To firm up their sense of security and self-confidence and make them motivated to speak, teachers must create a relaxed, encouraging English speaking environment in which English is [r]
(1)In the teaching of English, speaking is a productive skill considered to be challenging both for students to learn and for teachers to teach This is because learning to speak remains to be the greatest challenge for language learners (Pinter, 2006) whereas most students deem their speaking proficiency as the success outcome of their learning process and the effectiveness of their English course (Richard, 2008) Even in the ideal case of equal training and exposure to speaking opportunities, students have different levels of readiness and ability to speak, and there is a high chance that any teachers of English must at least face “unresponsive students” (Paul, 2016), or even unresponsive groups in their class
Vietnamese students, especially army students at the Military Technical Academy, are found to be generally quiet and shy This might be a result of the education
ThS BÙI THỊ HỒNG NHUNG1
1Học viện Kỹ thuật Quân sự✉anhbkhn@gmail.com
Ngày nhận: 10/01/2017; Ngày hoàn thiện: 25/01/2017; Ngày duyệt đăng: 26/01/2017 Phản biện khoa học: ThS TRẦN LÊ DUYẾN
GIẢM THIỂU YẾU TỐ TÂM LÝ CẢN TRỞ HỌC VIÊN QUÂN SỰ
THỰC HÀNH NÓI TIẾNG ANH TÓM TẮT
Kỹ nói tiếng Anh kỹ ngơn ngữ quan trọng thể trực tiếp rõ ràng trình độ người học Tuy nhiên, kỹ nói người học, đặc biệt học viên quân khối ngành kỹ thuật, hạn chế Để tìm hiểu nguyên nhân đưa giải pháp cho vấn đề cần có nghiên cứu quy mô diện rộng Trong khuôn khổ báo này, người viết tổng hợp lại yếu tố tâm lý cản trở người học nói chung việc thực hành nói tiếng Anh Từ đó, người viết đưa đề xuất nhằm giảm thiểu trở ngại tâm lý cho học viên khối quân học tập Học viện Kỹ thuật Quân thông qua việc xây dựng môi trường thực hành ngôn ngữ tự nhiên, thiết kế giảng với chủ đề hoạt động thực hành nói phù hợp với trình độ người học
Từ khóa: chủ đề, công cụ, hoạt động, môi trường thực hành tiếng, rào cản tâm lý
Confucian teachings In addition, they are often afraid of making mistakes and being embarrassed in front of class Research also finds that lack of confidence and motivation prevents students from speaking (Boonkit, 2010 and Juhana, 2012) The aim of this article is to summarize the causes of these inhibiting psychological factors and suggest possible solutions to improving army students’ speaking skills
1 LITERATURE REVIEW
(2)speaking both in and outside class (Zhang, 2009) Besides, learners from Asian countries are often shy, afraid of “losing face” and making mistakes (Lihua, 1990; Juhana, 2012 and Zhao, 2016) Also, anxiety, lack of confidence and motivation were common factors identified by Schwartz and Thornbury (cited in Juhana, 2012) as undermining learners’ speaking competence These psychological factors are categorized into five main types as follows:
Shyness
As teachers and researchers from Asia, (Lihua, 1990; Juhana, 2012 and Zhao, 2016) all state shyness as a source of problem that limits learners’ speaking ability Learners, especially those with quiet nature (Bowen, 2006 and Kukurs, 2010) are intimidated when they have to speak in front of people and this phobia makes their mind go blank Aside from personality, shyness is also resulted from learners’ fears of being laughed at by their peers and corrected by their teachers This insecure feeling makes learners who are aware of their low ability become even more unresponsive in class
To remove shyness, Pesce (2011) points out that teacher should make classrooms an open and friendly environment and thus make students less stressed about making mistakes in their learning Meanwhile, Chinmoy (2007) suggests teachers encourage learners to consider shyness as a thing to overcome and make them believe it is totally alright to make mistakes
Fear of mistake/ “losing face”
Researchers have long argued that students are reluctant to speak in class because they are afraid of making mistakes and losing face and “this fear is linked to the issue of correction and negative evaluation” (Juhana, 2012) The main reason for this fear is that learners not want to look or sound foolish in front of class (Juhana, 2012)
With regard to addressing the fear of mistake, Zua (2008) says that it is needed that teachers build “emotional bonds” with students By doing this, they can make students feel comfortable and believe that the teacher can help them correct their mistakes and improve their English Zua (2008) also calls for a
learners’ nervousness during class Anxiety
As stated in Juhana (2012), there are three causes of students’ anxiety in learning a foreign language: they not understand the language (limited communication apprehension), they are scared of being tested and giving wrong answers (test anxiety) and they are afraid of getting negative comments from teachers (fear of negative evaluation) This suggests that teachers can lower students’ anxiety by motivating students, creating an ease environment and particularly accepting a variety of answers (Juhana, 2012)
Lack of confidence
Lack of confidence is believed to stem from students’ self-built perception that their English is not good This opinion seems to be strengthened every time learners fail to make their conversation partners or teachers understand their message (Juhana, 2012) The students’ lack of confidence is due to the lack of encouragement from the teacher (Brown, 2001 cited in Juhana, 2012) This urgently calls for teachers to make learning more of a motivating, rather than demotivating process
Regarding ways to boost students’ confidence, teachers need to “maximize students’ exposure to English” (Ye Htwe, 2007 cited in Juhana, 2012) and create a “relaxed atmosphere” (Lihua, 1990)
Lack of motivation
(3)2 RECOMMENDATIONS
Studies on psychological barriers facing students when they converse in English offer a departure point for me to think of practical ways to help students, particularly low-level army students, overcome these barriers
In this paper, I would like to suggest some key points for teachers to make their students speak They are summarized from my experience and observations of what works in a speaking class
Recommendations would be focused on three areas: how to create a good language environment, how to plan a speaking lesson and how to deliver a speaking lesson
2.1 Good language environment
A good language environment is a relaxed learning atmosphere in which learners are exposed to English as much as possible, yet without fears of making mistakes and/ or negative evaluation To make speaking classes less of an intimidating experience for learners, it is extremely needed to make speaking a routine/ a habit for learners Teachers should act as follow:
– Speak English most of the time and only resort to L1 after efforts to elicit/ clarify concepts have all failed – Develop a “bank” of functional language for students from the start This language bank is to be used frequently and authentically in class, and thus forms the basis for learners to start interacting The language bank might include various groups of expressions, for example: (1) needs (I’ve not finished I need more time, etc.); (2) permissions (May I go out? May I come in?, etc.); (3) requests (Can I have more time? Can you repeat that? Can you help me with this? Could you please speak more slowly/ turn up the volume?, etc.); (4) apology (Excuse me!, I’m sorry for coming late, etc.); (5) agreeing/ disagreeing (I agree/ disagree, I want/ don’t want to…, That’s correct/ incorrect, etc.); 6) asking for interruption (Excuse me, but…, I’m sorry to interrupt but…, Could I stop you for a second? etc.) When students constantly repeat these phrases, they not have to hesitate and automatically form a
– Establish simple routines that make students to speak English in class (greetings, ask or say similar things every day before class, i.e How are you today? – Great, and you; How was your weekend? What did you see on TV yesterday? etc.; writing the date, etc.)
– Let students have five minutes free talk in pairs at the beginning of the class They can talk about anything, from what they did the night before to fun news/ stories they read today
All these tips build an encouraging atmosphere in which students deem speaking part of their everyday doings and feel less shy
2.2 Lesson plan
In order to make students speak, teachers should pay close attention to the lesson plan A good preparation of teaching/ learning activities should meet two criteria: intriguing topics and varied activities
2.2.1 Interesting and familiarized topics
Since textbooks are mostly developed by the Westerns, it is quite common for teachers to come across materials (a text, a quiz, a recording, etc.) that require not only language but also socio-cultural knowledge
An example of this is File 6C, English File Elementary 3rd edition by Oxford, page 48 The lesson takes a music quiz as a context to a grammar point of distinguishing between be and do Teachers then can hardly expect students, especially army students who have little knowledge ofdifferent music genres, to discuss anything or even the quiz as they listen Since the built-in speaking activity is also a music questionnaire, teachers should “work their way around” the topic
(4)Who is your favourite singer? - My favourite singer is …
What is the person like? - He/she is very hand-some/beautiful/kind/cool, etc
Why you like the person? - I like this person because …
After letting students ask and answer those questions in pairs for some minutes, teachers can screen pictures of some singers and ask questions, write students’ feedback on board and underline the verbs is and like This can be a smooth way to introduce the grammar point (distinguishing between be and do) and finally a freer, less-controlled practice of speaking about the singers
Second, teachers should sometimes give students different topics and allow them to choose their favourite ones After the allotted time for pair discussions, students will work in a bigger group, practicing ask and answer questions to and from other groups
Teachers can ask students to select some of the topics they like to talk about from the following list: Animals, Body and health, Classroom items and rules, Clothes, Colors, Daily activities, Dreams, Hobbies, Holidays, House and home, Family and relationship, Food, Transportation, Work and jobs, Pets, Sports, Travel, Festivals, etc The tasks for students vary, from recovery dialogues, role plays to monologues or debates on a certain statement relating to the suggested topics
2.2.2 Varied activities (tasks)
Choosing a topic is important but another factor to stimulate students to speak is the desire to complete a task Based on each class’s ability, teachers should try to modify a guided speaking activity and turn it into a communicative task Here are a few things for setting up a speaking task:
2.2.2.1 Levels of controlledness
Speaking tasks vary in forms but can be flexibly carried out through three phases, representing the controlledness of the task or the different levels of students’ independence in language use as follows
With beginning classes, teachers should start with a closely guided speaking task where fixed expressions are provided beforehand with thorough drilling Such a guided task allows low-level students to speak imitatively and participate from their low levels Guided, controlled activities help motivate students and strengthen their confidence
With higher level classes, teachers should ask students to perform more creatively with phrases/ expressions provided Finally, at the top level, learners are free to use their individual linguistic repertoire in a meaningful context
In conclusion, a speaking task should move gradually towards providing opportunities for the negotiations of meaning This is to stimulate learners to make the most of the language available to them to convey meanings By doing this frequently, students develop creativity in finding alternative ways of expressing themselves, thereby extend their communicative competence Based on the model of communicative speaking developed by Becker and Roos (2015), I would like to suggest a few speaking activities which I have applied in different classes as follows:
(5)Reproductive language use (controlled): dialogues, story retelling; guessing game or twenty questions game; picture description; find someone who … game; interviews with a questionaire;
Creative language use (semi-controlled): spot the difference between two pictures, talking about the picture (give students some pictures and let them describe, using the grammar point learnt in the lesson), gapped dialogues, partly scripted information gaps, story skeletons, role playing with some pre-given situations/expressions, etc Creative & productive language use (free): story telling (provide students with situation and characters/ cartoon pictures, etc and let them invent improvised stories); short plays (give students some reading texts/pictures/situations and characters and ask them to make a short play), discussions and debates (choose a debatable topics, let students discuss in pairs before forming two oppositional groups for the debate); watch and speak (students watch parts of a cartoon/film/TV show, etc without any sound, guess the meaning and talk about it; or student A tells what is on the screen for student B to answer questions given on a piece of paper, etc.); acting as an interpreter (one student acts as an interpreter and one as a foreigner and some as local people They communicate through interpretation to shopping, renting a bike, bargaining, etc.); etc
2.2.2.2 Patterns of interaction
To remove students’ nervousness and anxiety, teachers should remember to:
– Let students work in pairs first After some time talking with their partners, students are prepared both mentally and linguistically to join in a larger group discussion or make a presentation Different patterns of interaction give students a better chance to improve their language, in terms of both grammar and fluency – Avoid forcing presentations without students’ consent/content This will scare away students with low speaking competence and make them even more unresponsive in class
2.3 Lesson delivery
important role in making the class lively and effective by their guide and the atmosphere they create both before, during and after speaking activities are done 2.3.1 Different techniques
To make students speak, teachers have to draw their interest into the topic, provide them with useful language to communicate and make the language sink in their mind In order to so, teachers should conduct the scaffolding steps as follows:
– Personalize the story to draw attention For
example, to demonstrate a memorable night (English File Elementary, 3rd edition, Oxford, Unit 7C), teachers could tell the class about their special holiday night Keep it short and slow Use simple grammar and vocabulary so that students can understand Other visual tools can be used to provide students with something to lean on for their speaking, such as flashcards, posters or graphic organizers
– Double check by asking questions to make sure
students understand and make them better memorize the details/vocabulary/expressions Teachers could check by asking concept checking (yes/no) questions and questions for details For example: Was it in July or August? Did I go on holiday alone or with my family? Where did I go? How long did I stay? Was the weather good or bad? etc By asking questions for details, teachers help students to memorize the details of the story
– Give written record of the useful words and phrases
students will need to tell the story themselves
– Ask for a reproduction of the story by asking a few
students (whose language competence is better) to retell a story They could this with the help of the language input written on the board
– From the students’ demonstration, remind the class of the tense and vocabulary they need to use
– Give preparation time for students to think about and note down the words and phrases they will need for the speaking task
(6)2.3.2 Feedback
In order to make students feel safe and motivated to speak, teachers should make the classroom an encouraging place where students feel free to try things out without fears of criticisms
Teachers should ask students to focus on fluency over accuracy in speaking class Explain to them that focusing too much on grammar will impede their fluency and create unnecessary fears of making mistakes, which are detrimental to speaking in general To mitigate students’ fear of mistakes, teachers should accept more than one answers and/ or create activities that promote students to diversify their expressions, make them try best with the available language to get the tasks done (for example: taboo word description, listen and guess, twenty questions, etc.) In terms of giving feedback, teachers should as follows: Avoid correcting students as they are talking Make the necessary corrections after they finish
During the speaking time, teachers should walk around the pairs/ groups, take notes of what the class has done, give students praise for the good language use and corrections for mistakes
For on-the-spot feedback, teachers should avoid negative comments like no, you’re wrong, incorrect, etc For good answers, teachers should give compliments such as well-done, very good, excellent, great, etc For answers that need further work on, teachers might say: thank you but …, good try, yes but it is more correct to say…
For delayed feedback, start with a positive comment of the overall completion of the task Then write common mistakes (around ten) on the board without saying who made them to avoid embarrassment Give students some minutes to correct the sentences themselves As they read their correct versions, teachers correct the sentences on the board By doing this, the students can recall their mistakes and better memorize the things they have learned
3 CONCLUSION
Learning a foreign language is difficult and learning to speak is even more challenging, given various
confidence and motivation Speaking requires a lot of confidence and preparation from students To firm up their sense of security and self-confidence and make them motivated to speak, teachers must create a relaxed, encouraging English speaking environment in which English is used chiefly to communicate in authentic situations, students are free to express their ideas without fears of being wrong and criticized In addition, teachers should organize different activities to let students practise speaking in class These activities must be conducted in a scaffolding fashion to make sure students not only apprehend but can efficiently use the phrases and expressions to communicate
Last but not least, teachers should develop a good rapport with students and act positively by keeping their smiles and pleasant facial expressions to create a positive atmosphere for the class./
References:
1 Becker, C & Roos, J (2015), “An approach to creative speaking activities in the young leaners’ classroom.“ [Online] Available: http://www.education-inquiry net/index.php/edui/article/view/27613 (December 30, 2016)
2 Boonkit, K (2010), “Enhancing the development of speaking skills for non-native speakers of English.” Procedia Social and Behavioral Science 2, 1304-1309 Bowen, T (2005), “Methodology: Shy Students; An Article Offering Suggestions And Advice On TeachingShyStudents.” [Online] Available: http:// www.onestopenglish.com/suppor t/askthe -experts/methodology questions/methodology-shy-students/146385.article (March 15, 2011)
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