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INTRODUCTION

Rationale

English is currently the official language of communication in many nations, and it is widely spoken all over the world as the common language of international trade, business, entertainment and education (Rao, 2019; Wang & Burris, 2019) This is the justification for why English is better than less popular languages With the fast escalating demands of globalization in many domains, such as the business, the environment, and culture, the standards for English language proficiency in Vietnam have dramatically evolved over the previous 20 years Dao (2015) stated that English has become a crucial foreign language, particularly for the younger Vietnamese population In particular, it is covered in practically every school and university's curriculum To further encourage the study of English and improve the standard of English teaching and learning in Vietnam, the Prime Minister of Vietnam released Decision 1440/QĐ-TTg "Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Formal Education System in the Period 2008-2020."

Speaking is one of the most challenging skill for students to master, but it is believed to play vital for in the master of language (Bailey, 2001) Many methods have been introduced and applied to improve students’ speaking ability, yet they are still not the strong skills of many students in many developing countries including Vietnam Dao (2015) informed a common concern of his 330 participants in a research into their needs for improving English, detailing that speaking skills are their weakest skills and ought to be enhanced soon

Photovoice is a suitable method using pictures for supporting the process of English speaking teaching and learning More specifically, photovoice was first developed by Dr Caroline Wang in the University of Michigan with the aim of empowering members of groups to collaborate with each other to enhance the quality of a group or community through photographic show (Wang & Burris,

1997) This method has been credited with encouraging interactive learning and advancing student’s creative thinking (Ferdiansyah, et al., 2020); increasing students’ oral skills in an English specialized secondary class (Janu, et al., 2021); and motivating students in online English class (Nugroho & Sakhiyya, 2022) It was anticipated that using this strategy would help pupils perform better orally, suggesting that it should be used more frequently in the classroom

In the light of the above discussion, the researcher has been inspired and motivated to conduct the research on applying photovoice in teaching speaking with the title of “Employing photovoice in improving students’ speaking skill at the primary school” This method has never been applied in the context of grade 3 in Iris School that the researcher chooses, making it worthwhile to carry out an action research to see whether it can address the speaking weaknesses that students are facing.

Statement of the problems

One of the things that contributes to raising the level of education in a given school or company is the innovation of teaching techniques For elementary school pupils who are just beginning to learn English, it is extremely crucial for teachers to innovate and be adaptable in their teaching techniques To improve English skills, students have experienced a wide range of methods at school and they are effective to a certain extent Teachers have typically used techniques like mind maps and flashcards to help pupils learn English more efficiently but a new method recently popular among teachers worldwide called photovoice is claimed to improve students’ engagement and proficiency in learning English (Ferdiansyah, et al., 2020; Hidayat, et al., 2019; Janu, et al., 2021; Nugroho & Sakhiyya, 2022)

The initial stage in learning English speaking skills for primary school pupils is to familiarize and create the four language skills while also building up their vocabulary and sentence structure to serve as a foundation for learning at all levels

As a result, a major challenge is ensuring that learners fully comprehend, retain, and apply their understanding of words and phrases (Trinh & Pham, 2021) while Nguyen and Nguyen (2007) pointed out the lack of necessary topic-based vocabulary for students to participate in meaningful communicative activities

A distinguished researcher named Howard (1993) asserted that youngsters had a very high prevalence of visual intelligence (spatial intelligence-visual), one of the eight categories of intelligence that made up our brains Thus, the vivid, colorful images displayed on the primary photographs shot by the kids have a significant influence on the students' minds, making it easier for them to retain terminology and arouse their curiosity Children become more motivated to study as a result of interest and curiosity Many primary students have the shortage of vocabulary to express their ideas and thought However, when they have a pleasant learning environment, they will be engaged in learning English, find it easy to grasp new vocabulary, and able to recall terminology As a result, teaching techniques including playing games, utilizing flashcards, singing, telling tales, and educating through internet applications have all been proved to be successful in helping kids learn (Trinh & Pham, 2021) Photovoice teaching technique which is based on using photographs captured by students themselves is, therefore, likely to stimulate student’s speaking frequency and thus skills in general (Wang & Burris, 1997)

Implementing the educational objective of Iris School of "Nurturing a passion for Learning" for students is collated with its firm understanding of the need for innovation of teaching techniques As stated in the school's educational objectives: gaining knowledge via enjoyable forms of learning, the photovoice approach not only assures learning improvements for kids but also supports them in nurturing their love of learning, ensuring students’ joyful experiences at school (Ferdiansyah, et al., 2020; Wang & Burris, 1997)

As a result, the researcher is inspired to put the method of "photovoice" in an attempt to help his primary school students with their speaking abilities during the 2022–2023 academic year because of its suitability to learners’ age as well as the course content.

Research objectives

The study's primary objective was to assess to what extent the photovoice technique is effective in improving speaking skills of third grade students at Iris school The secondary one was to evaluate the attitudes of students toward the use of Photovoice in English lessons at Iris school From that, an additional English teaching method was introduced to teachers and students also had an effective learning way to improve speaking skills This technique was applicable not only at Iris school but also at other educational institutions.

Research questions

It specifically aims to provide answers to the following queries:

1 To what extent is photovoice technique effective in teaching speaking skills of the third grade students at Iris School?

2 What are the attitudes of students and teachers toward the use of photovoice in English lessons at Iris school?

Scope of the study

The 90 full-time third-graders of Iris School and 2 teachers are the subjects of the investigation Students belong to 3 classes, hereafter called 3 groups, and are studying English under the instruction of 3 teachers They all belong to 3 classes because it is easier for the researcher to manage the data and carry out the action research Basically, they all know how to take photographs by a smart phone Two teachers are anonymous in this study, but they are currently working full-time at Iris School and giving lessons to students in two of the classes They are both experienced teachers with 4-6 years of experiences, working alongside and under the instructions of the researchers during this study to ensure that the steps are carried out in a consistent way as designed.

Significance of the study

Using action research to explore the effectiveness of photovoice method from the perspectives of both teachers and students, this study will add a different approach into the research of the effectiveness of photovoice method into speaking skill enhancement and might be used as model for further study in the same area The findings can be useful references for later study into the same area as well

The results of this study will help decide the extent in which speaking skills can be improved using photovoice method Therefore, for the community of domestic and international teachers who are teaching English at the same level and to the same kind of students, the study which is planned to explore a new method in improving the English speaking skills of primary school students can suggest a new technique to be applied in real similar teaching contexts.

Structure of the thesis

The study was divided into five chapters as follows:

Chapter 1: Introduction, which provides an overview of the whole research by presenting the current problem, mentioning the aims and objectives of the paper, and indicating the significance as well as the scope of the study

Chapter 2: Literature Review, which provides a theoretical basement on current situation of teaching speaking to young learners, discusses the key concepts, identifies the research gap and reviews the related studies both in Vietnam and in the world

Chapter 3: Methodology, which presents the participants, the chosen instruments, procedures of data collection and analysis

Chapter 4: Results and findings, which discuss the interpretation of the collected data in light of research questions

Chapter 5: Discussion, which summarizes the key points in the study Conclusion, which indicates the answers of the research questions, provides implications of the study, discusses limitations, and gives suggestions for further research.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Definition of speaking

Speaking is considered to be among the most important skills in both first and second language which demands a proactive, attentive and effective participation of the people involved because speaking can somehow reveal the thought and personal traits of a person (Nunan, 1991)

According to Siahaan (2008), speaking is a crucial linguistic skill, which includes the ability to produce sounds with meaning and make them understandable to others is what is meant by speaking in terms of effective communication Therefore, speaking skill is an integrated part of communication skill and needs to serve the purpose of transferring information from the producer to the perceiver

Similarly, Bailey (2001) and Fulcher (2003) believe that speaking also refers to the use of words in social interactions This suggests that at least two people are involved in the activity, and that each of them has some sort of objectives or goals for it In order to participate in this activity, participants must be both listeners and speakers who can respond rapidly to what they hear

Richards and Renandya (2002) emphasizes the importance of micro speaking skills, highlighting that speaking serves various useful functions such as describing things, giving complaint about people’s behavior and activities, making polite requests, discussing a topic and persuading others

These theories point to a connection between speaking and communicating skills, and thus highlight the importance of speaking in real life as well as its master in language acquisition Speaking is the capacity to use a language well to convey ideas, emotions, and information to and from other communicators Therefore, the

English instructor should encourage students to speak up in class by employing communicative language exercises and interesting media, as well as by giving them opportunities to do so as frequently as is practical.

Aims of speaking

Speaking is primarily used to communicate, deliver ideas to the listener or communicate with the speaker's society, but can be identified in a slight different way from one researcher to another

Tarigan (2008) argues that speaking generally has three major goals: to inform means to express to the listener one's views, information, sentiments, or opinions as well as knowledge for a specific purpose; to make the listener happier by employing items that were picked primarily for their entertainment value, which is what it means to entertain; to persuade someone else to do something

Many other scholars refer to this skill as a communicative tool (Bailey, 2000); Fulcher, 2003), claiming that it serves the most important need of transferring information from one person to another, and thus requires both speakers to participate with active role in the conversation

From the preceding summary, it can be concluded that a person can make decisions, learn about another person's feelings by asking them directly, and communicate their feelings through speaking skills The teacher needs to leave a good teaching impression on the pupils by modeling effective material delivery

In addition to actively participating in the lesson, students might understand the lesson's perspective from the example The activities must be carried out for the speaker to successfully encourage the listener to take the desired actions.

Speaking strategies

Training in language learning techniques must include speaking strategies, also known as communicative strategies, communication strategies, conversation skills, or oral communication techniques, are the tools that students utilize to overcome any communication-related problems when speaking in English

According to O'Malley and Chamot (1990), speaking skills are crucial because they help language learners expressing the meaning two speakers do not share the same linguistic and social background

According to Hedge (2000), a skilled speaker understands how to use speaking strategies These strategies are used when they are unable to count on linguistic abilities These verbal and nonverbal communication tactics (including verbal circumlocution, clarification, nonverbal mimicry, gestures, etc.) can be used to increase effective communication as well as to make up for a communication breakdown or for unidentified terms or topics

Méndez (2007) claims in a prior study that students frequently keep quiet or rely on the teacher to make up for unfamiliar terminology or grammatical structures Only two of the ten students who were audio-recorded while conducting speaking tasks prior to training in this study used speaking strategies, suggesting that students might not always transfer L1 knowledge to L2 In the same view, Mugford (2007) indicates that neither teachers nor students are equipped to deal with some adverse communication situations, such as rudeness, disrespect, and impoliteness Although this may seem like an unconnected topic, Mugford argues that students should be taught speaking skills so they can communicate in English in a realistic way

Last but not least, Brown (2004) provides a list of speaking strategies including emphasizing keywords, rephrasing, explaining the meaning of new words, calling for help and checking understanding and believes that they are very important for the development of speaking skills in general Bearing this in mind, this study will use this list of strategies as the backbone for creating data collection instrument.

Definitions of photovoice

In the 1990s, Caroline Wang's work had a major role in the rise of photovoice as a qualitative research tool In community action and advocacy, where images are utilized to promote social change, this study approach has its origins It is thought that a study topic will be less likely to be overlooked if the

"hard realities" of it are captured Instead of the written word, the attention is mostly on the visual

Using video and/or photographic images, people use the photovoice approach to capture and subsequently communicate with others different aspects of their surroundings and experiences (Wang & Burris, 1997) With text often written by the photographers themselves, the photographs may then be utilized to inform the public and influence decision-makers about the reality of the photographers' lives

Many authors (Ferdiansyah, et al., 2020; Hidayat, et al., 2019; Janu, et al., 2021; Nugroho & Sakhiyya, 2022) refer to photovoice as a method of using photo capturing activities to stimulate natural micro speaking skills and emotion

According to Wang (1999), photovoice is the process of documenting or taking pictures, then telling stories about them It is an approach as a means of gaining interest in research objects The attraction of these objects makes it easier for readers or researchers to analyze events clearly and meaningfully so that they can increase researchers' responses Photovoice is a reinforcement or training technique to help communicate the contents of images and photos

According to Perry (2009), photovoice uses pictures to spark conversations and include students in the teaching and learning process They use the photos they take as a means of expressing the ideas they want to write or speak about Based on study findings, Ciolan & Manasia (2017) found that photovoice gives people access to subjective closeness to learning in real-world contexts and experiences Furthermore, photovoice facilitates participants' participation as researchers According to Mckernan & Gleddie (2019), who use photovoice as a student- centered method to comprehend the connection between the home and school environments, students actively participate in class sessions, embodying the participatory nature of photovoice According to a different article, photovoice encouraged the participant's participation as a co-researcher.

The benefits of photovoice

A professor and researcher - Caroline Wang- at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health, created photovoice in the early 1990s as a unique method for conducting participatory action research (Wang 1999) Photovoice is a strategy created to enable people of underrepresented groups to collaborate and "identify, represent, and strengthen their community through a specialized photography style" community-based research activities (Wang & Burris 1997)

According to Blackman and Fairei (2011), the activities performed through photovoice such as taking photos and sharing stories about them—are impactful

If people sense these feelings of empowerment, they may be more motivated to strive for improved living circumstances for themselves and other people in their community In classroom using Photovoice, students are required to fulfill a range of roles, and thus having chances to improve their micro speaking skills such as giving opinions or asking for something politely (Nugroho & Sakhiyya, 2022) When they act as photographers, who involve in capturing images as evidence, they will be able to speak with their friends about their photo and thus learning some macro speaking skills (Janu, et al., 2021; Nugroho & Sakhiyya, 2022)

Sharing with their view, researchers (Ferdiansyah, et al., 2020; Hidayat, et al., 2019; Janu, et al., 2021; Nugroho & Sakhiyya, 2022) also add that student’s speaking includes more details, has higher fluency and can deal with rising situation in speaking tasks more naturally and meaningfully

It can be concluded that in light of the aforementioned benefits, photovoice needs to be tested out in the classroom It is hoped that employing this method would improve the oral communication abilities of the students specified in the following chapter, which would lead to an increase in its use in the classroom.

Previous studies

Many studies in language teaching have already been conducted in an attempt to analyze the implementation of photovoice in language classrooms McNamara (2000) points out that insights from such previous analysis provide invaluable contribution to defining the use of photovoice in teaching and learning Thus, exploring how other researchers have investigated the use of photovoice in teaching speaking can shed light on the process followed in this research study

In a recent two-cycle action research by Widiadnya (2019), which used photovoice to increase ten graders speaking ability and was carried out in SMA (SLUA) Saraswati 1 Denpasar secondary school, a number of positives of this method was proven The subject of the study was The X IPA class including a total of 36 females and 13 males suffering from a lack of fluency and confidence in speaking Pre-test carried out on them with a mean score of 59.18 After the completion of Cycle I of the research, the score was raised to 70.81 Then, the researcher conducted cycle II of the investigation, and the results of the data analysis of the cycle II reflections were 81.02 The results demonstrated that the photovoice technique had improved the kids' test scores Based on the study's findings, it was determined that the photovoice technique might enhance the students at SMA (SLUA) Saraswati 1 in Denpasar's tenth grade speaking abilities However, this research did not provide any remedies to adapt the method in a lower level school

Janu, et al (2021) carried out their action research on raising the oral abilities of MAN 1 Kendari among students in grade IX using a two-cycle model, with the first cycle having three meetings and the second cycle having another three meetings 29 students from MAN 1 Kendari's class XI English Major were chosen to be the study's subjects The research's activities included organizing picture-based activities, encouraging them to speak English, providing feedback on their speaking performances The observation sheet and the students' reflections were used as the study's data collection instruments This study pointed out that photovoice was a useful tool for teaching and learning speaking since it increased students' speaking abilities in general with the mean score rising from 57% in the first cycle to 81% in the second as well as stimulated students to participate in speaking activities Although using a well-designed instrument, their analysis seemed to lack weight as they did not describe how they controlled other external factors that could affect the increase in the mean score such as cheating and having extra English speaking hours outside class

Hidayat, et al (2019) recognized a speaking weakness of high school students in Pemalang and carried out a quantitative experimental research on how photovoice could be used to boost their speaking skills and confidence The study was conducted on 60 students divided into two groups in different classes but at the same grade By assigning one group to be an experimental group and the other the control group, they could compare the effectiveness of the method on speaking skill improvement The study pointed out that those in experimental groups were able to speak more naturally and comfortably while having more confidence in giving their opinions They also discussed the weakness of their study which involved time management, classroom management and activity management, and lack of equipment among students and it is certain that these factors can distort the application of the method

Maaly (2021) carried out a qualitative case study on 46 undergraduate students in a developmental psychology course about the transformative affordances of the application of photovoice Both qualitative and quantitative data was collected and merged using theoretical frameworks of transformational experience and learning (Mezirow, 1978a, 1978b) (Pugh, 2011) He then concluded that photovoice had pedagogy's potential in transformational affordances, particularly in psychology courses, but some adjustments must be made to suit adult learning needs Although carried out in a systematic way with well-reviewed literature, this research was not applicable to the area of language teaching as it is restricted to the area of psychology only

Giang et al (2023) studied Photovoice as a decolonizing approach to gain an in-depth understanding of the teaching and learning experiences of a transgender teacher of English and a group of English LGBTIQ+ youth learners in Vietnam The findings indicated that there was positively impacts on students' language attainment and learning purposes, in which students feel inspired to not only embrace

It is clear from a summary of existing studies that there is a lack in assessing the effectiveness of photovoice on the subject of primary school students, particularly those at the age of 8 in the context of Vietnamese education system and the characteristics of Vietnamese learners Apart from that, these previous studies did not have good control of external factors that can lead to misleading researchers and distorting the results It is therefore important for the present research to be carried out systematically on the subjects of primary school third- grade students in the teaching conditions of Viet Nam to assess the extent in which photovoice can contribute to the development of speaking skills among students

Cambridge English Qualifications is a in-depth assessment tool Every exam passes indicate a significant gain in language proficiency The Cambridge English Qualifications are closely related The Common European Framework for Reference (CEFR), a collection of internationally accepted standards for evaluating proficiency in second or foreign languages At each of the six levels, the CEFR outlines what a person “can do,” or should be able to do The level descriptors for the CEFR adhere to a series of appropriate goals for language learners (Taylor, 2006) Up to 75% of young students taking the A2 Key for Schools exam in Beijing reported that their motivation to study had increased as a result of setting and meeting meaningful goals (Yan, Gu, and Khalifa, 2014) Cambridge English Qualifications are based on a model of communicative language ability that emphasizes the importance of real-life conversation and interaction, in line with the theory paper on communicative competence (Michael

& Merrill, 1980) In order to ensure accuracy and fairness for students worldwide, Cambridge English exams are developed and delivered under strict guidelines, in safe environments

In this study, the Cambridge English Qualifications by Cambridge Assessment English was adopted to be the criteria for the pre-test, mid-test and post-test for the following reasons Firstly, participants in this study were grade-3 students Secondly, this assessment is in accordance with the Common European Framework for Reference which is the goal of Iris school as well as the target of national curriculum Lastly, Iris school where the study was conducted is using Cambridge in teaching curriculum; therefore, this assessment met the requirement of course book

In short, the chapter gives access to the study's theories including as well as the and earlier research which helped to construct the study's theoretical foundation From that, readers can have an overview of the theoretical basement of the study.

Cambride assessment

The research methodology used in this study is presented in this chapter It describes the research design, the subject and context of the study, the instruments used to collect data, how to collect and analyze the data

This study was conducted at Iris Schools which was a new school in Thai Nguyen, the school was established in 2020 with an education system of 4 levels including kindergarten, primary school, secondary school, and high school There were more than 800 students and 100 teachers in Iris school The school managers and parents paid a lot of attention to English subject The school used the national curriculum which was enacted by the Ministry of Education together with copyright teaching plan of some subjects including English In primary level, students participated in 8 English lessons per week including both national curriculum and school’s own teaching program The subjects of the study are all third grade students aged 8 who are struggling with their speaking skills and 2 teachers teaching these classes According to the most recent year-end test of students’ speaking skills, which was carried out in June 2021, their speaking competences were not really up to the expectations of teachers and the course targets

Classroom action research will be used in this study According to Kemmis and Mc Taggert (1982), action research will make use of both acting out a new method and researching its effects on the subjects The results can benefit self- improvement processes and knowledge about language curriculum and the learning-teaching process In his paper, Wallace (1998) defined “Action research is a strategy for teachers to make changes and develop professionally by reflecting on their own everyday teaching.” (p.16); therefore, must be useful in the area of education From a different viewpoint Harmer (2002) stated that action research refers to the steps that teachers can take to “improve aspects of their teaching, or

METHODOLOGY

Context of the study

This study was conducted at Iris Schools which was a new school in Thai Nguyen, the school was established in 2020 with an education system of 4 levels including kindergarten, primary school, secondary school, and high school There were more than 800 students and 100 teachers in Iris school The school managers and parents paid a lot of attention to English subject The school used the national curriculum which was enacted by the Ministry of Education together with copyright teaching plan of some subjects including English In primary level, students participated in 8 English lessons per week including both national curriculum and school’s own teaching program The subjects of the study are all third grade students aged 8 who are struggling with their speaking skills and 2 teachers teaching these classes According to the most recent year-end test of students’ speaking skills, which was carried out in June 2021, their speaking competences were not really up to the expectations of teachers and the course targets.

Framework

Classroom action research will be used in this study According to Kemmis and Mc Taggert (1982), action research will make use of both acting out a new method and researching its effects on the subjects The results can benefit self- improvement processes and knowledge about language curriculum and the learning-teaching process In his paper, Wallace (1998) defined “Action research is a strategy for teachers to make changes and develop professionally by reflecting on their own everyday teaching.” (p.16); therefore, must be useful in the area of education From a different viewpoint Harmer (2002) stated that action research refers to the steps that teachers can take to “improve aspects of their teaching, or to evaluate the success and/or appropriation of certain activities and procedures”

In diverse studies, a number of action research models have been put forth The eight steps for implementation in the action research paradigm that McBride and Schostak described in 1995 were as follows:

Figure 1 Action research cycle (source: the researcher’s own drawing)

The cycle process starts with the location of the issue, then moves on to the gathering of preliminary information Using this information, a poll was conducted to verify the problem identified in stage 1 The information received from the initial survey is then analyzed, some adjustments are made to the activities, and a hypothesis is developed so there is data to contrast with the findings of the follow-up survey The next stage of this action research project is planning action

The following factors led the researcher to select classroom action research: Firstly, it offers a more preferable alternative to problem-solving techniques that are more subjective in the classroom, especially for grade 3 children at Iris School Secondly, it can address the identified issues in certain conditions or enhance a specific set of circumstances by allowing the interventions to be repeated after adjustments Lastly, it can resolve Iris students’ issues like anxiousness and lack of confidence of those who lack motivation and still struggle to speak English aloud

Based on the theoretical framework of Schostak(1995), the researcher built up the framework applied for this study as follows:

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5

In the first week of the study, the pre-test was administered to collect data for future analysis, during the first 8 weeks, the Photovoice was used in lessons The mid-test was administered at week 8 In the next 8 weeks, Photovoice was continued applying and week 16, post-test, questionnaire, interview were used to collect data for analyzing.

Participants

Participants in this study included 90 students in grade three at Iris school in the school year of 2021-2022 They were learning in a fixed class, hereafter named class 1, 2 and 3 They had a similar starting level with quite low achievements of speaking skills as presented in Table 1 They participated in speaking lessons using photovoice technique and take pre-test, mid-test and final test during the study process to assess the extent in which this method can be used to improve students’ speaking skills These 90 students were chosen because they were the age group which is not extensively studied using photovoice methods in

Vietnam and their speaking skills in English could somehow be easier to be developed (Table 3.1)

Table 3.1 Demographic information on the students in the study

Participants of the study also included 2 teachers who were in direct charge of class 1 and 2 as above They were both experienced teachers who were familiar with action research They taught class 1 and 2 using photovoice method with the assistance of the researcher and interviews offered some insights into the way to adapt the method to better improve the speaking quality of students (Table 3.2)

Table 3.2 Demographic information on the teachers in the study

Teachers Years of experience Class in charge

Study design

Students in class 1 did not participate in photovoice lessons while students in class 2 and 3 had lessons applying photovoice To be concrete, the teacher in class 2 and 3 had students use pictures provided by the researcher, students would have activities with these provided pictures, the teachers in these two classes did not have any support with students’ pronunciation After 8 weeks of the implementation, the mid-test was administered to collect data After the mid-test, some changes were applied to the study to explore the possibility of suggestions that could be done to improve the photovoice technique application In the following 8 weeks, students in class 1 still joined no lessons with photovoice; class

2 and 3 continued their study schedule with photovoice However, photovoice technique was adjusted in class 3 and remained the same in class 2 Students in class 3 were asked to prepare pictures of themselves by having their parents help to take pictures The topic for pictures in each lesson was provided in advance to students and parents to prepare; together with this, at class, students in Class 3 was corrected pronunciation carefully by the teacher.

Data collection procedure

This study uses 8-step action research because it is very suitable to teaching English as a second language and can be carried by any teachers in their teaching context (Coghlan & Brannick, 2005) This study adopted the research model suggested by McBride and Schostak (1995) because of its detailed explanation regarding steps to take during an action research (Refer to section 2.7)

The first cycle process starts with the identification of the issue of speaking skills of the subjects, then moves on to collecting preliminary data about the issues such as references and backgrounds for further study Later on, a speaking pre-test is conducted to verify the problem identified earlier The information received from this initial survey is then analyzed and a hypothesis about students’ weaknesses is then developed, so there is data to contrast with the findings of the follow-up survey The next stage of this action research project was planning 8 lessons and then delivering them using photovoice technique After 8 lessons, a mid-test was carried out on students to assess their speaking skill improvement The tests was scored, which was compared with the results of pre- test The next 8 lessons were prepared which adapted some changes After the next 8 lessons, the post-test was administered to collect data which was compared with pre-test and post-test results in order to find out the answer for research questions An interview was conducted to gather opinions of teachers regarding the use of this technique so that adaptation to the application of the photovoice technique can be made to further develop student’s speaking skill.

Data collection and instruments

Pre-tests, mid-tests and post-tests were carried out to collect data about the effectiveness of the method According to Garton (2011), pre-tests and post-tests can be administered to gather data about the subjects before and after the intervention of a teaching method and can collect a sizable amount of data at a comparatively low cost This study’s tests are adapted from the Cambridge Starter Level placement test as they are equivalent to students’ starting level and include

4 parts: finding objects in the pictures, answering questions about a small picture, answering questions about a big picture, and answering picture-based questions related to test-takers Samples of pre-tests, mid-tests and post-tests are presented in the Appendix 1, Appendix 2 and Appendix 3 They were all piloted prior to being used in the actual research process on 5 students with the same demographic information as the study subjects to eliminate any possibility of misunderstanding

Pre-tests were administered at the beginning week of the term to assess student’s starting level and decide whether the hypothesis about their speaking skills are right and what their weaknesses were Mid-tests were used after 8 weeks of using the photovoice method to assess their improvement in English speaking skills Post-tests were used at the end of week 15 The examiner in these tests was a foreign teacher who did not participate in teaching these classes to ensure the objective of the tests

According to Burns (2010) and McBride & Schostak (1995), interviews are useful for action research because they offer chances to find out about the subjective opinions and even data which is not foreseen by the researcher At week

8 and 16 of this study, interviews are carried out to collect the opinions and suggestions of teachers about the effectiveness of the method as well as adjustments to be made to further increase the impacts Six questions in the interview are included in the Appendix 5

This study employed semi-structured interview suggested by Garton (2011) which allowed for more details to be explored and surprising data can be collected, helped to calm the interviewees and created a relaxing environment for interview Interview questions were piloted on one of the teachers in the study before they were used in actual interview

Interviews were carried in a classroom at Iris school and interviewer had contact with interviewees for agreement before they were administered Subjects of the interview included 2 teachers in class 2 and 3 The interview was recorded, and the total length of each is around 15 minutes

A questionnaire is a way of collecting primary data for different purposes

A questionnaire helps quantitative data to be analyzed so that data are suitable for the analysis (Rosen et al., 1996)

In this study, the questionnaire was employed to collect information about the attitude of students towards the application of photovoice at Iris school with 3 questions investigating the attitude of students towards photovoice

When completing the questionnaire and got approval from School of Foreign Languages, Thai Nguyen University, the researcher carried out a pilot study at the first week of the term with 10 students (grade 3) at Iris Primary School in Thai Nguyen city This step was conducted to figure out if there were any significant problems with the students' perception of the questionnaire's items In this section, the content validity of the questionnaire was piloted in order to make any necessary adjustments Firstly, 10 students were scheduled for appointments at a classroom Secondly, the questionnaire's instructions were read aloud to the students to make certain they were comfortable to take part in the survey and to guarantee that they would have no trouble understanding the items Thirdly, the students were instructed to tick just one option for each of the questions It was recorded how long it took the students to finish the questionnaire The responses were then examined

According to the survey, the questionnaire's instructions were straightforward They allowed the students to quickly understand and carry out the instructions that were read to them without encountering any problems The participants also felt relieved to complete the questionnaire After studying with photovoice techniques, it took the students 5 minutes to answer 3 questions related to their attitudes about studying with photovoice technique

To conclude, it can be inferred that the pilot participants had no problems following the instructions, finishing the questions in the allotted time, or completing the data collection instruments intended for the questionnaire These results indicate that the instruments used in the pilot study can be used in the main investigation There was no need to make any modifications to the instruments and the amount of time set aside for respondents to complete the questionnaire's items.

Data analysis

In this study, both quantitative research and qualitative research are flexibly adapted in order to be suitable for the context and aim of this study According to Burns (2010), both quantitative and qualitative data should be collected during steps of action research in order to ensure the reliability and validity of the findings

Pre-tests, mid-tests and post-tests are scored based on the criteria adapted from that of Cambridge Starter speaking scoring rubric (2021) The criteria which are included in the appendix 4 assess students’ overall speaking skills in 3 main domains namely vocabulary, pronunciation and interaction Students’ speaking performance is evaluated with scores ranging from 1-5 in which score 0, 1 and 2 represent low achievement, score 3 represents average while score 4 and 5 indicate high achievement The scale descriptors are shown in Table 3.3 below (Handbook for teachers, by Cambridge Assessment English, 2021)

Table 3.3 Speaking rating scale (Source: www.cambridgeenglish.org)

Band Vocabulary and grammar Range Pronunciation Interaction

5 • Uses a range of vocabulary to deal with all test tasks

• Uses a range of simple structures and, although there are some mistakes, meaning is clear

• Responds at word, phrase or longer utterance level

• Can join ideas with a range of simple linkers

(e.g and, but, when, then, because)

• Has some control of stress and intonation at both word and longer utterance levels

Responds appropriately to all instructions, questions and visual prompts, and very little support is required

• Is able to ask for support if required

• Responds promptly with only natural hesitation and pausing

4 Some features of 3.0 and some features of 5.0 in approximately equal measure

3 • Uses the vocabulary required to deal with most test tasks

• Uses some simple structures correctly but makes some mistakes,

• Has limited control of word stress and intonation

• Responds appropriately to almost all instructions, questions and visual prompts, and little support is required

Band Vocabulary and grammar Range Pronunciation Interaction

Reception although meaning is generally clear

• Responds at word, phrase or longer utterance level

• Can join ideas with some simple linkers

• Is able to ask for support if required

• Almost always responds promptly, although there may be hesitation and some pausing mid- utterance

2 Some features of 3.0 and some features of 1.0 in approximately equal measure

1 • Uses the vocabulary required to deal with some test tasks

• Attempts some simple structures but makes some basic mistakes which may obscure meaning

• Generally responds at word or phrase level but may also produce longer utterances

• Is mostly intelligible, although some sounds may be unclear

• Has limited control of word stress

• Responds appropriately to some instructions, questions and visual prompts with some support

• May attempt to ask for support if required

• Often responds promptly, although there may be hesitation and

Band Vocabulary and grammar Range Pronunciation Interaction

• Can join ideas with a few simple linkers (e.g and) pausing mid- utterance

0 Performance does not satisfy the Band 1 descriptor

Pronunciation: If the candidate produces some language, but insufficient language to make a confident judgement about pronunciation (e.g just a couple of words), the maximum score that can be awarded is 3, regardless of the quality of pronunciation

Mean scores of the pre-tests, mid-tests and post-tests are calculated average scores of students’ speaking tests in order to measure the improvement of students through the intervention of photovoice technique In case of frequent repeating score, median and mode can also be pointed out to prove the findings Standard deviation is calculated to see how far each value spreads from the mean to ensure the validity of the mean scores Standard deviation is calculated using the following formula

● = number of values in the sample

The recordings in the interview were transcribed and coded in colors and numbers before any further analysis could be made There were three broad groups of data from the interview including suggestions for speaking vocabulary under red color, for pronunciation under blue color and for interaction under yellow Coding in color can help researchers quickly count, identify and later on categorize data (Coghlan & Brannick, 2005; Garton, 2011) Opinions of each teacher was coded under number #1 for teacher 1 and #2 for teacher 2 This coding system could help identify whether both teachers share the same view towards the issues

The result was coded and analyzed to identify the number of students who had ideas about photovoice from these data the effectiveness of photovoice could be found out

In conclusion, the chapter presents the research methodology that was used for this study It explains the instruments used to collect data, the topic and background of the study, the research design, and the procedures for gathering and analyzing data All the mentioned information provides a specific presentation of the study methodology.

RESULTS AND FINDINGS

Test results

With the aim of answering the first research question, students’ pre-test scores were collected and analyzed quantitatively through statistics in SPSS Table 4.1 shows the frequency of pre-test results in Class 1, 2, and 3

Table 4.1 Pre-test result in Class 1, 2, and 3

Table 4.1 shows the frequency of pre-test results of three classes It can be observed that students in three classes did not achieve Band 4 and 5 The majority of the students achieved Band 1,2,3 More specifically, it is noticeable that the highest Band of Class 1 was 3 and the lowest was 1 Students achieved Band 1 accounted for the highest percentage with 55.2%; followed by the number of students achieved Band 2 with 41.4% In contrast, the students achieved Band 3 had a mere of 3.4%

Regarding Class 2, the highest Band that students achieved was Band 3 and the lowest was Band 1 To have a clearer investigation, students with Band 1 took up 58.1%; students with Band 2 was accounted for 32.3% However, students who achieved Band 3 made up the lowest proportion with 9,7%

In relation to Class 3, the proportion of students who achieved Band 1 stood at the first position with 60%; followed by the ratio of those achieving Band 2 with 36.7% Meanwhile, the smallest proportion was for Band 3 with 3.3% only

Table 4.2 Mean scores of pre-test result in Class 1,2, and 3

Class N Min Max Mean Std

Table 4.2 demonstrates the descriptive statistics of pre-test results of class 1,2 and 3 Overall, the average Band score of 3 classes had no considerable difference In Class 1, the average Band score was 1.48 with the Std was 0.57; while these values in Class were 1.52 and 0.68 Regarding Class 3, the average Band score of this Class was 1.43 and Std was 0.57

Table 4.3 Multiple comparisons of pre-test result of Class 1,2 and 3

Sum of Squares df Mean Square F Sig

Table 4.3 shows the multiple comparisons of pre-test results of Class 1,2 and 3 It can be seen that the probability value (p-value) of pre-test scores in three classes was 0.868 which was higher than the degree of significance 5% (p = 0.05)

From the statistical results above, it can be drawn the conclusion that there was no difference in pre-test results among three classes before the implementation of the study In other words, all students in three classes shared the same status at the beginning of the study

At week 8 of the study, the mid-test was administered, students’ mid-test scores were collected and analyzed quantitatively through statistics in SPSS Table 4.4 shows the frequency of mid-test results in Class 1, 2, and 3

Table 4.4 Mid-test result in Class 1, 2, and 3

Table 4.4 shows the mid-test result of class 1, 2, and 3 Overall, there was a difference in the mid-test results of 3 Classes There was no student who achieved Band 1 as in the pre-test, a noticeable point that should be concerned was the appearance of Band 4

At a closer look, in Class 1, the number of students who got Band 2 was

13 which accounted for 44.8%; while the number of students who achieved Band

3 was 16 which stood at 55.2% And there was no student who scored 4 in this mid-test

In terms of Class 2, there were 7 students who achieved Band 2 which constituted 22.6% The number of students who got Band 3 and 4 was the same at

Investigating Class 3, the number of students who achieved Band 3 was highest with 14 students (46.7%) Followed by the number of students who got Band 4 with 10 students (33.3%) The number of students who got the lowest ratio was those who achieved Band 2 with 6 students (20%)

Table 4.5 Mean scores of Mid-test result in Class 1,2, and 3

Class N Min Max Mean Std

Table 4.5 reveals the descriptive statistics of mid-test results in Class 1,2,3 Overall, Class 2 and Class 3 achieved higher results in mid-test than Class 1 Specifically, In Class 1, the average Band score was 2.55 (Std=0.51) with the highest Band being 3; while the lowest was 2 In regard to Class 2, the average Band of this class was 3.16 (Std=0.78); the highest Band was 4 and the lowest Band was 2 Taking Class 3 into consideration, the average Band of this class was 3.13 (Std=0.73) with the highest Band was 4 and the lowest Band was 2

Table 4.6 Multiple comparisons of Mid-test result in Class 1,2, and 3

* The mean difference is significant at the 0.05 level

Table 4.6 presents the multiple comparisons of mid-test results in Class 1,2, and 3 It was obvious that after 7 planned lessons, the speaking level of 3 classes revealed certain differences To be concrete, the result of class 1 was significantly different from the result of class 2 and 3 (p = 0.03 and 0.04 < 0.05); while the result of class 2 and 3 showed considerable difference (p=0.986>0.05)

At the sixteenth week of the study, the post-test was administered in order to collect more data for the research Students’ post-test scores were collected and analyzed quantitatively through statistics in SPSS Table 4.7 presents the frequency of post-test results in Class 1, 2, and 3

Table 4.7 Post-test result in Class 1, 2, and 3

Table 4.7 illustrates the frequency of post-test results in Class 1,2, and 3 after the implementation of the study Overall, there was a significant difference in the post-test results among 3 classes that should be taken into consideration

To be concrete, in Class 1, the number of students who achieved Band 3 stood at the first position (44.8%); followed by the proposition of those who achieved Band 4 with 37.9% students achieved Band 2 and 5 accounted for 10.3% and 6.9% respectively

Questionnaire results

With the aim of seeking the answer for the second question of the study, the questionnaire with three questions was employed to collect data at the end of the study a pilot study was conducted at the beginning of the study to ensure the validity of the questionnaire (Refer to section 3.4.3.) The data were analyzed with Excel Table 4.11 indicates the results of the questionnaire

Table 4.11 illustrates the attitude of students towards the use of photovoice Overall, students had highly positive opinions about photovoice implementation

Regarding the question of students’ stance about the lessons applied photovoice technique, the number of students who liked the lessons accounted for 97%; 3% of them had no idea about the question and no student chose no for this question

In terms of students' thoughts about the teacher’s pronunciation correction 93% of students liked the experience of being helped with pronunciation by the teacher; while 7% of them had no idea about the question There was no student who disagreed with this statement

In relation to the attitudes of students towards the help of parents for taking photos 90% of them liked to be helped by parents; while 7% had no idea and 3% did not like this experience

1 Students’ attitudes towards lessons applied photovoice 29 97 1 3 0 0

Students’ attitudes towards teacher’ pronunciation correction

3 Students’ attitudes towards parents help for taking photos 27 90 2 7 1 3

Students in class 3 had positive attitudes towards the lessons using photovoice A high percentage of students liked the lessons applying photovoice as well as the support from the teacher and parents about the lessons

In conclusion, the support from teachers in lessons with photovoice technique was one of the effective ways to boost the effectiveness of photovoice in practice In addition, the help of parents to take pictures as instructed was also a method to enhance the positive experience of students in lessons with photovoice.

Interview result

Together with the questionnaire, the interview with teachers was also employed Interviews were carried in a classroom at Iris school and interviewers had contact with interviewees for agreement before they were administered Subjects of the interview include 2 teachers of class 2 and 3 The purpose of this interview was to compare the results with the questionnaire, so that the answer for the second question of the study was found out

The interview is recorded, and the total length of each is around 15 minutes

Firstly, the teacher was asked about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ vocabulary for speaking Two interviewees highlighted that using photovoice technique in the speaking classroom is a good way because students will have more chances to memorize words and enrich their vocabulary Below are excerpts that illustrate their points

Interviewee 1: I think it’s a very good way to improve students’ vocabulary for speaking; because students have the chance to memorize words through visual tools

Interviewee 2: Students can definitely enrich their vocabularies by photovoice

In the second question, the interviewees were asked about the alterations that should be employed during the photovoice lessons to further enhance students’ vocabulary for speaking The two interviewees agreed that students’ own photos should be used rather than provided photos due to the fact that students could collect more new words from various scenes The following excerpts illustrate their statements

Interviewee 1: well, students’ photos should be used in the lessons rather than using provided pictures ; you know, new words will appear in different contexts

Interviewee 2: I think it should be the pictures taken by them New things in each picture create a chance for students to get new words

Regarding the third question, when being questioned about positive effects that photovoice techniques provide with students’ pronunciation The interviewees had the same opinions that photovoice was a highly effective teaching method to develop students’ pronunciation, as well as eliminate the shame of students The excerpts below are examples of the statement

Interviewee 1: it’s absolutely good for pronunciation improvement due to the fact that students have to talk and talk; so it clearly reduces their shame to show what they have and teachers have a chance to correct their mistakes

Interviewee 2: photovoice helps students a lot in improving their pronunciation; I saw students struggling with pronunciation at the beginning of the course, at the end of the term; their pronunciation became much better

In the fourth question, interviewees were asked about the alterations that should be done in order to further boost students’ pronunciation The help from the teacher was the answer of both interviewees Below are excerpts that illustrate their point

Interviewee 1: It's definitely the help from teachers

Interviewee 2: I think the feedback from teachers will help a lot

In relation to the fifth question, the researcher asked about the effectiveness of the photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ interaction The interviewees indicate that this technique promoted students to talk and interact more in the class The following excerpts show their points of view

Interviewee 1: Using students’ own materials encourages them to talk more and become more active in the lessons; that is what photovoice brings to the lessons

Interviewee 2: they talk more and laugh more in the class

The last question of the interview investigated the opportunities to further increase students’ interaction The interviewee 1 stated that students’ own pictures are the promotion for their interactions in the class; while the interviewees 2 pointed that smaller numbers of students in the class would work Below are the excerpts that demonstrated their opinions

Interviewee 1: the key point is students’ own pictures; they love to share and be proud of their own things

Interviewee 2: To me, the lesson would go better if there are less students in the class, 15 to 20 students is an ideal number

In conclusion, the interview with teachers indicates important points for the study Photovoice provided an effective learning environment for students with significant improvement of vocabulary, pronunciation and interaction of students Interviewees agreed that photovoice technique was an effective teaching method that help to improve students speaking skills In addition, parents helped to take photos for the study was also a stimulation for students to be more interested in the lessons because the materials used in the lessons was taken from their own situation Teachers’ guide played a pivotal role when applying this technique because students felt more confident when being corrected pronunciation by the teachers.

Findings and Discussion

This part shows the findings and discussion of the author which answer the research questions raised at the beginning of the study.

Findings and discussion for research question 1

In order to answer the research question 1 which is about the effectiveness of using photovoice technique in teaching speaking skills of the third grade students at Iris School, the study employed 3 kinds of students’ test scores: pre, mid and post tests

The findings of pre-test scores showed that students in 3 classes had no significant difference in their speaking skills with average band score ranging from 1.4 to 1.5 which means that before the application of the study students showed had similar speaking levels and they were all suitable for the study.; therefore, the researcher decided to keep all the participants for the next step of the study

The findings of mid-test scores indicated that after 8 weeks of the study, Class 2 and Class 3 achieved higher level of speaking with average band score was 3.16 and 3.13 respectively; while this score in Class 1 was 2.55 which indicated that the application of Photovoice had considerable influence of students’ speaking skill 3 classes all participated in English lessons at school as schedule; however, Class 2 and Class 3 (Photovoice was used in these classes) had much higher average band score than Class 1 (Photovoice was not used in this class)

The findings of post-test scores revealed that after the next 8 weeks, there were considerable change in the test results of three classes Firstly, the band score of class 1 was the lowest (3.41), although the band score of this class increased Secondly, the band score of class 3 was the highest (higher than class 2) which indicated that the adjustments that were applied in class 3 had significant influence on the speaking level of students Lastly, the band score of class 2 was lower than class 3 but higher than class 1 which confirmed the effectiveness of Photovoice as well as the effectiveness of adjustments which were applied in Class 3

Overall, it can be claimed that the result of the study indicates certain significant points for the study Firstly, the test revealed the improvement of students’ speaking performance after 16 weeks of applying photovoice in the lessons At pre-test, students all had similar speaking level; after first 8 weeks, all students in 3 classes showed certain improvement in their speaking skill; however, students in class 1 had lower average Band score than students in class 2 and 3 (classes applying photovoice lessons) which indicates that photovoice played significant role in improvement of the speaking skill of students in these two classes which is in line with the statement of Velea & Alexandru (2017) photovoice had various advantages in term of improving writing and speaking skills as well as motivating creativity; and it also matched with the findings of Widiadnya (2019) which confirmed that photovoice was a remedy for speaking of students in primary school At the following 8 weeks, the researcher changed the way of applying photovoice in class 3 with the support from parents and teachers; data analysis represented an important difference in the speaking level which meant that the changes that were applied in Class 3 brought benefits to students’ speaking skill This finding was in line with the conclusion of Maaly (2021) that indicated that photovoice helped to develop speaking skills of students.

Findings and discussion for research question 2

In order to answer the research question 2 which is about the students’ and teachers’ attitudes toward the use of photovoice technique in teaching speaking skills of the third grade students at Iris School, the study employed questionnaire for students and semi-structured interview for teachers

The findings of students’ questionnaire showed that students had positive attitudes toward the use of Photovoice in English speaking class A high rate of students agreed that they liked the lessons applied Photovoice In addition, students were also into the experience of being corrected pronunciation by teachers and helped to take pictures by parents which emphasized the important role of Photovoice in developing students’ speaking skill and the stimulations that Photovoice gave to students in English classroom

The findings of teachers’ interview indicated that teachers had positive attitudes toward the use of Photovoice The findings confirmed that Photovoice had a significant influence on enhancing students’ speaking level and this technique also gave students motivations to study in English class Teachers were also in favor with this teaching method due to the effectiveness it brought to develop students’ speaking skills

All in all, the questionnaire result emphasized the effectiveness of photovoice in speaking performance of students; a high rate of students liked the lessons employing photovoice, more than that, a majority of students liked the experience of being supported by the teacher with their pronunciation and being helped by parents to take photos for the lessons Harmer (2011) concluded that a student's development in learning a new language depended upon the motivation which was created by communicative activities The interview with 2 teachers who taught class 2 and class 3 indicated that photovoice had a positive influence on students’ vocabulary, pronunciation, and interaction when speaking English; one more important point was that students with pictures of their own showed a high level of motivation in the class which promoted their performance progress Chen

(2001) stated that pictures brought various benefits as they could bridge students with real life through visual context In this study, it can be seen that pictures taken with the help of parents provided students with stimulation to study

To conclude, the study's results are presented in this chapter which indicates the results of the questionnaire, interviews, pre-test, mid-test, and post-tests From these data, the conclusion of the study was drawn.

CONCLUSION

Conclusion

This chapter presents the conclusion as well as the implications and limitations of the study

Photovoice is a new technique that should be applied more in the teaching environment because of its various advantages This study aimed at answering two questions that were the extent that photovoice technique influence in teaching speaking skills of the third grade students at Iris school and attitudes of students and teachers toward the use of Photovoice in English speaking classes Firstly, photovoice effectively influences a student's speaking level at Iris school, at pre- test, students in class 1, 2 and 3 had similar speaking level with average Band score was around 1.4 and 1.5 After 8 weeks, photovoice showed a positive effect on students in class 2 and 3 with considerable improvement in students’ average Band score (3.13 and 3.16); while class 1 which was not applied photovoice technique showed a lower level of improvement in speaking Band score (2.55) After the mid-test (8 weeks), adjustments used in Class 3 which were the pronunciation correction from the teacher when students made mistakes at class and the help of parents to take photos preparing for the lessons at home, students’ speaking level in class 3 performed better than class 1 (no application of photovoice) and class 2 (application with no adjustment) The average Band score of class 3 was 4.7 while this of class 2 was 4.1 and of class 1 was 3.4 Secondly, teacher’s help with pronunciation correction and parents with taking photos for the lessons were ways could be applied at Iris school to help the photovoice technique became more effective The questionnaire reinforced these methods were effective with 97% of students liked lessons using photovoice; 93% of students liked the experience of being corrected pronunciation by the teacher; 90% of students liked the experience of being helped by parents to take pictures for the lessons The interview emphasized the effectiveness of photovoice as well as the adjustments applied for this technique at Iris school In short, both students and teachers had positive attitudes toward the use of photovoice in English speaking classes.

Implications of the study

After 16 weeks of study, the findings indicate that the photovoice technique worked effectively in Iris school which develops students’ speaking ability and suggest actions that could be put into practice to help improve the application of photovoice technique at Iris school The results of the study suggest the implications for students and teachers

For students, photovoice technique is an effective learning method to improve speaking ability because it creates a speaking environment for students Moreover, this technique provides students with motivation to speak confidently and interact actively in the class With the support from teachers and parents, students obtain more confidence and stimulation to speak English

For teachers, photovoice technique is a novel and effective teaching way to develop students’ speaking skills due to the fact that this technique provides students with active speaking environment This technique is also a method of blended-learning which gives tasks to students at home and it connects students with their parents when young students ask their parents help to take photos In addition, this method gives students motivation to speak and interact confidently in the class.

Limitations of the study suggestions for further research

After the implementation of the study, there were certain limitations that could be recognized by the researcher Firstly, the participants were in grade 3, so that the study could not analyze the influence of this method in other grades; the author would like to recommend other studies to investigate the effect of photovoice technique on to other grades and ages Secondly, the study explored only the influence of photovoice technique on the speaking skill of the participants, there are still other skills that should also be investigated Hence, the author would like to suggest that other researchers evaluate other English-learning skills such as grammar, writing, and listening and reading

All in all, this chapter presents the study's conclusion Furthermore, the study's limitations and implications are also discussed

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Appendix 1: Pre-tests used for assessing student’s level and improvement in speaking skills

1.1 Look at the big picture and point the object

• Where’s the cup? (It’s on the table)

1.2 Look at the small pictures and put the object card in various locations on the big picture

• Which is the robot? Put the robot on the red chair

• Which is the hat? Put the hat on the table

PART 2: LOOK AT THE BIG PICTURE AND ANSWER THE

• What color is it? (Answer: yellow)

• Tell me about the girl (Answer: She is eating)

PART 3: LOOK AT THE SMALL PICTURES AND ANSWER THE

• What’s this? (Answer: orange juice)

• What do you drink for lunch?

PART 4: ANSWER THE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOU:

• Which sport do you like?

• What is your favorite food?

Appendix 2: Mid-tests used for assessing student’s level and improvement in speaking skills

1.1 Look at the big picture and point the object

• Where’s the box? (It’s next to the table)

1.2 Look at the small pictures and put the object card in various locations on the big picture

• Which is the guitar? Put the guitar next to the elephant

• Which is the hat? Put the hat on the table

PART 2: LOOK AT THE BIG PICTURE AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS

• What color is it? (Answer: yellow)

• Tell me about the man (Answer: He is writing)

PART 3: LOOK AT THE SMALL PICTURES AND ANSWER THE QUESTIONS

PART 4: ANSWER THE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOU:

• What is your favorite color?

• What is your favorite animal?

Appendix 3: Post-tests used for assessing student’s level and improvement in speaking skills

1.1 Look at the big picture and point the object

• Where's the sun? (It’s in the sky.)

1.2 Look at the small pictures and put the object card in various locations on the big picture

• Which is the apple? Put the apple in front of the birds

• Which is the spider? Put the spider on the tree

PART 2: LOOK AT THE BIG PICTURE AND ANSWER THE

• What color is it? (Answer: pink)

• Tell me about the man (Answer: He is holding a ball/ playing with a ball)

PART 3: LOOK AT THE SMALL PICTURES AND ANSWER THE

PART 4: ANSWER THE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOU:

• What is your favorite food?

• Who is your best friend at school?

Appendix 4: Criteria for assessing student’s speaking skills

Band score Vocabulary Pronunciation Interaction

5 has sufficient vocabulary to answer all questions use simple answer, but make some mistakes use words or phrases, even sometimes complete sentences to answer questions most sounds are clear may be able to use stress give suitable answers, but sometimes need help from examiner know how to ask examiner for help when needed answer questions instantly in spite of some hesitation

3 has sufficient vocabulary to answer all questions use simple answer, but make some mistakes which may cause confusion use words or sometimes phrases to answer the question quite easy to understand give suitable answers, but often need help from examiner can ask examiner for help hesitate when giving answer

1 can use vocabulary to answer the question can answer simple questions, but has a lot of mistakes which cause communication problems can answer with simple words or sometime cannot answer the questions try to pronounce although it is not clear and causes confusion often need help and may not be able to answer the questions hesitate when answering which requires listeners to be very patient to understand the answer

Appendix 5: Interview questions Personal information

Full name: ……… Teaching class No: ……

Question 1: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ vocabulary for speaking?

Question 2: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ vocabulary for speaking?

Question 3: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ pronunciation?

Question 4: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ pronunciation?

Question 5: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ interaction?

Question 6: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ interaction?

Appendix 6: STUDENTS’ QUESTIONNAIRE Question 1: Do you like lessons with photovoice?

Question 2: Do you like if teacher gives you pronunciation instructions?

Question 3: Do you like if your parents help you to take photos for the lessons?

- Ask and answer about the name of another person

- Listen and write a name or a number (Listening part 2)

Learning outcomes and Success criteria:

- Ss identify the situation to use Mr., Mrs and Miss

- Ss ask and answer about:

+ name of another person using strucrture: “What’s your name?”

- Ss know how to do the exersice in Listening part 2

Unit vocabulary: Vocabulary: brother, grandmother, school friends, man, woman, teacher, address, street, birthday

2 How do you spell your name?

3 Can you spell your name?

- Play game: GUESS THE NAME!

*Rule: T spells the name of one student in class, he/she will raise their hand to say it aloud Then other students who sit in line horizontally and vertically will stand up quickly If they stand up slowly or don’t stand up, they will lose the game

- T shows pictures about “brother, grandmother, school friends, man, woman, teacher, address, street, birthday”

- T asks Ss to look at the pictures and guess the words

- T checks Ss’ answer and asks Ss to read the words aloud

- T asks Ss to repeat individual and in chorus

- T shows the structures and asks one student to ask and answer the structures as an example

2 How do you spell your name?

3 Can you spell your name?

- T calls some students to answers the questions

- T asks Ss to practice the structures in pairs

- T calls some pairs to asks and answer the structures

- T shows the situation to use Mr., Mrs and Miss and make some example for Ss

Look at the pictures Speak out the name

- T asks Ss to look at the pictures and speak out the name of each person in the picture

- T asks Ss to spell the name of each person in the picture

- T asks some Ss go to the board and speak out the name of the people in the picture

- Consolidate the content of the lesson

- T asks Ss to look at the objects in the picture and repeat the words

- T asks Ss to remind steps to do Listening part 2

- T gives Ss worksheet to do at home

Picture used in the lesson:

Appendix 8: Interview transcripts Interview with teacher 1

Interviewer: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ vocabulary for speaking?

Interviewee 1: I think it’s a very good way to improve students’ vocabulary for speaking; because students have the chance to memorize words through visual tools

Interviewer: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ vocabulary for speaking?

Interviewee 1: well, students’ photos should be used in the lessons rather than using provided pictures ; you know, new words will appear in different contexts

Interviewer: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ pronunciation?

Interviewee 1: it’s absolutely good for pronunciation improvement due to the fact that students have to talk and talk; so it clearly reduces their shame to show what they have and teachers have a chance to correct their mistakes

Interviewer: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ pronunciation?

Interviewee 1: It's definitely the help from teachers

Interviewer: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ interaction?

Interviewee 1: Using students’ own materials encourages them to talk more and become more active in the lessons; that is what photovoice brings to the lessons

Interviewer: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ interaction?

Interviewee 1: the key point is students’ own pictures; they love to share and be proud of their own things

Interviewer: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ vocabulary for speaking?

Interviewee 2: I think it should be the pictures taken by them New things in each picture create a chance for students to get new words

Interviewer: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ vocabulary for speaking?

Interviewee 2: Students can definitely enrich their vocabularies by photovoice

Interviewer: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ pronunciation?

Interviewee 2: photovoice helps students a lot in improving their pronunciation; I saw students struggling with pronunciation at the beginning of the course, at the end of the term; their pronunciation became much better

Interviewer: What should be changed during photovoice lessons to further increase students’ pronunciation?

Interviewee 2: I think the feedback from teachers will help a lot

Interviewer: What do you think about the effectiveness of photovoice technique on the improvement of students’ interaction?

Interviewee 2: they talk more and laugh more in the class.