Luận văn thạc sĩ a study on 10 graders’ motivation in speaking activities at son tay high school ha noi

The results obtained from the analysis of responses to the questionnaires and interviews for teachers and students revealed the types of motivation of 10 graders, the level of motivatio

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYEN THANH THUY

A STUDY ON 10 GRADERS’ MOTIVATION IN SPEAKING ACTIVITIES AT SON TAY HIGH SCHOOL, HA NOI

(NGHIEN CUU DONG CO TRONG CAC HOAT DONG NOI TIENG ANH

CỦA HỌC SINH LỚP 10, TRƯỜNG THPT SƠN TÂY, HÀ NỘI)

M.A MINOR THESIS

Field: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY

Code: 60.14.10

Hanoi, 2013

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYEN THANH THUY

A STUDY ON 10 GRADERS’ MOTIVATION IN SPEAKING ACTIVITIES AT SON TAY HIGH SCHOOL, HA NOI

(NGHIEN CUU DONG CO TRONG CAC HOAT DONG NOI TIENG ANH

CỦA HỌC SINH LỚP 10, TRƯỜNG THPT SƠN TÂY, HÀ NỘI)

M.A MINOR THESIS

Field: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY

Code: 60.14.10 Supervisor: Trần Xuân Điệp, Assoc Prof Dr

Hanoi, 2013

DECLARATION

Ihereby certify that the minor thesis entitled “A Study on 10 Graders’ Motivation in Speaking Activities at Son Tay High School, Ha Noi.” is the result of my own work

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the dogree of Master of Atts al Faculty

of Post- Graduate Studies, Hanoi University of Languages and international Studies, Vietnam National University The material in this research has not been

submitted to any other university or institution wholly and partially

Nguyen Thanh Thuy

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Virst of all, I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Assoo Prof

Dr Trin Xuén Bigp, whose insightful comments, criticism, direction and kind support

were of great assistance to me in carrying out this study

My sincere thanks also go to all the lecturers and staff of the Faculty of

Post- Graduate Studies, Hanoi University of Languages and Intemational Studies,

Vietnam National University, Hanoi, for their valuable knowledge and invaluable guidance and help during my two years of study at the Faculty

T am also indebted to my colleagues as well as my students al Son Tay High

School, who have helped me a lot in my data collection to fulfill this papor

Last but not least, I would like to express my appreciation to my family for

their understanding and strong encouragement 1o me throughout the study

Nguyen hanh Thuy

ABSTRACT

Success in language leaming can be ascribed to many factors among, which

is molivation However, it is sludents’motivalion to speak that does exist as a

problem In order to improve the quality of speaking classes, the work entitled “A Study on 10 Graders’ Motivation in Speaking Activities at Son Tay High School,

Ha Noi.” has been intended

‘The study was aimed at investigating the motivation in speaking lessons of

10 graders at Son Tay High School (STHS) to find out

(2) lypes of motivation possessed by 10 graders al STHS

(2) level of motivation of 10 graders at SHS in speaking lessons

(3) causes leading to the lack of motivation in speaking lessons of 10 graders

at STHã

‘The research approach undertaken in this study was qualitative and

quantitative The research data collection instruments were survey questionnaires

and interviews

The results obtained from the analysis of responses to the questionnaires and

interviews for teachers and students revealed the types of motivation of 10 graders,

the level of motivation and the causes of students’ deficiency of motivation at S'HS Finally, this study provided some recommendations for effective application of

tnolivalional strategies in enhancing students’ speaking skills It is expected thai the

xosults from the study could be of bencfit to the teaching and learning of English

speaking at STHS.

1.3 Objeelives oÍ the sHudy s2 2222:2221 T

1.6 Method of the study ees cess ieesueenss seers 2

1 7, Significance of the Study .cccs:scnvsssesssessueseessnisseeesnneeivee 3

CHIAPTER 1: TIHEORETICAL BACKGROUND oA

1.1.1 Definitions of motivation 0.0.0 ccc eee ieee eens ieee

1.1.3 The importance of motivation in foreign language learning 5

1.1.3 Types of motivation in foreign language learning 5

1.1.4, Factors affecting motivation in second language leaming Xe?

1.2.4 Problems with speaking aotivities

2.1 Research selling of the sludy

2.1.1 An overview of the rasearch sitE

2.1.2 The English teachers

2.1.3 The students and their background

2.1, 4, The Linglish teaching and learning in Son ‘tay Ligh School

3.1.1, Analysis of students’ questionnaires and interviews

3.1.2 Analysis of teachers’ questionnaires

3.1.3 Teachers’ problems and judgement on the success of speaking lessons

3.1 Recapitulation of the main ideas

3 2 Limitalions of the stucly

3 3 Suggestions for further research .cccccssccsssesssiseseeeesseerveee

REFERENCES

APPENDIX,

LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS

Students’ reasons for earning English speaking Students’ participation in speaking lessons

Kactors affecting students’ motivation in class

Problems students have in speaking lessons

Students’ preference [or communicative aclivilics

‘Teachers’ techniques to motivate students in speaking lessons Teacher's encouragement in speaking lessons

Place leacher stands in speaking class

‘Teacher's commumecative activities

Problems teachers have itr speaking lessons

Students’ intorest in speaking lessons

Activities enjoyed most by students

Teavhor’s activities in speaking lessons Teacher's responses to unwilling speakers Teachers’ judgement on the success of speaking lessons

vi

Page

APPENDICES

Appendix 1: Questionnaire for students

Appendix 2: Questionnaire for teachers

Appendix 3: Questions for interview

Appondix 4: Phiếu khảo sắt (đảnh cho học sinh)

Appendix 5: Phiéu khảo sát (đảnh cho giáo viên) Appendix 6: Câu hỏi phỏng vẫn (đành cho học sinh)

Appendix 7: Interview transcript of students

vi

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

MLA: Master of Art

STIIS: Son Tay High School

L2: Sccond language

vil

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale of the study

Motivaliom is the key factor to success in English learning It is undeniably

an essential component that decides successful acquisition of an L2 According to Dornyei (2001), “teacher skills in motivating learners should be seen as central to caching ellectiveness”, which mans molivalion is the focus of L2 tcaching and leaming activities Consequently, theorists have been trying to find out the inost effective ways to motivate leamers with a view to achieving a long-desired methodology which could be the most productive in the L2 classroom However, Dornyei (2001) found out that motivation still has a very limited place in the curriculum of L? teacher education programs worldwide Teachers are still not

equipped with cnough nec

sary skills to motivale their students while molivation’s

central role in L2 acquisition has long been undeniably acknowledged Due to the lack of motivation, interaction during speaking lessons at schools is restricted, with

few students gelling involved in the activities, As a result, il is 1

ry Uheal, (his

issue be brought up over again so as to keep reminding teachers and teacher trainers

of the imporlance as well as the benefit motivalion brings to language learning The purposes of this study are therctore first of all to review current literature

conceming motivation in L2 teaching and learning, then to investigate the

motivalion at STHC, making suggestions Lo improve 1L “The Study on 10th

Graders’ Motivation for Speaking Activities at Son Tay High School, Hanoi” has

‘been conducted

1.2 Aim of the study

'The study is aimed to improve the speaking skull of 10 graders at STHC

3 Objectives of the study

The objectives of the research are as follows:

-'Lo find out different types of motivation 10 graders at S1'LIC have

- To examine the level of motivation and causes of motivation deficiency of 10

graders at STHC

1 4 Research question

‘Yo achieve the aims and objectives mentioned above, the research questions

designed are

« Research question 1: What kinds of motivation do 10 graders in Son Tay High

School apply in speaking lessons?

© Research question 2: How motivated are 10 graders in Sou Tay High School in

speaking lessons?

© Research question 3: Whal are mnajor causes of 10 graders’ lack of molivalion?

1.5 Scope of the study

Motivation is so broad a topic that cannot be wholly and thoroughly

discussed within the framework of the thesis This study investigates five different

types of motivation as well as the level of motivation 10 graders of the three classes

al Son Tay High School possess There exist.a variely of factors affecting students’ motivation in speaking lessons However, because of the limited time and length constraint of a minor thesis, only those factors relating to learners, teachers and

leaching and learning environment are discussed From the findings of the sludy,

suggestions on motivational strategies to be applied in speaking lessons were provided to increase students’ motivation

1 6 Method of the study

‘The study adopts both quantitative and qualitative methods ‘The tasks involved

are:

- Collecting data for analysis (rom 130 grade- ten students and 8 teachers of LUnglish of the school

- Interviewing 8 students randomly among the 130 given questionnaires for

further auormation for the study

- Sorting data by different catogorics Analyze and display data

All comments, remarks, recommendations and conclusions are based on the

data analysis and interviews.

1 7 Significance of the study

‘The study when finished will serve as one of the initial studies on speaking skill

in general and speaking molivation in particular al STHS Tt is expocted Lo be of benefiL

to both the Knglish teaching and leaning at the school

Yirst, the information about types of motivation of grade 10 students in this minor

thesis is supposed fo provide a thorough understanding of the actual purposes of studorits?

speaking leaning, helping teachers know their students better

Second, the findings about the level of motivation in speaking Iinglish, helping teachers get lo know the importance as well as the urgent need 10 find ways

to solve the problem

Third, the causes leading to low motivation clearly point out teachers’

drawbacks as well as dilliculties in teaching process, which accordingly suggest some solutions to the problem for teachers The findings and recommendations of

the study will be applied so as to improve the language learning in general and

speaking skill in particular m STHS

1 4 Design of the study

The sludy is divided into 3 main parts as follows

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Development

Chapter 1- Theoretical Background of Motivation

Chapter 2: Methodology Chapter 3: Data Analysis and Findings

Part 3: Conelusion

PART 2: DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

1.1 Motivation

1.L.L Definitions of motivation

There is no doubt that motivation plays a key role in second language

teaching and closcly ourrelules with second language achievement as well as proficiency However, "Without knowing where the roots of motivation lie, how can teachers water those roots?" (Oxford & Shearin, 1994:15) A lot of researchers

have worked oul what motivalion means There have been so far a number of ways

to define motivation found out in the literature Motivation seams to be the reason

for the action According tio Domyei, “Motivation explains why peuple decide to do

something, how long they are willing to sustain the activity and how hard they are

going to pursue it”(Domyei, 2001:17) Similarly, Williams and Durden (1997) points out "Motivation is concemed with such issues as why people decide to act in

certain ways and what factors influence the choices they make.” Moreover, motivation is defined as “some kind of internal drive which pushes someone to do

things in order to achieve something” (Harmer, 2001:51), ‘an internal state that

arouses, directs and maintains behavior’ (Woolfolk, 2001:366)

Williams and Burden (1997) believe motivation “also involves decisions as

to the amount of effort people are prepared Lo expand in aflempting 1o achieve their

goals.” (1997:119), It explains “how hard they are going to pursue it and how long they are willing to sustain the activities.” (Domyei) Also, Atkinson (cited in Amold, 2000:13) considers motivation as “a cluster of factors” thal “energize” the behavior and give it “direction” In Atkinson's point of view, motivation is a term

used to describe what energizes a person and what directs his activity, energy and

achievement accordingly Motivation docs involve a goal, an offort, a desire to attain the goal

1.1.2 The importance of motivation in foreign language learning

Motivation has been of great concern in second language learning as well as

in foreign language learning Norris-Ilolt (2001) points out “Motivation is an important factor im 1.2 achievement." (2001) According to Gardner (1985),

“positive attitudes and motivation are related to success in second language

teaching” [lighly motivated leamers tend to participate more actively in leaning

activilies and there is more chance for them lo excel

According to Caroll (1962) , motivation decides the amount of time a learner -will spend on the task of language leaming She claims: “ The more motivation a learner Was, the more time he or she will spond learning am aspect of a second language” (Carol, 1962) As a result, it is considered as an “important factor” which decides on the “level of proficiency” of a learner (Labonde, 1982)

1.1.3 Types of motivation in foreign language learning

‘There are different ways to classify motivation In some studies, motivation

is calegorized info Iwo lypes: intinsic (internal) and extrinsic (external),

“Intrinsic motivation

Intrinsic motivation is leamers” interest in the culture, the target language

group or in learning tasks It "Tnvolves the arousal and maintenance of curiosity and can ebb and flow as a result of such factors as learners’ particular interests and the extent to which they fell personality involved in leaming activities." (Lillis,

1994:76) In fact, intrinsic motivation means the stimulation originates from the

leamers themselves It is their own inner anxiety to lea that brings about achievement

recognize that a certain way of behaving is an expedient means to that goal, and they make plans to modify their behavior in such a manner that they are likely to

experience the desired outcome” (Spaulding, 1992:5-6) This type of motivation derives from the influence of some lands of external incentives, including the

influence of the teacher, the leamer's wish to please some other people or to succeed

im an exicmal exam, other than their wish to learn for their own sake or inlerest in

learning tasks

Motivation is also categorized into different types as follows

“Integrative motivation

Integrative motivation, on the other hand, belongs to those who intemally

‘want to discover the culture of the L2 and wish to be in harmony with the culture of the larget language “Tl is thought that studenls who are most snecesaful when

leaming a target language are those who like the people that speak the language, admire the culture and have a desire to become familiar with or even integrate into

the society m which the language is used” (Falk 1978) Gardner and Tannberl (1972:

132) stresses “a sincere and personal interest in the people and culture represented

by the other group” According to Finegan (1999-568), “integrative motivation typically underlies successful acquisition of a wide range of registers and a

nativelike promunciation”

*Instrumental motivation

instrumental motivation features the desire to achieve practical aims from the

study of L2 (Iudsen, 2000) A student’s opinion of a given language is

significantly shaped by its perceived usefulness and relevance to future career goals

(Chambers, 1999) Hilis (1994) also states "Some functional reasons such as to pass

an examination, to get a better job or to get a university place motivate learners ta

learn an 1.2 because i opens up educational and economic opportunities for then."

(1994:75) Instrumental motivation, therefore, occurs when leamers need the target

language as an instrumental to get a particular goal; it is the reflection of an external

need.

*Resultative motivation

‘There has been a controversial argument over whether motivation should be

seer as Ihe cause or the result of sue

8 in second language leaming Acoordinys to

Hermann (1980), "learners who do well are mare likely to develop motivational intensity and to be active in the classroom" (Lillis, 1994:515) Ile also stated that ‘it

is success fhat contnbules to motivation ralher than vice- versa’ (ciled im Ellis,

1997), In his view, the result of success indirectly influences motivation or

motivation may result from success In sum, “the relationship between mativation

and achievement ts am interactive one A high level of motivation does stimulate

learning, but perceived success in achieving L2 goals can help to maintain existing motivation and even create new types Conversely a vicious circle of low

motivalion low achievement lower molivalion can develop" (Fllis, 1994:515)

1.4 Factors affecting motivation in second language learning

There exist some studies on the factors affecting students’ motivation in

learning a forcign language Rescarchers have had some different views in this issue, however, a list of common factors affecting students’ motivation has been

decided on, which are divided into three groups: teacher’s factors, students’ factors and learning condition factors

1.1.4.1 Learner- related factors

a Intelligence:

According to Lightbown & Spada (1999:52), it refers to “performance on

certain kinds of tests”, through which teachers can assess students’ performance in the class It is reported that there is a link between intelligence measured by IQ tests and second language learning; however, some students, in fact, are successful in L2 learning even though their academic results are not good

b Aptitude:

According to Gardner (1980) and Skehan (1989), aptitude is the main factor

determining the level of success of second language learning (Douglous et al, 1995)

Lighibown and Spada (1999-53) proposes thal aplilude consists of

(1) the ability to identify and memorize new sounds

(2) the ability to understand the function of particular words in sentences

(3) the abibty to figure out grammatical rules [rom language samples

(4) the ability to memorize new words

c Personality

Various porsonalily charavlerislies are listed, thal is extraversion, inhibition,

self-esteem, empathy, dominance, talkativeness and responsiveness In general, researchers have drawn a conclusion that personality has a great influence on the

success of second language learners, (Lightbown & Spada, 1999)

Compared with introverted leamers, extroverted ones seem to perform better

in acquiring basic interpersonal communication skills.”, which bring them “more

opporlunilies to practice, more impul, and morc success in communicaling im Lc

L2.” Meanwhile, introverted learners will do better at developing cognitive

academic language ability.", which means they typically enjoy more academic

success, perhaps because (hey spend more time reading and wriling” (Ellis, 1994 &

Littlewood, 1984)

d Age of acquisition

Late starters may be good at the syntax and vocabulary of a second language, however, it seems very difficult for them to produce native-like words It is

generally thought that children are better language learners than adulis In facl,

when adults and children come to a target Ianguage country or are exposed to L2 in

a target language community, children seem to acquire the target language more perfectly Younger learners have a greater chance of attaining native-like proficiency in the L2 and older learners may show faster progress at the beginning,

‘but are probably surpassed by the young ones in the end (Long and Larsen-

Freeman, 1991), citing Hatch (1977,

¢ Leaners’ belief

Ellis (1994:479) argues that "past experience, both of education in general and of language learning in parlicular" plays an important, perl in language kearning

“Furthennore, Ariogul (2009), Oz (2007), Abraham and Vann (in Ellis 1994:478) think that beliefs might affect learning outcomes ‘The results revealed that learner beliefs mighl change according to their levels, language studied and as well as the

institutions that learners are studying at.” (Kahraman, Ayhan Academic journal

article from Civilacademy Journal of Social Sciences, Vol 7, No.)

f Confidence, Anxiety

According to Domyei, confidence and anxiety make “a central component in

the personal dimension of motivation” Clement and his colleagues believe that

“self-confidence is a powerful motivational provess in multiethnic, multilingual

settings” , and that “self-confidence is also a major motivational subsystem in

foreign language learning situations”

g Learning style

A leaming style is a shudent's consistent way of responding to and using

stimuli in the context of leaning Keefe (1979) defined learning style as ‘the

composite of characteristic cognitive, affective and physiological factors that

serve as relatively stable indicators of how a learner perceives, interacts with, and responds to Lhe learning envirormnent.” Learning slyte is 4 consistent, way of functioning that reflects underlying causes of behavior (cited in Ellis, 1997;

Physical conditions refers to the classroom size, chairs, desk, tables, lights, boards

and even bulletin boards, which affect students’ motivation either positively or negatively

- Classroom atmosphere:

Classroom atmosphere means pleasant and supportive atmosphere in the classroom Lightbown & Spada (1999) claimed that the supportive and non-threatening

abnosphere makes a contribution lo learners* motivation

Besides, learners’ preferences is also taken mto account It is “an individual's

natural, habitual, and preferred way of absorbing, processing, and retaining new

information and skill" (Reid, 1995 eited tm Lightbown and Spada, 1999) T.carners’

preferences in acquiring new knowledge consist of visual learners, aural learners

and kinaesthetic learners or field independent and field dependent learners

1.1.4.2 Teacher- related factor

‘feacher plays a key role in students’ leaming mouvation Appropriate activity do help motivate students in learning Domyei (2001) mentions some

leacher’s factors affecting students’ motivation: appropriate teacher behavior,

teacher’s enthusiasm and a good relationship with the students, enthusiasm, commitment to and expectations for the students’ academic progress, acceptance,

ability to listen and pay aliention io students

1.1.4.3 ‘caching and Icarning condition- related factor

Teaching aud learning condition involves classroom almosphere and

physical condition,

a Physical conditions

Physical conditions refer to things in classroom such as classrooms facilitics

(board, chairs, desks, tables, electric equipments, etc.) or classrooms size Jeremy Tlarmer (1992) confirmed that such physical conditions has great impact on students' learning as well as their attitude towards the subject matter and affect stadents' motivation either positively or negatively accordingly Moreover, teachers

should create the ownership of the class among students

Physical condition affects both teacher and studs’ motivation The large

the poor facilities will lead to a decrease in motivation.

b A pleasant and supportive atmosphere in the classroom

A pleasant and supportive classroom atmosphere creates motivation, or, in

other words, cneouragermen|, for students lo express their ideas MacIntyre (1999) and Young (1999) pointed out that students’ amciety created by a tense classroom

climate was one of the most potent factors that undermined learning effectiveness

and 7.2 motivation (ciled im Doryzi, 2001:121) Besides, “Tn order for the studenls

to be motivated, the learning environment needs to be free from anxiety; the student

should not feel threatened or intimidated.”

To fact, there are a tumnber of elements which make up whal we call the ideal classroom climate, that is the relationship between the teacher and the students, the

relationship among the students themselves and the norm of tolerance which helps

students [ec] free of the feelings of embarrassment when making mistakes

1.2 Overview of speaking

1.2.1 Definition of speaking skill

Flores (1999) defined speaking was “an interactive process of constructing smeaning that involves producing and receiving and processing information” (cited

in Balley, 2005-2) TL is “ofien spontaneous, open- ended and evolving”, but iL is ol

completely wnpredictable In other words, “speaking comssts of producing

systematic verbal utterances to convey meaning” (alley, 2005:2)

Bygale (1997) stated Uhal speaking was @ skill which deserved allertion every bit as much as literacy skill It is often thought of as a “popular” form of expression thal uses the unprestigious “colloquial” register Speaking is in many

ways an undervalued skill Perhaps this is because we can almost all speak, and so

take the skal! too much for granted In his own view, Mackey (1965) shows that

“oral expression involves not only the use of the right sounds in the right patterns of

rhythm and itonalion, but also a choice of words arxd inflections in the right order

to convey the right meaning”(cited in Bygate, 1997:5) According to Mackey, for

the student who wants to be good at speaking, he/ she has to choose the right forms,

put them in correct order sound it like native speaker and cven produce the right mieanings

1.2.2, Stages in a speaking lesson

So far, there have been various discussions on the stages in a speaking lesson In Terry (2008)'s presentation about “Ilow to teach speaking in an EFL class”, it was proposed that a speaking Fessons consists of Uwe main stages: pro-

2)

in “Teaching Oral English” says that there are stages: Presentation stage, the

communicative stage, practice stage, communicative interaction Byrne (1976:

practice slage and production stage

- Presentation stage (pre-communicative stage): ‘Teachers introduce the

communicative fimetion, highlight the fixed expression, point out the target

structure and provide sludents with the necessary vocabulary and the language of

interaction, In this stage, students passive- leamers, concentrating not only the

meaning but also promunciation, stress, intonation and spelling of the new language

item

- Practice stage: Teachers give students opportunities “use the newly presented

language in a controlled framework so as too allow them to memorize its form and

assimilate its meaning more fully.” (Matthews ctal., 1991:8), There are actually two steps here, controlled practice and guided practice In the former, teacher

conducts what studenis should do and whai kind of language to be used, meanwhile,

in the latter, teacher only prompts and corrects students if necessary

- Production stage (Communicative interaction): Teachers encourage language negotiation among students, take notes of any aspects that may hinder communication such as pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, ete After this stage, teachers give students feedback on pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary and ask students Lo repeat the (ask if necessary

1.2.3 Communicative activities

1.2.3.1 What are communicative activities?

Cormmunivative aclivitics arc those which involve learning activities through

using language for a communicative purpose Whatever activity the students are

involved in, if it is to be genuinely communicative and if it is really promoting

language use, the students should have a desire to communicatc Tf they do nol want

to be involved in communication then that communication will probably not be effective The students should pay attention to the ideas being presented and not the

language form being used (Hanmer, 1991) During the course of teaching, the

teacher works as a participant, observing and providing help when necessary and gives feedback to students’ speaking

1.2.3.2 Purposes of communicative activities

According to Littlewood (1990), communicative activities help leamers use the language items introduced to speak in the target language Communicative

aotivilios arc advantageous because they provide “wholc-task practices”, improve the

smnotivation, allow natural leaming and can create a context which supports learning

1.2.3.3 Types of oral communicative activities

There are a great number of communicative activities designed to create chances for spoken communication in language learning environment

* Communication games

According to Harmer (1991) , communication games are activities where leamers use all the target language to complete a game-like task This brings students opportunities for interaction Communication games activities include finding the differences (or similarities); describe and arrange; story reconstruction and/or poem reconstruction (Bygate, 1987), each of which is actually the working

on information yap acliviy The aclivtly focuses ou “meanings lo be communicated” rather than “linguistic form to be leamt”, (Llarmer, 1991)

* Songs

There is no denying the fact that music and songs create a relaxing atmosphere, which act, as a result, as a very beneficial means to create motivation

Fkeu (1996: 46) states that songs cam be used:

« to present a topic, a language point, lexis, etc,

« to practice a language point, lexis, etc;

+ lo envourage extensive and intensive Hslening,

« to stimulate discussion of attitudes and feelings;

« to encourage creativity and use of imagination:

« lo provide a relaxed classroom atmosphere and

« to bring variety and fun to learning

* Discussion,

According to Sheils (1993), “Discussion activities imvolve learners in

personal and fluent use of the target language.” Ile also stated that “The exchange

of opinions or feelings in a discussion should assist leamers in getting to know

themselves and their classmates bellcr”

However, in order for this type of activity to be exploited successfully,

teachers should bear in mind “proper organization” (Harmer, 1991-125) in their

teaching because he believed that the problem of students having nothing to say is because of teacher’s inappropriate approach

* Problem solvirys

According to Littlewood (1990), this type of activity dispenses completely

with the need to share information Students now have access to all the relevant facts The stimulus far communication comes from the need to discuss and evaluate

these facts, in pairs or groups, in order to solve a problem or reach a decision

* Role-play

“Role-play is one of communicative techniques which develops Mueney in

language students, which promotes interaction in the classroom, and which

increases mativation.”” (Ladousse, 1987:7)

According to Littlewood (1992; 49): “ simulation and role-play are well- established as techniques for organizing controlled, pre-communicative language

practice, which prepares students later lo take parl in Cully sponlancous inleraction”

This type of activity is applicable in lessons for students of different levels of proficiency Bygate (1997) believes that it can be carried out in several ways:

- Role-play controlled Ihrough cued dialogues

- Role-play controlled through cued situations and goal

- Role-play controlled through cues and information

- Role-play in the form of debate or discussion

* Story- telling

This kind of exercise helps students to develop creative thinking because

they can cilher summarize 2 story using their own words or creafe a complele one

Students have chances to practise expressing ideas in a concrete form: opening,

body and ending

1.2.4 Problems with speaking activities

‘Yhe learners have their own difficulties in language learning, especially in

speaking Munjayanah (2004: 17) mentions the following as problems students may

face up to in learnmg speaking skill

* Inhibition: Learners are often inhibited about trying to say things in a foreign

language in the class room They are worried about making mistakes, fearlul of

criticism or losing face

* Nothing fo say: Even if they are not inhibited, we often hear leamers complain

that they cannot think of anything to say

* Low or uneven participation: Only one participant talks at a time or he or she

dominates the group while others speak very little or not at all In a large group each member gels very litle Lalking inte

* Mother-tongue use: In classes where all or a number of the learners share the

same mother tongue, they are likely to use it, It is easier and it feels unnatural to

speak lo one another ina forcign language

15

1.2.5 Characteristics of a successful speaking aclivily

Classroom activities designed by teachers are aimed at creating chances for

students Lo xpress their ideas through spo

ch Therefore, they are really necessary

in a language course A classroom whose successful speaking, activities is where

“Leamers talk a lot”, “Participation is even”, “Motivation is high” and “Language is

of an acceplable leveP’ (Ur, 1996:120)

1.3 Literature review

Motivation does play a key role in foreign language learning and speaking

skill There have been a lot of studies focusing on motivation among which are

mentioned as follows:

Firstly, some very popular researchers and linguists in the language fields are

Gardner (1985), Brown (1994) or Domeyi (2007) Concepts of motivation were

created, its benefits or different strategies were discussed in their various books,

which set up firm background knowledge, paving the way for later works in related

topic

‘There have also been some studies as minor theses about language leaming

in Vietnam, one of which was wrillen by Mai Phuong Thuy (2005) It is a study om

the techniques for improving speaking skill to non-major students of English at

Llaiphong foreign Language Centre, Lai Phong University” (Unpublished MA

Dissertion CFT.-VNU) Different ways lo eller spoaking skill are mentioned in the

thesis

Another study is the one specialized in motivation conducted by Dinh Thuy Linh (2011), aiming at “Improving 11 Grade students’ Motivation in Speaking

Lessons at Viet Nam- Poland High School by Using Communicative Activities” ‘the

data collected were questionnaires and class observations for analyses Three

experimental speaking lessons were conducted and ther

sed Ubrough the same

instruments, questionnaires and class observations Besides, Lloang Dus Doan (2009)

also had a thesis on motivation The author explored the motivation in speaking, skill

of students of Sao Do Calloge of Tadustry Data instruments were questionnaires and

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interviews There were 130 students and 8 teachers mvolved in the rescarch, whose major findings were about types of motivation, students’ level of motivation, factors aflecting molivation and activities and (echniques used by the Leachors in speaking lessons besides motivational strategies ta motivate students in speaking lessons

To sum up, motivation has been a matter of great concern in language learning and there have been a number of studies on these However, it has never been touched upon in Son ‘lay High School with the subjects of grade- ten students

As a result, the study is carried out in the hope of creating further evidence to the

selection of relevant topic as well as a pioneer research of benefil to the English

teaching and learning of the school

1.4, Summary

Tn sununary, the chapler pictures various view points on molivation and ibs

related sections including definitions, types of motivation and major factors

affecting it Overview of speaking (definition, stages of a speaking leson,

communicative activities, problems as well as characteristics of a succcasful activity) are also mentioned Literature review of some works of the same topic is

discussed last in the chapter

CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY 2.1 Research setting of the study

2.1.1 An overview of the research site

The study was conducted at SIHS, one of the oldest as well as biggest schools in Son Tay town There are 45 classes with over 2000 students of grade

10th, 11th and 12th, among which are 27 classes of gifted students of 9 subjects

amaths, physics, chemistry, biology, history, geography, information technology and Tnglish Like other high schools in Vietnam, English is taught here as a compulsory

most af whom are

subject There are 122 teachers of 12 compulsory subjects,

young and dynamic besides those experienced in teaching In recent years, SIIIS is one of the schools which have had a high percentage of general education

graduation, It often ranks high in number of students who pass university entranee

examinations

2.1.2 The English teachers

There are fourteen teachers of Hnglish in the Foreign languages team, twelve

of whom teach Inglish and the rest two teach French One has already got her M.A degree and two others are going lo Ol the Lwelve English teachers, with more than seven years’ working experience, only half graduated from official courses at the University of Languages and Intemational Studies, Vietnam National

University, Hanoi The rest six leachers finished in-service training programs of the University Most Linglish teachers are young and active (only 2 are over 50) ‘hey

have easier access to CLT (through classes, Intemet and books or different nurses), so they are more (anilar lo il so as to apply i in their leaching The older

ones, serious and enthusiastic in their work, however, are not keen on this new

teaching method, which prevent them from getting best results in their speaking

lessons On average, every teacher has fifleer periods per week besides a great deal

of work (designing tests, marking, controlling forrn classes, etc., as well as family

work loads al home) Fspecially, half of the members are Collowing courses of

English of the 2020 foreign languag¢ project

2.1.3 The students and their background

Almost every student al Son Tay High School is aged from 15 to 18, most of whom come from urban areas and bave been learning English since they were at primary schools, As a result, their English proficiency is some how better than those

from rural areas as there are more chances for them to attend different extra courses

of English Except those in English- gifted classes, there are more and more students interested in learning English, wishing to be proficient in this subject However, there are still a lot of others who are very p

sive in their learning

2 1 4 The English teaching and learning in Son Tay High School

‘The syllabus of teaching and learning

English has been taught as a compulsory subject at STHS for years Except those in Linglish- gifted classes who use the textbooks of advanced level (Branch C), all the rest grade 10, 11 and 12 students take the textbooks “Tieng Anh 10”,

“Tieng Anh 117 and

Lieng Anh 12” respectively (published by the Ministry of Tiducation and Training) There are 105 periods covering the whole school year (divided into two semesters), which means 3 periods per weck with 45 minutes long each to be carried out

“Tieng Anh 10° was written with the application of communicative

approach TL consists of 16 units tm which there are 5 different parts of S different

sections, each of which centers on four different skills: reading, speaking, listening, writing and language foous, where there are a variety of exercises and tasks compiled (or pronunciation as well as grammar practice Basides, there oxisls a consolidation lesson for the three- previously- leamt units

The content of the new textbook is theme- based, with each unit touching a

particular topic (ol' daily life, social issues or avademie ficld) The various topies arc

advantageous in creating interesting situations for students to be creative in

learning The textbuok works as a means for the teacher to help develop

students language skills comprehensively in the target language In fact, if used well, it brings about good results both in students’ Lnglish knowledge but also their understandiry, of culture

The teaching and learning of English speaking skills

Speaking skill helps students develop their speaking competence

Communicative ability then has been considered as students’ proper aim for language

teaching, which makes speaking skill an important part in any English cowse In recent years, the Lnglish subject has been paid more and more attention to at Son Tay [igh

School However, the teaching of the subject, especially of speaking skill has a greal

deal of difficulties Apart from those in the Linglish- gifted classes, few students have zeal interest or motivation in English speaking lessons Like other high schools in Vietnam, STHS’s tcaching and learning of speaking skill is challenged by some

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constraints such as large class sizc, students’ unfamiliarity with CLT, students’ low

Linglish proficiency or low participation in a lesson Lesides, lack of framing in

teaching methods, especially CLT also contributes to le limited results

2.2 Research methods

2.2.1 Description of the subjects

Participants in the questionaire survey for teachers are 8 English teachers,

ranging from 28 to 50 years of age with 5 to 25 years’ teaching experience One teacher has got an M.A and two are taking an M.A course at National University,

University of Languages and International Studies The participants in the survey

for students were 130 students in class 10A1, 10A2 and 10A3 in Son Lay Iligh

School, who carried typical features of the general 10 graders of the school All of

them were al the age of fillcen and have been leaming English [or 8 yours and arc

almost of the same level of English (according to the placement test results at the beginning of the first term) These students

2.2.2, Data collection instruments

Survey questionnaire

The questionnaires (designed by Rajit Kumar (1996) in Reseurch

Afethodology) are taken as the research instruments for gathering information from the respondents, Chey are convenient thanks to some advantages: low cost in time

and money: easy to gol information from a Tol of peuple; convenient for respondents

in terms of time to complete, etc As a result, they were used as the main instruments in this study Two sets of questionnaires were used: one for students

including 7 questions and the other for teachers which consists of 8 questions

Tnterviews

Interviews are beneficial in that they help the researcher to get better insights tito the research questions and to discuss for further imformation about the items

raised in the questionnaires In the interviews, which lasted about 10 minutes each,

the participants were asked to answer questions This was carried out at the school

during the break time and im the form of mformal talks between the researcher and

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the 8 grade-ten students (chosen at random among the 130 mentioned) The data collected from the interviews, all of which were carried out in Vietnamese,

recorded, transcribed, and het transtaled into English for the purposes of the study

‘The questions for interviews were recorded in a sheet of paper

2.2, 3 Procedures

The questionnaires were distribulcd and gathered from those teachers and

students of SHS who agreed to take part in the research during the fourth week of the first semester of the school year 2013-2014 After one week, figures from the

questionnaires were collected and presented in tables Cur analysis,

‘The interviews with 8 grade-ten students of SY1LS were caried out in the following week, at the end of September, 2013 The aim of the researcher for the

interviews is lo gel beller insights ito the research queslions and io get more

information about the matters mentioned in the questionnaires The participants

were asked to answer the researcher's questions during school breaks In the form

of informal talks lasting about 5- 10 mutes cavh, the interviews were conducted in

Vietnamese, with the content noted down in paper for later sumunary and judgement

2.2 4, Data analysis

‘This part of the thesis is the analysis of all the data collected from the survey

queskionmaires conducted on 130 sludenis, 8 English teachers as well as from the

interviews of the 8 grade-ten students

2 3 Summary

The part gives a presentation of methodology with details about the research

setting of SHS Information about the English teachers, the students, of the schoo!

in general and the subjects of the study including 8 teachers and 130 students are

also discussed The methods and procedures of the study are clearly presented The

data analysis and discussion will be presented in the next chapter

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CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS,

3.1 Data analysis

Tn this chapter, the data collected from the survey questionnaires and interviews -will be presented and analysed in answer to the research questions ‘Lhe major results are expressed in the form of tables The interview transcriptions were notted down in the form of reflective noles and summmanes of held notes

3.1.1 Analysis of students’ questionnaires and interviews

3.1.1.1 ‘Lypes of motivation of the students in speaking lessons

There are several types of motivation in 1.2 learmmg discussed in chapler 2

‘The concentration of this study, however, mainly focuses on the following

integrative, instrumental, resultative, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation

Students’ reasons for practising English speaking

Strongly | Disagree | Strongly | Agree | No

A You think it is necessary 11 16.5 30 22.5 ụ

for you in your future

exams/in your future job

B You want lo commumeale 69 63 58 25.1 | 67

with foreigners

Tnglish cultire and people

interested in speaking skill

Li Linglish is a compulsory 4.7 427 676 23 0

subject in the syllabus

F You often get good marks 339 288 35 3.3 0

and/ or positive remarks for

your speaking presentation of

English in the class

Table 1: Students’ reasons for practising English speaking

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As scen from the table above, the five types of motivation were not cvenly occupied among the 130 students ‘The highest percentage of them adopted extrinsic rnotivalion (90.6 %), Th

practised speaking English because il was a compulsory

subject in the syllabus Most students owned instrumental motivation: 80.1 % of them wanted to practise English to communicate with foreigners; 72.5% practised it

‘because Ihey [houghl 3L was necessary [or them in their fulure exams or fulure job

Meanwhile, only a few students occupied intrinsic motivation: 33.5 % of the respondents were especially interested in speaking skill About the same number of the students (38.3%) possessed resullalive motivation The reason for their English leaming was that they often got good marks and/ or positive remarks for their speaking presentation of English in the class 48% of the learners owned integrative

and inintrinsic molivalion, beimg mrúerested mm culture and people of English speaking countries

Of the 8 students interviewed, four showed their instrumental motivation

when they said that they practised Fnghsh speaking for fulure cxans or future

career, Three possessed extrinsic motivation because it was the compulsory subject

Only 1 of them showed bis intrmsic and resultalive molivalion, “Because T like

speaking skill I often get good marks at this subject.” There was also onc xespondent who was interested in Lnglish culture, that is integrative and intrinsic

Taotivalion,

in brief, the data obtained from the questionnaires and the interviews of the students coincided to some extent Instrumental motivation and extrinsic motivation

seemed to outweigh the rest three, integrative, intrinsic and resultative motivation as

a drive to practise speaking Most learnt English because of the exterior factors and not because of their own interior desires

3.1.1.2 Students’ interest and participation in speaking lessons

Students’ interest in speaking lessons

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& Strongly disagree

Chart 1: Students’ interest in speaking lessons

As seen from the table, a surprisingly high percentage of students (28.3 %)

showed no idea about their interest in practising speaking, which means that they

showed no concern for the activity Only a few students (37.8 %) agreed and

strongly agreed that they were interested in their speaking lessons Approximately

one third of those respondents (33.9 %) disliked practising speaking,

From the analysis of data from the table, it is clearly seen that students’ interest in speaking lessons was very low

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Students’ participation in speaking lessons

Strongly | Disagree | Strongly | Agree | No

B Know the answers but are | 43.6 144 197 223 [0

too shy to speak

© Only speak when

‘but were too shy to speak However, the rest 42 % of the students agreed that their

shyness prevented thera (rom volunteering lo prosent ideas Approximately half of those in question (48 %) admitted that their speaking depended very much on

whether the tasks given attracted them or nol The minorily of the respondents (27

%) were actually willing to practise speaking in the lessens Those who never spoke in the oral Jessons accounted for the lowest percentage (7 %),

To sum up, the tables above shows that STHS students did not highly

appreciate the speaking skill Most leamers found it uninteresting and did not enthusiastically participate in the activities assigned As a result, the question raised

here is what factors result in smdents’ lack of motivation

3.L.L3, Factors affecting students’ motivation in speaking lessons

There are learner-+elated factors, teacher-related factors and teaching and

learning conditions (hal make learners unwilling lo speak

Factors affecting students’ motivation in ckass

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