Attitudes of ULIS first year international business english students towards the application of case studies in english 2a business

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION FAST TRACK DIVISION  GRADUATION PAPER ATTITUDES OF ULIS FIRST-YEAR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS ENGLISH STUDENTS TOWARDS THE APPLICATION OF CASE STUDIES IN ENGLISH 2A - BUSINESS Supervisor: Nguyễn Thị Thanh Vân, M.A Student: Nguyễn Ngọc Thu Trang Course: QH2012.F1.E1 Hanoi, May 2016 ACCEPTANCE PAGE I hereby state that I: Nguyen Ngoc Thu Trang, class 12E1, being a candidate for the degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the College relating to the retention and use of Bachelor’s Graduation Paper deposited in the library In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper Hanoi, 5th May 2016 Nguyen Ngoc Thu Trang ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First of all, I wish to send my most sincere gratitude to Ms Nguyen Thi Thanh Van, M.A., my mentor for this research paper With many years of teaching experience in English for Business Purposes, she has given me such an invaluable guidance and advice throughout the whole process of completing the thesis Her enthusiasm, sympathy and willingness to listen to my concerns are also a precious support to help me go through difficult and demotivating moments I also want to pay tribute to all the research participants - three teachers and 50 first-year and second-year students in the International Business English program, FELTE, ULIS Despite being busy with their own teaching and learning schedules, they have been always willing to spare time sharing with me their personal viewpoints in the survey and interview Last but not least, I would like to thank my family and friends for always standing by and giving me spiritual encouragement for the last five months i ABSTRACT With a scrutiny into the process of conducting case studies by first-year students in the International Business English program, FELTE, ULIS, the research aims at: (1) reporting students' perceptions of the effectiveness of case studies in enhancing pivotal skills for business careers, (2) determining the demotivating factors that students may encounter when doing case studies and (3) offering recommendations to overcome demotivation and make the best use of case studies in Business English lessons To achieve the above objectives, the research uses a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods with questionnaire and semi-structured interview as main data collection instruments The result reveals that as perceived by students, case studies enormously contribute to their development in various essential skills for their future careers such as business communication skills, problem-solving skill and decisionmaking skill In addition, students face numerous sources of demotivation in doing case studies Their demotivation originates from diverse factors: students themselves, learning materials, teachers and learning environment, which suggests reconsideration and comprehensive changes for improvement ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements i Abstract ii List of abbreviations vii List of tables viii List of figures ix PART A INTRODUCTION The statement of the problem and the rationale for the study Research aims Research questions Scope of the research Significance of the research Organization of the research PART B DEVELOPMENT Chapter Literature Review Theoretical backgrounds of Business English 1.1 Definitions and features of Business English 1.2 Characteristics of a successful Business English learner 1.2 Methods of teaching Business English Theoretical backgrounds of task-based language teaching (TB LT) iii 2.1 Definitions of tasks in TBLT 2.2 Stages of a TBLT lesson Theoretical backgrounds of case studies 10 3.1 Definitions of case studies 10 3.2 Case studies in teaching Business English 11 3.3 The benefits of case studies 12 3.3.1 Case studies in developing business communication 12 skills 3.3.2 Case studies in developing problem-solving skill 14 and decision-making skill Case studies exploitation in International Business English 15 program, ULIS 4.1 Description of cases in Market Leader - Intermediate 15 4.2 Case studies implementation procedure 16 4.3 Related study 18 Theoretical backgrounds of demotivation 19 5.1 Definitions of demotivation 19 5.2 Demotivation in language learning 19 Chapter Methodology 22 Research design 22 Research participants 22 Data collection instruments 23 Data collection procedure 25 Data analysis methods and procedure 26 iv Chapter Data analysis, discussion of major findings and recommendations Data analysis 28 Major findings and discussion 44 Recommendations 47 3.1 Recommendations to the students 47 3.2 Recommendations to the teachers 49 3.3 Recommendations to the course designer(s) 50 PART C CONCLUSIONS 52 Summary 52 Implications 53 Contributions of the study 54 Limitations of the study 54 Suggestions for further study 55 REFERENCES 56 APPENDIXES Appendix 1: Case study report I Appendix 2: Case study evaluation sheet (Group performance) III Appendix 3: Case study evaluation sheet (Individual performance) V Appendix 4: Survey questionnaire for students VI Appendix 5: Interview questions for teachers XIV v Appendix 6: Interview questions for students XVI Appendix 7: Evaluation form XVII vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS FELTE: Faculty of English Language Teacher Education ULIS: University of Languages and International Studies VNU: Vietnam National University ESP: English for Specific Purposes EBP: English for Business Purposes CLIL: Content and language integrated learning CBI: Content-based instruction TBLT: Task-based language teaching %: percent SD: Standard deviation vii LIST OF TABLES Table Name of table Page Table Variants of the work with case studies 15 Table Ratings on the effectiveness of case studies in particular skills 30 Table The frequency of demotivators in case-study lessons 38 viii Timekeeping: finished in allocated time Work distribution: equal contributions from group members Comments Process Mark / 20 GROUP MARK / 60 IV APPENDIX CASE STUDY EVALUATION SHEET (Individual Performance) Name: Group: QH15E Group number: = poor INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE = best Lexial resource: address business terms covered in the unit Grammar accuracy: shows good control of grammar Pronunication: practises basic pronunciation features Fluency: speaks at length and use connective devices Eye contact: makes eye contact to engage the audience Gesture & Posture: correspond to the content of the case Clear speech: audible, nervousness controlled Personal energy: shows confidence / control; avoids reading notes Comments Individual mark / 40 OVERALL MARK / 100 V APPENDIX SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS This questionnaire is designed to collect information about the attitudes of first-year International Business English students towards the application of case studies in the subject English 2A - Business Your assistance in responding to the following questions is appreciated All information in this survey will be kept confidentially and used for statistics and research purposes only Thank you in advance! I Personal background Survey conductor Name: Nguyen Ngoc Thu Trang Class: QH2012.F1.E1 Faculty: Faculty of English Language Teacher Education Mobile: 098 332 8194 Email: trangngocnguyen281@gmail.com Research Attitudes of ULIS first-year International Business English students title: towards the application of case studies in English 2A - Business Survey respondent Name: Class: Mobile: VI Email: VII II Survey content Case study is a widely used method in teaching and learning Business English It provides participants with opportunities to practise using the target language in meaningful scenarios that they are likely to face in their futur e careers such as business negotiations, meetings, presentation, writing emails, reports and action minutes, etc Which case-study activities have you participated in in International Business English program, ULIS, VNU? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers You can tick MORE than one choice □ Presentation □ Group discussion □ Debate □ Role play □ Problem solving □ Decision making □ Writing business genres (email, action minutes, summary, report, letter) □ Other(s) (please specify): To what extent you find the following case-study activities effective in developing your business skills? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers Not effective A little Quite effective Effective Very effective at all effective VIII Case-study activities Presentation Group discussion Debate Role play Problem solving Decision making Writing business genres (email, action minutes, summary, report, letter) Other(s) (please specify): To what extent you find case studies useful in developing the following skills? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers Not useful at all A little useful Quite useful Useful Very useful Skills Agreeing and disagreeing Asking for opinions Giving opinions Making suggestions Stating your purpose Interrupting Dealing with interruptions Summarizing IX Asking for information Checking information Making offers Accepting an offer Refusing an offer Checking understanding Playing for time Following up the deal Closing the deal Reaching agreement Taking turns Teamwork Structuring the presentation Introducing the topic Inviting questions Refering to the audience's knowledge Refering to visuals Taking action minutes Writing emails Writing letters Writing reports Writing summary Solving problems Making decisions Other(s) (please specify) a) b) c) X d) To what extent you agree with the following statements? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree Through case studies No Statement 4.1 I learn the way to be a confident presenter I know how to introduce the talk, announce 4.2 the outline, highlight, summarize and invite questions 4.3 4.4 4.5 I can improve my pronunciation I can speak with appropriate volume and body language I can improve my English fluency I can improve my writing in terms of the following criteria:  Task achievement 4.6  Coherence and cohesion  Lexical resource  Grammar XI 4.7 I learn how to make negotiations 4.8 I can memorize business words better 4.9 4.10 I can use business words in the right contexts I learn the way to think critically to make final decisions 4.11 I can practise solving problems How you feel about case-study lessons? Please circle your answer A Motivated B Neutral C Demotivated * If you circle A, please answer question and skip questions 7, If you circle B or C, please skip question and answer questions 7, What makes you feel MOTIVATED in case-study lessons? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers You can tick MORE than one choice □ The topics of case studies are familiar □ The listening / reading texts in case studies are mostly interesting □ Vocabulary included in case studies is easy enough for me to understand □ Given tasks in case studies are simple enough to fulfill □ The teacher has creative and interesting ways of conveying knowledge and facilitating activities □ The speed of teaching is moderate □ The teacher's instructions are easy to understand □ I often get help with my language mistakes in English classrooms XII □ Both coursebook and other supplementary sources are well exploited □ The workload (assignments, homework) is adequate □ The classroom atmosphere is relaxing □ I like to work in groups □ I get marks equivalent to my efforts □ Other(s) (please specify): What makes you feel DEMOTIVATED when doing case studies? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers You can tick MORE than one choice □ The topics of case studies are difficult or unfamiliar □ The listening / reading texts in case studies are mostly boring □ Vocabulary included in case studies is too difficult for me to understand □ Given tasks in case studies are too complicated to fulfill □ The teacher has uncreative and boring ways of conveying knowledge and facilitating activities □ The lessons' activities are conducted too fast to follow □ The teacher's instructions are difficult to understand □ I not often get help with my language mistakes in English classrooms □ Lessons are just limited to coursebook □ The workload (assignments, homework) is too much □ The classroom atmosphere is stressful □ I not like to work in groups □ I get low marks despite having studied hard and seriously □ I am left behind by my classmates □ I feel unconfident / I am afraid of losing face XIII □ Other(s) (please specify): What can help you overcome the above problems in doing case studies? Please put (x) in the box which indicates your answers You can tick MORE than one choice □ More interesting coursebooks □ Materials at lower levels □ More inspiring ways of teaching (activities, explanation, etc) □ Teacher's praises and encouragement □ Slower speed of teaching □ More easily comprehensible instructions □ More frequent feedback from the teacher □ More materials, activities, tasks other than coursebooks □ Less workload (assignments, homework) □ More friendly classroom atmosphere □ Less groupwork □ Other(s) (please specify): -The EndThank you for your participation XIV APPENDIX INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR TEACHERS What is your opinion about the content of the cases in Market Leader Intermediate? Follow-up questions: (in case teachers not mention these in their answers) - What you think about their authenticity? Do they mirror real-world business contexts? - What you think about the lexical resources included in case studies? Are they equivalent to your students' level? - What you think about the tasks in case studies? Are they motivating? Are they appropriate for your students' level? How often you give feedback to your students in case studies activities? What kind of feedback you give? (corrective, descriptive, diagnostic) How often you provide support to students? What kind of support is it? (in terms of vocabulary? language use? content?) What factors you think can motivate your students when taking part in case studies? What factors you think can negatively affect your students' motivation when taking part in case studies? What suggestions you give to help them overcome the demotivation? XV Thank you for all that valuable information, is there anything else you'd like to add before we end? XVI APPENDIX INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR STUDENTS In the questionnaire, you rated debate activity as not effective at all / a little effective Can you explain your evaluation? In the questionnaire, you disagreed with the statement: "Through case studies, I can speak with appropriate volume and body language." Can you explain why you disagreed? In the questionnaire, you disagreed with the statement: "I can memorize business words better and longer." Can you explain why you disagreed? You ticked "I not often get help with my language mistakes in the English classroom" as one of the factors that demotivate you in case-study lessons Can you elaborate on this? In the questionnaire, you noted that Could you please clarify how case study activities help you improve those particular skills? Think back to a demotivating case study lesson you attended What made you so demotivated? In the questionnaire, you noted that make you demotivated Could you please clarify how negatively affects your motivation when taking part in case study lessons? Thank you for all that valuable information, is there anything else you'd like to add before we end? XVII APPENDIX EVALUATION FORM To what extent have you achieved the lesson's desired learning outcomes? Degree of achievement Learning outcomes Accomplished Developing Emerging (Learning outcome 1) (Learning outcome 2) (Learning outcome 3) What you LIKE most about the lesson? …………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… What you DISLIKE most about the lesson? …………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………………………… XVIII ... the researcher to a study with the title: "Attitudes of ULIS first- year International Business English students towards the application of case studies in English 2A Business" Research aims The. .. Definitions of tasks in TBLT 2.2 Stages of a TBLT lesson Theoretical backgrounds of case studies 10 3.1 Definitions of case studies 10 3.2 Case studies in teaching Business English 11 3.3 The. .. encouragement for the last five months i ABSTRACT With a scrutiny into the process of conducting case studies by first- year students in the International Business English program, FELTE, ULIS, the research