Using the textbook “Practice Maths 1” to teach Maths in English to first graders at Minh Khai 1 primary school – Difficulties and some suggested solutions

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES ---***--- NGUYỄN THI ̣ PHÚC USING THE TEXTBOOK PRACTICE MATHS 1 TO TEACH MATHS IN ENGLISH TO FIRST

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST - GRADUATE STUDIES

-*** -

NGUYỄN THI ̣ PHÚC

USING THE TEXTBOOK PRACTICE MATHS 1 TO TEACH MATHS IN ENGLISH TO FIRST GRADERS AT MINH KHAI 1 PRIMARY SCHOOL – DIFFICULTIES AND SOME

SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS

(Sử dụng sách giáo khoa “Practice Maths 1” để dạy Toán bằng Tiếng Anh cho học sinh khối 1 trường tiểu học Minh Khai 1- Khó khăn và một số giải

pháp)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Language Teaching Methodology Code: 60 14 10

Hanoi - 2013

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Language Teaching Methodology Code: 60 14 10

Supervisor: M.A Nguyễn Thị Minh Tâm

Hanoi - 2013

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Certificate of originality of the thesis ……… i

Acknowledgements ……… ii

Abstract ……… iii

Table of contents ……… iv

Abbreviations ……… vii

List of figures ……… viii

List of tables ……… ix

’ PART I: INTRODUCTION 1 1 Rationale ……… 1

2 Aims of the study ……… 2

3 Research questions ……… 3

4 Scope of the study ……… 3

5 Significance of the study 3

6 Methods of the study ……… 3

7 Organization of the study ……… 4

PART II: DEVELOPMENT 5 Chapter 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 5

1.1 Content Language Integrated Learning ……… 5

1.1.1 Overview of Content and Language Integrated Learning……… 5

1.1.2 Core features of CLIL Methodology ……… 7

1.1.3 Why CLIL for youngsters ……… 9

1.1.4 CLIL Teacher Competence … ………… 11

1.2 Review of related studies ……… 13

Chapter 2: Research Methodology 14

2.1 The Current Situation of Teaching and Learning at Minh Khai 1primary school ……… 14

2.1.1 The Context ……… 14

2.1.2 The Course Objectives ……… 14

2.1.3 The Material Description ……… 14

2.2 The research methodology ……… 15

2.2.1 The informants ……… 15

2.2.2 The Data Collection Instruments ……… … 15

2.2.3 Data Collection Procedure ……… 16

2.3 Data analysis ……… 16

2.3.1 Data analysis of the teachers’ survey questionnaire ……… 16

2.3.2 Data analysis of students’ survey questionnaire ……… … 25

Chapter 3: Major findings and Discussion 30

3.1 Research question 1: To what extend is the textbook Practice Maths 1 used to teach first graders at Minh Khai 1 primary school? ……… 31

3.2 Research question 2: What are the difficulties that teachers and students face when using Practice Maths 1 ……… 31

3.2.1 Teachers’ competences ……… 31

3.2.2 Teaching and learning facilities ……… … 31

3.2.3 Students’ mixed levels of proficiency in English and their motivation … 32

3.3 Research question 3: What are suggestions solutions to overcome the difficulties in using Practice Maths 1? ……… 32

3.3.1 Modifying the teaching syllabus to fit students’ level and teaching context ……… 32

3.3.2 Improving the teaching and learning facilities……… 33

3.3.3 Regrouping students in smaller classes according to students’ level ……… ……… 33

3.3.4 Professional development program for teachers.……… 33

3.3.5 Adapting the textbook to fit students’ levels and learning styles… ……… 34

3.4 Summary ……… 35

PART III: CONCLUSION 36

1 Conclusions ……… 36

2 Limitations of the Study ….……… 36

3 Suggestions for Further Study ….……… 37

REFERENCES 38

ABBREVIATIONS

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: The 4Cs Framework of CLIL (Coyle, 2011) 6 Figure 2: The Language Triptych (Coyle, Hood, Marsh, 2010) ……… 7

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Teachers‟ ideas of the implications of using the textbook “Practice Maths 1”

Table 2: The teachers‟ ideas about the focus of the course

Table 3: Teachers‟ self-evaluation of their training

Table 4: The necessity of being well-trained

Table 5: The teachers‟ ideas on language used in the teaching and learning

Table 6: Teachers‟ self-report on when to use Vietnamese during the lesson

Table 7: Teachers‟ self-reported frequency of using teaching aids in teaching

Table 8: The teachers‟ attitude of students‟ language proficiency levels

Table 9: Teachers‟ perception of the difficult level of the Mathematics vocabulary in the textbook

Table 10: Teachers‟ attitude on the effectiveness of teaching English for Mathemetics by the textbook “Practice Maths 1”

Table 11: Teachers‟ attitude on how to teach the textbook effectively

Table 12: The use of different organization types of classroom activities

Table 13: The design of the activities in the textbook

Table 14: Can students learn English for Maths in Practice Maths 1

Table 15:Teachers‟ difficulties in using the textbook

Table 16: The necessity to teach Maths through English to first graders

Table 17: Teachers‟ preference in choosing the textbook

Table 18:Teachers‟ suggested solutions to overcome their difficulties

Table 19:Students‟ preference for learning English for Maths lessó

Table 20: The number of English for Maths periods per week

Table 21: Do all teachers use Practice Maths 1

Table 22: The language used in the lesson

Table 23: Would students choose the textbook if they are allowed to

Table 24: Teachers‟ use of Vietnamese in English for Maths lesson

Table 25: Vocabulary in Practice Maths 1

Table 26: Students‟ self-report on what they gained after the lesson

Table 27: Students‟ preference of textbook exercises

Table 28: Students‟ preference of learning activities

Table 29: The students‟ affirmation of difficulties

PART I: INTRODUCTION

1 Rationale

Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) has become the umbrella term describing both learning another (content) subject such as Maths or Science through the medium of a foreign language and learning a foreign language by studying a content-based subject In ELT, forms of CLIL have previously been known as 'Content-based instruction', “English across the curriculum” and “Bilingual education” This approach in education started in Europe in 1970s and has been spreading widely since 1990s In Vietnam since 1998 when a pilot project involving the teaching of Maths and Science through English at Grade 1 started in Ho Chi Minh, the concept of English Bilingual Education (EBE) or the term Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) was little known CLIL lessons have only been described as modern subject lessons like those that could also take place in the learners‟ mother tongue The question of the linguistic side of CLIL and above all of the integration of content and language requires further considerations Language plays a central role in the teaching of any subject It is undeniable that the textbook plays an important role in foreign language teaching since it determines the major part of classroom teaching and student learning Although choosing a textbook is daunting, it has a significant influence on the ability of students to meet their language learning objectives and affects both the process of learning and outcomes Nevertheless, as Swales (1980) states, textbooks, especially course books, exhibit problems and in extreme cases are examples of educational failure Thus, to have a successful language teaching program, it is necessary to have good materials, and to make the most effective use of a textbook, it is necessary for teachers to carefully examine all aspects of the textbook and compare it against an assessment tool The present textbook taught at Minh Khai 1 Primary school is Practice Maths 1 To some extent, its content meets the teaching and learning‟s objectives such as the objectives

in vocabulary and reading skill development However, the best exploitation of the book are not yet achieved Teachers still find it hard to bridge the gap between language level of proficiency of first graders and the language proficiency level

required to do all the tasks and activities in the textbooks The lack of teacher book and teaching facilities also poses a big challenge to the quality of teaching and learning Though this material has been used at Minh Khai 1 primary school for several years, no evaluation or consultation has ever been conducted to check its strengths and weaknesses and to see how well it can suit the desired and attainable goals of the course As a teacher of English at Minh Khai primary school, I myself also use Practice Maths 1 to teach my students Maths through English at their very first grades; and I therefore have first-hand experience in how hard it is to use the textbook Practice Maths 1 to teach Maths through English to the first graders in the school I am fully aware that, the only way to improve the teaching and learning quality in the Teach –Maths-through-English program here is to conduct a study on the real teaching context and the difficulties that teachers and students are facing Only when the difficulties are found could solutions to overcome those difficulties

be suggested For those reasons, the topic “Using the textbook Practice Maths 1 to teach Maths in English to first graders at Minh Khai 1 Primary School - Difficulties and some suggested solutions” was chosen as the theme for my minor

MA thesis

2 Aims of the study

The study is carried out with the hope to be some of help to improve the effectiveness of the teaching other subjects through English at primary school The major aims of the study are:

- to explore the context of using the textbook Practice Maths 1 to teach 1st graders at Minh Khai 1 Primary school

- to investigate the difficulties that teachers and learners are facing with in their

teaching and learning Maths through the textbook Practice Maths 1

- to suggest some solutions to overcome these difficulties

3 The research questions

The general goal of this research is to look into teachers‟ difficulites in teaching Maths in English to first graders at Minh Khai 1 primary school To this end, this research tries to answer the following questions:

1 To what extent is the textbook “Practice Maths 1” used to teach 1st graders at Minh Khai 1 Primary school, Thanh Hoa?

2 What are the difficulties that teachers face when using the Practice Maths 1?

3 What are suggested solutions to overcome the difficulties in using Practice Maths 1?

4 Scope of the study

The study is scoped down to collect data from the teaching practice at Minh Khai 1 primary school, with the use of the textbook Practice Maths 1 in the CLIL approach only The study therefore only focuses on evaluating the appropriateness of the use of the textbook and the objectives of the “Bilingual Program” for first graders, and on the finding difficulties that teachers are facing using this textbook in this program Solutions suggested in the study are applicable to the teaching and learning context in Minh Khai Primary 1 school only

5 Significance of the study

The textbook Practice Maths 1 has been used to teach Maths through English

to 1st graders of the Bilingual Program in Minh Khai 1 primary school for 3 years now, but there has never been any study on this teaching practice, despite certain facts about the shortcomings of the book and the teaching-Maths-through-English program This study is therefore conducted as the first effort to check the appropriateness of Practice Maths 1 to the teaching context in Minh Khai 1 Primary school, the effectiveness of using this textbook, the difficulties that teachers and students are facing in the program, and to suggest some solutions to these problems

6 Methods of the study

This study is conducted using descriptive and analytic methods, with survey questionnaires as the data collecting instruments In general, the analysis and arguments in the thesis is based on qualitative explanation and reasoning The survey

questionnaire as the data collecting instrument provides the writer with the quantitative data needed as the evidence of the real exploitation of the textbook, the teaching aids and class activities The quantitative data also play the role of informing the writer some real-life trends in the attitudes and evaluation of the informants about related issues These methods are described in detail in chapter two

7 Organization of the study

Besides Introduction and Conclusion, the Development includes 3 chapters:

Chapter 1 – Literature review – provides a theoretical basis for the study: the

approach of Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) with some basic concepts, features and methodology

Chapter 2 – Methodology – includes an overview of the approach used in

conducting the study It also provides a through description of the data collection procedure as well as the analytical procedure

Chapter 3 – Major findings and discussion – reports the findings of the

survey and discuss

PART II: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 1.1 Content and Language Integrated Learning

1.1.1 Overview of Content and Language Integrated Learning

“Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is a dual-focused educational approach in which an additional language is used for the learning and teaching of both content and language” (Coyle, Hood and Marsh 2010:1) CLIL is generally defined as a pedagogical approach which has a dual (integrated) aim: learning of the subject matter (content) and learrning of the (second/foreign/target)

language used as the medium for the content As defined in page 2 of Content and

Language Integrated Learning (CLIL): a Handbook for teachers by Cambridge

ESOL, CLIL can be depicted as follows:

CLIL describes an evolving approach to teaching and learning where subjects are taught and studied through the medium of a non-native language The experience of learning subjects through the medium of a non-native language is more challenging and intensive as there is more exposure to the language and learners acquire knowledge and skills in different areas of the curriculum In CLIL, learning a curriculum subject in a second, third or sometimes fourth language involves drawing on effective pedagogical practice from a range of different educational contexts Curriculum subjects apart from languages are taught through the target language […] In Primary contexts, CLIL programmes are commonly delivered by non-native subject specialists or by English language teachers

CLIL aims to create an improvement in both the foreign language and the non-language area competence, general categories being motivational and cognitive impact of the positive attitudes triggered by using CLIL, and the linguistic and methodological utilisation of the non-language content material It is believed that content, e.g mathematics, and a foreign language, e.g English, can be better

developed through gradual interplay (25 – 100 % of the content is taught in a foreign language) (Pavesi et al., 2001)

In CLIL, high quality teaching and learning fit for 21st century classrooms anywhere in the world It is context-embedded, content-driven with clear pluricultural learning outcomes It sees language as out greatest learning tool and it connects learners to the visions and realities of language using for different purposes

at different times According to Coyle (2005), Cs Conceptual framework consists of Content – Subject matter, Communication – language learning and using, Cognition – learning and thinking processes and Culture – developing interculture understanding and global citizenship

Fig.1: The 4Cs Framework of CLIL (Coyle, 2011)

The 4Cs framework for CLIL starts with content (such as subject matter, themes, cross-curricular approaches) and focuses on the interrelationship between content (subject matter), communication (language), cognition (thinking) and culture (awareness of self and „otherness‟) to build on the synergies of integrating learning (content and cognition) and anguage learning (communication and cultures) Framed in such a way, CLIL thus unites learning theories, language learning theories and intercultural understanding

In the CLIL approach, language is seen as the learning tool which operates in three ways: OF, FOR, and THROUGH language

Fig.2 The Language Triptych (Coyle, Hood, Marsh, 2010)

Such an integration in CLIL enables it to motivate both teachers and learners

by integrating content into language, thus develops learners‟ linguistic confidence and competence, even set the good ground for building global citizenship & intercultural understanding

Johnstone and McKinstry (2008) point out some advantages of the CLIL approach:

 CLIL develops confident learners

 CLIL enhances academic cognitive processes and communication skills

 CLIL encourages intercultural understanding and community values

 Learners become more sensitive to vocabulary and ideas presented in their first language as well as in the target language

 Learners gain more extensive and varied vocabulary in the target language language

 Learners reach proficiency levels in all four skills of Listening, Speaking, Writing and Reading

1.1.2 Core features of CLIL Methodology

Mehisto et al (2008) summarize six core features of CLIL

First of all, CLIL approach makes the teaching and learning a dual-focus, even multiple-focus process, which at the same time serve more than one function as follows:

 Supporting language learning in content classes

 Supporting content learning in language classes

 Integrating several subjects

 Organizing learning through cross-curricular themes and projects

 Supporting reflection on the learning process

Teaching and learning in a CLIL approach can also create a safe and enriching learning environment by:

 Using routine activities and discourse

 Displaying language and content throughout the classroom

 Building student confidence to experiment with language and content

 Using classroom learning centers

 Guiding access to authentic learning materials and environments

 Increasing student language awareness

Such a learning environment in turn authenticity to be maximize in different ways:

 Letting the students ask for the language help they need

 Maximizing the accommodation of students‟ interests

 Making a regular connection between learning and students‟ lives

 Connecting with other speakers of the CLIL language

 Using current materials from the media and other resources

Accordingly, students take a self-motivated part in their learning “CLIL induces the learner to be more cognitively active during the learning process” (Van

de Craen, P, Mondt, K, Alain, L and Gao, Y ( 2008) Such a view point is understandable because:

 Students communication more than the teacher

 Students help set content, language and learning skills outcomes

 Students evaluate progress in achieving learning outcomes

 Favoring peer co-operative work

 Negotiating the meaning of language and content with the students

 Teachers acting as facilitators

The process of teaching and learning is therefore a scaffolding process in the sense that it builds on a student‟s existing knowledge, skills, attitudes, interests and experience In CLIL classes, knowledge, when taught in a foreign language, is repackaged in user-friendly ways and learners are given chance to work in their different learning styles The approach thusfosters creative and critical thinking Moreover, it also challenges students to take another step forward in learning and not just coast in comfort Marsh (2000) therefore believes that CLIL can also have an impact on conceptualization – how we think

CLIL approach is also ideal in developing cooperation between teachers and learners and among learners The approach also involve parents, and even local community, authorities and employers in orienting and supporting students‟ learning

1.1.3 Why CLIL for youngsters

There are many advantages to the CLIL approach as mentioned above; but the outstanding advantageous feature that works in educating young learner is: it develops confident learners and enhances academic cognitive processes and communication skills According to Slattery & Willis (2001), characteristics of young learners (YLs) when acquiring languages can be illustrated in figure below:

Fig 3: Characteristics of Young Learners in Language Acquisition (Slattery & Willis, 2001)

Marsh (2000) sees that, regardless of the differences in how the brain works

as a child grows older and becomes an adult, a key issue in „picking up‟ languages relates to the opportunities we have for learning languages This is where CLIL can

be of interest One reason why very young children seem so good at picking up language is often to do with the naturalness of the environment around them A language classroom, where learners go through the often difficult process of sorting out sounds, structures, grammar or vocabulary is rarely natural The language classroom is essential for the learner to understand the „nuts and bolts‟ of language – the architectural plans But there is rarely enough time in the classroom for the language teacher to go beyond this essential part of the learning process Learners need time to build things with the „nuts and bolts‟ – to build the house which they see in theory on paper The best way to acquire language is therefore provide them a chance for natural language acquisition: language is acquired when children learn to

do things, when they learn other subjects using the language What CLIL can offer to young learners of any age, is a natural situation for language development which

builds on other forms of learning This natural use of language can boost a young learner‟s motivation and hunger towards learning languages It is this naturalness which appears to be one of the major platforms for CLIL‟s importance and success

in relation to both language and other subject learning Thus far, CLIL is appropriate for primary education, when students‟ conceptual mapping can be easily built up, so that what teachers are doing is providing opportunity to learn to “think” in the language not just to learn about the language itself as the major learning focus CLIL enable both subject knowledge and language skills to develop at the same time

1.1.4 CLIL Teacher Competence

As students learn both the subject knowledge and the language skills in a CLIL class, teachers have to be generally competent enough to cover the subject knowledge and skills and their application CLIL teachers should therefore have a good command of the target language and resort to the learners‟ mother tongue with care For learners, however, code switching is a natural communication strategy, and teachers should allow it, particularly in the first stages of CLIL Secondly, teachers‟ task in this field is to flexibly adapt their instructional support bearing in mind that in order to enable incidental language learning, i.e language acquisition in the learners, their main concern should be to scaffold them on their way towards achieving mathematical competences Learners, whose attention is focused on the non-linguistic content, need to have access to spontaneous speech, preferably in an interactive context

Thus one of the conclusions, further supported by the experiences from schools where CLIL is already in operation, is that CLIL calls for an interactive teaching style Verbal input should be accompanied with the use of visual and multimedia aids Moreover, young learners should be given opportunities to promote holistic ways of learning and to learn from practical, hands-on experiences

Language/communication-based competences

Whereas in an English class, communicative competence is the ultimate aim

of teaching, and involves both accuracy and fluency, the main aim of teaching other languages through English, eg teaching mathematics through English is to develop

mathematical thinking Learning mathematics includes „appropriating ways of speaking mathematically, that is, learning the language of mathematicians” (Zazkis, 2000) In schools the mathematical language comprises both formal and informal components

CLIL teachers should therefore have a good command of the target language and resort to the learners‟ mother tongue with care For learners, however, code switching is a natural communication strategy, and teachers should allow it, particularly in the first stages of CLIL Teachers‟ task is to flexibly adapt their instructional support bearing in mind that in order to enable incidental language learning, i.e language acquisition in the learners, their main concern should be to scaffold them on their way towards achieving mathematical competences Learners, whose attention is focused on the non-linguistic content, need to have access to spontaneous speech, preferably in an interactive context

Methodology-based competences

Teachers‟ task is to enable students to develop their individually different process of knowledge building and meaning construction as well as positive attitudes (De Corte, 2000) Continue with the example of teaching Maths through English above, it is a common belief that mathematics and languages are difficult subjects Therefore, in order to help the learners succeed, it is of the utmost importance for the teacher to examine and analyse possible barriers that might have a negative impact

on learning The CLIL teacher should be able to suggest ways how these could be minimised and use a variety of effective teaching strategies that would help overcome individual learning difficulties

Class management competences

Teachers‟ task is to identify and use dual-focused activities which simultaneously cater for language and content aspects From the point of view of class management, a qualified CLIL teacher should be able to decide whether teaching the whole class, groups, pairs, or individuals is appropriate for particular learning purposes, should be able to maintain learners´ interest and motivation through relevant learning opportunities, and to consider time management

In summary, CLIL has been proved to be an approach suitable to teach young learners subjects through the English The approach has many advantages and it is quite demanding in terms of methodology and teachers‟ competence requirement The approach has been proved to be feasible in European countries for about three decades now Though it is quite new and not fully applied in the Vietnamese teaching context, the approach, with all its features and advantages described, is applicable in the Bilingual Education Program at Minh Khai Primary school, and it is being used here

1.2 Review of related studies

As mentioned in the previous sections, CLIL has long been successfully applied in European countries, with many research works elaborating on the key features, the advantages, the possibilities, even the limitations of it like in Marsh (2000), Pavesi, M et al (2001), Coyle, D., Hood, P., Marsh, D (2010), Mehisto, P., Marsh, D., Frigols, M.J (2008)

In Vietnam, though CLIL has been applied in the so-called Bilingual Education in some schools in Vietnam, there is, to the best of my knowledge, published works on the application of CLIL in teaching and learning

As regards research works in material evaluation, there have been many MA theses conducted to evaluate the English textbook or the course book being used in different institutions in Vietnam, but the aim of evaluating a CLIL text book used to teach Maths through English for first graders at a primary school as set out in this thesis seems to be the first attempt in the field of CLIL material evaluation The

writer of the thesis thus choose “Using the textbook Practice Maths 1 to teach English for Mathematics to first graders at Minh Khai Primary School - Difficulties and some suggested solution” as theme of her MA thesis with the hope

to make a new and useful contribution to the development of CLIL in Vietnamese teaching context

CHAPTER 2: THE RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 2.1 The Current Situation of Teaching and Learning English at Minh Khai primary school

To meet the pressing need of society for future generations who are competent in using English in both their social life and jobs, in the school year 2009, Minh Khai 1 primary school piloted an intensive English program at grade 1 with 2 periods (a period lasts 35 minutes) per week At the start in 2009 with 80 students in grade 1 participating in the program This program aims at teaching Maths through English to first graders, whose levels of proficiency in English are mostly beginners

2.1.2 The Course Objectives

The main objectives of the course are set out by the leaders and teachers at Minh Khai 1 primary school as follows:

At the end of the course, students will be able to:

- gradually become familiar with lessons of Maths in English

- listen and read with comprehension, follow instructions, and solve Maths problems related to certain basic mathematical concepts like the calculations of additions and subtraction, comparison between numbers from 1 to 10, and some basic geometrical representations in English

- conduct simple oral interactions to learn Maths through English

2.1.3 The Material Description

The textbook Practice Maths 1 was published by Education Publishing House

of Vietnam in 2009 The book consists of 24 units and 5 Cumulative reviews Each unit contains two lessons, both with key concepts and practice The book is divided into two big parts for the use in two semesters: the first part comprises 9 units and 2 Cumulative reviews, all of which focus on the numbers from 1 to 10, and some basic geometrical forms like square, circle and triangle The second part centers around the calculations of additions and subtractions within 10

2.2 The research methodology

With such research questions as just restated, the methodology with the following steps has been conducted

2.2.1 The informants

The informants of the study were from two sources: from 80 first grader students who are involving in the Bilingual program and all of the four English teachers teaching at Mink Khai 1 primary school

Eighty students were selected by ramdom to go in for the research and to participate in the survey questionnaire

Four English teachers who have been teaching English were invited to take part in the survey questionnaire It was hoped that their experience would be useful for this study

2.2.2 The Data Collection Instruments

The instruments in this study are questionnaires, which are said to be a relatively popular instrument to collect data, and especially suitable with large number of informants There are two questionnaires used, one is for teachers, the other is for students In order to avoid misunderstandings, all the questions for both teachers and students for the survey questionnaires were written and administered in Vietnamese

The questionnaire for teachers consists of 18 items which have been developed by the researcher based on the review of literature on material evaluation The questionnaire mainly aims at surveying the actual use of the textbook Practice

Maths 1 to teach Maths through English to first graders at Minh Khai 1 primary school, the difficulties that teachers face when using the textbook in to meet the objectives of the program in such a teaching context Some questions in the questionnaires aim to seek for suggested solutions to overcome the difficulties in using the textbook All of the four teachers informants did provide suggested solutions which are what they have actually piloted in their own classes

The questionnaire for the students comprises 10 items in which question 1, 2,

3, 4, 5, 7, 10 were the open-ended questions and questions 6, 8 were open questions The questionnaire is designed in order to find out the prominent difficulties students face in learning Maths through English and reflect their attitudes and evaluations of the learning-Maths-through-English program that they are participating It was delivered to 80 students

2.2.3 Data collection procedure

The questionnaire for the students was administered to 80 students during their Maths in English lessons Before the questionnaire was delivered, the reseacher spent time to explain of the survey questionnaire‟s purpose, the requirement for the participants and answer any questions made by the particidants The participants were also encouraged to ask if there was anything in the questionnaire they did not understand Then they were instructed to take as much time as they needed to complete the questionnaire The students‟ response rate was 100%

Differently, the teachers were requested to complete and return the questionnaires in one week to ensure that they would have enough time to give detailed and accurate information There was a return rate of 100% from the teachers In brief, there were 80 responses from students and 4 responses from teachers being coded for statistical analysis

In order to indentify teachers‟ difficulties in using the textbook Practice Maths 1 to teach Maths in English to the first grader, a questionnaire (see Appendix 1) was delivered to 4 English teachers who have been teaching the Bilingual program at Minh Khai 1 primary school This questionnaire consisted of 18 questions with the following categories:

- The teachers‟ reflection on the use of textbook Practice Maths 1 to teach English for Mathematics to the first graders

- Teachers‟ report and evaluation of the difficulties that they are facing in using Practice Maths 1 to teach

- Suggested solutions from teachers to overcome the difficulties

(i) Teachers’ reflection on the use of Practice Maths 1 to teach first graders

at Minh Khai 1 Primary school

Question 1: What is the main purpose of using the textbook

Practice Maths 1

No of informants

Help students know how to use knowledge learned in learning

Mathematics and other subjects

implications of using the textbook “Practice Maths 1” to teach maths in English to the students positively affects the lessons And the implications of using the textbook

“Practice Maths 1” to teach maths in English to the first grader were to help students familiarize with maths in English

Table 2: The teachers’ ideas about the focus of the course

Table 2 showed us the results of the teachers‟ ideas about the focus of the course It can be seen that most teachers thought that the focus of the course was teaching both Maths and English This meant that English teachers have to teach Maths through English

Question 3: Did you receive any training in teaching English to

primary school children before teaching this program?

No of informants

%

Table 3: Teachers’ self-evaluation of their training

The table revealed that (25%) of the teachers in the survey took the training before teaching the program, the other 75% did not receive any training in teaching English to primary school children before taking part in this program

Question 4: If you choose “Yes”, to question 3, say how useful

did you find that training to your teaching?

No of informants

%

Others

Table 4:The necessity of being well-trained

From the table we can see that, 25% of the teachers received the training which lasted 2 days They think that it is useful to their teaching

Question 5:.What language is used in the teaching and

learning?

No of informant

informants

%

To explain difficult words and structures 3 75

Table 6: Teachers’ self-report on when to use Vietnamese during the lesson

The numbers in table 6 shows that 75% of the teachers in the survey use Vietnamese give instructions, explain new words and structures to their students, they also use Vietnamese to explain difficult words and structures, 50% of them use Vietnamese to guide students to do exercises This meant that teachers still use too much Vietnamese in the lesson, which might be a demotivating factor to students in class

Statements Often Sometimes Rarely Never Others

Question 7: How often do you

use teaching aids such as:

computer in teaching English

for Mathematics

Table 7: Teachers’self-reported frequency of using teaching aids in teaching

As can be seen from the table, only 25% of the teachers often use the teaching aids in their teaching 65% of them sometimes do, 10% of them rarely

Question 8: How good your students at learning Maths

through English by the textbook Practice Maths 1?

No of informants

Table 8: The teachers’ attitude of the students’ language proficiency levels

Table 8 indicates that 25% of the teachers think that their students learn English for Mathematics excellently, 50% of them think that students can learn English for Mathematics well 50% of them think their students‟ learning English or Mathematics was medium It can be explain that students can learn English for Mathematics well

difficult

Difficult Normal Easy Very

easy

vocabulary and structures in

the textbook?

Table 9: Teachers’ perception of the difficult level of the Mathematics vocabulary in

the textbook