Some suggestions to teach grammar lesons in english 11 at pham hong thai high school

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING VINH UNIVERSITY PHAN THỊ THANH HƯƠNG SOME SUGGESTIONS TO TEACH GRAMMAR LESSONS IN ENGLISH 11 AT PHAM HONG THAI HIGH SCHOOL Major: Teaching English t

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

VINH UNIVERSITY

PHAN THỊ THANH HƯƠNG

SOME SUGGESTIONS TO TEACH GRAMMAR LESSONS IN ENGLISH 11 AT PHAM HONG THAI HIGH SCHOOL

MASTER'S THESIS IN EDUCATION

Nghệ An, 2014

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

VINH UNIVERSITY

PHAN THỊ THANH HƯƠNG

SOME SUGGESTIONS TO TEACH GRAMMAR LESSONS IN ENGLISH 11 AT PHAM HONG THAI HIGH SCHOOL

Major: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)

Code: 60 14 01 11

MASTERTHESIS IN EDUCATION

SUPERVISOR: TRẦN BÁ TIẾN, Ph.D

Nghệ An, 2014

DECLARATION

I certify that this study is entirely my own work I have provided fully documented references to the work of others The material in this study has not been submitted for assessment in any other formal course of study

Author

Phan Thị Thanh Hương

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am, first of all, particularly indebted to my supervisor, Dr.Tran Ba Tien, for his invaluable advice, instructions and correction, excellent suggestions and constant encouragement during the research period Without his guidance and help, this work would not have been accomplished

Secondly, my sincere thanks also go to all the lecturers who have been teaching K20 MA course in Vinh University and the post-graduate staff for their administrative assistance to the success of the course

Besides, I would like to give my heartfelt thanks to all the teachers and the students at Pham Hong Thai High School in Hung Nguyen, who willingly participated in the study I thank them for their time, patience and willingness in completing the questionnaires, answering the questions and sharing their classrooms with me

Last but not least, I would like to convey my deepest gratitude to my parents,

my husband and my son, and for their constant support and thorough understanding Their great encouragement and love have helped me to overcome the difficulties during my study

ABSTRACT

Grammar always plays an important part in teaching and learning English However, how to create students‟ motivation in learning grammar lesson is not simple This study is concerned with the communicative activities in teaching grammar as an effective method to create students‟ motivation and improve students‟ understanding of the lesson The benefits of using communicative activities are affirmed again in this thesis through the former grammarians‟ studies and the researcher‟s carried out at Pham Hong Thai High School, Hung Nguyen district These benefits bring considerable effectiveness to teachers and students in teaching and learning grammar In order to achieve this aim, the researcher carries out observing classes, interviewing, questionnaires closely both teachers and students, giving questionnaires to them, etc to have necessary findings and analysis The researcher also suggests the suitable measures to overcome difficulties in using communicative activities in class successfully, and the examples of using communicative activities to teach grammar points in Tieng Anh 11

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION i

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii

ABSTRACT iii

Chaper 1: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Rationale of the Study 1

1.2 Purposes of the study 2

1.3 Research questions 2

1.4 Scope of the Study 3

1.5 Significance of the Study 3

1.6 Method of the Study 3

1.7 Design of the Study 4

Chapter 2: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 5

2.1.Enghlish grammar 5

2.1.1 Definition of grammar 5

2.1.2 Grammatical Structure 7

2.1.3 The role of grammar in teaching and learning English 7

2.2 Grammar teaching in the major teaching methods 10

2.2.1 The Grammar- Translation method (GTM) 10

2.2.2 The Direct method (DM) 11

2.2.3 The Audio-Lingual method (AM) 12

2.3 Definition of CLT 14

2.3.1 Teaching Grammar in CLT 15

2.4 Some General Principles of Grammar Teaching 17

2.5 Stages in teaching grammar communicatively 19

2.6 Common Procedure in Teaching a New Structure 20

2.6.1 Presentation 20

2.6.2 Practice 21

2.6.3 Production 21

2.6.4 Feedback and Correction 21

2.7 Conclusion 22

Chapter 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 23

3.1 Real Situation of Learning and Teaching English at Pham Hong Thai High School 23

3.1.1 Pham Hong Thai High School 23

3.1.2 The 11th-form students and observation classes 23

3.1.3 English teachers at Pham Hong Thai high school 24

3.1.4 The textbook English 11 and its Language Focus section 24

3.2 Research methodology 27

3.2.1 Method of the Study 27

3.3 Conclusion 30

Chapter 4 : DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 31

4.1 Questionnaire for the students 31

4.1.1 Students‟ attitudes about the importance of language skill and other elements 31

4.1.2 Students‟ ideas about degrees of difficulty of English grammar 32

4.1.3 Students‟ interest in learning English grammar 33

4.1.4 Students‟ frequent errors 34

4.1.5 Students‟ interest in the stages of grammar lesson 35

4.1.6 The ways teachers introduce and show the form of a grammatical

structure 36

4.1.7 Students‟ opinions about exercises in textbooks 38

4.1.8 Students‟ opinions about extra grammatical activities 38

4.1.9 Motivating factors 40

4.2 Questionnaire for the teachers 41

4.2.1 Teachers‟ attitude toward English Grammar 41

4.2.2 Teachers' difficulties in teaching English Grammar 42

4.2.3.The teachers‟ opinions of teaching grammar 43

4.2.4 The teacher guides the student to practise the structure 44

4.2.5 Teachers‟ adapting grammar exercises 45

4.2.6 Forms of interaction teachers employ to conduct activities 46

4.2.7 Teachers‟ assessment on students‟ results 47

4.2.8.The teachers‟ activities for grammar lessons 47

4.3 Data from the class observation 48

4.3.1 Introduction 48

4.3.2 Data analysis of the class observation 49

4.4 Findings from interviews 53

4.4.1 Findings from interviews with the teachers 53

4.4.2 Findings from interviews with the students 54

4.5 Post class survey and discussion 55

4.5.1 Students‟ reactions and progress 55

4.6 Proposed activities for teaching English grammar 56

4.6.1 Introduction 56

4.6.2 Criteria for activities used in grammar teaching 57

4.6.3 Some proposed activities 57

4.7 Conclusion 66

Chapter 5: CONCLUSION 67

5.1 Recapitulation 67

5.2 Suggestions for Further Study 68

REFERENCES 70

APPENDIX 72

ABBREVIATIONS

CLT: Communicative Language Teaching

ELT: English language teaching

GTM: Grammar- Translation method

DM: Direct method

AM: Audio-Lingual method Audio

LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES

Table 3.1: Distribution of time , units and contents in 2 semesters 26

Table 4.2: Students‟ attitudes about the importance of language skill and other elements 31

Chart 4.1: Students‟ ideas about degrees of difficulty of English grammar 32

Chart 4.2: Students‟ interest in learning English grammar 33

Chart 4.3: Students‟ frequent errors 34

Chart 4.4: Students‟ interest in the stages of grammar lesson 35

Table 4.3: The ways teachers introduce and show the form of a grammatical

structure 36

Chart 4.5: Students‟ opinions about exercises in textbooks 38

Table 4.4: Students‟ opinions about extra grammatical activities 39

Chart 4.6: Motivating factors 40

Chart 4.7: Teachers‟ attitude toward English Grammar 41

Chart 4.8: Teachers‟ difficulties in teaching English grammar 42

Table 4.5: The teachers‟ ways of teaching grammar 43

Table 4.6: The teacher guides the student to practise the structure 44

Chart 4.9: Teachers‟ adapting exercises 45

Chart 4.10: Form of interaction 46

Table 4.7: Teachers‟ assessment on students‟ results 47

Table 4.8: Teachers‟ activities in classes 48

Chart 4.11: Students‟ reaction 55

Chart 4.12: Students‟ progress 56

Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 Rationale of the study

Today, English has become one of the most important languages to communicate from this country to another country and people focus on learning this language with different purposes For whatever purposes they have, English is the most useful means to achieve the goals Besides the aim of passing their exams and getting some further studies for their future life, all students have a desire to be integrated into the culture, the civilization, and the people of English speaking countries

The more society develops, the more important part communication plays in every field of life: home school, work and beyond Through communication, we can change our thoughts, opinions, and information by speech, writing or signs It is only through communication that collaboration and cooperation occur Therefore, the author has really been interested in communication in learning language through which people of different nations can communicate or exchange the materials and spiritual values, make their knowledge and culture richer and more diversified Aware of language‟s function as a means of communication, many researchers have been involved in the study of how to develop communication to language learners This is the first time the author has had a chance to learn

“Language teaching theory” and she has found that it is a very important material for everyone who becomes teacher of English since it is a good way to help learners practice communicative skills

In addition, in my experience, after 7 years of teaching English by using the new English textbooks at Pham Hong Thai High School, the researcher observed that the teachers and learners have to face a number of difficulties not only in teaching and learning the four language skills but also in teaching and learning grammar during the Language Focus lessons Specially, one of the problems

generally faced by most of the teachers of English at the secondary school is the poor standard of the students Students are even ignorant of the basic rules and structural patterns which they are supposed to have learnt at the school level Some students are shy to use Enghlish in class, these are so serions prollems that the reasearcher has been thinking about the question: Why do students fail in communicating? How do teachers apply communicative language teaching in grammar lessons? What activities can help them to motivate in learning Enghlish well?

For the above reasons, the researcher decides to choose the topic: “Some suggestions to teach Grammar lessons in English 11” It is expected that this study

will find out the problems of teaching and learning grammar in Language Focus lessons at Pham Hong Thai High School in order to contribute some immediate

solutions to make grammar lessons more successful and effective

1.2 Purposes of the study

The aims of the study are as follows:

- Investigate the difficulties in teaching and learning grammar

- Find out how the teachers and the students deal with grammar in the

“language focus” lessons

- To help teachers aware of the importance of grammar and applying activities to teach grammar communicatively

- To get some information about the real situation of teaching and learning grammar with creating and applying activities

- To suggest some useful activities to motivate students and improve the ability of communication for learners in grammar lessons

2 What are the difficulties in teaching and learning grammar in the

Language Focus lessons as perceived?

3 What is real situation of teaching and learning English grammar at Pham

Hong Thai High School?

4 What are communicative activities to be applied in grammar lessons?

1.4 Scope of the Study

As mentioned earlier, this study is only aimed at investigating the difficulties

of teaching and learning grammar in Language Focus lessons and giving some

solutions to make grammar lessons more effectively

This study is limited to the teaching and learning difficulties with regard to

teaching and learning grammar in Language Focus lessons

This study is a detailed survey at Pham Hong Thai High School in Hung

Nguyen district Therefore, the findings of the study are not intended to be

generalized to other school contexts Indeed the findings may not apply beyond the

actual participants in this particular study

1.5 Significance of the Study

This study plays an important role in improving grammar teaching method to

students at Pham Hong Thai School It aims to identify the problems and suggests

ways of improving them; therefore, this study mainly focuses on communicative

activities It is hoped that this study will be beneficial in many ways First,

participants in the study (the teachers and the learners at Pham Hong Thai High

School) will benefit immediately from the experience of reflection Secondly, the

findings of the study will contribute information to make the application of CLT at

my school successful and effective

1.6 Method of the Study

For the sake of the teaching and learning of English, as this study is carried

out, the author has applied the two methods: quantitative and qualitative Then,

various instruments will be used to collect the data for the study from different

sources:

- Survey questionnaires to investigate the difficulties in teaching and learning grammar in Language Focus lessons In order to do the research, a lot of references have been selected, read and filtered for information Furthermore, a survey has been done by providing a questionnaire for 5 teachers of English and another for

116 students at Pham Hong Thai Questionnaires are delivered to the teachers to investigate difficulties in teaching grammar communicatively that they face and solutions that should be implemented Questionnaires are delivered to the students

to find out the students‟ attitudes to learning English grammar, their difficulties confronted and solutions suggested by them

-After that, she conducts a survey to get information about the real situation

of teaching and learning English grammar at Pham Hong Thai High School.All the collected information and data have been analyzed and synthesized and the suggested activities to teach grammar for 11th form classes are discussed In addition to these, the research paper will not be completed without the supervisor‟s help

1.7 Design of the Study

The thesis consists of 5 main chapters Chapter I, Introduction, deals with the author‟s reasons for choosing the topic of the study, the rationale, aims, scope, significance, methodology and design of the study

Chapter II, entitled Literature Review, provides an overview on the theoretical background Chapter III presents the methodology of the study Chapter

IV is devoted to analyzing and discussing the findings of the study

Chapter V, “Conclusion” is the summary of the main points presented in the study The study ends with the “References” which lists all the materials and sources of the information used in the study and the “Appendix

Chapter 2 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND 2.1 English grammar

2.1.1 Definition of grammar

Grammar is understood in various ways There have been a lot of ways to define grammar – a very common and familiar term in language teaching and learning

According to Ur.P (1998), “grammar may be roughly defined as the way a

language manipulates and combines words (or bits of words in order to form longer units of meaning” For example, in English, the present form of the verb “be” in the

third person has two distinct forms; one is being used with singular subject, and the other with a plural If the plural “are” is combined with a singular subject, the result

is usually unacceptable or ungrammatical Thus, a sentence like “She are a teacher”

is ungrammatical The correct sentence is “She is a teacher”

Grammar can be seen as “the study and practice of the rules by which words

change their forms and are combined into sentences” from The Longman

Dictionary of Contemporary English (quoted in Harmer: 1987, p12) There are two concentrated basic elements: the rules of grammar and the study and practice of the rules

As for Murcia (1988), grammar is “a subset of those rules which govern the

configurations that the morphology and syntax of a language assume.” (p16) According to Lưu Quý Khương (2006), grammar is sometimes defined as

“the way words are put together to make correct sentences” Thus, in English, “Iam

a teacher” is grammatical, but “I a teacher” On the other hand, “I are a teacher” are not We can, however, apply the term “grammatical” to units smaller than a sentence A brief phrase said or written on its own can be grammatically acceptable

or unacceptable on its own right A tall woman sounds right but a woman tall is not The same may be true of single words: compare “went” with “goed”

All the ideas mentioned above agree on a point that is grammar is a set of rules which form words and make sentences from words This help to orient language teachers to the focus of grammar teaching

Most language learners and teachers agree that mastering the grammar of a language may form part of the knowledge of it However, there exist some controversial opinions about the teaching of grammar One of the biggest challenges to the necessity of grammar teaching comes primarily from Krashen whose insistence on the primacy of acquisition has tended to downplay the value of deliberate grammar teaching In Krashen and Tarrel‟s influential Natural Approach,

it is claimed that learners need to be exposed to a lot of comprehensive and meaningful input at a level just above their own for acquisition to take place The study of grammar has only secondary role in the language program with the goal to produce optimal monitor–user, programmers who can use grammar as a supplement

to acquisition when they have time, when the focus is on form, and when they know the rules (the Monitor Hypothesis, Krashen and Terrell,1983) Put another way, grammar can be acquired naturally from meaningful input and opportunities to interact in the classroom and grammatical competence can develop in fluency–oriented environment without conscious focus on the language forms

Admittedly, some learners acquire second language grammar naturally without being taught Immigrants to the United States (especially young ones) who attain proficiency in English on their own can be a good example of naturalistic acquisition (Lightbown and Spada, 1999, p.60) But this is not true for all learners Among the same immigrants are learners who may achieve the proficiency in English but that English is far from accurate

In fact, grammar is one of the key components of a language Thus, one cannot master a language without the knowledge of its grammar Partly thanks to grammar, language can function as a means of communication, especially in written language A person cannot write well if he lacks the knowledge of grammar From

my observation and my experience, I find it necessary to teach grammar lessons I

intend to carry out my study The first reason is that almost all the students in Pham Hong Thai who come from the rural areas where they never have chance to learn grammar sufficiently Furthermore, the main objective of these students after leaving the school is to communicate and attend some courses in English For the two reasons mentioned above, they can hardly do it without grammar Moreover, grammar exists to enable us to „mean‟ and without it, it is impossible to communicate beyond a very rudimentary level because speech seems to be no more than sounds, writing seems to be no more than hieroglyphics For all these reasons, the teaching of grammar is quite important in English language teaching (ELT)

2.1.2 Grammatical structure

Grammatical structure is the building blocks of language It is usually understood as a system of interrelated words, which makes a meaningful utterance The thing is what elements are needed to hold the relations of utterances Grammatical structures not only have form, but they are also used to express meaning “semantics” in context and appreciate use “pragmatics” which includes social context, linguistic discourse and presupposition about context (Marianne Celce, Murcia)

A particular form may be used for different appropriate uses depending on the context This means that the form of an utterance by itself does not determine the function In other words, we cannot fully explain the form of grammar while ignoring meaning and use We cannot account the form of an utterance by looking only at its meaning or function

Having controlled a skeleton structure, we can create dozens or even hundred

of utterances If the students can handle a range of useful structures in a formulaic way, be aware of the functional value of each and able to substitute the content to meet their communicative needs, then they getting what they need

2.1.3 The role of grammar in teaching and learning English

ESL teachers must frequently explain complex English grammar to their students to help them speak and write This course covers basic grammatical

concepts and exercises for ESL instruction Ideas are presented to help educators make grammar manageable for students; include grammar in their teaching of written and spoken language; testing grammatical knowledge; and development of

materials that promote language fluency as well as accuracy

It is quite reasonable to see the importance of grammar according to

Harmer‟s viewpoint (1987):“Without some understanding of Grammar, students

would not be able to do anything more than utter separate items of language for separate functions The expression of functional language is only possible through the use of the Grammar of the language” (p.12)

Firstly, teaching grammar helps students understand how the language works Apart from vocabulary, students need to know grammar to understand how

it is written or how words are combined together to understand the proper meaning Without grammar or with a poor knowledge of grammar, they may get confused with complicated expression In other words, the teaching of grammar means providing students with opportunities to use English in a variety of realistic situations to learn to communicate effectively Appropriate grammar techniques are embedded in meaningful, communicative contexts then contribute positively to communicative goals and they also promote accuracy within fluent communicate language use

Secondly, according to Smith (2001), if teachers neither pay attention to grammar nor create opportunities for learners to improve grammar, learners are likely to stand the risk of fossilization or reach a point where they can cope with level of communication that is demanded of them by making use of their existing grammatical resources and communication strategies and probably with sufficient fluency Surely, they do not see the need to develop their linguistic abilities any further (p.15)

In favour of the importance of grammar, Larsen – Freeman (1986) affirms that grammar is regarded as a skill rather than an area of knowledge Learners do not simply store knowledge about the language and its use, they need also develop

an ability to do something They must have a chance of learning situations to overcome the knowledge problem It is true to say that grammar is the fifth skill besides four skills reading, writing, speaking, and listening Skill development as well as learning grammar takes practice Grammar might not be taught only when the students already possessed the knowledge and the ability to use the grammar item in speech, writing and listening comprehension In fact, grammar is the basis for mastering four language skills When we have concrete foundation of grammar,

we feel easy to advance (p.13)

In general, grammar is acknowledged to be of importance in language study and in language teaching and learning in particular Grammar is acquired naturally from meaningful input and opportunities to interact in the classroom More especially, learners can improve their grammar competence in a suitable environment without conscious focus on language forms However, this partly depends on the learning circumstances As a result, grammar teaching gains its significant role in English Language Teaching because highly developed language skills are difficult to achieve without some knowledge of grammar

The position of grammar teaching in ELT is still controversial Some people refute the place of grammar teaching for the reason that the study of grammar is neither necessary nor sufficient for learning to use a language

In fact, grammar is one of the key elements of a language Therefore, one person can not master a language without the knowledge of its grammar Thanks to grammar, language partly can function as a means of communication, especially in written language One can not write well if he/she lacks the knowledge of grammar

In speaking, though grammatical mistakes are sometimes acceptable, grammar makes one‟s speech better and more attractive, especially in formal situations Learners can not use words if they do not know how to put these words together The most important of teaching a language is to make students acquire and use it All languages have their own grammar People teach English grammar to make students improve their English English must be taught because it promotes

better language skills However, the most important is the application of them in the language production

For this reason, the teaching of grammar is very important in ELT However, this view is not shared by all researchers, scholars, and second language acquisition researchers The following sections review two opposing views on the role of grammar

2.2 Grammar teaching in the major teaching methods

There are many influential methods widely used by language teachers in the world in general and in Vietnam in particular The methods are now discussed in

this paper as follows: Grammar-Translation method (GTM);Direct method (DM)

and Audio-Lingual method (AM)

2.2.1 The Grammar- Translation method (GTM)

Traditional method or GTM was rooted in the formal teaching of Latin and Greek and become popular in the late 19th century According to Larsen- Freeman (19864), the GTM was used for the purpose of helping students read and appreciate foreign language literature Through studying the grammar of the target language, students would become more familiar with the grammar of their native language and this helps them use their language more grammatically (p.4)

Advantages of the Grammar- Translation method

The strength of GTM is that it requires few resources so it is easy to apply and cheap to administer Thus, the method is still used in many places where the class is large (more than 38 students), and there is a great shortage of teaching - learning facilities and equipment, the teachers with inadequate speaking skill are accustomed to setting teaching procedures

Disadvantages of the Grammar- Translation method

This method, however, has certain disadvantages According to Richards and Rogers (1986), GTM obviously focuses on the form rather than the use of the target language (p 3) Students who are in this way did not have a chance to practice their speaking and listening Students learn rules of grammar and vocabulary without

much feeling of progress in the mastery of the target language can lead to the lack

of motivation in learning a language for their having little opportunity to express themselves through it They just learn what they have to without any creativeness The method creates frustration for students, for whom foreign language learning is a tedious experience of memorization of new words and grammatical rules, while it makes few demands on teachers (Richards and Rogers, 1986, p.4)

2.2.2 The Direct method (DM)

In the late 19th century, increased opportunities among European create a demand for oral proficiency in foreign language The GTM was not very effective

in preparing students to use the target language communicatively and a new method, namely DM was born DM is characterized by the use of the target language as a means of instruction and communication in the classroom, and by the avoidance of the use of the first language and translation as a technique

Advantages of the direct method

It brings the process of learning the target language close to that of first language acquisition Students are exposed to the target language situations Therefore, their ability to think in the target language is developed River (1981) claims that “at its best, DM provides an exciting and interesting way of learning a language through activity It has proved to be successful in releasing students from the inhibitions all too often associated with speaking another tongue, particularly at the early stage"

Disadvantages of the direct method

Though there is a development in students‟ thoughts in the target language, it has two- sided effect Students may develop inaccuracies if they are not properly guided This is the result if their trying to express themselves in the target language with insufficient knowledge about the language Because all statements they learn relate to the classroom The teacher did not generally think of the students using of the language beyond the classroom Any connection with real life was expected to come later and was not the business of the school The graduation and sequences of

materials is not based on realistic spoken speech but artificial connected sentences The weakness of the method is also states in River (1983): “In the pure form of the

DM, insufficiency is made for systematic practice and requesting- practice of structures in a coherent sequence As a result, students often lack a clear idea of what they are trying to do, and they make haphazard progress” (p.34)

2.2.3 The Audio-Lingual method (AM)

The AM derived from America during the World War II where there was a need for people to learn foreign languages quickly for military purposes It led to the development of the AM which then has had a considerable influence on English language teaching all over the world This English teaching method puts listening and speaking in the first place It uses sentence pattern as the base of teaching and try to avoid mother tongue in class Attention is paid to the need for practice rather than explanation about the language because the ability to use the language as a means of communication is the ultimate aim

Advantages of the Audio-Lingual method

The first and most successful point of this method is to develop students' listening comprehension and fluency in speaking in the target language Students are encouraged by the sense of being able to use what they have learned in the very early days of their study In addition, the study is reinforced by repetition, so the students have good repetition and this is suitable for learners of different abilities Another point is that, this method provides a good systematic progression of the materials

Disadvantages of the Audio-Lingual method

However, there still remain some problems The success or failure of this method depends largely on the qualities of the teachers and the availability of resources That is why Brumfit (1983) comments “the objective is generally the mastery of sentence patterns rather than creative or communicative use of language” (p.8)

Along the history of language teaching methodology, different teaching methods have perceived grammar differently, especially its role and its teaching methods In this study, the researcher intends to present the teaching of grammar in four major teaching methods, namely Grammar-Translation method, Direct Method, Audio-lingual Method and Communicative Language Teaching approach

The Grammar-Translation Method was derived from traditional approaches

to the teaching of Latin and Greek in the nineteenth century This method used grammar as the starting point for instruction The class under this method began with explicit grammar rules presentation, followed by practices involving translation into and out of the student‟s mother tongue (grammar is taught deductively) Students‟ native language is the language of instructions and mistakes and errors must be avoided at any cost The syllabus used was structural syllabus (Richards and Rogers, 2002) Briefly, in this method grammar is considered essential in foreign language teaching and there is an attempt to teach it in an organized and systematic way The best point of this method is that it helps learners produce grammatically correct sentences and is easily used in large-sized classes; however, learners taught with this method find it difficult to communicate in real life and tend to be passive recipients of knowledge

The Direct method emerged to challenge the way Grammar-Translation Method focused exclusively on written language The basic premise of the Direct Method was that one should attempt to learn a second language in much the same way as children learn their first language The method emphasized oral interaction, spontaneous use of language, no translation between first and second languages, and therefore rejected explicit grammar teaching Grammar is taught inductively in the target language by asking and answering questions between teachers and students in small and intensive classes (Richards and Rogers, 2002) An advantage of the Direct method is that learning in the target language enables students to think in the target language Beside, it may be advantageous to a teacher using this method not

to know his students‟ native language However, the complete avoidance of

students‟ native language may lead to the misunderstanding of rules and frustration from students

Evolving from the work of structural linguists and behavioral psychologists, the Audio-lingual approach proposes that language performance consists of a set of habits in the use of language structures and patterns Grammar is taught inductively with little or no grammatical explanations Dialogues and drills form the basis of audio-lingual classroom practice After a dialogue has been presented and memorized, specific grammatical patterns in the dialogue are selected and become the focus of various kinds of drills and pattern-practice exercises The focus of instruction rarely moves beyond the sentence level (Celce-Murcia, 1991) It is important to prevent learner from making errors because errors lead to the formation of bad habits When errors occur, they should be corrected immediately

by the teacher The strong point of this method is that students can develop listening and speaking proficiency at the same time they learn new structures; however, the explicit use of the target language often leads to time consuming and students might get bored with mechanical repetition or become well-trained parrots

2.3 Definition of CLT

Different authors view CLT differently However, most definitions of CLT come under its weak version which emphasizes the importance of opportunities to use English for communicative purpose Among the available definitions, the one given by Nunan (1989) seems to be the most widely accepted and the most favourable one

“CLT views language as a system for the expression of meanings Activities involve oral communication, carrying out meaningful tasks, and using language, which is meaningful to the learners Objectives reflect the needs of the learners; they include functional skills as well as linguistic objectives The learner‟s role is as

a negotiator The teacher‟s role is as a facilitator of the communication process Materials promote communicative language use” Nunan (1989, p.194)

2.3.1 Teaching Grammar in CLT

2.3.1.1 Grammar in CLT

An influential analysis of communicative competence is found in Canal and Swain (1980, cited in Nguyen Thi Van Lam and Ngo Dinh Phuong, 2007), in which four dimensions of communicative competence are identified One of them is

“grammatical competence” “Grammatical competence” refers to what Chomsky calls linguistic competence and what Hymes intends by what is “formally possible”

It is the domain of grammatical and lexical capacity

As grammar is seen as a communicative system in CLT, it should derive from realistic situations and be used for a concrete purpose to enable learners to express meanings by using as much appropriate forms as possible Activities included in teaching grammar should enable students to become active (learning by doing) and teacher should set grammar in relation to what they need and are interested in

One important thing when teaching grammar in communicative situation is that errors should not be overestimated or overemphasized as this can result in a stressful and fearful classroom climate This goes against the general goal to make students more confident and increase their motivation for language learning

As far as grammar is concerned, CLT is an ideal choice, as it rather has the learners in its centre than assessing the number of mistakes made “Boring grammar” can turn into various demanding, enjoyable games and tasks that fulfill the goal to practice structures even better or equally well Grammar examples are taken from real life situations that make sense and are no longer meaningless or boring invented illustrations Furthermore, students learn that grammar is meaningful and helps them to express their own ideas and achieve speaking goals (grammar is a means to an end) In addition, rules that consider the functions and notions of language are still relevant, but mainly taught by means of activities, which facilitate their understanding

2.3.1.2 Characteristics of CLT

In CLT, meaning is paramount Wilkins (1972) classifies meaning into notional and functional categories and views learning a second language as acquiring the linguistic means to perform different kinds of functions According to

Larsen- Freeman (1986), the most obvious characteristic of CLT is that “Almost

everything that is done with communicative intent” Students use the language

through communicative activities (e.g games, role- plays and problem-solving tasks) (p.132)

From Morrow‟s point of view (in Johnson and Morrow, 1981), activities that are truly communicative have three features: information gap, choice, and feedback

An information gap occurs when one person exchanges the information he has with the one who does not

Another characteristic of CLT is the introduction of authentic material In CLT, it is considered desirable to give learners the opportunity to genuine communicative needs in realistic second language situations so that they develop strategies for understanding language as actually used by native speakers (Canale and Swain, 1980)

In addition, “activities in the Communicative Approach are often carried out

by students in small group” (Larsen- Freeman, 1986, p.132) Students are expected

to interact with one another, either through pair and group work or in their writing (Finicchiaro and Brumfit, 1983) CLT favors interaction among small numbers of students in order to maximize the time each student has to learn to negotiate meaning Teachers therefore select learning activities according to how well they engage the students in meaningful and authentic language use rather than in the merely mechanical practice of language patterns

Another dimension of CLT is “its learner- centered and experience- based

view of second language teaching” (Richards & Rogers, 1986, p.69) According to

CLT theory, individual learners possess unique interests, styles, needs, and goals that should be reflected in the design of instructional methods (Savignon, 1983)

Teachers are to develop materials based on the demonstrated needs of a particular class Students must be made to feel secure, unthreatened and non- defensive in a CLT classroom, so teachers using CLT should avoid adopting a teacher- centered authoritarian posture (Taylor, 1983)

Thus, Li (1998) reviews CLT characteristics based on the work of other researchers such as Larsen- Freeman (1986), Richards and Rogers (1986) and Thomson (1986) as follows:

- focus on communicative functions

- focus on meaningful tasks rather than on language form

- make tasks and language relevant to a target group of learners through an analysis of genuine, realistic situations

- use the authentic from life materials

- use group activities effectively

- attempt to create a secure, non- threatening atmosphere

2.4 Some General Principles of Grammar Teaching

According toThornbury.S $ Harmer J (1999) in “How to teach grammar”,

the basic principles for grammar teaching are the E- factor (economy, ease, efficacy), and the A- factor (appropriacy)

- Efficacy: Given that dealing with grammar is only a part of teachers‟

activities, and given that classroom time is very limited, it would seem imperative that whatever grammar teaching is done as efficiently as possible If grammar activity requires a great deal of time to set up or a lot of material, is it the most efficient? When considering an activity for the presentation or practice of the grammar the first question to ask is “How efficient is it?”

Economy: When presenting grammar, a sound rule of thumb is the shorter

the better It has been shown that economy is a key factor in the training of technique skills

Ease: The ease factor recognise the fact that most teachers lead busy lives,

have many classes, and simply can not afford to sacrifice valuable free time

preparing elaborate classroom materials Of course, the investment of time and energy in the preparation of materials is often accompanied by a commitment on the part of the teacher to making them work However, realistically, painstaking preparation is not always going to be possible The easier an activity is to set up, the better it is

The A- factor: Appropriacy

No class of learners is the same, not only are their needs, interest, level and goals going to vary, but their beliefs, attitudes and values will be different Any classroom activity must be evaluated not only according to criteria of efficiency, but also of appropriacy Factors to consider when determining appropriacy include:

- the age of the learners

- their level

- the size of the group

- the constitution of the group, e.g monolingual or multilingual

- what their needs are, e.g, to pass a public examination

- the learners‟ interests

- the available materials and resources

- cultural factor

- Educational context, e.g, private school or state school

The teacher should furnish pupils with words to change the lexical (semantic) meaning of the sentence pattern so that pupils will be able to use it in different situations He should assimilate the grammar mechanism involved in sentence pattern and not the sentence itself

Pupils learn a grammar item used in situations For example, the Possessive Case may be effectively introduced in classroom situations The teacher takes or simply touches various things and says this is Nina's pen That is Sasha's exercise book, and so on

While preparing for the lesson at which a new grammar item should be introduced, the teacher must realize the difficulties pupils will meet in assimilating

this new element of the English grammar They may be of three kinds: difficulties

in form, meaning, and usage The teacher thinks of the ways to overcome these difficulties: how to convey the meaning of the grammar item either through situations or with the help of the mother tongue; what rule should be used; what exercises should be done; their types and number Then he thinks of the sequence in which pupils should work to overcome these difficulties, i.e, from observation and comprehension through conscious imitation to usage in conversation (communicative exercises) Then the teacher considers the form in which he presents the grammar item - orally, in writing, or in reading And, finally, the teacher plans pupils' activity while they are learning this grammar item (point): their individual work, mass work, work in unison, and work in pairs, always bearing in mind that for assimilation pupils need examples of the sentence pattern in which this grammar item occurs

2.5 Stages in teaching grammar communicatively

In a CLT classroom, the teacher pays more attention to enable students to work with the target language during the lesson and communicate in it by the end of

it The following is the typical procedure of a grammar lesson according to a CLT author- Adrian Doff (1981)

1 The teacher uses visual aids to present the grammar structure to be taught

2 Students deduce the meaning, the form and the use of it

3 The teacher gets students understanding by asking yes/ no questions focusing on form, meaning and use

4 The teacher gets students to practice the structure through Repetition and Substitution Drills, Word Prompts, and Picture Prompts The teacher tries to provide maximum practice within controlled, but realistic and contextualized frameworks and to build students‟ confidence in using the new language

5 The teacher provides students with opportunities to use new language in a freer, more creative way The teacher creates activities in which students can

integrate new language with the previous learnt language and apply what they have learnt to talk about their real life activities

What makes this kind of lesson different from the traditional is that the teacher tries to make the language used in the lesson real and true The teacher creates real or like- real situations in which the language can be used This will enable students to communicate in English outside the classroom During the CLT lesson, the teacher often plays the important role of facilitator who facilitates activities to work with the target language

2.6 Common Procedure in Teaching a New Structure

A popular framework for teaching grammar based on examples or texts is P.P.P (presentation – practice – production) Presentation of the new material can be done with rules and examples Practice of the target grammar is done in drill exercises and more ones that are creative The result can be production of learners‟ utterances (Byrne.D,1976)

2.6.1 Presentation

Presentation provides the structure input that gives students foundation for their knowledge of the language grammar, helping them absorb the grammar content

We usually begin by presenting the class with a text in which the grammatical structure appears The aim of the presentation is to get the learners to perceive the lecture – its form and meaning – in both speech and writing to take it in

to short-term memory

Often, a story or a short dialogue is used which can appear in written form and read aloud by the teacher and students As a follow-up, students may read aloud, repeat, reproduce for memory, or copy out instances of the use of the structure Where the structure is very simple, easily perceived one, the presentation may be no more than a simple sentence or two, which serves as a model The explanation of the new structure should focus on grammatical items themselves: what they look like, what they mean, how they function – in short, what rules

govern them The objective is that the learners should understand these various aspects of the new structure It should be illustrated by plenty of contextualized examples or visual material if possible

2.6.2 Practice

The aim of this stage is to give students thorough practice of the items, both

in writing and speaking, so that they will be able to use them correctly and fluently

in a variety of contexts or their own For this occur, we need to provide activities from fully teacher-controlled, mechanical ones to less controlled and more meaningful to produce communicative activities then The former helps students to

“get their tongue around” or manipulate a new structure As this type of practice restricts individual‟s contribution the latter is created to make the students to think and understand what they are saying Students need to be thinking more actively Practice should be more difficult and more useful or in another way, to transfer from short-term to longer-term memory

2.6.3 Production

At the production stage, learners are able to use structures freely for communicative purposes This step must be creative and communicative It is important as the goal of language teaching and learning is for communication Usually, they produce utterances about their own experiences, their life, their family, etc during this stage; there is a focus on what is said rather than on the language itself That makes the students feel that they are really using the language for their need of communication Students have the chance to use the language freely and incorporate it in to their existing language The emphasis at this stage is

on use and fluency

2.6.4 Feedback and Correction

Feedback and correction must take place throughout the lesson The teacher‟s correction may vary according to the change of the phases of the lesson It

is very important to motivate learners for their correct responses After a teacher introduces grammatical item, he/she asks them to practice the language At this time

supportive feedback is more useful to develop confidence to use the language Markee (1997) says the focus of error correction should be on meaning, not merely

on grammatical form The teachers should tell how the meaning change occurs when the form is changed There are different kinds of error correction peer, self correction, teacher correction, and so on In the case of grammar, the first step with respect to error correction is establishment of certain basic parameters (Tudor, 1996, p.215) Teachers use different means to correct their students‟ errors such as guided corrections and controlled corrections The teachers can direct students to arrive at the right way of using the language by repeating the students‟ sentences correctly Both accuracy and fluency are desirable and cannot be taught in isolation Teachers should also tell their students exceptions and complications on grammar rules This may help them to avoid overgeneralization of the rule

2.7 Conclusion

In this chapter, some brief information about grammar and its position in language teaching are reviewed Different grammar teaching methods such as GTM, DM, AM have also been revised to find out the advantages and the disadvantages of each method Furthermore, the writer has a brief overview on CLT, its characteristics, and stages of a CLT grammar lesson Finally, factors affected CLT applications are mentioned In the next chapter, the situation of English learning and teaching at Pham Hong Thai High School will be analyzed, and the survey with a questionnaire for 5 teachers and another one for 116 students will be done After that, the findings of the survey will be analyzed and discussed

Chapter 3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

3.1 Real situation of learning and teaching English at Pham Hong Thai High School

3.1.1 Pham Hong Thai High School

Pham Hong Thai High School was founded in 1979 in Hung Chau village, Hung Nguyen distrist, Nghe An province It has a long history of nearly 35 years of foundation Like most of other schools, English is an important and compulsory subject for all students Teachers of English are all experienced in teaching They have approached the change in teaching method and have been trying to apply it in their language classrooms

At Pham Hong Thai High School, learning and teaching activities are mostly carried out in the classroom It is equiped with goood conditions for English teaching and learning as well as other subjects All teachers have to be acquainted with the new teaching technology, learning how to use it well This is the way to promote students‟ learning motivation The use of project in teaching English is an example Besides, teaching aids becomes more popular with the use of cassettes, audiocassette tape in learning listening and visual aids such as pictures, drawings, cards for different teaching purposes in the classroom

This school has 21 classes on average of 38 students in each class, a library, two computer-equipped room and two laboratories

3.1.2 The 11 th -form students and observation classes

The subjects of the study were 116 students in three classes and the observation classes were classes 11A1, 11C3, 11C4 They are both male and female Lots of them come from comparatively poor families, so their learning condition is low In addition, their lack of awareness of the importance of English as well as motivation makes them not interested in learning English Although most of them have already learnt English for four years at lower secondary school, their

knowledge of English in general and grammar in particular is still poor and limited, only some students are good at this subject

3.1.3 English teachers at Pham Hong Thai high school

With regarding to teaching staff, there are 6 teachers of English, including the researcher, aged from 33 to 38 All of them hold a university degree The number of female teachers accounts for the majority (4 female teachers and two male teachers) All of them are enthusiastic with their career and had at least 10 years of experience in teaching English

The environment of teaching and learning in this school is quite good for teachers and students During the time of teaching practice in this school, it was realized that teachers and students made many efforts to enhance the quality of learning and teaching English However, there are still some problems The first one

is the ineffective use of modern teaching and learning equipments Also, some teachers do not have creative methods of teaching, so they cannot attract their students to learning Moreover, the number of students in this school who are good

at English is not high In fact, many of them do not pay much attention to learning English These problems are reflected partly through grammar lessons in Pham Hong Thai High School

3.1.4 The textbook English 11 and its Language Focus section

3.1.4.1.The textbook English 11(the standard textbook)

The new textbook English 11 was developed based on the new national

curriculum The book is claimed to adopt a theme-based syllabus However, this syllabus may be more appropriately described as a „multi-strand‟ one since there is almost everything in it: topics, tasks, functions, notions, skills, grammar, vocabulary and sounds The methodologies the book is claimed to follow are the “learner-centered approach and the communicative approach with task-based teaching being

the central teaching method” (English 11, Teacher‟s Manual, p.12) This textbook is

accompanied with cassette tapes, student‟s workbook and teacher‟s manual

There are 16 teaching units and six review units in the book Each teaching unit covers one topic and is structured into five sections: Reading, Speaking, Listening, Writing and Language Focus Each section is supposed to be taught in one period of 45 minutes The sixteen topics are derived from six themes: You and

me, Education, Community, Health, Recreation, The world around us

3.1.4.2 Content of Grammar in the English 11th Form Textbook

Language focus lesson consists of two main parts: the pronunciation part is designed to review the way students to pronunciate short sounds and long sounds (for both consonants and vowels) in words and sentences Grammar and vocabulary refer to grammatical problems and some vocabulary, which are considered the centre of the lesson All of them are presented in the form of exercises or activities

to give the students the opportunities to practice in the class

As mentioned above, the content of grammar is mainly designed to review and to consolidate the knowledge students have been taught before; grammatical units are not difficult for them

The content of this study relates to Grammar in “Language Focus” The book includes 16 units with the following grammar points are:

Semester Unit Time

1 45 Infinitive with to and without to

2 45 The past tenses ( past simple , past progressive

and past perfect)

3 45 Infinitive and gerund ; passive infinitive and

gerund

4 45 Gerund and present participle; perfect gerund and

perfect participle

5 45 Reported speech with infinitives

7 45 Conditional types 1,2 and 3 ; conditional in

reported speech

I

8 45 Pronouns : one(s), someone,anyone,no one ,

everyone

Tieng Anh 11

II

9 45 Defining relative clauses and non-defining

relative clauses

10 45 Relative pronouns with prepositions

11 45 Relative clauses replaced by participles and to

infinitives

12 45 Omission relative pronouns : relative clauses

13 45 Cleft sentences (subject focus ,object forcus,

adverbial focus)

15 45 Could , be able to ; tag questions

16 45 It is said that ; people say that

Table 3.1: Distribution of time, units and contents in 2 semesters

3.1.4.3 Learning and teching grammar at Pham Hong Thai High School

It can be said that grammar is considered the most important content for students in high school but seems to be the most boring of all Teaching and learning grammar at Pham Hong Thai high school is no exception

As mentioned above, since the main goal of Communicative Language Teaching is to help students to communicate well, students must be more active and given opportunities to practice communication in class To reach this aim requires many efforts from both teachers and students

It is undeniable that new teaching methods have been applied Many teachers

do not use the traditional way to present grammar items Instead, they often attach

to communicative purposes For example, teachers try to show the meaning visually

by pictures, or any objects available in the class, etc Some of them usually show the meaning through situations This can make students focus on meaning without looking at the grammatical rules However, one limitation of teachers is that they

are still accustomed to showing the form of the structure by using “S-V” form To facilitate students and prepare for them to communicate well, it is necessary for teachers to connect the form to meaning In this way, they will find it easier and familiar with producing communication thereafter

In practice of most lessons, although some of cooperative activities have been applied such as pair work, group work, etc to stimulate students; teachers‟ creation seems to be not enough Some teachers do not give enough creative methods of teaching Therefore, students do not find it interesting to focus on practicing Many of them feel bored with the types of exercises or activities, which are the same in every lesson Moreover, practice by doing these exercises do not give students opportunities to communicate in the class What they have to do is to complete these exercises This is another limitation of teachers in high school While students may do well in writing, they find it very difficult to communicate to each other To reach the goal of communication, teachers need to create many other activities not just drills I also find that, even after controlled stage, students are rarely given the chance to communicate by themselves There is a little time for them to play a game or make free talk while these activities really motivate students and create an environment for them to communicate with each other The above real situation suggests that teachers should have various creative activities to teach grammar communicatively during the process of the lesson to attract students and help them to communicate well

3.2 Research methodology

3.2.1 Method of the Study

The study employs both quantitative and qualitative methods The quantitative analyses are used through the process of data collected from reviewing theories and collecting information associated with teaching and learning English grammar from different sources: references, books, and internet

In addition, the qualitative approach is employed to deal with the data gathered from think-aloud reports and interviews with the volunteer students before

and after the treatment in order to obtain more in-depth understanding The combination of these data collection methods will help the author achieve the aims

of the study

Instrument 1: survey questionnaires

In order to get information for the research, survey questionnaires for both teachers and students were carried out

Conducting a survey on the real situation of teaching and learning English grammar at Pham hong Thai High School by using questionnaires for both the teachers and students there, having students do a writing task before and after applying some communicative activities in English grammar classes

Questionnaires are a common tool to collect data in language acquisition research They do not take much time to administer as other procedure And the data are more uniform, standard and accurate Additionally, questionnaires can be easily quantified because multiple-choice questions are used Due to these advantages questionnaires were used as a main data collection method in this study However, one of the biggest problems with questionnaires is that constructing a reliable one is extremely time consuming The researcher must be very careful when designing questions as the ambiguity in the questions may lead to irrelevant answers Furthermore, responses may sometimes not reflect exactly what the students think or implement

To deal with these problems, the questionnaires were carefully designed and tried out with some students in other classes to examine whether they helped to elicit the kind of data necessary for the study Based on the feedbacks from those students, some questions, which were inappropriate and ambiguous to the students, had been improved In addition, before delivering the questionnaires to the subjects, they were informed that the study would only be valuable if they gave true answers

to the questions in the questionnaires

Instrument 2: Class observation

Apart from the survey questionnaires for students and teachers, class observation was employed to clarify and test the validity of information about the

current situation of using communicative activities in teaching English grammar The method of structured observation was chosen in this research since just the class activities related to grammar teaching and learning was observed and recorded The observation was carried out in some 11th form classes in Pham Hong Thai high school and it was kept in the form of diary

Instrument 3: Interview

- Interviews with the teachers and students to get in-depth information about the teachers‟ and the students‟ suggestions to improve the teaching and learning of grammar in the Language Focus lessons in English 11

3.2.1.1 Questionnaire for the students

The questionnaire consists of two types of questions including 12 closed and open-ended ones To ensure the students‟ accurate misunderstandings before answering the questions, all of them were written in Vietnamese Their answers were also written in Vietnamese, which enabled them to express their ideas fully and with ease It took 4 weeks to deliver the questionnaire and collect 116 copies of the questionnaire

The questions focus on the following categories:

-Students‟ attitudes about the importance of language skill and other elements

-Students‟ ideas about degrees of difficulty of English grammar

-Students‟ interest in learning English grammar

- Students‟ frequent errors

-Students‟ interest in the stages of grammar lesson

- The ways teachers introduce and show the form of a grammatical structure

-Students‟ opinions about exercises in textbooks

-Students‟ opinions about extra grammatical activities

-Motivating factors

3.2.1.2 Questionnaire for the teachers

The second questionnaire was designed for 5 teachers of English at Pham Hong Thai high school It contains 9 closed and open ended questions in English The questionnaire was delivered to the teachers and collected within 4 weeks The questionnaire emphasizes on:

- The teachers‟ attitude toward teaching English grammar

- The teachers‟ difficulties in teaching English grammar

- The teachers‟ opinions of teaching English grammar

- The teachers‟ guidence for practising English grammar

- The teachers‟ adapting grammar exercies

- The teachers‟ activities for grammar lessons

- Teacher's assessment on student's result

3.3 Conclusion

This chapter presented the context and the methodology of the study Concerning the context of the study, some characteristics of the school such as the teaching and learning conditions, the students, the teaching staff and the overall information about the new textbook English 11 were mentioned In the methodology part, the research questions, the subjects and data collection were described in detail To obtain the aim and objectives of the study the questionnaires were used