each section is designed with different kinds of activities with a view to helping students follow the lessons easily and attain basic knowledge related to the theme of the unit as well as improve their skills in terms of Reading, Speaking, Listening and Writing Normally, each skill lesson is taught and learnt in a 45-minute period Like other skill lessons presented in the textbook, reading lessons consist of different activities from the easier to more complicated ones for students to fulfill However, it is noticeable that some task types, namely answering the questions, matching words and their definitions, are repeated in all reading lessons and to some extent cause boredom to students Situation of teaching and learning reading skills at high school Under the instructions of Ministry of education and training, all schools now have had their own syllables for teaching and learning English As far as I am concerned, most high schools in Nghe An province allot 45 minutes for each skill lesson However, many of the activities in Listening, Speaking and Writing lessons in general and in Reading lessons in particular are not fully carried out due to the lack of time as well as students’ uneven levels of proficiency Many Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhd 77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77t@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn.Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhddtt@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn skkn C.33.44.55.54.78.65.5.43.22.2.4 22.Tai lieu Luan 66.55.77.99 van Luan an.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.33.44.55.54.78.655.43.22.2.4.55.22 Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an.Tai lieu Luan van Luan an Do an of the students admit that they are unable to complete all of the tasks themselves The quality of the reading lessons is also rooted from the monotonous requirements of some tasks given in the textbook Taken these factors into consideration, it is undeniable that the objective of the lesson is not always reached Because of these reasons, I would like to suggest a number of adaptations for some reading tasks to make them easier for students to fulfill so that the lesson objective is fully gained III THE STUDY Situation analysis 1.1 Setting of the study The study was conducted at Le Viet Thuat High School in Nghe An province At Le Viet Thuat high school, the 11 th graders have four 45-minute periods of English a week and there are only six reading lessons in each semester The official textbook used at Le Viet Thuat high school is Tieng Anh 11, edited by Hoang Van Van and written by Phan Ha, Hoang Thi Hong Hai, Hoang Thi Xuan Hoa, Kieu Thi Thu Huong, Vu Thi Lan, Dao Ngoc Loc, and Chung The Quang, published by Nha xuat ban giao duc Viet Nam 1.2 Scope of the study The study was conducted in the second semester of the academic year 2021-2022 Some of the reading passages from unit to unit 10 of the textbook Tieng Anh 11 were used as the materials for the study 1.3 Participants The participants of the research consist of 90 students of 11 th form from classes 11A and 11D at Le Viet Thuat high school In this study, no students were identified by their names All of the informants have the same time of learning English of six years; and they have already completed the syllabus of English with the new series of English textbook from grade to grade 10 at secondary school The most significant point for choosing these participants is that there are no noticeable differences in their levels of proficiency This is proved by their average scores in grade 10 and in the first semester of this academic year 1.4 Instrumentation In order to get information to fulfill the aims of the study, a survey questionnaire (given in Appendix 1) was designed and delivered to the student respondents The survey questionnaire included two parts: Part was some personal information and Part comprised questions relating to researched issue Questions in the questionnaire contained both closed-ended questions and opened-ended questions The questionnaire was written in Vietnamese in a logical order so that they could gradually lead the respondents into the theme of Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhd 77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.77.99.44.45.67.22.55.77.C.37.99.44.45.67.22.55.77t@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn.Stt.010.Mssv.BKD002ac.email.ninhddtt@edu.gmail.com.vn.bkc19134.hmu.edu.vn skkn