Adaptation strategies on lessons of skills in pilot english textbook series for lower secondary schools under task based learning approach

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES DƯƠNG THỊ LOAN ADAPTATION STRATEGIES ON LESSONS OF SKILLS IN PILOT

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES

DƯƠNG THỊ LOAN

ADAPTATION STRATEGIES ON LESSONS OF SKILLS IN PILOT ENGLISH TEXTBOOK SERIES FOR LOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLS UNDER TASK-BASED LEARNING APPROACH

CÁC CHIẾN LƯỢC ĐIỀU CHỈNH CÁC BÀI DẠY KĨ NĂNG TRONG SÁCH GIÁO KHOA TIẾNG ANH THCS THÍ ĐIỂM DƯỚI CÁCH TIẾP

CẬN CỦA PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC NGÔN NGỮ

DỰA VÀO NHIỆM VỤ

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 8220201.01

HA NOI, 2020

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES

DƯƠNG THỊ LOAN

ADAPTATION STRATEGIES ON LESSONS OF SKILLS IN PILOT ENGLISH TEXTBOOK SERIES FOR LOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLS UNDER TASK-BASED LEARNING APPROACH

CÁC CHIẾN LƯỢC ĐIỀU CHỈNH CÁC BÀI DẠY KĨ NĂNG TRONG SÁCH GIÁO KHOA TIẾNG ANH THCS THÍ ĐIỂM DƯỚI CÁCH TIẾP

CẬN CỦA PHƯƠNG PHÁP DẠY HỌC NGÔN NGỮ

DỰA VÀO NHIỆM VỤ

M.A MINOR THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 8220201.01 Supervisor: Dr Nguyen Viet Hung

HA NOI, 2020

DECLARATION

I certify that the thesis entitled “Adaptation Strategies On Lessons Of Skills In Pilot English Textbook Series For Lower Secondary Schools Under Task-Based Learning Approach” is my own research requirement for the Degree of Master of Arts in

English Teaching Methodology Program at the Faculty of Post-graduate Studies, University of Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi

Signature

Duong Thi Loan

evaluation of skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem The findings showed that in

order to fit weak student‟s needs at the lower secondary school in the research, some skills lessons needed some improvements in input and output relevance, text and illustration relevance, sequence of questions and activities, and scaffolding and recycling activities Therefore, Maley (1998) adaptation techniques were used under Nunan (1991 & 2004) Task-Based Language Approach principles to improve the skills lessons These adapted skills lessons were then delivered and then assessed by teacher and student participants All data from the findings indicated that adapted skills lessons satisfied teachers‟ and students‟ needs in the research Briefly, the study proposed some adaptation strategies on skills lessons under TBLA which teachers could utilize to increase the effectiveness of skills lessons when teaching

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem in a particular teaching and learning context

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My research project has been completed with the support of a great number of people First, I am greatly indebted to my supervisor, Dr Nguyen Viet Hung for his support, encouragement, and valuable advice throughout this research With his excellent insights and patient guidance, this thesis has been made possible I also would like to especially thank anonymous participants who contributed data to this study Finally, I would like to express my special thanks to my family for their support and encouragement throughout my study

TABLE OF CONTENT

DECLARATION i

ABSTRACT ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iii

TABLE OF CONTENT iv

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vii

LIST OF TABLES viii

LIST OF FIGURES ix

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Aims of the study and research questions 2

1.3 Significance of the study 2

1.4 Scope of the study 2

1.5 Organization of the thesis 3

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 4

2.1 Task-Based Learning Approach 4

2.1.1 Definitions of “task” 4

2.1.2 Frameworks for TBLA 5

2.1.3 Principles for TBLA 8

2.2 Textbook, textbook evaluation, and textbook adaptation 12

2.2.1 Roles of textbooks in ELT 12

2.2.2 Textbook evaluation 13

2.2.3 Textbook adaptation 15

2.3 Textbook Adaptation under TBLA 20

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 23

3.1 Research approach 23

3.2 Restatement of research questions 23

3.3 The setting of the study 23

3.3.1 The setting of the study 23

3.3.2 Participants 24

3.4 Data collection instruments 25

3.4.1 Questionnaire 25

3.4.2 Interview 27

3.4.3 Classroom observation 28

3.5 Data collection procedures 28

3.6 Data analysis procedures 29

CHAPTER 4: THE FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION OF THE FINDINGS 31

4.1 Evaluation of skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem before the adaptation 31

4.1.1 Teachers‟ opinions of the skills lessons before the adaptation 31

4.1.2 Students‟ opinions of the skills lessons before the adaptation 37

4.1.3 Summary of teachers‟ and students‟ opinions before the adaptation 44

4.2 Description of adapted skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6-Thi Diem under TBLA 44

4.2.1 Omission 45

4.2.2 Addition 45

4.2.3 Rewriting/Modification 46

4.2.4 Replacement 49

4.2.5 Re-ordering 49

4.3 Evaluation of skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem after the adaptation 51

4.3.1 Overall opinion 51

4.3.2 Scaffolding 54

4.3.3 Task dependency 56

4.3.4 Recycling 59

4.3.5 Authentic materials 60

4.3.6 Summary of teachers‟ and students‟ opinions after the adaptation 61

4.4 Summary of the findings 61

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION 65

5.1 Summary of the research 65

5.2 Conclusion 65

5.3 Implications 66

5.4 Limitations of the study 67

5.5 Suggestions for further studies 67

REFERENCES 68 APPENDICES I

Appendix 1: Nunan (2004) checklist for task evaluation I Appendix 2: McGrath (2002) checklist for textbook evaluation IV Appendix 3: Cunningsworth (1995) checklist for textbook evaluation VII Appendix 4: Questionnaire for Students before the Adaptation X Appendix 5: Questionnaire for Students after the Adaptation XVI Appendix 6: Semi-structured Interview Checklist Before the Adaptation (English and Vietnamese versions) XXI Appendix 7: Semi-structured Interview Checklist After the Adaptation (English and Vietnamese versions) XXIV Appendix 8: Written transcript of taped interviews (English Translation) XXVII Appendix 9: Classroom Observation Form XXIII Appendix 10: Guidelines for Classroom Observation XXIV Appendix 11: Lesson Observation Sheets XXV Appendix 12: Samples of students‟ writing XXXIV

Appendix 13: Adapted skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem XXXVI

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

ELT: English Language Teaching

MOET: Ministry of Education and Training

N: Number of participants

TBLA: Task-Based Learning Approach

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Salaberry‟s framework for TBLA (Salaberry, 2001) 7

Table 2: Teacher participants‟ profile 25

Table 3: Summary of students‟ evaluation on activities‟ instructions 38

Table 4: Summary of students‟ evaluation on illustrations 38

Table 5: Summary of students‟ evaluation on pre-speaking and pre-writing activities 39

Table 6: Summary of students‟ evaluation on activities‟ sequence 39

Table 7: Summary of students‟ evaluation on questions‟ sequence in one activity 40 Table 8: Summary of students‟ evaluation on skills lessons 41

Table 9: Summary of students‟ evaluation on the familiarity of lessons‟ topic 42

Table 10: Summary of students‟ evaluation on the naturalness of language 42

Table 11: Summary of students‟ evaluation on adapted Skills 1-Unit 9 52

Table 12: Summary of students‟ evaluation on adapted Skills 2-Unit 8 52

Table 13: Summary of students‟ evaluation on scaffolding in adapted Skills 1-Unit 9 55

Table 14: Summary of students‟ evaluation on scaffolding adapted Skills 2-Unit 855 Table 15: Summary of students‟ evaluation on sequence in adapted Skills 1-Unit 9 57

Table 16: Summary of students‟ evaluation on sequence in adapted Skills 2-Unit 8 58

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Willis‟ framework for TBLA (adapted from Willis, 1996, 2012) 6 Figure 2: The cycle of textbook adaptation (Grave, 2000, p205) 17 Figure 3: A framework for textbook adaptation (McDonough, Shaw, & Masuhara, 2013) 18 Figure 4: Framework for Textbook adaptation under TBLA 22

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale

With the aim of promoting English language teaching and learning throughout Vietnam in all school level, on 30th September 2008, Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) announced Decision No 1400/QĐ-TTg “Teaching and Learning Foreign Languages in the National Education System, Period 2008 to 2020”

In order to attain the goal of National Foreign Language 2020 Project, in 2010 Vietnam Educational Publishing House, in collaboration with MacMillan Education and Pearson Education, published a new series of English textbooks for Vietnamese schools from grade 3 to grade 12 under MOET decision This English textbook series has been piloted in selected schools all over Vietnam since 2011

The lower secondary school where the study was carried out is implementing this textbook series Students in this school are placed into classes at appropriate academic level basing on their placement test scores Therefore, there are classes at different levels of competence in English, from strong to weak ones It is reported that many students in weak classes had difficulties in dealing with activities, especially in skills lessons The difficulties arose not only due to student‟s

incompetence but also because Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem is designed for public use,

not for any particular learning environment Therefore, some skills lessons are too difficult for weak classes in the author‟s school This makes teachers spend more time on planning the lesson as well as explaining the tasks for students It is

assumed that if TBLA and its philosophy had been adopted in adapting Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem, such raising matters could have been solved This reality motivated me

to conduct this study to contribute my modest understanding of TBLA in adapting

skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem

1.2 Aims of the study and research questions

The study is an attempt to evaluate activities and tasks of skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem to grade 6 classes at a lower secondary school in Hanoi, and assess the

effectiveness of adaptation techniques on the lessons skills under TBLA In brief, the study seeks to address the following questions:

1 What are teachers‟ opinions about the activities in original skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem?

2 What are students‟ opinions about the activities in original skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem?

3 What are teachers‟ and students‟ opinions about activities in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem adapted under TBLA?

1.3 Significance of the study

This study has been carried out to search for useful techniques to adapt skills

lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem under TBLA This research utilizes the principles

of TBLA to adapt skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem in order to make the

lessons more suitable to the level of weak students Its findings hopefully would

help teaching and learning Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem skills lessons in weak classes

within the author‟s context become more effective

1.4 Scope of the study

The thesis does not cover skills lessons in pilot English textbooks of all levels, but

focuses on skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6-Thi Diem due to the author‟s limited

ability, time constraints and narrow-scaled study The strategies mentioned in this

study are techniques to adapt activities and tasks in skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6-Thi Diem Additionally, this study was conducted in a lower secondary school in Hanoi

Only a small number of grade 6 teachers and weak students participated in the study

1.5 Organization of the thesis

Chapter 1 presents the basic information of the study, namely rationale, research questions, significance, scope and organization Chapter 2 is the literature review of various concepts of Task-Based Learning Approach (TBLA), material evaluation, material development, and material adaptation Chapter 3 covers the method of investigation which includes participants, instruments, methods of data collection and data analysis In Chapter 4, the author gives a detailed presentation of data, description of data analysis, and explanations and interpretations of the findings of

the study This chapter also presents description of adapted skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem under TBLA Chapter 5 will deal with a review of the study,

consider some limitations and give some suggestions for further study In the last part of the study, to assure that the thesis is really valid, the researcher gives references and appendices

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Task-Based Learning Approach

Another definition of “task” was provided by Richards, Platt and Weber in 1986:

“…an activity or action which is carried out as the result of processing or understanding language (i.e as a response) For example, drawing a map while listening to a tape, listening to an instruction and performing a command may be referred to as tasks Tasks may or may not involve the production of language A task usually requires the teacher to specify what will be regarded as successful completion of the task The use of a variety of different kinds of tasks in language teaching is said to make language teaching more communicative … since it provides a purpose for a classroom activity which goes beyond the practice of language for its own sake.” (as cited in Nunan, 2006)

Nunan (2006) in an article about TBLA defined “tasks” in the following way: “a task is a piece of classroom work that involves learners in comprehending, manipulating, producing or interacting in the target language while their attention is focused on mobilizing their grammatical knowledge in order to express meaning, and in which the intention is to convey meaning rather than to manipulate form The task should also have a sense of completeness, being able to stand alone as a communicative act in its own right with a beginning, a middle and an end.”

Branden (2006); Ellis (2009); & Skehan (1998) define a task as an activity or a series of activities which have a primary focus on meaning (i.e learners are engaged

in understanding and producing messages designed to communicate information and opinions); contain a gap of some kind (information, opinion, reasoning); allow the learners to use their own linguistic resources (i.e they do not simply reproduce language given to them); and have an outcome other than the display of correct language

Although these definitions are different in some ways, they share the same underlying assumption that tasks “involve communicative language use in which the user‟s attention is focused on meaning rather than grammatical form” (Nunan, 2006) Nevertheless, this does not mean that TBLA neglects grammatical form

2.1.2 Frameworks for TBLA

Various frameworks of a task-based lesson have been proposed In general, TBLA framework is generally used to refer to the sequence of subtasks within tasks to form the stages The stages in one TBLA framework are different from one another since each researcher has their own ways of perceiving TBLA framework

Firstly, the three-phase TBLA framework is approved by Prabu (1987), Estaire and Zanon (1994), Skehan (1996), Willis (1996), Ellis (2006) and Willis (2009) Three stages in this framework are pre-task, task cycle, and language focus As can be seen in Figure 1, a framework for TBLA proposed by Willis (1996), pre-task includes different preparing activities by introducing vocabulary items, promoting initial ideas of the topic of the main task, and other language features These activities help students to perform the task confidently and effectively Ellis (2006) states that pre-task activities can be used to “scaffold learners‟ performance of the task with the expectancy that this „other-regulation‟ facilitates the „self-regulation‟ learners will need to perform the main task on their own.” In the second phase, students are required to undertake a task where students have opportunities to experience using the language By discussing with their partner or in groups, and reporting to the class, students develop their language fluency Finally, there are following-up activities in the final phase of language focus which helps improve

learners‟ accuracy This means that in this phase, students have a chance to focus on specific language forms which students already encounter in the previous stages In this model, the teacher is expected to lead the class step-by-step to the expected outcome, to break down a step into smaller steps if the learners encounter difficulties and to offer one of more parallels to a step in the reasoning process to ensure that mixed ability learners could understand what is required (Ellis, 2006)

Figure 1: Willis‟ framework for TBLA (adapted from Willis, 1996, 2012) Another model of TBLA is built by Salaberry (2001) using the concept of the three

Is (Illustration, Interaction, and Induction) proposed by McCarthy (1998) Students‟ and teachers‟ stages are shown in Table 1 As described by the author, students are introduced to the topic and motivated to participate in a task in the first step Then,

communicative analysis of language in communicative context is carried out This

is mostly initiated by learners, not the teacher During the third stage, students have chances to practice and develop hypotheses about structure and functions of the language Finally, students are required to produce a piece of work using the newly acquired features of the language

Nunan (2006) introduces a procedure of six steps in his book on TBLA The first

step, schema building, is similar to Willis‟ pre-task phase whose purpose is to

“introduce the topic, set the context for the task, and introduce some of the key vocabulary and expressions that the students will need in order to complete the

task.” (Nunan, 2006) This is followed by controlled practice that extends the

scaffolded learning that is initiated in step one by having students take part in using the target language vocabulary, structures and functions Next, students are exposed

to authentic listening practice, which extends the language from the model conversation in step two After that, students have a chance to focus on linguistic elements by completing a sequence of exercises in which the focus is on one or more linguistic elements In step five, provide freer practice, students are encouraged to express ideas using their own words Finally, teacher introduces the pedagogical task to students who are asked to take part in a group work discussion

and decision-making task In Nunan‟s framework, the form-focused activity occurs before the task while Willis suggests putting a focus on form after the task

In summary, although many frameworks for TBLA are proposed from different perspectives, they all bear the fundamental similarity that sequencing is a major characteristic of TBLA As can be seen in the aforementioned models, scaffolding

is implicitly and explicitly regarded as an indispensable part of TBLA It is also important to note that, in addition to focusing on meaning, focusing on form also plays a crucial role in a TBLA framework

2.1.3 Principles for TBLA

Nunan (1991: 279) mentions five characteristics of a TBLA framework In his later research, Nunan (2004) proposed seven principles for TBLA which are: scaffolding, task dependency, recycling, active learning, integration, reproduction to creation, and reflection He suggested that these principles could be used to evaluate the materials or textbooks

2.1.3.1 Scaffolding

The first principle, scaffolding, refers to a supporting framework that lessons and

materials provide to facilitate learning Scaffolding appears through the use of

“simplified language, teacher modeling, visuals and graphics, cooperative learning and hands-on learning” (Ovando, Collier, & Combs, 2003, p 345) The reason for scaffolding is that “At the beginning of the learning process, learners should not be expected to produce language that has not been introduced either explicitly or implicitly” (Nunan, 2004) Nunan also suggests that timing is crucial when deciding

to remove the supporting framework This means that scaffolding should be removed when the students are more confident and proficient

2.1.3.2 Task dependency

The next principle, task dependency, means “within a lesson, one task should grow

out of, and build upon, the ones that have gone before” (Nunan, 2004, p.35-36) This principle suggests that each task should take advantage of and be designed basing on the one before This is aimed to lead learners step by step to the point final pedagogical task in the sequence

This principle includes the receptive-to-productive principle and creative-language principle The receptive-to-productive principle refers to the proportion of time engaged in receptive (listening and reading) tasks and in productive ones: first, students spend more time in receptive tasks than in productive ones; later, they spend more time in productive work The reproductive-to-creative-language principle, which is also about the sequencing of tasks, is introduced sepeartely below

reproductive-to-2.1.3.3 Recycling

Another important rule for task is recycling where opportunities are created for

students to come into with target language in different types of activities Nunan stated that, in a task-based syllabus, grammatical and functional items will reappear numerous times in a diverse range of contexts This would appear to be healthy for second language acquisition because it allows learners to „restructure‟ and develop

an elaborated understanding of the item in question

2.1.3.4 Active learning

The fourth fundamental is active learning where students actively use the language

they are learning to express themselves “A key principle behind this concept is that learners learn best through doing – through actively constructing their own knowledge rather than having it transmitted to them by the teacher” (Nunan, 2004) This suggests that controlled practice should be limited; dependence on the teacher should be reduced

2.1.3.5 Integration

Regarding principle integration, it is advised to teach lessons where “linguistic

elements – the grammatical, lexical and phonological components” – are integrated This means that the teachers as well as textbooks should demonstrate the relationships between form, function and meaning to learners of English

2.1.3.7 Reflection

This principle emphasizes the significance of the opportunities that students have to

“reflect on what they have learned and how well they are doing” (Nunan, 2004) This helps students to be conscious of the strategies driving their learning and the reasons for their learning, which makes them become better learners according to Nunan (2004)

2.1.3.8 Authentic materials

Nunan (1991: 279) mentions five characteristics of a TBLA framework:

 An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language

 The introduction of authentic texts (teaching materials) into the learning situation

 The provision of opportunities for learners to focus not only on language, but also on the learning process itself

 An enhancement of the learner‟s own personal experiences as important contributing elements to classroom learning

 An attempt to link classroom language learning with language activation outside the classroom

In 2004, Nunan proposed a six-step procedure of a task-based lesson This step would expose them to authentic or simulated conversation through the listening texts that involve a number of native speakers talking to each other about certain topics In this step, authentic materials play a vital role in incorporating and extending the language from the model conversation for the learners

Through above-mentioned features, it can be noted that authentic materials play an

important part in a TBLA framework because real-life conversations and situations have several advantages to the process of language learning Authentic materials can help students connect the language classroom with the outside world (Brinton, 1991) Gebhard (1996) sees authentic materials as a way to give students a valuable source of language input from the real world context, so that they are not being exposed only to the language presented by the text and the teacher

2.1.3.9 Summary

Basing on the aforementioned TBLA principles, four criteria for evaluating skills

lessons in Tieng Anh 6-Thi Diem were developed, which are (1) scaffolding, (2) task

dependency, (3) recycling, and (4) authentic materials These principles were chosen because of their compatibility with this thesis‟ purpose of evaluating and adapting skills lessons under TBLA to suit the levels of grade 6 weak students in this research

Some princiles are not chosen to evaluate skills lessons in this research First, active learning is not used due to the author‟s limited ability, time constraints and narrow-

scaled study In order to evaluate skills lessons basing on this principle the researcher needs to observe every original skills lesson to see whether teacher-

focused work dominate class time or not Second, integration is not used to evaluate

skills lessons because this criterion is more suitable to evaluate grammar and

vocabulary lessons Finally, reproduction to creation is already included in task

dependency as stated by Nunan (2004) Finally, the book gives students chances to

reflect their learning in Looking back lessons which are the last lessons of every

unit, not in skills lessons Therefore, this principle is not applicable to this thesis‟ purpose

2.2 Textbook, textbook evaluation, and textbook adaptation

2.2.1 Roles of textbooks in ELT

Sheldon (1988, p 237) suggests that textbooks not only "represent the visible heart

of any ELT program" but also offer considerable advantages - for both teachers and learners - when they are being used in the English as a Second Language and English as a Foreign Language classroom as cited in Nguyen (2007)

Teachers can benefit from textbooks in a variety of ways The first advantage of textbooks is that they provide teachers of English with a source of teaching materials Thus, teachers do not have to spare time preparing teaching materials themselves Therefore it “saves time, gives direction to lessons, guides discussion, facilitates giving of homework, making teaching „easier, better organized, more convenient‟ and learning „easier, faster, better‟ This view is advocated by Hutchinson and Torres (1994) who state that “Almost all of textbooks provide confidence and security” (p.315) Secondly, textbooks can fulfill the need of a map

or a plan for sequences of lessons A lesson is one of “an incremental sequence of teaching units, the sequence as a whole meant to achieve a larger objective” as characterized by Prabhu in 1992 (as cited in Hutchinson and Torres, 1994) Therefore, lessons should not be taught separately, but in relation to each other The previous lessons act as a scaffolding element for coming-up lessons A textbook, as stated by Hutchinson and Torres (1994), is capable of satisfying this demand Students consider textbooks as a guideline for their learning in class like discussions, doing activities and exercises; and outside the classroom such as doing homework, or preparing for tests Textbooks facilitate students‟ learning and make students learn “better, faster, clearer, easier, more” (Hutchinson and Torres, 1994)

Since textbooks are vital in ELT, the process of selecting, evaluating and adapting course books to suit each learning context has significant impacts on the effectiveness of English language teaching and learning process

2.2.2 Textbook evaluation

Textbook evaluation is an important process in language teaching and learning By evaluating the textbook, teachers can “acquire useful, accurate, systematic, and contextual insights into the overall nature of the textbook” (p.7) as described by Cunningsworth (1995) and Ellis (1997) Consequently, it helps teachers understand the textbook so that they can change their teaching to suit the course aims, and learners‟ needs

Depending on the teaching and learning context, teachers and educators select the most suitable framework to follow Therefore, a number of different criteria for material evaluation have been introduced by Ellis (1997), McDonough and Shaw (1998) McGrath (2002), Tomlinson (2003)

A two-stage textbook evaluation approach is suggested by Ellis‟s (1997) This includes predictive evaluation and retrospective evaluation Predictive evaluation decides which textbook will be used for the course Once they have been used, retrospective evaluation may be conducted to find out what impact they have had on instructors and learners The first stage, predictive evaluation, as its name suggests,

is based on the first impression of evaluators about a textbook so it is somehow subjective Hence, teachers need to take a further evaluation by retrospective evaluation which takes place in and after the process of teaching and learning Basing on the feedback from textbook users, educators make decisions if the textbook should or should not be used in the next course

Tomlinson (2003) suggests a three-stage process of evaluation: pre-use evaluation, whilst-use evaluation and post-use evaluation The first stage, pre-use evaluation, has some similarities to predictive evaluation by Ellis (1197) where the evaluators take a quick look through a textbook (artwork, illustrations, appearance, content

pages, etc.) to gain an impression of its potential value While teaching, teachers evaluate the following criteria of the textbook: clarity of instructions, clarity of layout, comprehensible of texts, credibility of tasks, achievement of performance objectives, potential for localization, practicality of the materials, teachability of the materials, flexibility of the materials, appeal of the materials, motivating power of the materials, impact of the material, effectiveness in facilitating short-term Finally,

at the stage of post-use evaluation, evaluators find out the impact of the textbook on learners, teachers and administrators The criteria in Tomlison (2003) are general because of not clarifying what to look for in a textbook to measure the criteria Inexperience evaluators may encounter difficulties when adapting his criteria

Cunningsworth (1995), at the very first pages of his book, introduces a reference checklist” for textbook evaluation and selection with more specific criteria and elements In his checklist, there are eight main criteria (Aims and approaches, Design and organization, Language content, Skills, Topic, Methodology, Teacher‟s guide, Practical considerations) which are followed by a series of questions (see Appendix 2 for more details) Novice evaluators can easily make objective judgments of their course book by answering those questions McGrath (2002) indicates textbook features that need evaluation in a two-step procedure which consists of „first-glance‟ evaluation and „in-depth‟ evaluation In first-glance‟ step, four criteria for evaluators are mentioned: practical considerations; support for teaching and learning; context relevance; and learner appeal The second step, in-depth evaluation, involves following 7 key criteria each

“quick-of which contains specific evaluation questions which are (1) the aims and content

of the book, (2) what they require learners to do, (3) what they require the teacher to

do, (4) their function as a classroom resource, (5) learner needs and interests, (6) learner approaches to language learning, and (7) the teaching – learning approach in the teacher‟s own classroom (see Appendix 1 for more details)

Nunan (2004) suggests a checklist for evaluating tasks The checklist is divided into right main parts: (1) Goals and rationale, (2) Input, (3) Procedures, (4) Roles and setting, (5) Implementation, (6) Grading, (7) integration, and (8) Assessment and Evaluation Nunan (2004) suggests that the evaluators do not necessarily need to answer all the questions in task evaluation They should record the lesson in which the task is introduced on audio- or videotape and use this to aid their reflection as they evaluate the task An alternative would be to invite a colleague to observe their class and do the evaluation with them

Many textbook adaptation approaches have been reviewed in this section Despite being called different names, they seem to be quite similar A logical framework for the whole process and explicit criteria are supplied in these approaches However, these are designed for all teaching and learning context Therefore, in order to conduct an effective evaluation, the textbook evaluator needs to apply the approaches under their real teaching and learning environment

This research combines three checklists, one by McGrath (2002), one by Cunningsworth (1995), and one by Nunan (2004) to evaluate the skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6 – Thi Diem textbook under TBLA Moreover, to serve the purpose of

this study research, these checklists are modified and integrated with four criteria: scaffolding, task dependency, recycling, and authentic materials

2.2.3 Textbook adaptation

2.2.3.1 Reasons for adaptation

Gabrielatos (2000) (as cited in Tsiplakides, 2011) presents the following reasons for textbook modification:

 There are too many tasks on a specific area

 The item/area concerned is not a priority

 The item/task is not well designed or well-suited for its aim

 The topic is not appropriate for the learners

 Texts are of inappropriate length (e.g too long)

 Materials are inappropriate for the learners‟ age, needs or experience

 Materials are unclear, confusing, or misleading

The following list of reasons for teachers to adapt textbooks is suggested by McDonough, Shaw, and Masuhara (2013):

 Not enough practice of grammar points of particular difficulty to learners

 Reading passages contain too much unknown vocabulary

 Comprehension questions are too easy, because the answers can be lifted directly from the text with no real understanding

 Listening passages are inauthentic, because they sound too much like written material being read out

 Not enough guidance on pronunciation

 Subject matter inappropriate for learners of this age and intellectual level

 Photographs and other illustrative material not culturally acceptable

 Amount of material too much or too little to cover in the time allocated to lessons

 Dialogues too formal and not representative of everyday speech

 Audio material difficult to use because of problems to do with room size and technical equipment

 Too much or too little variety in the activities

 Vocabulary list and a key to the exercises would be helpful

 Accompanying tests needed

In summary, despite various factors leading to textbook adaptation, teachers modify

a textbook to make it suitable for their teaching contexts (e.g national, regional, institutional, cultural situations), course requirements (e.g objectives, syllabus, methodology, assessment), learners e.g age, language level, prior learning experience, learning style), materials (e.g texts, tasks, activities, learning and teaching philosophy, methodology) and for themselves (e.g teaching style, belief about learning and teaching) (Tomlinson and Masuhara, 2004, p.12)

2.2.3.2 Frameworks for textbook adaptation

Textbooks are adapted because they are designed for public use, not for any particular learning environment Moreover, in the places where teachers are not allowed to choose teaching materials, textbook adaptation is necessary for effective and interesting lessons As Tomlinson (2012) points out “most materials, whether they be written for a global market, for an institution or even for a class, aim to satisfy the needs and wants of an idealized group of target learners who share similar needs and levels of proficiency No matter how good the materials are, they will not by themselves manage to cater to the different needs, wants, learning styles, attitudes, cultural norms and experiences of individual learners.”(p.1)

There are many proposed adaptation procedures helping educators to make useful and successful adaptation for textbooks The first textbook adaptation cycle is outlined by Graves (2000: 205) as a series of steps which includes: planning (needs analysis and textbook structure analysis), teaching (implementing modifications), replanning (after the completion of one course, plan again using all conclusions made during the previous course) and reteaching (the implementation of new conclusions and decisions made on the basis of the previous course and replanning) The cycle can be illustrated as the diagram below:

Figure 2: The cycle of textbook adaptation (Grave, 2000, p205)

McDonough, Shaw, and Masuhara (2013) illustrate the process of textbook adaptation in Figure 3 below As can be seen from Figure 3, textbook can be adapted in varied content areas including language practice, texts, classroom managements, skills and so on using six recommended techniques Within the scope

of this study, adaptations to skills lessons are carried out

Figure 3: A framework for textbook adaptation (McDonough, Shaw, & Masuhara,

2013)

2.2.3.3 Techniques for Textbook Adaptation

Maley (cited in Tomlinson, 1998, p.281) suggests eight techniques for textbook adaptation as below:

 Omission: the teacher leaves out things deemed inappropriate, offensive, unproductive, etc., for the particular group

 Addition: where there seems to be inadequate coverage, teachers may decide

to add to textbooks, either in the form of texts or exercise material

 Reduction: where the teacher shortens an activity to give it less weight or emphasis

 Extension: where an activity is lengthened in order to give it an additional dimension; for example, a vocabulary activity is extended to draw attention

to some syntactic patterning

 Rewriting/modification: teacher may occasionally decide to rewrite material, especially exercise material, to make it more appropriate, more

“communicative”, more demanding, more accessible to their students, etc

 Replacement: text or exercise material which is considered inadequate, for whatever reason, may be replaced by more suitable material This is often culled from other resource materials

 Re-ordering: teachers may decide that the order in which the textbooks are presented is not suitable for their students They can then decide to plot a different course through the textbooks from the one the writer has laid down

 Branching: teachers may decide to add options to the existing activity or to suggest alternative pathways through the activities; for example, an experiential route or an analytical route

Gabrielatos (2000) (as cited in Tsiplakides, 2011) argues that the adaptation of the course book can be taken using four following techniques: 1) teachers may omit materials and tasks included in a course book, 2) teachers may re-order/combine

materials and tasks included in a course book, 3) teachers may replace materials and tasks included in a course book, and 4) teachers may add materials and tasks

Similarly, McDonough, Shaw, and Masuhara (2013) seem to agree with Gabrielatos (2000) techniques, but add “modifying” and “simplifying” to their list The techniques include 1) adding (expanding and extending), 2) deleting (subtracting and abridging), 3) modifying (rewriting and restructuring), 4) simplifying, and 5) reordering They advise that “content can be adapted using a range of techniques;

or, conversely, a single technique can be applied to different content areas” (p.69) This is to indicate that techniques can be used individually or in combination with others to make the most effective adaptation

In order to adapt skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem, this piece of work utilizes

the techniques of textbook adaptation suggested by Maley (1998, p.281, in Tomlinson, 1998) under Nunan (2004) TBLA principles The reasons for this choice are (1) Maley‟s framework is more complete because it includes techniques proposed by other researchers, and (2) this framework supports Nunan‟s TBLA framework and principles, which creates scaffolding and facilitates learning process

2.3 Textbook Adaptation under TBLA

Students can benefit from learning a lesson with tasks that follow TBLA principles First, logic sequencing and sufficient scaffolding provide students with motivation and develop their self-confidence through facilitated learning This is because when students are capable of coping successfully with tasks arranged in increasing difficulty order, the feeling of competence is fostered This results in students‟ good performing on learning tasks According to Feuerstein and Feuerstein (1991), close connections can be found between students‟ self-image, self-competence, and their task performance Thus, the supporting systems and suitable task arrangements can help learners to advance from what they know (their actual zone of development) to what they would like to achieve (the Zone of Proximal Development)

Moreover, when textbooks are adapted under the principles of TBLA, teachers may save time from planning and delivering their lessons when activities are arranged

from easy to difficult levels Nunan (2004) states in principle Task dependency that

“the sequence tells a „pedagogical‟ story, as learners are led step by step to the point where they are able to carry out the final pedagogical task in the sequence” As a result, when activities are built upon the ones that have gone before, teachers can save time from providing frequent support

Therefore, textbooks with logically sequenced activities not only facilitate learning process of students, especially weaker ones, but also save time for teacher‟s lesson planning and teaching For these reasons, this study implements TBLA to adapt

skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem in a particular context

Figure 4 below illustrates the process how Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem was adapted

under TBLA in this study research

As shown in Figure 4, in step 1, the appropriateness of skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem to weak students was evaluated basing on teachers‟ and students‟ opinions After that, acitivities or content that need modification could emerge In step 2, the author searched for the theories of adjusting acitivities or content in skills

lessons from Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem to suit the teaching principles so that weak

students can easily absorb the lesson Through the literature review, the author finds the Maley (1998) adaptation techniques are the most suitable ones to adapt activities

in the textbook; and Nunan's TBLA teaching principles are also suitable teaching principles for developing weak students‟ English competence Therefore, in this step, the author presented the literature review of Maley (1998) adaptation techniques as well as Nunan (1991, 2004) TBLA teaching principles.In the next step, the author chose appropriate adaptation techniques to adapt skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem satisfying Nunan (1991, 2004) TBLA teaching principles.In

step 4, the author evaluated adapted lessons and adaptation strategies under TBLA

by interviewing teachers, surveying students, and observing lessons where the

adaptation was taken place Finally, the author reviewed and finalized her adaptation techniques using under TBLA principles

Figure 4: Framework for Textbook adaptation under TBLA

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research approach

Exploratory research is defined by Burns and Grove (2001:374) as research conducted to gain new insights, discover new ideas, and for increasing knowledge

of the phenomenon This paper employs exploratory study to address the investigated issue and answer the research questions because it allows the researchers to determine evaluation of original skills lessons as well as the effectiveness of adaptation strategies on skills lessons in her teaching context

3.2 Restatement of research questions

1 What are teachers‟ opinions about the activities in original skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem?

2 What are students‟ opinions about the activities in original skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem?

3 What are teachers‟ and students‟ opinions about activities in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem adapted under TBLA?

The answers to these questions offer insights into the effectiveness of adaptation

strategies on skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem under TBLA in a lower

secondary school in Hanoi

3.3 The setting of the study

3.3.1 The setting of the study

The study is carried out in a lower secondary school in Hanoi where the researcher

is working With regard to grade six, there are about forty students in each class At the beginning of the school year, students are assigned to classes at different levels basing on two tests: entrance test and placement test Therefore, beside classes with strong students, there are classes where students need a lot of support from the teachers In this research, weak classes were chosen

It is reported that from the school teachers that they encounter difficulties when teaching slow students There is a shortage of time for weak classes because teachers often have to stop to repeat, reteach, or translate the English content into Vietnamese to help students understand it

Additionally, this school is using the pilot textbook series of English for all classes

at all levels from grade six to grade nine This makes it difficult to “satisfy the needs and wants of an idealized group of target learners … [who have different] learning styles, attitudes, cultural norms and experiences” (Tomlinson, 2006, p.1)

The study was conducted during the period when learning and teaching curricula were cut back due to the prolonged school closure caused by the COVID-19 pandemic Learning and teaching were operated online and English lessons in this school were reduced by more than half, from 7 sessions to 3 sessions a week Therefore, time is especially precious during this period Teachers have to plan lessons so as to fit their limited time allowance as well as help students, whether strong or weak, achieve lessons‟ objectives

3.3.2 Participants

3.3.2.1 Student participants

Seventy-one grade 6 students from two weak classes were chosen to take part in the research These students officially started studying English as a compulsory subject when they were grade 3 students They were assigned to the grade 6 classes basing

on their entrance and diagnostic test results at the beginning of the academic year The test results of students in these two classes were ranked among the lowest ones

3.3.2.2 Teacher participants

Two out of six teachers who are teaching grade six were selected to join the research The participants are grade six teachers who are teaching weak classes, willing to be interviewed and observed in the classroom In order to keep the

participants‟ identity confidential, their real names are replaced by Giang and Nhung whose information is shown in Table 2

Teachers Gender

Years of teaching

Tieng Anh 6

-Thi Diem

Qualification/Training

Giang Female 3 She got her degree of associate in English

Language Teaching and began teaching at the school in 2016 She is now enrolling a course

on English Language Teaching offered by Hanoi National University of Education

Nhung Female 4 She graduated from University of Languages

and International Studies in 2006 Her major is English Language Teaching She is now enrolling a master course run by University of Languages and International Studies and Southern New Hampshire University She has taught English in this school since 2006

Table 2: Teacher participants‟ profile

3.4 Data collection instruments

In order to assure the validity of the research, this study utilizes questionnaires, direct interviews, and classroom observations This part discusses the reasons why these instruments fit the research‟s aims, and how they are designed to serve the research purpose

3.4.1 Questionnaire

In this research, questionnaire was used to seek for:

(1) Weak students‟ opinions about the appropriateness of original skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem

(2) Weak students‟ opinions about the appropriateness of adapted skills lessons in

Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem

Using questionnaires is incredibly helpful when researchers want to collect information from a large number of participants Jones et al (2013) claimed that questionnaires are “a very useful survey tool that allows large populations to be assessed with relative ease” and “easy to conduct” However, respondents sometimes may not be truthful with their answers due to a variety of reasons Hence, in order to ensure validity and reliability, researchers should not completely depend on the questionnaire but combine it with other data collection instruments

In this study, the questionnaires were used to collect weak students‟ evaluations of skills lessons before and after the adaptation The items in the questionnaires were developed based on the evaluation checklists introduced by McGrath (2002) and Cunningsworth (1995), and Nunan (2004) TBLA principles

Both questionnaires include close-ended questions requiring responses on a point Likert scale (ranging from strongly agree to strongly disagree) They were divided into 2 main parts Part A consists of questions about the beliefs or thoughts

five-of students towards different aspects five-of four discrete skills (Reading, Speaking,

Listening, and Writing) in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem Part B contains items investigating students‟ opinions about skills lessons (Skills 1 and Skills 2) in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem There were also open-ended questions asking for students‟

suggestions for improvement on skills lessons

In order to remove possible comprehension problems, the questionnaires were written in both English and Vietnamese The students were asked to use Vietnamese

to answer all open-ended questions They had been carefully instructed before they started responding to the questionnaires to make sure that they could understand and complete them easily

3.4.2 Interview

In this research, interview was used to seek for:

(1) Teachers‟ opinions about the appropriateness of original skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem

(2) Teachers‟ opinions about the appropriateness of adapted skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem

Interviewing is a popular data collection instrument because of its numerous advantages First, interviews can be used to attain in-depth understanding of a particular topic Second, Austin (1981) stated that compared to a questionnaire survey, the response rates of an interview are higher because of the personal nature

of interviews He claimed that the rate of refusing an interview is typically much smaller than questionnaires‟ and other methods‟ non-response rate Moreover, by using interviews, researchers can gather more complete information since they can easily clarify the interview questions, as well as asking for respondents‟ further explanation for unclear information Probing always ensures that there is clarity by the end of the interview (Abawi, 2013) Interviewing is suitable for this study

research It investigates teachers‟ opinions of skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem to help the researcher gain more useful information for textbook adaptation

processes

The interview questions in this study were designed to elicit the teachers‟

evaluations of the skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem Similar to the items in

the questionnaires, semi-structured interview questions were also written basing on the evaluation checklists introduced by McGrath (2002) and Cunningsworth (1995), and the TBLA principles mentioned previously

Both pre- and post-adaptation interviews include questions under five sub-headings which are (1) scaffolding, (2) task dependency, (3) integration, (4) recycling, and (5) authentic materials In addition to these five topics, in post-adaptation interviews, teachers were asked to give overall evaluations on adapted skills lessons

that they had delivered The interviewed questions were designed in both English and Vietnamese through the semi-structure format

 Teacher‟s ways of delivering adapted lessons

 Student‟s behaviours and performances during the lessons

Observing both the teaching and learning process may give indications about the potential suitability of the adapted materials for the research site

3.5 Data collection procedures

Data collection methods used for the study include student questionnaires, teacher interviews, and classroom observations Due to the school closure during the Coronavirus pandemic, questionnaires, interviews and classroom observations were conducted online using an online meeting application All questionnaires and interviews were conducted in Vietnamese to remove language barriers that may hinder participants from expressing their ideas

First, pre-adaptation questionnaires based on TBLA are carried out to get information from 71 students The questionnaire items were sent to the teachers via email who then sent them to the students Questionnaires for students were

organized during classroom time to make sure students finished and handed in the all questionnaires After conducting surveys on students, the researcher interviewed

two teacher participants, asking them to give comments on skills lessons in Tieng Anh 6- Thi Diem The interviews were tape-recorded for the research purpose

Based on students‟ and teachers‟ feedback, the author carried out an analysis of skills lessons and then made some adaptations under TBLA Adapted skills lessons were sent via email to teacher participants who taught the lessons The researcher then observed the adapted skills lessons to evaluate her adaptation strategies While observing as a non-participant, the researcher took notes of the classroom procedures After that, analysis was conducted basing on the transcription of the recorded lessons and notes made by the researcher

Finally, post-adaptation questionnaires and interviews were conducted to ask for students‟ and teachers‟ opinions of the adapted lessons Students were asked to complete the questionnaire right after the adapted lessons The interviews were arranged later, lasted about 20 to 25 minutes each, and were all tape-recorded for the purpose of analysis

3.6 Data analysis procedures

In order to analyze and interpret data collected from interviews and classroom observations, the researcher listened again to the interview as well as classroom observation records, and carefully transcribed them The data then were analyzed under the inductive approach which identifies patterns, similarities and regularities

in experience in order to reach conclusions or generate theory (Saunders, Lewis, and Thornhill, 2012)

The data from in the questionnaires was divided into the data from close-ended questions and from open-ended ones Regarding the close-ended data, it was quantitatively calculated using Microsoft Excel for statistics and was converted into percentages The statistics of each item in each column on the five-point Likert scale were presented following the order: the number of respondents and the