Teachers’ Use of Classroom-management Activities to Involve the Students in English-speaking Lessons at Thụy Hương High School, Hai Phong City

8 English-speaking lessons were observed and the two sets of survey questionnaire were delivered to 8 teachers of English and 330 students at Thụy Hương high school in Hải Phòng to ident

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

VŨ THỊ THƯƠNG

TEACHERS’ USE OF CLASSROOM-MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES

TO INVOLVE THE STUDENTS IN ENGLISH-SPEAKING LESSONS

AT THỤY HƯƠNG HIGH SCHOOL, HẢI PHÒNG CITY

VIỆC SỬ DỤNG CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG QUẢN LÝ LỚP HỌC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN NHẰM THU HÚT HỌC SINH THAM GIA VÀO TIẾT HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH TẠI TRƯỜNG THPT THỤY HƯƠNG, HẢI PHÒNG

M.A Minor Thesis

Field: English Methodology

Code: 60.140.111

HANOI – 2013

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

VŨ THỊ THƯƠNG

TEACHERS’ USE OF CLASSROOM-MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES

TO INVOLVE THE STUDENTS IN ENGLISH-SPEAKING LESSONS

AT THỤY HƯƠNG HIGH SCHOOL, HẢI PHÒNG CITY

VIỆC SỬ DỤNG CÁC HOẠT ĐỘNG QUẢN LÝ LỚP HỌC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN NHẰM THU HÚT HỌC SINH THAM GIA VÀO TIẾT HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH TẠI TRƯỜNG THPT THỤY HƯƠNG, HẢI PHÒNG

M.A Minor Thesis

Field: English Methodology Code: 60.140.111

Supervisor: Trần Xuân Điệp, Assoc Prof Dr

HANOI – 2013

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DECLARATION

I certify that the work contained in this thesis is the result of my own research, and this thesis has not been submitted for any degree at any other university or institution

Hanoi, October 2013

Signature

Vũ Thị Thương

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am indeed thankful to my supervisor, Assoc Prof Dr Trần Xuân Điệp, whose sympathetic guidance has been the source of inspiration and knowledge for my research I am also grateful to other teachers of the Department of Post-Graduate Studies for their encouragement and valuable advice

I have profound regards for the teaching staff of Thụy Hương High School in Hải Phòng and for all the students who spent their precious time on completing my survey questionnaire Without their enthusiastic cooperation, my thesis would not have been completed

My great thanks are also given to my family and my friends who have encouraged

me a lot during the process of my study

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ABSTRACT

In this minor thesis, a survey research was conducted to investigate the influence of the teachers‟ classroom management on the students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons 8 English-speaking lessons were observed and the two sets of survey questionnaire were delivered to 8 teachers of English and 330 students at Thụy Hương high school in Hải Phòng to identify the classroom-management activities that the teachers have used in their English-speaking lessons and the attitudes of these students towards their teachers‟ activities The research findings revealed various classroom-management activities that the teachers have efffectively and ineffectively used in involving their students and the positive attidtude of about 60 percent of the selected students towards their teachers‟ activities

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LIST OF FUGURES

Figure 1.1: Types of students‟ participation

Figure 1.2: Strategies to cope with chaos in large classes

Figure 3.1: Teachers‟ frequency of using certain activities before the students‟ practice

Figure 3.2: Teachers‟ frequency of using certain activities during the students‟ practice

Figure 3.3: Students‟ attitudes towards their English-speaking lessons

Figure 3.5: Students‟ remark on their teachers‟ classroom-management activities

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Pages

Declaration i

Acknowledgements ii

Abstract iii

List of figures iv

Table of contents v

PART A: INTRODUCTION 1

1 Rationale 1

2 Objectives of the study 2

3 Research questions 2

4 Scope of the study 3

5 Design of the study 3

PART B: DEVELOPMENT 4

CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 4

1.1 Definition of major related concepts 4

1.1.1 Students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons 4

1.1.2 Teacher‟s classroom management in English-speaking lessons 6

1.1.2.1 Personalizing a large class 7

1.1.2.2 Getting students‟ attention 9

1.1.2.3 Developing good discipline 10

1.1.2.4 Managing pair and group work 12

1.2 Review of existing related works 13

Summary 14

CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 15

2.1 Research method 15

2.2 Research subjects 15

2.2.1 The researcher 15

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2.2.2 The selected teachers and students 16

2.3 Research instruments 16

2.3.1 Survey questionnaire for teachers 16

2.3.2 Survey questionnaire for students 17

2.3.3 Classroom observation 18

2.3 Research procedures 18

CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 20

3.1 Data collected from survey questionnaire 20

3.1.1 Survey questionnaire for teachers 20

3.1.1.1 Teachers‟ opinions of a successful English-speaking lesson 20

3.1.1.2 Teachers‟ assessment of their students‟ level of English-speaking proficiency and participation 20

3.1.1.3 Teacher‟s opinions of the most effective activities to raise the level of students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons 21

3.1.1.4 Teachers‟ frequency of using certain classroom management activities 22

3.1.2 Survey questionnaire for students 26

3.1.2.1 Students‟ attitudes towards their English-speaking lessons and the related issues 26

3.1.2.2 Students‟ remark on their teachers‟ classroom-management activities26 3.2 Data collected from classroom observation sheets 31

3.2.1 Teachers‟ classroom-management activities in the observed English-speaking lessons 31

3.2.2 Students‟ participation in observed English-speaking lessons 33

3.3 Summary of the major findings 34

3.3.1 Answer for research question 1 34

3.3.2 Answer for research question 2 34

PART C: CONCLUSION 36

1 Recapitulation 36

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2 Limitations of the study 37

3 Suggestions for further research 37

REFERENCES 38 APPENDIXES

Appendix A - SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TEACHERS I Appendix B - SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS XIII Appendix C - CLASSROOM OBSERVATION SHEET XXI

The researcher, from her own teaching experience, is in favor of the remark from many previously mentioned studies that teachers‟ use of classroom management activities affects the level of students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons Then,

speaking lessons

2 Objectives of the study

This study aims at investigating the relationship between the teachers‟ classroom- management activities and the students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons at Thuy Huong high school in Haiphong To achieve this aim, the study concentrates on:

(1) Investigating the teachers‟ classroom management activities to involve their students in English-speaking lessons;

(2) Identifying the students‟ attitudes towards their teachers‟ classroom management activities in English-speaking lessons;

(3) Giving some implications to help the teachers to improve the students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons

The result of this study is expected to be useful for the teachers of English at Thuy Huong high school in particular and other teachers who have the same concern with the issue of the students‟ level of participation in English-speaking lessons in general

3 Research questions

Within the objectives of the study, two research questions are raised:

(1) Which classroom management activities have the teachers at Thuy Huong high

school used to involve their students in their English-speaking lessons?

(2) What are the attitudes of the students towards their teachers’ classroom

management activities in their English-speaking lessons?

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4 Scope of the study

Although there are various factors that have the influence on the students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons, the researcher only focuses her study on one of these factors – i.e teachers‟ use of classroom management activities

5 Design of the study

The main body of this thesis consists of three main parts:

Part A – INTRODUCTION: provides a brief theoretical and practical background

of the research area and states the aim, the objectives and the scope of the study Herein, the research questions are also raised

Part B – DEVELOPMENT: consists of three chapters:

Chapter 1: Theoretical background: provides the definition of major related

concepts (students‟ level of participation and teachers‟ classroom management activities in English-speaking lessons) and reviews the related works that compose the theoretical background of the study

Chapter 2: Methodology: identifies the research method (survey research sampling,

research procedures) and gives detailed descriptions of the data collection tools (survey questionnaire and classroom observation sheet) as well as the subjects of the study

Chapter 3: Results and Discussion: reports the results after analyzing the collected

data in themes and gives brief summary answer for the two research questions

Part C – CONCLUSION: summarizes the whole research, gives some teaching

implications, and discusses the limitations of the study as well as suggestions for further research

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PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

1.1 Definition of major related concepts

1.1.1 Students’ level of participation in English-speaking lessons

According to Tsou (2005:46), students‟ classroom participation „includes many forms of students actions such as speaking, listening, reading, writing, and body languages or physical movement‟ However, since „oral participation is the most observable behavior‟ (Tsou, 2005:46), students‟ participation “usually means students speaking in class: answer and ask questions, make comments, and join in discussions‟ (Lee, 2005:2)

Liu (2001) in his multi-case ethnographic study distinguishes four types of students‟ participation: total integration, conditional participation, marginal interaction, and silent observation Based on the description of Liu (2001), Sayadi (2007:25) summarizes the features of these four types in the following table:

Figure 1.1: Types of students’ participation

Conditional

+ Constrained by factors such as socio-cultural, cognitive, affective, linguistic, and

environmental + Limited interaction between learner and learner, learner and teacher

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participation + Figuring out when to speak, what to speak

+ Concern with appropriate classroom behavior + Carefully reflect on their participation after each attempt

Marginal

interaction

+ Attentive listeners + Seldom speak up in class + Prefer listening, note-taking and group discussion after class

+ Less adventurous + Thinking carefully and internal rehearsal before attempting to participate

Silent observation

+ The least active + Seem to accept whatever discussed in class + Use various sorts of compensation strategies to help digest and confirm what has been

communicated in class (Sayadi, 2007:25)

As can be seen from the table, the students who actively verbally participate in classroom discussions are ranked as „total integration‟ with the highest level of involvement whilst the students who rarely or never raise their voices in class are of

„marginal interaction‟ and „silent observation‟ with the poor level of participation

To a second or foreign language learning class, the students‟ participation is required to be at high level because a successful language learning class is believed

to be the place where „learners talk a lot; participation is even; motivation is high and language is of an acceptable level‟ (Ur, 1996:120) This means that the participation patterns in English-speaking lessons should be „total integration‟ and

„conditional participation‟

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For years, the positive impact of the students‟ level of participation in classroom activities on their academic results has been identified by a significant number of studies (e.g Busch, 1982; Day, 1984; Elly, 1986; Zhou, 1991; Lim, 1992; Wudong, 1994; Gomez et al., 1995; Faizah & Liew, 2007) These studies confirm that students who show their higher level of participation in the classroom activities would achieve greater academic results Thus, English learners who do not actively take part in the classroom discussions do waste their golden chances to improve and master their English-speaking skill Consequently, students in English-speaking lessons are expected to spend most of their time on speaking English to their classmates and their teachers to express ideas, to make questions or to give comments so that the learning and teaching process can effectively take place

1.1.2 Teacher’s classroom management in English-speaking lessons

According to Oyinloye (2010:307), a teacher has to deal with a wide range of management issues in his class These, as he clarifies, may include:

…creat[ing] the setting, decorat[ing] the room, arrang[ing] the chairs,

speaking to children and listen[ing] to their responses, putting routines

in place and then executing, modifying and reinstating them,

developing rules and communicating those rules to pupils

He also states that each of these above issues will „determine the academic achievement and behavior‟ of the students and it is „the way the teacher prepares the classroom physically‟ that „could determine the level of students‟ participation in lesson‟ (2010:307) His remark, on the one hand, shares the findings of a body of research on the influence of the teachers‟ classroom-management activities on students‟ learning process and results (cf Freiberg et al., 1995; Marzano et al., 2003; Hải, 2005; Lan, 2005; Oliver & Reschly, 2007; Hằng, 2008; Mustapha et al., 2010; Huyền, 2010) His remark, on the other hand, confirms the claim of all

1.1.2.1 Personalizing a large class

The techniques presented by The Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) – a series

of programs facilitating and supporting new innovations in teaching – governed by the University of Maryland appear to cover a large scope of effective management These strategies include: (1) make a class feel small, (2) encourage question, (3) be available, (4) try to learn students‟ name, (5) relate lectures and discussions to students‟ experiences, (6) pay attention to individual students, (7) consider self-presentation, and (8) give personalized feedback

Initially, teachers can „make a large class feel small‟ by performing various activities such as walking around the classroom, moving toward the student asking a question, distributing handouts The Schreyer Institute for Teaching Excellence supports the view that instructors should move into the aisles and around the room

by stating that if the teachers do that frequently, they are able to not only make the class smaller but also promote the students‟ level of involvement Another way to set a small-class atmosphere in a large-class setting is letting students work in small groups Theberge (1994:34) states that small groups can „afford different participation structures than the one-at-a-time talk of the whole class, and turns are often distributed more equitably in these small groups than in whole-class discussion‟ Thus, using group

work discussions will let students chance to work in a smaller environment so that they could actually engage in classroom activities

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Encouraging questions is also an effective technique assisting teachers to make the classroom atmosphere smaller and warmer Responding in ways that appeals more questions from students such as "I'm glad you asked that" or "That's a good question", mentioning the names of the students who have asked questions and using nonverbal responses such as smiling or nodding are strategies to cope with students‟ reluctance of raising voices in classroom When performing asking-and-answering activities, teachers are advised to notice the „teacher wait time‟ – the amount of time a teacher waits before he answers his own questions Fritscher (2000, as cited in Mustapha et al., 2010) finds that students rarely asked questions

or make comments to instructors who wait „no more than a few second‟

Being available to students both before and after class is regarded to be a good strategy to lower the high student-instructor ratio in large class This, therefore, makes the classes smaller Walking around the room and asking certain questions before starting a lesson are commonly used by various teachers And that, in fact, makes the class warmer After class, teachers are suggested to stay back a few minutes longer than usual to be available to answer questions of the students who interested in the lessons

Another strategy which is highly appreciated by a variety of researchers is using students‟ names when addressing them (cf Hayes, 1997; Mamadou, 2001) Hayes (1997:113) cited an example to prove the importance of learning students‟ names: if someone was called on by the term „Hey, you!‟, then his feelings are „usually ones

of annoyance, accompanied by a desire to ignore the person calling out‟

Relating lectures and discussions to student experiences is a technique of appealing students‟ interest in the discussed topic Knowledge of teachers on the backgrounds

of his students can be of great help to incorporate students‟ life experiences into the class This also assists to establish a good relationship between the teacher and his students

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Paying attention to individual students is undoubtedly a real challenge In fact, a teacher seems not to be able to keeping an eye on all students in a large class The teacher, therefore, is suggested to deliver his attention to individual by reviewing students‟ attendance, students‟ performance on exams and homework

Presenting teacher himself to students as a person rather than just a source of knowledge also makes the class smaller Teachers are advised to show their personality and humor so that they can establish a good rapport with their students Sharing lesson expectations, experiences or challenges and getting feedbacks from students makes the classroom friendlier

One of the key shortcomings of the large classes is that teachers find it difficult to give feedbacks to all students To overcome this, teachers are encouraged to

„comment on a different group of exams or papers each time‟ so that students could get individualized comments from their teachers at least once during the semester

1.1.2.2 Getting students’ attention

Certain strategies that can assist the teacher to show their interest in students are using body gestures and facial expressions, using interesting topics and audio-visual aids, and asking for students‟ volunteer

Lewis and Hill (1992, as cited in Lan, 2007) states that when the teacher takes his eyes off students, his students seem to lose their concentration on his talks Thus, keep moving eyes around the class, students will feel engaged

One of the most natural and effective ways to hold the notice of all students is making the lesson interesting to students Using teaching materials such as audio or visual

aids can, on the one hand, also provide students with authentic teaching materials and on the other hand, make the lesson interesting thank to the diversity of the teaching aids

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Another common way to appeal students‟ attention is asking for volunteer This strategy makes students feel more responsible to participate in the classroom interaction This also provides dynamic students opportunities to model the performance in front of the classes It is clear that in a speaking lesson, the more students are actively involved in the discussions, the more successful that lesson is

1.1.2.3 Developing a good discipline

Discipline is a crucial factor in the teaching and learning procedure (Azhar, 2004:98) Also, amongst all the school-related factors, discipline has the greatest impact upon students‟ responsibility (Ingersoll, 1996:164) Thus, developing a good discipline is a major task of all teachers

Initially, it is of great importance to raise the deep awareness about a good discipline There remains a common thought that discipline relates to strict rules or heavy punishments which make students sit quietly in their seats In fact, if this perception of discipline is applied in an English speaking class, this class would become a really least successful lesson a teacher may have Of all the insights on what must be a good discipline, the view of Pastor (2002:657, as cited in Lewis, 2008:159) appears to be a satisfactory one when he states that „discipline is not primarily a matter of keeping things under control by making choices for students…

it is a matter of helping students learn to make good choices and be responsible for those choices‟ It can be stated that the goal of discipline is to establish students‟ ability of self-responsibility Then, good discipline consists of all rules that give students the freedom to learn in their own way within the boundaries of a reasonable amount of control

To enhance a good discipline in large classes, teachers are also advised to pay attention on the chaos which they may encounter in an English class Following table presents certain strategies that can assist teachers to solve the issue of lacking control in their English classes

+ plan a rehearsal stage before the activity + plan and write the instructions beforehand + plan a filler activity for the groups that finish earlier than the others

+ plan the lesson with a variety (change the patterns of interaction: student to student, student to teacher; group to group)

+ break up longer tasks into shorter sections and handle these sections differently

During the

activity

+ look interested in each group but from a distance + note down common errors of grammar or usage to explain later on

After the

+ ask Ss feeling about the activity

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activity + discuss performance of certain groups

+ ask students‟ comments on the performance of others (Azhar, 2004)

1.1.2.4 Managing pair and group work

Carrying out the teaching and learning activities in pairs and groups is the most suggested strategy to deal with the issue of large size English learning classes According to Nakabugo et al (2007:3), „group work, if well arranged, can enable all children in their small groups engage with the task at hand, share their views, and learn from one another‟ Thus, managing pair work and group work is of great importance in large English-speaking classes to promote the level of students‟ participation in the classroom discussions

Initially, one of the teachers‟ major concerns must be the organization of pair and group work Teachers can organize the groups which fit the learners‟ abilities such

as mixed-ability groups where good learners can assist weaker learners to master

the tasks so that the teacher need not teach certain parts or same-ability groups that provide teachers with more time to give extra help to weak individual learners in the weaker groups Using group leaders or monitors can not only help the weak learners but also help the teachers to maintain discipline in groups

Another issue of managing pair or group work is how to control pair and group work effectively First, teachers are suggested to move around the classroom to see what improvement the students are making and whether there are any problems with students‟ performance to provide them with advice, encouragement and extra individual assistance Then, teachers are also advised to pay attention upon the fact that „not all students need individual attention in every lesson: for some, a quick check that they are doing the activity correctly will often be enough, whereas others will need closer guidance‟ (Hayes, 1997:113)

In addition, teachers also have to pay attention on the way they give feedback to their students‟ presentation It is the fact that there is no rule about feedback-giving Certain teachers who have a good relationship with their students can deliver feedback right after the students have made mistakes but is it more suggested by various researchers that it would be better for the teachers to give feedback after the students have finished their presentations

1.2 Review of existing related works

As previously mentioned, this study aims at investigating the relationship between the teachers‟ classroom- management activities and the students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons In fact, a significant number of studies have been conducted of this issue such as Freiberg et al (1995), Marzano et al (2003), Hải (2005), Lan (2005), Oliver & Reschly (2007), Hằng (2008), Mustapha et al (2010), and Huyền (2010) Thus, the result of this study is expected to confirm the remark

of all aforesaid research that the teachers‟ pedagogical methodology has great impact upon the students‟ oral involvement in English-speaking lessons

Similarly, a large number of studies have been also conducted to identify the most valuable pedagogical methods to involve more students in classroom activities (e.g

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Lim, 1992; Zhao, 1998; Davis, 1999; Bích, 2003; Azhar, 2004; Xuân, 2004; Tsou, 2005; Loan, 2006; Lịch, 2007; Lan, 2007; Ngân, 2008; Mai, 2008; Tuyết, 2009; Uyên, 2009; Hoài, 2010; Lan, 2010; Quyên, 2010) In brief, these academic methods vary from single strategies such as using games, task-based teaching or differentiated instructions to a combination of various strategies such as active learning activities, classroom-management activities or activities related to students‟ motivation Based on the findings of these above mentioned studies, this survey research is conducted at a specific high school – Thụy Hương high school in Hải Phòng city; and within the scope of this study, the researcher only focuses on investigating the classroom-management activities that the teachers of English at the selected high school have used to involve their students in English-speaking lessons and then gives some implications to help the teachers to improve the students‟ participation in their English-speaking lessons

Summary

In this chapter, the researcher provides the definition of two major concepts of the study such as the students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons and the teachers

classroom-management activities in English-speaking lessons Then, a number of works that have related to the issue of the teachers‟ using classroom-management activities to raise the level of students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons are also reviewed to compose the theoretical background for the study

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CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 2.1 Research method – survey research

This study was a survey research in the way that it was the work of the researcher with an expectation of investigating the English-speaking teaching and learning reality at Thụy Hương High school in Hải Phòng In particular, two major issues were explored: (1) the teachers‟ classroom management activities to involve their students in English-speaking tasks and (2) the students‟ attitudes towards their teachers‟ classroom management activities in English-speaking lessons

In this survey research, all the teachers of English and the students at Thụy Hương high school were the population (the entire group of interest) and the sample (the subset of the entire group) were all the teachers of English (8 teachers) and 330 students (8 classes) The biggest difference between the population and the sample was the number of involved students Herein, 8 classes with 330 students were selected from the population to meet the teachers‟ teaching timetable at school However, despite this sampling of convenience, the sample was still adequately representative of the whole population because the selected students, as confirmed

by all the teachers, shared the similar proficiency in doing their English-speaking tasks with the rest of the entire group

2.2 Research subjects

2.2.1 The researcher

The researcher is attending the MA course at the Department of Post-Graduate Studies, University of Language and International Studies, Vietnam National University of Hanoi As trained in English teaching major, the researcher has had opportunities of attending and teaching English lessons in certain Vietnamese high schools Also, the researcher did have chance to conduct certain studies in the field

of English language teaching This study was another work of the researcher with the aim of contributing its results to the broad body of research on the same issue Herein, the researcher worked as the person who delivered the survey questionnaire,

a classroom observer, a data collector and analyst to complete the study

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2.2.2 The selected teachers and students

The subjects of the study were 8 teachers of English and 330 students at Thụy Hương high school in Hải Phòng

All the teachers are female from 31 to 36 years old They were trained in English teaching major at Hanoi University of Education, Haiphong University, and Haiphong Private University They have been teaching English for high school students for 4 to 9 years

The selected students were 330 students from 8 classes: 2 from grade 10, 3 from grade 11, and 2 from grade 12

Following is the description of these instruments

2.3.1 Survey questionnaire for teachers

The first set of questionnaire (Appendix A) was delivered to 8 teachers of English at

the selected high school Apart from the requirement for the teachers‟ background information at the beginning part of the survey questionnaire, the rest consisted of two main parts

The first part included 6 open-ended questions that asked for the answers written by the teachers These questions fell into 3 categories:

Category 1: included 2 questions related to the teachers‟ opinions of a successful

English-speaking lesson

Category 2: included 2 questions related to the teachers‟ assessment of their

students‟ level of English-speaking proficiency and participation

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Category 3: included 2 questions related to the teacher‟s opinions of the most

effective activities to raise the level of students‟ participation in English-speaking lessons

The second part of the survey questionnaire asked for the teachers‟ frequency of using certain classroom management activities This was composed by ranked

questions with 16 items (a-p) as follows

The first 9 items (a-i) were about the activities which the teachers often did before

their students‟ practice, from adapting the textbooks activities, preparing the instructions for each speaking task, establishing the discipline, introducing the lesson objectives, instructing the students how to work in pair/group, having plan to change pair/group members, using group leaders, setting the practice time to giving the model of performance

Then, the next 7 items (j-p) were about the teachers‟ frequency of using activities

during the practice of the students These activities included: walking around the class to observe the students‟ activities, using names to call on the students and paying attention on their presentations, using interesting activities, using body gestures, facial expressions and eye contact when giving explanations, instructions

or feedback to attract the students‟ attention, instructing pair or group work and delivering help, appointing groups of presentation, reminding of the discipline, and giving feedback after the students have finished their presentations

Details can be seen in Appendix A

2.3.2 Survey questionnaire for students

The second set of questionnaire (Appendix B) was delivered to 8 classes of 330

students This set of questionnaire consisted of 8 questions with multiple-choice, yes/no, open-ended and ranked questions These questions were divided into two major categories:

Category 1: included 7 questions related to the students‟ attitudes towards their

English-speaking lessons and the related issues (students‟ common activities in their

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English-speaking lessons, students‟ frequency of speaking performances in front of the class, students‟ difficulties in learning speaking skill)

Category 2: include ranked questions with 8 items related to the students‟ remark on

their teachers‟ classroom management activities (from the activities that the teachers used during the students‟ practice time to the overall work of the teachers)

Details can be seen in Appendix B

2.3.3 Classroom observation

8 classroom observation sheets (Appendix C) were used to observe 8

English-speaking lessons of 8 teachers to identify two main categories:

Category 1: included a checklist that assisted the researcher to find out the teachers‟

used classroom management activities in the observed English-speaking lessons

Category 2: included a field note that let the researcher make comments on the

effectiveness of each used classroom management activities and on the students‟ level of involvement in their English-speaking tasks

The work of observation included the following steps:

• Start the observation as soon as the teacher begins the lesson

- Put a √ next to the activity that the teacher is using

- Write the letter E (effective) or I (ineffective) next to the used activity to show whether the activity is effective in evolving the students in the lesson

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in English-speaking lessons became the most remarkable As a teacher of English who have also spent time teaching English for high school students, the researcher shared her agreement with almost teachers of this school that the teachers‟ classroom-management activities did have great impacts on the students‟ level of involvement Thus, after reviewing the related literature, a survey was conducted in

6 weeks (from the beginning of April to the middle of May, 2013) to explore the relationship between the teachers‟ classroom-management activities and the students‟ participation at the selected school

To begin with, a questionnaire (Appendix A) was delivered to 8 teachers of English

Then, 8 English-speaking lessons were observed with the observation sheets

(Appendix C) At the end of each lesson, the students of each class were also called for completing a survey questionnaire (Appendix B)

The data collected from these two sets of questionnaire and from 8 observation sheets were analyzed by using both analytical and statistical process The results after that were presented in themes or categories

The survey research was complete after the two research questions had been answered and some recommendations had been suggested for the teaching English-speaking skill at the selected high school

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CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 3.1 Data collected from survey questionnaires

3.1.1 Survey questionnaire for teachers

3.1.1.1 Teachers’ opinions of a successful English-speaking lesson

Question 1 and question 2 in the survey questionnaire for teachers (Appendix A)

were designed to explore the teachers‟ opinions about a successful English-speaking lesson

When being asked what could be considered as a successful English-speaking lesson, all the teachers stated that the first and the very important criterion for a successful English speaking lesson was that all the students enthusiastically joined the speaking activities to finish all the given tasks Then, most of them agreed that a successful English-speaking lesson was the place where their students could freely use their knowledge and vocabulary to express ideas about the discussed topics Consequently, the students‟ independence from task models in the textbooks was appreciated Certain teachers even showed their desire that a successful English-speaking lesson had to help their students to use English to communicate in the daily life

Also, when being asked which factors had the most influence on the success of an English-speaking lesson, seven of eight teachers shared the same idea that the level

of students‟ participation was of the most importance Some explained that only when all the students participated in the speaking activities could they finish the given tasks well Another factor that attracted attention from half of the teachers was the teachers‟ lesson organization In their opinions, teachers‟ preparation and ways of designing a lesson were very important to have a successful English-speaking lesson

3.1.1.2 Teachers’ assessment of their students’ level of English-speaking proficiency and participation

Question 3 in the survey asked for the teachers‟ remark upon the level of speaking proficiency of their students Herein, all the teachers agreed that the

English-21

majority of their students were very bad at speaking English As stated by them, their students were not able to finish many speaking tasks in the textbooks Because most of these students were dependent on the models, they were not able to use what they had learnt in the daily life To explain this situation, some of the teachers stated that certain speaking tasks in the textbooks were too difficult for their students to practice

Towards the students‟ participation, all the teachers remarked that most of their students did not take part in the given tasks enthusiastically In each lesson, only certain students were eager to speak while many others only joined when being reminded by the teachers

3.1.1.3 Teacher’s opinions of the most effective activities to raise the level of students’ participation in English-speaking lessons

When being asked which factors had the most influences on the students‟ level of participation, most of the teachers agreed that it was the way the teachers organized and managed the speaking activities that decided whether the students joined the given tasks enthusiastically or not Some of them emphasized that the teachers‟ methods of introducing the lessons or the teachers‟ warm-up activities were very important to attract the students‟ attention Also, only by making each activity interesting to students could the teachers remain the level of their students‟ participation Other factors that were also reported by certain teachers are student-related factors In their opinions, the students‟ awareness of the lesson importance and the students‟ vocabulary and knowledge were major factors that affected the students‟ level of involvement

Also, question 6 in the survey asked for the teachers‟ opinions about which classroom management activities were the most effective in enhancing the level of students‟ participation in English-speaking tasks All the teachers stated that the teachers‟ use of games, pictures or videos could attract the students‟ attention most Thus, all the teachers made use of the overhead projectors to provide their students with as many interesting lessons as possible

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3.1.1.4 Teachers’ frequency of using certain classroom management activities

In the next part of the survey questionnaire, the teachers were asked for their frequency of using certain classroom management activities

Initially, the first 9 items (a-i) were about the activities which the teachers often did

before the students‟ practice time (preparation activities) These ranged from adapting the textbooks activities, preparing the instructions for each speaking task, establishing the discipline, introducing the lesson objectives, instructing the students how to work in pair/group, having plan to change pair/group members, using group leaders, setting the practice time to giving the model of performance The statistics of the 9 items are described in the table below:

Figure 3.1: Teachers’ frequency of using certain activities before the students’ practice

A – Never apply

B – Rarely apply

C – Sometimes apply

D – Usually apply

E – Always apply

a Adapt the

English-speaking tasks in the

and the filler activities

for the students who

finish the task earlier

than others

12.5% 87.5%

c Establish a code of

behaviors which the

students should and

the numbers of students

in each group when

of the teachers often used group leaders and changed pair/group members was that these activities were time-consuming As stated by some teachers, it was a hard work to select students who could be the group leaders and the learning space actually did not support for the change of group members Besides, some teachers rarely or sometimes reminded the students of the discipline, of the lesson importance and of how to work in pair or group because in their opinions these activities must have been done in the first lessons at the beginning of the school year

The next 7 items (j-p) were about the teachers‟ frequency of using certain activities

during the practice time of the students (on-task activities) These included: walking

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around the class to observe the students‟ activities, using names to call on the students and paying attention on their presentations, using interesting activities, using body gestures, facial expressions and eye contact when giving explanations, instructions or feedback to attract the students‟ attention, instructing pair or group work and delivering help, appointing groups of presentation, reminding of the discipline, and giving feedback after the students have finished their presentations The results are reported in the following table:

Figure 3.2: Teachers’ frequency of using certain activities during the students’ practice

A – Never apply

B – Rarely apply

C – Sometimes apply

D – Usually apply

E – Always apply

(cf 3.1.1.3) Similarly, certain teachers left the comment that they were not able to

use the projectors frequently to design games and many other interesting activities due to the lack of rooms equipped with projectors in the school Some also found it time-consuming to use games in their lessons As stated by them, to complete all the

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speaking tasks in the textbook was sometimes a very hard work; there was no time for other extra activities

3.1.2 Survey questionnaire for students

3.1.2.1 Students’ attitudes towards their English-speaking lessons and the related issues

The first 2 questions of the survey questionnaire for students (Appendix B) aimed at

investigating the attitudes of the students toward their English-speaking lessons When being asked about the importance of English-speaking lessons, a majority of students (96.37%) agreed that English-speaking lessons were important to them However, when being asked whether they liked or disliked their current English-speaking lessons, only 68.64% stated that they had the interest in these lessons Whilst there were 26.73% of the students expressed their neutral attitudes that they neither liked nor disliked their current English-speaking lessons, others (4.63%) did not like these lessons in any way These figures are illustrated as follow

Figure 3.3: Students’ attitudes towards their English-speaking lessons

Very important Rather important Little important Not important at all

No, not at all

1 How are the English-speaking lessons important to you?

2 Do you like your current English-speaking lessons?

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The next 3 questions (question 3, 4, and 5) asked for the students‟ common

activities in their English-speaking lessons

Initially, when being asked about what they often did during their practice, about 67% of the students said that they practiced immediately to finish the task and then sat quietly or joined the extra activities before the given time was up while nearly 23% stated that they took time to chat with others in Vietnamese right after finishing their tasks The number of the students who practiced only when being reminded, who sat quietly to listen to their partners, and who spent time chatting with friends instead of practicing fell into around 3% per each

Secondly, when being asked about what they often did during their classmates‟ performance time, more than 85% of the students stated that they listened to their friends‟ presentations to compare to themselves While only about 10% said that they just noticed when their teacher paid attention to them, there were a quite small number of students who did not care about their peers‟ talks

These above figures actually showed the contrast with the teachers‟ remark that

most of their students did not take part in the given tasks enthusiastically (cf

3.1.1.2) Question 5 then asked about the students‟ frequency of speaking

performances in front of the class More than half of the students said that they had chance to practice once or twice in each lesson However, while about 15% of students declared that they presented from two to three times and about 10% were called for more than 3 times each lesson, a quite greater proportion (about 20%) fell into the figure of students who had no chance to make presentation in front of the class This revealed the fact that in large class, giving students individual attention

is of great challenge to the teachers

Question 6 and 7 in the survey questionnaire asked the students whether they had any difficulties in learning English-speaking skill The answer was the agreement of almost student (nearly 96%) The results are shown in the following table

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Figure 3.4: Students’ difficulties in learning speaking skill

Difficulties Percentage

(%)

A Do not have enough knowledge and vocabulary

C Do not want to practice in class, only like

practicing at home

3.96

E Be afraid of making grammar and pronunciation

H Be lack of chance for making presentation due to

I Do not receive enough care from the teacher 5.61

J Be unmotivated by the teacher’s way of task

K Do not understand the teacher’s instructions 2.31

L Other problems Please specify:

0

As can be seen from the table, the most common problem that the students had in their English-speaking lessons was their fear of losing face While 64.69% of the students were afraid of making grammar or pronunciation errors, 35.31% were worried about making worse presentation than that of others The second most common difficulty fell into the issue of lacking knowledge and vocabulary related

to the given topic (accounting for 55.45%) This shared with the remark of some

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teachers that the students‟ vocabulary and knowledge was one of the major factors

that affected the students‟ level of involvement (cf 3.1.1.3)

Being lack of chance for making presentation due to the large-sized class and limited time ranked the third with the figure of 24.42% Then, other difficulties only accounted for a quite small proportion of students (accounting for 0 to 6%)

3.1.2.2 Students’ remark on their teachers’ classroom-management activities

Question 8 in the survey questionnaire for students asked for the students‟ feedback

on their teachers‟ classroom management activities in their English-speaking lessons The results are reported in the following table

Figure 3.5: Students’ remark on their teachers’ classroom-management activities

A – Never apply

B – Rarely apply

C – Sometimes apply

D – Usually apply

E – Always apply