Improving soft skills through some activities in english speaking clubs

Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders NGHE AN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING QUYNH LUU UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL    TEACHING EXPERIENCE TITLE Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Teacher: Vũ Thị Kim Sự Group: English Tel: 0972018305 Email: levubaoan@gmail.com March, 2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders CONTENT Page Part A Introduction I Reasons for the study II Aims of the study III Methods of the study IV Scope of the study Part B Content I Theoretical and practical background Theoretical background 1.1 What are soft skills? 1.2 When to use soft skills activities? 1.3 Why should teachers introduce soft skills activities? 1.4 Advantages of teaching soft skills through English speaking clubs 1.5 Disadvantages of teaching soft skills through English speaking clubs Practical background II The solutions Classification of soft skills activities Tips for using soft skills activities Samples of helping improve soft skills through some activities in English speaking club for 10th graders Findings and evaluation 47 Part C Conclusion 49 Part D Reference 50 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders PART A: INTRODUCTION I Reasons for the study The prevalence of English has been a growing concern in the past few years It is an indisputable fact that, English is the dominant business language and it has become almost a necessity for people to speak English if they are to enter a global workforce Research from all over the world shows that cross-border business communication is most often conducted in English English is an important language for all kinds of professional and personal goals Its importance in the global market place therefore cannot be understated Learning English really can change your life Although learning English can be challenging and time consuming, we can see that it is also very valuable to learn and can create many opportunities! Nowadays, studying English at all levels is not expectedly effective since the students are still used to a traditional teacher-centered method of teaching and learning Students have to learn in a passive way and most of them get bored at keeping sitting and taking notes every day At The Asian International School, the International English Program has adopted new teaching methodology applied to all skills and subjects The students not only learn English in class but also get acquainted with this language through soft skills activities This is necessary to students’ development of English skills, independence and interest in language Students can learn helpful lessons necessary to their growth now and then They will know how to organize group activities as well as independently making their own decisions The most important thing is that students learn how to cooperate and get along with their peers Besides, they will learn new commands in learning, new vocabulary, and spoken English as foreign teachers’ expectation Why in recent years, the proportion of children committing crimes, children getting involved in social evils and leaving home and damaged are increasing quickly? Why many students dare leave their families, and find it difficult to get along with as a group? The above problems are all caused by their severe lack of life skills Not a small part of high school students are spoiled, and neglected to study Bad children seem to be getting younger and younger It is a sad situation nowadays Female students go to school but dye their hair and wear the wrong uniform or especially swearing We were shocked to hear our children are middle school students saying: "Teen sex early, everyone knows only parents don't know" Alternatively, they consider this a very normal thing Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Students increasingly have more complicated relationships at school, class, and outside friends Small conflicts that occur in everyday life make them easily agitated There are instances when high school students beat a classmate All of the above phenomena are due to their serious lack of life skills such as self-control, emotions, communication skills and skills to protect themselves from negative harm, behavioral skills Life skills are not a few of the skills we often hear, but include many skills that need to be equipped for children Learning life skills has been put into different levels of education, by age, and at each educational level Moreover, facing the challenges of the times and the new demands of integration, soft skills have become extremely important equipment To survive, develop, master and manage work, modern life with an increasingly dynamic working environment, more pressure and competitiveness, soft skills are an indispensable factor Being a teacher of English for a long time and from my personal experience, I myself find out that soft skills are an essential part of improving students’ ability to work with others and can have a positive influence on furthering their career If they are a small business owner or self-employed, soft skills can help them find, attract, and retain clients Highly developed presentation skills, networking abilities, and etiquette awareness can help students win new clients and gain more work from existing clients Honing their abilities to resolve conflicts, solve problems, and provide excellent customer service can lead to stronger relationships with colleagues, vendors, and other professional contacts Ultimately, strong soft skills can help them gain confidence-an invaluable trait in the business world On the other hand, a lack of soft skills can limit their potential, or even be the downfall of their business By developing strong leadership, teamwork, and communication abilities, they can run projects more smoothly, deliver results that please everyone, and even positively influence their personal life by improving how they interact with others Therefore, teaching soft skills in English not only helps students improve their English but it is also a significant way to lead them to success in their lives As a result, it is very necessary for us to introduce soft skills in school Having applied these soft skills activities, my students have studied more actively and effectively and they can gain a lot of emotional intelligence or the ability to interact amicably with others They are more excited to access the lesson My students are encouraged and they are eager to learn as well From these Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders activities, they can draw many lessons in life and no longer feel stressful and bored during classes To be honest, I feel satisfied with what I have done I would like to recommend some soft skill activities in English speaking clubs so that my colleagues can apply them to help their students be successful in life The topic is “Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders” Of course, this study cannot be perfect in limited time I hope that the contribution of my colleagues will bring it to perfection and be widely applicable II Aims of the study The aims of this study are: - To give a brief overview on soft skill activities and introduce samples of helping improve students’ soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs - To increase students’ creativity and activeness - To help students learn in free and flexible ways - To boost students’ confidence and help develop a learner-centred dynamic - To produce a dynamic and stimulating environment - To reduce students’ stress and pressure - To achieve the highest achievement in learning a foreign language III Methods of the study - Base on my personal teaching experience - Study a variety of documents and share experience with my colleagues - Carry out surveys and interviews among 10th graders as well as having small discussions about the effectiveness of the application - Apply and adapt some essential knowledge from the workshops and classes I have participated in before IV Scope of the study 10th graders Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders PART B: CONTENT I Theoretical and practical background Theoretical background 1.1 What are soft skills? Soft skills are character traits and interpersonal skills that characterize a person's relationships with other people In the workplace, soft skills are considered a complement to hard skills, which refer to a person's knowledge and occupational skills Sociologists may use the term soft skills to describe a person's emotional intelligence quotient (EQ) as opposed to intelligence quotient (IQ) Soft skills have more to with who people are, rather than what they know As such, they encompass the character traits that decide how well one interacts with others and usually are a definite part of an individual's personality In a competitive labor market, employees who demonstrate they have a good combination of hard and soft skills often see a greater demand for their services Soft skills, like the ability to communicate and work together, are some of the most sought-after employee skills In fact, 92% of recruiters say soft skills are critical tools they look for in their applicants Unfortunately, soft skills not come naturally to everyone Activity-based soft skills training gives you the opportunity to instill these desirable qualities in new hires Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders 1.2 When to use soft skills activities? At the high school level, life skills education is integrated in the main subjects, activities to salute the flag at the beginning of the week, weekend homeroom activities, extracurricular activities, cultural activities, sports, youth radio programs Many schools have actively organized soft skills activities for students throughout the school year, forging student skills to participate in collective activities, handicraft village sightseeing activities, historical relics, English festival In Quynh Luu high school, our English group sets up monthly English speaking clubs with various combination of soft skills activities in the aim of: + Improving students’ soft skills through activities + Giving students opportunities to practice listening skills and practice speaking interactively real English within the students’ community + Increasing fluency, reducing accents and building confidence to think and speak English + Providing opportunities for students to express opinions and debate issues and thereby encourage critical thinking + Learning English in a fun way in a natural and authentic English speaking classroom community English speaking club plan: Time Soft skills Note September, 2019 Ability to work under pressure and time management October, 2019 Negotiation and conflict resolution November, 2019 Communication December, 2019 Self – motivation and leadership April, 2020 Responsibility and problem solving May, 2020 Flexibility and decisiveness 1.3 Why should teachers introduce soft skills activities? Most interactions with other people require some level of soft skills At a company, you might be negotiating to win a new contract, presenting your new ideas to colleagues, networking for a new job, and so on We use soft skills everyday at work and developing these soft skills will help you win more business and accelerate your career progression Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders On the other hand, a lack of soft skills can limit your potential, or even be the downfall of your business By developing strong leadership, delegation, teamwork, and communication abilities, you can run projects more smoothly, deliver results that please everyone, and even positively influence your personal life by improving how you interact with others Outside of the office, soft skills like communication is used to build friendship groups and meet potential partners You might be negotiating the price of your new house renovation, or mentoring your neighbours’ children on the weekend Soft skills are useful both in our professional and personal lives 1.4 Advantages of teaching soft skills through English speaking clubs By participating in the soft skills activities, students are more active, selfconscious and creative to explore the great variety of environments outside the classroom Life skills education activities have contributed to change students' perception and actions They know how to control their own behavior, have skills in conflict resolution, are more confident in communication, and participate in collective activities with more enthusiasm and quality From that, they create and develop the values of living and necessary skills These activities also help students grasp knowledge, strengthen solidarity, contribute to educating them about ethics, lifestyle, compassion, awareness of environmental protection, nature, and behavior skills with friends, teachers especially contributing to promoting the activeness, initiative and creativity of students Since then, it contributes to personality orientation, career future orientation for students in the future 1.5 Disadvantages of teaching soft skills through English speaking clubs Although being aware of the importance of soft skills education for students, at present, the introduction of soft skills education in schools is still limited, proactively integrating soft skills education in just one number of teachers, has not yet become a requirement like some other integration content - Soft skills training needs to be done through active and practical activities, while many students are still accustomed to passive learning Most of the students of the school come from rural areas, so their ability to adapt to modern society is still weak, and their understanding of soft skills is almost nonexistent The above factors show that integrating education to educate soft skills for students in current school hours is very important and necessary - There is no doubt that learning English by using soft skills activities can take more time to prepare for the lesson Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders - Disadvantaged and handicapped students generally have fewer opportunities to learn academic content outside of school They cannot catch up with their classmates - Students may be lack of detailed knowledge of the locality and lack of skills Practical background According to the research results, there are many reasons affecting the current status of students' soft skills: from teachers, from students themselves, from the school and from the society + Teachers: Despite the fact that soft skills activities have so many outstanding advantages, some teachers feel it new and strange They hesitate to apply these activities because they are familiar with the traditional hard skills activities + Students: Among the reasons from the students themselves, the most prominent one is that students not know how to choose a reliable "source" to learn the soft skills and have not invested adequate time and effort to practice the soft skills + School: On the school side, it is mainly not focused on training soft skills for students as a long-term activity + Society: On the social side, communication on soft skills is still quite sporadic, with no methodical and elaborate investment and there is no regular and continuous training program II The solutions Classification of soft skills activities Below are some typical soft skills activities teachers usually use in teaching English Ability to work under pressure and time management Negotiation and conflict resolution Communication Self - motivation Leadership Responsibility Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Problem solving Flexibility Decisiveness 10 Teamwork Tips for a successful soft skills lesson We can teach soft skills in many ways such as organizing social activities, clubs, and charities Alternatively, stimulating the passion of reading, developing skills in sport activities In addition, it is possible to take courses for proper awareness So what determines the success of soft skills teaching? It is not because of the miracle from the skills learned through the courses, but the progressive attitude in each person and personal perception of each individual "Awareness" and changing perceptions of learning along with training skills are the most important today Soft skills can be learned and practiced anytime, anywhere and are not confined to just that many standards For each person, when the sense of wanting to be a good communicator with determination, there will definitely come a time when that person becomes a good communicator Success is not achieved in a day or two Hard training, collision life, plus wisdom and luck There are lucky people who have the conditions to be successful overnight, but there are also people who struggle to make a living for a lifetime - To have an effective and successful English speaking club, teacher has to prepare the plan well, know abilities and characters of each member clearly so that he can assign tasks reasonably - Soft skills activities should be closely related to the learning theme, each lesson content, time, place and it clearly shows the methods and measures to ensure the safety of teachers and students - Soft skills activities must be meaningful, safe and thrifty, - Teachers must be expected the time to organize soft skills activities at the beginning of the school year as part of the plan to implement the tasks of the school year, to ensure the systematic of the lesson - Make full use of most of the existing facilities, use school space, classrooms that are all practical and useful, extend classroom space, enhance classrooms outside the school - The subject of each soft skills activity must be derived from the interest and excitement of the students, must be closely linked or derived from the life and 10 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Divide you group into teams of three and provide ten balloons and four 3foot long strips of masking tape for each team The object of this problem solving activity is to build the tallest freestanding tower in ten minutes They can break the balloons if they wish However, they may not use any additional materials and the tower must be built on a table or the floor If you wish, you may add the following instructions: + No talking + Each team member may use only one hand + One team member may not touch the materials and only give directions + You can use one or more of these limitations in 60-second intervals The first team to complete their tower wins this challenge Activity 4: Human Knot Objective: This game helps students gain a lot of skills in solving problems Time: 15 - 30 minutes Number of participants: - 15 people Tools needed: none Rules: Have everyone stand in a circle facing each other, shoulder to shoulder Instruct everyone to put their right hand out and grab a random hand of someone across from them Then, tell them to put their left hand out and grab another random hand from a different person across the circle Within a set time limit, the group needs to untangle the knot of arms without releasing their hands If the group is too large, make multiple smaller circles and have the separate groups compete Cross their hands Go through turn around back to the first shape 3.8 Flexibility 38 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Flexibility is the capacity to adjust to short-term change quickly and calmly, so that you can deal with unexpected problems or tasks effectively For example, when taking a test that contains both multiple choice and essay questions, a child with good flexibility skills will be able to switch easily between the two formats, while a child who struggles with flexibility skills may get stuck and become frustrated each time the format changes Activity 1: Come up with unconventional uses for household items Encourage thinking about things differently For example, discuss the different ways to use a phone book, such as for a booster seat, a doorstop, or a fire starter Turn pots and pans into a drum set, or make a fort out of the couch and pillows Activities like this help kids learn to look at things differently and come up with creative solutions to problems Activity 2: Describing pictures - Divide some pictures for some groups of students Ask them to describe the pictures flexibly as what they think - Call some representatives of these groups to present - Encourage different ideas - Example (in the first picture): The following picture shows us the scene (violence) in a family There are four people in front of their house: parents and two children The mother is so angry with the little girl She is biting her The girl is running as fast as she could to escape … 39 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Activity 3: Practice trial-and-error learning Do something with students for which it is clear that there is no right or wrong answer For example, rearrange the books on a bookshelf to see how they look best, put together a flower arrangement, or try various recipes for a smoothie or an ice cream shake After doing these things, students have to present their ideas in English which both help improve their English fluency and flexibility skills 40 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Activity 4: Make up a new game Invent new games by slightly changing the rules, or by taking rules from one game and adding them to another Changing the rules in a game can be very difficult for students who are inflexible For these students, it is important to play or create games in which rules change frequently For example, play a memory game in which players must match opposite images, rather than ones that are alike Play a basketball “shooting” game in which players get 2, 3, 4, or points depending on the type of shot that is taken We can even create some absurd challenges, like play horseshoes with a soccer ball, or trying to play baseball using a kickball and no gloves We can even add a timed element to one of students’ favorite games, changing the strategies needed to win After playing, make sure to discuss with students how they needed to apply different strategies as the rules changed Activity 5: Play “What is this?” Help students to view things in more creative ways by taking regular objects and seeing how many things you can pretend they are For example, a funnel could be a party hat, a trumpet, and a unicorn horn A whiteboard eraser could be a phone, a microphone, and a hairbrush 41 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Activity 6: Play theater games, like “yes, and ” - Theater games help students practice accepting and building off another person’s idea “Yes, and…” is a partner game, so students play in pairs with another student or a teacher - To start the game, one partner sets the scene with a statement like, “It’s a cold day here in the mountains.” The other partner adds on to it “Yes, and I can’t seem to find my winter boots.” Partners go back and forth making “Yes, and…” statements until the story reaches an ending Activity 7: Play “How many ways….” Flexible thinking is important for doing math Help students build that skill by playing the game “How many ways….” Gather a pile of different objects like game pieces, crayons, and beads Then say, “Let’s see how many ways we can make the number 10.” Students can pick objects from the pile to show different number combinations that equal 10 For example, they might choose two red beads, five crayons, and three yellow beads If they not get through all the combinations, show them the rest You can also take turns There are many ways to help children build flexible thinking skills at home and at school Families and teachers can share ideas and work together to help kids learn different ways to approach problems 3.9 Decisiveness Being seen to be a strong, decisive decision maker is a critical factor in establishing our leadership credibility A quick and well thought through decision backed by logic, gut instinct and taking personal responsibility for whatever the outcome will be, can boost our professional standing in the eyes of those around us 42 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Every day, we are faced with all sorts of decisions Sometimes the decisions are small, like what to wear or what to eat and sometimes the decisions are bigger, like where to live or where to send your children to school Being able to make a choice is a vital life skill that children carry into adulthood These two pictures remind us of two heros: one is Soviet Air Force Captain Igor Belikov and the other is Nguyen Ngoc Manh If two people had not made quick decision, two babies could not have had a chance to live Therefore, It is so important to make a decision in time Activity 1: Which party? Set situation: your birthday is coming next week, your parents give you two choices: A party in a luxury restaurant and a party at your home Make lists of pros and cons, talk about how to decide, which one you think will be more fun and suggest a time frame for making the choice Students sit in groups and discuss, then present in front of the English speaking club Activity 2: Musical Chairs 43 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Musical chairs is one of the best games for teaching fast, on-the-spot decisions The game is simple: You will need some siblings or friends to play with - Start the game with enough chairs for everyone to sit and place them randomly around the room - When the music plays everyone dances around the room - When the music stops everyone must run and sit on any of the chairs - Remove a chair and start the music again - Stop the music and whoever does not get to a chair in time is out - Continue, removing a chair in each round until there is only one child left This is a game of thinking fast because if you not decide on a chair and move to it quickly you will lose out With practice, children learn how to choose a chair Is the best one the nearest one? The one with the least amount of people around it? Facing you or facing away? Activity 3: Tic Tac Toe 44 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Tic Tac Toe, also called naughts and crosses, is one of the simplest yet best games for practising decision making Not only you need to choose squares that will help you get a row of three, but you also need to choose squares to stop your partner from potentially getting three in a row It takes a lot of concentration and practice to get good at this game and it can be tough at first for young children but they will soon catch on and start outsmarting you Here are the rules of the game: - Draw the outline (as in the pic above) - Assign a symbol to each player (one player is naughts, one is crosses) - Taking turns, place your mark (0 or X) in an open square - To win the game, you must make a row (horizontal, vertical or diagonal) with your symbol This game can be played on a chalkboard, whiteboard, paper or a Tic Tac Toe board Activity 4: How the Story Goes Choose a story your students have not heard before and read the first few pages Then offer two alternative paths: Bear decided to go for a walk in the woods Bear decided to have a picnic with his friends Ask your students to choose which path she likes more and to tell the rest of the story by using her imagination Alternatively, offer two alternate endings: The girl married the prince The girl did not want to marry the prince Tell the story to get to the ending Activity 5: Pick Up Sticks 45 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders - Pick up sticks is an old favourite You can use a set of wooden pick up sticks, skewer sticks, straws or even twigs from the garden - It requires making a very careful decision about which stick to move each time - Making the wrong decision will result in losing a turn This is how you play the game: - Hold the sticks upright in your fist on a table or floor - Let go and let the sticks fall wherever they land - Take turns to remove one stick from the pile at a time, without moving any other sticks - Sticks that are lying on the surface and not touching others are easy to remove but sticks that are touching others must be carefully lifted with your hands or by using another stick - If you move another stick while trying to lift one, you have to leave your stick on the pile and let the other player have a turn - The winner is the person with the most sticks at the end During this game, children learn to recognize which sticks are too lodged in to be moved easily and how moving a stick will affect the others around it It requires lots of practice and will also develop your child’s fine motor skills and concentration span Activity 6: Memory Game A memory game can be played with a set of picture cards (with exact pairs) This is how you play: - Turn all the cards face down on the table - Take turns to choose two cards each and turn them face up - If the cards match, you keep them - If they not match, you turn them both face down - Continue turning two at a time until all the cards have been matched - The winner is the person with the most cards at the end 46 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders - In a memory game, children have to try to remember where the pictures are on the table This works their memory and concentration skills - They also need to make wise choices For example, if a child only knows where one of the apples is and starts by turning it over, then she has a slim chance of picking the matching apple with a random card - However, if she starts with a card she does not know, it may reveal a picture she has seen on another card she remembers the location of These are decision-making skills she will pick up naturally with time and practice tur child's development and get ready for school through PLAY, even it on tiscover 3.10 Teamwork 47 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Teamwork skills are the qualities and abilities that allow you to work well with others during conversations, projects, meetings or other collaborations Having teamwork skills is dependent on your ability to communicate well, actively listen and be responsible and honest Teamwork skills are essential to your success at work, no matter your industry or job title Working well with clients, colleagues, managers and other people in your workplace can help you complete tasks efficiently while creating an enjoyable environment both for yourself and others An organization that emphasizes good teamwork skills is typically a healthy, high-functioning workplace Activity 1: Game of Possibilities Objective: This team building exercise inspires creativity and individual innovation Time: 5-6 minutes Number of Participants: One or multiple small groups Tools Needed: Any random objects Rules: This is a great 5-minute team building game Give an object to one person in each group One at a time, someone has to go up in front of the group and demonstrate a use for that object The rest of the team must guess what the player is demonstrating The demonstrator cannot speak, and demonstrations must be original, possibly wacky, ideas 48 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders Activity 3: The Mine Field Objective: This game focuses on trust, communication, and effective listening This activity makes a great team building beach game as well Time: 15 - 30 minutes Number of Participants: - 10 people (even numbers) Tools Needed: Various handheld objects, several blindfolds Rules: Find an open space such as an empty parking lot or a park Place the objects (cones, balls, bottles, etc.) sporadically across the open space Have everyone pair up, and make one person on from each pair put on the blindfold The other person must lead their teammate from one side of the open space to the other without stepping on the objects - using only the verbal instructions The blindfolded person cannot speak at all To make it more difficult, create specific routes the blindfolded team members must walk Findings and evaluation 4.1 The results of the work It is undeniable that teaching soft skills through some activities in English speaking club brings teachers and students a large number of benefits, such as providing a new and effective learning environment, making learning more relevant and engaging, nuturing creativity and imagination, improving attendance, reducing behavior proplems, developing interest in the environment and wider surroundings, exposing children to new opportunities, keeping healthy,ect After these outside classes, my students always feel relaxed and love English lesson more Weak students are no longer under pressure when English lesson comes On the contrary, they are eager to join English speaking clubs Furthermore, students are excited to take part in exploring problems and challenges in real - world tasks and applying new knowledge in a problem-solving context, 49 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders which coaches both their knowledge development and social skills The close, interesting and up- to- date topics attract students to the lesson naturally with great enthusiasm These real situation lessons creat reflex of speaking English among them Above all, outdoor trips leave wonderful memories in the beautiful life of each student about friendship Obviously, learning soft skills through some activities proves that it effectively helps to raise students’ achievement The result of my work is illustrated in the following table: Quynh Luu high school School year 20192020 Class Before doing experiments After doing experiments Students’ attendance (% Students) Speaking English (%Student) Improving skills Students’ attendance Speaking English Improving skills (%Student) (% Students) (%Students ) (%Students) 10D1 50% 40% 60% 80% 78% 90% 10D2 60% 45% 62% 90% 83% 96% (1 term) 10A7 61% 50% 63% 92% 85% 97% 20192020 10D1 55% 51% 62% 74% 71% 89% 10D2 53% 59% 60% 82% 77% 78% 10A7 63% 67% 72% 95% 91% 96% st (2nd term) 4.2 Comments from my colleagues: 50 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders PART C: CONCLUSION In conclusion, learning soft skills is extremely necessary for students in high school It creates totally new and exciting learning atmosphere Since then, students have new general view, positive attitude toward learning English However, some teachers are familiar with traditional teaching method inside class; they not want to change teaching method due to several reasons such as having bad health and wasting of time and money Sometimes, the school board and the students’parents society should join hands to support their children I have carried out this new method of teaching successfully in my schools so personally I think that the most important thing that contributes to the success of the English speaking club is the enthusiasm, co- operation of teachers and students As far as I am concerned, learning soft skills not only helps encourage students to explore the new things and develop many skills for students but also creates an exciting learning atmosphere Therefore, the relationship between teachers and students is close-knit as if they were best friends that make students feel comfortable and be in good mood to acquire knowledge These soft skills activities can be applied widespread among grade 10, 11 and 12 I hope that my research can be useful reference materials for language teachers and help them teach English more effectively at school I am looking forward to having your comments so that my study will become more practical and perfect Quynh Luu, March 10th, 2021 51 Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders PART D: REFERENCE “Personality Development and Soft Skills (Old Edition)” by Barun K Mitra “Soft Skills – Enhancing Employability: Connecting Campus with Corporate” by M S Rao “communication and soft skill development (first edition)” by career publications and Ashwini Deshpande “Soft Skills Training: A Workbook to Develop Skills for Employment” by Frederick H Wentz “Design Your Career- Soft Skills Of Career” by Yogesh P Chopade “Successful Career Soft Skills And Business English Personality Development And Career Path” by Varanasi Bhaskara Rao and Y Kameswari “Enhancing Soft Skills Through Learner Centered Activities at Ug Level” by Raj K Bharathi “Challenge the Interview by Developing Soft Skills” by Maruthi Gandikota Prathap “Ten Soft Skills You Need to Advance Your Career (Andere Keys Book 9)” by Lisa Smith 10 “Get your First Job: A companion for getting your first job – A Guide to Employability Skills and Career Planning” by A J Balasubramanian and Dr J Sadakkadulla 52 ... improve soft skills through some activities in English speaking club for 10th graders Findings and evaluation 47 Part C Conclusion 49 Part D Reference 50 Improving soft skills through some activities. .. Activity-based soft skills training gives you the opportunity to instill these desirable qualities in new hires Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th... no doubt that learning English by using soft skills activities can take more time to prepare for the lesson Improving soft skills through some activities in English speaking clubs for 10th graders