(SKKN 2022) using pair work to improve students’ speaking skill at thach thanh i high school

THANH HOA EDUCATION AND TRAINING DEPARTMENT THACH THANH I HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENTIAL INITIATIVE USING PAIR WORK TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ SPEAKING SKILL AT THACH THANH I HIGH SCHOOL Author: Vũ

THANH HOA EDUCATION AND TRAINING DEPARTMENT

THACH THANH I HIGH SCHOOL

EXPERIENTIAL INITIATIVE

USING PAIR WORK TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ SPEAKING

SKILL AT THACH THANH I HIGH SCHOOL

Author: Vũ Thị Xuân Occupation: Teacher Experiential initiative on: English

THANH HOA, YEAR 2022

N0 CONTENTS PAG

1.1 Reasons for the study

1.2 Aims of the study

1.3 Scope and object of the study

1.4 Study method

2 2 2 3 3

2.1 Theoretical rationale of the study

2.2 Status of the study problem

2.2.1 For the teachers

2.2.2 For the students

2.2.3 For objective factors

2.3 Solutions

2.3.1 What is Speaking skill?

2.3.1.1 Definitions of Speaking

2.3.1.2 Types of Speaking performance

2.3.1.3 Principles for teaching Speaking skill

2.3.1.4 Assessment criteria for Speaking

2.3.2 What is Pair work?

2.3.2.1 Definitions of Pair work

2.3.2.2 Some common activities for Pair work

2.3.2.3 Advantages and disadvantages of Pair work

2.3.2.4 Procedures of Pair work

2.4 Demonstration

2.5 Some suggested exercises for Pair work

2.6 Applying Pair work in teaching speaking skill

2.7 The study effects

3 3 4 4 4 4

5 5

10 14 15 19

3 3 CONCLUSION, PROPOSALS

3.1 Conclusion

3.2 Proposals

20 20 20

1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 REASONS FOR THE STUDY

Nowadays, English is the most commonly spoken language in the world.One out of five people can speak or at least understand English It’s also thelanguage of international communication, the media and the internet, so learningEnglish is important for socializing and entertainment as well as work.Therefore, English has been a compulsory subject at thousands of schoolsaround the world and Vietnam is not an exception Being good at English givesthem chances for employment or going abroad for further study To make thesesuccessfully, they must be good at four language skills, especially speaking skill Speaking skills are defined as skills which allow us to communicateeffectively These skills give us the ability to convey information verbally and in

a way that the listener can understand One of the most difficult and frustratingthings is making the transition from the classroom to the 'real' world Theproblem becomes more complicated when it comes to Vietnam setting Englishteachers in Vietnam have just adopted communicative approach for just a fewyears However, they have not paid enough attention to speaking skill Thespeaking tasks are simple, and more importantly, impractical

Throughout years’ time of my teaching English, studying materials as well

as observing the other teachers' class, I realize that stimulating students topractice speaking actively during English lesson majorly bases on designingteaching-learning activities of each teacher in each lesson plan And, activitiesare very useful in teaching and learning speaking skill because it not onlyencourages, but improves students’ ability in using English fluently as well And

I also have positively realized that students are more interested and less anxiouswhen they work in pairs Moreover, pair work can increase the amount oftalking for individual students; encourage boarder skills of participation,cooperation, negotiation and so on Only by organizing pair work effectivelycan we interest students in speaking English

Having identified the problem, I have tried to search for solutions to help

students improve speaking skill Thus, in this writing I would like to share “

Using pair work to improve students’ speaking skill at Thach Thanh I high school” with the hope that my colleagues can also considered my teaching

strategies as useful suggestions to help their students become more interestedand confident in speaking English

- Investigating the current reality of the teaching and learning of speaking skill

in high schools

- Identifying the difficulties and obstacles that the teachers and learners ofintermediate level of English language proficiency in high schools encounterwhen teaching and learning speaking skill

- Suggesting some kinds of pair work with the hope of helping English languageteachers in high schools improve the quality of their teaching, which later helpsimprove students’ speaking skill quality.

1.3 SCOPE AND OBJECT OF THE STUDY

- Scope: Research subjects are grade 10th and 11th students at Thach Thanh IHigh School, school year 2021-2022

- Object: This subject is concerned with some pair work to teach speaking skill

in the class

1.4 THE STUDY METHOD

- Finding out difficulties that students have in speaking English in English classes

- Research methodology through the documents: Book of Applied Informatics,

Internet, textbooks 10,textbooks 11, teacher books, exercise books and relateddocuments

- Observing and drawing out experiences

- Research Methodology of actual survey, gathering information and data

processing

2.1.THE THEORETICAL RATIONALE OF THE STUDY

Speaking is "the process of building and sharing meaning through the use

of verbal and non-verbal symbols, in a variety of contexts" (Chaney, 1998, p.13) Speaking is a crucial part of second language learning and teaching Despiteits importance, for many years, teaching speaking has been undervalued andEnglish language teachers have continued to teach speaking just as a repetition

of drills or memorization of dialogues However, today's world requires that thegoal of teaching speaking should improve students' communicative skills,because, only in that way, students can express themselves and learn how tofollow the social and cultural rules appropriate in each communicativecircumstance In English teaching, pair work is considered a useful and effectivetechnique to assist learners to use the language in class In considering theadvantages of pair work, Ur (1996:232) states that pair work is a form of learneractivation which is of particular value in the practice of oral fluency She alsoemphasizes that pair work fosters learners’ responsibility and independence,helps to improve motivation and contributes to a feeling of co-operation andwarmth in the class When students are put in pair, they can help each other tocarry out interviews, to play roles in a dialogue, to do problem solving, surveys,and values clarification In agreement with Ur, Harmer (1998:21) says, “theother advantage of pair work is that they give the teacher the opportunity to

work with individual students” The use of pair work is not new But how toapply these methods efficiently to stimulate students’ interest in speakingEnglish is what I want to share and present in this writing

2.2 STATUS OF THE STUDY PROBLEM

2.2.1 For the teacher

Most teachers understand the importance of using pair work in motivatingstudents’interest in learning English, especially for high school students But

pair work; however, has some problems the teacher should take into account sothat he or she can maximize its effectiveness Ur (1996:232) points out, “ Inindividual classes, pair work may encourage students to be more disruptive thanthey would be in a whole class setting” Obviously, in pairs without the teacher,

students can make unneccesary noise or use their own language Furthermore, to

prepare activities for pair work may take time

2.2.2 For the students

According to Burns and Joyce (1977): 134, passive learning style makeslearners reluctant to take part in pair work They still deeply affected by the oldmethods such as Grammar Translation or Audio-lingual Method and learningwhich didn’t encourage students speaking They get used to listening to theteachers, take notes and do exercises That can explain why they mindparticipating in pair work

Furthermore, while working in pair, some students cannot express ideas

in English because of their poor vocabulary, grammar, and even pronunciation.Some of them do not have any knowledge to present the given topic

In addition, many students are afraid of making mistakes because of theirlow level of proficiency and their lack of ideas They are not confident enough

to express their ideas for the partners All these reasons prevent students fromparticipating in pair work, gradually they will lose their interest in working inpair work Passive learning way, low level of English language proficiency andthe fear of making mistakes deter them to speak in group

2.2.3 For objective factors

Teaching and learning English at high school in Vietnam still faces manyproblems such as: lack of teaching equipment, and adequate teaching methods.Furthermore, that the majority of students do not pay attention to acquiringknowledge is also a serious problem causing difficulties in raising the quality ofteaching and learning speaking skill Moreover, most of classes at high schoolconsist of more than 40 students, so that it is very difficult for teachers toorganize pair work, to control the class and to put an eye on every student These are the problems that urge me to find out the solutions to use pairwork in teaching speaking skill in a flexible and easy way

2.3.1.2 Types of speaking performance

Brown also points out some types of classroom speaking performance, they are:

* Intensive

Intensive speaking goes one-step beyond imitative to include any speakingperformance that is designed to practice some phonological or grammaticalaspect of the language Intensive speaking can be self-imitated or it can evenfrom part of some pair work activity, where learners are “going over” certainforms of language

*Responsive

The students’ speech in the classroom is responsive short replies to

teacher-or students-initiated questions teacher-or comment These replies are usually sufficientand do not extend into dialogues Such speech can be meaningful and authentic

*Transactional

Transactional dialogue, which is carried out for the purpose of conveying or

exchanging specific information is to extend form of responsive language.Conversation, for example, may have more of a negotiate nature to them thandoes responsive speech.

*Interpersonal

Interpersonal dialogue carried out more for maintaining social relationshipthan for the transmission of the facts and information e.g The conversationsare little trickier for learner because they can involve some or all of thefollowing factors: a casual register, colloquial language, emotionally chargedlanguage, slag, ellipsis, sarcasm, and a covert “agenda”

2.3.1.3 Principles for teaching speaking skill

According to H.D Brown, there are some principles for teaching speaking skill as mentioned below:

- Focus on both fluency & accuracy depending on your purposes “Make sureyour tasks have a language-based objective, and seize the opportunity to helpstudents to perceive and use the building blocks of language.”

- Provide fundamentally motivating techniques “Appeal to students’ ultimategoals and interests, to their need for knowledge, for status, for achievingcompetence and autonomy, help them to see how the activity will benefit them

- Encourage the use of authentic language in meaningful contexts “It takesenergy and creativity to devise authentic contexts and meaningful interaction,but with the help of a storehouse of teacher resource ” materials, it can be done

- Provide appropriate feedback and correction “It is important that you takeadvantage of your knowledge of English to inject the kinds of correctivefeedback that are” appropriate for the moment

- Capitalize on the natural link between speaking and listening “The two skills can reinforce each other Skills in producing language are often initiated”

through comprehension

- Give students opportunities to initiate oral communication “Part of oralcommunication competence is the ability to initiate conversations, to nominatetopics, to ask questions, to control conversations, and to change the subject

- Encourage the development of speaking strategies “Speaking Strategies askingfor clarification (what?) asking someone to repeat something (pardon me?) usingfillers (uh, I mean) to get time to process using conversation maintenance cues(ah-hah, right, OK, well) getting someone’s attention (hey, yo, so) paraphrasingfor structures one can’t produce appealing for assistance from the interlocutorusing formulaic expressions using mime and non-verbal expressions.”

2.3.1.4 Assessment criteria for speaking

* Fluency and coherence

- Fluency is the ability to maintain a flow of language without unnaturalhesitation

- Coherence is the logical organization, development and connection of ideas

* Lexical resource

- Uses vocabulary with full flexibility and precision in all topics

- Uses idiomatic language naturally and accurately

* Grammatical range and accuracy

- Uses a full range of structures naturally and appropriately

- Produces consistently accurate structures apart from ‘slips’ characteristic ofnative speaker speech

* Pronunciation

- Uses a full range of pronunciation features with precision and subtlety

- Sustains flexible use of features throughout

2.3.2 What is Pair work?

2.3.2.1 Definition of pair work

According to Adrian Doff (1988:137), the whole class is divided into pairs

by the teacher Every student works with his or her partner in pairs and all thepairs work at the same time (It is sometimes called simultaneous pair work).This is not the same as ‘public’ or ‘open’, pair work, with pairs of studentsspeaking in turn in front of the class In fact, a pair work consists of two studentsworking together at the same time

2.3.2.2 Some common activities for pair work

According to Brown (2001, p.182), common pair activities consist of

Dialogues, Question and answer, Drills, Quick Brainstorming Pair work enablesteachers to engage students in interactive communication for a short period of time with minimum of logistical problems Typical group tasks are games, role-play, drama, interview, brainstorming, information gap, jigsaw, problem solving and decision making, and opinion exchange For the limitation of this study’s page number, I would like to define and characterize some most popular ones

* Game

A game could be any activity formalizing a technique into units that can bescored For example, students can review the vocabulary through “ slap theboard” Teachers write down some words on the board, invite a pair of students

to play each time The teachers say out loud one word and the students have torace to slap to the word The student who is faster will be the winner

* Information gap

In this activity, students are requested to work in pairs One student willhave the information that other partner does not have and he/ she has to askhis/ her partner to get the information The aims of this activity are solving aproblem, collecting information, etc

* Role-play

Role-play involves giving a role to each member of a pair and setting an objective that students must complete

*Brainstorming

On a given topic, students can produce ideas in a limited time Depending

on the context, either individual or group brainstorming is effective and learnersgenerate ideas quickly and freely The good characteristic of brainstorming isthat the students are not criticized for their ideas so students will be open tosharing new ideas

* Interviews

Students can conduct interviews on selected topics with various people It

is a good idea that the teacher provides a rubric to students so that they knowwhat type of questions they can ask or what path to follow, but students shouldprepare their own interview questions Conducting interviews with people givesstudents a chance to practice their speaking ability not only in class but alsooutside and helps them becoming socialized After interviews, each student canpresent his or her study to the class Moreover, students can interview each otherand "introduce" his or her partner to the class

* Find the difference

For this activity students can work in pairs and each couple is given twodifferent pictures, for example, picture of boys playing football and anotherpicture of girls playing tennis Students in pairs discuss the similarities and/ordifferences in the pictures

2.3.2.3 Advantages and disadvantages of pair work.

According to Hubert Skrzynski, pair work has both advantages and

disadvantages These are mentioned below

* The advantages of pair work.

- To increase the amount of students practice: When students work in

pairs, they have more chance to practice Working in pair, students often feelmore willing to talk, so that it dramatically increases the amount of talking forindividual students

- To increase the students’ confidence: the students feel much more

comfortable to speak English with his partner rather than with the whole classand the teacher Especially shy students, or ones who are not good at speakinglanguage yet feel more relaxed and self- confident trying to put their languageabilities to a test during the activity and seeing how they use them Thisencourages students to cooperate with one another

- To develop students’ fluency: While working in pair, the students can

use the language freely and express their opinions and thoughts without anyrestrictions

- To increase students’ motivation: A huge variety of activities influences

the course of a lesson and its success The more different activities the teacheruses in the lesson, the bigger their motivation is In fact, students’ motivationincreases because they are active and feel important during these activities Inkeeping with this, the teacher is going to experience success in his/ her workbecause motivated students are usually good language learners and they alwaysmake progress

* The disadvantages of pair work

- To speak native language: one of the disadvantages is that students

often speak in their native language If the class is really big with too manystudents, it is difficult for the teacher to listen to all pairs at the same time

- To make mistakes: Another problem is incorrectness While students

work in pairs, the teacher do not disturb them, even if he/she notices somemistakes they have made

- To eliminate shy and weak students from the practice: Some shy or

weak students can be eliminated from the practice, because of individuals whoalways tend to dominate

- To make noise and indiscipline: Working in pair in a large class makes

noise and discipline, the teachers have more troublesome than the learners have.Participants in a pair work are normally unaware of the noise and of what otherpairs and groups are doing

It seems that there are as many disadvantages as advantages of theseclassroom arrangements and one cannot unanimously state which one is better,

since each teacher has his/her own likes and dislikes It is his/her individualchoice which one should be used during the process of teaching a language.

2.3.2.4 Procedures of pair work

Harmer (2001, p.122) explains the procedures used in teaching speaking

He divides the procedures into three sub-units: before, during, and after activity

- Before: The teacher makes students feel enthusiastic about what they are

going to do They need to understand what they are going to do, and they need

to be given an idea of when they will have to finish the task they are going toinvolved in

The important thing about instruction is that the students shouldunderstand and agree on what the task is To check that they do, we may askthem to repeat the instructions, or in monolingual class, to translate them intotheir first language

- During: While students are working in pairs, the teachers have a number

of options They could, for instance, stand at the front or the side of the class (or

at the back or anywhere else in the room) and keep an eye on what is happening,noticing who appears to be stuck or disengaged, or about to finish

An alternative procedure is to go round the class watching and listening tospecific pairs The teachers can stay (with their agreement) for a period of timeand then intervene if we think it is appropriate or necessary, always bearing inmind what we have said about the difference between accuracy and fluencywork

When the students are working in pairs, the teacher have an idealopportunity to work with individual student whom they feel would benefit fromour attention They also have a great chance to act as observer, picking upinformation about students’ progress

- After: When pairs stop working, the teacher needs to give feedback The

teachers want to let them discuss what occurred during the group session and,where necessary, add their own assessments and make corrections

Finally, it is vital to remember that constructive feedback on the content

of the student work can greatly enhance students’ future motivation Thefeedback the teachers give on language mistakes is only one part of that process

2.4 DEMONSTRATION

their

demonstrations

Before teaching teacher should prepare pair work activities carefully

If he can do so the students are attracted to his designed activities The climate

of the class is very exciting as everyone must practise And below are some myexamples that I have already applied

Example 1: In Unit 3: People’s background - Part B: speaking (English 10)

Imagine you are a journalist Use the cues below to interview a classmate about

his/ her background or that of a person he/ she knows well Change the rolewhen you have finished

S1: Hello Can you tell me something about yourself?

S2: Oh, of course What do you want to know?

S1: When and where were you born?

S2: I was born on September 11 th , 1991 in Hai Duong.

S1: How many people are there in your family?

S2: There are four: my parents, my sister and I.

S1: What do your parents do?

S2: my dad is a doctor and my mum is a nurse.

Students look at the model and it is easy for them to practise in pairs

Example 2: In Unit 2: School talk – Part B- Speaking (English 10)

Teacher: - Ask students to look at the phrases in the book and to work in pairs toput the expressions in starting and closing a conversation

- Make sure that students understand all the expressions

+ How’s everything at school?= How 's your studying?

+ Catch you later = See you later.

Starting a conversation Closing a conversation

Good morning Goodbye See you later

How’s everything? Well, it’s been nice talking to you.

Hello How are you? Sorry I’ve got to go Talk to you later.

Hi How is school? Great I’ll see you tomorrow.

Hello What are you doing? Catch up with you later.