Việc áp dụng kỹ thuật mô phỏng trong việc cải thiện kỹ năng nói tiếng anh cho sinh v

Game ··· II Appendix 3: Table 3: Summary of previous studies on simulation ··· III Appendix 4: Table 4: The practice of speaking skills in real –life situations ··· V Appendix 5: Table 5

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

*********************

LÊ KIM PHA

THE APPLICATION OF SIMULATION TECHNIQUE IN IMPROVING ENGLISH SPEAKING SKILL FOR FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS IN FACULTY

OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE IN HO CHI MINH UNIVERSITY OF INDUSTRY

(VIỆC ÁP DỤNG KỸ THUẬT MÔ PHỎNG TRONG VIỆC CẢI THIỆN KỸ NĂNG NÓI TIẾNG ANH CHO SINH VIÊN NĂM NHẤT CỦA KHOA NGOẠI NGỮ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC CÔNG NGHIỆP THÀNH PHỐ HỒ CHÍ MINH)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY CODE: 60140111

Hanoi, 2014

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

*********************

LÊ KIM PHA

THE APPLICATION OF SIMULATION TECHNIQUE IN IMPROVING ENGLISH SPEAKING SKILL FOR FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS IN FACULTY OF FOREIGN LANGUAGE IN HO CHI MINH UNIVERSITY

OF INDUSTRY

(VIỆC ÁP DỤNG KỸ THUẬT MÔ PHỎNG TRONG VIỆC CẢI THIỆN KỸ NĂNG NÓI TIẾNG ANH CHO SINH VIÊN NĂM NHẤT CỦA KHOA NGOẠI NGỮ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC CÔNG NGHIỆP THÀNH PHỐ HỒ CHÍ MINH)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY CODE: 60140111

SUPERVISOR: PHẠM HỮU ĐỨC, PhD

Hanoi, 2014

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to send my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Dr Phạm Hữu Đức, for his encouragement, dedicated guidance and constant assistance from the initial stage to the final stage to develop an understanding of the subject, without which this thesis would not have been possible I would also like to express my hearty thanks for his spending precious family time on my call at any time

It is my pleasure to thank the teachers of class DHAV9A and DHAV9B; Ms Hoàng Lê Thị Tuyết and Ms Lê Ngọc Diệp who facilitated me the most in the delivery

of questionnaires and observation of the students‟ activities

I would like to thank the students of class DHAV9, NCAV7 who helped me pilot as well as fulfilled the questionnaires and interviews

My warm gratitude goes to my family who always believes in me, always respects my choices and gives me the best support both of spirit and finance

Above all, I thank God, who blesses me with peaceful energy to support me at all time

iii

ABSTRACT

There is no doubt about the significance of English in today‟s world when the communicative abilities become important And one of the challenges is that how to help student be able to apply their classroom knowledge in real-life situations to the most extent Simulation is considered as one of the potential activities to wed theory into practice and improve students‟ speaking skills

The attempt was to know whether students were engaged in simulation and their responses to this activity To serve these purposes, a quantitative research together with

a specific group of 59 first-year students was chosen At the same time, two phases of questionnaires, before introducing simulation and after its implementation were proceeded For the achievements of these purposes, besides 59 freshmen from DHAV9A, DHAV9B, more methodologies including questionnaires and the interviews were also employed to help the researcher examine and provide more details to the findings as statistics and reliable materials for the analyzing phase

The results have found students‟ interest and support for this kind of activities They got chances to deal with realistic situations in relaxing settings, which not only prepared them with practical experience but promised to contribute to the improvement

of their speaking skills Additionally, this paper also provided several recommendations for the implementation of simulation, which were withdrawn from the research process

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP……….i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……… ii

ABSTRACT ……….iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS……… iv

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS……….viii

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES……….ix

PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale ··· 1

2 Aims and objectives of the study ··· 2

3 Research questions ··· 2

4 Scope of the study ··· 3

5 Methods ··· 3

6 Organization of the study ··· 4

PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Simulations ··· 5

1.1.1 Definition of simulations in language learning context ··· 5

1.1.2 Characteristics of simulations ··· 6

1.1.3 Distinction simulations and role-plays ··· 8

1.1.4 Distinction simulations and games ··· 10

1.1.5 The role of simulations in L2 teaching and learning context ··· 11

1.1.6 The limitation of simulations ··· 12

v

1.1.7 The effects of simulations on students‟ attitudes in language learning

……….13

1.1.7.1 Motivation ··· 13

1.1.7.2 Activeness ··· 14

1.1.7.3 Courage and confidence ··· 15

1.2 Summary of previous studies on simulations in language teaching and learning · 16 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 2.1 Participants and setting of the study ··· 18

2.2 Data collection ··· 18

2.2.1 Data collection instruments ··· 18

2.2.1.1 Questionnaire ··· 18

2.2.1.2 Interview ··· 19

2.2.2 Data collection procedures ··· 19

2.2.2.1 Piloting ··· 19

a) Piloting the questionnaires ··· 19

b) Piloting the interview ··· 20

2.2.2.2 Main procedure ··· 20

2.2.3 Data analysis procedures ··· 21

CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 3.1 Findings and discussion ··· 23

3.1.1 Students‟ English speaking learning before the introduction of simulations ··· 23

3.1.1.1 Students‟ attitudes in general towards the current speaking activities at class ··· 23

vi

3.1.1.2 Students‟ improvement of speaking skills in comparison with that

of the last semester ··· 25

3.1.1.3 Students‟ frequency in practicing English speaking skills in daily situations ··· 25

3.1.1.4 Students‟ confidence in bringing English to realistic conversations with native speakers ··· 26

3.1.1.5 Students‟ participation in a variety of activities ··· 28

3.1.1.6 The activities that students feel like to participate in most ···· 29

3.1.1.7 Students‟ choice among various activities: group discussion, class discussion, role play and simulations ··· 30

3.1.1.8 Students‟ expectations in their speaking class ··· 31

3.1.2 The implementation and students‟ responses towards simulations ··· 33

3.1.2.1 Students‟ interest in simulations ··· 33

3.1.2.2 Students‟ responses about the benefits of simulations ··· 35

3.1.2.3 Students‟ self-evaluation about their roles in the simulations 37 3.1.2.4 Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities ··· 38

3.1.2.5 Do the students want simulations to be employed? ··· 39

3.2 Pedagogical implications ··· 39

PART C: CONCLUSION 1 Recapitulation of the study ··· 41

2 Conclusions of the study ··· 41

3 Limitations of the study ··· 42

4 Suggestions for further study ··· 43

REFERENCES ··· 45

vii

APPENDICES

Appendix 1:Table 1: Simulation vs Role play I Appendix 2: Table 2: Simulation vs Game ··· II Appendix 3: Table 3: Summary of previous studies on simulation ··· III Appendix 4: Table 4: The practice of speaking skills in real –life situations ··· V Appendix 5: Table 5: Students‟ confidence in communicating with native speakers ··· VI Appendix 6: Table 6: Students‟ participation in various types of activities………VII Appendix 7: Table 7: The activities that students feel like to participate in most………VIII Appendix 8: Table 8: Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities ··· IX Appendix 9: Schedule of classroom observation ……… X Appendix 10: Questionnaire 1 (English version) Speaking activities in classroom before the application of simulations ··· XI Appendix 11: Questionnaire 1 (Viet version) Quan sát hoạt động trong tiết học speaking……… XIII Appendix 12: Questionnaire 2 (English version) Students‟ attitudes and responses to simulations ··· XV Appendix 13: Questionnaire 2 (Viet version) Quan sát thái độ của sinh viên về simulations ··· XVII Appendix 14: Sample lesson plan 1 - Shopping Stands………XIX Appendix 16: Lesson plan 2 - Restaurant Servicesimulations: Making and taking order

in a restaurant ··· XXI

viii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

FFL : Faculty of Foreign Language

HUI : Ho Chi Minh University of Industry

DHAV9 : Đại học Anh văn 9

L2 : Second Language

ix

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1: Simulation vs Role play

Table 2: Simulation vs Game

Table 3: Summary of previous studies on simulation

Table 4: The practice of speaking skills in real –life situations

Table 5: Students‟ confidence in communicating with native speakers

Table 6: Students‟ participation in various types of activities

Table 7: The activities that students feel like to participate in most

Table 8: Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities Figure 1: The structure of a simulation

Figure 2: Students‟ attitudes on speaking activities

Figure 3: Students‟ improvement of speaking skills compared to the last semester Figure 4: The practice of speaking skills in real-life situations

Figure 5: Students‟ confidence in communicating with native speakers

Figure 6: Students‟ participation in various types of activities

Figure 7: The activities that students feel like to participate in most

Figure 8: Students‟ choice among discussion, role play and simulation

Figure 8: Students‟ interest in simulation

Figure 10: Students‟ responses about the benefits of simulation

Figure 11: Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities

xi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to send my deepest gratitude to my advisor, Dr Phạm Hữu Đức, for his encouragement, dedicated guidance and constant assistance from the initial stage to the final stage to develop an understanding of the subject, without which this thesis would not have been possible I would also like to express my hearty thanks for his spending precious family time on my call at any time

It is my pleasure to thank the teachers of class DHAV9A and DHAV9B; Ms Hoàng Lê Thị Tuyết and Ms Lê Ngọc Diệp who facilitated me the most in the delivery

of questionnaires and observation of the students‟ activities

I would like to thank the students of class DHAV9, NCAV7 who helped me pilot as well as fulfilled the questionnaires and interviews

My warm gratitude goes to my family who always believes in me, always respects my choices and gives me the best support both of spirit and finance

Above all, I thank God, who blesses me with peaceful energy to support me at all time

xii

ABSTRACT

There is no doubt about the significance of English in today‟s world when the communicative abilities become important And one of the challenges is that how to help student be able to apply their classroom knowledge in real-life situations to the most extent Simulation is considered as one of the potential activities to wed theory into practice and improve students‟ speaking skills

The attempt was to know whether students were engaged in simulation and their responses to this activity To serve these purposes, a quantitative research together with

a specific group of 59 first-year students was chosen At the same time, two phases of questionnaires, before introducing simulation and after its implementation were proceeded For the achievements of these purposes, besides 59 freshmen from DHAV9A, DHAV9B, more methodologies including questionnaires and the interviews were also employed to help the researcher examine and provide more details to the findings as statistics and reliable materials for the analyzing phase

The results have found students‟ interest and support for this kind of activities They got chances to deal with realistic situations in relaxing settings, which not only prepared them with practical experience but promised to contribute to the improvement

of their speaking skills Additionally, this paper also provided several recommendations for the implementation of simulation, which were withdrawn from the research process

xiii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP……….i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……… ii

ABSTRACT ……….iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS……… iv

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS……….viii

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES……….ix

PART A: INTRODUCTION 7 Rationale ··· 1

8 Aims and objectives of the study ··· 2

9 Research questions ··· 2

10 Scope of the study ··· 3

11 Methods ··· 3

12 Organization of the study ··· 4

PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.3 Simulations ··· 5

1.1.8 Definition of simulations in language learning context ··· 5

1.1.9 Characteristics of simulations ··· 6

1.1.10 ··· Dist inction simulations and role-plays··· 8

1.1.11 ··· Disti nction simulations and games ··· 10

xiv

1.1.12 ··· The

role of simulations in L2 teaching and learning context ··· 11

1.1.13 ··· The limitation of simulations ··· 12

1.1.14 The effects of simulations on students‟ attitudes in language learning ……….13

1.1.7.4 Motivation ··· 13

1.1.7.5 Activeness ··· 14

1.1.7.6 Courage and confidence ··· 15

1.4 Summary of previous studies on simulations in language teaching and learning · 16 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 2.3 Participants and setting of the study ··· 18

2.4 Data collection ··· 18

2.2.4 Data collection instruments ··· 18

2.2.1.3 Questionnaire ··· 18

2.2.1.4 Interview ··· 19

2.2.5 Data collection procedures ··· 19

2.2.2.3 Piloting ··· 19

c) Piloting the questionnaires ··· 19

d) Piloting the interview ··· 20

2.2.2.4 Main procedure ··· 20

2.2.6 Data analysis procedures ··· 21

CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION 3.3 Findings and discussion ··· 23

xv

3.1.3 Students‟ English speaking learning before the introduction of simulations ··· 23 3.1.1.9 Students‟ attitudes in general towards the current speaking activities at class ··· 23 3.1.1.10 Students‟ improvement of speaking skills in comparison with that

of the last semester ··· 25 3.1.1.11 Students‟ frequency in practicing English speaking skills in daily situations ··· 25 3.1.1.12 Students‟ confidence in bringing English to realistic conversations with native speakers ··· 26 3.1.1.13 Students‟ participation in a variety of activities ··· 28 3.1.1.14 The activities that students feel like to participate in most ···· 29 3.1.1.15 Students‟ choice among various activities: group discussion, class discussion, role play and simulations ··· 30 3.1.1.16 Students‟ expectations in their speaking class ··· 31 3.1.4 The implementation and students‟ responses towards simulations ··· 33 3.1.2.6 Students‟ interest in simulations ··· 33 3.1.2.7 Students‟ responses about the benefits of simulations ··· 35 3.1.2.8 Students‟ self-evaluation about their roles in the simulations 37 3.1.2.9 Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities ··· 38 3.1.2.10 Do the students want simulations to be employed? ··· 39 3.4 Pedagogical implications ··· 39

PART C: CONCLUSION

5 Recapitulation of the study ··· 41

6 Conclusions of the study ··· 41

xvi

7 Limitations of the study ··· 42

8 Suggestions for further study ··· 43 REFERENCES ··· 45 APPENDICES

Appendix 1:Table 1: Simulation vs Role play I Appendix 2: Table 2: Simulation vs Game ··· II Appendix 3: Table 3: Summary of previous studies on simulation ··· III Appendix 4: Table 4: The practice of speaking skills in real –life situations ··· V Appendix 5: Table 5: Students‟ confidence in communicating with native speakers ··· VI Appendix 6: Table 6: Students‟ participation in various types of activities………VII Appendix 7: Table 7: The activities that students feel like to participate in most………VIII Appendix 8: Table 8: Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities ··· IX Appendix 9: Schedule of classroom observation ……… X Appendix 10: Questionnaire 1 (English version) Speaking activities in classroom before the application of simulations ··· XI Appendix 11: Questionnaire 1 (Viet version) Quan sát hoạt động trong tiết học speaking……… XIII Appendix 12: Questionnaire 2 (English version) Students‟ attitudes and responses to simulations ··· XV Appendix 13: Questionnaire 2 (Viet version) Quan sát thái độ của sinh viên về simulations ··· XVII Appendix 14: Sample lesson plan 1 - Shopping Stands………XIX Appendix 16: Lesson plan 2 - Restaurant Service simulations: Making and taking order

in a restaurant ··· XXI

xvii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

FFL : Faculty of Foreign Language

HUI : Ho Chi Minh University of Industry

DHAV9 : Đại học Anh văn 9

L2 : Second Language

xviii

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1: Simulation vs Role play

Table 2: Simulation vs Game

Table 3: Summary of previous studies on simulation

Table 4: The practice of speaking skills in real –life situations

Table 5: Students‟ confidence in communicating with native speakers

Table 6: Students‟ participation in various types of activities

Table 7: The activities that students feel like to participate in most

Table 8: Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities Figure 1: The structure of a simulation

Figure 2: Students‟ attitudes on speaking activities

Figure 3: Students‟ improvement of speaking skills compared to the last semester Figure 4: The practice of speaking skills in real-life situations

Figure 5: Students‟ confidence in communicating with native speakers

Figure 6: Students‟ participation in various types of activities

Figure 7: The activities that students feel like to participate in most

Figure 8: Students‟ choice among discussion, role play and simulation

Figure 8: Students‟ interest in simulation

Figure 10: Students‟ responses about the benefits of simulation

Figure 11: Comparison of students‟ attitudes among various speaking activities

same idea with Nunan in this case by saying:

“Speaking skills in learning English is a priority for many

second-language or foreign-second-language learners English learners often evaluate

their success in language learning as well as the effectiveness of their

English course on the basis of how much they feel they have improved

in their spoken language proficiency.”

In the international integration, the need for interpersonal communication is indispensable Therefore, English speaking competence is considered as a magic tool in dealing with language barrier However, Richard (1990: 122) explains the typical learners‟ problems in speaking such as speaking slowly, taking too long to compose utterances, being incapable to participate actively in conversation, speaking unnaturally, having poor grammar and poor pronunciation It is commonly seen that these difficulties emerge in most English teaching institutes During the teaching time

at HUI, I recognized that such kinds of obstacles also interfered with the teaching and learning of English as a foreign language (EFL) at HUI Specifically, most of our students are not confident enough to interact in English either in a real setting or in class Even when they want to express themselves, they are intervened by the lack of vocabulary or grammar In addition, it takes them much time to think about what they are going to say

As for speaking to the point, Tansey and Unwin (1969) state: “The context of learning is not the context in which the knowledge will have to be applied.” It is

believed that colleges of education have gone too far away from practical approaches

This research, therefore, hopefully contributes to students‟ improvements of speaking skills and their effective application to meet the requirements in a real world Moreover, this paper will be a helpful source of materials for the researcher‟s teaching career in the near future Thereby, simulation technique caught the researcher‟s interest because whereas standardized methods give us insight on how the student might do in

a real setting, “simulations will show us how the student actually performs” (Littlejohn,

1990: 128) Wondering whether simulations can benefit students at FFL of HUI to any considerable extent brings the researcher to this thesis research process

2 Aims and objectives of the study

The objectives are drawn up to get clear:

 if students can get along well with this simulations

 what students‟ responses to simulations are

All these findings promise to facilitate English learning and teaching through simulations approach, which fulfill students‟ need for realism- a desire to relate to life out there beyond the classroom‟s box-like walls” (McArthur, 1983: 101)

3 Research questions

Having explained the problems of the research in the previous part, the

researcher would like to formulate the problems into one question: To what extentare influences of the application of simulations on first year students’ attitudes in learning English speaking in FFL at HUI? To clarify this question, the more specific questions

are employed as follows:

3

 To what extent are students interested in simulations?

 What are students‟ responses to simulations?

4 Scope of the study

This research just attempts to address a small number of first year students from Faculty of Foreign Language at HUI The scale of this research is limited in these participants because of two reasons Firstly, they have made a turning passage from high school to University environment It is known that high school students focus mainly on grammar in English learning From personal experience combining with the majority of my peers‟, when attending University class as majored-English students, most of us are shy and hardly speak English And that might be the similar phenomenon to freshmen in general Secondly, there has not been any surety about the application of simulations technique in class In addition, its effectiveness on students

in FFL at HUI not been announced As a consequence, simulations research process will get priority on carrying out on first year students as an extent of elaborating the effectiveness of simulations implementation Simulations create new experience for freshmen in different learning situations Moreover, the application of this approach is

to help first year students build up confidence; get along well with this method in order

to set up a foundation for students to get a momentum in speaking at higher level In this paper, the researcher does not expect to study on theapplication of simulations in different fields in general for instancetechnology, economics, politics, etc but specifies

in English languageteaching and learning in particular Lastly, the paper does nottry to cover all the four skills in teaching and learning a foreign language,but focuses merely

on speaking skills

5 Methods

4

This study includes the interview and the survey questionnaires The questionnaires are designed to find out the students‟ responses to their speaking learning state and whether students ever come up with simulations in class Besides, this study also contains the interview from students in order to get deep and reliable data

6 Organization of the study

To achieve the aims of the study, this paper is divided into three main parts They are INTRODUCTION, DEVELOPMENT, and CONCLUSION

INTRODUCTION includes the reasons of choosing the thesis, the aims, the scope, the research questions, the methods and the organization of the study

DEVELOPMENT consists three chapters

Chapter 1 presents the theoretical background relevant to the research Firstly, some basic concepts of simulations are introduced Then, the summary of previous studies is also presented

Chapter 2 is the research methodology In this chapter, I will introduce the subject of the study, the instruments used to collect data and the procedure of data collection

Chapter 3 presents data analysis and discussion The data will be analyzed through two instruments: questionnaires and the student interview I also interpret the findings

The last part is CONCLUSION, which is the summary of the findings to facilitate English learning and teaching through simulations approach This part also includes the limitations of the study as well as some recommendations for further study

5

PART B: DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

Since Viet Nam became the 150th member of World Trade Organization in

2007, the accession will bring abundant opportunities to contribute to the economic development of Viet Nam More foreign investors have headed for Vietnam and there exists no debate about the position of English in such an integration context as a magic tool for global communication Therefore, English is now a compulsory subject in almost educational institutes in all over the world and in Vietnam in particular Learning is one thing, but how to apply that thing to the most extent for realistic purposes is the matter that inspires the researcher The reality shows that students have been learning English for a long time as 7 or 8 years or even more not only in their schools, universities but in extra classes in language centers However, many of them find it hard to get along well with English The noble duty of language education is how to engage students to speak up and prepare them with realistic experiences for the utmost important need of communication

1.1 Simulations

1.1.1 Definition of simulations in language learning context

Educators have been designing, using, evaluating, and writing about simulations for more than 40 years There are a lot of definitions on the term “simulations”, among whichDougili and Jones‟ (1987) are the very first researchers in this field.According to

Dougili (1987: 21), “Simulations can be defined as a structured set ofcircumstances that mirror real life and participants act as instructed.” The definition has not

specialized the unique features of simulations However, it is a foundation for further research to reach the light of simulations In his book: “Simulations in language

teaching” (1982), Jones defines “simulations asreality of function in a simulated and

6

structured environment.” Thisdefinition shows three essential elements in simulations:

reality of function,simulated environment, and structure

The two definitions have a consensus on “simulated environment”, which means the environment in which this kind of activities takes place mimics the setting as in real life However, Jones‟ explanation shapes a clearer picture to readers about simulations What make simulations different from other activities are its characteristics

1.1.2 Characteristics of simulations

Essentially, a simulation has three characteristics:

 A reality of function which means the participants in a simulation must step

inside the role they have accepted and act accordingly

 A simulated environment where there is no contact with the real world

 A structured environment where the participants have all the facts and

information provided for them

To the first feature, participants must step inside the function mentally and behaviorally in order to fulfill their duties and responsibilities in the situation (Jones, 1982: 5) The most important part of simulations is having participants accept the reality of function (role and duties) fully, not thinking they are students but taking the role; otherwise the simulations simply will not work For example, a participant who has the function of the doctor must examine the patient, communicating effectively to

do the job The role of students in simulations (as cited on Yeonhwan Lyu (2006: 13), therefore, is:

(1) taking the functional roles such as reporter, doctor, customer as a participant

“Taking the functional roles” here means participants fulfill their roles in the situation based on their practical experiences and personalities They do and must know the reasons for their behaviors, not just say: ““I was just imitating that person I saw on television last night.”

(2) stepping into the event

7

(3) shaping the event, carrying out their duties and responsibilities

To come up with the second characteristic, in simulations, a provided environment must be simulated In order to fulfill the essential condition of being a simulated environment, there must be no contact between the participants and the world outside of the classroom (Jone, 1982, as cited on Lyu, 2006: 13) In other words, when space in a restaurant is setting for the simulations, we do not need to provide real stylish tables, chairs or a real restaurant building, yet we simply create a simulated environment representing the restaurant by arranging and decorating the class with some props like vases of flowers, menus and so forth Likewise, if we need a music contest stage, we can move tables and chairs and leave a space on the platform with a chalk or marker-decorated board full of musical notes This preparation also engages students in utilizing their aesthetic senses in painting, drawing, decorating and so on One thing that needs to keep in mind is that only the environment is simulated, but the behavior of a participant is real

Finally, the environment must be structured It is important that the essential

“facts” of the simulations environment are provided, not invented by the participants,

to preserve reality of function (Jones, 1982: 5) Without structure, it is not a simulation because there is no reality of function Participants need more than a single episode in order that function properly in the simulations, the purposes, the process of the program and the relevant documents for the program, etc needed to be provided

In short, these three characteristics contribute to shaping a simulation It is generally divided into three phrases: firstly, a stage forgiving the participants necessary information; secondly, the problemsolving discussions, and thirdly follow- up work Herbert and Sturtridge(1979, as cited in Bygate, 2000: 81) illustrate this in their diagram ofstructure of a simulation as follows:

8

Figure 1: The structure of a simulation

1.1.3 Distinction simulations and role-plays

There is little consensus on the terms used in the “role play” and “simulations” literature Just a few of the terms which are used, often interchangeably, are

Information input Language work based on the task

The role-cards (if any) The background to the task

Linguistic input Classroom practice of the language of discussion and essential lexis

Sub- group discussions

Discussion of the task

Follow- up Feed back and evaluation session Immediate remedial work

Follow up Further work arising from the discussions

PHASE 1

PHASE 2

PHASE 3

9

"simulations," "games," "role-play," "simulations-games," "role-play simulations," and

"role-playing games" (Crookall & Oxford, 1990a) There does seem to be some agreement

However, the first distinction is that simulation is a broader concept than role play Ladousse (1987), for example, views simulations as complex, lengthy and relatively inflexible, but role playing as quite simple, brief and flexible Simulations simulate real life situations, while in role playing the participant is representing and experiencing some character type known in everyday life (Scarcella & Oxford, 1992) Simulations always include an element of role play (Ladousse, 1987)

The second is the criterion of “fact” As Jones, (1980: 10) simulations are not improvised drama, or episodic role play They are not isolated events played out before

an audience of fellow students/pupils In a professional situation the participants must have the key facts, and not be asked to invent them For example, “You are the customer returning a broken shoe, and you are the shop assistant” In simulations, the essential facts are provided to participants for the functional part such as their sex, age, job, broken shoes while in role plays, participants have to “invent” key facts or “act out” scenes according to provide specific scripts or descriptions alike The customer might take on the role of author and invent the circumstances in which the shoe broken, where, when, and what were the consequences The shop assistant could take on the role of author in order to invent the policy of shop towards disgruntled customers who return articles Participants are encouraged to act according to the script, which is impossible in simulations, where there is no script There is nothing wrong with this; imagination and improvisation are fine But the thoughts, motives, and tasks of a participant in such a role play are quite different from a simulation This is not to say that participants in simulations never invent “fact”, but they should never be key facts Invention and acting can sometime occur in a simulation, but this is usually confined to non-essential details

10

Thirdly, simulations simulate real life situations, while in role playing the participant is representing and experiencing some character types known in everyday life (Scarcella & Oxford, 1992) Participants in simulations take on roles accepting duties and responsibilities and function according to their own personalities, instead of playing or acting the role Mimicry of “real life” is legitimate for actors in role play and drama but not for participants in a simulation In the debriefing all participants should

be able reasons for their behavior and not say “I was just imitating that person I saw on television last night.”

As Bambrough (1994: 14) says, simulations are differentiated from other role activities in that the roles function within a structure that represents a real world situation and the elements of this situation are represents consistently in a dynamic

way (See the table 1 in appendix 1)

1.1.4 Distinction simulations and games

Like simulations, games can be effective learning tools, but some key characteristics can be distinguished them from simulations

Firstly, the difference between simulations and games is on the represented degree of reality of function unlike education simulations, games often involve elements of fantasy and make-believe whereas simulations present reality Secondly, the rules of play in games are likely to be fixed and rigid, unlike the more fluid and often spontaneous guidelines of simulations

Furthermore, many academic games, such as variations of bingo, are predicated

on a combination of knowledge and luck The luck factor gives all students, even less able, a chance to win, thus increasing motivation In simulations, the actions of the players typically have more predictable outcomes and luck brings no greater chance of success than it does in real life

11

Finally, games can also effectively reinforce or increase knowledge or strengthen skills, in the classroom they typically do so through less complex methods than in simulations Often the learning objectives are less clear-cut in games

Briefly, the four criteria to distinguish games and simulations are the degree of reality, the rules, the presence of luck and the complexity

The list in table 2 is Jone‟s interpretation of proper terminology that helps us to

understand the distinctions between simulations and other interactive activities ( See the table 2 in appendix 2)

The games (inappropriate) list is not intended to reflect adversely on the techniques of games, informal drama and exercises Clear appreciation of boundary lines helps immeasurably in choosing suitable simulations, designing the behavior, including both oral and written skills

1.1.5 The role of simulations in L2 teaching and learning context

According to Wan‟s summery (1990) of advantages: (as cited on Khuc Kim

Lan, 2010: 33) Simulations:

 Stimulates authentic conversations

Simulations activities stimulate authentic learner-to-learner conversational interaction (Richards, 1985) The activities also develop conversational competence

among second language learners

 Is a fluency activity:

It is where opportunities arise for the learner to use language freely and

creatively

 Is suitable for consolidation:

Since simulations activities are more practice/revision activities than teaching activities, they are useful and more suitable for consolidating and practicing aspects of

conversational proficiency than teaching new forms

 Creates sensitivity and a sense of awareness:

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Simulations bring the outside world into the classroom This could have affective effects in terms of social interaction and cultural awareness

 A break from routine:

The use of simulations activities is a break from the usual textbook teaching and the 'chalk and talk' method of the teacher The students have opportunities to mix around and to act out different roles The atmosphere in the classroom is less formal and this can reduce tension

 Prepare students for real life and unpredictability:

Real life situations and communication are unpredictable A student may learn all the correct forms of communication but may not know when to use them appropriately Simulations provide opportunities to react to these situations and to give

the students a taste of real life

Gibbs (1974) and Jones (1982) get along well with Wan‟s points (1990) about

the above pros of simulations but one stronger element that is: “It can be used as an assessment technique.” Oral examinations can make use of simulations where students

are given different roles to play in groups of fours or fives and left to interact on their

own The accuser observes and scores the students based on a marking scheme

1.1.6 The limitation of simulations

A coin always has two sides, and apparently, drawbacks in simulations are inevitable

 Selection of suitable simulations:

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Some criteria will have to be set before the selection of the appropriate simulations Factors to be considered include the language level of the learners, the costs of purchasing or making simulations sets, its relevance to the students and so on

 Difficulties in monitoring activities:

With so much activity both physical and verbal going on, it is sometimes difficult for the teacher to monitor a student's performance There is the fear among teachers that the students are having too much fun and that no learning is taking place

 Embarrassment:

In some situations, especially among adult learners, simulations activities cause

a lot of embarrassment, awkwardness and very little spontaneous language use The

choice of appropriate roles for different students is thus very important

 Encouragement of incorrect forms:

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Since the teacher is not encouraged to correct mistakes immediately so as not to discourage students, this provides opportunities for learners to produce and practice

ungrammatical and inappropriate forms

1.1.7 The effects of simulations on students’ attitudes in language learning 1.1.7.1 Motivation

Simulations increase motivation Simulations prompt mental and bodily activity The activities require active participation Concentration is also often required and it is not easy for a student to stay passive for long Situations are created for the students to use the language meaningfully and this would motivate the students towards participation The less motivated students will be gradually drawn into the activity when they see the rest of the group having a good time (Wan, 1990)

Teachers who have used simulations overwhelmingly agree that this method of learning motivates the students Theall and Franklin (1999), after editing a book examining motivation as it relates to teaching, learning, institutional programs, found convergence in the current research on motivation They found a “consistent pattern of emphasis on a group of six factors: inclusion, attitude, meaning, competence, leadership, and satisfaction” (1999: 105) All of the factors are apparent in well-organized simulations All researchers who have looked at motivation agree that it can not be “imposed” on students They have to somehow get “fired up” It goes without saying that we learn best what we feel a need to know Intrinsic motivation remains inextricably bound to some level of choice and control ” (Rhem, 1995) Motivation is self- generated since motive arises out of function, the duties, the responsibilities and the circumstances in which the participants find themselves (Jones, 1982: 10) When people are intrinsically motivated, they not only experience interest and enjoyment but also feel competent and self- determining (Deci & Ryan,1985: 34) Deci and Ryan

(1985: 256) also stated, “Being intrinsically motivated to learn improves the quality of

1.1.7.2 Activeness

Fortunately, active learning can play a key role in motivating students Emphasizing Greenblat‟s (1981) second element, the entire students participating in a variety of roles within an environment designed around the learning objectives of the course Petreanek, Corey, and Black(1992: 176) concluded that this participatory

interaction helps students learn through education simulations: “During a simulations participants unconsciously process all types of information: facts, strategies, outcomes, relationships, feeling, and much more…Learning happens because the students are active and not passive in the process They are able to experiment with various options and interact with fellow students” Moreover, students can share the leadership with the

teacher in simulations, which helps transform the chalk-and-talk tradition into center in classroom Different from traditional pedagogy, simulations give students free and large space to find themselves, exploring their strengths as well as weaknesses; the most importantly they know where their passion is to choose the effective tools in learning No one but they take the handlebar actively steering their own study and their future

student-1.1.7.3 Courage and confidence

Here is a perception that it is okay to make errors and keep going A basic reason for using simulations is that mistakes are both inevitable and desirable It is experiential learning, not programmed learning, or rehearsed event Participants learn

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from their mistakes and want opportunity to improve in the next simulations The greater the disaster is, the greater the learning becomes Participants‟ anxiety is lowered since there is no teacher in simulations; learners participate in the activity without trying to please the teacher or worrying about being correct Making mistakes and even failing the communication are accepted in simulations Learners do not have

to be afraid to fail because communication in simulations does not have to be successful to be beneficial In fact, failures are as desirable as success (Jones, 1982: 9) Learners have ample chances to make it work, not make it right, while they negotiate meanings in simulations By designing the simulations without all of complexities and distractions of real life, students are able to focus on the instructor‟s intended learning objectives Instructors can also “design out” negative learning experiences that often occur in actual practice Thus, students in education simulations can take risks without fear of harm to real people or real events, and they are free to learn from mistakes

In addition, when learning how to communicate in a target community, realistic experiences are essential In simulations, subjects/contexts are more meaningful to learners since they are inside of the simulations Being participants within the simulations, learners become an apart of the event and involved in real life situations where they have to deal with issues to resolve Therefore, the simulations that they are

in are not an “imaginary world” What they perform in the simulations may help them

to visualize what is in real life Thereby, they will feel more comfortable and more prepared Simulations give them ample opportunities to demonstrate themselves, which

enhance not only motivation but also confidence It is not the “I’ve read it, so now I know it”, but a type of confidence: it is the “I’ve done it, so I can do it” (Jones, 1982:

12)

Generally, motivation, activeness, courage and confidence are bricks of right attitudes in learning Once students are facilitated to come at right attitudes in learning, they will shape right strategies as well as positive directions in learning Importantly,

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such kinds of attitudes bring joy and enthusiasm to students every day at class as

Winston Churchill, a psychologist says: “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.”

1.2 Summary of previous studies on simulations in language teaching and

learning (See the table 3 in appendix 3)

Most of the research papers above prior to the theory of simulations such as its distinct features, advantages and disadvantages, some suggestions on how to apply simulations in classroom for students of different levels, and so forth These papers have stopped at simulations in words but action to testify its effectiveness on English speaking improvement in a specific number of students Therefore, the result could not show the validity and liability

There is a minority of papers relating to action Firstly, "Using simulations in an ESL Classroom: a descriptive analysis", written by Jung and Levitin (2006), pointed out both the theories and practice to testify the effectiveness of simulations by describing a typical courtroom simulations that was used in English in a program called EIC It also provides information concerning the preparations for the activity, the simulations itself, and the students' responses to and the perceptions of the activity The participants are thegovernment officials and their English levels ranged from low beginner tolow advanced The instruments that are used in this paper are questionnaireand observation with the video camera After that all the information are analyzed in detail It can be seen that the results of this study is of great reliability and practicality

The second action research is Khuc Kim Lan‟s (2010) with the same goal as Jung and Levitin However, the participants are third year students at advanced level The instruments are observation, questionnaire and interview with the record device This research also produces reliable outcomes with the responses and suggestions from

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both teachers and students, and also the interview‟s details are in great validity and clearly presented in this paper

It is the fact that a lot of research have touched upon the issue of usingsimulations

in L2 teaching and learning Yet, there still remains a gap as fewprevious research agreements on using simulations for a group of studentswhose major is English in a foreign language university

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CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 2.1 Participants and setting of the study

The subjects of this study are two groups of first-year students of Faculty of Foreign Language at HUI namely DHAV9A, DHAV9B The reason is made for this selection is that, different though they are from their time in high school of grammar focus, these students began to major in English of all skills including speaking Therefore, orientation and motivation should be given to them right at this stage so that they can get certain directions in their speaking learning in particular and English speaking in general The subjects of questionnaires are comprised 80% of females and the rest of males and the age was between 19 and 20 These students have been learning English for around 7 years

For interview, six out of the participants were chosen in the interview By implementing this, the researcher could confirm their answers in the questionnaires and their performance in real life Moreover, this created a chance to listen more about their ideas and thoughts on speaking activities

in Mackey & Gass, 2005: 92) This instrument was employed in this paper as it helps

collect information quickly from a large number of participants and is “one of the most common methods of collecting data on attitudes and opinions from a large group of participants” and it “allows researchers to gather information that learners are able to

report about themselves, such as their belief and motivation about learning or their reactions to learning” (Mackey & Gass, 2005: 92-93)

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Two different forms of questionnaires were self-developed The first one aims

to survey students‟ responses to their speaking learning state and whether students ever come up with simulations at class; the second to seek answers for the main question:

“To what extent are influences of the application of simulations on first year students’ attitudes in learning English speaking in FFL at HUI?” and the smaller branches:

 To what extent are students interested in simulations?

 What are students‟ responses to simulations?

The questionnaires totally include 12 close ended questions in order to quickly collect and administer responses and 5 open ended questions so that the respondents can freely speak their mind, even express further necessary words which have not been mentioned in the questionnaires The research made an effort to reduce open-ended questions because many of the students refuse to answer in dragging ways To be added, the survey was drawn up in Vietnamese in order to restrict misunderstanding and help students get clear expression of the questions

2.2.1.2 Interview

McNamara (1999) says: “interviews are particularly useful for getting the story behind a participant’s experiences The interviewer can pursue in-depth information around the topic Interviews may be useful as follow-up to certain respondents to questionnaires, e.g., to further investigate their responses.” Interviews are far personal

form of research than questionnaires, which can seek for more opinions and expressions from the respondents to intensify the data Based on the demands of this research, the same open-ended questions are asked to six interviewees from the two classes The interview was executed in the form of friendly conversation so that the students could be comfortable and honest to share their thoughts The most important pieces of information in the interview were noted down

2.2.2 Data collection procedures