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VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLIS H LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION GRADUATION PAPER THE EFFECTIVENESS OF LEARNING ENGLISH FOR ECONOMICS AS PERCEIVED BY GRADUATE STUDENTS AT FELTE, ULIS, VNU Supervisor : CẤN THỊ CHANG DUYÊN Student : NGUYỄN THỊ NGỌC TÚ Course : QH2010.F1.E4 HÀ NỘI - 2014 ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ SỰ HIỆU QUẢ CỦA VIỆC HỌC MÔN TIẾNG ANH KINH TẾ VỚI SINH VIÊN ĐÃ TỐT NGHIỆP KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH, ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ, ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HA NỘI Giáo viên hướng dẫn: CẤN THỊ CHANG DUYÊN Sinh viên: NGUYỄN THỊ NGỌC TÚ Khóa: QH2010.F1.E4 HÀ NỘI – 2014 DECLARATION I hereby declare that the research paper titled “A research on the effectiveness of learning English for Economics to graduate students at FELTE, ULIS, VNU” by me, Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tu, is based on actual and original work carried out be me Any reference to work done by any other person or institution or any material obtained from other sources have been duly cited and referenced I further certify that the research paper has not been published or submitted for publication anywhere else nor it will be sent for publication in the future Signature i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my special appreciation and thanks to my advisor, teacher Duyen Can Thi Chang, you have been a whole-hearted mentor and a great supporter for me I would like to thank you for encouraging my research and spare your precious time giving comments and instructions on my research paper Your pieces of advice on research as well as on my career have been priceless My classmates, especially my three great friends Chi, Thuy Anh and Quynh Anh have been great supporters and inspiring companions The time I spend being with them is always the most enjoyable I would also like to thank my graduate friends and acquaintances who have helped me in doing the questionnaire and answering my interview questions A special thanks to my family Words cannot express how grateful I am to my family for supporting me during the hard time when I was carrying out the research At the end I would like to express appreciation to my best friends Kim Ngan, Mata, Cindy and Ngoc Dang who have been with me and encouraged me when I needed them the most ii ABSTRACT In this fast-paced life, all over the world people have become highly economic minded It is believed that the study of economics can provide a solution to many economic and social problems In any capacity all inhabitants are playing a role as economic agents such as a consumer, an investor or a merchant It is undeniable that regardless what jobs people do, the Economic knowledge is never futile The purpose of this study is to identify the effectiveness of English for Economics to FELTE graduates and solutions for its betterment Quantitative and qualitative methods as survey questionnaires and face-to-face interviews are used to inspect the graduates‟ attitudes towards the effectiveness of English for Economics These include three major findings Firstly, although FELTE graduates work in a wide range of jobs, their jobs demand some certain Economics knowledge Secondly, the purposes of learning English for Economics diversify among FELTE graduates; however; the importance of this subject in practice is undeniable Last but not least, an appropriate combination of student‟s presentations, material provision and exercise rectifying may be suggested as a new method meeting all the learners‟ demands A theoretical analysis, backed by analysis of data collection, indicates that English for Economics plays an important role in equipping students at FELTE, ULIS, VNU with necessary Economic background knowledge in their job performance Some suggestions given to have good results in EC course are: working hard work, being willing to widen knowledge and in-depth understanding about all the lessons Based on the findings from the research, further studies and future implications may be conducted in a larger population and field to study other relating matters iii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLA RATION .i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vii LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND CHARTS viii PA RT 1: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale Statements of research questions Scope and significance Method of the study Design of the study PA RT 2: DEVELOPMENT 1.1 An overview of ESP 1.1.1 Definition & Classification of ESP 1.1.2 The development of ESP 1.2 Evaluation 1.2.1 Formative 1.2.2 Summative 1.2.3 History of two evaluations 10 1.3 Jobs performance 12 1.3.1 Overview of Performance Improvement 12 1.3.2 Purposes for Job Performance evaluation 14 1.4 Effectiveness and evaluation 13 1.4.1 What is “effectiveness”? 13 1.4.2 Evaluating the effectiveness of Learning Interventions 14 iv CHAPTER AN OVERVIEW OF ENGLISH FOR ECONOMICS AT FELTE, ULIS, VNU 16 2.1 THE TEACHING AND LEARNING SITUATION OF ENGLISH FOR ECONOMICS A T FELTE, ULIS, VNU 16 2.2 A DESCRIPTION OF CURRENT ESP PROGRAMS AT FELTE, ULIS, VNU 16 2.3 THE GRA DUATES OF ULIS 17 CHAPTER 3: THE STUDY 19 3.1 METHODOLOGY 19 3.1.1 Participants 19 3.1.2 Data collection instrument 19 3.1.3 Procedure of data collection 21 3.1.4 Procedure of data analysis 21 3.2 DA TA A NA LYSIS A ND DISCUSSION .23 3.2.1 Graduate students‟ job variety using knowledge relating to ESP programs 23 3.2.2 Graduate students‟ job performance in applying knowledge relating to ESP programs 23 3.2.3 Graduate students‟ evaluation on the effectiveness of ESP programs 30 3.3 SUGGESTIONS FOR THE IMPROVEMENT OF ESP PROGRAM- ENGLISH FOR ECONOMICS 32 PA RT III: CONCLUSION 40 I Summary of findings 40 II Limitations of the current study 42 III Significance of the findings 43 IV Suggestions to better learning ESP program-English for Economics 44 REFERENCES 46 APPENDICES 49 v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EC: English for Economics IT: Information Technology ESP: English for Special Purposes EMT: English Mother Tongue ESOL: English for Speakers of Other Languages EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESL-EAL: English as a second language - English as an additional language EGLP: English for general legal purposes EGAP: English for General Academic Purposes EGOP: English for General and Occupational Purposes EAP: English for academic purposes ESAP: English for Specific Academic Purposes EBE: English for Business and Economics ESS: English for the Social Sciences EST: English for Science and Technology vi LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND CHARTS Figure 1: An ELT Family Figure 2: The necessity of learning EC Figure 3: The variety of participants‟ current jobs Figure 4: Purposes of learning EC Figure 5: Economics knowledge application in graduates‟ jobs Figure 6: EC knowledge used in jobs Figure 7: The application of EC in performing jobs Figure 8: The usefulness of EC Figure 9: Frequency of using EC Figure 10: The most used EC knowledge in jobs Figure 11: Evaluation on current teaching method Figure 12: Satisfaction towards graduate‟s needs Figure 13: Factors in terms of EC knowledge need improving Figure 14: Preference on teaching method Figure 15: The usefulness of presenting news reports, theories and case studies Figure 16: The effectiveness of teaching EC from graduates‟ perspective Figure 17: Suggestions to improve EC course from graduates‟ perspectives vii PART 1: INTRODUCTION RATIONALE English for Economics is among the compulsory subjects for the junior and senior ULIS students who major in Linguistics and double-major program As be known, Economics is about choice and is at the heart of all decision-makings Individuals, businesses and governments are all faced with making choices in situations where resources are scarce As a result, Economics is applicable in a wide range of fields, including business, finance, administration, law, local and national government and, indeed, most aspects of everyday life In studying Economics , learners will examine topics of obvious importance to human well-being Increasingly, policy debate in all areas is being cast in economic terms Knowing this importance, English for Economics is taught in ULIS, VNU aimed at equipping students with sufficient Economic knowledge From that, this raises a question: “How effective that English for Economics brings to them after they graduate and get a job, and how to apply it to perform their jobs most efficiently?” In this research, I will carry out a research to analyze this matter and find out what the specific advantages are There are a number of researches that have discussed the importance of this subject and the evaluation of the usefulness of the topics In ULIS, VNU, some recent related researches have also mentioned about the importance of this subject: The Role of Needs Analysis in English for Specific Purposes by Custi Astika Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana Salatiga, Should Students’ Language Needs Influence How We Teach? By Charito Aglaua,etc Among those, “An evaluation of ESP programs at FELTE, ULIS, VNU” by Bui Thi Bich Thao is the one that provides the most insightful information relating to this matter This study means to evaluate and improve the ESP program for Economics at FELTE, ULIS, VNU Most of the researches, however, only focus on the influence of the subject on current students Therefore, this research will lead take a step further forward to Moreover, it is highly recommended with a relatively identical amount among the course improvement‟s solutions that the course‟s time allocation should be lengthened; various topics in reading texts should be implemented These findings suggest that in general EC is a purposive yet profitable course to students The knowledge they accumulated from EC lessons is expedient in performing their future jobs In a nutshell, the study has gone some way towards enhancing our understanding of the effectiveness of learning and teaching English for Economics for FELTE graduates Although the current study is based on a small sample of participants, the findings suggest that EC can be taught widely and intensively to students who not study Economics major With Economic background knowledge, students have more chances in getting jobs as well as doing jobs more productively and competently II Limitations of the current study Despite the researcher‟s effort in justifying methodology as well as collecting and analyzing data with careful consideration, certain limitations could be detected in this study due to time constraints and other factors Firstly, the scope of the paper was not large but it is still difficult to collect data from graduate students The researcher had to contact personally and the questionnaire was done online mostly With a small sample size, caution must be applied, as the findings might not be transferable and accurate to all ULIS graduates Secondly, most respondents are employed and busy with their jobs Some even got married and had babies The major limitation of this study is the low response rate Therefore, it takes longer than usual to collect responses 47 Thirdly, the researcher could interview only a few graduates to reconfirm their answers in survey Many graduates were unavailable when the research contacted them to interview However, thanks to the acquaintances of the researcher, the interview was completed successfully Fourthly, the survey also suffers the limitation of forcing respondents into particular response categories, thereby limiting the range of responses Fifthly, the study did not evaluate the use of EC in current jobs distinctly due to the variety of graduates‟ jobs Sixthly, one source of weakness in this study which could have affected the measurements of was that these results may not be applicable to all graduates This resulted from the reason that most respondents are one-yeargraduate Due to the fact that the network of graduates that researcher has is mostly one-year graduates; therefore; the finding was mainly about this population Lastly, the scope of the research is 80 participants but there were only 60 collected Some respondents felt overworked and did not have time to complete the survey The above-mentioned limitations are the bases for some suggestions for other researchers sharing the same interest in the field The research issue is an intriguing one which could be usefully explored in further research Notwithstanding these limitations, the study gives some s uggestions for further research: Further investigation and experimentation into the effectiveness of learning English for Economics is strongly recommended If further research continues, the researcher hopes to conduct larger surveys and interviews including more participants (both graduates and teachers) 48 from all universities teaching ESP programs such as National University of Education and Hanoi University III Significance of the findings (research contribution) Initially, this research extends our knowledge of EC, how it is taught and learnt in ULIS The findings assist in our understanding of the role of learning ESP in general and EC in particular Furthermore, the study also provides a new understanding of graduates‟ evaluation on EC and how they asses its effectiveness Despite its exploratory nature, this study offers some insight into meliorating current EC program Suggested further studies: - A research on effectiveness of ESP in students learning this subject in Hanoi University and National University of Education - An evaluation of ESP programs by students learning this subject in Faculty of Translation and Interpretation, ULIS, VNU - A comparison between ESP programs‟ application into practice in FELTE graduates and graduates from Translation Department The findings of this study have a number of important implications for future practice A further study could assess the long-term effects of learning English for Economics on FELTE graduates The researcher would be very grateful for readers‟ comments and tolerance for the shortcomings and deficiencies of the study Finally, above all, it is hoped that these research findings can partly contribute to future EC course‟s improvement 49 IV Suggestions to better learning ESP program-English for Economics From the researcher‟s and graduates‟ point of view, some recommendations are given to learners so as to have suitable learning strategies and get good results in EC Firstly, before taking the course, learners should thoroughly study about the course description Learners are strongly recommended to have a through grasp of what EC teaches, and how it is taught such as the theories, the assignments, the exercises and learning materials Next, they should selfdefine their learning purposes and suitable strategies Secondly, during the course, besides being attentive and interested in the subject, learners also need to develop and research more online materials in order to present news report forcibly By doing that learners can gradually get used to technical terms and know how to apply theories in practice However, they need to be deliberate in choosing online materials Trustworthy materials should be suggested by teachers or from an authentic source Textbook exercises and theories need to be well-comprehended so that the learners can the final test efficiently Lastly, after completing the course, learners should re-systematize all the knowledge they have learnt and try to put it into use Learners should be selfmotivated and active in learning and engaging accumulated knowledge with practical purposes when performing jobs In brief, to have good results in EC course, it requires a lot of hard work, the willingness to widen knowledge and in-depth understanding about all the lessons 50 REFERENCES [1] Iteslj.org, (2014) Gatehouse - Key Issues in English for Specific Purposes (ESP) Curriculum [2] Carver, D (1983) Some propositions about ESP The ESP Journal, 2, 131-137 Department of English and Anglo-American Cultures [3] T., H and A., W (1987) English for Specific Purposes: A learningcentered approach Cambridge: Cambridge University Press [4] A, J and T, D (1991) English for Specific Purposes: International in scope, specific in purpose [5] Jones, G (1990) ESP textbooks: Do they really exist? English for Specific Purposes, 9, 89-93 [6] Dudley-Evans, Tony (1998) Developments in English for Specific Purposes: A multi-disciplinary approach Cambridge University Press (Forthcoming) [7] Hutchinson, T & A Waters, (1978) English for Specific Purposes A Learning Centered Approach Cambridge: CUP [8]Johns, Ann M & Dudley-Evans, Tony (1991) English for Specific Purposes: International in Scope, Specific in Purpose TESOL Quarterly 25:2, 297-314 [9] Intrahealth.org, (2014) Introduction to Performance Improvement [online] Available at: http://www.intrahealth.org/sst/intro.html [Accessed May 2014] 51 [10] Mackay, R., &Mountford, A (Eds.) (1978) English for Specific Purposes: A case study approach London: Longman [11] Mackay, R., & Palmer, J (Eds.) (1981) Languages for Specific Purposes: Program design and evaluation London: Newbury House [12] Misanchuk, E R (1978) Uses and Abuses of Evaluation in Continuing Education Programs: On the Frequent Futility of Formative, Summative, and Justificative Evaluation Adult Education Research Conference, April, San Antonio, Texas [13] Rossett, Allison & Sheldon, Kendra (2001) Beyond the Podium: Delivering Training and Performance to a Digital World San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer [14] Saettler, Paul (1990) The Evolution of American Educational Technology Englewood, Colorado: Libraries Unlimited, Inc., p 350 [15] Scriven, M (1967) The methodology of evaluation.In R W Tyler, R M Gagne, & M Scriven (Eds ), Perspectives of curriculum evaluation, 3983 Chicago, IL: Rand McNally [16]Strevens, P (1988) ESP after twenty years: A re-appraisal In M Tickoo (Ed.), ESP: State of the art (1-13) SEAMEO Regional Language Centre [17]Thom, N The nature of professional language [18]Singh, R (2005) Teaching English for Specific Purposes: An Evolving Experience Book Enclave, Jaipur [19] Yogman, J., & Kaylani, C (1996) ESP program design for mixed level students.English for Specific Purposes, 15, 311-24 52 [20] Studypoints.blogspot.com, (2014) Importance of Economics or Role and significance of the study of economics [online] Available at: http://studypoints.blogspot.com/2011/05/importance-of-economics-or-roleand_3543.html [Accessed May 2014] [21] Writing.colostate.edu, (2014) Writing@CSU [online] Available at: http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/guide.cfm?guideid=68 [Accessed May 2014] [22]Fiorito, L and Fiorito, L (2014) Teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP) - Articles - UsingEnglish.com [online] Usingenglish.com Available at: http://www.usingenglish.com/articles/teaching-english-for-specific- purposes-esp.html [Accessed May 2014] [23]Wikipedia, (2014) Effectiveness [online] Available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Effectiveness [Accessed May 2014] [24] BusinessDictionary.com, (2014) What is effectiveness? definition and meaning [online] Available at:http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/effectiveness.html [Accessed May 2014] [25] L Moody, D (2014) Evaluating the Effectiveness of Learning Interventions An Information Systems Case Study 53 APPENDICES: APPENDIX 1: THE QUESTIONNAIRE SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE I am Nguyen Thi Ngoc Tu, a senior student of FELTE, ULIS, VNU This survey questionnaire is designed to collect data for my graduation paper whose title is “ A research on the benefits of learning English for Economics to graduate students at FELTE, ULIS, VNU.” Therefore, your assistance in responding to the following questions is highly appreciated All the personal information will be kept in secrets There are sections Section 1: “What is the jobs background of graduate students? (The variety of their jobs)?” Your gender: Male/ Female How long have you graduated from ULIS? How long have you been learning English? In your opinion, how necessary is it to learn ESP in practice? Unnecessary/ Necessary / Very necessary What are your purposes of learning ESP? (You can choose more than option)  To be able to read and translate ESP texts/ documents  To widen ESP vocabulary  To learn grammar  To acquire knowledge for future jobs 54  To gain new knowledge in a new field o Others (Please specify) What is your current job? A IT B Language Teaching C Business (in general) D Translation and Interpretation E Public relation or Event Planner/ Marketing F Officer G Others (Please specify) Does your job involve in economic fields or require economic background knowledge? Yes/No Section 2: “How does the knowledge that they have accumulated from learning English for Economics help graduate students in performing tasks in their jobs?” Which knowledge of ESP you often use in jobs? ( You can choose more than option)  Background knowledge in economics ( economic issues, supply and demand, business operations in different companies, price, government regulation etc)  Economic terms ( corporation, entrepreneurs, physical markets, etc) 55  Themes in the course book ( History of economic thoughts, Brand wars, etc)  Economic materials for Translation (suggested phrases in translating exercises)  Others ( please specify) ………………………………………………………………………………… … How you apply knowledge that has been learnt in ESP in your job? A Using economic terms at work transaction B Using theoretical knowledge learnt from ESP to put into use C Applying background knowledge from text book‟s themes to the job D Using translation exercises as a tool to practice in the real job E All of above F Others (Please specify) ………………………………………………………………………………… ……… How you evaluate the usefulness of the ESP program (English for Economics)? 56 Not very useful Very useful How often you use knowledge related to ESP program (English for Economics) in your job? A Never B Rarely (Once a week) C Sometimes (Twice per week) D Occasionally (Three times per week) E Usually ( Four- five times per week) F Always ( Everyday) Which is the most useful knowledge that you think you have gained from learning ESP? (You can choose more than option)  Lectures/ Theories  Economic terms  Extra knowledge gained from reading topics  Extra knowledge accumulated from other students‟ news reports, discussions, case studies  Others Which teaching method you prefer in ESP? 57 A Learning by teaching: Teacher gives students more chances to present news report and theory B Teacher centeredness: Teachers provide materials and present mainly C Drilling and practicing: Teachers provide more exercises and focus on correcting exercises rather than only teaching new knowledge D Others (please specify) ………………………………………………………………………………… …… F o r m a tte d: I ndent: Left: 0" How you evaluate your satisfaction towards your needs after learning English for Economics? Not very satisfied Highly satisfied Section 3: “From graduate students’ perspective, how should the subject English for Economics be improved to be more effective?” Which factor you need to improve the most?  Technical terms 58  Knowledge about Economics  Ability to comprehend and translate texts/ materials related  ESP exercises  Others ( please specify) …………………………………………………………………………… …… How should ESP teaching methods be improved? Teachers should: A let students self-research and prepare presentations more B use only English when teaching C assign more group project relating to lessons D use more visual aids and video while teaching to make lessons more interesting E give tests regularly to help students get accustomed to the final exam test format F Others (please specify) ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… …………… How you evaluate the usefulness of presenting news report, case studies and theory in ESP? 59 Not very useful Very useful How you evaluate the effectiveness of learning ESP? Not very effective Very effective Do you have any suggestion to improve ESP Program (English for Economics)?  Lengthen the time allocation of English for Economics  Provide more topics of the English for Economics reading texts  Provide more various exercises  Provide more vocabulary in the course book  Others (please specify) ………………………………………………………………………………… ………………………………………………………………………………… …………… Thank you very much for your contribution! 60 F o r m a tte d: Justified 61 ...ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HÀ NỘI TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ SỰ HIỆU QUẢ CỦA VIỆC HỌC MÔN TIẾNG ANH KINH TẾ VỚI SINH VIÊN ĐÃ TỐT NGHIỆP KHOA SƯ PHẠM... TỐT NGHIỆP KHOA SƯ PHẠM TIẾNG ANH, ĐẠI HỌC NGOẠI NGỮ, ĐẠI HỌC QUỐC GIA HA NỘI Giáo viên hướng dẫn: CẤN THỊ CHANG DUYÊN Sinh viên: NGUYỄN THỊ NGỌC TÚ Khóa: QH2010.F1.E4 HÀ NỘI – 2014 DECLARATION... my career have been priceless My classmates, especially my three great friends Chi, Thuy Anh and Quynh Anh have been great supporters and inspiring companions The time I spend being with them