THE EFFECTS OF USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS ON STUDENTS READING COMPREHENSION ACHIEVEMENT AT LE HOAN HIGH SCHOOL

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST GRADUATE STUDIES ********************* ̀ DƯƠNG THI T ̣ HU HIÊN THE EFFECTS OF USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS ON STUDENTS READING COMPREHENSION ACHIEVEMENT AT LE HOAN HIGH SCHOOL Hiệu việc sử dụng tài liệu thực thành tích học tập kỹ đọc hiểu học sinh - nghiên cứu trường Trung hoc ̣ phổthông Lê Hoàn M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 HANOI – 2017 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST GRADUATE STUDIES ********************* ̀ DƯƠNG THI T ̣ HU HIÊN THE EFFECTS OF USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS ON STUDENTS READING COMPREHENSION ACHIEVEMENT AT LE HOAN HIGH SCHOOL Hiệu việc sử dụng tài liệu thực thành tích học tập kỹ đọc hiểu học sinh - nghiên cứu trường Trung hoc ̣ phởthơng Lê Hồn M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Supervisor: Hoàng Thị Xuân Hoa, Ph.D HANOI – 2017 DECLARATION I hereby certify that the thesis “ The effects of using authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement at Le Hoan High School” is submitted for the partial fulfillment of the Degree of Master of Arts at the Faculty of Post Graduate Studies – University of Languages and International Studies – Vietnam National University, Hanoi I also declare that this thesis is result of my own research and efforts and that it has not been submitted for any other purposes Hanoi, 2017 Signature Dương Thị Thu Hiền i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to show my deep gratitude to all the lecturers at University of Language and International Studies – Vietnam National University, Hanoi for the invaluable lecturers, which laid the foundation for my thesis I would also like to express my sincerest gratitude to Dr Hoang Thi Xuan Hoa, my respected supervisor for her precious guidance, critical comments and constructive supervision throughout my research My gratitude also goes to the students and colleagues at Le Hoan High Schools who enthusiastically participated in the research procedure Without their help, this project could not be fulfilled Last but not least, I am indebted to my beloved family and friends who have unfailingly inspired me to complete this study ii ABSTRACT The study was conducted with the hope that the result gained could clarify the effects of using authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement at Le Hoan High School In order to achieve the goals, quasi-experimental research design was employed Subjects of the study were two groups of 30 students each of 10th grade – students at Le Hoan High School One group was assigned as the experimental group and the other as the control group The students of both groups were taught with the same teaching techniques, the same teaching topics and did the same tests but with different types of teaching materials in an 8-week-period While the experimental group used authentic materials provided by the teacher, the control group only used materials in the course book - English 10 published by the Ministry of Education and Training A pretest and a posttest were used to measure the improvement in the reading skill of the students in the two groups The research results showed that the reading skill of the students who worked with authentic materials was better improved than that of the students working with only course book The former seemed to be able to avoid some typical mistakes about vocabulary which the students in control group often made Therefore it is suggested that authentic materials be used in teaching reading skill for high school students in order to get the highest results English teachers also need to be creative in selecting, developing and providing teaching materials to their students iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF TABLES vi LIST OF CHARTS vii PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale The research question and objectives of the study 3 The scope of the study Significance of the study Methods of the study Design of the study PART B: DEVELOMENT CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW .5 Theoretical background 1.1 Overview on reading skill 1.1.1 Definition of reading 1.1.2 Reading comprehension 1.1.3 Reading comprehension achievement 1.1.4 Types of reading comprehension question 1.2 Overview on authentic materials 10 1.2.1 Definition of authentic materials 10 1.2.2 Types of authentic materials 11 1.2.3 Advantages of authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement 11 iv 1.2.4 Disadvantages of authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement Literature review CHAPTER II: METHODOLOGY Methodology 1.1 The applied methodology in the research 1.2 Quasi-experimental design Research design 2.1 The subjects of the study 2.2 Selecting teaching materials 2.3 Teaching procedure 2.4 Measuring participants’ competence 2.4.1 Data collection instrument 2.4.2 Procedures of data collection 2.4.3 Procedure of data analysis CHAPTER III: RESULT ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION Result analysis 1.1 Pretest result analysis 1.2 Post-test result analysis 1.3 Analysis pre-test and post-test results within each group Discussion PART C: CONCLUSION Conclusion Implications Limitations of the study and suggestions for further research REFERENCES APPENDICES v LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Description of Pre-test Result 28 Table 2: Description of post-test result 30 Table 3: Independent Sample T-test for Post-test result 32 Table 4: Paired Sample T-test for pre-test and post-test 33 vi LIST OF CHARTS Chart 1: Pretest scores 27 Chart 2: Post-test results 29 Chart 3: Control group’s results 34 Chart 4: Experimental group’s results 34 vii suffer from myopia This is a seven-fold increase in cases from 2000 to 2050 Sixty years ago, around 15 per cent of the Chinese population was short-sighted Now, almost 90 per cent of Chinese teenagers and young adults have trouble seeing faraway objects A recent survey found that up to 95 per cent of teenagers in South Korea are near-sighted The researchers said they could not pinpoint definite reasons for this phenomenon and say it could be a combination of factors They did say that looking at computer screens and mobile phones could be a leading cause Researchers said the sudden rise in myopia may be linked to "lifestyle changes resulting from a combination of decreased time outdoors and increased near-work activities" Science journalist Sarah Zhang said, "Spending time outdoors, especially in early childhood, reduces the onset of myopia" Professor Kovin Naidoo, a co-author of the report, offered some advice He said: "You could spend a long time reading computers and screens, but also spend two hours outdoors." Topic 3: Plants can make intelligent decisions Plants are a lot smarter than we thought According to researchers, they are capable of making intelligent decisions regarding risk Scientists have discovered that one plant, the humble pea, can make decisions regarding how to survive best, even though it does not have a brain Researchers from the UK's Oxford University and Israel's Tel-Hai College grew several pea plants that had their roots separated between two pots Each pot contained differing amounts of nutrients One pot always had the same amount, while the other pot varied between a lot and a little The plants turned out to be remarkably consistent at diverting their roots to the pot with the most nutrients The research paper will be published this week in the 'Current Biology' journal Researcher Alex Kacelnik said the experiment "raises a question, XI not about plants, but about animals and humans" He wondered whether the pea plant might be more efficient in using its limited decision-making resources than humans He said: "We have a very fancy brain, but maybe most of the time we're not using it." Professor Kacelnik said he did not think that pea plants were intelligent in the human sense, but that they exhibited complex behaviours to efficiently take advantage of natural opportunities It would be interesting to see how our lives would be different if we adopted similar strategies Topic 4: Study shows there are two divorce seasons Couples might want to put a little extra effort into their marriage just before March and August every year Sociologists have identified annual spikes in the number of divorces filed in these two months Researchers from the University of Washington analysed data for divorces filed in the U.S state of Washington between 2001 and 2015 There were almost 25,000 divorces filed in the state in 2014 alone The scientists found that over the 14-year period of the study, divorce rates peaked in August, after the summer holidays, and in March, after the Christmas and New Year holidays Some researchers said the divorces could be due to financial problems caused by the winter and summer holidays Researcher Julie Brines suggested that the anti-climax felt after the build-up to holidays, and the holidays themselves, may leave couples feeling stressed and deflated She said: "People tend to face the holidays with rising expectations, despite what disappointments they might have had in years past." She added: "[Holidays] represent periods in the year when there's the anticipation or the opportunity for a new beginning, a new start, something different, a transition into a new period of life It's like an optimism cycle." Couples generally spend more time in closer proximity to each other during XII holidays, which may actually exacerbate tensions rather than rekindle romance Topic 5: Cats are just as clever as dogs, says study For whatever reason, people assume dogs are more intelligent creatures than cats This notion has been called into question by scientists in Japan, who have said that cats are as smart as dogs at certain memory tests Cat lovers, of course, have always known this Researchers at Kyoto University conducted tests on how well 49 cats could recall or relate to an event from the past – known as an episodic memory The Japanese team got the felines to eat from one of two bowls Fifteen minutes later, the cats were tested on their ability to remember which bowl they had eaten from and which remained untouched The team found the cats could recall what they ate and where, suggesting they had episodic memory The scientists also said that cats were as good as dogs on a whole variety of mental tests, including responding to the gestures, facial expressions and emotions of humans Researcher Saho Takagi told reporters that she believed cats think about past events similar to the way humans She said: "An interesting speculation is that they may enjoy actively recalling memories of their experience, like humans." She added: "Episodic memory is viewed as being related to an introspective function of the mind Our study may imply a type of consciousness in cats." Ms Takagi said the research is good news for pet owners, saying: "Understanding cats more deeply helps to establish better cat-human relationships." Topic 6: Astronauts' brains change shape during spaceflight Researchers from the University of Michigan in the USA have found that the brain of astronauts changes shape during spaceflight It is the first study to look into how the brain changes on the journey into space Researchers looked at pictures of the brains of 26 astronauts who spent time in space The photos were taken by high-tech medical machines called MRIs Twelve of the XIII astronauts spent two weeks as Space Shuttle crew members, and 14 spent six months on the International Space Station All of them experienced increases and decreases in the size of different parts of the brain The researchers said that the longer an astronaut spent in space, the bigger the differences in size were The research produced some interesting findings The researchers explained that, "gravity is not available to pull fluids down in the body" This means there is a shift in the position of the brain inside the skull The brain becomes either more squashed or bigger in size The findings could help doctors in the future to treat problems that affect the brain's function One possibility is to treat people who develop problems caused by long-term bed rest Another possibility is to treat those who have a build-up of fluid in the brain, which can lead to brain damage The researchers also say we will understand more about how neurons in the brain make connections In addition, the findings will help future space travelers on their journey to Mars Topic 7: Online gaming may improve school test scores Maybe kids playing online video games is not such a bad thing after all A new study shows that teenagers who regularly played games online improved their test scores at school However, the same study found that social media use was damaging to exam results The study was conducted by professor Alberto Posso at Australia's RMIT University Researchers analysed data on the online activities of more than 12,000 15-year-olds across the globe It looked at their maths, reading and science scores Professor Posso concluded that: "It is possible that a number of skills associated with online gaming correlate positively with general knowledge and skills tests in maths, reading, and science." Critics of the study suggest the findings may not be relevant today as the games are now outdated Education expert Nicola Johnson said: "I think technology practices move so quickly, even within a year….While [this study] should make headlines, you have to say it's not really a reflection XIV of current practice." However, she did admit that children could learn useful skills while gaming She said: "Many games involve a lot of strategising, problem solving, goal setting and regular practice in order to obtain more skills That kind of mindset would of course seemingly correspond with achievement and learning." Conversely, the study found that students who used social media a lot scored 20 points lower on maths tests Topic 8: Sitting may be dangerous for your health If you spend most of your days sitting at school, work, at a computer or stretched out on a couch at home, you may be taking up to two years off your life It is common knowledge that a sedentary lifestyle increases the risk of heart disease, type diabetes, cancer and obesity, and can result in premature death Many people think they can compensate for sitting around by walking, playing sports or going to the gym Unfortunately, this might not be so A new study just published in the journal 'Annals of Internal Medicine' suggests the effect on our longevity from sitting for long periods of time cannot be reversed through exercise Even 60 minutes of daily exercise may not be enough The study is from Dr David Alter and his colleagues at Toronto University Dr Alter and his team analysed 47 studies that tracked different groups of people, who kept notes on how long they sat down each day and how much they exercised They found that the most sedentary groups had a 24% increased chance of dying during the course of the study than the least sedentary ones This remained the case even though those who sat a lot also did 60 minutes of daily exercise Dr Alter writes: "Reducing your sit-down time by 2-3 hours each day by standing up at your desk, taking frequent breaks to stretch and walk, or watching TV…on your feet may be better than an expensive, crowded, smelly gym and be just what the doctor ordered." XV SAMPLE LESSON PLAN LESSON : WOMEN DO NOT GET ENOUGH SLEEP READING SKILL I Objectives: Educational aim: By the end of the lesson Ss will be able: + To get Sts to read the text to understand some information about women’s lask of sleep + Sts understand and use the new words to some types of reading tasks Knowledge: - General knowledge: discovery about the fact that women not get enough sleep - Language: Common knowledge of lack of sleep to women - New words: Surprise; issues; temporary; cessation; prone; experts; sign; underlying; severe; bring on *Grammar: the present simple Skills: Guessing meaning in context, answering questions BI Preparation: Teacher: handouts Ss: learn the old lesson & prepare for the new one IV Procedure: Teacher’s / Ss' activities Aims: to introduce the topic of the lesson and to raise students' interest T: divide the whole class into groups S: Sit in groups T: ask students to work in groups, XVI discuss and write down as many things which make someone unable to sleep as possible S: Work in groups as required and list the things T: After minutes, call the representative of each group to come to the board and write their answers The group which has more suitable answers will be the winner II BEFORE READING Activity 1: Getting to sleep T: Ask students to work in pairs, ask their partner about her/ his opinion about the suggested things in the table and write down S: Look at the table, ask his/ her friend’s opinion about the suggested things to complete the table T: Call on some students to stand up and share the information they have noted down in the table S: Do as teacher’s requirement Activity 2: Pre-teachvocabulary T may ask Sts to skim the text quickly and T may elicit some new words and phrases from Sts or give them (for worse students) XVII Ss : Skim the text quickly Ss: Listen and write down some words and phrases III WHILE READ ING Aims: To help Ss read the passage and the tasks given as well as to develop their reading skills TASK 1: SYNONYM MATCHING Individual & class work T - Ask Sts to read the text individually and match the words in column A with suitable words in column B + Ask them to compare the answers with their partners + Call on some Sts to present the answers Ss :Read the text again and then choose the best answers Some present their answers T:give remarks & correct answers, TASK 2: Choose the best answers Pair & class work T- Introduces the task and explain the way to deal with the task - Asks Sts to read the text again, and then decide whether the statements are true or false based on the information in the reading text XVIII - Walks round the class to give help if necessary - Gives suggested words, phrases or useful suggestions - Corrects the students’ work Ss - Listen to the teacher then the task - Works in pairs and give out their answers TASK 3: Answering the questions Individual work T: Ask students to read the questions carefully - Ask students to read through the passage again - Call some students to give the answers - Ask others students to correct - Give the true answers Ss: Work individually to read the text then choose the words and phrases in the passage: - Share the key with other students How many women go to see a doctor about sleeplessness? What many women think feeling exhausted is a part of? XIX What does sleep deficiency leave women at risk of reducing? 10 What can sleep apnoea cause besides heart attacks? Suggested answers 10 Task 4: Multiple-choice questions Method of teaching and learning: Pair work explain T: + Introduces the task + Provides students with some tips to this type of task + Asks students to work in pairs and the task S: + Listen to teacher’s requirement + Take notes + Do the task as required T: Calls on students to give out their answers and explain S: Give out their answers and T: Check the answers with the whole class XX not sleep well? A Half B 43 C 36 D quarter What are women more prone to doing at night than men? A having nightmares B waking up C sleepwalking D talking in their sleep What could feeling exhausted be a sign of? A over-exercising B the need for a diet C something serious D too much studying How many women go to see a doctor about sleeplessness? A two-fifths B a third C a half D a quarter What many women think feeling exhausted is a part of? A modern life B their job C being a woman D thinking too much What does sleep deficiency leave women at risk of reducing? A their quality of life B their weight C their life span D their friendships 10 What can sleep apnoea cause besides heart attacks? A Absentmindedness B strokes C Obesity D migraines Suggested answers XXI IV AFTER READING T - Asks students to work in pairs to discuss what the best thing to fall asleep is and tell their friend three reasons - Asks some students to report Ss - Listen to the teacher then discuss in pairs - Some students stand up to report their discussions - T :Give remarks and suggested answers V HOMEWORK (2mins) T - Assign homework Ss - Listen to the teacher - Write down the homework to at home XXII ... cover all the issues related to the problem discussed The paper mainly focuses on the effects of using authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement at Le Hoan High School, ... conducted with the hope that the result gained could clarify the effects of using authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement at Le Hoan High School In order to achieve the. .. effects of using authentic materials on students reading comprehension achievement at Le Hoan High School To accomplish the objectives, the research mainly concentrated on answering the following