Dimotivating factors for the first year non english major students in learning to speak english at hai duong college

i VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES **************************************** NGUYỄN THỊ THANH HUYỀN DEMOTIVATING FACTORS FOR THE FIRST YEAR NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS IN LEARNING TO SPEAK ENGLISH AT HAI DUONG COLLEGE CÁC YẾU TỐ LÀM GIẢM HỨNG THÚ TRONG VIỆC HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH VIÊN KHÔNG CHUYÊN NĂM THỨ NHẤT TẠI TRƯỜNG CAO ĐẲNG HẢI DƯƠNG M.A MINOR THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY CODE: 601410 HANOI, 2012 ii VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES **************************************** NGUYỄN THỊ THANH HUYỀN DEMOTIVATING FACTORS FOR THE FIRST YEAR NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS IN LEARNING TO SPEAK ENGLISH AT HAI DUONG COLLEGE CÁC YẾU TỐ LÀM GIẢM HỨNG THÚ TRONG VIỆC HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH VIÊN KHÔNG CHUYÊN NĂM THỨ NHẤT TẠI TRƯỜNG CAO ĐẲNG HẢI DƯƠNG M.A MINOR THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY CODE: 601410 SUPERVISER: DO BA QUY, M.Ed HANOI, 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration Acknowledgements Abstract Table of contents List of abbreviations List of tables and charts PART A: INTRODUCTION Statement of the problem and rationale for the study Aims of the study Research questions Methods of the study Scope of the study Design of the study PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: REVIEW OF LITERATURE 1.1 Theoretical background of speaking 1.1.1 The nature of speaking 1.1.2 Definition of speaking 1.1.3 The role of speaking in foreign language teaching 1.1.4 Factors affecting the learning of speaking 1.2.Theoretical background of demotivation 1.2.1 Definition of demotivation 1.2.2 Factors affecting students’ demotivation 1.3 Previous studies on the topic 1.4 Summary of the chapter CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 2.1 An overview of current situation of teaching and learnin iv English at HDC 2.1.1 Hai Duong College 2.1.2 The students 2.1.3 The teachers 2.1.4 The teaching and learning conditions 2.1.5 The textbooks 2.2 Methodology 2.2.1 Subjects of the study 2.2.2 Data collection instruments 2.2.3 Data collection procedure 2.2.4 Data analysis procedure 2.3 Summary of the chapter CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 3.1 Data analysis of students’ responses 3.1.1 Students’ attitudes towards speaking skills 3.1.2 Students’ ideas about demotivating factors in learning speaking English 3.1.3 Students’ interest and expectations 3.2 Data analysis of teachers’ responses 3.2.1 Teachers’ opinions on students’ attitudes towards speaking skills 3.2.2 Teachers’ ideas about students’ demotivation in learning to speak English 3.2.3 The frequency of teaching techniques and activities used by teachers in speaking lessons 3.2.4 Teachers’ opinions on what motivates students to learn to speak English 3.3 Major findings and discussion 3.3.1 Demotivating factors in learning English speaking skills for v the first year non-English majors at HDC 3.3.2 Solutions suggested by the teachers and the students to overcome demotivation in the learning of speaking skills 3.4 Summary of the chapter PART C: CONCLUSION Conclusions Recommendations Limitations of the study Suggestions for further studies REFERENCES APPENDICES vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS BA Bachelor of Arts EFL English as a Foreign Language ELT English Language Teaching ESL English as a Second Language HDC Hai Duong College L2 Second Language MA Master of Arts PhD Doctor of Philosophy vii LIST OF CHARTS AND TABLES Charts Chart Students Chart Teachers Chart Teachers skills Tables Table Students Table Student’ Table Student’ Table Student’ Table Student’ Table Students English Table Teachers Table Teachers speaking Table The freq speaking Table 10 Teachers speaking viii PART A: INTRODUCTION Statement of the problem and rationale for the study Language skills have never been more important than today because in a global world where information travels fast, and people frequently interact across borders, the ability to communicate effectively is very necessary It can not be denied that English is now considered to be a means of international communication and an important tool to connect countries all over the world It is English that plays an essential role in the path of industrialization and modernization as well as in the process of integration and globalization of every country in the world In Vietnam, English teaching and learning has become a great concern over the last decades It has been a compulsory program in most of educational campuses such as institutions, universities, colleges and schools at different levels There are more and more people desiring to know and master English because of different purposes: to pass examinations, to keep up with the latest development in science and technology in the world, or to cater their practical needs Among the four skills known as listening, speaking, writing and listening, speaking skill plays an important part in language teaching in the context of Vietnam For many learners, speaking skill is the most important of the four skills in a second language in general and in English in particular However, it is the fact that most of students at Hai Duong College (HDC) seem to consider speaking skill to be the most challenging From observations and teaching experiences, the author realizes that students pay little attention to communicative skills such as listening and speaking They seem to have lost interest in learning English and they are not active in participating in speaking activities They feel nervous in speaking class and become demotivated in learning speaking These lead to the underachievement and have a negative effect on students in learning English as a foreign language With the desire to identify the factors affecting students’ demotivation and find out some solutions for this problem, I decided to choose the topic “Demotivating Factors for the First Year non-English Major Students in Learning to Speak English at Hai Duong College” as the title of my minor thesis Aims of the study The major purposes of this study are: - To identify the demotivating factors affecting the first year non-English majors learning to speak English - To figure out some suggested solutions to eliminate the demotivation and help to improve students’ speaking skills Research questions The study is implemented to find out the answers for the following questions: What are the demotivating factors affecting the first year non-English major students in learning to speak English at HDC? What solutions the teachers and the students suggest to overcome the students’ demotivation in learning speaking skills? Methods of the study To achieve the aims of the study, both quantitative and qualitative methods are employed The data was collected by means of questionnaires and interview Two sets of survey questionnaires, one for students and the other for teachers, were mainly used to get information and evidence for the study To get more reliable data, an interview was conducted All the comments, remarks, recommendations and conclusions provided in the thesis were based on the analysis of the data Scope of the study This study is limited to the student’s demotivation in learning to speak English at HDC Therefore, the investigation of the issue on other skills will not be included in the study Furthermore, it should be taken into consideration that the subjects of the study are the first year non-English majors who are being taught speaking skill under the communicative approach Design of the study This minor thesis is divided into three main parts: Introduction, Development, and Conclusions Part A, Introduction, presents the rationale, the aims, the research questions, the methods, the scope as well as the design of the study Part B, Development, consists of three chapters: Chapter one, Literature review, revises the relevant theories as the base for carrying out the research In addition, related studies are also mentioned in this chapter Chapter two, Methodology, provides the methodology underlying the research which includes the setting of the study, research questions, participants, data collection instruments, data collection procedure as well as data analysis procedure Chapter three, Data analysis and discussion, shows a detailed presentation of data analysis to answer the research questions The discussion of the findings is also included in this chapter Part C, Conclusions, addresses the key issues in the study, comes up with some recommendations to cope with the problem Furthermore, this part also points out some shortcomings of the study as well as provides some suggestions for further studies overuse these, it may take a lot of time to prepare and even distract students from the main points of the lessons For the long-term aim, the school should equip more adequate teaching devices such as computers, projectors or multi-media labs in order to improve the quality of English teaching and learning in general and the learning of speaking in particular  Enhancing students’ intrinsic motivation Students will be interested in speaking if they have the language knowledge they need as well as a good pronunciation to express their ideas For each topic, teachers should provide them with necessary vocabulary and grammatical structures in the preparation stage Besides, pronunciation should be integrated into every lesson Interesting activities and proper teaching facilities also help to motivate students to learn  Giving students clear instructions and sufficient explanation Clear instructions can be considered to be the first and most important stage in the preparation for each speaking activity since students can take part in the activity only when they know what to and how to it Therefore, teachers should give short, simple and clear instructions and check them again to make sure that students can understand what to be done If there are any difficulties or if students make mistakes, the most crucial rule is to explain that sufficiently for students It is obviously true that students are not able to take part in any activity if they not know the rules thoroughly  Applying and adapting suitable teaching methods Teachers’ teaching methods play an important role in motivating students to learn speaking English If the students find the teacher’s teaching style suitable, they will be willing to get involved in the lesson Undoubtedly, it is beneficial for students if different teaching techniques are applied so that their demotivation can be reduced As revealed in the findings, there existed a gap between the frequency of teachers’ using communicative activities and the students’ preference for these activities Students appeared to be interested in games but this kind of activity was 39 not often adopted by the teachers They all employed discussion even though this seemed to be difficult and boring for most of the students Therefore, teachers’ flexibility in employing different techniques to suit students’ different learning styles is also of considerable significance  Adapting the topics in the textbook The findings of the study revealed that textbook is also a factor demotivating students to speak For this reason, teachers should adapt the topics so that they are suitable to students’ level In addition, teachers should provide students with necessary vocabulary, grammar and background knowledge to help students deal with difficult or uncommon themes By that way, students will be confident to take part in the activity Limitations of the study Due to various constraints and scope of the study, the present research displays certain limitations First, this study investigated the demotivating factors for the first year non-English majors at HDC However, with the limited number of participants, the results of the study may not reliably reflect the teaching context Second, if time was available, an interview with teacher subjects would be conducted to add more validity to the research Suggestions for further research Due to the small scope and limited time, the research only focused on speaking skill Therefore, the coming research can focus on the other three skills in particular or foreign language learning in general Furthermore, the researchers can focus on more learners at other levels and more teachers to participate in the studies to have more reliable findings and perceptions of the issue In addition, since the research was carried out within the case of HDC, other researchers may conduct the study at other training programs and teaching contexts 40 REFERENCES Allwright R (1982), “What We Want Teaching Materials for?”, ELT Journal (36), 8-12 Bailey K M., Nunan D (2005), Practice English Language Teaching, New York: McGraw – Hill ESL/ ELT Brown G., Yule G (1983), Teaching the Spoken Language, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Brown H D (1994), Teaching by Principles, Cambridge University Press Burns A., Joyce H (1997), Focus on Speaking, Sydney: National Center for English Bygate M (1987), Speaking, Oxford University, Longman Byrne D (1986), Teaching Oral English, London: Longman Chambers G (1993), “Taking the “de” out of Demotivation”, Language Learning Journal, 7, 13-16 Chaney A L B., Burk T L (1998), Teaching Oral Communication, Boston: Allyn & Bacon 10 Chang S M., Cho C H (2003), “Demotivating Factors in Foreign Language Learning”, Selected Papers from the Twelfth International Symposium on English Teaching, Taipei: Crane Publishing, 257-264 11.Deci E L., Ryan R M (1985), Intrinsic Motivation and Self-determination in Human Behavior, New York: Plenum 12 Dörnyei Z (2001), Motivational Strategies in the Language Classroom, Cambridge: Cambride University Press 13 Dornyei Z (2001a), “New Themes and Approaches in Second Language Motivation Research”, Annual Review of Applied Linguistics 21, 43 – 59 14 Gorham J., Christophel D M (1992), “Students’ Perceptions of Teacher Behaviours as Motivating and Demotivating Factors in College Classes”, Communication Quarterly, 40 (3), 239 -252 15 Gorham J., Millete D.M (1997), “A comparative Analysis of Teacher and Student Perceptions of Sources of Motivation and Demotivation in College Classes”, Communication Education, 46, 245-261 41 16 Hoang Ngoc Linh (2011), An Investigation of Demotivators in English Listening Lessons of the 10th Form Non- English Majors at Cao Bang Upper Secondary School for the Gifted, M.A Thesis, ULIS – VNU 17 Keblawi F (2006), “Demotivation among Arab Learners of English as a Foreign Language”, The Reading Matrix, Inc, United States 18 Kikuchi K., Sakai H (2009), “Japanese Learners’ Demotivation to Study English: A Survey Study”, JALT Journal, Vol 31, No 19 Le Phuoc Ky (2002), “Problems, Solutions, and Advantages of Large Classes” Teachers’ Edition, 9(9), – 11 20 Nguyen Thi Minh Hang (2010), Investigation of Demotivators in English Speaking Lessons of the 10th Grade Students at Nam Sach High School, M.A Minor Thesis, ULIS – VNU 21 Nunan D (1992), Research Methods in Language Learning, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 22 Oxford R (1998), “The Unraveling Tapestry: Teacher and Course Characteristics Associated with Demotivation in the Language Classroom Demotivation in Foreign Language Learning”, Paper presented at the TESOL ’98 Congress, Seattle, March, 1998 23 Richard J C, Rodgers T S (1986), Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 24 Richards J (2005), The role of textbooks in a Language Program Retrieved on 29th November 2011 at http://www.professorjackrichards.com/work.htm 25 Seldon L E (1988), “Evaluating ELT Textbooks and Materials” ELT Journal 42 (4) 26 Tran Thi Tuyet (2010), A Study on Factors Causing Demotivation in Writing Lessons of 10th Grade Students at Doan Thi Diem Private High School, Hanoi, M.A Minor Thesis, ULIS – VNU 27 Trang T T., Baldauf R B (2007), “Demotivation: Understanding Resistance to English Language Learning_ The Case of Vietnamese Students”, The journal of Asia TEFL, Vol.4, 79-105) 28 Tabatabaei O., Molavi A (2012), “Demotivating Factors Affecting EFL Learning of Iranian Seminary Students”, International Education Studies, Vol 5, No 29 Ur P (1996), A Course in Language Teaching, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press 42 APPENDICES APPENDIX PHIẾU ĐIỀU TRA (CHO SINH VIÊN) (Vietnamese version) Phiếu điều tra nhằm mục đích xác định yếu tố gây hứng thú việc học kỹ nói em sinh viên không chuyên tiếng Anh năm thứ trường Cao đẳng Hải Dương Những ý kiến em quan trọng nghiên cứu Các liệu điều tra phục vụ cho việc nghiên cứu, khơng mục đích khác Xin chân thành cảm ơn hợp tác em! Xin em vui lòng cho biết: - Giới tính: - Em tuổi? - Em học lớp nào? - Em học tiếng Anh năm rồi? Hãy khoanh tròn phương án em cho từ câu đến câu Em nghĩ tầm quan trọng việc học nói tiếng Anh? A Rất quan trọng B Quan trọng C Bình thường D Khơng quan trọng Mức độ thích học nói tiếng Anh em nào? A Rất thích B Thích C Bình thường D Khơng thích Mức độ luyện tập nói tiếng Anh em ngồi học nói nào? A Thường xuyên B Thỉnh thoảng Mục đích học nói tiếng Anh em gì? A Em tìm việc làm tốt trường B Em nâng cao trình độ tiếng Anh C Em vượt qua kì thi học phần D Đó sở thích em Em thường làm học nói? A Tham gia tích cực vào tất hoạt động B Chỉ tham gia vào hoạt động em thích C Chỉ tham gia giáo viên yêu cầu I C Ít D Khơng D Làm việc riêng chán nản Em cho biết quan điểm em nhận định sau yếu tố gây hứng thú cho em học nói tiếng Anh (Đánh dấu (√) vào ô tương ứnng với câu trả lời em) Hoàn toàn đồng ý (1) – Đồng ý (2) – Khơng có ý kiến (3) – Khơng đồng ý (4) – Hồn tồn khơng đồng ý (5) Nhận định Phát âm tiếng Anh khó Em khơng có đủ từ vựng cấu trúc ngữ pháp để diễn đạt ý kiến Em không hiểu giảng Em nghĩ em đủ kiến thức tiếng Anh Em thường căng thẳng sợ mặt nói tiếng Anh trước mặt cô giáo bạn Giáo viên thường bực sinh viên mắc lỗi Giáo viên khơng quan tâm, nhiệt tình, linh động tương tác với sinh viên Giáo viên quý bạn học tốt lớp Giáo viên nói tiếng Anh nhanh Em thấy khó nghe hiểu lời giảng giáo viên 10 Phương pháp truyền tải kiến thức giáo viên buồn tẻ, không sáng tạo 11 Giáo viên thường không dẫn rõ ràng 12 Giáo viên thường khơng giải thích đầy đủ 13 Cách chữa lỗi giáo viên chưa phù hợp 14 Khơng khí học nói tẻ nhạt căng thẳng 15 Các bạn bên cạnh em khơng thích nói tiếng Anh 16 Lớp học q đơng, em có hội để nói II 17 Em khơng có hội thực hành nói tiếng Anh bên ngồi lớp học 18 Trang thiết bị phục vụ dạy học (máy chiếu, băng video, Tivi, Internet) không sử dụng cách thường xuyên 19 Khơng có hoạt động thực hành nói tiếng Anh ngồi chương trình bắt buộc 20 Thời lượng cho việc học nói tiếng Anh cịn 21 Chủ đề nói giáo trình khơng thú vị 22 Chủ đề nói giáo trình khó Ý kiến em hoạt động dạy học giáo viên sử dụng học nói - Rất thích (1) – Thích (2) – Bình thường (3) – Khơng thích (4) – Khơng thích chút (5) Hoạt động Hoạt động luyện tập lặp lại Luyện tập hội thoại có hướng dẫn Hồn thành thơng tin thiếu Trị chơi Đóng vai Thảo luận Hoạt động cặp/ nhóm Theo em, giáo viên nên làm để gây hứng thú cho em việc học nói tiếng Anh? A Khuyến khích, giúp đỡ nhiệt tình với em học B Có phương pháp dạy học sáng tạo C Tổ chức nhiều hoạt động giao tiếp thú vị phù hợp D Đưa phản hồi phù hợp E Tạo môi trường học thân thiện, hỗ trợ lẫn F Sử dụng phương tiện dạy học cách phù hợp G Hoạt động khác:………………………………………………………………………… Cảm ơn nhiều hợp tác em! III APPENDIX QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS (English version) Dear students! This survey questionnaire is designed with the hope of identifying the demotivating factors affecting the first year non-English major students’ learning to speak English at Hai Duong College Your assistance in completing the following items is highly appreciated Data collected will remain confidential and be used only for the study purpose Thank you very much for your cooperation! Part A: Personal information - Your gender: Male Female - Age: ……… - Class: ……………… - How long have you been learning English? ……….years Part B: Questions Please circle or tick the answer(s) you think it is the most appropriate to you For question 8, you can choose more than one option How is English speaking important to you? A Very important B Rather important C Somewhat important D Unimportant How interested are you in learning speaking English? A Very interested B Rather interested C Somewhat interested D Uninterested How often you practice speaking English outside speaking class? A Usually B Sometimes C Rarely What is your purpose of learning English speaking skills? A To get good jobs after graduating B To improve my knowledge of English C To pass exams D To meet my interest IV D Never What you often in speaking class? A Actively take part in all activities B Only take part in the activities I like C Passively participate when being asked D Get bored and other things instead Below is a list of statements about demotivation in learning speaking English To what extent you agree or disagree with each statement Please put a tick (√) in the appropriate space provided Strongly agree (SA) – Agree (A) – No idea (NI) – Disagree (D) – Strongly disagree (SD) Statements English pronunciation is very difficult I don’t have enough vocabulary and grammar to express my ideas I don’t understand the lessons I think I not have basic background knowledge of English I’m very nervous and afraid of losing my face in front of my peers and my teacher My teacher usually gets angry when her students make mistakes My teacher isn’t caring, enthusiastic, flexible or interactive with students My teacher prefers good students in the class My teacher speaks English too fast It is difficult to listen to and understand my teacher’s talk 10 My teachers’ ways of conveying knowledge are boring and uncreative 11 My teacher does not usually give clear instructions 12 My teacher does not usually give sufficient explanation 13 My teacher doesn’t give corrective feedback V 14 The atmosphere in speaking classes is boring and stressful 15 My partners are not willing to speak English 16 The number of students in my class is large, so I rarely have chance to express my ideas 17 I have no chance to use English outside class 18 Teaching and learning facilities such as projector, video, TV and Internet are not used very often 19 There are no extra-curricular speaking activities 20 The class time for English speaking is limited 21 The topics for speaking in the textbook are not interesting 22 The topics in the textbook are difficult What is your opinion on the speaking activities designed by your teacher? Activities Repetition drills Guided dialogues Information gaps Games Role plays Discussion Pair work and group work In your opinion, what should your teacher to motivate you to learn speaking English? A Be more encouraging, helpful and enthusiastic B Be creative in ways of teaching C Create more interesting and suitable speaking activities D Give appropriate feedback E Create a co-operative and non-threatening classroom environment VI F Making use of teaching facilities G Others: (Please specify): ………………………………………………………………… Thank you very much! VII APPENDIX QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TEACHERS Dear my colleagues! This survey questionnaire is designed for the study on demotivating factors affecting the first year non-English major students’ learning to speak English Your assistance in completing the following items is highly appreciated Data collected will remain confidential and be used only for the study purpose Thank you very much for your help! Part A: General information - Full name: ……………………………… - Gender: Male Female - Age:………… - How long have you been teaching English?……… year(s) Part B: Questions According to you, how important is your students’ awareness of English speaking skills? (Tick (√) one option that you think is the most appropriate) A Very important B Rather important C Somewhat important D Unimportant What your students often in speaking class? (Tick (√) one option that you think is the most appropriate) A Actively take part in all activities B Only take part in the activities they like C Passively participate when being asked D Get bored and other things instead In your opinion, which factors affect your students’ learning to speak English? A The number of students in a class is too large, therefore students seldom have chance to raise their voice B English pronunciation and grammar is very difficult for students C Students’ background knowledge of English is not adequate D The topics in the textbook are difficult and boring E Speaking activities are not interesting enough F Teachers’ competence, teaching methods and personality VIII G Students are not confident and willing to speak English H Videos, DVDs, TV, Internet, Projector… are not used very often How often you use the following activities in your speaking lessons? Activities Repetition drills Guided dialogues Information gaps Games Role plays Discussion Pair work and group work What you think motivates students to learn speaking English? A Teachers’ enthusiasm and help B Teachers’ creative teaching methods C Variety of interesting and suitable speaking activities D Appropriate feedback E Friendly and co-operative learning atmosphere F Proper use of teaching facilities G Others: …………………………………………………………………………………… Thank you very much! IX APPENDIX QUESTIONS FOR THE INTERVIEW How long have you been learning English and how you feel about your learning English? Do you think that speaking skill is very important? Why? Do you spend time learning speaking English every day? If yes, how long? In your opinion, is speaking skill easy or difficult? If difficult, why? Have you ever been demotivated in learning to speak English? If yes, what demotivates you? What you think about speaking activities used by your teacher? What you think of your teacher’s competence and teaching method? Which kinds of teaching and learning facilities are used in speaking classes? Do you often complete your speaking tasks in the class? Why/ Why not? 10 Can you make some suggestions about how to motivate your learning in speaking skill? X ... topic “Demotivating Factors for the First Year non -English Major Students in Learning to Speak English at Hai Duong College? ?? as the title of my minor thesis Aims of the study The major purposes... Demotivating factors in learning English speaking skills for v the first year non -English majors at HDC 3.3.2 Solutions suggested by the teachers and the students to overcome demotivation in the learning. .. - To identify the demotivating factors affecting the first year non -English majors learning to speak English - To figure out some suggested solutions to eliminate the demotivation and help to