Experimental Research on the Effect of Self-monitoring Technique on Improving Writing Skill among English-major Freshmen at a University in Hanoi

MINOR PROGRAM THESIS FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY CODE: 60140111 EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH ON THE EFFECT OF SELF-MONITORING TECHNIQUE ON IMPROVING WRITING SKILL AMONG ENGLISH-MA

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

MẠC THỊ HUYỀN

Nghiên cứu thực nghiệm về hiệu quả của kỹ thuật tự giám sát đối với việc cải thiện kỹ năng viết cho sinh viên năm nhất chuyên Anh tại một trường

đại học tại Hà Nội

M.A MINOR PROGRAM THESIS

FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY

CODE: 60140111

EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH ON THE EFFECT OF

SELF-MONITORING TECHNIQUE ON IMPROVING WRITING SKILL AMONG ENGLISH-MAJOR FRESHMEN AT A UNIVERSITY IN HANOI

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

MẠC THỊ HUYỀN

Nghiên cứu thực nghiệm về hiệu quả của kỹ thuật tự giám sát đối với việc cải thiện kỹ năng viết cho sinh viên năm nhất chuyên Anh tại một trường

đại học tại Hà Nội

M.A MINOR PROGRAM THESIS

FIELD: ENGLISH TEACHING METHODOLOGY

CODE: 60140111 SUPERVISOR: Dr TRẦN THỊ THU HIỀN

HANOI 2016

EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH ON THE EFFECT OF

SELF-MONITORING TECHNIQUE ON IMPROVING WRITING SKILL AMONG ENGLISH-MAJOR FRESHMEN AT A UNIVERSITY IN HANOI

DECLARATION

I hereby state that I, Mac Thi Huyen, being a candidate for the degree of Master

of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the university relating to the retention and use of Master Thesis deposited in the library

In terms of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care, loan or reproduction of the paper

Signature

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is my pleasure to thank those who made this thesis possible

Firstly, I owe my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr Tran Thi Thu Hien, whose encouragement, guidance and support from the initial to the final level enabled me to develop an understanding of the subject

Secondly, I would like to thank Ms Pham Thu Duong and Ms Le Thi Thu Thuy, two teachers of English at the research site (English Department, a Hanoi-based university) for their invaluable assistance together with professional advice during the research time

Thirdly, this thesis would not have been possible without the enthusiastic participation of 58 English-major freshmen at English Department of the university where the research was carried out

Lastly, I offer my regards and blessings to all of those who supported me in any respect during the completion of the study

Mac Thi Huyen

1

PART I: INTRODUCTION

This part is dedicated to introducing the rationale of the study, the problem to be addressed in the study, the aims and objectives of the study, and the research questions to be answered It will also present the scope of the study, an overview

of the employed methods and the design of the study

1 Rationale

Writing is considered a complicated and multifaceted task Good writing involves thinking that may lead the writer to express himself/herself in a more effective way For learners of English, writing is a vital skill, one of the main criteria to measure a learner’s second language proficiency Unfortunately, writing is a difficult skill which is not easy to be improved Therefore, various approaches to teaching writing have been recommended to help cope with this problem Of all, self-monitoring is a technique the effectiveness of which is a controversial issue among many researchers As a matter of fact, there exists some research on self-monitoring in teaching However, little attention has been paid to self-monitoring in writing teaching In Vietnam, self-monitoring remains

a totally new concept which has not been researched in academic papers Hopefully, this thesis will help shed light on the effect of self-monitoring in writing class in the specific context of a university in Vietnam

The context chosen by the researcher to conduct this research is English Department of a Hanoi-based university The participants all are first-year majors Of the four language skills taught here, writing is regarded as not only challenging but also boring by the mainstream first-year major students The students encounter numerous difficulties when being asked to produce in-class texts It is actually hard for them to produce a high quality text due to such reasons as language incompetence, lack of motivation and a traditionally passive way of learning They tend to ignore writing and pay more attention to the three other language skills As a result, the students have fewer opportunities of success at academic writing when they move to higher levels in the later years

despite adequate oral communication skills This long term consequence is serious and worth being taken into consideration How to teach the first year English-major students to write well is a question posed in the many past years drawing a lot of attention from the teachers

With the desire for enhancing the quality of writings produced by major freshmen as well as developing learners’ autonomy, the researcher decides to

carry out the thesis “Experimental Research on the Effect of Self-Monitoring

Technique on Improving Writing Skill among English-Major Freshmen at a University in Hanoi” by applying the self-monitoring technique in practice in

two writing classes This study is hoped to be successful and bring about feasible applications towards upgrading the learning and teaching writing for English-major freshmen at this university as well as at other universities

2 Aims and objectives

The research aims at investigating the effect of self-monitoring technique on improving writing skill among English-major freshmen at a university in Hanoi This fundamental aim can be achieved when the two following objectives are met The first objective of the study is to find out the effects of self-monitoring technique on the students’ writing improvement Next, the researcher wishes to explore the students’ attitudes towards self-monitoring technique

3 Scope of the study

The scope of the research has been made quite clear from the title:

“Experimental research on the effect of self-monitoring technique on improving

writing skill among English-major freshmen at a university in Hanoi.”

Firstly, the research focuses on “self-monitoring technique in writing.” To be

more specific, it refers to the process in which students write notes or annotations on their writings before handing it to the teacher This will help students place themselves in the position of readers, not only writers As for teachers, self-monitoring technique gives them an opportunity to offer feedback

I

REFERENCES

(1) Arndt V (1987), “Six Writers in Search of Texts: A Protocol-based Study of

L1 and L2 Writing”, ELT Journal, 41 (4), pp 257 – 267

(2) Benson P (2001), Teaching and Researching Autonomy in Language

Learning, Pearson Education, England

(3) Brannon L., Knight M., Neverow-Turk V (1982), Writers Writing,

Boynton/Cook Publishers, Portsmouth

(4) Byrne D (1991), Teaching Writing Skills, Longman, London

(5) Chen X (2009), “Self – monitoring feedback in English writing teaching”,

Research in Theoretical Linguistics, 3 (12), pp 109 – 117

(6) Charles M (1990), “Responding to problems in written English using a

student self – monitoring technique”, ELT Journal, 44 (4), pp 286 – 293 (7) Cohen L., Manion L., Morrison K (2007), Research Methods in Education,

Routledge, New York

(8) Cooper J O., Heron T E., Heward W L (1987), Applied Behavior Analysis,

Merrill, Columbus

(9) Cresswell A (2000), “Self – monitoring in student writing: developing

learner responsibility”, ELT Journal, 54 (3), pp 235 – 244

(10) Faerch C., Kasper G (1983), Kommunikation im (Sprach-) Unterricht,

University of Utrecht, Utrecht

(11) Faigley L., Witte S (1981), “Analyzing Revision”, College Composition

and Communication, 32 (4), pp 400 – 414

(12) Flower L., Hayes J R (1981), “A Cognitive Process Theory of Writing”,

College Composition and Communication, 32 (4), pp 365 – 387

(13) Harris J (1993), Introducing Writing, Penguin English, UK

(14) Hillocks G (1987), “Synthesis of Research on Teaching Writing”,

Educational Leadership 5 (87), pp 71-82

(15) Hyland F (2000), “ESL writers and feedback: giving more autonomy to

students”, Language Teaching Research 4 (I), pp 33 – 54

(16) Kazdin A E (1974), “monitoring and Behavior Change”, Self-control: Power to the Person, Brooks/Cole, Monterey

(17) Kormos J (1999), “Monitoring and self-repair in L2”, Language Learning,

49, pp 286 – 293

(18) Leki I (1976), Academic Writing, Techniques and Task, ST Martin’s

Press, New York

(19) Leki I (1990), “Feedback in the writing process: a model and method for

implementation”, ELT Journal 44 (4), pp 294 – 304

(20) Mace F C., Belfiore P J., Hutchison J M (2001), “Operant theory and

research on self-regulation”, Self-regulated learning and academic

achievement, pp 39-65

(21) Muncie J (2000), “Using written teacher feedback in EFL composition

classes”, ELT Journal 54 (I), pp 47 – 53

(22) Murray D M (1978), Internal Revision: A Process Discovery, the National

Council of Teachers of English, Illinois

(23) Nelson R O., Hayes S C (1981), “Theoretical Explanations for Reactivity

in Self-monitoring”, Behavior Modification, 5, pp 3 – 14

(24) Nunan D (1992), Research Methods in Language Learning, Oxford

University Press, Oxford

(25) O’Malley J M., Chamot A U (1985), “Learning strategies applications

with students of English as a second language”, TESOL Quarterly, 27, pp

679 – 689

(26) Perl S (1979), “The Composing Process of Unskilled College Writers”,

Research in the Teaching of English, 13, p 43

(27) Raimes A (1993), Techniques in Teaching Writing, Oxford University

Press, Oxford

(28) Rozakis L E (1997), The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Creative Writing,

Alpha Books, UK

III

(29) Schunk D H (1983), “Progress self – monitoring: Effects on children’s

self – efficacy and achievement”, Journal of Experimental Education, 51,

pp 89 – 93

(30) Shapiro E S., Ackerman A., (1983), “Increasing productivity rates in adult

mentally retarded clients: The failure of self – monitoring”, Applied

Research in Mental Retardation, 4, pp 163 – 181

(31) Susser S H (1981), Self-monitoring success and failure: Evidence for a

mediating mechanism, Paper presented at annual convention of the American

Psychological Association, Los Angeles, CA (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No ED 217348)

(32) Thorensen C E., Mahoney M J (1974), Behavioral Self-Control, New

York

(33) Tribble C (1996), Writing, Oxford University Press, Oxford

(34) Wenden A (1991), Learner Strategies for Learner Autonomy, London:

Prentice Hall International

(35) White R V (1991), Process Writing, Longman, London

(36) Xiang W (2004), “Encouraging self – monitoring in writing by Chinese

students”, ELT Journal 58 (3), pp 238 – 246

(37) Zamel V (1983), “The Composing Processes of Advanced ESL Students:

Six Case Studies”, TESOL Quarterly, 17 (2), pp 165 – 187

(38) Zimmerman B J., Risemberg R (1997), “Becoming a self – regulated

writer: a social cognitive perspective”, Contemporary Educational

Psychology, 22, pp 73 – 101