luận văn using storytelling to improve speaking skills for non english majored students a case study at the foreign language center of thu dau mot university

PEOPLE’S COMMITTEE OF BINH DUONG PROVINCE THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY DAM LUU BAO CHAU USING STORYTELLING TO IMPROVE SPEAKING SKILLS FOR NON- ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY AT THE FOR

PEOPLE’S COMMITTEE OF BINH DUONG PROVINCE THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY

DAM LUU BAO CHAU

USING STORYTELLING TO IMPROVE SPEAKING SKILLS FOR NON- ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY

AT THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CENTER OF THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY

MAJOR: ENGLISH LANGUAGE MAJOR CODE:8220201

MASTER THESIS

PEOPLE’S COMMITTEE OF BINH DUONG PROVINCE THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY

DAM LUU BAO CHAU

USING STORYTELLING TO IMPROVE SPEAKING SKILLS FOR NON- ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS: A CASE STUDY AT THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE CENTER OF THU DAU MOT UNIVERSITY

MAJOR: ENGLISH LANGUAGE MAJOR CODE:8220201

MASTER THESIS

SUPERVISOR’S NAME: TRAN THANH DU, PH.D

ABSTRACT

Speaking skills play a significant role in communication, especially in English speaking In Vietnamese schools, English is considered a foreign language subject Students are still very passive in speaking English, so their speaking skills still need to be improved and make motivation in speaking classes There are many reasons students need help with speaking, such as a lack of ideas to tell, lack of knowledge (such as topic structure, vocabulary, and grammar) to express their thoughts, lack of the chance to speak, and lack of an exciting method to motivate them to speak In this study, the writer focuses on a case at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University, where eighty percent of students belong to the group of non-major foreign language students The researcher desires to find a suitable technique to enhance students' speaking skills and bring interest to students in English-speaking classes Therefore, this study is done to identify storytelling as an effective technique for helping non-English major students improve their English-speaking skills and to support teachers with a deep understanding and knowledge of the role of storytelling in applying teaching in speaking classes The subjects are seventy students from two classes, all first-year students, and five teachers at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University This research data is obtained from the questionnaire, interviews, observations, and speaking tests The result showed that using the storytelling technique to teach English-speaking lessons is effective This study recommends using storytelling technique to effectively improve speaking skills and make students interested in speaking classes

Key words: storytelling; speaking skill; first-year students

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Firstly, I would like to express my great appreciation to Ph.D Tran Thanh Du, a lecturer at Thu Dau Mot University and my keen supervisor, for his support and excitement He is willing to spend his time giving me great advice and making corrections numerous times in order for this research paper to be completed

Secondly, I am grateful to the teachers and students at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University for the help where I have been working and gathering information for my study

Thirdly, I am also grateful to my lecturers at the Faculty of English, Thu Dau Mot University, for all their kind guidance and help Other than this, I am thankful to all teachers who have commented on and proposed improvements to my paper

Last but not least, I significantly thank my family for their sacrifice in offering me an opportunity to the interest of my higher education You are not only my pride but also my quality It is worth naming the thoughtfulness of my soul mate in giving me great support, tolerance, and help

DAM LUU BAO CHAU

1.5 Scope of the study 5

1.6 Significance of the study 5

1.7 Organization of the study 6

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 7

2.1 Course descriptions 7

2.1.1 Objectives and student level 7

2.1.2 Expected course learning outcomes 7

2.2.3 The importance of speaking ability 11

2.3 Assessing speaking skills 11

2.3.1 Indicator of speaking skills 12

2.3.2 Fluency and accuracy in speaking assessment 13

2.3.3 Rubrics for assessing EFL speaking ability 14

2.4 Teaching speaking to EFL learners 15

2.4.1 Principles for teaching speaking 15

2.5 Storytelling technique 20

2.5.1 Definition of storytelling 20

2.5.2 The communicative competence of storytelling technique 21

2.5.3 Benefits of storytelling technique in ELF teaching and learning 22

3.5 Data collection and analysis 28

3.5.1 Procedure of data collection 28

5.2 Implications and recommendations 58

5.2.1 Implications for teachers 58

5.2.2 Implications for students 60

5.2.3 Recommendations 60

5.3 Limitation of the study and suggestions for further study 60

REFERENCES 62

APPENDIX 1 QUESTIONNAIRE 66

APPENDIX 2 INTERVIEW QUESTIONS 69

APPENDIX 3 TEST FOR EXPERIMENTAL CLASSES 70

APPENDIX 4 SPEAKING PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT RUBRIC 72

APPENDIX 5 SCORES OF EXPERIMENTAL CLASSES 75

APPENDIX 6 SAMPLE LESSION 79

APPENDIX 7 SYLLABUS OF THE SUBJECT GENERAL ENGLISH 1 82

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 4.1 The benefits of using storytelling in learning speaking English 41 Figure 4.2 Scores in experimental group before and after using storytelling 48 Figure 4.3 Scores in control group before and after using storytelling 48 Figure 4.4 The number of students in pre and post-test results of two groups 49 Figure 4.5 Web storytelling technique 53 Figure 4.6 The Network tree 55

LIST OF TABLES

Table 4.1 Students’ information 38 Table 4.2 Students’ attitudes towards speaking learning 38 Table 4.3 Students’ feelings and attitudes towards learning speaking skills with

storytelling 39 Table 4.4 Students’ trouble when speaking 40 Table 4.5 Students' opinions on the improvement in speaking skills after using

the storytelling technique 41 Table 4.6 The pre-test result of two groups 45 Table 4.7 Mean, SD and P in the pre-test and post-tests 46 Table 4.8 Number of students and percentage in pre-test and post-test results of

two groups 49 Table 4.9 Compare and contrast matrix 54

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study

Globalization creates a necessity to communicate English effectively in all aspects of life People usually assume that the ability to speak is the product of language learning (Aye & Phyu, 2015) Speaking is a basic skill and important in a second language acquisition process Speaking is one of the most challenging skills language learners have to face Despite this, in traditional English classes, English teachers only spend all their classroom time trying to teach their students how to write, read, and sometimes even listen in an L2 because these skills have a long-written tradition (Bueno et al., 2006) Shumin (2002) discussed that speaking a language involves more than knowing the linguistic components of the message and developing language skills; therefore, it needs more than grammatical comprehension and vocabulary memorization Chastain (1988) stated that, like any language skill, foreign language learners need explicit instructions in speaking Language students need to learn to speak the language to communicate with each other Speaking supplies a change of pace in the classroom routine Speaking is the natural state of language, as all humans are born to speak their native languages It is thus the most distinguishing feature of human beings This verbal communication involves not only producing meaningful utterances but also receiving others’ oral productions Therefore, most language learners consider speaking a critical skill in learning a second or foreign language, and their success in learning a language is measured in terms of their accomplishment in oral communication (Nunan, 1998; Nunan, 2001)

The field of second language acquisition has witnessed a hot debate in the last few decades on how second language learners acquire a new language, the best ways to help them learn, and what teachers need to focus on while teaching Storytelling has emerged as a technique that offers comprehensible input and positively impacts memory From past to present, storytelling is constantly proving that it is an ageless technique that can

be used anytime and anywhere

According to many researchers, storytelling has many qualities that qualify it to be a best practice to be used with ESL/EFL students For example, storytelling offers language input in a very understandable way Using gestures, facial expressions, body movements, vocalization, repetitions, and slowing down the speech rate when needed helps students understand the input delightfully These linguistic or paralinguistic techniques facilitate the input students receive, even if it is a little beyond their current level of comprehension (Krashen, 1982) Students can still get the meaning from the context and the teacher's cues while telling the story In addition, the atmosphere where students listen to the stories is very relaxing and enjoyable Unlike traditional instructional practices such as lecturing and teacher-centered classrooms, storytelling engages learners and improves student-teacher relationships The storytelling method incorporates the four communicative skills in each session and coordinates two communicative aptitudes in each movement Storytelling as a learner-centered method checks students’ characteristics, such as age and conceptual level, needs and interests, language level, and past language-learning experience (Dujmovic, 2006) In storytelling, it is significant to catch learners’ attention by displaying past exercises to extend the lexicon, and hone elocution, body language methods, and vocalization (Peck, 1989) As the story develops, a few emotional delays take at certain times to voice changes and body movements to act characters and special situations of the story

Vietnam is a multi-ethnic and multilingual country, with fifty-four different ethnic groups who speak more than ninety other languages (Lien, 2021) In terms of Kachru's influential Circles of English model (Kachru, 1988), Vietnam is considered a country belong the Expanding Circle English is taught as a foreign language and the most helpful vehicle of international communication Vietnamese use English to communicate with foreigners who come to Vietnam on holiday, work, or study The influx of foreign business dealers and visitors has created a great demand for English

proficiency among Vietnamese people, especially the younger generations English is currently the most popular foreign language taught and learned in Vietnam It is a compulsory subject from elementary school in the Vietnamese education system Increasing awareness of the benefits of English proficiency has resulted in English becoming a medium of instruction in some areas of Vietnamese education

According to the website of Thu Dau Mot University (2022), the university has 775 staff and lecturers, including 22 professors or associate professors, 135 PhDs, and 557 masters who belong to different fields In training activities, by June 2021, the university has 20,000 students and 1,000 graduate students studying and researching in 50 undergraduate programs, 11 post-graduate programs, and 1 Ph.D program in fields such as Economics, Technology, Natural Sciences, Humanities, and Pedagogy As a public university of Binh Duong province, Thu Dau Mot University has become the study choice of local and neighboring students Over eighty percent of students are non-English majors Though all students have been learning English for at least ten years in primary, secondary, and high school, most of them are still very passive in speaking English, so their speaking skills still need to be improved and make motivation in

speaking classes The problems students encounter will be discussed in the next part 1.2 Statement of problem

According to Chens (2009), difficulties in English Speaking of students are common because they lack confidence and still have limited fluency and vocabulary

Oxford (1990) reported that most students have scared to speak English Leong & Ahmadi (2017), learners are worried about making mistakes when speaking English, and they are afraid of criticism from other students They feel embarrassed by the attention of other students Latha & Ramesh (2012) argue that lack of motivation is one reason students are not active in-class lessons It causes students to be passive and reluctant to speak in class According to Nunan (1999) said that students who lack confidence indeed suffer from fear when communicating Rivers (1968) states that

students do not have anything to express because the teacher chooses a topic of conversation that is unsuitable for students or issues that are not familiar to students Therefore, students are challenged to respond when the teacher invites them to say something in English

Rabab’ah, G (2005) pointed out that many factors cause students to struggle to speak English as a foreign language These factors are related to the students, teaching strategies, curriculum, and environment The elements related to the students are, for example, the students' lack of vocabulary, difficulty getting meaning or understanding the conversations, and keeping the interaction going Motivation is also a factor that causes students to have problems speaking English as a foreign language

Through observing speaking classes, the researcher realized some problems that students often face, such as (1) lack of knowledge about vocabulary and grammar; (2) lack of arranging ideas clearly and logically; (3) feeling shy, lack of confidence, (4) fear making mistakes when speaking; (4) becoming passive and scaring from participating in group activities in speaking classes The aforementioned reasons have inspired me to conduct a study on “Using storytelling to improve speaking skills for non-English majored students: A case study at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University.” This study will be expected to support teachers with a deep understanding and knowledge of the role of storytelling in applying teaching in speaking classes At the same time, it identifies an effective technique for helping the non-English majored students improve their English-speaking skills

1.3 Aims and objectives of the study Aims:

The study's aims are to identify an effective technique for helping the non-English majored students at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University improve their English-speaking skills, and to consider the implementation of storytelling technique in the teaching and learning the English-speaking skills

The objectives:

The research is to:

- Describe the teachers and students’ attitudes towards the use of storytelling technique in the speaking class

- Describe and compare the efficiency for the class using storytelling and the one not using it in improving non-English majored students’ speaking skill

1.4 Research questions

The study has answered for two following research questions:

(1) What are teachers and students’ attitudes towards the use of storytelling technique in speaking classes?

(2) How effective can storytelling technique help non-English majored students improve their speaking skills?

1.5 Scope of the study

This study focuses on using storytelling as a teaching technique to improve students’ speaking skills at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University Participants are seventy first-year students studying at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University They are learning General English 1 as an obligatory course to get the output standards of their university

1.6 Significance of the study

In terms of theory, there have been many articles and reports on the effectiveness of using storytelling technique to improve English skills In terms of practice, there are many teaching techniques born to serve the teaching and learning of English-speaking skills, and storytelling is one effective technique Although storytelling is a new technique that has been adopted in recent years The effectiveness of storytelling in improving speaking skills for non-English majored students has not yet been proven

Therefore, this research is significant in finding out how effective storytelling

improves speaking skills for non-English majored students: a case study at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University The study results can identify an effective technique for helping the non-English majored students at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University improve their English-speaking skills and help English teachers working at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot university rethink their methods and techniques for their better teaching English-

speaking skills

1.7 Organization of the study

The thesis consists of the following main parts: Chapter 1: Introduction

This chapter presents the rationale, the aims, and the scope of the thesis The research questions, methods, and the study's design are also included in this chapter

Chapter 2: Literature review

This chapter covers theories related to speaking techniques and teaching speaking in common and applying storytelling in speaking specifically

Chapter 3: Research methodology

This chapter shows the method and procedure for collecting the data for the findings

Chapter 4: Findings and discussion

This chapter shows the results, data analysis and discuss the study's findings in teaching and learning speaking in the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot university

Chapter 5: Conclusions and Recommendations

This chapter presents conclusions made from analyzing and interpreting the data and some suggestions for using storytelling technique to improve speaking skills

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter presents theories related to speaking skills and teaching speaking techniques in common and applying storytelling in teaching speaking specifically It supplies literature and studies made by researchers or educators which are found significant to the research on the effectiveness of storytelling in improving speaking skills

2.1 Course descriptions

2.1.1 Objectives and students’ level

After completing this module, learners gain knowledge of new words, grammar, and English language skills at the A1-A2 level More specifically, learners can write an informal email or letter on a familiar topic, write simple compound sentences, and can use basic reading, listening, and speaking strategies From there, learners can use that version of English knowledge in communicative contexts daily interactions in and out of the classroom At the same time, the module also aims to enhance the students' positive attitude to study and their love of learning English

2.1.2 Expected course learning “Outcomes”

Elementary students are aiming to move from around level A1 towards level A2 After the course, students have to understand and use basic pronunciation such as sound surfing, sound connection, and emphasis; understand and apply key grammar points from lessons to everyday contexts They understand and know how to learn new words, relatives, and phrases, and guess the meaning of words through context Besides students can catch on using basic listening, reading and writing strategies such as: (1) preparing before, during, and after listening; listening for details ideas, listening for main ideas, guessing when listening; (2) guessing the meaning of words through the context, read for details, read for main ideas; (3) writing correctly simple, compound and complex sentences; distinguishing the difference between mail and email; knowing

the basic forms of email and letter; writing a complete, communicative, intimate letter or email about an everyday situation (4) Introducing themselves and using basic speaking strategies such as: prepare in advance, while speaking, find ideas before speaking, how to listen to the examiner's questions

2.1.3 Curriculum

The substance of the "Outcomes" textbook is planned on specific subjects, which is the basement to select and organize the content and materials Students are considered the central and the principal subject of the learning handle They may effectively and imaginatively participate in the exercises which help learners improve their English communicative abilities Instructors play the roles of controller, advisor, and organizer of the education and learning process Each unit includes three parts with topics related to the main topic Each lesson consists of four skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing Besides that, it also develops vocabulary, conversation, and pronunciation

According to this book's curriculum, students have a test to check their knowledge and skills after four units There is an assortment of topics in OUTCOMES familiar to real life, such as routine exercises, environmental issues, and places of scenic magnificence or modern technology It additionally included fundamental grammar focuses, which are valuable for students However, students frequently get bored and tired in speaking classes The speaking assignments are more troublesome than other skills The plan of speaking assignments is quite basic, but their requirement is complex, especially during post speaking period Students are asked to report or present the subject, which can sometimes not be secured within only 45 minutes In this manner, instructors need to organize, arrange, and apply new exercises to avoid boredom in the classroom

2.1.4 Material

The course’s book “Outcomes Elementary” is used in this study, written by Hugh Dellar and Andrew Walkley, and published by National Geographic Learning

The second edition of Outcomes has been fully revised and updated to provide contemporary, global content, and stunning National Geographic photos and videos Its trademark lexically rich approach shows students how vocabulary works, and the evenly-paced grammar syllabus provides examples and tasks based on what people actually say and write With a huge variety of talking points and practice, Outcomes teaches students the English they need to communicate outside the classroom Besides doing the exercises in the textbook, learners are also provided with an online learning account and a CD for listening parts

2.2 Speaking skills

2.2.1 Definitions of speaking

Speaking skills are defined as the skills which allow us to communicate effectively They give us the ability to convey information verbally and in a way that the listener can understand According to Harmer (2001), speaking is a skill in which the narrator can state himself in a language, knowledge, and information to express his speaking ability fluently to say it on the spot Pinter (2006) said that speaking could be started by repeating models, drilling set phrases, and practicing It means conversing with others in situations where a spontaneous contribution is required Learners who can speak accurately or fluently will help them communicate easily and explore their ideas Speaking English also helps them get up-to-date information in the fields worldwide

From the explanation, it can be concluded that speaking is a process of expressing feelings and sharing ideas orally There are some aspects involved in speaking, such as vocabulary building, appropriateness, fluency, and accuracy, so all of the above parts must be mastered by learners

2.2.2 Aspects of speaking

According to Brown (2004), speaking skills must have five aspects:

comprehension, grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, and fluency

Comprehension: Comprehension is the ability to perceive, and process stretches

of discourse to formulate representations of the meaning of sentences Comprehension of a second language is more difficult to study since it is not directly observable and must be inferred from overt verbal and nonverbal responses, by artificial instruments, or by the intuition of the teacher or researcher Comprehension refers to the fact that participants fully understand the nature of the research project, even when procedures are complicated and entail risks (Cohen et al., 2005)

Grammar: Grammar is a necessary rule for students to combine correct

sentences in conversation Harmer (2001) and Nelson (2001) state that grammar studies how words combine to form sentences Grammar systematically accounts for and predicts an ideal speaker’s or hearer’s language knowledge Grammar refers to the fundamental principles and structure of the language, including clear and accurate

sentence construction and the proper conditions of words (Batko, 2004)

Vocabulary: Vocabulary is essential for successful second language use because,

with an extensive vocabulary, we can use the structure and function we may have learned for comprehensible communication In spoken language, the vocabulary tends to be familiar and used daily (Turk, 2003) The vocabulary must be familiar and used in everyday conversation to understand the spoken discourse It is a fundamental building block of language learning Students need to know words, their meanings, how they are spelled, and how they are pronounced So, when teaching vocabulary, the teachers must make sure to explain the meaning, spelling, and pronunciation

Pronunciation: Pronunciation refers to the traditional or customary utterance of

words From that statement, pronunciation is how students produce words clearly when speaking (Kline, 2001) English pronunciation only amounts to understanding a list of sounds or isolated words Instead, it amounts to learning and practicing the specifically English way of making a speaker’s thoughts easy to follow (Gilbert, 2008) Moreover, pronunciation includes all those aspects of speech that make for an easily intelligible

flow of speech, including segmental articulation, rhythm, intonation, phrasing, and more peripherally even gestures, body language, and eye contact (Fraser, 2001)

Fluency: Fluency is defined as the ability to speak communicatively, fluently,

and accurately Fluency usually refers to expressing oral language freely without interruption In the teaching and learning process, if the teacher wants to check students’ fluency, the teacher allows students to express themselves freely without interruption The aim is to help students speak fluently and with ease The teacher does not correct immediately, whereas the idea is that too much correction interferes with the flow of conversation (Pollard, 2008)

2.2.3 The importance of speaking ability

Speaking skills are essential for all learners who wish to learn English to enhance their career, improve business, build confidence, get better job opportunities, make public speeches, attend interviews, participate in debates, and group discussions, give presentations, and so on In the present modern world, everything is linked with speaking skills One who has good talent in speaking can conquer the whole world Having good communication is the passport to getting better employment opportunities In modern interviews, the real talent of the job aspirants is assessed through their performance in group discussions, debates, presentation skills, and so on Therefore, job seekers have to acquire good oral communication skills to grab better opportunities

2.3 Assessing speaking skills

Assessing speaking is complicated because several factors may influence a teacher's opinion on giving the score Speaking is a multifaceted skill needing the simultaneous use of different skills, frequently expanding at various functions Each teacher can give a separate score for speaking Such as in, giving a range score from 5 to 1 is difficult to do because the line of dissimilarity between stages is relatively challenging to identify Brown (2004) stated that the teacher requires various scores for

each answer to solve that problem Every score stands for one of the multiple features like grammar, fluency, comprehensibility, pronunciation, and vocabulary use There are two critical methods for assessing speaking

These are analytical scoring and holistic The analytical scoring is the final product by breaking down into criteria parts; every part is scored separately It is become specified into two features to be assessed for every performance level and offers a separate score for every performance This method engages the separation of various parts of a conversation This process is used to know the weaknesses or strangeness and provide detailed feedback on students' performances However, the holistic method employs numeric ratings to give a score of a student's performance (Iwashita & Grove, 2003) This method's process is seeing learners' achievement in language learning Each method has advantages and disadvantages The advantage of the holistic approach is quick scoring, efficiency for big group scoring, more realistic, and an impression of student achievement It does not offer detailed information, it is not easy for scorers to decide on one overall score, and it does not include a diagnostic, which is the advantage of the holistic method On the other hand, the disadvantage of analytical scoring is needed much time to score speaking performance, offering essential diagnostic information on students' speaking ability

Assessment has a leading role in the teaching-learning process By assessing students, teachers can measure their students' understanding of the materials given in their classroom That is one of the significant aspects of testing students' comprehension According to Fulcher and Davidson (2007), assessment is a way to see the evidence of learning activities that focus on students' practice In the teaching-learning process, learners have to be livelier to practice what has been explained by the teacher in the classroom The function of assessment is to guide the teacher to give students scores and help students recognize what knowledge, activities, and understanding help their progress

2.3.1 Indicator of speaking skills

Kuhn & Stahl (2003) approach speaking performance from different expectations, and many researchers have defined the indicators of speaking ability Grabe (2004) states that three fundamental indicators are discussed: automaticity, accuracy, and prosody

Automaticity is widely defined as one of the indicators of speaking ability It presents the ability to complete a speaking task without supporting supplemental resources During the speaking performance, automaticity is seen as effortless with the accuracy and accomplishment of words Schwanenflugel et al (2006) show that studying speaking skills in L1 is crucial in automaticity achievement

Speaking ability is a definition of producing vocabulary in language practice Speaking is an essential skill that students must master in learning the language We can recognize the students' speaking ability to achieve the target language Speaking is to express an opinion by using the voice or talking to say it aloud to the audience The primary purpose of communication is to exchange information from the sender to the receiver

Prosody plays a key factor as an indicator of ability in oral speaking Yamashita & Ichikawa (2010) show that oral speaking has a particular establishment in L1 with a chain of language features Those include stress or emphasis, melody or pitch variations, pronunciation or intonation, phrasing, and pausing In oral speaking, students' comprehension can interact through prosody Therefore, researchers suggest that understanding should include accuracy, prosody, and automaticity indicators of oral speaking fluency It is believed that a speaking performance will only be accepted if the speakers remember to comprehend the content

2.3.2 Fluency and accuracy in speaking assessment

Since the 1990s, these three factors have focused on EFL learning investigations It is accepted that fluency, exactness, and complexity can be utilized as both execution

descriptors and capability markers Fluency alludes to using the language with like quickness; exactness alludes to being error-free, and complexity implies the capacity to handle a broad run of structures and lexicon (Wolfe-Quintero & et al., 1998) The first characteristic of speaking appraisal is accuracy Learners routinely ought to be not fluent but also precise in speaking a foreign language Within the occasion that people speak English with a high level of exactness, it infers they say accurately with incredibly few botches So, second language educators emphasize precision in their education plans Learners must consider the rightness and the completeness of language outline when speaking Moreover, they should focus on syntactic structure, vocabulary, and articulation

native-Accuracy has been recognized from fluency since the 1980s when analysts attempted to define and degree second language verbal aptitudes Past inquiries have recognized fluency-oriented and accuracy-oriented exercises in a dialect program Fluency exercises offer assistance to move forward with the unconstrained oral etymological generation, whereas exactness focuses on the production of language structures Complexity in the EFL procurement literature relates to language errands and generation A few analysts also broke down the idea of complexity into two sorts: cognitive and phonetic (Housen & et al., 2005; Williams & Evans., 1998) Whereas cognitive complexity concerns the second language learner and is decided by components related to the learners, one of which is memory span, phonetic complexity concerns the second dialect framework A few pointers of the learner's etymological complexity are the assortment of structures and the expansive stock of lexicon

Even though an impressive sum of literature has been distributed on the affiliation between the three angles of language, there has yet to be the assertion that fluency, accuracy, and complexity create simultaneously This exploration subsequently set out with the point to decide if advancement in fluency through the speed speaking course leads to change in accuracy and complexity

2.3.3 Rubrics for Assessing EFL Speaking Ability

Szpyrka and Smith (1995) define rubrics as a detailed scale that fully describes the criteria learners need to achieve It is a tool that accurately assesses student achievement and provides student feedback Good criteria should have the following characteristics: explicitly stated, briefly; Observed, describe the behavior, and be written for students to understand Furthermore, ensure each criterion is unique, which is characteristic of the test According to Airasian (2000), before designing a detailed rubric, the teachers must decide whether students' outcome competence or product will be scored holistically or analytically

Many studies have shown the benefits of using a rubric in evaluating learning outcomes from the faculty and student perspective These can be listed as assuring the object's consistency and consistency when marking multiple items, helping faculty maintain focus on predetermined criteria, and improving the quality of students' feedback Feedback helps students evaluate the quality of their work and their peers, reducing the marking time of instructors (Andrade, 2005) During speaking practice, rubrics seem like an essential scale connecting assessment and teaching teachers to get a broad scale about specific teaching quality Then, they can apply it to teaching their students more effectively By using rubrics, teachers can work more comfortably, and it is easier to assess their student's performance in a more scientific, clarified, and persuasive way Moreover, using rubrics helps teachers reduce the time to evaluate, score, and professionally give students results Under rubrics, students can also fairly and quickly realize the expectations of teachers, parents, and schools Then, they have good motivation and happiness in learning the language

2.4 Teaching speaking to EFL learners 2.4.1 Principles for teaching speaking

In speaking activities, the teacher needs to acquire the ability to teach appropriately According to Richards and Renandya (2002, p.208), speaking is one of

the central elements of communication In EFL teaching, speaking is an aspect that requires special attention and instruction To provide practical education, it is necessary for EFL teachers to carefully examine the factors, conditions, and components that underlie speaking effectiveness In addition, interaction in teaching speaking is also key to improving EFL learners' speaking ability

Nunan (2003) stated that the language teacher should master some principles of teaching speaking Those principles are as follows: (1) The teachers should know the differences between second language and foreign language learning contexts The difference in context between them is very crucial The foreign language context is challenging because the students only have a few opportunities to speak in their environments Most people around them use their first language rather than a foreign language Meanwhile, in the second language context, English is used to communicate in society, like English in UK and Singapore (2) The teachers should give students practice with both fluency and accuracy by providing much practice in speaking (3) The teachers should provide opportunities for students to talk by using group work or pair work to speak effectively (4) The teacher should plan speaking tasks to help students communicate appropriately and effectively with others in the target language Discussion for purpose happens when the students try to understand what others say by asking for clarification, confirmation, or explanation (5) The teacher should design classroom activities for both group work and individual Brown (2001) states that there are some principles for designing techniques for teaching speaking He said that the speaking techniques should use methods that cover learners' need and carry out accuracy, fluency, and meaning The techniques should provide intrinsic motivations That means the practices should encourage authentic language use in meaningful contexts The technique should give appropriate feedback and correction and take advantage of the natural link between speaking and listening The process should allow learners to initiate oral communication and develop speaking strategies

In addition, Harmer (2001) argues that there are three primary reasons to give students speaking tasks that encourage them to see all and any language under their control The first is that the activities provide the students a chance to discuss and rehearse the material outside the classroom It is a way for students to feel comfortable communicating in a foreign language The second is the activity of giving feedback to the learners Then, suitable speaking activities can and should be highly motivating for the students Those reasons can encourage the student's language needs if the teachers do all the components well By keeping the regulations in education, the problems that usually happen in the teaching-learning process can be minimized, and the students can learn English maximally in class

2.4.2 Techniques for teaching speaking skills

Speaking skills ought to be practiced in the course through exercises In this manner, instructors should apply different verbal exercises in speaking lessons to empower their students to speak Language learners must often hone their language in the classroom by performing specific exercises The final point of communicative action in the course is to get learners to use the language they are learning to associate with real life According to Davies & Pearse (2000), there are numerous different exercises that can be wiped in the classroom to assist learners in developing their speaking skills, such as:

reasons The students may aim to conclude, share ideas about an event, or find solutions in their discussion groups Before the discussion, the teacher must set the purpose of the discussion activity In this way, the discussion points are relevant to this purpose, so students only spend time chatting with each other about relevant things For example, students can become involved in agree/disagree discussions In this type of discussion, the teacher can form groups of students, preferably 4 or 5 in each group, and provide controversial questions Then each group works on their topic for a given period and

presents their opinions to the class It is essential that the speaking should be equally divided among group members It is always better to refrain from forming large groups for efficient group discussions because quiet students may only contribute to small groups

to speak Students pretend they are in various social contexts and have a variety of social roles In role-playing activities, the teacher gives information to the learners, such as who they are and what they think or feel

Simulations are similar to role plays but make simulations different from role plays because they are more elaborate In simulations, students can bring items to the class to create a realistic environment For instance, if a student is acting as a singer, she brings a microphone to sing, and so on Role plays and simulations have many advantages First, since they are entertaining, they motivate the students Second, they increase the self-confidence of hesitant students because, in role play and simulation activities, they will have a different role and do not have to speak for themselves, which means they do not have to take the same responsibility

will have the information the other partner does not have, and the partners will share their information Information gap activities serve many purposes, such as solving problems or collecting information Also, each partner plays a vital role because the partner can only be completed if the partner provides the information the others need These activities are practical because everybody has the opportunity to talk extensively in the target language

time Depending on the context, either individual or group brainstorming is effective, and learners generate ideas quickly and freely The excellent characteristic of brainstorming is that the students are not criticized for their ideas, so they will be open

to sharing new ideas

students can briefly summarize a tale or story they heard from somebody beforehand, or they may create their own stories to tell their classmates Students can also tell riddles or jokes Storytelling fosters creative thinking

Another direction of storytelling technique, Story completion, is a delightful, whole-class, free-speaking activity in which students sit in a circle For this activity, a teacher starts to tell a story, but after a few sentences, they stop narrating Then, each student begins to describe where the previous one stopped Each student is supposed to add from four to ten sentences Students can add new characters, events, and descriptions.

with various people The teacher should provide a rubric to students so they know what questions they can ask or what path to follow, but students should prepare their interview questions Conducting interviews with people gives students a chance to practice their speaking ability in class and outside and helps them become socialized After the interviews, each student can present their study to the class

In the next step of an interview or before coming to class, students are asked to read a newspaper or magazine, and, in class, they report to their friends what they find the most exciting information Students can also talk about whether they have experienced anything worth telling their friends in their daily lives before class.

speaking activity is to give students pictures and have them describe what it is in the pictures For this activity, students can form groups, and each group is assigned a different picture Students discuss the picture with their groups, then a spokesperson for each group describes the picture to the whole class This activity fosters the creativity and imagination of the learners as well as their public speaking skills

Similar operations describe pictures To find the difference, students can work in pairs Each couple is given two different pictures, for example, a picture of boys playing football and another picture of girls playing tennis Students in teams discuss the similarities and differences in the photos

In this research paper, the writer focuses on applied storytelling technique in teaching English to non-English majored students

2.5 Storytelling technique

2.5.1 Definition of storytelling

Storytelling has long been an interesting topic for researchers A significant number of researchers have devoted their knowledge and energy to exploiting the advantages of this technique Storytelling incorporates words, pictures, or symbolic patterns (conceptual, leveled, patterned, and sequential) They show verbal, visual, and coherent learning styles Storytelling has diverse layouts, but they ordinarily have a comparative purpose They portray the relationships between realities and figures or key concepts and concepts inside a learning assignment

With the function and design of the teacher, storytelling can be used in terms of teaching speaking skills Functionally, storytelling can be gathered into two categories: those that portray fundamental information structures (whole-to-part, cause/effect) and those that serve specialized needs (extended planning, objective setting)

According to Gibson (1990), storytelling does not intrude into class time as many teachers think However, it can be a part of the actual lesson, which can stir up the lesson, thereby helping students retain the knowledge longer Groce (2004) finds out that storytelling is found to be effective in sparking interest and improving language skills in activities associated with social studies, science, language arts, and bilingual education Shank (2006) claims that storytelling can help language teachers create a collaborative learning space, reflect on their education, recognize new practical directions, and co-construct a shared understanding of good pedagogy Educators also

agree that storytelling is especially well-suited for students' exploration As a standard teaching tool, storytelling can encourage learners to explore their unique expressions and heighten their skills to communicate thoughts and feelings appropriately Storytelling has been proven beneficial to both teachers and students in terms of language teaching and learning by creating a positive and collaborative language learning classroom environment (Sever, 2014) and also as a convenient tool in helping students improve their linguistic skills in both their mother tongue and target language due to numerous benefits embedded in stories (Khodabandeh, 2018) regardless of their age or culture (Lucarevschi, 2016) Storytelling can help enlarge students' vocabulary, without which they cannot speak or listen effectively (Brakke & Houska, 2015)

2.5.2 The communicative competence of storytelling technique

According to Paulston (1974), communicative competence lets the speakers know more than linguistic competence In the 1970s, many researchers found communicative competence They indicated the significant differences between communicative competence and linguistic competence Notably, the difference between language mastery and knowledge achievement makes a student able to communicate interactively and frequently Moreover, communicative competence includes linguistic competencies such as knowledge of grammar and vocabulary and three other factors (Xu Li- sheng, 2000)

Communicative competence is the main factor in speaking proficiency (Scarcella, 1992) Communicative competence is an additional requirement for those who want to communicate effectively with their backgrounds and cultures Communicative competence is closely related to the nature of speaking; it means that language learners should focus on it while learning speaking skills Speaking skills could be necessary for each actual situation In daily communication, we use language to speak more than other skills; that is why spoken language must be taught first when the learner starts to learn the language Learning how to speak a foreign language is very difficult for non-

native speakers It requires the learner to master the nature of the language and its application in each specific context Subsequently, the instructor ought to teach learners with a certain degree of accuracy and fluency in understanding, responding, and communicating thoughts within the spoken language

Richards & Renandya (2002) pointed out the effectiveness of verbal communication that requires students to use the language appropriately in social interactions It includes verbal and nonverbal communication, such as signals, body language, and expressions needed to pass on messages straightforwardly These researchers also indicated that teachers should provide balance in storytelling This complementary role helps overcome the limitations and problems of each approach Moreover, the use of the storytelling approach is to motivate students' awareness of learning language skills It is used to provide opportunities for students to practice and apply the knowledge for communication of social nature In the same vein, storytelling should be combined in teaching speaking courses

2.5.3 Benefits of storytelling technique in EFL teaching and learning

Telfer (2012) suggested that storytelling is a beneficial pedagogical technique to be implemented in either EFL or ESL classrooms The potential benefits gained from using storytelling are enormous It has linguistic and social values Linguistically, for example, storytelling can help develop all four language skills Storytelling stimulates students to activate their schemata and connect their previous knowledge with the story’s events Also, students interpret the stories differently, which leads to healthy discussions When students are asked to retell the story, students practice their speaking skills using their own words based on what they have learned and grasped from the story Storytelling also encourages students to be active readers When students listen to lively and attractive stories, they get motivated

Socially, storytelling transforms the classroom into a community It helps build relationships between the students and their teachers and the students themselves The

non-intimidating atmosphere in which the story is offered strengthens the relationship between the teacher and their students This environment makes the learners close to their teacher, which is a critical factor in lowering the affective filter Among students, learners start to show respect for each other’s emotions and opinions

Hall and Strangeman (2001) believed storytelling technique could be applied to improve their effectiveness for learning Besides, storytelling significantly affects the classroom because it provides learners with approaches and opportunities to speak the language that builds on their awareness and extends their understanding The learners are given a suitable tool with a more distinct visual method of presenting information and ideas in the classroom (Chang et al., 2002) In speaking skills, learners are supported to clarify and present information into categories (structure of a presentation such as opening, body parts, and conclusion) Teachers help learners understand how to organize information, expand vocabulary, and divide sentences by dividing them into grammatical structures and connecting topics with their knowledge and remembering topics easily

The benefits storytelling offers are uncountable In addition to the benefits mentioned above, storytelling teaches students some life skills, such as negotiation, turn-taking, respecting others’ opinions, and understanding what is hidden between the lines It also expands the horizons for creativity for both teachers and students

2.5.4 Technology of storytelling

Storytelling is an activity in teaching and learning to tell a story to students one by one based on a central topic in front of the class while other students are listening In teaching using this model, the lecturer usually offers topics beforehand, and students find sources or may tell their own experiences to the whole class Storytelling becomes significant because students' ideas are naturally expressed through speech The writer assumes this learning model is a better teaching and learning process because all basic English skills are covered, such as grammatical structure, vocabulary, and

pronunciation

Storytelling is retelling the story having read or heard by using the storytellers’ own words based on their understanding of the story According to Zaro and Saberri in Akhyak and Indramawan (2013), storytelling involves the interaction between the storyteller and the audience and between an individual and the listener at a certain level Next, Safdarian (2013) defines storytelling as the way the students retell stories in a different word construction after being told the stories by the teacher Then, Ebrahiminejad et al (2014) say that storytelling is one teaching method using short stories According to Ling in Julia (2015), storytelling as a learner-centered method helps students to use the information and delivers messages to others Thus, it can be said that storytelling is a teaching method in which the students are asked to retell the content of the stories in different word constructions by involving a certain interaction between the storyteller and the listener

Meanwhile, Samantaray (2014) describes the procedures of storytelling as follows: (1) the teacher hangs different written stories with colorful papers on the board, (2) the teacher asks the students to make groups of five, (3) the teacher asks every group take a paper from the board, (4) the teacher asks them to develop a story in 15 minutes, (5) the teacher asks them to retell their story based on the group discussion, and (6) the teacher gives award to the group considered as the best group Additionally, Fikriah (2016) presents the procedures of storytelling as follows: (1) the students are asked to sit in groups, (2) then, the students make a story based on a sequence of pictures having some key sentences given by the teacher, and (3) the teacher asks the students to tell the story based on the result of their discussion in front of the class

The theoretical background for the current study has been reviewed in this chapter In the next chapter, the researcher will introduce the research questions, research design, the participants, and the instruments together with the procedure for data collection

CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY

The previous chapter displayed a literature survey, which may be a fundamental theoretical background for the study This chapter presents the technique used for the information collection and analysis within the study

3.1 Research design of the study

In order to assure the validity and reliability of the research results, this study employs mixed methods to assure the validity and reliability of the research results The quantitative method includes a questionnaire, and oral test for students A qualitative method contains an observation of the researcher and a semi-structured interview for teachers

The researcher did the same thing in group C This research consisted of five steps: (1) doing a pre-test in the first week, (2) teaching and observing in the experimental process, (3) surveying students, (4) interviewing teachers, and (5) doing a post-test in the last week There were 70 students from two classes of Lever 1 at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University, divided into two groups, participating in this study The researcher collaborated with a collaborator Both the researcher and collaborator were teachers at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot university The researcher did the study with an experimental group (group E) using the storytelling technique in speaking lessons Meanwhile, the collaborator taught another class (group C) with other techniques (such as practicing in pairs, group work, reading aloud the dialogues, etc.) The collaborator attended the speaking classes in group E She used observation sheets to report the lecturer’s activities, students’ activities, and students’ responses during the lecturer taught speaking using the storytelling technique in group E

3.2 Research questions

The study aimed to find out the answer to two following research questions: (1) What are teachers and students’ attitudes towards the use of storytelling

technique in speaking classes?

(2) How effective can storytelling technique help non-English majored students improve their speaking skills?

3.3 Population and sample

The subjects involved in this study were 70 students and 5 EFL teachers at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot University All students who participated in the survey were freshmen, and most were non-English majors They studied technical, social, economic, and other majors such as pedagogy and natural sciences And teachers who participated in interviews have had at least two or more years of experience teaching English as a foreign language

In the study, 70 students from two classes of Lever 1 (22EN10E60032 and 22EN10E60033) at the Foreign language center of Thu Dau Mot University were divided into group C (22EN10E60033) and group E (22EN10E60032) The researcher collaborated with a collaborator The researcher and collaborator were teachers at the Foreign Language Center of Thu Dau Mot university The experimental process was done in 8 weeks with the cooperator's help The collaborator taught Group C, and the researcher taught group E

3.4 Instruments

The instruments employed in this descriptive research were questionnaires, individual interviews, classroom observation, and oral tests, which permit the assessment of teachers’ and students' attitudes towards using storytelling in the speaking class and how effective storytelling technique can help non-English majored students improve their speaking skills In the following section, four instruments that have been mentioned will be described in detail

3.4.1 Observation

In the first four weeks of the course, the researcher and collaborator taught two groups according to the level 1 curriculum For the next four weeks, the researcher

conducted speaking lessons using the storytelling technique for the experimental group The other group was taught speaking lessons using other techniques by the collaborator During teaching, the researcher and collaborator conduct cross-class observations using observation checklists After eight weeks, the checklists were compiled, and information was collected to analyze the students' attitudes toward using storytelling techniques in the speaking classroom

3.4.2 Questionnaire

All the items of the questionnaire (see Appendix 1) were constructed and categorized from a careful review of related literature and the results of previous studies on the attitudes of students towards speaking skills and using storytelling technique in speaking classes The questionnaire was composed of 2 parts, with ten questions for the survey participants The first part contained two information questions (questions a & b) in order to gain information covering the student's education level and their majors In the second part, the participants chose the answer for each question including 4 questions (questions from 1 to 8) dealing with Students’ attitudes toward learning English speaking skills and storytelling technique For 6 in 8 questions, students have to choose 1 out of 4 answers provided; for 2 in 8 questions (questions 5 & 6), students can choose multiple solutions simultaneously

3.4.3 Interview

Semi-structured interviews with five teachers were conducted individually to obtain more insights into the data collected from the questionnaire and observation Interviewers invited to the observation class had at least two years of teaching experience The interview section was conducted after each classroom observation which aims to employ teachers' attitudes toward using the storytelling technique In addition, the interview part is considered a helpful instrument to investigate in-depth teachers' thoughts, which is to enhance the ability of storytelling teaching technique One question about the number of years of teaching experience and four open-ended

interview questions were conducted, as follows: (1) How many years have you been teaching? (2) What problems do your students have in speaking classes? (3) What do you think of the impact of storytelling techniques on students’ speaking skills? (4) How does storytelling benefit your teaching? (5) Using storytelling techniques and other teaching speaking methods, which is the most favorable method for you?

3.4.4 Oral Tests

A pre-test was done in the first weeks to assess the speaking proficiency of the two groups A post-test was done in the last week after the experimental process to assess the effectiveness of using storytelling technique in speaking classes Tests were managed to investigate the students' speaking capability and utilized to gather data on students’ capacity and knowledge of the second language Of course, to give concise results, tests must be well outlined to the degree of students' ability

Students use the textbook “OUTCOMES,” published by National Geographic Learning for level grade 1 Besides doing the exercises in the textbook, learners are also provided with an online learning account and a CD for listening parts The oral tests were created based on the knowledge of the book It is reasonable for the participants to define their level of language capability At the time of the study, their English capability was at an elementary level, so essential speaking assignments were chosen to be more suitable for the subjects All of these tests are included in "Appendix 3" The rubric of speaking ability assessment and votes marks for experimental tests were created after referencing the previous studies and the syllabus of this course (Appendix 4)

3.5 Data collection and analysis

3.5.1 Procedures of data collection

The data collection procedures were implemented in the academic school year of 2021-2022 from the end of March 2022 to early June 2022 All of the procedures were followed by these steps:

(1) Doing a pre-test: A pre-test was administered in the first weeks of the course The data from the test was used to assess the speaking proficiency of the two groups And the result was also used to compare with the post-test result to investigate the improvement of students' speaking capability

(2) Teaching and observing: From the first to the fourth week of the course, the researcher and collaborator taught two groups according to the level 1 curriculum From the fifth to the eighth week, the researcher conducted speaking lessons using specialized narrative techniques for group E; the other group was taught by the collaborator the speaking lessons using other techniques During teaching, the researcher and collaborator conduct cross-class observations to collect students' attitudes toward using storytelling techniques in the classroom

(3) Surveying students: At the end of the course, each student was given a questionnaire to collect student' attitudes toward their interest in learning English speaking and applying storytelling techniques in the classroom

(4) Interviewing teachers: Interviews with the teachers were conducted individually to obtain more insights into the data collected from the questionnaire and observation

(5) Oral test: A follow-up test was administered after the test was conducted to assess the effectiveness of using storytelling techniques in speaking classes Score data of the tests used for analysis in the study

Classroom observation procedure

Before observation, the participants would be informed of the purpose of the classroom observation During the observation, based on Willis’ (1996) framework and the suggestions of Estaire et al., (1994), the researcher focused on students' attitudes toward using storytelling in speaking classes Then, the information from the classroom observation would be compared with the findings from the questionnaires

Questionnaire procedure

At the end of the course, each student was given a questionnaire to collect students' attitudes toward their interest in learning English speaking and applying storytelling technique in the classroom The survey consisted of student information and the attitude survey The student information has two questions about the student's year of study at university and the student's major The data of this result was used to determine whether the participants were suitable for the research The attitude survey has eight questions to explore the students’ thinking about learning in speaking classes, troubles in learning to speak, and the benefits of using storytelling in speaking

Interviews procedure

Interviews with the teachers were conducted individually to obtain more insights into the data collected from the questionnaire and observation The interview participants were English teachers who had at least two years of experiment teaching They had been invited to the classroom observation to clarify the usefulness of a teaching speaking technique in the classroom The interview section was conducted after classroom observation which aims to employ teachers' attitudes toward using the

storytelling technique in speaking classes Oral test procedure

At the time of the study, their English capability was at an elementary level, so essential speaking assignments were chosen to be more suitable for the subjects All of these tests are included in "Appendix 3" and the scoring rubric of the speaking test used in this research was adapted from the speaking rubric of Zuhriyah (2017) (Appendix 4) The reason for selecting these tests is that they can be respected as standardized tests developed by specialists and therefore considered well-developed, reliable, and valid

3.5.2 Procedure of analysis

This study utilized quantitative and qualitative strategies to analyze the information to determine the teachers' and students' attitudes and effective storytelling techniques improve the students' speaking skills at Thu Dau Mot

university The Microsoft Excel program was utilized to test noteworthy differences in scores between the pre-test and post-test The survey information helped the instructor clarify the students’ contemplations and reflections on storytelling, which

had been assessed for them in 10 weeks Observation data

The researcher and collaborator did the observation by writing everything happening in the class on the field notes in each speaking lesson The observation data were analyzed by using descriptive analysis to know the students’ activities, and their responses during the lecturer taught speaking by using storytelling and other techniques

Questionnaire Data

Student survey data consists of 2 parts: Part 1 data was used to determine whether the participants were suitable for the study Information Question 1 identified which years the students were studying at university Information Question 2 identified the student's major The data in part 2 is used to analyze students' attitudes toward developing speaking skills and using storytelling techniques in activities in English-speaking lessons Questions 1 and 2 data are used to analyze students' attitudes towards developing English speaking skills Questions 3 and 4 data (Qp2.3 & Qp2.4.) are used to analyze students' attitudes towards using storytelling techniques in speaking lessons Question 5 (Qp2.5.) is used to analyze students' problems in speaking English Questions 6 and 7 (Qp2.6 & Qp2.7.) are used to analyze the effectiveness of storytelling techniques in developing English-speaking skills Question 8 (Qp2.8.) assesses students' interest and motivation to learn to speak English when using storytelling techniques The questions and answers are coded, and