Using english pronunciation websites to improve students pronunciation an action research project at an english center in hanoi

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THỊ LOAN USING ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION WEBSITES TO IMPROV

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN THỊ LOAN

USING ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION WEBSITES TO

IMPROVE STUDENTS’ PRONUNCIATION: AN ACTION

RESEARCH PROJECT AT AN ENGLISH CENTER IN

HANOI

Sử dụng trang web dạy phát âm tiếng Anh để cải thiện khả năng phát âm

của học sinh:

nghiên cứu hành động tại một trung tâm Anh ngữ ở Hà Nội

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231.01

Hanoi, 2018

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST- GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN THỊ LOAN

USING ENGLISH PRONUNCIATION WEBSITES TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ PRONUNCIATION: AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT AT AN ENGLISH CENTER IN

HANOI

Sử dụng trang web dạy phát âm tiếng Anh để cải thiện khả năng phát âm

của học sinh:

nghiên cứu hành động tại một trung tâm Anh ngữ ở Hà Nội

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field : English Teaching Methodology Code : 8140231.01

Supervisor : Huỳnh Anh Tuấn, PhD

Hanoi, 2018

Also, I am greatly indebted to all professors and staffs of the Faculty of Graduate Studies for their meaningful lessons and precious support thanks to which

Post-I was able to overcome obstacles during the time my research was carried out

Besides, I would like to give my whole-hearted thanks to the manager and students in class Movers 6 in the center for their enthusiastic participation in my research Without their help, I would not have been able to complete this paper

Last but not least, I owe a great debt of gratitude to my beloved family whose support and encouragement have always been a great deal of motivation that has helped me to overcome all problems to complete my thesis

Hanoi,

Nguyễn Thị Loan

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ABSTRACT

This study investigated the potential role of pronunciation websites as a means to improve students‘ competence in pronunciation The research aimed to figure out whether the use of pronunciation instruction websites could help improve students‘ pronunciation and to identify students‘ attitude towards using these websites as well as the selected activities In order to accomplish these purposes, 15 students of class Movers 6 at an English center in Hanoi were selected to participate

in the study All the students came from the same linguistic background and they shared the same teacher and teaching contents Three data collection instruments were employed, namely pre-test/post-tests, questionnaire and class observation After 3 months, the post-test and a questionnaire were administered The analysis of the data collected revealed that the students made progress in pronunciation by using pronunciation websites in teaching and learning pronunciation Results from the questionnaires and observation also reflected a completely positive attitude of students towards the use of these websites, and students claimed that the selected activities helped them have more fun and motivation in learning pronunciation On this basis, useful implications for teachers‘ preparation, classroom practices and future research were proposed

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CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i

ABSTRACT ii

CONTENTS iii

LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND CHARTS vi

INTRODUCTION 1

1 Statement of the problem and rationale of the study 1

2 Aims and objectives of the study 2

3 Research questions 3

4 Scope of the study 3

5 Significance of the study 4

6 Research methods 4

7 Organizations of the study 5

CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEW 6

1 Pronunciation 6

1.1 Definition of pronunciation 6

1.2 The importance of pronunciation 6

2 Pronunciation in language teaching 7

2.1 Pronunciation as an aspect of communicative competence 7

2.2 Approaches to teaching pronunciation 9

2.2.1 Intuitive- imitative approach 9

2.2.2 Analytic- linguistic approach 9

2.2.3 Bottom-up approach 10

2.2.4 Top-down approach 10

2.2.5 Integrated approach 10

2.3 Elements of pronunciation teaching 10

2.3.1 Consonant and vowel sounds 11

2.3.2 Word stress 11

3 Ideas on pronunciation teaching and learning 11

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4 Pronunciation websites 13

5 Theoretical background of technology and websites application in language teaching 13

6 Advantages and disadvantages of using pronunciation websites in pronunciation teaching and learning 14

7 Websites evaluation 15

8 Summary of previous studies and the gap to carry the current research 18

CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY 20

1 The context of the study 20

2 Action research 20

2.1 Definition of action research 20

2.2 Types of action research 21

2.2.1 Individual teacher research 21

2.2.2 Collaborative action research model 22

2.2.3 The school wide action research 22

2.3 Action research model 23

2.4 The reasons of choosing action research for this study 25

2.4.1 A framework for change and improvement 26

2.4.2 A framework for a participative small scale study that can be evaluated 27

2.5 The potential pitfalls of doing action research 29

3 The participants of the study 29

4 Data collection instruments 30

4.1 Pre-test and post-test 30

4.2 Questionnaire 30

4.3 Observation 31

5 The research stages 31

PRE-INTERVENTION STAGE 31

5.1 Identifying the problem 31

INTERVENTION STAGE 32

5.2 Action planning 32

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5.2.1 Matching the symbols and the words (Appendix 5- Worksheet 1) 33

5.2.2 Running dictation (Appendix 5- Worksheet 2) 33

5.2.3 Silent mouthing 33

5.2.4 Minimal pair bingo (Appendix 5- Worksheet 3) 34

5.2.5 The tongue twisters game 34

5.2.6 Word hunters 35

5.2.7 Odd one out (Appendix 5- Worksheet 4) 35

5.2.8 Stress snap (Appendix 5- Worksheet 5) 36

5.3 Action taking 36

POST-INTERVENTION STAGE 38

5.4 Evaluating 38

CHAPTER 3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS 39

1 The improvement of students‘ pronunciation by using the pronunciation instruction websites in teaching and learning pronunciation 39

1.1 Scores of pre-test and post-test 39

1.2 Pre-test and post-test analysis 42

2 The students‘ attitude towards the use of pronunciation instruction websites for improving pronunciation 43

3 The students‘ feelings about the activities applied to improve their pronunciation through pronunciation instruction using websites 45

4 Discussion 47

5 Reflection 48

CONCLUSION 50

1 Major findings of the research Error! Bookmark not defined 2 Implications 51

3 Limitations of the study 51

4 Suggestions for further study 52

REFERENCES 53 APPENDICES I

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LIST OF FIGURES, TABLES AND CHARTS

Figure 1 Simple action research model 23

Figure 2 Detailed action research model 24

Table 1: Scores of pre-test and post-test 39

Chart 1: Overall mean score of students‘ pre-test and post-test 40

Table 2: The percentage of students‘ scores 41

Chart 2: Scores of students‘ pre-test and post-test 41

Table 3: The results of students‘ questionnaire answers 44

Table 4: Students‘ evaluation of class activities 45

Table 5: Students‘ answer about their favourite activity used in the lessons 46

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INTRODUCTION

1 Statement of the problem and rationale of the study

The last few decades have seen phenomenal growth in the demand for English It is now thought to be one of the crucial features for people‘s success in not only academic life but also in people‘s casual life In Vietnam, English has become increasingly important not only as a mean of global communication but also as bridge to mankind‘s knowledge Most of Vietnamese try to master English

in order to communicate, gain knowledge and get better chances for their life Vietnamese children learn English quite early because their parents believe that the younger they are, the better they learn English To meet the demand of society, there are a lot of English centers for children opened in Hanoi- the capital of Vietnam English teachers always try to apply new methods and materials to help their students improve English Besides course books and other written resources, technology integrated language teaching provides a lot of materials for language learners as well Websites might be regarded as online teaching tools which can be very effective resources both for learners and teachers

After teaching at some English centers in Hanoi for 3 years and teaching the students as participants in this study for 5 months, the researcher notices the poor pronunciation with incorrect word stress of many students Though they seem not to have problems with grammar, fluency or ideas, they have difficulties in pronouncing certain consonants, vowels and similar sounds in English Besides, words and sentences are usually produced with wrong stress pattern or no stress at all

The researcher has taken this matter into consideration a lot The students seem not eager to learn pronunciation and feel difficult to correct their mistakes Meanwhile, most of them are really into surfing the Internet on computers or mobile phone to play games or watch films every day, which inspires the researcher the

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idea of using websites for pronunciation instruction The websites include not only standard video clips that guide students to pronounce English sounds but they also provide a wide range of exercises, games, quizzes and activities with pictures and other illustrations, which are believed to attract the children Besides, using websites to study English pronunciation can give students chances to listen again and practice the words, phrases, sentences at home

So far, there are some studies which have been conducted to discover the effectiveness of using technology in teaching English in general and in pronunciation aspect in particular For example, Nguyen Thi Kim Dung (2014) found out the challenges the teacher encountered in applying IT (MS Powerpoint) in teaching medical vocabulary terms to the second year students at Thanh Hoa medical college as well as provide suggestions to enhance effective utilization of

MS Powerpoint here Besides, Tran Thi Tuyet Mai (2010) in other context, at Duy Tien C high school, worked on the effectiveness of using English traditional songs

to improve students‘ pronunciation With the similar aspect, another study

conducted named ―A study on using multimedia for teaching pronunciation to

pre-intermediate students in Crazy Ones English center” (Trieu Ngoc Tuan, 2015)

showed a variety of using multimedia and assessing their impacts in teaching pronunciation Actually, those studies were conducted with the participants who are high school and college students, have a long time to learn English and pronunciation as well Differently, the researcher would like to work on children aged from 8-10 at different English center where the researcher is working with the objective to enhance the students‘ pronunciation by using some websites; with these subjects, it is more concrete than the previous studies

2 Aims and objectives of the study

This research aims at using websites to motivate 8-10 year- old children in improving pronunciation at the chosen English center According to the aim, the researcher points out some main objectives as below:

- Investigating how students in class Movers 6 at the English center improve

In a nutshell, the researcher is going to answer three following questions:

1 To what extent does using pronunciation instruction websites in teaching and learning pronunciation contribute to the improvement of’ pronunciation of the students in class Movers 6 at the English center?

2 What is the attitude of the students in class Movers 6 at the English center towards the use of pronunciation instruction websites for improving pronunciation?

3 What do the students in class Movers 6 at the English center think about the activities applied to improve their pronunciation through using these websites?

4 Scope of the study

There are many problems in Vietnamese children‘s English learning that they can be listed such as grammar, vocabulary, four basic skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing); however, it can be seen that learning to speak is very essential Obviously, we cannot communicate with one another without speech What‘s more, there are certainly various aspects of pronunciation such as vowels and consonants, stress, intonation, rhythm, assimilation, elision, linking, tones etc.; however, due to the limitation of time as well as the scope of this paper, the research deals with only two aspects of pronunciation: consonants and vowels and word stress

In terms of methods, there are a lot of methods to help children improve pronunciation; however, in modern society, using Information Technology in

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teaching and learning English is necessary and convenient With the development of the Internet, websites supporting for learning English in general and learning pronunciation in particular are more popular Hence, the researcher wish that IT as well as websites would be implemented more often and more efficiently for learning English pronunciation is the coming time

5 Significance of the study

Pronunciation has often been used to evaluate the cohesion and fluency of the speakers Good pronunciation is important for people who want to improve their speaking skills and listening skills to communicate effectively with others This is more essential to children in order to help them become confident when expressing their ideas and motivate them to learn English better

Although the study is conducted in as small scale one, once being completed, it may bring advantages to the teachers and other researchers also The research was carried out to find out the applicability of websites in teaching and learning English pronunciation to help students at the chosen center improve their pronunciation, speaking skill and confidence while communicating in English Hopefully, the teachers will take this research as a helpful consultant for teaching English pronunciation to children

6 Research methods

The aim of this research is to investigate the effectiveness of using websites for students‘ improvement in pronunciation; therefore action research is the method employed in this study In addition, the researcher made a careful selection of the subjects of the study and the participants In this research, both qualitative and quantitative methods are used to analyze the data

In this research, quantitative method is used to analyze the data collected from the pre-tests and post-tests Then, conclusions are drawn from the results using inferential statistics It is also used to analyze data collected from the survey questionnaire to find out what are the students‘ attitudes towards the use of pronunciation websites in learning pronunciation

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Furthermore, qualitative method is used to analyze the tape recordings and

teacher‘s observation and notes

7 Organizations of the study

The minor thesis is composed of five following parts and chapters:

INTRODUCTION

This part presents the statement of the problem and rationale of the study, aims and objectives, research questions, the scope, the significance and methods of the study

CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter summarizes the concepts and theoretical backgrounds related to the topic of the study by earlier authors

CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY

This chapter involves the information about the setting of the study, the participants, instruments for collecting data and presents the data collection and analysis procedures

CHAPTER 3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

The findings of the tests, questionnaire and observations are presented in this chapter

CONCLUSION

This part summarizes some major findings, provides recommendations for pronunciation teaching using websites, limitations of the study and suggestions for further studies

What‘s more, according to Adult Migrant English Program Research Centre (2002), pronunciation refers to the production of sounds that we use to make meaning It includes attention to the particular sounds of a language (segments), aspects of speech beyond the level of the individual sound, such as intonation, phrasing, stress, timing, rhythm (suprasegmental aspects), how the voice is projected (voice quality) and, in its broadest definition, attention to gestures and expressions that are closely related to the way we speak a language

Moreover, Otlowski (2004:1) (cited in ―The Portrait Of ED Students Pronunciation Education Essay ‖, 2015) asserted that pronunciation is a way that is accepted or generally understood Expressing his idea in another way, Gilakjani (n.d) stated pronunciation is a set of habits of producing sounds which are ―acquired

by repeating these habits over and over again and by being corrected when the sounds are pronounced wrongly‖ He also has the same idea that pronunciation includes attention to the particular sounds of a language (segments) and other

aspects of speech

From the statements mentioned above, the author can conclude that pronunciation is the way of speaker to produce segmental and suprasegmental

sound that is accepted or generally understood

1.2 The importance of pronunciation

Nowadays, no one might deny the significant role of pronunciation in language teaching and learning Pronunciation is one of the most important aspects

of language We may be proficient at grammar and have a numbers of vocabularies but when we pronounce words incorrectly, the hearers will not get understood

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Wong (1993) argues that the importance of the connection between pronunciation and listening comprehension is needed to be considered Besides pronouncing the words, as listeners expect spoken English to follow certain patterns

of rhythm and intonation, speakers need to employ these patterns to communicate effectively Obviously, if the rhythm and intonation are different, listeners might get the wrong meaning from the speakers Furthermore, listeners also need to know how speech is organized and what patterns of intonation mean to interpret the messages accurately Hence, learning about pronunciation helps learners be able to comprehend spoken English well

According to Hope Speak (2014), pronunciation is the most important and difficult problem that non-native English speakers have to face when studying English Incorrect pronunciation can lead to negative impression, misunderstanding and ineffective communication If you have a poor pronunciation with very strong foreign accent, you can be regarded as a bad English speaker in spite of your good vocabulary and grammar Knowing a lot of vocabularies is meaningless if you cannot pronounce those words correctly because no one can understand the words that you are trying to use

As mentioned above, it is surely that pronunciation plays a very important role in communicative competence because successful communication cannot take place without correct pronunciation (Celce-Murcia, Briton and Goodwin, 1996)

2 Pronunciation in language teaching

2.1 Pronunciation as an aspect of communicative competence

There have been various supports for the effectiveness of pronunciation training on learners‘ achievement in communicative competence According to Pennington (1996), the most important part of learning a second language rests on pronunciation With the similar idea, Morley (1998) also states that pronunciation plays an important role in overall communicative competence While, Kelly (2006) emphasizes that a learner mispronouncing a range of phonemes can be extremely difficult for the listeners from another language community to understand This can

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make the learner who may have a good command of grammar and lexis but have difficulty in understanding and being understood by a native speaker feel very frustrating when learning and communicating Moreover, the inaccurate use of supsegmental elements, such as stress or intonation can also cause a big problem

In addition, Fraser (1999) explains that being able to speak English includes

a number of skills, of which pronunciation is the most important (other skills of speaking include vocabulary, grammar, and pragmatics) She states that a speaker with good pronunciation is intelligible in spite of other errors; however, with poor pronunciation, a speaker can be very difficult to understand, despite accuracy in other areas

sub-Hewings (2004) also emphasizes that ―difficulties with pronunciation might mean that students fail to get their message across, even when the correct words are being used, or they might fail to understand what is said to them.‖ (p.10)

Yong (2004) confirms that from the traditional ways of learning English, students neglected the basic knowledge of speaking This may have been enough to meet the demands of English in the years when we had less communication with foreign countries However, oral communication began to be more important when they arrived in this century with extended forms of communication with Western countries He asserts that understanding by reading or writing would no longer be sufficient for development of the economy and that communicating face to face personally or through the internet needed be understood Yong also indicates that pronunciation is the foundation of speaking English, both written and spoken, has been accepted as the dominant means of communication for most of the world but some misunderstandings have been caused by improper pronunciation Obviously, poor pronunciation can lead learners to less social, academic and work advancement than they deserved

Moreover, Dan (2006) claims that language competence covers many aspects Phonetics, both in theory and practice, establishes the basis of speaking above all other aspects of language and pronunciation is the foundation of speaking

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Good pronunciation might make the communication easier, more relaxed and more useful Almost all learners rate pronunciation as a priority and an area in which they need more guidance

In short, pronunciation plays a vital role in our modern world, particularly in oral communication Hence, acquiring good pronunciation is very crucial for those who are learning foreign languages in general and in English in particular

2.2 Approaches to teaching pronunciation

According to Celce-Murcia (1987), the field of modern language teaching has developed two general approaches to the teaching pronunciation: Intuitive- imitative approach and Analytic- linguistic approach

2.2.1 Intuitive- imitative approach

Intuitive- imitative approach depends on the learner‘s ability to listen and imitate the rhythms and sounds of the target language without the intervention of any explicit information; it also presupposes the availability first of phonograph records, the of tape recorders and language labs in the mid-twentieth century and more recently of audio and video cassettes and compact discs Jones and Evans (1995) suggest teachers should take this approach at the beginning of teaching pronunciation because it gives students a chance approach pronunciation on intuitive and communicative levels before moving on to a more analytical exploration of specific elements of phonology

2.2.2 Analytic- linguistic approach

Analytic- linguistic approach utilizes information and tools such as a phonetic alphabet, articulatory description, chart of the vocal apparatus, contrastive information, and other aids to supplement listening, imitation and production It explicitly informs the 5 learners of and focused attention on such segmental as the sounds and rhythms of the target language This approach was developed to complement rather than to replace the intuitive-imitative approach

Two other common approaches to teaching pronunciation stated by Tench (1984), Pennington (1989), Jones and Evans (1995), Dalton and Seidlhofer (1994) are approaches of Bottom-up and Top-down

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2.2.3 Bottom-up approach

Bottom-up approach has close relationship with accuracy which should be focused from the very beginning of a course Teachers teach learners with the smallest and most concrete unit elements in pronunciation Teachers start from individual sounds to more abstract segments such as intonation and thought group

2.2.4 Top-down approach

Top-down approach gets the idea of contextualized sounds in connected speech The teacher goes from the biggest elements to the smallest ones of pronunciation: from intonation or thought group to individual sounds

2.2.5 Integrated approach

Integrated approach mentioned by Hewings and Goldstein (2004) is that this approach is applied in some classes where pronunciation is given a lower priority than other components of language such as grammar and vocabulary The teacher gives pronunciation a more central role in teaching by integrating it with other areas

of language work; for example connection vocabulary and pronunciation or the link

between grammar and pronunciation

2.3 Elements of pronunciation teaching

Different researchers have different viewpoints toward what should be taught

in pronunciation classes Colin Mortimer (1985) claims that elements of pronunciation teaching include weak forms, clusters, linking-up, contractions and stress However, more sufficiently, according to Gerald Kelly (2000), teaching pronunciation involves vowels, consonants, word and sentence stress, intonation, other aspects if connected speech and spelling Jennifer Jenkins (2004) provides more comprehensive elements of pronunciation teaching This researcher states that pronunciation teaching typically covers any or all of the following: consonant and vowel sounds, changes of these sounds in the stream of connected speech, word stress patterns, rhythm, and intonation

In short, because of the scope of this study, among aspects mentioned above, the researcher chose consonant and vowel sounds and word stress to teach to children

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2.3.1 Consonant and vowel sounds

It is obvious that learners of English need to know and pronounce letter sounds correctly because they are basement for the combination of sounds into words However, students must know that English pronunciation does not match spelling and one of the most confusing aspects of English pronunciation is sound and spelling patterns English has borrowed lots of words from other languages such

as ancient Latin, Greek,… so its sound and spelling correspondences are irregular

Consonants

Roach (2000) defines ―Consonants sounds are the sounds in the production

of which two articulators come together to form and an obstruction of some type so that the air-stream cannot get out freely‖ (p.10)

In English, there are 24 consonants, whereas Vietnamese has only 21 Some phonemes exist in English but not in Vietnamese and vice versa, which are challenging for both Vietnamese teachers and learners

Vowels

―Vowels are the sounds in the production of which there is no obstruction to the air so the air can get out freely‖ (Roach, 2000, p.11) There are 20 vowels in English (12 simple vowels and 8 diphthongs)

2.3.2 Word stress

Word stress must highly be focused on at the beginning of any pronunciation courses because without correct word stress, speakers of English cannot have understandable pronunciation In every two or more syllable words, one of the syllables is stressed, which means it is higher, louder and longer than the others This stressed syllable is very important because it helps listeners distinguish the word from others Therefore, listeners often find it hard to understand what the speaker is saying when he or she misuses word stress

3 Ideas on pronunciation teaching and learning

Changing outlooks on language learning and teaching have influenced the view of language competence, which leads to a shift from specific linguistic

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competencies to broader communicative competencies as goals for teachers and students (Morley, 1991) Previously, teachers of pronunciation only focused on teaching segmental features which started with a concentration on phonetic alphabets during the Reform Movement (Celce-Murcia et Al., 1996) Phonetic training was used in order to help learners establish good speech habits Minimal pair drills were used extensively to distinguish phonemes in listening practice and oral production (Celce-Murcia et al., 1996)

However, after the studies on ―Teaching suprasegmentals to international teaching assistants using field-specific materials‖ (1990) and ―Pronunciation factors affecting intelligibility in speakers of English as a foreign language‖ (1995) were introduced by Anderson-Hsieh, the focus of pronunciation teaching changed dramatically from segmentals to and emphasis on suprasegmentals Thanks to Anderson-Hsieh‘s viewpoints, abundant studies have investigated the extent to which suprasegmentals contribute to speakers‘ intelligibility and its pedagogy Then

a lot of books for teachers have largely encouraged the teaching of suprasegments at the production level to improve learners‘ intelligibility

In the same spirit, Morley (1991) also states the need for the integration of pronunciation with oral communication, a change of emphasis from segmentals to suprasegmentals, more emphasis on individual learner needs, meaningful task-based practices, development of new teacher strategies for the teaching, and introducing peer correction and group interaction

According to Cohen (1977), teaching phonemes is not enough for intelligibility in communication With the emphasis on meaningful communication and Morley‘s (1991) premise, that ―Intelligible pronunciation is an essential component of communication competence‖ teachers should include pronunciation

in their courses and expect students to do well in them It is certain that the learner‘s ability to communicate is severely limited without adequate pronunciation skills Morley believes that not attending to a student‘s pronunciation needs ―is an abrogation of professional responsibility‖ (1991)

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4 Pronunciation websites

A website is a page or series of related pages that load after entering a domain name in an Internet browser It‘s the medium that your audience will experience your online content with The most relevant example would be this article, which is a page on the Hover website (Hover, 2016)

Pronunciation websites are a collection of related web pages containing images, videos, lessons, conversations, exercises and quizzes on pronunciation of English consonants, vowels and words, phrases and sentences, which support the teaching and learning of pronunciation

5 Theoretical background of technology and websites application in language teaching

Thanks to the achievements of international science and technology, the methods of teaching and learning have undeniably been changing year by year Now it is time for us to make up the general scenery of technology in foreign language classroom or educational technology (Harmer, 2001)

The grammar- translation method has usually been the most popular method

of teaching with chalk, blackboards, pens, paper and textbooks These go with educational technologies Warschauer & Carla Meskill (2000) said nearly every type of foreign language classroom teaching is supported by its own technologies The blackboard can be considered a perfect tool for grammar- translation method The teacher uses the board for a lot of purposes, such as note pad, explanation aid, picture frame and so on However, all the educational technologies above sometimes do not work well

In Vietnam and in the world, the traditional educational technologies are currently used by teachers or educators To make the matter better, such modern media as radios, cassette players, recorders, movies, TV, etc have contributed to the renovation in teaching and learning According to Nguyen Lan Trung (2002), they have changed classroom structures and have assisted learners‘ acquisition of knowledge Foreign language classroom activities have been much more fascinating

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and understandable to both teachers and learners, which is due to the usage of modern media Learners learn foreign languages when they listen to CDs/ tapes, watch film/ programmes or see images projected from computers‘ screen

Of all the means of modern media, undeniably, computer is now quite a useful multipurpose tool for foreign language education A newly established branch called IT started the actual revolution of innovating methods in FL education

Teachers and students can easily search for information of language teaching and learning with the help of CD/ DVD-ROMS and Internet CDs/ DVDs of FL have continuously been programmed and produced to meet the enormous needs of

FL teaching and learning The two most distinguishing programmes to count are Encyclopedia and FL Dictionaries The Encyclopedia such as Encarta, Grollier, Hutchinson contains knowledge of all fields, including maps, photos and films To those who teach and learn FL, FL dictionaries can be used as a perfect tool for reference They are available on CD-ROM or Internet Undeniably, Internet is now the most convenient source of materials

―As a vast virtual library the Internet offers a seemingly endless range of topics to choose from, all in one handy location‖ (Dede & Peta, 2001, p.36) Google, Yahoo, Alta Vista, etc have been the most popular searching engines Only with a key word, a teacher or student can find a vast amount of information related Importantly, foreign language students and teachers make great use of web sides in FL as authentic materials for research or reference Each Web page is identified by a unique address called URL (Uniform Resource Locator) A variety of web sites are designed specifically for foreign language students and teachers to search information, exchange emails, so exercises, play games, etc

6 Advantages and disadvantages of using pronunciation websites in pronunciation teaching and learning

There are certainly lots of advantages of using websites for pronunciation instruction First of all, students have chance to access to authentic voice since there

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are video and audio clips by native speakers Secondly, teachers can save time and energy; all what they need to do is some guidance for students to study on their own and some observation to make sure if they are on the right track In addition, websites are very useful resources for students to practice pronunciation at home where there is no teacher‘s help What‘s more, websites motivate and relax students when studying because there are lots of illustrations, clips, games and quizzes to refresh their mind while studying Last but not least, students can test their own pronunciation with recording function, tests and quizzes

Everything has its two sides and websites are not the exception Once using websites for language instruction, teachers need to be well-prepared for everything, for example, the power, the Internet connection and the access speed, the headphones, projector, sound server installation, searching engines etc All these conditions must work well during the lesson because if one thing goes wrong, the lesson will not be successfully carried out Moreover, it is quite difficult to find pronunciation websites which are not only suitable for students‘ level and interest but also easy enough for teachers to design related activities in the class Besides, teachers also have to pay very close attention to make sure that students do not access to other distracted websites and check whether they actually imitate the sounds in the video or audio clips

7 Websites evaluation

Nowadays there are thousands of websites for English teaching and learning

on the Internet Therefore, it is essential for teachers as well as learners to decide what is good to use The excessively increasing load of information production and routing within the Internet leads to an inevitable overload of useless information, which raises certain criticisms concerning the pedagogic value and relevance of the web According to Luhmann (1996), as cited in Sofos & Kostas (2009), he amassing of information follows a non-systematic pattern because the organization and presentation of information on the Web is quite different from those taking place within the classical media Kron & Sofos (2007), as cited in Sofos & Kostas

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(2009), stated that within the online context, the user can be a content ―producer‖ and ―consumer‖ simultaneously, thus leading to a huge amount of a raw information, produced by a huge number of different users without any educational information applied and incapable to support classroom learning design As a result, evaluation of information resources is a basic requirement for content published on the web Sofos & Kostas (2009) added:

If we focus on the learning and teaching process, then we have to consider evaluation through a pedagogical approach and a media-didactic theory and so, web resources are able to support active learning by using various media elements, are considered as quality content (p.2)

Many scholars and organizations have developed criteria for judging educational websites They usually specific criteria about platform requirements, goals and objectives, the content, the pedagogy, ease of use, and costs However, the criteria can be modified according to your needs Kapoun (1998) mentioned five criteria to evaluate a website, including accuracy, authority, objectivity, currency and coverage While Jackson (2000) listed six: platform requirements, goals, and objectives, content, pedagogy, ease of use and cost He also asserted that we need to undertake our own assessment of the websites based on the criteria which were previously prepared by scholars and organizations, you might adapt those criteria to your organization‘s own priorities, or you might develop new criteria According to Hsu, Yeh & Yen (2006) ―Standardized and objective design criteria for evaluating web-based learning platforms can effectively distinguish the quality of a platform and, therefore, contribute in improving web-based learning outcomes‖

The two websites used for the research were selected and evaluated thoroughly from the pronunciation websites available based on such criteria as Authority, Purpose, Accuracy, Currency, Content, Functionality, Cost and Accessibility General speaking, the two selected websites meet quite well the criteria

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The first selected website is

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/grammar/pron/sounds/vowel_short_1.shtml

This website, which is mainly designed for English learning, is ideal for guiding students to pronounce correct vowels and consonants in English as there are series of video clips directing students how to pronounce properly Besides, it also consists of quizzes, and other activities for students to practice and test their own pronunciation It is written and designed by the BBC (The British Broadcasting Cooperation) which has gained reputation throughout the world over years The working team includes experienced native teachers, editors, producers and programmers who have been working for BBC for many years and very professional in designing a very interesting and user-friendly websites with easy navigation In addition, this website is frequently updated and in terms of functionality, it works well with no broken links The page is incorporated with Video Media, PDF, audio and some links with other websites/ channels such as Youtube and Encyclopedia Another advantage of the website is that it is a free website on a consistent basis and quick accessibility

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The second website is http://www.shiporsheep.com/

This website is especially ideal for the students to practice minimal pairs It

is mainly created for learning English pronunciation and promoting English speaking This is a copyright website which is written and designed by Tim Bowyer who has taught English Authored courses, trained teachers and directed school in England, France, Spain, and so on He is the founder of the British Institute schools

in Indonesia and creator of the Fonetiks family of websites The pronunciation of the words is American English It is the same as other reliable websites and dictionaries The website is up-to-date and has been designed with effective animated illustrations and audio sounds which are fast and easy for learners to access and practice In addition, this is a website with many free entries except some requiring membership fees

8 Summary of previous studies and the gap to carry the current research

In terms of the topic, there are some studies which have been conducted to discover the effectiveness of using technology in teaching English in general and in pronunciation aspect in particular For example, Gusrina and Zul (2013) conducted

a study on using a website to teach pronunciation to junior high school students In Vietnam, a number of research related to this topic can be found Nguyen Thi Kim Dung (2014) found out the challenges the teacher encountered in applying IT (MS Powerpoint) in teaching medical vocabulary terms to the second year students at

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Thanh Hoa medical college as well as provide suggestions to enhance effective utilization of MS Powerpoint here With the similar aspect, another study conducted

named ―A study on using multimedia for teaching pronunciation to

pre-intermediate students in Crazy Ones English center” (Trieu Ngoc Tuan, 2015)

showed a variety of using multimedia and assessing their impacts in teaching pronunciation Furthermore, a teacher called Bui Van Khiet at Le Hong Ph ong Gifted high school in Nam Dinh carried out a study on using pronunciation instruction websites to improve his students‘ pronunciation The participants of the study were in grade 10 (2012)

With regards to participants, actually, those studies were conducted with the participants who are high school and college students, have had a long time to learn English and pronunciation as well I often work with younger students; thus I chose the participants differently who are children from 8-10 years old

With regards of methodology, though some studies above mentioned using websites, Gusrina and Zul used only one website to teach pronunication as usual lesson without any tests to check students‘ ability before and after treatment so it seems to be a report after the class but a research While with Bui Van Khiet‘s, he conducted an experimental research and showed that pronunciation websites enhanced students‘ pronunication Therefore, I would like to do a research with another method, action research with desire of appling these websites to help my students improve their pronunciation Moreover, it was necessary to identiy students‘ attitude towards activities used in pronunciation lessons which studies above have not mentioned

Because of that analysis and evaluation, the researcher decided to work on children aged from 8-10 at another English center in Hanoi where the researcher is working with the objectives to enhance the students‘ pronunciation by using some pronunciation intruction websites to teach and learn as well as realize students‘ opinions about using those websites and activities applied

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CHAPTER 2 METHODOLOGY

1 The context of the study

The chosen center, a young English center in Hanoi, was founded in 2013 Its main duty is to train English skills to young students who are from 4-17 years old The center is well equipped with teaching and learning facilities It has 5 classrooms which are quite convenient for the application of IT in teaching because of installing with a projector, a computer and speakers Moreover, most of students have chance

to access information technology with smart phones or computers at home All of them know how to use a computer and explore the Internet

In terms of courses, all classes are taught 4 main English skills including listening, speaking, reading and writing; however, there is no specific course for pronunciation only

The researcher has worked as a part-time teacher for 3 years Class Movers 6 was selected for the subjects of the study because the researcher has taught them for

5 months and realized that they are really in need of help with speaking, especially pronunciation

2 Action research

2.1 Definition of action research

Bassey (1998:93) describes ―action research as an enquiry which is carried out

in order to understand, to evaluate and then to change, in order to improve educational practice‖ Similarly, Winter and Munn-Giddings‘s (2001:8) assert that action research is a ―study of a social situation carried out by those involved in that situation in order to improve both their practice and the quality of their understanding, captures the essence of the philosophy underlying the action research approach‖

The main focus of this study was on whether pronunciation websites helped to improve learners‘ pronunciation I wanted to find out which activities teacher used

to teach in the class with pronunciation websites and if they developed confidence

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to speak English after the training It is hoped that the findings from this study in a classroom context will encourage pronunciation teaching and learning These goals could only be achieved through action and reflection and so led me to action research McNiff and Whitehead‘s claim (2005:1) about action research has motivated and supported the idea

Action research is a common-sense approach to personal and professional development that enables practitioners everywhere to investigate and evaluate their work, and to create their own theories of practice In addition, Whitehead (1989) and McNiff (1993) assert that action research constitutes a look at the questions in the class of things which disturb us and tries to find out the solution The teacher‘s position is not only as teacher but also as researcher (Stenhouse, 1983) The teacher can develop professional competence as well as improve students‘ learning through action research (McNiff, 2003)

2.2 Types of action research

According to Glen Doyle (n.d), there are three types of action research which are individual teacher research, collaborative action research and school wide action research

2.2.1 Individual teacher research

In individual teacher research, a single teacher goes through the process of a research study by her/himself It usually focuses on a single issue in the classroom The teacher may be seeking solutions to problems of classroom management, instructional strategies, use of materials, or student learning Teachers may have support of their supervisor or principal, an instructor for a course they are taking, or parents The problem is one that the teacher believes is evident in his or her classroom and one that can be addressed on an individual basis The research may then be such that the teacher collects data or may involve looking at student participation One of the drawbacks of individual research is that it may not be shared with others unless the teacher chooses to present findings at a faculty meeting, make a formal presentation at a conference, or submit written material to a journal, or newsletter It is possible for several teachers to be working concurrently

on the same problem with no knowledge of the work of others

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2.2.2 Collaborative action research model

Collaborative action research may include as few as two teachers or a group

of several teachers and others interested in addressing a classroom or department issue This issue may involve one classroom or a common problem shared by many classrooms These teachers may be supported by individuals outside of the school, such as a university or community partner Members may include teachers, principal, university professors, school board officials and so on This study group will meet on a regular basis for usually about a few hours every 2-4 weeks for the total of a year An issue or topic is selected as a result of the needed of the school

2.2.3 The school wide action research

The school wide action research process involves the entire faculty in conjunction with a school consortium In this, schools typically commit to a three-year program focused on long-term school renewal in one student academic area The movement through the research process is guided by collective actions of the large group The common pattern of implementation first includes a school-site study group of 6-10 members These members include the principal, teachers, counselors, media specialists and other staff This study group meets approximately

2 hours every 2 weeks for collective study The first thing to be decided is the focus area to be studied It is suggested that this focus area should be on a specific academic student learning area in which teachers are most able to impact Next the study group must learn and implement the action research process to collect, organize, and analyze data on students and on the learning environment Through this the study group expands their knowledge of how students should learn, what are the best teaching practices, identify staff development needs and develop a plan

of action to change the learning environment As in the collaborative process the study group will be encouraged to attend training sessions on implementing the action research process Once the single-issue area is expanded through the action research process this knowledge is shared throughout the school community The objectives for school improvement should now be clear The function of the action research now should be to provide continuous responsibility for assessing and monitoring the school improvement plan To allow for sufficient time for

1) Purpose and process

2) Support provided by outside agencies such as universities, intermediate service agencies

3) Kind of data utilized

4) Audience for the research

5) Expected side effects

Based on five points about choosing a suitable type mentioned above, the researcher decided to choose individual teacher research because the aim of this study was to help students, who were taught directly by the researcher, enhance their pronunciation; therefore she wanted to go through the process of the research by herself

2.3 Action research model

Kemmis and McTaggart (1988) developed a simple model of the cyclical nature

of the typical action research process Each cycle has four steps: plan, act, observe and reflect Figure 1 presents a clear concept of action research

Figure 1 Simple action research model

(adapted from MacIsaac, 1995)

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Susman (1983) gives a more elaborate listing He suggests five phases to be conducted within the research cycle (Figure 2) Initially, a problem is identified and data is collected for a more detailed diagnosis This is followed by a collection of possible solutions, from which a single plan of action is implemented Data on the results of the intervention are collected and analyzed and the findings are interpreted in the light of how successful the action has been At this point, the problem is re-assessed and the process begins another cycle This process continues until the problem is resolved

Figure 2 Detailed action research model

(adapted from Susman, 1983)

Because the primary focus of action research is on solving real problems, it is used in real situations It is often that those who apply this approach are practitioners who wish to improve understanding of their practice Problems requiring action research on the requisite methodological knowledge to deal with them are not focused (O‘Brien, 2001) It is more of a holistic approach to problem-solving rather than a single method for collecting and analyzing data It allows for several different research tools to be used as a project is conducted These various methods which are generally common to qualitative research include keeping a

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research journal, documenting data collection and analysis, participant observation recordings, self-assessment tools such as reflective report etc, structured and unstructured interviews and case studies

In this study, because of the small scale and the limited time, the researcher decided to choose the simple model from Kemmis and McTaggart‘s work Cycle 1 was carried out with 4 steps including planning, acting, observing and reflecting

2.4 The reasons of choosing action research for this study

Action research provides better practice than theory for teachers to apply into

a specific class or course; therefore, to develop the teaching and learning in a particular class room, teachers or educational practitioners should make an action research In another words, it requires teachers take an impact into their teaching to make a positive result This result is more practical and valuable than observing or analyzing‘s result Moreover, each class has different context with its own problem depending on the level of the learners, the goal of the course or learners‘ motivation To improve the learners‘ English ability, teachers need to study in their own classes to find out the problems as well as suggest solutions to solve them

With that desire, the researcher has the purpose of enhancing her own students‘ pronunciation only and the study is made to decide the effectiveness of using websites in improving students‘ pronunciation in her class and make a decision on how to utilize them efficiently The author believes that the change of English pronunciation is positive and gives children a motivation to learn English better and love learning English than before

The initial conception of action research emphasized its potential to empower and emancipate participants through cycles of reform based on reflection and action (McDonough, 2006) Action research can inform teachers about their practice and empower them to take leadership roles in their local teaching contexts (Mills, 2003) This study was completed one cycle aimed to present the improvement of learners‘ pronunciation through training and to see if and how language learning strategies instruction contributed to their improvement Learners

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participated in the training and reflected on their improvement and reported how it happened A change in English language teaching to include the importance of pronunciation and language learning strategies was strongly believed to assist learners‘ improvement This was taught separately to the English syllabus normally taught, which includes English grammar Action research was a particularly appropriate framework for research into language teaching (Wallace, 2000)

2.4.1 A framework for change and improvement

A review of action research frameworks reveals several common features

An action research project seeks to create knowledge, propose and implement change and improve practice and performance (Stringer, 1996) Kemmis and McTaggert (1988) suggest that the fundamental components of action research include the following: developing a plan for improvement, implementing the plan, observing and documenting the effects of the plan, and reflecting on the effects of the plan for further planning and informed action New knowledge gained results in changes in practice (Fullan, 2000a) Action research is often conducted to discover

a plan for innovation or intervention and is collaborative Mills (2003) developed a framework for action research based on Kemmis and McTaggart‘s (1998) formulation of action research Action research describes the problem and area of focus, defines the factors involved in the area of focus, for example the curriculum, student outcomes or instructional strategies It develops research questions, describes the intervention or innovation to be implemented and also develops a timeline for implementation In addition, it describes the data to be collected and develops data collection and plans analysis Finally, it carries out the plan and reports the results The defining features of action research also reflect the qualities

of leaders in collaborative cultures of change These qualities include a deep understanding of the organization, vision and insight, a quest for new knowledge, a desire for improved performance, self-reflective activity and a willingness to effect change (Fullan, 2000a, 2000b)

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Academic action research is conducted by teachers and for teachers It is small scale, contextualized, localized, and aimed at discovering, developing, or monitoring changes to practice (Wallace, 2000) Its contribution emphasizes an individual teacher‘s professional self-development rather than its potential to initiate large-scale reform (Burns, 1999; Rainey, 2000) Definitions of the typical features were summarized by Burns (1999:34) and Mills (2003:4) as follows

Action research is contextual, small scale and localized It identifies and investigates problems within specific situations It is evaluative and reflective as it aims to bring a change and improvement in practice It is participatory as it provides for collaborative investigation by teams of colleagues, practitioners and researchers Changes in practice are based on the collection of information or data which provides the impetus for change (Burns, 1999:34)

Action research is any systematic inquiry conducted by teacher researchers to gather information about the ways that their particular school operates how they teach, and how well their students learn The information is gathered with the goals of gaining insight, developing reflective practice, effecting positive changes in the school environment and on

The linking of the terms ‗action‘ and ‗researcher‘ according to Kemmis and McTaggart (1988) highlights the essential feature of the approach trying out ideas in practice of its importance to increase knowledge about the curriculum, teaching and learning The result is improvement in what happens in classroom and school

Action research stated by Kemmis and McTaggart (1988:5)

…is a form of collective self-reflective enquiry undertaken by participants in social situations in order to improve the rationality and justice of their own social or educational practices, as well as their understanding of these practices and the situations in which these practices are carried out

Lewin (1946), an originator of action research theories, described action research as proceeding in a spiral of steps, each of which is composed of planning, action and the evaluation of the result of the action In practice, the

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process begins with a general idea that some kind of improvement or change is desirable Lewin also urged that it is the way groups of people can organise the conditions under which they can learn from their own experience and make this experience accessible to others Action research is known by many other names, including participatory research, collaborative inquiry, emancipatory research, action learning, and contextual action research but all are variations on a theme(O‘Brien, 2001) O‘Brien urges that there are other key attributes of actionresearch that differentiate it from common problem-solving activities that we all engage in every day Primary is its focus on turning the people involved into researchers People learn best, and more willingly apply what they have learned when they do it themselves Secondly, the research takes place in a real-world situation, and aims to solve real problems Finally, the initiating researcher makes

no attempt to remain objective but openly acknowledges their bias to the other participants A more succinct definition is,

Action research…aims to contribute both to the practical concerns of people in an immediate problematic situation and to further the goals of social science simultaneously Thus, there is a dual commitment in action research to study a system and concurrently to collaborate with members of the system in changing it in what is together regarded as a desirable direction Accomplishing this twin goal requires the active collaboration of researcher and client and thus it stresses the importance of co-learning as a primary aspect

of the research process (Gilmore, Krantz, & Ramirez 1986:24)

O‘Brien (2001) stated that ―action research is learning by doing that is when a group of people identify a problem, do something to resolve it, see how successful their efforts were and, if not satisfied, try again.‖ The researcher studies the problem systematically and ensures the intervention is informed by theoretical considerations Much of the researcher‘s time is spent on refining the methodological tools to suit the situation and on collecting, analysing and presenting data on an on-going, cyclical basis (O‘Brien, 2001)

A variety of potential tools are listed in six categories (Brown, 1995) They are existing information, tests, observations, interviews, meeting and questionnaires All these tools share three important characteristics that must be considered in

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selecting or creating them: reliability, validity and usability This led the researcher

to evaluate records in a more rigorous way in order to gain reliable, valid and useful information

2.5 The potential pitfalls of doing action research

Hofstee (2006: 127) specifically warns the action researcher to be careful of subjectivity; generalisability of results and replicability This is because of the contextual nature of the research problem Subjectivity was reduced in this study by contracting external markers (who did not know the students) for marking the pre-test and post-test The researcher asked a native English teacher for help He has not taught this class before so he marked the tests objectively

A major limitation of doing individual action research is difficult to generalize findings to a larger population Actually, the sample size of this type is often small To overcome this difficulty, the researcher shared the study as well as its results with the manager and other teachers at the center in a meeting They agreed that pronunciation needed to be paid more attention to and applying these websites was essential to improve students‘ pronunciation without making them demotivated when learning English in general and Engish pronunciation in particular

3 The participants of the study

There are 15 children (8 girls and 7 boys) who are from 8 to 10 years old of a class named Movers 6 at the chosen English center They have learnt English for more than one year and have just finished the course book ―Incredible English 3‖ (Sarah, 2012), Oxford University Press The participants were chosen for the following reasons Firstly, most of them are at pre-elementary level and have little knowledge about English and English pronunciation Hence, errors in their pronunciation may be inevitable and it would be easier change these errors at the beginning of the learning English stage because in the later stages, these errors might be permanent and become difficult to change positively Secondly, all of participants are directly taught by the researcher; therefore, it seems to be the most convenient way for the researcher to conduct this study

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4 Data collection instruments

The research was conducted using both quantitative and qualitative methods The instruments used in the study were pre-test and post-test on pronunciation and a questionnaire delivered to the students after the course about the students‘ attitude towards the use of websites Besides, the author also applied classroom teacher‘s observation because it was convenient for the teacher to obtain more detailed and precise evidence of the students‘ attitude and classroom atmosphere

4.1 Pre-test and post-test

Before having trained pronunciation, the learners read forty-four words which tested forty-four English sounds and ten sentences which tested the stress After ten weeks, the students did the post-test which was the same with the pre-test Actually, the questions (items) used in these two tests should be different and equivalent in the level of the difficulty, especially for testing vocabulary or grammar because the students can memorize the answers easily However, with the major objective of the tests of pronunciation is to check whether the sound is pronounced accurately, the retention problem can be ignored Hence, the pre- and post-tests being the same are acceptable Moreover, the time between the pre-test and the post-test was about

4 months; therefore, preventing memorization was feasible

All the students‘ tests were recorded to use in data analyzing step The contents

of the tests were taken from the book ―Incredible 3‖ and the two selected websites

To make the study more reliable and valid, the marking schemes of the pre- and post-tests were prepared by the researcher and then delivered to a colleague who is

a native teacher from England to help the researcher mark them The highest score for each test is 10 It is marked by subtracting 0.25 point for every mistake made by the students about the pronunciation of consonants, vowels or word stress

4.2 Questionnaire

Bell (1993) states that questionnaire is a useful tool to collect certain types of information quickly The aim of the questionnaire is to identify the students‘ attitude toward using websites in teaching and learning pronunciation

This questionnaire delivered to the students after the last lesson of the pronunciation training series It consists of 3 parts: part 1 concluding 8 items with a 1-5 Likert Scale for each item to get the information about the students‘ attitude towards the use of pronunciation websites to improve their pronunciation; part 2 and 3 are to support

With regard to the benefits of observation, the researcher also chose it as one of three primary instruments for the study The purpose of the observation was to analyze further the participants‘ attitude toward activities used in pronunciation lessons based on pronunciation websites Because being the major teacher of the class, the researcher could not observe the class in teaching time immediately To solve this problem, the author used video tapes to watch and take notes at home

5 The research stages

PRE-INTERVENTION STAGE

5.1 Identifying the problem

Firstly, to identify the problem, before the study was conducted, the author used

a camera to record the whole class room in the lesson and analyze at home to see the problem in students‘ pronunciation as well as their participation They had difficulty in understanding and identifying sounds in English distinguishing from their mother tongue They tended to pronounce the same way they spoke in their mother tongue

At that time, the researcher also realized that her students were inactive with the class activities They spent time on listening to teacher‘s guide more than practicing with friends or enhancing their own speaking skills They seemed to be bored and dissatisfied because they just sat still and repeat after teacher‘s voice without activities to practice

Then teacher chose a set of words and sentences from the book ―Incredible 3‖ they had just completed and asked them to read as naturally as they could Tape recording was used to record the students‘ pronunciation including 2 parts: in part 1

http://www.shiporsheep.com/

The lessons especially focus on the sounds that students usually make mistakes For practice and homework, the class was asked to practice doing activities, exercises and quizzes, watching, listening and repeating after the video clips on the websites mentioned above

These are some steps that teacher followed in this stage:

Step 1: Design a syllabus for 20 lessons to make sure that students have chance

to learn three main aspects of pronunciation

Step 2: Choose the websites with the appropriate content for the aspect of each lesson

Step 3: Design the activities to help students to practise what they have learnt in each week

Step 4: Design an observation sheet to take notes about classroom atmosphere, students‘ participation and performance as well as teacher‘s difficulties

The detailed intervention is described in the following table: