MINISTRY OF JUSTICE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAININGHANOI LAW UNIVERSITY DINH THI DOAN TRANG 442952 ENGLISH-MAJORED STUDENTS’ DIFFICULTIES IN READING LEGAL ENGLISH DOCUMENTS -A CASE ST
Popular types of legal English documents read by English maJors
Figure 3 Popular types of legal English documents read by English majors.
As presented in Figure 3, the majority of students read codes and laws most often with the highest percentage at 40.9% Also the rate of other types like
“precedent/case law”, “contract and will’, and “constitution” made up significant proportions in the figure, which were 23.7%, 12.2% and 14.7%, respectively.
On the contrary, “international treaties/ conventions” was the least frequently read by legal English majors, with only 8.5% It can be supported by answers in the semi-structured interview, in particular, three of six interviewees claim that:
“T read code and law the most often” (Student 1).
“I read code the most often, and I also read laws and contracts if it helps me get better understood about legal issues that I have to deal with in my assignment” (Student 5).
“IT read Legal English documents for studying purposes so what I read most often are code and laws, constitution, and contracts” (Student 6).
In short, the most frequent read legal documents among legal English majored at HLU are Codes and Laws, precedent or case law, Constitution, Contract andWill because of their course requirement.
Students’ viewpoint of the necessity of reading Legal English
Figure 4 The respondent’s viewpoint of the importance of reading Legal
English documents Apparently, Figure 4 displays that there are more than half of the respondents believed that reading Legal English documents was important (51.6%) In contrast, it was followed by the choices, namely “not important’,
“slightly important’, and “moderately important” with 2.5%, 5.7%, and 1.6%, respectively Likewise, the option “very important” is considered the choice with a high percentage, making up exactly 38.5% (47) In particular, two interviewees stated that:
“In my opinion, reading documents in learning legal English is important Because in the phrase "legal English" has already included 2 parts:
"English" and "legal" Reading legal documents in English will help improve understanding of legal issues, then learning legal English will become easier” (Student 2).
“Reading legal documents will help me improve my knowledge of legal vocabulary, legal structures as well as relevant information in the legal field At the same time, constant and regular access to legal documents in English will help me have a better and more effective reading habit, improve the quality of information gathered from reading as well as apply previous knowledge” (Student 4).
In a nutshell, a large number of students are aware of the necessity of reading Legal English documents in learning Legal English.
Difficulties in reading Legal English documens ‹ - ôô- 36
Strategies for enhancing legal vocabulary -. ‹-++-sss++<<s 48 3.4.2 Strategies for enhancing legal grammar . ‹ ss++++<s+ 49 3.4.3 Strategies for improving legal knowledỹe -. ‹+++<<s++sss 50 3.4.4 Strategies for reading comprehensive ablẽIty . ‹ -ô<s++<+ 51 3.5 SUMIMATY Š
Table 8 Strategies for enhancing legal vocabulary.
27 reading reference materials (e.g dictionary, 122 {4.55 |.655 glossary) to help me understand the text.
28 paraphrasing (restating ideas in my own words) to [122 |3.22 | 845 better understand the new words and terminologies.
29 recording vocabulary, similar expression after 122 |3.88 |.743 reading the
With regards to the respondents’ viewpoint of the strategies for developing their legal vocabulary, it can be noticed that all three procedures were widely adopted to overpower difficulties in reading legal English documents from legal grammar barriers In particular, almost respondents consented to reading reference materials (e.g dictionary, glossary) had helped them understand the text, which is reflected by the highest mean score of 4.55 (SD=.655) Likewise, the way of recording vocabulary, similar expression after reading the text also received a relatively high mean value at 3.88 (SD=.743) Nevertheless, the statements of paraphrasing (restating ideas in my own words) to better understand the new words and terminologies experienced lower mean scores of wide usage, 3.22 (SD=.845) Such useful practice could be approved by interviewees’ answers, one of the students mentioned this in the interview:
“I would find the relevant information about the legal issues that I don’t understand by googling it before asking my friends, teacher, and law experts I also recorded legal vocabulary follow on each topic, it’s collocations after reading By doing these, my effectiveness of reading legal English documents is improved.” (Student 6)
Briefly, to boost vocabulary about law fields, almost of participants used reference materials like dictionary, and legal English books glossary Therefore, they got the meanings of legal texts, their reading skill also were promoted.
3.4.2 Strategies for enhancing legal grammar
Table 9 Strategies for enhancing legal grammar.
30 reading grammar books in English and Vietnamese | 122 | 3.99 | 782 to get a better understanding of the usage of replaced pronoun, passive voice.
31 recording connections in complicated structured 122 | 4.29 | 733 sentences
32 practising writing complex and compound 122 | 4.38 | 613 sentences
Noticeably, it was found that Legal English majors at HLU perceived strategies for improving their legal grammar positively with a high mean score ranging 3.99 to 4.38 There is no doubt that the majority of participants overcome difficulties in reading legal English texts by practising writing complex and compound sentences, since it received a mean value of 4.38 (SD=.613) Another point to consider is that two other ways stood on the next ranks of popular usage with the mean score of 4.29 (SD=.733) and 3.99 (SD=.782) Such statistics were later clarified by the interview, that participants did not actively find grammar books to read in order to enhance their legal grammar, they may find other ways more useful A student of course 44 stressed that:
“T think I haven't really overcome the above difficulties, but at least I have improved my reading comprehension I have been trying to improve my legal
English grammar by taking full notes of difficult grammar structures and then drill those complex sentences to create favorable conditions when practicing reading these documents.”’ (Student 1)
In short, the most common way used by English majors to enhance their legal grammar was the practice of writing compound and complex sentences after recording those structures in the post-reading step.
3.4.3 Strategies for improving legal knowledge
Table 10 Strategies for improving legal knowledge.
33 reading reference materials about Vietnamese 122 | 4.17 828 Law and other legal systems in both Vietnamese and
English to get a better understanding of the topics in the reading text.
34 listening to News, especially those related to the 122 | 3.31 664 legal system, on daily basis.
35 attending court and listening to advocates making | 122 | 3.45 562 the submission.
36 working as an intern in law chambers 122 | 4.31 628
As can be seen from table 10, respondents perceived the methods for dealing with the lack of knowledge in the law fields certainly with a significant mean score ranging from 3.31 to 4.31 Almost all participants acknowledged that reading reference materials about Vietnamese and other legal systems in bothEnglish and Vietnamese and working in law chambers help them broaden their knowledge to comprehend legal English documents as the mean scores of these statements were 4.17 (SD=.828), 4.31 (SD=.628) respectively Furthermore, the item of attending court and listening to advocates making the submission was employed by certain target participants with the mean value of 3.45 (SD=.562).Meanwhile, the statement of /istening to News, especially those related to the legal system, on daily basis was practiced by the minority of respondents with lower scoring of 3.31 (SD=.664) Clarifying their position, interviewees showed their opinions in the subsequent interview, as followed,
“When reading, if I don't understand the reading text, I would read the relevant information of the issues in both English and Vietnamese to get better understand And then, I would ask friends and teacher when I come to class” (Student 2)
“Actually, when working in law firm, I read many documents about different legal systems in both Vietnamese and English So I know more about Vietnamese law as well as my horizon was broadened As a result, the efficient of my reading was improved” (Student 3)
It can be summarized that a high proportion of respondents worked as interns in law firms and read reference materials about law fields in both Vietnamese and English to enrich their legal knowledge.
3.4.4 Strategies for reading comprehensive ability
Table 11 Strategies for reading comprehension ability
37 conducting the reading process follow up three 122 |4.14 |.618 steps: pre-reading, while-reading, and post-reading.
38 applying reading strategies which I find effective | 122 [3.24 | 792
39 asking myself questions about the content of the | 122 [3.06 | 733 text after reading.
40 Selecting appropriate reference material whichis |122 |4.25 | 594 understandable to read.
When it comes to strategies for reading comprehension abilities, it is witnessed that all four items received remarkable mean scores, varying from 3.06 to 4.25 The majority of respondents concurred that they had selected appropriate reference material which is understandable to read since the mean score of item
40 is highest at 4.25 (SD=.594) In addition, items 38, and 39 were evaluated at the lower mean values of extensive usage with 3.24 (SD=.792), and 3.06 (SD=.733), correspondingly Finally, having stood at a noticeable mean of 4.14 (SD=.618), the item of conducting the reading process follow up three steps: pre-reading, while-reading, and post-reading was believed to be widely used by English majors to overpower difficulties in reading legal English documents In the semi-structured interviews, two students consented that their reading effectiveness were improve by conducting procedures improving comprehension ability In particular, they said:
“I tend to choose easy-to-understand documents to read, after my vocabulary and understanding improved, I read more difficult materials I find it really effective, especially in the combination with recalling the content of the text after reading And the last is trying to find out my effective reading strategies and apply to my reading process.” (Student 4)
“IT improved my reading efficiency by choosing materials that match my reading comprehension I also try to read the title and subtitle carefully before skim and scan I also find that recording what I learnt after reading helps me improve my reading skills.” (Student 5)
It can be generalized that the most popular procedure employed by legal English learners to boost their comprehensive ability was to select materials that are appropriate for individual reading comprehension.
All in all, although certain participants felt that using strategies for improving vocabulary, grammar, and knowledge about law fields was not very helpful and there was no significant change when they learn, a great number of students get positive results after adopting these procedures, as explained above.
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On the grounds of the above findings and discussion, the current study has practical implications for supporting intentional Legal English documents reading.
First and foremost, to tackle students’ laziness, they need to clearly define their attitudes, goals, and motivations for reading Knowing the purpose and goals of reading legal texts, readers can look easily for the main ideas and details that support their reading comprehension For example, students can aim to learn different vocabulary related to the central topic like labour law, civil law, and commercial law that are closely related to legal English After building vocabulary with higher-level phrases, readers can increase the difficulty level of legal English documents Therefore, they might form a habit of reading legal documents in English.
Secondly, in terms of reading strategies, students need to set a clear plan for reading process In this respect, Ontario Ministry of Education (2007) stated that effective readers use strategies to understand what they read before, during, and after reading Specifically, before reading, they should use prior knowledge to think about the topic, make predictions about the probable meaning of the text,and preview the text by skimming and scanning to get a sense of the overall meaning; during reading, students need to monitor understanding by questioning,thinking about, and reflecting on the ideas and information in the text; after reading, readers ought to reflect upon the ideas and information in the text, and then relate what they have read to their own experiences and knowledge before clarifying their understanding of the text, and lastly is extending their understanding in critical and creative ways.
Moreover, it is critical for learners to enhance their knowledge of legal English (including legal English vocabulary, and grammar) In the first place, legal English majors need to develop vocabulary about law fields so as to strengthen their reading comprehension Indeed, English-majored juniors and seniors recorded new words after reading to enrich lexis, yet it is recommended that they use applications to learn legal English vocabulary actively outside of classroom such as Quizlet, or other tools For instance, after each session of Legal English, students ought to transfer all new terms to a set in Quizlet so as to create their own glossary of specialized vocabulary into distinctive topics for later revision In the second place, some English majors who had difficulties in dealing with legal grammar barriers ought to reinforce grammar knowledge to promote reading comprehension Each student may encourage herself and himself to watch video, listen to postcard or music in English on daily basis to address obstacles in relation to grammar.
Furthermore, through the results analyzed in the previous chapter, learners are required to improve their background knowledge of Law consisting of both the Vietnamese legal system and other legal systems Students should read more legal document in their mother tongue to improve their legal backgound knowledge It will be easier to comprehend and find the corresponding legal terms in legal English documents.
Based on the research findings, this study also provides certain ideas to legal English teachers for students’ difficulties in reading legal English documents The previous findings reveal that lecturers who play a crucial role in encouraging English majors to read legal English texts are considered contextual factors causing student’s difficulties in reading Regarding teaching methods, in addition to theoretical lessons, lecturers should regularly organize group work sessions, discuss, debate, and solve cases with foreign elements, using Legal English documents for students The more teaching fascinating the teacher’s teaching approaches are, the more motivated students feel to study reading subjects Secondly, teachers ought to have more measures to control reading activities so that English majors are less lazy For example, evaluating reading comprehension inside the classroom should compose three phrases including pre-reading activities, while-reading activities and post-reading activities. Moreover, lecturers need to encourage students to apply and be exposed to more legal documents in the process of learning legal English Last but not least, teachers need to provide legal English references with a greater variety of difficulty levels The appropriate reference materials which are easy for their learners to understand about the content make students feel more excited about reading legal English documents.
4.3 Suggestions for the Faculty of Legal Foreign Languages
Primarily, for the purpose of raising awareness about the importance of reading legal documents in English in learning legal English, there should be more professional training programs for lecturers to develop their competencies and pedagogical methods, as well as more seminars for learners to gain deeper insight into the crucial impact of reading legal English documents on learning this major In addition, the Faculty should increase teaching periods of credits for reading skills In addition, building more legal reading materials in English at various levels from simple to difficult is necessary It is better for learners to get used to these documents, and not to be overwhelmed when they have to read difficult documents as their English reading skills and specialized knowledge are not good enough.
Throughout the chapter, valuable suggestions are made for learners,educators, and the Faculty of Legal Foreign Languages to facilitate the acquisition of reading Legal English documents of the Legal English-majored juniors and seniors at HLU.
The purposes of this study are to survey 122 English majors’ difficulties and factors causing them as well as the solutions for these obstacles in reading legal English documents In order to achieve such aims, the data was gathered by an online questionnaire via Google Form and direct interview Subsequently, the results and statistics were analyzed via IBM SPSS and Microsoft Office Excel and displayed in figures and tables.
Firstly, the majority of Legal English-majored juniors and seniors (90%) agreed that reading legal English documents is “important” and “very important” However, the reality is that they spend little time on this learning activity, most of them only use about 2 hours per week reading In addition, the types of legal documents they most often read are codes and laws.
Secondly, the difficulties they face in reading legal English documents are originated from the linguistic features of legal English, and the barriers from legal knowledge Regarding the barriers of legal vocabulary and grammar, most major students admitted that it was difficult to make sense of legal English documents because of the use of Latin terms, archaic words, and common words with uncommon meanings combined with complex and long sentences. Furthermore, the lack of background knowledge in law, and the difference in Vietnamese and English legal systems as well as the references on this issue are also obstacles for students to read legal English texts.
Thirdly, students' difficulties in reading stem from both individual and contextual factors Concerning individual factors, it seems that students are lazy to read as their lack of positive attitude and motivation Besides, they have not found and applied effective reading strategies In terms of teacher-related factors, teaching methods and extra reference materials are too hard for learners to understand.
Last but not least, regarding effective methods to improve reading performance, the students claimed that applying vocabulary, grammar as well as knowledge related to the field of law enhancement strategies and procedures to boost comprehensive reading ability helped their reading skills were improved. Specifically, the majority of students agreed that one of the best ways to improve reading efficiency is to read references on grammar, Vietnamese law and other legal systems in both English and Vietnamese Besides, the recording of difficult vocabulary and structures after reading combined with the practice of writing complex, compound sentences also helps them to overcome the difficulties of lexical and legal grammar barriers In particular, a practical method that significantly improves legal knowledge applied by learners is working in a law office.
In the first place, the research serves as a bridge the Faculty and students in the teaching-learning process of reading skills By dint of the findings from the research, the Faculty and their teaching staff could get a much deeper understanding of the students’ difficulties in reading legal English texts so as to develop the most suitable methods or approaches to facilitate them to reach their ultimate goals of legal English reading acquisition.
In the second place, the research is meant to lay the foundation for subsequent studies on the reality of legal reading skills among Legal English- majored students through other research instruments such as tests, observations,and so forth As a result, the matters related to the problems in legal reading in learning legal English would be addressed efficiently, and the other workable methods to improve students’ reading efficiency would be devised.
3 Limitations and suggestions for further research
One of the most noticeable weaknesses of this study concerns its scope, within which it was only carried out in the HLU context with the participants of English majors from juniors to seniors The number of respondents in this research was 122 English majors with only 6 participants in the interview, which is considered rather limited This might not fully provide an objective opinion of Legal English-majored juniors and seniors at HLU as the researcher’s expectation Therefore, it is challenging to generalize and hypothesize the study’s findings to participants in another frame of reference To some extent, the analyzed results and statistics are not able to fully reflect the perspectives of a larger population.