Learning guides in speaking english in in class and out of class activities for vietnamese freshman students in the thai nguyen university system

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Số hóa bởi Trung tâm Học liệu – ĐHTN http://www.lrc.tnu.edu.vn

LEARNING GUIDES IN SPEAKING ENGLISH IN IN-CLASS AND OUT-OF-CLASS ACTIVITIES FOR VIETNAMESE FRESHMAN

STUDENTS IN THE THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY SYSTEM

A Dissertation Presented to The Faculty of Graduate School

Batangas State University

Batangas City, Philippines

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ABSTRACT

Title: Learning Guides in Speaking English in In-class and Out-of-class Activities for Freshman Students in the Thai Nguyen University System

Author : Van Thi Quynh Hoa (Flower)Course : Doctor of Philosophy

Major : English Year : 2015

Adviser : Dr Amada Banaag

Summary

This study was undertaken to determine the level of English language performance and the extent of participation of students in in-class and out-of-in-class activities of the freshman students in the Thai Nguyen University system to propose learning guides in speaking English both for in-class and out-of-class activities

The respondents of the study were four hundred (400) students also from these universities who served as respondents

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1 What is the level of English language performance of the students? 2 What is the extent of participation of students in in-class activities which require speaking in English? 2.1 listening; 2.2 speaking; 2.3 reading and 2.4 writing? 3 To what extent do students‘ engage in the following out-of-class activities? 3.1 contests; 3.2 clubs; 3.3 sports; 3.4 games and 3.5 entertainment? 4 Is there any significant difference between the extent of participation in in-class and that of out-of-class activities? 5 In which among in-class and out-of-class activities do teachers find communication barriers? 6 What learning guide in speaking English both for in in-class and out-of-class activities may be proposed?

The hypothesis of the study is no significant difference between the extent of participation in in-class and out-of-class activities

In order to analyze the data gathered: Weighted mean was used to determine the levels of language performance of the students and the extent of participation of using English in in-class and out-of-class activities

Dependent sample t-test was utilized the significant difference between the extent of participation of student in in-class activities and out–of–class activities

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was on the average only Additionally, the extent of participation of using English in in-class activities was high on reading and speaking; there was a moderate extent of participation on entertainment as a form of out-of-class activities; the performance of the students in using English in in-class activities is better than in out-of-class activities; writing was deliberate as communication barriers in terms of in-class activities while joining clubs was noticed on out-of-class activities and a proposed learning guide was formulated to enhance students English speaking

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The writer extends her sincerest thanks and appreciations to those people who in one way or another have helped make this piece of work a reality

Dr Dang Kim Vui, President of Thai Nguyen University, for establishing

the international cooperation relationship between BSU and TNU

Dr Hoang Bich Thao, Director for International Training Center,

for his assistance and for supporting the researcher a chance to gain professional growth through completion of this study

The Panel of Examiners, for their honest and meaningful

comments and recommendation to go on with this research work

Dr Amada Banaag, her adviser and mentor, who drained all her effort

and her best during the entire preparation and revision of this study

To the Rectors of the University, for his permission to conduct

the research at Thai Nguyen Universities

To the students who served as her respondents for their

assistance and collaboration in providing information necessary for the completion of the study

To her husband and her children, for inspiring her fulfill her dream To her ever dearest friends, and relatives who in one way or

another, gave her encouragement and remarkable support

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DEDICATION With pride and honor,

This piece of work is lovingly dedicated To her beloved parents, her loving husband

and to her children

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Số hóa bởi Trung tâm Học liệu – ĐHTN http://www.lrc.tnu.edu.vn TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT i ACKNOWLEDGMENT v DEDICATION vi

TABLE OF CONTENTS vii

LIST OF FIGURES xii

CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM 1

Introduction 1

Statement of the Problem 5

Scope, Delimitation and Limitation 6

Significance of the Study 7

II REVIEW OF LITERATURE i

Conceptual Literature 8

Research Literature 39

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Definition of Terms 62

III RESEARCH METHOD AND PROCEDURE 64

Research Environment 64

Research Design 66

Subjects of the Study 67

Data Gathering Instruments 69

Data Gathering Procedure 71

Statistical Treatment of Data 73

IV PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA i V SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS i Summary 143 Findings 145 Conclusions 148 Recommendations 149 BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDICES A Questionnaire on In-Class and Out-Of-Class Activities of Vietnamese Freshman Students in the Thai Nguyen University System 167

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C Validation Letter of the Questionnaire for Students

180

D Letters of Request to the Head of the Colleges 181

E Documents for Validation of Questionnaires and Test in 185

F Photographs of the Study Sites 186 G Photographs of the Approval Test Administration of

the Head of Colleges H Photographs of the Student Respondents

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LIST OF TABLES

Table Title Page

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12 Extent of Participation of Students in Out-Of-Class Activities in Terms of

Entertainment 99

13 Extent of Participation of Students in Out-Of-Class Activities 101

14.Difference Between the Extent of Participation in In-class and Out-of-class Activities 103

15 Difficulty Encountered in In-class Activities in Terms of Listening 106

16 Difficulty Encountered in In-class Activities in terms of Speaking 108

17 Difficulty Encountered in In-class Activities in terms of Reading 109

18 Difficulty Encountered in In-class Activities in terms of Writing 111

19 Summary Table on the Difficulty Encountered in In-class Activities 111

20 Difficulty Encountered in Out-Of-Class Activities in Terms of Contest 113

21 Difficulty Encountered in Out-Of-Class Activities in Terms of Clubs 114

22 Difficulty Encountered in Out-Of-Class Activities in Terms of Sports 116 23 Difficulty Encountered in Out-Of-Class Activities in Terms of Games 117

24 Difficulty Encountered in Out-Of-Class Activities in Terms of Entertainment 119

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LIST OF FIGURES

Figure Title Page

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CHAPTER I THE PROBLEM

Introduction

English language is a global language which is used for communication with native-speakers and non-native-speakers in the world, especially in the education sector, all university students need it in their studies in order to search information and obtain knowledge With this, a lot of the universities throughout the world need to include English language as one of their educational tool requirements as it is the central language of communication in all sectors of society

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In Thai Nguyen University, students are facing two problems when they learn English First, university students continue to make some basic errors in pronunciation, spelling, morphology and syntax

Second, they are unable to express themselves confidently and

efficiently either when dealing with 'academic topics' or 'common everyday topics' The students' major difficulty arises from the fact that they cannot use English correctly and appropriately in and out the classroom when required to do so This means that the difficulty is related to the students' deficiencies in communicative competence and self-expression

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experiences most likely to produce these outcomes, assess regularly the impact of in-class as well as out-of-class environments on students The researcher still believes that something can still be done to upgrade English language performance in in-class and out-of-class activities if only more meaningful measures are taken with focused attention What is needed are not always surveys to diagnose the defect, but rather take a micro inquiry on the matter, and come up with measures that are adoptable to a particular element

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Statement of the Problem

This study dealt with the Learning Guides in speaking English in in-class and out-of-class activities for freshman students in the Thai Nguyen University system

Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions: 1 What is the level of English language performance of

the students?

2 What is the extent of participation of students in in-class activities which require speaking in English? 2.1 listening; 2.2 speaking; 2.3 reading and 2.4 writing? 3 To what extent do students‘ engage in the following out-of-class activities? 3.1 contests; 3.2 clubs; 3.3 sports; 3.4 games and 3.5 entertainment?

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5 In which among in-class and out-of-class activities do teachers find communication barriers?

6 What learning guide in speaking English both for in- class and out-of-class activities may be proposed?

Scope, Delimitation and Limitation

The study focused on learning guides in speaking English in in-class and out-of-in-class activities for Vietnamese freshman students in the Thai Nguyen University system during the first semester of academic year 2013-2014 The subjects of the study were limited to the freshman students of Thai Nguyen University who were from the College of Agriculture and Forestry; College of Education; College of Information Technology; College of Sciences; and College of Economics and Business Administration

The level of English language performance of the first year college students was also evaluated by the college English test It also included the extent of participation of students in in-class activities and out-of-class activities

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Significance of the Study

The study is deemed significant for its contributions to the following groups of individuals

University administrators of Thai Nguyen University They will

benefit from the study as it will be their basis for curriculum development and academic planning

College English teachers They will be provided with a rationale

and understanding as to why the students language performance is such and would instill in them a deep appreciation of the remedial strategies that will be designed

College students of English They will benefit from the study

especially in areas that concern measures to take in order to improve English language performance

To the researcher herself As an English teacher, she is always

confronted with the challenge of improving English language performance of her students, therefore hopes the findings of the study will help her become a better teacher

To the future researchers This study may serve as the

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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

This chapter presents the conceptual and research literature related to the present study It also includes the synthesis, theoretical framework, conceptual framework, hypothesis, and the definition of terms

Conceptual Literature

This section contains the concepts that helped the researcher in conceptualizing the present study It includes English language competencies, in-class activities, extra-curricular activities and instructional materials development

English Learning Competencies Competence is a term used in

linguistic theory, especially in generative grammar, to refer to person‘s knowledge of his language, the system of rules which a language user has mastered so that it would be possible for that user to be able to produce and understand an indefinite number of sentences and recognize grammatical mistakes and ambiguities (Wia‘am, 2003)

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and structures of language, but competence also extends to how the individual uses language in actual social situations

Competencies are developed through the learning process (Sonnentag, Niessen, & Ohly, 2004), which involves acquiring knowledge, skills and attitudes (Illeris, 2004) Learning may be defined as a relatively lasting change in a person‘s capacity or behavior that is transferable to new situations It constitutes the process through which the competency is developed while the expression of competencies represents a manifestation of what the person learned

Language competence is a term which includes the linguistics or grammatical competence, discourse competence, sociolinguistics competence and what might be called as textual competence Language competence refers to the knowledge of a language, cognitive aspect in learning a language, and of course the ability to use that language to produce meaningful production and language performance

Competence is used to describe the learner s capacity to produce a language Students' competencies show that perceptions and judgments of students about their own learning abilities, skills, or competencies, affect their academic roles, performances, and proficiencies particularly in learning foreign language in the classrooms

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paramount Perceived competence is one's belief that he/she has the skills and qualifications to do things well or it refers to the requisite qualities in a specific situation to achieve specified tasks (Ormrod, 2006) For students, competency is a belief that they have the academic capabilities to reach the required levels in foreign language courses (Matsushima & Shiomi, 2003 )

Mary Siew-Lian and Wong (2005) also provided the support for the claim that a significant positive association existed between students' perception about competence and language learning strategies Interview findings also revealed that using a number of language learning strategies are often influenced by high self efficacy and perceived competence that may impede their level of anxiety when learning foreign language

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The target of having language competence is to be able in producing the correct utterance, meaningful spoken language, and well-performance language structure Concerning English is a worldwide used international language, especially as a foreign language in countries, good English competence from learning activities, of course, is aimed to be used as one of the communication medium bridges the cross cultural people whose English is not as their native language Learning English as a foreign language is not merely simple learning the vocabulary, structure or the grammar only, however, more than just cognitive intelligence

Additionally, it must be a very fatal mistake in some countries where English is taught in school in order the students has good English competence for passing the English exam and doing such English text exercise and ignoring other skills which explore the performance of English as a language The conventional practical English teaching as a foreign language which focuses on the cognitive aspect and emphasizes the reading skill is still widely implemented, giving the proof that grammar translation method is still existing

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Richards, and Theodore S Rodgers, 2002) that language is a system of structurally related element of coding of meaning

Language competence should be developed through classroom activities which focus on meaningful uses of the language and on language in context Tasks will be chosen based on the needs, interests and experiences of students The vocabulary, grammatical structures, text forms and social conventions necessary to carry out this task will be taught, practiced and assessed as students are involved in various aspects of the task itself, not in isolation

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substantially increase the amount of writing practice that students receive (Kellogg and Raulerson, 2007)

In-Class Activities A good language lesson consists of

much more than a series of activities and exercises that the teacher has strung together to occupy classroom time and it involves much more than simply presenting the material in the textbook (Jack and David , 2011)

Language teaching is not only a field of practical activity but also a discipline that draws on a considerable body of knowledge and practice There are long traditions of theory, research, and practical experience to support contemporary approaches to language teaching For this reason, teachers entering this educational specialization are required to acquire professional qualifications in order to assure that they are provided with a solid understanding of their subject

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Due to time and space limitations imposed by a large auditorium-style classroom, we decided to focus on one idea per activity and we then followed up on that idea with homework Cotter (2007) suggests in her work that according to the activities that are been developed in class, they should then move into freer and freer use of the language, which will allow each student to integrate the lesson material with pre-existing language Activities at the end of the lesson allow students to select vocabulary and grammar structures, and to tie the day's material with previously studied language Therefore, ‗for a student to be considered proficient in English, he ultimately needs to speak it well‘ Promoting engagement in classroom activities is especially important in foreign language learning contexts (as opposed to second language learning contexts) because communication in the L2 rarely occurs outside of the classroom Yet, low L2 learning motivation in secondary schools, and concomitant low significant problem, which is compounded by the compulsory nature of most L2 study (Dörnyei, 2001c)

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with student needs, interests, and preferences, as students show strong motivation, active engagement, and meaningful earning

In addition, English proficiency requires students to learn four skills, namely receptive skills (which involve listening and reading) and productive skills (which involve speaking and writing) Generally, students who are confused in learning grammar find speaking class to be more interesting as teachers focus more on meaning rather than on form Both Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) and Task-Based Learning (TBL) syllabuses basically have the same principle in relation to this matter

Lightbown and Spada (1993) as stated by Achmad and Yusuf (2014) further explained that one of the characteristics of CLT classroom is a limited amount of error correction, and meaning is emphasized over form In relation to the task in the classroom, Nunan (2006) as cited by Achmad and Yusuf (2014) defined task as: a task is a piece of classroom work that involves learners in comprehending, manipulating, producing or interacting in the target language while their attention is focused on mobilizing their grammatical knowledge in order to express meaning, and in which the intention is to convey meaning rather than to manipulate form

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oral activities they propose to the students in order to achieve certain oral skills ‗the purpose of the conversation affects the process, as does the place and the people involved‘ Mastery of English as a foreign language comes down to how well a student speaks Students may write well, get high marks on tests, or even have an accent nearly identical to a native speaker; but if they cannot express ideas, opinions, or instructions clearly in a conversation, few would call them proficient

The teacher may develop some activities in the classroom in order to develop oral skills in his/her students, in this way, the teacher should use other students and him/herself in order to foster oral activities in class, the teacher should encourage students to speak no matter the mistakes in grammar and pronunciation they may have

Farooqui (2007) showed that students are reluctant to actively participate in class, students still consider the teacher as the authority figure The findings of Farooqui explain that students are facing themselves to a new world, since they received passive grammar translation method where the teacher is the centre of the class; they encounter themselves with new experiences that in some cases could be frustrating

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further stated that activities should move into freer and freer use of the language, which will allow each student to integrate the lesson material with pre-existing language The researcher also highlights that more than the traditionally taught linguistic skills of listening, speaking, reading, and pronunciation, students require using those linguistic skills in contextually appropriate ways

In real life a listener usually has the advantage of visual cues that establish both the context and the respective roles of the participants in a conversation In a hotel check-in encounter, one would see a hotel foyer, a guest with a suitcase standing on one side of a desk, and a receptionist (possibly in uniform) standing on the other

According to Field (2008), our understanding of the conversation might be considerably assisted by facial expressions and visual cues None of this is available when the learner is listening to an audio recording in an artificial environment such as the classroom Recognizing the issue, listening teachers increasingly make use of visual material on DVD or video to compensate the weaker listeners in the class and also to create a more realistic environment

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Some learners look forward to their language class Others dread going to class because they anticipate being engaged in activities that are not enjoyable, that appear to have little purpose, or that leave them feeling frustrated and/or embarrassed

Using activities and games in class encourages active learning, as well as collaboration, and interactivity (Reuben, 1999) Participation in an activity requires the use of content by the learner; thus ensuring students are working with the ideas that are being taught, and applying them In lecture situations, students are assumed to be doing this on their own Proponents of adult learning theory assert that students must be actively involved in their learning, that they must get feedback, and that they should practice sharing, reflecting, and generalizing in small group activities The in-class activities can persuade students to rely on each other more as they study outside of class Such a context for learning supports the development of social competence (Huyen & Nga, 2003)

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suggests that more learning takes place when students are engaged in relevant tasks within a dynamic learning environment rather than in traditional teacher-led classes (Moss & Ross, 2003)

According to Cotter (2007), role-play activities are valuable classroom techniques that encourage students to participate actively in the learning process This author also mentions that those activities take several different forms and that the teacher should provide students with a variety of learning experiences by arranging different methodologies according to individual needs, interests and learning levels Cotter also explains that role-play activities enable the teacher to create a supportive, enjoyable classroom environment in which students are engaged and motivated to effectively learn the target language

The teacher also should tell students to join conversation clubs in order to challenge themselves to talk to different people Role-plays in the class is another kind of activity that the teacher may implement in class, situations such as going shopping and asking about the prices, or just going to a bar and starting a conversation about any topic The use of songs and videos are other strategies that the teacher may use with students, they may have different likes and dislikes about music and that is another way to start an oral activity with students

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pair work El Karfa (n.d) in his study states that group work provides opportunities for students to be involved in cooperative classroom communication and helps to create a comfortable and motivating atmosphere in the classroom Group work activities have the advantage of engaging students in interactive communication and negotiation of meaning that develops respect of others‘ words, ideas, opinions and thoughts

In addition to small group work and pair work, whole class discussion also allows students to freely engage in interactive communication while they express themselves and exchange ideas and information El Karfa (n,d) agrees that a circle discussion activity enhances open human communication because ‗in a circle, people can simply be with each other face-to-face,‘ in contrast to rows, where they ‗face the source of power and authority, and it is clear who will talk and who must listen‘ The importance of such activities is also underlined by Jianing (2007) who affirms ‗The lively atmosphere and real life environment created by activities such as stories encourage the students to talk and discuss with each other Besides, many stories can be adopted into short plays and learners enjoy performing‘

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skills for successful negotiation (El Karfa, n.d) The teacher should then provide his/her students with the necessary input to let them develop their oral and cognitive skills in order to have a successful language class This means, knowing the students and their interests, having good competence in the foreign language, implementing new methodologies, techniques, and activities along the classes

Thus, listening is one of the important skills in language learning According to Feyten (1991), of the total time people spend on communication, 45 percent is on listening, 30 percent on speaking, 16 percent on reading, and 9% on writing Among the four skills, listening is the language skill which usually develops faster than speaking and which affects the development of reading and writing abilities in learning a new language (Scarcella & Oxford, 1992; Vandergrift, 1997) It is also the most frequently used skill in the classroom and in daily life (Yang, 1996) Vandergrift (1997) claimed that listening internalized not only the rules of language but also facilitated the emergence of other language skills (Chiou, 2013)

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helping students to acquire communicative skills and also to improve higher education standards of English, since the government acquired a new methodology in order to teach English in all the private and public universities throughout the country

There are several factors that affect the initiative of students when taking part of oral tasks inside the classroom Some of them could be inner factors, students‘ previous experiences; while some others can be external as for instance the environment created by teachers in the class ‗… non-English speaking adults are already timid about using the English language The teacher must help students‘ self-confidence by being encouraging Learning environments can have a facilitating effect on oral production.‘ (Farooqui, 2007) The main purpose of having oral activities in class is that students speak and use the target language They should overcome their fears of speaking and use the target language even if they make mistakes, students cannot learn without making mistakes, the error makes them realize they are having success in their learning process; it is a proof of their development

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may have had a strong influence in their levels of participation in class activities

Fernandez (2004) explains that, when learners have a clear communicative need in the target language, they are most likely to learn language spontaneously by participating in class activities

As instructors, many have had the experience of teaching courses where students participate frequently, the classes flow well, and all involved feel like the course was a success On the other hand, most have also had quite the opposite experience, where it is a regular struggle to get students to ask questions and participate in discussions Student engagement, a broader, more encompassing term, which consists of four factors (skills, participation/interaction, emotional, and performance) are becoming increasingly important in higher education (Handelsman, et.al., 2005)

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participation has become increasingly important with Millennial generation students who demand more interaction from their classroom experience (Allred & Swenson, 2006; Howe & Strauss, 2000)

Extracurricular activities Extracurricular activities are one of

the best investments that a school can make to help promote achievement, student engagement, and the attitudes and habits that lead to college aspirations and ultimate success These results are especially pro-found for minority and low-income students who often have difficulty bonding with the school strictly through academic pro-grams In fact, student activity programs seem to have better results in reducing drop out behavior than programs that are designed specifically for at-risk students, since these programs tend to concentrate marginal students and focus on deficits rather than providing a productive, voluntary way for students to engage with the school community Eligibility requirements and fees may be especially problematic for low-income students, and may be an insurmountable barrier to participation (Howard Johnston, 2008)

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activities not associated with school are not included within this definition Extracurricular activities are offered at most schools and can consist of a wide range of activities that do not form a part of the regular school curriculum Most schools allow a free choice for student involvement in these activities, but ―many private schools make involvement in one or more extracurricular activities a mandatory requirement for their students; believing that such a mandate helps to create a more ‗well-rounded‘ student‖ (Stoltzfus, 2004)

Extracurricular activities provide language instructors and students with multiple opportunities for creating the target language environment, and exploring different cultural issues of the country of the target language Extracurricular activities provide students with an opportunity to develop a positive support system among their peers and adult staff, which also are key components of fostering student engagement in the classroom (Heller et al., 2003) Schools could assist in fostering student engagement in learning by offering ―structured activity settings‖—such as student clubs, sports teams, and volunteer activities—to students outside the normal school day (Fredricks & Eccles, 2006)

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have been associated with an improved educational level, more interpersonal competencies, higher aspirations and a better attention level (Mahoney, Cairos & Farwer, 2003), increased critical thinking and personal and social maturity (Bauer & Liang, 2003), higher motivation and generally speaking, with great benefits that serve to bridge school activities with those performed outside the academic setting (Noam, Biancarosa & Dechausay, 2003)

Extra-curricular work is an important aid in the instruction and education of pupils It is closely connected with work in class, and it supplements it It offers numerous possibilities for instruction and education

In the field of foreign languages extra-curricular work is especially important Schools can afford but a rather reduced number of foreign language classes, this work offers additional possibilities for developing the pupils‘ skills and abilities in the foreign language There are a series of characteristics which distinguish extracurricular work from the work in class

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The work of the participants in extra-curricular activities is first appreciated by their classmates, then by the teacher The results obtained should be brought to the pupils‘ notice on bulletin boards (Laura Andrei, 2003)

There are three types of extra-curricular work with foreign languages: individual work, group work and mass work These three types of work are closely connected with one another

Individual work often marks the starting point of mass work The teacher appoints a pupil to make a short report on an author or a literary work in English, to learn a poem or a prose passage by heart, to translate a literary passage into the mother tongue, to prepare some visual material foe the English classes (pictures, diagrams, tables) It is important to include in this kind of work pupils of medium and even low level, and not only the best pupils, as teachers usually do

Group work includes permanent circles as well as temporary groups created for a special task Such special tasks may be: The creation of a foreign language library or its completion with additional books; the organization of a literary program; the organization of reading competitions; the organization of a foreign language corner

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