Developing supplementary vocabulary activities to enhance vocabulary retention for tenth grade students at a high school in bac ninh province

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -O0O - QUẢN THỊ MINH NGUYỆT DEVELOPING SUPPLEMENTARY VOCABULARY ACTIVITIES TO ENHANCE VOCABULARY RETENTION FOR TENTH GRADE STUDENTS AT A HIGH SCHOOL IN BAC NINH PROVINCE Phát triển hoạt động bổ trợ học từ vựng để cải thiện vốn từ vựng học sinh lớp 10 trường THPT Bắc Ninh M.A MINOR PROGRAM THESIS Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231.01 Supervisor : Dr Vu Thi Thanh Nha Hanoi 2019 i DECLARATION I hereby certify the thesis entitled “Developing supplementary vocabulary activities to enhance vocabulary retention for tenth grade students at a high school in Bac Ninh province.” as my own work in the fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts at the University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi Bac Ninh, 2019 Student‟s signature Quan Thi Minh Nguyet ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS For the very beginning part, I wish to give a bunch of thank to a number of people for their contribution to my paper First of all, I would like to express my deep gratitude to Dr Vu Thi Thanh Nha, my research supervisor, for her patient guidance, and enthusiastic encouragement for this research work Thanks for her comprehensive instruction, I could broaden my knowledge about the research field Had not been for her helps, I could not have finished my study properly Secondly, my grateful thanks are also extended to Ms Le Thi Lien – my supervisor in my training at Thuan Thanh high school for her assistance in keeping my progress on schedule and supporting me in collecting data for my paper Finally, I wish to thank my family for their support and encouragement throughout my study iii ABSTRACT It can be understood that vocabulary is a key point in learning English As a teacher of English for high school students, I am highly aware of vocabulary acquisition function for my students They are from rural district with quite low level of English In addition, they have obstacles with words when they are learning English because of lacking vocabulary Therefore, they could face with a number of difficulties learning vocabulary effectively As a teacher, I want to find out a solution to this problem in my class It results a need for more supplementary activities to enhance students‟ vocabulary retention Aiming to achieve my goals, I prefer action research with helps me in finding out the effectiveness of supplementary activities on my students, and their attitudes towards those activities That using digital flashcards and paper flashcards is expected to support students‟ vocabulary retention Observation and questionnaire are research tools which help me to carry out my study Due to the limitattion of the study, the participants includes 45 students in the practitioner‟s class, quite a small number After an eight-week study, the practitioner gets some positive feedback of the students, and the students‟ output is a little better; their desire to the adjustment is an encouragement By applying some supplementary activities to enhance students‟ vocabulary retention, she hopes to help and suggest some effective vocabulary learning and teaching activities Therefore, she does expect that her findings would be the hints for further investigation in vocabulary retention as well Although the study time is not quite long, she would carefully review and think of later study iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii ABSTRACT iv TABLE OF CONTENTS v LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES viii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Scope of the study 1.4 Methodology 1.5 Organization of the thesis CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 2.1 Concepts of vocabulary 2.1.1 Definition of vocabulary 2.1.2 Classification of vocabulary 2.1.2.1 Vocabulary classification according to frequency of use 2.1.2.2 Vocabulary classification according to meaning 2.1.3 Aspect of vocabulary to be taught in class 2.1.3.1 Pronunciation and spelling 2.1.3.2 Word formation 10 2.1.3.3 Grammar 10 2.1.3.4 Collocation 11 2.2 The role of vocabulary in language teaching and learning 12 2.3 Currently techniques in vocabulary teaching 13 2.3.1 Visual techniques 14 2.3.2 Verbal techniques 14 2.3.3 Translation 15 2.3.4 The use of dictionary 15 v 2.4 Quizlet and flashcard as new vocabulary teaching and learning tools 16 2.4.1 Quizlet 16 2.4.2 Flashcard 16 2.5 Memorizing vocabulary 18 2.5.1 Vocabulary retention 18 2.5.2 Types of memories 19 2.6 Related studies 19 CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY 23 3.1 The methodology 23 3.1.1 Reason to choose action research 23 3.1.2 Phases of action research 24 3.2 Participants of the study 26 3.2.1 The students 26 3.2.2 The textbooks 26 3.3 Data collection instruments 29 3.3.1 Observation 29 3.3.2 Questionnaire 30 3.4 Procedures of the research study 31 3.4.1 Plan: Planning the action 31 3.4.2 Act: Putting the plan into action 31 3.4.3 Observe: Observing the results of the plan 32 3.4.3.1 Observation: 32 3.4.3.2 Questionnaire 32 3.4.4 Reflect: Reflecting and planning for further action 33 3.5 Summary 33 CHAPTER IV: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 35 4.1 Current difficulties that students might face in their vocabulary retention 35 4.1.1 Difficulties that students might face 35 4.1.2 Aspects of vocabulary to be taught 36 4.1.3 The most frequently used techniques to teach vocabulary 37 vi 4.2 Supplementary activities to enhance students’ vocabulary retention and their attitude 38 4.2.1 Supplementary activities to enhance students‟ vocabulary retention 38 4.2.1.1 The first cycle: applying paper flashcards 38 4.2.1.2 The second cycle: applying digital flashcards 40 4.2.2 Students‟ attitude toward supplementary activities 42 4.2.2.1 Frequency of using supplementary activities prior to the study 42 4.2.2.2 Opinion of students on the effect of using DFs and PFs to teach vocabulary 43 4.2.2.3 Benefits of using supplementary activities in teaching vocabulary perceived by students 44 4.2.2.4 Difficulties of using supplementary activities to teach vocabulary perceived by students 46 4.2.2.5 The desire for using supplementary activities in vocabulary acquisition 48 CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION 49 5.1 Summary of the findings 49 5.2 Some suggestions for using flashcards and Quizlet to teach vocabulary 50 5.2.1 For the teachers 50 5.2.2 For the students 51 5.3 Limitation of the study 51 5.4 Suggestions for further research 52 REFERENCES 54 APPENDICES I APPENDIX 1: LESSON PLAN I APPENDIX 2: LESSON PLAN III APPENDIX V SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE V PHIẾU CÂU HỎI KHẢO SÁT IX APPENDIX 4: XII APPENDIX 5: XIII vii LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Action Research Spiral 24 Figure 2: Detailed Action Research Model .25 Figure 3: Students' difficulties in learning vocabulary .35 Figure 4: Aspects of vocabulary to be taught in a lesson 36 Figure 5: Teachers‟ major current vocabulary teaching methods .37 Figure 6: Frequency of using supplementary activities to teach vocabulary 42 Figure 7: Opinion of students on the effect of using supplementary activities to teach vocabulary 43 Figure 8: Benefits of using supplementary activities in teaching vocabulary perceived by students 44 Figure 9: Difficulties of using supplementary activities to teach vocabulary perceived by students 46 Figure 10: The desire for using supplementary activities in teaching vocabulary 48 LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Benefits of using supplementary activities to enhance students‟ vocabulary as students‟ perception 44 Table 2: Difficulties of using supplementary activities to enhance students‟ vocabulary as students‟ perception 46 viii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study Mastering vocabulary plays an important role in learning a foreign language It is because vocabulary carries content which constitutes a language itself Each word has its own notion, so having good vocabulary helps the learners understand well what they read and heard The larger amount of vocabulary the learners acquire, the easier it takes to master language When we have command of a language, it meant that we are able to manage vocabulary It might be difficult for high school students, when they are at a beginning level, they might face difficulties with vocabulary learning It is obvious that if they have good vocabulary, they will use language more proficiently In addition, their test requires definite range of vocabulary to pass It is easy to understand that vocabulary needed for high school student is not very much, but there is a number of learners who can not find the way to master It is obvious that vocabulary plays a very important role for learners of any language not English only, but learning vocabulary has not been paid attention enough yet Without vocabulary, language users can still communicate by other nonverbal means, but in tests they can not In writing, vocabulary is a must for users That is the reason learners should master vocabulary well Some students learn by heart words when they are being marked on the following lesson, in other way, they still have not found out the importance of vocabulary in language learning When we not have any course for vocabulary separately, mastering vocabulary depends on individual‟s perception There are some students event not understand basic words leading to be almost illiteracy Joining English test, they choose the answer randomly without any responsibilities for their answer In addition, there is no extra activity for vocabulary mastering With the aim to enhance vocabulary retention for students in some extension, a new study on which integrates some activities after class will be conducted 1.2 Aims of the study This study research aimed to enhance the students‟ vocabulary retention through supplementary activities To achieve the objectives, the study answered the following research questions: 1) What challenges did the students have in learning vocabulary? 2) To what extent can supplementary vocabulary activities enhance the students’ vocabulary retention? 3) What are the students’ opinion towards those activities? 1.3 Scope of the study Due to the limited time as well as the limited scope of a graduation thesis, this research is only paying attention to the use of supplementary activities in teaching English vocabulary but not various kinds of teaching activities Also, the research was conducted on limited subjects of the grade 10th students at a high school in Bac Ninh province As teaching for few weeks, the researcher found out the problems in vocabulary retention of students, she thought of any solutions to this problem As soon as she figured out some supplementary activities which she thought they could help improve her students‟ vocabulary retention, she decided to choose action research method It was helpful in this case because she could try the activities on her familiar participants She designed two cycles referring to two activities to improve students‟ vocabulary retention After each cycle, she had review on the result, which might favorable in students‟ learning output 1.4 Methodology Aiming to deal with the current problem with students‟ vocabulary retention, the practitioner selected action research because she could make a test to apply other activities to affect the current class situation In addition, she is the researcher who understands the problem and the participants the most Nation, I S P and Hwang, K (1999) „ Grade readers and vocabulary‟, Reading in a foreign language,12,355-380 Pyles, T & Algeo, J (1970) English-An introduction to language New York: Harcourt Brace World Qian, D (1999) Assessing the roles of depth and breadth of vocabulary knowledge in reading comprehension Canadian Modern Language Review 56, 282238 "Quizlet Mission," 2018 [Online].Retrieved from: https://quizlet.com/en- gb/mission Quizlet (2016) About Quizlet | Quizlet Retrieved August 25, 2016 from https://quizlet.com/mission Schmitt, N (2000) Vocabulary in language teaching Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Scholfiled, P (1980) Explaining meaning by paraphrase: problems and principle Guidelines 3: 24-37 Sokmen, A.J.(1991) Common Threads; An interactive vocabulary builder Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice Hall Regents T Kose, E Cimen and E Mede, "Perceptions of EFL learners about using an online tool for vocabulary in EFL classrooms: A Pilot Project in Turkey," Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, vol 232, pp 362-372, 2016 Valsa Koshy, Action Research for Improving Practice – A Practical Guide, Paul Chapman Publishing, 2005 Van, H (2011) Chương trình sách giáo khoa mơn tiếng Anh trung học phổ thơng, hệ chuẩn, Tạp chí Khoa học ĐHQGHN, Ngoại ngữ 27, 96 (106) 56 Wikpedia, "Quizlet," (2018) Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quizlet [Accessed 15 2018] Zhang, J (2004) Memory Process and the Function of Sleep Journal of Theoretic, 6(6) 57 APPENDICES APPENDIX 1: LESSON PLAN Activity 1: Using paper flashcards A Objectives By the end of the lesson, Ss will be able to: Knowledge  Use words/phrases to talk about human body, lifestyles and healthcare  Read about an alternative treatment in medical care for main idea and specific information  Talk about how to get rid of habits Skill  Integrated skills Attitude  Ss are aware of personal hygiene and the care of their body and health  Ss will be more responsible to protect and prevent from dangerous diseases from the community B Teaching method: Communicative C Teaching aids - Projector, cassette player, tape, board, chalks, textbook and notebook D Procedure Teacher‟s activities Students‟ activities Play a song named: An apple a day - Activity 1: - Tell students to swap flashcard which they prepared at home to their friend within the piece of music was played - When the music stopped, the practitioner would say any words, and I Listen to the teacher Do as request from the teacher whose flashcard of the word must stand up and make a sentence of words, or express their definitions in English Activity - Ask students to work in group to practice making definitions and making sentences so that they can help their partners in class - Ask students to present in front of class by saying any words, whose cards in hand must stand up and make presentation II APPENDIX 2: LESSON PLAN Activity 2: Using digital flashcards: Quizlet application A Objectives By the end of the lesson, Ss will be able to: Knowledge  Use words/phrases to talk about human body, lifestyles and healthcare  Read about an alternative treatment in medical care for main idea and specific information  Talk about how to get rid of habits Skill  Integrated skills Attitude  Ss are aware of personal hygiene and the care of their body and health  Ss will be more responsible to protect and prevent from dangerous diseases from the community B Teaching method: Communicative C Teaching aids - Projector, cassette player, tape, board, chalks, textbook and notebook D Procedure Teacher‟s activities Students‟ activities Teacher introduces the application software namely Quizlet prior to the activity so that they can practice at home Activity 1: - Teacher uses project to show a slide of word, calling some students to stand back to the screen - When the word is played on screen, the class should make definition without III - Listen to the teacher Do as request from the teacher translating into Vietnamese so that their friend can guess Activity - Teacher uses project to show a slide of word, calling some students to stand back to the screen - Ask some pairs to prepare a simple dialog basing on the given words on screen, IV APPENDIX SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE (For students) I am Quan Thi Minh Nguyet- student of University of Languages and International Studies, Faculty of Post Graduate Studies I am conducting a research study on “Developing supplementary vocabulary activities to enhance vocabulary retention for tenth grade students at a high school in Bac Ninh province” This questionnaire is designed as a part of my research You can be sure that the information from this questionnaire will be used for the research purposes only and your personal opinions will be kept strictly confidential in any discussion of the data Thank you very much for your cooperation! Please choose the answer by circling the letter next to your choice, putting a tick (√) in the right box or expressing your idea in the blanks (In some cases, you can choose more than one answer) Question How important you think vocabulary in English learning is? □ Very important □ Moderately Important □ Not important Question What is (are) your difficulties in learning English vocabulary?(You can choose more than one answer) A Cannot remember the meanings B Cannot remember how to pronounce and spell words or put stress correctly C Cannot remember word formations D Do not know how to use words in correct contexts E Can not distinguish some synonyms F Others (please specify) …………………………… V Question What aspect(s) of a new word are you often taught by your teacher? (You can choose more than one answer) A Meanings B Pronunciation and spelling C Use D Formation E Word collocation F All of these above Question What technique does your teacher most frequently use to teach vocabulary (You can choose more than one answer) A Translating into Vietnamese B Giving examples C Using synonyms or antonyms D Using audio-visual aids E Using real objects F Using body languages (gestures, facial expressions…) G Combining different techniques Question How often does your teacher use other supplementary activities to teach vocabulary? □Always □Very often □ Sometimes □ Rarely □ Never Question In your opinion, how effective is it to use other supplementary activities in teaching vocabulary? □Very effective □ Effective □Ineffective VI Question Please read the following statements and select one opinion to indicate how much you agree with the statement? (Tick in the box you agree with) Note: SA: Strongly agree A: Agree U: Undecided D: Disagree SD: Strongly disagree Benefits and difficulties SA These activities make you feel learning vocabulary more exciting These activities help you guess the meanings of new words easily These activities help you understand the meanings of new words easily These activities help you remember new words effectively Others benefits (please specify)………………… 6.Time-consuming to prepare teaching tools (flashcards, real objects…) 7.Difficulties in choosing suitable activities 8.Pictures in textbook are limited 9.Lack of time to teach the rest of lesson 10 Class management VII A N D SD 11.Other difficulties (please specify)………………… Question Would you like your teacher to continue using these activities in teaching vocabulary in future? □ NO □ YES VIII PHIẾU CÂU HỎI KHẢO SÁT (Dành cho học sinh) Tên Quản Thị Minh Nguyệt-học viên khoa SĐH chuyên ngành LL PP Giảng dạy Tiếng Anh, trường Đại học Ngoại ngữ ĐHQG Hà Nội Tôi tiến hành nghiên cứu “Phát triển hoạt động bổ trợ học từ vựng để cải thiện vốn từ vựng học sinh lớp 10 trường THPT Bắc Ninh” Phiếu câu hỏi phần nghiên cứu Bạn chắn thông tin từ phiếu khảo sát dùng cho mục đích nghiên cứu thơng tin cá nhân giữ kín q trình nghiên cứu Cảm ơn nhiều hợp tác bạn! Trả lời câu hỏi cách khoanh tròn vào chữ bên cạnh lựa chọn bạn (Trong số câu hỏi, bạn chọn nhiều đáp án) Bạn nghĩ vai trò từ vựng dạy học Tiếng Anh? □Rất quan trọng□Quan trọng□Bình thường □Khơng quan trọng Mục đích học từ vựng bạn gì? (bạn chọn nhiều đáp án) A Để đạt điểm cao kiểm tra B Để vượt qua kì thi đại học C Để tăng cường kĩ giao tiếp D Đi du học/lao động nước E Khác (cụ thể) Khó khăn bạn học từ vựng Tiếng Anh? (bạn chọn nhiều đáp án) A Không thể nhớ nghĩa B Không nhớ cách phát âm đánh vần từ tả, nói trọng âm C Không biết cách sử dụng từ ngữ cảnh D Khác (cụ thể) Khía cạnh từ mà giáo viên thường dạy cho bạn? (bạn chọn nhiều đáp án) A Nghĩa B Phát âm cách viết C Cách sử dụng D Cách cấu tạo từ IX E Tất đáp án Công cụ giáo viên thường xuyên sử dụng để dạy từ vựng? (bạn chọn nhiều đáp án) A Dịch sang Tiếng việt B Đưa ví dụ C Sử dụng từ đồng nghĩa trái nghĩa D Sử dụng phương tiện nghe- nhìn E Sử dụng ngôn ngữ thể (dáng điệu, biểu cảm khuôn mặt, ) F Kết hợp công cụ khác Giáo viên sử dụng hoạt động bổ trợ để dạy từ vựng lần? □Thường xuyên□Thường thườngThỉnh thoảng□Hiếm khi□Không Theo ý kiến bạn, hoạt động bổ trợ có mang lại hiệu cho việc dạy từ vựng nào? □Rất hiệu quả□Hiệu quả□ Bình thường□Khơng hiệu Bạn suy lợi ích việc sử dụng hoạt động bổ trợ để dạy từ vựng? (đánh dấu  vào ô bạn chọn) Chú ý: SA: Đồng ý mạnh mẽ A: Đồng ý N: Trung lập D: Phản đối SD: Phản đối mạnh mẽ X Lợi ích SA A N D SD Hoạt động bổ trợ làm bạn cảm thấy học từ vựng hào hứng Hoạt động bổ trợ giúp bạn đoán nghĩa từ nhanh Hoạt động bổ trợ giúp hiểu nghĩa từ cách dễ dàng Hoạt động bổ trợ giúp bạn nhớ từ nhanh hiệu Khác (cụ thể)………………… Bạn nghĩ khó khăn việc sử dụng thẻ nhớ dạy từ vựng? (đánh dấu  vào bạn chọn) Khó khan SA A N D SD 1.Mất thời gian để chuẩn bị giáo cụ (thẻ nhớ…) 2.Gặp khó khăn việc chọn hoạt động bổ trợ phù hợp Ảnh sách hạn chế Thời gian dạy từ vựng hạn chế Quản lý lớp học (ồn ào,…) Khác (cụ thể)………………… 10 Bạn có muốn giáo viên tiếp tục sử dụng hoạt động bổ trợ để dạy từ vựng? □ Có □ Không XI APPENDIX 4: PRE-OBSERVATION Date: Time: -Subject: Class: -Number of students: Level of Students: Describe your students in this class in terms of vocabulary frequency use What have students been asked to in preparation for this class? Do you have anything to remind the students? What is your goal for the lesson? What you hope students learn or be able to as a result? What are your plans for achieving these goals? What teaching methods/teaching aids will be used? Is there anything else I should be aware of prior to the observation? XII APPENDIX 5: CLASSROOM OBSERVATION Activity Learning Targets: Vocabulary Ability Achieved Below Retention Beyond successful mastery or no Note expectations target despite effort effort Evaluating the ability of speaking output Making words sentence Little using Creating the final products Evaluating the connection between words and sentences XIII ...DECLARATION I hereby certify the thesis entitled Developing supplementary vocabulary activities to enhance vocabulary retention for tenth grade students at a high school in Bac Ninh province. ” as... regarding practical language Several linguists and investigators in learning foreign language mentioned that vocabulary learning and foreign language learning have a strong relationship to each other... the students have in learning vocabulary? 2) To what extent can supplementary vocabulary activities enhance the students vocabulary retention? 3) What are the students opinion towards those activities?