Những nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến việc học phát âm tiếng anh của sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số ở trường cao đẳng cộng đồng lai châu m a thesis

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES  PHÙNG THỊ THANH NGA FACTORS AFFECTING ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION LEARNING OF ETHNIC MINORITY STUDENTS AT LAI CHAU COMMUNITY COLLEGE Những nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến việc học phát âm Tiếng Anh sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số trường cao đẳng cộng đồng Lai Châu M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01 Hanoi - 2018 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES  PHÙNG THỊ THANH NGA FACTORS AFFECTING ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION LEARNING OF ETHNIC MINORITY STUDENTS AT LAI CHAU COMMUNITY COLLEGE Những nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến việc học phát âm Tiếng Anh sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số trường cao đẳng cộng đồng Lai Châu M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01 Supervisor: Dr TRAN THI THU HIEN Hanoi - 2018 DECLARATION I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report entitled ―Factors affecting English pronunciation learning of ethnic minority students at Lai Chau Community College.” (Những nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến việc học phát âm Tiếng Anh sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số trường Cao đẳng Cộng đồng Lai Châu) submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts at the Faculty of Post Graduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi Except where the reference is indicated, no other person‘s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis Signature Phung Thi Thanh Nga i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This thesis could not have been completed without the help and support from a number of people First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Dr Tran Thi Thu Hien, my supervisor, who has patiently and constantly supported me through the stages of the study, and whose stimulating ideas, expertise, and suggestions have inspired me greatly through my growth as an academic researcher Secondly, a special word of thanks goes to all the lecturers and the staffs of Faculty of Post Graduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi for their useful lectures, materials, guidance and enthusiasm during my course Thirdly, I also thank my colleagues for their willingness to share their ideas on this study and my students for their cooperation in completing the survey questionnaires Last but not least, I am indebted to my family and all my friends who have kindly given me assistance and encouragement Without them, this study would have no such great motivation ii ABSTRACT Pronunciation plays a very important part in learning English but it is a big problem for most of ethnic minority students at Lai Chau Community College, the only college in Lai Chau province where more than 90% of students are ethnic Most of them have difficulties in English pronunciation learning Until now, no research on English pronunciation learning of the ethnic learners at Lai Chau Community College has been carried out The researcher, therefore, decides to convey the research with the aim of finding out factors affecting ethnic minority students‘ pronunciation learning, investigating typical pronunciation errors that ethnic minority students often commit, and proposing possible solutions To achieve the objectives of the study, the author used both qualitative and quantitative methods The data were obtained from students‘ survey questionnaires, students‘ test results, and teachers‘ interview Basing on the results, the author has pointed out common errors as well as main factors affecting English pronunciation of ethnic minority students at Lai Chau Community College Besides, the author also implies some suggestions for teaching and learning English pronunciation for ethnic minority students at this college It is hoped that this thesis will be useful for teachers and students not only at Lai Chau Community College but also at other colleges iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CVC: Consonant-vowel-consonant EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESL: English as a Second Language IPA: International Phonetic Alphabet NNSs: Non-native speakers L2: Second language LCCC: Lai Chau Community College SLA: Second language acquisition iv LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1: Information of students‘ participants Table 2.2: Information of teachers‘ participants Table 3.1: Teachers‘ view on students‘ difficulties in pronouncing vowel sounds Table 3.2: Teachers‘ view on students‘ difficulties in pronouncing consonant sounds Table 3.3: Students‘ evaluation on difficulty in learning English consonants Table 3.4: The test‘s results on students‘ vowel and consonant sounds Table 3.5: The test‘s results on students‘ word stress Table 3.6: Student‘s age, ability and education level Table 3.7: Students‘ interest in learning English pronunciation Table 3.8: Factors affecting English pronunciation learning from students‘ views Table 3.9: Techniques used in English lessons from students‘ view Table 3.10: Activities and techniques of teachers in pronunciation lessons Table 3.11: Students‘ expectations in English lessons v TABLE OF CONTENT Contents Pages DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iv LIST OF TABLES v TABLE OF CONTENT vi PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale of the study The objectives of the research Research questions Scope of the study Methods of the study Significance of the study Design of the study PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW .4 1.1 Review of previous studies .4 1.1.1 Previous studies overseas …………………………………………………….4 1.1.2 Previous studies in Vietnam ………………………………………………….5 1.2 Review of theoretical background 1.2.1 Perception of pronunciation ………………………………………………….6 1.2.2 Features of pronunciation 1.2.3 Factors affecting English pronunciation learning ………………………… 11 1.2.4 English pronunciation errors ……………………………………………… 20 1.2.5 Common English pronunciation problems of Vietnamese learners ……… 22 1.2.6 Overview of difficulties for learning English of ethnic minority students in Vietnam ……………………………………………………………………………23 vi 1.3 Chapter summary 24 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 25 2.1 Research setting 25 2.2 Research approaches 26 2.3 Research participants 26 2.4 Data collection instrument 27 2.4.1 The questionnaire ………………………………………………………… 27 2.4 The interview ………………………………………………………………27 2.4.3 The test …………………………………………………………………… 27 2.5 Data collection procedures and analysis 28 2.5.1 For the questionnaire ……………………………………………………… 28 2.5.2 For the interview ……………………………………………………………28 2.5.3 For the test ………………………………………………………………….29 2.6 Chapter summary 29 CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 30 3.1 Data analysis 30 3.1.1 Students‘ common errors ………………………………………………… 30 3.1.2 Factors affecting students‘ pronunciation ………………………………… 34 3.1.3 Techniques used to teach the English pronunciation ……………………….37 3.1.4 Teachers‘ recommendations on teaching and students‘ expectations on learning English pronunciation ………………………………………………… 38 3.2 Discussion 39 3.2.1 Typical English pronunciation errors ……………………………………….40 3.2.2 Factors affecting students‘ English pronunciation learning ……………… 41 3.3 Possible solutions for improving students’ English pronunciation 42 3.3.1 For teachers …………………………………………………………………42 3.3.2 For students …………………………………………………………………44 3.3.3 For managers ……………………………………………………………… 45 3.4 Chapter summary 46 PART C: CONCLUSION 47 Recapitulation 47 vii Concluding remarks 47 2.1 Typical English pronunciation errors made by ethnic students at LCCC 47 2.2 Factors affecting English pronunciation of ethnic minority students at LCCC? 48 2.3 Solutions to improve English pronunciation of ethnic minority students at LCCC …………………………………………………………………………… 48 Limitations of the study 49 Recommendations for further studies 49 REFERENCES 50 APPENDICES I APPENDIX I APPENDIX .VII APPENDIX VIII viii 47 Penny Ur (1996) A Course in English Language Teaching, Cambridge University Express 48 Seferoglu, G (2005) Improving students’ pronunciation through accent reduction software British Journal of Educational Technology, 36(2), 303316 49 Suter, R (1976) Predicators of pronunciation accuracy in second language learning, Language Learning, 26, 233-53 50 Senel, M (2006) Suggestions for beautifying the pronunciation of EFL learners in Turkey Journal of Language and Linguistic Studies, 2(1), 111-125 51 Van den Noort, M W M L., Bosch, P., & Hugdahl, K (2006) Foreign language proficiency and working memory capacity European Psychologist, 11(4), 289-296 52 Zhang, F., & Yin, P (2009) A Study of pronunciation problems of English learners in China Asian social science, 5(6), 141 54 APPENDICES APPENDIX SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE (for students) Dear participants, This questionnaire is designed to find out the factors that affect the pronunciation of the ethnic minority students at Lai Chau Community College and give the best solutions to help our students improve their pronunciation So your cooperation plays a very important role in the success of the project Please complete the following tasks in accordance with each instruction Thanks for your cooperation I Personal information (Thông tin cá nhân) Sex (Giới tính) Age (Tuổi) How long have you studied English? (Em học tiếng Anh rồi?) năm Which level of education did you graduate? (Em tốt nghiệp hệ nào?) a Secondary school b High school II Information on studying English pronunciation (Thông tin việc học phát âm Tiếng Anh) a) Strongly disagree (Hồn tồn khơng đồng ý ) b) Disagree (Không đồng ý ) c) Neutral (Trung lập ) d) Agree (Đồng ý) e) Strongly agree (Hoàn toàn đồng ý) Do you like the pronunciation lessons? (Em có thích tiết học luyện phát âm không?) a b c d e Do you think that good pronunciation is very important to learn English? (Đối với em việc phát âm tốt quan trọng trình học Tiếng Anh?) a b c d e Which sounds are the most difficult for you to pronounce? (Em thấy âm I âm khó phát âm nhất? No 10 11 Other consonants Which consonants you usually mix or make wrong sounds when speaking in Vietnamese? (Những âm tiết em hay nhầm lẫn nói ngọng giao tiếp Tiếng Việt?) Mixed sounds (nhầm âm): ……………………………………………… Ví dụ:………….………………… …………………………………… Wrong sounds( Âm ngọng) : …………………………………………… Ví dụ:………….………………………………………………………… Do you spend time for learning pronunciation each day? (Em có dành thời gian cho việc luyện phát âm khơng?) a b c d e 10 Which language you communicate with your friends or your family members at home?(Khi nhà em thường nói chuyện với bạn bè, người thân gia đình tiếng nào?) a Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt) b Ethnic group‘s language (Tiếng dân tộc) 11 It is said that English pronunciation of below II is difficult because reasons.(Em thấy học ngữ âm khó ngun nhân sau (Đánh dấu √ vào ô tương ứng): No Factors E-V and E-ethnic language differences (Một số âm Tiếng Anh khơng có Tiếng Việt tiếng dân tộc) Influence of Vietnamese (Ảnh hưởng cách phát âm Tiếng Việt) Influence of ethnic minority pronunciation (Ảnh hưởng cách phát âm tiếng dân tộc) Language exposure (Lack of communication with native people )(Ít có hội giao tiếp với người xứ) Attitude , motivation and identity (Em khơng thích học phát âm) Age ( Cản trở tuổi tác) III Prior pronunciation instruction (Do thiếu hướng dẫn phát âm) Education level (Do trình độ học vấn) Personality( Do yếu tố cá nhân) 10 Other reasons (Những nguyên nhân khác) III Information on teaching pronunciation (Thông tin việc dạy phát âm Tiếng Anh) 12 Which techniques teachers use to teach English? (Giáo viên áp dụng thủ thuật dạy học dạy tiếng Anh?(Đánh dấu √ vào ô tương ứng): Frequency (Tần suất) No Techniques ( Các thủ thuật) Presenting rules of pronunciation (Liệt kê quy tắc) Using conversations (Cho sinh viên hội thoại) Using English poems and songs (Cho sinh viên nghe, đọc hát, thơ tiếng Anh) Using games (Kết hợp trò chơi giảng dạy) IV Using visual aids (Sử dụng giáo cụ trực quan) Listening and repeating words, phrases, sentences (Nghe nhắc lại từ, cụm từ, câu) Odding one out (Tìm từ, cụm từ, câu có cách đọc khác từ, cụm từ, câu lại) Transcribing phonetically (Viết phiên âm từ, cụm từ, câu) Others(Các thủ thuật khác) 13 Which techniques you like? (Thủ thuật em thấy thích) (Đánh dấu √ vào ô tương ứng): No Lik ver mu Techniques Presenting rules of pronunciation (Liệt kê quy tắc) Using conversations (Cho sinh viên hội thoại) Using English poems and songs (Cho sinh viên nghe, đọc hát, V thơ tiếng Anh) Using games (Kết hợp trò chơi giảng dạy) Using visual aids (Sử dụng giáo cụ trực quan) Listening and repeating words, phrases, sentences (Nghe nhắc lại từ, cụm từ, câu) Odding one out (Tìm từ, cụm từ, câu có cách đọc khác từ, cụm từ, câu cịn lại) Transcribing phonetically (Viết phiên âm từ, cụm từ, câu) Others(Các thủ thuật khác) IV Students’ expectations on learning English pronunciation (Mong muốn học sinh việc học phát âm Tiếng Anh) 14 What you expect to learn pronunciation? (Em có nguyện vọng học phát âm?) …………………………………………………………………………….…… …………………………………………………………………………….…… …………………………………………………………………………….…… THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION! VI APPENDIX INTERVIEW QUESTIONS (FOR TEACHERS) Interview questions How long have you been teaching English? Are you interested in teaching pronunciation? Why? or Why not? Do you feel teaching pronunciation easy or difficult? Why? Which consonants or vowels your ethnic minority students have difficulty in pronouncing? Do you often give extra activities or particular techniques in teaching pronunciation for ethnic minority learners? Why? Why not? Do you pay attention to teach stress and intonation in English lesson? Why? Why not? What are the main errors on English pronunciation of ethnic minority students? What factors you think affect your ethnic minority students in learning pronunciation? What should teachers to make pronunciation lessons more interesting and effective? VII APPENDIX TEST (for students); Time allowance: 20 minutes Choose the word whose underlined part is differently pronounced from the rest.(2.5pts) 1) A worked 2) A university 3) A closes 4) A boxes 5) A devotion 6) A hear 7) A chemist 8) A this 9) A boat 10) A give Write these words in their normal writing.(2.5pts): EXAMPLE:/nekst/ 11) /rəʊd/ ………… … 13) /fld/……… …… 15) /dʒʌmp/ ……… … 17) /'lisn / …………… 19) /pipəl/…………… Write phonemic transcription of the following words.(2.5pts) EXAMPLE: easy: … /'i:zɪ/… 21) orange /………… / 22) she /…………… … / 23) cook /……… ……/ 24) trade /……… … … / 25) stop /……… … …/ 26) teach /………….……./ 27) like /……… … / 28) sentence /… ……… / 29) student /……… …/ 30) chemical /……………/ Choose the word that has main stress placed differently from the others.(2.5pts) 31 A become B forget C enjoy VIII D answer 32 A mistake 33 A busy 34 A Vietnamese 35 A birthday IX ... ETHNIC MINORITY STUDENTS AT LAI CHAU COMMUNITY COLLEGE Những nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến việc học phát ? ?m Tiếng Anh sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số trường cao đẳng cộng đồng Lai Châu M. A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS. .. pronunciation learning of ethnic minority students at Lai Chau Community College.” (Những nhân tố ảnh hưởng đến việc học phát ? ?m Tiếng Anh sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số trường Cao đẳng Cộng đồng Lai Châu) ... positive attitudes toward the target language and target language community, or wants to become a member of the target language community Gardner and MacIntyre (1991) claimed that instrumental motivation