USING WARM-UP ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILLS AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AT DONG NAI TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY

VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Lê Thị Hồng Tuyến USING WARM-UP ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILLS: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AT DONG NAI TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY MA THESIS IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE HANOI, 2019 VIETNAM ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Lê Thị Hồng Tuyến USING WARM-UP ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILLS: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AT DONG NAI TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY Field: English Language Code: 8220201 Supervisor: Bùi Thị Thục Quyên, Ph.D HANOI, 2019 DECLARATION BY AUTHOR I hereby declare that this thesis is my own work and effort and that has not been submitted anywhere for any award I certify that the thesis “Using Warm-up Activities to Improve the Students’ Speaking Skills: An Action Research Project at Dong Nai Technology University” is the result of my own study and that it has not been submitted to any other university or institution wholly or partially Author’s Signature Lê Thị Hồng Tuyến Approve by SUPERVISOR Dr Bùi Thị Thục Quyên Date: …………………… i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to many people for their thoughtful help given to me in doing this study Firstly, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Dr Bui Thi Thuc Quyen for her insightful comments and suggestions on various parts of this thesis My thanks also go to all my lecturers from the Foreign Languages Department – Graduate Academy of Social Sciences for their useful and interesting lectures to finish the study I am most thankful to my colleague – Ms Pham Thi Kim Tuoi and the students at Dong Nai Technology University for their support in data collection Finally, my special thanks go to my family, for their love and support throughout this project Without their encouragement I could not have completed this thesis ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page DECLARATION BY AUTHOR i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii ABSTRACT vii LIST OF FIFGURES viii LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS ix LIST OF ABBREVIATION USED IN THE THESIS xi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1Rationale 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Scope of the study 1.5 Significance of the study 1.6 Research methods 1.7 Structure of the study CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Nature of language skills and oral communication 2.1.1 Nature of language skill 2.1.2 Oral communication 2.2 Speaking skills 2.2.1 Concepts of speaking 2.2.2 The importance of speaking 2.2.3 Characteristics of speaking skills 2.2.4 Speaking problems 2.3 Warm – up activities 11 iii 2.3.1 Definitions of warm – up activities 11 2.3.2 Principles of warm – up activities 11 2.3.3 The advantages of warm – up activities 13 2.3.3.1 Warm – up activities help create a good rapport 13 2.3.3.2 Warm – up activities help motivate students 14 2.3.3.3 Warm – up activities help attract attention 15 2.3.4 The disadvantages of warm-up activities 16 2.4 Previous studies 17 2.5 Summary 20 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 21 3.1 Research design 21 3.1.1 Definitions of Action Research 21 3.1.2 Action research procedures 22 3.2 The context of the study 27 3.2.1 The teacher 28 3.2.2 Participants 28 3.2.3 The course book 29 3.3 Procedures of the current study 29 3.5 Data collection instruments 30 3.5.1 The pre – test and post – test 30 3.5.2 The questionnaire 31 3.5.3 Class observation 32 3.6 Summary 32 CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 33 4.1 Research question 1: Students’ thoughts about English speaking 33 4.1.1 The difficulty level of English speaking 33 4.1.2 Students’ difficulties in English speaking lessons 34 iv 4.2 Research question 2: students’ attitudes toward using warm – up activities in English speaking lessons 35 4.2.1 How much students liked warm – up activities in general 35 4.2.2 The effectiveness of warm – up activities in speaking lessons 36 4.2.3 Students’ difficulties when participating in warm – up activities 37 4.2.4 Suggestions from students to improve warm –up activities 38 4.2.5 Warm – up activities in speaking lessons preferred by students 39 4.3 Research question 3: revised warm – up activities and their effects on students 40 4.3.1 Word jumble race 41 4.3.1.1 Data from Questionnaire 41 4.3.1.2 Data from the observation sheets 43 4.3.2 Remembering pictures 45 4.3.2.1 Data from Questionnaire 45 4.3.2.2 Data from the observation sheets 47 4.3.3 Mimic 49 4.3.3.1 Data from the Questionnaire 49 4.3.3.2 Data from the observation sheets 51 4.3.4 Words of mouth 53 4.3.4.1 Data from Questionnaire 53 4.3.4.2 Data from observation sheets 55 4.4 The results from the pre – test and post – test 56 4.4.1 Data from the pre – test 58 4.4.2 Data from the post – test 59 4.5 Discussion 60 4.6 Summary 62 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 63 v 5.1 Recapitulation 63 5.1.1 Students’ difficulties when taking part in English speaking lessons 63 5.1.2 Students’ attitudes toward the use of warm – up activities in English speaking lessons 63 5.1.3 The effects of revised warm – up activities on students in English speaking lessons 64 5.2 Concluding remarks 65 5.3 Implication 65 5.4 Limitations and suggestions for further studies 66 5.4.1 Limitations 66 5.4.2 Suggestions for further studies 67 REFERENCES 68 Appendix 1a: Survey questionnaire (English version) I Appendix 1b: Survey questionnaire (Vietnamese version) IV Appendix 2a: Survey questionnaire (English version) VII Appendix 2b: Survey questionnaire (Vietnamese version) VII Appendix 3: Observation sheet X Appendix 4: Pre – test XI Appendix 5: Post – test XIII Appendix 6: Rubrics of the pre – test XV Appendix 7: Rubrics of the post – test XVI vi ABSTRACT For some recent years, English has played more and more important part in Vietnam, and it has been taught in many levels of Vietnamese schools as a compulsory subject So far, there have been remarkable changes in the way of teaching and learning English speaking However, students’ speaking skills are still far from satisfaction How to improve students’ performance in speaking has been a big question for every English teacher It is also the question that has inspired the researcher to investigate the use of warm – up activities to improve her students’ speaking skills In attempt to fulfill this thesis, there were two classes which attended in this research Class A studied English speaking skills with warm – up activities but class B studied without warm – up activities The final results were very surprising Warm – up activities basically have had a very little effect on students’ speaking skills From the final results, some suggestions have been drawn out to help use warm – up activities more effectively It is hoped that this thesis will be found of value to those who have great interest in using warm – up activities in speaking lessons vii LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1: Principles of warm – up activities 12 Figure 2: Kemmis and McTaggart’s action research spiral 23 Figure 3: Elliot’s action research model 25 Figure 4: O’Leary’s cycles of research 26 viii d Spend proper time on each warm – up activity e Use warm – up activities connecting group members Others: ……………………………………………………… III Appendix 1b: (Vietnamese version) BẢN ĐIỀU TRA KHẢO SÁT Tôi soạn điều tra nhằm tìm hiểu phong cách học sinh viên Thơng tin thu thập sử dụng cho việc hoàn thành luận văn cao học có tựa đề “Using Warm-up Activities to Improve Students’ Speaking Skills: An Action Research Project at Dong Nai Technology University” Mong bạn vui lòng dành chút thời gian trả lời câu hỏi điều tra Xin khẳng định rằng, không nêu danh bạn trường hợp Chân thành cám ơn! Họ tên:……………………………………………………………… Bạn cảm thấy việc nói Tiếng Anh nào? a Rất khó b Khó c Bình thường d Khơng khó Đánh dấu tích vào khó khăn bạn gặp phải học nói (Bạn chọn nhiều khó khăn) Cảm thấy lo sợ e ngại nói sai Thiếu ý tưởng chủ đề u cầu Có hội nói Khơng đủ Tiếng Anh để diễn đạt ý Có thói quen hay sử dụng Tiếng Việt thảo luận nhóm Khó khăn khác:……………………………………………… Bạn có thích hoạt động khởi động khơng? a Rất thích b Thích c Bình thường d Khơng thích Các hoạt động khởi động học nói có hiệu khơng? a Rất hiệu b Hiệu IV c Bình thường d Khơng hiệu Đánh dấu tích vào hoại hoạt động khởi động mà bạn thích tham gia? ( Bạn chọn nhiều hoạt động) Bingo Người treo cổ (Hangman) Sử dụng hát Truyền thông điệp Giải vấn đề Kể chuyện Mô Thẻ thông tin (Flashcards) Ghi nhớ tranh ảnh Giải câu đố Hội thoại Sắp xếp từ Trò chơi đối mặt Từ vựng bí mật Đánh dấu tích vào khó khăn mà bạn gặp phải tham gia hoạt động khởi động (Bạn chọn nhiều khó khăn) Khơng hiểu luật Hoạt động khó Thiếu ý tưởng Các hoạt động nhàm chán Mất nhiều thời gian Lớp học đơng ồn Các thành viên nhóm thiếu hợp tác Khó khăn khác: ………………………………………… ………………………………………………………… Theo quan điểm bạn, giáo viên nên làm để cải thiện hoạt động khởi động? (Bạn chọn nhiều đáp án) Giáo viên nên … f Hướng dẫn hoạt động rõ ràng cho ví dụ V g Điều chỉnh độ khó hoạt động khởi động cho phù hợp với trình độ sinh viên h Sử dụng hoạt động khởi động mang tính cạnh tranh i Phân bố thời gian phù hợp cho hoạt động khởi động j Tạo hoạt động liên kết thành viên nhóm k Ý kiến khác: ……………………………………………………… VI Appendix 2a: (English version) SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE This survey questionnaire is designed for my research into “Using Warm-up Activities to Improve Students’ Speaking Skills: An Action Research Project at Dong Nai Technology University” Your assistance in completing the following items is greatly appreciated You can be confident that this questionnaire is for research purposes only and you will not be identified in any discussion of the data Full name: …………………………………… Date: …………………… What you think about the warm – up activity today? a Very effective b Effective c Normal d Not effective What are the advantages or strengths of this activity? Please specify and give examples …………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………… What are the disadvantages or weaknesses of this activity? Please specify and give examples …………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………….……… Please rank your participation level in today speaking lesson a Very positive b Positive c Normal d Negative VII Appendix 2b: (Vietnamese version) BẢNG ĐIỀU TRA KHẢO SÁT Tôi soạn điều tra nhằm tìm hiểu phong cách học sinh viên Thông tin thu thập sử dụng cho việc hồn thành luận văn cao học có tựa đề “Using Warm-up Activities to Improve Students’ Speaking Skills: an Action Research Project at Dong Nai Technology University” Mong bạn vui lòng dành chút thời gian trả lời câu hỏi điều tra Xin khẳng định rằng, không nêu danh bạn trường hợp Chân thành cám ơn! Họ tên:……………………………………………………………… Ngày điền phiếu khảo sát: …………………………………………… Bạn nghĩ hoạt động khởi động tiết học nói hơm nay? a Rất hiệu b Hiệu c Bình thường d Khơng hiệu Những lợi ích điểm mạnh hoạt động gì? Xin bạn nêu rõ chi tiết cho ví dụ …………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………… Những bất lợi điệm hạn chế hoạt động gi? Xin bạn nêu rõ chi tiết cho ví dụ …………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………… VIII Hãy đánh giá mức độ tham gia bạn vào tiết học nói ngày hơm a Rất tích cực b Tích cực c Bình thường d Khơng tích cực IX Appendix 3: OBSERVATION SHEET Cycle / Activity: …………… Date: ………… Topic Time Preparation Comments Instruction Rule Pros Cons X Appendix 4: PRE – TEST PART I: SELF-INTRODUCTION Students freely talk about themselves (1-2 minutes) PART II: SHORT TALK Students randomly choose one of the following topics to make a short talk (2-3 minutes) (5points.) Topic1: Talk about a town/ city that you like best Topic 2: Talk about your last vacation PART II: QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES Examiners ask students some questions related to the chosen topic (1-2 minutes) (5 pts.) Suggested questions: TOPIC 1: Describe a city or a town that you like best Which city you like? Why you like it? Do you like Bien Hoa city? What you like about Bien Hoa city? What’s the weather like in your city? What you dislike about Bien Hoa? TOPIC 2: Describe your last vacation XI Where did you go? How long was you stay there? Did you have a good time? Who did you travel with? What did you during your last vacation? What activities did you like best on your last vacation? What you like to on vacation? XII Appendix 5: POST – TEST PART I: Examiners ask each candidate some questions from the list below (2 minutes) (4 points.) What you usually have for breakfast? How often you go to the supermarket? What you usually buy? What dishes can you make? Do you usually eat out? What’s your favorite restaurant? What type of vacation you like most? Why? Where you usually go on vacation? Who you often go on vacation with? What activities would you like to on vacation? Who is your idol? What you like about your idol? 10.Do you know any talented people? What are their talents? PART II: Examiners give one candidate a card with some information on it and the other candidate a card with some cues to make questions Candidates will use the cues and information on the card to ask and answer questions Then candidates will change roles (5 minutes) (6 points) XIII Candidate A Candidate B Candidate A Candidate B XIV Appendix 6: RUBRICS OF THE PRE – TEST Subject: ENGLISH Date of Test: …/ … / 20… Class: ……… ST T Studen ts’ name Part (5 pts.) Ideas + Vocabul Pronuncia Gram ary tion/ mar (2 pts.) Fluency (2 pts.) (1 pt.) Ideas + Gram mar (2 pts.) Part (5 pts.) Comprehen Pronuncia sion/ tion/ vocabulary Fluency (2 pts.) (1 pt.) Examiner Examiner (Signature and full name) (Signature and full name) XV TOT AL Appendix 7: RUBRICS OF THE POST – TEST Subject: ENGLISH Date of Test: …/… /20… Class: ……… ST T Students ’ name Part (4 pts.) Ideas + Pronunciatio Gramma n r (1 pt.) (3 pts.) Ideas + Gramma r (2 pts.) Part (6 pts.) Vocabular Pronunciatio y n/ Fluency (2 pts.) (2 pts.) Examiner Examiner (Signature and full name) (Signature and full name) XVI TOTA L XVII ... anywhere for any award I certify that the thesis Using Warm-up Activities to Improve the Students’ Speaking Skills: An Action Research Project at Dong Nai Technology University is the result... SCIENCES GRADUATE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES Lê Thị Hồng Tuyến USING WARM-UP ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE THE STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILLS: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AT DONG NAI TECHNOLOGY UNIVERSITY Field:... an Action Research Project at Dong Nai Technology University to enhance the efficiency of using WAS and increase students’ involvement in speaking classes 1.2 Aims of the study The thesis has