[LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ] The impact of task-based instruction on improving students' speaking skill in the front office program an Vung Tau Tourism Vocational College

Background of the study

Language teachers strive to fulfill their mission of engaging and supporting learners in the learning process Ellis believes that an important element in the language learning environment and “keeping a central place” in the learning process is instructional tasks (Ellis, 2003, p.1) Learners’ performance can be positively affected by the type of task used in the instruction Thus, the tasks are designed to promote a language learning context so that learners can participate and be assisted in their efforts to communicate fluently and effectively The language learning context created in task-based instruction (TBI) offers opportunities where activities are used effectively and meaningfully This is precise reason why TBI promotes the use of communicative language in the language classroom

Some scholars emphasize the significance of task-based approaches to communicative instruction, in which teachers and learners have more freedom in finding their own directions and directions to maximize effective communication (Prabhu, 1987; Nunan, 1989).Therefore, TBI can be defined as an approach in which learners are provided with a learning context, through communicative activities the learner is required to use the target language Thanks to this approach, the process of using language plays a more important role than just creating precise language forms For this reason, TBI is considered a Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) in terms of real and meaningful communication as the main feature of language learning (Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Willis, 1996).

Task-based instruction (TBI) is considered a replacement to traditional language teaching methods since it aims to use functional communicative language (Brumfit, 1984; Ellis, 2003; Willis, 1996) In addition, TBI is seen as an effective approach that fosters a learning environment in which learners are free to select and

2 use the target language forms that they think are most likely to achieve their defined goals In addition, TBI is seen as an effective approach to fostering a learning environment in which learners are free to select and use the forms of the target language that are believed to be most likely to lead to the completion of identified communicative goals (Ellis, 2003; Willis, 1996)

Improving learners’ communicative competence is one of the main goals in language education (Barnard & Nguyen, 2010), and appropriate teaching methods are needed to convey language knowledge to learners and extract that knowledge for practical use Researching teaching methods to achieve that goal, Harshbarger (2002) and Phuong (2016) argue that Presentation - Practice - Production (PPP) is no longer effective because this method limits opportunities, possibilities, and ability to use the target language to communicate and negotiate, which goes against the goal of the Ministry of Education and Training Therefore, the proposed solution is to switch to task-based language teaching which is believed to be more effective in developing learners’ communicative abilities (Barnard & Nguyen, 2010; Harshbarger, 2002; Phuong, 2016)

The term ‘task’ is one of the core concepts in task-based learning and teaching and became more formalized as part of various kinds of vocational training in the 1950’s and came into widespread use in school education in the 1970s (Richards & Rodgers, 2001) The key programmatic proposals for Task-Based education in language teaching were first introduced in the 1980’s and 1990’s (Skehan, 1998) Presently, tasks are also considered as significant research tools, in conjunction with being the ground for language instructional approaches (Corder, 1981, as cited in Ellis, 2000; Crooks, as cited in Richards and Rodgers, 2001) When defining a task in second language education, a task is defined as an activity focusing on meaning Learners perform this task using the target language to achieve a definite goal at the end of the task (Bygate, Skehan & Swain, 2001) Nunan (1989) stated that tasks should motivate learners to perceive the need and attempt to complete the activity in a communicative manner Learners are given “purposes” to use the target language through tasks (Lee, 2000, p 30) In the process of purposeful learning, although

3 confident forms of language are not oriented for learners to use, they are encouraged to construct and use the target language themselves The teacher will assist the student throughout the process, but mistakes do not need to be corrected immediately by the teacher Teachers act as observers and supporters that facilitate task-based communication (Lee, 2000)

Following the task definitions, Barnard and Nguyen (2010, p.78) then presented a very brief definition of task-based language teaching (TBLT), stating that TBLT refers to the application of “communication and interaction tasks interaction” to stimulate English learners to make “meaningful communication and interaction” TBLT emphasizes the practice of creating meaning based on existing knowledge, which means that learners are enabled to make maximum use of their linguistic knowledge to complete language tasks (Nunan, 2004)

Speaking tasks are helpful to fulfill the conditions to practice the target language communicatively Fluency can be achieved, and accuracy can be enhanced through the design of communication tasks in speaking classes (Brumfit, 1984) When designing these pedagogical tasks, it is important to estimate the difficulty level of the tasks Skehan argues that it is necessary to introduce some complexity in order to have challenging communication (Skehan, 1996) According to him, in cases where students are assigned to perform tasks that require a lower level of language proficiency than the proficiency levels permit, students often do not perform these tasks as enthusiastically and diligently as usual Simultaneously, it is less likely that they will fully achieve the three goals, including fluency, accuracy, and complexity Thus, an appropriate task difficulty level can allow learners to focus on fluency, precision, and complexity alike.

Statement of the problem

Hotel Front Office (F.O) is a department of a hotel which has an important function and role in the hotel activities According to Bruce Braham (1993, p.63) The role of this department is to sell or rent the rooms, give needed information, provide customers’ demands, and handle the guests’ problems In addition, Foster and Dennis (1993) says that Hotel Front Office has responsibilities to monitoring and

4 organizing activities in the hotel According to Desy (2019) Hotel Front Office staff are facing the guests, have to know the purposes of the guest when they are asking or questioning Therefore, speaking English is crucial for F.O staff because there are not only local guests but also an international guest Thus, they need to speak English when communicating with the guests for the continuity Hotel business

Actually, the results of the summative assessments and formative assessments showed that the students’ speaking skill is always lower than the other three skills of listening, reading and writing, at all the four criteria of discourse management, vocabulary and grammar achievement, interactive communication and pronunciation achievement This circumstance has been going on for quite a long time despite the school's efforts to improve the quality of teaching and learning

In order to develop students’ speaking ability, the mentioned obstacles need to be overcome and a new approach should be introduced to help learners use English effectively and efficiently One of the proposed new approaches is the Task-Based Instruction (TBI) method TBI was chosen as a solution to the lack of exposure to authentic English since it gives students the opportunity to practice English naturally through participating in various activities during real assignments and in a stress-free atmosphere in the classroom environment

Thus, the researcher is interested in using this approach based on the use of tasks as the core element of planning and instruction in language teaching known as TBI The study will attempt to understand the impact of TBI on students’ speaking skill in the Hotel Front Office program at Vung Tau Tourism Vocational College Finally, pre- and post-oral tests, a survey questionnaire and a semi-structured interview will be conducted as primary methods This study also raises the hypothesis which states that TBI will have no effect on students’ improvement of speaking skills

1.3 Aims and objectives of the study

This study aims to examine the impacts of TBI in enhancing the communication skills of vocational students in English classes for the Hotel Front Office The research objectives are as follows:

• To find out how TBI is utilized in Hotel Front Office speaking classes at VTVC

• To investigate to what extent TBI improves Hotel Front Office students’ speaking skills at VTVC

The following research questions must be addressed to achieve the previously mentioned goals:

1 How is TBI used in Hotel Front Office speaking classes at VTVC?

2 To what extent does TBI improve Hotel Front Office students’ speaking skills at VTVC?

The research focuses on investigating the impacts of TBI on enhancing the communication skills of vocational students in English classes at Vung Tau Tourism College based in a Vietnamese setting The research does not generalize to all programs and institutions in the Vietnamese educational system

This present study was conducted at Vung Tau tourism vocational college at

459 Truong Cong Dinh, Ward 7, Vung Tau City, Ba Ria – Vung Tau Hotel Front Office Management program is among 12 training programs which are being conducted according to the VTVC’s official 2022 curriculum

Participants of 60 students ranging from 19 to 21 years old were divided into two classes The students are sophomores and have compulsorily learned English for at least five years in secondary and high school In addition, they have been trained with 120 sessions in the General English course in their first year Even though they received a similar English education, their English proficiency varied from elementary to pre-intermediate levels

The research was carried out for 4 months at VTVC Three instruments, pre- and post-oral tests, questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 60 second-year students in the Hotel Front Office classes

TBI in teaching is not a new research aspect Many scholars have conducted and reviewed research on the effectiveness of TBI methods of teaching ESL classes The research conducted in speaking classes at the vocational education level is extremely limited This study provides a practical significance at the school in research, specifically improving the teaching quality of the Hotel Front Office program for vocational tourism students

The goal of this research is to investigate if it is practical to implement TBI in teaching content classes in VTVC Also, the study could help to re-adjust the organization of teaching and learning English in the hospitality industry and grasp the actual needs of learners and teachers to adjust appropriately to reality For this purpose, the author helps set up reliable materials that the school manager can consider when making related decisions

The following terms are emphasized throughout this study:

Task-based instruction (TBI) is defined as an approach in which communicative and meaningful tasks play a central role in language learning and the process of using language appropriately is far more vital than producing the correct grammatical language Thus, TBI is seen as a model of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) in terms of real and meaningful communication as a key feature of language learning (Richards and Rodgers, 2001; Willis, 1996)

Tasks are defined as activities that will be accomplished while using the target language communicatively by centering on meaning to achieve an intended outcome (Bygate, Skehan & Swain, 2001; Lee, 2000; Richards & Rodgers, 2001;)

Speaking is defined as an interactive process of contriving meaning which comprises producing, receiving, and processing information Its form and meaning

7 relies on the context in which it occurs, the participants, and the purposes of speaking (Ruenyoot, 2010)

There are five parts of this research study

Chapter 1 serves as an introduction Background information, the purpose of the study, the aims and objectives, the research questions, the scope of the inquiry, the significance of the study, definitions of key terms, and the thesis structure are all included in the first chapter

Research questions

The following research questions must be addressed to achieve the previously mentioned goals:

1 How is TBI used in Hotel Front Office speaking classes at VTVC?

2 To what extent does TBI improve Hotel Front Office students’ speaking skills at VTVC?

Scope of the study

The research focuses on investigating the impacts of TBI on enhancing the communication skills of vocational students in English classes at Vung Tau Tourism College based in a Vietnamese setting The research does not generalize to all programs and institutions in the Vietnamese educational system

This present study was conducted at Vung Tau tourism vocational college at

459 Truong Cong Dinh, Ward 7, Vung Tau City, Ba Ria – Vung Tau Hotel Front Office Management program is among 12 training programs which are being conducted according to the VTVC’s official 2022 curriculum

Participants of 60 students ranging from 19 to 21 years old were divided into two classes The students are sophomores and have compulsorily learned English for at least five years in secondary and high school In addition, they have been trained with 120 sessions in the General English course in their first year Even though they received a similar English education, their English proficiency varied from elementary to pre-intermediate levels

The research was carried out for 4 months at VTVC Three instruments, pre- and post-oral tests, questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 60 second-year students in the Hotel Front Office classes

Significance of the study

TBI in teaching is not a new research aspect Many scholars have conducted and reviewed research on the effectiveness of TBI methods of teaching ESL classes The research conducted in speaking classes at the vocational education level is extremely limited This study provides a practical significance at the school in research, specifically improving the teaching quality of the Hotel Front Office program for vocational tourism students

The goal of this research is to investigate if it is practical to implement TBI in teaching content classes in VTVC Also, the study could help to re-adjust the organization of teaching and learning English in the hospitality industry and grasp the actual needs of learners and teachers to adjust appropriately to reality For this purpose, the author helps set up reliable materials that the school manager can consider when making related decisions.

Definitions of the Terms

The following terms are emphasized throughout this study:

Task-based instruction (TBI) is defined as an approach in which communicative and meaningful tasks play a central role in language learning and the process of using language appropriately is far more vital than producing the correct grammatical language Thus, TBI is seen as a model of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) in terms of real and meaningful communication as a key feature of language learning (Richards and Rodgers, 2001; Willis, 1996)

Tasks are defined as activities that will be accomplished while using the target language communicatively by centering on meaning to achieve an intended outcome (Bygate, Skehan & Swain, 2001; Lee, 2000; Richards & Rodgers, 2001;)

Speaking is defined as an interactive process of contriving meaning which comprises producing, receiving, and processing information Its form and meaning

7 relies on the context in which it occurs, the participants, and the purposes of speaking (Ruenyoot, 2010).

Organization of the study

There are five parts of this research study

Chapter 1 serves as an introduction Background information, the purpose of the study, the aims and objectives, the research questions, the scope of the inquiry, the significance of the study, definitions of key terms, and the thesis structure are all included in the first chapter

Chapter 2 discusses TBI methods for developing English speaking skills and their effectiveness in helping students to comprehend Hotel Front Office topics in English Finally, a conceptual framework is presented in the literature review

Chapter 3 describes the methodology of the study It includes the reserach design, research location, sample and sample techniques, research equipment, data collecting process, and data processing procedures

Chapter 4 presents the study’s findings based on data analysis from the oral pre- and post-tests, a questionnaire, and observations Data from prior discussion studies are also compared and contrasted with the results of this study

Chapter 5 summarizes the thesis’s significant results, the study’s implications, the research limitations, and suggestions for further investing.

LITERATURE REVIEW 7 2.1 Teaching Speaking

Task-based instruction

Task-based instruction (TBI), also known as Task-based language teaching (TBLT), focuses on using authentic language to accomplish meaningful tasks in the

11 target language According to Le (2004), TBI is a teaching method: Accurately introduce authentic languages into specific learning situations; emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction using the target language; accurately introduce authentic languages into specific learning situations; provide a number of opportunities for students to focus not only on the language themselves, but also on the learning process; exploits all of an individual’s experience as an important element of learning; and attempt to combine classroom learning with real-life use of the language

The use of TBI in language teaching has attracted increasing attention (Bygate, Skehan & Swain, 2000; Skehan, 1998; Willis, 1996) In TBI, meaningful and interactive tasks are the primary responsibility for language learning In this approach, the process of using language in communication takes precedence over the precise use of language Thus, if real and meaningful communication is regarded as the main feature of language learning, then TBI is a model of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) (Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Willis, 1996) Accordingly, in TBI, authentic language is practiced in the classroom content, enriching the learning environment in which learners actively deliver their own speech As a result, learners achieve communication practice which is appropriate to their abilities and pace within the identified goals in the TBI Particularly, the use of communicative language is highlighted as a fundamental aspect of a task-based framework because learners are supposed to learn the language while using it (Willis, 1996) Along with emphasizing the primacy of meaning, TBI focuses on the form for language learning TBI assesses that developing communication skills and concentrating on foundation are equally important in the language learning process (Bygate, Skehan & Swain, 2001) The task-based framework ensures that learners can use the language with accuracy and fluency (Willis, 1996) Obviously, both CLT and TBI have a common feature of using real languages However, TBI also has an essential and unique identity: ‘‘input and output processing, negotiation of meaning and focused conversations’’ (Richards & Rodgers, 2001) TBI provides productive language learning contexts in the form of tasks (Willis, 1996) The exposure to meaningful

12 input is considered the dominant context among the principal ones for language learning (Krashen, as cited in Ellis, 2003; Willis, 1996) Nevertheless, Swain (1985) affirms that productive output and meaningful input are placed on an equal importance, and at the end of a task, TBI demands a product - an output (as cited in Richards & Rodgers, 2001) Communication in TBI defines the process of understanding input as significant as production of comprehensible outcome in communication When a problem occurs during the process of communication, learners can negotiate meaning to find an appropriate solution (Ellis, 2003; Foster, 1998; Plow & Gass, as cited in Richards and Rodgers, 2001) Meaningful negotiation includes adjustment, rephrasing and experimentation with language Negotiation of meanings includes adjustment, rephrasing and experimentation with language The elements of meaning negotiation serve as a center for learners to use to practice speaking in real-life conversations Conversations involving clarification, confirmation, and comprehension checks, and self-repetition make the input intelligible Therefore, the existence of interactions to meaning negotiation is a pre- requisite for intelligible input and promoted language acquisition (Seedhouse, 1998; Yule, Powers, & Macdonald, 1992)

In Vietnam, some researchers also have an insight and definition of the task- based approach (Le, 2014; Pham & Nguyen, 2018; Phuong, 2016) Vo (2015) argues that this learning method focuses on using real language through meaningful performance of assigned tasks In this method, learners are free to use their own established language to perform language creatively in solving problems Learners recognize language deficits in the work of learning tasks Consequently, they have the opportunity to widen their indispensable knowledge in terms of language as well as other vital skills With the concept of turning language from a theoretical subject into a global language as a means of conveying information, TBI has quickly formed and developed in international schools such as RMIT Vietnam, International Language Auckland - New Zealand and British Council –Vietnam

Skehan (1996) suggests that to effectively support TBI, the goals for TBI need to be appropriately set and it is vital to pose three main language learning goals: fluency, accuracy, and complexity

Firstly, to achieve fluency, learners plan to use the target language in real-life situations at a level-appropriate speaking speed without interruption Besides, the key to achieving language fluency also involves rephrasing, hesitation, redundancy, pausing, and appropriate lexical usage (Skehan, 1996) Yet, learners cannot always succeed in speaking fluently An appropriate level of fluency is required for the communicator to be accepted as a positive participant in an interaction (Larsen- Freeman & Long) Poor fluency restricts interaction patterns which can affect communication This interference can leave both the speaker and the interlocutor unsatisfied The effective solution to this problem is that learners need to be given the opportunity to practice the language in real-time conversations One of the most common causes of a negative impact on learners’ fluency is that learners spend more time paying attention to the other two goals: accuracy and complexity In addition, personality factors are also considered as reasons for learners' poor fluency, related to general shyness, anxiety, awkwardness when speaking, feeling of saying the wrong idea

Secondly, accuracy is concerned with the regular use of the target language by learners It is indispensable for TBI to foster accuracy for constructive language learning and use because inaccuracy in communication negatively affects speaker’s production (Willis, 1996) Although most teachers advocate focusing on both form and fluency as central keys in language practice and acquisition, proponents of TBI insist that a focus on Form should not affect the flow of communicative pedagogy in the classroom (Ellis, Basturkmen, & Loewen, 2001) The primary goal in designing successful language teaching tasks is that these tasks must strike a balance between fluency and focus on form

Lastly, the complexity involved learner’s attentiveness aims to broaden the basic competencies for using more difficult words, phrases, or sentences If learners

14 are not interested in enhancing their inter-language or are not willing to take challenges in using more complex structures, then they cannot restructure and build the language (Schachter, as cited in Skehan, 1996) He appreciates the learner’s willingness to attempt to use more complicated language and this is extremely valuable in the learning process.

Tasks

Tasks are determined in varied ways in the literature due to their use for different purposes According to Long (1997, as cited in Ellis, 2003, p 89), tasks have their everyday meaning as the things people do, including “painting a fence, buying a pair of shoes, finding a street destination, making a hotel reservation”

By the middle of the last century, tasks were preferred in vocational training for instructional purposes The work is analyzed and adjusted to proper in the teaching task Work tasks are detailed as instructional tools and arranged in sequence for classroom training (Richards & Rodgers, 2001) In the early 1970s, the role of tasks was known in academic use Academic tasks have four dimensions These are 1) student products, 2) operations required to construct products, 3) cognitive skills to carry out the tasks, and 4) an accountability system for product evaluation (Richards

& Rodgers, 2001) TBI shares many of the same characteristics and functions as tasks which are created for other academic aims

Currently, tasks are evaluated as both research tools as well as instructional techniques (Corder, cited in Ellis, 2000; Crooks, as cited in Richards & Rodgers, 2001) Tasks play a pivotal role in program design and implementation (Long, as cited in Ellis, 2003) because language program designers rely on research tasks to identify learners' needs Taking a program described by Richards as an example, the tasks which are built around the process of needs analysis, focusing on five oral interaction scenarios: basic interactions, face-to-face informal interactions, telephone conversations, interviews, service meetings Task types included role-plays, brainstorming, ordering, and problem solving (as cited in Richards & Rodgers, 2001)

15 Despite the undeniably crucial role of TBI in language teaching pedagogy, TBI programs have received some criticism for their lack of organized grammar or other types of systematic program design Some current versions of TBI are actively modified to fill these gaps by placing the tasks in a systematically structured curriculum (Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Skehan, 1996)

TBI proponents believe that missions have several distinctive features Essentially, tasks are responsible for conveying meaning through language Tasks have detailed work plans and clearly defined communicative outcomes Tasks are set in the real world and involve cognitive processes (Kumaravadivelu, as cited in Ellis, 2000; Richards & Rodgers, 2001)

The most prominent feature of tasks is their focus on meaning Tasks should be created to engage learners in practicing the target language in a meaningful context by mainly concentrating on meaning transformation Delivered tasks should have gaps in reasoning, opinion, or information in order to design a meaningful context Task operations can create reasons in which learners communicate by negotiating with other students to form meaning and thus achieve success (Ellis, 2003; Foster, 1998; Richards & Rodgers, 2001) Furthermore, thanks to communicative activities with meaningful contexts, learners casually have great chances of practicing various linguistic structures which they choose to pick up while completing assigned tasks (Ellis, 1997; Ellis, 2003; Willis, 1996) In other words, although the tasks provide the content, the linguistic forms which are determined by the learner, are often in support of the teacher (Breen, 1989; Kumaravadivelu, as cited in Ellis, 2003; Richards & Rodgers, 2001)

Secondly, tasks can be considered as part of an instructional work plan (Ellis, 2003) A work plan that includes an outline of what learners and teachers are expected to do; and how the participants proceed to complete the task A work plan that includes an outline of what learners and teachers are expected to do; and how the participants proceed to complete the task For example, the instructional work plan might refer to a learning task which is established to attract students' interest in

16 different forms of language, applied to perform typically communicative functions However, task activities are sometimes unpredictable because of varying learners’ reactions Thus, the process of completing the task may or may not be consistent with the work plan (Ellis, 2003) In his explanation, Breen (1989) proposes that this unpredictability is a mismatch between task-as-work plan and task-as-process In case learners contribute to task operations in various unscripted ways, task work plans should forecast the variation of learners’ performance on task completion Breen (1989) further suggests that if a task can adapt to the variability in the learner's reactions, then the task is an appropriate activity for language learning and effectively promotes language acquisition

Another important feature of tasks is their relation to the real world which requires using related and actual materials in classrooms (Ellis, 2003; Skehan, 1996) Actual materials are authentic facts whose language is close to real world, out-of- class language use (Richards & Rodgers, 2001) In contrast, materials specially designed for language teaching should be related to pedagogical requirements to make them useful for teaching However, these documents must be different from authentic written or spoken ones Such tasks are defined as “pedagogical” tasks that

“have a psycholinguistic basis in SLA theory and research but do not necessarily reflect real-world tasks” (Nunan, 1989, p.76)

One more undeniably vital task feature is cognitive processing in TBI Ellis (2003, p.10) believes that, while fulfilling a supplied task, learners apply cognitive skills, including ‘selecting, classifying, ordering, reasoning, and evaluating information’ Although the nature of the task and the task product limits the linguistic functions that are relevant to the task, the learner oversees the cognitive selection of linguistic forms to express these functions Hence, Ellis asserts that learners’ language choices are influenced by their cognitive skills Meanwhile, Skehan (1996) argues in more detail about the cognitive approach to tasks In his view, cognitive processes in task completion depend on differences between the systems that learners use while presenting their second language knowledge These models are called exemplar-based and rule-based systems Exemplar-based models save formulas that

17 stay in the learner’s memory, promoting fluency The pattern-based ones save existing formulas in the learner's memory and motivates fluency Meanwhile, the rule-based system supports a more consciously controlled use of language and assists accuracy Both learning systems which are applied together to complete a given task can provide additional efficiency to task performance (Ellis, 2003; Skehan, 1996) Finally, tasks apparently determine communicative outcomes (Ellis, 2003; Skehan, as cited in Ellis, 2000) Ellis (2003) concludes that learner’s performance is developed by two determinants, namely: a task with a clear goal and expected communicative outcome at the end of the task Simultaneously, Willis (1996) also admits that clearly defining the output of a given task has a positive impact on strengthening learners’ participation in the task At the same time, Ellis (2003) believes specifying a task’s communicative outcomes also guides teachers to evaluate how successful learners are in achieving the task In other words, teachers need to instruct learners what skills they will have to achieve by the end of the task, which helps boost their performance because learners know they will be evaluated on the basis of the informed outcomes According to Richards and Rodgers (2001), tasks boost learner’s motivation because tasks require learners to draw on past experiences and engage themselves in variously designed interactions, for example: tasks that require physical participation or cooperative work

The task features explained in detail above are also accepted as differentiating

“Task” from “Activity” or “Exercise” (Widdowson, as cited in Ellis, 2000) Morris (1996), Nunan (1999), Ellis (2003) and Carl also distinguish Task from Exercise The authors emphasize that Tasks are communicative learning tasks and are often employed for new methods, while Exercises are non-communicative types of exercises, often used for traditional methods (p4 & p9 & p11) Besides, Nunan (2004) identifies the difference between the three concepts of Task, Activity and Exercise Exercise usually focuses on a specific linguistic element and orients linguistic output

A Task is a communicative activity whose interest is not limited to a certain grammatical structure but also has a non-linguistic outcome Accordingly, Activity is an intermediate operation compared to the opposite of Task and Exercise, which

18 means, it pays attention to one or two linguistic factors and also has a linguistic outcome Table 2.1 shows the difference between Task and Activity

Table 2 1 Distinguishing ‘Exercise’ and ‘Task’ (Skehan, 1998a)

Orientation Linguistic skills viewed as prerequisite for learning communicative abilities

Linguistic skills are developed through engaging in communicative activity

Focus Linguistic form and semantic (“focus on form”)

Propositional content and pragmatic communicative meaning (“focus on meaning”)

Goal Manifestation of code knowledge

Performance evaluated in terms of conformity to the code

Performance evaluated in terms of whether the communicative goal has been achieved

Internalization of linguistic skills serves as an instrument for future use

There is a direct and obvious relationship between the activity that arises from the task and natural communicative activity

Task features as discussed above represent a crucial dimension in task design and usage The other vital one in TBI is the selection of task types for specific teaching objectives Types of tasks in relation to teaching objectives will be considered in the next section

There are variety of tasks in the construction of tasks in TBI that task-designers need to carefully consider and choose to match their teaching goals Table 2.2 shows a partial list of suggested task types

Task designer Types of tasks

Pica, Kanagy, and Falodun (1993) 1 Jigsaw

Previous studies

Research on the impact of TBI has been conducted extensively over the years This section looks at a variety of research studies related to the author’s topic They were conducted on participants at different levels of education, from primary school, junior high school, high school to university in international and domestic regions Vanessa Feiteiro (2018) carries out a research project in 3rd and 4th grades in the first cycle of a Portuguese primary school The main aim is to clarify and implement task based learning to verify its positive impacts to the development of speaking skills Classroom strategies and five speaking tasks in pairs and in groups are consumed to promote speaking skills The data was gathered from a reflection journal, audio recordings and a questionnaire The audio recordings are analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively to inspect the children's verbal interaction and production while they are implementing the speaking tasks Results confirm that TBI can be mixed with a topic based approach to boost students' speaking skills Results conclude that TBI developed the experimental learners' speaking skills According to the writer, when creating speaking tasks for primary learners, teachers should focus on some following criteria: freedom level of the task, the fun nature of the task, the adequate challenge to attract learners and response to their proficiency levels

On the other line, Diyar Mauria (2017) does two kinds of research, library research and field research with eleventh-grade students of SMK Texmaco Semarang High school In this case, the author conducts an observation to the student

27 respondents before analyzing the data to gain the result She finally concludes that teaching speaking by using TBI is very interesting to reach better target of students’ speaking skill Applying this approach in teaching speaking brings some certain advantages to students, such as: enriching their speaking skill, comfort learning process, improving the correctness Because the students feel relaxed in accepting the English words used for speaking lesson, by the way, it also brings benefits for the teacher in teaching the speaking skill Teacher can implement task-based instruction technique as teaching instrument or use it as the helping tools encouraging their students to speak and respond by using English correctly However, teachers may face difficulties in teaching speaking using pictures techniques or students make much noise in class The writer suggests that teachers should master the speaking techniques, classroom management skills and the equipment used in teaching speaking process should be well-prepared

Merita Ismaili (2013)'s paper analyzes the effectiveness of the task-based learning approach on the development of students' speaking skills in multicultural academic setting in Southeast European University The research questions' results illustrate that task-based teaching encourages students in completing task activities which leads to development regarding their performance It thus offers students diversity and improves their learning Its positive value impresses the attendees since they are supplied more opportunities to express themselves in the target language than in teacher-centered lessons The author acknowledges that closed tasks stimulate modified interaction more than open tasks for lower-intermediate and intermediate learners because "open" tasks are less structured, with less specific goals, and more creative The author also observes that students are more eager to learn and often more excited She noted that TBI is especially beneficial in mixed-level classrooms as it encourages students to cooperate TBI allows students to actively interact with language in authentic contexts and challenges them to negotiate meanings and patterns which develop learner's autonomy In addition, teachers are also advised to deliver a variety of interesting tasks to their students The more students participate

28 in the tasks, the more they make progress and the more positive their attitude is, rather than being a passive listener (Ruso, 1999)

The investigation by Chanadda and Seanghai (2020) discovers sufficient evidence for the effectiveness of TBI in enhancing English-speaking skills in Cambodian classrooms The approach of Task-Based Instruction (TBI) is experimented with ninth-grade pupils to scrutinize the effect of TBI on their English- speaking skills and their satisfaction toward the experience with this approach The findings recommend that TBI is an efficient approach to developing learners’ English-speaking skills It satisfies their demands and interests and offers an appropriate condition for language learning despite the class size Pupils also viewed TBI as an applicable and fitting approach for language learning to motivate their speaking skills, their confidence in speaking and motivation in learning English Although the current intervention ‘moderately’ raises students’ achievement, it can be a very significant improvement

D Shaby and Dr J John (2022) conduct an experimental study to discover the effectiveness of Task Based Approach in teaching speaking skills to Indian college students Task based platform planned to teach for the first year undergraduates is based on the designed textbook Fifty students participating in the study were divided into an experimental group and a control group A pre-test and a two-section questionnaire is conducted to check the language proficiency of the students Based on the deployed classroom activities, a post-test is carried out for both groups Once analyzed, these results revealed students are so interested in participating in group work like developing conversation and playing language games They naturally make progress to achieve language outcomes The findings conclude that the task-based learning approach is applicable and even effective to average and slow learners because it provokes their curiosity in learning something new The results accommodates the utilization of task-based learning in bettering the teaching of English as a second language The two researchers claim that task based teaching method is more effective than the traditional teaching one because students feel more relaxed and enjoyable to expel opinions when involving in group activities They also

29 make recommendations that speaking should be given top priority as it provides a solid framework for their future career Besides, the more realistic the classroom situations are, the more students' speaking level develops

In the Vietnamese setting, research for TBI is not novel Since the Decision No 2080/QD-TTG dated December 22, 2017, of the Prime Minister of Vietnam approving the adjustment of the project on teaching and learning foreign languages in the national education system in the period of 2017-2025 published, research on implementing the TBI has received a serious contribution

Pham & Nguyen's (2014) action research aims to scrutinize the factors causing challenges to the speaking activities of the first-year English majors Ba Ria-Vung Tau Teacher Training College and the effectiveness of Task-based speaking activity on the students' oral performance after implementing in 15 weeks over 23 students The surveys show 2 factors affecting students' oral communication activities: They are provided few opportunities to practice speaking; and they lack of confidence in oral communication due to their poor vocabulary and sentence patterns For 15 weeks, the researchers observe that when the discussion topic is clarified and vocabularies are equipped enough, the students all actively participate in the conversation They obviously speak more fluently when they feel confident and have the opportunity to practice speaking with their partners The students suggest using these activities frequently during speaking class as they feel convinced and assured when practicing Task-based speaking activity; and they have made progress in learning to speak Based on the findings, a conclusion has been stated that Task-based speaking activity should be used to promote learners' speaking ability

A study by Nguyen Ha, Nguyen Loc & Tran Tuyen (2021) shows that TBI is perfectly consistent with the teaching tendency focusing on communication and learner-center Moreover, this method brings benefits to most learners who show their interest in studying English It helps learners have a positive attitude to learning English More specifically, Vietnamese students are more confident when communicating with others in English

30 Based on their experimental results, the construction of pedagogical learning tasks and the selection of appropriate teaching methods will create a learning community in the classroom, where there is active interaction between learners and teachers As a result, learners will have better learning methods and easily adapt to real life A task-based speaking lesson with the application of Willi's framework creates an enjoyable and relaxing learning environment for learners to engage with The contexts in which the teacher can guide the students to use the target language effectively and the learners will have the opportunity to master the target language when discussing with friends, also becomes easier for other learners and teacher Another study by Pham and Truong (2021) aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the task-based approach to speaking competence as well as students’ attitude towards the implementation of this method The researchers use an action study design for ninth-grade students at Viet Anh Secondary School, under the assistance of five teachers acting as examiners and observers Research results expose TBI has a great influence on students' speaking skills They demonstrate excitement, curiosity, confidence, creativity, and collaborative learning skills throughout oral classes This can be explained as follows: when they search for material from many sources, their reading, listening and vocabulary knowledge during presentations are improved because they have to read, listen and compare a lot of information before making decision to select the adequate information for their task At the same time, their writing ability also increases when they prepare PowerPoint slides or write scripts for their presentations

As can be seen, the mentioned studies mainly focus on TBI at primary, secondary, high school, and university level However, these studies have overlooked the impacts of applying TBI method in teaching speaking in vocational schools Especially, no previous research on using TBI to teach students majoring in Hotel Front Office in the tourism vocational training environment in Vietnam has been completed, according to the author's knowledge Therefore, for all the reasons above, it is necessary to conduct this research to fill in the research gap mentioned

Conceptual framework

Figure 2 1 Conceptual framework of the study

Summary Tasks play a significant part in classroom learning processes Task-based instruction focuses on the critical responsibilities of tasks in the learning process When learners are constrained to contexts outside the classroom in practice, classroom tasks become dominant in language instruction (Nunan, 1989) Therefore, teachers and curriculum designers need to emphasize the role of tasks and task-based instruction to have a productive teaching-learning environment

In this chapter, background information on the teaching of oral skills in task- based instruction has been directed along a logical progression, going from history to the present The definition and TBI and perspectives on teaching speaking have been presented in many different perspectives and angles TBI's goals, tasks types, tasks features and phases of the task-based framework have also been systematically discussed in detail The tasks intended applying for this research’s purpose were also examined in the context of task descriptions in the literature In addition, previous

32 studies have also been published in chronological order, both domestically and internationally, to indicate the research gap

The next chapter provides information about the participants, instruments, data collection, and data analysis procedures

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 33 3.1 Research design

Research site and Participants

This study was conducted at Vung Tau tourism vocational college (VTVC) VTVC is a public unit directly under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism The mission of the school is to train human resources for tourism with high-quality training programs in tourism-restaurant-hotels, vocational skills training for workers, research and application of techniques and technologies in order to improve the effectivenes of training quality for the cause of industrialization and development and modernization of the country in the context of global economic integration

35 According to VTVC's official program framework 2022, the school offers a total of 12 training programs: 6 College training programs (2.5 years) and 6 Intermediate training programs (1.5 years) The College of Hotel Front Office Management is one of the eight key occupations at the national level in the ASEAN region To better explain the field of Hotel Front Office Management, the figure 3.1 details the occupation sectors that Hotel Front Office students are able to take after graduation:

Figure 3 2 The structure of Hotel Front Office

Hotel Front Office students are equipped with fully equipped classrooms, projectors, televisions, speakers to meet the requirements of English teaching They are also provided with authentic hotel front desk to practice real-time English conversation Every year, students have many opportunities to practice at 3-5 star hotels - in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province, where they practice professional skills and communicate in real English This encourages students to study English in college to induce enough knowledge to use in the real world Additionally, the teachers at VTVC are high-qualified trained from Australian tourism college and Alexis Heck tourism school in Luxembourg Therefore, they are qualified to teach English simultaneously with vocational skills However, most of their teaching style is still traditional and students are not really interested in learning English According to statistics, most students when applying for jobs do not meet the requirements for English skills set by businesses

36 According to the updated program of VTVC, a school year is 48 weeks in length, divided into 2 semesters Each semester has 60 hours of English lessons, in which 15 hours are for theory lessons; 40 hours are for practice lessons; and 5 hours are for tests All lessons must strictly adhere to this program delivery

The study was conducted on a sample of two groups: an experimental group taught by the task- based instruction and a control group taught conventionally This study used a convenience sample because it was not possible to take a random sample of sophomores that is representative of the whole school The advantage of this type of sampling was the availability and the speed of data collection Besides, it was easy for the researcher to collect data because of her working as a teacher of these students The disadvantage was that the sample was not likely to reflect the entire population and could be influenced by volunteers

The research subjects included 60 male and female students in 2nd semester of the second year at the Hotel Front Office Department at VTVC The experimental group had 30 learners, and the control group had 30 ones They were all from 19 to

21 years old These students were chosen because they had studied English at the VTVC for one and a half year and may have had clearer objectives and more significant experience learning English than first-year students This experience might help students better comprehend and communicate their feelings about studying English at the VTCV and about the obstacles and successes they encountered All students spent the first year studying English level A2 (the second level of English in the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) and 1 semester of year 2 for English for Specific Purposes (ESP) at the Hotel Front Office The students were assessed four skills by the end of each semester During this time, the students periodically went to the hotels to practice their profession, 4 weeks after each semester Their levels were determined by a standard proficiency test conducted after the first term of 2nd year Therefore, when being recruited as participants, their language proficiency levels were similar at lower intermediate Table 3.1 shows the participants in this study

Table 3 1 The participants of study

Students in the experimental group 30 6 males

Students in the control group 30 9 males

Research instruments

A research instrument is a tool that the author uses to gather data Quantitative and qualitative methods were employed to collect data for addressing the two research questions The data of the experiment were taken from three tools, including a pre- test and a post test, a close-end questionnaire and semi-structured interview 14 lesson plans are designed under the task framework proposed by Willis (1996) and delivered to the experimental students as a treatment while the control group is instructed in communication activities in the PPP model

Firstly, the researcher was entirely responsible for describing the questionnaire (Appendix 1 & 2), giving guidance, and delivering it to participants The questionnaire also included a consent form which informed students about the questionnaires and interviews and asked for being voluntary and their responses being confidential (Appendix 3 & 4) The second data collection instrument consisted of pre- and post-oral tests in which learners’ speaking abilities were graded The aim of these conversations was to observe if learners improved their communicative language skills by virtue of TBI in their speaking classroom Interviews were the third instrument in the study A focus group interview (Appendix 5 & 6) was conducted with 6 learners, 4 females and 2 males in the experimental group after task-based treatment by the researcher Speaking tests were used to assess the improvement of learners’ speaking skills while questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were used to investigate how the TBI was used in speaking class The questionnaire and interview questions had been checked and confirmed by the other two teachers of

38 English at the VTCV for validity and reliability before being provided to participants by an expert in English language studies

Undoubtedly, questionnaires are one of the primary sources of acquiring data in any research According to Nunan (1999), questionnaires are a useful tool in educational research since it is important that, in closed-ended questions, the responses to these types of questions accurately reflect what the respondent wants to express

Due to the fact that questionnaires save time and effort for both researchers and participants, in the scope of this research, questionnaires for students were employed as one of the primary instruments for data collection Survey questionnaires were chosen because they allowed large amounts of data in a relatively short time In my thesis, the 4-point Likert-scale type questions were used in a general way to sample responses both in terms of positive and negative aspects of participants for each specific TBI lesson

The questionnaire of 12 items was administered after each task during the treatment, so I found that a shorter scale elicited more spontaneous responses from students Participants were asked to choose from four responses ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree

3.3.2 Pre- and Post-oral Test

The pre- and post-speaking tests included speaking tasks related to topics in both speaking classes, the experimental and the control groups

The researcher approved the scale assessment rubric for the B1 level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages which includes 5 points because it has specific sub-criteria and is suitable for the curriculum The 5 bands have been moved to a ten-point scale for ease The four criteria used include (1) pronunciation achievement, (2) grammar and vocabulary achievement, (3) discourse management, and (4) interactive communication The last criterion is essential for the specific requirements of the profession when hotel staff need to communicate daily

39 with hotel guests Each oral test was performed in pairs of dialogues of students, representing a real situation in a hotel, between a guest and a Hotel Front Office staff Since the participants had a lower intermediate level in my study, the pre- and post- oral tests corresponded to the tasks they learned in their regular classes In order to evaluate the results to be transparent and random, the pre-speaking test was designed by the researcher while the post-speaking test was designed by the Department of Testing and Quality Assurance because post-oral test was the final test of term 2

To help students best prepare for their future jobs, the test was conducted at a simulated hotel reception The test was scored by four experienced teachers Students did the test in pairs The tests included role-playing tasks: a hotel guest and a hotel receptionist The candidate playing the role of a receptionist was asked to choose a slip from an envelope containing a situation or process about the work of a Hotel Front Office staff The contestant read it aloud to let his/her partner know their role as a hotel guest Each student had to prepare a dialogue based on the selected card in one minute When ready, they began the conversation, the reviewers observed them Students were free to use the forms and cards at the front desk while presenting their dialogues (dealing with complaints, check-out, etc.) Students repeated the same process for another series of case sheets After students completed the role-play and left the classroom, the evaluators scored each student's performance using the current oral assessment criteria The two reviewers then compared their scores They negotiated a common ground through discussion of performance if one contestant’s score had a difference of 10 points The mean scores of these two tests revealed the degree of oral improvement after the intervention To evaluate the significance of this study, a pair sample T-test was conducted to compare the scores of the two tests (Appendix 7 & 8)

A semi-structured interview was selected and conducted at the end of the study to better understand the impact of TBI activities on students’ speaking ability As

40 suggested by Bernard (1988), data is more natural and reliable because semi- structured interviews encourage respondents to express their opinions orally According to Nielson (cited in Johnson, 2008), a sample size as small as five participants could provide enough information to make inferences, so that six students of the experimental group were invited to take part in the interview, in which

2 students had the highest score, 2 with the lowest and 2 with the average in the post- oral test These students best reflected the learning process using TBI in the speaking classroom The five-question interview took place over sixty minutes and was recorded for later analysis

In this study, the researcher decided to use this data collection tool to further explore students’ opinions about TBI and to collect more spontaneous responses beyond the scope of the questionnaire The results of this semi-structured interview were aimed at clarifying how their use of TBI went on for 14 weeks and how TBI helped them develop their speaking skills.

Data collection procedures

Pre-oral test was conducted on 7 th and 8 th of February 2023 This was done one week before the actual research study to allow the adequate researcher time to make any necessary revisions to ensure the research was credible Four lecturers were invited as raters All of them are teachers with over 10 years of experience in teaching English and have hospitality industry knowledge Students took the test in pairs, playing the role of a guest and a hotel receptionist Raters also participated in the assessment in pairs To control the inter-rater reliability, to some extent, each pair of raters scored 50% of experimental group and 50% of the control group, and they did not know if the students came from experimental or control one Each student needed

10 minutes to handle the situation as a receptionist, then changed roles to be a guest Therefore, each pair took 20 minutes to complete the entire test The evaluators then individually scored each pair's performance for 5 minutes Table 3.2 The raters and participants in the pre- and post-oral tests

Table 3 2 Raters and participants in pre-and post-oral test

Rater 1 & 2 • 16 students in experimental group

Rater 2 & 3 • 14 students in experimental group

The detailed schedule (Table 3.3 in detail that each pair of raters followedin the pre- and post-treatment oral tests.

Table 3 3 The schedule in the pre-and post-oral tests

Raters Day Number of pairs

Day 1 8 pairs 15 minutes (10 minutes: actual test

Day 2 7 pairs 15 minutes (10 minutes: actual test

Day 1 8 pairs 15 minutes (10 minutes: actual test

Day 2 7 pairs 15 minutes (10 minutes: actual test

TBI was applied for the experimental group for 14 weeks with 14 tasks, starting on February 14 th and ending on May 9 th The scheme of tasks was displayed in detail in table 3.4

Table 3 4 Tasks applied for the experimental group

Date Unit/Task Objectives Description

To convey the meanings of particular vocabulary items in a context

This task related to the process of brainstorming and searching for information of learners A context is created for learners to elicit the meanings of words They are supposed to exchange information, using their previous knowledge to list the vocabulary of hotel facilities and services in international standard hotels Then they are supposed to act out the given conversation

To enable students to work on a jumbled conversation to order it again in a meaningful way

Students are provided a conversation between a hotel guest and a hotel staff They firstly categorize the sentences belonging to either the guest or the hotel staff Then, they order these sentences in a meaningful conversation After that, they elicit the expressions of introducing chamber and laundry service and upsell the rooms

- To enhance real life rehearsal on the given topic and build fluency in using the target expressions

- To enable students to practice previously learned structures in contexts they prepare

By showing the expressions in the previous lesson and practicing their use, students prepare a similar conversation in pairs and role- play

Students are then given different scenarios so that they will prepare their own conversations in a more controlled manner In each situation, they have to prepare a dialogue and practice it in pairs

To practice the following linked goal structure, distinguish the different

Students are given situation cards and expected to design a dialogue with their partners to satisfy the guest

(4 situations corresponding to 4 types of complaints)

43 Role-play kinds of complaints in hotel

- Apply the complaint handling process politely

Students are then given different scenarios so that they will prepare their own conversations to handle the guest complaints politely and effectively to make them satisfied Pairs will role play

To enable learners to elicit target language structures through examining sample conversations

Each student in pairs is given 2 message forms Since it is an information gap activity, one has the information that the other one does not A asks B to take the message and the other student leaves the message According to the given directions, A completes the Message form

To practice how to take message on the phone

Students are informed of the situations before creating their own responses to the guest Taking the message on the phone while completing the Message form

Learners have to evaluate the objectivity of each solution and choose the most suitable solution through pair discussion

Students listen to short conversations between a receptionist and several guests while looking at marked places on Vung Tau map The pairs must discuss to find clues to decide the destination for each guest

To practice how to ask for and give directions

To raise students’ attention towards the target language functions (asking for and making requests) (maybe a pre- task activity)

Each student in pairs is given

2 maps Since it is an information gap activity, one has information that the other one does not A asks

B for a direction and the other gives the directions A finds the place on his/her map

Students are given different conversations to analyze them according to a checklist called

‘request analysis’ to see whether certain expressions are used in the

44 conversations or what types of structures are used

To enable students to practice the elicited target language functions through role playing

Students are supposed to prepare conversations for the given situations in which they will use target functions elicited in the analysis task

Requests (jazz chant) To familiarize students with the target language structures through rhythmic chant, enable them to practice the pronunciation and intonation of structures

Teacher firstly practices the jazz chant of the particular structures and then let learners practice it in pairs

To foster cooperative learning, to give the opportunity to negotiate for meaning, to enhance their creative thinking skills

Learners are given a dialogue jumbled and lacking the ending (a guest make a request) Then in pairs they are given the parts of the incomplete dialogue in a randomized way and expected to re-order them and create an ending for it

To enable students to work on a jumbled conversation to order it again in a meaningful way

Students are given a conversation between a guest and cashier They are firstly supposed to categorize the sentences belonging to either the guest or the cashier Then, they are expected to order these sentences in a meaningful conversation After they elicit the expressions for payment methods 9/5 Module 6

To enable students to practice the elicited target language functions through role playing

Students are supposed to prepare conversations for the given situations in which they will use target functions elicited in the analysis task to do the cheek-out procedure with different payment in the hotel

All tasks were designed by the researcher During course, students were given one or two tasks in a class hour, based on TBI After each task, questionnaires were delivered to the students and collected after that In each questionnaire, students were instructed to write the date and task number Each questionnaire was tagged by a student code There were 14 questionnaires analyzed at the end of the study Each survey questionnaire includes 12 statements (Appendix 9)

At the end of the course, post-oral tests with the same procedure as in the pre- oral test, were administered to both 2 groups on 18th and 19th, May 2023 The testing was organized by the Department of Testing and Quality Assurance The designed tasks in the pre- and post-tests were directly performance-referenced They were simulations of the real world, in which students negotiate through role-plays The situations assigned to improvise a small dialogue with their pairs were purposeful and authentic The topics were appropriate to the provided knowledge and skills Two in four raters were replaced by other two ones due to the school’s staffing arrangements The setting was a mock room simulating the lobby of a 3-star hotel Students could use the equipment and forms/cards available at the front desk to complete the test, depending on the situation

The two raters assessed each test-taker on criteria consisting of these components: pronunciation achievement, grammar and vocabulary achievement, discourse management, and interactive communication The raters individually assessed each student’s performance before negotiating a common mark

Data analysis procedures

As mentioned above, there are two types of data: quantitative and qualitative Accordingly, quantitative data were collected via a pre-oral test and a post-oral test and a questionnaire To collect and evaluate qualitative data, interview questions were employed through the interviews with 6 students in the experimental group The data were only collected and translated into English for research purpose

The Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0 software package was used to analyze the data Means and standard deviations of the pre- and post- oral tests in the experimental and control groups were compared using t-tests

Also, the data from students’ responses to the survey questionnaires were analyzed quantitatively The statistical data from the Likert scale questionnaires completed by the students were also examined using SPSS Means and standard deviations of all responses for 14 tasks were composed Individual responses were inspected for the patterns of responses to individual tasks as well as to TBI more generally Total mean responses for the 14 tasks were ranked from the most favored to the least one This gave a measure of a student’s affective response to particular tasks and task types Lastly, the interviews with 6 students were analyzed and interpreted qualitatively by the researcher

3.6 Validity and reliability of the data collection and data analysis

The data collection tools in this study ensure the validity since the researcher chose to do survey using a questionnaire and in-depth interviews for the participants at the schools the researcher is teaching, and designed speaking tests to properly measure the speaking ability of learners who are learning speaking skills at the school These tools accurately and consistently measure concepts of interest The questionnaire, and the in-depth interview were reviewed by other teachers of English

47 at the school Moreover, the speaking tests were also inter-rated by other teachers of English, and thus ensuring the reliability

The data analysis in this study ensures the validity of the research since the research used valid procedures such as interviews and observations for qualitative data analysis The researcher used cross-checking data, statistical tests (pretest and posttest) to assess the reliability of the measures The research also Cronbach’s alpha for the reliability of the questionnaire According to Trobia (2011), the alpha of Cronbach varies between 0 and 1 The higher the alpha value, the more consistent and thus accurate the scale is Trobia (2011) also revealed that some authors have suggested a crucial value of 0.70 for alpha, at which the researcher can be certain that the scale is correct Thus, as can be seen in Table 3.2, the Cronbach alpha of these 12 items is 0.7 showing that they are reliable and they have relatively high internal consistency

Table 3.5: Reliability statistics of students’ questionnaire

Reliability Statistics Cronbach’s Alpha N of Items

Ethical considerations were addressed prior to data collection The researcher obtained informed consent from participants, ensuring confidentiality and privacy, and considered any potential harm to participants The researcher outlined the plans for addressing these ethical issues in the data collection procedures section For ethical considerations during data analysis, the researchers ensured the anonymity of participants when presenting the data to avoiding any potential harm that could come from misinterpreting or misrepresenting the data, and being transparent about the limitations of the data

The chapter included a description of the study design and the motivation for choosing it, the samples used in the study, and how research instruments were created This chapter also discussed how the data were collected and analyzed The validity and reliability of research instruments such as questionnaires and semi-structured interviews were mentioned as well The analysis and presentation of gathered findings and the discussion of such discoveries were the focus of the next chapter

RESEARCH RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 49 4.1 Quantitative data

Qualitative data

The purpose of interview questions directed to six students of the experimental group was to investigate their acceptance of TBI in speaking classes and determine the impact of tasks on their speaking ability improvement There were 5 interview questions, and 6 students were selected based on their post-test scores: two students (S1 and S2) achieved the highest scores, two other students (S3 and S4) gained the medium scores, the remaining students (S5 and S6) got the lowest scores Although such chosen students were spread in different point ranges, their reflections might not represent the whole group Participants' comments were analyzed based on the commonalities Therefore, this data has helped the researcher better understand the impact of TBI tasks on individuals and generalize their observations to the whole experimental group

When the first question was asked “What specific tasks do you have in your minds?” Task 12 and 14 (see Table 3.4) were mentioned immediately, gaining the highest mean values in the tasks rank order (see Table 4.7) The outcome of the interview matched the findings from the Questionnaire Task 12 was believed to stimulate learners’ creativity and imagination Although they faced some struggle designing the endings to meet the guest’s expectation, this task increased their

63 problem solving skill and creative thinking skill The students voiced the following sentiments during the interview, which served as a reflection of this result:

“It made us use our creativity and imagination I mean we experienced to think in English.” (S3)

“We had to discuss to figure out the most suitable solutions based on the negotiation for meaning We finally felt pleased with our effort.” (S4)

“The task developed our creative thinking skills and fostered our cooperative learning.” (S5)

Another student commented that Task 12 improved listening skills and fluency:

“We received many kinds of requests from hotel guests and quickly sorted them out in our minds before responding When I learned this task, my listening skill and fluency was enhanced.” (S2)

Students also recalled task 14 related to check-out procedure They found this task extended their vocabulary in the situation which a cashier deals with different paying methods upon on the guest’s wishes Although there were some challenges, they enjoyed it and found it helpful in their future career

“I think the check-out task is my favorite I learned some target language forms in this procedure, so I felt confident being a professional hotel staff It was very useful.” (S6)

“Yes, madam I preferred the challenge where the task required the cashier to quickly respond to requests Cashier could be asked to separate the invoice, call a taxi or a porter, even book a room for the next vacation.” (S3)

“I agree with the others The situation in which the bill was beyond the guest's payment ability really challenged us.” (S2)

64 Participants also made positive comments on Task 4, related to the language used in dealing with complaints The task encouraged students to practice language in different real-life contexts, which re-enforced the learning of particular language structures They supported these ideas by stating that:

“In fact, this task created many chances to practice speaking English and required communication skill.” (S4)

“It was also the toughest for me We almost learned all the forms in that task.” (S3)

It can be seen that the stated perspectives expressed by the interviewees are congruent with the responses provided by persons who completed the survey questionnaire

Tasks during the treatment were designed mostly as pair work activities for the following reasons: they help increase learners’ engagement; they are suitable for the actual working environment of the hotel receptionists According to students' reflections, pair work activities increased interaction among themselves, improved speaking and listening skills thanks to practising language more When asked “How did pair-work help you to complete the tasks?”, they replied:

“We have more opportunities to help and learn from each other intentionally or unintentionally through mutual correction and complementarity and, therefore, we fostered skills together (S2)

In addition, it has been shown that participation in pairs attracted not only active but also timid students When communicating in pairs, the language students used to express themselves was often specific and intimate, and they were given opportunities to use the language without pressure They responded:

“We felt more comfortable communicating, so we can express our thoughts more naturally” (S3)

“We were quite comfortable using correct or incorrect language because my partner and I had similar language levels I found pair work useful and exciting.” (S5)

However, students realized some negative effects when doing pair work They mentioned that sometimes students might make many mistakes which the teacher could not control, or one member of the pair had no willingness to engage, which frustrated the other They reported their pessimistic views on pair-work tasks as follows:

“My partner often makes many grammar mistakes I think she would hesitate to speak if she was constantly corrected.” (S3)

“Sometimes my partner was uncooperative and tried to finish the tasks in a sloppy way This made me frustrated and less motivated.” (S6)

4.2.3 Speaking skills improved through tasks

Students' responses demonstrated all the tasks provided environment where they practiced real hotel-language, thus improving their speaking When asked “How did the tasks help you improve your speaking skills?”, they affirmed that they achieved or advanced various language skills, including the sub-skills of accuracy, fluency, statement expansion, pronunciation, and vocabulary development They were all highly appreciated with the assigned tasks involved making decisions, handling guest requests, negotiating a solution, taking phone messages They supported these ideas by pointing that:

“The task about taking phone messages and giving directions required us to communicate with guests on the phone, so it helped us improve our pronunciation and listening skills a lot."(S1)

"I agreed with you These tasks not only expand our vocabulary but also increase our speaking reflexes."(S4)

“… Handling the requests and dealing with complaints increased my fluency and vocabulary." (S6)

“… Practicing speaking in a simulated front desk also made me feel more confident and professional in interacting with future guests.” (S2)

“Thanks to speaking English more during the classroom time, now I can speak long English sentences with proper intonation I was instructed to practice focusing on the rhythm and stress of the words and phrases.” (S3)

“Real-world tasks actually provided polite expressions to use in hotels It really helped me quickly and consistently respond to inquiries and questions.”

Students also reported that there has been an interaction growth among students both inside and outside the classroom since TBI was implemented This proves that TBI supports language learning while strengthening the connection between pair members

4.2.4 Reflections on the TBI treatment

Students agreed that tasks provided them opportunities to focus not only on the language themselves, but also on the learning process while the researcher wanted to know about the differences in the classroom after the TBI treatment Students have found that they have more speaking and listening time during treatment Also, they expressed that the learning atmosphere was so exciting and entertaining that they ignored the passage of time They all seem delighted to see their progress in language learning Some positive thoughts:

“I think we were actively engaged after just one task We didn't even realize the class was over.” (S2)

“Before, I was shy in public speaking because I was afraid of being laughed at for mistakes in pronunciation or grammar, but now I don't care about these things anymore.” (S3)

“… I am more confident in communication and take advantage of every opportunity to speak English.” (S1)

“Teacher, through these tasks I could practice English more This helped us to improve our speaking.” (S6)

“That’s right Some situations in tasks were challenging, so the classes were full of fun, exploiting students’ creativity.” (S4)

In addition, students have exploited personal experience as an important component of learning They reported that the combination of classroom learning with real-life language created classes which were full of fun and boosted students' creativity They also asserted that discussions of TBI in the classroom led to enhancing the interaction outside of the formal learning environment which was a huge positive step for students They supported these ideas by stating that:

“Another interesting thing is that Task about giving directions in the city has exploited all my personal experiences I have only lived in Vung Tau for more than 1 year, but thanks to the information sharing from my partner, I not only expanded my vocabulary but also enriched my life knowledge” (S4)

“The tasks in the course are really practical and suitable for students in the hotel industry Thanks to them, our professional knowledge and skills have significantly updated.” (S5)

“Textbook for Hotel Front Office mainly includes listening and speaking activities The designed tasks were very interesting and natural like the real contexts we experienced during the internship.” (S1)

“I completely agree, the situations in the complaint handling task were really similar to those which I experienced at Pullman hotel.” (S2)

Discussion

4.3.1 The implementation of TBI in the Hotel Front Office speaking class at VTVC

The study's findings revealed that the vast majority of whom took part in the survey questionnaires and interviews held positive opinions about the effectiveness of using TBI in classroom Besides, the interviews elicited a few negative responses and a few that were neutral Furthermore, students were open and honest about their struggles, even though they tended to have a positive outlook Therefore, assuming they answered all the questions honestly during the interview is reasonable

The first research question “How is the task-based instruction used in the Hotel Front Office classes at VTVC?” was explored by the data which was collected and analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative methods through two research instruments: a survey questionnaire and a group interview

As the first instrument, the survey questionnaire results showed that all the 14 tasks used in the treatment were responded positively and there were no tasks with

71 negative responses Tasks apparently determine communicative outcomes (Ellis, 2003; Skehan, cited in Ellis, 2000) Ellis (2003) concludes that learner’s performance is developed by two determinants, namely: a task with a clear goal and expected communicative outcome at the end of the task This was also in line with the improvement of the learners' speaking performance at the post-test It is clear that the carefully designed tasks succeeded in reaching the target goals Besides, the results of independent sample t-tests to compare the responses of the experimental group students to 14 different tasks indicated that the most preferred tasks were about problem solving and related to real-world activities

The most preferred problem-solving tasks in which students were given various situations to build up conversations to deal with the guests’ complaints politely and effectively, and to create an ending for incomplete dialogues about handling the different requests of in-house guests Problem solving tasks can be viewed as creative tasks because they are more open-ended tasks in which there is a direct and unambiguous connection between task-driven activity and natural communication It is easy to see that students were keen on participating in language challenges, as some students revealed in the group interview They wanted to stimulate their intellectual capacity and reasoning ability through classroom activities before receiving directions to the solution of a particular problem Communication in TBI defines the process of understanding input as significant as production of comprehensible outcome in communication When a problem occurs during the process of communication, learners have the opportunity to negotiate meaning to find an appropriate solution (Ellis, 2003; Foster, 1998; Plow & Gass, cited in Richards and Rodgers, 2001)

The type of tasks whose criteria received the second highest appreciation from students was Task 4 and Task 14 They were real-world tasks where reflective language were used in the authentic contexts of an international standard hotel, and the receptionist and guests were involved in conversations Tasks are set in the real world and involve cognitive processes (Kumaravadivelu, cited in Ellis, 2000;

72 Richards & Rodgers, 2001) Learners casually have great chances of practicing various linguistic structures which they choose to pick up while completing assigned tasks thanks to communicative activities with meaningful contexts (Ellis, 1997; Ellis, 2003; Willis, 1996)

In contrast, tasks 1 and 9 which received the lowest approval from learners were for ordering and sorting and information gap Although this activity has provided learners with many opportunities to practice speaking skills through pair or group communication, using data gaps in the classroom has some drawbacks According to Weir (1990), when colleagues work in pairs or groups, one of the respondents adjusts the conversation process while the others reduce their speaking time In addition, differences in skill levels among learners can affect the communication process In fact, VTVC students are mostly non-local, so indoor and outdoor directions made it difficult for many of them Listing tasks, otherwise, require learners to create a list based on some criteria of the task, involving hotel facilities and services Participants in the task brainstorm, activate their personal knowledge and experiences, and carry out fact-finding, surveys, and library searches Willis (1996) However, it should be emphasized that task 1 was the first task of the treatment Again, this finding shows that students who were familiar with the more traditional teacher-oriented PPP format, needed time to develop into the more student-oriented TBI format

The results from survey questionnaires - the second research tool - including

12 items were analyzed quantitatively to investigate the level of effective responses of the experimental group students to the tasks used in the treatment General views about TBI suggest that students had an overall positive view about the process and would therefore be motivated to ensure both implementation and student engagement The research question is confirmed with a rather high mean score (M = 3.12, SD 0.26), showing that the learners have positive reflection towards the use of task-based speaking activities

73 Firstly, a majority of tasks received learners’ interest (M = 3.15, SD = 28) The result is similar to D Shaby and Dr J John (2020) and Pham and Truong (2021) who found that the students have positive reactions towards task- based learning used in the study Moreover, the findings of Pham and Nguyen (2014) and Chanadda and Seanghai (2020) revealed that the students showed quite positive responses towards task based speaking activities used in speaking lessons Most tasks required students to work in pairs, acting as a guest and a receptionist; therefore, to complete the designed tasks, students must make an effort to share ideas with their mates as well as correct the others’ errors

Supporting the component of interaction and communication achievement, most of the tasks received the recognition that "I have more opportunities to speak English while doing this task" (M = 3.23, SD = 42) and “I can gather my thoughts and articulate clearly in speaking situations after doing this task” (M = 3.08, SD 19) In the interview section, participants asserted that discussions of TBI in the classroom led to enhancing the interaction outside of the formal learning environment which was a huge positive step for students This can be easily explained as most tasks are deployed in pairs and require role-playing, in line with a real connection of Hotel Front Office and professional requirement: a receptionist and a guest It is obvious to see that working in pairs greatly increased the speaking time of any student in the class and allowed students to interact independently without teacher's guidance Thus, pair-work not only promoted students' independence, but also fostered their cooperation, making the learning environment a more comfortable and friendly, Harmer (2001:116) The data also demonstrates that students perceived the effectiveness of TBI in supporting their speaking and listening ability as learners believed their listening skills were improved after the experiment (M = 3.11, SD 22) Two-way tasks require interaction amongst learners and their participation in order to complete the task successfully, Ellis (2003)

In terms of discourse management, the task-based framework ensures that learners can use the language correctly and fluently In particular, the use of

74 communicative language is emphasized as a fundamental aspect of the task-based framework because learners must learn the language while using it (Willis, 1996) Survey results show that most students generally acknowledged that TBI tasks helped them speak English more fluently (M = 3.16, SD = 28) with more complex speech performance when practicing this with TBI (M = 3.08, SD = 18) and they also were able to produce a speech which was relevant and cohesive through the tasks (M 3.14, SD = 26) This evidence also coincides with the results of the post-test, where students' discourse management showed the greatest improvement in the four sub- skills

Regarding the vocabulary and grammar achievement, most of the TBI tasks in this study received students' constructive feedback They elicited that their vocabulary was enriched after practicing tasks (M = 3.08, SD = 18) and they understood grammar structures easily through the TBI (M = 3.09, SD = 21) Unlike traditional grammar instruction, accuracy is often focused first, then transitioning to fluency after grammatical consistency is achieved In task-based grammar instruction, the goal is language fluency first, and accuracy comes last with grammatical consistency, completing a language task resembles real-life language situations rather than doing grammar exercises as well

The pronunciation achievement criteria were confirmed when the learners realized that they not only produced sounds that do not exist in Vietnamese (M 3.05, SD = 13) but also made fewer pronunciation mistakes after learning the TBI tasks (M = 3.09, SD = 21) This is understandable that they felt confident delivering their message smoothly, even when they might have made mistakes They did not need to focus too much on accuracy at the expense of fluency in an open and natural speaking environment with topics tailored to their goals They also pointed out that although mistakes could be made when practicing the language before it was explicitly taught, they could recognize and correct mistakes on their own or with the help of a partner and teacher

75 Finally, above the average response level (MD = 3.12), the tasks in the treatment were evaluated as practical for learners' future career (M = 3.13, SD = 43)

In fact, all the types of tasks used in the treatment, covering from problem-solving, real world, information-gap, ordering and sorting, decision-making to creative task vitalized the learners’ intellectual capacity and reasoning ability, directing them to the solution of a pointed problem Learners had the opportunity to do task repetition which improved their fluency They simultaneously used more complex and precise forms of language and thus expressed themselves more clearly (Bygate, 1996; Ellis, 2003) For vocational students, it is extremely important and beneficial to practice situations as close to reality as possible This finding is shown to be consistent with the statement that tasks were preferred in vocational training for instructional purposes The work is analyzed and adjusted to proper in the teaching task Work tasks are detailed as instructional tools and arranged in sequence for classroom training (Richards & Rodgers, 2001) It can be concluded that most of the tasks which were designed in the treatment were suitable with the students’ characteristics and the presented contexts were the work which students were trained during internships at hotels

4.3.2 The improvement of Hotel Front Office students’ speaking skills at VTVC

Although the results obtained from post-oral were not so ideal as many previous studies, The results of the first research question partly are in line with most of the findings of many previous research studies Vanessa Feiteiro (2013) Diyar Mauria (2013), Merita Ismaili (2013), Chanadda and Seanghai (2020) and Pham and Nguyen (2014), D Shaby and Dr J John (2020), Nguyen Ha, Nguyen Loc & Tran Tuyen (2021) all found that the tasks in the framework of TBI are beneficial tools for students to improve their speaking ability The findings of the paired samples t-tests for pre- and post-oral test results showed the two groups achieved their oral performance; however, the treatment group made better progress than the comparison group The mean scores of the two groups in oral performance before and after the

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 79 5.1 Summary of the main findings

Pedagogical implications

In several significant ways, the learning that takes place in TBI classrooms diverges from the learning that takes place in regular classrooms Different discoveries shed light on how students experience learning in these environments and what rewards and problems they undergo during their education As a direct consequence, decision-makers in policy and practitioners in the field may stand to gain a great deal from the findings of this research Since the resources, conditions, and other aspects of each school are distinct, the following implications are not necessarily applicable to everyone; however, this study shows that it is worth experimenting further with TBI in classrooms and exploiting the role of tasks in improving students' speaking skill in language learning classroom

In this study, TBI treatment was based on the adaptation and the extension of the existing textbooks and materials in the speaking syllabus at VTVC To make it suitable with the current syllabus, TBI was implemented in fourteen weeks Even though the study duration was not long, the results showed that most of the students expressed their interest in the tasks and their performance was always at a positive level

In the semi-structured interview, students’ reactions to the tasks in the treatment were positive Through the help of tasks, changes occurred in the TBI classroom in a positive direction in terms of student’s interest in the speaking lesson, the complexity and fluency of language produced by the students According to these findings, this study may contribute to the design of the course and syllabus in VTVC or vocational schools The curriculum and the syllabus designers may take advantage of the findings construct educational programs, especially for hotel training programs The idea of adapting course material to TBI can be regarded as a contribution to the addition of alternative methods for making more effective learning environments It can be useful for students who work better in some instructional

85 formats than others Students can also be supported in working in the most suitable format to their learning style Besides, there should be some combinations of TBI and other instructional approaches such as Engage - Study - Activate (ESA) or Present - Practice - Production (PPP) Those mixes may supply an appropriate instructional approach for all students (Harmer, 1998) Lastly, the idea of employing native teachers should be considered and experimented with whether it is more effective when students' performing in a natural setting

Adequate training for TBI teachers

With regard to program design, when designing a teacher training program, organizers should include the implementation of TBI as an alternative teaching method Teachers, especially novice teachers, may not be acquainted with TBI or its implementation Therefore, teachers should be trained in procedures for adapting course materials into TBI tasks and about mastering the phases of TBI If this is ignored, a detrimental paradigm shift will likely occur, leading to a substantial amount of time and effort being squandered on unfulfilled promises Similarly, participants mentioned that the materials played a significant role in the effectiveness of TBI-based lessons Hence, it would be quite threatening to ignore the reality that teachers should be familiar with the things that would help them make the most of what they are inclined to accomplish in their respective contexts Like teachers, students should also be informed about TBI, the tasks, their aims, expectation of tasks when students are taught through TBI In particular, both teachers and students need to be made aware of the use of tasks and TBI

Although the research has reached its stated objective of figuring out the impacts of task-based instruction in enhancing the speaking skills of vocational students in English classes for the Hotel Front Office, the findings of this study have to be seen in light of some limitations

86 Firstly, only a small number of the participants were surveyed and interviewed in the research - 60 male and female second-year learners at Hotel Front Office classes at Vung Tau tourism vocational college Furthermore, they were randomly chosen, so the results partly cannot accurately describe and reflect response, performance and advancement when implementing TBI of the whole Hotel management sophomores in Vung Tau tourism vocational college More importantly, this research paper was carried out in the city of Vung Tau, situated in the southern region of Vietnam Therefore, these findings have not yet been evaluated with those obtained in other areas of Vietnam to date To determine whether or not TBI is applicable on a large scale, it is possible to conduct research that compares TBI with different settings and takes a cross-cultural perspective In conclusion, to determine whether TBI is applicable throughout the course of a longer period, it is possible to examine how gender, age, and academic background influence the application of TBI Consequently, a larger sample would produce more precise estimates extra, and ethnographic research needs to be carried out

Secondly, a further limitation of this study also comes from the length of the study The relatively short duration of treatment is considered a major limitation of this study Although the course lasted 14 weeks, which was seen as appropriate time for this kind of experimental study, students studied only 4 hours per week and a maximum of 50% of such time was devoted to speaking lessons

Moreover, the selection of groups is another important limitation for this study VTVC Hotel Management Department in the school year 2022-2023 has only

2 classes Two groups are selected based on these two existing classes Therefore, there was no open option for researchers to select research participants except the existing groups Because of random group selection, students in the experimental group had slightly higher input scores, even though the speaking proficiency of the two groups was similarly assessed before starting treatment This leads to the statistical results and qualitative data analysis being more or less affected

In addition, in some task designs, the researcher failed to fully apply all three of TBI's suggested phases due to the parallel curriculum expectations of all classes Take TBI post-task phase as an example, theoretically, students should have had the opportunity to repeat the task; however, they skipped repeating completed tasks during the treatment Despite reflection on the completed tasks belonging to the design sequences of TBI post-task phase, it had not been done by the students

Finally, due to time limit and scheduling pressure, the qualitative data collected from semi-structured interviews of 6 students was not sufficient to make strong statements about the entire study process The researcher should have had the opportunity to better understand the students' personal opinions about the impact of TBI from collecting more qualitative data by interviewing all students in the experimental group This situation would have provided more reliable evaluation of tasks and TBI the treatment

5.4 Recommendations for the further research

As a result of the findings and limitations, the several recommendations for further studies should be conducted Undertaking a re-study of TBI in the speaking course with a large number of research participants of varying proficiency levels over a longer period of time, with an emphasis on qualitative research and investigating the interest of other educators could be interesting fields At the same time, taking a combination of approaches which meet with the students' needs and styles as well as the teachers' creativity can be a more practical approach to elicit new pedagogical ideas

First of all, TBI is worth experimenting further in contexts of vocational education because of the research results showing the improvement in students’ speaking skills and their great excitement in the TBI tasks The limitations of this study may be responsible for the insignificant improvements in the mean in the experimental group's post-test results However, the different proficiency criteria also showed that although pronunciation achievement did not have a large discrepancy,

88 the remaining criteria achieved significant progress as the study's expectation If TBI treatment is carefully planned and conducted over a longer period of time, the study results could be more positive with great improvement in students' pronunciation achievement Hopefully, a similar study can be replicated with a larger number of participants over a longer period of time

Secondly, modifying the current textbook of Hotel Front Office during the treatment made contribution to motivate the learners' positive reflection towards TBI tasks Future studies also need to take a more qualitative perspective to examine the effectiveness of TBI on students' oral skill improvement Indeed, the participants' experience during the TBI treatment can deliver insights into processes' implications More interviews with diverse groups or face-to-face seminars with students and teachers can provide valuable data on the impact of assignments and TBI This personal reflection gathering process can even be integrated into the TBI treatment