The application of visual aids to tech vocabulary for young learners at a language center in binh duong province

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY ∞0∞ PHAM THI HAI YEN THE APPLICATION OF VISUAL AIDS TO TEACH VOCABULARY FOR YOUNG LEARNERS Tai Lieu Chat Luong AT A LANGUAGE CENTER IN BINH DUONG PROVINCE MASTER OF ARTS IN TESOL HO CHI MINH CITY, 2022 MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY ∞0∞ PHAM THI HAI YEN THE APPLICATION OF VISUAL AIDS TO TEACH VOCABULARY FOR YOUNG LEARNERS AT A LANGUAGE CENTER IN BINH DUONG PROVINCE Major: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages Major code: 14 01 11 MASTER OF ARTS IN TESOL Supervisor: Dr NGUYEN THI XUAN LAN HO CHI MINH CITY, 2022 TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC MỞ CỘNG HÒA XÃ HỘI CHỦ NGHĨA VIỆT NAM THÀNH PHỐ HỒ CHÍ MINH KHOA ĐÀO TẠO SAU ĐẠI HỌC Độc lập – Tự – Hạnh phúc GIẤY XÁC NHẬN Tôi tên Phạm Thị Hải Yến Ngày sinh: 05/07/1992 Nơi sinh: Nghệ An Chuyên ngành: Lý luận phương pháp dạy học môn Tiếng Anh Mã học viên: 1781401110045 Tôi đồng ý cung cấp tồn văn thơng tin luận án/ luận văn tốt nghiệp hợp lệ quyền cho Thư viện trường đại học Mở Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh Thư viện trường đại học Mở Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh kết nối tồn văn thơng tin luận án/ luận văn tốt nghiệp vào hệ thống thông tin khoa học Sở Khoa học Công nghệ Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh Ký tên (Ghi rõ họ tên) Phạm Thị Hải Yến STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP I certify that this thesis entitled “ The application of visual aids to teach vocabulary for young learners at a language center in Binh Duong Province” is my own work Except where reference is made in the text of this thesis, this thesis contains material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from publication of which I am the only author No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the main text of the thesis This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree of diploma in any other tertiary institutions Ho Chi Minh City, March 2022 PHAM THI HAI YEN i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my deep indebtedness to Dr Nguyen Thi Xuan Lan who offered me tremendous guidance and supervisions The accomplishment of this paper could not have been done without her continuous encouragement and suggestions which have been the facilitation during my hard time My sincere appreciation also goes to the academics my friends and my colleagues who dedicated their time to supporting me in the completion of my thesis Thanks to them, I had a lot of inspiration throughout the process of the study My deep thanks are given to my family members for their great personal sacrifices, love and unconditional support Throughout the pursuit of my academic growth, they have motivated and endlessly encouraged me, which was the foundation of my continuous efforts Thanks also due the young learners who made the study possible by their participation without which the feasibility of conducting this research could not be gained I sincerely thank all the organizations and individuals for their facilitation of my implementation of the study Without their help, I could not have collected the data to accomplish this paper Ho Chi Minh, March 2022 Pham Thi Hai Yen ii ABSTRACT Learning vocabulary is considered very important for primary school level However, vocabulary mastery also brings about the difficulties for many young learners Therefore, there should be solutions to address problems faced by students in learning vocabulary As such, this study was conducted to investigate if visual aids (i.e videos and pictures) improved students’ performance in terms of vocabulary To achieve the goals of the research, tests and group interviews were employed as instruments The purposes of the tests were to determine student gains in terms of vocabulary competence and the aims of the interviews were to get data related to students’ attitudes towards the application of visuals The quasiexperimental study was the design of this research with 60 young learner participants who were divided into two groups, namely control group and experimental group While the control group was taught with translation techniques, the experimental group had experiences with videos and pictures as visual aids The findings of this study proved that students receiving lessons with visual aids had outstanding improvement after the treatment Moreover, the findings of the group interviews showed that students were motivated in learning and their performance concerning comprehension of word meanings improved significantly Finally, some recommendations for further research were also provided iii ABBREVIATIONS OUP Oxford University Express CG Control group EG Experimental group iv TABLE OF CONTENTS STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .ii ABSTRACT iii ABBREVIATIONS iv TABLE OF CONTENTS v LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF FIGURES x CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background of the study 1.2 Statement of problem 1.3 Aim of the study 1.4 Research questions 1.5 Significance of the study 1.6 Thesis overview CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Young learners 2.1.1 Definition of young learners 2.1.2 Young learners’ characteristics 2.1.3 Young learners’ learning 2.1.3.1 Attention span 2.1.3.2 Cognitive development 2.1.3.3 Sensory input 2.2 Teaching vocabulary 10 2.2.1.Vocabulary 10 2.2.2 Techniques of teaching vocabulary 11 2.2.2.1 Verbal techniques 11 2.2.2.2.Visual techniques 12 2.3 Young learners’ attitudes towards learning 16 v 2.4 Online learning for young learners 17 2.5 Teaching theory 18 2.6.Learning theory 18 2.7 Theoretical framework 19 2.8 Chapter summary 21 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 22 3.1 Research objectives and research questions 22 3.2 Research design 22 3.3 Research site 24 3.3.1 The center 24 3.3.2 The population 25 3.4 The participants 25 3.5 Instruments for data collection 26 3.5.1 Tests 26 3.5.1.1 Pre-test 26 3.5.1.2 Post-test 27 3.5.2 Interview 28 3.6 Data collection procedures 30 3.6.1 Before collecting data 30 3.6.2 Administering of the pre-test 31 3.6.3 The treatment 31 3.6.4 Administering of the post-test 33 3.6.5 Administering of interview 34 3.7 Data analysis procedures 35 3.7.1 Analyzing quantitative data 35 3.7.2 Analyzing qualitative data 36 3.8 The trustworthiness of the study 37 3.8.1 Credibility 37 3.8.2 Transferability 38 vi (20 -Ask students to work individually in - Work individually minutes) minutes and match the words in column A - Match the words in with their meanings in column B column A with their A meanings in column B B 1.Table a.Cái bảng 2.Computer b.Cái móc áo 3.Coat hook c.Cái bàn 4.Pencil case d Máy vi tính 5.Board e Cái hộp bút -After minutes, ask students to type their answers in the chat box -Give feedback -Suggested answers: 1-c, 2-d, 3-b, 4-e, 5-a Activity 2: -Divide students into six groups -Let students look at the sentences in column A and their equivalents in column B, ask them to put a tick or cross in column C -Let students go into the breakout rooms -Gon into the breakout in Zoom rooms -Have students discuss in groups to -Discuss in groups answer the questions -The groups with the most correct answers will be the winners -Listen carefully -Give students feedback -Suggested answers: A B C 87 These are Đây your new bảng tables chúng  ta This is my Đây new pencil case bàn  This is my Đây hộp new pencil bút case This is our Đó new board móc áo   This is the Đây new máy tính computer  Activity 3: -Let students work in groups -Work in groups -Ask them to read the text, look at the equivalents and choose a word from the box to fill in the blanks -Send each group a link for them to type their answers and submit -Let students go into breakout rooms in -Discuss in groups, minutes and discuss in groups to find out type the answers and the answers, type the answers and submit submit 88 -After minutes, the groups with the highest points will be the winners -Give feedback Choose a word from the box Fill in the blanks with correct words tables computers pencil case coat hooks board My name’s Layla This is my classroom The (những bàn) are long This is a (cái bảng) and these are two (máy vi tính) .These are the new (những móc áo) .And this is my new (hộp bút) Suggested answers tables board computer 4.coat hooks Pencil case Consolidati - Show following list on the screen on table (n): bàn -Pay attention (4 minutes) computer (n): máy vi tính coat hook (n): móc áo pencil case (n): hộp bút board (n): bảng -Hide the meaning one by one -Have students say the words - Point to some English words in the list randomly and ask some students to say the -Try to remember the meaning of each word 89 meanings in Vietnamese when all the -Say the words meanings are hidden -Try to remember the meaning of all the words in the list Homework -Ask students to exercise and on -Listen carefully and (2 minutes) page 14 in the workbook take note -Have students prepare the new sentence patterns in lesson 2.Grammar 90 APPENDIX LESSON PLAN (EXPERIMENTAL GROUP) UNIT Our new things Lesson Words I OBJECTIVES: By the end of the lesson, students will be able to: -Understanding the meanings of words in word level, sentence level and text levels II TIME: 45 minutes III LEXICAL ITEMS: table (n), computer (n), coat hook (n), pencil case (n), board (n) IV.TEACHING AIDS: board, chalk, textbook, pictures, videos, recordings V PROCEDURES: Teacher’s activities Stages/ Students’ activities time Warm up MISSING PICTURE (4 mins) pencil bag book pen -Show students the above pictures and the -Stay focused words in seconds -After seconds, hide one word and its picture -Say the word -Ask individual students to say the word -Let students play the game in three rounds One word and its picture will be hidden in each round 91 -Play the game -Give feedback Suggested answers: Round 1-bag Round 2-pencil Round 3-book Teach table (n) vocabulary ->we sit at tables (15 mins) - Read out loud the word -Pay attention to the - Show students the spelling spelling - Have students repeat the word in chorus -Repeat the word in -Listen carefully times chorus - Show students pictures of a table and a desk - Help students distinguish between table and desk -Answer the question -Listen carefully -Ask some students to repeat the word -Repeat the word Computer (n) -Read the word computer -Stay focused - Reveal the spelling of the word -Look at the spelling of -Ask students to repeat the word in chorus the word times -Repeat the word in -Ask some students to repeat the word chorus -Ask students to watch the videos without -Repeat the word pictures and let them just listen to the individually sounds of people typing on the computer -Watch the video 92 -Let students guess what people are -Answer the question doing -Show them the video with pictures and let them confirm their answers -Listen to the Coat hook (n) pronunciation of the -Let students listen to the pronunciation of word the word -Pay attention to the -Have the spelling of the word shown on spelling of the word the screen -Repeat the word -Ask students for the choral repetition of - Look at the picture the word’s pronunciation -Answer the question -Show students a picture of a coat hook -Tell students this is a coat hook and ask them “What can we see on the coat -Repeat the word hook?” -Let some students to repeat the word Pencil case (n) -Provide students with the pronunciation -Listen to the sound of of the word the word -Have students see the spelling of the word -Ask students to repeat the word three -Repeat the word times -Call on some students to repeat the word -Put little squares of paper all over the screen and remove them one-by-one so that what is happening is only gradually -Answer the question revealed -Focus on the meaning of the word 93 -Ask students to say the things in the pencil case -Listen carefully Board (n) -Take a look at the -Read the word out loud and ask students spelling of the word to listen carefully -Repeat the word in -Show students the spelling of the word chorus -Ask students to repeat the word in chorus -Have some students to repeat the word -Answer the question -Show students the below picture, elicit the meaning of the word from students Practice Activity (20 -Ask students to work individually in -Work in pairs minutes) three minutes and match the words in - Match the words in column A with their meanings in column column A with their B meanings in column B -After three minutes, ask students to type -Type the answers in the their answers in the chat box chat box A 1.Table B a 2.Computer b 94 3.Coat hook c 4.Pencil case d 5.Board e -Give feedback -Suggested answers: 1-b, 2-c, 3-d, 4-e, 5-a Activity -Divide students into six groups -Send the leader of each group a link in which students have a video -Work in groups -Let students go into the breakout rooms in Zoom -Have the group leaders open the link , -Go into the breakout share screen, discuss in groups to answer rooms the questions in the videos and submit the answers to teachers -Discuss in groups -The groups with the most correct answers will be the winners -Suggested answers: These are your new tables Those are your new coat hooks This is our new board This is the new computer 95 This is my new pencil case Activity -Let students work in groups -Ask them to read the text, look at the pictures and choose a word from the box -Work in groups to fill in the blanks -Read the text, fill in the -Send each group a link for them to type blanks their answers and submit -Let students go into breakout rooms in minutes and discuss in groups to find out the answers, type the answers and submit -Discuss in groups -After minutes, the groups with the highest points will be the winners -Give feedback Choose a word from the box Fill in the blanks with correct words tables pencil case computers -Listen carefully coat hooks board My name’s Layla This is my classroom The are long This is a and these are two .These are the new .And this is my new Suggested answers 96 tables board hooks Consolida tion computer 4.coat Pencil case - Show the pictures on the screen -Pay attention table (n) (4 mins) computer (n) coat hook (n) pencil case (n) board (n) -Hide the words one by one -Have students look at the pictures and say the words -Try to remember the words 97 -Point to some pictures randomly and ask - Look at the pictures students to say the words when all the and say the words words disappear -Try to remember all the words in the list Homework -Ask students to exercise and on -Listen carefully and (2 mins) page 14 in the workbook take note -Have students prepare the new sentence patterns in lesson Grammar 98 APPENDIX Interview guiding questions (English version) Part Affective attitudes towards vocabulary lessons with visual aids Do you feel learning vocabulary with pictures, videos interesting? What made you interested in the lessons? Part Cognitive attitudes towards vocabulary lessons with visual aids Do the pictures and videos faciliate your understanding of word meanings? Could you exemplify by giving examples of words that pictures and videos support your comprehension of word meanings? Do you find any difficulties in learning vocabulary with pictures, videos ? Part Behavioral attitudes towards vocabulary lessons with visual aids How can you get meanings of words through pictures and videos? Thanks for joining the interview! APPENDIX Interview guiding questions (Vietnamese version) Phần Cảm nhận học sinh tiết học từ vựng với giáo cụ trực quan Con thấy học từ vựng với tranh ảnh, video có thú vị khơng? Điều làm cảm thấy thú vị tiết học? Part Nhận thức học sinh tiết học từ vựng với giáo cụ trực quan Tranh ảnh video giúp dễ hiểu nghĩa từ khơng? Con đưa ví dụ tranh ảnh video giúp hiểu nghĩa từ không? Con thấy học từ vựng với tranh ảnh, video có khó khăn khơng ? Part Hoạt động học sinh tiết học từ vựng với giáo cụ trực quan Làm cách hiểu nghĩa từ xem tranh ảnh video? Thanks for joining the interview! 99 APPENDIX Test scores of two groups Coded students Pre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test CG CG EG EG 5.0 5.5 7.0 7.5 4.5 5.0 4.5 7.0 5.0 5.0 6.0 6.5 5.5 3.5 7.0 6.0 3.0 3.5 5.0 5.5 5.0 3.5 5.0 5.0 3.5 6.0 3.0 5.5 3.5 5.0 7.0 7.5 4.5 6.0 3.0 5.5 10 4.0 5.0 4.0 5.0 11 5.0 5.5 3.5 5.5 12 6.5 7.0 5.5 8.0 13 5.0 7.0 4.5 5.0 14 3.5 3.5 4.5 5.5 15 8.0 5.0 5.0 7.5 16 3.0 5.5 8.0 9.0 17 7.5 8.0 4.5 6.5 18 3.5 5.0 5.0 7.0 19 7.0 6.0 5.5 5.5 20 5.5 6.5 3.0 6.5 21 7.0 6.0 5.0 6.5 22 5.5 6.0 3.5 6.0 23 4.0 6.5 4.5 6.5 24 5.0 4.0 5.5 6.0 100 25 3.0 5.5 5.0 6.5 26 6.5 4.0 6.0 8.5 27 7.0 7.5 7.0 6.0 28 5.0 6.5 5.5 8.0 29 6.0 6.5 5.0 6.0 30 5.5 5.5 5.5 8.0 101