A study on the reality of using english communication skills of the juniors of faculty of english at thuongmai university

THUONGMAI UNIVERSITY ENGLISH FACULTY GRADUATION PAPER TOPIC: HANOI - 2020 ABSTRACT Currently, the trend of globalization and internationalization in all fields is taking place strongly in almost all countries in the world, including Vietnam Therefore, to facilitate the international integration in a convenient and comprehensive manner, besides the political, economic or cultural factors, the proficiency in using foreign languages in general and English in particular is extremely necessary for all social classes, especially for young people and university students The English proficiency mentioned here is not only limited to the knowledge that the students are studying at the university, but also how they use that foreign language in communication Currently, communicating well in English is considered as an important factor that helps students have better opportunities to get a good job and to have a good status in society However, in order to communicate well in English, students will certainly encounter many difficulties and obstacles, especially for students in a non-native English speaking country like Vietnam Therefore, this study is based on the research on the situation of using English communication of English-majored third year students at Thuongmai University All the data and information gathered from them can help researchers find out the difficulties and obstacles that they are really facing in the process of learning to communicate in English From the results of that situation analysis, some most feasible suggested solutions will be brought out to help them overcome all barriers and become proficient in using English communication skills ACKNOWLEDGEMENT First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to my instructor, Ms Hoang Thi Thuy, MA of English Faculty of Thuongmai University, for her enthusiastic guidance, very helpful comments and detailed corrections throughout my research Moreover, I would like to thank all the lecturers in the Faculty of English at Thuongmai University They are the ones who have brought me a lot of new knowledge, including professional knowledge and knowledge about life during my four-year studying process Not only that, they also helped me a lot in improving my soft skills, especially my communication and presentation skills in English In particular, I am very grateful to my family My family has been a source of support, both physical and mental ones, for me during my four years of college Their sincere and precious encouragement is immeasurable and I really appreciate it Also, I couldn't help but say thanks to my close friends and classmates, who have been studying with me all this time They have exchanged knowledge with me, studied with me and got progress with me They have also helped me a lot so that I could smoothly pass all the modules during years of study Finally, I would like to say thank you to all the students who participated in the questionnaire survey and interview on the topic "The reality in using English communication skills of students " Thanks to their enthusiastic help, everything could go smoothly and I was able to complete my study Hanoi, 24th April, 2020 Student Nguyen Dang Ngoc Anh TABLE OF CONTENS ABSTRACT i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii TABLE OF CONTENS iii LITS OF TABLES AND CHARTS .v CHAPTER 1: OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Previous studies .1 1.3 Aims of the study .2 1.4 Research subject 1.5 Research methodology 1.6 Scope of the study 1.7 Organization of the study .3 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW .5 2.1 Some basic definitions 2.1.1 Skill .5 2.1.2 Communication 2.1.3 Communication skill .8 2.2 Importance of communication skills .8 2.2.1 To communicate in work and daily life 2.2.2 To communicate in studying process 2.3 Importance of communicating in English .9 2.3.1 In study 2.3.2 In work 10 2.3.3 In daily life 11 2.4 Techniques to communicate well 11 2.4.1 Maintain good body language 11 2.4.2 Seek first to understand 13 2.4.3 Be open and honest .13 2.4.4 Frame your views 14 2.4.5 Meet others where they stand .15 2.5 Factors affecting students' ability to use English communication skills 16 2.5.1 Students' perceptions of the importance of English communication skills.16 2.4.2 Psychological factors 17 2.4.3 Communication environment .17 2.4.4 Influence of mother tongue 18 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH FINDINGS 19 3.1 Students’ self-assessment on their level of English communication skills 19 3.2 Places where students often use English to communicate 21 3.3 Students’ self-confident level when communicating with foreigners 21 3.4 Factors that students focus on when communicating in English 22 3.5 Students’ difficulties when communicating in English 23 3.5.1 Think in Vietnamese while communicating in English 24 3.5.2 Restriction on vocabulary 25 3.5.3 Lack of concentration when communicating in English 26 3.5.4 Lack of self-confidence when communicating in English 26 CHAPTER 4: SOME SUGGESTED RECOMMENDATIONS .29 4.1 Some suggested recommendations for the third year English-majored students 29 4.1.1 Being self-confident 29 4.1.2 Try to practice more and promote self-study 30 4.1.3 Stop thinking in Vietnamese when communicating in English 31 4.1.4 Try to read more and practice by writing 31 4.2 Some suggested recommendations for the lecturers of the Faculty of English at Thuongmai University .31 4.2.1 Create a favorable environment for students to communicate in English right in the classrooms 32 4.2.2 Change teaching methods 32 4.3 Some suggested recommendations for Thuongmai University’s Board of management 33 4.3.1 Find and supplement qualified English native lecturers 33 4.3.3 Improve the quality of English faculty lecturers 34 4.3.4 Improve the quality of facilities for the learning process 35 CONCLUSION 36 REFERENCES .vi LITS OF TABLES AND CHARTS No Tables and Charts Page Chart 3.1: Self-assessment of third-year English-majored students at Thuongmai University on their level of English communication 19 skills Chart 3.2: The self-confidence level of a third-year English2 majored students at Thuongmai University when communicating with foreigners Chart 3.3: Factors that students focus on when communicating in English Chart 3.4: Obstacles that third-year English-majored students at Thuongmai University when using English communication skills 21 22 23 Table 1: The self-confidence level of third-year English-majored students at Thuongmai University when communicating with foreigners Table 2: Places where third-year English-majored students at Thuongmai University often use English to communicate 20 21 CHAPTER OVERVIEW OF THE STUDY 1.1 Rationale Nowadays, when English has become a global language, learning English is extremely important to everyone, especially to students who want to get a good job in the future However, currently almost students at universities, including Englishmajored ones, seem to be only learning specialized English Indeed, to be able to live and work in a globalized working environment, only specialized English knowledge is not enough Students need to communicate well in English to turn it into a useful tool to support them in the process of working as well For these reasons, “A study on the reality of using English communication skills of the juniors of Faculty of English at Thuongmai University” was conducted to identify the reality in using English communication skills of students and propose some suggested solutions to help them improve their English communication skills 1.2 Previous studies There have been many research studies carried out relating to the using of communication skills in general and English communication skills in particular in the world and also in Vietnam Some noticeable ones are described as follows: Firstly, the research “English Communication Skills: How Are They Taught at Schools and Universities in Oman?” done by Rahma Al-Mahrooqi, was published on April 1st, 2012 This research focuses on how Omani students define the English communication skills and how they are taught to communicate in English at schools, universities and other educational institutions According to the result of this research, the author shows that none of students define wrongly about the English communication skills, but all of their definitions are in a very limited sense Students learn English communication skills not only at schools, but also by personal interaction with many groups of people in society, including family members, friends, teachers (inside and outside the classroom), private institutes, and English clubs Secondly, the research “The importance of English communication skills in multilingual settings in Southern Africa” done by Ingrid Fandrych, was published on the website “English Today” of Cambridge University Press (CUP) on September 2009 This research aims to find out and emphasize the importance of appreciating language communication skills in general and English communication skills in particular in a developing multilingual context According to the author, there is a need to act, especially in the developing world, to ensure that English communication as a basic skill is available to the majority of population Finally, the research “Kỹ giao tiếp tiếng Anh trường Đại học Cảnh sát nhân dân thời kỳ hội nhập” done by Le Huong Hoa, was published on May 2018 This study aims to understand the limitations of students when using English communication skills so that they can find out the solutions to further improve English communication skills for students to meet needs in studying and participating in international cooperation According to the author, in fact, most students have quite a long time to learn English, but their ability to use English in their studies as well as in professional work after graduation is not really effective Students are not confident enough when communicating in English 1.3 Aims of the study Nobody can deny the importance of English in today globalizing and developing world Learner who communicate well in English seem to have an advantage over the others, they will have much better opportunities in studying, working and many other aspects in life Therefore, this study aims at investigating the reality in using English communication skills of the Juniors of English Faculty at Thuongmai University Simultaneously, it is essential to find out the difficulties and obstacles that they have when communicating in English And then, from these difficulties, some suggested recommendations should be brought out to help them improve their English communication skills 1.4 Research subject This study is designed to reveal the ability in using English communication skills of students in studying and in work and daily life Specifically, it also shows both students’ strengths and weaknesses when they communicate in English, what difficulties and obstacles they have Then, some recommendations will be brought out to help them in English communicating improvement process 1.5 Research methodology This study is carried out based on the combination between qualitative research methods and questionnaire survey, including observation Through the results of these research methods, the reality in using English communication skills of the Juniors of English Faculty at Thuongmai University can be found out After analyzing the information and data collected, the difficulties and obstacles which prevent these students from communicating English well will be discovered In this study, the following questions will be investigated: - What is the current situation of using English communication skills of students today? - What causes obstacles for students when communicating in English? - How can they overcome those obstacles to communicate well in English? 1.6 Scope of the study This study focuses on researching and analyzing the reality of using English communication skills of third year English-majored students at the Thuongmai University by using data collected through survey questionnaire and direct observation The questionnaire is designed with 10 multiple choice questions, relating to several aspects in learning and practicing English communication skills of students and it was sent to a hundred juniors of English Faculty at Thuongmai University to collect data and information from their learning and practicing process The results of this study may be limited to students participated in the research and information finding process However, it can be used as a resource for students who are interested in practicing and improving their English communication skills 1.7 Organization of the study main parts will be included in this study: - Chapter 1: Overview of the study This chapter consists of The Rationale, Previous studies, Aims of the study, Research subject, Research Methodology, Scope of the study and Organization of the study - Chapter 2: Literature review This chapter consists of Some basic definitions, Importance of communication skills, Factors affecting students’ ability in using English communication skills - Chapter 3: Research findings and Analysis This chapter consists of the data, information collected from the questionnaire survey, observation and interview These data and information will be analyzed in detail in this chapter - Chapter 4: Suggested recommendations This chapter consists of some useful suggested solutions which are brought out to help students communicate well in English CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Some basic definitions 2.1.1 Skill A skill is the ability to carry out a task with determined results often within a given amount of time, energy, or both Skills can often be divided into domaingeneral and domain-specific skills For example, in the domain of work, some general skills would include time management, teamwork and leadership, selfmotivation and others, whereas domain-specific skills would be used only for a certain job Skill usually requires certain environmental stimuli and situations to assess the level of skill being shown and used In fact, there are many kinds of skills such as: Vocabulary plays a relatively important role, not only in English listening, reading or writing skills, but also in speaking and communicating English Vocabulary is considered essential to help students to be able to express all of their content or thoughts to the person communicating with them Therefore, the lack of vocabulary is one of the major barriers, hindering the communication process of learners Lack of vocabulary, along with the habit of thinking in Vietnamese when communicating in English will really make students feel anxious when there is no way to express exactly what you want to say In fact, although students are majoring in English, but for students, English is not their native language, so the amount of vocabulary that they can grasp will definitely have a limit In fact, the subject in English is very wide, so learning vocabulary is not easy, it requires great effort and regular practice Not only that, just like Vietnamese, there are many words in English with many meanings, that is, a word with many different meanings This also causes many difficulties for the learner in the process of choosing vocabulary so that it is in the right context of communication, sometimes causing word forgetting or using the wrong words This is also one of the common reasons to reduce the ability of students to communicate in English Lack of vocabulary really has a great impact on students' use of English, not only for the use of communicative English, but also for the ability to use other English skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing 3.5.3 Lack of concentration when communicating in English The distraction in communication is the next obstacle to mention Lack of concentration leads to a range of other communication difficulties that students may encounter, especially it will cause students not to grasp the content of the conversation nor catch up with the talking speed of people with whom they are communicating In general communication, it is important that students listen and understand what the other person wants to say to them However, to that, they need to have a 25 certain concentration If students lose their concentration when communicating, they will accidentally ignore what the other person is saying and think about something else By the time they get back to the conversation, the person who communicated with them may have finished what they wanted to say or the students missed too much important content For example, when they are telling students about how their holiday week in Vietnam has been going They will start from day one, day two, but if the students just let their minds stray for a few minutes, they may have told you until the last one This will make the students not know how to continue the conversation and what to talk about next Not only that, the students must understand that the native speaker's talking speed is very fast because they are communicating in their native language, just like when students communicate with each other in Vietnamese Therefore, if students distract, they will not be able to catch up with the story and understand what other communicators are saying 3.5.4 Lack of self-confidence when communicating in English 3.5.4.1 Being affected by psychological factors In Vietnam, the method of teaching and learning English is mainly in the path, grammar-centered while pronunciation is the foundation for good learning of foreign languages in general and English in particular The consequence of this is that although Vietnamese people are exposed to English early, but only through the grammar aspects, theoretical exercises are mainly and not highly applicable The goal of learning English is just focusing on increasing the score, taking the exam but not helping the learner recognize the importance and have the right way to learn English This is the reason why the level of English communication of Vietnamese in general and of students in particular, including the English-majored students of Thuongmai University, are still at an average level In addition, the environment for communicating English at universities in Vietnam is often not focused Practice time in class is very small, the listening and speaking module is only "coping", leading to many students forming psychology of fear of speaking, fear of being wrong, afraid of communicating in English Every time I speak English, I am ashamed, afraid of making mistakes while speaking and 26 being laughed at by the other people The evaluation of teachers' academic results is also based on the grade book, students who make pronunciation errors will get low marks without being corrected in detail, thereby forming the mentality of "silence is gold" 3.5.4.2 Lack of self-confidence because of incorrect pronunciation and misorganizing English sounds Many students have difficulty in listening to English, and English-majored students at the Thuongmai Universty are not exception Part of the reason why students feel less self-confident when use English communication skills is limited vocabulary, partly because the learners themselves pronounce wrong, so when listening to the correct pronunciation, they will not recognize English is a bit different from Vietnamese, so English learners in Vietnam in general and students in particular often make basic mistakes when pronouncing English like swallowing sounds, not having stress, speaking without intonation When listening to native speakers pronouncing English quickly, we can hardly recognize words, leading to limited listening comprehension For example, when pronouncing, Vietnamese people often forget the ending sound of a word The ending sounds like / k / in "like" or "think" are often not pronounced by Vietnamese people Other ending sounds like / f / as in "safe" will disappear: "sây" The more difficult end syllables can be truncated for easier reading, for example "build" is often simply read as "biu" - the / ld / sound completely disappears (actually the "u" sound in this word) not read); or "milk" is reduced to "miu" - the / lk / sound is also "gone with the wind" Another example is Vietnamese students often mis-pronoun the ending sounds In Vietnamese, there is no word that ends with / d /, / b / or / g / Therefore, a "difficult habit" for Vietnamese people to pronounce the word / t /, / p / and / g / at the end of the word is one of these three sounds For example, "rob" would be pronounced "rốp"; "Trade" will be pronounced "trết"; and dog is “đóc” The ending sounds "th" like "breath" are read as "bờ-rét"; the final "f" as "if" is read as "íp"; "Six" is read as "xích"… 27 All such wrong pronunciation errors will lead to the learners not hearing the English sound when listening to the native speaker This makes communication efficiency greatly reduce CHAPTER SOME SUGGESTED RECOMMENDATIONS Nobody can deny the importance of English in today globalizing and developing world Learner who communicate well in English seem to have an advantage over the others In fact, they will have much better opportunities in studying, working and many other aspects in life However, according to the all realities we have studied above, we can realize that students still have a lot of difficulties in the process of using English communication skills Therefore, some useful recommended solutions should be brought out to help learners overcome these obstacles which are preventing them from mastering the English communication skills 4.1 Some suggested recommendations for the third year English-majored students One question keeps hovering in the minds of many people that how can English communication skills be acquired or improved? Some argue that English communication can be mastered in certain months while some claim that understanding and getting the ability to speak English is a journey rather than a time-bound process The process of learning to speak English should be started in initial years only and it should evolve over time However, students who not have a background in English, it is tough to resort to English speaking institutes Here are some suggested recommendations for learners to master English communication skills 4.1.1 Being self-confident As you all know, one of the most important factors that determines whether you can communicate well or not, is confidence Many Vietnamese students in general, and students at the Thuongmai University in particular, are facing psychological difficulties when communicating in English Most of them are afraid 28 of making mistakes, which can be pronunciation errors, word usage errors, wrong vocabulary, etc… and that has caused the mind of hesitating to communicate in English, afraid to use English However, students need to understand that they can learn a lot from their own mistakes First of all, they need to overcome their own psychological obstacles, communicate naturally and confidently In the process of learning, they can ask their teachers and friends about the communication errors they usually encounter, so that they can get a lot of suggestions from people around them, methods that help improve communication English By this way, learners can improve their English communication skills more quickly, along with their own confidence and effort In addition to overcoming psychological barriers, learners can also help themselves feel more confident when communicating in English by cultivating their vocabulary and knowledge They can learn more about common topics in everyday communication, issues that native people find interested in and so on Then practice those topics often This will help learners become more sensitive when communicating with foreigners Moreover, expanding vocabulary with many different topics in life will also help students more confidently communicate, because no matter what the opposite person talks about, they can understand most of the content of the communication 4.1.2 Try to practice more and promote self-study In order to communicate in English fluently and naturally, daily practice is indispensable There are several methods for practicing communication quite effectively Firstly, they can find a few friends and spend a certain amount of time each day communicating with them in English They can also speak English on their own while doing housework to improve their ability to use language, vocabulary and pronunciation Or learners can correct themselves in the mirror and speak English every day to improve their speaking skills, pronunciation and intonation when communicating will also be greatly improved In addition, learners can also watch English communication videos from easy levels to difficult ones, imitating the way they communicate with each other to 29 improve intonation to be most similar to native speakers and learn how they use words in daily communication as well Specifically, to communicate well in English, students must listen to English well They can listen to English songs, watch English news on channels like VOA, BBC News, , watch English movies with or without subtitles to listen and detect English sound as well as familiarize yourself with native speakers' communication speed and practicing language reflexes 4.1.3 Stop thinking in Vietnamese when communicating in English Last but not least, the way students think also greatly affects the effectiveness of the communication process The survey has shown that thinking in Vietnamese while communicating in English is also one of the causes of communication errors that the English-majored students at the Thuongmai University are facing Therefore, instead of transferring thoughts and ideas from Vietnamese into English, students need to learn how to think everything in English and express them in English Thanks to this way, their communication will become more natural and easier Learners need to understand that the language of daily English communication is not so complicated as the English language that they have to learn at university Therefore, simple thinking way in English will help their communication process become more effective 4.1.4 Try to read more and practice by writing A good way to improve communication skills is to read as much as possible The Internet is a pool of information and learners can spend plenty of time online reading cultivating more useful knowledge and information This helps in two things: the first thing is that it provides students with a lot of information and the second one is that it helps in broadening the vocabulary Reading also helps in getting a grasp of good words and understanding usage This can effectively be used when communicating Besides, writing is also a kind of communication skill Therefore, to have fluent verbal communication skills, students also need to practice to achieve a good writing skill If learners can express their thoughts well by writing them into paragraphs, complete essays, with logical and coherent ideas, this will help them a 30 lot in verbal communication They should spend plenty of time writing essays and topics to understand the significance of using different words It also helps in improving the grammar which is vital for communication skills 4.2 Some suggested recommendations for the lecturers of the Faculty of English at Thuongmai University In order to improve the use of English communication skills of students in English Faculty in general and third-year students in particular, besides the practice and self-study of learners, lecturers’ instruction also plays an extremely important role It would be great if the basic communication skills of students are created right in the university lecture hall Therefore, the followings are some solutions for lecturers of the Thuongmai University’s English Faculty, to help students in the faculty improve their ability to communicate in English 4.2.1 Create a favorable environment for students to communicate in English right in the classrooms The English communication environment is an effective language development facility to help students practice communication skills competently Besides, it also facilitates learners to easily experience real situations and behave more easily Therefore, in order to help students practice their English communication skills, lecturers need to give them a favorable English communication environment right in the lecture halls, during class-time Real English communication situations should also be put in place so that students can work with each other in pairs or in groups, thereby helping students communicate more with each other, increasing the ability to perform their own opinions, while exchanging knowledge, give them the opportunity to practice more and train their confidence and initiative in communication 4.2.2 Change teaching methods Thanks to their teaching experience, English Faculty’s lecturers at Thuongmai University can actively lecture entirely in English to help students increase their English listening skill At the same time, instead of lecturers giving lessons and letting students listen passively like traditional lessons, they can also encourage their students to give their opinions and to argue to protect their opinions, to ask and 31 answer questions in English This is a way to increase the interaction and communication between students and lecturers obviously In addition, lecturers need to provide constructive comments and encouragement to students so that they have more confidence and motivation to communicate in English more positively at class The opening of additional English clubs is also necessary to engage learners in order to create opportunities and more interest for them to practice their English communication skills more often 4.3 Some suggested recommendations for Thuongmai University’s Board of management The following suggestions should be given to the Board of management at Thuongmai University to create better condition for English-majored students to learn and improve their English communication skills, and also to help both teachers and students work well with each other to get higher performances in their teaching and learning process 4.3.1 Find and supplement qualified English native lecturers In order to help students of the Thuongmai University in general and Englishmajored students at the Thuongmai University in particular, have the best English communication environment, besides Vietnamese lecturers, Board of management needs to find and invite more native English teachers Studying directly with native lecturers is a great opportunity for students to communicate in English, keep up with the communication speed of native speakers, listen and correct pronunciation errors, practice intonation when communicate and increase communication reflexes in the best way Moreover, there are some tips in daily communication that students can learn from their native lecturers They can be taught about some common communication errors and ways to avoid avoid them, the communication habits and regular topics used in the daily communication of native speakers, etc… These are all extremely essential knowledge in communicating that students need to grasp if they want to communicate in English confidently and fluently English native teachers can provide students with really good learning and communication opportunities, which may be limited for Vietnamese teachers 32 4.3.2 Create more chances for students to participate in English events The Board of Management should create more opportunities for students, especially English-majored students, to participate in big events such as the national English Olympic Games, English speaking competitions between universities, which are organized nationwide yearly These are all great chances for students to practice and develop, not only their knowledge, but also their ability to communicate and use English language When attending large English events, students can give presentations, debate in English, learn communication skills and other skills from students of other universities All of these activities will help students increase their confidence in communicating in English, and also help them use the language more fluently In addition, within Thuongmai University, the administration may also allow the English Faculty to organize English competitions among students in different faculties, in order to increase the likelihood of learning each other amongst students; some seminars should also be organized to help students be aware of the importance of English skills, especially English communication skills at an early stage and motivate them to study better 4.3.3 Improve the quality of English faculty lecturers 4.3.3.1 Conduct lecturers’ quality assessments Assessment is the most important aspect to improve teacher quality The Board of Management needs to regularly observe and assess lecturers’ classroom to identify areas of weakness and plans for each of them to improve in those areas The evaluation must be thorough, especially for teachers who need significant improvement Plans should be brought out after a significant period of observations, allowing the Board of Management to fully grasp what the teachers are doing in their classrooms These assessments will promote the leaders' plans for the resources, suggestions and professional development needed to improve lecturers’ quality 4.3.3.2 Provide professional training courses Attending professional development courses can promote positive changes in lecturers It can inspire creative ideas and bring a new perspective This gives them 33 the opportunity to develop expertise arising from any weakness that teachers have Continuous development and improvement are essential for all teachers That is why the Board of Management should regularly open specialized training courses for lecturers, especially English Faculty ones, in order to create good condition for them to improve their teaching skills 4.3.4 Improve the quality of facilities for the learning process Currently, all classrooms at Thuongmai University are equipped with basic equipment to serve the teaching and learning process However, the school administrators need to continue investing financial resources in building infrastructure, improve teaching and learning conditions for teachers and students In particular, classrooms need to have internet, more modern speakers, projectors, large screens, to serve for discussion or skills practice sessions for students to achieve the highest quality and efficiency CONCLUSION Along with the development and global integration, English is considered a common language for all countries in the world in all areas of social life Therefore, learners need to try to improve their language skills, especially communication skills in English This is considered a means for learners to catch up with the modern pace of life and gain the advantage in the process of conquering their future career ladder For this reason, this study aims to understand students' perceptions of the importance of communicative English in learning, working and communicating in everyday life At the same time, it also points out some problems and difficulties in the process of learning and using communicative English of learners Through research, students reported that they encountered psychological difficulties in communicating in English, as well as limitations on vocabulary, pronunciation, thinking, and so on Since then, several solutions have been developed to help them improve their English communication skills, such as: promote self-study and selfpractice, giving up thinking in Vietnamese when communicating in English, read more, 34 Because of limited research time and knowledge, this research certainly has many shortcomings Moreover, it cannot mention all aspects of English skills Even so, I hope this will be a useful resource for those who want to learn and improve their English communication skills 35 REFERENCES Ingrid Fandrych (2009), “The importance of English communication skills in multilingual settings in Southern Africa”, English Today Website, Cambridge University Press “Importance of communication skills for students”, Learn Effective Communication Le Huong Hoa (2018), “Kỹ giao tiếp tiếng Anh trường Đại học Cảnh sát nhân dân thời kỳ hội nhập” Mohammad Ali Moslehofar, Noor Aireen Ibrahim (2012), “English Language Oral Communication Needs at the Workplace: Feedback from Human Resource Development (HRD) Trainees”, Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, Vol 66, Pages 529 – 536 Rahma Al-Mahrooqi (2012), “English Communication Skills: How Are They Taught at Schools and Universities in Oman?”, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman “Developing English Communication and Understanding Skills”, Study Mode Research S S Stevens (1950), “A definition of communication”, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Vol 22, No Zanaton Haji Iksana, Effendi Zakariaa, Tamby Subahan Mohd Meeraha,Kamisah Osmana, Denise Koh Choon Liana, Siti Nur Diyana Mahmuda & Pramela Krishb (2012), “Communication skills among university students”, Procedia – Social and Behavioral Sciences, Vol 59, Pages 71 – 76 http://ebooks.edu.vn/tieng-anh-giao-tiep/tam-quan-trong-tieng-anh-giaotiep-thong-dung.html 10 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skill 11 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communication APPENDIX SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE How is your ability to communicate in English? o Excellent o Very good o Good o Bad o Very bad Where you usually communicate in English out of class? (You can choose more than one answer)  English clubs  Travelling places  Work places  Others:……………………………………………………………… In which cases you usually use English to communicate? (You can choose more than one answer)  Only during class time  When you travel  When you meet foreigners and you want to chat with them  When you work with foreign partners  Others:………………………………………………………………… How you feel when you meet foreigners? o Feel really confident and actively talk to them o Feel less confident and afraid to communicate o Feel fearful and actively stay away and not communicate When communicating in English, what you focus on? (You can choose more than one answer)  Grammar  Vocabulary  Pronunciation  Intonation  Words usage How often you participate in extra-curricular English activities aside from class time? o Very often o Sometimes o Rarely o Never Are you interested in listening and speaking English modules at university? o Extremely interested o Interested o Normal o Uninterested o Extremely uninterested Are you really self-confident in your English communication skills? o Absolutely yes o May be o Absolutely no What are the causes that obstruct your ability in using English communication skills? (You can choose more than one answer)  Cannot recognize English sounds  Thinking in Vietnamese when communicating in English  Restriction on vocabulary  Lack of confidence when speaking because of incorrect pronunciation  Lack of concentration when listening and cannot catch the content  Cannot keep up with the native speaker's speaking speed  Being affected by psychology, afraid to speak  Others:…………………………………………………………………… 10 What you often to improve your English speaking and listening skills? (You can choose more than one answer)  Speak by yourself in English to improve your ability of using the language  Practice communicating in English with friends more  Participate in structured communication courses  Proactively approach and create short conversations with foreigners  Self-study communication skills through online videos, communication manuals  Watch US – UK movies with/without subtitle  Listen to US – UK songs  Watch foreign news  Others:…………………………………………………………………… ... reasons, ? ?A study on the reality of using English communication skills of the juniors of Faculty of English at Thuongmai University? ?? was conducted to identify the reality in using English communication. .. ? ?A definition of communication? ??, The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Vol 22, No Zanaton Haji Iksana, Effendi Zakariaa, Tamby Subahan Mohd Meeraha,Kamisah Osmana, Denise Koh Choon... methods, the reality in using English communication skills of the Juniors of English Faculty at Thuongmai University can be found out After analyzing the information and data collected, the difficulties