An investigation into 10th grade students’ out of class learning at a high school in lao cai province

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -oOo - HỒ THU HUYỀN AN INVESTIGATION INTO 10TH GRADE STUDENTS’ OUT-OF-CLASS LEARNING AT A HIGH SCHOOL IN LAO CAI PROVINCE (Nghiên cứu việc học lớp học học sinh khối lớp 10 trường THPT tỉnh Lào Cai) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231.01 Hanoi - 2019 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -oOo - HỒ THU HUYỀN AN INVESTIGATION INTO 10TH GRADE STUDENTS’ OUT-OF-CLASS LEARNING AT A HIGH SCHOOL IN LAO CAI PROVINCE (Nghiên cứu việc học lớp học học sinh khối lớp 10 trường THPT tỉnh Lào Cai) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231.01 Supervisor: Assoc Prof Lê Văn Canh, PhD Hanoi - 2019 DECLARATION I, Ho Thu Huyen, hereby declare that my thesis entitled “An investigation into 10th grade students’ out-of-class learning at a high school in Lao Cai province” (Nghiên cứu việc học lớp học học sinh khối lớp 10 trường THPT tỉnh Lào Cai) submitted to the Faculty of PostGraduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi is my own work and has not been submitted before to any institutions for assessment Documented references have been fully provided Hanoi, 2019 Ho Thu Huyen i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my sincere thanks to my supervisor, associate professor Le Van Canh, who has constantly supported me through the stage of my study and stimulated ideas for my growth as an academic researcher I also want to express my profound gratitude to all the doctors, lecturers and staff members of the Faculty of Post-Graduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi for their useful lectures and helpful advice for me to complete the thesis I would like to send my thanks to the management board and teachers of Lao Cai High School Number for their cooperation and valuable information they provided in my research Without their help, the survey could not have been successfully conducted My thanks also go to my colleagues in Lao Cai college for their encouragement and enthusiasm for my studying time Last but not least, I would like to express my endearing and enduring gratitude to my family and friends for their continuous support throughout my years of studying and the process of researching and writing this thesis It is virtually impossible for me to accomplish my thesis without their assistance ii ABSTRACT This research aims at exploring the ways the10th grade students learn English outside the classroom The primary purpose is to examine what activities the students take part in to improve English out of the class, the frequency of those supplementary activities The secondary purpose is to investigate the activities they like to participate in most To achieve the aim of the study, the author used survey questionnaire as instrument to collect data The results of the data analysis reveal that activities students usually to enhance their English proficiency are watching films, doing projects, listening to music and learning the new words by heart The out-of-class activities they prefer are listening to music, playing games and communicating in English The students also recognized the importance of learning English outside of the classroom In addition, the findings of the research suggested some activities for the students behind the class for their better English iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv ABBREVIATIONS vi LIST OF TABLES vii LIST OF FIGURES viii CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale of the study Aims of the study 3 Scope of the study Methods of the study Significance of the study Organization of the thesis CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Activities in teaching and learning English 2.2 The role of out-of-class learning 2.3 Out-of-class learning activities 11 2.3.1 Chat rooms 11 2.3.2 Interviews 12 2.3.3 Using media 12 2.3.4 Online games 14 2.4 Language learning beyond classroom by Nunan and Richards 15 2.5 Previous studies on out-of-class learning 19 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 23 3.1 Rationale for choosing survey as the research method 23 3.2 Research site 24 iv 3.3 The participants 25 3.4 Data collection 26 3.4.1 Data collection instruments 26 3.4.2 Data collection procedure 26 3.4.3 Data analysis 27 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 28 4.1 Students’ attitude towards English 28 4.2 Students’ self-evaluation about English 29 4.2.1 Students’ self-evaluation about their English proficiency 29 4.2.2 Students’ evaluation about their English skills and knowledge 30 4.3 Students’ attitude toward out-of-class activities 32 4.3.1 Students’ frequency of taking part in out-of-class activities 32 4.3.2 Advantages of out-of-class activities to their English 34 4.3.4 Students’ preference about out-of-class learning activities 36 CHAPTER CONCLUSION 38 Summary of the research results 38 5.1 Current out-of-class activities students take part in 38 5.2 Activities students like to participate in most outside the classroom 40 5.3 Suggested activities for English out-of-class learning 42 5.3.1 English clubs 42 5.3.2 Blogs 43 5.3.3 Collaborating projects 43 5.4 Implications of the study 44 5.5 Limitations of the study 46 5.6 Further research directions 46 REFERENCES 47 APPENDIX I v ABBREVIATIONS App Application ELT English language teaching EFL English as a foreign language ESL English as a second language IT Information technology RELC Regional English Language Center TESOL Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages vi LIST OF TABLES Table Students’ frequency of taking part in out-of-class activities 32 Table The necessity for taking part in out-of-class activities 35 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Students' attitude toward English 28 Figure Students’ evaluation about their English proficiency 29 Figure Students’ evaluation about their English skills and knowledge 30 Figure Advantages of out-of-class activities 34 Figure Students' preference abut out-of-class learning activities 36 viii Games help reduce stress and bring an environment for English development, but it is easy for students to be addicted to them and make them easy to forget learning because when playing games, they usually forget the time Therefore, parents should help their children choose the appropriate games to play and control their playing time 5.3 Suggested activities for English out-of-class learning The findings show that most of the students preferred learning through songs and games Therefore, teachers may pay greater attention to the use of multimedia as an important channel to promote out-of-class learning For example, teachers may ask the students to undertake learning projects using English songs In case of games, the issue can be more challenging because it is not easy to design games that can promote out-of-class learning I believe that games can make learning fun, but their impact on language learning for adolescent (i.e 10th graders) is not conclusive from empirical evidence 5.3.1 English clubs It is obvious that English clubs can help learners of all ages and levels improve their English It is useful to develop all English skills such as listening, speaking, reading and writing There are many reasons why English clubs are necessary to English learning First, English clubs are less formal than a classroom setting Many learners find them more fun than usual English classes They also let learners practice English in more real-life situations This can increase a learner’s desire to practice and learn on their own because using a language in authentic situations is very important for learners Second, English clubs create chances for meeting new people Usually, people participating in an English club will feel easy to get along with each other because they all have something in common: interest in English Most clubs have scheduled meetings to get together a few times a 42 week, so club members often become good friends with one another Third, English clubs help members learn new skills and improve their time management, which are very useful for their future job Fourth, members become confident when joining a club The more people practice club activities, the better they will be at English In other words, the more time people spend on a club, the more comfortable and confident at expressing ideas in English they will be They will feel very nervous the first few times, but it gets easier every time In short, English clubs with various activities are helpful to develop English The activities in an English club may be varied from discussion, English songs or readings to guest’s presentation, quizzes, parties, etc 5.3.2 Blogs Blogging is a very useful tool for English communication Blogging has the power to English learning, reflections or communication such as it provides an opportunity for reflection by students and their teacher, opens up student writing to a wider audience, provides an opportunity to practice writing and communication skills, builds a learning support community, motivates and engages students in higher-level communicative learning One of the best benefits that come as a result of blogging is that it allows people to express and hone their creativity to develop unique and original content, solve problems and combine much of what they have learnt to respond to fellow’s feedback and comments A student blog can focus on many purposes such as discussions, responses, reflections, sharing images, links, and resources, vocabulary and grammar activities, paragraph writing, etc 5.3.3 Collaborating projects This is one kind of task for students to improve English outside the classroom Students can work in groups or work individually to complete the 43 tasks which vary from simple ones as writing paragraphs to complicated one as picture drawing and presentation or making videos, etc In completing these kinds of tasks, the students will have to move seamlessly between inand out-of-classroom spaces By completing the task, students will have to find out the materials to get data or information, this is the chance to develop listening and reading skills By preparing for the presentation, they will develop writing and speaking skills Moreover, other soft skills will also be developed such as collaborating with friends to find out the information, discussing to come to the final group’s ideas In short, it is important to provide learners with opportunities to communicate beyond the classroom context In these spaces, learners are not only activating their language in authentic contexts, they are also developing their communicative repertoires and acquiring new language skills that are not readily acquired in the classroom 5.4 Implications of the study From the result of the study, it can be seen that students often take part in various activities outside the classroom All the activities focus on developing different English skills as well as entertaining Among the activities they often do, there are activities which are optional but there are also the ones that the students have to as the homework assigned by their teachers The activities which are compulsory as doing projects (with 46% of the students choose) or learning the new words by heart (with 43% of the students choose) are helpful because they are to revise grammar knowledge as well as develop English skills and soft skills such as problem-solving or collabolative skills In addiition, optional activities such as watching films (with 47% of the students choose), listening to music (with 44% of the students choose) or playing games (with 38% of the students choose) are 44 mainly for entertainment However, students can learn much while doing those activities: They can develop listening, reading and widen their vocabulary Furthermore, it can be seen that learning outside the classroom brings certain advantages to the students Beside bringing relaxation, the activities can help them enhance vocabulary and develop different skills as well as widen their social knowledge Because of that, the students see the necessity of taking part in out-of-class activities In addition, the 10 grades are at the age of learning and playing so learning should not be limited only inside the classroom with textbooks and practice The students need to develop the ability to acquire knowledge both inside and outside the class context Because the majority of students learn English through such out-of-class activities as watching films with the subtitle, listening to English songs, playing digital games in English, doing projects, teacher should select appropriate materials of these types to introduce to the students or give extra lessons for them to at home with the focus on these types Parents should also be the ones to control their activities because these activities may make them waste time or get them be addicted Moreover, information technology should be applied to support students’ learning and teacher’s teaching Teachers give exercises through emails or blogs and students post the answers on those With the help of the internet, students access to websites and load the songs, films or games they like In short, students should be attracted by various activities so that they can access authentic sources of English More importantly, teachers should encourage students both inside and outside the class room activities so that they can be active in learning 45 5.5 Limitations of the study The study has certain limitations The first one is that the study focuses on finding the activities 10 graders participate outside the classroom, so the results might not be applied to students in upper grades When students study in class 11 or 12, their choice for out-of-class activities may change to suit their tastes or ages The second one is the study used only one method of data collection, which is the questionnaire This means that the data was the students’ self-respected responses Therefore, the data may not be exactly what the students actually did or thought Despite this drawback, the results of the study provide useful suggestions for teachers in designing out-of-class learning for their students 5.6 Further research directions In order to extend the domain of the research, another study can be carried out to investigate the out-of-class activities that 11 graders and 12 graders usually Students of different grades may have different choices for learning outside the classroom because of their ages or English curriculum in class In addition, another technique of collecting data such as interview can be used to gain richer and more detailed information More importantly, the effectiveness of the out-of-class activities should be researched for teachers have the results of giving exercises for 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Hoạt động (Activities) Không Thỉnh Thường Luôn thoảng (Usually) (Never) (Sometimes) Reading (1) Tìm đọc thú vị viết tiếng Anh Internet (Find something interesting in English on the internet to read) (2) Đọc truyện ngắn viết tiếng Anh (Read short stories in English) Listening (3) Nghe hát tiếng Anh (Listen to English songs) (4) Nghe tin tiếng Anh (Listen to news in English) Writing (5) Viết thư điện tử II (Always) tiếng Anh cho bạn bè (Write English emails to friends) (6) Viết bình luận tiếng Anh Facebook (Write comments on Facebook in English) Practising grammar (7) Làm tập ngữ pháp (Do grammar exercises) (8) Làm kiểm tra tiếng Anh sách (Do English tests in test books) (9) Làm tập nhà (Do homework) (10) Làm dự án với bạn lớp (Do English projects with classmates) Speaking (11) Luyện nói tiếng Anh với người khác (Practice speaking English with other people) Developing vocabulary (12) Học thuộc lòng từ (Learn new words by heart) Entertaining III (13) Xem phim tiếng Anh có phụ đề (Watch movies in English with the sub-title) (14) Xem phim tiếng Anh mà khơng có phụ đề (Watch movies in English without the sub-title) (15) Chơi trò chơi điện tử tiếng Anh (Play English video game) Em trả lời câu hỏi 2.1 Nếu em tham gia nhiều hoạt động bảng 1.4, em cho biết lý em tham gia hoạt động Những hoạt động giúp ích cho việc học tiếng Anh em? ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… 2.2 Nếu em không tham gia hoạt động bảng 1.4, em cho biết lý sao? ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… IV 2.3 Theo em học sinh có cần phải tham gia hoạt động học tiếng Anh khơng? Vì sao? ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… 2.4 Em thích hoạt động học tiếng Anh ngồi nhất? Vì sao? ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… V ... kind of learning that takes place outside the classroom” and is classified into three categories: selfinstruction, naturalistic language learning and self-directed naturalistic language learning. .. out- of- class English language learning was not researched in Lao Cai high schools While the benefits of out- of- class learning are obvious and because out- of- class activities play a certain role in. .. Benson also gave definition about out- ofclass English learning activities as students’ activities in vocabulary learning, grammar learning and language skills such as listening, speaking reading,