MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING QUY NHON UNIVERSITY NGUYEN THI CHUNG TEACHERS’ AND STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS ON THE 11th GRADE ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS Major: Theory and Methodology of English Language Teaching Code: 8140111 Supervisor: Assoc, Prof Dr Nguyen Thi Thu Hien Tai ngay!!! Ban co the xoa dong chu nay!!! BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƢỜNG ĐẠI HỌC QUY NHƠN NGUYỄN THỊ CHUNG NHẬN THỨC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN VÀ HỌC SINH VỀ SÁCH TIẾNG ANH 11 MỚI Ngành: Lý luận phƣơng pháp dạy học môn Tiếng Anh Mã số: 8140111 Ngƣời hƣớng dẫn: PGS TS Nguyễn Thị Thu Hiền i DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP The thesis entitled “Teachers’ and Students’ Perceptions on the 11th Grade English Textbooks” is conducted under the supervision of Assoc Prof Dr Nguyen Thi Thu Hien I declare that the information reported in this study is the result of my own work and effort, except where due reference is made This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any university Quy Nhon, 2022 Nguyen Thi Chung ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Without the support, encouragement, and contributions from my supervisor, my professors, my school, colleagues, friends, and family, the successful completion of this thesis work would not have been possible I take this chance to express my deepest thanks to them for their support First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my thesis advisor Associate Prof.Dr Nguyen Thi Thu Hien for her continuous support, expert guidance, and patience throughout the study She provided me with assistance at every stage of the process and always expressed his faith in me I am gratefully indebted to her for her very valuable comments on this thesis A special thank goes to Phu Yen Department of Education and Training and Nguyen Khuyen Secondary and High School for giving me the chance to attend a MA course at Quy Nhon University This study was made achievable by the participation of the enthusiastic teachers and students at High Schools in Song Cau town, who devoted their time to taking part in this research I was also thankful to my colleagues for their support during my study time I am also grateful to Quy Nhon University, Post-graduate Department, and Foreign Languages Department for the administrative assistance Last, but not least, I must express my gratitude to my family for providing me with unfailing support and continuous encouragement throughout the course and the study of this thesis iii ABSTRACT This study explored the teachers‟ and students‟ perceptions on the 11 th grade English textbooks issued in 2014 under the National Foreign Language 2020 project The study was conducted with 10 teachers and 100 students from high schools in Song Cau Town during March 2022 This research implemented the quantitative and qualitative approaches in collecting the data, by using questionnaires and semi-structured interviews A questionnaire was distributed to 10 English teachers and 100 students, and interviews were completed with teachers and students who returned the questionnaire The findings showed that the teachers and students had positive perceptions of the textbooks in the physical appearance and format and the roles of the textbooks The results also showed that teachers and students had different perceptions of the difficulty level and unit organization, the exercises and activities, and the skills and sub-skills distribution in the 11th grade English textbooks Keywords: Textbook, teachers’ and students’ perception iv TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION OF AUTHORSHIP i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE OF CONTENTS iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS vii LIST OF TABLES viii CHAPTER INTRODUCTION 1.1 RATIONALE 1.2 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES 1.2.1 Aims 1.2.2 Objectives 1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1.4 SCOPE OF THE STUDY 1.5 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY 1.6 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY CHAPTER LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 TEACHING ENGLISH AT THE GENERAL EDUCATION LEVEL IN VIETNAM 2.1.1 The 7-year set of English textbooks 2.1.2 The renovation of the textbooks in Vietnam 2.2 TEXTBOOKS 10 2.2.1 Definition of textbook 10 2.2.2 The role of textbooks for EFL teachers and students 11 2.2.3 A description of the 11th – grade English textbooks 13 2.3 PERCEPTION 18 2.3.1 Definition of perception 18 2.3.2 Importance of perception on learning and teaching 19 v 2.4 EVALUATION OF TEXTBOOKS 20 2.4.1 Evaluating the design of ELT textbooks 22 2.4.2 Evaluating the language content of ELT textbooks 23 2.5 REVIEW OF RELATED EMPIRICAL STUDIES 27 CHAPTER RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 32 3.1 RESEARCH DESIGN 32 3.2 POPULATION AND PARTICIPANT SELECTION 32 3.2.1 Teachers 33 3.2.2 Students 33 3.3 RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS 34 3.3.1 Questionnaire 34 3.3.2 Semi – Structured Interview 37 3.4 DATA COLLECTION 38 3.5 DATA ANALYSIS 39 3.6 RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY 40 3.6.1 Scale Reliability Analysis 40 3.6.2 Validity 41 CHAPTER FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS 42 4.1 TEACHERS‟ PERCEPTIONS ON THE 11TH GRADE ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS 42 4.1.1 Teachers‟ perception on the appearance and format of the 11th – grade English textbooks 43 4.1.2 Teachers‟ perception on the difficulty level and unit organization of the 11th – grade English textbooks 46 4.1.3 Teachers‟ perception on the exercises and activities of the 11 th – grade English textbooks 47 4.1.4 Teachers‟ perception on the skills and sub-skills distribution of the 11th – grade English textbooks 50 vi 4.1.5 Teachers‟ perception of the roles of the textbooks 52 4.2 STUDENTS‟ PERCEPTIONS ON THE 11TH GRADE ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS 53 4.2.1 Students‟ perception of the physical appearance and format on the 11th grade English textbooks 54 4.2.2 Students‟ perception on the difficulty level and the unit organization of the 11th – grade English textbooks 57 4.2.3 Students‟ perception on the exercises and activities of the 11 th – grade English textbooks 60 4.2.4 Students‟ perception on the skills and sub-skills distribution of the 11th – grade English textbooks 62 4.2.5 Students‟ perception of the roles of the 11th – grade English textbooks 64 CHAPTER CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS 67 5.1 SUMMARY 67 5.2 IMPLICATIONS OF THE STUDY 68 5.3 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 69 5.4 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE STUDIES 69 REFERENCES 70 APPENDICES vii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS EFL : English as a foreign language ELT : English language teaching ESL : English as a second language SLA : Second language acquisition CEFR : Common MOET : Ministry of Education and Training VNFLPF : Foreign Language Proficiency Framework for Vietnam European Framework of Reference Languages for viii LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 The number of English periods for each level of education in Vietnam Table 2.2 Book structure, unit structure, component headings, and time allocated for each heading ( Hoang, V V., 2015) 14 Table 2.3 The topics in the 11th grade Textbooks (MOET, 2012) 15 Table 3.1 The background of teacher participants 33 Table 3.2 The background of student participants 34 Table 3.3 Process of Conducting the Survey 37 Table 3.4 Reliability Statistics of the questionnaire 40 Table 4.1 Teachers‟ perception of the 11th grade English textbooks 42 Table 4.2 Teachers‟ perception on the appearance and format of the 11th – grade English textbooks 43 Table 4.3 Teachers‟ perception on the difficulty level and the unit organization of the 11th – grade English textbooks 46 Table 4.4 Teachers‟ perception on the exercises and activities of the 11th – grade English textbooks 48 Table 4.5 Teachers‟ perception on the skills and sub-skills distribution of the 11th – grade English textbooks 50 Table 4.6 Teachers‟ perception of the roles of the textbooks 52 Table 4.7 Students‟ perception of the 11th grade English textbooks 54 Table 4.8 Students‟ perception of the physical appearance and format on the 11th grade English textbooks 55 Table 4.9 Students‟ perception on the difficulty level and the unit organization of the 11th – grade English textbooks 57 consideration the whole academic year 14.The exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are relevant to students‟ interests 15.As a result of using the 11th grade English textbooks, students can use English as a means of communication 16.The 11th grade English textbooks content reflects cultural characteristics of the target language 17.The reading exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ reading skills 18.The writing exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ writing skills 19.The speaking exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ speaking skills 20.The listening exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ listening skills 21.The vocabulary load seems to be reasonable for the students‟ level 22.The vocabulary items are controlled to ensure systematic gradation from simple to complex 23.The exercises in the 11th grade English Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree Items Agree AP-3 textbooks improve students‟ comprehension skills 24.The exercises improve students‟ ability to distinguish between main ideas and details 25.The exercises promote meaningful communication by referring to realistic situations Roles of English textbooks 26.The 11th grade English textbooks serve as a syllabus 27.The 11th grade English textbooks help planning daily instruction 28.The 11th grade English textbooks serve as a source of assessment items 29.The 11th grade English textbooks serve as a source of homework 30.The 11th grade English textbooks serve as an essential source for teacher Thank you very much Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree Items Agree AP-4 AP-5 Appendix Questionnaire for students Dear students, I am an MA TEFL student at Quy Nhon University This questionnaire is designed to investigate your concerning the 11th grade English Textbook Your cooperation would be much appreciated I look forward to receiving your replies Thank you for your participation PART A: Your personal background: I You are: a) male b) female II You have been learning English for: a) years b) years c) more than years PART B: Read each item and indicate your opinion with a scale of Tick the relevant column which best reflect your opinion The answers are: a) Strongly Agree (SA), b) Agree (A), c) Neutral (N), d) Physical appearance and format The cover of the 11th grade English textbooks is attractive The cover of the 11th grade English textbooks is durable The layout of the 11th grade textbooks motivates students to perform the tasks The illustrations in the 11th grade English textbooks are directly related to the content to help the learner understand the printed text Main headings and subheadings in the 11th grade English textbooks are well organized The instructions in the 11th grade English Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Items Strongly Agree Disagree (D), d) Strongly Disagree (SD) textbooks help students to comprehend the items thoroughly Content (units, activities, exercises, skills and subskills) The difficulty level of the 11th grade English textbooks is appropriate to the students‟ level The content is organized according to the students‟ language needs Each unit is in the same format 10 The topics of the units are interesting for students 11 The units in the 11th grade English textbooks provide students coverage of four main skills and other sub-skills (vocabulary and grammar) 12 The 11th grade English textbooks include information about different people from different countries 13 The content of the 11th grade English textbooks is prepared by taking into consideration the whole academic year 14 The exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are relevant to students‟ interests 15 As a result of using the 11th grade English textbooks, students can use English as a means of communication 16 The 11th grade English textbooks content reflects cultural characteristics of the target language 17 The reading exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are interesting for students to practice 18 The writing exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ writing skills 19 The speaking exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Items Strongly Agree AP-6 speaking skills 20 The listening exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks are appropriate for improving students‟ listening skills 21 The vocabulary load seems to be reasonable for the students‟ level 22 The vocabulary items are controlled to ensure systematic gradation from simple to complex 23 The exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks improve students‟ comprehension skills 24 The exercises improve students‟ ability to distinguish between main ideas and details 25 The exercises promote meaningful communication by referring to realistic situations Roles of English textbooks 26 The 11th grade English textbooks serve as a syllabus 27 The 11th grade English textbooks help planning daily instruction 28 The 11th grade English textbooks serve as a source of assessment items 29 The 11th grade English textbooks serve as a source of homework 30 The 11th grade English textbooks serve as an essential source for teacher Thank you very much Strongly Disagree Disagree Neutral Strongly Agree Items Agree AP-7 AP-8 APPENDIX B INTERVIEWS My name is Nguyen Thi Chung I am conducting research titled “Teachers’ and Students’ perceptions on the 11th grade English textbooks” The purpose of this interview is to collect data to my investigation into the perceptions of teachers who experienced the first time Your responses to the question will be studied If they are frank and accurate, they will be an invaluable help in my research You can be sure that you will not be identified in any case Please not discuss any of the questions with your friends Thank you very much! Appendix Interview for teachers Question 1: What make people impressed most when approaching an English textbook? Question 2: How does the content of the 11th grade English textbooks meet the student‟s needs and interests? Question 3: How the activities and exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks reinforce what the students have already learned and improve students‟ English skills? Question 4: How are four English skills (reading, speaking, listening, writing) presented in the 11th grade English textbooks? Question 5: How complicated were the vocabularies represented in the 11th grade English textbooks? Appendix Interview for students Dear students, thank you for agree to take part in our research We highly appreciate your help in completing this survey interview AP-9 In your experience, please answer some questions related the challenges of textbook Question 1: What make people impressed most when approaching an English textbook? Question 2: How does the content of the 11th grade English textbooks meet the student‟s needs and interests? Question 3: How the activities and exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks reinforce what the students have already learned and improve students‟ English skills? Question 4: How complicated were the vocabularies represented in the 11th grade English textbooks? Question 5: What are your interests and challenges during learning the 11th grade English textbooks? AP-10 APPENDIX C THE TRANSCRIPTION CONVENTIONS The teachers’ interview result Question 1: What make people impressed most when approaching an English textbook? T1: In my opinion, people are interested in the cover of the textbook, and the colorful layout of the textbooks if they are attractive Moreover, the clear format and headings are essential to help teachers follow easily T2: Well, I think that while selecting an EFL textbook, I focus on the textbook’s layout, instructions, and topics In addition, I might read through the headings and sub-headings to obtain a general view of the textbooks T3: Actually, the high-quality pictures and material play an important for choosing the textbooks Moreover, visual aids are quite important in language teaching, which help the teacher teach the student easily Question 2: How does the content of the 11th grade English textbooks meet the student‟s needs and interests? T1: From my point of view, the content of the textbooks is updated with new and trending topics such as Unit 1: Generation gap, Unit 3: Becoming independent, Unit 6: Global warming, Unit 10: Healthy and longevity, which helps students understand and access new problems Besides, students can become more independent in speaking English T2: I think students can improve their English such as reading, speaking, listening, and writing skills, which helps students pass the final exam easily and communicate English very well T3: In my opinion, students are equipped with skills and subskills such as reading, speaking, listening, writing, various vocabulary, grammar, and AP-11 structures The textbooks further provide more knowledge about the culture, customs, and people in the world Question 3: How the activities and exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks reinforce what the students have already learned and improve students‟ English skills? T1: Well, students are consolidated after each lesson by doing some exercises and activities They can practice doing exercises and activities to improve their English skills such as reading comprehension, and communication Nonetheless, some listening exercises are not appropriate for students’ levels T2: Yes The textbook has several exercises that can be learned by the students The material from the textbook can come from the exercises The students get the conclusion after doing some exercises They can get the theory from the exercise Generally, the textbooks have exercises and activities to help students develop reading skills and speaking skills In addition, students can apply to write an email, a letter, and an essay easily, so their writing skills are improved T3: Sure But to make it completely suit, I used to add some other material from the other textbooks Some activities and exercises tend to help students apply in real situations; however, they are quite challenging for students Question 4: How are four English skills (reading, speaking, listening, writing) presented in the 11th grade English textbooks? T1: From my point of view, the textbook served listening activities, speaking such as practicing dialogue, writing, and reading as well T2: It was a good balance of four main skills represented in the textbooks It concludes all the aspects in every unit of the book T3: I think that each unit performs main skills such as reading, speaking, AP-12 listening, and writing Each skill lesson is designed to teach in a period Question 5: How complicated were the vocabularies represented in the 11th grade English textbooks? T1: It depends Because sometimes when we think it was easy for us, the students' comprehension might not be as we expected it to be Maybe vocabulary represented in the textbooks is difficult for students such as generation gaps topic and becoming independent topic T2: In my opinion, most vocabularies in the 11th – grade English textbooks are designed from simple to complex T3: Most of the vocabularies represent from simple to complex However, some vocabulary themes are quite more challenging for student levels AP-13 The students’ interview result Question 1: What make people impressed most when approaching an English textbook? S1: My priorities while choosing an ELT textbook are nice and colorful pictures and photos in the textbooks S2: I think that students will follow and study easily if the textbooks have a clear format and illustrations, so I will pay attention to the format and illustrations represented in the textbooks first to get background information and content textbooks Then, I will select the textbooks having colorful and beautiful pictures S3: In my opinion, I will be inspired by good and clear headings and illustrations in textbooks because I will follow and practice the lessons easily S4: I think nice and colorful textbooks are my first choice S5: Well, because I’m a teenager, I want to use nice and pretty things so nice and attractive textbooks are my first choice Especially, clear and interesting headings motivate students to study well” S6: From my point of view, my first choices are topics, headings, and illustrations represented in the textbooks If they are clear and interesting, students might study more effectively S7: In my opinion, people are attracted to the pictures, headings, and illustrations of the textbooks first in choosing the textbooks S8: I think interesting topics and beautiful pictures are important to choose textbooks Question 2: How does the content of the 11th grade English textbooks meet the student‟s needs and interests? S1: In my opinion, students are given a lot of vocabulary to apply in doing AP-14 reading exercises and the content of the textbooks focus on speaking skill and communication which helps the students improve speaking skills S2: Students can be more confident in communicating, which plays an important role in developing students’ language However, it depends on the level of students’ proficiency S3: The content of the textbooks focuses on grammar, communication, vocabulary, and pronunciation, which helps students improve their knowledge S4: Sure, topics and the content of the textbooks are updated with the hot topics such as Unit 1: Generation gap, Unit 3: Becoming independent, Unit 6: Global warming, and Unit 10: Healthy and longevity S5: I think that students can improve vocabulary and pronunciation Students can also improve listening skills and writing skills through listening lessons and writing lessons are challenged and difficult.” S6: Well, I think that students can improve comprehension skills through various vocabulary, colorful pictures, examples, and reading texts Nevertheless, the difficulty level of the 11th – grade English textbooks is advanced and challenging for students S7: Yes, the content of the textbooks helps students get more knowledge about developing and improving listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills S8: Yes, students’ vocabulary and communication are improved Question 3: How the activities and exercises in the 11th grade English textbooks reinforce what the students have already learned and improve students‟ English skills? S1: Well, students are practiced more exercises after learning grammar points AP-15 S2: Yes, the language lesson will help students revise vocabulary in the getting started section S3: Students revision lessons to consolidate the previous knowledge In addition, students can practice speaking skills, but depending on each student’s level, they can use English as a means of communication S4: Certainly, there are some exercises after each section Students practiced a lot of activities and exercises in each skill lesson so that they can improve their English skills However, listening and writing lessons are difficult for students to comprehend and practice S5: Students complete one or two exercises after each section Thus, I think students can consolidate their previous knowledge S6: Sure, students are practiced more exercises after learning each skill Moreover, students can strengthen English skills such as reading, speaking, listening, and writing S7: Students reinforce what the students have already learned by doing activities and exercises after each lesson Moreover, there is a review lesson after three units that helps students consolidate vocabulary, grammar, and structure S8: Yes Students practiced exercises to improve reading comprehension and communication However, listening exercises and writing exercises are not suitable for students to improve their listening and writing skills Question 4: How complicated were the vocabularies represented in the 11th grade English textbooks? S1: It depends on each topic and unit For instance, unit 1: The generation gap has difficult vocabulary so students have difficulty in learning speaking and writing skills AP-16 S2: In my opinion, the vocabulary items are not represented from simple to complex in the 11th grade English textbooks Some topics have complicated vocabularies that students find hard to understand and use S3: The vocabularies are appropriate for students’ level S4: The vocabulary items are represented from simple to more complex to help students understand and learn easily S5: I think the vocabularies are more complex than the students’ level S6: From my point of view, students still find it hard to comprehend and apply vocabulary because some topics have few vocabularies to express S7: In my opinion, there are too many vocabularies in a lesson S8: I think the vocabulary loads are appropriate for students to understand and exercises Question 5: What are your interests and challenges during learning the 11th – grade English textbooks? S1: Yes, students can access new things and practice a lot of activities during learning, however vocabulary in some units and some speaking, and writing lessons are quite difficult S2: Certainly, while the textbooks give various and useful vocabulary, the difficulty level of vocabulary is not suitable for students’ proficiency Some writing exercises are difficult to finish on time S3: Well, students can improve their vocabulary, reading, and speaking skills Nonetheless, listening and writing exercises are challenged S4: Students have learned a lot of useful knowledge from the textbooks Thus, students can apply it in real situations Nevertheless, some units have too much vocabulary Some listening lessons are difficult for students S5: In my opinion, speaking topics are hard for me to explain AP-17 S6: I have difficulty learning listening lessons and speaking lessons S7: There are too many tasks to in a learning period S8: It is obvious that topics are updated such as the generation gap, caring for those in need, global warming, and Healthy Lifestyle and Longevity However, there are many vocabularies and tasks to complete in a learning period