A study on difficulties of the fourth year non english major students at hanoi university of science and technology in achieving english learning outcome standard

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ************************* NGUYỄN THỊ THANH HẰNG A STUDY ON DIFFICULTIES OF THE FOURTH-YEAR NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT HANOI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ACHIEVING ENGLISH LEARNING OUTCOME STANDARDS AND SOME SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS (Nghiên cứu khó khăn sinh viên khơng chun tiếng Anh năm thứ trường Đại học Bách Khoa Hà Nội việc đạt chuẩn đầu tiếng Anh đề xuất số giải pháp khắc phục) M.A.MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 60140111 HA NOI – 2017 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES ************************* NGUYỄN THỊ THANH HẰNG A STUDY ON DIFFICULTIES OF THE FOURTH-YEAR NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT HANOI UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN ACHIEVING ENGLISH LEARNING OUTCOME STANDARDS AND SOME SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS (Nghiên cứu khó khăn sinh viên khơng chun tiếng Anh năm thứ trường Đại học Bách Khoa Hà Nội việc đạt chuẩn đầu tiếng Anh đề xuất số giải pháp khắc phục) M.A.MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 60140111 Supervisor : DR PHẠM THỊ THANH THÙY HANOI – 2017 DECLARATION NGUYỄN THỊ THANH HẰNG, hereby certifies that this thesis, which is entitled “A Study On Difficulties Of The Fourth-year Non-English Major Students At Hanoi University Of Science And Technology In Achieving English Learning Outcome Standards And Some Suggested Solutions” is created from my original work I have firmly declared the contribution of others to my thesis such as data analysis, practical strategies, and all other researches that were employed or reviewed in my thesis This thesis is the result of my own study in the fulfillment of the requirement for the Degree of Master of Arts at Faculty of Post-Graduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi Hanoi, 2017 Nguyễn Thị Thanh Hằng i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr PhạmThịThanhThùy, whose insightful comments, criticism, direction and kind support were of great assistance to me in carrying out this study My sincere thanks also go to all the lecturers and staff of the Faculty of PostGraduate Studies, Hanoi University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, for their valuable knowledge and invaluable guidance and help during my two years of study at the Faculty I am also indebted to the teachers as well as the students at Hanoi University of Science and Technology, who have helped me a lot in my data collection to fulfill this paper Last but not least, I would like to express my appreciation to my family for their understanding and strong encouragement to me throughout the study Nguyễn Thị Thanh Hằng ii ABSTRACT The fact that final year students at universities in Vietnam in general and at Hanoi University of Science and Technology in particular face many difficulties in achieving English learning outcome standards is of great concerns to many people including educational managers, teaching staff and families This study aims to explore the difficulties that students encounter in achieving English learning outcomes, identifies which particular factor poses the most difficulty of the students in order to propose feasible solutions that help them overcome the problems and get the best results in English study The subjects of the study were the fourth-year nonEnglish major students of Hanoi University of Science and Technology among which 108 students who took English examination in the academic year 2016-2017 were selected for the study Data on difficult factors that students face in achieving English learning outcome standards were collected using questionnaire and interview The results show that the fourth year non-English major students have many problems that negatively affected their academic achievements in both English subject and university study These problems mainly resulted from sources: (1) the students themselves, (2) the teaching staff, and (3) the management Several suggestions to help students overcome the problems by the participants are also presented iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv ABBRIVIATIONS v LIST OF TABLES vi LIST OF FIGURES vi PART A INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study 1.2 Research objectives 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Scope of the Study 1.5 Structure of Research PART B DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Definition of outcomes and outcome-based education 1.1.1 Definition of outcomes 1.1.2 Definition of outcome-based education 1.2 Difficulties of learning English as a foreign language 1.3 Difficulties in achieving expected learning outcomes in English language study7 1.3.1 Difficulties relating to the students 1.3.2 Difficulties relating to the teachers 1.3.3 Difficulties relating to the management 1.4 Previous studies on the difficulties faced by language learners 10 1.5 Chapter summary 13 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 14 2.1 The context of Hanoi University of Science and Technology 14 2.1.1 Teachers 14 2.1.2 Students 14 iv 2.1.3 The English teaching and learning at HUST 15 2.1.3.1 The syllabus of English teaching and learning 15 2.1.3.2 The English teaching and learning in HUST 15 2.1.4 Requirements of English learning outcomes for HUST students 16 2.2 Research method 18 2.2.1 Description of the subjects 18 2.2.2 Conduct preliminary study 18 2.2.3 Data collection instruments 20 2.2.3.1 Questionnaire 20 2.2.3.2 Teacher interview 20 2.2.4 Procedures 21 2.2.5 Data analysis 21 Summary 22 CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 23 3.1 Difficulties faced by the fourth-year non-English major students 24 3.1.1 Difficulties relating to the students 24 3.1.2 Difficulties relating to the teachers 28 3.1.3 Difficulties relating to the university management 30 3.2 The factor that poses the most difficulty for the students 33 3.3 Summary of the results 35 PART C: CONCLUSIONS 37 Recapitulation of the main ideas 37 Implications 37 REFERENCES I APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE III APPENDIX 2: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS V APPENDIX 3: INTERVIEW VIII APPENDIX 4: RATE OF DIFFICULTY XI v ABBRIVIATIONS HUST: Hanoi University of Science and Technology EFL: English Foreign Language L2: Second Language vi LIST OF TABLES TABLE1 1: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS 25 TABLE1 2: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS 28 TABLE1 3: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS 30 TABLE1 4: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS 33 TABLE 1: FACTORS AND PARTICULAR DIFFICULTIES INFLUENCING THE EFL LEARNERS‟ ACHIEVEMENT 36 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1: SPOLSKY‟S (1989) MODEL OF SECOND LANGUAGE LEARNING 12 FIGURE 2: MINIMUM ENGLISH LEVEL FOR STUDENTS AT HUST 17 FIGURE 3: EQUIVALENT TO SCORES OF ENGLISH LEVEL 17 FIGURE 4: SUMMARY OF FACTORS CAUSING DIFFICULTIES TO THE EFL LEARNERS IN ACHIEVING LEARNING OUTCOMES 19 FIGURE 1: DIFFICULTIES RELATING TO THE STUDENTS 26 FIGURE 2: DIFFICULTIES RELATING TO THE TEACHERS 29 FIGURE 3: DIFFICULTIES RELATING TO THE MANAGEMENT BOARD 31 FIGURE 4: DIFFICULTIES FACED BY THE 4TH YEAR NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT HUST IN ACHIEVING ENGLISH LEARNING OUTCOMES 34 vii PART A INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale of the study There is no denying that English has been taken up by people in all walks of life not only in academic institutes but also in companies in Vietnam People are eager to learn English and wish to acquire it at an early age Also, in order to speed up the country economy and to improve the living standards as soon as possible, it is necessary for engineers, technicians, scientists, etc to learn and acquire English to keep up to date with the latest developments in technology in the world However, as a matter of fact, there are a large number of graduates who cannot use English at work fluently, while English proficiency is constantly considered as a key requirement for recruitment In order to improve this situation, Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) launched the dispatch No 2196/BGDĐT-GDĐH dated April 22nd 2010, universities and colleges must notify the graduate outcome standards to students to know Accordingly, English is one of the compulsory criteria to evaluate students‟ performance after years at schools Moreover, as cited from Prime Minister‟s Decision No 1400/QĐ-TTG approving the project "teaching and learning of foreign languages in the national education system period 2008-2020”(Nhan, 2008), in the higher education level, students who are studying in universities non-specialized in foreign languages have to pass at least the language proficiency-level (450 TOEIC) after their graduation Therefore, as one of the leading universities in Vietnam, Hanoi University of Science and Technology has integrated TOEIC as one of learning outcome standards to the evaluation system In addition to the number of outstanding students attaining the required English level, there are a lot of undergraduates, especially non- English major ones, encountering problems with English outcome standards in their final year at this university That is the reason why “difficulties faced by the fourth-year non-English major students at Hanoi University of Science and Technology in achieving English learning outcome standards” is chosen as the research‟s topic Therefore, it can be assumed that mastering English skills will be a key for graduates to open the career gate rather than struggling and become the ineffective required to try self-studying English It is undeniable that in order to be successful in language learning, self-study plays the most important role Although many English learners feel hesitant about studying alone, there are some advantages of this way such as being more comfortable, more active and motivated, less dependent on others to learn English Besides, the students must know how to arrange and manage learningtime properly and effectively They should be active in learning process It is important to study English every day and start learning from as early as possible Because the fourth year students are so busy with various complicated and challenging duties that they have little time left for learning English and preparing for the TOEIC outcomes exam Therefore, initiating to learn English early and everyday is much better than studying it urgently with overloaded contents Moreover, testing skill is considered as a vital factor for the success of English learners In reality, many learners show their good performance during the study process; however, they are often unsuccessful in examinations That is due to their poor testing skills and techniques Thus, the learners should equip themselves the essential strategies to handle the tests 2.2 Implications for the teachers Despite the fact that the difficulties relating to the teachers are not considerable, they should take the result of the study in to account with a view to promote English teaching and study at HUST The teachers should pay more attention to the students‟ motivation and attitudes They should also help their students to properly assess the need of English for the future, so that the students can identify motivation, positive learning attitudes and effective learning strategies With regard to the students‟ problems of low English skill competences, the teachers should focus on teaching skills rather than grammar and vocabulary as previously The research reveals that a majority of the students find it difficult with 39 listening test, so the teacher should let them practice listening more and more According the results of the study, a large number of the students responded that their teacher did not strictly pose the tasks and review assignments Therefore, it is suggested that the teachers should tighten the discipline and assign more homework for the students to and obey In addition, the teachers should give more explanation and guidance about the TOEIC test for students to acknowledge 2.3 Implications for the management The implementation of the outcome standards should be consistent throughout the university The management board should pay more attention to teaching and learning equipment to meet the demand for innovative teaching methods Besides, English programs need to be designed more appropriately Also, the university managers should initiate more activities to support the students, help them receive more opportunities to attend English revision classes and to take more English exams In terms of announcing outcomes information, in addition to dissemination in writing, posting information on the website, the school should provide the academic advising staff with the most popular classes Seminars on foreign language learning standards should be organized to raise awareness among students about the need to apply foreign language learning outcomes using international tests Regarding the time of English lesson, the researcher holds the opinion that 180 hours for years at university are not enough for language teaching as it requires regular practice It came to light that once out of school or college, students tap resources such as Language Institutes to manage their proficiency issues The point is, what they could not achieve with almost four years of exposure cannot possibly be taught better by these agencies in two or three months‟ courses English learning hours in HUST should be increased English classes should, therefore, be held for at least six hours a week and continuous in years at university 40 Finally, school should also apply the standard of foreign language to lecturers, so that cadres and lecturers will become a good example of learning foreign languages for students to follow Limitations of the research and suggestions for further study In doing a research, limitations are unavoidable and this minor thesis study is of no exception Firstly, the research has mainly based on questionnaire with 108 non-English major students at HUST The ideas from a small number of participants may not be totally typical for thousands of non-English major students‟ ideas at HUST Furthermore, the study includes only the subjects who are the fourth - year nonEnglish major students at HUST It is unfortunate that the researcher cannot cover the subjects of English major students as well as the first, the second and the third year students at HUST Therefore, the researcher hopes that in the future she can extend the survey questionnaire on English major students and other subjects to gain precise information to judge the situation objectively Secondly, as the researcher‟s knowledge of this field and practical experience is limited, the suggestions and recommendations are likely to be subjective and incomplete, leaving the issue to open to debate Therefore, further study should overcome the shortcoming Finally, due to the limited scope of the current study, the writer could not deal with other important factors that affect EFL learners‟ outcomes This calls for further research 41 REFERENCES AoutaGhania, (2013), An Analysis of Some Internal and External Factors Influencing Learners’ Success in EFL Dissertation, University of Biskra, Algeria Beardsmore, H B (1982) Bilingualism: Basic principles, Avon Choi, I.C (2008) The impact of EFL teaching on EFL education in Korea Language Testing, 25/1, 39-62 Crystal D (2003).English as Global Language Trumpington Stree, Cambridge CB2 1RP, United Kingdom: The Press Sydicate of The University of Cambridge Desveaux, S (2013, July 17) https://support.cambridgeenglish.org Retrieved August 19, 2016, from https://support.cambridgeenglish.org: https://support.cambridgeenglish.org/hc/en-gb/articles/202838506-Guidedlearning-hours Dornyei, Z (2007), Research methods in applied linguistics New York: Oxford University Press, pp 39-45 Ellis, R., (1986),Understanding Second Language Acquisition, Oxford: OUP Ellis, R., (1994),The study of second language acquisition, Oxford: OUP HàThanhBích Loan, 2015 , “ChuẩntiếngAnhđầurahệđạihọcchínhquy: Thựctrạngvàgiảipháp” http://nnkt.ueh.edu.vn/wp- content/uploads/2015/06/02.pdf 10 Hanoi University of Science and Technology (2014, October 20) http://hust.edu.vn Retrieved July 31, 2016, from http://hust.edu.vn: http://hust.edu.vn/web/vi/home 11 Hedge, T (2000), Teaching and learning in the language classroom, Oxford: OUP 12 Henry Khiat, (2014) “The Importance of Learning Outcomes in Your Study Guide”, SIM University Press I 13 Lightbown, P M (2000), Classroom SLA research and second language teaching AppliedLinguistics, 21(4), 431-462 14 Little, D (2007),Language learner autonomy: Some fundamental considerations revisited Innovation in language learning and teaching 1(1), 14-29 15 Liu, L (2011) An International Graduate Student‟s ESL Learning Experience beyond the classroom TESL Canada Journal, 29(1), 77-92 16 Margery H Davis (2013), Educational Strategies, pp 227-3 17 Rattanaphumma R., (2008), Second Language Learning and Language Learners, Galaxy, The English Department Journal 18 Rebecca L (2003), Language Learning Styles and Strategies: An Overview, Oxford University Press 19 Spady W G (2013), Outcome-Based Education: Critical Issues and Answers, Oxford University Press 20 Spolsky, B (1989) Conditions for second language learning Oxford: Oxford University Press 21 Thomson S (2012), The Effects of TOEIC Education in South Korea Universities, Dissertation, University of Birmingham, pp 23-24 22 Willy A Renandya, (2013), Essential Factors Affecting EFL Learning Outcomes,English Teaching, Vol 68, No 4, Winter 2013, pp 23-41 23 Yancy D.C (2004) The Importance of Students’ Learning Outcomes, Johnson C Smith University Press II APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE (About the difficulties faced by the fourth year non-major English students at Hanoi University of Science and Technology) I PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: (optional)………………………………… Class: ………… Academic year: ……………………… Faculty: …………………… Age: …………….Gender: Male/ Female Hometown: …………… II CONTENT The purpose of the questionnaire is to find out the information about the difficulties faced by the fourth year non-English major students at Hanoi University of Science and Technology Your responses are of great importance to the success of the study, so please kindly respond to each statement or question and complete all of them as frankly and accurately as you can by marking "x" in the appropriate box indicating the difficulties Thank you very much in advance for your cooperation! Level of agreement: 1: Completely disagree 2: Disagree 4: Agree 5: Completely agree III 3: No idea No A 10 11 12 13 14 15 B Content Difficulties relating to the students Students have poor background knowledge Students have inadequate vocabulary Students‟ grammatical knowledge is uncertain Students‟ language skills are poor Students are unaware of TOEIC test Students‟ exam skills are poor Students are not interested in learning English Students lack seriousness in learning English Students are unaware of English language‟s importance Students not invest much time learning English Students not attend the English class fully Students are not willing to study by themselves Students‟ learning methods ineffective Students not have enough time for revision class Students not have enough time for self study Difficulties relating to the teachers The requirements of English subject are very high Teachers‟ teaching methods inappropriate Teaching competences are unqualified Teachers not encourage students to learn English Teachers not assign the task, homework or assignment for students Teachers not create the environment for students to practice English Teachers not explain the test requirements in details Teachers not guide students the exam methods C Difficulties relating to the management The demand of outcome standards is too high for the students Classroom programs not support exam content The school management for the students‟ study is not good Equipment for teaching and learning English are incomplete School library resources are incomplete The school lacks organizations to advise and support for students in learning English Scholarships to encourage outstanding and excellent students of the school are few IV APPENDIX 2: DESCRIPTIVE STATISTICS Appendix 2.1: Reliability Statistics Reliability Statistics Cronbach's Cronbach's Alpha Alpha Based on N of Items Standardized Items 841 841 30 Appendix 2.2: Mean value for each question (item) in each group Descriptive Statistics N Minimum Maximum Mean Std Deviation A1 108 4.04 546 A2 108 3.95 741 A3 108 3.78 728 A4 108 3.99 1.089 A5 108 3.19 1.015 A6 108 3.64 703 A7 108 3.13 1.200 A8 108 3.25 1.169 A9 108 2.39 884 A10 108 3.72 926 V A11 108 3.18 926 A12 108 3.80 733 A13 108 3.73 650 A14 108 2.98 843 A15 108 2.63 705 B1 108 2.25 738 B2 108 2.18 807 B3 108 2.08 763 B4 108 2.15 681 B5 108 2.12 782 B6 108 2.44 646 B7 108 2.20 746 B8 108 2.19 703 C1 108 2.46 1.036 C2 108 2.71 1.024 C3 108 2.24 819 C4 108 2.71 958 C5 108 2.55 1.027 C6 108 2.58 787 C7 108 2.91 860 Valid N (listwise) 108 VI Appendix 2.3: Mean value for each group Descriptive Statistics N Minimum Maximum Mean Std Deviation A 108 2.33 4.07 3.4259 41346 B 108 1.00 3.12 2.2025 51602 C 108 1.00 3.57 2.5952 68037 Valid N (listwise) 108 VII APPENDIX 3: INTERVIEW Question 1: How did the teacher approach the teaching of general English programs? All interviewed teachers reported that in order to improve the students‟ English skills and knowledge, they emphasized on the teaching general programs to complete the basic knowledge gaps and training of listening strategies, such as, predictive skills, extracting special information, getting the general picture In addition, they were not restricted to one particular teaching method; they preferred to combine some teaching methods depending on the students‟ proficiency level and learning condition They were strict to the students because they strongly believed that students should practice very hard and make good progress Question2: What teaching materials, teaching activities, and learning tasks were employed in the course? All the teachers reported that they used the textbook New English File Intermediate They agreed that this kind of book provided students with basic knowledge of grammar, structures and vocabularies, and helped students improve basic language skills such as listening, writing, reading and speaking However, they asserted that in order to gain the certificate of TOEIC 450, students had to read a lot of different reference books, for examples, TOEIC Preparation book, TOEIC Smart, Practice Tests for the TOEIC Test, which introduced the strategies and techniques to gain success in examinations All the teachers required the students to the exercises from the textbook and encourage them to practice speaking and listening English every day not only in the lesson but also in the normal life Question 3: What the teachers think about the students’ motivation and attitude towards learning English? All interviewed teachers thought that almost students were not much motivated to learn English and did not know what to learn and how to improve their English skills This might be due to the students‟ past experience, their poor English competence and their laziness in practice A majority of the students were told to be lack of seriousness in learning English They always preferred to complain about VIII the difficulty level of English required outcomes Question 4: What did the teachers considered as problems for the students in learning English to achieve outcomes? What kind of test in the TOEIC exam your students find it the most difficult? Most of the teachers commented that the students were poor in overall language skills and lack of basic knowledge such as inadequate vocabulary, uncertain grammar In addition they were not active in practice speaking and listening, they also did not apply effective learning methods and testing strategies to handle their language problems; moreover, their weak management of time and discipline also affected their English language performance and scores A majority of the students have troubles in listening test Their scores in this test are always much less than those in reading test Question 5: (for management member) Which solutions did the board of management to assist the students to overcome the challenges in learning English and achieving English outcomes? The manager asserted that HUST students were always stressed under a lot of pressure of study; otherwise, the student would not meet the demand of a large number of companies, enterprises or corporations inside and outside the country However, in an attempt to reduce the students‟ obstacles, the board of university management always created the best condition both in facilities and in teaching for the students in their study, especially in learning English In terms of the facilities, the classrooms of foreign languages have been well-equipped with a lot of modern technology like projectors, cassette players, speakers, computers and air conditioners Regarding the teaching English, the university has a system of highly qualified and experienced teaching staff Beside the teaching general English programs, revision classes for TOEIC preparation are opened twice a term in an academic year IX APPENDIX 4: RATE OF DIFFICULTY No Content Difficulties Don’t have A Difficulties relating to the students Num ber Have Students have poor background knowledge 14 Percentage (%) 13.0 Students have inadequate vocabulary 32 29.6 76 70.4 Students‟ grammatical knowledge is uncertain 25 23.1 83 76.9 Students‟ language skills are poor 26 24.1 82 75.9 Students are unaware of TOEIC test 70 64.8 38 35.2 Students‟ exam skills are poor 46 42.6 62 57.4 Students are not interested in learning English 74 68.5 34 31.5 Students lack seriousness in learning English 61 56.5 47 43.5 Students are unaware of English language‟s importance 100 92.6 7.4 10 Students not invest much time learning English 45 41.7 63 58.3 11 Students not attend the English class fully 60 55.6 48 44.4 12 Students are not willing to study by themselves 38 35.2 70 64.8 13 Students‟ learning methods ineffective 39 36.1 69 63.9 14 Students not have enough time for revision class 80 74.1 28 25.9 15 Students not have enough time for self study 103 95.4 4.6 XI Numb er 94 Percentage (%) 87.0 P value 0.000 Difficulties B 8 Difficulties relating to the teachers The requirements of English subject are very high Teachers‟ teaching methods inappropriate Teaching competences are unqualified Teachers not encourage students to learn English Teachers not assign the task, homework or assignment for students Teachers not create the environment for students to practice English Teachers not explain the test requirements in details Teachers not guide students the exam methods Teachers not guide students the exam methods XII Don’t have Percentage No (%) 64 59.3 66 61.1 74 68.5 74 68.5 70 64.8 51 47.2 65 60.2 69 63.9 69 63.9 No 44 42 34 34 38 57 43 39 39 Have Percentage (%) 40.7 38.9 31.5 31.5 35.2 52.8 39.8 36.1 36.1 P value 0.017 The demand of outcome standards is too high for the students Difficulties Don’t have Have Percentage No No (%) 56 51.9 52 Class programs not support exam content 46 42.6 62 57.4 The school management for the students‟ study is not good 61 56.5 47 43.5 Equipment for teaching and learning English are incomplete 37 34.3 71 65.7 School library resources are incomplete 46 42.6 62 57.4 The school lacks organizations to advise and support for students in learning English 47 43.5 61 56.5 Scholarships to encourage outstanding and excellent students of the school are 27 few 25.0 81 75.0 C Difficulties relating to the management XIII Percentage (%) 48.1 P value 0.000 ... dispersion of a set of data values A low standard deviation indicates that the data points tend to be close to the mean (also called the expected value) of the set, while a high standard deviation indicates... time at HUST puts the students in a situation of overloaded learning contents Based on the above data analysis, the findings of the study have revealed the role of teachers in creating learning. .. equivalent percentage of respondents facing the difficulties basing on the mean and the standard deviation of each variable in the questionnaire The results of the percentage calculation are summarized