A case study of teaching English in a remote and mountainous secondary school in Quang Binh province = Điển cứu về việc giảng dạy tiếng Anh ở một trường THCS -

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN BÍCH HUỆ A CASE STUDY OF TEACHING ENGLISH IN A REMOTE AND M

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN BÍCH HUỆ

A CASE STUDY OF TEACHING ENGLISH IN A REMOTE AND MOUNTAINOUS SECONDARY SCHOOL IN QUANG

BINH PROVINCE (ĐIỂN CỨU VỀ VIỆC GIẢNG DẠY TIẾNG ANH Ở MỘT TRƯỜNG THCS-THPT THUỘC VÙNG SÂU VÙNG XA CỦA TỈNH QUẢNG

BÌNH)

MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

FIELD: METHODOLOGY CODE: 601410

HANOI-2010

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT ……… i

AKNOWLEDGEMENT ……… ii

TABLE OF CONTENTS ……… iii

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ……… v

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION ……… 1

1 Rationale of the study ……… 1

2 Aims of the study ……… … 1

3 Scope of the study ……… … 1

4 Methods of the study ……… … 2

5 Design of the study …… ……… … 2

PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT …… ……… … 3

Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW …… ……….……… … 3

1.1 Overview ……… ……… … 3

1.2 Definitions of second language acquisition …… ……… … 3

1.3 Some stratergies of teaching English ……… … 3

1.4 Factors affecting the quality of language teaching ……… … 6

1.4.1 Attitude and motivation of students ……… … 6

1.4.2 Teaching strategies ……….……… … 7

1.4.3 Environment and context of teaching …….……… … 8

1.4.3.1 Textbooks ……… ……… … 8

1.4.3.2 Classroom structure amd climate ……… 9

1.4.3.3 School facilities … ……… 10

1.4.4 Social context … ……… ……… 11

Chapter 2: METHODOLOGY …….……….……… … 12

2.1 The settings … ……… …….……… … 12

2.1.1 An overview of the research site ….…… ……… … 12 2.1.2 Descriptions of the teachers of English at Hoa Tien secondary school … 12 2.1.3 Descriptions of the students of English at Hoa Tien secondary school … 12 2.1.4 The current situation of English teaching and learning at Hoa Tien

secondary school ……… …….……… … 13

2.1.4.1 The materials for teaching and learning ……… … 13

2.1.4.2 The current situation of English teaching and learning at Hoa Tien secondary school ……… …….………….……… … 13

2.2 Research questions ………… …….……… … 14

2.3 The participants ……….…… …….……… … 14

2.4 Data collection ………… …….………… ……… 15

2.4.1 Questionnaires ………… …….……… 15

2.4.1.1 Questionnaire for teachers ….……… 15

2.4.1.2 Questionnaire for students ….……… 15

2.4.2 Interview with teachers ….……… 15

2.5 Data analysis ……… …….………… ……….… 16

Chapter 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ……….… 17

3.1 Findings from the questionnaires ………… ……… 17

3.1.1 Questionnaire for students ………… … ……… 17

3.1.2 Questionnaire for teachers ………… … ……… … 22

3.2 Findings from the Interviews for teachers ……… 30

PART THREE: CONCLUSION ………… … ……… … 32

4.1 Summary of the findings … ….………… ……….……… … 32

4.2 Recommendations and suggestions ……… ……… … 33

4.3 Limitations of the study ……… ……… ……… … 35

4.4 Recommendations for further research ……… …… ……… … 35

REFERENCES ……… ……… ……… 37 APPENDICES

ABSTRACT

In an attempt to investigate the reality of teaching English in a remote and mountainous school in Quang Binh province, the main purposes of the research were to find out: (1) teachers’ attitude toward English teaching; (2) teachers’ techniques and strategies; (3) teaching materials; and (4) main difficulties in teaching English at school The subjects of the study were 100 students and 5 English teachers in Hoa Tien secondary school All of them answered the questionnaires Among them, three teachers were invited to participate in an interview The research finds out that they focus on teaching grammar points but pay less attention to speaking, reading and even communicative skills The findings also show that they often use black board, pairwork and groupwork, they sometimes use teaching aids which they made by themselves and often use their mother tongue in class Moreover, teachers often simplify, adapt or redesign some contents in the textbooks which are not relevant to their students The research also reveals the students’ negative attitude to and poor motivation for English learning Finally, in order to improve English teaching in a secondary remote and mountainous school, the study recommends the followings: teachers should vary their teaching techniques and activities; textbooks should be adapted; extra curriculum activities for language learning should be organized; learning and teaching conditions should be improved; and local teachers should be available to teach English for students in their communities

PART ONE: INTRODUCTION

1 RATIONALE OF THE STUDY:

These days, there is no doubt about the fact that the English language is becoming something of a forerunner in global communication It is the first and second language in most countries of the world Almost 70% of the Internet is in English A huge volume of the information used on the Internet is also in English Thus, English is playing a very significant role in bringing the world together Therefore, teaching and learning English have become the necessity all over the world In Vietnam, English is a compulsory subject from primary schools to universities However, quality of learning and teaching English is different from one school to another, especially from schools in cities, towns and those from remote and mountainous areas Students in remote and mountainous schools, particularly in Quang Binh, have a higher rate of low marks than those in cities and towns It is the fact that there has been

a big difference between them Therefore, how to teach English to students in remote and mountainous schools has been a controversial issue Thus, investigating the reality of teaching English in remote and mountainous schools should be carried out in order to identify the difficulties that teachers and students there encounter and the factors that affect their English teaching and learning process Hence, the topic “A case study of teaching English in a remote and mountainous school in Quang Binh” has been chosen This case study as the topic of this research is carried out in the hope of giving a few benefits to teachers, students and others concerned

2 AIMS OF THE STUDY:

The main objectives of this study are as follows:

 To identify the reality of teaching English at Hoa Tien secondary school

 To suggest some solutions for improving the English teaching in remote and mountainous schools

3 SCOPE OF THE STUDY:

The main focus of the study is on the investigation of the English teaching in a remote and mountainous school in Quang Binh As this is a case study research, its limitation is obviously

on teachers at Hoa Tien secondary school, a school located at a remote and mountainous area

of Quang Binh province

4 METHODS OF THE STUDY:

In order to carry out this research, the following methods are used:

 Theoretical study

 Survey questionnaires

 Interviews with teachers

5 DESIGN OF THE STUDY:

The minor thesis consists of two main parts: the first part is titled introduction including the rationale, aims, scope, methods and design of the study The second part includes five chapters Chapter one conceptualizes the framework through the discussion of issues and ideas on English teaching theories

The research methodology is presented in chapter two focusing on the settings, the research questions, the participants, data collection and data analysis Chapter three is the report of the results collected from data analysis and discussion of the research questions The last chapter

is the conclusion of the study, including summary of the findings, recommendations and suggestions, limitations of the study and recommendations for further research

Part TWO: Development

Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW

1.1 OVERVIEW:

This chapter deals with some of the most important issues in the theory of language teaching Firstly, definitions of second language acquisition will be presented Secondly, some strategies of teaching English put forward by some researchers and educators will be listed Finally, factors that affect the quality of language teaching in remote and mountainous areas will be taken into consideration

1.2 DEFINITIONS OF SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION

Up to now, there has been a variety of definitions of second language acquisition However, most of the authors have the similar definitions of second language acquisition Second language acquisition is concerned with the study of the way in which an individual becomes able to use one or more languages different from his first language This process can take place in a natural setting or through formal classroom instruction, and, although the degree of proficiency that can be attained is a controversial topic, it can start at childhood or during the adult age (Krashen, 1982)

According to the website:

http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/second+language+acquisition, Second language acquisition is the process by which people learn a second language in addition to their native language(s) The term second language is used to describe the acquisition of any language after the acquisition of the mother tongue

1.3 SOME STRATEGIES OF TEACHING ENGLISH:

Linda Woolhether (2010) suggests some strategies for teaching English These include:

 Using technologies:

Computer technology can help teachers to make learning process more effective, meaningful and socially connected Inquiry-based learning is a strategy that helps students better organize their thoughts and to complete projects The teacher can make a class presentation with instructions for completing research projects, creative writing or literature reviews through the use of an LCD projector Power Point presentations enable the teacher to instruct students in a clear, precise and motivating way

 Planning and Organization:

It is necessary for teachers to plan lessons that are suitable to a particular class In the lesson plans, student-directed practice should be concentrated on rather than teacher-directed instruction Responsibility of students for their learning should be encouraged The lecture content is probably not appropriate if it minimizes student interaction and expects students to understand the material just by receiving knowledge about the language Students of English

as a second language require instructional strategies that are innovative and motivational English as a second langugage is a required course for all students that should stress the importance of mastering the skills included in English instruction For this objective to be accomplished successfully, students need to be able to make the connection between what is taught in class and their life

 Active Learning:

Students should be encouraged to participate in the learning process by taking part in class discussions, small group meetings, case studies and role playing Much literature lends itself to this type of activity Teachers who utilize literature circles find that students gain a better understanding of reading selections than those who read independently Literature circles encourage each student’s active participation When students are actively engaged, their learning output will improve

As for students from remote and mountainous schools, many researchers and experts suggest a number of strategies for teaching English

 Facilitate autonomous students’ learning:

Weden (1985) states that learner strategies are the key element to learner autonomy, so facilitating autonomous learning is one of the most teaching goals Besides, it has been found that students can benefit from the strategies-based instruction (MacIntyre & Noels 1996) To facilitate autonomous learning, training in learning strategies could, therefore, be one of the teaching goals in an English classroom

 Provide strategy instruction: Teachers can provide strategy instruction by offering examples of how they have used strategies for similar language tasks After explaining a strategy, the teacher can then explain the purpose and importance of the strategy They may explicitly discuss why a strategy works and when it might be used Explicit instruction in

strategies can make students use the learned strategy more frequently and more effectively, help them become better language learners, help them add strategies to their repertoire of learning tools, make them more aware of the strategies available to them and encourage them

to decide which strategies are most effective for particular tasks (Chamot, Barnhardt, Dinary & Robbins, 1999)

El- Emphasize the coordination of strategies: Once a few strategies have been introduced, instruction should emphasize the coordination of strategies The teacher can explain the importance of having a repertoire of strategies for language learning Students can be reminded that different strategies can work for the same task and that good learners plan, monitor, problem-solve and evaluate recursively during a given task (Chamot, Barnhardt, El-Dinary & Robbins, 1999)

 Encourage students to talk about their thought processes: This helps make them more aware of the strategies they have been using This awareness is important because it enables them to call on those strategies whenever they face challenging tasks

 Encourage students to practice learning strategies: Finally, these learning strategies should be practised in different learning tasks Only through practice will students become more familiar with these learning strategies

According to Kristmanson (2000), in order to create an effective learning environment, teachers should:

- Create an atmosphere in which students are not afraid to make mistakes and are encouraged to take risks

- Encourage and support students all the times and especially when they are struggling with or lacking confidence in certain areas

- Be energetic and enthusiastic about what they are teaching and on those days when they

do not have that energy, provide activities that require learners to put forth the majority of the energy

- Provide opportunities for interaction in the target language in and outside the language learning environment through preplanned and spontaneous activities

- Avoid tension-causing strategies such as surprising quizzes, overly competitive activities, putting students in front of their peers with no warning or chance for preparation, and correcting errors in a negative, accusatory fashion

- Encourage goal setting and a sense of dedication and continuous commitment to the language learning task through meaningful, relevant and authentic language learning activities

- Encourage learners to seek out opportunities in their lives that will help in the learning of the target language

- Create, through the presentation of attainable goals and reasonable challenges, a learning environment with a definite potential for success

- Recognize the "little successes", improvements and progress of each student or all the students in the group

- Allow students opportunities to talk about themselves, their interests, and their culture

1.4 FACTORS AFFECTING THE QUALITY OF LANGUAGE TEACHING:

There is a great deal of factors affecting the quality of language teaching but because of the limited scope of the study, the focus is only on some factors affecting English teaching in remote and mountainous schools in Quang Binh province, which include attitude and motivation of students; teaching strategies; environment and teaching context; and social context

1.4.1 Attitude and motivation of students:

There have been a large number of researches on the attitude and motivation of students on learning and teaching English According to Gardner (1985), “positive attitude and motivation are closely related to success in foreign language learning”

An attitude is a mental or neural state of readiness organized through experience, exerting

a directive or dynamic influence on the individual's response to all objects and situations to which it is related (Allport, 1935) An attitude, roughly, is a residuum of experience, by which further activity is conditioned and controlled We may think of attitudes as acquired tendencies

to act in specific ways toward objects (Krueger & Reckless, 1931) According to Kavitha (2009), we must recognize that most success stories begin with the acquisition and earnest practice of appropriate and positive attitude toward the task on hand For too long, we have let our political desires, goals and propaganda come in the way of language learning For any

significant change in the mastery of a second language, teachers must acknowledge and respect students' attitudes, beliefs, and expectations and help them overcome any harmful perceptions and blocks

Language attitudes may have an effect on second language or foreign language learning The measurement of language attitudes provides information which is useful in language teaching and language planning (Richard et all, 1993)

Motivation is one of the important aspects of second language acquisition Motivation has been identified as the learner's orientation with regard to the goal of learning a second language (Crookes and Schmidt 1991) Motivation is a kind of desire for learning It is very difficult to teach a second language in a learning environment if the learner does not have a desire to learn a language Taking into consideration from that aspect, to be able to make the learner active and desirable in learning process gains importance According to Gardner (1985), motivation involves four aspects: a goal, effortful behaviour, a desire to attain the goal and favorable attitude towards the activity in question

Motivation can be divided into extrinsic and intrinsic ones Brown (1994) suggests that extrinsic motivation comes from the learner’ s desire to get reward or cognition of the peers and parents or the avoidance of punishment According to Deci and Ryan (1985), intrinsic motivation is related to basic human needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness Intrinsically motivated activities are those that the learners are engaged in for their own sake because of their value, interest, and challenge Such activities present the best possible opportunities for learning

to have the skills and the time to talk with students about life and its problems

The choice of teaching strategy on motivation is emphasized by Reece & Walker (1997) The choice of teaching strategy has an effect upon the motivation and interest of the student The manner in which the teacher approaches the teaching strategy will have an effect upon motivation: an enthusiastic approach is more likely to motivate than a dull approach

1.4.3 Environment and context of teaching:

A rich and stimulating language environment during the early years and beyond is essential to the development of verbal and intellectual skills necessary for language learning 1.4.3.1 Textbooks:

A great deal of researchers consider textbooks as a factor affecting the teaching and learning foreign/ second languages Richards (2001) suggests:

“Textbooks are a key component in most language programs In some situations they serve as the basis for much of the language input learners receive and the language practice that occurs in the classroom They may provide the basis for the content of the lessons, the balance of skills taught and the kinds of language practice the students take part in[…] In the case of inexperienced teachers textbooks may also serve as a form of teacher training- they provide ideas how to plan and teach lessons

as well as formats that teachers can use”

In Vietnam all the textbooks for schools are produced by the Ministry of Education and Training and no alternatives are available These course books are used in both private and public schools and all the teachers follow the same syllabus Thus, students and teachers from remote and mountainous schools have difficulty in learning and teaching English Moreover, Rivers (1968: 475) states that the textbook plays an important part determining the major part

of the classroom teaching and the students’ out-of-class learning According to Hutchinson & Torres (1994: 315), “The danger with ready-made textbooks is that they can seem to absolve teachers of responsibility Instead of participating in the day-to-day decisions that have to be made about what to teach and how to teach it, it is easy to just sit back and operate the system, secure in the belief that the wise and virtuous people who produced the textbook knew what was good for us Unfortunately this is rarely the case.”

As for students, Tomlinson (2008: 3) has argued:

“Many ELT materials (especially global course books) currently make a significant contribution to the failure of many learners of English as a second, foreign or other language to even acquire basic competence in English and to the failure of most of them to develop the ability to use it successfully They do so by focusing on the teaching of linguistic items rather than on the provision of opportunities for acquisition and development And they do this because that’s what teachers are expected and required to do by administrators, by parents, by publishers, and by learners too.”

1.4.3.2 Classroom structure and climate:

As for classroom structure, Brown & Koschmann (1992) support the interactive environment of group work, which allows students to control their own learning and presents them with direct feedback in the learning process

Classroom structure refers to how the physical environment is organized to facilitate students’ success in learning When students enter the classroom, they should be able to identify where their workspace or desk is located, and where the play or break area is located Therefore, classroom structure can be a powerful factor in setting up the environment for success by letting individuals know what is expected, what to do next, and when they finish with an activity A well-structured classroom not only improves learning opportunities, and can increase opportunities for appropriate social interactions but also decreases frustration, which may result in fewer challenging behaviors A well-structured classroom should be a positive, pleasant place where students and staff alike want to be

According to Bilgic & Yurtal (2009), the term “classroom climate” is defined as “the main structure of students’ learning environment where knowledge, skills and attitudes in line with students’ education and social development are acquired”

Soltis (1984) coins the term the affective environment as the “subjective engines” of teachers and learners in thepedagogical situation:

“Sometimes it’s compulsion or curiosity that motivates the learner; sometimes it’s duty or social need that moves the teacher But for those who have truly experienced this universal human activity, there is always an expectation of a joyful subjective feeling that is recognized as ever potential by both teacher and learner in every pedagogical situation The learner has felt and seeks again the good feeling of the

mastery and understanding of a skill, or the consumatory experience of insight, appreciation, and understanding of ideas, or the thrill of discovering something not known before, or the feeling of accomplishment that comes with making sense of the World The teacher also has experienced and seeks again the joy or success found in the purposeful pedagogical activity, the empathetic sharing of the joy of the learner, and the basic human satisfaction of freely giving to another human being those things that nurture their growth as individuals and as social beings The subjective experience

is an important part of the process (p 8).”

1.4.3.3 School facilities:

Most teaching takes place in a specific physical location (a school building) and the quality of that location can affect the ability of teachers to teach, teacher morale, and the very health and safety of teachers Many factors contribute to the quality of the school building and,

in turn, affect the quality of teachers’ life, teaching and educational outcomes Successful teaching and learning take place in school buildings that are clean, quiet, safe, comfortable, and healthy (Blagojevich, Illinois Capital Development Board, & Illinois State Board of Education, 2006) There are many factors related to school facilities that affect the quality of teaching and learning According to Blagojevich (2006), among them are Indoor Air Quality, ventilation and thermal comfort, lighting, acoustics, building age and quality, school size, and class size Students, teachers, staff, and administrators all are affected by the physical environment (Blagojevich, 2006)

Having the same view of Blagojevich’s, Scheider (2002) states that poor indoor air quality (IAQ) can affect teaching and learning process in classrooms It makes teachers and students sick - and sick students and teachers can't perform as well as healthy ones (EPA 2000, Kennedy 2001, Leach 1997, as cited in Scheider, 2002)

Another area in which research has linked school facilities to teacher performance is thermal comfort Lackney (1999) showed that teachers believe that thermal comfort affects both teaching quality and learning achievement Corcoran et al (1988) focused on how the physical condition of school facilities, including thermal factors, affects teacher morale and effectiveness

The final facility condition that we note here pertains to noise levels Lackney (1999) found out that teachers believe that noise impairs academic performance Indeed, it appears that external noise causes more discomfort and lowers efficiency for teachers than for students (Lucas, 1981)

1.4.4 Social context:

Social context can make children less interested in attending school First, the opportunity costs of attending schools are often higher in rural areas (Lockheed and Verspoor, 1991, p158) especially in remote ones Many rural households are dependent on their children for help at busy times of the agricultural year such as harvest time

Second, parents in rural areas often have a lower level of education, and may attach a lower value to schooling The perceived lack of relevance of schooling may be enhanced by a rigid curriculum, often designed for a context (and sometimes culture) removed from that in rural areas Rural schools rarely adapt the curriculum to make use of local settings, or to link the curriculum to local needs (Taylor and Mulhall, 2001)

Third, even where parents place a value on schooling, they may be less able to help their children learning Parents in rural areas are less likely to be educated themselves, and so have less ability to provide support for their children Some report that they are embarrassed to discuss school topics with their children, because of their own lack of knowledge Further, homes in rural areas are often ill-equipped to meet the needs of children to study, and often lack facilities like electricity (Taylor and Mulhall, 2001)

In summary, children in rural and remote areas may be considered to have more disadvantages of getting education They are likely to have less parental encouragement to go

to school, and more alternative demands on their time, such as helping with agricultural tasks When they attend school, they may find the curriculum less relevant to their lives, and find less support for their learning from the home environment

Chapter 2: METHODOLOGY

2.1 THE SETTINGS:

2.1.1 An overview of the research site:

Quang Binh is a province in the centre of Vietnam with a population of 846.924 It consists of 7 districts, among which there are the two main remote and mountainous districts named Minh Hoa and Tuyen Hoa The school in my study, named Hoa Tien secondary school,

is located in Minh Hoa, a north-eastern district It is a mountainous and remote school, including the lower and upper secondary level At present, there are 19 classes from 6 to 12 grade (8 classes at the lower secondary level and 11 classes at the upper secondary one) with about 570 students The teaching staff composes of 36 teachers (16 are females and the others are males) Most of them are young (from 26 to 37 years old), enthusiastic and creative Almost teachers of this school live in the school’s boarding motel built beside the school

2.1.2 Descriptions of the teachers of English at Hoa Tien secondary school:

At Hoa Tien secondary school, there are five teachers of English currently working Three are female and the rest are male, at the age of from 28 to 38 Their experience in teaching English varies from 4 years to 13 years Three of them graduated from Ha Noi Foreign Languages University, the rest were from Hue Foreign Languages University It is proved that all of them are qualified and experienced English teachers Most of them are from different regions of Quang Binh (two are native, two are from Dong Hoi city) and one is from Thai Binh province

2.1.3 Descriptions of the students of English at Hoa Tien secondary school:

The school has 19 classes with over 570 students ranging from grade 6 to grade 12, at the age from 12 to 19 They learn English from grade 6 on

Most of them come from poor and large families with low income so they are not provided with good learning conditions They borrow the textbooks from their school and almost do not have reference or supplementary materials Because of disadvantage family background, after school, they have to sell goods at the local market and do farming (working in rice paddy, feeding buffalos) Moreover, most of them are Kinh people, the others are from ethnic minorities (May, Sach, Ruc) They communicate to each other in their local language called

“Nguon language” Only when talking to their teachers and people from other regions, they use the popular language Therefore, as for teachers from other regions, in their teaching process, they find it hard to understand their students and have to make greater efforts to encourage them to use Vietnamses or English when in class

2.1.4 The current situation of English teaching and learning at Hoa Tien secondary school:

2.1.4.1 The materials for teaching and learning:

At Hoa Tien secondary school, English is one of the compulsory subjects in the curriculum

As in other secondary schools in Vietnam, the textbooks currently used for teaching and learning English is a series of textbooks from “Tieng Anh 6” to “Tieng Anh 12” published by Ministry of Education and Training All of them consist of 16 units with a variety of topics From “Tieng Anh 6” to “Tieng Anh 9”, in each unit, there are two or three main parts (A, B, C) which are taught in five or six lessons Therefore, there is no detailed division in each lesson Each teacher has to adapt and design the lesson basing themselves upon their students and context From “Tieng Anh 10” to “Tieng Anh 12”, all units have the same structure, starting with the theme of the unit, followed by 4 lessons focusing on language skills (reading, speaking, listening and writing), and ending with language focus The textbooks systematically provide secondary schools English forms and use and communicative skills as well, which are suitable to their ages Moreover, they help students to have adequate understanding about the land, the people and the cultures of Vietnam, England and other

countries in the world

2.1.4.2 The current situation of English teaching and learning at Hoa Tien secondary school:

English teaching and learning in Hoa Tien secondary school is quite different from that in other developed regions in Vietnam Firstly, it is a remote mountainous area, so educational conditions are comparatively poorer than other areas Secondly, the habitants have their own language called “Nguon language” but they do not have their own written words/language As

it was mentioned in the previous section, students communicate with each other in their local language, they only use the official language when talking to their teachers or others from other regions The Vietnamese language (the working one) is not their mother tongue, now

they have to learn English as a foreign language so it is clearly inferred that they will get so many problems in learning English Thirdly, students in rural and remote areas are likely to have less parental guidance in learning English It is due to the fact that most of their parents have never known anything about English and they can not help their children’s English learning Last but not least, there is no English environment in daily life for students to practice what they learn in schools The main goal of teaching and learning English in schools

is to practice and improve communicative competence for students; but how can they –students in remote and mountainous area- use their communicative skills in such a place where there is almost no English environment for them to practice the language

In summary, students at Hoa Tien secondary school may be considered to have more disadvantages of learning English than at other schools As a result, English teachers at this school have to face many significant teaching challenges However, somewhat surprisingly under these conditions, teachers at this school prove to take pleasure in their work and enjoy being part of this small community

2.2 RESEARCH QUESTIONS:

As it has been stated, this study was carried out to give insights into the reality of English teaching of teachers at Hoa Tien secondary school as well as to find out difficulties and some major factors affecting their English teaching Therefore, the study was designed in an attempt

to seek answers to the following questions:

1 What is the reality of English teaching of teachers at Hoa Tien secondary school?

2 What are some main difficulties in teaching English in the school?

2.3 THE PARTICIPANTS:

In order to get the data for the study, 100 students and five teachers of Hoa Tien secondary school are the research objects

100 students have been randomly chosen from grade 7 to grade 12 Their ages vary from

13 to 19 They are 43 females and 57 males Their time length of learning English is different: 98% started learning English at grade 6, only 2% started at grade 10 Some of them belong to ethnic minorities such as May, Sach and Ruc

Five teachers who are teaching at the school were invited to participate in the research As being stated from the previous section, they came from different regions (two are natives, two

are from Dong Hoi city and one is from Thai Binh province) Their ages range from 28 to 38 Three are females and the rest are males Their time length of teaching English is different: minimum is 4 years and maximum is 13 years

2.4 DATA COLLECTION: The data for this project were mainly collected in two ways: questionnaires and interviews

2.4.1 Questionnaires: To gather data for the research, two questionnaires were designed: one for teachers and the other for students

2.4.1.1 Questionnaire for teachers:

The questionnaire for teachers was written in English It comprises two main parts: part one focused on teachers’ demographic information, containing the teachers’ gender, age, the number of years they have been teaching English Part two consists of ten questions both closed and open-ended The questions focused on the following categories: teachers’ professional knowledge, the ways they use teaching materials, their uses of mother tongue or the target language, their teaching strategies, and their opinions on some factors affecting their English teaching (See Appendix A)

2.4.1.2 Questionnaire for students:

The questionnaire for students was written in Vietnamese to ensure students’ accurate understanding of all the questions before answering them It also comprised the two main parts: part one is about the students’ background information, which includes the students’ grade, the number of years they have been learning English and their average marks in English

in the first semester Part two consists of ten questions The questions were designed to aim at obtaining a snapshot of: the students’ general motivation and attitudes to learning English (question 1, 2 and 3) their uses of language (question 4, 5); the facility in learning English (question 6, 7, 8); their English learning materials (question 9); and their opinions about the textbook (question 10)

(see Appendix B)

2.4.2 Interview:

In order to get in-depth data for the study, three teachers were chosen to take part in the interview Each of them was individually interviewed for 10 minutes by the researcher The interview used a list of questions to prompt the interviewees in an effort to elicit useful

information The interview questions were designed to elicit teachers’ attitudes toward their teaching job; their daily work at a remote and mountainous school; their teaching experience and their ways of teaching English (see Appendix C)

2.5.DATA ANALYSIS:

The information from the two sources was first read through for a sense of overall data Then they were analyzed both descriptively and interpretatively The information from the questionnaires was displayed in the form of tables and figures, while the information from the

interviews was used as reflective notes and quotation

Chapter 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

3.1 FINDINGS FROM THE QUESTIONNAIRES:

3.1.1 Student questionnaire:

The participants’ background information from the questionnaire shows that they are at the age of from 13 to 18 Most of them began learning English at grade 6 Moreover, their average marks of English subject were not high, ranking from 4.2 to 8.3 The questions from the questionnaire were designed to explore some information about their learning and their teachers’ teaching of English at one of the mountainous and remote schools in Quang Binh The data collected and analyzed in order to help the researcher have all-sided data for the study

 Students’ motivation and attitudes toward learning English:

The survey questionnaire consists of three questions designed to explore students’ motivation and attitudes toward learning English

For the first question, the participants were asked to respond to the six items showing reasons for learning English The result is presented in table 1, analyzed by quantitative counting the occurrences of their choice

Reasons for learning English Number of respondents

(%)

Table 1: Students’ reasons for learning English (N=100)

As seen from table 1, more than half of the respondents (60%) stated that they learned English to “pass the exams” while 20% of them learned English for their future career Only few respondents had a real interest in English (9%) or learned it to communicate in English (6%) or considered it a compulsory subject (5%) It is revealed from the data collection that a

greater number of the students were not interested in learning English and they did not have much motivation for learning English

As for the importance of getting good marks, table 2 shows that nearly half of the respondents (48%) said that they just wanted to get a pass mark, they did not care whether their mark was high or not It is proved that the result from table 1 showing their low motivation was revealed in their responses in question 2 41% of the respondents paid much attention to good marks Only few of them (11%) did not care about marks

The importance of good marks Number of respondents (%)

Table 2: Students’ responses to the importance of good marks (N=100)

With regard to the students’ attitudes to English lessons in class, table 3 shows that more than half of the respondents (56%) found their English lessons interesting, 33% of them thought that the lessons were normal As seen from the table, the portion of respondents who felt bored, excited and interested in their English lessons were nearly equal It confirms that a great number of students in this school have neutral and positive attitudes to their English lessons

Students’ attitudes to English lessons Number of respondents

Table 3: Students’ attitudes to English lessons (N=100)

 Effects of students’ first language on their English learning

The questionnaire consists of two questions related to the effects of students’ first language on their English learning Question 4 was designed to find out which language they

often used when talking to their friends and families, and question 5 examine how their language affected their English acquisition The results were demonstrated in two tables below (table 4 and 5)

Table 4 shows that there is no participant who used English or others but majority of them (79%) often used their “Nguon” language when talking to their friends and families while official language was used by the rest (21%) It is clearly understood since their friends and families often talked to each other in their language which is hard to be understood by people from other regions When being asked about whether their first language influenced their second language acquisition (question 5), more than half of the respondents (54%) stated that

it did, only 35% of them confessed their language used just a little Some respondents (11%) said that there is no influence of their local language on their English acquisition

Students’ language when communicating with

families and friends

Table 4: Students’ language when communicating with families and friends (N=100)

With regard to the frequency of using teaching aids by their teachers when teaching English in classes, table 5 below proves that majority of the respondents (62%) said that their teachers often used teaching aids in classes while 33% said that their teachers often used teaching aids Only few of them (5%) said that their teachers rarely used technologies or teaching aids in teaching process

Question 7 was designed in order to find out the frequency of learning English in the language laboratory As can be seen from the table below, all of the respondents agreed that they never learned English in language lab room The reason for this was there is no language laboratory for students to learn English

As for the English curriculum activities that the school organized, most of the participants (93%) thought that their school rarely organized English curriculum activities for them to participate in The result shows that their school did not pay much attention to organizing curriculum activities for students to practise their English

Often Sometimes Rarely Never their teachers using teaching aids in

Table 5: Students’opinions about English learning facilities (N=100)

Learning materials are a necessary factor in helping students to learn English effectively Question 9 was designed to explore students’ materials in learning English The result is demonstrated in table 6 It is proved that a majority of the participants (79%) often used textbooks in learning English Nearly half of them (47%) considered reference books were helpful for their language learning Meanwhile, workbooks which include a large number of exercises for English practice were not paid much attention to (only 17% ) It is not a surprising result that only 8% of the respondents chose the Internet as the material for learning English better and there was no selection for “newspapers/ magazines in English” It is due to the fact that students in this school were lack of English learning materials It is really hard to find newspapers or magazines in English in this region, even those in Vietnamese Moreover, there are only some rich families who have access to the Internet but most of the students in this school were from poor families who have never got a chance

Materials Textbooks Workbooks Reference

books

Newspapers in English

The result from table 6 proves that a great deal of participants considered textbooks an effective material for English learning However, how do they think about the textbooks they are using? Question 10 was designed to find out their evaluation on their textbooks and the result is presented in the table below

As seen from the table below, none of the respondents found the tasks in their textbooks easy for them In their opinions, the new textbooks were difficult for them (57%) and especially overwhelmed by the amount of vocabulary (84%) Some of the participants (21%) also stated that the contents in some units were remote from their daily life Moreover, it is an unexpected result that there are “too many tasks in each skill practice lessons” and “there are many grammar points in each unit” which were added to their questionnaires It is easily understood as all secondary schools in Vietnam have to use the same textbooks in teaching and learning English and students in this research school belong to a remote and mountainous region so most of them can not be provided with as good conditions for English learning as those in towns or cities

Students’ evaluation on their textbooks Number of respondents

(%)

Contents in some units are not familiar with their daily life 21

Others

Too many tasks in each skill practice lessons 9

There are many grammar points in each unit 11

Table 7: Students’ evaluation of their textbooks (N=100)

3.1.2.Teacher questionnaire:

In the questionnaire that handed out to the teachers, question 1 was designed to explore their attitudes toward English teaching It attempted to find out their awareness of English teaching aim which is presented in the table below

The aim of teaching English is enable students to: Number of

respondents Percentage (%) understand English grammar and do grammar

Table 8: Teachers’ attitudes toward English teaching aim (N=5)

From the table, it is obvious that most of the participants considered “understand English

grammar and do grammar exercises” (80%) and “do exams well”(60%) as the aims of

teaching English It was surprisingly unexpected that “do well in exams” which most of them mentioned was not listed in the questionnaire A minority of them (40%) selected

“communicate with English-speaking people”, “read simple texts in English” and “study

abroad” as the goals of teaching English to the students It may be due to the fact that

although the main purpose of learning English is to communicate, in their final examinations there is no task of their listening and speaking skills Thus, students in this mountainous and remote school learn English only to pass the tests or examinations Consequently, some teachers think that in teaching process, they only help their students to understand grammar points in the textbooks so that they can do grammar tasks or exercises well It is proved that teachers in this school do not pay much attention to speaking and reading skills as well as orienting their students to study abroad