Thiết kế các hoạt động mang tính thực tiễn trong việc biên soạn giáo trình tiếng anh văn phòng

This has led to a corresponding increase in the materials development of ESP in which designing authentic tasks plays an important part in enabling learners to master the target language

NGUY ỄN THỊ THU PHƯƠNG

DESIGNING AUTHENTIC TASKS IN THE MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT OF SECRETARIAL ENGLISH

THIẾT KẾ CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG MANG TÍNH THỰC TIỄN TRONG VIỆC BIÊN SOẠN

GIÁO TRÌNH TIẾNG ANH VĂN PHÒNG

M.A THESIS

Course: #13

Field: Methodology Code: 601410

Supervisor: NGUY ỄN THỊ VƯỢNG, M.A

Certificate of originality of study report

I certify my authority of the study entitled:

DESIGNING AUTHENTIC TASKS IN THE MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT OF

SECRETARIAL ENGLISH

In partial accomplishment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts

Nguyễn Thị Thu Phương July, 2007

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First of all, I would like to acknowledge my supervisor, Nguyen Thi Vuong for her precious advice, suggestions and especially generous assistance and continual encouragement without which this thesis would not have been accomplished

I am grateful to all the lectures of the M.A course at VNU for their teaching and instructions which are of great value to my study and my thesis

I am also appreciative of my colleagues at the English Department of Bac Ninh Teacher Training College, and all the post-students of English for their cooperation in the process of data collection for this thesis

Last but not least, my heartfelt gratitude goes to my family for giving me endless supports and encouragements during my three-year course at VNU and during the time I carried out and fulfilled the research

ABSTRACT Many areas of English Language Teaching (ELT) have undergone a lot of changes in order to meet the requirements of English learners In recent years, ELT has been showing an inevitable tendency of shifting from General English to English for Specific Purposes (ESP) as the number of ESP has been rising This has led to a corresponding increase in the materials development of ESP in which designing authentic tasks plays an important part in enabling learners to master the target language

This research aims at finding out the most effective techniques to create authentic tasks in the materials development of Secretarial English, which is to be a compulsory subject in the curriculum to train English majors at Bacninh Teachers Training College

This research report is composed of three main parts It begins with the introduction, which states the rationale, aims, scope and methods of the study Part two includes three chapters, the first reviews the related literature, the second presents the study in details and the third deals with major findings from the data analysis and offers recommendations on how to design authentic tasks in the materials development of secretarial English Part three is the conclusion, which summarizes the whole study and gives suggestions for further research

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgement……… 3

Abstract……… 4

Table of content……… ……… 5

List of abbreviations, tables and figures……… ……… 7

PART A: INTRODUCTION ……… ……… 8

1 Rationale of the study ……… …8

2 Aims and significance of the study……… ……… 9

3 Scope of the study……… ……… 9

4 Methods of the study……… ……… 10

5 Design of the study……… 10

PART B: DEVELOPMENT……… 11

CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW ……… ……… 11

I.1 An overview of materials development in English Language Teaching .……… 11

I.1.1 Definition and categories of ELT materials……… ……… 11

I.1.2 Materials development ……… 11

I.1.2.1 Definition of materials development……… 11

I.1.2.2 Basic principles of Second Language Acquisition relevant to thematerials development for the teaching of languages ……….11

I.1.2.3 The process of developing materials……… ……… 16

I.2 Task authenticity as one of the core parts of materials development ………… 16

I.2.1 The nature of authenticity in ELT materials development………… 16

I.2.2 Authentic materials ……… …… … 17

I.2.3 Authentic tasks … ……… ……… 17

I.2.4 Task authenticity and input authenticity……… 18

I.3 Materials development, syllabus design and teaching methodology…… 19

I.3.1 Materials development and syllabus design ……… 19

I.3.2 Materials development of secretarial English and the adopted

teaching approach ……… 23

CHAPTER II: THE STUDY ……… 28

II.1 Background to the study ……… 28

II.1.1 The settings of teaching and learning 28

II.1.2 The teachers ……… 28

II.1.3 The learners and their needs 28

II.2 The problems and research questions 30

II.3 The surveys ……… 30

II.3.1 Selecting the population 30

II.3.2 Data collection instruments 31

II.4 Data analysis and discussion 31

CHAPTER III: FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW TO DESIGN AUTHENTIC TASKS IN THE MATERIALS DEVELOPMENT OF SECRETARIAL ENGLISH 39

III.1 Major findings and discussion 39

III.2 Recommendations on how to design authentic tasks in the materials development of secretarial English 40

III.2.1 A suggested model to enhance task authenticity in the materials

development of secretarial English 41

III.2.2 The selection of teaching techniques 41

III.2.3 Suggested activities 42

III.2.4 Authentic class resources 44

PART C: CONCLUSION 46

1 Conclusion 46

2 Limitations of the study and suggestions for further research 47

REFERENCES 48

APPENDICES 50

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, TABLES AND FIGURES

List of Abbreviations

ELT: English Language Teaching EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESP: English for Specific Purpose SLA: Second Language Acquisition TBLT: Task-based Language Teaching TBL: Task-based Learning

List of Tables

Table 1: A summary of frequency of responses to question 1 for teachers…….………… 26

Table 2: A summary of frequency of responses to question 2 for students……….……… 26

List of Figures Figure 1: The rating of teachers' answers to question 2 ……… 28

Figure 2: The rating of students' answers to question 3 ……… 28

Figure 3: Students’ rating to question 1……… 29

Figure 4: The rating of teachers' responses to question 3 & students' responses to question 4 30

Figure 5: The rating of teachers' responses to question 4 and students' responses to question 6 30

Figure 6: The rating of students' responses to question 5 31

PART A: INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale

As English language has become an important medium for international business, politics and other fields, a good command of the English language is particularly important for those who want to go on to work in an English-speaking environment The development of English for interacting professionally as a result of the integration and globalization processes has been rapidly increasing in almost all workplaces in our country However, the situation of teaching and learning English in our country hasn’t met such demands The fact is that English is taught as a foreign language (EFL), it is a compulsory subject in all curricula of any schools But English is not often used outside the classrooms A great number of students do not need English to engage in day-to-day life functioning or to participate in society There is little or

no motivation to learn a new language when they can communicate only in their first language As a result, low achievement in teaching and learning English has been gained

In recent years, the communicative approach in language teaching has become more and more predominant However, the real quality of the outcomes proves to be a matter of concern of all language teachers and learners The fact is that a lot of learners’ linguistic performance is quite good in class learning, but when they engage in real-life communication in which the target language is used, they seem to be hindered by many factors such as linguistics problems, inappropriate responses, communicative skills, etc Especially, ESP students face a great deal of obstacles when using the target language at their workplaces The problems begin the moment the students step outside the classroom into the real world They are surrounded by a vast range of spontaneous and unpredictable language They have no control over the range of vocabulary they may encounter or the kind of things they will hear or need

to respond to It is the fact that a lot of students who do very well in the classroom find it difficult to express when faced with a 'real' situation Perhaps we simply haven't taught them

in a way that will help them cope with this

It is not a joke that a number of students and graduates rush to their language teachers and ask questions like: “Why is English used inside classroom different from outside communication?”, “Is English in learning too bookish”… On the other hand, the writer often hears complaints from her colleagues: “Students seem so quiet and lazy during the lessons It

is so difficult to get them involved in learning activities”

Such matters may rest with many reasons, including teaching materials, characteristics of learners, teachers’ proficiency, classroom methodology as well as classroom learning activities, among which learning tasks account for a very important part firstly in motivating

and getting students involved in the lessons, then in helping them achieve the goal of using the target language in real-life communication

That is why the concerns of all EFL teachers share an agreement that it is essential to design interesting classroom activities which can motivate the enthusiasm and involvement of learners in an EFL classroom, and particularly for ESP learners such activities should be useful and related to their future jobs If so, the aims of the lessons will be achieved As a result, the quality of English language teaching and learning will be improved as well

Things considered, the writer would like to conduct a mini-research on finding suitable techniques to design authentic tasks in the materials development of secretarial English, which is one of compulsory subject in the curriculum of the writer’s college to train English majors As the goals of teaching secretarial English is to give students intensive experience in the use of general and professional English for the sake of their career, to help students to develop their communication skills effectively, to express themselves confidently and to provide students with the opportunity to gain first hand experience which can be adapted to the future workplace situations In order to achieve these aims, teachers should find ways to create authentic tasks to increase the students’ confidence and ability in using English in such environment and also develop their cognitive processing skills so as to enable them to understand and express ideas, attitudes and feelings, to think and respond creatively In other words, students will get used to using the target language appropriately by performing authentic tasks in contextualized situations, so that they will be capable of using the target language effectively in their future workplace In sum, everything is to be done with a view to enhancing the quality of teaching and learning secretarial English

2 Aims and significance of the study

This study aims at

- Investigating the attitudes of teachers of English and college/ university graduates working

as secretarial or administrative staff towards the effectiveness of techniques used to create authentic tasks in teaching and learning English;

- Finding out the most effective techniques to design authentic tasks in the materials development of secretarial English;

If the study is successfully completed, the quality of teaching and learning secretarial English will be bound to be better As a result, English majors who might work as secretarial and administrative staff will be more competent in using their target language at their workplace

3 Scope of the study

The study focuses on finding techniques to design authentic tasks in the materials

College

4 Methods of the study

The methods used are questionnaires and individual interviews Then an analysis of the

collected data will be quantitatively discussed together with qualitative analysis of the results

of the individual interviews

5 Design of the study

The study is divided into three parts which are briefly presented as follows:

Part A is the Introduction which states rationale, aims and significance, scope and research method of the study

Part B is the Development of the study, consisting of three chapters:

Chapter one reviews the literature concerning an overview of the materials development in ELT, task authenticity as one of the core parts of materials development and the relationship between materials development, syllabus design and teaching methodology

Chapter two presents the background to the study, the problems and research questions, the surveys and the data analysis and discussion according to the research questions

Chapter three shows major findings from the data analysis and offers recommendations on how to design authentic tasks in the materials development of secretarial English

Part C is the Conclusion which summarizes the overall study and states its limitations and suggestions for further research

PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW I.1 An overview of materials development in ELT

I.1.1 Definition and categories of ELT materials

Most people associate the term “language-learning materials” with course books because

that has been their main experience of using materials However, Tomlinson (1998) refers the term to “anything which is used by teachers or learners to facilitate the learning of a language” Materials can obviously be in the form of textbooks, work books, cassettes, videos, CD-Roms, dictionaries, grammar books, readers, workbooks or photocopied exercises They could also be any realia such as newspapers, food packages, photographs, or even live talks by invited native speakers, instructions given by a teacher, tasks written on cards or discussions between learners In other words, they can be anything which presents or informs about the language being learnt

According to McGrath (2002), there are three main categories of materials as follows:

published materials; authentic materials and supplementary ones The first kind includes

course books, students’ books, teachers’ books, workbooks, which can be utilized in a number

of ways The second consists of plentiful materials which do have a place in language learning such as newspapers, magazines, leaflets and brochures, videos and songs, etc The third type can also be very useful for teachers and learners They are dictionaries, grammar books, charts, games etc Other types of materials used in language teaching and learning can

be grouped in the mode of perceptions and specific uses

I.1.2 Materials development

I.1.2.1 Definition of materials development

Tomlinson (1998) refers materials development to anything which is done by writers, teachers

or learners to provide sources of language input and to exploit those sources in ways which maximize the likelihood of intake: in other words the supplying of information about and/or experience of the - language in ways designed to promote language learning

Materials developers might write textbooks, tell stories, bring advertisements into the classroom, express an opinion, provide samples of language use or read a poem aloud

Whatever they do to provide input they do so in principled ways related to what they know about how languages can be effectively learned

I.1.2.2 Basic principles of SLA relevant to the materials development for the teaching of languages

According to Methold (1972) good materials will have the following characteristics:

- set out to teach a predetermined body of knowledge, e.g., what is contained in a syllabus;

- be divided into teachable segments;

- take into account such principles as variety, weighting, the content validity of exercises and the need for recycling ;

- take into account local conditions (the classroom environment, conventional teaching and learning practice, the teachers’ linguistic and methodological competence

In order to design good materials, Tomlinson (1998) has proposed an extensive set of principles which are said to be really valuable in the development of materials The most noticeable are listed as follows:

1 Materials should achieve impact

Impact is achieved when materials have a noticeable effect on learners, that is when the learners' curiosity, interest and attention are attracted If this is achieved there is a better chance that some of the language in the materials will be taken in for processing Materials can achieve impact through:

* novelty (e.g unusual topics, illustrations and activities);

* variety (e.g breaking up the monotony of a unit routine with an

unexpected activity; using many different text types taken from many different types of sources; using a number of different instructor voices on a cassette);

* attractive presentation (e.g use of attractive colors; lots of white space; use of photographs);

* appealing content (e.g topics of interest to the target learners; topics which offer the possibility of learning something new; engaging stories; universal themes; local references)

One obvious point is that impact is variable In order to maximize the likelihood of achieving impact the writer needs to know as much as possible about the target learners and about what is likely to attract their attention In order to achieve impact the writer also needs

to offer choice The more varied the choice of topics, texts and activities the more likely is the

achievement of impact

2 Materials should help learners to feel at ease and develop confidence

Research has shown … the effects of various forms of anxiety on acquisition: the less anxious the learner, the better language acquisition proceeds Similarly, relaxed and comfortable students apparently can learn more in shorter periods of time (Dulay, Burt and Krashen 1982)

Materials can help learners to feel at ease in a number of ways For example:

- are more at ease with texts and illustrations that they can relate to their own culture than they are with those which are culturally exotic (and therefore potentially alien);

- are more relaxed with materials which arc obviously trying to help them to learn than they are with materials which are always testing them

- informal discourse features (e.g contracted forms, informal lexis);

- concreteness (e.g examples, anecdotes);

- inclusiveness (e.g not signaling intellectual, linguistic or cultural superiority over the

learners)

Most materials developers recognize the need to help learners to develop confidence but many

of them attempt to do so through a process of simplification They try to help the learners to feel successful by asking them to use simple language to accomplish easy tasks This approach is welcomed by many teachers and learners But in Tomlinson (1998)’s experience,

he prefers to attempt to build confidence through activities which try to 'push' learners slightly beyond their existing proficiency by engaging them in tasks which are stimulating, which are problematic but which arc achievable too It can also help if the activities encourage learners

to use and to develop their existing extra-linguistic skills, such as those which involve being imaginative, being creative or being analytical

3 What is being taught should be perceived by learners as relevant and useful

Most teachers recognize the need to make the learners aware of the potential relevance and

utility of the language and skills they are teaching Perception of relevance and utility can also

be achieved by relating teaching points to interesting and challenging classroom tasks and by presenting them in ways which could facilitate the achievement of task outcomes desired by the learners Especially in ESP materials it is relatively easy to convince the learners that the teaching points arc relevant and useful by relating them to known learner interests and to 'real-life' tasks which the learners need or might need to perform in the target language

4 Materials should require and facilitate learner self-investment

It seems that learners profit most if they invest interest, effort and attention in the learning activity Materials can help them to achieve this by providing them with choices of focus

and activity, by giving them topic control and by engaging them in learner-centred discovery activities

5 Materials should expose the learners to language in authentic use

Materials can provide exposure to authentic input through the advice they give, the instructions for their activities and the spoken and written texts they include In order to facilitate acquisition the input must be comprehensible Ideally materials at all levels should provide frequent exposure to authentic input which is rich and varied In other words the input should vary in style, mode, medium and purpose and should be rich in features which are

6 The learners' attention should be drawn to linguistic features of the input

White (1990) argues that there are some features of the L2 which learners need to be focused

on because the deceptively apparent similarities with LI features make it impossible for the learners to otherwise notice certain points of mismatch between their interlanguage and the target language And Schmidt (1992) puts forward a powerful argument for approaches which help learners to note the gap between their use of specific features of English and the way these features are used by native speakers

7 Materials should provide the learners with opportunities to use the target language to achieve communicative purposes

Most researchers seem to agree that learners should be given opportunities to use language for communication rather than just to practice it in situations controlled by the teacher and the

materials

8 Materials should take into account that learners differ in learning styles

Different learners have different preferred learning styles This means that activities should be variable and should cater for all learning styles Styles of learning which need to

be catered for in language learning materials include

- visual (e.g the learner prefers to see the language written down);

- auditory (e.g the learner prefers to hear the language);

- kinaesthetic (e.g the learner prefers to do something physical, such as following instructions)

- studial (e.g the learner likes to pay conscious attention to the linguistic features of the language and wants to be correct);

- experiential (e.g the learner likes to use the language and is more concerned with communication than with correctness);

- analytic (e.g the learner prefers to focus on discrete bits of the language and to learn them one by one);

- global (e.g the learner is happy to respond to whole chunks of language at a time and

to pick up from them whatever language she can);

- dependent (e.g: the learner prefers to learn from a teacher and from a book);

- independent (~.g the learner is happy to learn from their own experience of the language and to use autonomous learning strategies)

9 Materials should take into account that learners differ in affective attitudes

Ideally language learners should have strong and consistent motivation and they should also have positive feelings towards the target language, their teachers, their fellow learners and the materials they are using But, of course, the ideal learner does not exist and even if she did

exist one day she would no longer be the ideal learner the next day The fact is that no materials developer can cater for all these affective variables but it is important for anybody who is writing learning materials to be aware of the inevitable attitudinal differences of the users of the materials

Ways of doing this include:

- providing choices of different types of text;

- providing choices of different types of activities;

- providing optional extras for the more positive and motivated learners;

- providing variety;

- including units in which the value of learning English is a topic for discussion;

- including activities which involve the learners in discussing their attitudes and feelings about the course and the materials;

- researching and catering for the diverse interests of the identified target learners;

- being aware of the cultural sensitivities of the target learners;

- giving general and specific advice in the teacher's book on how to respond to negative

learners (e.g not forcing reluctant individuals to take part in group work)

10 Materials should provide opportunities for outcome feedback

Feedback which is focused first on the effectiveness of the outcome rather than just on the accuracy of the output can lead to output becoming a profitable source of input Or in other words, if the language that the learner produces is evaluated in relation to the purpose for which it is used that language can become a powerful and informative source of information about language use Thus a learner who fails to achieve a particular communicative purpose is more likely to gain from negative feedback on the effectiveness of their use of language than

a learner whose language is corrected without reference to any non-linguistic outcome It is, therefore, very important for materials developers to make sure that language production activities have intended outcomes other than just practising language

The rest of the principles are:

11 Learners must be ready to acquire the points being taught

12 Materials should maximize learning potential by encouraging intellectual, aesthetic and emotional involvement which stimulates both right and left brain activities

13 Materials should not rely too much on controlled practice

14 Materials should take into account that the positive effects of instruction are usually delayed

15 Materials should permit a silent period at the beginning of instruction

Rossner (1988: 143), discussing teachers' expectations of materials, sees the impact of communicative principles as being most clearly visible in the following Materials will:

1 provide “comprehensible input” for generalized rehearsal of skills and “activation” of learners' interlanguage repertoire;

2 raise learners' awareness about language, communication, learning, etc.;

3 provide experiences of communication in the new language similar or parallel to those likely to be encountered beyond the learning situation

It is important to bear in mind that however reasonable such principles might seem, they do not represent an objective truth A set of principles for materials

design is therefore best thought of as a personal rationale: a key-point justification for the decisions that are to be taken based on beliefs about learning and how this can best be facilitated

I.1.2.3 The process of developing materials

A teacher’s path through the production of new or adapted materials Tomlinson (1998)

Most materials developers move in this direction and use some or all of the steps If not always precisely in this order: a movement from the identification of a need for materials to their eventual use in the classroom

I.2 Task authenticity as one of the core parts of materials development

I.2.1 The nature of authenticity in ELT materials development

Authenticity has been a controversial matter in ELT Authenticity is felt to be important because it gives learners a taste of the real world; an opportunity to rehearse in a sheltered environment Taylor and Breen argued the facets of authenticity in language learning and teaching as follows:

Authenticity of text used as input data for learners Authenticity of language

Authenticity of the learners own interpretations of such texts

Authenticity of task Authenticity of the tasks conductive to language learning

Authenticity of situation Authenticity of the actual social situation of the language classroom The writer of this study would like to focus the review on authentic materials, authentic tasks and the relationship between task authenticity and input authenticity

I.2.2 Authentic materials

Traditionally, authentic materials have been defined, "as those which have been produced for purposes other than to teach language" (Nunan 1988, p 99) Little et al (1988:27) states that an authentic text is one “created to fulfill some social purpose in the language community in which it was produced” With the onset of the communicative movement a greater awareness of the need to develop students’ skills for the real world has meant that teachers endeavor to simulate this world in the classroom One way of doing this has been to use authentic materials as defined by Little et al above in the expectation that exposing students to the language of the real world will help them acquire an effective receptive competence in the target language In other words the use of authentic texts embracing both the written and spoken word is helping to bridge the gap between classroom knowledge and a student's capacity to participate in real world events

In the case of texts designed for proficient speakers (or readers) of the language, Widdowson (1978; 1998) refers to them as possessing "genuineness" – a characteristic of the text or the material itself – and he claims that this is distinct from "authenticity" which refers

to the uses to which texts are put So the claim here is that texts themselves can actually be intrinsically "genuine" but that authenticity itself is a social construct In other words, authenticity is created through the interaction of users, situations and the texts

I.2.3 Authentic Tasks

“Control over linguistic knowledge is achieved by means of performing under real operating

conditions in meaning-focused language activities” (Ellis, 1990) Taking the Ellis quote above

we might posit that authenticity lies not only in the ‘genuineness’ of text but has much to do with the notion of task Nunan (1988:4) defines authentic tasks as that takes real-world

behavior and learner need into consideration: “tasks which replicate or rehearse the

communicative behaviors which will be required of them in real world” However, learners may have different expectations of classroom activities and their real-world parallels So what makes a task authentic? Guariento and Morley (2001, p.350) note the importance of student

"engagement" in a task as essential in determining task authenticity For example, when students are given the task of reading a short text, sharing the contents with a partner, listening to an explanation of what their partner has read about the same topic and then

consolidating that information to share with a larger group of students, a variety of skills are activated and engaged to communicate a specific outcome ensuring task authenticity

Authentic tasks can be contrasted with pedagogic tasks (e.g controlled grammar practice

activities such as gap-filling or transformation exercises), which focus on the development of accuracy rather than language using

William Guariento and John Morley argues that the issue of task authenticity is in fact far more complex than Elliss’ rather vague reference to “real operating conditions” and so it might be possible to identify principles to make tasks more authentic:

i Authenticity through a genuine purpose: One of the crucial aspects of task

authenticity is whether real communication takes place and whether the language has been used for a genuine purpose

ii Authenticity through real world targets: A task might be said to be authentic if it

has a clear relationship with real world needs

iii Authenticity through classroom interaction: All of the everyday procedures the learning tasks types of data and the materials to be selected and worked on the actual needs interests and preferred ways of working of all the people gathered in the classroom all provide sufficient authentic potential for communication

iv Authenticity through engagement: Authenticity of task might be said to depend on whether or not a student is engaged by the task Unless students are genuinely interested in its topic and purpose and they understand its relevance then they are somehow engaged by the task, authenticity may count for the most It suggests that students should be given a role in task selection; learning tasks should be the product of negotiation

I.2.4 Task authenticity and input authenticity

Brown and Menasche (2006, p.3) distinguish between input authenticity and task authenticity They argue for degrees of authenticity by stating: “While allowing that learners must be encouraged to process authentic language in real situations, we think the necessity of authentic materials at all levels of learning and for all activities has been overstated Our view

is that materials that are 'not authentic' in different ways are more than just useful; they are essential in language learning Non-authentic materials are as valuable as authentic materials Indeed, there are some situations in which authentic materials are useless - especially when the learners' receptive proficiency is low

But one problem emerges for syllabus planners and materials designers: “how to predict the

behaviors that will (or not) be needed? To solve the problem the relationship between input

text and task has to be dealt with

Input and tasks each can have degrees or levels of authenticity Brown and Menasche propose five levels for input from "genuine input authenticity", "altered input authenticity", "adapted input authenticity", "simulated input authenticity" and "inauthenticity" while noting that no type is better than the other in their view They define three types of task authenticity:

"genuine", "simulated" and "pedagogical" and note that "there is probably no such thing as real task authenticity; that classrooms are by their nature artificial The only genuine task authenticity for language learning may well be total immersion in the target language

environment without an instructor

I.3 Materials development, syllabus design and teaching methodology

In a carefully designed course to language teaching, we might expect a high degree of consistency between aims, objectives, syllabus, materials and method (Richards and Rodgers 1986) Thus, materials will embody syllabus content and the method that is used to facilitate the learning of that content will be congruent with overall aims and objectives and with the beliefs about language and language learning that lie behind these

I.3.1 Materials development and syllabus design

The relationship between materials and syllabus can be represented in two basic ways In the first, the syllabus determines if not the selection of materials at least the way in which they will be exploited for teaching purposes In the second, materials are selected first, for their intrinsic interest and general linguistic appropriateness, and a specific linguistic syllabus is then derived from them For the materials development of secretarial English, the former is

more preferred as it is described by Nunan (1991): “Materials, whether commercially

developed or teacher-produced, are an important element within the curriculum, and are often the most tangible and visible aspect of it While the syllabus defines the goals and objectives, the linguistics and experiential content, instructional materials can put flesh on the bones of these specifications” Thus, the syllabus design should be taken into consideration before developing the materials

Designing a language syllabus is no doubt a complex process It involves a logical sequence

of three main stages,

i) needs analysis, ii) content specification, and iii) syllabus organization

i Needs analysis

A needs analysis is usually seen as being most beneficial for ESP course

Derwing and Schutz (1981) offer an eight phase plan for the assessment of needs as follows;

1 define the purpose, that is, have a clear idea of the goals and objectives of the programme

2 delimit the target population, that is, determine the range of persons who the programme

3 delimit the parameters of investigation for which the following information must be

sought from the population surveyed:

a general background

b occupational specialty or academic field

c English language background

d attitudinal and motivational factors

e relevance of English to use in occupational or professional field

f basic English language skills

g functional registers and job tasks

h course content and methods of instruction

i reaction to project

4 select the information-gathering instrument, This would be determined by the scope and objectives of the inquiry

5 collect the data

6 analyze the results

7 interpret the results, and

8 critique the project, so as to provide positive benefits for similar projects in the future

ii Content specification

Most language syllabus content is drawn from inventories or lists which may be word frequency lists, inventories of functions or lists of specific topics Content can be also be specified through a series of checklists which deal with communicative functions, discourse skills, and study skills

A useful general analysis to specify content has been put forward by Brumfit (1984) According to him there are three types of such analyses The first is that of the linguist, that is, formal analyses of phonology, syntax, morphology, or certain types of semantic categories The second type is interactional analyses of various kinds, such as situational and functional categories which lead to the analyses of discourse rhetoric The third type of analysis is an analysis of what is talked or written about

Each of these analyses presumes a different view of the nature in which language is learned For example, the first presumes inductive or deductive learning; the second presumes that discourse is learnt to interact and to communicate; while the third one presumes that interesting and motivating content is necessary

Trim (1973) pointed out that the content specifications of a syllabus can be described in terms

of

i the behavioral input-output chain involved;

ii select language which can be used in a wide range of contexts; and

iii taught language that is appropriate to the interest of the pupils and the situations in which he might possibly use his linguistic knowledge

But Shaw (1976) sees the selection of content to be concerned mainly with two questions:

i how much can we teach or how much can be learnt by the learners in question; and

ii which items should be included

He suggests a criterion for selection based on the "relative usefulness" or "relative difficulty"

of the content matter He argues that students' point of entry level and the duration of the course provide a good indicator of how much should be included and how difficult the content matter should be Purposes and types would determine the usefulness of the content Based on this criterion, Shaw proposed the following general procedure for selection of content:

i determine previous knowledge of learners,

ii decide amount of content in general terms,

iii list items in rough order of specific frequency,

iv group for relative difficulty,

v check that both functional and notional categories are present,

vi check coverage of grammatical items

iii Syllabus organization

The objective of organizing a syllabus should be to promote learning, and not just to provide a description of the language Therefore, the content matter should be organized in such a way

so as to facilitate teaching and learning The unit of organization should also suit the particular purpose of learning

The syllabus may be structured on the basis of a gradual move from the more general to the more particular, a statement of a general rule to a statement of particular rules or exceptions which incorporates the deductive process The material can also be organized so that the direction is from the particular to the general which is the inductive process

According to Allen (1984), there are basically three approaches which can be utilized to sequence and organize content:

1 the traditional, structural-analytic approach in which the highest priority is given to formal grammatical criteria;

2 the functional-analytical approach which defines objectives in terms of categories of communicative language use; and

3 a non-analytic, experiential, or "natural growth" approach, which aims to immerse learners in real-life communication without any artificial pre-selection or arrangement

Sequencing of content involves the marking out of subject matter along a path of development Sequencing of subject matter will depend on particular views of language learning and classroom conditions that the syllabus designer holds For example, if the syllabus represents a view of language as a formal system, then the criteria for sequencing would be related to "simplicity" or "complexity" of structures If the syllabus represents a functional view of language, then the "usefulness" or "frequency" criteria would have greater prominence

The syllabus sequenced on a particular view of learning may have to start with subject matter which is more "familiar" to the learner before moving on to something which is "unfamiliar"

A syllabus may also represent a particular view of the conditions offered by the specific classroom situation The sequence for the subject matter may have to take into account whether it is "easy to teach" or whether it is "more urgent" That is why Wilkins feels that staging and sequencing should be carried out according to the criteria of simplicity, regularity, frequency and contrastive difficulty

Where language is learned for more specific purposes, learner needs can be better assessed arid the criteria successfully applied For more general language courses, the pedagogic criteria usually play a larger role

For the learner needs criteria, earlier language is taught according to

1 which is needed most immediately by the learner,

2 which has high surrender value, that is, of most use to the learner,

3 which is necessary to avoid a communication breakdown,

4 which is flexible, that is, can be used most widely, and

5 which is most frequently used by the learner

For the pedagogical factors criteria, earlier language is taught which

1 can be taught most effectively and efficiently given in the classroom situation,

2 can be used in teaching other languages,

3 is needed for classroom purposes,

4 is simpler in form or meaning

The identified needs would impose the choice of syllabus content The organization of content is complex as it has formal and functional components

* Syllabus Implementation

No matter how well developed a syllabus, it would not be able to achieve what it is meant to if serious consideration is not given to its successful implementation

Various sources have cited a number of factors which need to be given consideration

in the successful implementation of a language syllabus These factors would also affect the choice of an appropriate syllabus for use

Maley (1984) gives the following factors:

i cultural

ii educational iii organizational

iv learner

v teacher, and

vi material These very same factors would also have to be taken into consideration when selecting an appropriate syllabus type to achieve the purpose desired

* Types of language syllabuses

As for Robinson (1991), types of language syllabuses can be summarized as follows:

chosen is a situation-based syllabus

I.3.2 Materials development of secretarial English and the adopted teaching approach

The teaching methodology adopted in the class room plays a major role in enhancing learning

PROCESS means- driven

Notional/ Functional focus

LANGUAGE Receptive/

Productive

LEARNING Skill Acquisition focus

PROCESS Learning Focus Learner - led

PROCEDURAL Cognitive focus Task - based

SITUATION

Contextual

focus

approach to be proposed in the implementation of the syllabus resorts to the task-based

language teaching (TBLT) because TBLT fundamentally reflects the communicative teaching and learning It is a meaning-focused teaching method, aiming at fulfilling language communicative tasks A task involves real-world processes of language use as well as pedagogic communicative activities TBLT can make language learning in classrooms closer

to the natural route and may reach a higher rate of language acquisition because it provides learners with a clear communicative goal, interaction is needed to reach the goal, and comprehensive input can occur, and then language acquisition is facilitated

**An overview of the task-based language teaching and learning

Prabhu (1987) deserves credit for originating the task-based teaching and learning, based on the concept that effective learning occurs when students are fully engaged in a language task, rather than just learning about language

Task-based learning draws on several principles that formed part of the Communicative Language Teaching as follows:

- Activities that involve real communication are essential for language learning;

- Activities in which language is used for carrying out meaningful tasks promote learning;

- Language that is meaningful to the learner supports the learning process

(Richards & Rodgers 2001) Nunan in his article in Volume 8 Issue 3 of Asian EFL Journal once again states that pedagogically task-based language teaching has strengthened the following principles and practices:

• A needs-based approach to content selection

• An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language

• The introduction of authentic texts into the learning situation

• The provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only on language, but also on the learning process itself

• An enhancement of the learner's own personal experiences as important contributing elements to classroom learning

• The linking of classroom language learning with language use outside the classroom

* What is a task?

There are many viewpoints about the “task” and a lot of definitions of “task” exists Nunan (2004) draws a basic distinction between real-world or target tasks, and pedagogical tasks Target tasks, as the name implies, refer to uses of language in the world beyond the classroom Pedagogical tasks are those that occur in the classroom

As for Jane Willis (1996) a task is an activity "where the target language is used by the learner for a communicative purpose (goal) in order to achieve an outcome."

In L2 teaching and learning, task is now often viewed as an outcome-oriented instructional segment or as a behavioral framework for research or classroom learning

• creative tasks (project)

• sharing personal experiences

• problem solving

* Components of a task

Nunan (1989) presented components of a 'Task' as shown below:

From the above diagram, a task can be viewed as a piece of meaning focused work, involving learners in comprehending, producing and/or interacting in the target language

* Characteristics of a task

Skehan (1998) puts forward five key characteristics of a task:

• meaning is primary

• learners are not given other people's meaning to regurgitate

• there is some sort of relationship to comparable real-world activities

• task completion has some priority

• the assessment of the task is in terms of outcome

Pica, Kanagy and Falodun (1993) describe other characteristics of tasks as follows:

1 one-way or two-way: whether the task involves a one-way exchange of information or a two-way exchange

2 convergent or divergent: whether the students achieve a common goal or several different goals

3 collaborative or competitive: whether the students collaborate to carry out a task or compete with each other on a task

Task

Teacher’s role

Student’s role Goal

Input

Activitie

s

Setting

4 single or multiple outcomes: whether there is a single outcome or many different outcomes are possible

5 concrete or abstract language: whether the task involves the use of concrete language or abstract language

6 simple or complex processing: whether the task requires relatively simple or complex cognitive processing

7 simple or complex language: whether the linguistic demands of the task are relatively simple or complex

8 reality-based or not reality-based: whether the task mirrors a real-world activity or is a pedagogical activity not found in the real world

But what is more helpful here in assessing whether a set of tasks for classroom use adequately meets the requirements in fulfillment of a task-based approach are what Ellis (2003, pp 9-10) has identified as the critical features of a task These features are 1) A task is a work plan, 2)

A task involves primary focus on meaning, 3) A task involves real-world processes of language use, 4.) A task can involve any of the four language skills, 5) A task engages cognitive processes, and 6) A task has a clearly defined communicative outcome

*Advantages of task-based learning:

Richard Frost (British Council, Turkey) summarizes the advantages of task-based learning as

- The students will have a much more varied exposure to language with TBL They will be exposed to a whole range of lexical phrases, collocations and patterns as well as language forms

- The language explored arises from the students' needs This need dictates what will be covered in the lesson rather than a decision made by the teacher or the course book

- It is a strong communicative approach where students spend a lot of time communicating PPP lessons seem very teacher-centred by comparison Just watch how much time the students spend communicating during a task-based lesson

- It is enjoyable and motivating

*Methodology of task-based teaching: Rod Ellis (2006) presents a framework for designing task-based lessons as shown below:

Phase Examples of options

A Pre-task

* Framing the activity (e.g establishing the outcome of the task)

* Planning time

* Doing a similar task

B During task * Time pressure * Number of participants

C Post-task

* Learner report

* Consciousness-raising

* Repeat task The first phase concerns the various activities that teachers and students can undertake before they start the task, such as whether students are given time to plan the performance of the task The second phase, the 'during task' phase, focuses on the task itself and affords various instructional options, including whether students are required to operate under time-pressure

or not The final phase is 'post-task' and involves procedures for following-up on the task performance Only the 'during task' phase is obligatory in task-based teaching Thus, minimally, a task-based lesson consists of the students just performing a task Options selected from the 'pre-task' or 'post-task' phases are non-obligatory, but, as we will see, can serve a crucial role in ensuring that the task performance is maximally effective for language development

In a Framework for Task Based Learning, Jane Willis also suggested a three-phase lesson:

* Pre-task (Introduction to topic and task)

* Task Cycle (Task-Planning-Report)

* Language Focus (Analysis and practice)

In the Pre-task stage the teacher will introduce the topic and task and perhaps highlight useful words and phrases The students may hear recordings of others performing the same task During the task cycle, the students work in pairs or small groups while the teacher monitors their work from a distance After completing the task, students plan how they will report their work to the class In the Language Focus stage the students examine and discuss specific features of any texts they have used or produced and the teacher may conduct some form of practice

The two theories share the core of a lesson with task-based learning, that is three-phase one Either frame to be put into practice is sure to bring beautiful results

It is ideal to take advantages of the task-based approach in creating authentic tasks in the materials development of secretarial English and then in classroom teaching where the use of secretarial English will be picked up through learners’ task completion

CHAPTER II: THE STUDY II.1 Background to the study

II.1.1 The settings of teaching and learning

At the Bacninh Teacher Training College English is a compulsory subject in the curricula During a three-year course, English major students have 1080 formal classes of General English (from Elementary to Upper Intermediate) (36periods / 1academic year) and a variety

of syllabuses for ESP such as English for Computing, Business English, English in Correspondence, Secretarial English, all of which is taught in a formal setting

Secretarial English is taught to the third-year majors of English (2005-2008) in their sixth semester after they have completed 900 classes of General English during So their English proficiency is at Pre-Intermediate level, which enables them to improve their professional English

The physical condition in BNTTC can provide a supportive environment for language teaching and learning with favorable factors such as available rooms equipped with overhead projector, screen, video, CD and cassette player, a big board etc in an area which is not distracted by the surroundings like sudden noises or movements…

II.1.2 The teachers

The English Department in Bacninh Teacher Training College, where the materials of secretarial English to be developed will be taught has twelve teachers, aged from 30 to 45, all experience between 9 and 24 years in teaching Four of them have got MA degree, six are MA

learners and the rest have BA in English

II.1.3 The learners and their needs

The students age from 18 to 21, both male and female, have learned English for at least three years at high school Besides, they have completed 900 classes of General English So they are supposed to be at the Intermediate level of proficiency in English

According the interviews before the research, 100% of the students are keen on learning English, both General and ESP, as it is a must for their future job Besides, English is a tool for them to take up their hobbies such as listening to English songs, reading materials in English, surfing the Internet etc

The students’ would-be jobs are various They will have a number of choices They might work as secretarial or administrative staff or do kind of job relating to English together with

an added specialized study of the would-be work So learning Secretarial English is of great benefits for their perspectives careers