Students’ attitude toward english as a compulsory subject at an upper secondary school in quang ninh province

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ĐINH THỊ HẢI HÀ STUDENTS' ATTITUDE TOWARD ENGLISH AS A COMPULSORY SUBJECT AT AN UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL IN QUANG NINH PROVINCE (Thái độ của học sinh đối với Tiếng Anh một môn học bắt buộc tại một trường THPT tại Quảng Ninh) MASTER’S THESIS Major: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231,01 HÀ NỘI – 2018 ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SAU ĐẠI HỌC ĐINH THỊ HẢI HÀ STUDENTS' ATTITUDE TOWARD ENGLISH AS A COMPULSORY SUBJECT AT AN UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL IN QUANG NINH PROVINCE (Thái độ của học sinh đối với Tiếng Anh một môn học bắt buộc tại một trường THPT tại Quảng Ninh) MASTER’S THESIS Major: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231,01 Supervisor: Assoc.Prof Lê Văn Canh HÀ NỘI –2018 STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP The thesis entitled “Students’ attitude towards English as a compulsory subject at an upper secondary school” has been submitted for the Master of Arts I, the undersigned, hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis I have fully acknowledged and referenced the ideas and work of others, whether published or unpublished, in my thesis My thesis does not contain work extracted from a thesis, dissertation or research paper previously presented for another degree or diploma at this or any other universities Signed Dinh Thi Hai Ha Date / / ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am deeply indebted to the individuals that provided support for the completion of this study Associate Professor Dr Lê Văn Canh supervised the entire study and, most importantly, read and discussed every aspect and section of this dissertation with assiduity His recommendations also helped to shape the form and contents of the final version I am equally indebted to them for the exceptional friendliness, kindness, and patience that he demonstrated during my study at ULIS-VNU and my research My sincere thanks also go to the Dean - Dr Huỳnh Anh Tuấn as well as the staff members at the Faculty of Postgraduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies (ULIS), Vietnam National University (VNU), who are always so kind and supportive during my study time In addition, I would like to express my thankfulness to all the participating teachers at an upper secondary school who helped me in my preliminary research, especially the teachers who accompanied me during a long time of my data collection time The results I have achieved today partially belong to them Last but not least, I would like to thank my fellows for their dedication and support, and my family members for their motivation for me to overcome all the difficulties and to become a better me now Thanking you all Dinh Thi Hai Ha September, 2018 i ABSTRACT This paper explores the influence of students’ attitude and English subject studying outcome through a case study at a high school The study hopes to identify and provide few recommendations on approaches to improve English teaching outcome at high school level in general From a survey of 180 at a high school students across age ranges and grades, the finding includes the significance of students’ drive to study English and their opinions about teachers on English learning outcomes Furthermore, from data overview, it is suggested that school facilities also matter Therefore, the study recommends school to provide students with information about the implications of English, improve facilities to embrace the age of Internet, and enhance students’ opinion about teachers ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i ABSTRACT ii TABLE OF CONTENTS iii ABBREVIATIONS v LIST OF TABLES vi CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Research question 1.3 Research method 1.4 Scope of the study 1.5 Significance of the study 1.6 Structure of the thesis CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Definition 2.1.1 Attitudes 2.2 English as a compulsory subject in other countries and Vietnam 13 2.3 Students’ attitudes to English as a compulsory in other countries 17 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 18 3.1 Context of the study 18 3.2 Instruments 19 3.2.1 Questionnaires 19 3.3 Data collection 21 3.4 Data analysis 23 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 24 4.1 Quantitative results and discussions 24 4.2 Qualitative results and discussions 32 4.2.1 Results of the interviews 32 4.2.2 Discussions of the interview 33 iii 4.2.3 Summary 33 CHAPTER CONCLUSIONS 34 REFERENCES 37 APPENDICES I iv ABBREVIATIONS CEFR: Common European framework of Reference EFL: English foreign language L2: Second language TEFL: Teaching English as a foreign language v LIST OF TABLES Table 3.1 Reliability value regarding the language Aspects 20 Table 4.1 Descriptive Statistics of Students’ Attitudes towards English Language25 Table 4.2 Descriptive statistics of Behavioral aspect of Language Attitude 25 Table Descriptive Statistics of Cognitive Aspect of Language Attitude 27 Table 4.4 Descriptive Statistics of Emotional Aspect of Language Attitude 29 Table 4.5 Descriptive Statistics of Attitudes towards English as a compulsory subject 30 vi CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale In foreign language learning context, there are various factors that influence the learning process such as motivation, attitudes, anxiety, learning achievements, aptitudes, intelligence, age, personalities, etc (Shams, M., 2008) The matter of learner’s attitude is acknowledged as one of the most important factors that impact on learning a language (Fakeye, D., 2010) Attitudes toward learning are believed to influence behaviors such as selecting and reading books, speaking in a foreign language etc Especially in Education, if the students have positive attitude towards any subject, they can achieve many things in that specific area There is an interaction between language learning and the environmental components in which the students were grown up Both negative and positive attitudes have a strong impact on the success of language learning Attitude is determined by the individual’s beliefs about outcomes or attributes of performing the behavior (behavioral beliefs), weighted by evaluations of those outcomes or attributes Thus, a person who holds strong beliefs that positively valued outcomes will result from performing the behavior will have a positive attitude toward the behavior Conversely, a person who holds strong beliefs that negatively valued outcomes will result from the behavior will have a negative attitude Attitude is considered as an essential factor influencing language performance and received considerable attention from both first and second language researchers There are many reasons why students’ attitude toward language learning is important Weinburgh (1998) believes that attitudes toward learning influence behaviors such as selecting and reading books, speaking in a foreign language Generally, it is believed that learners’ attitudes dictate whether or not they will be able to absorb the details of language In other words, achievement in a target language relies not only on intellectual capacity but also on the learner’s 12 Eagly, A., Chaiken, S (1993) The psychology of attitudes Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt, 13 Fakeye, D (2010) Students’ personal variables as correlates of academic achievement in English as a second language in Nigeria.Journal of Social Sciences, 22, 205–211 14 Gardner, R C (1985) Social psychology and second language learning: The role of attitudes and motivation London: Edward Arnold 15 Gardner, R C., and W E Lambert (1972) Attitudes and motivation in second language learning Rowley, MA: Newbury House 16 Ghazvini, S D., & Khajehpour, M (2011) Attitudes and Motivation in learning English as Second Language in high school students.Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 15, 1209–1213 17 Gömleksiz, M N (2010) An evaluation of students’ attitudes towards English language learning in terms of several variables.Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, 9, 913–918 18 Hough, L.W & Piper, M.K (1982) The relationship between 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Motivational orientations and selfdetermination theory.Language Learning 50 (1): 57–85 30 Pang, G.Z., Wu, D (2010) A survey on English learning motivation of students in Qingdao Agricultural University Qingdao Agricultural University, China Journal of Language Teaching and Research, (2), 151-156.Retrieved on 14 February 2018 from www.academypublisher.com 31 Sarjit Kaur (1993) Analysis of the English language needs of consultants at NCVC Unpublished M.A thesis, University of South Australia Retrieved 12 February 2018 from http://www.eprints.oum.edu.my/565/1/role_motivation.pdf 32 Samarin, W (1987) Lingua Franca In U Ammon, N Dittmar, & K Mattheier 39 (Eds.), Sociolinguistics: An international handbook of the science of language and society (pp 371–374) Berlin: Walter de Gruyter 33 Seidlhofer, B (2005) English as a lingua franca ELT Journal, 59 (4), 339-341 34 Shams, M (2008) Students’ attitudes, motivation and anxiety towards English language learning Journal of Research, 2, 121–144 35 Simpson, R.D., & Oliver, J.S (1990) A summary of major influences on attitude towards and achievement in science among adolescent students.Science Education 74:1-18 36 Spolsky, B (2000) Anniversary article: Language motivation revisited Applied Linguistics 21 (2): 157-69 37 Spolsky, B (1969) Attitudinal aspect of second language learning.Language Learning, 19, 271-283 38 Visser, M (2008) Learning under conditions of hierarchy and discipline: The case of the German Army (1939 - 1940) Learning Inquiry 2, 127-137 39 Vijchulata, B., & Lee, G (1985) A survey of students' motivation for learning English.RELC Journal, 16 (1), 68-81 Retrieved 10 January 2018 from http://www.eprints.oum.edu.my/565/1/role_motivation.pdf 40 Weinburgh, M H (1998) Gender, ethnicity, and grade level as predictors of middle school students’ attitudes toward science Retrieved from http://www.Ed.Psu 41 Yashima, T (2002) Willingness to communicate in a second language: The Japanese EFL context Modern Language Journal 86 (1): 54-66 40 APPENDICES APPENDIX A: Questionnaires (English version) ATTITUDES TOWARDS ENGLISH LANGUAGE Thank you so much for participating in this study! This questionnaire will take approximately 25 minutes to finish and is concerned with your attitudes toward English and your purposes for learning English You are the expert in this case Please be assured that your identity is completely confidential By completing this questionnaire, you consent to participate in this study PART 1: YOUR ATTITUDES TOWARDS ENGLISH LANGUAGE To what extent you agree with the following items? The following items ask about your attitudes toward learning the English language Remember there is no right or wrong answers; just answer as accurately as possible Please read the statements below carefully and tick the appropriate choices that reflect your attitudes and perceptions towards English language Use the scale below to answer the questionnaire items = Strongly Disagree = Disagree = Neutral = Agree = Strongly Agree No Statements Scoring Studying English is important because it will make me 5 more educated Being good at English will help me study other subjects well I feel proud when studying English language I feel excited when I communicate in English with others 5 Speaking English anywhere makes me feel worried I Studying English helps me to have good relationships with friends I like to give opinions during English lessons I have more knowledge and more understanding when 5 10 I don’t get anxious when I have to answer a question in my 5 12 I am able to make myself pay attention during studying 5 15 Studying English makes me have good emotions 5 studying English I look forward to studying more English in the future English class 11 Studying foreign languages like English is enjoyable English 13 When I hear a student in my class speaking English well, I like topractice speaking with him/her 14 To be inquisitive makes me study English well (feelings) 16 I prefer studying in my mother tongue rather than any other foreignlanguage 17 Studying English makes me have more confidence in expressingmyself 18 Studying English helps me to improve my personality 19 I put off my English homework as much as possible 20 Studying English helps me getting new information in 5 which I can linkto my previous knowledge 21 I cannot to summarize the important points in the English subjectcontent by myself 22 Frankly, I study English just to pass the exams 23 I enjoy doing activities in English II 24 I not like studying English 25 I am not relaxed whenever I have to speak in my 5 Englishclass 26 I feel embarrassed to speak English in front of other students 27 I wish I could speak English fluently 28 I am interested in studying English 29 In my opinion, people who speak more than one language 5 5 33 To be honest, I really have little interest in my English are veryknowledgeable 30 Studying English helps me communicate in English effectively 31 I cannot apply the knowledge from English subject in my real life 32 Studying English subject makes me feel more confident class 34 Studying English makes me able to create new thoughts 35 I like to practice English the way native speakers 36 I am able to think and analyze the content in English 5 38 When I miss the class, I never ask my friends or teachers 5 5 language 37 I wish I could have many English speaking friends for thehomework on what has been taught 39 I am not satisfied with my performance in the English subject 40 In my opinion, English language is difficult and complicated to learn 41 English subject has the content that covers many fields of III knowledge 42 I not feel enthusiastic to come to class when the English is beingtaught 43 Knowing English is an important goal in my life 44 I look forward to the time I spend in English class 45 I not pay any attention when my English teacher is explaining thelesson IV PART 2: YOUR ATTITUDES TOWARDS ENGLISH AS A COMPULSORY SUBJECT AT SCHOOLS In this section, please read each of the following statements carefully; and then circle the number that best represents the level of your agreement to the statement Level of agreement = Strongly Disagree (SD) = Disagree (D) = Slightly Agree (SLA) = Agree (A) = Strongly Agree (SA) No Statements Scoring All Vietnamese students should learn English Vietnamese high school students should use English in 5 5 5 either spoken or written communications among each other English education should start from elementary school in Vietnam English should not be a compulsory subject in the National College Entrance Examination in Vietnam I would not take English if it were not a compulsory subject in school If English were not taught at school, I would study it on my own Oral language skills are more important than literacy skills in English education High school English classes should be entirely conducted in English V High school English classes should be conducted in both 5 5 5 5 5 English and Vietnamese 10 Besides English classes, other classes, such as Math, should be also conducted in English 11 VSTEP-3 (Vietnamese Standardized Test of English Proficiency band 3) should not be a requirement for obtaining the university degree in Vietnam 12 I am satisfied with the English education policy in Vietnam 13 I am satisfied with the college English education curriculum in Vietnam 14 I am satisfied with the English learning textbooks and other materials used in our school 15 I am satisfied with the English teaching methods used in our school 16 American English is the best model for Vietnamese learners of English 17 British English is the best model for Vietnamese learners of English 18 I prefer native speakers rather than non-native speakers as my English teachers VI PHỤ LỤC A: Bảng câu hỏi (Bản tiếng Việt) THÁI ĐỘ CỦA HỌC SINH TRUNG HỌC PHỔ THÔNG Ở VIỆT NAM ĐỐI VỚI VIỆC HỌC TIẾNG ANH Cảm ơn bạn nhiều tham gia vào nghiên cứu này! Bạn khoảng 25 phút để hoàn thành bảng câu hỏi thái độ bạn việc học môn tiếng Anh mục đích mà bạn học tiếng Anh.Hãy n tâm danh tính bạn hồn tồn bảo mât.Bằng cách hoàn thành bảng câu hỏi này, bạn đồng ý tham gia vào nghiên cứu PHẦN 1: THÁI ĐỘ CỦA BẠN ĐỐI VỚI VIỆC HỌC TIẾNG ANH Bạn đồng ý với mục sau mức độ nào? Các câu sau hỏi thái độ bạn việc học tiếng Anh Hãy nhớ khơng có câu trả lời hay sai; trả lời xác Vui lòng đọc kỹ câu đánh dấu vào lựa chọn thích hợp thể thái độ nhận thức bạn tiếng Anh Sử dụng thang đo để trả lời câu hỏi = Hồn tồn khơng đồng ý (SD) = Khơng đồng ý (D) = Đồng ý phần (SLA) = Đồng ý (A) = Hoàn toàn đồng ý (SA) No Statements Scoring Học tiếng Anh quan trọng mơn học giúp 5 Tôi cảm thấy hào hứng giao tiếp tiếng 5 hiểu biết Biết tiếng Anh giúp học môn học khác tốt Tôi cảm thấy tự tin học tiếng Anh Anh với người khác Việc nói tiếng Anh nơi khiến lo lắng VII Học tiếng Anh giúp có mối quan hệ tốt với bạn bè Tơi thích phát biểu học tiếng Anh Tơi có kiến thức hiểu biết học tiếng 5 5 Tơi có khả tập trung suốt học tiếng 5 5 Toi thích học tiếng Anh tiếng mẹ đẻ Anh Tôi mong muốn học tiếng Anh nhiều tương lai Tôi không lo lắng phải trả lời câu hỏi học tiếng Anh Học ngoại ngữ học tiếng Anh thú vị Anh Trong học tiếng Anh, nghe bạn nói tiếng Anh tốt tơi thích luyện tập bạn Ưa khám phá làm cho việc học tiếng Anh trở nên thú vị Học tiếng Anh làm tơi có cảm giác vui vẻ thứ tiếng khác Học tiếng Anh làm tự tin Học tiếng Anh giúp tơi phát triển tính độc lập Tơi trì hỗn việc làm tập nhà môn tiếng Anh 5 lâu tốt Học tiếng Anh giúp tơi có nhiều thơng tin mà tơi kết nối với kinh nghiệm sẵn có Tơi khơng thể tự tóm tắt ý nội dung học tiếng Anh Thực học tiếng Anh để không bị trượt Tơi u thích tham gia hoạt động tiếng Anh VIII Tơi khơng thích học tiếng Anh Tôi không thấy thoải mái tơi phải nói tiếng Anh 5 học tiếng Anh Tôi cảm thấy bối rối phải nói tiếng Anh trước mặt bạn khác Tơi ước tơi nói tiếng Anh trơi chảy Tơi thích học tiếng Anh Theo quan điểm tôi, người biết nhiều 1 5 ngôn ngữ hiểu biết Học tiếng Anh giúp giao tiếp tiếng Anh hiệu Tôi áp dụng kiến thức từ việc học tiếng Anh vào sống Học tiếng Anh làm cho cảm thấy tự tin Thực không thấy hứng thú với môn tiếng Anh Học tiếng Anh làm cho tơi có nhiều sáng kiến Tơi thích luyện tập tiếng Anh theo cách mà người 5 Khi nghỉ học, không hỏi lại bạn Tôi không hài lòng với kết học tập mơn tiếng Anh Tơi nghĩ tiếng Anh vừa khó vừa phức tạp Môn tiếng Anh có nội dung bao hàm kiến thức địa nói Tơi suy nghĩ phân tích nội dung tiếng Anh Tơi mong muốn có thêm nhiều bạn biết nói tiếng Anh giáo viên tập nhà kiến thức dạy nhiều lĩnh vực IX Tôi khơng cảm thấy nhiệt tình đến lớp học mơn tiếng Anh Biết tiếng Anh mục tiêu quan trọng đời Tôi mong chờ đến học tiếng Anh Tôi không tập trung vào giảng tiếng Anh X PHẦN 2: THÁI ĐỘ CỦA BẠN KHI XEM TIẾNG ANH LÀ MỘT MÔN HỌC BẮT BUỘC TẠI TRƯỜNG Trong phần này, vui lòng đọc kỹ câu sau khoanh tròn số phù hợp với mức độ đồng ý bạn ý kiến Mức độ đồng ý: = Hoàn tồn khơng đồng ý (SD) = Khơng đồng ý (D) = Đồng ý phần (SLA) = Đồng ý (A) = Hoàn toàn đồng ý (SA) Tất học sinh Việt Nam nên học tiếng Anh Học sinh cấp Việt Nam nên sử dụng tiếng Anh 5 5 5 5 giao tiếp (bằng lời văn bản) với người khác Việc dạy tiếng Anh nên trường tiểu học Việt Nam Tiếng Anh không nên trở thành mơn học bắt buộc kì thi đại học Việt Nam Tôi không học tiếng Anh khơng phải mơn học bắt buộc Nếu tiếng Anh không dạy trường, tự học môn Kĩ giao tiếp ngoại ngữ quan trọng kĩ viết môi trường học tiếng Anh bậc đại học Các tiết học tiếng Anh trường cấp nên dạy hoàn toàn tiếng Anh Các tiết học tiếng Anh nên dạy tiếng Anh tiếng Việt 10 Bên cạnh tiết học tiếng Anh tiết học khác XI Toán nên giảng dạy tiếng Anh 11 Chứng tiếng Anh VSTEP-3 (chứng kiểm tra trình 5 13 Tơi hài lòng với chường trình đào tạo tiếng Anh bậc 5 5 5 độ tiếng Anh bậc 3) không nên điều kiện bắt buộc để tốt nghiệp THPT Việt Nam 12 Tơi hài lòng với sách đào tạo tiếng Anh Việt Nam THPT Việt Nam 14 Tơi hài lòng với sách giáo khoa tiếng Anh tài liệu khác sử dụng trường 15 Tơi hài lòng với phương pháp giảng dạy tiếng Anh đước sử dụng trường 16 Tiếng Anh - Mỹ biến thể tốt dành cho người học tiếng Anh Việt Nam 17 Tiếng Anh - Anh biến thể tốt dành cho người học tiếng Anh Việt Nam 18 Tơi thích giáo viên người địa giáo viên người địa INTERVIEW (Vietnamese version) Bạn có thích học tiếng Anh khơng? Tại sao? Trong số môn học trường, tiếng Anh có xếp vào nhóm mơn học khơng? Tại sao? Bạn có thường xun luyện tập kỹ Nghe, Nói, Đọc, Viết tiếng Anh khơng? Bạn có mong muốn học tốt tiếng Anh khơng? Tại sao? Theo bạn có nên thay môn tiếng Anh môn học khác không? Tại sao? XII ... second language or foreign language learning The measurement of language attitudes provides information which is useful in language teaching and language learning.” Attitudes are defined as an “acquired... but also on the learner’s attitudes toward language learning This means that learning language should be approached primarily as a social and psychological phenomenon rather than as a purely academic... of learning, degree of importance, elegance, social status, etc Attitudes towards a language may also show what people feel about the speakers of that language Language attitudes may have an effect