luận văn english for grade 6

However, not a few complaints about the unsuitability and loaded programme of “TIẾNG ANH 6” have been made by both teachers and students who have been using it.The research on the book w

INTRODUCTION

Background of the study

Textbooks are basic materials, compulsory to use in the school, so they play a crucially important role in teaching and learning From textbooks, students can get access to basic, modern and systematic knowledge In addition to new knowledge, textbooks are also materials that help students consolidate, synthesize, and systematize knowledge through review and study guides

Textbooks play such an important role in the learning and teaching process In fact, Cunningsworth (1995:7) claims that textbooks have multiple roles in ELT Firstly, they can serve as a source of activities for learner practice and communicative interaction Secondly, they can be a reference source for learners on grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, etc Finally, they can be a support for less experienced teachers

Moreover, “textbooks help teachers have more time to think about creating interesting and effective classroom activities to introduce the given content knowledge to learners” (Bell and Gower, 1998 & 2011) Additionally, according to McGrath (2002), textbooks are sometimes considered to offer a clear map for the teacher and learner to follow They indicate to both the teacher and learner where they are, what they have done and what needs to be done to fulfill a specific course aim McGrath (2002) states that,

“They also help learners review and practice what they have learned”

In an effort to carry out reforms in education, the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training has put forward the idea of changing textbooks in order to orientate teachers towards more communicative and effective teaching approach and encourage students to acquire knowledge more actively and effectively textbooks And English is no exception because it has gained greater and greater importance to students‟ secondary education as well as their later career The new textbook is aimed at improving students‟ all four language skills and providing students with much grammar and pronunciation practice in comparison with the old one, which mostly focuses on reading

2 skill and has been considered demanding and rather boring as far as reading texts, are concerned However, not a few complaints about the unsuitability and loaded programme of “TIẾNG ANH 6” have been made by both teachers and students who have been using it.The research on the book was carried out as a result of most secondary school teacher‟s need to amass objective comments on “TIẾNG ANH 6” from students and teachers who have experience of using the book, which would help them to anticipate difficulties to overcome and aspects of the book to adapt for their teaching and learning contexts when it is officially used in their secondary schools

In fact, textbooks are not always professionally designed and do not always fit the curriculum and closely correspond with the aims of the teaching program and the needs of the students Because textbooks have a significant impact on the language teaching, the purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the new textbook English for 6 th grade to find out whether it can be adopted in the current learning and teaching situation Moreover, it is to explore the potential obstacles students and teachers encounter when using the new textbook It also helps the manager and Ministry of Education and Training to select the most appropriate materials available for a particular course It also helps to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the articular textbook that is already in use and, finally, to present some suggestions on how to put the new book in effective use.

Aims of the study

This study aims at evaluating the new textbook for 6 th grade to see if it is appropriate to the students‟ level of English and their background knowledge, exploring the weaknesses in the new textbook English for 6 th grade and presenting some suggestions to help teachers and students to use the book effectively

In order to attain the aforementioned aims, the study seeks to answer the research questions:

1) What are the weaknesses in the new textbook English for 6 th grade?

2) How can teachers and students use the new textbook English for 6 th grade effectively?

This study is significantly conducted for some of the following expected outcomes

Firstly, this study might also help English- language teachers in secondary schools have a useful insight into the new textbook so that they could understand the nature of the material, master and employ the book effectively.Secondly, it may provide some suggestions for the authorities and the group of authors of the textbook at the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training with scientific evidence to improve the quality of the current material being used for grade 6 – students

The study aims to investigate needs and expectations of six-graders in Phu Chanh secondary school and three issues of the new textbook: (1) teachers and student‟s reaction to “TIENG ANH 6”, and teachers and student‟s suggestions for the better use of the new textbook The study, however, does not put equal emphasis on all the aspects of the book but mainly focuses on (1) topics, (2) language content, (3) skills, and (4) methodology

The subjects of the study are 294 students chosen randomly from 1106 students and 19 teachers chosen randomly from 20 teachers of English at Phu Chanh secondary school The study was implemented from early September 2019 to late May 2020 at Phu Chanh secondary school as soon as students stabilize their learning at the beginning of the new school year

Due to the time limit, instruments used to collect data are questionnaires to teachers and students

The study is presented in five chapters:

Chapter 1 provides the background to the study, states the purpose and scope of the study, pose the research questions and hypotheses, states the significance of the study and draw the overall structure of the study

Chapter 2 describes the review of related literature and also states the research gap

Chapter 3 describes the research methodology applied in this study such as research design, participants, instruments and research procedure

Chapter 4 discusses the results of the study in which the data collected from the participants will be analyzed and reported

Chapter 5 summarizes the main findings of the study and suggests implications for further improvements

So far this chapter has presented an introduction to the research paper using the background, the aims and the scope of the study and significance of the study As stated in the previous section, the next chapter will explore the literature review.

Scope of the study

The study aims to investigate needs and expectations of six-graders in Phu Chanh secondary school and three issues of the new textbook: (1) teachers and student‟s reaction to “TIENG ANH 6”, and teachers and student‟s suggestions for the better use of the new textbook The study, however, does not put equal emphasis on all the aspects of the book but mainly focuses on (1) topics, (2) language content, (3) skills, and (4) methodology

The subjects of the study are 294 students chosen randomly from 1106 students and 19 teachers chosen randomly from 20 teachers of English at Phu Chanh secondary school The study was implemented from early September 2019 to late May 2020 at Phu Chanh secondary school as soon as students stabilize their learning at the beginning of the new school year

Due to the time limit, instruments used to collect data are questionnaires to teachers and students.

Structure of the study

The study is presented in five chapters:

Chapter 1 provides the background to the study, states the purpose and scope of the study, pose the research questions and hypotheses, states the significance of the study and draw the overall structure of the study

Chapter 2 describes the review of related literature and also states the research gap

Chapter 3 describes the research methodology applied in this study such as research design, participants, instruments and research procedure

Chapter 4 discusses the results of the study in which the data collected from the participants will be analyzed and reported

Chapter 5 summarizes the main findings of the study and suggests implications for further improvements.

Summary

So far this chapter has presented an introduction to the research paper using the background, the aims and the scope of the study and significance of the study As stated in the previous section, the next chapter will explore the literature review

LITERATURE REVIEW

Definitions of terms

Awasthi (2006) offers a very detailed definition, saying a textbook is a teaching and learning material for both the teacher and the learner to rely on in the process of teaching and learning Tomlinson (2011) defines the textbook as one of the materials used to help teachers teach learners Hutchinson & Torres (1994) says that a textbook is a guide for teachers in teaching, and a tool for learners to review knowledge It is also considered a record for measuring what has been taught by the teachers Cunningsworth‟s (1995) definition is as follows:

“A textbook is defined as an effective resource for self-directed learning, an effective source of presentation of materials, a source of ideas and activities, a reference source for students,a syllabus where they reflect predetermined language objectives, and support for less experienced teachers who have yet to gain confidence”

(Cunningsworth, 1995 as cited in Awasthi, 2006: 2) This definition seems to cover many things In general, different writers have their own definitions of textbooks, based on how and in which context textbooks are used However,there is one thing they have in common: textbooks are considered to be a source for both the teacher and the learner.There are various definitions for textbook

“Textbook is a book used for instructional purposes, especially in schools and colleges (Harris & nHodges, 1995:124), books used by students for particular branches of study can be characterized by another important feature: their intrinsically challenging nature Thus, in the introductory part of her innovative ESL textbook, Price-Machado (1998) acknowledges, "the development of a textbook is a long and complex process, and many individuals contribute along the way" Textbooks are commodities, political objects, and cultural representations and, therefore, are the site and result of struggles and compromise in order to determine how and by whom they will be produced, how and by

6 whom their contents will be selected, how and to whom they will be distributed, and how teachers and students will make use of them (Shannon, 2010)

Objectives are defined as “the specific ways in which the goals will be achieved” (Graves, 1996: 17) Brown (1995: 21) explains that “objectives are precise statements about what content or skills the students must master in order to attain a particular goal” Nunan (1988: 79) claims that “objectives are shorter – term, concrete ideas of how we can achieve the goals”.These can be achieved the syllabus designer "through a process of introspecting on the sorts of communicative purposes for which language is used."

The term task has been defined by many researchers Long (1985:89) defines task as “a piece of work undertaken for oneself or for others, freely or for some reward” Moreover, Crookes (1986: 1) regards it as “a piece of work or an activity, usually with a specified objective, undertaken as part of an educational course, or at work” Breen (1987:23) comprehends task as “a range of work plans” which have the overall purpose of facilitating language learning – from the simple and brief exercise type to more complex and lengthy activities such as group problem – solving or stimulation and decision making In addition, Prabhu (1987:24) claims that a task is “an activity which required learners to arrive at an outcome from given information through some process of thought, and which allowed teachers to control and regulate that process” Additionally, Breen (1987: 23) defines task as “any structured language learning endeavor which has a particular objective, appropriate content, a specified working procedure, and a range of outcomes for those who undertake the task

According to Richards (1992:363), methodology (in language teaching) is “the study of the practices and procedures used in teaching, and the principles and beliefs that underlie them Methodology includes: a study of the nature of language skills (e.g., reading, writing, speaking, listening) and procedures for teaching them b study of the preparation of lesson plans, materials, and textbooks for teaching language skills c the evaluation and comparison of language teaching method (e.g., the audiolingual method)”

Review of related literature

In the teaching-learning process, textbook plays a significant role dealing with the material which will be delivered to the learners Cunningsworth (1995) mentions the roles of materials in the textbook in language teaching These include the following: a A resource for presentation materials (spoken and written) b A source of activities for learner practice and communicative interaction c A reference source for learners on grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and so on, d A source of stimulation and ideas for classroom activities, e A syllabus (where they reflect learning objectives that have already been determined), and f A support for less experienced teachers who have yet to gain in confidence (Cunningsworth, 1995: 7)

In addition to being a learning instrument, textbooks are used as a supporting teaching instrument (Ur, 1996) Textbooks also provide some road maps for both teachers and students to follow Ur (1996) states that a textbook provides a clear framework, teachers and learners know where they are going and what is coming next, so that there is a sense of structure and progress Ur (1996) states that textbooks serve as a guide to be used in a systematic way in the classroom as a basis of language course Apart from their function as a guideline in teaching language process, textbooks also serve as a basis and s determining factor of the teaching learning quality Besides, Ur (1996) points out that “The textbook provides texts and learning tasks which are likely to be of an appropriate level for most of the class This of course saves time for the teacher who would otherwise have to prepare his or her own”.A textbook can be defined as written information about a particular subject for those who are studying about that subject According to Ur (1999: 79), a textbook gives a clear framework of learning process and tasks According to Ur (1996) in some places, course book is taken for granted In other places they are not used at all and in some situations they are used selectively based on the proper parts for the objectives of the course He names some advantages of course book such as;“The coursebook provides a clear framework for both teachers and learners Following this framework they feel progress.Sometimes, it is used

8 as a syllabus in which the content is systematically determined.It provides teachers with ready –made texts and tasks of appropriate level of difficulty and save their time.The coursebook can be used as guidance for inexperienced teachers and it also increase the autonomy of the learners.”

Byrd (as cited in Murcia, 2001: 415) states that content, teaching, and learning activities which influence much of every learning process in the classroom are supported in the textbooks Another research by Awasthi (2006: 1) shows that textbooks are such teaching materials for teacher and learning materials for students Tomlinson (2011: 296) argues that textbooks provide core materials for a language-learning course and aim to serve what student and teacher need during a learning process Cunningsworth (1995: 1) believes that textbooks can make learning process easier and more enjoyable In addition, Hutchinson and Torres (as cited in Harmer, 2007: 181) mention that textbooks support an encouragement for methodological development Overall, it can be concluded that textbooks can be specified as teaching aids which help learning process especially in EFL context

Textbooks are the central core of a variety of language learning and teaching programs and they have many advantages for both teachers and students According to Richards (2001) “they provide structure and a syllabus for a program” Also, Hutchinson and Torres (1994) as quoted purposes of textbook evaluation by Liz (2005) state their vital role in learning and teaching programs as the following:“The textbook is an almost universal element of English language teaching Millions of copies are sold each year, and numerous aid projects have been set up to complete until it has its relevant textbook.”According to the above mentioned scholars, textbooks are of great significance for teaching and learning.Teaching and learning are tasks carried out by teachers and students Then the teachers and learners need textbooks The teachers use the textbooks not as the objectives of instruction but as an instrument in order to acquire their objectives or aims (Brown, 1995) They tell the teachers “what to teach and in what order (Davies and Pearse, 2000) And “they help standardize instruction They also provide inexperienced teachers with congruous training activities of how to present and sequence”

Hunchinson and Torres (1994: 323) propose that textbooks serve as an agent of change This condition happens for several reasons First, textbooks become a basis for

9 negotiation.In the principle, extbooks allow negotiation between all related parties which further create a framework for the management of the lesson.Second, textbooks offer a flexible framework in which informed choices can be made by teachers Third, textbooks lead to the teacher development in the sense that they require teachers to be creative in using textbooks in the classroom practices.Fourth, textbooks are workable compromise thing in which teachers can easily negotiate with.Textbook, on the other hand, are also seen to provide two kinds of roles in language teaching.Allwright as quoted in Richards and Renandya (2002:81) lists two functions of textbooks in the classroom.The first view, called a deficiency in the classroom.Also, they are used to ensure that the syllabus has been covered by using appropriate tasks and activities.The second view, commonly known as a difference view, sees that materials are carriers of decisions best made by parties other than teachers because of different expertise.In general, the roles of textbooks in the classroom can be summarized into two aspects namely negotiate and deficiency.Negotiate means that teachers could easily compromise with several aspects with regard to their implementation in the classroom Deficiency, on the other hand, supports the teacher‟s drawbacks in developing the teaching and learning process.The two aforesaid principles are then primarily aimed at fostering their professional development

According to Edge & Wharton (1998), textbooks provide a readily available source of ELT materials for teachers to focus on doing the real work of teaching, and not having their energy dispersed by preparation of teaching materials The way textbook chapters are designed and structured can provide a blueprint of how lessons shall be conducted (Hutchinson & Torres 1994) Textbooks can also serve as a tool to motivate and stimulate language learning (Allwright 1981, Lee 1997, Skierso 1991) In a learning environment in which learners are motivated and positive about their learning environment, the speed of language acquisition can be greatly enhanced, making language learning more effective (Tomlinson 2008:5) textbooks can serve as a reference point for teachers managing their teaching progress, and also help to provide a focus for teaching (Tomlinson 2008) One of the major motivations in using textbooks in the ELT environment is that textbooks can serve as a good monitor for measuring progress of teaching and learning Textbooks can have a similar function of a map,

10 showing the teaching progress (McGrath 2002, O‟Neil 1982, Ur 1996) and can providefor direction and ideas in how lessons can be delivered (Tomlinson 2008) They are effective tools in terms of allowing for carefully planned and systematic presntation of the syllabus of an ELT program (Ur 1996) and can facilitate curriculum change (McGrath 2002) textbooks are particularly useful in providing support and security for new inexperienced teachers or teachers, who have relatively low confidence to deliver ELT lessons in a communicative way (Edge & Wharton 1998, Mares 2003, Tomlinson

2008, Ur 1996) A good textbook can be an extremely valuable ELT device, especially in situations where interesting and motivating authentic materials are difficult to compile in an organized manner (McDonough & Shaw 1993)

Students can also benefit from using textbooks in many different ways Similar to the case of teachers, textbooks can act as a reference point for their learning process and keep track of their development (O‟Neil 1982) Students can use the textbook as a tool for revision of previously taught items, and at the same time, familiarize themselves with the new items that will be taught soon Textbooks are also one of the more economic and convenient forms of access to carefully structured packaged learning materials (O‟Neil

1982, Ur 1996) According to Cunningsworth (1995), textbooks provide additional benefits to students as they are an efficient collection of materials for self-accessed learning and for knowledge consolidation Textbooks can also potentially save learners from teacher‟s incompetency and deficiencies (O‟Neil 1982, Litz 2005)

According to Tomlinson (2003), textbooks will give teachers instructions on how to carry out the lessons They also help teachers save time on lesson preparation and materials production, as some textbooks provide photocopiable activity sheets and pictures to introduce new language material to learners.The role of the textbook in the language classroom is a difficult one to be defined perfectly and exactly Using only textbooks, from cover to cover, without any supplemental material is not the most satisfactory method for meeting students‟ needs However, both teachers and students need a framework on which to build and textbooks definitely provide this It is important that instructors strike a balance between being a slave to their texts and providing organized, objective-based instruction (Garinger, 2002)

Textbooks are often referred to as being a core source for teaching, learning and classroom interaction In fact, almost all teachers use published textbooks in their teaching career (Cunningsworth, 1995; Hutchinson and Torres, 1994 and Tomlinson, 2003) Textbooks are widely used by teachers and have the following advantages:

 In Donoghue‟s (1992) survey of 76 experienced and inexperienced teachers, he showed that the majority of teachers used teachers‟ guides at least once or twice a week This suggested that textbooks, with their supplementary components are an important source of information in teaching

 Textbooks, with their supplementary components (teachers‟ guides, workbooks, tests, and other audio-visual devices), can provide useful and necessary classroom work for general language courses (Crawford, 2002; Littlejohn, 1992; McGrath, 2002 and Tomlinson, 2003)

 According to Tomlinson (2003), textbooks help to „re-skill‟, rather than

„de-skill‟ teachers This is because textbooks with their teacher‟s manuals give teachers instructions on how to carry out the lessons They also help teachers save time on lesson preparation and materials production, as some textbooks provide photocopiable activity sheets and pictures to introduce new language material to learners

 Textbooks help teachers have more time to think about creating interesting and effective classroom activities to introduce the given content of knowledge to learners (Bell and Gower, 1998 & 2011)

Review of previous studies

2.3.1 Previous studies carried out in foreign countries

Litz (2002) evaluated the material “ English Firsthand 2” used for undergraduate science students at the Sung Kyun Kwan University Science & Technology in Suwon, South Korea in 2000-01 school years The findings of this study revealed that this is a good textbook because the textbook was attractive in physical appearance It was organized clearly and logically to reflect a topic-based structural-functional syllabus which facilitates communicative competence It was a multi-skill focus textbook, which integrates the four language skills without neglecting the development of other language elements such as vocabulary and grammar Activities and tasks in the textbook were found to be communicative The study concluded with recommendations for supplementing, modifying and adapting problematic aspects In addition, consciousness- raising activities, genuine negotiation of meaning tasks, and cooperative learning strategies were suggested by the author

Litz (2005)‟s study evaluated a university level textbook used in one of the language courses at a university in South Korea A total of eight university instructors teaching that particular language course and five hundred students had been surveyed The study adopted a post-use evaluation approach focusing on how the textbook can meet student‟s and teacher‟s needs “This research project needed to be initiated in order to determine the overall pedagogical value and suitability of this book towards this important component of the university language program” Questionnaires were sent to both students and teachers to survey their post-use experience on their perceived pedagogical value of the content of the textbook and also practical considerations such as layout and design A student learning needs analysis had also been conducted as the researcher felt that such analysis can help course designers to ensure that the teaching objectives of the language course are aligned with student needs

Alamri (1998) conducted a study to evaluate the Sixth Grade English Language Textbook for Saudi Boys' Schools A 63-item questionnaire was grouped under 12 main categories: the general appearance, design and illustration, accompanying materials, objectives, topic appropriateness, language components, socio-cultural contexts, skills development, reachability, flexibility, teaching methods, and practice and testing Alamri (1998) used a method of collecting data by using documents and records, involving

24 documents planning, needs statements, objectives and targets of the education program, lesson records of teachers and so forth The findings of this study revealed that this is a good textbook because it satisfies almost all the categories listed Ten points of recommendations emphasizing the characteristics of a good textbook is also made in terms of glossary, attractive illustrations, critical thinking topics, better listening materials, students' multi-intelligences consideration and so on

Aftab (2011) evaluated a series of 7 ELT textbooks (English 6; Every Day English

6; Guided English 0; Oxford Progressive English 5; Oxford Progressive English 6; Advance with English 1 and Step Ahead 1) used in Pakistan in both public and private education systems Data in this study were collected from a variety of instruments (interviews, questionnaires, documentation) and from many participants including stakeholders (at universities and job markets); officials (Ministry of Education and private publishing house); school administrators; English teachers and students He conducted his study in 5 stages

Stage 1 involved data collection and analysis to uncover the role of English in

Stage 2 involved the collection and analysis of the previous English language national curriculum, and the most recent one, to discover the main learning objectives and the textbook policies The English syllabi of private schools were scanned to find out the English language teaching goals

Stage 3 involved interviews with officials from the Ministry of Education and private publishing house for information on the textbook policy and process of writing the textbooks

Stage 4 involved a survey of the views of school administrators, English teachers and students It was conducted in both interviews and questionnaires

Stage 5 considered the actual evaluation of the textbooks

In this study, the author found that the textbooks were linguistically appropriate (most vocabulary and sentence structures were easy and simple and compatible with relevant learners‟ linguistic abilities) and focused on language functions (e.g greetings, farewells, asking for and giving information/permission, giving advice in Every Day English Book 6; orders, instructions, polite requests in Guided English Book 0; etc.)

Some books had useful topics (both familiar, e.g family, local festivals, health in English

Book 6; holidays, daily routines, public transport in Every Day English Book 6, etc and unfamiliar, e.g pre-historic times, classical tales in Oxford Progressive English Book 5; myths, legends in Oxford Progressive English Book 6) and provided for skills integration A small number of the textbooks had „effective vocabulary building tasks

(e.g Oxford Progressive English Book 5, Oxford Progressive English Book 6) and a variety of authentic reading texts‟ (Aftab, 2011:342) However, the author also concluded that listening and writing skills were ignored, and that speaking activities were unrealistic

(speaking activities focus on grammar structure in Guided English 0; „speaking tasks involve chorus reading of a poem and acting out texts like the folk tale‟ ‘The content to be used in the oral discussions is either suggested by the text or is purely subjective‟ Aftab (2011: 302) in Oxford Progressive English Book 6) The textbooks mainly focused on accuracy without communicative or creative potential.Aftab collected data from a variety of sources to make sure there was sufficient data for textbook evaluation The data from stakeholders helped shed light on English language policy and the objectives of the textbooks and the role of English in Pakistan However, he did not investigate the organization and activities of the textbooks in detail The usefulness of the textbooks to the teaching and learning process was also not mentioned and he did not make any recommendations for improving the textbooks or for future textbooks for the Pakistani context

Al-Youself (2007)‟s master thesis evaluated secondary level third grade intermediate English textbooks used in Saudi Arabia.The study used the checklist- method for evaluation which, based on the work of Cunningsworth (1995), was a modified checkilist suitable for the local environment.The checklist which was termed by the author “ Textbook Evaluation Tool” or simply “TET” was then sent to a group of one hundred and eight four research participants consisted of teachers and students as a questionnaires for a post-use evaluation of the etxtbook.Quantitative methods were applied to analyze the evaluation results Two unstructured interviewes were also conducted with two administrations in Saudi Arabian Ministry of Education to provide supporting data to the evaluation findings

Jahangard‟s study (2007) study was carried out to evaluate the four ELT textbooks

(English Book 1,English Book 2, English Book 3 and Learning to Read English for Pre-

University Students) used in Iranian High Schools The author of the study evaluated the

26 four textbooks theoretically, using 13 evaluation criteria he believed to be the most common among 10 materials evaluation checklists proposed by different authors The 13 evaluation criteria include:

Are objectives explicitly laid out in the introduction and implemented in the material?

 Does it give good vocabulary explanation and practice?

 Are the approaches taken educationally and socially acceptable to the target

 What type of periodic review and test sections do they have?

 Are appropriate visual materials available?

 Do they have interesting topics and tasks?

 Do they give clear instructions?

 Is the layout and print clear, attractive and easy to read?

 Is the content clearly organized and graded?

 Do they contain plenty of authentic language?

 Do they include good grammar presentation and practice?

 Do they allow fluency practice in all four skills?

 Do they encourage learners to develop their own learning strategies and to

 become independent in their learning?

He scrutinized the four textbooks against each evaluation criterion and analyzed them under each heading The study found that the textbooks mainly provided reading activities, and grammar practice involving repetition, substitution and transformation objectives One of the textbooks (Learning to Read English for Pre-University Students) was considered to help learners develop learning strategies by stating clearly the characteristics of good learners This was thought to „familiarize the learners with cognitive and behavioral strategies or, at least, raise their consciousness about learning strategies‟ (Jahangard, 2007: 147) However, the author concluded that the series failed to meet most of the above-mentioned criteria (e.g out-of-date topics, incompatibility between the meanings of words in the „Reading Comprehension Section‟ and „New Word Section‟, etc.) He also suggested that the series needed a deeper analysis by a group of experienced teachers to make sure the judgments were unbiased The study used evaluation criteria needed for an overall evaluation and analyzed each criterion carefully

27 with reference to the literature and illustrations taken from the textbooks.However, this was a theoretical and subjective evaluation, involving only the author‟s opinions without feedback from users, so bias is unavoidable

2.3.2 Previous studies carried out in Viet Nam

Nguyễn Thị Hương Lan (2004) made an evaluation of the piloted "English 10 textbook 2" at Nguyen Tat Thanh high school The author used the model suggested by

Hutchinson and Waters (1993) which was reflected in a twenty-item questionnaire for teachers and another twenty-two-item questionnaire for students and informal interviews with the teacher informants and the student sample to evaluate the textbook's objectives, content and methodology as compared to the statement objectives and aims defined by the Vietnam's Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) for grade 10 The findings of this study show that the textbook under evaluation partly met the course requirements and suitable to the students' level of English in such areas as suitable topics, appropriate listening sections, various and appropriate text types and skill-integrated task types and activities However, students' ability to communicate in English about the required topics stated in the objectives are not well-met; the texts on speaking, reading, and writing skills are difficult and there are not enough proper instructions given Some adjustment of content and methodology, exercises designed basis and adaptation techniques such as adding, deleting, simplifying, and reordering are also included in the study

Nguyen‟s study (2011) study aimed to evaluate the pragmatic content of a series of textbooks ( English 10, 11 and 12 ) used in senior secondary schools in Vietnam She focused on how speech acts are linguistically presented in the textbooks and whether they provided adequate contextual and meta-pragmatic information to facilitate the learning of those speech acts The evaluation was based on her own expert opinion and reference to the literature First, she listed all speech acts presented in the three books of the series and then analyzed their range, distribution, presentations and linguistic realization.The study found that the distribution of speech acts in the series seemed to be neither patterned nor justified The order of appearance of the speech acts was not reasonable (i.e., speech acts which require linguistic complexity, such as complaining, declining an invitation, etc., were introduced earlier than the less complex ones, such as responding to thanks) Contextual and meta-pragmatic elements were also ignored, as the majority of the speech acts in the series were introduced and practiced out of context,

Conceptual framework of the study

There is a variety of evaluation criteria discussed in the literature Ur (1996) suggests seven criteria Theories by Ur (1996) were to survey objectives, layout and visual material, tasks, content, language, skills and vocabulary Tomlinson (2003) suggests five criteria Theories by Tomlinson (2003) were to survey organization and structure, tasks, vocabulary and grammar, language level and supporting resource Cunningsworth (1995) suggests four criteria Theories by Cunningsworth (1995) were to survey skills, language content, topic and methodology In this study, I completely agree with theories by Cunningsworth (1995) because in this study, I just focus on 2 aspects They are the potential obstacles in teaching and learning the new textbook English for 6 th grade and how effectively the teachers and students use the new textbook English for 6 th grade I choose the theories by Cunningsworth (1995) for textbook evaluation because of the purpose of the study and the conditions of the study.

The objectives of the English language training program

The general education program in English helps students have a new, forming and communicating tool develop students the ability to communicate in English through listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills End of curriculum in high school education, students with the ability to communicate reach level 3 of the 6-level Language Proficiency Framework for Vietnam, creating a foundation for students to use English in learning, forming lifelong learning habits to become successes global people in the integration period

The general education program in English helps students have an overview of the country, people and background the culture of some English-speaking countries and of others around the world; has a good attitude and affection towards the land countries, people, cultures and languages of those countries In addition, general education program in English also contributes to the formation and development of students the qualities and competencies necessary for employees: awareness and labor responsibility, orientation and career selection in accordance with capacity, interests, and adaptability in the context new industrial revolution scene

After completing the middle school English language program, students can:

-Use English as a communication tool through four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing to meet needs communicate basic and direct in close and everyday situations

- Have basic knowledge of English, including phonetics, vocabulary, grammar, through English, there is conceptual understanding overview of the country, people and cultures of the English – speaking countries and other countries around the world, at the same time understanding and being proud of the values of their own culture

-Have a positive attitude towards the subject and learning English, initially knowing how to use English to learn the subjects other in general education

- Form and apply different learning methods and strategies to develop language communication skills He is inside and outside the classroom, managing study time and forming self-study habits

The curriculum aims and objectives for English grade 6

The curriculum aims and objectives (MoET) for English at junior high school level says grade 6 pupils should be able to undertake the following:

- Listen to understand the English used in the classroom

- Listen and understand short passages (about 80-100 words) about simple topics with language content mentioned in the program

- Make simple communication exchanges in English in the classroom and out of the classroom

- Make communication about topics using the language learned in the program

- Read and understand the main content of short and simple passages (about 100-

120 words) within the range of topics learned in the program

- Read and understand the main content of documents on the learned database combined with inferencing and looking up dictionary

- Write a short passage (approximately 40-60 words) describing or reporting a class activities within the framework of the language and theme of the program

- Write to serve simple personal and social communication needs such as filling out personal forms, questionnaires, writing letters to friends…

Summary

In short, this chapter covers the literature review of the current study, which helps the researcher gain insights into various issues related to the focus of the study The chapter has presented some definitions, review of related literature, and review of previous studies and conceptual framework of the study

METHODOLOGY

Research Questions

The study will be conducted to answer the following research questions:

1)What are the weaknesses in the new textbook English for 6 th grade?

2)How can teachers and students use the new textbook English for 6 th grade effectively?

Research design

For the purpose of research, this study is carried out with a considerable concentration on quantitative method.and qualitative method The quantitative data was mainly used to find out the answer for the first research question and the second research question that were to see teachers and students‟ attitudes towards the weaknesses in English for 6 th grade and the suggestions which help teachers and students use the book effectively The first question – the weaknesses that students and teachers encounter when using the new textbook- will be analyzed based on the results of the questionnaires And the second questions - the suggestions which help teachers and students use the book effectively-will be mentioned in the last chapter (implications and recommendations)

To find the answer of the first question and the second question, two sets of questionnaires in this study were designed to gain teachers and students‟ attitudes towards the obstacles in teaching and learning the new textbook English for 6 th grade Based on the results of the questionnaires, the first and the second research question of the study will be answered

Then, the researcher interviewed three teachers to identify the teacher‟s attitudes towards the weaknesses in English for 6 th grade and the suggestions which help teachers and students use the book effectively Finally, the study was implemented to find out the weaknesses that students and teachers encounter when using the new textbook and the suggestions which help teachers and students use the book effectively

Population and sample

Textbook evaluation is usually done by those teachers who teach a particular book, but Chambers (1997) has pointed out that this activity is usually more beneficial if it is collectively undertaken by everyone involved in the teaching and learning process

He suggests that when teaching materials are to be used by a large group of teachers and students it seems sensible for these materials to be evaluated by all or most of those who will be involved in their use Therefore, the research popultion of this study is of two groups: teacher population and student population

The number of English teachers at Phu Chanh Secondary school is twenty, aged 26-43 years old All of them have B.A degrees Most of the teachers graduated from Thu Dau Mot University majoring in English teaching The oldest teacher has nearly 20 years of teaching experience, and the youngest one just has 1 year All of them have got B2 or C1 certificates (according to CFFR) to be qualified for teaching

The reason for choosing the teachers is that they are the ones who receive positive feedback or complaints about the textbook These teachers have been teaching the new textbook “TIẾNG ANH 6” for several years Thus, these experienced instructors have enough knowledge and ability to identify their strengths and weaknesses The teachers had taken a training course in using the book effectively with Communicative Approach run by the Ministry of Education and Training before being entrusted with the task of teaching English to sixth- graders Most of them are experienced teachers, among whom one had taught for one year, two for three years, one for eight years, one for ten years, one for twelve years, and one teacher did not give the information

The number for grade 6 students at Phu Chanh Secondary school is 1106.Most of the students come from nearby districts such as Phu Giao, Dau Tieng, Ben Cat, and Tan Uyen The education background of most students before they admitted into school is above average However, some student‟s background is also good Some students' English competence are at the qualified level at A1 and A2 Most of the student‟s parents are busy and have little time to take care of them so they choose the

37 school for their children to stay and study in the daytime Students usually learn 5 periods in the morning and 3 periods in the afternoon Each period lasts 45 minutes.

The researcher followed these steps to extract a simple random sample of 19 teachers out of 20 According to Denscome (2003), there are 10 basic sampling techniques including random sampling, systematic sampling, cluster sampling, multi- stage sampling, quota sampling, purposive sampling, theoretical sampling, snowball sampling, and convenience sampling.Each sampling technique has different characteristics and their own methods in selecting the people or items tobe involved in the sample.Therefore, the choice of sampling techniquedepends on the needs of the researchers and the purpose of research.The researcher used simple random sampling methods because it helped ensure high internal validity In addition, randomization is the best method to reduce the impact of potential confounding variables (Denscome, 2003) The researcher created a list of the numbers All were assigned a number to every teacher at school database from 1 to 20 and use SPPS to select teachers All of the teachers were teaching English at Phu Chanh secondary school The majority of them were females (15 teachers) and only four teachers were males All had bachelor‟s degree

There were 294 students taking part in the research All the students varying from

11 to 12 years old, which were the normal ages for grade 6 students in the whole country The English competence of some students is at the qualified level at A1and A2.According to Denscome (2003), there are 10 basic sampling techniques including random sampling, systematic sampling, cluster sampling, multi-stage sampling, quota sampling, purposive sampling, theoretical sampling, snowball sampling, and convenience sampling.Each sampling technique has different characteristics and their own methods in selecting the people or items tobe involved in the sample.Therefore, the choice of sampling techniquedepends on the needs of the researchers and the purpose of research.The researcher uses simple random sampling methods because it helped ensure high internal validity In addition, randomization is the best method to reduce the impact of potential confounding variables (Denscome, 2003) The researcher followed these steps to extract a simple random sample of 294 students out of 1106 Initially, the

38 researcher made a list of all the students Then, the researcher assigned a sequential number to each student Next, the researcher figured out what the sample size is going to be In this case, the sample size is 294.Finally; the researcher used a random number table to select students.

Instrumentation

To collect the necessary data, the author used two research instruments The first instrument is two sets of questionnaires, one is for the teachers and one is for the students The second instrument is interview

The questionnaire sent to the teachers was to collect the information about the perceptions about the book, suggestions for its better use It consists of two main sections, excluding personal information part which gained information about the teachers‟ name and years of teaching experience The first section concentrates on the teacher‟s reaction to “TIẾNG ANH 6” The second section concentrates on the teacher‟s recommendations in term of skills, language content, topics, and methodology, and teaching and learning context Questionnaire for teachers has 15 questions eliciting teacher‟s opinion about the topics (question T1.1-T1.3), the language content (question T2.1- T2.67), skills (question T3.1-13.5) and the methodology (question T4.1 – T4.4) presented in the book In order to minimize misunderstandings that may occur because of the different levels of proficiency, hence impairing the reliability of the responses, the questionnaire was written in Vietnamese However, the questionnaire was translated into English by the researcher

The questionnaire sent to the students was to collect the information about student‟s reaction to “TIẾNG ANH 6” and elicit suggestions for a better English class from the students „point of view This questionnaire includes two sections The first section concentrates on the student‟s reaction to “TIẾNG ANH 6” The second section concentrates on the student‟s recommendations in term of skills, language content, topics, and methodology, and teaching and learning context Questionnaire for students has 15 questions electing student‟s opinion about the topics (questions S1.1-S1.3), the language content (question S2.1- S2.6), skills (question S3.1-S3.5) and the methodology

(question S4.1 – S4.4) presented in the book In order to minimize misunderstandings that may occur because of the different levels of proficiency, hence impairing the reliability of the responses, the questionnaire was written in Vietnamese However, the questionnaire was translated into English by the researcher because of the research

Qualitative research methods are based on the collection and analysis of non- numerial data such as such as observations, interviews, focus groups and videotaping (Gay &Airasian,2003) Meanwhile, interview is a qualitative research technique that is a qualitative research technique that is conducted to explore respondents'perspectives on a particular idea, program, or situation (Mertens,1998) Especially, interviews are personalized, and so permit a level of in-depth information gathering, free responses, and flexibility that cannot be obtained by other procedures The interviewer can deeply probe detailed information about a person's thoughts and behaviors.Hence, the qualitative method with an interview guide for the students is adapted in this study to nvestigat variables to be able to gain more reliable information

In order to collect the qualitative data, the researcher was conducted with three teachers In interviews, the researcher gives the interviewees the chance to express their ideas and interpretations freely and elaborate points ofinterest (Denscombe,2003) In the current study, the aim of the inetrview is to gain more rich data for the questionnaire data.The qualitative data was the interview questions which were designed to get more information about the teacher‟s remarks on the weaknesses that teachers encounter when using the new textbook

The interview questions were designed to elicit the participants‟ perceptions of the textbook, so the questions were mostly based on the questionnaire items, with more emphasis on open-ended items The purpose was to get more detailed data, especially on the advantages and disadvantages the teachers faced using the textbook, their overall evaluation and their suggestions for improvement They also focused on the teachers‟ opinions about the teacher‟s book and the ways teachers were trained to use the textbook.

Data collection

The data collection was done by means of survey questionnaires delivered indirectly to teachers and students because of the covid epidemic, the researcher had difficulty in delivering questionnaires directly Originally, the researcher was going to

40 use interview and questionnaire directly as a tool to investigate teachers‟ attitudes towards the weaknesses in the new textbook English for 6 th grade but only one teacher would take part in the interview However, the researcher found that it was difficult to have a meeting with some teachers because of the covid epidemic and they were too busy After asking some teachers to have an interview, many of them postponed the meeting Therefore, the researcher decided to use questionnaires and interview indirectly as an alternative way By this way, some teachers of English at Phu Chanh were investigated and this would be more helpful for the success of the study Nineteen questionnaires were sent indirectly through email to nineteen teachers who were teaching at Phu Chanh Secondary school

Teacher questionnaires were administered to teachers and were collected one day later Pupil questionnaires were administered at a time arranged by the researcher and the teachers of English in charge The questionnaires were delivered to the teachers and students at Phu Chanh secondary schools at the same time when they have completed the lessons in the textbook “TIẾNG ANH 6” The research data was gathered via the questionnaires delivered to the teachers and students

Interviews were arranged by the researcher (interviewer) and the teachers (interviewees), usually after all teachers had returned the questionnaire to the researcher

In order to ensure that interviewees answered the questions honestly, the researcher tried to make the interviewee relaxed Therefore, after gaining permission for the interview, the researcher invited each teacher interviewee to chat about their teaching experience All the interviews with the teachers were carried out the day of the collection of the questionnaires from the teachers

However, in the context of the covid epidemic, the researcher had difficulty in interviewing directly, so the researcher made a phone call to conduct an interview with 4 teachers.The interviews were carried out individually, lasting about 15 to 25 minutes each and conducted in Vietnamese to make sure there were no language barriers which might prevent the interviewees from expressing their opinions They were all tape- recorded for the purpose of analysis.

Data analysis

The research data was gathered via the questionnaires delivered to the teachers and students The researcher then converted all the data obtained into percentage and

41 listed it in tables and charts All the computing in the analyses was done with the computer package SPSS 11.5 for Windows.The presentation and discussion of the data were in the order of the items in the questionnaire By this way, all the teachers of English at Phu Chanh Secondary school were investigated, and this would be more helpful for the success of the study The questionnaires were sent to nineteen teachers The total number of the respondents was 19 teachers replied For interview, four questions were given to teachers to interview in order to collect the data.After the interview, the researcher analyzed their answer and viewpoint.

Summary

Chapter III has presented the methodology employed in the study to evaluate the new textbook for sixth grade.The questionnaire responses from the student and teacher respondents will be analyzed and discussed in chapter IV

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Analysis of data and discussion of results

4.1.1 Teachers’ and students’ reaction to “TIENG ANH 6”

In this section, “TIENG ANH 6” was evaluated from the viewpoint of both the teachers and the students investigated In each part, therefore, there are two lines of information: from the teachers and the students As mentioned in the first chapter, the analysis will focus on four aspects of the book: topics, language content, skills, and methodology

Topics in the book are interesting

Table 4.1 Teacher’s and students' opinions about interest for topics

As can be seen from the table 4.1, when asked about whether topics in the book were interesting, 84.2% of the teachers thought the topics were interesting, 15.8% of the teachers thought the topics were uninteresting, 68.1% of the students thought they were interesting, 31.9 % of the students considered them very interesting The results showed

43 that 15.8% of the teachers thought that topics in the book were uninteresting while the students thought that they were interesting The big difference between the teachers‟ and the students‟opinions about interests for topics is because of the difference of the age They might look at the problem from different viewpoints The learners have their needs, interest and ability which cannot be decided by the teachers, and which could be different from the teacher‟s When asked which topics were unsuitable, teachers mentioned topics in Unit 12 and unit 13 In Unit 12 instead of a boring passage about how important music was to our lives, the reading text could be about a famous singer/musician who/has great influence on music world It could also be about a new trend in music world or about the music industry, and so on The text about history of cinema in Unit 13 was considered interesting When asked about interest for topics, 15.8% of the teachers thought the text should be about ƣhen movie history began, ƣhat scientists discovered at that time, ƣhether movies in the early days had sound, when audiences were able to see long films, when sound was introduced These topics will help students get some knowledge about the first films (of different kind), talented directors/actors/actress, and annual awards for excellence in the cinema

Topics are suitable with student’s age and interest

Table 4.2 Teacher’s and student’s opinions about suitability of topics with student’s age and interest

As can be seen from the table 4.2, when asked about the suitability of the topics with student‟s age and interest 94.7 % of the teachers found it suitable and 5.3 % of the teachers found it unsuitable However, 61.9% of the students found it suitable and 38.1 %

44 of the students found it very unsuitable The results showed that 5.3% of the teachers thought that topics in the book were uninteresting while the students thought that they were interesting The big difference between the teachers‟ and the students‟ opinions is because because of the difference in their ages The learners have their needs, interest and ability which cannot be decided by the teachers, and which could be different from the teacher‟s When the researcher asked the teachers which topics were unsuitable, teachers mentioned topics in Unit 12 and unit 13

Topics help students widen knowledge and gain experience

Table 4.3 Student’s and teacher’s opinions about widening knowledge and gaining experience for topics

In addition, when asked about whether topics help students widen knowledge and gain experience, nearly all the teachers (94.7%) gave “Yes” answers, only one of them (5.3%) gave “No” answers Moreover, 69.4 % of the students gave “yes” answers, 30.6% of the students gave “No idea” answers

The course book covers the main grammar items appropriate to each learner’s level very inappropriate 0

Table 4.4 Teacher’s and student’s opinions about grammar items to learner’s level

When asked about whether the main grammar items were appropriate to learner‟s level, 42.1% of the teachers found it appropriate and 57.9% of them found it very appropriate However, 50% of the students found it inappropriate, and 50% of the students found it very inappropriate The results showed that 52.6 % of the teachers and

50 % of the students thought the main grammar items were inappropriate or very inappropriate The big difference between the teachers‟ and the students‟opinions about grammar items to learner‟s level 50% of the students mentioned they had not mastered the grammar knowledge at primary school and 50% of the students mentioned there were many new grammar points in the 6 th grade English books that they had not studied at primary school Besides, students were not familiar with the way of learning and teaching English of English teachers at secondary school, so students thought the grammar items in the 6 th grade English books were difficult for them When the researcher asked the students which grammar items were difficult, students mentioned the Present simple and the Present continuous 50% of the students found it difficult to distinguish between the Present simple and the Present continuous When doing exercises about putting the verbs in brackets in the Present simple or Present continuous, the students didn‟t know clearly when to use Present simple and when to use Present continuous In contrast, 42,1 % of the teachers thought that the grammar items in grade

6 th were suitable because the they thought students needed to improve their grammar and got used to the exams, especially the 9 th grade English entrance exam

Language content Students the course book cover the main grammar items appropriate to learner’s needs into account very inappropriate

Table 4.5 Student’s opinions about grammar items to learner’s needs

When asked about the suitability of grammar items to learner‟s needs, 50.1 % of the students agreed that the main grammar items were appropriate to their needs and 48.9% of the students thought the main grammar items were very appropriate

Reading Teachers Students reading passages are suitable for students „levels very unsuitable 2

Table 4.6 Teacher’s and student’s opinions about suitability of reading passages for student’s level

As can be seen from Table 4.5, when asked about the suitability of reading tasks for student‟s level, 89.5% of the teachers found it unsuitable and 10.5 % of the teachers found it very unsuitable In addition, 68.1% of the students found it unsuitable, 31.9 % of the students found it very unsuitable 89.5% of the teachers and 31.9 % of the students thought that reading passages were unsuitable for student‟s level because the content of the reading passages was unrealistic When the researcher asked the students which parts in reading passages were unsuitable or very unsuitable for student‟s levels, 89.5% of the teachers and 31.9 % of the students thought the topics in reading passages were outdated and thus could not help widen learners‟ knowledge.Unit 2 and 3 were typical examples

In Unit 2, the text is mainly sending mail However, nowadays no one used the mailing method anymore The form of this sending mail was only used in the past.Therefore,

47 students found it impractical The reading passage in unit 3 was considered interesting, but it must be more informative such as the location of the school and the difference between the schools so that students could read the text and widen their knowledge about schools around the world such as Sunrise, An Son and Dream

Reading Teachers Students reading activities are suitable for students „levels very unsuitable 2

Table 4.7 Teacher’s and student’s opinions about suitability of reading activities for student’s level

As can be seen from Table 4.6, when asked about the suitability of reading activities for students „level, the teachers considered that 89.5 % of the teachers found it unsuitable and 10.5 % of the teachers found it very unsuitable However, 84% of the students found it suitable, 16 % of the students found it very suitable The big difference between the teachers‟ and the students‟opinions about suitability of reading activities for student‟ is because 89.5 % of the teacher expected to improve students' reading skills with activities that were more challenging for students like finding synonyms, antonyms, and antonyms and paraphase On the contrary, 84 % of the students thought reading activities were appropriate, or even quite easy There were no challenges for students and the questions and exercises in the book were easy enough for students to identify the answers and did the exercises in the reading passages

Listening material is accompanied by yes 6

48 background information, questions and activities which help comprehension

Table 4.8 Students’ and teachers’ opinions about listening activities which help comprehension

When asked whether listening material was accompanied by background information, questions and activities which help comprehension, 31.6% of the teachers and 31.9% of the students gave “Yes” answer, 68.4% of the teachers and 68.1% of the students gave “No”answer 68.1% of the students mentioned that they did not practice listening much at primary school, so when they practiced listening to English at secondary school, students felt confused when listening to a lengthy speech combined with fast speed of native speakers Besides, 68.4% of the teachers mentioned the number of students in the class is large and the questions in the listening part are difficult and long, as a result, they found it difficult to guide the students how to do the the listening exercise in the book

English (dialogues, roleplays, etc.) is well designed to equip learners for real-life interactions yes 10

Table 4.9 Teachers’ and student’s opinions about speaking activities

As can be seen from Table 4.8, 52.6% of the teachers and 31.9 % of the students gave “Yes” answers, while 47.4% of the teachers and 68.1% of the students gave “No” answers 47.4 % of the students were afraid of speaking English and they were not active in speaking English because most of them only focused on vocabulary and grammar and practiced doing the test at school, they did not have much time and chance to practice

The appropriateness of the book with the the 6-grade English

The appropriateness of a textbook to the curriculum aims and objectives, according to Cunningsworth (1984), is one of the guidelines forming the basis of formulating a personalized criteria checklist aiming at local relevance Therefore, it is

51 important for a textbook to be related to the curriculum aims and objectives (Aftab, 2011).The curriculum aims seem to be specific enough to help teachers achieve the objectives of level 6 and the grammar and vocabulary in the textbook conform to these objectives However, the textbook does not help much with the skills objectives Listening activities are the first example showing the mismatch between the requirements and the textbook While the requirements state that pupils should be able to „Listen and understand 40–60-word long monologues or dialogues, simple questions and answers about personal information, family and school‟ (MoET, 2008a), listening tasks are long and complicated in grammar and vocabulary It means students mostly listen a lengthy speech instead of using short conversations Therefore, it is unclear whether they can listen and understand monologues or dialogues Also, the textbook provides many opportunities for speaking but are mainly restricted to repetition or substitution drills with few free practice activities Moreover, the book does not provide sample dialogue or sample sentences for students to practice, so students find it difficult to practice speaking because students do not know how to start and end the conversation appropriately Reading activities and tasks in the textbook seem to be more helpful, as they conform to the objectives There is usually a reading text followed by some tasks to check the pupils‟ comprehension The topics in the reading passage are outdated and do not provide information and knowledge for students to widen their knowledge Finally, there are very few writing activities in the textbook To sum up, the textbook covers the knowledge required by the MoET‟s curriculum specification However, it should be modified by adding more activities to develop listening, speaking, reading and writing particularly

English 6 covers the grammar in the aims and objectives set up in the MoET curriculum However, it would be better if there is a section at the end of the book which summarizes the main grammar points, including the forms, uses and some examples for students to review The topics introduced in the textbook cover 12 core topics.However, some topics are not practical, interesting, suitable for student‟s interests and ages, and they cannot provide students with a lot of information for students to widen their knowledge.Moreover, the book doesn‟t advice or help to students on study skills and leraning strategies.

Summary of questionnaire findings

From the earlier discussion of results, the researcher summarizes the main findings which reply to the research questions of the study

The research results show that the textbook satisfactorily meets both the aims prescribed by the curriculum as well as the teachers‟ and the students‟ goal of teaching and learning English at Grade 6 English 6 has a number of positive characteristics that suit the situation and culture of teaching and learning fairly well However, it also has some weaknesses which need to be seriously considered The weaknesses derived from the analysis of English 6 are given below:

Some topics included in TIENG ANH 6 are not suitable for students needs and interest.In addition, some reading passages are unrealistic Moreover, they do not provide information and knowledge to help students discover and improve understanding In addition, reading activities in the book are limited, so students cannot apply more skills and are not familiar with the test types, so students will not be able to do the test exam in the process of taking the test.There are no sample dialogues or sample sentences for students to practice, so students find it difficult to practice speaking because students do not know how to start and end the conversation appropriately.Most listening tasks are considered difficult for students because they are read by native speakers and the texts are long.There are no mind map in the writing part or the suggested questions to make it easier for students to write the paragraph because the 6th graders are not able to think of the outline and the students have many ideas to make a paragraph.Some grammar items are not suitable for 6 th grade because they are too difficult for student‟s level

The book does not have review section at the end of the book which summarizes the main grammar points, including the forms, uses and some examples about the Present simple and Present continuous in the book The book doesn‟t include advice to students on study skills and learning strategies, so students find it difficult to study, especially self study

When the teachers were asked to assess the topic of the textbook for grade 6 pupils , most teachers stated that the topics are appropriate for grade 6 pupils because they are relevant to their everyday lives The following statements were heard from the interviewees

Trinh: “ What do you think about topics? Do you think that the topics of lessons are interesting and suitable with the student's age and interest?”

Teacher Tram: “Almost all of the topics, in my view, are appropriate for grade 6 pupils since they are relevant to their everyday lives However, other topics, such as our future homes and robotics, are completely unrealistic.”

Teacher Hang: “Yes, of course.They are very close to our students”

Teacher Nu: “Topics are remarkable and popular for students who are studying at secondary school Yes.I think that they are interesting and suitable for students because they are really close to their daily lives.”

When the teachers were asked to assess the language content, two teachers agreeded that the language content provided some interesting tasks and it assists pupils in reviewing all of the grammar they had learned, one teacher stated that language content was really long and difficult for students, especially bad students However, most of them thought the review lessons helped students review grammar knowledge they had learned

Trinh: “What do you think about language content? Do the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt?”

Teacher Tram: “These sections, I believe, are beneficial to pupils since they provide some interesting tasks to assist students It may assist pupils in reviewing all of the grammar they have learned.”

Teacher Hang: “It‟s ok because language focuses have some things such as tenses, phonetics and other structures that students can apply to communicate in their life.yes, the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt.”

Teacher Nu: “Language content is really long and difficult for students, especially bad students.For example, in a unit has so many grammar points, so students can‟t learn quickly and easily Yes, some review lessons help studennts review the grammar points.”

In relation to skills, one teachers‟ interview responses were somewhat negative They thought that all four skills, they challenged for some pupils the textbook did not help their pupils develop communicative abilities One teacher said,

Trinh: “What do you think about skills in the new textbook for 6th grade? Are writing, speaking, listening, reading activities suitable for student's level?”

Teacher Tram: “All four skills, in my opinion, are fairly challenging for some pupils The audios in the listening section, in particular, are quite fast and long Students cannot brainstorm to create paragraphs or dialogues in the writing and speaking sections Moreover, some reading passages have a lot of new words, which causes students to get confused and unable to answer the questions.”

However two other teachers thought four skills were suitable for student‟s level They helped students develop language skills that students could study and practice Skills in the textbook could classify student‟s abilities and lives clearly and particularly.Two other teachers remarked as follows,

Teacher Hang: “There are four skills.They help students develop language skills that students can s tudy and practice.”

Teacher Nu: “ Skills in the textbook can classify student‟s abilities and lives clearly and particularly.Yes, the writing, speaking, listening, reading activities are suitable for student‟s level.”

When asked about the methodologyin the interviews, 2 teachers expressed that the textbook provided advice to students on study skills and learning strategies For example, teachers said the following:

Trinh: “Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?”

Teacher Hang: “ Yes, it does.There are learning tips to help students dvelop skills.”

Trinh: “Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?”

Teacher Nu: “ In some cases, the textbook gives “watch out, remember, look out” to help students have some tips and broaden some new knowledge.”

However , one teacher expressed dissatisfaction with them When asked, teacher Tram said:

Trinh: “Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?”

Teacher Tram: “This book does not provide any suggestions for pupils in the four skills I believe it would be preferable if there were certain guidelines for all students to follow in order to complete the task efficiently For example, in reading sections, students must be familiar with specific reading methods, such as skimming and scanning techniques, in order to locate the place of the answers in long reading passages.”

Summary of interview findings

From the above analysis, we can see that the results of the interviews mainly coincided with and support the questionnaire responses The teachers were able to expand in more detail on responses in the questionnaires, especially when not entirely pleased with the textbook English 6 has a number of positive characteristics that suit the situation and culture of teaching and learning fairly well However, it also has some weaknesses which need to be seriously considered The weaknesses derived from the analysis of English 6 are given below:

Some topics included in TIENG ANH 6 are not realistic for students needs and interest Language content is really long and difficult for students, especially bad students Skills challenge for some pupils and the textbook does not help their pupils develop communicative abilities The audios in the listening section, in particular, are quite fast and long, so students cannot brainstorm to create paragraphs or dialogues in the writing and speaking sections Moreover, some reading passages have a lot of new words, which causes students to get confused and unable to answer the questions This book does not provide any suggestions for pupils in the four skills I believe it would be preferable if there were certain guidelines for all students to follow in order to complete the task efficiently For example, in reading sections, students must be familiar with specific reading methods, such as skimming and scanning techniques, in order to locate the place of the answers in long reading passages

Response to Research question 1: What are the weaknesses in the new textbook English for 6 th grade?

The research results show that the textbook satisfactorily meets both the aims prescribed by the curriculum as well as the teachers‟ and the students‟ goal of teaching and learning English at Grade 6 English 6 has a number of positive characteristics that suit the situation and culture of teaching and learning fairly well However, it also has

56 some weaknesses which need to be seriously considered The weaknesses derived from the analysis of English 6 are given below:

Some topics included in TIENG ANH 6 are not suitable for students needs and interest.In addition, some reading passages are unrealistic Moreover, they do not provide information and knowledge to help students discover and improve understanding In addition, reading activities in the book are limited, so students cannot apply more skills and are not familiar with the test types, so students will not be able to do the test exam in the process of taking the test.There are no sample dialogues or sample sentences for students to practice, so students find it difficult to practice speaking because students do not know how to start and end the conversation appropriately.Most listening tasks are considered difficult for students because they are read by native speakers and the texts are long.There are no mind map in the writing part or the suggested questions to make it easier for students to write the paragraph because the 6th graders are not able to think of the outline and the students have many ideas to make a paragraph.Some grammar items are not suitable for 6 th grade because they are too difficult for student‟s level The book does not have review section at the end of the book which summarizes the main grammar points, including the forms, uses and some examples about the Present simple and Present continuous in the book The book doesn‟t include advice to students on study skills and learning strategies, so students find it difficult to study, especially self study.

Summary

This chapter has analyzed and discussed the data collected from questionnaires and interview delivered to both the teachers and the students, from which a number of findings have been presented

RECOMMENDATION

Conclusion

The findings obtained from analyzing the questionnaires for the teachers and students in Phu Chanh secondary school have provided sufficient evidence to support a conclusion to the main question raised in this research, i.e., the question of whether

"TIENG ANH 6" is suitable for students in Phu Chanh secondary school Although the textbook is good, the answer from the study clearly points to a need for adapting the book to suit students of different levels, interests, and learning styles

The students who took part in the study were generally aware of the importance of English and in favor of the book The findings reveal that a great number of the students thought that the book could satisfy their needs and interests in terms of quality.However, many students who investigated found the book too difficult for them Further analysis indicated some possible reasons:

Firstly, some topics included in TIENG ANH 6 are not suitable for students' interests and ages.Secondly, some reading passages are unrealistic Moreover, they do not provide information and knowledge to help students discover and improve their understanding In addition, the reading activities in the book are limited, so students cannot apply more skills and familiarize themselves with the test types, so students will not be able to do the test exam in the process of taking the test.Thirdly, there are no sample dialogues or sample sentences for students to practice, so students find it difficult to practice speaking because they do not know how to start and end the conversation appropriately.Furthermore, most listening tasks are considered difficult for students because they are read by native speakers and the listening texts are long.In addition, there is no mind map in the writing part or suggested questions in the writing part because the 6th graders are not able to think of the outline and the students have many ideas for writing a paragraph.Additionally, some grammar items are not suitable for 6 th grade because they are too difficult for the students‟ level The book does not have a review section at the end of the book that summarizes the main grammar points, including the forms, uses, and some examples of the present simple and present continuous in the

58 book.Lastly, the book doesn‟t include advice for students on study skills and learning strategies, so they find it difficult to study, especially self-study

The nineteen teachers gave almost the same answers to questions about the suitability of the book for the students Analyses show that since the book was presented in an unsystematic way and the teachers did not study the book carefully,

With the conclusion that the book is only suitable for Phu Chanh secondary school students and students at other schools if the teachers, the students, and the editors follow some recommendations below (recommendations to the teachers, recommendations to the students, and recommendations to the editor)

Due to the limits of the study, generalizations about the suitability of "TIẾNG ANH 6" for secondary school students cannot be made; therefore, the book cannot be fully evaluated The evaluation could have been more comprehensive if the study had been carried out on all sixth-graders in Phu Chanh secondary school and in other secondary schools Hopefully, more research will be done for better generalizations and comprehensiveness of the book, which has been and will be used for teaching English to millions of Vietnamese sixth graders for many years.

Pedagogical implications

The study has uncovered a number of findings that have important implications for the English textbook, "TIẾNG ANH 6", in secondary schools Implications for this study can be seen at both the evaluative and instructional levels.In Vietnam, it is still a novel experience to collect students' feedback about the course book they are using, or have used Even when teachers and students have different attitudes toward the book, the information collected is reasonable, reliable, and valuable because they look at it from two different points of view, i.e., the teacher‟s and the learner‟s point of view The learner has his/her own needs, interests, and abilities that cannot be decided by the teachers, and which can be different from the teacher‟s

Limitations of the Study

The present study, like any other, has a number of limitations, which are summarized below:

The participants might not have had time to recall all that they thought about the textbook Had the researcher had more time for data collection, she would have organized focus group discussions for teachers to exchange ideas about the textbook, and recorded them Limitations can also be recognized in the choice of participants The pupil participants were beginner learners of English, who had studied English at school for only about four months, and so their evaluations and suggestions for improving the textbook cannot be applied to others in the series (English 7, 8, and 9), which requires further data for analysis.

Recommendation

When "TIẾNG ANH 6" is used nationwide, there will be different difficulties for teachers and students in different parts of Vietnam because they differ in background, level of proficiency, interest, needs, teaching and learning conditions, etc In this section, we will focus on how to make the book as suitable for students as possible in order to achieve the goals of communicative language teaching Recommendations are not only for Phu Chanh secondary school but also for all secondary schools where the book is used.Teaching and learning are two intertwined processes linked by the book and classroom activities and aided by teaching aids.Therefore, the recommendations will be concerned with (1) recommendations to editors and (2) recommendations to teachers (3) recommendations to students

Response to Research question 2: How can teachers and students use the new textbook English for 6 th grade effectively?

Based on the findings of the study, this part presents some practical recommendations on how teachers and students can use the new textbook English for 6 th grade effectively The recommendations are made below

In such a class, teachers will have difficulty in teaching.Thus, it is essential that:

- Some topics that are practical, interesting, suitable for students‟ interests and ages, and can help students widen their knowledge, such as films, travelling, festivals around the world, the environment, etc., should be added to the course

- Teachers should add the listening text at a slightly slower speed and use short conversations or interviews instead of lengthy speeches Some sample dialogues or sample sentences should be added for students to practice in the classroom

- Teachers should add more reading activities for students to the course so that students can become familiar with the test format and do the exam easily

- Teachers should add a mind map to each writing part or the suggested questions to the course so that the students find it easy to carry out the writing

- Teachers should add review sections and review exercises to the course for students to review grammar knowledge For example, before students learn the comparison between the Present simple and Present Continuous, it is suggested that teachers summarize or review the main grammar points, including the forms, uses, and some examples of the Present simple and Present Continuous for students

- Teachers should give advice to students on study skills and learning strategies so that students can find their own way to effectively acquire the language, according to their personal characteristics and abilities For example, in listening skills, teachers should guide students to underline keywords in the questions and answers and focus on which keywords are important in the sentence when students listen In addition, in writing skills, teachers should apply writing tips such as drawing mindmaps, outlines, or answering suggested questions for students to write a paragraph In speaking skills, teachers should apply tips for speaking skills such as sample conversations or sample sentences for students to practice

In such a class, students will have difficulty in learning

- Students should review their knowledge and preview the new lesson before going to school For example, before learning the comparison between the present simple and the present continuous, students should review their grammar knowledge at home

- Students should draw a mind map, an outline, or some suggested questions before starting any writing

- Students should base on sample dialogues or sample sentences which teachers provide in the classroom to practice

- Students should practice listening with short conversations and slower speed instead of lengthy speech

- Students should choose some realistic reading passages to practice reading so that students can widen their knowledge and improve their understanding Moreover, students should practice doing more reading activities by themselves to familiarize with the test format

- The editor should choose some topics that are practical, interesting, suitable for students' interests and ages, and they can help widen their knowledge such as films, travelling, festivals around the world, the environment, saving energy…

- The editor should add review or review exercise for students to review their grammar knowledge For example, in Lesson 3, before students learn the comparison between the Present simple and Present continuous, it is suggested that there should be a section at the end of the book that summarizes the main grammar points, including the forms, uses, and some examples of the Present simple and Present continuous in the book

- The editor should select reading passages that are realistic, providing information and knowledge to students through the content of the reading passages to help students discover and improve their understanding Unit 5 and 6 are typical examples In unit 5, for example, students should be provided with knowledge and information about society, nature, and the environment In unit 6, students can learn about a new culture and a new country to help them gain knowledge about history and geography Moreover, the editor should use the structure of the exam to provide reading exercises or reading activities so that students can apply more skills and become familiar with the test types The types of reading exercises and reading activities in the currently-used book are limited and do not correspond to the exam format, so students will not be able to do the test exam in the process of taking the test if they have never been acquainted with these types of exercises in class

- The editor should choose the listening text at a slightly slower speed and change the tasks for listening skills For example, the editor should use short conversations or interviews instead of lengthy speeches In this way, the tasks are more meaningful and interesting, and students can practice and get used to the listening practice gradually

-The editor should add sample dialogue or sample sentences for students to practice, so students find it easy in speaking practice because students can based on the sample to work in pairs with their friends without without hesitation

- The editor should add mind maps in the writing part or suggest questions so that the students find it easy to carry out the paragraph because the 6th graders are not able to think of the outline and the students do not have many ideas to make a paragraph For example, there should be a strategy to develop students‟ writing skills in which the first written draft can be the work of a pair, a small group, or sometimes the whole class The following activities, suggested by Nunan (1999), must be of great help to build such a strategy

2 Brainstorming/ making notes/ asking questions

3 Fast writing/ selecting ideas/ establishing a vieewpoint

6 Arranging information/ structuring the text

- It is suggested that the book should include advice to students on study skills and learning strategies so that students can find their own way to effectively acquire the language, according to their personal characteristics and abilities Advice and help can be provided as pre-or post-reading and listening activities that help arouse the student‟s interest.

SUMMARY

The chapter has presented the implications of the study for the teaching and learning of English and the use of the new textbook in secondary schools, as well as recommendations concerning changes in the content and the adaptation of the book in certain situations The points mentioned in this chapter are in the hope that they can help secondary school teachers have a better look at the adaptation of the book to suit their students and teaching condition

Awasthi, R J (2006) Textbook and Its Evaluation.Journal of NELTA, 17(1-2), 5-8

Blackwell, A and T Naber 2005.KnowHow: Oxford: Oxford University Press

Brown, H D, 2000.Principles of Language Learning and Teaching 4 th Ed London:

Brown.J.D.1995.The Elements of Language Curriculum: Asystematic approach to program development.USA: Heinle & Heinle Publishers

Chambers, F.(1997) Seeking consensus in textbook evaluation ELT Journal, 51(1), 29-

Cunningsworth, A.1995.Choosing Your Coursebook.Oxford: Heinemann

Dickinson, L.1987.Self-instruction in Language Learning.Cambridge: Cambridge

Doff.A.1988.Teach English: A Training Course for Teachers.Cambridge: Cambridge

Dubin, F and E Olshtain 1986 Course Design.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Ellis, R.1985.Understanding Second Language Acquisition.Oxford University Press

Ellis, R The Evaluation of Communicative Tasks.In Tomlinson, B (Ed) 1998 Materials

Development in Language Teaching Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Harmer, J (2007) The Practice of English Language Teaching Fourth Edition New

Harmer, J (2001) The Practice of English Language Teaching.Harlow: Longman

Harris, T., & Hodges, R., (Eds) (1995) The Literacy Dictionary: The Vocabulary of

Reading and Writing’, Newark: International Publishers and Writing‟, Newark:

Hutchinson, T.and A Waters 1987 English for Specific Purposes: a learning Centered

Approach Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Hutchinson, T.1997.Lifelines Oxford: Oxford University Press

Klippel, F.1984.Keep Talking: Communicative Fluency Activities for Language

Teaching Cambride: Cambridge University Press

Larsen-Freeman, D Techniques and Principles in Language Teaching.Oxford: Oxford

Lee, J F and B VanPatten 1995.Making Communicative Language Teaching Happen

Littlejohn, A.and S Windeatt.Beyond Language Learning: Perspectives on Materials

Design In Johnson, R.K.(Ed) 1989.The second Language Curriculum.Cambridge

Littlejohn, A The Analysis of Language Teaching Materials: inside the Trojan Horse.In Lynch, B.K.1996 Language Program Evaluation.Cambridge: Cambridge University

Marsland, B.1998.Lesson from Nothing: Activities for Language Teaching with Limited

Time and Resources.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Nunan, D.1999.Second Language Teaching and Learning.Boston: Heinle & Heinle

Nunan, D.1991.Syllabus Design.Oxford: Oxford University Press

Pnnington, M.C (ed)1995.New Ways in Teaching Grammar.Virginia: Teachers of

English to Speakers of Other Languages.Inc

Pratt.D.1980.Curriculum Design and Development.New York: Harcourt Brace

Rea-Dickins, P.and K Germaine 1992.Evaluation Oxford: Oxford University Press

Richards, J.C.J Platt and H Weber 1985.Longman Dictionary of Applied

Richards, J.C.1990.The Language Teaching Matrix.Cambridge: Cambridge University

Richards, J.C.and T.S Rodgers 1991.Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching:

A Description and Analysis.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Tomlinson, B (Ed) 1998.Materials Development in Language Teaching.Cambridge:

Tomlinson, B (2011) Materials Development in Language Teaching Second Edition

Ur, P (1999) A Course in Language Teaching Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Sheldon, L (1988) Evaluating ELT textbooks and materials ELT Journal, 42 (4), 237-

BẢNG CÂU HỎI ĐÁNH GIÁ SÁCH “TIẾNG ANH 6” DÀNH CHO GIÁO VIÊN

Bảng câu hỏi này đƣợc thực hiện nhằm tìm hiểu mức độ phù hợp của sách TIẾNG ANH

6 đối với học sinh trường THCS Phú Chánh đồng thời tìm hiểu những điểm chưa phù hợp trong quyển sách và kiến nghị của giáo viên đang trực tiếp giảng dạy sách giáo khoa mới, từ đó rút ra những đánh giá khách quan để những nhà soạn sách, giáo viên và học sinh sử dụng quyển sách hiệu quả Với mục đích nêu trên, chúng tôi rất mong nhận đƣợc sự hợp tác của quý Thầy/Cô

I.Ý KIẾN VỀ SÁCH GIÁO KHOA MỚI

Theo ý kiến riêng của Thầy/Cô:

T.1.1 Phần lớn các đề tài trong sách có thú vị không? a rất không thú vị b Không thú vị c Không ý kiến d.Thú vị e Rất thú vị

(Nếu Thầy (Cô) chọn a hoặc b, Thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra chủ đề nào rất không thú vị hay không thú vị)

T.1.2 Phần lớn các đề tài có phù hợp với độ tuổi và sở thích của học sinh không? a rất không phù hợp b không phù hợp c không có ý kiến d.Phù hợp e Rất phù hợp

(Nếu Thầy (Cô) chọn a hay b, Thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra chủ đề nào rất không phù hợp hay không phù hợp)

T.1.3 Các chủ đề trong sách có giúp học sinh mở rộng kiến thức và tăng kinh nghiệm không?

1.Trường học mới của tôi

7.Tivi 10.Nhà của chúng tôi trong tương lai 2.Nhà của tôi 5.Những kì quan thiên nhiên của thế giới

8.Thể thao và trò chơi

11.Thế giới xanh của chúng tôi

3.Những người bạn của tôi

6.Kì nghĩ Tết của chúng tôi

9.Những thành phố của thế giới

T.2.1 Sách có phù hợp có bao gồm các diểm ngữ pháp phù hợp với trình độ, người học không? a rất không phù hợp b không phù hợp c.Không có ý kiến d.phù hợp e rất phù hợp

(Nếu Thầy (cô) chọn a hay b, thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra điểm ngữ pháp nào là không phù hợp)

Những chủ điểm ngữ pháp

1.Thì hiện tại đơn và thì hiện tại tiếp diễn

5.So sánh nhất với tính từ ngắn

8.Thì quá khứ đơn 11.Câu điều kiện

3.Thì hiện tại tiếp diễn trong tương lai

9.Thì hiện tại hoàn thành

12.Khả năng với could and will be able to

T2.2 Tài liệu có chú trọng phát triển chiến lƣợc học không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu Thầy (Cô) chọn “Không”, Thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra lí do)

T.3.1 Các bài đọc có phù hợp với trình độ của học sinh không? a rất không phù hơp b Không phù hợp c.Không có ý kiến d.Phù hợp e Rất phù hợp

(Nếu Thầy (cô) chọn a hay b, thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra điểm không phù hợp )

T.3.2 Các hoạt động đọc có phù hợp với trình độ của học sinh không? a rất không phù hơp b Không phù hợp c.Không có ý kiến

68 d.Phù hợp e Rất phù hợp

(Nếu Thầy (cô chọn a hay b, thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra hoạt động đọc nào không phù hợp)

1.Nối 3.điền vào chỗ trống 2Trả lời câu hỏi 4.Hoàn thành

T3.3 Các bài nghe trong sách có những từ vựng và ngữ pháp dễ hiểu không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu em chọn “Không”, em vui lòng đƣa ra lí do.)

5.Cái khác (Nếu chọn cái khác, vui lòng ghi rõ yếu tố gì)

T3.4 Hầu hết các chủ đề của phần nói có liên quan chặt chẽ với đời sống thực tế và sở thích của học sinh không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu em chọn “Không”, em vui lòng đƣa ra lí do.)

T3.5 Các hoạt động trong phần viết trong sách có đưa ra phần gợi ý và các bước để giúp học sinh hình thành bài viết dễ dàng không? a Có

(Nếu Thầy (Cô) chọn “Không”, Thầy (cô ) vui lòng đƣa ra lí do)

T4.41 Sách có bao gồm lời khuyên nào cho học sinh về kỹ năng học tập và cách học không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

II NHỮNG KIẾN NGHỊ Để phát huy hiệu quả của việc dạy Tiếng anh của Trường THCS Phú Chánh, từ những nhận xét về sách giáo khoa mới, mong Thầy/cô đƣa ra những đề nghị mới đối với sách giáo khoa và điều kiện giảng dạy ở trường THCS

1 Ngữ pháp và cấu trúc

D Phương pháp dạy và học

QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TEACHERS Questionnaire for teachers

This questionnaire is designed in order to investigate the suitability of “TIẾNG ANH 6” for students in Phu Chanh Secondary School, the difficulties that you have been faced with when teaching with the book as well as your suggestions for the better use of the book We would be very grateful for your cooperation

Please look at the information below to choose the answer

T1.1 Are most of the topics in the book interesting? a Very uninteresting b uninteresting c No idea d interesting e Very interesting

(If you choose a or b, please give me which topics are uninteresting or very uninteresting)

T1.2 Are most of the topics are suitable with student‟s age and interest? a Very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which topics are unsuitable or very unsuitable)

T1.3 Do the topics in the book help students widen your knowledge and gain experience? a Yes b No c No idea

1.My new school 4.My 7.Television 10.Our house in the

2.My home 5.Natural wonders of the world

T2.1 Does the coursebook cover the main grammar items appropriate to each learner‟s level? a very inappropriate b inappropriate c No idea d appropriate e very appropriate

(If you choose a or b, please give me which grammar items are very inappropriate or inappropriate)

1.The present simple and the present continuous

3.The present continuous for future

6.Should or shouldn‟t for advice

- Will be able to for ability

T2.2 Is material placed on strategies for individual learning? a Yes b No c No idea

(If you choose “No”, please give the reason)

T3.1 Are reading passages suitable for students „levels? a very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which parts in reading passages are very unsuitable or unsuitable)

T3.2 Are reading activities suitable for students „levels? a very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which reading activities are very unsuitable or unsuitable)

T3.3 Is listening material accompanied by background information, questions and activities which help comprehension?

(If you choose “No”, please give me which factors make it difficult)

Listening material a vocabulary b Grammar c.speed d.accent e others (please write down)

T3.4 Is material for spoken English (dialogues, roleplays, etc.) well designed to equip learners for real – life interactions? a Yes b No c No idea

(If you choose “No”, please give me which parts are not well designed to learners for real –life interactions)

T.3.5 Are writing activities suitable in terms of amount of guidance/control, degree of accuracy, organization, of longer pieces of writing (e.g., paragraphing) and use of appropriate styles? a very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which writing activities are very unsuitable or unsuitable)

T4.1 Does the material include any advice to students on study skills and learning

Please give suggestions for the book, the methodology and the teaching and learning so that “TIẾNG ANH 6” can be well adapted in many other secondary schools

Thanks for your time and help

BẢNG CÂU HỎI ĐÁNH GIÁ SÁCH “TIẾNG ANH 6” DÀNH CHO HỌC SINH

Bảng câu hỏi này đƣợc thực hiện nhằm tìm hiểu nhu cầu, sở thích của học sinh đối với việc dạy học Tiếng Anh và nhận xét của em về sách “TIẾNG ANH 6” đang đƣợc sử dụng Với mục đích nêu trên, chúng tôi mong nhận đƣợc sự hợp tác của các em

I.Ý KIẾN VỀ SÁCH GIÁO KHOA EM ĐANG SỬ DỤNG

Mỗi câu hỏi có từ 4 đến 5 lựa chọn ,các em hãy chọn một trong số đó bằng cách khoanh tròn

S.1.1 Phần lớn các đề tài trong sách có thú vị không? a rất không thú vị b Không thú vị c Không ý kiến d.Thú vị e Rất thú vị

(Nếu em chọn a hoặc b, em vui lòng đƣa ra chủ đề nào rất không thú vị hay không thú vị)

S.1.2 Phần lớn các đề tài có phù hợp với độ tuổi và sở thích của học sinh không? a rất không phù hợp b không phù hợp c không có ý kiến d.Phù hợp e Rất phù hợp

(Nếu em chọn a hay b, em vui lòng đƣa ra chủ đề nào không phù hợp hay không phù hợp)

S.1.3 Các đề tài trong sách có giúp học sinh mở rộng kiến thức không? a Có b Không

S.2.1 Sách có phù hợp có bao gồm các điểm ngữ pháp phù hợp với trình độ, người học không? a rất không phù hợp b không phù hợp c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu em chọn a hay b, em vui lòng đƣa ra điểm ngữ pháp nào không phù hợp với trình độ người học)

S2.2 Tài liệu dạy từ vựng có chú trọng phát triển vốn từ vựng, chiến lƣợc học không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu em chọn “Không”, em vui lòng đƣa ra lí do)

S.3.1 Các bài đọc có phù hợp với trình độ của học sinh không? a rất không phù hơp b Không phù hợp c.Không có ý kiến d.Phù hợp e Rất phù hợp

(Nếu em chọn a hay b, em vui lòng đƣa ra điểm không phù hợp)

S.3.2 Các hoạt động đọc có phù hợp với trình độ của học sinh không? a rất không phù hơp b Không phù hợp c.Không có ý kiến d.Phù hợp e Rất phù hợp

(Nếu em chọn a hay b, em vui lòng đƣa ra hoạt động đọc nào không phù hợp)

1.Nối 3.điền vào chỗ trống 2Trả lời câu hỏi 4.Hoàn thành

S3.3 Các bài nghe trong sách có những từ vựng và ngữ pháp dễ hiểu không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu em chọn “Không”, em vui lòng đƣa ra lí do.)

Kĩ năng nghe 1.Từ vựng

5.Cái khác (Nếu chọn cái khác, vui lòng ghi rõ yếu tố gì)

S3.4 Hầu hết các chủ đề của phần nói có liên quan chặt chẽ với đời sống thực tế và sở thích của học sinh không? a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

(Nếu em chọn “Không”, em vui lòng đƣa ra lí do.)

S3.5 Các hoạt động trong phần viết trong sách có đưa ra phần gợi ý và các bước để giúp học sinh hình thành bài viết dễ dàng không? a Có b Không c.Không ý kiến

(Nếu Thầy (Cô) chọn “Không, Thầy (cô) vui lòng đƣa ra lí do)

S4.1 Sách có bao gồm lời khuyên nào cho học sinh về kỹ năng học tập và cách học không?

83 a Có b Không c.Không có ý kiến

II NHỮNG KIẾN NGHỊ Để phát huy hiệu quả của việc dạy Tiếng anh của Trường THCS Phú Chánh, từ những nhận xét về sách giáo khoa mới, mong Thầy/cô đƣa ra những đề nghị mới đối với sách giáo khoa và điều kiện giảng dạy ở trường THCS

1 Ngữ pháp và cấu trúc

H Phương pháp dạy và học

CHÂN THÀNH CẢM ƠN NHỮNG Ý KIẾN CỦA CÁC EM

This questionnaire is designed to investigate your needs for and interest in learning English at the secondary school and your opinions about the new textbook “TIẾNG ANH 6” It would be very grateful for your cooperation

Each question has 4 to 5 answers; please choose one of them by circling

Please look at the information below to choose the answer

S1.1 Are most of the topics in the book interesting? a Very uninteresting b uninteresting c No idea d interesting e Very interesting

(If you choose a or b, please give me which topics are uninteresting or very uninteresting)

S1.2 Are most of the topics are suitable with student‟s age and interest? a Very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which topics are unsuitable or very unsuitable)

S1.3 Do the topics in the book help students widen your knowledge and gain experience? a Yes b No c No idea

(If you choose “No”, please give the reason)

1.My new school 4.My neighbourhood

7.Television 10.Our house in the future 2.My home 5.Natural wonders of the world

S2.1 Does the coursebook cover the main grammar items appropriate to each level‟s learner? a very inappropriate b inappropriate c No idea d appropriate e very appropriate

(If you choose a or b, please give me which grammar items are very inappropriate or inappropriate)

S2.2 Does the course book cover the main grammar items appropriate to learner‟s needs into account? a very inappropriate b inappropriate c No idea d appropriate e very appropriate

1.The present simple and the present continuous

3.The present continuous for future

6.Should or shouldn‟t for advice

- Will be able to for ability

S2.3 Does the coursebook include material for pronunciation work? a Yes b No c No idea d If you choose “No” or “No idea”, please ignore T2.4

S3.1 Are reading passages suitable for students „levels? a very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which parts in reading passages are very unsuitable or unsuitable)

S3.2 Are reading activities suitable for student‟s levels? tudent‟s levels? a very unsuitable b unsuitable c.No idea d.suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which reading activities are very unsuitable or unsuitable)

S3.3 Is listening material accompanied by background information, questions and activities which help comprehension? a Yes b No c No idea

(If you choose “No”, please give the reason)

Listening material a vocabulary b grammar c.speed d.accent e others (please write down)

S3.4 Is material for spoken English (dialogues, roleplays, etc.) well designed to equip learners for real – life interactions? a Yes b No

(If you choose “No”, please give me which factors make it difficult)

S.3.5 Are writing activities suitable in terms of amount of guidance/control, degree of accuracy, organization, of longer pieces of writing (e.g., paragraphing) and use of appropriate styles? a very unsuitable b unsuitable c No idea d suitable e very suitable

(If you choose a or b, please give me which writing activities are very unsuitable or unsuitable)

S.4.1 Does the material include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies? a Yes b No

Please give suggestions for the book, the methodology and the teaching and learning so that

“TIẾNG ANH 6” can be well adapted in many other secondary schools

Thanks for your time and help

1/ What do you think about topics?

- Do you think that the topics of lessons are interesting and suitable with the student's age and interest?

2/ What do you think about skills in the new textbook for 6th grade?

Are writing, speaking, listening, reading activities suitable for student's level?

3/ What do you think about language content?

Do the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt?

4/ Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

A phone interview was conducted on September 9 th 2021 at 11:30am It lasted 22 minutes

It was conducted in Vietnamese and then translated into English as follows:

Trinh: What do you think about topics? Do you think that the topics of lessons are interesting and suitable with the student's age and interest?

Teacher Tram: Almost all of the topics, in my view, are appropriate for grade 6 pupils since they are relevant to their everyday lives However, other topics, such as our future homes and robotics, are completely unrealistic

Teacher Hang: Yes, of course.They are very close to our students

Teacher Nu: Topics are remarkable and popular for students who are studying at secondary school Yes.I think that they are interesting and suitable for students because they are really close to their daily lives

Trinh: What do you think about language content? Do the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt?

Teacher Tram: These sections, I believe, are beneficial to pupils since they provide some interesting tasks to assist students It may assist pupils in reviewing all of the grammar they have learned

Teacher Hang: It‟s ok because language focuses have some things such as tenses, phonetics and other structures that students can apply to communicate in their life.yes, the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt

Teacher Nu: Language content is really long and difficult for students, especially bad students.For example, in a unit has so many grammar points, so students can‟t learn quickly and easily Yes, some review lessons help studennts review the grammar points

Trinh: What do you think about skills in the new textbook for 6th grade? Are writing, speaking, listening, reading activities suitable for student's level?

Teacher Tram: All four skills, in my opinion, are fairly challenging for some pupils

The audios in the listening section, in particular, are quite fast and long Students cannot brainstorm to create paragraphs or dialogues in the writing and speaking sections Moreover, some reading passages have a lot of new words, which causes students to get confused and unable to answer the questions

Teacher Hang: There are four skills.They help students develop language skills that students can s tudy and practice

Teacher Nu: Skills in the textbook can classify student‟s abilities and lives clearly and particularly.Yes, the writing, speaking, listening, reading activities are suitable for student‟s level

Trinh: Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

Teacher Tram: This book does not provide any suggestions for pupils in the four skills I believe it would be preferable if there were certain guidelines for all students to follow in order to complete the task efficiently For example, in reading sections, students must be familiar with specific reading methods, such as skimming and scanning techniques, in order to locate the place of the answers in long reading passages

Trinh: Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

Teacher Hang: Yes, it does.There are learning tips to help students dvelop skills.” Trinh: “Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

Teacher Nu: In some cases, the textbook gives “watch out, remember, look out” to help students have some tips and broaden some new knowledge

A phone interview was conducted on September 9 th 2021 at 11:30am It lasted 22 minutes

It was conducted in Vietnamese and then translated into English as follows:

Trinh: What do you think about topics? Do you think that the topics of lessons are interesting and suitable with the student's age and interest?

Teacher Tram: Almost all of the topics, in my view, are appropriate for grade 6 pupils since they are relevant to their everyday lives However, other topics, such as our future homes and robotics, are completely unrealistic

Teacher Hang: Yes, of course.They are very close to our students

Teacher Nu: Topics are remarkable and popular for students who are studying at secondary school Yes.I think that they are interesting and suitable for students because they are really close to their daily lives

Trinh: What do you think about language content? Do the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt?

Teacher Tram: These sections, I believe, are beneficial to pupils since they provide some interesting tasks to assist students It may assist pupils in reviewing all of the grammar they have learned

Teacher Hang: It‟s ok because language focuses have some things such as tenses, phonetics and other structures that students can apply to communicate in their life.yes, the review lessons help students review grammar knowledge they have learnt

Teacher Nu: Language content is really long and difficult for students, especially bad students.For example, in a unit has so many grammar points, so students can‟t learn quickly and easily Yes, some review lessons help studennts review the grammar points

Trinh: What do you think about skills in the new textbook for 6th grade? Are writing, speaking, listening, reading activities suitable for student's level?

Teacher Tram: All four skills, in my opinion, are fairly challenging for some pupils

The audios in the listening section, in particular, are quite fast and long Students cannot brainstorm to create paragraphs or dialogues in the writing and speaking sections Moreover, some reading passages have a lot of new words, which causes students to get confused and unable to answer the questions

Teacher Hang: There are four skills.They help students develop language skills that students can s tudy and practice

Teacher Nu: Skills in the textbook can classify student‟s abilities and lives clearly and particularly.Yes, the writing, speaking, listening, reading activities are suitable for student‟s level

Trinh: Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

Teacher Tram: This book does not provide any suggestions for pupils in the four skills I believe it would be preferable if there were certain guidelines for all students to follow in order to complete the task efficiently For example, in reading sections, students must be familiar with specific reading methods, such as skimming and scanning techniques, in order to locate the place of the answers in long reading passages

Trinh: Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

Teacher Hang: Yes, it does.There are learning tips to help students dvelop skills.” Trinh: “Does the book include any advice to students on study skills and learning strategies?

Teacher Nu: In some cases, the textbook gives “watch out, remember, look out” to help students have some tips and broaden some new knowledge

Reading Listening Speaking Writing Language

-Reading for specific information about schools -Reading e- mails and webpages

-Listening to get information about school activities/ what students do at school

-Talking about and describing a school -Talking about and describing school activities

- Punctuatio n -Writing a webpage for your school

-Sounds: / əʊ / and / ʌ / -Review: The present simple and the present continuous -Verb (study, have, do,play) +Noun

-Reading e- mails/informal letters about rooms in the house

- Listening to get information about rooms and furniture

-Talking about and describing houses, rooms, and furniture

-Writing e-mails to describe a room/ house

- Sounds:/z/, /s/ and /Iz/ -Review: There is/There isn‟t There are/There aren‟t -Prepositions of place

-Reading e – mails and advertisements about things to

-Listening to get information about friends and things to do

-Talking about appearance and personality

-Writing to describe friends and things

- Verbs be and have for

96 do with friends with friends -Talking about plans to do with friends description -The present continuous for future Review 1

-Listening for specific information to locate places in a neighbourhood

-Talking about and describing a neighbourhood – Asking for and giving directions

-Writing a paragraph describing your neighbour hood

-Comparative adjectives: smaller, more expensive…

-Reading short passages to get inforamtion about natural wonders

-Listening to get information about amazing places or a travel guide

-Talking about and describing things in nature -Giving travel advice

-Writing a travel guide about a natural attraction

-Sounds:/t/ and /st/ -Superlative of short adjectives: longest, hottest -Modal verb: must

Reading about facts of the New

Year‟s practices in viet Nam and some other countries

-Listening to conversations about what you should or shouldn‟t do at Tet, and about intentions

-Talking about Tet activities traditions -Giving advice: what people should and shouldn‟t do at Tet

-Writing a short paragraph about what you should/sho uldn‟t do at Tet

-Sounds: /s/ and / ʃ / -should & shouldn‟t for advice -Will/won‟t to talk about intentions REVIEW 2

Reading Listening Speaking Writing Language

-Reading for specific information about TV programmes

-Listening for specific information about TV programmes

-Talking about favorite TV programme

-Writing a paragraph about a favorite TV programme

-Sounds: / θ / and / ð / -Wh- question: what, where,when -

-Reading for information about favorite sports stars

- Listening for specific information about the sports/games people play

-Talking about the sports/game you like

-Writing a paragraph about the sports/games you like

- Sounds: / eə / and / ɪ ə/ -The past simple -Imperatives giving instructions -Adverbs of frequency

-Reading for information about famous cities and landmarks

-Listening to quizzes about different cities in the world

-Talking about cities in the world (lifestyle)

-Writing a postcard about a city attraction

- The present perfect -Superatives of long adjectives

-Reading for information about house in the future

-Listening to an interview about a house in the future

-Talking about different houses in the future

-Sounds:/dr/ and /tr/ -will for future -Modals: might for future prediction Unit 11:

- Reading for information about tips to

-Listening to students talking about ways to make a school

-Talking about different ways to save the environment

-Giving ideas to make a school

-Sounds:/ ɑ: / and / ổ /represented by the letter -Conditional -Modal verb: mustsentence –type 1 -If clause Unit 12:

-Reading about an international robots show

-Listening to different opinions about what robots will be able to do in the future

-Talking about different types of robots and what they will be able to do in the future

-Writing about agreement and disagreement on the role of robots in the future

-Sounds: / ɔ ɪ / and / aʊ / -Review: can -Could for past ability -will be able to for ability

The general education program in English helps students have a new, forming and communicating tool develop students the ability to communicate in English through listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills End of curriculum in high school education, students with the ability to communicate reach level 3 of the 6-level Language Proficiency Framework for Vietnam, creating a foundation for students to use English in learning, forming lifelong learning habits to become successes global people in the integration period

The general education program in English helps students have an overview of the country, people and background the culture of some English-speaking countries and of others around the world; has a good attitude and affection towards the land countries, people, cultures and languages of those countries In addition, general education program in English also contributes to the formation and development of students the qualities and competencies necessary for employees: awareness and labor responsibility, orientation and career selection in accordance with capacity, interests, and adaptability in the context new industrial revolution scene

After completing the middle school English language program, students can:

-Use English as a communication tool through four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing to meet needs communicate basic and direct in close and everyday situations

- Have basic knowledge of English, including phonetics, vocabulary, grammar, through English, there is conceptual understanding overview of the country, people and cultures of the English – speaking countries and other countries around the world, at the same time understanding and being proud of the values of their own culture

-Have a positive attitude towards the subject and learning English, initially knowing how to use English to learn the subjects other in general education

- Form and apply different learning methods and strategies to develop language communication skills He is inside and outside the classroom, managing study time and forming self-study habits

The curriculum aims and objectives for English grade 6

The curriculum aims and objectives (MoET) for English at junior high school level says grade 6 pupils should be able to undertake the following:

- Listen to understand the English used in the classroom

- Listen and understand short passages (about 80-100 words) about simple topics with language content mentioned in the program

- Make simple communication exchanges in English in the classroom and out of the classroom

- Make communication about topics using the language learned in the program

- Read and understand the main content of short and simple passages (about 100-120 words) within the range of topics learned in the program

- Read and understand the main content of documents on the learned database combined with inferencing and looking up dictionary

- Write a short passage (approximately 40-60 words) describing or reporting a class activities within the framework of the language and theme of the program

- Write to serve simple personal and social communication needs such as filling out personal forms, questionnaires, writing letters to friends…

TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THỦ DẦU MỘT

CỘNG HÒA XÃ HỘI CHỦ NGHĨA VIỆT

NAM Độc lập – Tự do – Hạnh phúc

Bình Dương, ngày 12 tháng 01 năm 2022

BIÊN BẢN CUỘC HỌP HỘI ĐỒNG CHẤM LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ

Của học viên: Phan Thị Lệ Trinh

Về đề tài: ENGLISH FOR GRADE 6: EXPLORING THE SUITABILITY OF

Tại Hội đồng trực tuyến - Trường Đại học Thủ Dầu Một, ngày 12 tháng 01 năm 2022

Hội đồng chấm luận văn đƣợc thành lập theo Quyết định số, 2025/QĐ-ĐHTDM, ngày 29/12/2021 của Hiệu trưởng Trường Đại học Thủ Dầu Một đã nghe học viên: Phan Thị Lệ Trinh trình bày tóm tắt nội dung luận văn thạc sĩ

Nhận xét, đặt câu hỏi của thành viên Hội đồng chấm luận văn:

1/-TS Trần Thanh Dũ (Chủ tịch hội đồng)

- Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét)

1 What are the reasons for your selection of the textbook English 6, not other ones (for example, English 7, or even English 9)?

2 And from your teaching experience, for how many years can a textbook be used in secondary education?

3 If the textbook English 6 is replaced by another one in the coming school year, are you sure that the study has implications in English teaching and learning in Vietnamese context?

4 what are the criteria for choosing each group of participants?

2/-TS Nguyễn Kim Loan (Phản biện 1)

- Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét)

- Câu hỏi: Please clarify Pedagogical implications in 5.2

3/-TS Lê Thị Thanh (Phản biện 2)

- Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét)

4/-TS Huỳnh Thị Bích Phƣợng (ủy viên)

- Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét)

- Câu hỏi: In your opinions, what are the obligatory criteria for the evaluation of a textbook in Vietnam?

5/-TS Trần Ngọc Mai (thƣ ký)

- Nhận xét (đính kèm Bản nhận xét)

1 A re the results of your study in line with results from previous study?

2 D id you record the interviews?

Sau khi nghe tác giả trả lời và người hướng dẫn khoa học nhận xét luận văn Hội đồng họp riêng và thông qua kết luận Khi thông qua kết luận, Hội đồng bầu Ban kiểm phiếu gồm: 1) Trần Thanh Dũ, Trưởng ban

2) Nguyễn Kim Loan, Ủy viên

3) Lê Thị Thanh, Ủy viên

Căn cứ vào kết quả bỏ phiếu của Hội đồng chấm luận văn là:

+ Số thành viên Hội đồng tham gia bỏ phiếu: 05/05

+ Tổng số điểm chấm luận văn của Hội đồng: 28.75

1) Bản luận văn của học viên Phan Thị Lệ Trinh đáp ứng yêu cầu của luận văn Thạc sĩ 2) Các nội dung đề nghị chỉnh sửa:

TS Nguyễn Kim Loan (Phản biện 1)

- 1.5 Scope of the study: The subjects of the study are 50 students chosen randomly from

250 students and 7 teachers chosen randomly from 10 teachers of English at Phu Chanh secondary school (p 3) Whereas in 3.3.2 Samples: extract a simple random sample of 19 teachers out of 20 (p 37); In this case, the sample size is 294 Finally; the researcher used a random number table to select students (p 38); The total number of the respondents was 19 teachers replied (p 41) It is suggested that 1.5 and 3.3.2 should be rewritten with a better direction and a more reasonable relation

- Chapter 2 Literature review: In this chapter, the candidate reviews and updates issues that are related to the research topic, but it is too long It consists 29 pages (from p 5 to p.34),

103 whereas Chapter 4 Result and Discussion – one of the important parts of the research – just consists 24 pages (from p 42 to p.57) This leads to the knowledge unbalance among the study Moreover, when reviewing literature, the research concentrates in listing the writers‟ names and works; there are a few arguments and criticalness from the candidate It should be more synthetic, avoiding mere listing of opinions and ideas by different authors

The research mentions Criteria for evaluating textbooks in 2.2.3, Textbook evaluation procedure from many authors in 2.2.4, but at last the candidate hasn‟t clearly identified the ones which are applied in the research It is suggested that the research should be rewritten with a better direction of writing literature review

- In 5.4.2 Recommendations to the students: In such a class, teachers will have difficulty in learning - Students should review ….(p 61) There is a lack of related thinking among the first sentence and the left ones

- Run on sentences: e.g She also argued that some of the…… own expertise (5 lines) (p

- Spelling: too many spelling errors, e.g Just in 1 page (p 52): The topics introduced in the textbook cover 12 core topcs.(p 52), and they cannt provide students .(p 52), students on study skills and leraning strategies (p 52) How about the left pages of the research?

- Grammar: The nineteen teachers investigated gave almost the same answers to questions…(p 59)

- Ambiguity: The role of the textbook in the language classroom is a difficult one to be defined perfectly and exactly (p 11), …when using the new textbook - (p35)

- Appendices: Questionnaire: Participants‟ names should not be asked to respect their privacy and safety Interview should be recorded and enclosed with the research

TS Lê Thị Thanh (Phản biện 2)

1.The thesis needs a careful proofreading for checking spelling, word choice, sentence structures Besides, the research format, reference citations, works cited, punctuations, and the presentation of final draft should be in consistence because the candidate tended to present the words in bold or italic without any specific reasons

2 The language use should be checked from the Statement of Originality,

Acknowledgements, Abstract to all the sections of the thesis

3.The researcher should define the title of the thesis as on the cover page the title is

“English for Grade 6: Exploring the Suitability of textbook contents” whereas in the Statement of Originality the title is “English for Grade 6: Exploring the Suitability of Textbook Contents

104 from EFL teachers‟ perspective at Phu Chanh Secondary School.”

TS Huỳnh Thị Bích Phƣợng (ủy viên)

- Research samples should be expanded in term of number of high schools, various participants for the survey (especially the ones responsible for High school education/ programs in Vietnam)

- Conceptual framework should be presented as a chart

- The objectives of the English language training program, p.33 should be stated clearly in term of educational settings

- The full statement by MoET (2008)- p.33 should be displayed in the References and also attached to the appendices

- The writing of summaries should be revised more carefully to ensure the details presented in the same chapter (p.57)

- A lot of mistakes of language use, grammar, and sentence structures need checking seriously

TS Trần Ngọc Mai (thƣ ký)

- The author should not give the definitions of many terms (grammar, topic, aims, skills….) It‟s not necessary Chapter 2 should be rewritten, focusing only on what is really relevant to the present study

- A lot of statements made by the author are very subjective The author should read the paper again and revise them

- The summary presented in each chapter should be read carefully and revised

3) Đề nghị công nhận học vị Thạc sĩ cho học viên Phan Thị Lệ Trinh sau khi chỉnh sửa, góp ý theo các khuyến nghị/đề nghị của các thành viên Hội đồng (Học viên phải trình quyển Luận văn đã chỉnh sửa và Bản giải trình cho Chủ tịch và Thƣ ký Hội đồng xem và xác nhận trước khi nộp về Viện Đào tạo Sau đại học để hoàn tất thủ tục Bảo vệ LVThS, chậm nhất 01 tháng kể từ ngày nhận Hồ sơ nhận xét của Hội đồng)./

THƢ KÝ HỘI ĐỒNG CHỦ TỊCH HỘI ĐỒNG

Trần Ngọc Mai Trần Thanh Dũ

THE SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIET NAM Independence - Freedom - Happiness

Research title: English for Grade 6: Exploring the suitability of textbook contents

Candidate: Phan Thi Lệ Trinh

Supervisor(s): Dr Nguyễn Thị Nguyệt Ánh

Examiner: Dr Nguyễn Kim Loan Role: MA.Thesis Reviewer 1

Examiner‟s institution: Vietnam Aviation Academy

1 Study significance, scientific and practical implications

The thesis has a significance in evaluating English teaching and learning material In general, the research has a few scientific and practical implications when analyzing barriers students and teachers encounter in using the book English for Grade 6, and offering some suggestions on how to overcome difficulties to utilize this book effectively and suitably

2 Appropriateness of the research topic

Research topic and its content “English for Grade 6: Exploring the suitability of textbook contents “is fitted with the English language and its code 8220201

The research methodology (based on quantitative method and qualitative method) is suitable to the study content

4 Structure and format of the paper

The research is fairly well planned, designed, and organized The research is rather short (81 pages, not counted References and Appendix) but accepted