Luận văn thạc sĩ Lý luận và phương pháp dạy học môn tiếng Anh: Using project-based learning in teaching speaking skills at a junior high school in Vung Tau City

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG DAI HỌC SƯ PHAM THÀNH PHO HO CHÍ MINHNguyễn Như Bình USING PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN TEACHING SPEAKING SKILLS AT A JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL IN VUNG TAU CITY LUẬN

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG DAI HỌC SƯ PHAM THÀNH PHO HO CHÍ MINH

Nguyễn Như Bình

USING PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN

TEACHING SPEAKING SKILLS AT A

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL IN VUNG TAU

CITY

LUẬN VĂN THAC SĨ NGANH KHOA HỌC GIÁO DUC

Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh - 2024

BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO

TRƯỜNG DAI HỌC SU PHAM THÀNH PHO HO CHÍ MINH

Nguyễn Như Bình

USING PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN

TEACHING SPEAKING SKILLS AT A

JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL IN VUNG

TAU CITY

Chuyên ngành: LL&PPDHBM tiếng Anh

Mã số : 8140111

LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ KHOA HỌC GIÁO DỤC

NGƯỜI HƯỚNG DÁN KHOA HỌC:

TS PHAN NGỌC THẠCH

Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh - 2024

I hereby declare that this thesis, entitled “Using Project-Based Learning

in Teaching Speaking Skills at a Junior High School in Vung Tau City”, is the

result of my own work which is supervised by Dr Phan Ngoc Thach The

research contents and results have not been submitted previously, in whole or

in part, in respect of any other academic award or qualification I have clearly

referenced all sources and content that is not my own in the references.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to several individuals and

institutions for their invaluable support and contributions throughout the

completion of this thesis

First and foremost, | would like to express my deepest gratitude to my

supervisor, Dr Phan Ngoc Thach, for his continuous support, guidance, and

encouragement throughout the course of my research and the writing of this

thesis His constructive feedback and valuable suggestions greatly enhanced

the quality of this work

I would also like to extend my thanks to the lecturers of Ho Chi Minh

City University of Education They have worked day and night preparing

lesson plan, dedicating all their ability and enthusiasm to bring me wide and

useful knowledge

A special thanks to the Faculty of English Language, particularly Dr

Nguyen Thanh Binh — Dean of the Faculty, and M.A Le Dinh Tung for their

assistance in supporting the learning and research process

I am also grateful to all the teachers participating the research Their

help was instrumental in the completion of this thesis

My heartfelt thanks go to my colleagues, friends and K31 classmates

for their unwavering support, patience, and encouragement throughout my

academic journey To my parents, my brother and my spouse for their endless

love, understanding and sacrifices

Finally, I would like to thank everyone who has contributed, directly or

indirectly, to the successful completion of this thesis Your support has been

invaluable

Thank you all.

H

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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2.2.3 The role of the teacher in Project-based learning 10

2.2.4 The role of students in Project-based learning - II

2.2.5 Challenges of using Project-based learning 12

2.2.6 Process of implementing Project-based learning 13

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

No |ABBREVIATIONS | MEANING

H | English as a Foreign Language

the Ministry of Education and Training

Project-based learning

H | Teacher

Vi

LIST OF APPENDICES

APPENDIX A : The questionnaire

APPENDIX B : Questions in the interview

APPENDIX C : Interview transcription

Vii

LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1 Sepulveda (2018)’s sample rubrIC - «se <s<ssssesxe 22

Table 3.1 Reliability statistics of the pilot questionnaire - 34

Table 4.1 Teachers’ perceptions of PBL benefits for students’ speaking skills

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 2.1 The conceptual framework of the Study « «-««<5 28

Figure 4.1 Teachers’ perceptions of PBL benefits for students’

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Vietnamese students often face more difficulties in speaking skills

compared to other skills like reading, writing, or listening To improve

students’ speaking skills, the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has

introduced Project-based learning (PBL) into the classroom through the

Project part in the new ten-year English textbook series (from grade 3 to

grade 12) PBL is a student-centered approach where students learn by

actively engaging in real-world and personally meaningful projects In PBL,

students explore complex questions or problems over an extended period,

allowing them to acquire deeper knowledge, critical thinking, and skills

through hands-on experiences The main aim of this study is to determine

teachers’ perceptions and implementation of PBL in teaching speaking skills

at a junior high school in Vung Tau City, Viet Nam Some recommendations

are also made to enhance the effectiveness of PBL implementation in

speaking lessons This study uses a mixed-method design of both qualitative

and quantitative research All fifteen English teachers in the school complete

the questionnaire while the interview is conducted with only five teachers

The findings show that most of the teachers have a positive attitude towards

PBL in teaching speaking skills, but they do not often use it in their classes

due to time limitation For successful implementation, teachers need to be

aware of these potential obstacles and seek strategies to mitigate them, such

as careful planning, using rubrics for assessment, encouraging peer feedback,

etc.

Keywords: Project-based learning, speaking skills, teachers’ perception

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the study

In this day and age, English is the most commonly spoken language in

the world It is estimated that one out of five people can speak or at least

understand English Besides, English is used in many international business

meetings and university courses, and, all over the world, tourists and travelers

communicate in English It is easy to see that the ability to speak English is a

necessary skill in the modern world To satisfy this urgent need, the

Vietnamese education system has made English a compulsory school subject

in elementary, lower secondary, upper secondary school, college and

university English is also included in compulsory graduation exams at all

levels However, until the early years of the 21st century, it seems that the

results of English teaching and learning have not been as good as expected

(Le, 2018) Vietnamese students have good vocabulary and grammar, they

may listen, read and write well, but their speaking skills are weak The reason

why is that the traditional teaching methods, such as the grammar-translation

method, are popular in Vietnamese schools Besides these traditional teaching

methods, the teaching, learning and testing system focus more on linguistic

knowledge (grammar, vocabulary) and three skills (listening skills, reading

skills, writing skills) while speaking skills are neglected

To solve this problem, in Vietnam’s National Foreign Language 2020

Project, the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) says that the English

language education aims to develop learners’ communicative competence

which consists of the capacity to use linguistic knowledge of pronunciation,

vocabulary and grammar and four language skills (listening, speaking,

reading, and writing) These days witness a shift from teacher-centered

approaches to more learner-centered approaches and the rise in popularity of

project-based learning (PBL) These projects are incorporated after each unit

in the new ten-year English textbook series (from grade 3 to grade 12) for

Vietnamese schools

PBL is a student-centered teaching method that directs students to

acquire knowledge and skills through playing one or more roles to solve

problems (Edutopia, n.d.) These problems are referred to as projects which

simulate real activities in the society, making learning activities more

meaningful to students As mentioned above, projects are done at the end of

each unit, so the project's content is based on the unit’s topic When working

on projects, students will consolidate their language knowledge of the unit,

and, at the same time, develop listening, speaking, reading and writing skills.

In addition, soft skills such as teamwork, time management, presentation or

information searching skills are also developed (Musa, Mufti, Latiff, & Amin,

2012; Hamidah, Widjiningsih, Yuriani, & Palupi, 2015)

In traditional speaking lessons, students work individually and

passively based on the content the teacher gives in the lesson However, those

contents are sometimes not close and practical to students, so they feel less

confident in communication, which makes them lose interest in learning With

the implementation of PBL in speaking lessons, students are expected to

promote their activeness, initiative and creativity in the process of learning

English in general as well as in the process of practicing speaking skill They

will be more confident in speaking and communicating in English as well as

improving their presentation ability and teamwork skills

1,2 Statement of the problem

PBL is one of the teaching methods that contribute to the goals of the

current teaching method innovation, overcoming certain limitations of

traditional teaching methods, PBL has many advantages that are suitable

for teaching toward developing students’ comprehensive abilities

(Hmelo-Silver, 2004; Martinez, 2019) PBL has been applied in many places and

contexts and teachers are encouraged to use it in their classrooms to

develop not only students’ communicative competence but also the 21*

century skills However, compared to other teaching methods, in Vung Tau

City, it is quite new and a great number of teachers and students are not

familiar with it This leads to a lot of challenges for both teachers and

students when working on projects Although this teaching method is

reported to create interest in learning for a considerable number of students

as well as improving speaking skills, forming problem-solving skills,

flexibility and creativity, some junior high school students in Vung Tau

City find it difficult as they have been familiar with the passive traditional

way of learning for many years Some teachers here also encounter some

difficulties while applying PBL in classrooms with the aim of boosting

students’ speaking skills Therefore, PBL may be applied in different ways

in this area

1.3 Research aims

The aim of this research is to find out EFL junior high school teachers’

perceptions of PBL in teaching speaking skills and the ways they implement

PBL in speaking lessons The following research questions are put forward

for the whole study:

1 What are EFL junior high school teachers’ perceptions of PBL in

teaching speaking skills?

t3 What do EFL junior high school teachers report on PBL

implementation in teaching speaking skills?

1.4 Significance of the research

Through the comprehensive exploration of this study on PBL in

English teaching speaking skills, the findings are expected to be beneficial to

the teachers and students This study may bring the EFL teachers valuable

information about the advantages and difficulties of using projects in their

speaking lessons This information helps them to look back on their teaching

Strategies and they can improve them to maximize the teaching process This

study would also help fill the gap regarding junior high school contexts since

there is more research focused on PBL in higher education levels

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 The concept of teachers’ perception

2.1.1 The concept of perception

Erin and Maharani (2018) define that perception is a structured process

that transforms raw sensory input into meaningful understanding It starts

with sensing a stimulus, progresses through organization, and concludes with interpretation, enabling individuals to make sense of their experiences and

environment

According to Feldman (1999), perception is the process by which

individuals actively interpret and organize sensory stimuli to construct a

meaningful understanding of their environment It involves going beyond the

raw sensory input to form a coherent and personalized representation of

reality.

Another definition from Qiong (2017), perception is a cognitive

process that begins with the use of the five senses to receive a stimulus This

sensory input is then organized and interpreted by the brain to form an

understanding of what is being sensed, allowing individuals to make sense of

their environment

From the definitions above, it can be concluded that perception is

psychological processes through which individuals use experiences gained

from the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell) to interpret and

respond to stimuli This process allows individuals to form positive or

negative perceptions of their environment or experiences

2.1.2 The concept of teachers’ perception

Stark and Bettini (2021) find that teachers’ perceptions encompass the

beliefs and attitudes that educators hold regarding various aspects of teaching,

including display rules (acceptable behaviors, expressions, and interactions in

the classroom), These perceptions are shaped by factors such as personal

identity, contextual influences, and the desire to achieve professional

outcomes.

According to Demirdag and Efe (2023), teachers’ perceptions

encompass the cognitive, emotional, and attitudinal perspectives and beliefs

that educators hold about their professional roles, the teaching and learning

process, and the educational environment These perceptions are inherently

subjective and can significantly influence various aspects of education,

including teaching practices, decision-making, and interactions with students,

colleagues, and administrators

Siimer et al (2018) state that teachers’ perceptions have considerable

influences on teaching practices, decision-making and interactions

Perceptions guide how educators plan lessons, interact with students, and

assess learning It influences classroom management, curriculum adaptation,

and instructional methods It also shapes relationships with students,

colleagues, and administrators, impacting classroom and school climate

Century (2023) conducts research into the effects of teachers’

perceptions and finds that understanding teachers’ beliefs, attitudes, and

interpretations regarding various aspects of education helps identify effective

and ineffective teaching strategies Teachers’ perceptions influence their

expectations and interactions with students, which directly impacts learning

outcomes It can also highlight areas where teachers feel underprepared or

need additional support, which ensures that training programs are relevant and

impactful

Overall, it can be noticeable that it is significant to conduct research on

teachers’ perceptions to provide a deeper understanding of the educational

landscape It empowers educators, informs policies, improves student

outcomes, and drives systemic improvements in teaching and learning This

type of research ultimately creates a more effective, inclusive, and supportive

educational environment.

2.2 Project-based learning

2.2.1 The concept of Project-based learning

Krajcik and Blumenfeld (2006) say that PBL belongs to situated

learning and it is believed that, during students’ process of working with the

materials, students acquire better knowledge The project-based learning is

built on guiding questions, integrating content and higher-order thinking in

real-world contexts

Gijbels, van de Watering and Dochy (2005) define that PBL is a

method in which individuals or groups of learners set up a project whose

content is linked to the learning content Based on their knowledge,

experience and skills, along with documents and tools, learners come up with

ideas, design projects, make drafts and end up with products Accordingly,

students’ self-reliance and active participation in activities are enhanced They

can enhance creativity, responsibility, teamwork skills, critical thinking skills,

and especially problem-solving skills

According to Markham (2003), PBL is “a systematic teaching method

that engages students in learning knowledge and skills through an extended

inquiry process structured around complex, authentic questions and carefully

designed products and tasks” (p.4)

Based on the above definitions, it can be seen that PBL is a

student-centered teaching model It helps develop Knowledge and related skills

through open-ended real-world problems, and encourage students to explore and realize what they have learned in the process of making and creating their

own products,

2.2.2 The benefits of Project-based learning

It is commonly known that PBL has considerable benefits First of all,

it positively influences students’ speaking skill PBL overcomes the

limitations of traditional teaching methods (Liu & Liu, 2021) It helps to

innovate teaching methods and improve the quality of English speaking

practice hours for students PBL creates excitement for students in English

speaking practice time since students can choose topics that they are

interested in and these topics are practical, close to their daily lives

(Ruslan et al., 2022) Instead of imposing spoken content on students, the

teacher allows students to be creative as long as they have the opportunity to

speak in English about the topic they were interested in During the process

of doing projects, students’ knowledge about the language and the society

increases thanks to the practical experience given by the teacher, which

helps them be more confident in communication Using PBL, all students are

encouraged to participate in speaking activities, especially weak students

(Binnendijk, 2014) They are recommended to use simple words appropriate

to their level, thereby breaking down their feelings of fear and inferiority

when speaking English

PBL not only improves students’ speaking skill but also has a positive

influence on students learning outcomes A lot of findings have proved that

PBL increases diligence, responsibility, self-reliance and learning attitude of

students (Thomas, 2000), deepens students’ knowledge (Boaler, 1997; SRI

International, 2000), and develops soft skills (SRI, 2000; Sukiawati &

Nurfaidah, 2021)

According to Thomas (2000), PBL enables students to develop good

qualities such as diligence, responsibility, and self-reliance as well as

positively influence their learning attitudes PBL will reverse the traditional roles of students and teachers, pushing students out of their comfort zone.

Projects do not always go as smoothly as planned, and students may

experience failure before completing their projects, which forces them to

learn to be adaptive and flexible

9

The aim of education is to prepare students for future work and life.

One of humanity's biggest problems is interdisciplinary This means that, in

order to come up with a solution to a given problem, one must have a deep

understanding of different fields like science, technology, culture, economics,

and history Therefore, education must prepare students to face ambiguity and

complexity and PBL is a good choice to present students with such problems

(SRI International, 2000) During dealing with the project, learners gain a

deeper understanding since it requires not only academic knowledge but also

practical experience and a great deal of responsibility (Boaler, 1997)

Both SRI International (2000), Sukiawati and Nurfaidah (2021) declare

that PBL offers students opportunities to develop essential soft skills, such as

higher-order thinking, problem-solving, collaboration, communication, etc

When participating in projects, students have to take responsibility for

themselves and have to solve problems that may arise at any time In the

process, they acquire the soft skills necessary for future life and work

Regarding teamwork skills, PBL mostly revolves around teamwork, so

students will learn how to work effectively in groups with people from

different cultures, with different perspectives, and how to appreciate the value

that each member brings to the group PBL will also help students learn

effective oral communication with the help of visual aids to different

audiences like fellow students, or teachers

2.2.3 The role of the teacher in Project-based learning

Unlike the role in traditional teaching method with the teacher as a central role, the expert and his/ her main task is to impart knowledge, in PBL, the teacher is just a guide and a consultant (Fragouli & Tsiplakides,

2009) This means that teacher does not teach the content in the traditional

way, but he/ she looks at the content to see its relevance to real-life

problems, then form an idea for a project After that, the teacher designs

10

assignments suitable for the required learning outcomes and creates roles for

students in the project

Barrows (2011) states that, in PBL classrooms, the teacher's role is to

facilitate learning In this context, teachers are responsible for creating an

effective educational environment for learning, not just teaching according to

lesson plans in traditional methods This will require teachers to design a

series of instructional and assessment strategies to guide and manage students

as they participate in learning activities The teacher's role is not to

disseminate knowledge but to guide and orientate students, ensuring that they

are able to solve problems themselves but not being deviated from the original

topic Good questioning skills, consulting skills and process assessment

Strategies are very important for maximizing student achievements (Bell,

2010) In short, the teacher no longer plays the leading role in the teaching

process, but becomes a guide and a helper, creating the most favorable

environment for them on the way to project implementation

2.2.4 The role of students in Project-based learning

Holm (2011) says that learners are the center in PBL classrooms and they have more active roles Students decide how to approach the problem as

well as what methods and activities should be taken to solve it They also

select data sources, collect data from these different sources, then synthesize,

analyze and accumulate knowledge from their own work (Meloni &

Thompson, 1980) Students complete their learning with specific products and

are able to present and defend their work Their products should have certain

meanings and values for themselves and society (Beckett, 2002) Besides,

students are given a rubric to self-evaluate their own work

Most teachers prefer to design projects as group work rather than

individual work (Barrows, 2011) Students practice solving real-life problems

with soft skills through teamwork They play the roles of people from

II

different fields, with each one in charge of one task according to the project’s

objective Learners are asked to show more initiative to receive knowledge

and fulfill their roles based on certain knowledge and skills To sum up, in

PBL, learners must solve problems and other related tasks on their own in

order to gain knowledge and create products They move from passive

learning to oriented active learning

2.2.5 Challenges of using Project-based learning

Due to the changes in teachers’ and students’ roles in the teaching and

learning process when using PBL, both learners and teachers have faced

many difficulties According to Phan (2011), most teachers feel that giving

instructions and guiding students during the whole teaching process are not

the way that most teachers have been trained in pedagogical universities In

PBL, teachers are more of a facilitator and a guide, so their talking time is

less than that in frequently-used traditional teaching methods, which

teachers may not yet familiar

These projects require careful preparation and planning to attract

learners to participate actively (Aldabbus, 2018) A good project needs to

be closely associated with the lesson contents and real-life problems

However, not all lesson contents are suitable for PBL and some contents

are difficult to design relevant and engaging projects for students Their

challenge is that they have to select the important lesson content to plan

and build stimulating projects for students and students will gain

knowledge after doing projects.

PBL requires a lot of time from teachers and students (Mansor et al., 2015) This is a big obstacle, if there is not enough time for projects in the

syllabus or teachers are not flexible enough to balance the time for projects,

they have to work overtime It takes teachers loads of time to plan, prepare

and design good projects A project lasts at least 2 hours and it can be

12

~

extended for months (Frey, 2005) During this long period, teachers are

responsible for guiding students, giving them essential feedback and making

assessments of their work Like teachers, students spend lots of time meeting,

discussing and doing the project with their group members

PBL requires students to do more thinking than traditional teaching

methods since, when doing projects, students have to move beyond the levels

of remembering and understanding in Bloom’s Taxonomy (Anderson &

Krathwohl, 2001) Most students admit that the aspect of self-directed

learning in PBL is difficult for them as they are used to following teachers’

instructions They have to identify their own project, design activities and

choose the appropriate way to do the project Students must also conduct

investigations and find questions to collect information scientifically

In PBL, students work in groups to actively seek a solution to a

problem given by the teacher Students will work together in groups, discuss

the topic, raise questions and gather different opinions They can develop

skills such as cooperation, criticism, creativity, communication, and confident

presentation in front of other students However, group collaboration in PBL

poses big challenges (Aldabbus, 2018) Some students do not have the skills

to work effectively in groups, like lacking a sense of responsibility or

collaboration skills Some are usually passive and dependent on others to do

their part, which makes the project work unequally distributed

2.2.6 Process of implementing Project-based learning

Different researchers implement PBL in teaching in different ways

Currently, researchers have not agreed on a fixed process for implementing PBL According to Trinh, Phan and Trinh (2011), there are five steps for

successful project implementation

Step 1: The teacher and students choose a topic and the class is divided

into groups The teacher finds the basic lesson content that is relevant or can be

13

applied to real life The teacher should pay attention to the things that have been

happening in the real world, such as important global issues The teacher divides

the class into groups, and instructs students to identify their group’s topic

Step 2: The teacher and students create the project outline Developing

a project outline is very important in determining the whole process of

implementing, collecting data and project evaluation, The teacher instructs the

learners to set the goal, then they decide ways to work on the project, the

time, the material and so on

Step 3: Students execute the project in groups The group assigns tasks

to each member They collect data from many different sources, then

synthesize, analyze and accumulate knowledge from practices

Step 4: Students present the results The project results can be written in

the form of a publication (news, newspapers, posters, reports, etc.) and can be

presented on PowerPoint, or designed as a web page Each student needs to be

encouraged to present the results or the project products in front of the class,

the school or even outside the school

Step 5: The teacher and students assess the project and students learn from

the experience The teachers and learners evaluate the implementation process

and project results which are based on the obtained products They also give

feedback on the way the students make presentations Thanks to the teacher`s

and other students’ feedback, they can gain experience for future projects

Nevertheless, The Compass School (2017) states that an effective PBL

process has three phases.

Phase 1]: Project preparation includes developing ideas, selecting the

topic, and building the project plan The teacher poses a driving question or

problem which requires students to come up with an answer or solution, He/

She also builds PBL plans and prepares materials and favorable conditions to

support learners Learners choose their project’s topic and build the plan to

lá

complete the project Both teachers and students agree on the project

assessment criteria

Phase 2: Project implementation consists of collecting information,

investigating, discussing with group members and consulting with the teacher

In this step, the teacher monitors, instructs and assesses learners during the

process Learners collect information, process them and build up their

products, then inform the teacher and other groups

Phase 3: Finishing the project includes synthesizing and reporting

project results In this step, the teacher is responsible for preparing the

conditions for the project report and assessing groups’ projects Learners are

responsible for presenting the project’s products, self-evaluating their results

and the implementation process to gain experience

Besides, Sepulveda (2018) states that a successful project has four stages: a

driving question, objectives, rubrics and project schedule The first stage, a

driving question, aims to present the driving question that students will work

on throughout the project The driving question is the heart of PBL, fostering

engagement and guiding the direction of student learning It is a central,

open-ended question that links the classroom to the real world, making learning

relevant and meaningful to students The question should be designed to

address key content and skills that students need to master, integrating

curriculum objectives The second stage, objectives, emphasizes the necessity of

embedding the unit objectives into the broader project objectives This helps

students see how their learning applies to real-world tasks, enhancing engagement and ensuring that the project supports curriculum objectives Unit

objectives outline the knowledge, skills, and competencies students should

achieve by the end of a unit The third stage, rubrics, provides clear

expectations and criteria for evaluating students’ work This critical

assessment tool outlines specific criteria for various aspects of the project A

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well-designed rubric helps both teachers and students focus on the key

learning goals and provides an objective way to assess performance In the

fourth stage, project schedule, students start working on their project

according to their plan They begin researching the topic related to the driving

question, gather information, develop their understanding of the subject, and

explore potential solutions to the problem Then, they work in groups, sharing

their research findings and discussing ideas Collaboration is key during this

Stage as students communicate and build on each other's ideas Students

organize all of their research and ideas into a presentation This may include

creating visual aids (e.g., slides, posters) to enhance their presentation After

their presentation, peers and the teacher give feedback based on the rubrics.

There are a lot of ways to implement PBL (Bell, 2010) With different

objectives, projects’ goals and students’ ability, each researcher conducts PBL

in their own way, like in the three above studies According to Le Khoa

(2016), the division of PBL steps in teaching and learning is varied In

practice, they can intermingle and penetrate each other

2.2.7 Project assessment

To evaluate learners’ performance in PBL, rubrics are increasingly

being widely used as a tool to help the assessment activities become

transparent, consistent and efficient (Edmonton Regional Learning

Consortium, 2017) A rubric is a detailed systematic description, with criteria,

standard label and standard descriptor, of outcomes (knowledge skills,

attitudes) that learners should do and need to do to achieve the end goal when

performing a particular task (Stevens & Levi, 2013) With rubrics, students

know the desired goals and criteria to meet for their products, so they can

actively plan their own projects right from the beginning Learners will also

form positive learning motivation, recognize their own strengths and

weaknesses, when comparing the results achieved at different stages with the

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rubric, and improve their performance They can even give peer feedback and

understand why some groups’ work is better than others

When building rubrics, the teacher has an overall view of his own

teaching and is aware of what the focus of the project is There are different

criteria in the rubric, for example, task achievement, fluency, coherence,

pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, etc (Stevens & Levi, 2013) Assessment

becomes more objective since subjective points of view and general

assessments causing disadvantages for learners are minimized Another point

worth mentioning is that the unit objectives determine the project objectives

and these objectives should be included in the rubric (Dubiel, 2021) This

benefits students as they have more chances for further practice with the

vocabulary and grammatical points of the unit

2.3 Speaking skills

2.3.1 The concept of speaking skills

Chaney (1998) defines that speaking is using spoken and gestural

symbols to convey messages in different situations Brown (2001) and Burns

and Joyce (1997) say that speaking is a turn- taking process of speaker and

listener roles changing back and forth to exchange information According to

Widyaningsih (2014), speaking skills are the skills of using sound to express

one's thoughts, opinions and words to converse and communicate with

listeners Through a conversation, the speaker and the listener exchange

information with each other Based on the above definitions, it can be seen

that speaking or speaking skills are the capacity that humans use words to

communicate and perform speech acts

2.3.2 The components of speaking skills

Speaking skills have five components such as _ pronunciation,

vocabulary, grammar, comprehension and fluency (Harris, 1974)

e Pronunciation

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Kristina et al (2006, as cited in Pratiwi, 2010) defines that

pronunciation is how words are pronounced to convey messages in verbal

communication Otlowski (1998, as cited in Gilakjani, 2016) says

pronunciation is the generally agreed-upon way in which a word is made to

sound in speech Further pronunciation definition taken from Cambridge

Dictionary states that pronunciation 1s the way that words are pronounced in a

meaningful manner Based on the above definitions, it can be seen that

pronunciation is the socially agreed way of saying a word in communication

to exchange information Pronunciation is a significant component in

speaking since good pronunciation makes it easier for listeners to understand

what the speakers mean in a conversation.

¢ Vocabulary

It is certainly true that vocabulary plays an important role in

English teaching and learning and it is an important component that

supports speaking skill (Khan et al., 2018) Even though the grammar is

good, it is not possible to properly convey the wanted content with limited vocabulary English teachers have always [elt the need to equip students with a wide range of vocabulary, so they can understand and convey

messages precisely

¢ Grammar

Grammar plays a significant role in the process of learning a foreign

language and is considered the foundation for developing other skills Good

speaking skills must rely on grammar to create correct sentences and people

can express what they want to say completely and exactly.

e Comprehension

Comprehension plays an essential role which demonstrates the power

of understanding (Hornby, 1995) The conversation will be successful if the

speakers and listeners understand each other If there is no comprehension,

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the communication purposes cannot be achieved In short, in speaking skill,

comprehension refers to the capacity for spoken language understanding

e Fluency

In speaking skill, fluency is the ability of a person using English in a

communicative context to achieve communication goals without too much

hesitation and pauses, Good fluency is reached when these hesitations and

pauses do not get in the way of communication goals A fluent speaker uses

words to express ideas and feelings effectively and with confidence Their

speaking speed is reasonably fast and with little pauses, which shows that the

speaker can quickly think of the needed language items

2.3.3 The teaching of speaking skills

Khamkhien (2010) argues that speaking is one of the most important

skills when learning a foreign language, including English Speaking skills

help learners to use foreign languages to express opinions, thoughts and

feelings to the other person or the listener (Bygate, 1987) When learning

English, many people want to learn and practice a lot to improve their speaking skills which is useful for their future study and work However,

students face many difficulties in the learning process and the teaching of

speaking is a hard work for teachers

Bailey (2003) says that when teaching speaking, teachers are

recommended to teach students how to:

- Produce the English speech sounds and sound patterns

- Use word and sentence stress, intonation patterns and the rhythm of

the second language.

- Select appropriate words and sentences according to the proper social

setting, audience, situation and subject matter

- Organize their thoughts in a meaningful and logical sequence

- Use language as a means of expressing values and judgments

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- Use the language quickly and confidently with few unnatural pauses,

called as fluency (p 3)

In traditional classes, one of the difficulties students encounter when

learning to speak English is that they do not have many opportunities to speak

in class This is explained by the fact that foreign language classes in public

schools are often crowded, Therefore, in order to save time and easily manage

the class, teachers tend to spend a lot of time explaining vocabulary, grammar

and structure, then students are asked to learn by heart or repeat the teacher's

models with drilling The current goal of teaching speaking is communicative

ability Two forms of speaking are spoken interaction and spoken production

Spoken interaction mentions the capacity to ask and answer questions,

maintain the conversation and handle exchanges with others Spoken

production refers to the ability to produce language correctly and

appropriately According to Ur (1996), a successful speaking activity should

have four characteristics First, learners can talk a lot Second, the

participation of members is relatively even Third, learners have a lot of

interest in speaking activities Fourth, the language used is appropriate to

students’ levels, easy to understand, and has high communication efficiency.

In short, speaking skills are one of the four basic and important English

language skills Thanks to it, students can basically practice the language

content, express language functions, then expand into _ real-life

communication Teaching speaking skills is challenging However, teachers

can conduct speaking lessons with many different activities and methods, but

depending on the students’ needs, the type of speech, the students’ levels, the

lesson and the context to choose suitable methods for the most effective

teaching and learning

2.4 The application of Project-based learning in teaching speaking skills

It is undoubtedly that a project can be conducted in a variety of ways in

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different contexts In this study, the Sepulveda (2018)'s process of PBL

implementation is applied to be the framework for implementing PBL in

speaking lessons Sepulveda’s (2018) process emphasizes a structured

approach that encourages inquiry, collaboration, and real-world application By

following these stages, teachers can help students build critical thinking and

problem-solving skills while working on meaningful, engaging projects that

enhance their speaking abilities and overall learning According to Sepulveda

(2018), there are four stages for a successful project in speaking lessons

Stage 1: A driving question

In a project, students will be exposed to a driving question A driving

question plays an important role in the project since it is a guideline for

teachers and students to explore the problem together to attain the project’s

goal A driving question is an open question which students cannot find the

answer with just a single click on Google It is also a multi-answer question,

not just a common test question with one correct answer and it should be

suitable for students’ level For example, a simple question could be “Making

a presentation about a city you would like to visit” or it can be as complicated

as “Finding a past tradition and working out how to help preserve it” These

open-ended driving questions give students guidance to complete the project,

excitement, challenges and plenty of ideas

Stage 2: Objectives

Establishing objectives is essential since it demonstrates the

knowledge, practical skills, and attitudes that teachers expect students to achieve after completing a project The more detailed the objectives are, the more successful the project is It is advisable to include the unit objectives

(content, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar) in the project objectives as

students can have further practice in the meaningful context

Stage 3: Rubrics

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Rubrics is a widely used assessment tool in current teaching practices

in the world According to Brookhart (1999), rubrics are scoring guide

designed by the teacher to evaluate students’ processes or products Rubric

helps to evaluate more objectively, reducing the possibility of subjective and

general assessment that causes disadvantages for learners Besides, evaluating

students’ speaking skill is difficult because there are more language features

in speaking skill than in other skills (Brown, 2001) Therefore, it is significant

to have a detailed rubric about each language feature Below is a sample

rubric designed by Sepulveda (2018)

Table 2.1 Sepulveda (2018)’s sample rubric

Category Below Meet expectations | Exceeded expectations

expectations

Grammar | All forms used | Most forms used Halfor fewer forms

correctly correctly used correctly Pronunciation, Clearorno | Clear with several | Many incomprehensible

errors errors words and sentences

Vocabulary | Vocabulary and ” Most vocabulary Many mistakes from

verbs accurate and verbs vocabulary and verbs

accurate

It is noticeable that a rubric consists of categories, descriptors and

levels of performance These three parts of the rubric helps both the teacher

and students effectively and easily evaluate the products as well as checking if

the initial aims and objectives have been met

Stage 4: Project schedule

In the last stage, students carry out the things that they have planned in

the previous stages They collect and process the information, then have a

group discussion They can ask the teacher for help if facing any problems

while working on the product The group should regularly inform teachers

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and other groups in discussion sessions The last step is that students present

their group’s product in front ofclass They also self-assess their own product

and other groups’ products according to the given rubric before the teacher

gives feedback

2.5 Related studies

A large number of researchers have conducted studies to investigate the

use of PBL in teaching English as a foreign language, especially teaching

speaking The findings of these research show that PBL has many benefits for

both teachers and students since the application of PBL motivates students,

and promotes cooperative learning and learning effectiveness

Sirisrimangkorn (2021) did a study to find out whether or not the use of

PBL with presentation affected EFL undergraduate students’ speaking skills

This research’s participants were 31 second-year undergraduate students with

a Business English major Project-based learning instruction, speaking tests,

interviews and questionnaires were used to gather information The results of

the research showed that there was a good influence of the use of PBL with

presentations on students’ speaking skills It provided a cooperative learning

environment and an authentic English-speaking context, which were

wonderful to promote the integrated skills, especially speaking skills.

Vaca Torres and Gomez Rodriguez (2017) investigated the PBL’s

effect on the speaking skill of ninth graders in an EFL classroom In this

study, researchers used transcripts of learners’ oral performance, field notes,

and an interview to collect data while data were analyzed by grounded theory

to answer the research questions The findings of this study indicated that the

speaking skills of these students are affected positively by PBL Thanks to

this research, teachers and students were aware of the benefits of PBL in

education, so they could apply this teaching method in the teaching and

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learning process.

Zare-Behtash and Sarlak did research on the PBL influence on the

speaking ability components of students at an EFL beginner level in Iran in

2017 The research was 13 weeks with 45 participants This research's sample

was class A as the experimental class with PBL and class B as the control

class with traditional teaching methods The data was collected from the

pre-test and the post-pre-test, then was analyzed with t-pre-tests The findings indicated

that the five components (grammar, vocabulary, fluency, organization and

pronunciation) of beginner EFL students’ speaking ability were improved

significantly with the use of PBL

Puangpunsi (2021) did research on university students’ perceptions of

PBL at Silpakorn University 17 males and 87 females majoring in

agricultural science joined this research They were divided into small groups

to work on a 15-week project The data was collected from a questionnaire

with close-ended and open-ended questions and semi-structured interviews

The findings indicated that most students were fond of PBL activities since

they find these activities engaging and beneficial to their English learning

PBL gives learners the opportunity to expand their background knowledge

and develop 21st-century skills by undertaking projects These projects were

based on the problems they may encounter in real life

Notable research was conducted by Adams in 2018 This study focused

on teachers’ and students’ perceptions of PBL in EFL classrooms in one

private Guatemalan high school He also wanted to discover how different the

boys’ and the girls’ attitudes toward PBL are One teacher and 18 students

took part in this study The instruments used to collect information were

observation, interviews and surveys The study’s results were that both

teachers and students felt confident and were sure that PBL has a positive

influence on the English learning and teaching process It effectively created

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learning interest and contributed to forming flexible and creative

problem-solving skills for students

Elmiati, Yelliza and Theresia M (2019) investigated teachers’

perception of PBL in English textbooks as the implementation of Curriculum

2013 in Indonesia This descriptive research involves 12 English teachers

from Curriculum-2013-piloting schools in Padang Data were collected from

questionnaires and interviews The findings showed that, in most teachers’

opinions, the Curriculum-2013 English textbook’s content did not well

present PBL Therefore, it was recommended that the content of the English

book should be improved.

Nguyen (2019) conducted research on the influences of project-based

learning on students’ English speaking fluency in Hong Bang international

university Fifty-eight first-year students participated in this research The

researcher collected information from pre-test and post-tests, a t-test analysis,

journals, and interviews This research showed that PBL produces good

learning results in students’ fluency in speaking English It also motivated

students and helped them develop many skills such as confidence, creativity

and cooperative learning skills

Tran (2018) wanted to discover Vietnamese students’ attitudes towards

PBL assessment in an EFL setting The instrument used to collect data from

40 high school students was a questionnaire The findings of this research

were that most of the participating students showed positive attitudes toward

PBL use to learn English.

Vo and Tran (2023) did research on EFL high school teachers’

perceptions and practices of project-based learning in teaching speaking

skills 25 English teachers of seven senior high schools in a Central Vietnam

province joined this research The data was collected from a questionnaire

with close-ended and open-ended questions, semi-structured interviews and

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class observation The teachers said that most students were fond of PBL

activities since they found these activities engaging and beneficial to their

English learning, especially their speaking skills PBL gives learners the

opportunity to expand their background knowledge and develop 21st-century

skills by undertaking projects These projects were based on the problems

they may encounter in real life

In the above studies, many researchers in Vietnam and overseas have

discussed a lot about PBL in EFL teaching and learning A considerable

number of rescarch was done in senior high schools and universities;

however, the research which collects data from junior high schools is rare

Therefore, this study was conducted at a junior high school to gather opinions

from EFL teachers about PBL as well as teachers’ practice of implementing

PBL in teaching speaking skill

2.6 Conceptual framework

The aim of this study is to investigate teachers’ perceptions and

implementation of PBL in teaching speaking skills by using the questionnaire

and the interview The process for implementing PBL of Sepulveda (2018) is

chosen to be the framework for implementing PBL in speaking lessons PBL

offers a dynamic approach to education, fostering students’ speaking skills

and student learning outcomes, but it presents some challenges (Simbolon et

al., 2019) Having a decent knowledge of the benefits and potential challenges

of PBL, teachers can apply PBL in their speaking lessons and significantly

enhance students’ speaking skills Pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar,

comprehension and fluency are the fundamental components that are

generally recognized in the context of speaking skills (Harris, 1974) PBL can

indeed be an effective method to improve speaking skills, and it does so by

integrating these components in a meaningful and contextualized way

PBL can indirectly contribute to improving pronunciation skills

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through its immersive and interactive nature (Amalia, 2017) During PBL

group work and presentation, pronunciation is reinforced as students

pronounce more carefully to ensure clarity and effective communication If

they mispronounce, they can receive peer feedback and listen to their peers’

pronunciation, This collaborative environment leads to peer modeling and

mutual support in improving pronunciation

Pramesti et al (2023) states that during project work, students

encounter new vocabulary in research materials, and discussions with peers,

the teacher and experts, which promotes vocabulary acquisition through

exposure and usage The real-world-problem characteristic of PBL helps

students connect new words with practical applications, making it more

meaningful and easier to remember

Yang and Puakpong (2016) mention that PBL involves a great number

of communication activities, such as presenting or explaining ideas In order to

convey their thoughts clearly to classmates and the teacher, students will pay

more attention to their grammatical use They may even receive feedback from

peers and the teacher Reflecting on feedback helps them become more aware

of their grammatical errors and encourages them to seek improvement Besides,

PBL offers frequently meaningful speaking opportunities, which is helpful for

students to improve not only their comprehension but also fluency

The information on teachers’ perceptions and the way teachers

implement PBL in speaking lessons is significant since it can help educators

maximize the advantages of PBL in speaking-skill teaching By understanding

what teachers perceive as the benefits of PBL for speaking lessons, these

aspects can be leveraged to design more effective speaking-related projects

However, there are some challenges when teachers implement PBL in

speaking classes, which limits the frequency and popularity of PBL in public

schools Therefore, it is necessary for educators to explore teacher`s

27

perceptions and implementation to suggest solutions to raise the effectiveness

of PBL in teaching speaking skills

Teacher's implementation

teaching (Sepulveda, 2018)

Speaking skills

(Harris, 1974)

Students’ Student speaking leaming skills outcomes

Figure 2.1 The conceptual framework of the study

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CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

3.1 Research design

This research’s purpose was to explore teachers’ perceptions and teachers’

implementation of PBL in teaching English speaking skills The researcher

decided to use a mixed-method design which is a type of research using data,

techniques, and methods of both qualitative and quantitative research (Leech &

Onwuegbuzie, 2009) Qualitative research collects non-numeric data to obtain

detailed information about a research object for the purpose of analysis or

in-depth evaluation, This information is usually collected through interviews, direct

observations or group discussions using open-ended questions, and is often

applied in the case of a small, concentrated sample In contrast, quantitative

research collects statistical data to obtain basic and general information about the

research object to serve statistical and analytical purposes; in other words, the

quantification of data collection and analysis The information is usually

collected through surveys using a large-scale questionnaire and is often applied

in the case of a large sample This combination of mixed-method design is using

the strengths of both qualitative and quantitative research, which can deal with

the increasing complexity of social realities (Wilson, 1986) The information

gained from the combination of both qualitative and quantitative research

provides a better and expanded understanding of this research topic.

3.2 Research site

The research was conducted at a junior high school which is located in

the suburbs of Vung Tau City, Vietnam This public school was founded in

1990 In the academic year 2023-2024, it attracts 1639 students and 78

teachers, staff and administrators Most teachers are well qualified with about

85% bachelors and 15% postgraduates They are enthusiastic, creative and

dedicated to their teaching They always devote themselves to their teaching

professions They constantly learn, explore and apply new teaching methods

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