An investigation into teachers choice and use of games in teaching english to young learners at some primary schools in hue city

But how the teachers at the primary schools in Hue choose and use games and whether their choice and use of games are suitable in order to help the young learners learning English better

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

This chapter introduces the setting of the problem of the study Then the research questions that the study based on are listed The purposes as well as the scope of the study are also reported The last part of this chapter presents the brief outline of the research

1.1 Background

Considered as an international language, English is as the bridge which links people together, helps them closer and understand each other more easily Particularly, in the globalization nowadays, English becomes more and more important It is a fundamental condition to get a good job, to catch up with the development of the society in every field, especially in the science and technology Therefore, learning English as a second language is more and more paid attention, especially as for the young learners As Scott (1998) mentions, the importance of teaching English to young learners has been especially emphasized in the recent years

Teaching English to the adults has many problems, but the adult learners are aware of their study, they have purposes of learning However, young learners are different from the adults, because they are still developing cognitively, linguistically, physically and emotionally (Moon, 2005) They have not been aware

of their learning yet, they even do not really know why they should learn English In fact, young learners do not have clear purposes to learn English like the adults Moreover, they cannot maintain their attention too long nor understand all the complex rules and theory; therefore, young learners are easy to feel bored if they do not find any interests in the learning process In addition, because the social competition is fierce, the parents expect their children to be the best The students’ burden of study is heavy, their pressure is increasing gradually and they are tired of

learning Thus, it is necessary to find a suitable way to keep students’ interest and help them learn English more effectively and comfortably

Among a lot of strategies teachers have used, using games is considered as one of the most effective ways to teach young learners English better As Lee (1995, p.35) said:

There is a common perception that all learning should be serious and solemn in nature and that if one is having fun and there is hilarity and laughter, then it is not really learning This

is a misconception It is possible to learn a language as well as enjoy oneself at the same time One of the best ways of doing this is through games

There is the fact that most learners enjoy games, especially the young learners Playing games is the nature of the children, they “love to play, and learn best when they enjoy themselves” (Scott & Ytreberg, 1998, p.3) Games help students recycle new language aspects naturally, and games can be fun, competitive, challenging or relaxing, especially to children There are many reasons to use games

in teaching young learners such as games relieve tension for the child, games increase their interest, games help young learners feel better about themselves or games help them retain new information for a longer period of time, etc As Chan & Lin (2000) emphasized students’ motivation and confidence could be enhanced in the process of playing games when they achieved the learning goal in a relaxing environment Moreover, using games in teaching can maintain the attention of students more easily because having fun will satisfy an inborn predisposition towards attentiveness in human subjects (Deesri, 2002) The game is also a useful tool to improve children’s vocabulary acquisition in a natural way (Angelova & Levoka, 1995) Kuo (cited in Briody, Shang & Wang, 2011) also further mentions that games have always been a popular tool in an English class to create interest and wake uninterested students up Obviously, using games in teaching English is always supported by the English teachers and learners all over the world

In the mainstream of the whole world, the teaching and learning English at the primary schools is paid special attention The teaching of English at primary schools has been expanded nationwide, initially from big cities to many other towns, localities and even to rural areas On August 17th, 2010, the Ministry of Education and Training of Vietnam made the announcement N.4919/BGDDT-GDTH about the direction for the school year 2010 - 2011 applied for primary school According to this latest regulation, students at primary schools will learn English from grade 3 to grade 5 and at least 2 periods per week The requirement of the Moet to English teaching at the primary schools is to develop the communicative ability for children through the variety of teaching activities Therefore, the teachers also try their best in designing activities, applying visual aids and technology in teaching, finding the more effective ways to improve the quality of teaching and learning English Although games have been used in the teaching English to young learners for a long time, they are really paid attention in recent years Many studies have been carried out to investigate the effectiveness of using games teaching English to young learners, and most of the results showed that games are always approved by both teachers and learners However, because of the difference in learners’ characteristics, the lack of teaching facilities as well as the limited of teaching time, most of the teachers always want to explore the effective ways to choose and use games in the teaching English to young learners efficiently

Thua Thien Hue is one of the first provinces to be chosen to teach English at primary schools English teachers in Hue usually have chances to gain more experience and improve their teaching through the training courses held annually The teaching aids such as computers, projectors, video, etc are always useful for their teaching and using games seems indispensable But how the teachers at the primary schools in Hue choose and use games and whether their choice and use of games are suitable in order to help the young learners learning English better or not

To solve this problem, the researcher carried out the study to explore the teachers’

choice and use of games in teaching English to young learners at some primary schools in Hue city

1.2 Topic

“An investigation into teachers’ choice and use of games in teaching English to young learners at some primary schools in Hue city”

1.3 Aims of the study

This study is carried out with the aims of exploring the teachers’ perception

on using games in teaching English to young learners In addition, the research also discovers the ways teachers in some primary schools in Hue city choosing and using games in their teaching English to young learners in reality Basing on the finding results and suggestions from the teachers, some possible solutions will be recommended in order to make the teachers’ choice and use of games in teaching English become more beneficial to young learners

3 What are suggestions for choosing and using games?

1.5 Significance of the study

Up to now, there have been many researches about the effectiveness of using games in teaching English in general and teaching English to children in particular

However, most studies mainly focused on the benefits of using games in teaching English as well as exploring the difficulties using games in teaching process This study, therefore, is supposed to gain some insights into the specific area that the teachers’ choices and use of games in teaching English to young learners Besides investigating the teachers’ perceptions on choosing and using games in teaching English to young learners, this study also explored the way that teachers choose and use games in teaching English to young learners in reality It is expected that this study can contribute further useful ideas to the primary teachers so that they can select and use games in teaching English more effectively

1.6 Scope of the study

This study conducted in some primary schools with 30 teachers and 100 students from some primary schools and foreign languages institutions in Hue: Tran Quoc Toan, Quang Trung, Phu Cat, Phu Hoa, Phu Thuan, Phu Binh, Thuan Thanh, Thuan Loc, Le Loi and Vietnam – America English Center

1.7 Brief outline of the thesis

The thesis consists of five chapters as follows:

Chapter 1: Introduction

This chapter presents an introduction to the briefly main contents of the whole thesis It includes the background of the study and explains the reasons why the researcher chooses this area for this study Then the research questions, scope of the study and structures of the thesis are stated

Chapter 2: Literature Review and Theoretical Background

In this chapter, the related studies are briefly summarized and analyzed Then, the researcher provides some theoretical background which provides some definitions of games, defines the young learners, mentions the effectiveness of using games as well as indicates the ways to choose and use games in teaching English to young learners effectively

Chapter 3: Methodology

Chapter 3 presents the methodology based on which the study was carried out To do this research, both qualitative and quantitative are chosen The participants, the instruments and data collection procedures as well as the tool using

to analyze the data are also presented

Chapter 4: Findings And Discussion

This chapter has presented an analysis and discussion of the results from investigating teachers’ choice and use of games in teaching English to young learners at some primary schools in Hue city The result will be analyzed basing on the research questions and presented in tables and charts

Chapter 5: Conclusions And Implications

The last chapter deals with the study summary, implications for the teachers and administrators, some limitations of the study and suggestions for further study

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND THEORETICAL

BACKGROUND

This chapter divides into two main parts The first part reviews the critical points of current knowledge which relate to the field of study The second part will give some theoretical background of the study which includes the definition of games, the characteristics of games for young learners as well as the reasons to use games in the classroom In addition, the classification of games, ways to choose

appropriate games and when games should be used will be presented

2.1 Review of the previous studies

Using games in teaching English in general, and teaching English for children in particular is now very popular Many researches are conducted to investigate the advantages of using games, the impact of using games as well as the ways to use games in teaching English effectively

Concerning to the effectiveness of using games in teaching English, Chirandon, Laohawiriyanon & Rakthong (2010) reflected that students had significantly improved in vocabulary knowledge and ability to communicate Moreover, students also had positive attitudes towards learning English through games Regarding these results, they recommended that using games in teaching English was beneficial to beginners especially those in primary schools for young learners

Focusing mainly on the students at the primary schools, Briody, Shang & Wang (2011) carried out the research with 50 students from the elementary schools

in Taiwan The aim of the study is to investigate the relationship between the usage

of games and students’ English proficiency They found that students had significant improvements in their learning motivation and vocabulary acquisition Moreover, students’ anxiety levels due to peer pressure were reduced when the

lessons included games Games, therefore, have a great effect on the learning English of the young learners and it should be used in the teaching English to young learners more frequently

Not just investigating the effectiveness of using games in teaching English in general; many researchers have deeply examined the impact of using games on the specific skill Among of them, the research of Khuat & Nguyen (2003) proved the effectiveness of learning vocabulary through games Most of the students showed their pleasant feeling and positive attitude towards learning vocabulary through games Moreover, learning vocabulary through games also helped students enrich their vocabulary and remember them longer Similarly, the research of Uberman (1998) also revealed that games were useful and more successful than other methods of vocabulary presentation and revision It is clear that using games in teaching not only brings the more interesting way to learn vocabulary but also helps students remember new vocabulary in an effective way

Additionally, the teaching of English now focuses on developing the communicative skill for the learners Using games seems not only to make the learning more interesting but also to create the real context for communication Many researchers (Huang, 1996; Atake, 2003; Chen, 2005; Wang, 2010) reveal that using communicative games in the teaching helps students develop their communicative competence because they have chances to use the language to contact with their friends in the real context As Chen (2005) said, the competition

in games gave students a natural opportunity to work together and communicate by using English with each other Wang (2010) also indicates that through processing creative game activities, learners experience language use for the purpose of truly meaningful communication Games are natural exposure and meaningful use of the target language while conducting communicative activities that motivate learners to take more interest in language learning and assist them to develop learner autonomy

Using games in teaching English in general and teaching English for children

in particular really bring many effectiveness and advantages Therefore, the research on this topic always attracts a lot of attention Many researchers in Hue are not out of this mainstream

According to the results of the study on “The Feasibility of Teaching a Second Language to Students in Primary schools” conducted by Phan (2006), along with the teachers’ preference for structural technique, choral repetition and drill teaching, games were also used for motivating young learners to learn a second language in elementary schools Moreover, she also found that the activities of the feeling studying and playing interested elementary students of L2, for examples, games puzzles, songs and funny stories

Another research of Ho (2011) about the teachers’ perceptions of the use of games for children to learn English at some primary schools in Hue city revealed that most of the teachers were deeply aware of the necessity and benefits of games

in primary schools Moreover, most of the teachers agreed that games gave children opportunities for practicing in all language skills and they could form their basic communicative ability in English

It hardly denies the significant effectiveness of using games in teaching English for children Using games in teaching is one of the most interesting and effective ways that can be applied in any classrooms In fact, most young learners in primary schools are keen on playing games, but not every game is suitable for every child; thus, the teacher has to be sensible with the selecting games in their teaching Moreover, teachers need to consider which games to use, when to use them and how to link them with the teaching in order to make the use of games in teaching English become more and more efficient (Khan, J.1996)

In conclusion, there are many researches on the effectiveness as well as the perceptions of the teachers and students on using games in teaching and learning English In addition, many studies on the using games are also conducted in Hue

city However, there are not many researches on the teachers’ choice and use of games in teaching English for young learners Therefore, it is necessary to carry out the research on this issue in order to have deep insight into the selecting and using games of the English teachers in Vietnam in general and English teachers in Hue in particular Based on the finding results, some solutions will be suggested to help the teachers choose and use games in teaching English to young learners more and more effectively

2.2 Theoretical background

2.2.1 Definition of games

According to the Longman Dictionary of Language Teaching and Applied Linguistics (Richards, Platt & Platt, 1995), games are defined as “an organized activity that usually has the following properties: a particular task or objective, a set

of rules, competition between players, and communication between players by spoken or written language” (p.89)

Meanwhile, Hadfield (1996) and Toth (2005) define games quite simply They define a game as an activity with rules, a goal and element of fun Similarly, Byrne (1995) gives the definition to games as form of play governed by rules They should be enjoyable and fun They are not just a diversion, a break from routine activities, but a way of getting the learners to use the language in the course of the game

Lee (1986, p.3) also points out that “games in the strict sense, which have a definite beginning and end and are governed by rules, shade off into game-like activities which have a less formal design”

In general, there are many different definitions of game; however, they all point out that games involve many factors such as rules, competition, relaxation and learning, etc., and the main focus of using game in class is to help students learn and have fun However, it is important to remember that games in education must be

more than just fun As Deesri (2002) emphasized the most important factor is that games should be used when they can give students both fun and educational meaning otherwise they will be waste of time

2.2.2 Who are young learners?

Many researchers define young learners, but they all have general agreement about the definition of young learners Philips (1994, p.5) defines that young learners are “the children from the first year of formal schooling (five or six years old) to eleven or twelve years of age” Similarly, Slatternly and Willis (2001) define the young learners as those between 7 – 12 years old while very young learners are defined as less than 7 years of age Scott and Ytreberg (1998) distinguish between two groups of young learners, one between 5-7 and another 8-11, considering mainly their ability to perceive the abstract and concrete

In this research, young learners are students at the primary schools who are from 8 to 10 years old According to Scott and Ytreberg (1998) at this age, young learners “have a language with all basic elements in place” (p.4) Moreover, they understand meaning of words based on the spoken words and the physical world They also have the competence to work with others and learn from others Particularly, the young learners who are at ten also can:

 Understand abstracts

 Understand symbols (beginning with words)

 Generalize and systematize

Hence, understanding the young learners’ characteristics at specific age the teachers can have more selections in choosing and using games in order to make the teaching become vivid, interesting and effective as well as stimulate young learners’ interest in learning English

Actually, teaching of young learners can be cheerful because young learners are usually active, enthusiastic, open and cooperative They are usually happy with

new activities that teacher prepares Furthermore, most of them are not sheepish and they do not hesitate to use gestures as older learners do Therefore, it is very convenient for teachers to apply games in teaching them effectively

2.2.3 Characteristics of games for young learners

Piskozub (as cited in Arifin, 2009) states that not all games are appropriate for all students irrespective of their age Different age groups require various topics, materials, and modes of games The children with their own characteristics need the games to be appropriate with them so that the teaching can get the higher results

Bekiri (2003, p.1) states that when using games to teach young learners, game should not be a complicated game, but a simple one because it is usually more effective as young learners find it difficult to understand a long list of rules Similarly, games should also be full of praise and encouragement because young learners always love to be the centre of attention Additionally, games should be as short as possible because young learners are able to pay their attention to the games just for a limited time

According to Rixon (1990), the teacher-led games are the best for the young learners from the discipline point of view Because most of games are competitive ones in which points were given for correct language, learners need to get the rules and try to get scores from the teachers in order to decide the winner Moreover, another characteristic of young learners is a strong desire for the teacher's approval This makes children much keener on taking part in activities like team games in which the teacher evaluates every answer than in the more independent pair and group games in which the teacher only occasionally listens to each student In addition, these learners also need as much writing and spelling practice as possible

Nevertheless, one important thing is that competitive games must be done in the non-threatening atmosphere in order to get the best results

2.2.4 Reasons to use game in the classroom

Using games is really an interesting way to teach English, especially to teach English to young learners because games bring many advantages for the teaching English There are many reasons to use game in the classroom listed as follows

2.2.4.1 Motivating children’s learning with fun, enjoyment and excitement

With the regard to the role of games, Carrier (1980, p.6) stated that “game can be used to change the pace of a lesson and also maintain motivation” Moreover, through playing games, students can learn English as the way children learn their native language without noticing they are studying; therefore without stress, they can learn a lot (Lewis, 1999) Additionally, games also bring fun and energy into a buoyant learning zone, but with the focus on learning Indeed, fun and excitement are suitable for children’s characteristics, thus they can learn English unconsciously in a relaxed environment within high motivation

2.2.4.2 Providing learners with opportunities to use language in authentic contexts

It is important for the teachers to create communication situations for the children to use language As Wright, Betteridge & Buckby (1989, p.1) claimed

“games also help the teacher create contexts in which the language is useful and meaningful” Through the game environment, students can develop their communicative competent naturally Moreover, the game context makes the foreign language immediately useful to the children As Lewis (1999) concluded games bring the target language to life

2.2.4.3 Supplying practice on language use and language usage

Another role of games is that games are invaluable to teacher of a foreign language because they provide an opportunity for students to use their language

skill in less formal situation As Carrier (1980, p.6) indicated, “Games can give

“hidden” practice of specific language points without students being aware of this”

Furthermore, games provide a practice field where learners interact with the topic, demonstrating their knowledge and ability to apply the information By observing this real-time demonstration, the trainer can adjust the subsequent level of lecture, readings and interventions, accordingly

2.2.4.4 Increasing learner-center in the classroom

Teaching now pays attention to the learner-center role in the teaching and learning process Today learners need to do and to try things on their own Games provide an environment that transforms the passive students into an active part of the learning process where they can connect their own dots and experience their own ideas

Moreover, games can change the role of the teacher from that of formal instructor to that of manager or organizer of activities in which students enjoy participating Games can reduce the domination of the classroom by the teacher As Cervantes (2009, p.21) said, “games provide a perfect opportunity for teacher to take backseat and let students do the talking”

As a result, from these roles, games can help children to learn English in an agreeable and supportive learning environment in which they can get benefit of acquisition of a foreign language at the first stage

2.2.4.5 Promoting interpersonal relations

Games are real-time activities that bring players into teams, demonstrate the rules and roles of working together as a team, and underscore the value of team collaboration Games give the learners a chance to know their peers as they share the same real-time experiences, allowing strong network and bond

2.2.4.6 Accelerating learning

Games allow you to compress your topic and demonstrated learning into shorter periods of time, accelerate the speed of learning The visual presentation, oral interactions, and active participation of game appeals to all of the learning styles (visual, auditory and kinesthetic), involves both the rational and experiential mind that helps players remember what they have learned

In summary, from the reasons to use game in the classroom stated above, it is seen that the contribution of games to teaching and learning is invaluable for both elementary school teachers and learners

With this kind of game, the length of each utterance is limited, usually one word only and seldom longer than one or two sentence Moreover, correct repetition

of a limited range of language is very important In addition, ways of winning and ways of organizing students may vary in these games, but underlying principle is the same: in order to win, players must get thing right

2.2.5.2 Communicative games

As Hadfield (1999) said, communicative games focus on successful exchange of information and ideas, such as two people identifying the differences between their two pictures which are similar to one another but not exactly alike More detailed, Rixon (1999, p.33) emphasizes that communicative games focus on getting a message over to other players and reacting appropriately to their message, i.e giving and following instructions, describing something , persuading someone, etc Correct language usage, though still important, is secondary to achieving the communicative goal

In communicative games, the language used by the players may be not perfect but if the message is understood, the objective will be reached This kind of

games gives students chances to use language in the real communication context 2.2.6 Ways to choose an appropriate game

There are a great number of the language games for teachers However, not all the games are appropriate for all learners, especially the young learners As Uberman (1998, p.21) emphasizes “if games are to bring desired results, they must correspond to students’ level, or age, or to the materials that is to be introduced or practiced” For young learners, organizers must take many factors into account in using games for them to learn English in order to see the usefulness and appropriateness of a game that make children’s language learning profitable

Besides, to choose the right game, the following factors should be considered: the size of the class, players’ age, the class level, the noise factor, the students’ interest, the equipment, the cultural considerations, time for games which will affect what one can hope to achieve (Callum, 1980; Rixon, 1990) As suggested

by Carrier (1990), teachers should first consider the level of game to fit their students’ language level and the purposes of that class or the content Moreover, teachers should consider students’ characteristics such as whether they are young or old, serious-minded or light-hearted and highly motivated to learn or not

In addition, according to Tyson (2000), there are some rules to be considered

to choose games that are:

 A game must be more than just fun

 A game should involve "friendly" competition

 A game should keep all of the students involved and interested

 A game should encourage students to focus on the use of language rather than on the language itself

 A game should give students a chance to learn, practice, or review specific language material

It is important to remark that most of the learners are very willing to play games, so it is necessary to choose the appropriate games which involve students and help them improve their language naturally and effectively

2.2.7 How to use game in the teaching process

Deciding how to use games appropriately is one of the most important factors that affect the success of organizing any games in the language lesson as well as the effectiveness of using games in teaching English Although it seems that games can be used in almost every lesson and in all classes, not all classes enjoy games and not all lessons are appropriate for incorporating the games Actually, there is no rule for using games The teacher can use games as a warm up activity or revision of the previous lesson or as a summary of the skills as the end

However, Wright, Betteridge and Buckby (1989) argued that language games can be regarded as central to a teacher’s repertoire They should not be used for wet days and at the end of term only Similarly, Lee (1994) emphasized that “games,

therefore, should not be regarded as a marginal activity, filling the odd moments when the teacher and class have nothing better to do” (p.3) Games should be an essential part of the teaching and learning foreign languages Thus, teachers should bear in mind that games can be used at any suitable time during the lesson and they should not be treated as a merely warm-up activity As Rixon (1990) states games should be used at all stages of the lesson They can be used to present, practice, recycle, revise or assess any language They can be used to develop listening, speaking, reading and even writing skills

Regarding to young learners, they learn through playing and play to learn Therefore, games should be combined in the presentation in order to help students learn new target points naturally In addition, depending on different purposes, games are also used at different stages of the lesson as follows:

 Presentation: Provide a good model making its meaning clear

 Controlled practice: Elicit good imitation of new language and appropriate responses

 Communicative practice: Give students a chance to use language

Games cannot just be used to teach new language, help learners practice language but also help them revise what they have learnt Recalling something that happened in a game may help students remember the language connected with it (Rixon, 1990) Therefore, the teacher must be very attentive to students’ reactions and the atmosphere of each lesson to assure that “no one should be forced to play games” (McCallum, 1890, p.12)

To use games in teaching effectively, Mgr Lucie Kupeckova (2010) suggested some ideas:

- First, games should be carefully prepared and well-organized

- Second, instructions should be exact and clear to the students

- Third, good timing which means that teacher should be flexible and set the good time

In addition, the aim of the games should be considered and the teachers should not forget some rewards to their students

In short, in the teaching process, games can be used at any time whenever necessary and appropriate As Hadfield (1990) suggested that "games should be regarded an integral part of the language syllabus, not an amusing activity for Friday afternoon or for the end of the term."

to young learners effectively were indicated in order to give some background information for analyzing and discussing the collected data

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

This chapter presents the methodology based on which the study was carried out To do this research, both qualitative and quantitative are chosen The participants, the instruments and data collection procedures as well as the tool using to analyze the data are also presented

3.1 Research design

The research approach is a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods According to Condelli & Wrigley (2004) the best research method design

is a mixed method that integrates qualitative and quantitative research

As Smith (1988) pointed out that quantitative research involves counting and measuring events and performing the statistical analysis of a body of numerical data Therefore, quantitative research methods are based on the collection and analysis of numerical data obtained from questionnaires

In comparison with quantitative method, qualitative method is considered as

a useful tool to check and increase the validity and reliability from the

questionnaire As Greenhalgh (2006, p.166) emphasized “qualitative researchers seek a deeper truth” and can collect more personalized data In this research,

qualitative method was applied through the additional ideas of participants and from the open-ended questions from questionnaires and through the class observations

3.2 Participants

In order to collect in-depth information, 30 teachers from some primary schools in Hue city such as Tran Quoc Toan, Quang Trung, Phu Cat, Phu Hoa, Phu Thuan, Phu Binh, Thuan Thanh, Thuan Loc, Le Loi and Vietnam – America English Center involved in this study Background information on Teacher Participants will be presented in Table 3.1

Table 3.1: Background Information on Teacher Participants

“quickly and relatively cheaply” to collect information (Bell, 1993)

The questionnaire was designed into three parts based on the three research questions that are teachers’ perceptions on choosing and using games in teaching English to young learners, reality of choosing and using games in teaching English

to young learners and some suggestions to the teachers’ choice and use games in teaching English to young learners more effectively

The first two parts included 15 closed-ended questionnaires According to Newman (2000), this kind of question is quicker and easier for both respondents and researchers Also Mc Millan and Schumacher (1993) added that closed-ended items are best for obtaining data that can be easily categorized In addition, for some questionnaires, the researcher also left a small space empty so that the participants can add more ideas if necessary

The third part of the questionnaire included two questions in open-ended questions As Brown (2001, p.36) showed that open-ended format can give the participants an opportunity to express their own ideas which are useful for the researchers make the study more plentiful because many respondents’ ideas are out

of the researchers’ experiences Moreover, this kind of question can contribute more qualitative to the study even though it is quite difficult and time-consuming for the participants to answer

3.3.1.2 Class observation

To have deep insight on the teachers’ choice and use games in their teaching reality, the researcher also conducted class observations Observation methods are considered as the powerful tools for gaining insight into situations (Cohen, Manion

& Maririson, 2000) It can help the researcher collect more data which are not reflected through the questionnaire Taking these advantages, the author conducted observations with the observation sheets (see Appendix) to gather live data from the participants’ concrete teaching and learning situations

3.3.2 Procedures of data collection

After designing the questionnaire and being corrected by the supervisor, three draft questionnaires were delivered to three primary teachers of English and asked for responses to questionnaires After that the piloted questionnaires were

sent to the supervisor With the revision of the supervisor, the questionnaire was modified before delivering to participants A total of 30 copies of the questionnaire were delivered to primary school teachers With the teachers’ enthusiasm, a week later all the questionnaires were completed and returned to the researcher

After collecting all the questionnaires, the researcher conducted 6 class observations at Thuan Thanh , Le Loi and Huong Ho primary schools Thanks to the principals’ permission and the cooperation of the teachers, I could conduct the observation conveniently Each class observation lasted 35 minutes with the observation sheet designed in advance While observing the class, I took notes of what happened in class in the observation sheet carefully, so that the data from the observation can support the questionnaire better

3.3.3 Data analysis method

In this study, the data collected from the questionnaire and class observations were analyzed with the use of both quantitative and qualitative approaches Data analysis was analyzed based on three parts of the questionnaire The first two parts were analyzed quantitatively through tables and charts by descriptive statistics, i.e frequency and percentage As McMillan and Schumacher (1993, p.192) explained

“the use of descriptive statistic is the most fundamental way to summarize data, and

it is dispensable in interpreting the results of quantitative research” On the basis of

data analyses, all descriptive in word were given Then based on the theoretical background, the discussion of finding was fulfilled The additional ideas in the questionnaires were basically used for qualitative analysis The third part including two open-ended questions were also contributed to the qualitative analysis The data from the observations also analyzed to clarify more about the teachers’ responses from questionnaires and add more possible explanation for the finding results

3.4 Chapter summary

In brief, this chapter has presented the methodology which was used to collect and analyze the data In addition, the participants’ characteristics are mentioned with some personal information The two instruments that are questionnaires and class observation are also presented with the reason for selecting them to collect data In addition, the procedure of data collection and how the collected data are analyzed are also clarified

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS

In this chapter, the data from the questionnaire and class observations will

be analyzed and presented in charts and tables based on three research questions This chapter begins with teachers’ perceptions on the role of games in teaching English to young learners After that, the reality of choosing and using games in teaching English are analyzed and discussed And the last part presents the teachers’ suggestions for choosing and using games in teaching English to young learners

4.1 Teachers’ perceptions on the role of games in teaching English to young learners

Using games in teaching English in general and teaching English to young learners in particular is approved by many researchers (Chen, 2005; Chirandon, Laohawiriyanon & Rakthong, 2010; Wang, 2010) In Hue city, primary school teachers also have been applying games in their teaching English to young learners for a long time However, whether they support using games in teaching or not, and how they perceive the choosing and using games in teaching English to young learners; these questions raised in the questionnaire will be answered in the following parts

4.1.1 Necessity of using games in teaching English and teaching English to young learners

When being asked about the necessity of using games in teaching English and using games in teaching English to young learners, most teachers showed positive attitude The result from the questionnaire showed that the majority of the teachers agreed that using games in teaching English was necessary, and all of them asserted the necessity of using games in teaching English to young learners In detailed, as for the attitude towards using games in teaching English, 56.7% of the teachers claimed that using games in teaching English is necessary However,

13.3% of the teachers had no ideas about this issue Meanwhile, more than half of the teachers stressed that using games in teaching English to young learners is very necessary And the rest of teachers also stated the necessity of using games for young learners (See Figure 4.1)

Figure 4.1: Necessity of using games in teaching English and in teaching English to

young learners

It is clear that most of the teachers at some primary schools in Hue city are supported using games in teaching English Particularly, they are all conscious of the importance of using games in teaching English to young learners This can be explained by the fact that games are the useful activities in the English teaching and learning process Furthermore, as Scott and Ytreberg (1998) emphasized games were the nature of the children; thus as teaching English to young learners, the teachers at primary schools cannot deny the use of games in teaching English to their young learners And as mentioned in the Literature review, using games in teaching English brings a lot of advantages to the learners, especially to the young learners Particularly, to young learners who learn best through playing, games are really indispensable This result is also supported the findings of Chirandon,

Games in teaching English to YL

Laohawiriyanon & Rakthong (2010) which claimed that using games in teaching English was beneficial to beginners especially those in primary schools

4.1.2 Necessity to choose games based on criteria

Games for young learners are supported by all teacher participants However,

to make games profitable to young learners, deciding how to choose games plays an important role

Figure 4.2: Necessity of choosing games based on criteria appropriate with young

learners

As is illustrated in Figure 4.2, half of the participants claimed that choosing games based on the criteria which are appropriate with young learners is necessary and 46.7% of them strongly emphasized its necessity It is possible that the teaching aims to learners, all activities in the classroom are supported to the students’ learning; thus, choosing games must be based on criteria which are suitable with young learners in order to get the best results Moreover, as Piskozub (cited in Arifin, 2009) claimed that the children with their own characteristics needed the appropriate games so that the teaching could get the higher results

4.1.3 Necessity to divide games into categories

In terms of necessity of dividing games into categories, as can be seen from Figure 4.3 below, up to 70% of the teachers supported this idea 13.3% though that dividing games into categories for teaching language skills or language aspects was very necessary A possible explanation for this may be that games which are classified according to the language aspects or skills may help the teachers save time in finding and selecting games for each lesson Moreover, it is also convenient for the teachers to store games for reusing Besides, it will be more helpful for teachers to add new interesting games or to remove the boring one

Figure 4.3: Teachers’ perceptions on the necessity of dividing games into

categories

However, it is noticeable that 16.7% of the teachers believed that it is not necessary to categorize games into language aspects or language skills It is probable that classification of games is not easy because the categories often overlap; therefore, these participants may assume that dividing games might cost them a lot of time and effort than finding the games with their purposes at first

Games for young learners should be selected carefully in order to be beneficial for their learning English For this reason, how games should be created

is considered as an important factor in choosing and using games

4.1.4 How games should be created

Table 4.1: Teachers’ perceptions on how games should be created

Games should be…

Teacher (N = 30)

Number of choices Percentage

Provided by prestigious educational organization 2 6.7%

As Table 4.1 shows, 19 of 30 teachers, accounting for 63.3%, claimed that teachers should create games by themselves It is possible that games created by teachers themselves usually aim to the language points in the teaching lessons Moreover, from what they know about their young learners, teachers can create games appropriate with students’ levels, characteristics, interest, etc Therefore, those games can be more effective to learners

Besides, 21.3% of the teachers thought that games should be chosen from the language games textbooks and adapted to appropriate with young learners It is surprising that only 6.7% of teachers responded that games should be provided by the educational organization such as British Council It is difficult to explain this result, but it might be related to the teachers’ point of view about the games from

these organizations It is probable that the games from these organizations may not appropriate with the learners’ levels or learners’ culture background

4.1.5 Teaching stages that games are used in reality

In terms of teaching stages that games are used in reality, as Figure 4.4 below reveals, the number of teachers’ choices for using games at presentation stage

is 25 out of 30 Meanwhile, the number of teachers’ choices for others stages are all under 10 It is clear that most teachers supported using games at the presentation stage when the new language points of the lesson were introduced

Figure 4.4: Teachers’ perceptions on stages games should be used

The reason for this may be that most teachers aware that at this age, the young learners love playing games and they learn best through playing; thus, new language points are transmitted to learners naturally through games Moreover, when new language points are introduced through games, the learners may absorb new language without being stressed In addition, it is possible that presenting the content of the lessons by using games, young learners seems to be enthusiastic about learning English instead of being bored with the complicated theory Therefore, as for most teachers, using games at the presentation stage seems to be

the most appropriate This result is also harmony with the idea of Uberman (1998) which revealed that using game was one of the best ways to present new vocabulary

4.1.6 Effectiveness of using games in teaching English to young learners

In terms of effectiveness of using games in teaching English to young learners, the result is quite positive

Table 4.2: Teachers’ perceptions on using games in teaching English to young learners

Using games in teaching English to young learners…

Teacher (N = 30)

Number

of choices Percentage

Motivates students joining the extracurricular activities 5 16.7%

As is shown by Table 4.2, none of the teachers agreed that using games in teaching English to young learners was waste of time and ineffectiveness Meanwhile, up to 63.3% of the teachers confirmed that games helped students learn English language aspects as well as language skills better Particularly, 20% of the teachers thought that using games should be considered as the main way to teach English to young learners It is obvious that most teachers are conscious of the effectiveness of using games in developing English knowledge to young learners This result once again proved the teachers’ positive attitude towards using games in teaching English to young learners Moreover, this finding is in agreement with

Chirandon, Laohawiriyanon & Rakthong’s finding (2010) which reflected that using games in teaching English could help learners improve vocabulary knowledge and ability to communicate It also supports the ideas of many researchers who showed that games developed learners’ communicative competence (Huang, 1996; Chen, 2005; Wang, 2010) and helped them learn new vocabulary effectively

In brief, the teachers’ perceptions on using games in teaching English to young learners are positive Choosing and using games in teaching English to young learners also considered carefully by the teachers However, whether teachers select and use games in their teaching in reality is the same as their perception on this issue This question will be discussed in the next part

4.2 Reality of choosing and using games in teaching English to young learners

4.2.1 The teachers’ habit of using games in teaching English to young learners

Figure 4.5: The teachers’ habit of using games in teaching English to young learners

As illustrated in Figure 4.5, 40% of the teachers responded that they often used games in their teaching English Up to 23.3% of the teachers stated that games