Investigating students attitides towards teaching to the test in their toeic preparaton courses a study at hcmc university of technology m a

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HOCHIMINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE INVESTIGATING STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS “TEACHING TO THE TEST” IN THEIR TOEIC PREPARATION COURSES: A STUDY AT HCMC UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY A thesis submitted to the Faculty of English Linguistics & Literature in partial fulfillment of the Master’s degree in TESOL By NGUYỄN THÁI SƠN Supervised by LÊ HOÀNG DŨNG, PhD HO CHI MINH CITY, MAY 2014 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY-HOCHIMINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES & HUMANITIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE INVESTIGATING STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS “TEACHING TO THE TEST” IN THEIR TOEIC PREPARATION COURSES: A STUDY AT HCMC UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY A thesis submitted to the Faculty of English Linguistics & Literature in partial fulfillment of the Master’s degree in TESOL By NGUYỄN THÁI SƠN Supervised by LÊ HOÀNG DŨNG, PhD HO CHI MINH CITY, MAY 2014 APPROVAL SHEET The thesis submitted by Nguyễn Thái Sơn has been read and approved by the following committee: Dr Đặng Tấn Tín Chair Petrovietnam University Dr Phó Phương Dung Secretary HCMC University of Social Sciences & Humanities Assoc.Prof Dr Nguyễn Thanh Tùng Reader HCMC University of Pedagogy Dr Đồn Huệ Dung Reader Nơng Lâm University Dr Lê Hoàng Dũng Member HCMC University of Social Sciences & Humanities The final copies have been examined by the supervisor of the thesis and the signature that appears below verifies the fact that any necessary changes have been incorporated and that the thesis is now given final approval by the committee with reference to content and form The thesis is therefore accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in TESOL Date Supervisor’s signature i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people have assisted me in the preparation of the current thesis, but, of course I am alone responsible for any shortcomings First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere thanks and special gratitude to Dr Lê Hoàng Dũng, my supervisor, without whose excellent guidance, patience, and encouragement, the completion of this thesis could never have been possible I am grateful for the support provided by University of Technology, Ho Chi Minh City: both its students and teachers who responded and have been instrumental in shaping the contents of the study I would like to give special thanks to Ms Mai Phuong, Ms Kim Phung, and Ms Xuan Tien, who enthusiastically permitted data collection through observation and shared insights into test preparation in their classrooms A serious problem that could have obstructed the feasibility of this thesis was inadequate access to materials; consequently, my ultimate gratitude goes to Mr Huy Cuong, PhD candidate, Massey University and Mr W James Popham, Professor Emeritus, University of California-Los Angeles for kindly sending me their valuable articles upon my request I would like, in addition, to thank the faculty members at USSH-EF who have contributed to my professional development and thank the staff who provided me with the full assistance whenever I needed it Also, a special word of thanks is due to Ms Hoang Yen and Mr Nguyen Han, who generously dedicated their time and patience to supporting me with their excellent technical knowledge Last but not least, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my family for their deep love, tolerance, and understanding that have and will always follow me on every path of my life ii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY I certify my authorship of the Master’s Thesis in TESOL submitted today entitled: INVESTIGATING STUDENTS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS “TEACHING TO THE TEST” IN THEIR TOEIC PREPARATION COURSES: A STUDY AT HCMC UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY In terms of the Statement of Requirements for Theses in Master’s Programs issued by the Higher Degree Committee This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any other institutions Ho Chi Minh City, May 2014 Signature NGUYỄN THÁI SƠN iii RETENTION OF USE I hereby state that I, NGUYỄN THÁI SƠN, being a candidate for the degree of Master of Arts (TESOL), accept the requirements of the University relating to the retention and use of Master’s theses deposited in the library In terms of these conditions, I agree that the original of my Master’s thesis deposited in the library should be accessible for purposes of 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 2014 Signature NGUYỄN THÁI SƠN iv TABLE OF CONTENTS APPROVAL SHEET i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY iii RETENTION OF USE iv LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF FIGURES x ABSTRACT xi CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background to the study 1.1.1 “Teaching to the test” and the ELT reform in Vietnam 1.1.2 Utilization of TOEIC as a high-stakes test in Vietnam 1.1.3 TOEIC preparation courses at HCMC-UT 1.2 Objectives of the study 1.3 Research questions 1.4 Significance of the study 1.5 Scope of the study 1.6 Definition of terms 1.7 Organization of the study CHAPTER REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 2.1 TOEIC as a high-stakes English test 2.1.1 Introduction to the TOEIC test 2.1.2 Issues around the TOEIC test and test preparation 10 2.2 “Teaching to the test” 12 2.2.1 General perceptions of “teaching to the test” 12 2.2.2 Discussion over “teaching to the test” 14 2.2.3 Ethical continuum for evaluation 25 2.3 A synthesis of the review of related literature 28 2.4 Towards an operational definition 29 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 37 v 3.1 Research method 37 3.2 Research setting 39 3.3 Sampling 40 3.4 Research participants 41 3.4.1 Teacher respondents 41 3.4.2 Student respondents 42 3.5 Research instruments 43 3.5.1 Questionnaire to teacher respondents 44 3.5.2 Questionnaire to student respondents 44 3.5.1 Structured interview 46 3.5.2 Classroom observation 46 3.6 Data collection procedure 47 3.7 Data analysis procedure 49 CHAPTER DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 51 4.1 Analysis of data 51 4.1.1 Results from questionnaires to teacher respondents 51 4.1.2 Results from questionnaires to student respondents 63 4.1.3 Results from interviews with students 89 4.1.4 Results from classroom observation 94 4.2 Discussion of results 98 4.2.1 Application of “teaching to the test” at HCMC-UT 98 4.2.2 Learners’ attitudes towards “teaching to the test” at HCMC-UT 99 4.2.3 Practical problems in TOEIC preparation courses at HCMC-UT 101 CHAPTER SUMMARY OF FINDINGS, SUGGESTIONS & CONCLUSION 105 5.1 Summary of major findings 105 5.2 Suggestions 107 5.2.1 Suggestions to the academic administrators at HCMC-UT 107 5.2.2 Suggestions to the teachers at HCMC-UT 111 5.3 Limitations of the current study 117 5.4 Recommendations for further research 118 vi 5.5 Conclusion 118 REFERENCES 119 APPENDICES 127 vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CA : Communicative Approach CEFR : Common European Framework of Reference CET : College English Test CETQA : Center for Educational Testing and Quality Assessment CLT : Communicative Language Teaching CIV : construct-irrelevant variance EFL : English as a Foreign Language ESP : English for Specific Purposes ETS : Educational Testing Service HCMC : Ho Chi Minh City HCMC-UT : Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology IELTS : International English Language Testing System ITBS : Iowa Test of Basic Skills L : Listening (skill) L2 : second language/target language MCQ : multiple-choice question MOET : Ministry of Education and Training Qs : questions R : Reading (skill) RQ : research question S : Speaking (skill) Ss : students T/Ts : teacher/teachers TOEIC : Test of English for International Communication TOEFL : Test of English as a Foreign Language W : Writing (skill) viii Previous form preparation GV sử dụng kiểm tra năm trước làm luyện tập lớp      GV hướng dẫn cách trả lời câu hỏi dựa đề năm trước      GV cho SV xem đề thi năm trước để định hướng ôn tập cho SV      GV dạy từ vựng nằm kiểm tra      Current form preparation đến GV cho SV luyện tập trước câu hỏi thi đến, có thay đổi lựa chọn trắc GV cho SV luyện tập câu hỏi giống hoàn Varied-format preparation toàn với kiểm tra đến B      nghiệm chút      10 GV cung cấp câu hỏi luyện tập với nhiều dạng thức khác ngồi dạng trắc nghiệm (ví      dụ: câu hỏi mở/ điền từ/ viết luận/câu đố, v.v…) Hướng dẫn kĩ làm 11 GV hướng dẫn SV cách hiểu đề kiểm tra      12 GV hướng dẫn SV cách điền câu trả lời vào phiếu trả lời cho      13 GV hướng dẫn SV cách dùng thời gian hợp lí để hồn thành tốt kiểm tra      14 GV hướng dẫn SV cách lí luận để loại bỏ câu trả lời sai (mồi nhử) 15 GV hướng dẫn SV chiến thuật suy đoán           16 GV hướng dẫn SV cách tránh sai sót làm kiểm tra      17 GV giúp SV hiểu mục đích kiểm tra (những thơng tin cần thiết thi TOEIC)      18 GV hướng dẫn SV tìm dấu hiệu câu trả lời      C Giới hạn chương trình 19 GV chuẩn bị giảng dựa thi năm trước dạy theo      20 GV sử dụng thi năm trước để loại bỏ nội dung thi      21 GV trọng dạy nghĩa nhóm từ vựng thường xuất kiểm tra (chỉ dạy ý nghĩa từ để đủ trả lời trắc nghiệm, để ý đến      ngữ âm cách dùng từ) 22 GV nhấn mạnh tài liệu quan trọng, cần học cho kiểm tra      23 GV giảng dạy chủ yếu tiếng Việt (ít sử dụng tiếng Anh)      24 GV trọng kĩ Nghe-Đọc (được kiểm tra) quan tâm đến kĩ giao tiếp (Nói-      Viết) 25 GV sử dụng hoạt động tương tác lớp (thảo luận, pair work, group work)      26 GV dành nhiều thời gian ôn luyện nội dung kiểm tra      27 GV giao tập tài liệu tham khảo nhắm đến kiểm tra      28 GV dùng trị chơi phát triển giao tiếp lớp D      Tạo động lực khuyến khích 29 GV khen thưởng SV đạt điểm cao làm thi thử kiểm tra lớp, kì      30 Khuyến khích, nhắc nhở SV học tuần có kiểm tra (có thể cho điểm thưởng)      31 GV nói với SV lợi tương lai có điểm thi TOEIC cao 32 GV củng cố tự tin SV để làm kiểm tra           tốt 33 GV nhắc nhở SV việc giữ gìn sức khỏe, ăn uống, ngủ nghỉ trước kì kiểm tra      34 GV sử dụng báo cáo điểm số để giúp SV phân tích mạnh điểm yếu cần cải thiện      35 Xin vui lòng liệt kê hoạt động lớp nhằm chuẩn bị cho kiểm tra mà bạn nghĩ có lợi ích cho việc học tập mình, đồng thời giải thích ngắn gọn lí ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………………… XIN CHÂN THÀNH CẢM ƠN! Appendix INTERVIEW PROTOCOL I Letter to participants Dear participants, The purpose of this interview is to get a better understanding of how you students feel about the practice of “teaching to the test” in your classroom and how this attitude influences the way you learn English The information also serves to provide a platform for suggestions to improve TOEIC preparation courses at HCMC-UT The topic for this interview is a part of the survey questionnaire you have completed As I go through these questions, they might start to sound as if I’m repeating some of the questions Please bear with me It’s important to give you a chance to elaborate or even change your mind about something that was discussed earlier This way, we can more fully understand your viewpoint on these issues and not what simply first comes to your mind I would like to express my deepest gratitude and sincerest thanks for your help, time, patience and cooperation Thank you very much Respectfully yours, Nguyễn Thái Sơn Hand phone: 0937 749 477 Email: matthewson.op@gmail.com II Questions for interviews How long have you learned English? ……………………………………………………………………………………… What you hope to improve in your English learning in this course (AV4)? ……………………………………………………………………………………… Do you feel pressured to increase TOEIC scores and pass the final test? ……………………………………………………………………………………… When preparing you for TOEIC and other related tests, your teacher tends to conduct some types of “teaching to the test” like (1) test content and format preparation, (2) test-wiseness training, (3) curriculum narrowing, and (4) motivational activities How you feel about these types of test preparation? Do you think they are appropriate and helpful?  If Yes: Which activities of these types are most helpful? Why If No: Which activities of these types are most inappropriate? Why? The information is then recorded onto the following table: Types of “teaching to the test” Most useful activity Most inappropriate activity Why? Test content and format preparation Test-wiseness training Curriculum narrowing Motivational activities After finishing this course (AV4), you think your TOEIC test scores improve? If Yes: Which skill? (L/R or both?) How much is the improvement? (little/some/much) If No: Why not? ………………………………………………………………………… After finishing this course (AV4), you think your English improves? If Yes: Which language areas (Pro/Voc/Gram)? Which language skills (R/L/S/W)? How much is the improvement? (little/some/much)  If No: Why not? What you think should be done to make the TOEIC preparation course (AV4) better? ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… THANK YOU VERY MUCH! Appendix OBSERVATION FORM I Classroom context I.1 General information Date of observation: …………………………………………………………… Length of observation: ………………………………………………………… Teacher in charge: …………………………………………………………… Number of students: …………………………………………………………… Textbook: ……………………………………………………………………… I.2 The way tables and chairs are arranged in class Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” How are tables and chairs arranged in class? Arrangement of traditional way (teacher faces students) Arrangement of U-shape Arrangement of rectangular shape Arrangement of round shape Other ways of arrangement Yes No Note I.3 Teaching procedure Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” Teaching procedure Yes No Note 3Ps: preparation-presentation-practice Ss self-study, T explains with focus on necessary points Others: I.4 Teaching aids and materials Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” Teaching aids and materials CD and CD player Video Pictures Movies Slide and projector Yes No Note Other visual aids Sauces of references (articles, magazines, reference books, etc…) I.5 Interaction in classroom Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” Classroom interaction Teacher-students Students-students Yes No Note I.6 Language mainly used between teacher and students Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” Classroom language Teacher mostly uses English in class Teacher half uses English in class Teacher mostly uses mother tongue in class Students mostly use English in class Yes No Note Students half use English in class Students mostly use mother tongue in class I.7 General classroom activities Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” General classroom activities Teacher lectures and students listen Pair work Group work Individual work Class discussion Role play Simulation Games Teacher moves around and provides facilitation Yes No Note II Research area Put a tick () next to each statement to indicate “YES/NO” Test content and format Provide class with practice questions in the same format (MCQs) Use a commercially developed test preparation package with parallel form Use test items with similar format for teachermade classroom tests Use prior-year test questions as practice for the current-year test Teach Ss how to approach a question seen on past tests Show Ss past versions of the test so they would know what to expect Teach vocabulary words that are on the current test Give Ss practice exercises with Qs off the current test, with a change in the stem or distracters Give Ss practice exercises with Qs off the current test Varied-format preparation Current form preparation Previous form preparation Same-format preparation A 10 Provide class with practice Qs in different format (open-ended/ filling/ essay/puzzle, etc) B Test-wiseness training 11 Teach Ss how to follow test directions 12 Discuss with Ss how to mark the answer sheet 13 Show Ss how to use time efficiently to complete the test 14 Teach Ss how to use deductive reasoning skills to eliminate distracters 15 Teach Ss some guessing strategies 16 Teach Ss how to avoid errors Yes No Note 17 Talk with Ss about the purpose of the test/ introduction to TOEIC (intent consideration) 18 Teach Ss how to use clues to determine the answer C Curriculum narrowing 19 Prepare objectives based on past test items and teach accordingly 20 Use past tests to eliminate the already-tested content 21 Teach commonly-tested vocabulary (with meaning to answer MCQs, without focus on use or pronunciation) 22 Emphasize which materials are important for tests 23 Give instruction in mother tongue (ignore use of target language) 24 Focus on R+L (tested domain) and give little attention to communicative skills (S+W) 25 Limit interactive activities (discussion, pair work, group work) 26 Extensively review/drill domain tested 27 Assign test-related homework/ extra materials to help them prepare for the upcoming tests 28 Limit communicative game activities D Motivational activities 29 Give Ss rewards for completing in-class/sample tests with high scores 30 Encourage attendance in the test week and provide rewards for high attendance (score bonus) 31 Talk with Ss about the advantage of high test scores for their future 32 Boost Ss’ confidence for test (stress inoculation) 33 Encourage Ss to eat good breakfast, get enough sleep, and be rested for the days of testing 34 Use sample test report to identify Ss’ strengths and weaknesses Appendix ... INVESTIGATING STUDENTS? ?? ATTITUDES TOWARDS ? ?TEACHING TO THE TEST? ?? IN THEIR TOEIC PREPARATION COURSES: A STUDY AT HCMC UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY In terms of the Statement of Requirements for Theses in Master’s... complete map of the content domain that schools require their students to achieve Test makers, in fact, also claim that their tests are merely a sample of the broader achievement domain of skills and... extensive test preparation for preventing the utilization of Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) Investigating an array of TOEFL commercial textbooks, she comments that these self -study materials