Luận văn sự kì thị giới qua hình Ảnh bộ sách giáo khoa tiếng anh mới dùng cho bậc tiểu học tại việt nam qua góc nhìn phân tích diễn ngôn phê phán

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CLT: Communicative Tanguage Teaching PPP: Presentation — Practice- Production PPT: Present Perfect Tense HMU: Hai Phong Medical University LIST OF CIARTS AND TABL

'VTETNAM NATTONAT., ENTVERSITY,HANOL

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

POST — GRADUATE DEPARTMENT

DO THI HONG DIEP

TOM TAT LUAN VAN

APPLYING GAMES IN TEACHING THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE TO THE FRESHMEN AT HATIPHONG MEDICAL UNIVERSITY {Nghiên cứu việc áp đụng trò chơi trong việc dạy thời Hiện tại

Hoàn thành cho sinh viên năm thứ nhất Dại học Y Hài Phòng )

M.A Minor Thesis

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 60 1410

Hanoi - 2611

'VTETNAM NATTONAT., ENTVERSITY,HANOL

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

POST — GRADUATE DEPARTMENT

DO THI HONG DIEP

APPLYING GAMES IN TEACHING THE PRESENT PERFECT TENSE TO THE FRESHMEN AT HAIPHONG MEDICAL UNIVERSITY { Nghiên cứu việc áp dụng trò chơi trong việc đạy thời Hiện tai

Hoan thanh cho sinh viên năm thứ nhất Đại học Y Hải Phòng )

M.A Minor Thesis

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 6Ú 14 10

Supervisor: Phung ‘Thi Kim Dung, MA

Tlanoi - 2011

Scope of the study

Methodology of the study

Design of the situty

Chapter 1: Literature review

1.1 Grammar and its rote in English caching and learning A

L1.1 — Defnitionsofgramuwr HH ee 4 1.1.2 ‘The role of grammar in English teaching and learning 4

1.2 The Present Perféct tense and its meaning 7

1.2.1 Present Perfect expresses indefinite past actions a

1.2.2 Present Pertzct expresses state uplo he present o.Ð

1.2.3 Present Perfect expresses finished events connected to the present 10 1.2.4 Present ParfEct fr repeated or habitual actions 1 1.3 The application of games in teaching Present Perfect Tense 11

13.1 The importance of students’ motivation ím lcamring langugp H

1.3.3 Clasifieations ofgames cc.ccecceL4 1.34 Ađvantages ofteaching Present Perfect tense with games 15 13.5 Applieaionofgames à.cceeeieeeeouT

3.1.1 An overvicw of English leaming and tcaching at Hai Phong Medicsl Universily

„20 2.1.2 Aims and syllahus of Present Perfect teaching at Hai Phong Medical

21

3.1.3 Situation of teaching and learning grammar, including the Present Perfect tense at

2.2 Lesson plan and application of games in leaching the Prasent Perfect tens: 23

2.2.1.3 The feedback of the fieshmen in experimental lessơn - 32

vì

2.4, Findings and discus8ÌOIt uc non nhai ulÐ

1 Summary of major findings oo co.cc nh nh nh HH uy 4

2 Limitations and suasestions for futheT rcscarch — AD

REFERENCE:

APPENDICES

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

CLT: Communicative Tanguage Teaching

PPP: Presentation — Practice- Production

PPT: Present Perfect Tense

HMU: Hai Phong Medical University

LIST OF CIARTS AND TABLES

Chart 1: ‘Teachers purpose of teaching grammar

Charl 2: Teachers’ method Lo teach grammar

Chart 3: Students’ Present Perfect learning

Chart 4; Suggestions to improve the students’ learning

Charl 5: Frequeney of using games in class

Charl 6: Students’ interest in PPT

Chart 7: Students’ understanding of the lesson

Chart 8: Students’ attitude to teaching method

Charl 9: Students’ time for learning lesson at home

Chart 10: Students’ understanding after the lesson

Chart 11: Students’ problem with PP'T

Charl 12: Students’ attilude to learn PPT through games

Chart 13: Students’ interest in games in the lesson

Chart 14: Students’ understanding after the lesson with the games Charl 15: Sludents’ applivation structure PPT in the games

Table 1: Teachers’ difficulties in teaching PPT

Students’ activities in Present Perfect lesson

Students’ comments on teachers’ frequericy of using games The advantages when participating in the games

‘Lhe difficulties when participating in the games

Students’ attitude of frequency of playing games in the lesson

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale

Linguists define grammar as a set of components: phonelics (Ihe production and perception of sounds), phonology (how sounds are combined), morphology (how elements are combined to create words), syntax (how words are strung together into sentences) and sommmlics or meaning So, by definition, language does not exist without granumar In learning

a forcign language, grammar plays an important role Many advantages of grammar study are

to improve your writing, reading, thinking and speaking Besides, it can enable you to express the knowledge thal we have, ina correct and understandable formal

In the English grammar system, leamers still find i difticult to master the connection

between ‘Time — ‘Tense — Aspect ‘Tense and aspect are grammatical categories of the verbs

with

which have to do with forms While tense links the situalion represented by a senier

the time at which it is nffered, aspect represents features of the temporal structure of the situation Tense and aspect are obligatory because whenever we encode an event through a finile clause, we select ong or another tense, one or another aspectual distinction Tn acl, tense and aspect can combine in various ways, giving different types, such as: the Present Progressive tense, the Present Perfect tense, the Past Perféet Progressive tense Having taught

at some colleges and universities far a few years, I realize that the Present Perfeet tense that

puzzles students most Of all the English tenses, PPT is undoubtedly the most difficult one for students to Iearn and for that reason, the most difficult one to teach The trouble does not come fiom teaching the form, Students do not have much trouble with how to form PPT Instead, they have trouble understanding how to use PPI Almost all elementary students

know how to conjugate this verb tense correctly, but knowing when to use PPT (the fimetions

of the Lens: is oflen confusing

Mario Rinvolweri (1984:3) wrote that “Grammar is perhaps so sevions and central in

learning anather language that all ways should be searched for which will focus students

energy on the task of mustering und internalizing it, One way of focusing dus energy ix

through the release offered by games” Grammar games are very useful in teaching and learning; grammar games nol only encourage bul also improve studenls? ability in using

a

English fluently ITowever, at my university, teaching grammar, including the PPT - a difficult item of English grammar is very boring and passive Through my observation with two random classes — Y1K32B and Y1K32H- (see Classroom Observation Sheet in Appendix 1), I find that in the Tesson pln, Lcachor proposcs many activities for students to loan and communicate; however in practice, teacher oflen uses PPP approach, and even Grarumar

Translation Method which make students inattentive to the lessons In some classes, few

teachers use activities, technology or games to create amusement and attractiveness, but they

cannot guide students to attend The rcasons may be poor English skills or weak motivation of

the students or teachers’ knowledge about activities applied in their classes or unsuitable

activities lo the corden of the lusson, ele Finally, teachers cannot gain the first goal and

students cannot understand the lesson thoroughly and use grammar structures in oral

communication So, the teaching grammar in my university has neither developed ability,

activeness and motivation of the studenls nor crealed many opporlimities for ther ta

communicate in English Therefore, this study ís neecssary because using games in teaching

gtammar; specifically the PPT will bring many practical benefits to the students

In consideration of these problems, as an English teacher, [ really wanl to sludy die

situation of teaching and learning the PPT at HMU and make a small conttibution to

enhancing the effectiveness in teaching this tense through games

2 Aims of the study

¥ to examine the effects of games on (he leaching and fearning of the Present

Perfect tense and to explore students' attitudes, expectations and progress in their process of

learning the Present Perfect tense through games

¥ 1 propose several recormmendations on game adaplation (o make Them mor:

enjoyable and productive to the students at HMU

In order to camry out the study in this way, the following questions are put forth

2 How does the use of games help students learn Present Perfect Tense more effectively?

3 What games should be used 10 teach the Present Perfect Tense more effectively for

the freshmen at Hai Phong Medical University?

3 Scope of the study

Given the rationale and the aims of the study, it is necessary to limit the study to the areas which are manageable Benefits of application of games in teaching the PPT create the cffectivencss of studonts* loaning which focuscs on two faclors: developing stufenis? molivation and imderstanding of the lesson The study focuses on the first-year students all HMU, so the results of the study are not applied for all students of all universities

4 Methodology

This study uscd both quantitative and qualitative methods Quantitative method helps

to provide the quantified background data, The collected data and information lay the foundation for the slndy Comments, ramarks, assurnptions and conclusions of the study arc based on data analysis, Data collection for analysis in the study come fiom the lecturers and

students in LIMU by:

+ Class observation

~ Survey questionnaires

- Interviews and discussion

5 Design of the study

This minor thesis inckudes three parts

‘The ñrst part — Introduction — provides the motivation for the research, identifies the

cope, methods and research questions

The second part Development consists of three chapters

Chapter 1- Literature review - gives an overview of theories of the study

Chapter 2 — Contents of the study — investigates the current situation af learning and

teaching the PPT at HMU through class observation, interviews and questionnaires, then caries out data analysis, comparison, findings and discussion,

Chaplor 3— Suggestions — provides or suggestions ty overcome difficulties when using Present Perteet games in class and examples of games to teach the Present Perfect tense in Teadway textbook (elementary)

The last part of the study is the conclusion which gives a summary of the study and recommendations for further stady

PART 2: DEVELOPMENT Chapter 1: Literature Review

4.1 Grammar and its role in English teaching and learning

1.1.1 Definitions of grammar

Ur (1991: 4) defines grammur as “he way language manipulates and combines words

(or bits of words) in order to form longer units of meaning.” This definition is quite close to

the common understanding of what grammar is The main difference is that it tells us how the

rules of language actually work —they arrange and shape words Nevertheless, knowing what

these rules do is not a very motivating factor alone

Crystal (2004) says: “Granimar is the structural foundation of aur ability to express

ourselves, The more we ure aware of how it works, the more we can monitor the meaning and

effectiveness of the way we and others use language It can help foster precision, detect

ambiguity, and explott the richness of expression available in English, Additionally, 1 can

help everyone, not only teachers of English, but teachers of anything for all teaching granuar

is ultimately a matter of getting to grips with meaning.”

Maugham (1938) adds: “ft is necessary to know grammar, and it is better to write

grammatically than not, but it is well io remember that grammar is common speech

fornuilated Usage is the only test.”

1.1.2 The role of grammar in English teaching and learning

According to Larmer’s viewpoint (1987: 12): “Without some understanding of

Grammar, siudenis would not he able to do anything more than utter separate items of

language for separate functions The expression of functional language i only possible

through the use of the Grammar of the language”, teaching grammar helps students

understand how the language works Apart from vocabulary, students need to know grarmmar

to understand how it is written or how words are combined together to understand the proper

meaning, Without grammar or with a poor knowledge of grammar, thsy may get confused with complicated expression Appropriate grammar techniques are embedded in meaning ful, communicative contexts then contribute positively to commmmnicative goals and they also promoie accuracy in using language fluently

Besidk

, according to Smith (2001: 15), if teachers neither pay aitention te grammar not create opportunities for leamers to improve grammar, learners are likely to stand the risk

of fossilization or reach a point where they can cope with level of communication by making

cs and probably with sufficient fluency Surely, the lsarners do not see the need to develop their linguistic abilities

usc of their cxisting grammatical resources and communication stratzgi

any ñmther

In favor of the importance of grammar, Larsen EFreeman (1986: 13) afflrms thai grammar is regarded as a skill rather than an area of knowledge Leamers do not simply store knowledge about the language and its nse; they necd also develop an ability to do something They must have a chance of learning situations to overcome the knowledge problem It is truc

to say that grammar is the fifth skill besides four skills reading, writing, speaking and listening Skili development as well as learning grammar ised practice Grammer mighl not be taught only when the students already possessed the knowledge and the ability to use the grammar item in speech, writing and listening comprehension In fact, grarnmar is the basic for mastering four lamguage skills, Whew we have concrete foundation of grammar, we be] easy to advance,

In general, grammar is acknowledged to be of importance in tearning and teaching a

language Gramumar is natnrally avquired from meaningful input and opportunitiss lo interac!

in the classroom, More especially, learners can improve their grammar competence in a suitable environment without conscious focus on language forms Liowsver, this partly

dgponds on the learning circumstances, As a resull, grammar lcaching gains i

in English Language Teaching because highly developed language skills are difficult to achieve without some knowledge of grammar

significant rale

As an important clement in the grammatical system of English language, the Present

Perfect ‘Tense is also necessary It is not easy to commmunicate with someone without using the

Present Perfect We often need to talk about things which happened ar started to happen in the

past and which are linked to the present or fixture The Present Perfect is the tense that we need

im communications

1.1.3 Grammar: what need to be taught?

The mesning of teaching grammar is still covtraversial Some teachers claim thal 4

grammar class primarily consists of the explanation of grammatical rules with all of the

necessary grammatical terminology for this task For others, the teaching of grammar is

synonymous with the practice of common grammatical pattcrns For still others, what should

be concerned about in grammar teaching is providing learners with opportunity in a variety of

tealislic situations in order to learn fo communicalc successfully

Sandra L McKay (1986:xiv) has an interesting point of view: “I/we want our studenis

to learn these things and to use English both correctly and appropriately, we need to include

in our grammar classes attention to hath form and function” “Forin", as scen ftom her viewpoint, means graumatical forms such as verb tense, question formation and “function”

refers to the purpose that language serves such as asking for information, making a suggestion,

extending an invitation

Penny Ur (1988: 6) shares the same view as Sandra L MacKay: “Some teachers,

andior the course book they use, have a tendency ta concentrate an some of these and neglect others: they may spend a lot of time on getting the forms right and neglect to gtve practice in using the structure to convey meanings, or they may facus, on written exercises and fail to cover the oral aspects satisfactorily It ix important to keep a balance, taking into account of course, the needs of the particular class being taught.”

According to Adrian Doff (1988: 33), teachers should teach the meaning, the form of

the grammatical structure az well as how it is used le also suggests some remarkable points for teachers fo remember when presenting # structure

© Show wlut the structure means ancl how il is used, by giving examples

© Show clearly how the structure is formed so that students can use if to rake senlonees of their owt.

1.2 The Present Perfect Tense and its meanings

1.2.1, Present Perfect expresses indefinite past actions

‘The Present Perfect is used when the speaker wants to refer to the past event in relation

lo specch lime, nol to a definite moment of occurrence of the event The spoaker views the

ime) in dhe past This makes a marked

event as happening al an indefinile time (or unspecific

contrast with the simple past which is used when the speaker views the events as occurring at

a definite past time Compare:

a The train has left safely

Tn (2) the speaker wants fo refer the presont situation, the tain has leñ and now il is on the

rails with the passengers get on it whereas in (b) there is an adverbial of tume to specify the exact time so past tense is appropriate

As 4 consequence of is indefiniteness, the Present Perfecl is often ased with indefinite time

expressions which mean at any time up to now or by now, For cxample

Just is used to indicate immediate past time, whose results are very clear

Eg “I’ve just washed the floar” (sv il’s slitt wel)

“He's just left” (80 yoware too late to speak to him)

Already suggests that the speaker believes that the action is over and that the present result is, surprisingly quick

E.g.: “He’s already eaten it” (there is none left That was surprisingly quick)

“Fave you already seen it?” (What a pity We couldn’ have seen it together)

Yet suggests thal the speaker believes thal the Tesull of the action should or could be pr

“now”

Lig: “ihaven't painted the fence yet” (You promised to paint the fence Is it finished, how

tong will you take ta Anish il?)

Lately/Recently are used to express regency These are used to talk about the recent events

which continne up to the present

Eg- “ve seen Jane u lot lately.”

“There have been a lot of terrible starms recently.”

Ever/Never/Refore are used to express indefiniteness, especially for remembered experience which is part of a person in the present

“Tne sure we've met before.”

Still expresses the speaker's surprise Ihal Ihe action contimics to affect the present moment

E.g.: “He still hasn’t left.” (1 am surprised that he is here now)

This morning’ Today/ This week are used with Present Perfect to refer actions or events

which arc still contiming in the present

E.g.: “We've done quite a lot work today.”

“T haven't watched any television so far this week

However, the Present Perfact and the past tense in English are not normally

interchangeable ‘Chis is because the two forms reflect different ways of looking at an event The past simpte is

sentially faclual remote in ime and relates to # definite event or stale in

the past whereas the Presont Perfect is essentially srounded in the moment of speceh, It is also indefinite and provides the speaker's present view of the past- that is, the speaker sees or thinks of something at the moment of spoaking which makes him Jook back on something which has already happened

"This is clear if we contrast the following pair:

Have you been busy dis moring? (Il is stilt (he morning new)

{ Were you busy this morning? (Thus moming is now the finished past)

Have you cleaned the floor? (The floor is stilt wel)

{nu yon clean the floor? (Maybe the floor is dirty and nocd cleming:)

The Present Pertect- not the past tense is used when the meanings of indefinitenass and befbreness are present in the speaker's mind even though no adjunct accompanies the verb

is 1o eslablish whal determines the choice of the Present Perfect rather

The problem remai

than the past Consider these sentences:

fa) I've finished my homework (b) He's sold his house

At first glance, it looks as if there is no elemsnt of present involvement in these sentences but

in fact, in all of them there are present features which form part of the whole relevant situation set out in time — that is to say, they are past events with present relevance In (a), the implication may bo J’m now ready to go oud with you and in (b) the implication may be he will

have to hive a house So the Present Perfect is oflen used when the past events have some

‘present importance, usually they are news and we could make a present tense sentence with a

similar meaning about the same situation such as

We often give picec of news in Present Perfect — it is especially commen in reports,

letters and conversations And it often occurs at the start of an exchange and serves to

cstablish past fine focus, subsequent references lo events beirys made by means af pasl tense

For example:

B: Oh, have you? What sort?

A: A Ford We bought ii last week

1.2.2 Present Perfect expresses state up to the present

The Present, Perfect can be uscd Lo report the cxistanec of a stable stale of affairs over a

continuous period of time up to present

‘The following sentences are examples:

(1) Thay've lived in Hanoi since 2000

(2) Mai has only had that diamond ring for two days

(3) Pve feit tired for a whole week now:

(4) Those people have heen at my house since Monday

(5) The fridge has been empty for days

‘This usage of the Present Perfect is often used with state verbs and adjuncts of duration or frequency The sentences like They've lived in Hanoi, Mat has only had that diamond ring,

The fridge has heen empty should not make people understood without the duration

prepositional phrase since 2000, for two days, for days It can be said that the adjuncts

beginning with swce and for arc specifically associated with the Present Perfect The adjunct

begins with sice indicated the starting point of the period of time With for the extended time

1.2.3, Present Perfect expresses finished events connected to the present

The Present Porfect can be uscd to imply that a finished action or a past cvent is connected with the present in some way The result of that action or event is still operative at

the present moment That is, the Prasent Perfect refers lo a present stale of affairs hát has

changed fiom an earlier state as the result of a past event, For this reason, it is sometimes called the “resultative perfect” ‘This usage is the clearest with transitional event verbs đenoling the change from one stale to another For example

(1) My grandparents have arrived (they arc here now)

(2) He’s drunk all the wine (there isn’t any lefi)

(3) She's learnt the words (Sho knows the words)

In some other cases, even though the resultative implication is not obvious from the verb’s meaning, the major focus of the clause is the present result of the event not the past event ilselt For example: P've crt myself (The cut is stilt there)

With the Present Pertéct just 1s used to indicate intermediate past time whose result are very clear Por example: I’ve just washed the floor (So it’s still wel)

This usage of the Present Perfect

or even of the situation Thus, They have came back implies that they are still back while They

came back —has no such implication.

Relevanee is a đifñcmit idea and does not identify the primary semantic distinction

associated with the perfect form It is better to use the explanation based on the essential

meaning of the form ‘I'he speaker sees, or thinks of, something at the moment of speaking which makes him look back on something which has already happened

1.2.4 Present Perfect for repeated or habitual actions

The Present Pertect is used to express actions that are habitual or can be repeated more

than once This use is associated with frequency adverbs: often, always, frequently and

expressions like #uree/ four! several times

Here are the examples:

(1) Mary's attended classed regularly She’s always worked hard

(2) I’ve watched Bill Gates on TV several times

(3) He has visited his mother daily

(4) The valley has heen floaded every yaar sinee 2000

For habits or states may continue through the present moment into the future, and

adverbial of duration is usually required So this use closely resembles the state use of the

Pr

nl Perfect as desuribed in (2) above The scntenes: The valley has heen flooded every year since 2000 would have a state interpretation if the frequency adverbial every year has been omitted, ‘Ihe valley would be understood to have suffered continuously from a single flood Also without the adverb af frcqueney daily or the expression several tintes the sơntznoes Pve watched Bill Gates on TV and He has visited his mother become the examples of the indefinite past meaning

1.3 The application of games in aching Present Perfect Tense

1.3.1 The importance of students’ motivation in Icarning language

Smce motivation is a vital and a highly complex factor determining more ot Jess successfil bmguage lomrning, it is necessary to examine approaches Lo motivation in learning

in order to bring about better insights into it

Over the years, researchers have attempted to explain what is meant by motivation

Keller (1984) (quore in Flis, 1994) sees ‘izterest’ as one of the major components of

motivation, defining if as “a positive response to a stimdi based on existing cognilive structures in such a way that learners’ curiosity ix aroused and sustained”

However, most of studies oss motivation in foreign and second language learning have deen influenced by the work of Gardner (1985) (quote in Spolsky, 1998), who defines

motivation as consisting of effort, plus desire to achieve the goal of learning, plus favorable

attitude toward learning the language

Another theory on motivation can be scen trom Littlewood’s perspective (1985:53)

that “in second language as in every other field of human learning , motivation is the crucial

force which determines whether a learner embarks on a task at all, haw much energy he

devotes 10 il, and how long he perseveres It is a complex phenomenon and includes many

components: the individual's drive, need for achievement and success, curiosity, desire for

stimulation and new experience, and so on.”

Apparently, Littlewood, not only highlighting the important role of motivation in

second language learning but also emphasizing the “highly complex construct” of motivation

claimed (hat HỆ learner is inotivated she will probably decide to undertake a particular task

with certain amount of energy and time needed for it

Vurthermore, McKay and Tom (1992:2) point out that the need and drive to

conmnunesle with olhers ina sew language provide strong motivation far most learners

This is more or less similar to Lightbown and Spada’s (1999:56) definition of

motivation in second language learning that “ntotivation in second language leaming is a

complex phenomenon which their attitudes towards the secand cammunity:

They also add that “Uf earns need to speak the second language in a wide range of

sactal situations or to fidfill professional ambitions, they will perceive the communicative

value of the second language and will therefore he motivated to acquire proficiency in it

Likewise, if learners have favourable attitudes the speakers of the language, they will desire

more contact with then:

Learners’ motivation can change overtime and cffect on their language learning

Various studies have found that motivation is strongly related to success in language learning,

Gardner (1985) (quoted in Spolsky, 1998) sums up”: it seems clear that

characteristics Pastulating that achievement in a second language learning is promoted by an Integrative motive ts not tantamount to saying that this is the only cause or predictor”

However, many research findings shows that successful learning can enhance motivation,

and the relationship between leaming achievement and motivation is an interactive ome As

Gardner and Smythe (1981) (quoted in Hedge, 2000) claim that the high correlation between

motivation and sucecssful Icarning confirms the crucial importance of motivation in the classroom

whether learners amve with it or whether they acquire it through classroom experience

1.3.2 Definitions of game

According to Haldfield (1999): “4 game is unt activity with nudes, a goal and an

element of fun Games should be regarded as an integral part of the language syllabus, not as

an amusing activity far Friday afternoon or for the end of the term.” This defimtion highly evaluates the importance of games in teaching It adds to teachers’ techniques in teaching that

games serve not only as an ‘amusing activity’, but as a technique to carry ont tasks to learners

amusingly as welt

Haldfield (1999) adds: “Games can be used at all stages of the progression from

controlled to free practice, serving at one end af the range as a memory aid and repetition drill, at the other as a chance to used the language freely and as a means to an end rather than an end in itself They can also serve as a diagnostic toal for teacher, who can note areas

of difficulty and take appropriate remedial action.” Ualdfield further emphasizes the effective

use of games Stndouls arc always lazy to do the tasks, Thercfors, games are uscd suitably in the way in which learners are eagerly and willingly participate to have a chance to practice or nse the new langnage items they have just learnt instead of forcing them to do the tasks unwillingly It is more offective way for students to play and learn af the same time

Lee (1991: 3) defines: “Games in the stick sense, which have a definite beginning and end, are governed by rules

Similarly, Hadficld (1990) defines game:

element of fin.” Games are not carried in chaos, Games have the rules, and for it is necessary

as "an activity with rules, a zoal and an

players to digest these mules before the start so that they can play the games smoothly without

committing them

According to Greenall (1990: 6), "Fhe term ‘game’ is used whenever there is an

appears ‘an element of competition’, all above rales are most needed, Besides, games arz

emphasized to encourage students’ solidarity in teamwork in which they have to try their best to

do the tasks or maybe to code any requirements given in the games for their team spirit

Therefore, games comprise many factors such as rules, competition, rclaxation, and

learning ‘he main focus of using game in class is not only to help students to leam more

effectively but alsa to have fan

* Linguistic games focus on accuracy, such as supplying the correct anfonym,

* Communicative games focus on successful exchange of information and ideas, such as two people idontifying the differences between their Lwo pichures which are sirritar

to one another but not exactly alike Correct language usage, though still important, is secondary to achieving the commmnicative goal

Sccond, HadGicld (ibid) classifics language games into many more calcgorics Together with the classification of games as linguistic games or communicative games, some games will contain elements of more than one type

Sorting, ordering, or arranging games For example, students have a set of cards with different products on them, and they sort the cards into produets found at a grocery store and

products found at a department store

¥ Information gap games ¥ Matching games

Another dislinelion among games is thal bebween competitive games and cooperative

ones (Jacobs, in preparation) Research snggests that Isaming, as well as affective variables, are enhanced by a cooperative environment (Iohnson, Johnson & Stanne; Slavin, 1995)

Millis (2005) outlines a number of advantages of cooperative games, such as appropriate

anxicly lovels and more constructive fsedback

According to Lee (2000) (cited in Pham, 2007), games have been classified inlo

¥ Structure games which provide experience of the use of particular pattems of syntax in communication

Vocabulary games in which the learners" attention is focused mainly on words Spelling games

*⁄ Games and writing

¥ Miming and role play

Y Discussiongames

Another classificalion of games by McCallum (1980) cansisls af soven kinds which are

“Games and problem-solving activities have @ purpose beyond the production of correct

speech and are examples of the most preferable communicative activities” They go on to

explain that grammar games help students gain knowledge and apply and use that learning

Additionally, games have the advantage of allowing the students to “practice und internalize

vocabulary, grammar and structures extensively” Games can teach, and there might be no reason why they cannol be included as 4 parl ofa lesson They can do this through Tepealed exposure to the largel grarnmar and because students are olen more molivated Lo play games

than they are fo do deskwork Plus, during the game, the students are focused on the activity

and end up absorbing the grammar subconsciously

Aydan Ersoz (2000), author of “Six Games for the ESL/EFL Classroom” also cxplains

more reasons why games do work for teaching grammar Learning a language requires constant efforts and thal can be liring, but Ersoz oullines two good reasons why gates should

be included in the classroom:

* Games that arc anmasing and challenging arc highly motivating

© Games allow mcartingfal use of the language i context

While games are motivating for the students, probably the best reason, according to

Saricoban and Metin (2000) to use games is that “the use of sch activities increases both the cooperation and competition in the classroom” Indccd games can be used to add cxeitement

through competition or to create bonding between the students, and between the students and

the teachers Students may wish to play game purely for fim ‘Teachers, however, need more

Tink them up with the syllabus, textbook or programme and how, more specifically, different

games will benefit students in different ways” (Khan, 1.1996) The key to a successful

language game is that the rules arc clear, the ultimate goal is well defined and the game must

be fun

Nagakawa (2003:11) says: “Ji the deductive approach, suedents often find it quite difficult to gain the concept of the time of arientation hecause the instruction often fails to

provide a meaningful context with which students can construct the ime framework in

describing an episode in these activities, students are encauraged to construct the time Sramework of the past events Through the construction process, students can inductively gain the knowledge of the time of orientation and understand the usage of the past perfective” In

the activity, which provides meaningful contexts and timelines with stndents, students can

pYactice not only the usage of “the past in the past” but also the usage of the perfective aspects

of the past perfective

The PPT is a rather important tense in English, bul il gives speakers of sore languages

a difficult time That is because it uses concepts or idzas thal do not exist in those languages

In fact, the structure of PPT is very simple The problems come with the use of the tense The

PPT is really a very interesting tense, and a very useful one Try not to translate PPT into your

language Just try to accept the concepts of this tense aud carn te "think" present perfect! You will soon learn to like the PPT!

According lo Wright, Bellcridge and Buckby (1984): “Games help the teacher to

create contexts in which the languaye is useful and meaningful The learners want to take part

and in order to do so must understand what others ave saying or have written, and they must speak or write in order to express their awn point of view or give information Thanks to games, shy language learners will have more chances te speak and show their feeling and

opinions in English as much as they can’

Teaching the PPT can be hard going - for the teacher and the students Tt does nol have

to be difficult or painful, however You can teach the PPT using fim learning games and

before you know it, your students will be more than willing ‘There is an interesting movement towards (caching Ihe tens: with games Teaching this tense through games, the alwospher: of

the class will be more comfortable and exciting The lesson will become easier, more

effective, motivating and interesting It creates stndents’ motivation in learning Just imagine

1.3.5.1 Which games to apply?

The teacher's using games in class is not 10 All time without any linguistic purposes

ion of games

These games may entertain the students, but when the teacher docs not have mach time with them each day as it is, he/she wants the game to do double duty to get the most out of the time

he/she spends playing games Lin Ilong (2002), author of “Using Games in Taching English

to Young Learners”, explains that not all games are going to work to teach students language

skills If the games are simple for fin and not linked to educational goals it may not be the best

use of Lime TLis possible to have fun games thal is cdueationat sound, however, to find out if

the game: is cducalional sound, think about these questions posed by Hong:

- Which skills do the games practice?

- Does the difficulty level of dhe game mesh with the students’ ability level?

- Do the suedents like it? Does the teacher like it?

To add to these questions also ask yourself

- What specific vocabulary of grammar ts the teacher introducing or practicing with this

game?

- Can the teacher keep control of class and play this zante?

- What conirols, if any are needed, will the teacher have in place to ensure the students are

on track?

- Competition is not always appropriate Is it possible to play a game for the sake of the

game and not in order to define winners or losers? Here are some wavs play down

competition: Do noi keep score all the lime, make sure the team te, play down any

“winning”, praise everyone, play until everyone has finished // The wirmers are those who

finish, not those wha finish first, and everyone finishes, etc

- Ave the rules easy and clear?

When you answer clearly these questions, you will choose the best games to teach the

PPT —one of the most difficult grammar items

1.3.5.2 When ta apply games?

It is necessary for those who want to use games as a learning aid to be concerned about how to use them Hadfield (1990) suggests that "games should be regarded an integral part of the language syllabus, not an amusing activity for Friday afternoon of for the end of the term."

Games can contribute to develop students’ language skills if they are incorporated into the classroom, particularly if they are used to introduce a grammatical rule or structure

Carrier (1980) says that games can be used to open or close a lesson in a stimulating

way, lo punctuate a lesson to relicve lension afer a test or at amy time thal leachers

appropriate, Byrne (1980) atlvises not to play a game al the boginming of the conversation period and save the game for the use in the middle or toward the end of the session, when the students would welcome a change of pace Ile also reminds that teachers should stop playing a game before students are ready to quit, In other words, teachers nover have a game played for

so long that if hegins to bore the participants Similarly, games shouldn’t be played too offen singe (his will cause il th lose is novelty

Undoubtedly, games are very effective in language teaching and learning with a lot of advantages such as giving fim, reinforcing motivation, improving proficiency and corporation, cle The difficult task for teachers is how to choose Ihe suitable Lyps of game, the appropriats time to play it as well as the opportunity of its use

1.4 Summary

To summarizs, it can bo said thal The Prosont Porfsct plays a very important parl in teaching and learning English, Many linguists and researchers have come to a common conclusion that games are very useful and can be used as an effective tool to develop students” learning and phố provide Ihe sludents an opporturily lo practice grammar in goncval and the PPT in particular, Also, the use of games is of great help to make grammar lessons more interesting, enjoyable, and effective To be specific, the PPT and games, twa key factors of this sIudy, bave been taker into consideration and discussed in inany aspoets

There are 9 teachers of English aged trom 24 to 55 at HMU Most of them are masters

Some of them are studying at Postgraduate Department of Universities All of them are

cuthusigstic in Iesching English

The subjects of the study were 146 students in three first-ycar classes and the

observation class is ¥1K32B (49 students) ‘I'he explanation for choosing these above classes

can be slated as follows, Firstly, they arc students whorn are taken charge of by the Leachars who are the researcher’s close ftiends during the intemship so it will be easier and more convenient for the researcher to keep contact with them or ask for their help in collecting the dala, Sccondly, lols of students come from comparatively poor families, so their learning condition is low Their lack of awareness of the importance of English as well as motivation makes them not interested in learning Finglish Althongh most of them have already leant English for at Ieast three yoars al high school, their knowledge of English is still poor and lumited, especially they cannot use PPT fluently, only some students are good at this subject

Lleadway elementary is the course book of IMU According to the authors, eadway

Elementary has been designed for adulls and young adults who would like to use English both for fluency and accuracy and all the tour skills are developed systemically (Soars and Soars, 1993) which makes this book appropriate for all kinds of leamers, The book concentrates on traditional approaches such as a clear focus on grammar with in-depth analysis and clarification, through many exercises and reading material, yet it employs the

“Communicative approaches” since students are required to work out rules individually and reflect upon their personal opinions The book has been used for many years in the HMU, The book is suitable for learners who are taking initial steps into building up a well-stocked conmund of English Headway (clemenlary) is the first of five books, which vaver the initial slage of limguage learning

The grammar of unit 14 is the PPT, pages 99 -105

2.1.2 Aims and syllabus of teaching Present Perfect tense at [Fat Phong Medical University

2.1.2.1 Aims

In this unit, one of the main uses of PPT is introduced, that is, to refér to an experience some time in one’s Hife, We also focus on anothar use (ta refer lo the present result of a past action) with the adverb yet and just, We do not introduce at all the third main use of PPT which is to refér to unfinished past (7 Aave been a teacher for ten years), nor do we teach the Present Perfsol Continuous The aim of this unit is to provide an introduction to PPT, but do not expect our students to master the arca quickly! It takes a long time (and a lot of mistakes, correction and re-teachting) before students feel confident with this tense However, through

my lesson wilh the apphealion of garaes, the focdbuck drawn indicates that tay students had mastered PPT more easily and effectively

2.1.2.2 The syllabus This unl intreduces one of the most difficult tonscs for students af English lo Tearn The PPT is one of the most commonly used tenses in English, especially spoken English, but its presentation has been deferred until unit 14 This is because until students have understood the concept thal the Past Simpl: refers to the definite past, they will not be able to grasp the idea that the Present Perfect refers to the indefinite past

Unit 14 is taught in 3 periods Hach period is 2 hours

2.1.3, Situation of teaching and Jearning grammar, including the Present Perfect tense ai Hai Phong Medical University

In learning a foreign language, grammar plays an important role Grammar help learners usc English in # varicty of realistic situations to learn Lo cornmunivale offectively

Without grammar or wilh a poor knowl

of grammar, they may get confised with complicated expression,

With regards to teaching grammar, most of the teachers af Tlai Phong Medical

stages; Proscntation-Praetice-Production (PPP), At the first stage, the teacher presents the new grammar items on the board through examples, and then

University often follow thre

clicils cxamptes from the students If the slurlerts know nothing or very littl: aboul the ilems, the teacher tells them the rules The students write down the rules and the models in the note- books Then, at the second stage, the students are required to do a series of practice exercises following the steps in the loxtbook and the suggestions in the leacher's book The final stage - the production- is often ignored because of many reasons, such as; designing and choosing freer activities for commmmication are very difficult with different levels of students, the time

for lessons is timtited, ete So, the (cacher has nol ervated opporlurilics for the students ta usz

new language in fieer and more creative ways, so the teacher cannot check how much has been learnt actually ‘Therefore, the teaching of grammar at LIMU has not met the requirements

of "communicative _ grammar instruction" intended by the (extbook wrilcts Thz teaching PPT is not an exception

In addition, ITMU students usually feel bored in grammar lessons because they have

lear proper grammar usage or doing grammar exercises in the textbook but not being able to

use grammar structures to communicate in different contexts he PPT is a rather important

tense in English, but it gives Icarners a difficull tine Thal is because il uses conecpis ar idcas that do not exist in those languages In fact, the structure of the present perfact tense is very simple, The problems come with the use of the tense The first step, the most difficult step, is

to understand the usc of PPT for natural, real lift communication Almost all clementary

students know how to conjugate this verb tense correctly, but they do not know when ta use PPT (the functions of the tense) Maintaining the old habit, students cannot master the tense

Besides, most studemts who are fiom remote provinces do not have chances to learn English, so their English level is very tow when they entered tho university Tn contrast, students from big citics, like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, lave higher English level Alt these students are mixed in one class, which creates many problems for the teacher Besides, teacher cannot ensure that the students are really motivated in classes or are motivated to do their assignments at home

“These problems are always challenging for teachers

2.2 Lesson plan and application of games in teaching the Present Perfect Tense

Unit 14 is taught in three periods (see appendix 2) In these periods, teacher can, exploit several games to teach PP’ After these three periods, opinions on and feedback fiom the teaches and students 10 the gaics are collected for inaking ne

adaptation for the better use of games in the fiture

2.3 Data analysis

sary changes and

2.3.1 Analyzing result of survey questionnaire

2.3.1.1 Questionnaire for teachers

‘Teachers’ answers ftom survey questionnaire (see appendix 4 ) show that

When being asked about the purpose of leachiryg grarmmnar, 4/9 (44.4%) of the tcaohors want to help students to get good results in the exams, 3/9 (33.4%) want to help students to read and translate material better and 2/9 (22.2%) want to help students to communicate better

Tt shows thal our teacher attach dmportanae lo marks and one of medical students? specific characteristics is to read many research books, so teachers’ purpose is to help students understand the forsien documents

Chart 1: Teachers' purpose of

teaching grammar

Help studentsto get sood results in the exams

‘= Help studentsto read and

translate material better

Help studentsto communicate better

5/9 (55.6%) of the teachers often choose PPP approach to teach grammar, 3/9

(33.3%) choose Communicative Language Teaching and only 1/9 (11.1%) often uses

Grammar Translate Method Teachers’ attitude of teaching communication is not high

Chart 2: Teachers' method to teach

grammar

= CommunicateLanguage Teaching

= PPP approach

= Grammar Translation Method

When giving idea about how students learn PPT with the current teaching methods,

22.2% of the teachers say that their students leam very well, 33.3% of the teachers think

students don’t learn well learn not well, and 44.5% of the teachers find their students learn

badly and very badly So, with the old habit of teaching, students’ PPT learning is not good.

Other difficulties (e.g: choosing suitable activities, .) 2 22.2

Table 1: Teachers’ difficulties in teaching the PPT

From this table, we see that most of the teachers want to have more time for PPT Crowded classes, passive students or students at many levels are problems

Teachers” ideas about frequency of using games in class are as follows: only 22.2%

of the teachers usually use, meanwhile 66.6% sometimes use and 11.2% seldom use We see

that they do not often use games in the lesson

In spite of acknowledging above difficulties, most of teachers agree that games bring

_ 3

many benefits,

Developing ability of using Present Perfect structure 7 T17

in another context

Increasing the amount of students’ practice and 4 444

Table 3: The problems of teaching PPT through games Teachers give their ideas to improve the approach to PPT at the university

Table 4: Teachers’ ideas to improve the approach to the PPT

2.3.1.2 Questionnaire for students

146 freshmen, 64 male-students (43.8%) and 82 female-students (56.2%) answer the questionnaire (see appendix 5), and the results are as follows:

23.2% of the freshmen like learning PPT very much and 32.1% like Meanwhile, 24% like but not much and 20.7% do not like learning PPT

Chart 6: Students' interest in PPT

This chart shows the students’ interest in PPT is similar

Like very much Like

Like but not much mNot like

After Present Perfect lesson, only 46.5% students understand the lesson in class, 38.3%

of the students understand a little and 15.2% can not understand This means that the effectiveness of the lesson is low

Chart 7: Students' understanding of

Join in the activities teachers organize 98 60.2

Try to remember the structures in class 65 44.5

Table 5; Students’ activities in Present Perfect lesson

This shows that students are still very passive in learning and mainly rely on what teachers

explain in class

23.3% of the students like the teaching method of their teachers very much, 32.8%

like, 23.3% like but not much and 20.6% don’t like it This chart shows that over a half of

students like the teaching method of their teacher, they also keep the old habit of learning, they agree to the teachers’ method without any requirements.

mike but not much

#Notlike

When asked if they spent time on learning lesson at home, 52.7% answer yes,

41.7% sometimes and 5.6% no We see that students’ hardworking at home is not high, if they

can’t understand the lesson in the class, they have not many opportunities to review the lesson

Students talk about their immediate understanding the PPT after lesson in the class

18.4% of the students say they understand immediately, 45.2% say they can not understand immediately and 36.4% say they understand after a long time they practice and revise many

times It shows that the current teaching method of PPT is not good.

31

Chart 10: Students' understanding

after the lesson

mYe

=No

= Aftera longtime

The students’ biggest problem with PPT is the use (58.2%), only 17.8% have

difficulty with the form of PPT and 24% has problems with other items From this chart we see that the use of PPT is always challenging with students

Table 6: Students’ comments on teachers’ frequency of using games

28.8% of the freshmen like to learn PPT through games very much, 36.3% like,

21.9% like but not much and 13% don’t like games in the lessons So, most of students (87%)

like to learn PPT through games

= Notlike

2.2.1.3 The feedback of the freshmen in experimental lesson

After teaching and learning Unit 14 with games, we have feedback from the students

as follows (see appendix 6):

84.2% of the students say they like the games in Unit 14 and only 15.8% do not like

76% of the freshmen say that the games are guided by the teachers, which makes it easy for

them to understand and 26% find it difficult to understand We see that games show their effectiveness in the lesson.

When the teachers instruct on how to play the games, 26.7% of the students are very interested in them and really join in and 26.7 % are interested Meanwhile, 21.2% are interested but not much, 18.6% are not interested and 6.8% are not interested at all We can see that the motivation of the students is good

Chart 13: Students’ interest in games

in the lesson

Very interestd Interested

1 Interested but not much

Not interested '# Notinterested at all