An investigation into the attitudes of teachers and students at the hanoi college of industrial economics towards speaki

1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -NGUYỄN THỊ PHƯƠNG LAN AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ATTITUDES OF TEACHERS AND STUDENTS AT THE HANOI COLLEGE OF INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS TOWARDS SPEAKING ACTIVITIES IN THE TEXTBOOK NEW HEADWAY PRE-INTERMEDIATE AND SOME SUGGESTIONS Nghiên cứu thái độ giáo viên sinh viên trường Cao đẳng Kinh tế Công nghiệp Hà nội hoạt động nói giáo trình New Headway PreIntermediate số gợi ý M.A Minor program thesis Field: English teaching methodology Code: 601410 HANOI - 2010 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -NGUYỄN THỊ PHƯƠNG LAN AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ATTITUDES OF TEACHERS AND STUDENTS AT THE HANOI COLLEGE OF INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS TOWARDS SPEAKING ACTIVITIES IN THE TEXTBOOK NEW HEADWAY PRE-INTERMEDIATE AND SOME SUGGESTIONS Nghiên cứu thái độ giáo viên sinh viên trường Cao đẳng Kinh tế Công nghiệp Hà nội hoạt động nói giáo trình New Headway PreIntermediate số gợi ý M.A Minor program thesis Field: English teaching methodology Code: 601410 Supervisor: Phạm Minh Hiền , M.A HANOI - 2010 DECLARATION OF ORINALITY I certify my authority of the Study Project Report submitted entitled: TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION OF ORINALITY ……………………………………………………… i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………… …………………………… ii ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………… iii TABLE OF CONTENTS…………………………………… ………………………… v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS …………………………………… …………………… ix LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS …………………………………… ……………… x PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationales …………………………………… ………………………………… Aims of the study …………………………………… ………………………… Scope of the study …………………………………… ………………………… Significance of the study …………………………………… ………………… Methodology of the study …………………………………… ………………… Design of the study …………………………………… ……………………… PART II: DEVELOPMENT Chapter I: Literature review 1.1 Communicative Language Teaching …………………………………… ………… 1.1.1 Definition of CLT …………………………………… …………………… 1.1.2 Characteristics of CLT …………………………………… ………………… 1.2 Speaking skills …………………………………… ……………………………… 1.2.1 Definitions of speaking skills …………………………………… ………… 1.2.2 Importance of speaking skills in ELT …………………………………… … 1.2.3 The development approach of speaking skills ……………………………… 1.2.4 Problems with speaking skills …………………………………… ………… 1.2.5 The techniques in teaching speaking skills ………………………………… 1.2.5.1 Pair-work …………………………………… …………………… 1.2.5.2 Group work …………………………………… ………………… 10 1.2.6 The activities in teaching speaking skills …………………………………… 10 1.2.6.1 Information gap activities …………………………………… …… 11 1.2.6.2 Jigsaw activities …………………………………… ……………… 11 1.2.6.3 Role play …………………………………… …………………… 11 1.2.6.4 Discussion …………………………………… …………………… 12 1.3 Textbooks …………………………………… …………………………………… 13 1.3.1 Definitions of textbooks …………………………………… ……………… 13 1.3.2 The roles of textbook in language program ………………………………… 13 1.3.3 Previous studies related to the series of textbooks New Headway ………… 14 1.4 Motivation …………………………………… …………………………………… 15 1.4.1 Definitions of motivation …………………………………… ……………… 15 1.4.2 The importance of motivation in foreign language learning ……………… 16 Chapter II: The study 2.1 Current situation of teaching and learning English at the HCIE ………………… 17 2.1.1 Description of the English course at the HCIE ……………………………… 17 2.1.2 Description of the 1st year students at the HCIE …………………………… 17 2.1.3 Description of the teachers at the HCIE …………………………………… 18 2.2 Design and methodology ………………………………………………………… 18 2.2.1 Subjects of the study ………………………………………………………… 18 2.2.2 Instruments of data collection ……………………………………………… 18 2.2.2.1 Questionnaires ……………………………………………………… 18 2.2.2.2 Interviews …………………………………………………………… 18 2.2.2.3 Classroom observations …………………………………………… 19 2.3 Data analysis ……………………………………………………………………… 2.3.1 Questionnaires ……………………………………………………………… 19 19 2.3.1.1 Questionnaire for the students …………………………………………… 19 2.3.1.1.1 The attitude of students at the HCIE towards speaking skills in 19 ELT 2.3.1.1.2 The attitude of students at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in the textbook NW Pre …………………………………………… 20 2.3.1.1.3 Students‟ difficulties in speaking lessons ………………………… 22 2.3.1.1.4 Students‟ preferences and demands for the speaking lessons …… 23 2.3.1.2 Questionnaire for the teachers ………………………………………… 24 2.3.1.2.1 The attitude of teachers at the HCIE towards speaking skills in 24 ELT 2.3.1.2.2 The attitude of teachers at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre……………………………………………… 24 10 2.3.1.2.3 Teachers‟ difficulties in speaking lessons and their textbook 26 adaptation ……………………………………… 2.3.2 Interviews …………………………………………………………………… 27 2.3.3 Classroom observations …………………………………………………… 28 Chapter III: Findings and suggestions 3.1 Findings …………………………………………………………………………… 31 3.1.1 About the students …………………………………………………………… 31 3.1.1.1 The students „attitude towards speaking skills …………………… 31 3.1.1.2 Prior passive learning experiences ………………………………… 31 3.1.1.3 Low level of proficiency ………………………………………… 32 3.1.2 About speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre …………………………… 32 3.2 Suggestions for teaching speaking skills ………………………………………… 33 3.2.1 Suggestions for students …………………………………………………… 33 3.2.2 Suggestions for the teachers ………………………………………………… 34 3.2.3 Adaptation for the speaking skills of the textbook ………………………… 36 PART III: CONCLUSION Summary of the study ………………………………………………………… 38 Limitations of the study ………………………………………………………… 38 Suggestions for further study …………………………………………………… 39 APPENDICES Appendix 1: Survey questionnaires for students ……………………………………… I Appendix 2: Survey questionnaire for teachers………………………………………… III Appendix 3: Questions for students „interview …………………………………… V …… Appendix 4: Questions for teachers „interview …………………………………… … VI Appendix 5: Classroom observation form …………………………………… ……… VII Appendix 6: Contents of speaking activities in NH Pre ……………………………… IX REFERENCES XI 11 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CLT refers to Communicative Language Teaching HCIE refers to the Hanoi College of Industrial Economics L2 refers to second language ELT refers to English Language Teaching IGA refers to Information gap activities ESP refers to English for special purposes ESL refers to English as a second language EFL refers to English as a foreign language NH Pre refers to New Headway Pre-Intermediate 12 LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS Table 1: Students‟ attitudes towards speaking skills in ELT ………………………… 20 Table 2: Students‟ attitudes towards speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre 20 ………… Figure 1: Students’ attitudes towards speaking topics 21 ………………………………… Figure 2: Students’ attitudes towards speaking activities …………………………… 21 Figure 3: Students’ enthusiasm towards speaking activities in speaking lessons 22 …… Figure 4: Students’ attitudes towards speaking time allowance ……………………… 22 Table 3: Students‟ difficulties in speaking lessons ………………………………… 23 Table 4: Teachers‟ attitudes towards speaking skills in ELT ………………………… 24 Table 5: Teachers‟ attitudes towards speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre ……… 25 Table 6: Teachers‟ difficulties in speaking lessons and their adaptation …………… 26 Table 7: Results of class observations ……………………………………………… 28 13 PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationales In Vietnam, since the country adopted open-door policy, the need for integrating into the world has increased In order to achieve this need, a tool for integrating has been explored: English That is why English is now widely taught throughout the country in almost all educational institutions, universities, colleges, schools and language centers at every level English teaching and learning have become very important to our country because of industrialization and modernization The teaching of English in Vietnam always follows the frameworks of English Language Teaching (ELT), from the grammar translation to audio-lingual method in which teaching and testing are focused mainly on writing and reading so Vietnamese students of English are very good at grammar but can hardly speak English To catch on with the above demand and to improve English speaking skills, Vietnamese teachers of English have been searching for a more suitable and effective method of teaching and have come to decide on using the Communicative Language Teaching Approach (CLT) at all levels As a result, speaking skills have gained their important roles in the curriculum of most English courses nowadays At the Hanoi College of Industrial Economics (HCIE), where I have been working for 10 years, speaking skills have been taught based on the textbook Headway Pre–Intermediate since 2006 From my personal observation and professional experience as a teacher of English, I have realized that teaching and learning speaking skills have still faced some difficulties and the students‟ ability to speak English has not improved much For several years, I have been haunted by the questions what difficulties the teachers and students have and how to improve the students‟ English speaking ability effectively Analyzing the attitudes of the teachers and students towards speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre will help me find the situation of teaching and learning speaking skills, in general and teaching and learning speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre in particular From the result of the investigation, the writer of this thesis can suggest some solutions to improve the situation Aims of the study With the above- presented rationales, the specific aims of the study, accordingly, are: 14 - to find out the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards speaking skills in ELT - to investigate the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre - to find out students‟ preferences and demands - to recommend some solutions based on the findings of the study Scope of the study As it has been stated above, the study is designed to explore teachers and students‟ attitudes towards speaking activities in the textbook NH Pre in order to make some methodological recommendations for teaching speaking skills The study is, therefore, explorative by nature Given the aims of the study, I limited myself to focus on teachers and the first-year students at the HCIE who have taught and studied the textbook NH Pre Significance of the study This study is first hoped to be helpful to both teachers and students at the HCIE because its finding will enable not only the teachers to see whether their ways of teaching English in general and teaching speaking in particular are appropriate and effective but also make students to fully understand their responsibility for their study The practical meaning of this study is to evaluate teaching and learning speaking skills based on the textbook NH Pre Therefore, it is also expected to be beneficial to both teachers and students at colleges and universities where New Headway series are used as a textbook Methodology of the study To achieve the aims stated, quantitative method was mainly used The data collected for the study come from 100 first- year students at the HCIE who have just finished studying NH Pre and 10 teachers who have taught Basic English for the first year students for over years Survey questionnaires were used to collect information and evidence for the study with the hope that the research would be reliable and the processing of the data would be manageable within limited time budget In addition, the research also used qualitative method that is the author collected some information based on her informal classroom observations and interviews with 10 students and teachers chosen from 100 students and 10 teachers in the questionnaire survey The 15 researcher hopes that these methodologies supplement each other and the data are more reliable All comments, remarks, recommendations and conclusion provided in the study are based on the data analysis Design of the study The study consists of three main parts, a list of reference and appendices Part I, INTRODUCTION, deals with the reason for the research and the aims, scope, significance, methodology and design of the study Part II, DEVELOPMENT, includes three important chapters: Chapter is intended to give some theoretical background related to speaking skills, textbook and the problems in teaching and learning speaking skills In chapter 2, the methodology underlying the research is presented This chapter presents the background information of the subjects of the study, the instruments used to collect the data Chapter provides an analysis on the current situation of teaching and learning speaking at first year classes at the HCIE; the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in ELT; the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre and the students‟ preferences and demands Chapter focuses on some findings and recommendations about learning and teaching speaking skills based on the textbook NH Pre Part III is the CONCLUSION of the study, providing summary of the issues, the major findings in the research, limitations and suggestions for further 47 than can not do, giving them the feeling of making a useful contribution and creating classroom situations  Have students participate Teachers should get students involved in all activities Teachers should let students decide what to and how to it, work with each other and get physically involved in the lesson By choosing several students to help the teacher (take role, grade objective exams, research bibliographies/ biographies of important people, find learning materials, prepare real objects for the next lessons ,etc) students‟ self- esteem is boosted and as a result their motivation is raised  Create interesting topics because interesting topics motivate the students and create enjoyable atmosphere in the class so they are eager to take part in it  Design exercises, which are suitable for students‟ level, because students can finish the tasks suitable for their level Practically, multi-level classes are popular The tasks for students with limited competence can de-motivate good students So, tasks in the class should be arranged from easy o difficult scale so that the bad can keep up with the others  Give them more time for preparation and respect their extra- preparation and practice  Establish close and good relationship with the learners and create low anxiety to encourage them to communicate During the lessons, teachers should not keep standing in front of the learners, waiting for the answers They should walk around the classroom to assist the learners when necessary  Be more tolerant to the learners‟ language mistakes, as in CLT, the focus of the lesson is fluency, not accuracy When teachers tolerate learners‟ errors, the learners will feel more confident in using the target language Teachers should focus on techniques for correcting students‟ mistakes Teachers should give sufficient clues to enable self- correction to be made 3.2.3 Adaptation for the speaking skills of the textbook From the findings about, it can be concluded that the students are not satisfied with the speaking skills in the textbook NH Pre Make the curriculum Students are not motivated to learn unless they regard the materials they are taught as worth learning Therefore, the task of the teachers is to find out their students‟ goal and the topics 48 they want to learn and build these in the textbook as much as possible to make their textbook desirable, valuable and relevant for the learners The researcher recommends that the teachers should adapt the speaking skills in the textbook before using them for teaching speaking skills Adaptation is considered as making changes to materials in order to improve them more congenial for a particular type of learners Adaptation can include reducing, adding, omitting, modifying and supplementing Most teachers adapt materials every time they use a textbook in order to maximize the value of the book for their particular learners Based on the students‟ needs the teachers work together to use two techniques to adapt the speaking skills Some ideas are suggested  Find topics based on the textbook or from daily life which are more interesting and appropriate to age, level to create enjoyable class atmosphere that make learners interested in speaking  Give the students the chance to select topic themselves because the topic certainly will be in their list of favourite, and the more they like it, the more they are interested in speaking activities  Provide a variety of activities that are suitable with learners‟ level for students „production of the language because the textbook requirements are often limited  Omit difficult and unnecessary parts such as some practices using listening tasks  Replace some boring exercises and activities with more realistic ones  Analyze speaking exercises in the course book to see if they are appropriate with Vietnamese students and their circumstances so as to make some adjustment or changes that could help enhance students‟ speaking ability For example, the speaking exercise is about the tradition of the Halloween‟s day, the students will find hard to discuss because they not know anything about it So, teachers should introduce this day to students and make a comparison between this day in the USA with the Mid-autumn Day in Vietnam The lesson will continue with either the discussion the similarities and differences between these days or only discuss the tradition of the Midautumn Day in Vietnam Some topics require general knowledge for example characteristics of New Zealand, South Africa, the life in Hollywood or the USA, the music band Style that are very strange to the HCIE students so teachers should provide students information or make them find it actively 49 by assigning the task of searching information before the lesson Teachers also should make some changes: for example a country in the South-East Asia or Vietnamese music band so students will find more interesting and suitable 50 PART III: CONCLUSION Summary of the study This study set out to investigate the attitudes of the students and teachers towards the textbook New Headway Pre- Intermediate as well as the difficulties they meet when using this textbook Based on the research instruments such as questionnaires, interviews and classroom observation, this research has discovered the significant findings with a help to improving the English speaking teaching at the HCIE The study includes the following parts: Part I has introduced the rational for choosing the study, aims, scope and method of the study In part II, chapter one has highlighted the theoretical background knowledge relating to the study in the literature review such as speaking skills, textbook definitions In this chapter, the development approach of speaking skills, some speaking activities, the role of textbook have been presented The difficulties in teaching and learning speaking skills have been in focus as well Chapter two in part II has presented brief description of teaching and learning situation at the HCIE including the English course, the first year students and the teachers at the HCIE It also includes the main part of the study Basing on the situation in chapter two and related theories in chapter one the data were collected and analyzed through questionnaires, interviews and classroom observations Finally, in chapter three, some suggestions for learning and teaching speaking at the HCIE are worked out Last comes part III, in which the limitations and suggestions for further studies are presented Limitations of the study Although the study has certain strengths, such as the triangulation of the data collection methods, namely survey questionnaires, interviews for learners and teachers and classroom observation, due to time limits, lack of resources and the researcher‟s ability, it is obvious that the study has got a number of drawbacks 51 Firstly, the number of class observation and interviews the researcher carried out is still limited, so the findings may, to some extent, not be generalized to all the teachers and students Secondly, the classroom observation sheet written by Brown (1994) was designed to evaluate a class of English in general Although the researcher tried to adapt it to match her purpose, she could not avoid the subjectivity Therefore, this needs further studies Suggestions for further study Whoever interested to this matter or / and have met the same difficulties may continue this study for further improvements Basing on the finding of the study, the researcher will adapt the textbook or design a complete speaking syllabus for the first year students at the HCIE or choose an available textbook that more suitable with the level of the students with approve of the researcher‟s college and departments 52 APPENDIX 1: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRES FOR STUDENTS Bảng khảo sát I Đối tượng: Sinh viên vừa học xong học phần Anh I Anh II trường Cao đẳng Kinh tế Cơng nghiệp Hà Nội Mục đích: Tơi lập bảng khảo sát nhằm phục vụ cho đề tài Nghiên cứu thái độ giáo viên sinh viên trường Cao đẳng Kinh tế Công nghiệp Hà nội hoạt động nói giáo trình New Headway Pre-Intermediate số gợi ý Rất mong em trả lời câu hỏi sau cách trung thực ý kiến đánh giá nhận xét em quan trọng đề tài tơi Các em vui lịng khoanh vào ô mà em lựa chọn Tôi xin chân thành cảm ơn giúp đỡ em! Theo em, kĩ nói mục đích học tiếng Anh em: A.Rất cần thiết B Cần thiết C Tương đối cần thiết D Không cần thiết Em có cảm thấy hứng thú học nói tiếng Anh lớp không? A Rất hứng thú B Khá hứng thú C HơI hứng thú D Không hứng thú Em có ngại nói tiếng Anh lớp không? A Rất ngại B Khá ngại C Hơi ngại D Khơng ngại Em có hài lịng với học nói lớp khơng? A Rất khơng hài lịng B Khơng hài lịng C Hài lịng D Rất hài lòng Em đánh nội dung chủ điểm nói giáo trình New Headway Pre-Intermediate học lớp? A Rất thú vị phù hợp với trình độ em B Rất thú vị khơng phù hợp với trình độ em C Tương đối phù hợp D Quá khó Em có ý kiến hoạt động nói dùng giáo trình New Headway PreIntermediate? 53 A Rất hay phù hợp với trình độ em B Rất hay khó C Quá khó trình độ em D Buồn tẻ Trong học nói em tham gia hoạt động thực hành nói tiếng Anh giáo viên yêu cầu nào? A.Rất tích cực B.Khơng tích cực C Em ngại D Em nói giáo viên gọi em Những khó khăn em thường gặp phải học nói theo giáo trình New Headway PreIntermediate A Thiếu từ, thiếu cấu trúc để diễn đạt ý B Thiếu kiến thức lĩnh vực thảo luận C Không có mẫu hội thoại tương tự để luyện tập theo D Khả nghe đọc ảnh hưởng đến khả nói Theo em, thời gian dành cho hoạt động nói lớp A nhiều B vừa đủ C D 10 Hãy nêu ba điều làm em hài lòng với học nói lớp 11 Hãy nêu ba điều làm em chưa hài lịng với học nói lớp 12 Nêu góp ý, em có ý kiến để giúp học nói tiếng Anh lớp giúp em nói tiếng Anh tốt hơn? 54 APPENDIX 2: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TEACHERS The survey questions are designed for my study on teachers and students‟ attitude towards speaking activities in the textbook New Headway Pre-Intermediate Your assistance in fulfilling the following items is greatly appreciated You can be confident that you will not be identified in any discussion Thank you for your help Instruction: Please put a tick beside the appropriate answer or in the appropriate column or give short answer in the provided space According to you, how is teaching speaking skills important? A Very B Rather C Little D Not at all How much you feel interested in teaching speaking in class? A Very B Rather C Little D Not at all How you find the speaking topics introduced in the textbook New Headway PreIntermediate A Very interesting and suitable B Very interesting but unsuitable C Rather suitable D Too difficult What is your opinion about the speaking activities mostly used in the textbook New Headway Pre- Intermediate A Very interesting and suitable with your students‟ level B Very interesting but difficult C Too difficult with your students’ level D Boring How much class time you spend teaching speaking in a lesson? A Less than 45 minutes B From 45 to 90 minutes C From 90 to 135 minutes D More than 135 minutes How much class time you allow your students to participate in speaking activities? A Less than 20 minutes B From 20 to 45 minutes C From 45 to 90 minutes 55 D More than 90 minutes What are the difficulties you have experienced when teaching speaking based on the textbook New Headway Pre-Intermediate? A Learners ‘low proficiency B Learners ‘low general knowledge in the discussed topics C Large size class D Not enough time Do you follow the activities suggested in the textbook and how often you adapt them? A Never I always teach what are in the textbook B Sometimes I make a change in the topics C Sometimes I make a change in the activities D I usually make changes APPENDIX 3: QUESTIONS FOR STUDENTS ‘INTERVIEW 56 Hãy nêu ba điều làm em hài lòng với học nói lớp Hãy nêu ba điều làm em chưa hài lòng với học nói lớp Nêu góp ý, em có ý kiến để giúp học nói tiếng Anh lớp giúp em nói tiếng Anh tốt hơn? APPENDIX 4: QUESTIONS FOR TEACHERS ‘INTERVIEW 57 Theo anh ( chị) nội dung hoạt động nói giáo trình New Headway PreIntermediate có phù hợp với trình độ nhu cầu sinh viên năm thứ khơng? Xin anh (chị ) cho biết lí Anh (chị ) đánh giá tầm quan trọng giáo trình việc điều chỉnh giáo trình cho phù hợp với trình độ sinh viên? APPENDIX 5: CLASSROOM OBSERVATION FORM Observer:…………………………………… Teacher‟s name: ……………………………… Date of observation:………………… 58 Class: … A: Applied Time of observation: ……………… NA: Not applied Categories Results (%) Criteria A NA I Presentation The teacher shows an interest in, and enthusiasm for, the subject taught Language of instructions is clear and concise and students are able to carry them on Authentic materials are added Material is presented at the students‟ level of comprehension II Methods The teacher moves around the class and makes eye contact with students There are balance and variety of activities during the lesson Instructional aids or resource material is used effectively Drill are used and presented effectively Structures are taken out of artificial drill contexts and applied to the real contexts of the students‟ culture and personal experiences III Teacher- student interaction Teacher is a facilitator The students are communicators Teacher encourages and assures full student participation The students are attentive and involved The students are active Teacher organizes effectively individual, pair and group work The students are encouraged to ask questions, to disagree, or to express their own ideas Teacher controls and directs the class APPENDIX 6: CONTENTS OF SPEAKING ACTIVITIES IN 59 NEW HEADWAY PRE- INTERMEDIATE Unit Contents Activities Joy Darling Information gap Who are your ideal neighbours? Discussion Exchanging information about two neighbours Role play People‟s lifestyles Information gap Exchanging information about immigrants to the USA Talking about living in the USA Zoe‟s party Information gap fortunately/ unfortunately Telling stories Town survey – the good things and bad things about Talking about ling in a living in your town town Attitudes to shopping Discussion What are your plans and ambitions? Talking about the future Being a teenager Discussion Comparing cities Information gap The rich and their money Discussion Find someone who… Mingle Interviewing a band Role play Find an interview with a famous person Project Jobs Game House rules Discussion Asking questions about places Role play Acting a dialogue Group work A letter to a problem What will you Talking about the future What will life be like in the 21st century? Discussion What are the biggest cities in the world? 10 “When I was young” Talking Describing feelings childhood Tom and Jamie Role play about your 60 11 12 13 14 Exchanging information about three plants Talking about the plants Which plants have been good and bad for the world? Discussion Giving advice – If I were you, I‟d … Individual practice Tell the class a ghost story Telling stories Steven Spielberg Information gap What is a good job? Discussion Phoning a friend Role play A love story: the end of the story- Your ideas Telling stories Arguments in families Discussion What happens next in the story? REFERENCES Brown, G and Yule, G (1983), Teaching the Spoken Language, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 61 Brown, J (1995), The Elements of Language Curriculum,Heinle and Heinle Publishers Burns, Anne (1998), “Teaching speaking”, Annual review of applied linguistics, (18), 102-123 Bygate, M (1991), Speaking, Oxford University Press, Longman Cunningsworth, A (1995), Choosing Your Coursebook, Heinemann Harmer, J (1984), The Practice of English Language Teaching, Longman, London Harmer, J (1996), The Practice of English Language Teaching, Longman Haycroft, J (1998), An Introduction To English Language Teaching, Longman Hutchinson, T and E Torres (1994), “The Textbook as Agent of Change”, ELT Journal, vol 48/ 10 Jacobs, G.M & Ball, J (1996), “An investigation of the structure of group activities in ELT coursebooks.”, ELT Journal, vol 50/2, 99-107 11 Larsen- Freeman, D (200), Techniques and principles in language teaching(2nd ed), Oxford University Press, Oxford 12 Litaz, David (2001), “Textbook evaluation and ELT management: A south Korean case study.”, Asian EFL Journal, http://www.asian-efl-journal.com/Litz_thesis.pdf 13 Littlewood, W(1988), Communicative Language Teaching,Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 14 Littlewood, W(1981), Communicative Language Teaching, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 15 Mai Thuy Phuong (2005), A study on the Techniques for Improving Speaking Skills to Non- major Students of English at Haiphong foreign Language Center,Haiphong University,Unpublished MA Dissertation CFL-VNU 16 Nunan, D.(2003), Practical English Language Teaching, NY:McGraw-Hill 17 Nunan, D.(1990), Designing tasks for the Communicative Classroom, Sydney Macquarie University Press 18 Pattison, P.(1992), Developing communication Skills, Cambridge University Press ... situation of teaching and learning speaking at first year classes at the HCIE; the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in ELT; the attitudes of teachers and. .. find out the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards speaking skills in ELT - to investigate the attitudes of teachers and students at the HCIE towards the speaking skills in the textbook... PHƯƠNG LAN AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE ATTITUDES OF TEACHERS AND STUDENTS AT THE HANOI COLLEGE OF INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS TOWARDS SPEAKING ACTIVITIES IN THE TEXTBOOK NEW HEADWAY PRE-INTERMEDIATE AND SOME