Using driving questions adapted from the requirements of some speaking tasks in the new textbook “tieng anh 10” to encourage students’ active participation in speaking activities

NGHE AN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING –––––––––––––––––––––––– USING DRIVING QUESTIONS ADAPTED FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF SOME SPEAKING TASKS IN THE NEW TEXTBOOK “TIENG ANH 10” TO ENCOURAGE STUDENTS’ ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING ACTIVITIES Subject: English Vinh, 2021 NGHE AN DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING LE VIET THUAT HIGH SCHOOL USING DRIVING QUESTIONS ADAPTED FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF SOME SPEAKING TASKS IN THE NEW TEXTBOOK “TIENG ANH 10” TO ENCOURAGE STUDENTS’ ACTIVE PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING ACTIVITIES Subject: English Researcher: Vo Thi Thuy Linh Phone number: 0984359184 Group: Literature – Foreign languages Vinh, 2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTENTS PAGE PART I: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale Aims of the Study PART II: CONTENT I THEORETICAL BACKGROUND Project-based learning Driving questions as a key feature of project-based learning 2.1 Function of driving questions 2.2 What makes a good driving question? 2.3 Common types of driving questions Speaking skills 3.1 Definition of speaking 3.2 The elements of speaking 4 Adapting Textbooks 4.1 What is textbook adaptation? 4.2 Principles and techniques for adapting textbooks 4.3 Instructions for adapting textbooks II PRACTICAL BACKGROUND An overview of the new textbook “Tieng Anh 10” Situation of teaching and learning speaking skills at high school III THE STUDY Methodology 1.1 Participants 1.2 Instrumentation 1.3 Data collection procedures Findings of the study Finding solutions 3.1 Suggested adaptations for the requirements of some speaking tasks in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 10” 3.2 Sample teaching plans 20 Results and Discussion 35 PART III: CONCLUSION 36 A summary of the development of the study 36 Limitations 36 Recommendations 36 REFERENCES APPENDICES PART I: INTRODUCTION Rationale It is irrefutable that the English language has gained more and more significance in every aspect of society in general and in education in particular Realizing the importance of English in education, many policies and renovations have been promulgated in teaching and learning English during the recent years In an attempt to innovate Vietnamese education to meet the demand of the society in the process of integration and development, the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training has reformed English textbooks since the school year 2020-2021 With this reform, both teachers and students have certain advantages and disadvantages in mastering the four skills in the process of teaching and learning English Of the four skills, speaking, in general, is considered a relatively difficult one for students to master Students of low-proficiency level consider speaking as a challenging skill to fulfill effectively When practising speaking skills, the students tend to translate the ideas from their mother tongue into English, which makes them confused in using words, grammatical structures and organizing the ideas Moreover, because of limited background knowledge as well as essential skills, they often feel bored when carrying out speaking tasks, especially when lacking support and motivation from teachers Due to students’ low level of proficiency, time constraints and low motivation, speaking skills still remain neglected in upper-secondary schools and teaching speaking skills is a challenging job for many teachers In addition, most speaking activities in the upper-secondary syllabus in general, and in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 10” in particular, are designed in a controlled speaking format All the students have to is following the activities given in the book under the instructions of teachers This, to some extent, demotivates students because they cannot use their own experiences to express themselves and hinders teachers from applying new approaches in teaching speaking Besides, from the experience in teaching speaking skills to the 10 th form students who have a rather low level of proficiency in learning English, the author realizes that some of the students not have so much interest in speaking classes as in classes of other skills They have certain difficulties in performing the required speaking tasks in the textbook by themselves Related to these problems, this study was carried out, entitling: Using driving questions adapted from the requirements of some speaking tasks in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 10” to encourage students’ active participation in speaking activities Aims of the Study The study aims at suggesting adaptations of driving questions designed from some speaking task requirements given in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 10” to motivate 10th graders to participate actively in speaking activities in class PART II: CONTENT I THEORETICAL BACKGROUND Project-based learning Projects are defined as complex tasks, based on challenging questions or problems, that involve students in design, problem-solving, decision making, or investigative activities; give students the opportunity to work relatively autonomously over extended periods of time; and culminate in realistic products or presentations Students in a project-based classroom take part in different activities, namely investigating questions, proposing hypotheses and explanations, discussing their ideas, challenging the ideas of others, and trying out new ideas Definitions of project-based learning include features relating to the use of an authentic ("driving") question, a community of inquiry, and the use of cognitive (technology-based) tools (Krajcik et al, 1994) Driving questions as a key feature of project-based learning 2.1 Function of driving questions The driving question in project-based learning serves to organize and drive activities of the project, provides a context in which students can use and explore learning goals and scientific practices, and provides continuity and coherence to the full range of project activities Learning environments that are project-based have five key features (Blumenfeld et al., 1991; Krajcik, et al., 1994): They start with a driving question, a problem to be solved Students explore the driving question by participating in authentic, situated inquiry – processes of problem solving that are central to expert performance in the discipline As students explore the driving question, they learn and apply important ideas in the discipline Students, teachers, and community members engage in collaborative activities to find solutions to the driving question This mirrors the complex social situation of expert problem solving While engaged in the inquiry process, students are scaffolding with learning technologies that help them participate in activities normally beyond their ability Students create a set of tangible products that address the driving question These are shared artifacts, publicly accessible external representations of the class’s learning 2.2 What makes a good driving question? Some factors that should be considered in writing driving questions include: - Make the question engaging The best questions are easily understood and interesting They ignite curiosity, making students eager to explore answers - Craft open-ended questions Driving questions go beyond fact-finding and reporting They require students to compile information and use application, analysis, evaluation and synthesis to arrive at answers Yes-no questions not require critical thinking - Support student learning goals Projects are based on the content and skills students must learn The driving questions align with these goals and incorporate academic vocabulary 2.3 Common types of driving questions Following are some common types of driving questions that are suitable for high school students - Solve a Problem: There’s a real-world predicament with multiple solutions - Educate: The purpose of the project is to teach others - Convince Others: Students persuade a specified audience to something or change their opinions - Discuss Broad Theme: The project tackles big ideas - Give Opinion: Students need to consider all sides of an issue in order to form and justify their opinions Speaking skills 3.1 Definition of speaking Speaking is a basic skill that language learners should master with the other language skills It is defined as a complex process of sending and receiving messages through the use of verbal expressions, but it also involves non-verbal symbols such as gestures and facial expressions Hedge (2000: 261) defines speaking as “a skill by which people are judged while first impressions are being formed.” 3.2 The elements of speaking In order to speak a foreign language fluently and accurately, learners need to be able to know some elements which are very important to develop this skill According to Harmer (2001:89), these elements include knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, fluency and also attitude These are the main cores of speaking that have to be learned by the learner who are willing to learn foreign language Adapting Textbooks 4.1 What is textbook adaptation? Adapting textbook activities is not just something teachers should as the need arises but also for appealing to the lower, middle and strong student levels Textbook adaptation is performed to make textbook lessons more communicative and incorporate authentic textbook into the lessons Adapting is the ability to create the textbook that introduces and integrates skills in a lively, enjoyable and productive format 4.2 Principles and techniques for adapting textbooks Despite the great effort that textbook writers make to meet the needs of the intended users, textbooks are subject to adaptation when they are actually used in the classroom McDonough and Shaw (1993:83) propose that textbooks are internally coherent although they may be, they may not be entirely applicable Although most classroom teachers will not be involved in the production of textbooks, all teachers have the responsibility for textbook evaluation, selection and adaptation It is undeniable that adapting textbook allows teachers to achieve more compatibility and fitness between the textbook and the teaching environment, and therefore maximize the value of the book for the benefit of their particular learners and for the most effective teaching outcomes to achieve Maley (1998:281) suggested the following techniques to adapt textbook: • Omission: the teacher leaves out things seemed inappropriate, offensive, unproductive, etc., for the particular group • Addition: where there seems to be inadequate coverage, teachers may decide to add to textbooks, either in the form of texts or exercise material • Reduction: where the teacher shortens an activity to give it less weight or emphasis • Extension: where an activity is lengthened in order to give it an additional dimension (For example, a vocabulary activity is extended to draw attention to some syntactic patterning.) • Rewriting/modification: teacher may occasionally decide to rewrite material, especially exercise material, to make it more appropriate, more “communicative”, more demanding, more accessible to their students, etc • Replacement: text or exercise material which is considered inadequate, for whatever reason, may be replaced by more suitable material This is often culled from other resource textbook • Re-ordering: teachers may decide that the order in which the textbooks are presented is not suitable for their students They can then decide to plot a different course through the textbooks from the one the writer has laid down • Branching: teachers may decide to add options to the existing activity or to suggest alternative pathways through the activities Textbook adaptation can be done at three levels The first level is macro adaptation, which is ideally done before the language program begins After comparing what is covered in a textbook and what is required by the syllabus or examination, the teacher may find that certain areas or even whole units of the book can be omitted, and certain contents need to be supplemented The second level of adaptation is adapting a unit This could be done by reordering the activities, combining activities, omitting activities, rewriting or supplementing exercise material, etc Unit adaptation helps to make the classroom teaching more smooth and cohesive It also helps the teacher to better fulfill the aims of a unit The third level is adaptation of specific activities in a unit Occasionally an activity is regarded as valuable, but it is not well-designed or it is not suitable in a particular class If the teacher does not want to give up the activity, he or she needs to adapt it 4.3 Instructions for adapting textbooks When adapting the textbooks, teachers should follow the following steps: Decide what content or which topics need adapting in light of the reading texts and activities Activities can relate to any one of the four basic skills: reading, listening, writing and speaking Can the text be exploited because of it thematic, lexical and structural elements in order to appeal and engage all three levels of students? If not, you will need to adapt your textbook activities to suit the levels This may appear as a ton of work, but the key is to think better, not to work harder Before you go ahead and change some of the activities particularly the reading activities, consider rewriting parts or all of the texts The reason for doing this is to simplify some of the vocabulary items and other concepts that might be difficult for some of your low-performing ESL students to understand You might also consider glossing the difficult vocabulary items or writing the meanings in another language if you are teaching in a bilingual context Take a look at those textbook activities in your textbooks and redesign them in light of the amount of the activity itself Redesigning the activity in light 10 Nam Homework - Ask Ss to prepare for the next lesson T < > Ss minute Results and Discussion After two groups of respondents, who have been taught with different orientations (with and without using intended driving questions), have completed some speaking lessons in the textbook, they are asked to work in groups of or to make a presentation on the same topic Their presentations are assessed through a speaking rubric (given in Appendix 2) including a number of criteria, namely task completion, fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary and accurate grammatical structures However, with the aim of this study, I also focus on students’ confidence and attitudes through their presentations to evaluate the effectiveness of applying adapted requirements of the textbook into improving students’ speaking skills and their participation in speaking classes during learning process The most important finding is that the students who are taught speaking skills with suggested driving questions have better presentation skills than the students who carry out the speaking tasks without any adaptation of the given requirements in the book Most of them have made marked progress in presenting their ideas naturally and confidently as well as speaking English more fluently than that at the beginning of the school year They feel more motivated when being able to perform a number of speaking tasks in the textbook more easily Besides, the atmosphere of a speaking class is gradually more interesting thanks to the comfort the students have when they realize that they can carry out speaking activities by themselves 39 40 PART III: CONCLUSION A summary of the development of the study As stated previously in the first part, the purpose of the study is to investigate the application of some driving questions adapted from the requirements of speaking activities in the textbook “Tieng Anh 10” in teaching and learning speaking skills for grade 10 students at Le Viet Thuat high school Basically, the study has achieved its aim through thoroughly review of related literature and a combination of methods in designing and employing driving questions for teaching speaking activities In order to receive reliable results for the study, experimental teaching periods in which designed driving questions are used have been conducted with the participation of a number of 10th form students at Le Viet Thuat high school The results collected from the study were then analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively Important findings for the study have been drawn from this analysis The results reveal that the application of driving questions adapted from available requirements in speaking lessons can bring about desirable benefits to both teachers and students The most significant finding is that the employment of the new questions makes students motivated and feel easier to carry out speaking tasks in speaking classes Also, in my opinion, using the driving questions is a good way to have adaptive activities in teaching which makes speaking lessons more successful Limitations The application of driving questions into teaching speaking skills in reality is still limited due to some subjective and objective reasons as limited time, class size, mix-leveled students, unsuitable provided activities, students’ learning style, etc Thus, to some extent, beside positive results gained from experimental teaching periods, it should be admitted the fact that teaching and learning English speaking skills still have been far from satisfaction What’s more, only 90 students of Le Viet Thuat high school were involved in the study As a result, it is impossible to generalize the outcomes as well as represent the situation of learning speaking skills of the 10th form students in Nghe An Recommendations As for the implication of the study, some detailed suggestions are recommended within the wish to contribute to the improvement of the teaching and learning of speaking skills in the textbook “Tieng Anh 10”: 41 - The requirements of speaking lessons in the textbook “Tieng Anh 10” should be reconsidered to make it more suitable for student’s different levels of proficiency and limited time of a speaking lesson Whatever pedagogical approach is applied in speaking teaching, it is desirable that speaking activities should be integrated into the work of the learners, which need to be made suitable for their objectives and levels of ability - Speaking skills should be a compulsory part in Exams Teachers of English are thus required to prepare their students to be able to use Speaking skills more frequently in the classroom - The possible reasons to account for students’ disinterest in learning speaking skills may partly lie in the inadequate method of teaching; therefore teachers of English are required to improve their speaking competencies and use alternative teaching methods flexibly - Other research on addressing the problems of low speaking proficiency and low interest in learning and teaching speaking skills should be conducted The potential research can focus on the implementation of task adaptation in general and application of appropriate techniques in particular 42 REFERENCES Blumenfeld et al., (1991) Motivating projectbased learning: Sustaining the doing, supporting the learning Educational Psychologist, 26(3-4), 369-398 Brown, G., & Yule, G (2001) Teaching the spoken language Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Brown, H D (1994) Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language pedagogy New York, NY: Tina Carver Byrne, D (1986) Teaching oral English London: Longman Harmer, J (2001), The Practice of Language Teaching, Longman Hedge, T (2000) Teaching and learning in the language classroom Oxford: Oxford University Press Krajcik et al.,(1994) A collaborative model for helping middle grade science teachers learn project-based instruction The Elementary School Journal, 94(5), 483-497 McDonough, J., & Shaw, C (1993), Materials and Methods in ELT A Teacher’s Guide, Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Penny Ur (1996) A course in Language Teaching Practice and Theory, Cambridge University Press 10 Ministry of education and training (2017) Tieng Anh 10 (Teacher’s Book) Volume and Volume Vietnam Education publisher APPENDICES APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS Please put a tick (√) on the answer you choose …………………………………………………………………………………… I Students’ Profile - Age: …………… - Years of studying English: …………………… - Your class size: Less than 40 students 40-50 students More than 50 students II Students’ Experience in Learning English (More than one choice is acceptable in some sentences) According to you, which skill is the most important in learning English? Please rank from 1(most important) to (less important) Listening Speaking Reading Writing How you feel when you attend the activities in a speaking lesson? Confident Uncomfortable Interested and motivated Bored Embarrassed and nervous Are you interested in the speaking lessons you have at your school? Very much Yes Not much No If yes, which factor(s) activate(s) your interest in the lessons? Teacher’s methods of teaching attract you You find given activities in the textbook interesting to practice English You have opportunity to speak English more You can develop your speaking skill No new structures Other factors………………………………………………………… If no, the reason(s) you not like the lessons is/are: You are not interested in English The topic is boring Teacher always asks you to follow the tasks in the textbook There is much vocabulary and many new structures Your personal characteristics such as your shyness prevent you from speaking The instructions of the tasks in the textbook are not motivating Other reasons:……………………………………………………………… - The end - APPENDIX 2: RUBRIC FOR ASSESSING SPEAKING TEST Teacher Name: Vo Thi Thuy Linh Student Name: Class: Date: _ This rubric uses a 10-point scale Each criterion is equivalent to points Task Fluency Pronunciation Vocabulary Grammar completion >8- Completes Thoughts Sounds natural Rich and Grammar is 10 task by expressed varied use of consistently elaborating completely vocabulary accurate on theme, with few with a with high pauses or variety of level of detail hesitation grammatical and structures creativity >6- Completes Some Sounds Vocabulary Grammar is task hesitation but somewhat conveys mostly appropriately manages to natural appropriate accurate and continue and meaning most appropriate complete of the time; for the level thoughts appropriate for the level >4- Completes Speech Good Vocabulary Grammar is task relatively pronunciation, conveys sometimes adequately; smooth with but not appropriate accurate or some some pauses, definitely meaning some not additional most thoughts natural of the time; appropriate details should are complete adequate for the level be provided vocabulary choice >2- Partially Speech Some problems Vocabulary Grammar is completes choppy and/or with does not rarely task; lacks slow with pronunciation convey accurate or important frequent that may meaning some appropriate information pauses, most interfere with of the time; too for the level or response is thoughts are communication basic for level too basic complete 0-2 Task Speech Multiple Vocabulary Grammar is minimally halting and problems with does not completely complete uneven with pronunciation convey inaccurate, Provides little long pauses or that may meaning most even with or no incomplete interfere with of the time; too simple information thoughts communication basic for level structures Overall Grade: _ APPENDIX 3: STUDENTS’ PRESENTATION RESULTS Class: 10A (taught without adapted driving questions) Name Class Score 10A Đặng Thị Bích An Bùi Phan Anh 10A Đặng Thị Ngọc Ánh 10A Đặng Quốc Bảo 10A Trần Đức Báu 10A Hoàng Quốc Cường 10A Lê Thị Mỹ Dung 10A 8 Nguyễn Văn Dũng 10A Võ Trọng Dũng 10A 10 Mai Lê Duy 10A 11 Lê Mạnh Đức 10A 12 Đậu Thị Trà Giang 10A 13 Phan Thị Hà Giang 10A 14 Nguyễn Đào Vinh Hải 10A 15 Hoàng Anh Hoàn 10A 16 Trần Lâm Hùng 10A 17 Nguyễn Công Huy 10A 18 Hồ Thị Hiền Hương 10A 19 Đặng Khoan 10A 20 Châu Phan Chí Linh 10A 21 Ngơ Xn Lộc 10A 22 Lê Đức Mạnh 10A 23 Nguyễn Bá Quang Minh 10A 24 Nguyễn Như Minh 10A 25 Trần Công Nam 10A 26 Phan Nguyễn Yến Nhi 10A 27 Trần Văn Phúc 10A 28 Võ Xuân Phúc 10A 29 Đoàn Vũ Mai Phươn g 10A 30 Lê Anh Quân 10A 31 Nguyễn Đình Quân 10A 32 Nguyễn Thục Quyên 10A 33 Nguyễn Cảnh Tài 10A 34 Nguyễn Thanh Tài 10A 35 Trần Nguyên Thông 10A 36 Trương Minh Thư 10A 37 Lê Quỳnh Trang 10A 38 Nguyễn Thùy Trang 10A 39 Võ Thị Vân Trang 10A 40 Lưu Thị Trân Trân 10A 41 Nguyễn Bá Triệu 10A 42 Phạm Thế Trung 10A 43 Bùi Lê Anh Tú 10A 44 Đào Văn Tùng 10A 45 Nguyễn Thanh Tùng 10A 46 Phan Văn Việt 10A Class: 10D (taught with adapted driving questions) Name Đào Nguyễn Tú Class Anh 10D Score Lê Thị Hồng Anh 10D Nguyễn Tuấn Anh 10D Trịnh Quang Anh 10D Trần Nhật Ánh 10D Nguyễn Hữu Diệu 10D Trần Thị Trà Giang 10D Trần Thúy Hiền 10D Trần Lê Hoa 10D 10 Nguyễn Diệu Huyền 10D 11 Nguyễn Thanh Huyền 10D 12 Ngô Mỹ Khánh 10D 13 Phạm Thị Minh Khuê 10D 14 Bùi Đặng Huyền Linh 10D 15 Hà Nhật Linh 10D 16 Nguyễn Hàm Ngân Linh 10D 17 Nguyễn Khánh Linh 10D 18 Nguyễn Thị Phương Linh 10D 19 Nguyễn Thị Thùy Linh 10D 20 Bùi Lê Nhật Minh 10D 21 Lê Thị Bảo Ngọc 10D 22 Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nguyệt 10D 23 Mai Thị Yến Nhi 10D 24 Nguyễn Thị Yến Nhi 10D Phươn g Phươn g 10D 10D 27 Trương Đức Quang 10D 28 Nguyễn Thị Như Quỳnh 10D 25 Lê Thị Hà 26 Nguyễn Hà 29 Đinh Nguyễn Như Thảo 10D 30 Lê Thị Thanh Thảo 10D 31 Nguyễn Hữu Thịnh 10D 32 Nguyễn Phúc Thuần 10D 33 Trần Thanh Thúy 10D 34 Nguyễn Thị Anh Thư 10D 35 Dương Thùy Trang 10D 36 Hồ Thị Quỳnh Trang 10D 37 Nguyễn Hà Trang 10D 38 Trần Thị Thùy Trang 10D 39 Nguyễn Bảo Trâm 10D 40 Phạm Việt Tú 10D 41 Nguyễn Nhã Tuấn 10D 42 Nguyễn Ngọc Hồng Vân 10D 43 Trương Ngọc Phương Vy 10D 44 Hồ Mạnh 10D Thắng APPENDIX 4: PICTURES OF STUDENTS’ PRESENTATIONS ... DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING LE VIET THUAT HIGH SCHOOL USING DRIVING QUESTIONS ADAPTED FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF SOME SPEAKING TASKS IN THE NEW TEXTBOOK “TIENG ANH 10” TO ENCOURAGE STUDENTS’ ACTIVE. .. Related to these problems, this study was carried out, entitling: Using driving questions adapted from the requirements of some speaking tasks in the new textbook “Tieng Anh 10” to encourage students’. .. contribute to the improvement of the teaching and learning of speaking skills in the textbook “Tieng Anh 10”: 41 - The requirements of speaking lessons in the textbook “Tieng Anh 10” should be