Using materials that promote reading by students at foreign language centers

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING VINH UNIVERSITY NGUYỄN TRẦN MINH NGUYỆT USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS TO MOTIVATE EFL LEARNERS AT LANGUAGE CENTER TO READ MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION Vinh, 2017 i MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING VINH UNIVERSITY NGUYỄN TRẦN MINH NGUYỆT USING AUTHENTIC MATERIALS TO MOTIVATE EFL LEARNERS AT LANGUAGE CENTER TO READ Major: Teaching English to Speaker of Other Languages (TESOL) Code: 60140111 MASTER’S THESIS IN EDUCATION Supervisor: Ass Prof., Dr Ngo Dinh Phuong Vinh, 2017 ii ABSTRACT Reading has always been considered one of the most important ways to enrich people‟s knowledge Although the majority of students have learned English reading for rather long time, their reading motivation is still low Therefore, this thesis aims at examining the relation of using authentic materials and student‟s motivation on reading The study was carried out using methods: survey and experiment The data were collected through questionnaires The questionnaires were delivered to 80 first-years at Dong Thap University to collect the data about: (1) their self-study in English reading, (2) their attitudes toward studying English reading and (3) their suggestions to help their reading Moreover, in order to find the answer for research question “Does the use of authentic materials motivate the student‟s reading?” the experiment was conducted The findings of the study indicate that: (1) the majority of the students lacked self-study in English reading; (2) they had a negative attitude toward reading Although they realized the necessity of reading in their language learning, they did not like reading, nor did they put effort on reading, (3) they suggested for the support of reading materials since authentic materials confirmed their positive relation to students‟ reading motivation Based on the findings of the study, the thesis recommends solutions for both the teachers and the learners In the teaching process, the teachers should invest their time and effort to inspire students‟ learning motivation Similarly, the learners should try their best cooperate with their teachers in that process because the success of the teaching and learning process needs the significant contribution of both teachers and learners iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This first acknowledgement is made to my supervisor, Ph.D Ngo Dinh Phuong for his invaluable and generous assistance during the development of this study report Without him encouragement and constant guidance, I could not have finished this thesis He told to me about my ideas, helped me proofread my paper and chapter carefully as well as help me think through my problems to complete my study I would like to send my special thanks to my teachers for their helpful instruction and dedication during the course I would like to express my sincere thanks to Ms Phan Thai Anh Thu, Mrs Do Thi Ngoc Bich and my classmates for their help in the study process In addition, I also wish to thank all the students participating in the study for their cooperation and all those who helped in the study Finally, I would like to express my greatest thank to my parents and my future husband who helped me a lot as well as give me with love and encouraged iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS BA: Bachelor of Arts CUP: Cambridge University Press EFL: English as a Foreign Language L1: First Language L2: Foreign/ Second Language Ph.D.: Doctor of Philosophy TESOL: Teaching English to Speaker of Other Language UK: United Kingdom v TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF FIGURES vi LIST OF TABLES vii CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 The rationale 1.2 The research questions 1.2.1 What concerns the students have regarding self-study in reading? 1.2.2 Does the teacher use of authentic materials motivate students to read? 1.3 The aims of the study 1.4 The subjects of the study 1.5 The scope of the study 1.6 The academic and practical significance of the study 1.7 The overview of the study CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 An overview of reading 2.1.1 Definitions 2.1.2 Purposes of reading 2.1.3 Models of reading 2.1.4 Reading approaches 2.2 Literature on motivation 2.2.1 Definitions 10 2.2.2 Main kinds of motivation 12 2.3 Literature of authentic materials 15 vi 2.3.1 Definitions 15 2.3.2 Advantages of authentic reading materials in the classroom 16 2.3.3 Disavantages of authentic reading materials in the classroom 17 2.3.4 The criteria for selecting authentic materials 18 CHAPTER METHODOLOGY 21 3.1 Methods of research 21 3.1.1 The survey approach 21 3.1.2 The experimental approach 22 3.2 Research design 25 3.2.1 The subjects of the study 25 3.2.2 General background to study 29 3.2.3 Instruments 33 3.2.4 Data collection procedures 40 CHAPTER DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS 42 4.1 Learner's responses to the questionnaire for investigating their reading problems 42 4.1.1 Learners‟ responses to their self-study in their learning English and English reading 42 4.1.2 Learners' attitudes toward learning English and reading 48 4.1.3 Learners‟ recommendation 52 4.2 Learners‟ responses to the questionnaire for investigating reading motivation 54 4.2.1 Levels of reading motivation of the experimental group 55 4.2.2 Levels of reading motivation of the control group 55 4.2.3 The comparison about the mean scores between the experimental and control group 56 4.3 Findings 57 CHAPTER CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 59 vii 5.1 Conclusions 59 5.2 Recommendations 60 5.2.1 Recommendations to teachers 60 5.2.2 Recommendations to learners 62 5.2.3 Limitation of the study and recommendation for further research 62 5.2.4 Conclusion 63 REFERENCES 64 APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE FOR INVESTIGATING READING PROBLEMS (IN VIETNAMESE VERSION) 68 APPENDIX 2: THE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR INVESTIGATING READING PROBLEMS (IN ENGLISH) 72 APPENDIX 3: THE ADAPTED QUESTIONNAIRE FOR INVESTIGATING READING MOTIVATION (IN ENGLISH) 76 APPENDIX 4: QUESTIONNAIRES FOR INVESTIGATING READING MOTIVATION (IN VIETNAMESE VERISON) 79 APPENDIX 5: THE QUESTIONNAIRE FOR INVESTIGATING READING MOTIVATION (IN ENGLISH) 84 viii LIST OF FIGURES Chapter Criteria in selecting authentic reading materials 19 Figure 3.1 A summary of learner‟s gender 25 Figure 3.2 A summary of learner‟s hometown 26 Figure 3.3 A number of students from Dong Thap 27 Figure 3.4 A summary learner‟s living condition 28 Chapter Figure 4.1 Learner‟s self-study 42 Figure 4.2 Learner‟s self-study in English learning 43 Figure 4.3 Learner‟s self-study in English reading 43 Figure 4.4 Comparison of learners „self-study habit 44 Figure 4.5 Reason for not self-study in English reading 46 Figure 4.6 Time invested for reading 48 Figure 4.7 Learner‟s interest in learning English 49 Figure 4.8 Learner‟s evaluation for language skills 49 Figure 4.9 Learner‟s attitudes toward reading 50 Figure 2.1 Chapter Figure 4.10 Learner‟s opinion of reading 50 Figure 4.11 Learner‟s opinion of extensive reading 51 ix Figure 4.12 Learner‟s responses to reading efforts 52 LIST OF TABLES Chapter Table 3.1 The experiment timeline and the research schedule 23 Table 3.2 A summary of learner‟s age 26 Table 3.3 The duration of learning English 28 Table 3.4 The first year of the English course 31 at Dong Thap University Chapter Table 4.1 Reasons for self-study English reading 45 Table 4.2 The frequency what students self-study in English reading 47 Table 4.3 The learner‟s suggestions to the teacher 53 Table 4.4 The learner‟s suggestions to themselves 54 Table 4.5 Paried Samples Statistics of the experimental group 55 Table 4.6 Paried Samples Statistics of the control group 55 Table 4.7 Statistics comparison of two groups 56 x 19 In your opinion, to improve the learning and teaching of reading comprehension, what should be done? The learner -Other Thank you very much for your help 76 APPENDIX 3: THE ADAPTED QUESTIONNAIRE FOR INVESTIGATING READING MOTIVATION (IN ENGLISH) (Adapted from Wigfield and Guthrie questionnaire in “Relation of children’s Motivation for reading to the amount and bread of their reading) Aspects of Motivation Reading curiosity Aesthetics enjoyment of reading Original Items Adapted Items If the teachers discusses I like reading English something interesting I may read materials, that are said to be more about it interesting If I‟m reading about an I like reading English interesting topic, I sometimes materials about different lose track of time people in different places I read to learn new I hope that learning to information about topics that read in English helps me interest me learn more about my hobbies I read about my hobbies I like reading to learn more about them interesting topics to learn I have favorite subjects new things My favorite that I like to read about work is reading English I read stories about fantasy and make believe I get involved in interesting English stories I read a lot of adventure stories Reading adventure stories in English is really interesting I enjoy a long involved story or fiction book I make pictures in my mind when I read 77 It is enjoyable to read interesting English materials I draw picture in my mind when I read Important of reading 10 If I‟m a good reader, I can know more things 11 to 10 Reading is very important because it help It is very important to me me broaden my knowledge be a good reader 11 I find it important to 12 I can get a satisfaction job if be a good reader 12 Being able to read in I‟m good at reading English English helps me more successful in my job Reading recognition 13 I like having the teacher say I read well 13 I like reading English because my teachers say 14 My friends sometimes tell that I am a good reader 14 me I am a good reader I‟m am happy when my 15 My parents often tell me friend tell me I am a good reader what a good job I am doing in reading 15 My parents appreciate 16 I like to get compliment my English reading for my reading 16 I like reading English because of my teacher and friends‟ compliments Reading for grades I read English 17 I read to improve my 17 because I want to improve grades my grades 18 My parents ask me about 18 Better grades reflex my reading grades how well I in English 19 I look forward to finding reading out my reading book 19 In order to get better grades, I try to read English more 78 My friends and I like to Social reasons for reading 20 trade things to read 21 I talk to my friend about what I am reading 22 I like to tell my family about what I am reading 23 I sometimes read to my parents 20 My friends and I often go zoo the library to read English books 21 I share with my friends about what we are reading 22 I like to talk to my parents about my English reading 23 I like to read for reading clubs Reading competition 24 I try to get more right 24 I find it happy to have answers than my friends more right answers that my friends in English reading 25 I like being the best at reading 25 I like to be the top in the list of good readers 26 I am willing to work hard 26 I try to work hard to to read better than my friends read better than my friends 27 It is important for me to read all the materials what my friends have Reading compliance 28 I read because I have to 29 I always my reading work exactly as the teacher wants it 30 Finishing every reading assignment is very important to me 79 27 I don‟t want to miss any interesting English materials that my friend read 28 I read because I want to 29 I my reading work to please my teacher 30 It is my duty to finish my reading assignment APPENDIX 4: QUESTIONNAIRES FOR INVESTIGATING READING MOTIVATION (IN VIETNAMESE VERISON) BẢNG CÂU HỎI Chào bạn sinh viên, Những câu hỏi nhầm thu thập liệu cho đề nghiên cứu “Tạo động học tập môn Đọc hiểu tiếng Anh cho sinh viên không chuyên Anh năm thứ Trường Đại học Đồng Tháp tài liệu đọc thêm” Xin bạn vui lòng trả lời số câu hỏi bảng khảo sát cách đánh dấu chéo (X) vào câu trả lời dc lựa chọn Các câu trả lời bạn quan trọng cho thành công đề tài.Những kết thu thập giữ kín, phục vụ cho đề tài nghiên cứu khơng có mục đích khác.Xin chân thành cảm ơn bạn PHẦN 1: THÔNG TIN CÁ NHÂN Mã số sinh viên: Giới tính:  Nam  Nữ Độ Tuổi: 80  Từ 18-22  Trên 22 Quê quán: Bạn với gia đình hay trọ?  Với gia đình  Ở trọ Trước bạn học trường Đại học Đồng Tháp, bạn có học Tiếng Anh khơng ( khơng có học tiếng Anh xin bạn tiếp tục trả lời câu hỏi số 7)  Có  Khơng 7, Nếu học rồi, bạn học tiếng Anh khoảng bao lâu? 