Teachers attitudes toward the uses of the computers in language teaching at ha nam teachers training college

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -  - NGUYỄN THỊ CHUNG TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES TOWARD THE USES OF THE COMPUTERS IN LANGUAGE TEACHING AT HA NAM TEACHERS’ TRAINING COLLEGE (Thái độ giáo viên việc sử dụng máy tính giảng dạy ngoại ngữ trường CĐSP Hà Nam) MINOR M.A THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60.14.10 Hanoi, 2012 TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration……………………………………………………………… Acknowledgements……………………………………………………… Abstract………………………………………………………………… Table of contents………………………………………………………… List of abbreviations…………………………………………………… List of tables and charts………………………………………………… PART I – INTRODUCTION…………………………………………… Rationale…………………… Aims of the study…………… Research questions………… Scope of the study………… Method of the study………… Significance of the study…… Definition of terms………… Structure of the study……… PART II – DEVELOPMENT…………………………………………… Chapter 1: Literature review…………………………………………… 1.1 Attitude……………………… 1.1.1 Definition of attitude……… 1.1.2 Dimensions of attitudes…… 1.1.2.1 Beliefs……………………… 1.1.2.2 Feelings …………………… 1.1.2.3 Behaviors…………………… iv 1.1.3 The relationship between be 1.1.4 The relationship between fe 1.2 English Language Teaching 1.3 Computers in English Lang 1.4 The roles and effectiveness Teaching…………… 1.5 Teachers’ attitudes toward c 1.6 Factors affecting teachers’ u Summary…………………… Chapter 2: Methodology………………………………………………… 2.1 Context of the study……… 2.2 Participants ……………… 2.3 Instrument for data collectio 2.4 Procedure of data analysis… Summary…………………… Chapter 3: Data Analysis and Discussions……………………………… 3.1 Data Analysis……………… 3.1.1 Findings from Questionnair 3.1.1.1 Teachers’ background……… 3.1.1.2 General attitudes toward the uses of computers………………… 3.1.1.3 Some factors affecting teachers’ uses of computers in ELT…… 3.1.2 Findings from classroom ob 3.2 Discussions of the findings… 3.2.1.Research Question 1…………………………………………… 3.2.2 Research Question 2……… 3.2.3 Research Question 3……… Summary…………………… PART III – CONCLUSION…………………………………………… Concluding Remarks…………………………………………… 40 v Implications……………………………………………………… 41 Limitations of the study………………………………………… 42 Suggestions for further study…………………………………… 42 References………………………………………………………………… Appendices……………………………………………………………… APPRENDIX A: SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE ……………… APPRENDIX B: CLASSROOM OBSERVATION CHECKLIST………………………………………………… 44 I I VI vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CALL Computer Assisted Language Learning ESL English As Second Language ELT English Language Teaching IT Information technology ICT Information and Communication Technologies OTA Office of Technology Association HNTTC Ha Nam Teachers’ Training College vii Table 1: Background Information about Questionnaire Respondents Table 2: Main sections of the questionnaires Table 3: Teachers’ attendance of computer training course and teachers’ computer ownership Table 4: Teachers’ frequency of using computers at home and at school Table 5: Teachers’ feelings towards the uses of computer in an classroom Table 6: Teachers’ classroom Table 7: Teachers’ Chart 1: classroom Some factors affecting teachers’ computer uses in ELT viii PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationale It can not be denied that computer technology has changed the face of education in many parts of the world as well as in Vietnam in recent years More and more uses of its unique features are found every day and it is not surprising that the field of education is also being strongly affected by this tool As a result, English teaching and learning have been much easier and more effective under the assistance of computers However, computer-based technology has also brought with it many new challenges for the teacher who seeks to determine what it has to offer and how that should be delivered to students It is believed that there are many ways to encourage students to learn English and using computers as English teaching tools is considered one of the most effective ways Recent years have witnessed a significant shift concerning the technology use in teaching and learning environment Remarkably, the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has planned for a significant increase in ICT in education to take place in coming years and teachers are being encouraged to incorporate ICT technology into their lessons Up to now, a great number of researches have been carried out to investigate the perceptions or effectiveness of using computers for language teaching and learning However, the investigations into teachers’ attitudes toward the uses of computers in language teaching seem to be limited in Vietnam Additionally, one factor in the successful implementation of computers in the classroom is users’ acceptance, which in turn might be greatly influenced by users’ attitudes Consequently, it is said that attitude of teacher can either be a hindering factor or a facilitator for computer integration in education Ajzen and Fishbein (1977) states that by understanding an individual’s attitude towards something, one can predict with high precision the individual’s overall pattern of behavior to the object If teachers have positive attitudes toward computers, they will use them to improve their teaching and vice verse For that reason, teachers’ attitudes are of great importance in deciding to use or not to use computers in language teaching After five years of teaching English at Ha Nam Teachers’ Training College, the researcher found that most of the teachers have integrated the computer technology into their teaching curricula, however, their applications of computers may vary depending on their attitudes and more importantly, the question whether teachers’ actual attitudes toward the uses of computers in their classrooms have not been answered yet Stimulated by the above reasons , the researcher has decided to conduct the study on teachers’ attitudes toward the uses of computers in English language teaching at HNTTC Hopefully, the findings of this study will contribute to the pedagogic methodology Aims of the study The study is aimed at identifying the teachers’ attitudes toward the computer uses in English language teaching at HNTTC and exploring some main factors affecting the teachers’ uses of computers in their teaching Then teachers’ attitudes from the questionnaires and their classroom practice are compared to find out whether there is correlation between them From the findings of the study, some suggestions for further study in this very interesting topic can be provided Research questions In order to achieve the stated aims, the following research questions are raised: 1) What are the English teachers’ attitudes toward the uses of computers in language teaching at Ha Nam Teachers’ Training College? 2) What are the factors affecting the teachers’ uses of computers in language teaching? 3) Do teachers’ attitudes correlate with their classroom practices? Scope of the study The study focuses itself on the investigation of teachers’ attitudes towards the uses of computers in English language teaching in order to understand the teachers’ views on teaching with computers as well as some main factors affecting teachers’ computer use The participants are all of teachers of English of Faculty of Foreign Languages and Informatics at HNTTC Methods of the study The study is carried out in form of a survey model This survey was conducted at Ha Nam Teachers’ Training College to investigate teachers’ attitudes and some affecting factors on using computers in language teaching The survey assessed the independent variables: age, time, technical support, experience, computer skills/ training, facilities, teachers’ positive attitudes and confidence to find out the main factors affecting teachers’ computer use in English language teaching (ELT) at HNTTC In order to achieve the above objectives, two methods will be employed to collect the data including questionnaires and observation Questionnaires are used to investigate teachers’ attitudes towards the computer use in their classroom and the data were analyzed quantitatively by percentage of statistics At the meantime, observation is to discover teachers’ actual behaviors, and then compare with teachers’ attitudes collected from the questionnaire Significance of the study The study is significant in the following ways: - The first significance of the study is for the author herself to enhance the skills of conducting the study in educational contexts and for the other ESL teachers at HNTTC - The study is aimed at investigating teachers’ attitudes towards the uses of computers in ELT, which has not been carried out before in the context of HNTTC Consequently, results of the study will display the present situation of using computers in the teaching and contribute appropriate ways to help teachers use computers in ELT more effectively - This study can also lay grounds for further research on using new technology in teaching language and renovate the teaching language methods Definition of key terms  Computer: In the context of this study, computer is used as a general term referring to any computer that can be used in language teaching  Attitude: Attitude is a relatively enduring organization of beliefs, feelings, and behavioral tendencies towards socially significant objects, groups, events or symbols (Hogg & Vaughan, 2005, p.150)  Attitude toward Computers: As can be inferred from the definitions above, attitude toward computer refers to how the respondents feel and think about the impact of computer use in education and then how they behave toward computer technologies and specific computer related activities Structure of the study The thesis is composed of three main parts: introduction, development and conclusion Part I is the introduction in which the rationale, aims, research questions, scope and significance of the thesis as well as methods and some definitions of key terms of study are presented Part II is the development It consists of three chapters: literature review, methodology, data analysis and discussions In chapter one, the literature review provides some grounds of attitudes, dimensions of attitudes, findings from prior studies around teachers’ attitudes toward the uses of computers, and understandings of computers in English language teaching as well as roles and effectiveness of computers in language teaching … It also provides the factors affecting teachers’ computer use in ELT The second chapter introduces the methodology in terms of setting, participants, data collection instruments, and data analysis procedure In chapter three, results will be analyzed and discussions are presented Part III is Conclusion part In this part, concluding remarks, implications, limitations of the study and some suggestions for further study are presented REFERENCES Albirini, A A (2004) An exploration of the factors associated with the attitudes of high school EFL teachers in Syria toward information and communication technology Unpublished thesis, The Ohio State University Albirini, A A (2006) Teacher’s attitudes toward information and communication technologies: the case of Syrian EFL teachers Journal of Computers and Education, 47(4), 373-398 Ajzen, I., & Fishbein, M (1977) Attitude – behavior relation: A theoretical analysis and review of empirical research Psychological Bulletin, 84, 888-918 Compeau , D R., Higgins, C A., & Huff , S ( 1999 ) Social cognitive theory and individual reactions to computing technology: A longitudinal study MIS Quarterly, 23(2), 145-158 Eugene, J (2006) How teachers integrate technology and their beliefs about learning: Is there a connection? 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London: Prentice Hall Inch, B.A (1987) Change triggered computer technology: its implications for faculty development Doctoral dissertation, The University of Wisconsin – Madison 44 International Dictionary of Education (1977) London: Kogan Page Kersaint, G., Horton, B., Stohl, H., & Garofalo, J (2003) Technology beliefs and practices of mathematics education faculty Journal of Technology and Teacher Education, 11(4), 549–577 Mansour, N (2009) Science teachers’beliefs and practices: Issues, implications and research agenda International Journal of Environmental & Science Education, 4(1), 25-48 OTA (1995) Teachers and technology: Making the connection Washington, DC: U.S: Government Printing Office Oxford Advanced Learners’ Dictionary of Current English (2010) http://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/ Payette, D L (1987) The use of computer technology by senior administrator in colleges and universities Doctoral dissertation, New York University Percival, F (1984) A Handbook of Education Technology Billings & Sins Limited Worcester Rahman, F A (2000) Paper presented at the International Conference Education & ICT in the New Millenium Park Royal, Kuala Lumpur Saaid N (2010) The use of Technology (Audiovisual Aids) in teaching English as a foreign language in Benghazi secondary schools Unpublished Master thesis, Leicester University Samak, Z A (2006) An exploration of Jordanian English Language teachers’ attitudes, skills, and access as indicator of Information and Communication Technology integration in Jordan Unpublished Doctoral Thesis, Florida State University Simonsson, M (2004) Technology use of Hispanic bilingual teachers: A function of their beliefs, attitudes and perceptions on peer technology use in the classroom Journal of Instructional Technology, 31(3), 257-266 45 Vakaslis, M P (1990) Variables related to faculty attitudes toward computing at Western Michigan University Doctoral dissertation, Western Michigan University Warschauer, M (1996) Computer-assisted language learning: An introduction In Fotos (ed.) Multimedia language teaching, 3-20 Tokyo, Japan: Logos International Retrieved May, 2007 from: http://www gse.uci.edu/faculty/markw/call.html Warschauer, M., & Healey, D (1998) Computers and language learning: An overview Language Teaching, 31, 57-71 Retrieved http://www.en.sikipedia.org./wiki/computer-assisted-language learning 46 from: APPENDICES APPENDIX A SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE Dear Colleague, This survey questionnaire is designed for the study on “Teachers’ attitudes toward the uses of the computers in language teaching at HNTTC” Your assistance in responding to the following questions is highly appreciated Your assistance in completing this questionnaire is highly appreciated All the information provided by you is reserved for the study purpose only, and you can be confident that you will not be identified in any discussion of the data Thank you very much for your cooperation! Nguyen Thi Chung SECTION ONE: BACKGROUND In this section, you will be asked to provide some information about yourself Please put a tick where appropriate Have you ever attended any training course on using computers?  Yes If “yes”, please specify the number of days: ………… days Do you own a laptop?  Yes How often you use a computer at home?  Everyday How often you use a computer at school?  Everyday I SECTION TWO: GENERAL ATTITUDES I/ Read each statement and put a tick the most appropriate number that expresses your feelings Statements I like using computers in my English class Using computers makes me more self- confident in my teaching career I want to learn a lot about teaching aids computers Working with computers would stimulating be enjoyable I sometimes get nervous just computers Working with a computer makes me feel tense and uncomfortable thinking II II/ Read each statement and put a tick the most appropriate number that expresses your beliefs Statements teaching are useful because of the speed in getting feedback for the exercises Using classroom interesting because students are more computers are used supplement teaching and learning more fun and enjoyable for students to use Having available improve satisfaction toward using it time to learn how to use computers successfully to my Planning computers is time III/ Read each statement and put a tick the most appropriate number that expresses your behaviors toward the uses of computers in ELT Items I teach English through the use of laptops instead of desktops I design presentations PowerPoint, with Microsoft Word I supply the lessons more exciting video clips or some assisted – learning through the computer in classroom Useful video on the World Wide Web (Internet) are used in the lessons I have some technical problems in presenting my lessons by computers in classroom informati SECTION THREE: FACTORS What you think are the factors affecting your uses of computers in English language teaching? Please tick (√) where appropriate in the alternative below Factors Age Lack of time for preparation Lack of technical supports Lack of computer experience Lack of computer skills/ training Lack of computers Limited teachers’ attitudes Lack of teachers’ confidence Other (please specify): V APPENDIX B CLASSROOM OBSERVATION CHECKLIST School: ………………………………… …………………… Date: ……/……/.…… Class: …………… Major: ……………………… Lesson Title:……………………………………………………………………………….… Note: 1: Never A Types of computer used: Desktops Laptops B How activities are presented: Pre - stage While - stage Post - stage C How slides are presented: Well - prepared Not well - prepared D How soft wares and computer applications are presented: PowerPoint Microsoft Word Microsoft Excel Media Player Internet Websites VI E Some problems in using computers: Time for preparation Technical Facilities Thank you for completing this questionnaire! VII ... 1) What are the English teachers? ?? attitudes toward the uses of computers in language teaching at Ha Nam Teachers? ?? Training College? 2) What are the factors affecting the teachers? ?? uses of computers. .. attitudes toward the uses of computers in language teaching at Ha Nam Teachers? ?? Training College? ” The results of the study from the statistics above show that most of the teachers have positive attitudes. .. qualitative data indicated that teachers had positive attitudes toward technology use in education The first, concerning teachers? ?? feelings toward the uses of computers in ELT, most of the teachers