An action research project on improving reading comprehension using flash card matching strategy for grade 3 students at an english centre in hanoi

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES NGUYỄN THỊ MINH PHƯỢNG AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT ON IMPROVING R

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN THỊ MINH PHƯỢNG

AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT ON IMPROVING READING COMPREHENSION USING FLASH CARD MATCHING STRATEGY FOR GRADE 3 STUDENTS AT AN ENGLISH CENTRE IN HANOI

(Nghiên cứu hành động về Sử dụng chiến lược ghép thẻ nhằm cải thiệnkhả năng đọc hiểu cho học sinh lớp 3 tại một trung tâm tiếng Anh ở Hà Nội)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01

Hanoi - 2021

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HA NOI

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN THỊ MINH PHƯỢNG

AN ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT ON IMPROVING READING COMPREHENSION USING FLASH CARD MATCHING STRATEGY FOR GRADE 3 STUDENTS AT AN ENGLISH CENTRE IN HANOI

(Nghiên cứu hành động về Sử dụng chiến lược ghép thẻ nhằm cải thiệnkhả năng đọc hiểu cho học sinh lớp 3 tại một trung tâm tiếng Anh ở Hà Nội)

M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 8140231.01

Supervisor: Nguyễn Thu Hạnh, PhD

Hanoi - 2021

DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP

I certify my authority of the thesis submitted entitled “An Action

Research Project on Using Flashcard Matching Strategy to Improve reading comprehension for the 3 rd grade students at an English Centre in Dong Anh” in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts

Hanoi, January 2021

NGUYỄN THỊ MINH PHƯỢNG

I wish to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt thanks to the teachers of Department of Post-Graduate Studies who have supplied me with the good conditions to conduct this thesis and finish this M.A course

Also, I owe my debt to my colleagues and students who are the subjects

of my thesis for their willingness to answer my talks, questionnaires, and interviews

My special thanks also go to my friends for their constant support and concern while the work was in progress

Lastly, I am also grateful to my families for their kindly encouragement

during the research’s finalization

Hanoi, January 2021

ABSTRACT

This study was conducted with the purpose to identify the effectiveness

of using flashcards to improve reading comprehension for the 3rd grade students at an English centre in Dong Anh The study showed that most students at this primary school experienced many difficulties in English reading comprehension and they were not motivated in reading lessons To make situation better, an action plan was made, focusing on using flashcard matching strategy to motivate them actively to participate in reading lessons and then improve their reading comprehension The subjects of the study were

15 3rd graders of an English centre in Dong Anh To that end, action research (AR) was attempted with the use of quantitative and qualitative methods to determine whether the use of flashcards can improve the students’ capacity of reading comprehension as well as their attitudes towards the use of flashcard matching strategy during reading lessons The data were collected through the pre- and post-tests, questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews The research was conducted during the second semester of the school year 2019 -

2020 The findings of the study suggested that the use of flashcards can improve reading comprehension of the 3rd grade students of an English centre

in Dong Anh; and most of research students liked this technique because it made them happy and motivated during English reading lessons

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS iv

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES vii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale 1

1.2 Aims and objectives of the study 2

1.3 Research questions 2

1.4 Scope of the study 2

1.5 Significance of the study 3

1.6 Methods of the study 3

1.7 Organization of the thesis 4

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 5

2.1 Reading skills 5

2.1.1 Definitions of reading 5

2.1.2 Reading process 6

2.2 Reading comprehension 7

2.2.1 Definitions of reading comprehension 7

2.2.2 Factors impacting reading comprehension ability 9

2.3 Principles in teaching reading comprehension 10

2.4 Using flashcards in reading lessons 12

2.4.1 Definitions of flashcards 12

2.4.2 Flashcards as beneficial teaching aids 13

2.5 Previous studies on employing flashcards in reading lessons 15

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 18

3.1 Design of the study 18

3.2 Research setting 21

3.2.1 The research site 21

3.2.2 Description of textbook, curriculum, testing and assessment 22

3.3 Participants 22

3.4 Research procedure 23

3.5 Data collection instruments 27

3.5.1 Classroom observation 27

3.5.2 Pretest and posttest 27

3.5.3 Questionnaire 28

3.5.4 Semi-structured interview 29

3.6 Data analysis 30

CHAPTER 4: FINDING AND DISCUSSION 32

4.1 Preliminary investigation 32

4.1.1 The results from classroom observation 32

4.1.2 The results from pre-elimination test 33

4.1.3 Findings from preliminary investigation 34

4.2 Research findings and discussion from action implementation 35

4.2.1 Improvement in the students’ reading comprehension 35

4.2.2 The students’ attitudes towards the flashcard strategy 38

4.3 Discussion 44

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS 47

5.1 Recapitulate 47

5.2 Implication of the study 48

5.3 Limitations of the study 50

5.4 Suggestions for further study 51

REFERENCES 52 APPENDIX 1 - CLASSROOM OBSERVATION CHECKLIST I APPENDIX 2 - QUESTIONNAIRE II APPENDIX 3 – INTERVIEW V APPENDIX 4 – RESULTS OF THE PRETEST AND POSTTEST VI APPENDIX 5 – SAMPLES OF FLASHCARDS VII APPENDIX 6 – A SAMPLE OF LESSON PLAN WITH FLASHCARDS IX

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 3.1 Action research plan 25

Table 4.1 Number of students with passing scores of the pretest 34

Table 4.2 Results of the pretest and posttest mean scores 36

Table 4.3 Distribution of the pretest and posttest scores 36

Table 4.4 Results from questionnaire 39

Figure 2.1 A heuristic approach for reading comprehension (Snow, 2002) 9

Figure 3.1 Steps in the action research cycle (Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988) 21

Figure 4.1 Differences between the pretest and posttest ranges of scores 38

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale

English has been introduced as a compulsory in Vietnam for many years Students start to learn English from grade 3 and finish school at grade 12 The elementary school students whose ages range generally between 6 to 11 years old are categorized as young learners The introduction of English in elementary school is also based on the assumption that it is better to introduce English early since the learners are categorized as young learners

In teaching English to young learners, the most difficult thing is to keep

up their motivation and interest One of the problems in English teaching and learning of young learners is to keep up their reading skills For many English teachers of primary school, reading is considered a difficult skill to teach Normally, primary-school teachers, following a conventional, test-oriented teaching approach, often concentrate on teaching English vocabulary, grammar However, if the teachers create the reading lessons more attractive and easier for students by using flashcards matching strategy, the students will improve their reading comprehension skill This is also the case of an English centre in Dong Anh, Hanoi when most of the 3rd grade students of the center feel bored to learn English reading because they think that it is too difficult for them According to the English teacher of the 3rd grade of the centre, the trouble of the students’ reading skill is shown by students’ attitudes in the teaching and learning process Therefore, the teaching of English to the 3rdgrade students should emphasize the principle of playful learning Students like to learn through something which makes them interested in studying, especially in reading comprehension Consequently, the teacher has to create interesting activities to make the students enjoy, interested and active in learning so they will not get bored

One of the teaching aids that can be used by the primary-school teachers for conducting an interesting learning for young learners is flashcards By using flashcards, young students are given something simpler than other media which had been used Moreover, students also can build their own imagination from the pictures they see Therefore, through this study the researcher would like to figure out the use of flashcards to improve the 3rd

grade students’ reading skills, typically reading comprehension

1.2 Aims and objectives of the study

This research was carried out with the aims to find out how the teacher could apply flashcards to improve students’ reading skills and discover the effectiveness of the application of flashcards matching strategy in improving reading comprehension In addition, the study also investigated students’ attitudes towards the use of flashcards in reading lessons

(2) What are these students’ attitudes towards the use of flashcard matching strategy for improving reading comprehension?

1.4 Scope of the study

This research aims to investigate the use of flashcards to improve reading comprehension of the 3rd grade students at an English centre in Dong Anh, Hanoi Due to the limitation of time and knowledge, this thesis only focused on the impacts of flashcards on teaching reading comprehension of the 3rd grade students and discovered their opinions about the use of

flashcards in classes Therefore, teaching of other skills or other grades would

be beyond the scope

1.5 Significance of the study

By conducting this study, the researcher expect that the result will have some significant contributions to teaching English, especially in improving reading comprehension for students in grade 3

The researcher hopes that the result of this research will have several significance as follows:

Practically, the researcher hopes that this result can give motivation for teachers to be more creative and innovative in using alternative strategies to teach English, especially in teaching reading for school students

Theoretically, the researcher hopes that this result can be useful as a reference for those who have interest in the same topic

Pedagogically, the researcher hopes that this result can become a way to improve the English teaching and learning process for school students, typically to increase the students’ motivation and engagement in English lessons, including reading ones

1.6 Methods of the study

Action research was adopted in this study by the researcher and also the teacher; therefore, flashcards would be applied directly into the class where the researcher was teaching Also, both qualitative and quantitative data collection were applied in this study Questionnaire and interview with students were used to gather the students’ opinions about the use of flashcards

in reading classes The data analysis from tests would help to understand more the students’ improvement in reading comprehension skill All of the methods were triangulated to get the validity and reliability of the research, therefore, the results from students’ tests would be compared with the data collected in the interview and questionnaire

1.7 Organization of the thesis

The study is divided into five parts:

Chapter 1- INTRODUCTION presents the rationale for the study, the aims and objectives, the research questions, the scope, the methods, the significance, and the design of the study

Chapter 2 - LITERATURE REVIEW provides an overview of the theoretical background and the previous researches related to the study

Chapter 3 - RESEARCH METHODOLOGY restates the research questions and describes the setting, the participants, and the research methods

of the study

Chapter 4 - FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS displays a detailed description of data analysis Besides, the chapter also presents some discussion and interpretations of the findings of the study, and then gives suggestions for the teachers and the students and other researchers

Chapter 5 - CONCLUSION briefly summarizes the study, proposes some recommendations as well as makes several suggestions for further studies

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter provides a theoretical framework for reading comprehension and using flashcards in teaching reading It will look at the overview of reading skills, reading comprehension, and flashcard matching strategy

2.1 Reading skills

2.1.1 Definitions of reading

Reading is one of the most important skills in learning language besides listening, speaking and writing It has the fundamental goal to know enough the concept and the language It means an activity that the students perform to gain information or a message from written materials they read Therefore, in reading activities students have intention to obtain knowledge from their reading

Block and Israel (2005) define reading as an action of a person who reads Duke and Pearson (2005) and Gómez and Ávila (2009) claim that reading is a mechanical process plus the acquisition of meaning, which means the reader must fuse the meaning represented by the printed words into a chain of related ideas Also, reading is a combination of mechanics, understanding, retention, and use In this broadest of the these views, the reader should be able not to perform the mechanics and comprehend the meaning of the words, but to critically evaluate the ideas expressed and apply them to his or her situation

Similarly, Sheng (2000) states that reading is to recall, to understand, to interpret, and analyze the printed page while Czico et al (2000) consider reading an active attempt, on the part of the reader, to understand a writer's message The reader interacts with and tries to reconstruct what the writer wishes to communicate Gascoigne (2005) claims reading is the meaningful

interpretation of printed or written verbal symbols Sharing the same point, Pang (2013) remarks that reading is the process of getting a message from a text or understanding a written text by extracting the information from the text

as efficiently as possible According to Gascoigne (2005) and Grabe (2009), reading is an active cognitive process of interacting with print and monitoring comprehension to establish meaning

The purposes of reading refer to readers’ aims and objectives Therefore, different readers may have different purposes in their mind with the reading text in their hand According to Grabe (2009), basically there are two main reading purposes including reading for getting information and reading for pure fun or enjoyment Grabe and Stoller (2002), however, divide reading purposes into seven subtypes which are more specific: reading for search for simple information, reading to skim quickly, reading to learn from the text, reading to integrate information, reading to write, reading to critique the text and reading for general comprehension

From this point of view, it can be concluded that reading is an active thinking process where the reader tries to gain information given by the author and understand what actually the purpose of the author is

2.1.2 Reading process

Reading process is claimed by Gascoigne (2005) to be a selective process which is characterized as an active process of comprehending So far, there have been three widely accepted reading models developed to depict the act of reading or the way and procedure that readers use to construct meaning from the reading texts The three reading models are bottom-up, top-down and interactive (Grabe & Stoller, 2002; Pang, 2013; Goodman 1995)

In the bottom-up model, reading is compelled by the text, proceeds from part to whole, constructs meaning from letters, words, phrases, sentences

Readers process the text in linear direction Therefore, in this model, readers are believed to play a rather passive role The basis of the bottom-up reading model lies in the linguistic knowledge of the reader In the top-down model, the understanding of the text is constructed from whole to part The readers predict what comes next, test their prediction and adjust or confirm In this model, readers actively use their background knowledge Goodman (1995) described reading using a top-down model like a “psycholinguistic guessing game” in which the “reader reconstructs, as best as he can, a message which has been encoded by a writer as a graphic display” (pp.128-135) Interactive model is a combination of bottom-up and top-down approaches This model was discussed as the process of combining textual information with the information the reader brings to a text (Gascoigne, 2005); therefore, the meaning of the text is, in fact, synthesized based on information provided simultaneously from several knowledge sources

2.2 Reading comprehension

2.2.1 Definitions of reading comprehension

Reading comprehension is a crucial component of second language acquisition As a core part of language learning it is, obviously, not an effortless process There are so many definitions of reading comprehension

To begin with, Bormuth (1969) sees reading comprehension as an act of combining information in a passage with prior knowledge in order to construct meaning Other authors, such as Kucer (2005), affirm that there is comprehension when readers have understood a text and are able to give a coherent account for various aspects of it – this process is the process of reading comprehension Calfee and Curley (1984) state that comprehension happens when readers recognize organizational structures and are capable of modifying them for their own purposes Furthermore, Hulme and Snowling

(2011) also define that comprehension is the reason for reading If readers can read the words but do not understand what they are reading, they are not really reading

In addition, Grabe (2009) elaborates that comprehension is an active process and the reader must interact and be engaged with the text for it to work well It is also a strategic process which can be taught As comprehension takes place, words are decoded and associated with their meaning in the reader’s memory and phrases and sentences are processed rapidly or fluently enough so that the meanings derived from one world, phrase, or sentence are not lost before the next is processed Yet, reading comprehension can be described as understanding a text that is read, or the process of constructing meaning from a text

And according to Channa et al (2015), reading comprehension is explained as the ability to understand what has been read Comprehending involves strategies that students learn to use when reading independently Teachers focus on several key comprehension skills These are inferring, predicting, comparing and contrasting, sequencing and summarizing Students usually learn how to use these strategies in a small group guided by the teacher who demonstrates their use Students then practice comprehension techniques with a partner by discussing what they read, making connections with prior knowledge and identifying the main ideas in the story

According to Snow (2002, p.xiv), reading comprehension is the process

of simultaneously extracting and constructing meaning through interaction and involvement with written language which entails 3 elements: the reader who doing the comprehending (bring his own capacities, abilities, knowledge and experiences), the text to be comprehended and the activity (the purposes, the processes, the consequences) The dynamic interaction between these elements of reading comprehension can be depicted in the following figure

Figure 2.1 A heuristic approach for reading comprehension (Snow, 2002)

In short, reading comprehension is the level of understanding of a text/message This understanding comes from the interaction between the words that are written, and how they trigger knowledge outside the text/message, which requires a lot of time for practicing In the reading process, learners should collaborate with the teacher as well as other learners

to better their language outcome Moreover, the teacher should be ready to assist students to develop their ability and to master this skill

2.2.2 Factors impacting reading comprehension ability

Reading comprehension is an active process which requires a number of abilities (Hedgcock et al., 2009; Lems et al., 2010; Smith, 2004) Therefore, e the process of reading comprehension can be influenced by a number of factors, namely intelligence, experience, mechanics of reading, learning interest and motivation, and skills of comprehension

- Intelligence: each student possesses his own level of intelligence so it will be possible for students to produce different comprehension

- Experience: students’ background experience has great impact on their understanding the world Therefore, students with limited experience may cope with difficulties in comprehending ideas or events that they are not familiar with

- Mechanics of reading: it will be easier for the students during the process of reading if they have mastered the skills of guessing the meanings

of the words, dealing with key ideas, and figuring out the writer’s views

- Learning interest and motivation: these factors are related to students’ personality, aims of learning If students are willing and motivated to learn new things they are likely to get actively engaged in the learning process

- Skills of comprehending: these skills can include the comprehending skills of word level, sentence level, and the whole text Students’ ability to comprehend what they read develops step and step, from the simple to the complex skills

2.3 Principles in teaching reading comprehension

Comprehension skills are strategies readers use to retrieve information and construct meaning from a particular text They are the thinking processes, broken down into steps that are used to comprehend, and must be taught explicitly (Johnson, 2008; Kennedy, 1984)

Teaching reading comprehension is an activity in which the teacher guides and facilitates learning, gives a chance for the learners to learn and sets the condition for learning Guidance is done by leading students to do activity

in the effort of getting knowledge However, an important point dealing with giving tasks to the students is about the consideration of technique used A teacher should consider the best technique to be applied for and major principles to follow for a particular reading task or activity

There are some principles behind the teaching of reading proposed by Harmer (2001) They are:

- Principle 1: Reading is not a passive skill Understanding the meaning

of the words, understanding arguments and working out for the agreement of the statements are included as active occupation in reading

- Principle 2: Students need to be engaged with what they are reading Students can get more benefit from reading if they are engaged and interested

in reading text

- Principle 3: Students should be encouraged to respond to the content of

a reading text, not just to the language In this principle, the point is that students should have opportunities to respond to the message of the text and thus provoking personal engagement of the students

- Principle 4: Prediction is a major factor in reading The fourth principle

is about the students’ expectations and active process of reading is ready to begin when they can get the hints of the text so they can predict what’s coming in the next segment of a particular text

- Principle 5: Match the task to the topic Choosing the good tasks for students in reading is important since it can undermine boring and inappropriate questions so the reading activity can be more exciting and challenging for the students

There are some principles behind the teaching of reading for young learners which are:

- Let them choose the material that they want to read by using picture material

- Provide the interesting material

flashcard strategy in reading lessons, teachers will recognize the effectiveness

of the using flashcard matching strategy in improving reading comprehension for the students in the 3rd grade

2.4 Using flashcards in reading lessons

2.4.1 Definitions of flashcards

One of the comprehensive definitions of flashcards is that of Scott and Ytreberg (1990)’s when they state a flashcard is a small card which contains pictures, text or symbols that remind and guide students’ imagination As defined in Online Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries, a flashcard is a card with a word or picture on it and is used by teachers during lessons Sharing the same point, Kupzyk et al (2011) state that a flashcard is a learning media in the form of a picture card with a size of about 25 cm x 30 cm The flashcard which contains words or a series of letters can be described through images which are displayed in the form of hand drawings, photos, or existing images attached on the sheets of card The flashcard provides advantages in its practicality in making and using It is easy to remember the content because the images are colorful and they attract student’s attention

Similarly, Komachili and Khodareza (2012) claim that flashcards which are sets of cards bearing information, as words or numbers, on either or both sides, can be used in classroom drills or in private study to aid memorization

by way of spaced repetition Flashcards can present vocabulary, historical dates, formulas or any subject matter that can be learned via a question and answer format Flashcards are normally used in a classroom, but can also be used more informally

According to Howard (2004), there are two types of flashcards: (1) Word flashcards are cards on which words have been printed For this type of flashcards, teacher can write a question on a card and an answer overleaf; if in

the form of sentences, the sentences on the cards must be grammatically correct and accurately meaningful; (2) Picture flashcards can be drawings or cut outs from magazines or perhaps photos It is easiest to sort these picture cards according to size, really big ones for class work, and smaller ones for individual or group work

Paper flashcards are considered a traditional vocabulary-learning tool Hung (2015) defined the paper flashcard as the “doubled-sided card”, which

is used in direct vocabulary learning activities and allows “learners to practise form-to-meaning and meaning-to-form recall in repeated retrieval of L2 words, by flipping the front and backsides of the cards” The paper flashcard used in this research has the English word, its phonetic transcription, syntactic category as well as a sample sentence on the front side; and its Vietnamese translation, (as well as a picture if the word is concrete) on the back side

In short, it can be concluded that a flashcard is a cardboard consisting of

a word, a sentence, or a simple picture on it A flashcard which can bear information that is useful media for teaching learning activities And in this research, flashcard strategy is implemented in teaching English for students in grade 3 to improve their reading comprehension skill

2.4.2 Flashcards as beneficial teaching aids

Flashcards are one of visual aids which can be used in teaching and learning processes According to Howard (2004) and Parchant (2005) there are some advantages of using flashcards in language teaching as follows:

- Flashcards are motivating and eye-catching Flashcards can be taken almost everywhere and studied when there is any free moment Flashcards have a great power in motivating and stimulating the students Meanwhile, flashcards are easy media to help students and teacher in learning process, especially to teach the students of

elementary school Teacher can use it at any time and in any situation when he wants to teach

- One of the most important advantages of using flashcards is they are easy and fast to reproduce Thus, they are inexpensive Making flashcards can be your art project with kids, students and family members With just crayons, color markers, paperboards, and scissors you can produce your unique set of flashcards that friends, family, or students can enjoy and learn from Flashcards can be one of the least expensive ways to study You do not need to buy a set of fancy illustrated cards Instead, create your own flashcards Furthermore, flash cards provide students with a portable learning tool Rather than having to carry around a book or notebook, flash cards allow students the opportunity to transport as many cards as they need The portability of flashcards can improve efficiency when learning new material By taking the cards everywhere, students can make effective use of their time such as using them while walking Flashcards are useful because the teacher and children can pick them up, move them and display them in different places and different sequences Since you can shuffle the order, flash cards prevent students from simply memorizing the order of the answers in long-list items Reverse the flash cards so the answers can be seen first and students must surmise what the original questions were

In addition, Abe (1991) claims that in place of reading, teachers can use flashcards together with realia to make the classroom come alive and resemble more closely the outside world The use of flashcards can free the teacher to be more the observer and facilitator and free the students to learn to use the language and learn to love the potentially fabulous experience of

being able to communicate in another language

There are several researchers who have admitted ability of flashcards to assist students in reading comprehension and memorization in vocabulary (Kornell, 2009; Nation, 2011) In their studies, it has been found that students who use vocabulary flashcards, for both words and phrases, had a significantly higher understanding and comprehension levels with both new words as well as reading This shows that the concept of vocabulary training with this type of tools is effective for students who are applying new words with vocabulary and communication In the broader educational setting, flashcards have proven to be an effective method for students learning new information and words as well as boosting their comprehension

Similarly, Suyanto (2008) states that the use of flashcards in the English teaching learning process helps the students to be familiar and stable with a few and a lot of concepts as well as to get the students’ attention using words and pictures with appropriate vocabulary and structures That means the teacher is easier to explain material and give examples clearly Because the students can see a picture that is appropriate with the theme so the students are easier to receive the explanation from the teacher

In short, flashcards are one of the effective medium in educational world which represent the visual resources It is neither a new trend nor recent idea Flashcards and teaching is correlated and it is an approach of ensuring the teaching process becomes a meaningful learning to students

2.5 Previous studies on employing flashcards in reading lessons

Regarding the use of flashcard to improve students’ reading comprehension, many researchers have conducted studies on this strategy They found that flashcards were an effective tool for teaching-learning languages as well as an effective way to improve reading comprehension skill Astuti (2015) conducted an action research project with the aim of using

flashcards to improve young learners’ interest in English learning The objective of the study was to find out in what way the use of flashcards could increase young learners’ interest in learning English reading The result of the study showed that there was a significant difference in students’ reading scores after they were given treatments using flashcards The increasing achievements show the increasing interest of the students

A study conducted by Komachili and Khodareza (2012) shows that the use of teaching aids has significant influence on the teaching and learning vocabulary of Iranian pre-university learners They found that flashcards are most suitable teaching aids for representation of a single concept, such as an object or an action Overall, the direct instruction of flashcards was effective

in improving students’ ability in learning English language, including reading comprehension

Moreover, Makhloufi and Khaldi (2014) also studied about the effectiveness of employing visual aids ‘flashcards’ in teaching new vocabulary and reading among students The research result proved that using flashcards were beneficial in increasing the accuracy, fluency and retention in learning language

Another study by Nugroho (2012) entitled “Improving students’ vocabulary mastery using flashcards” engaged the fourth grade students in a four-month action research project Based on the data from pre-test and post-test and the data from the observation notes, the study demonstrated that flashcards could improve the students’ vocabulary mastery which then considerably improved students’ motivation in learning reading skills

In short, the above studies have found many benefits in using flashcards

as medium of teaching English in general and English reading skills in particular However none was done on using this strategy with 3rd grade

students With above mentioned benefits of flashcards in improving students’ reading skills as well as the enjoyment that flashcards can bring to the students, the researcher decided to conduct an action research project on the employment of flashcards to prove the reading comprehension for 3rd grade students of an English centre in Hanoi

Chapter summary

Chapter 2 covers the theoretical background for the study Initially, the theoretical issues of reading skills, reading comprehension and teaching reading comprehension have been mentioned Then it provides a theoretical background of using flashcards in English teaching and learning activities in which the definition and benefits of flashcards were presented This chapter also reviewed several related studies on the employment of flashcards to teach English

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

In the previous chapter, the literature on the research topic is briefly reviewed for the theoretical basis of the whole study This chapter describes the methodology of this study It displays the research setting: the subjects, the instruments as well as the procedure of data collection and analysis are discussed in detail

The purpose of this study was to implement the flashcard matching strategy to determine if it was effective in producing positive outcomes of reading comprehension with 3rd grade students at an English Centre in Dong Anh In this research, the researcher collected several sources of data to inform the results The data collection tools were designed to find out the answers to the following research questions: (1) To what extent does the implementation of flashcards matching strategy influence reading comprehension of the 3rd grade students at an English Centre in Dong Anh? (2) What are the students’ attitudes towards the flashcards matching strategy

in improving reading comprehension? Data collection tools used in this study

to measure improvement in the students’ reading comprehension included class observation, a pretest and a posttest, questionnaires, and interviews

3.1 Design of the study

Action research in classroom is the research design of the thesis This is because this type of research is aimed at improving teaching practice Action research has been defined in a number of different ways Feldman (2007) defines action research as the application of fact finding to practical problem solving in a social situation with a view to improving the quality of action within it, involving the collaboration and co-operation of researcher,

practitioners and laymen In his book Action Research for Improving Practice

– A Practical Guide, Koshy (2005) states that an action research project is a

process which collects data on one’s everyday practice and analyzes it in order to make decision about what future practice should be

The goals of this study is to look at the classroom setting and teaching techniques to identify solutions to deal with matters in teaching and learning English reading comprehension Firstly, the researcher found out the current problems in teaching at an English centre in Dong Anh district and used a test

to assess her 3rd grade students’ level of English Then, she applied the use of flashcards in teaching reading comprehension for a period of 8 weeks After that, the researcher evaluated how students’ English level would change at the end of the flash-card implementation project by analysing the result of pretest and posttest, questionnaires and semi-structured interviews Finally, the researcher showed findings and discussed the achievement of the research

In this study, the researcher followed the model proposed by Kemmis and McTaggart (1988) because the steps in this model make it easier and more convenient for her to carry out the research Besides, it reflects correctly what steps will be taken during the study According Kemmis and McTaggart (1998), the action research process is composed of four steps such as the planning stage, the action stage, the observation and the reflection The spiral

of cycles will recur until a satisfactory result has been achieved and stop until the time is felt enough

- Step 1: Planning is the first stage of the cycle, an action plan is

developed that will achieve some agreed goals during this stage The plan can encompass the change in three “registers”: how language is used in the situation, what activities and practices are employed, and how social relationship and organizations are structured Specifically, this stage consists

of identifying and limiting the research topic, gathering information, reviewing related literature, and developing a research plan

- Step 2: Action is the stage which involves implementing the plan while

recognizing the need for flexibility and judgment Even so, it may sometimes

be necessary to revert to the planning stage if the proposed actions cannot be implemented In details, the teacher- researcher will use the information from the data collection and review of current literature to design a plan of action that will allow her to make a change and to study that change It is important that only one variable be altered As with any experiment, if several changes are made at once, it will be difficult to determine which action is responsible for the outcome While the new technique is being implemented, continue to document and collect data on performance

- Step 3: Observation is the stage when action should be accompanied by

monitoring and observating the results A range of data collection methods can be used, including documents, interviews, diaries, observations and questionnaires, along with secondary data Observation feeds into the next stage of the cycle by providing the basis for reflection

- Step 4: Reflection is the final stage, in which the researcher and the

group collaboratively “analyze, synthesize, interpret, explain and draw conclusions” about what has been achieved and identified possible ways of moving forward This stage also involves sharing and communicating results and reflecting on the process Several questions will be considered, including

“How well did the process work? Are we sure that the data we collected were

the most appropriate in order to answer our research question? Were there additional types of data that could or should have been included in the data collection?” The answers to these questions help guide next cylcle’s

implementation Depending on the outcomes, another cycle of planning, acting, observing and reflecting may be set in motion The Figure 3.1 below will illustrate the stages of every cycle of the action research project

Figure 3.1 Steps in the action research cycle (Kemmis & McTaggart, 1988)

In short, action research was chosen in this study because it was conducted with a view of a teacher rather than a researcher; therefore, real solutions and evaluations were adopted In fact, action research is the collaboration between teachers and students It would be the optimal choice when it comes to the pedagogical methodology of using flashcards to improve students’ reading comprehension

3.2 Research setting

3.2.1 The research site

The study was conducted at an English centre in Dong Anh district The centre was founded in 2015, and it has 22 classes with 9 well-trained and qualified teachers and 350 students Most of the students come from the areas nearby the centre and they are children of farmers or workers They have low motivation for learning English and most of them are quite passive in learning the subject They are likely to depend on the textbooks and the teachers for knowledge, and do not have the habit of self-study However, they are eager

to learn new things and it is favorable for the researcher to adopt the flashcards strategy in teaching reading comprehension

3.2.2 Description of textbook, curriculum, testing and assessment

The textbook that the 3rd grade students use in the centre is Family and

Friends 2 is from a seven-level primary course which offers students a skills

training programme covering language, phonics, and civic education written

by Naomi Simmons and his colleagues This textbook follows listening, speaking and literacy skills and phonics and theme-based curriculum approved by Oxford University and it is divided into 15 units and 5 reviews Each unit is separated into 5 sections, namely Words, Grammar, Song, Phonics and Skills Time (reading, listening, speaking and writing) Students will attend class twice per week, and there are 90 minutes for each section In total, after an 18 week semester, students will have approximately 6 lessons of reading (12 hours of learning reading), which may be enough for students to practice reading comprehension skills Moreover, during the semester, students are required to take six 60-minute tests which focus on testing their 3 skills including reading, listening and writing and 15-minute speaking tests

3.3 Participants

The participants were 15 Vietnamese 3rd grade students of English at an English centre in Dong Anh The participants, 8 females and 7 males, were chosen since they were the researcher’s students at that time At the time of conducting the study, they were starting their first semester at the centre and all of them had been learning English for a year, their English level was expected as at beginners’ level Most of students were curious, dynamic, and enthusiastic and preferred fun activities Although they had several difficulties

in learning reading skills, none of them had ever tried any method to improve their reading skills

The researcher also invited one female English teacher to cooperate with her during the project The researcher and this teacher judged the students’

reading tests individually and then compared the results to come to the final conclusion in order to avoid bias or subjectivity

3.4 Research procedure

The procedure of the research adapted the ideas of action research by Kemmis and McTaggart (1988) The research was developed and carried out during 10 weeks of the second semester of the academic year 2019- 2020 To

be more specific, the action research procedure is presented as follows:

Step 1: Problem Identification

The researcher identified the problem by doing observation in the teaching and learning English at this centre for several years During the time

of teaching reading skills, the researcher recognized that the students often spent too much time reading a passage and answering questions They regularly did not complete all reading tasks within the time allowance; the results of reading tests were rather low

Step 2: Preliminary Investigation

To investigate further about the problem and to figure out the actual level of the students’ reading comprehension, a pretest was employed and class observation was carried out The aim of the test was to identify their actual current reading comprehension so that the researcher had a proper plan

to apply the reading course with flashcards

After reviewing the initial data, the researcher came to the assumption that the students would improve their reading ability if they participated in flashcard activities, which then lead to their improved reading comprehension

Step 3: Planning

After formulating the reading problems, the researcher worked a plan of using flashcards to solve the problems related to the students' reading skills

that were identified in the previous step Detailed lesson plans were developed and several additional reading activities with flashcards were also prepared by the researcher to assign to students

Step 4: Intervention

The researcher implemented the actions that had been planned in the previous stage First, the researcher/ teacher introduced the students the flashcards and instructed them to use flashcards in studying reading comprehension The participants were given a guideline for using flashcards

in studying reading In this study, flashcards were integrated into the reading lesson in class, therefore, the teacher conducted every reading lesson following these main steps: Firstly, teachers let students do some simple games or do some activities to lead in the lesson and introduce the students to the topic of the lesson Secondly, the students were required to read a model text provided in the textbook and did some practise tasks in pairs or groups Through this stage, the students could get words, phrases or structures related

to the reading topic and those items could later be used in their reading tasks During the treatment, the researcher observed the implementation of the process to identify the strengths and weaknesses and to make some changes if necessary

The procedure of using flashcards during reading lessons is done as follows:

- Arranging the flashcards in the order of presentation

- Starting with the first flashcard Hold it up so students can clearly see the front

- Giving questions to them by showing flashcards one by one randomly

- If the students give an incorrect response or no response, tell him/her the correct answer, and place these flashcards in a pile on the table

- After the teacher has finished showing the students all of the flashcards, she may continue the flashcard teaching session by using the stack of incorrectly answered cards (see APPENDIX 5 for samples of flashcards)

Action research plan

After reflecting upon the project objectives and processes the teacher researcher had created the following project action plan This plan describes

in detail the steps of the research and the necessary tools to complete it The action plan lasted a time span of 10 weeks Table 3.1 describes the step by step procedure for this action research study

Table 3.1 Action research plan

Project

Teacher/

researcher’s activities

- Administrate a pretest

of reading skills

- Review and collect details on teaching and learning of reading skills and students’

reading comprehension

- Teach reading comprehension with flashcards

Weeks 2-3

To increase - Use flashcards to help - Teach reading Weeks 4-9

- Ask students to work

in pairs or on their own

to study the texts

- Make any changes in teaching with

flashcards if needed

comprehension with flashcards

- Check students’

comprehension and observe their

reaction to the use of flashcards

- Test students’

reading comprehension

- Ask students about the benefits and/or drawbacks of the use

of flashcards in reading lessons

Week 10

Step 5: Reflection

After the cycle, the researcher analysed the data collected from the tests, questionnaires and interviews It was done to know whether the implementation was successful or not

The decision to continue the flashcard implementation in the next cycle was done when the goals of action research project were not fulfilled

3.5 Data collection instruments

In order to get a collection of sufficient, reliable and valid data for the research, a combination of quantitative and qualitative method was employed including a pre-test and a post-test, a questionnaire and semi-structured interviews which were conducted at the end of the project The combination

of various data collection instruments would provide a comprehensive overview of the students’ difficulties in learning reading skills and causes for these problems before the treatment, the way how the teacher applied flashcards in her teaching context and the effectiveness of flashcards on improving students’ reading comprehension as well as students’ attitudes towards the application of flashcards in class The following part discusses each data collection instrument used in this research in details

3.5.1 Classroom observation

Classroom observation is conducted in order to get preliminary data for the research An advantage of observations is that it allows researchers to record actual behavior rather than obtain reports from the participants In the present study, the researcher has employed a class observation form to collect data from the lessons before the action research of flashcards (see Appendix 1) All of the data obtained from class observations were noted down, analyzed, and then synthesized for further use in the study Before observing the classes, permission from the teachers was sought by the researcher

3.5.2 Pretest and posttest

Brown (2004, p.3) states that “test is a method of measuring a person’s ability, knowledge, or performance in a given domain” A well-constructed test is an instrument that provides an accurate measure of test-takers ability within a particular domain Therefore, a pretest and a posttest were administered to explore the students’ reading abilities, typically their reading

comprehension A pretest was conducted at the beginning of the flash-card experiment for the group to identify their actual result of reading comprehension A posttest that was similar with the pretest was utilized for the students after eight weeks of the treatment to work out how much the students improved their reading comprehension ability All the test materials were adopted from the Centre’s test bank

The pretest and the posttest contained 20 questions which had to be answered by the students Students scoring 3-4 are considered as emerging recipients; scores between 5 and 6 as developing recipients; scores between 7 and 8 as proficient and scores more than 9 as advanced recipients

3.5.3 Questionnaire

A survey questionnaire can be applied to gather data efficiently on a basis of language scale, and it can help researchers to obtain the respondents’ views (Brown, 2001) Moreover, Dörnyei (2003) states that questionnaires can be used to investigate students’ perspectives and their problems towards the classroom activities Therefore, the researcher employed this instrument to investigate the problems, difficulties which the students had to cope with in learning English as well as their hope and expectation

The questionnaire in this study was written in Vietnamese because students at this level did not possess enough English language to facilitate the language difficulties in reading and responding to the questions, or express their thinking clearly and completely Consequently, it is better for students to express themselves fully in their mother tongue, here Vietnamese

The questionnaire consisted of 5 statements with the aim of gaining information on the students’ perception on reading with flashcards, theỉ attitudes towards flashcard reading activities and the effects of the flashcard

reading activities on the students (see Appendix 2) The Likert scale was used

in the closed questions in order that the students’ responses could readily be quantified and analyzed The students were required to rate each item on a 3-point scale by circling the response (A Disgree, 2 Neither agree nor disagree,

or 3 Agree) coded for different levels of agreement or other categories

3.5.4 Semi-structured interview

Interviews are used to gather data in particular categories There is a reciprocal relationship between interview and the questionnaire (Cohen et al., 2000) In addition, Brown (2001) claims that interviews make the respondents more involved and motivated, and are better than questionnaires in handling more difficult and open-ended questions

In this research, the researcher employed individual semi-structured interviews Although individual interviews are considered as time-consuming, they are good ways of exploring the data confidentially, in this study, gathering data about students’ opinions and thinking about the use of flashcards in reading activities Six out of 15 students were invited to participate in interviews (two students with the highest reading scores, two with the lowest, and two with the average) The interviews were (Appendix 3) conducted in Vietnamese so that students could express their opinions and think fully Each interview lasted about four to five minutes

In general, there were three main questions in the interviews The first one aimed at exploring whether students were interested in flashcards in reading activities, and exploring reasons for their answers The second question investigated students’ thinking about the use of flashcards in reading activities The third question revealed students’ suggestions/ recommendations to improve the use of flashcards in reading activities The procedure of designing and conducting the interviews are described below: