Students’ attitude towards the project works in enhancing autonomous learning in english speaking II at vien dong college

I certify that this thesis which entitled “Students’ Attitude towards the Project Works in Enhancing Autonomous Learning in English Speaking II at Vien Dong College” is my work.. This st

I certify that this thesis which entitled “Students’ Attitude towards the Project

Works in Enhancing Autonomous Learning in English Speaking II at Vien Dong College” is my work

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this paper does not contain material published elsewhere or extracted on whole or in part from a thesis by which I have qualified for or been awarded another degree or diploma

No other person’s work has been used without acknowledgement in the main text of the thesis

The thesis has not been submitted for any degree in any other tertiary institution

Ho Chi Minh, May 2017

TRUONG THI THANH CANH

Next, I would like to send my deep thank to all the lecturers, who have laid my background knowledge at the Master program in Ho Chi Minh city Open University, Vietnam This background helps me to have intensive knowledge in the scientific arena as well as improve my personal skills to conduct research papers

Then, my particular gratefulness is sent to all of my students who have participated in the PBL implementation They were eager to join and fill in questionnaire together with answering the interview questions

Furthermore, my thanks go to my classmates in TESOL 08, who have been with me as family members to share happiness and difficulties

Last but not least, my words of appreciation are sent to my family members as well as my beloved husband for their endless love and care

This study which entitles “Students’ Attitudes towards the Project Works in Enhancing Autonomous Learning in English Speaking II at Vien Dong College” was conducted with the following objectives: (1) to investigate students’ attitudes towards the use of project works to enhance their autonomous learning in an English speaking class; (2) to find out to what extent students believe that using project works can promote their autonomous learning; and (3) to figure out difficulties that learners have during the time they conduct their two projects, namely, Poster designing and Video making project The study population was 81 first-year students who took the course English speaking II An open-ended questionnaire, semi-structured interview and class observation were employed as research instruments for the quantitative and qualitative data collection Descriptive statistics such as mean score (M) and percentages were used to analyze and explain the data

The result firstly shows that the students have positive attitudes towards the use

of project works in English class that may have enhanced their autonomous learning Then, it reveals students’ preference in having more project works to do in their English classes Nonetheless, using project works’ evaluation as one of criteria for course assessment is a controversial issue among these students In addition, students’ interest in utilizing information technology devices is remarked as one of the significant findings in this study Furthermore, some difficulties when conducting projects are found, namely, time constraints, teamwork conflicts, cultural differences and technology problems In short, because of students’ positive attitudes toward Poster designing and Video making project in enhancing their autonomous learning, it

is suggested that institutions should consider to integrate these two projects in their second language training curriculum In addition, further researches on other types of project works should be taken to complete the picture on using project works as instances of Project-based Learning to enhance students’ autonomous learning

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii

ABSTRACT iii

LIST OF FIGURES vii

LIST OF DIAGRAMS viii

LIST OF TABLES ix

ABBREVIATIONS x

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1Background of the study 1

1.2 Statement of problem 3

1.3 Research purposes 4

1.4 Research questions 4

1.5 Significance of the study 5

1.6 Thesis organization 6

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 7

2.1 Project-based Learning 7

2.1.1 Project-based Learning theory 7

2.1.2 Definition of Project work 14

2.2 Autonomous learning 24

2.2.1 Definition of autonomous learning 24

2.3 Incorporating autonomous learning in the language classroom through Project works 26

2.4 Learner attitude and their role in language learning 29

2.4.1Definition of learner attitude 29

2.4.2 The importance of attitude in language learning 30

2.5 Studies related to the students’ attitudes towards Project-based Learning implementation to promote students’ autonomous learning 30

2.5.1 Studies related to the PBL implementation to enhance autonomous learning 31

2.5.2 Studies related to the students’ attitudes towards PBL implementation to enhance autonomous learning 34

2.7 Summary of Chapter 2 40

Chapter 3: METHODOLOGY 42

3.1 Research setting 42

3.2 Participants 43

3.3 Research design 43

3.4 Research procedure 44

3.4.1 English speaking II course 44

3.4.2 Project work implementation 44

3.5 Data collection instruments 49

3.5.1 Attitude questionnaire 49

3.5.2 Interview 54

3.5.3 Observation 55

3.6 Data collection procedure 58

3.6.1 Administering the questionnaire, interview and class observation 58

3.7 Data analysis 59

3.7.1 Mean (M) 60

3.7.2 Percentages 60

3.7.3 Data analysis of questionnaire 60

3.7.4 Data analysis of interview 61

3.7.5 Data analysis of classroom observation 61

3.8 Summary of Chapter 3 61

Chapter 4: DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDING DISCUSSION 62

4.1 The demographic information of participants 62

4.2 Response rate 63

4.3 Analytical results 63

4.3.1 Research question 1 63

4.3.2 Research question 2 72

4 3.3 Research question 3 83

4.4 Discussion of the findings 85

4.4.3 Students’ attitudes towards the effect of Project works on enhancing their

autonomous learning 87

4.4.5 Students’ difficulties while doing Project works 89

4.5 Summary of Chapter 4 90

Chapter 5: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 91

5.1 Conclusion 91

5.2 Contributions of the study 92

5.3 Limitations 93

5.4 Recommendations 93

5.4.1 Recommendations to students 94

5.4.2 Recommendations to English teachers 94

5.4.3 Recommendations to the college 95

5.5 Suggestions for further research 96

REFERENCES 98

APPENDIX 1 (A) 109

APPENDIX 1 (B) 113

APPENDIX 3 119

APPENDIX 4 121

APPENDIX 5 123

APPENDIX 6 124

APPENDIX 7 126

APPENDIX 8 129

APPENDIX 10 134

Figure 2.1 Autonomous learning……….27 Figure 2.2 Conceptual framework ……… 40 Figure 4.1 Students’ responses on the effect of PW on their creativity

enhancement……… 64 Figure 4.2 Students’ attitude towards English lesson with PW……… 67 Figure 4.3 Results of student’ attitude towards the use of PW in English

speaking class from the observation ……….80 Figure 4.4 Students’ difficulties with PW ……….83

Diagram 3.1 Study research instruments ………49

Table 2.2 Developing a Project in Language classroom ……… 20

Table 2.3 Summary of previous studies in the PBL implementation on enhancing students’ autonomous learning……… 32

Table 3.1 Evaluation scale for projects……… 38

Table 3.2 Steps in doing Poster project ………47

Table 3.3 Development of Video making project ………48

Table 3.4 Summary of questionnaire ……… 52

Table 3.5 Reliability coefficient of the questionnaire ……….57

Table 3.6 Schedule of classroom observation ……….48

Table 3.8 Summary of the content of the observation checklist ……….60

Table 3.9 Evaluation criteria of the questionnaire ……… 51

Table 4.1 Summary of the demographic information of the participants …………62

Table 4.2 Students’ motivation in English speaking class with PW ………66

Table 4.3 Students’ attitude towards PE and their learning skill……… 68

Table 4.4 Students’ opinion on using PW as a part of English speaking course ….69 Table 4.5 Students’ attitude s towards the use of PW in English speaking class ….71 Table 4.6 Students’ attitudes towards learning responsibility enhanced by PW… 73

Table 4.7 Students’ attitudes towards practical learning enhanced by PW……… 74

Table 4.8 Students’ attitudes on their ability in self-discovering new information 75

Table 4.9 Students; attitudes on self-evaluation ability………76

Table 4.10 Students’ attitude on their dependence on teachers………77

Table 4.11 Questionnaire items on teamwork ……… 78

Table 4.12 Students’ attitude towards autonomous learning………82

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION

This study aims at investigating students’ attitudes towards the use of project works as instances of Project-based Learning in enhancing their autonomous learning in English speaking class In this chapter, the author presents relevant background information, statement of problems, research purposes, research questions and significance of this study The chapter concludes by the overview for five chapters of the present study

1.1 Background of the study

The requirements of 21st century have placed a renewed emphasis on enhancing students’ autonomous learning experience They need to learn how to learn and think autonomously Holec (1981, cited in Skai & Takagi, 2009) claims that students need to have the ability to take charge of their learning Thus, it is believed that one of the key factors for students to be successful in this challenging society is their learning autonomy They need to be active rather than passive and figure out the answers rather than be told them However, fostering students’ autonomous learning is not an easy issue In fact, it is challenging to encourage students to be autonomous learners, especially in the countries which were strongly affected by Confucian heritage like Vietnam Students from these countries are generally viewed as typically passive, unwilling to ask questions or speak up in class and often based on memorizing rather than understanding knowledge delivered by teachers (Nguyen et al 2005)

For centuries, Vietnamese students have been educated with the passive learning style along with the teacher-centered belief (Nguyen, 2014) Furthermore, they tend to believe that sitting in classes will give them the information they need

to continue in “spoon-feeding” culture, which “in the long run, teaches nothing but the shape of the spoon” (Foster, 1951, as cited in Halonen, 2002, p.56) This phenomenon has been reported by many researchers Rao (2001), for instance,

claims that most of students are less autonomous, and they dislike “ambiguity”,

“uncertainty” or “fuzziness” Being consistent with Rao (2001), Bigg (2003) points out one more weakness of Vietnamese students is the lack of critical thinking skill These problematic issues are restated in the conclusion made by Stephen et al (2006) To identify problems of teaching and learning at selected Vietnamese universities, they conducted an observation in one year, then, gave a summary of main findings as follow:

- Ineffective teaching methods, which have high a dependence on lecturers and little use of active learning techniques, were used

- There was a lack of emphasis on conceptual learning or higher order learning

- Students’ learning is passive

- Students spend too much time in classes each day (and there was) no deep learning comprehension

(Stephen et al., 2006, p.6)

To sum up, most of the scholars share the same viewpoint that Vietnamese students are less autonomous, lack of critical thinking skill (Rao, 2001; Biggs, 2003), and dependent as passive learners (Stephen, et al., 2006, p.6) Undoubtedly, these weaknesses will cause negative impacts on their learning process, especially

in foreign language learning

Being aware of this problematic situation, educators are scrambling to innovate their teaching and learning approaches to better meet the needs of students

in improving their autonomous learning The demanding task for teachers is creating student-centered learning environment where students can experience the learning process by themselves They themselves decide to take their learning responsibility autonomously and become engaging builders of a new knowledge and active as lifelong learners A teaching method, namely Project-based Learning (PBL), which has gained the international popularity in recent years, is highly suggested as an appropriate method of teaching (Tricia, 2000) that can help to solve

the mentioned problem PBL is a teaching methodology that uses student-centered projects to facilitate student autonomous learning (Mergendoller, 2006), and is touted as superior to traditional teaching methods in improving problem solving and thinking skills, and engaging students in their learning (Berends et al., 2003) Through completing projects, learners are inspired to learn autonomously In addition, they are actively engaged with real world problems and challenges in order to acquire deeper understand (Felipe et al, 2016) Consequently, PBL is worth investigating as it motivates students’ learning autonomy (William & Burden,

1997, as cited in Nada, 2015)

1.2 Statement of problem

In Vietnam, at the tertiary level, there are some researchers, who conducted studies on students’ learning style Many of them agree that Vietnamese students are generally passive Tran (2013), in her study conducted at VNU University of Languages and International Studies, claims that Vietnamese students are generally viewed as typically obedient, shy and unwilling to question their teachers in class This issue is restated in another study: “Some Utilization of Project-based Learning for Vietnamese University Students of English in the Intercultural Communication Course” by Ngo (2014) He says that Vietnamese students learning style “is likely

to be passive” They are “deep-rooted in repeating and repeating after their teachers” That passive learning style is popular in the educating system, and many students still consider teachers as the main source of knowledge and rarely speak up

in class Ngo (2014)

At Vien Dong College, where the author is working, students are no exception With her two year teaching experience at this College, she comes to a conclusion that the lack of autonomy in learning has been a serious problem among students, especially with those who major in Foreign Languages Department The similar viewpoint is shared by her colleagues All five lecturers who participated in

an informal conversation via email, relating to Vien Dong students’ autonomous

learning agreed that the students are passive One of them explained that “students are afraid of being asked or are unwilling to ask about the lessons”

There have been some certain reasons for the mentioned issue First and foremost, students are characterized with Asian culture as to be passive They seem

to be satisfied with provided knowledge provided by lecturers and make no connections with real life In addition, they are reluctant to communicate in English, even with their peers or their lecturers Secondly, students are not autonomous in learning and investigating information Thus, they hesitate to use available services

at college to improve their English skills Last but not least, the reason may come from unsuitable teaching methods, which have not yet inspired students’ curiosity With the practical teaching experience and her ambition to improve the recent teaching and learning situation at her workplace, the author would apply Project-based Learning as a new method to motivate students to study English and encourage their autonomous lifelong learning

1.3 Research purposes

The aim of this study is to investigate students’ attitude towards the use of project works as instance of PBL teaching method in enhancing their autonomous learning in English speaking class Then, the study purpose expands to focus on students’ belief in the effectiveness of project works in enhancing their autonomous learning The last sub-question covers with the idea to figure out the learning difficulties that students have during the time of doing their learning projects as instance of PBL method

To achieve these above goals, the author focuses on finding answers for the following research questions

1.4 Research questions

In priority, this study was conducted to figure out answers for the three research questions:

(1) What are the students’ attitudes towards project work implementation

in the English Speaking II course?

(2) To what extent do students believe that the employment of project works enhances autonomous learning?

1.5 Significance of the study

The initial purpose of the current study is to bring up a significant contribution

to Vien Dong college, particularly, to its lecturers and students as well Then, the result from this study is expected to contribute to the limited Vietnamese literature

on using PBL in enhancing autonomous learning for ESL students by investigating learners’ attitudes to this new method

Firstly, this PBL implementation can have some certain contributions to the College development Specifically, it is stated in Vien Dong’s mission that the College has geared up to train students with practical orientation with “learning by doing” training philosophy The reasons which underscore this philosophy connects

to the idea that students are able to apply theoretical knowledge into real situations

In this case, for ESL students, the expected learning outcome is they need to know how to communicate with foreigners in real life communication and pass some international English proficiency tests Thus, this study pioneers in applying PBL as

a teaching method that can meet the demand of the college

Secondly, for the lecturers, they can take advantages of the study’ result It provides them with a reference for designing teaching activities to maximize students’ positive attitudes and reduce negative ones in classroom To some extent, students would be more enthusiastic in joining lessons, which encourages teachers’ teaching commitment

Lastly, for the students, who directly participate in the projects, they couls benefit from this new method of learning Obviously, they have opportunities to

manage their study, be self-regulated, collaborate with teammates to solve problems and actively involve in learning process All of these things build up their learning motivation and critical thinking skills that are really helpful for their future

In short, with the above potential mentioned benefit for Project-based Learning literature, teachers and students, Project-based Learning should be applied

as a teaching and learning method to promote students’ autonomous learning, especially in English speaking classes

1.6 Thesis organization

The study consists of five chapters:

Chapter 1 mentions to the introduction that links to the issues of using

Project-based Learning teaching method in promote autonomous learning for Vietnamese ESL students, the statement of purpose, research questions, the study significance and the overview of the study

Chapter 2 elaborates on the literature that the author bases on to conduct this

study This part goes with the theoretical concepts of autonomous learning, based Learning theory, the study framework and previous studies that were carried out with similar research aims

Project-Chapter 3 demonstrates the research methodology employed to conduct this

research paper The presented parts include research site, participants, research instruments, and data collection procedure

Chapter 4 analyses, interprets and gives discussion on the data collected from

the Project-based Learning teaching method via PW implementation

Chapter 5 concludes the core points of the study and gives implication for the

future research papers that aim to investigate the similar issue as this paper

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter introduces the relevant literature to the present study It firstly starts with definitions of project works, project types, and theory of Project-based Learning, its benefits as well as challenging, and implementing steps Then, in the next section, the author synthesizes several themes emergent in the literature, including autonomous learning What follows is a short part for defining attitude and its important role in guiding learners’ behavior towards PBL implementation The chapter concludes by summarizing some studies conducted by different researchers on the role of PBL in English teaching area and students’ attitudes towards the use of project work in learning

2.1 Project-based Learning

2.1.1 Project-based Learning theory

According to the Buck Institute for Education (BIE, 2015), a terrific resource for educators who desire to have effective means of conducting researches on PBL, this method had its roots in the early 1900s In recent years, this theory seems to be enjoying increased attention and is considered as a promising method that can attract students to learning process (Ellison & Freedberg, 2015) Nonetheless, review of literature suggests that there is no consensus as to the definition of PBL

In this study, the author takes a consideration on some raised by researchers such as Dewey (1938), Thomas (2010), Mergendoller, 2006), Bell (2010), and a group of educators, BIE (2015)

Originally, Dewey (1938, cited in Thomas, 2010) claims that PBL is an implemented learning and teaching model developed based on the concept that learning should not only prepare one for life, but should also be an integral part of life itself In other words, his belief when developing this approach is based on the relationship between learning process and real life

In another way, PBL is considered as a comprehensive approach to classroom teaching and learning that is designed to engage students in investigation of complex, authentic problems and carefully designed products and tasks (Mergendoller, 2002)

Differing from the above educators, Thomas (2010) defines PBL by providing the following essential features:

- Students learning knowledge to tackle realistic problems as they would be solved in the real world

- Increased student control over his or her learning

- Teachers serving as coaches and facilitators of inquiry and reflection

- Students (usually, but not always) working in pairs or groups

Then, more specifically, PBL is clarified as the learning method that places students at the center of the learning process Bell (2010) points out that in a project based learning classroom, students are provided with a topic which they should develop through researches or project works for their individual or group learning and teachers should monitor the project performed by students Students, in this learning framework, are trained to be critical and responsible for their learning (Bell, 2010) It is widely used to replace the traditional teaching method in which the teacher, who is the center, strictly follows the teaching plan In a project-based learning classroom, the teacher leads the students to the learning that they desire or

to the learning which follows the project objectives The project-based learning process thus involves an in-depth learning process with systematic learning management to get useful and applicable results, to create motivation, and to reinforce necessary living skills (BIE, 2015) Project-based learning has complicated working procedure and requires more time for operation However, it is flexible and the learning process involves interaction and cooperation among learners, between learners and teachers More importantly, when the teacher implements the project and the project is completed, the learners will feel proud of

themselves This generates motivation to learners to perform better projects in the future (Jung, Jun, & Gruenwald, 2001) Therefore, when teachers successfully implement project-based learning, students can be highly motivated, feel actively involved in their own learning, and produce complex, high-quality work (Blumenfeld et al., 1991) As a consequence, PBL provides students opportunities

to gain deep understanding concepts and potentially allows them to solve society’s problems (Moalosi et al., 2012)

Obviously, each of the researchers has their own way to approach the theory

of Project-based Learning Thus, it is not easy to give a concise definition However, no matter how different their beliefs are, there are some identical features that they share, which are then summarized by the Buck Institute for Education in www.bie.org (BIE, 2015), a nonprofit organization that has promoted and supported the implementation of Project-based Learning for the past 25 years All of these elements are divided into three groups: (1) Student Learning Goals; (2) Essential Project Design Elements; and (3) Project Based Teaching Practice These three groups have a close integration which is illustrated in the following diagram

Diagram 2.1 Gold Standard PBL

(Adapted from Setting the Standard for Project Based Learning: A Proven

Approach to Rigorous Classroom Instruction, by John Larmer, John Mergendoller,

Suzie Boss (ASCD 2015, cited in www.bie.org)

To help readers pursue a profound understanding, they also provide the explanation for the above elements presented in the diagram 2.1 as follow:

- Key Knowledge, Understanding & Key Success Skills: This element

refers to success skills such as critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration, and self-management and other possible habits of mind and work and personal qualities (such as perseverance or creativity)

- Challenging Problem or Question: It is suggested that projects are

designed in the form of open-ended, student-friendly “driving question” that focus

on their task so as they can challenge students without intimidating

- Sustained Inquiry: During PBL time, students need to incorporate

different information sources, mixing the traditional idea of “research” with more real-world, filed-based interviews with experts

- Authenticity: A project can be considered as the authentic one when it

has authentic context, provide the use of real-world processes, tasks, tools and performance standards and has real impact on others and it speaks to students’ own concern, interest, cultures, identities and issues in their life

- Student Voice & Choice: Having a say in a project creates a sense of

ownership in students; they care more about the project and work harder

- Reflection: Reflection can occur informally, as part of classroom

culture and dialogue, but should also be an explicit part of project journals, scheduled formative assessment, discussion at project checkpoints, and public presentations of student work

- Critique & Revision: Students should be taught how to give and

receive constructive peer feedback that will improve project processes and products, guided by rubrics, models, and formal feedback/ critique protocol

presentation of a solution to a problem or answer to a driving question

In this definition described by BIE (2015), all the features of Project-based Learning theory mentioned by previous scholars are fully described Moreover, its outstanding point is recognized by drawing on the language conception of learning that matches the requirements of the 21st century that students are in need Thus, the author would take this definition, given by the Buck Institute for Education (BIE, 2015), as the fundamental theory for this research paper, which emphasizes

on the crucial elements of PBL such as: Key Knowledge, Understanding & Key Success Skills, Challenging Problem or Question, Sustained Inquiry, Authenticity, Student Voice & Choice, Reflection, Critique & RevisionandPublic Product

2.1.1.1 Benefits of PBL in second and foreign language settings

For the past years, PBL has been studied by many researchers, who claim that

it is as an effective method in teaching and learning process, especially in the second language learning The use of PBL has been very rewarding because it has been suggested to offer a wide range of benefits to both teachers and learners Firstly, as Fried-Booth (2002) say that the process leading to the end-product

of project work provides opportunities for students to develop their confidence and independence In addition, it can help students thrive their self-esteem and positive attitudes toward their learning (Stoller, 2006) Furthermore, this is a student-centered approach driven by students’ choices Learners do what they chose and are responsible for their products As a result, they can take pride in accomplishing the projects, which they have assiduously prepared for Thus, they gain not only understanding and success skills but also confidence in their abilities and a greater

sense of their own efficacy and power Accordingly, students’ autonomy is enhanced

In addition, another benefit of PBL is to improve language skills (Levine, 2004) In the process of completing their projects, students need to do a lot of research for information to prepare content for the given topics Most of these sources are originally written in English, which foster students to read and investigate the meaning This transformative progress is seen in the types of project works such as video project, when they are required to have real life conversations with English native speakers Undoubtedly, when students are engaged in purposeful communication to complete authentic activities, they have the opportunity to use language in a relatively natural context (Haines, 1989) and participate in meaningful activities which require authentic language use Hence, PBL provides opportunities for “the natural integration of language skills” (Stoller, 2006)

One more advantage that PBL provokes for learners is increasing learning motivation After completing project assignments, students get some material products as the result of their very practical efforts (e.g., preparing poster or brochure, newspaper in English) Thus, the learning outcome is tangible, and that generates higher positive motivation than abstract learning, which results in higher motivation in learning of students They can enhance their motivation, engagement and enjoyment (Lee, 2002) Enjoyment and motivation also stem from the fact that classroom language is not predetermined, but depends on the nature of the project (Larsen & Freeman, 2000) From a motivational perspective, projects being authentic tasks, are more meaningful to students, increase interest, motivation to participate, and can promote learning (Brophy, 2004)

A further set of reported benefits pertains to the development of solving and higher order critical thinking skills as a mean of metacognition (Allen,

problem-2004) These skills are very important, since they are life-long, transferable skills to settings outside the classroom

Last but not least, PBL is considered as a method for foreign language learning environment in 21st century because it allows technology integration during teaching and learning process (BIE, 2015)

In conclusion, there are many benefits of incorporating PBL in second and foreign language settings have been suggested, such as develop learners’ confidence and independence, enhance students’ autonomy, promote language skills, increase learning motivation, develop problem-solving and higher order thinking skill as a mean of metacognition, and integrate technology application

2.1.1.2 Possible challenges and difficulties of the PBL implementation

In spite of the fact that PBL hold a huge number of advantages, it is necessary

to admit that some problems may appear in PBL as well Marx et al., (1997) have pointed out some enactment problems for teachers while implementing PBL

Firstly, it is time It seems that projects often take longer than anticipated In addition, difficulties that teachers experience in co-operating PBL into training guidelines are exacerbated by the necessary time to implement in-depth approaches such as PBL

Secondly, projects may incur certain difficulties associated with classroom management In order for students to work productively, teachers must balance the need to allow students to work on their own with the need to maintain order

The third challenge relates to controlling Teachers often feel the need to control the flow of information while at the same time believing that students’ understanding requires that they build their own understanding How to support for students’ learning in PBL is the next question that needs to be considered Teachers have difficulties scaffolding students’ activities, sometimes giving them too much independence or too little modeling and feedback

The next obstacle moves to the requirement of technology use In some cases, teachers have difficulties in cooperating technology into classroom, especially as a cognitive tool

Last but not least is the assessment It is time taking for teachers to design assessment that requires students to demonstrate their understanding Both students and teachers need feedback that goes hand in hand with assessment A teacher might decide whether he/she would apply formal or informal, final or continuous assessment Accordingly, the requirements and assignments should be set to make sure that teachers get the idea of what the students have learnt and understood to have suitable support as well as guidance

In conclusion, even though PBL is considered as an effective teaching method, there are still some difficulties and challenges which have been experienced by both students and teachers

2.1.2 Definition of Project work

In the previous section, the author presents the general concept of PBL, which build cornerstone theoretical part for this teaching and learning method In this part, she mentions to the tangible product of PBL named project work (PW)

Basically, Longman Dictionary of English Language and Culture defines the word “project” as a piece of work that needs skill, effort and careful planning, especially, over a period of time Longman Exams dictionary gives the explanation

of a school or college project as a part of a school or college course that involves careful study on a particular subject over a period of time (Lewis, 1993)

Then, coming to the educators, project work has been described literarily by Dewey (1938, cited in Thomas, 2010), Thomas (2010), Bell (2010) and others Due

to their different perspectives, there are various configurations of project definition Tracking back to the 19th century, Dewey (1938, cited in Thomas, 2010), who

is considered as the farther of PBL theory, says that a project work does not present

topics as verbal formulations to be memorized, but brings conditions when pupils try their resourcefulness and ability to make right decisions and activities He believes that thinking begins where obstacles are, which refers to the relations between thinking and practice This original idea of project work emphasizes the importance of his “learning by doing” theory Years later, Thomas (2010) develops Dewey’s theory and provides a more detailed explanation He claims that a project work is defined as a complex tasks based on problems encountered by students, conducted during certain period of time and culminated in realistic products that might be in form of presentation, exhibition, publications and etc… Bell’s (2010) idea should not be left out when he claims that project work is student-centered method and driven by the need to create an end-product

To summarize, the above definitions mention different angles of project work While Dewey’s (1938) focuses on the correlation between learning and practice in general, Bell’s (2010) refers to the need to create an end-product In this paper, the author applies the one suggested by Thomas (2010) because she believes that it matches her study’s purposes and connects closely to the PBL theory, which verifies a project as a complex task based on problems that students need to tackle

to create realistic products

2.1.2.1 Criteria for a project to be considered as an instance of PBL

In an attempt to clarify what PBL is, some researchers try to describe the essential components of a project work and emphasize on its uniqueness to be considered as an instance of PBL This study presents five criteria - suggested by Thomas (2010), namely, centrality, driving question, constructive investigation, student-driven and realism

Firstly, it is centrality It means that PBL projects are central, not peripheral to the curriculum Therefore, projects in which students learn things that are outside the curriculum (“enrichment” projects) are not examples of PBL, not matter how appealing or engaging they are Thus, to be considered as a project work in PBL, it

should be both the centre of teaching and learning process and not be out of curriculum

The second criterion relates to driving questions which “drive” students to encounter (and struggle with) the central concepts and principles of a discipline PBL projects may be built around thematic units or the intersection of topics from two or more disciplines, however, they should inspire students’ curiosity to solve given problems

Being a constructive investigation is another aspect of a project work An investigation is a goal-directed process that involves inquiry, knowledge building, and resolution Not all investigations which may be design, decision-making, problem-finding, problem-solving, discovery, or model-building process are called PBL projects Only those that involve the transformation and construction of knowledge such as new skill, new understanding on the parts of students are accepted (Bereiter & Scardamalia, cited in Thomas, 2010) Thomas (2010) confirms that if the central activities of the project represent no difficulty to the students or can be carried out with the application of already-learned information or skills, the project is an exercise, not a PBL project work

Another feature that should not be left is student-driven To some significant degree, projects are not scripted by the teachers Thus, teachers do not take predetermined paths and have predetermined outcomes The role of students in learning process is emphasized and they become more responsible To some extent, they will have more autonomy and responsibility towards their own learning

The last but not least is criterion of realism Projects are realistic, not like Projects embody characteristics that give them a feeling of authenticity to students These characteristics can include the topic, the tasks, the roles that students play, the context within which the work of the project is carried out, the collaborators who work with students on the projects, the products that are produced, the audience for the projects’ products, or the criteria by which the

school-products or performance are judged PBL incorporates real-life challenges where the focus is on authentic (not simulated) problems or questions and where solutions have the potential to be implemented

2.1.2.2 Types of Project work

The configurations of project work have been sorted out differently by language educators Haine (1989) considers the ways that final production for a project is reported and suggests three types of project work: production projects, performance projects and organizational projects Legutke & Thomas (1991) claim that there are five types according to the processing factors like data collection techniques and sources of information, namely research projects, text projects, correspondence projects,survey projects and encounter projects Basing on the nature and sequencing of project-related activities, Stoller (1997) suggests three types of project: structured projects, unstructured projects and semi-structured projects Among these classifications, the author of the current study would choose the one suggested by Haine (1989) as guidelines for the project work implementation The explaination for each type of project is presented as follows:

- Production projects: which involve students creating bulletin boards, videos, poster sessions, radio program, written reports, handbooks, travel itineraries, menus, letters, and brochures This entails that the outcome of this type of projects is written production

- Performance projects: leading to things such as debates, oral presentations, theatre, food fairs or fashion shows

- Organizational projects: involving planning and forming a club or conversation table or partner program

He also refers more in details the specific form of project works, which are shown in the following table:

Language club

Debates Oral presentations Drama

Fashion shows Food fairs

Table 2.1 Subdivision of projects according to the outcome

In a conclusion, even though project types are classified differently, there are still some main features that any projects need to have According to Arends (1998), in a project, tasks are organized around socially important problems and questions that are also personally important for students; students should conduct authentic investigations that find real solutions to real problems; tasks should require students to create artifacts and exhibits that represent or explain solutions to

a problem; tasks are characterized by students collaborating with each other in pairs and small groups These come to the two projects from the production group that the author applied in this study, namely Poster designing and Video making, which will be described in the next subsection

2.1.2.3 Poster designing and Video making projects as instances of PBL

There are a lot of options for teachers to choose suitable projects to apply in their teaching course which match the requirements of the course outcome and students’ characteristics For this study, the author chose to use two projects, namely Poster designing and Video making because of the followings reasons

Firstly, for Poster designing project, as Tal & Rishpi (1998), cited in Patrick et

al (2008), stated that “having students create their own posters or newspapers can enhance journalism skills, community involvement, team works skills and critical thinking skills” Motivation is also a key factor that the author expects this project can inspire students When students work on designing their Poster in group, they need to manage a lot of factors such as responsibility, and creativity By this way, when they finish they can take their pride on the artifact that is the final product Thus, the process of abstract learning turns into tangible product

Secondly, for the Video making project, the author decided to use it as an instance of PBL in her teaching course because of the benefits it may bring up to students Patrick et al (2008, p.68) strongly emphasize that “student-produced video drama has always been an excellent EFL language learning activity that requires learner participation in a variety of ways” Specially, “with the relatively recent advances in digital video technology and concomitant drop in cost of video hardware and editing software, drama has become an even more powerful teaching and learning method in the EFL classroom” (Patrick et al 2008, p.69) He also adds that “digital video recording, editing, and DVD authoring add to drama’s allure, as easy viewing and distribution possibilities enable students to see their own second language-speaking persona and share it with others” (p.69) In addition, there is another reason that comes from students’ situation It is easy to observe that most of the students participating in the author’ classes had used digital video cameras before with other social interaction service such as Facebook, Twitter or Instagram, but few of them had attempted to make a movie or short video in English as kind of interaction Therefore, using Video making project is expected to increasing students’ learning motivation and improve their speaking skill components such as pronunciation, intercultural awareness and identify formation, and as foremost, students can improve their autonomous learning

2.1.2.4 The implementation procedure of PW

The basic phases found in most projects include selecting a topic, making plans, researching, developing products, and sharing results with others (Wrigley, 1998) Each type of projects will go with different ways of constructing stages In this paper, the author aims to apply semi-structured projects, thus, she used the 10 step project type suggested by Stoller (2002) as cited in Phan (2015) According to him, these 10 steps present a way to maximize the potential use of project work

4 Prepare students forthe language demands of Step V 

6 Prepare students for the language demands of Step

VII



8 Prepare students for the language demands of Step

IX



Table 2.2 Developing a Project in Language classroom (Stoller, 2002,

as cited in Phan, 2015)

In detail, the tasks of both learners and instructors are explained as following: Step I: Students and instructor agree on a theme for the project

In this step, the instructor gives students an opportunity to shape the project and develop some sense of shared perspective and commitment Students also brainstorm issues that might be featured in their projects

Step II: Students and instructor determine the final outcome

After finishing the first step, students and their instructor need to consider the nature of the project, its objectives, the most appropriate means to culminate them Then, the most important thing is they need to decide the final outcome of their projects

Step III: Students and instructor structure the project

As Stoller (1997) mention, after students have determined the starting and ending points of the project, they need to structure the body of the project Questions that students should consider are as follows: what information is needed

to complete the project? How can that information be obtained (e.g., a library search, interviews, letters, faxes, e-mail, webs, field trip…) How will the information, once gathered, be compiled and analyzed? What role does each student play in the evolution of the project (i.e., Who does what?)? What time line will students follow to get from the starting point to the end point? These questions need

to be analyzed carefully in this step, so that learners can continue with the step 4 Step IV: Instructor prepares students for the language demands of information gathering

Step 4 is the period that instructor needs to give a hand for students through consultation or lesson on language demanded during their project conduction If, for example, students are going to collect information by means of interviewing, the instructor might plan exercises on question formation, introduce conversational gambits, and set aside time for role-plays to provide feedback on pronunciation Or,

in other case, when their topic focuses on special language area like tourism, then, the teacher needs to support them with basic language demand

Step V: Students gather information

Students, having practiced the language, skills, and strategies needed to gather information, are now ready to collect information and organize it so that others on their team can make sense of it However, they need to keep their time line and collecting suitable information

Step VI: Instructor prepares students for the language demands of compiling analyzing data

After successfully gathering information, students are then confronted with the challenges of organizing and synthesizing information that may have been collected from different sources and by different individuals The instructor can prepare students for the demands of the compilation and analysis stage by setting up sessions in which students organize sets of materials, and then evaluate, analyze, and interpret them with an eye towards determining which are most appropriate for the supporters and opponents of a given proposition

Step VII: Students compile and analyze information

With the assistance of a variety of organizational techniques (including graphic organizers), students compile and analyze information to identify data that are particularly relevant to the project Student teams weigh the value of the collected data, discarding some, because of their inappropriacy for the project, and keeping the rest Students determine which information represents primary

"evidence" for the supporters and opponents of their proposition

Step VIII: Instructor prepares students for the language demands of the culminating activity

At this point in the development of the project, instructors can bring in language improvement activities to help students succeed with the presentation of their final products This might entail practicing oral presentation skills and receiving feedback on voice projection, pronunciation, organization of ideas, and

eye contact It may involve editing and revising written reports, letters, or bulletin board display text

Step IX: Students present final product

Students are now ready to present the final outcome of their projects

Step X: Students evaluate the project

Although students and instructors, alike, often view the presentation of the final product as the very last stage in the project work process, it is worthwhile to ask students to reflect on the experience as the last and final step Students can reflect on the language that they mastered to complete the project, the content that they learned about the targeted theme

To summarize, those ten steps suggested by Stoller (2002) are incredible for both teachers and students when conducting projects to achieve their targets The given explanation for each step helps students to visualize the essential requirements that they need to fulfill for different stages before reaching the end product of project work

In conclusion, till date, PBL is still an inspiring issue that attracts attention of researchers There may have been some confusions in way of defining, some challenges and difficulties in conducting a project; however, most researchers reach

a common point in agreeing that PBL is an effective teaching method which helps

to build students’ confidence and independence (Fried-Booth, 2002), enhance learning autonomy (Skehan, 1998), improve language skills (Levine, 2004), increase learning motivation (Lee, 2002), develope problem –solving and higher order critical thinking skills and improve information technology skills Among these benefits, in the context that the author conducts this paper, enhancing students’ autonomous learning is considered as the significant benefit that need investigating Nunan (2000) claims that many researchers believe that using PBL has positive effect on enhancing autonomous learning, especially in English speaking class

Therefore, it is essential to understand the nature of autonomous learning which is considered as the learning outcome that both teachers and students set aims

to achieve.The following section lists out some issues that relates to the term autonomous learning

2.2 Autonomous learning

2.2.1 Definition of Autonomous learning

Autonomous learning is believed to play a key role in students’ success in both academic and career life Since Holec (1981) raised the concept of autonomy, autonomy has been extensively investigated in the field of foreign language learning Little (1991) claimed that this term has become a buzz-word in the area, it has yielded to concern of many researchers Nonetheless, Broad (2006) says there is

a surprising lack of consensus as to what it means It is because of educators’ different perceptions and its various synonyms Kesten (1987, p.9) says that

“independent learning, autonomous learning, independent study, self-directed learning, student initiated learning, project orientation, discovery and inquiry, teaching for thinking, learning to learn, self-instruction and life–long learning are synonymous” With such confusing definitions, autonomous learning is so complicated that there are various interpretations depending on how it is defined The first definition that has pioneered in defining autonomy or autonomous learning is by Holec (1981) He says that “autonomy is the capacity of taking charge

of one’s own learning” (1981, p.3) Then he explains more by saying that “take charge of one’s learning is to have, and to hold, the responsibility for all the decisions concerning all aspects of this learning” (1981, p.3) This definition may be understood that students themselves need to have ability and determination in term

of their objectives, learning content, the pace of learning, learning methods and techniques, monitor their own learning process and evaluate their outcome There need to say that this is an ideal learning environment that learners need to develop themselves However, the real teaching and learning context reveals that it is not

easy to create an ideal setting like that It is because of some other connection in educating system For example, for the college students, they need to follow a given curriculum decided by Education and Training Department and follow a teaching method introduced by their teacher in charge As a result, Holec’s (1981) definition

is an ideal one only

Little (1991) follows another direction when he privileges the cognitive processes that connected to autonomous learning Before giving his definition, he assures that autonomy is not self-instruction or learning without a teacher Then, he defines autonomy as:

A capacity of detachment, critical reflection, decision-making, and independent action It presupposes, but also entails, that the learner will develop a particular kind of psychological relation to the process and content of his learning The capacity for autonomy will be displayed both

in the way the learner learns and in the way he or she transfers what has been learned to wider contexts

(Little 1991)

In this definition, Little (1991) brings to light the capacity of reflection, of internal awareness of how the learning process develops for each individual This may lead to the change in students’ attitude toward learning One more important aspect highlighted by Little is his recognition on the importance of the teacher's role

in helping the learner become more autonomous It assures that teachers play an important role in enhancing their students to be autonomous

There is another story that hinders in Little’s (1991) definition is its limitation Language learning is a complex process, not only cognitive but also metacognitive need to be considered Both metacognitive and cognitive are identified as significant factors that would influence the development of learner autonomy Thanasoulas (2000) suggests, in the metacognitive dimension, there are always metacognitive moves, for instance, setting aims and goals; choosing learning

materials, methods, and tasks; organizing materials; carrying out the tasks; choosing criteria for evaluation

To sum up, it is not easy to define exactly what autonomous learning or learner autonomy is because it encompasses different areas However, from Holec (1981), Little (1991) and Thanasoulas’ (2000) definitions, there comes to an assumption that autonomous learning is a complicated process It takes place when learners aware of their learning responsibility, they need to take charge of their learning, can collaborate with peers, adopt more metacognitive strategies such as organizing materials; carrying out the tasks; choosing criteria for evaluation (Thanasoulas, 2000) This process ranges from forming cognitive awareness to metacognitive

2.3 Incorporating autonomous learning in the language classroom through Project works

The important role of learner autonomy towards their learning process is undeniable As Nada (2015) states in his paper that autonomous learning is so valuable because it is not only developing students learning, but also helps them to become interactively motivated learners, as motivation is one of the most important factors that create the situations where learners can learn effectively For the decades, researchers have conducted various studies to find out different approaches

in an attempt to discover how autonomous learning may be enhanced To achieve these purposes, DeLong (2009) suggests that teachers, firstly, should help their students assess their learning types to determine what their needs are or where they need help in determining what is missing and where they need to focus their attention in developing their abilities to become autonomous learners Then, teachers guide students to set up their goals or objectives to form personal values hierarchy, which reflects their preferences to become an autonomous leaner The following Figure 2.1 defines the personal values the learner must have in order to

realize autonomous learning as described in Boydell (1976) as cited in DeLong (2009)

Figure 2.1 Autonomous learning

(from Boydell, 1976, p.42, cited in DeLong (2009))

AUTONOMOUS LEARNING

Learning by doing

Learner being responsible for own learning:

Setting own goals Planning own programs

- Discovering, identifying, using own resources for learning

Able to cooperate with others

to problem solving

Self Flexible, Successful

- Creative, -Fulfilling behavior Learners helping

each other Safe, warm, accepting,

respecting, permissive climate

Value of individuality

Freedom from extrinsic threats, rewards, punishments

Taking a look at the Figure 2.1 designed by DeLong (2009), it can be assumed that students can become autonomous learners when they learn by doing, are responsible, discover things by themselves, find solutions for problems, learn how

to cooperate with others and so on To some extent, these characteristics of autonomous learning defined by DeLong (2009) are very specific and understandable However, it might be suggested that learners’ independence should

be named in the list to fulfill readers’ understanding of autonomous learning This recommendation of the author inspired from Karnchanoke and Raveewan’s (2015) paper in which they states that students become more independent because they are compelled to complete their project works

Therefore, in this current study, the author would combine the suggested concepts by DeLong (2009) and Karnchanoke and Raveewan’s (2015) to discuss autonomous learning Accordingly, students can become autonomous learners under conditions that they are responsible for their study, learn to how to learn by doing, discover new information by themselves, learn how to cooperate with others and be independent PBLwith PW as an instance is a new teaching method in 21st century

as “it offers considerable benefits to the students especially in terms of teamwork and learning autonomy” Karnchanoke and Raveewan (2015)

In a word, autonomous learning plays a crucial role in learners’ learning process It places them in the center of focus, in which they are expected to be responsible for any stages of their learning During that process, especially, in language learning, attitude is the core element that helps to build autonomous learning According to Qi Shujun & Li Qian (2006), positive attitude is regarded as crucial to the success of the development of autonomous learning Thus, to help students improve their learning autonomy, it is essential to take a look at the attitude factor, which is discussed in the following parts

2.4 Learner attitude and their role in language learning

2.4.1 Definition of learner attitude

The term “attitude” is abroad concept and it has received much attention from various scholars Baker (1988) provides the general definition of the term

“attitudes” when he describes as follows:

- Attitude are cognitive (i.e are capable of being thought about) and affective (i.e have feelings and emotions attached to them)

- Attitudes are dimensional rather than bipolar – they vary in degree of favorability or un-favorability

- Attitudes predispose a person to act in a certain way, but the relationship between attitudes and actions is not a strong one

- Attitudes are learnt, not inherited or genetically endowed

- Attitude tend to persist but they can be modified by experience

Differing from Baker (1988), Montano and Kasprzyk (2008, p.71) give a more inclusive explanation based on the theory of planned behavior:

“Attitude is determined by the individual’s beliefs about outcomes or attributes of performing the behavior (behavioral beliefs), weighted by evaluations of those outcomes or attributes Thus, a person who holds strong beliefs that positively valued outcomes will result from performing the behavior will have a positive attitude toward the behavior Conversely, a person who holds strong beliefs that negatively valued outcomes will result from the behavior will have a negative attitude.”

This definition reveals the belief that performing a task will result in mainly positive outcomes results in taking a favorable attitude towards the task Accordingly, this concept plays an important role in helping educators find out suitable teaching method for their students