An investigation into teachers evaluation of the textbook first friends grade 1 in teaching english at primary schools in dong hoi city quang binh province

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HUE UNIVERSITY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DANG HONG TRANG AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHER’S EVALUATION OF THE TEXTBOOK “FIRST FRIENDS- GRADE 1” IN TEACHING ENGLISH AT PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN DONG HOI CITY, QUANG BINH PROVINCE MA THESIS IN THEORY AND METHODOLOGY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHING CODE: 60.14.01.11 SUPERVISOR: Assoc.Prof.Dr TRUONG VIEN HUE, 2015 i BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO ĐẠI HỌC HUẾ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ ĐẶNG HỒNG TRANG ĐIỀU TRA VỀ SỰ ĐÁNH GIÁ CỦA GIÁO VIÊN ĐỐI VỚI QUYỂN SÁCH "FIRST FRIENDS- GRADE 1" TRONG VIỆC GIẢNG DẠY TIẾNG ANH TẠI CÁC TRƯỜNG TIỂU HỌC Ở ĐỒNG HỚI, QUẢNG BÌNH LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ LÝ LUẬN VÀ PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC BỘ MÔN TIẾNG ANH MÃ SỐ: 60.14.01.11 NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DẪN KHOA HỌC: PGS.TS TRƯƠNG VIÊN HUẾ, 2015 ii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY This work has not previously been submitted for a degree or diploma in any university To the best of my knowledge and belief, the thesis contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference is made in the thesis itself Date: …./ …./ 20… Signature iii ABSTRACT This study investigates into teachers’ evaluation of the textbook “First Friends- grade 1” at primary schools in Dong Hoi, Quang Binh in order to help make effective use of this textbook in the near future The subjects including 50 teachers from 22 primary schools in Dong Hoi, Quang Binh were supposed to mark 48 statements about the textbook in which they state whether and to which degree they agree or disagree with those Besides, 20 of them are asked to answer questions for their ideas and comments about the textbook Generally, the study revealed that teachers expressed negative attitudes towards the quality of the textbook evaluated through seven criteria in terms of Practical Consideration, Layout and Design, Themes, Activities, Skills, Language Type, and Subject and Content Based on the findings, it is recommended that difficult and long vocabulary should be omitted Most of teachers also stated that even though the First Friends- grade is a good book for children, the First Friends- grade might be taught for students in grade if it is redesigned so as to suit their right level of English ability and Vietnamese context Moreover, some shortcomings should have been taken into consideration iv ACKOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank all the people who have contributed to the accomplishment of this research paper First of all, I would like to express my sincere appreciation to my thesis supervisor, Assist Prof Dr Truong Vien, for his time and expertise, given so freely and thoughtfully throughout the study This research would not have become a reality without his valuable advice as well as enthusiastic guidance I would also like to say many thanks to my friends in the graduate class TESOL 2013-2015 for helping and encouraging me My special thanks are sent to my friends and colleagues at Nguyen Binh Khiem high school for providing favorable conditions to make this study possible Next, I would like to express my appreciation to the principals and especially the teachers of English from 22 primary schools in Dong Hoi, Quang Binh, who were willing to participate in the survey and spend time marking the questionnaires and joining the interviews Their enthusiasm helped me collect significant data for this study Finally, I would like to send a great deal of gratitude to my family for the help and support I would be forever grateful and deeply indebted v TABLE OF CONTENTS Pages Contents SUB COVER PAGE i STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY iii ABSTRACT iv ACKOWLEDGEMENTS v TABLE OF CONTENTS vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ix LISTS OF TABLES x CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 BACKGROUND 1.2 RATIONALE .2 1.3 AIMS OF STUDY .3 1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1.5 SCOPE OF STUDY .3 1.6 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Teaching English as a Foreign Language in Viet Nam .5 2.1.1 The educational policies for teaching English for young learners 2.1.2 The curriculum of teaching English at the primary level 2.2 Views on role of textbooks in the EFL/ESL classroom .6 2.3 Material evaluation .8 2.4 Material adaptation .9 2.5 Purposes of materials evaluation 2.6 Criteria for evaluation 10 2.6.1 Criteria defined by Hutchinson and Waters (1987) .10 2.6.2 Criteria defined by Sheldon (1988) 10 2.6.3 Criteria defined by Ur (1996) 11 vi 2.6.4 Criteria defined by Tomlinson (1999) 11 2.6.5 Criteria defined by McGrath (2002) 11 2.6.6 Criteria defined by Mc.Donough and Shaw (1993) 12 2.6.7 Criteria defined by Cunningsworth (1995) 12 2.7 Previous studies 16 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 19 3.1 Research design 19 3.2 Participants 19 3.3 Materials .19 3.4 Research Instrument 20 3.4.1 Questionnaire 20 3.4.2 Interview 21 3.5 Procedure 23 3.5.1 Piloting the questionnaires 23 3.5.2 Administering the questionnaires 23 3.6 Data Analysis Methods 23 CHAPTER RESULTS ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION .24 4.1 Results 24 4.1.1 Reliability of data 24 4.1.2 Descriptive statistics of total mean 24 4.1.3 Descriptive statistics of cluster mean scores 25 4.1.4 Descriptive statistics of item mean scores 25 4.1.5 Table of frequencies 27 4.2 Results analysis and discussion 27 4.2.1 Demographic Characteristics of participants 27 4.2.2 Practical Considerations 28 4.2.3 Layout and Design 30 4.2.4 Themes 32 4.2.5 Activities 33 4.2.6 Skills 34 vii 4.2.7 Language Type 36 4.2.8 Subject and content 37 4.2.9 Overall Consensus 38 4.2.10 Findings from interviews with teachers 39 CHAPTER CONCLUSIONS .44 5.1 Summary of the findings 44 5.2 Pedagogical implications 45 5.3 Limitations 46 5.4 Suggestions for further research .47 5.5 Conclusion 47 REFERENCES 48 APPENDIX .51 viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS MOET Ministry of Education and Training ELT English Language Teaching SPSS Statistical Package for Social Sciences ix LISTS OF TABLES Tables Table 3.1 Display the items grouped into categories Table 4.1 Reliability of data Table 4.2 Descriptive statistics of data’s overall mean Table 4.3 Descriptive Statistics of cluster mean Table 4.4 Descriptive Statistics of item mean Table 4.5 Analysis of participants’ profile Table 4.6 Mean score of cluster Table 4.7 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 4.8 Mean score of cluster Table 4.9 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 4.10 Mean score of cluster Table 4.11 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 4.12 One-Sample Statistics of cluster Table 4.13 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 4.14 Mean score of cluster Table 4.15 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 4.16 Mean score of cluster Table 4.17 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 1.18 Mean score of cluster Table 4.19 One-Sample Test of cluster Table 4.20 Mean score of cluster Table 4.21 One-Sample Test of cluster x Item 28 Cumulative Frequency Valid dong y Missing Percent 83.3 90.0 90.0 9.3 10.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent 45 hoan toan dong y Total Percent Item 29 Cumulative Frequency Valid Missing hoan toan khong dong y Percent Valid Percent Percent 5.6 6.0 6.0 khong dong y 47 87.0 94.0 100.0 Total 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Item 30 Cumulative Frequency Valid khong y kien dong y Missing Percent 1.9 2.0 2.0 42 77.8 84.0 86.0 13.0 14.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent hoan toan dong y Total Percent 59 Item 32 Cumulative Frequency Valid Missing dong y Percent Valid Percent Percent 5.6 6.0 6.0 hoan toan dong y 47 87.0 94.0 100.0 Total 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Item 33 Cumulative Frequency Valid hoan toan khong dong y Missing Percent 87.0 94.0 94.0 5.6 6.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent 47 khong dong y Total Percent Item 34 Cumulative Frequency Valid dong y Missing Percent 87.0 94.0 94.0 5.6 6.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent 47 hoan toan dong y Total Percent 60 Item 36 Cumulative Frequency Valid khong y kien dong y Missing Percent 3.7 4.0 4.0 44 81.5 88.0 92.0 7.4 8.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent hoan toan dong y Total Percent Item 37 Cumulative Frequency Valid hoan toan khong dong y khong dong y Total Missing System Total Percent Valid Percent Percent 47 87.0 94.0 94.0 5.6 6.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 Item 38 Cumulative Frequency Valid hoan toan khong dong y Valid Percent Percent 42 77.8 84.0 84.0 khong dong y 13.0 14.0 98.0 khong y kien 1.9 2.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 Total Missing Percent System Total 61 Item 39 Cumulative Frequency Valid khong y kien dong y Missing Percent 1.9 2.0 2.0 44 81.5 88.0 90.0 9.3 10.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 00.0 System Total Valid Percent hoan toan dong y Total Percent Item 41 Cumulative Frequency Valid khong y kien dong y Missing Percent 7.4 8.0 8.0 40 74.1 80.0 88.0 11.1 12.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent hoan toan dong y Total Percent Item 42 Cumulative Frequency Valid dong y Missing Percent 77.8 84.0 84.0 14.8 16.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent 42 hoan toan dong y Total Percent 62 Item 43 Cumulative Frequency Valid khong y kien dong y Missing Percent 3.7 4.0 4.0 44 81.5 88.0 92.0 7.4 8.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent hoan toan dong y Total Percent Item 45 Cumulative Frequency Valid hoan toan khong dong y Valid Percent Percent 47 87.0 94.0 94.0 khong dong y 3.7 4.0 98.0 khong y kien 1.9 2.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 Total Missing Percent System Total Item 46 Cumulative Frequency Valid Missing hoan toan khong dong y Percent Valid Percent Percent 3.7 4.0 4.0 khong dong y 48 88.9 96.0 100.0 Total 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total 63 Item 47 Cumulative Frequency Valid dong y Missing Percent 88.9 96.0 96.0 3.7 4.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 System Total Valid Percent 48 hoan toan dong y Total Percent Item 48 Cumulative Frequency Valid hoan toan khong dong y Valid Percent Percent 47 87.0 94.0 94.0 khong dong y 3.7 4.0 98.0 khong y kien 1.9 2.0 100.0 50 92.6 100.0 7.4 54 100.0 Total Missing Percent System Total 64 APPENDIX QUESTIONAIRE FOR TEACHERS I Background and general comments: Your school: ……………………………………………………… (optional) Gender: male female Age: 20-29 30-39 40-49 50+ How long have you been teaching English? ………… years II General evaluation of “First Friends- grade 1” Show your opinion or evaluation or decision by ticking the column that presents your opinion 1= strongly disagree 2= disagree 3= neutral 4= agree 5= strongly agree A Practical considerations: The price of the textbook is reasonable Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) The textbook is easily accessible Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Other ideas: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… B Layout and design: 65 The textbook includes a detailed overview of conversation features/ functions, themes, skills that will be taught in each unit Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) The layout and design is appropriate and clear Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) The textbook is organized effectively Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) An adequate vocabulary list or glossary is included Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) Adequate review sections and exercises are included Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) An adequate set of evaluation quizzes or testing suggestions is included Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 66 10 The teacher’s book contains guidance about how the textbook can be used to the most advantage Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 11 The material objectives are apparent to both the teacher and student Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 12 Other ideas: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… C Themes: 13 Do you agree that the following themes are easy to teach? Themes Strong disagree (1) Disagree Neutral Agree (2) (3) (4) 13 Me 14 My classroom 15 My toys 16 My things 17 My colours 18 My farm 19 My clothes 20 My body 21 My family 22 My food 67 Strong agree (5) D Activities: 23 The textbook provides a balance of activities (Ex There is an even distribution of free vs controlled exercises and talks that focus on both fluent and accurate production) Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 24 The activities encourage sufficient communicative and meaningful practice Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 25 The activities incorporate individual, pair, and group work Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 26 Functions and vocabulary items are introduced in motivating and realistic contexts Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 27 The activities promote creative, original, and independent responses Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 68 28 The activities center around communicative functions Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 29 There is a wide range of activities for learners to be engaged in Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 30 The activities are conductive to the internalization of newly introduced language Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 31 Other ideas: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… E Skills: 32 The materials include and focus on the skills that my students need to practice Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 33 The materials provide an appropriate balance of skills Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 69 34 The textbook highlights and practice natural pronunciation (i.e stress and intonation) Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 35 Other ideas: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………… F Language type: 36.The language used in the textbook is authentic – i.e like English for real- life communication Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 37.The language used is at the right level for students’ present English ability Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 38.The progression of vocabulary items is appropriate Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 70 39.The language functions exemplify English that I/ my students will be likely to use in the future Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 40.Other ideas: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………… G Subject and content: 41.The subject and content of the textbook is relevant to my students’ needs as English language learners Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 42.The content of the textbook is generally realistic and appropriate Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 43.The themes are interesting, challenging, and motivating Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 44 Other ideas: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………… 71 H Overall Consensus: 45 The textbook is appropriate for the language-learning aims of my school Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 46 The textbook is suitable for small-medium classes of your school Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 47.The textbook raises my students’ interest in futher English language study Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 48 I think selecting this book again is reasonable Strong disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strong agree (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) 72 APPENDIX INTERVIEW FOR TEACHERS What you think about the English teaching program using “First Friendsgrade 1”? Is it suitable for children in your school/ province? Why? Do you follow the format of all activities in the textbook “First Friendsgrade 1” accordance to teacher’s book or you make your own lesson plan? Are you satisfied with the result of this English teaching program with the book “First Friends- grade 1”? Why? What are some strong points as well as weak points we can tell from the book “First Friends-grade 1”? What are some obstacles in teaching English to primary children at your school? What suggestions should be made for effective teaching and learning of this textbook at primary schools? 73