Building students’ confidence in english speaking class through group work at faculty of finance and banking, vietnam university of commerce

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES PHẠM THỊ PHƢƠNG LIÊN BUILDING STUDENTS’ CONFIDENCE IN ENGLISH SPEAKING CLASS THROUGH GROUP WORK AT FACULTY OF FINANCE AND BANKING, VIETNAM UNIVERSITY OF COMMERCE (XÂY DỰNG SỰ TỰ TIN CHO SINH VIÊN TRONG GIỜ HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH THƠNG QUA HOẠT ĐỘNG NHĨM Ở KHOA TÀI CHÍNH – NGÂN HÀNG, TRƢỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THƢƠNG MẠI) M.A Minor Thesis English Teaching Methodology 601410 Hanoi, 2012 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES PHẠM THỊ PHƢƠNG LIÊN BUILDING STUDENTS’ CONFIDENCE IN ENGLISH SPEAKING CLASS THROUGH GROUP WORK AT FACULTY OF FINANCE AND BANKING, VIETNAM UNIVERSITY OF COMMERCE (XÂY DỰNG SỰ TỰ TIN CHO SINH VIÊN TRONG GIỜ HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH THƠNG QUA HOẠT ĐỘNG NHĨM Ở KHOA TÀI CHÍNH – NGÂN HÀNG, TRƢỜNG ĐẠI HỌC THƢƠNG MẠI) M.A Minor Thesis Field Code : English Teaching Methodology : 601410 Supervisor : Assoc Dr Dƣơng Thị Nụ Hanoi, 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT i LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ii LIST OF TABLES iii LIST OF CHARTS iv LIST OF FIGURES v TABLE OF CONTENTS .iii PART I: INTRODUCTION i Rationale Aims of the study Methods of the study Scope of the study PART II: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Theoretical background of speaking 1.1.1 Teaching speaking skill in Communicative Language Teaching Approach 1.1.2 Communicative activities 1.1.3 Speaking activities 1.2 Group work in speaking lessons 1.2.1 Definition of group work 10 1.2.2 Some main group work activities 10 2.2.3 Benefits of using group work in large classes 11 2.3 Confidence of students in speaking class through group work activities 12 2.3.1 Concept of confidence 12 2.3.2 Theoretical framework of the role of students’ confidence in second language learning 13 CHAPTER II: METHODOLOGY 16 2.1 Research context 16 2.2 Sample and sampling procedure 17 2.3 Research methods 18 2.4 Research materials 19 2.4.1 Questionnaires 19 2.4.2 Interviews 19 2.4.3 Class observations 20 2.5 Data collection procedures 20 2.6 Data analysis 21 CHAPTER III: MAJOR FINDINGS, DISCUSSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 22 3.1 Major findings and discussions 22 3.1.1 The importance of group work activities in speaking class 22 3.1.1.1 Students’ assessment about the importance of group work activities in speaking class 22 3.1.1.2 The frequency of organizing group work in speaking class 23 3.1.1.3 The teachers’ methods of encouraging students to speak 24 3.1.2 Factors affecting students’ confidence in speaking 25 3.1.2.1 Students’ confidence in using English in the speaking class 25 3.1.2.2 Comparison between teachers’ and students’ assessment of the topics in speaking lessons 27 3.1.2.3 Comparison between students’ speaking time and teachers’ expectations 28 3.1.2.4 Students’ evaluation on learning speaking English 30 3.1.2.5 Comparison between teachers’ and students’ assessment about factors affecting students’ confidence in speaking lessons 33 3.1.3 Suitable group work activities used to stimulate and encourage students’ confidence in speaking class 34 3.1.3.1 Teachers’ and students’ assessment of most popular working group activities 34 3.1.3.2 Comparison between teachers’ answers and students’ expectations about the most suitable group work activities that stimulate students’ confidence35 3.1.3.3 Problems teachers have to face in teaching speaking skill 36 3.1.3.4 Comparison of teachers’ and students’ suggestions to increase students’ confidence in speaking class 37 3.2 Recommendations 38 3.2.1 Recommendations for teachers 38 3.2.2 Recommendations for students 39 PART III: CONCLUSION 40 Conclusions 40 Limitations and suggestions for further study 40 REFERENCES 41 APPENDIXES I ABSTRACT Speaking plays a very important role in communicating with others in a second language, not only in teaching and learning environments, but also outside the classroom The students should be able to take part in conversations, discussions, negotiation and to express with their own view However, most of them feel nervous in speaking and unwilling to participate in speaking activities in the class because of lack of vocabulary, fear of making mistakes, inconfidence in their pronunciation, etc The above mentioned situation has been improved a lot through group work activities applied in the speaking class It is undeniable that group works stimulate students a lot in exchanging information and ideas among partners with less anxiety of making mistakes as well as more confidence in speaking English Therefore, the study “Building students’ confidence in English speaking class through group work at Faculty of Finance and Banking, Vietnam University of Commerce” has investigated the main factors affecting students’ confidence in speaking, suggested suitable group work activities to encourage them to speak, and appropriate teaching methods to lengthen their talking time i LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS VCU : Vietnam University of Commerce CLT : Communicative Language Teaching EFL : English as a Foreign Language ii LIST OF TABLES Page Table 1: Students’ learning styles 30 Table 2: Student’s motivation 31 Table 3: Factors causing students’ inconfidence 32 Table 4: Students’ language levels 32 iii LIST OF CHARTS Page Chart 1: Students’ assessment about the importance of group work activities in the speaking class 22 Chart 2: Teachers’ assessment about the importance of group work activities in the speaking class 22 Chart 3: Students’ opinion about the frequency of organizing group work in the speaking class 23 Chart 4: Teachers’ opinion about the frequency of organizing group work in the speaking class 24 Chart 5: Students’ assessment of the teachers’ methods of encouraging students to speak 24 Chart 6: The teachers’ methods of encouraging students to speak 25 Chart 7: Students’ assessment of their confidence in speaking English 25 Chart 8: Students’ assessment of their reluctance in speaking 26 Chart 9: Students’ speaking time 28 Chart 10: Teachers’ assessment of students’ speaking time 29 Chart 11: Teachers’ talking time in the speaking class 30 iv LIST OF FIGURES Page Figure 1: Comparison between teachers’ and students’ assessment of the topics in speaking lessons 27 Figure 2: Students’ and teachers’ answers about factors affecting students’ confidence in the speaking class 33 Figure 3: Teachers’ and students’ assessment of most popular group work activities 34 Figure 4: Group work activities stimulate students’ confidence most 35 Figure 5: Teachers’ assessment of their problems in teaching speaking skill 36 Figure 6: Teachers’ and students’ suggestions to increase students’ confidence 37 v “I know that it will be better if I group students of the same levels and give them personalized topics However, it is very time-consuming and takes me a lot of efforts I am afraid students will make noise when moving in the class.” (Teacher G) “In my opinion, grouping students of different levels also has good side It can help the weak ones learn something from the better ones They share the idea, exchange information and help each other complete the task.” (Teacher S) “We are familiar with working in group with friends sitting near me but if possible, I’d like to work with the partners who have the same language level and interest with me.” (Student B) 3.2 Recommendations Basing on the findings, the thesis is concluded with several recommendations for both teachers as well as students 3.2.1 Recommendations for teachers  Teachers should provide students with interesting and suitable topics and give clear and specific instructions to avoid misunderstanding Students only want to speak if they are interested in what they are going to say They cannot speak anything if they not like that topic or that topic is too difficult for them During the speaking class, teachers should go around the class to monitor students and give assistance when necessary  Teachers should pay much attention to the way of correcting mistakes for students; avoid making them feel shy, nervous or embarrassed in front of their partners Even when a learner has a high level of language proficiency, he still unavoidably makes errors As McArthur (1983:107) says that “he knows very well what he should have done, but owing to the nervousness, tiredness, pressure and the effects of inner translation, he just lapses and forgets for a moment what to do” Brown (1980:164) also confirms “Human learning is fundamentally a process that involves the making of mistakes.” Therefore, teachers should create a cooperative learning atmosphere in which learners are encouraged to talk in English and are praised for talking If a teacher places too much attention on errors and neglects the necessary encouragement, he will lose sight of value of the positive reinforcement of clear and free communication 38  Teachers shouldn’t forget to motivate students with some kinds of encouragement High scores, good comments, small gifts can be a good source of motivation for students working effectively in groups Clearly, encouragement can give learners self-confidence which should be taken into consideration in the speaking class  Besides teaching, teachers should raise students’ awareness of the importance of speaking English in the future The subjects of our survey are freshmen, so their awareness is very important If they know about the benefits and importance of English in the future job, they will overcome all difficulties to get better results 3.2.2 Recommendations for students  Students must be aware of their weaknesses and always try to improve those weaknesses to become more confident in speaking English Group work is a very good activity to provide student’s opportunity to speak with their friends, their teachers Thus, they must realize the importance and benefits of group work in building their confidence in speaking and take every chance to speak English as much as possible  Students should interact with their teachers and partners regularly They shouldn’t feel unconfident when making mistakes While working in groups, if there are any difficulties, they should ask teachers for help right away  Students need to be more active in the speaking class, moving around the class to complete a task, implement a project with the partners, or willing to answer teachers’ questions 39 PART III: CONCLUSION Conclusions This study was aimed at answering the research question: In what ways group work activities in speaking lessons help build confidence for the first year non major students at Faculty of Finance and Banking, Vietnam University of Commerce? In the study, the author would like to investigate the reasons why students feel unconfident in speaking, the strategies teachers used to reduce students’ anxiety and increase their confidence at the same time, popular group work in speaking class, and suggestions to improve speaking skill for students From their responses to the questionnaires, interviews, and class observations, it is clear that all teachers frequently use group work in the speaking class because they realize the importance of group work in creating opportunity for students to practice speaking They have popular group work activities and apply many strategies to increase students’ confidence in speaking However, the first year nonEnglish-major students at Faculty of Finance and Banking still have low level of language proficiency and passive learning style Through the data analysis, the author discussed the difficulties teachers as well as students must encounter and a number of suggestions were given to them Limitations and suggestions for further study Due to the limitation of knowledge, ability and time of studying, the author cannot avoid making mistakes She herself sees that her research has the following limitations: The first is she does not have time enough to have more class observations and interviews to clarify the factors affecting students’ confidence in speaking, the ways to improve their reluctance, and more suggestions for both teachers and students The second is due to the limited time she has not applied some suggestions to a particular speaking class to identify the speaking time of students before and after applying new strategies The third is the small sample of teachers for the study There are only six teachers teaching speaking skill at the Faculty of Finance and Banking Thus, the author only invites five of them, except the author who is teaching at the same faculty This small number of teachers cannot represent a large population of teachers in general This study opens up other areas for investigation into building confidence for students in speaking class through group work Hopefully, the area of building confidence for students in speaking through group works will be taken into consideration in the future studies 40 REFERENCES Anorld, J (1998), Affect in Language Learning, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Bailey R.P (2005), Practical English Language Teaching: Speaking New York Brown, H.D (1994), Teaching by principles: An Interactive Approach to Language Pedagogy London: Prentice Hall Regents Brown, H.D (2001), Principles of Language Learning & Teaching (3rd ed.), Longman Publishing Brumfit, C & John, K (1979), The communicative approach to language teaching, Oxford University Press Burn & Joyce (1997), Focus on Speaking, Handbook for Teachers series, National Centre for English Language Teaching & Research, 1997 Cameron, L J & M Bygate (1997), “Key issues in assessing progression in English as an Additional Language”, Working Papers in Language Education: Mainstream Language Development: No 4, School of Education, University of Leeds Canale, M (1983), “From communicative competence to communicative language pedagogy”, In Richards, J.C & Schmidt, R W (eds), Language and communication, London: Longman Chaney, A.L & Burk, T.L (1998), “Teaching Oral Communication in Grades K8”, Boston: Allyn & Bacon 10 Doff, A (1988), Teach English: A training course for teachers Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 11 Gillham, B (2000), Developing a Questionnaire, Wellington House, London 12 Glasser, W (1985), Control Theory, New Orleans, LA 13 Hamer, J (1991), The practice of English language teaching, Longman 14 Hymes, D (1972), “On Communicative Competence”, Harmondsworth: Penguin 41 15 Kayi, H (2006), “Teaching Speaking: Activities to Promote Speaking in a Second Language”, Internet TESL Journal, Vol XII, No 11, Nov 2006 16 Krashen, S (1982), Principles & Practice in Second Language Acquisition, Oxford: Pergamon Press 17 Krashen, S (2011), “Affective Filter Hypothesis”, Apr 18, 2011, Audio – Technical UK 18 Larsen-freeman, D (1986), Techniques and Principles on Language Teaching, Oxford University Press 19 Lawtie (2004), Teaching speaking skills – Overcoming classroom problems, Oxford University Press 20 Lee, Thomas W (1999), Using qualitative methods in organizational research London: Sage Publications 21 Long Michael (1996) "The role of the linguistic environment in second language acquisition" In Ritchie, William; Bhatia, Tej Handbook of second language acquisition San Diego: Academic Press pp 413–468 22 Marilyn Lerris (1999), “How can I improve my students’ motivation in speaking”, Routledge, London 23 Moskowtiz, G (1978), “Caring and Sharing in the foreign language class”, Rowley, MA: Newbury House 24 Nimmannit, S (1998), “Maximizing students’ oral skills: The Asian context” Retrieved August 20th, 2008, from http://www.jalt_publications.org/tlt files/98/nov/nimmannit.html 25 Nunan, D (1989), Designing task for the communicative classroom, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 26 Oxford Advanced Learners Dictionary (2006), Oxford University Press 27 Richard, J.C (1983), “Communicative Needs in Foreign Language Learning”, ELT Journal, V37.1983 42 28 Richards, Jack; Schmidt, Richard, eds (2002) "Interaction Hypothesis", Longman dictionary of language teaching and applied linguistics London New York: Longman p 264 29 Richard, J.C & Rodgers, T.S (2001), Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching: A description and analysis, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 30 Scarcella, R & Oxford, R (1992), “The tapestry of language learning”, the Heinle & Heinle Publishers individual in the communicative classroom, Boston 31 Stevick, E W (1990), Humanism in Language Teaching, Oxford: Oxford University Press 32 Stevick, E W (1996), Memory, Meaning and Method (2nd edn).Boston: Heinle &Heinle 33 Tsui, A (2001), “Recitence and Anxiety in Second Language Learning”, In K Bailey & D Nunan (Eds), Voices from the Language Classrooms (pp.145-167), Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 34 Ur, P (1996), “A course in language teaching”, Cambridge teacher training and development 43 APPENDIXES APPENDIX 1: Survey questionnaire for students The purpose of this questionnaire is to collect ideas of the students at Faculty of Finance and Banking at Vietnam University of Commerce to investigate in what ways group work is used in speaking class to improve the first-year students’ confidence Your ideas are very useful and make a great contribution to my study The researcher makes sure that the data collected are only for the study purpose and your personal information will not be displayed anywhere in my research What you think about the importance of group work activities in speaking class? A very important B important C not very important D not important at all How often does your teacher organize group work in your speaking class? A always B often C sometimes D rarely E never How confident are you of using English in the speaking class? A very confident B confident C not confident Are you always willing to participate in group work? A always B often C sometimes D never Do you usually like to choose the partners to work with? A Yes B No C It depends How often you feel reluctant to speak in the class? A always B often C sometimes D rarely E never Tick your appropriate choice Strongly Agree Disagree Strongly agree disagree I always take every opportunity to speak in groups I only speak English when the teacher calls me I enjoy speaking individually, not in groups I feel more confident when speaking with the teacher I often participate in speaking activities in order to have good communication in the future I like speaking English as it improves my fluency and pronunciation I not have a lot of chances to speak in groups because my friends speak better than me I really want to speak but I not have enough vocabulary I cannot express my ideas because I feel unconfident with my pronunciation 10 I feel nervous when I have to speak in front of the class I How long can you present your idea in group working? A minutes B minutes C minute D less 1minute How you find the topics in speaking lessons of the first year? A very interesting B interesting C normal D uninteresting 10 How your teachers encourage you to speak? A give presents B give good mark C give good comments D nothing 11 What are the most popular working group activities in your class? A Games E Opinion exchange than B Interviewing F Role-play and simulations C Discussing G Problem solving and decision-making D Project H Others………………… 12 In your opinion, which working group activities stimulate students’ confidence in speaking most? Your answer: ………………………………………………………………………… 13 How you evaluate your speaking lessons? A Many students are active B Most students are willing to speak C Most students feel unconfident to speak D The lessons are effective, interesting E The lessons are boring, ineffective F Others (please specify): 14 Which factors affect your confidence in speaking activities in term of learning? A Teachers’ inappropriate error correcting techniques B Students’ lack of motivation C Students’ low level of English proficiency D Large group size E Partners’ uncooperative attitude F Others (please specify): II 15 What should teachers to increase students’ confidence in speaking lessons? A Create a cooperative English learning environment B Encourage students to speak by giving evaluation (comments, feedback, marks …) C Correct mistakes in an appropriate strategy D Group students of the same level of language to help them speak with each other confidently E Personalize topics and tasks to be suitable for students’ interest and level F: Provide interesting topics G Others (please specify): Thank you for your cooperation! III APPENDIX 2: Survey questionnaire for teachers The purpose of this questionnaire is to collect ideas of the teachers at Faculty of English at Vietnam University of Commerce to investigate in what ways group work is used in speaking class to improve the first-year students’ confidence Your ideas are very useful and make a great contribution to my study The researcher makes sure that the data collected are only for the study purpose and your personal information will not be displayed anywhere in my research What you think about the importance of group work activities in speaking class? A very important B important C not very important D not important at all How often you organize group work in your speaking class? A always B often C sometimes D rarely E never How you encourage students to speak? A give presents B give good mark C give good comments D nothing What are the most popular group work activities in your class? A Games E Opinion exchange B Interviewing F Role-play and simulations C Discussing G Problem solving and decision-making D Project H Others………………… In your opinion, which group work activities stimulate students’ confidence in speaking most? Your answer: ………………………………………………………………………… How long can your students present their idea in group working? A minutes B minutes C minute D less than 1minute What are the problems you are facing in teaching speaking skill? A Students’ lack of motivation B Students’ lack of vocabulary C Students’ fear of making mistakes D Others (please specify): IV What you think of your talking time in the class? A too much B a little much C normal D little How you find the topics in speaking lessons of the first year? A very interesting B interesting C normal D uninteresting 10 In your opinion, what is the role of teacher in building confidence for students in speaking? A very important B important C normal D little 11 In your opinion, what are the factors that affect students’ confidence in speaking lessons? A Teachers’ inappropriate error correcting methodology B Students’ lack of motivation C Students’ low level of English proficiency D Large group size E Partners’ uncooperative attitude F Others (please specify): 12 What should teacher to increase students’ confidence in speaking class? A Create a cooperative English learning environment B Encourage students to speak by giving evaluation (comments, feedback, marks …) C Correct mistakes in an appropriate strategy D Group students of the same level of language to help them speak with each other confidently E Personalize topics and tasks to be suitable for students’ interest and level F: Provide interesting topics G Others (please specify): THANK YOU! V APPENDIX 3: Key questions for student interview In your speaking class, you like group work activities? Why? What are your favorite group work activities? Do you like to choose partners to work with or follow the arrangement of the teachers? Give the reason of your choice What you think about the speaking topic of the material English 1.1? Do you have a lot of opportunities to speak in the class? What are the reasons why you feel reluctant in speaking? Do you have any difficulties when working in group? If yes, what are they? What should the teachers to encourage students to work in group in your opinion? VI APPENDIX 4: Key questions for teacher interview What you think about the role of group work activities in the speaking class? What are the reasons why students feel reluctant in speaking? In your opinion, which group work activities encourage students’ confidence most? What you think about the speaking topic of the material English 1.1? Do you have any difficulties when organizing group work? If yes, what are they? What should teachers to encourage student’s confidence in speaking? VII APPENDIX 5: Classroom observation checklist Date: ………28/8/2012…………………………… Teacher: ……Trần Anh Thư………………………… Unit: ………4…………………………………… Class: ………K46H5………………………………… Number of students: …50………………………… Number of groups: ……10………………………… Materials: ………English 1.1………………………… Activity: ……Talking about your holidays last summer……  Observation Students’ level of participation in group work activities Students’ interaction with the teachers and their partners Students’ attitudes to group work activities Teacher’s methods to motivate students’ confidence through group work activities Classroom learning atmosphere Very low Very high Very bad Very good Not interested Very interested Not appropriate Very appropriate Not active Very active  Comment: During class observation the author herself realizes students participated in group work very actively They expressed their interest in this topic It is rather interesting and not too difficult for them They can talk anything they have had in the holiday with their family and friends last summer The teacher has applied some methods to encourage students to speak, such as giving good comments, good mark, and small gifts for the best presenter However, sometimes she has inappropriate method in correcting mistakes for students This makes them feel uncomfortable and reluctant to continue their presentation The teacher did not pay much attention to the weaker students, so some students only answered their partners’ questions and kept silent most of the talking time VIII APPENDIX 6: Classroom observation checklist Date: ………10/9/2012…………………………… Teacher: ……Phạm Thị Tố Loan…………………… Unit: ………6………………………………… Class: ………K46H6………………………………… Number of students: …55………………………… Number of groups: ……11………………………… Materials: ………English 1.1………………………… Activity: ……Presenting a product you have bought recently……  Observation Students’ level of participation in group work Very low Very high activities Students’ interaction with the teachers and their Very bad Very good partners Students’ attitudes to group work activities Not interested Very interested Teacher’s way to motivate students’ confidence Not appropriate Very through group work activities appropriate Classroom learning atmosphere Not active Very active  Comment: The author’s following class observation does not bring the expected result This time, students showed that they were not interested in this topic They did not have enough vocabulary to present a product they have just bought even the teacher provided them with new words and structured Most of students felt difficult so they did not participate in group work actively In this lesson the author realized that the teacher only focus on some better students, and asked them to go to the blackboard and made presentations Therefore, not many students can have opportunity to speak English This created inactive and uncooperative classroom learning environment IX ... anxiety of making mistakes as well as more confidence in speaking English Therefore, the study ? ?Building students’ confidence in English speaking class through group work at Faculty of Finance and Banking,. .. reality of the organization of group work in the speaking lessons for first year students at Faculty of Finance and Banking, Vietnam University of Commerce where the researcher is teaching In addition,... students at Faculty of Finance and Banking, VCU to investigate students’ attitude to group work, factors affecting their confidence in speaking, their favorite group work activities, and their