Some effective ways to attact students interest in learning english at thường xuân 2 high school

THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN THANH HOÁ THƯỜNG XUÂN 2 HIGH SCHOOL THE INITIATIVE FROM TEACHING EXPERIENCE SOME EFFECTIVE WAYS TO ATTRACT STUDENTS’ INTEREST IN LEARNING ENG

THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN

THANH HOÁ

THƯỜNG XUÂN 2 HIGH SCHOOL

THE INITIATIVE FROM TEACHING EXPERIENCE

SOME EFFECTIVE WAYS TO ATTRACT

STUDENTS’ INTEREST IN LEARNING ENGLISH

AT THƯỜNG XUÂN 2 HIGH SCHOOL

Teacher’s full name: Vũ Thị Hồng Position : Teacher The initiative of : Teaching English

THANH HOÁ, 2019

I INTRODUCTION

1 Reason for choosing the topic:

The difference of language prevents us from exchanging economy,politics and culture among nations in the World Trade libralization andglobalization of the World’s economy have been the special trend of the currentsociety Foreign language is one of the necessary materials which helps each of

us go into the World with confidence

The typical expression of the general trend of globalization is theassociation of economy among nations in the region and in all the World Thishas a great influence on the international relationship and the life in eachcountry It is not only the economic cooperation but also the cultural integrationamong nations, so the knowlegde of foreign language is becoming the generaltrend in the World The founding of ASEAN economic community in 2015allows the free labours to move abroad This makes a chance for the experts orthe professional workers in ASEAN’s countries to join the trading activities andinvest abroad This action has been satisfying the lack of the worker forcewithin countries in the region; and improving the workers’ payment andexperience Of course, many of those workers are Vietnamese It means thatforeign language is considered as “an important ticket” to come into othercountries in the region and in the World for work Thus, foreign language isnecessary and evident for people who want to work with foreigners in bothhome and aboard

From seeing the benefit of English, our Government leads this subjectinto the curriculum in schools, beginning from primary schools Schools havebeen invested much money in improving materials which are used for teachingand learning English So our Thuong Xuan 2 high school does But, in fact, theVietnamese’s ability of foreign language is not good As the declaration of theindex of the Global English expertness - EFEPI - in 2015 from InternationalEducating Organization, Vietnam’s expertness is at the average of index, it’sabout 53,81% , with that result, Vietnam ranks 29 out of 70 countries Now wecan see that foreign language as “a key” to help every one, every countryimprove the future It has been believed that learning foreign languages expressthe trending of integration clearly for an individual, a country

So, imroving the efficiency of teaching and learning English in schools ingeneral is necessary Especially, in mountainous areas like Thuong Xuanprovince According to me, the teachers of English should inspire the passion oflearning for this subject for each learner The teacher of foreign language’smission does not only teach the knowlegde of language but also creatsinspiration in learning for each student Teachers should help studentscomprehend: Speaking some foreign language well is an efficient instrument to

approach the modern science and technology, to enrich for themselves and fortheir country It’s considered as an important way for success I think that theyoung people do enthusiasticaly things that they love So, if we make them loveEnglish, they will try their best to achieve it in many their ways Teaching andlearning must be easier from that.

From the above given reasons, I decide to choose the theme “ some effective ways to attract students’ interest in learning English at Thuong Xuan 2 high school” for my research.

2 Aim of the research:

The aims of the research are to find the way to promote students’ interest

in learning English

3 The subject of study:

In this study, I concentrate on researching on my students’ attitude andinterest in learning English Then, I conclude the reason why my students arenot interested in learning English much At last, I try to find the best way tomotivate my students to learn English The subject of this study is the students

in class 11B1 at Thuong Xuan 2 High school The number of students consists

II CONTENT

1 Theoretical Background:

In a recent blog post at the NCWIT blog, the researchers give somereasons for the problem why it is very important for students to have teacherswho know the way how to inspire the students’ interest in learning They getstudents interested and even excited about what they are learning Passion iswhat makes students decide to study more

A research shows that a teacher for a while who taught both math (which

he loved) and computer science (which he was not so enthusiastic about) Thedifference in the level of success between students in those different courses wasamazing Same teacher Same brilliant mind But a different level of enthusiasmmeant different levels of results

Good teachers will find a way to get more interested in what they areteaching and to make things more interesting for their students It requires a littlemore work, a little more imagination, and maybe even a little acting ability Thebest teachers make learning interesting, exciting and important The teacherswho do that well deserve the students and their parents

Nowadays, English is admitted to be an International language It isspoken widely in the World More and more foreign cooperations andcompanies have invested in Viet Nam since viet nam joined ASEAN So,employees have to use English in work and in communication well beside theyare high professional employees Thus, people who communicate in Englishwell can get a good job in some foreign company with the high payment, andthey have also a chance to develop further in their job’s position and their work

The current serious fact is that using materials of teaching English in highschools in Viet Nam hasn’t brought the desired effect back yet This makesmany students and their parents not to be pleasant Most of students who learnEnglish in 7 years at schools are not able to listen, speak, read and write inEnglish The lastest searches show the pessimistic result: Many pupils whofinished their compulsory education at lower schools are only able to speak andlisten to the simple sentences about name or year-old, they can’t speak inEnglish in daily communication From this, many students are sent to thefamous foreign language centers to approach the more modern conditions ofteaching and learning English

2 The reality of learning English before applying this initiative:

English teaching is not a piece of easy work Especially, many studentsare losing their interest and showing negative attitude towards english learning

Teachers are always complaining that it’s hard to improve students’ scores andthe students are too lazy to learn the words, recite the dialogues and finishexercises To some degree, the effective way to make the English teaching andlearning go smoothly is to improve students’ interest in learning English,Einstein once said: “interest is the best teacher” Interest is a kind of directmotivation to push students’ study That means interest plays an important part

in learning English as to the teacher, it is worth-while to improve students’interest It can make students concentrate on what they are learning and thinkactively Learning English is quite different from other subjects’ learning It is aforeign language and there is not a good invironment for them to learn.Relatively speaking, learning English is rather dull Especially, learning so manynew words by heart is a hard nut to crack As a result, a lot of students are afraid

of it So, it’s teachers’ duty to motivate them to learn actively Teachers shouldspare no efforts to arouse their students’ interest

I have been teaching English at Thuong Xuan 2 high school for manyyears This school is in a mountainous area so I know clearly what my students’purpose is So far, I have been able to confirm one thing: Most of my studentslearn English for the GCSE, only a few study for the University entranceexamination

Generally, the quality of students’ input is not high so it is very difficultfor both teachers and students in teaching and acquiring English In fact, wedon’t only teach the very basic knowledge in the textbook but we have to teachstudents all the knowledge that they learned before also

Besides, there are also many reasons which make teaching and learning English are prevented development, for example: Students don’t

have further materials, students don’t have time to study at home (their familiesare very poor so they usually help their parents to get more money), they don’thave chance to practice English much, … Because the living conditions of mostlocal people are still poor and backward so learning in general has not beenfocused, particularly, learning English is attended hardly Students have no anyreference and means of learning except their textbooks

There are about 40 students in each class in my school I think it is a largeclass So, it is very difficult for me to control my class while speaking andstudents have no more chances to practice English skills, too Especially in oralskill because they have few words My students cannot communicate in English,even though they spent 6-7 years learning English at grammar schools Actually,

in English curricula, there are lessons that use tapes and CDs to practiselistening and speaking skills, but my school resources and the habits ofindividual teachers mean they are rarely used, especially in rural areas Studentsmostly copy the way their teachers speak, but many teachers mispronounce thewords themselves

In the past, the teachers of English in my school used to teach English intraditional teaching method which students stayed passive in learning and didnot have a communication environment and we didn’t care almost ways toattract students’ attention I think it is the main reason behind the ineffectiveteaching and learning of English in our school because this makes our studentsbecome afraid of speaking English.

We focused on teaching grammar much, and our students also focused ongrammar lessons in order to pass tests and examinations This traditional way of

teaching I think we put our students in the "passive voice" when learning English,

and they cannot have good communication skills, even though students can begood at grammar I think that our students had to try to approach English in thehard way and they seemed to be tired of this subject I felt their tiredness thoughtheir actions of learning this subject

Since many recent years, I have been trying to perfect the questions: What should teachers do to make students love learning English more ? and How do the teachers do to make English more attractive and easier? At last, I can find

the answers for my questions ( I will show that in the next part )

The other problem is that they learn English just to pass regular tests orexaminations, while they cannot use English in reality Especially, manystudents got high scores from exams and tests, but they can only writegrammatical sentences, while they are very bad at listening and communicating.Many students tell me that they like learning English, and some of them alwayshave good learning results at school However, when they meet foreigners or go

to an English club, they find out that they are afraid of speaking English incrowded places because they was afraid of making mistakes

Beside that, there is no place of tourism or some factory which foreignerswork or live in here so my students have no chance for communication That'swhy their listening and speaking skills are poor and my students becomefrustrated by this

I think that bad English skills have become a hot topic on educationforums Educators have pointed out that it is the nature of Vietnamese peoplethat they can easily get embarrassed when making mistakes, therefore, theywould rather not to speak English to make mistakes My students do, too

3 The initiative is being applied to teach English in my school

A great number of students in my school shared me that they learntEnglish because they were required to learn this subject in their curriculum atschool Similarly, not many said that they learnt English due to their love for thisforeign language Obviously, no teachers can persuade their students to learnEnglish like a favourite subject if they dislike it Hence, to help students learnEnglish better, it is important to make English become something special that

impresses students I think that teachers of English should make students realisethat learning a new language gets so many benefit to them They gain practicalknowlegde, learn valuable things about foreign cultures, and discover a wholenew World outside of their own.

These are some ways I have used to improve the learning English problem in our school:

3.1 Forging the relationship between teacher and students

Creating the close relationship in and outside the class between teachersand students is necessary This makes students feel easier and more friendlywhen they make questions of lesson as well as share personal secrets with theirteachers Students feel teachers like theirs friends Forging the relationship withstudents encourage them in conversations, too For example, if your lesson is onwhile your students can not focus on it because of something, you should letthem share their problem and you can participate in that action as a member.Your taking part in the action to help students solve their problem will stopwasting time for personal problem soon and will make the relationship betweenteachers and students more close-knit Students will have an interest in learningEnglish more from the reason they love you

3.2 Explain the benefits.

As a teacher, you should be wise enough to explain subtly the benefits oflearning English to your students Try to elaborate how mastering foreignlanguage is rewarding and beneficial You can also add that learning Englishcorrelates with better their academic results This applies to career and self-development as well

3.3 Make them use English (create a learning English environment)

Theoretical knowledge is the basic precondition for language learning but

it is even more important for your students to practice what they learn.Therefore, as a teacher, you should create possibilities for them to use Englishmore You may create a friendly learning English environment in each lesson.Sometimes, you can organize debates or close meetings, where many studentswill communicate in English as well as they will understand what they do ordon’t know

Of course, mistakes come as a natural part of this process so you have toprovide support and encourage your students not to give up on expressing theiropinions in foreign language because the more they speak, the more they aregoing to learn

3.4 Make class fun.

Making class fun is a surefire way to up intrinsic motivationlevels When students are having a good time, they’ll be more engaged in learning Their motivation will come from them

rather than from you You just have to find the best ways to help your students have a good time while they learn

One thing I have remembered since I was a student is my teachers’humour They knew how to make the lesson easier and more interesting I amsure we used to be under study pressure, but our teachers helped us get over thatpressure by their funny teaching Why don’t you make your class funny fromnow? For example, if you are having a lecture of sports, you should change yourclass into My Dinh stadium and your students will be athletes I am sure that thelecture will be more attractive; your students will comprehend and memorize thelesson easier They will be attracted from the begining to the end by you

3.5 Let them know the timely results of learning

Let your students see the results of their learning every once in a while,it’s up to you to choose how There are many ways to do it but keep in mind thatyour students are young, so they are usually impatient and yearn for someencouragement from your side

It may be done by organizing an English speaking club with discussions

on the specific topic that they have already perfected Introduce the rule withscores and objectives so that students can enjoy achieving results throughcorrect use of foreign language Any method that makes students feel proudabout the progress they made is valid

These are two of teaching plans that I use the above ways to attract

my students in learning English, make them interested in learning English:

* The 1st teaching plan:

Unit 10: Nature in Danger (English 11 - skill: Speaking)

The main ways I focuss on in this lesson are: 3.3 Make them use English

(create a learning English environment) and 3.4 Make class fun.

Let’s begin:

In this lesson, I try my best to finish tasks in 20 minutes - to reach this

purpose I say my students as soon as the lesson starts that: “We will have a very attractive action if we finish our lesson soon, in 20 minutes” After finishing the

lesson, I write in block capitals on the board: “ROLE PLAY”, then I stop in 1

minutes to attract my students’ attraction Of course, my students are going toguess the name of the play while I am at secret At last, I write the full sentence

on the board:

ROLE PLAY: A discussion between different parties interested in global

warming.

I divide the class into 4 groups with the names: Role A - Penguin leader, Role B – Dessert dweller, Role C – Worried Martian, Role D – U.S President Team up with classmates who have been assigned the same role to develop your roles and discuss ideas and “strategies” before the role play begins Introduce yourself to the other role players Discuss your roles after the role play ends.Role A – Penguin leader

You live in Antarctica You need global warming to stop Temperatures must actually get cooler Your species is at great risk of extinction Your habitat, the ice, is melting and your sources of food are disappearing The world must act to save you The day the last penguin dies is the start of the end of the Earth

Role B – Dessert dweller

You like the recent effects of global warming It has brought a lot of unexpected rain to your land For the first time you can grow things You have bumper harvests You have lots of water to drink You think global warming is simply a matter or winners and losers You think global warming or cooling has always happened

Role C – Worried Martian

Billions of years ago, Mars, your planet, looked like Earth Life was

everywhere However, greedy Martians controlled the energy sources and the Mars climate changed, killing all life – except you The greedy Martians paid leaders to pretend nothing was happening and that alternative energies would arise It was all too late Advise the Earthlings and the penguins of the dangers

of climate change

Role D – U.S President

You are terrified of taking measures to control global warming because you might lose your power You believe scientists can build a huge machine to re-freeze the ice caps You think keeping American jobs is more important than penguin food You know better than the world’s climate experts You don’t believe in aliens

Students work in groups in 10 minutes Then, the representative of eachgroup will show at the board Teacher and other students give comments

* The 2nd teaching plan:

Unit 16: THE WONDERS OF THE WORLD

(English 11 - SKILL: Reading)

The main ways I focuss on in this lesson are: 3.2 Explain the benefits

(Namely, learning English for travelling) and 3.4 Make class fun.

Warm up: (5 minutes)

(Teacher makes a short conversation with students by some simple sentences)

Teacher (T): Do you want to travel around the World?

Students (Sts): Yes, we do

T: If you want to travel around the World, you have to know English In this lesson, we will come to a famous part of the World It’s Egypt

The great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt, the wonder of the

ancient time certificated by UNESCO in 1979

T: Who can tell me what Egypt is famous for? (you can show in Vietnamese)Sts: (Pyramids/ Kim tự tháp)

T: Yea h I agree with you Now, who can tell me the words related to thePyramids (you can show your knowledge in both English or Vietnamese)

Sts: ( show their ideas)

T coppies the Sts’ answers on the board (the words are in Reading) Then, Tsupplies the missing meanings and the new words

I Vocabulary: (15 mins)

* I combine the words which Sts showed in “Warm-up” and the pictures

on the projector to teach “Vocabulary” Namely:

Teacher presents the first picture and says “This is the King in Egypt”

Students (will guess): Pharaoh - vua

Teacher: Corrects

Teacher shows the second picture and explains “ This is the place where buries dead people”

Students (will guess):“lang / mo”

Teacher shows the next picture and says: “They are treasures”

Teacher asks students “ what does treasures mean?”

Students answer “ vang bac/ chau bau”

Teacher shows other picture gives a suggestion: “This is a special room, it is used for containing the dead body with his treasures or belongs It’s called Burial Chamber ”