Những thách thức trong việc áp dụng khung năng lực chuẩn quốc gia cho sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số nghiên cứu tại trường đại học tây bắc

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES  NGUYỄN ĐỨC ÂN THE CHALLENGES OF IMPLEMENTING THE NATIONAL PR

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES



NGUYỄN ĐỨC ÂN

THE CHALLENGES OF IMPLEMENTING

THE NATIONAL PROFICIENCY STANDARDS

WITH ETHNIC MINORITY STUDENTS:

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY AT TAY BAC UNIVERSITY

Những thách thức trong việc áp dụng khung năng lực chuẩn quốc gia cho sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số: Nghiên cứu tại trường Đại học

Tây Bắc

M.A COMBINED PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111

Hanoi – 2016

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES



NGUYỄN ĐỨC ÂN

THE CHALLENGES OF IMPLEMENTING

THE NATIONAL PROFICIENCY STANDARDS

WITH ETHNIC MINORITY STUDENTS:

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY AT TAY BAC UNIVERSITY

Những thách thức trong việc áp dụng khung năng lực chuẩn quốc gia cho sinh viên dân tộc thiểu số: Nghiên cứu tại trường Đại học

Tây Bắc

M.A COMBINED PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111

Supervisor: Assoc Prof Lê Văn Canh

Hanoi - 2016

DECLARATION

I hereby certify that the thesis entitled “The challenges of implementing the

national proficiency standards to ethnic minority students: an exploratory study

at Tay Bac University” is entirely my own research work and has not been taken

from the work of others save and to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my work

Hanoi, 2016

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

First and foremost, I would like to show my deepest gratitude to Associate Professor Le Van Canh, my supervisor, who supported and encouraged me generously throughout my research I do appreciate his rigorous and meticulous working attitude as well as his academic professionalism During the process of conducting the current study, he gave me many sound suggestions and comments, which helped a great deal in working out the final thesis Without his illuminating instruction, I could not have gone this far

Secondly, I would like to acknowledge the support of the staff at the Training Bureau who gave me generous access to the reports and particularly of the Dean, Vice-Dean and Group Leaders of the Faculty of Foreign Languages, who provided

me with related legal documents

Thirdly, my heart-felt thanks go to all the participants who contributed data to this study Without their enthusiastic participation and outstanding cooperation, this thesis would not have been completed I wish them the very best on their English learning and teaching paths

Last but not least, I would like to extend my gratitude and deepest love to all

my family members; especially my dearest parents, my husband and my elder sister, who always encourage me with all their love, understanding and accompanying Besides, I would like to thank all my dear friends at Son La who have given me considerable assistance and kindly encouragement

ABSTRACT

Stepping into the new century, Vietnam has been facing more and more opportunities and challenges than ever before in the global and regional competitive environments.English, the widely used international language, has been regarded as the powerful tool for national sustainable development and personal success The National Project 2020 launched by the Government is an attempt to achieve an obvious advance in labor force’s English language competence by 2020 The common language framework CEFR-V, which allows the standardization in the field of English education nationwide, was introduced to ensure the consistency for measuring learners’ proficiency-and-progress of English language and the quality of the educational outcomes However, its implementation is just at the early stage but

a hot issue and a matter of argument among policy makers, managers and educators

in the field of foreign language education for its various complicate challenges faced by its target users

By providing a picture of the current complex English learning situations of minority students in such an ethnically diverse university like Tay Bac University, this study aims at pointing out what formidable challenges those students are facing

in achieving the outcome standard by exploring factors affecting English language education, and how realistic in implementing the mandated level of English proficiency to students of ethnic minorities The research was accomplished by using data from the placement test and questionnaires of 159 students of five majors, and from the interviews of 2 lecturers who were involved with student participants Analysis of the survey allowed for purposeful selection of 7 students for the focus group interview to fully investigate the research problem

Results indicated the minority students’ prominent difficulties including their tri-language barrier, low English background level, negative attitudes, low learning motivations, poor-and-inflexible learning strategies, inactiveness and over-anxiety

in English learning; difficult curriculum and strange textbook; teacher behavior; and

inadequate time The revealed findings cast serious doubt on the outcome standard attainment of the target users - the minority students at TBU I propose in the conclusion some recommendations to enhance minority students’ English language learning and outcome achievement by selecting more appropriate materials and textbooks to better suit the local students’ needs and levels; as well as boosting up their positive attitudes on English language learning and attainment Especially, I emphasize the roles of policy makers in adjusting their great expectations for outcome standard achievement by minority students with a more realistic viewpoint

of their actual levels of English and attention to their voices

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background to the study

1.1.1 English education in Vietnam

Vietnam has a complex history of language policies toward English Before

1986, English was taught in Vietnam but not as widely as French, Russia or Chinese In the period 1986-2002, English was introduced as a compulsory subject

at upper secondary level and as an elective subject at lower secondary school nation-wide However, English language education (ELE) during this time was mainly grammar-based, and research on language teaching and learning was inadequate Following Vietnam’s economic reform and open-door policy to reintegrate to the world at the beginning of the 21st century, ELE was more valued With the national project of new curriculum and new textbooks launched by the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) in 2002, English was a compulsory subject at both lower and upper secondary levels and an elective subject

at primary level

Stepping into the new century, Vietnam has been facing more and more opportunities and challenges than ever before in the global and regional competitive environments With Vietnam’s entry into World Trade Organization and freer movement of labor very soon due to the ASEAN community, English, the widely used international language, has been regarded as a powerful tool for both national sustainable development and personal success; ability in English could well become more important At the national level, ELE has been viewed as the gatekeeper for national industrialization, modernization, development and international-and-regional integration As for individuals, proficiency in English is seen as a key to a host of opportunities: to enter and graduate from university; to go abroad for further education; to secure desirable jobs in public and private sectors, foreign-invested companies or joint ventures; and to be eligible for promotion to higher professional ranks The fast process of globalization, the strongest external force for English language teaching and learning, particularly in the ten recent years, has made it

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