Investigation into Task-based language teaching in teaching ESP to the non-English major 2nd year students at Academy of Finance

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES  VŨ THỊ PHƯỢNG INVESTIGATION INTO TASK- BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING METHOD IN TEACHING ESP TO THE NON- ENGLISH MAJOR SECOND YEAR STUDENTS AT ACADEMY OF FINANCE (Tìm hiểu phương pháp dạy học thực thi nhiệm vụ giảng dạy tiếng Anh chuyên ngành cho sinh viên không chuyên năm hai Học viện Tài chính) M.A Minor Thesis Program Field: English Language Teaching Methodology Code: 60.14.10 HANOI- 2013 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES  VŨ THỊ PHƯỢNG INVESTIGATION INTO TASK- BASED LANGUAGE TEACHING METHOD IN TEACHING ESP TO THE NON- ENGLISH MAJOR SECOND YEAR STUDENTS AT ACADEMY OF FINANCE (Tìm hiểu phương pháp dạy học thực thi nhiệm vụ giảng dạy tiếng Anh chuyên ngành cho sinh viên không chuyên năm hai Học viện Tài chính) M.A Minor Thesis Program Field: English Language Teaching Methodology Code: 60.14.10 Supervisor: Cao Thúy Hồng, M.A HANOI- 2013 TABLE OF CONTENT Table of contents Page Declaration i Acknowledgements ii Abstract iii Table of content v Lists of tables, figures and abbreviations iv viii PART I: INTRODUCTION I Rationale II Aims III Scope of the study IV Overview of the study PART II: DEVELOPMENT Chapter I: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND and LITERATURE REVIEW I Theoretical background 1.1 Task 1.1.1 Definition 1.1.2 Characteristics of tasks 1.1.3 Types of task 1.2 Task- based language teaching 12 1.2.1 Definition 12 1.2.2 Task- based frame work 13 1.3 English for Special Purposes (ESP) 15 1.3.1 Development of ESP 15 1.3.2 Definition 16 II Literature Review 18 v Chapter II: Methodology 2.1 The context of the study 20 2.2 Research methodology 21 2.2.1 Participants 22 2.2.2 Data collection methods 22 2.2.3 Data collection procedures 25 2.2.4 Data analysis methods 27 Chapter III: Data Analysis: Results, Discussions and Recommendations Teachers and student’s perceptions about TBLT in ESP 28 3.1.1 Teachers and student’s perceptions about ESP 28 1.2 Teachers and student’s perceptions about tasks 29 3.1.3 Teachers and student’s perceptions about features of tasks 31 3.2 Task- based language teaching realization in ESP class 32 3.2.1 Frequency of using TBLT in ESP 32 3.2.2 Task types in ESP 34 3.2.3 Task cycle in ESP 38 3.3 Problems and Suggestions 39 3.3.1 Problems in learning and teaching ESP via tasks 39 3.3.2 Suggestions 42 vi PART III: CONCLUSION I Major findings of the study 44 II Limitations of the study 44 III Suggestions for further studies 45 REFERENCES 46 APPENDICES vii LISTS OF TABLES, FIGURES AND ABBREVIATIONS List of tables: Table 1: Teachers and Students’ opinion about ESP Table 2: Teachers and Students’ perceptions of tasks Table 3: Students’ perceptions of task features Table 4: Frequency of task types used ESP class Table 5: Problems of using tasks in ESP class List of figures Chart (a) (b): Frequency of using TBLT in ESP teaching for the 2nd year students at AOF Chart 2: Preferable types of tasks among students in ESP class List of abbreviations: AOF: Academy of Finance ESP: English for Special Purpose TBLT: Task- based Language Teaching Ss: Students viii PART I: INTRODUCTION This initial chapter states the problem and the rationale of the study, together with the aims, objectives and the scope of the whole paper Above all, it is in this chapter that the research questions are identified to work as clear guidelines for the whole research I Statement of the problem and the rationale for the study English is being taught as a foreign language in Vietnam from Elementary school It is also used as a medium of instruction in secondary and tertiary level of education Although the students have learnt English for a long time, they are unable to reach the expected proficiency level when they start tertiary education Over the years, different approaches, methods and procedures, have been employed to help learners learn English Some traditional methods are GTM (Grammar Translation method), ALM (Audio Lingual method) These methods are teacher- center, and focus on linguistic accuracy rather than interactive or communicative competence of learners Learners are often passive in class and have difficulties communicating in the real life Since the late 20th century, along with globalization trends, the demand for English as a global language in international business, travelling and cultural exchange etc has becoming higher and higher As a result, nowadays, a new method of teaching and learning English to serve those purposes has been indeed indispensable, and learner-centered approaches have been developed The new approaches draw knowledge from the learner, working through their needs and interests and selecting materials, activities and tasks accordingly One modern method is Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) According to Richards and Rodgers (2001), CLT is the acquisition of communicative competence via student engagement in meaningful use of language at discourse level To achieve this, the teacher facilitates communicative activities by managing the classroom environment, providing resources and acting as a communicator “Classroom activities are often designed to focus on completing tasks that are mediated through language or involve negotiation of information and information sharing” (Richards and Rodgers 2001: 165) One of the most popular methods within CLT recently is task-based language teaching (TBLT) This method promotes communication and social interaction In this method, learners are presented with a task or problem to solve and not concentrate on language features during performance Language analysis is incorporated after learners have performed a task TBLT focuses on using the tasks which are suitable for or meet students’ needs The reasons are TBLT seems to bring meaningful use of language with authentic tasks and it can promote autonomous learning With such advantages, it has been applied into many English courses There is no exception of TBLT application to English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses in which the requirements are the knowledge of specialization and skills of English to achieve the goal of professional communication in professional fields Therefore, both ESP and task- based language teaching method focus on learners’ needs to reach a certain goal and obviously, the exploitation of TBLT in ESP teaching is a good choice for many ESP teachers In fact, there have been some studies on application of TBLT in ESP so far in many countries including Vietnam , yet they only focused on certain aspects such as effectiveness, syllabus design etc Students and teachers, the two key factors of any teaching and learning, have not been sufficiently studied In Academy of Finance, ESP is an obligatory subject in semesters for second- year students and third- year students and ESP teachers here have applied TBLT for their lessons This inspired the researcher to conduct a research on the perceptions of teachers and learners of TBLT in ESP here II Aims and objectives of the study In the first place, this study aims to identify teachers and students’ perceptions of TBLT in ESP Specifically, the study would investigate into how teachers and students think or feel about the task and features of TBLT in ESP course Secondly, a closer look is taken to find out how tasks are realized in ESP class In other words, the researcher tries to investigate how often TBLT is exploited for second- year students in ESP course, which type of task is preferred in ESP class, and how task steps are realized in class In addition, some pedagogical techniques to overcome the problems or disadvantages will be provided as suggestions for TBLT application in the same context In brief, the researcher expects to answer three following questions: What are teachers and students’ perceptions of TBLT in ESP? How is TBLT realized in ESP class? What are teachers and students’ suggestions for TBLT to teach ESP course? III Scope of the study First, although TBLT is generally set as the title of the whole study, it is impossible for the researcher to cover everything related to TBLT but only some aspects of the issue in the given context This research only focuses on the context of ESP course in AOF for non- major second- year students Secondly, the research is done to find out the perceptions of teachers and APPENDIX Survey Questionnaire for students I am Vu Thi Phuong, teacher of Faculty of foreign languages from Academy of Finance I am conducting a research on “Application of task- based language teaching method in teaching ESP to non- major second- year students of English at Academy of Finance.”, which aims at investigating the reality of exploiting Task- based language teaching method to teach ESP to non- major second- year students of English at Academy of Finance and suggesting some techniques to use TBLT in teaching ESP I would be grateful if you could spend some of your precious time completing this questionnaire Please read the questions carefully and tick the answer you agree most for each question You are encouraged to ask me if you find something you not understand It is assured that your personal opinions will be kept secret under all circumstances Thank you for your cooperation Survey Questions 12.How long have you been learning English? …………… years 13.What you think about ESP? b very easy b easy c so-so d difficult e very difficult 14.How often does your teacher apply TBLT in your ESP lessons? e every lesson (two lessons a week) f once a week (one lesson a week) g sometimes (from to lessons out of 15 lessons) h never 15.Which of the following activities can be considered as tasks? Circle the letter of your answer (a, b, c etc.) (You can circle more than one letter) g List as many shift factors of demand and supply as you can and analyze these factors h Illustrate the change of the demand for rice during the crops V i Give the currencies of these countries: Spain, the UK, Australia, Japan, China j Compare public finance and corporate finance k Fill in the blank of these sentences with “rise” or “raise” l Name some popular banks in Vietnam 16.In your opinion, why are the activities above tasks? Circle the letter of your answer (a, b, c etc.) (You can circle more than one letter) f They have a clear goal g They focus on meaning h They focus on Language use i They are authentic with real- world context j Others, please specify……………………………………………………………… 17.How often does your teacher use these types of tasks? Always (x5) Listing (List some functions of money) Ordering and sorting (which issues belong to macroeconomics and microeconomics) Comparing (compare three economic systems) Problem solving (what does the government in high inflation period?) Sharing information (if you had money, which securities company would you invest in?) Creative tasks (Do a role- play about the importance of money) 18.What type of tasks you like best? a Listing b Ordering and sorting information VI Often (x4) Sometimes (x3) Rarely (x2) Never (x1) c Comparing d Problem solving e Sharing information f Creative tasks 19.What is the order of the task that is most often used in your class? Circle one letter of your answer (a, b, c, or d) a Teacher clarifies the content in the textbook Teacher gives new vocabularies Teacher asks Ss to repeat the knowledge through some questions b Teacher provides new topic and some new vocabularies in the reading textTeacher asks Ss to discuss about one point Teacher asks Ss to give their presentation on that point Teacher concludes that point and give some notes about form or language use c Teacher gives a topic and ask Ss to discuss  Teacher provides new words if necessary Teacher asks Ss to present Give comment and conclude the point d Teacher asks Ss to read the reading text Teacher provides new terms Ss answer the questions after the text and the exercise about new words and structures 20.What you think are disadvantages of using TBLT in ESP lessons? Circle the letter of your answer (a, b, c etc.) (You can circle more than one letter) a Multi- level class b Big size of class c Ss’ lack of background knowledge d Uninteresting course book e Ss’s lack of vocabulary f Ss’ lack of motivation g Ss’ passive learning style h Others, please specify………… 21.What can your teach to make ESP lesson better? Circle the letter of your answer (a, b, c etc.) (You can circle more than one letter) a Teachers use more authentic materials (real- life materials with updated information about economic situations, issues etc.) b Teachers should pay attention more to varied levels in class VII c Teachers explain new vocabularies more d Others, ………………………………………………………………………… …… Thank you for your cooperation! VIII APPENDIX Interview questions for teachers Full name: Time of teaching English: In your opinion, is a task an exercise? Why you think students like creative tasks least? How you organize tasks in ESP class? What are your problems when using TBLT in ESP lessons? What are your suggestions to design tasks for an ESP lesson? IX APPENDIX Interview questions for students Full name: Time of learning English: In your opinion, is a task an exercise? Why you like creative tasks? What are your problems when you learn ESP by tasks? What you think of tasks your teacher uses in your lessons? Are the tasks appropriate to you? Can you suggest some ways to have a better ESP lesson using tasks? X APPENDIX Transcription of teacher interview In your opinion, is a task an exercise? Teacher 1: No, I think exercises are a part of the task process, and it supports the tasks cycle Teacher 2: In my opinion, exercises are not communicative while tasks are a chain of activities to promote communication and interaction among students Teacher 3: In the questionnaire, activity “c” is an example of exercise It has no communicative purpose Teacher 4: I feel that “c” is an exercise, not a task I agree with them Teacher 5: task should have communicative purpose, that’s why activity “c” is an exercise, not a task Why you think students like creative tasks least? Teacher 1: Because my students are not good enough at English I think they feel difficult to express English fluently, and they are often afraid of presenting short talks or doing role- play in front of other students Teacher 2: That’s true When I give the idea of doing role- play for given topics, nearly half of my students feel worried and some students even refuse to play a role Teacher 3, & 5: I absolutely agree with them My students are afraid of doing something adventurous in class They are afraid of doing something wrong How you organize tasks in ESP class? XI Teacher 1, &3: Topics about economics are often broad with a lot of terms, It is easier to organize the lesson cycle b Teacher 4: Oh, I think that just apply cycle b can cause boredom I am flexible when I apply tasks in class My lessons are changeable in the organization depending on the lesson contents and students’ interests Sometimes I introduce new topic and new words first, sometimes I ask my students to discuss one point in the reading text first and then give them new words if they not know And, of course, tasks types are varied in my lessons What are your problems when using TBLT in ESP lessons? Teacher 1&2: The difference in students’ level of English makes it difficult or sometimes impossible to design a task which is suitable for all students in class Teacher 3&4: They are students’ lack of vocabulary and passive learning Students sometimes make out the problems very clear in Vietnamese, but they can’t express in English because of their lack of vocabulary, especially technical vocabularies Teacher 5: With TBLT, students had to work very hard in class and at home I often handed out materials and asked them to have a look at before class However, some of their students were too lazy and passive; they did not any reading, exercises before class What are your suggestions to design tasks for an ESP lesson? Teacher 1&2: I think the role of teachers in ESP class via task- based method should be noticed Teachers should be facilitator, collaborator, and evaluator XII In fact, I am sometimes not as good at major knowledge as students, so I can share with students as well as learn from them a lot of knowledge Teacher 3: Yes, I agree with you For example, teachers’ knowledge of banking is not as deep as major- banking students Teacher 4: the objective of ESP is to develop fluency of English to express major knowledge, not dig in teaching students’ knowledge of their major because they learn it a lot in Vietnamese Teacher 1, 2, 3, 4, 5: Authenticity helped to motivate their students a lot We have difficulties choosing authentic materials and turning these materials into suitable real- life activities in ESP class Therefore, teachers ought to use updated information and learn much knowledge of major Teacher 3: Information can be received from some websites of economics like Saigontimes.com or Nytimes.com or some textbooks of business XIII APPENDIX Transcription of student interview In your opinion, is a task an exercise? Student 1, &3: I think task is different from exercise Tasks are not exercises, and tasks have more activities than exercises I often work in group when doing a task, and individually when doing an exercise in class Student 4: I think tasks are the same as exercises I see that my teacher adds title Task: Fill in the blank of these sentences with “rise” or “raise”, so I think it is a task Student 5: I can’t distinguish tasks and exercises Why you like creative tasks? Student 1: Because I like challenge and I think I can express my English Student 2: I think practicing English helps me to improve my English, especially speaking I hate grammar and learning passively in class Student 3: I remember that when my teacher asked my group to a roleplay, at first my group was anxious about the plot, the conversation in the role- play because of our lack of vocabulary and self- confidence However, with our teacher’s help and my peers’ encouragement, we performed that role- play in class and we got a lot of favor from teacher and classmates It was such amazing thing We could it Student 4: When I could it well, I wanted to more and more and felt interested in it XIV Student 5: I like new things and practice skills in English rather than learning only What are your difficulties when you learn ESP by tasks? Student 1, 2, &4: I think course book is not interesting enough When I learn my major, some knowledge of the course book of English is not relevant Some content of the ESP course book does not give updated information, so it is a bit difficult for me to understand Student 5: I have a lot of problems as a non- major English student That is skill, confidence, and new words What you think of tasks your teacher uses in your lessons? Are the tasks appropriate to you? Student 1, 2, 3, &5: These tasks are easy enough for me to understand the content of the lesson We can get knowledge with real examples Can you suggest some ways to have a better ESP lesson using tasks? Student &2: Teacher should give us more new words to look up before class with reading text but the text should be updated Student 3, &5: I think that real- world situations should be put into lessons more and more XV APPENDIX Classroom observation checklists A Classroom observation checklist No.1 I Class profile:  Location of class: Class CQ48/11.1LT1, AOF  Class size: 35 students  Time: 4th period –(November 20th, 2012)  Time for teaching ESP: 45 minutes  Level:2nd year students (pre-intermediate)  Demand and Supply II Content: Elements Comments Teacher’s - Teacher (T) lets students discuss about the demand for activities laptops at the beginning of a school- year  lead in the topic “demand” - T asks students to look at the reading text about demand and explain new words, new ideas, for example, demand curve, rise and raise, decrease etc  preparation for while- task - T asks students to work in groups of and discuss the demand for gloves in winter  while- task XVI - T asks each group to present their ideas and gives comments on those presentations - T concludes the ideas and revise some new words and structures  Post- task T can check Students’ pronunciation and their background knowledge about English sounds quite effectively Students’ - students have difficulties in expressing ideas fluently activities III Observation & assessment of using task- based in ESP class Criteria Teacher’s exploitation Comments - Task cycle is used (Pre- While- Post) - Type of task: Problem solving  Topic and task type is familiar with students - The tasks designed are suitable with students’ level Students’ involvement - Topic can involve almost students in class - Vocabulary is a problem for Ss to express ideas IV Overall comments:  Strong points: - T can draw students’ attention - Students can complete the task given by the T XVII - The tasks designed are suitable with students’ level  Weak points: - Class is sometimes noisy B Classroom observation checklist No I Class profile:  Location of class: CQ48/15.2 LT, AOF  Class size: 40 students  Time: 1st period – ( December 15th , 2012)  Time for teaching ESP: 45 minutes  Level: 2nd- year students (pre-intermediate)  Management of working capital II Content: Elements Comments Teacher’s - Teacher should let Students the text and point out activities types and application of working capital T also provides new words (new technical terms)  Good preparation for students - T hands out the paper and asks students to work in groups to sort and compare types and applications of working capital  Suitable task and easy guideline to follow - Teacher can control the class well XVIII Students’ - Students study the text attentively and the tasks activities III Observation & assessment of using task- based in ESP Criteria Comments - Task cycle: Pre- while- post Teacher’s - Tasks are designed in multiform: sort and compare exploitation Students’ involvement Most students concentrate on completing the tasks Vocabulary should be built more by students IV Overall comments:  Strong points: - T can motivate students during the lesson - Tasks chosen are interesting and suitable for teaching the content - The tasks are suitable with students’ level  Weak points: - No authentic materials are used here XIX