Solving common intonation problems of non english major students at ho chi minh city university of science an action research study

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY - HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE SOLVING COMMON INTONATION PROBLEMS OF NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENTS AT HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE: AN ACTION RESEARCH STUDY A thesis submitted to the Faculty of English Linguistics and Literature in partial fulfillment of the Master's degree in TESOL By PHAM DUY DUONG Supervised by Assoc Prof Dr NGUYEN THANH TUNG HO CHI MINH CITY, MAY 2018 ACKNOWLEDMENTS Firstly, I would like to show my deepest gratitude to my beloved supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Nguyen Thanh Tung, for having wholeheartedly instructed, inspired, reminded and supported me when I conducted the study I apologize profusely to him for my lateness sometimes Without my dear supervisor, I could not have completed my thesis on time Secondly, I would like to give all my heartfelt thanks to all the lecturers at Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities and other lecturers for teaching, guiding and imparting the knowledge to me I have learned a great deal of valuable knowledge from them since I was a postgraduate at this university Thirdly, this thesis is highly dedicated to my parents and my two older brothers I owe a debt of gratitude to them They always remind me of the bright future after graduation and say to me "Do not ever give up and your best!" when I feel totally dispirited Next, I am extremely grateful to all my dear students and colleagues at Ho Chi Minh City University of Science for making my thesis complete and perfect Last but not least, I owe my friends, especially my closest one, special thanks They are always by my side to unceasingly motivate and push me when I am on the wrong track and give me helpful pieces of advice when I not have sufficient motivation for completing the thesis Thank you all of you from the bottom of my heart! i STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY I certify that this thesis, entitled "Solving common intonation problems of non-English major students at Ho Chi Minh City University of Science: An action research study" is my own work This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any other institution Ho Chi Minh City, May 2018 Pham Duy Duong ii RETENTION OF USE I hereby state that I, Pham Duy Duong, being a candidate for the degree of Master of Arts in TESOL, accept the requirements of the university related to the retention and use of Master's Thesis deposited in the University Library I agree that the original of my Master's Thesis deposited in the University Library should be accessible for the purpose of the study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the Library for the care, loan and reproduction of theses Ho Chi Minh City, May 2018 Pham Duy Duong iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDMENTS i STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ii RETENTION OF USE iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ix LIST OF TABLES x LIST OF FIGURES xiii ABSTRACT xiv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the study 1.2 Statement of the problem 1.3 Aim and research questions 1.4 Significance of the study 1.5 Organization of the thesis CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Pronunciation 2.1.1 Definitions of pronunciation 2.1.2 Aspects of pronunciation 2.1.3 Importance of pronunciation 2.2 Intonation 2.2.1 Definitions of intonation 2.2.2 Components of intonation 11 2.2.2.1 Pitch 11 2.2.2.2 Word stress 12 iv 2.2.2.3 Sentence stress 14 2.2.2.4 Tone unit 16 2.2.3 Intonation patterns 20 2.2.3.1 Paulston and Bruder (1976) 20 2.2.3.2 Kelly (2000) 21 2.2.3.3 Kreidler (2004) 23 2.2.3.4 Yoshida (2013) 23 2.2.4 Functions of intonation 26 2.3 Intelligibility and its application to intonation assessment 28 2.3.1 Intelligibility 28 2.3.2 Applying intelligibility to intonation assessment 29 2.4 Intonation teaching techniques 30 2.4.1 Using videos 30 2.4.2 Using Coolspeech 31 2.4.3 Using Speech Analyzer 31 2.5 Review of previous studies 31 2.6 Chapter summary 33 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 34 3.1 Research site 34 3.2 Participants 35 3.3 Research methodology 36 3.3.1 Research approach 36 3.3.2 Research method 37 3.3.2.1 Reasons for choosing action research 37 3.3.2.2 Applying action research to the study 38 v 3.3.3 Research instruments 40 3.3.3.1 Questionnaires 40 3.3.3.2 Tests 41 3.4 Analytical framework 43 3.4.1 Questionnaires 43 3.4.2 Tests 43 3.5 Validity and reliability 48 3.5.1 Questionnaires 48 3.5.2 Tests 48 3.6 Chapter summary 49 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 50 4.1 Data analysis 50 4.1.1 Results from the two questionnaires 50 4.1.1.1 Results from the pre-questionnaire 50 4.1.1.2 Results from the post-questionnaire 59 4.1.1.3 Comparison of pre- and post-questionnaires 64 4.1.1.4 Results from the two mini-tests of the two questionnaires 67 4.1.2 Results from the two tests 67 4.1.2.1 Inter-rater reliability 67 4.1.2.2 Tests data analysis 71 4.2 Discussion of the findings 76 4.2.1 Findings about the students' attitudes towards learning intonation 76 4.2.2 Findings about the students' intonation performance 77 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 80 5.1 Conclusion 80 vi 5.2 Evaluation of research methodology 81 5.2.1 Strengths 81 5.2.2 Weaknesses 82 5.3 Recommendations 82 5.3.1 For the teachers 82 5.3.2 For the students 83 5.3.3 For the schools 83 5.4 Suggestions for further research 84 5.5 Chapter summary 84 REFERENCES 85 APPENDICES 88 (Pre-questionnaire) 89 APPENDIX 2: Pre-questionnaire 94 (Post-questionnaire) 98 APPENDIX 4: Post-questionnaire 102 APPENDIX 5: Intonation test (Pre-test) 105 APPENDIX 6: Intonation test (Post-test) 107 APPENDIX 7: Pre-test assessment 109 APPENDIX 8: Post-test assessment 112 APPENDIX 9: Criteria for intonation assessment 115 APPENDIX 10: Raw scores by Examiner 116 APPENDIX 11: Raw scores by Examiner 117 APPENDIX 12: Total scores by Examiner 118 APPENDIX 13: Total scores by Examiner 119 APPENDIX 14: Mean scores by the two examiners 120 vii APPENDIX 15: General improvement of students 121 APPENDIX 16: Mean scores of the four types by the two examiners122 APPENDIX 17: Students' improvement for each type 123 viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AR : Action research HCMUS : Ho Chi Minh City University of Science SPSS : The statistical package for the social sciences ix Student: APPENDIX 7: Pre-test assessment Part Sentences Poor Fair Good Excellent Score Total score What's the matter? Part What you think? Which class you have on Tuesday mornings? Part Why didn't you answer the phone last night? I can't believe you've lost them again Part We might go for a picnic in the country if 109 the weather's not too bad I'm so nervous about my interview! Part Thank you for taking the time to come here in person Nice day, isn't it? Part We met at the conference last year, didn't we? Sally sometimes goes home early, doesn't she? Part She has won this award before, hasn't she? Have you got any plans for today? 110 Part Are you going anywhere nice this weekend? Do you have to study hard to become a dentist? Part Can you recommend a good eye doctor? 111 Student: APPENDIX 8: Post-test assessment Part Sentences Poor Fair Good Excellent Score Total score What are you doing here in Edinburgh? Part OK, so, where should I go after Melbourne? What's the English word for this? Part How long have you been studying with your present teacher? It's an absolutely beautiful city Part I actually went over to watch Scotland play 112 football France is slightly more crowded than the UK Part We haven't had a holiday since October You were in Prague last year, weren't you, Phillip? Part There are beautiful beaches up there, aren't there? Mr Suzuki is waiting for the delivery, isn't he? Part Sarah joined us last week, didn't she? Were you there for a holiday? 113 Part Should I stay in Cairns? Does all your family live round here? Part Do people have to military service in your country? 114 APPENDIX 9: Criteria for intonation assessment Level Criteria Flat intonation makes the speaker almost impossible to Poor (1pt) understand There is (almost) no attempt to make the key words or tonic syllables prominent Inadequate use of intonation makes the speaker very Fair (2pts) difficult to follow without compensation There is little effort to make important words or syllables stand out Adequate use of intonation, making the intelligibility of Good (3pts) the message fairly high, although there are occasional lapses Intelligibility is sometimes impeded by making the wrong syllables prominent Good use of intonation makes the speaker easy to follow Excellent (4pts) Intelligibility is almost never impeded by insufficient or misplaced prominence 115 APPENDIX 10: Raw scores by Examiner PRE-TEST No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Wh 10 11 9 7 10 10 8 7 9 9 S 10 10 11 11 7 8 7 7 11 8 10 10 11 11 T 12 11 7 11 5 8 11 7 POST-TEST Y/N 11 10 7 7 7 10 6 9 10 7 7 Wh 11 10 10 11 10 10 10 11 9 10 10 11 11 11 11 10 13 10 12 13 10 12 13 S 13 11 10 11 10 10 11 10 10 10 11 11 10 10 10 11 11 13 13 14 12 11 14 12 T 10 13 10 10 11 11 10 9 10 11 11 10 9 11 10 9 11 11 11 11 13 13 14 12 10 12 Y/N 12 10 11 11 9 10 10 11 11 10 11 11 12 11 10 11 12 11 11 13 11 11 12 116 APPENDIX 11: Raw scores by Examiner PRE-TEST No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Wh 9 11 11 8 11 8 8 7 7 10 5 10 S 11 12 12 10 10 9 10 8 11 10 11 10 11 10 10 10 10 T 12 10 11 8 10 5 12 8 10 12 9 POST-TEST Y/N 12 10 8 9 9 10 7 9 10 8 Wh 13 12 10 12 11 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 11 10 11 11 11 12 10 11 12 11 12 12 S 13 13 12 11 11 10 10 10 12 11 11 11 11 10 11 12 11 9 12 12 11 13 13 13 12 11 12 12 T 12 13 12 12 11 11 11 10 11 11 12 11 12 11 14 11 9 12 11 12 11 12 11 12 12 10 12 Y/N 11 13 10 11 11 11 12 9 10 11 11 11 11 11 12 12 11 11 12 12 12 11 12 10 11 117 APPENDIX 12: Total scores by Examiner No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Pre-test total score Post-test total score 32 42 40 32 41 27 27 31 27 31 32 28 31 27 23 27 40 26 26 23 33 31 33 37 36 38 32 25 34 30 34 49 41 40 41 40 40 38 37 39 40 43 40 39 40 39 45 40 40 36 43 42 44 48 47 52 50 44 45 49 118 APPENDIX 13: Total scores by Examiner No Pre-test total scores Post-test total scores 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 33 45 43 38 36 32 33 36 29 28 35 34 36 31 27 24 41 32 25 23 34 34 36 34 39 38 29 22 32 35 41 52 47 45 45 42 44 40 37 44 44 43 44 45 44 36 50 45 39 36 46 43 46 48 47 46 45 46 44 47 119 APPENDIX 14: Mean scores by the two examiners No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Mean Pre-test 32.5 43.5 41.5 35 38.5 29.5 30 33.5 28 29.5 33.5 31 33.5 29 25 25.5 40.5 29 25.5 23 33.5 32.5 34.5 35.5 36 38 30.5 23.5 33 32.5 32.2 Post-test 37.5 50.5 44 42.5 43 41 42 39 37 41.5 42 43 42 42 42 37.5 47.5 42.5 39.5 36 44.5 42.5 45 48 47 49 47.5 45 44.5 48 43.1 120 APPENDIX 15: General improvement of students No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Mean Pre-test Post-test 32.5 37.5 43.5 50.5 41.5 44 35 42.5 38.5 43 29.5 41 30 42 33.5 39 28 37 29.5 41.5 33.5 42 31 43 33.5 42 29 42 25 42 25.5 37.5 40.5 47.5 29 42.5 25.5 39.5 23 36 33.5 44.5 32.5 42.5 34.5 45 35.5 48 36 47 38 49 30.5 47.5 23.5 45 33 44.5 32.5 48 32.2 43.1 Improvement Improvement 2.5 7.5 4.5 11.5 12 5.5 12 8.5 12 8.5 13 17 12 13.5 14 13 11 10 10.5 12.5 11 11 17 21.5 11.5 15.5 10.9 100% 121 APPENDIX 16: Mean scores of the four types by the two examiners No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Mean Wh 9.5 11 10 8.5 7.5 7.5 10.5 6.5 8.5 7.5 8 6.5 6.5 6.5 5.5 7.5 8.5 9 9.5 8.0 PRE-TEST S T 10.5 11 12 11.5 9.5 9.5 7.5 10 11 9.5 8 7.5 5.5 8.5 5.5 9.5 7.5 8 7.5 6.5 7.5 6.5 11 11.5 6.5 7.5 4.5 10 7.5 10.5 8.5 9.5 9.5 9.5 11.5 10.5 9.5 10.5 7.5 9.0 7.5 Y/N 6.5 11.5 9.5 6.5 7.5 7.5 8 8.5 6.5 10 6.5 6.5 7.5 8 9.5 9.5 6.5 7.5 7.5 7.8 Wh 12 11 9.5 11 11 10.5 9.5 10 10.5 10 10 10 11 9.5 11.5 10 10.5 11 11 10.5 12.5 10 11.5 12.5 10.5 12 12.5 10.6 POST-TEST S T 8.5 11 13 13 12 11 11 11 10 11 11 11 10 10.5 10 9.5 11.5 10 10 10.5 10.5 11.5 10.5 11 10 11 10 10 11 11.5 12.5 10.5 10.5 9.5 9 11 11.5 11.5 11 11 11.5 13 11 13 12.5 13.5 12 12 13 11 12 13 10 12 12 11 10.9 Y/N 10 12.5 10 11 11 10 10.5 9.5 10 11 11 10.5 11 11 12 11.5 10.5 11 12 11.5 11.5 12 10 11.5 9.5 11.5 10.6 122 APPENDIX 17: Students' improvement for each type No 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Percentage Wh-questions -1.5 -0.5 2.5 1.5 3.5 1.5 1.5 2.5 2 4.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 3.5 4 2.5 5.5 4.5 3 86.7% Statements Tag questions Yes/no questions 3.5 -2 1 0.5 1.5 0.5 1.5 3.5 0 1.5 3.5 3.5 1.5 1.5 3.5 4.5 0.5 3.5 3 3.5 2.5 2 2.5 4.5 2.5 5 4.5 1.5 0.5 1.5 4.5 4.5 4 2.5 3.5 3.5 2.5 3.5 0.5 3.5 1.5 3.5 3.5 3 2.5 2.5 4 2.5 4 4.5 93.3% 96.7% 96.7% 123 ... certify that this thesis, entitled "Solving common intonation problems of non- English major students at Ho Chi Minh City University of Science: An action research study" is my own work This thesis... to investigate the use of intonation of English major freshmen at the Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Dang (2012) emphasized the significance of intonation, namely... LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AR : Action research HCMUS : Ho Chi Minh City University of Science SPSS : The statistical package for the social sciences ix LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1: Definitions of intonation