Teachers and learnerss attitudes towards the use of games in teaching grammar at dong thanh high school

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MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

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TEACHERS’ AND LEARNERS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE USE OF GAMES IN TEACHING

GRAMMAR AT DONG THANH HIGH SCHOOL TRUONG DAI HOC MO TP.HCM THU VIEN A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment

of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (TESOL)

Submitted by Pham Thi Truc Ha Supervisor

Ly Quyet Tien, PhD

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I certify that this thesis, entitled “Teachers’ and learners’ attitudes towards the Use of Games in Teaching Grammar at Dong Thanh High School”, is my own work

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis does not contain material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis by which I have qualified for or been awarded another degree or diploma

No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the main text of the thesis

Ho Chi Minh City, September 2011

PHAM THI TRUC HA

` ⁄

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to express my appreciation and deeply-felt words to all those concerned in my thesis

My deepest gratitude goes to my supervisor, Dr Ly Quyet Tien, who read my manuscript with great care and devotion, gave thoughtful and insightful comments, and provided me with invaluable support and relevant materials in the preparation and completion this thesis, thus asserting his indispensable role as a whole-hearted supervisor I would not have finished my study without his enthusiastic guidance and constructive critical questions to help me think over the problems

My special thanks are reserved for my TESOL2 classmates, who shared the happiness and difficulties with me during the course I will never forget the time I studied with them, as siblings in a nice family

I am also grateful to Dong Thanh High School in Can Giuoc District, Long An

Province, the principal, the English teaching staff, and the students in the academic year of 2010-2011 at Dong Thanh High School, whose willingness, enthusiasm, and

encouragement supported me so much

Last but not least, words cannot reveal my appreciation to my father and my late

mother Without their endless love and devotion, I could never overcome all the

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ABSTRACT

This thesis attempts to investigate teachers’ and learners’ attitudes at Dong Thanh High School towards the use of games in teaching English grammar At the same time, some grammar games for high school, some problems with their solutions are recommended To find out the answer about the attitudes of high school teachers and students towards grammar game use, a quasi-experiment was implemented in two classes of the tenth graders at Dong Thanh High School After four months, two grammar lessons in each month, the pre-test and post-test scores were compared to prove the positive attitudes, the change of attitude of the high school learners, and the effectiveness of using games in teaching grammar Beside the experiment, questionnaires were also carried out to 7 teachers and 754 students of this school The data collection and analysis from these questionnaires were the answers for the attitudes of the high school teachers and learners to the effective application of games in teaching and learning language grammar

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

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2.2.1 Game definitions from different points of View . - 5s 15 Joos LANGUARE game GAÍ6EOPIZNHOD csceesessersixilauabbalidrilvgk tugsgiasdsaxesas 15 2.2.3 Advantages of games in language teaching 5 + «5 «s<+ 16 2.2.4 Studies on cÏassroom ØIm€§ . 5 5+ +2 s++ +3 ££s£+s£z£s£s£+ 18 2.3 Games ¡n teaching ðTaImmạ ĩc + + s6 +35 32533 3£ xxx rxeeeeeeree 19 2.3.1 Studies on teaching grammar through øames 5- s52 19 2.3.2 Games used in teaching grammar at high school 55s 20

2.3.2.1 Benefits of games in teaching and learning English

grammar at high schOOl c5 55 52s s52 s+sszs+ss+ss+ 20 2.3.2.2 When and where games fit into ateaching programme 22 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY., 5 2 S222 S3 E2% 3x E vực ưu 24 3.1 Hypotheses -LScL tt HH nh HH HH HT HH HH ng ng sec 24 lĩc “TU 0U: Cờ HT xu sncocgnonoonlaoeooeeeoiesososssnrisrerdissssrdsltivbsiseebsssseeideofsiskiassaee 24 4.2: POpPULAtiON .not.carenarsiasernvenearsavenasuencnsisncnseslfdetovedssagsaudsuiessucseecareserees 25 EC EHEEEA HD HỆ x.scssulnceposyioadtiuisiepoagtsssserstesasissbself.tS1-snokEiflssoxssssesse aS 3.2.2.1 Quasi-experiment research .cccccscessssescssssssesseecesseeesceees 25 3.2.2.2 Survey quesfÏOTITIẠT€S 5s 2 5s <2 ekekevseeseese 32 3.3 Dafa analySiS c- + 11H ng ng TT ng ng gas 35 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 5- St 3 EeEgEzEscscsc 36 4.1 Questionnaire r€SuÏ(S 5 5c chư SE E18 8x Se nen se srey 36 4.1.1 Questionnaire 1 (for studenis) .- s5 se £+EeEeE+sgszszszscsz 36 4.1.1.1 Students’ Background -¿-s- <5 5s xE+E+Eex+eesseesz 36

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4.1.1.2.1 The importance of grammar to high school students 37 4.1.1.2.2 Games and high school students’ attitudes

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4.1.2.2.1 Games and their necessity for teaching 4] 4.1.2.2.2 High school teachers’ attitudes towards teaching

grammar With QaMes cccscsccsesscecessesseeceeeees 42 4.1.2.2.3 The problems of game application 43 4.1.2.2.4 Teachers’ experiences about teaching English

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LIST OF TABLES

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Table 4.4: Students’ opinions about proportion of grammar application 37

Table 4.5: Students” opinions about proportion of game attraction 38

Table 4.6: Students’ opinions about proportion of frequency use in class 38

Table 4.7: Students” opinions about proportion oftime use in cÏass 39

Table 4.8: Students” opinions about proportion of game heÏp .-. - - 39

Table 4.9: Students” opinions about proportion of game fypes - - - - 40

Table 4.10: Students’ feeling when teachers use games to teach English grammar TH OS at nr ve csnenneninveetieranrecnarncededvanshesmecndocchiand oatovanlaugn GU inn Anon 40 Table 4.11: Teachers? interest in prammar teaching . - 5-5 + sex szs+s 41 Table 4.12: Teachers’ thought about grammar lesSOTS - ¿2 5 5 55s zs+s 41 Table 4.13: Teachers’ opinions about the frequency of game application 4]

Table 4.14: Teachers” opinions about proportion of game attracfion 42

Table 4.15: Teachers’ opinions about proportion of game help in teaching grammar 42 Table 4.16: Teachers’ opinions about proportion of frequency use in class 42

Table 4.17: Teachers” opinions about proportion of time use in cÌass 43

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Table 4.25: Experimental students’ opinions about proportion of game interest Table 4.26: Experimental students’ opinions about proportion of frequency use in

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LIST OF CHARTS

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DMI EPL ESL HCMC ABBREVIATIONS : Douglas Mawson Institute

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Background ofthe Problem

High school students would easily feel bored with grammar lessons because they are in the habit of learning by heart its rules, most of which they have gotten passively through the teacher's explanations and quickly forget some days later In learning a foreign language, however, grammar plays an important role It is one of the elements that link the four skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing all together In order to communicate well in a foreign language, students should understand and should know how to use it accurately As a result, many techniques, including teaching with games have been employed in schools In order to help the students to see language classes, especially grammar lessons more interesting, and to achieve more from games, a research has been carried out to find the answer to the question, "Would teachers and students at high schools like teaching and learning English grammar through games?" Most of the teachers at high schools have used games in their classes to warm up

before new lessons, to make fun or to relax Therefore, they do not make full use of

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are that they first find the teacher's method, Grammar-Translation method, with which grammar points are presented deductively, boring Second, students usually get new grammar rules from their teachers during classroom lessons in just a short time, only three periods a week Therefore, they have little time to practise those points at class Some of them might even master those rules but are not able to use them in real situations Third, students do not want to take risks in applying what they have learnt inside and outside their class As an English teacher, I usually wonder if there are any ways for students to enjoy English, especially grammar lessons, and how to motivate them to learn as well as to use grammar lessons in the best ways, since motivation is “one of the key factors determining success in foreign or second language learning” (Dornyei & Csizer, 1998) Moreover, “Students said that they liked the relaxed atmosphere, the competitiveness and the motivation that games brought to the classroom.” (Nguyen & Khuat, 2003)

How to solve this problem: how to keep in their mind what they have learnt during as well as after classes and how to motivate them in studying and using English grammar actively and self-consciously Nguyen and Khuat (2003) were also on their way to find the answer for their question, they has stated that

In recent years, communicative language teaching (CLT) has been applied in Vietnam and from our own experience it has shown its effectiveness in teaching and learning language CLT is an approach that helps students be more active in real life situations through the means of individual, pair and group work activities It encourages students to practice the language they learn in meaningful ways

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communicatively in a more pleasant ways While many English centers including VUS (Vietnam USA Society English centers), ILA centers (International Language Academy), have been making full use of games in teaching this language successfully, how do high school students and teachers, especially at remote regions, think about using games in grammar lessons?

Last but not least, many researchers have been investigating the use of games in language classes such as

Huynh Chi Xuan Huyen , 2007 in “The use of Language games to teach English grammar to non-majored students at An Giang University” (AGU) exploited the reality of using language grammar to teach English grammar to non-majored (NEM) students at An Giang University, and he found that most teachers and students had positive attitudes towards language as well as language games They also acknowledge the usefulness of grammar games to their teaching and learning

In ‘Using games to promote girls' positive attitudes toward technology’ Richard Van Eck and his colleagues at the AIM Lab at the University of Memphis designed a two- semester curriculum to test the concept of using video games in the classroom They encouraged their students to play and design their own games during these semesters They learnt that Students' problem-solving efforts in both game play and game design during this study

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memorize word meaning better The result of the study showed that communication games were really effective in helping to solve the problem of word meaning memorization of DMI First-year students of HCMC University of Industry After learning new words with games in class, their memorization of word meaning became better as they could identify more meaning of the challenging new words in the test Nguyen Vu Thuy Tien in ‘The use of games in teaching vocabulary’ attempted to search the effectiveness of games in teaching vocabulary, students’ involvement in games as well as the possibility of game using to the variety of learners A quasi- experiment was implemented in two classes of English minor at Huflit University After the eight week quasi-experiment, the pretest and post-test scores were compared to prove the effectiveness of using games in teaching Besides, the questionnaire and interviews were also carried out to teachers and students of different Universities and language centers The data collection and analysis from the questionnaire and interviews were the answers for students’ involvement and possibility of game using to the large variety of learners These results indicated that the students who learnt vocabulary through games gained better scores and that the learners were interested in learning through games

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1.2 Purpose of the study

The purpose of this study is (1) to research the teachers’ and learners’ attitudes towards the use of games in teaching grammar at some high schools in the remote regions, and (2) to give suggestions so as to motivate high school teachers to apply games to teaching English grammar effectively

1.3 Research questions

To achieve the aim articulated above, this thesis will try to find the information to answer the following research questions:

1 What are the attitudes of Dong Thanh high school teachers and students to games?

2 What are their responses to grammar game application? 1.4 Significance of the study

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1.5 Methodology

Population: Teachers and students at Dong Thanh High School, who have very few opportunities of using and practicing English grammar

In order to assess the effectiveness of learning grammar through games in the classroom, we would like to learn how students' experiences help with their learning, what progress they gain, and if we can, specially, apply games as an effective means to make students feel more comfortable and interested in learning grammar at high school

1.6 The study background

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school graduation examination which consists of grammar points, pronunciation and reading, no listening and speaking Consequently, teachers and students teach and learn English for exams, which is too boring

1.7 Limitations

Some teachers and students do not complete all questions when being interviewed and answering the questionnaires, and some of them may not like games

1.8 Thesis overview

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

In chapter 2, the literature on the central issues associated with using games in English pedagogy is reviewed in order to set up a theoretical framework for the current study The first part of this chapter examines the areas which relate to the research questions in terms of grammar and its role in language teaching and learning This section also brings out the approaches in grammar teaching The second part revises the relevant concepts of language games (the definition of ‘game’, game categorization and their advantages in language teaching), studies and articles deal with classroom games; using games in teaching English grammar dealing the relevant research, and finally games used in teaching grammar at high school

2.1 Grammar

2.1.1 The theory of grammar

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Descriptive grammar ‘was a systematic way of approaching the study of linguistic facts’ and prescriptive grammar ‘came to be seen as a means to lay down and maintain

linguistic excellence’ (Garner, n.d.)

Then Grammar is split up into two types: formal and functional grammar ‘Formal grammar is a grammar that is formal studies language from the point of view of rules it is these rules that become the focus of teaching and learning.’ (Love, 2003, p1) Larsen-Freeman, (2001) insists ‘Formal grammars take as their starting point the form or structure of language, with little or no attention given to meaning (semantics) or context and language use (pragmatics).’(p 34) When we study grammar, indeed, we master not only its form, but also its meaning and use, which formal grammars give

little or no attention Conversely, a functional grammar is not concerned with rules, but

with the nature of meaning, and how meaning is constructed in language It seeks to explain why the linguistic form is more appropriate than another in satisfying a particular communicative purpose in a particular context In this respect, Love, (2003) indicates that the functional approach tries to identify the way language is used in different social contexts in order to satisfy human needs and goals

2.1.2 The role of grammar in language teaching

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followed by exercises involving translation into and out of the mother tongue Even today when communicative approach is preferred, grammar still helps, for ‘it is taught consistently as a means to improving mastery of the language, not as an end in itself.” (Ur, 1996, p 77-78)

2.1.3 Approaches to grammar teaching

Grammar can be introduced in a number of approaches based on the methods the teacher applies

2.1.3.1 Deductive and inductive approaches

Grammar can be taught inductively or deductively (Thornbury, 1999) Deductive approach, with which learners are taught rules and given specific information about a language, then apply these rules when they use the language, may be found in the Grammar-Translation Method When students study grammar in this way, it is important for them to learn about the form of the target language Deductive application of an explicit grammar rule is a useful pedagogical technique On the contrary, when the purpose of language learning is communication, learners should learn to think in the target language with the Direct Method and communicative approach with which grammar is taught inductively (learners are presented with examples and they figure out the rule or generalization from the examples) An explicit grammar rule may never be given

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For instance, teaching Present Perfect and Past Tense Deductive Inductive - Rules explained first by the - Examples first presented by the teacher teacher - Examples given by the students - Rules figured out by the students - Practice - Practice

In deductive teaching, the teacher gives the forms of present perfect and past perfect, explains the rules and the uses:

The present perfect

The present perfect relates past time to present time It has three main uses 1 To express unfinished past

Example: I’ve lived here for five years

2 To express an experience that happened some time in your life Example: I have been to Australia

3 To express the present importance of a past event

Example: I have lost my credit card The simple past

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Example: I saw her yesterday morning

In deductive teaching, the teacher may show students a picture of a pair of old and new shoes, and ask questions to elicit the answers from students

How did the shoes look a few minutes ago? Expected answer: They were very dirty

How are they now? — They are clean Why is that? Expected answer: He has just cleaned them

The teacher gives the students many more sentences, elicits the different between Past Simple and Present Perfect from the students

2.1.3.2 Situational approach

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The Rules oƒ the Game

Chess is a game for two players Each player begins with a set of sixteen white or black pieces Some chess sets are plain, but some are very unusual The players take turns moving their pieces on a board with 64 squares Each type of piece moves in a different way The Queen is the most powerful piece, but the King is the most important The primary goal in chess is to checkmate your opponent’s King The game is over when a King cannot avoid capture

The teacher has the students underline the nouns with articles, explains how and when

to use the articles, then checks the students’ comprehension by giving some sentences in which articles are used In the second stage, the teacher has the students practise using the articles in a controlled context through drills:

1 In chess, pawns move one square at a time 2 Chess is interesting game

3 The white Queen begins on white square

Finally, the students practise using the articles in different contexts with their own information to enhance their fluency with these articles

2.1.3.3 Task-based approach

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instructions During the Task cycle stage, the students perform the task in pairs or small groups while the teacher monitors from a distance, and the students then plan how they will tell the rest of the class what they did and how it went In the end, the teacher sets some language-focused tasks, based on the texts students read or on the transcripts of the recordings they hear, then the teacher conducts practice activities as needed, based on the language analysis already on the board, or using examples from the text or transcript To illustrate this point on teaching past tenses, in the pre-task, the teacher has the class to match the broken sentences: A B c

1 It was had already left I got there

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sentences above from the students In the end, the teacher gives language-focus tasks,

based on the sentences students write; then the teacher conducts practice activities,

such as tense using, sentences completion and multiple- choice 2.2 An overview about games

2.2.1 Game definitions from different points of view

Wright, Betteridge and Buckby (2006) defined the word ‘game’ as ‘an activity which is entertaining and engaging, often challenging, and an activity in which the learners play and usually interact with others’ (p.1) Also, Rixon (1981) coded Gibbs’ definition of a game as ‘an activity carried out by cooperating or competing decision-

makers, seeking to achieve, within a set of rules, their objectives’ (p.3) Additionally,

Richards, Platt and Weber (1985) make a clearer definition that game in language teaching is ‘an organized activity that usually has the following properties: (a) a particular task or objective; (b) a set of rules; (c) competition between players; (d)

communication between players by spoken or written language.’ (p 118)

2.2.2 Language game categorization

There are some different classifications of games from many writers Indeed, games can be used to teach different skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing and language focus: pronunciation and grammar Therefore, there are many kinds of games which are classified according to purpose such as ‘Games for language learning’ by Andrew Wright and his accompany who sorted games as Icebreakers and warmers, mainly speaking, mainly listening, mainly writing, mainly reading, mainly vocabulary and spelling, mainly grammar, and solo games, and typed basing on their characteristics as Rinvolucri (1984) who categorized games into four types namely competitive games in which players or teams race to set the highest goal, especially, Whisper Circles,

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Auction, Snakes and ladders, Find who, Grammar monopoly, collaborative sentence- making games, for example, Rub out and replace, Memorising structures, Awareness activities, mainly Animal habits, My view of you, Brain storming structures, From puzzle to punishment, Our lives, and grammar through drama, particularly The shout in the circle, Same and different, From word to story Hadfield (1999) explains two ways of classifying language games First, she divides language games into two types: linguistic games which focus on accuracy, such as supplying the correct antonym and communicative games which focus on successful exchange of information and ideas, such as two people identifying the differences between their two pictures being similar to one another but not exactly alike The second taxonomy that Hadfield uses to classify language games has many more categories As with the classification of games as linguistic games or communicative games, some games will contain elements of more than one type, such as sorting, ordering, or arranging games, information gap games, guessing games, search games, matching games,

labeling games, exchanging games, board games, and role play games

2.2.3 The advantages of games in language teaching

There are many strong points of games in language teaching and learning

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‘motivating and challenging’, ‘effort of learning’, ‘language practice in the various Skills’, ‘interact and communicate’, and ‘a meaningful context for language use’ Furthermore, Nguyen Thi Thanh Huyen & Khuat Thi Thu Nga (2003), who studied about the use of games in teaching vocabulary, wrote “Games usually involve friendly competition and they keep learners interested These create the motivation for learners of English to get involved and participate actively in the learning activities.” Also, according to Ersoz (2000) 'Games are highly motivating because they are amusing and interesting They can be used to give practice in all language skills and be used to practice many types of communication.’ Arif Saricoban and Esen Metin, authors of

"Songs, Verse and Games for Teaching Grammar" explain how and why games work for teaching grammar in an ESL classroom They say, "Games and problem-solving activities have a purpose beyond the production of correct speech, and are examples of the most preferable communicative activities." They continue to explain that grammar games help children not only gain knowledge but be able to apply and use that learning

Besides, Lewis, (1999) (as cited in 'Using Games in an EFL Class for Children’ by Yin Yong Mei and Jang Yu-jing Daejin University ELT Research Paper Fall, 2000) gave the reason why games should be used in class time as follows (1) games are fun and children like to play them Through games children experiment, discover, and interact with their environment; (2) games add variation to a lesson and increase motivation by providing a plausible incentive to use the target language For many children between four and twelve years old, especially the youngest, language learning will not be the key motivational factor Games can provide this stimulus; (3) the game context makes the foreign language immediately useful to the children It brings the target language to life; (4) the game makes the reasons for speaking plausible even to reluctant children;

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(5) through playing games, students can learn English the way children learn their mother tongue without being aware they are studying; thus without stress, they can learn a lot; (6) even shy students can participate positively

2.2.4 Studies on classroom games

Several researchers in the world have studied the use of games in learning and teaching language (Wright et al., 2006; Rixon, 1981; Eck, 2006, YU, 2005) All of them thought that games brought a more positive classroom atmosphere and a supportive spirit As teaching-learning strategies, games are fun and create a non-threatening learning environment that encourages interactions between students and teachers, enhances communication and team work, encourages active participation and enables students to demonstrate and apply previously or newly acquired language knowledge and skills Lee (1995) mentioned six helpful advantages of using games in the classroom such as (1) welcome break from the usual routine of the language class; (2) motivation and challenging; (3) help of making and sustaining students’ effort of learning; (4) provision of language practice in the various skills; (5) encouragement of students’ interaction and communication; (6) creation of a meaningful context for language use In the study ‘Fun games and activities for pronunciation and phonetics classes at University’ (1997), Makarova used vocabulary games including crosswords, hangman or bingo for pronunciation practice, which was one of the greatest challenges in academic environment about teaching phonetics and pronunciation

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were significantly better, and they are really interested in learning through games (Nguyen Vu Thuy Tien, 2006; Huynh Huu Hanh Nguyen, 2007)

Huynh Thanh Nhut (2007) demonstrated that communication games were really

effective in helping to solve the problem of word meaning memorization of DMI First- year students of HCMC University of Industry In his view, after learning new words with games in class, their memorization of word meaning became better as they could identify more meaning of the challenging new words in the test

2.3 Games in teaching grammar

2.3.1 Studies on teaching grammar through games

There are a number of experts who have been contributing to using games for grammar teaching, such as Rinvolucri (1984); Venon (2008), Saricoban and Metin (2000) In particular, Shu-jun YU (2005) reported that games provided with welcome communication-rich grammar practice activities, fun, a non-threatening learning environment, improvement and grammatical accuracy Students had positive attitudes towards the use of grammar games;

Huynh Chi Xuan Huyen(2007) confirmed that using grammar games in English classes makes teaching and learning English grammar fun and effective; Similarly, Nguyen Thi Bach Yen (2010) asserted the benefits of the use of games in grammar classes at

high school, such as the students’ interest and retention were stimulated, and their four

language skills, especially their listening and speaking, improved; and Nguyen Thi Cam(2010) concluded in her research that games helped students enjoy learning English grammar, promote interaction among students and improve their grammar

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In ‘Applying Board Games to teaching grammar practice at high school in Binh Duong province’, Luong Bich Hong (2009) pointed out the effectiveness of the application games in teaching grammar practice so as to overcome the potential difficulties facing teachers in dealing with grammar practice and some obstacles in grammar teaching, such as the stresses on cognitive in put of the Grammar-translation method and deductive application of rules, the out of date design of the text book, the class size, the

limit of time, etc

These previous researchers have contributed to easing grammar lessons for the variety of ages and levels Additionally, they not only proved grammar games so helpful to language teaching and learning, but they also showed students’ positive attitudes towards the use of grammar games in classroom It is necessary to have a specific research about the attitudes of teachers and students in application of grammar games especially for high school students in the far-off rural areas in order to enhance those who have positive attitudes to use games in teaching grammar lessons, and at the same time to encourage those whose attitudes are negative to change their attitudes toward games and accept teaching English grammar through games as one of the helpful techniques in the classroom

2.3.2 Games used in teaching grammar at high school

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and methodology manuals writers have argued that games are not just time-filling activities but have a great educational value Lee (1979) holds that most language games make learners use the language instead of thinking about learning the correct forms Games also prove helpful in the classroom Accordingly, Jennrich (2007), Wright et al (2006) and Harmer (1988) emphasize the advantages of using games in class that they allow the students to practise and interiorise vocabulary, grammar and structures extensively due to their motivation of playing games outside desk work Plus, fun learning games ‘give learners the opportunity to experience the language in use in contexts that are meaningful and enjoyable, and to practise using them over and

over again This helps the learners to understand, remember and, later, to re-use the

language.’ (Wright et al., 2006, p120)

Shelley Vernon in Teaching Grammar with Fun Learning Games (an article for teachers) insists on how games help in teaching grammar:

The game can be a listening game to allow the students to repeatedly hear a new grammatical structure in use, or it can be a speaking game to allow practise of the grammar once it has been absorbed through listening beforehand There are degrees of difficulty with speaking games from basic

repetition in a fun context to more creative sentence creation for revision or

more advanced practise once the basics have been mastered

Additionally, Rinvolucri, (1984) had the opinion about the advantages of Grammar Games that games give students individual responsibility for what they think the grammar is about, teachers freedom of finding out what the students actually know without being the focus of their attention And Larsen-Freeman (2000) insisted that

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mastering and internalizing it One way of focusing this energy is through the release offered by games (p3)

According to HUI Li-jun and JIN Guo-cheng, interesting games are ‘invaluable’ to students who can have a break and at the same time are allowed to practise language skills Games motivate students highly because they are ‘amusing’ and ‘challenging’ Furthermore, they give learners ‘meaningful’ and ‘useful’ language in ‘real contexts’ Games also encourage learners a great deal to build team spirit in study

2.3.2.2 When and where to fit games into a teaching programme

Some teachers believe that games are for fun and entertainment Consequently, they use them only for warm-up activities in order to get students into the lesson at the beginning or to fill the free time at the end Instead, games can be employed in many activities and almost at every stage as confirmed Saricoban & Metin, (2000) ‘Games and problem-solving activities, which are task-based and have a purpose beyond the production of correct speech, are the examples of the most preferable communicative activities.’ Then they said that games are generally used after the presentation, in the practice part, because such communicative tasks can only be handled after mastering sufficient grammar and lexical points Besides, games are designed to get students to practise a grammar point within a context

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grammar presentation to see how much the group have grasped, and as revision of a grammar area In addition, Rixon (1981) confirmed ‘three main stages’ for learners to master a new language — such as, presentation of the new language item, controlled practice and communicative practice where games can be used effectively

Not all games are suitable for all students; especially, for high school ones because of the language course, the subject matter, their complexity and the time Hence they should be adapted to suit or acceptable to the high school students’ needs

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This chapter explains the research design and method of investigation To do this, it first describes the research site, next gives an account of the sampling selection, then justifies the types of data needed to answer the research questions, and finally sketch the analytical framework employed to analyse the data after their collection Specifically, the design of the questionnaires to collect data is closely based on the conceptual framework shaped in the previous chapter

In order to achieve the research goal, we focused on the perception and attitudes of our students and teachers as well as what they gain through their learning and teaching English with grammar games The plan involved conducting different kinds of games in our lessons so that we could see how students react to this method of learning grammar

3.1 Hypotheses

The researcher supposed that when learning students’ and teachers’ attitudes at Dong Thanh High School towards the use of games in grammar learning and teaching, she thought she could encourage her colleagues to accept teaching English grammar through games as a helpful technique in the classroom, raise the students’ interest in studying grammar, change their attitudes to grammar lessons as well as games, and help them make progress in this subject Upon on that supposal, the researcher suggested the design for the study

3.2 Study design

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whether they liked games or not and if games could help improve their grammar Another way to gather data was from survey questionnaires which were designed for 754 students of different levels and 7 English teachers at Dong Thanh High School to research their attitudes towards studying and teaching grammar through games, problems and progress in their process of learning grammar

3.2.1 Population

The population involved in this research consisted of teachers and students who had difficulties in learning and teaching English grammar in Dong Thanh High School in the distant country In particular, two tenth-form classes in each of which there were 43 students aged 15 or 16 took part in the quasi-experiment These students also filled in the questionnaire before and after the experiment Besides, 754 students who were from different classes in grade ten, eleven and twelve, from 15 to 19 years old, and seven English teachers in the same school completed the questionnaires

3.2.2 Instruments

3.2.2.1 Quasi-experimental research

Quasi-experimental research is ‘concerned with studying the effects of specified and controlled treatments given to subjects usually formed into groups’ (Seliger, 1995:149) The quasi-experiment in this research was conducted to measure the effects of the use of grammar games in teaching and learning English at high schools The participants were chosen randomly from the fourteen tenth-grade classes in Dong Thanh High School during the academic year of 2010-2011

Although class 10.7 as an experimental class was slightly worse than class 10.14, the

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a Both of them were studying in grade ten, with the same number of students who were nearly the same age and have learnt English since the sixth form

b Most of them rather young, dynamic but not good at English

This method of data collection was chosen because of its visibility, convincible and conductibility For Seliger, (1995) insists it is ‘ more likely to have external validity’ , ‘it is easier to gain access to subject populations and thus easier to conduct .’ (p149) As two McDonough (1997) mentioned in their book about experiments, they said that ‘the feature’ of ‘external validity’ was ‘a prized attribute of good experimentation’

(p165)

In this quasi-experimental research, the pre-test mean and standard deviation of the two classes were found, calculated and compared to find out the similarity in the two classes At the same time, The T pre-test was calculated and the result was 3.131 to prove that the experimented class was worse than the controlled class before the experiment

In order to prepare for the experiment, for 16 weeks (4 weeks in the first semester from

the 6" to 31" of December, 2010, 12 weeks in the second semester from January 3" to

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Unit Grammar points Games Week

7 The present perfect - Bingo & Using Signals 15

Because of and in spite of Match end Catch

8 Reported speech - Whisper Circles 17

Conditional sentence type 1 - Mabg on Catch

9 Should - Match and Catch 19

Conditional sentence type 2

10 The passive voice - Whisper Circles 21

11 Conditional sentence type 3 - Match and Catch 23

12 To-infinitive to talk about purpose | - Relays 2

Wh-questions - How Many Questions

13 Attitudinal adjectives - Bingo 27

It is/was not until that - Whisper Circles

Articles - Relays

14 Will vs going to Will: making predictions - Guessing Games 29

Will: making offers - Relays

Table 3.1: Games applied for the grammar points

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researchers who has gathered a great deal of information from teachers in many different countries concerning their experience of using games with their students, and by the teachers who have been making full use of games in their English grammar teaching

Game 1: Bingo

Level: Beginners to Advanced; Age: Children to adult; Time: 10 minutes

This kind of game is used to teach many grammar points, such as tenses, determiners, parts of speech (Wright et al, 2006), tenses, irregular verbs, opposite-adjective (Woodward, 1997), article, superlative, relative clause, phrasal verbs (Hadfield, 2003), prepositions, conjunctions (Jones, 1995), any language (Rixon, 1981)

This game is used to facilitate introductions First of all, the teacher copies a card with nine or sixteen phrases which consist of students’ description for each player Next, Players circulate to find group members who match descriptions in the bingo squares When a match is found, the player writes the name of the individual in the square Different names must be used in each square When a player has filled a row with names, she/he yells “Bingo”

‘Bingo-type games can solve some of the problems presented by large classes’ (Rixon, 1981, p54)

Game 2: Using Signals (Present perfect)

Level: Intermediate to Advanced; Age: 9 to adult; Time: 10 minutes