iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration i Acknowledgements ii Abstract iii Table of contents iv List of tables vi List of charts vii List of abbreviations viii CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Rationale 1.2 Aims of the study 1.3 Scope of the study 1.4 Significance of the study 1.5 Method of the study 1.6 Design of the study CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Communicative Language Teaching & Cooperative Learning 2.1.1 Characteristics of Communicative Language Teaching 2.1.2 Cooperative Learning 2.2 Role-play in developing speaking skills 2.2.1 What is role-play? 2.2.2 Types of Role Play and Procedures in Using Role Play 11 2.2.3 Roles of Teachers and Students in role-play activities 17 2.2.4 Significance of Role Play in Developing Speaking Skills 21 CHAPTER III: THE STUDY v 3.1 Setting of the study 22 3.2 The study 22 3.2.1 Type of research 22 3.2.2 Participants 23 3.2.3 Data collection instruments 23 3.2.4 Data collection procedure 24 3.2.5 Data analysis procedure 25 3.3 Results 25 3.3.1 Research question and 25 3.3.2 Research question 38 3.3.3 Research question 39 3.4 Discussion 40 CHAPTER IV: CONCLUSION 4.1 Major findings of the study 44 4.2 Implications 45 4.3 Limitations of the study 47 4.4 Suggestions for further research 48 REFERENCES 49 APPENDICES I Appendix 1: Questionnaire for students I Appendix 2: Questionnaire for teachers IV Appendix 3: Interview questions for students VII Appendix 4: Interview questions for teachers VIII vi LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Degrees of students’ interest in different kinds of role-play activities (SQ-Q5) Table 2: How teachers form a pair/group/team (TQ-Q2) Table 3: Students’ preference in pair/group/team forming (SQ-Q6) Table 4: Students’ preference in being prepared for a role-play activity (SQ-Q7) Table 5: How teachers give instructions to students (TQ-Q3) Table 6: How teachers monitor the activity (TQ-Q4) Table 7: Students’ preference in terms of teacher monitoring the activity (SQ-Q8) Table 8: How teachers encourage students to use English in the activity (TQ-Q5) Table 9: Time of correction (TQ-Q6) Table 10: Ways of correction (TQ-Q7) Table 11: Students’ preference in having their mistakes corrected (SQ-Q9) Table 12: Difficulties students face in role-play activities (SQ-Q11) Table 13: Difficulties teachers encounter in conducting a role-play activity (TQ-Q10) Table 14: Students’ expectations of teachers’ roles in RP activities (SQ-Q12) Table 15: Teachers’ expectations for effective role-play activities (TQ-Q11) vii LIST OF CHARTS Chart 1: Frequency of students’ participation in role-play activities in speaking lessons (SQ-Q1) Chart 2: Frequency and kinds of role-play activities used in speaking lessons (TQ-Q1) Chart 3: Languages used by students in role-play activities (SQ-Q2) Chart 4: Influence of RP on students’ motivation (SQ-Q3) Chart 5: Students’ opinion about the benefits of role-play (SQ-Q4) Chart 6: Students’ evaluation on role-play activities introduced in their speaking lessons (SQ-Q10) Chart 7: Teachers’ evaluation on students’ enjoyment in role-play activities (TQ-Q8) Chart 8: Teachers’ evaluation on the effectiveness of role-play activities (TQ-Q9) viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS CLT : Communicative Language Teaching CL : Cooperative Learning ELL : English Language Learning RP : Role-play TTT : Teacher Talking Time STT : Student Talking Time FC : Faculty of Chemistry HaUI : Hanoi University of Industry TQ : Teachers’ Questionnaire SQ : Students’ Questionnaire Q : Question CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION This initial chapter presents the rationale, purpose, scope, significance, research methods and design of the study Above all, it is in this chapter that the research questions are identified to work as clear guidelines for the whole research 1.1 Rationale Nowadays, when Vietnam is on the way to regional and global integration, a demand for training students as competent communicators has been generated for Vietnamese education in general and foreign language education in particular A high proficiency of spoken English becomes not only an academic goal but one of the crucial keys to a guarantee of a successful career However, there exists one problem that teachers and students of English in Vietnam cope with: the target language is mainly used in the classroom and learners have few opportunities to use English in authentic contexts outside the classroom This problem sets a challenging task for teachers of English in Vietnam, that is to design communicative activities which can provide students with “real” contexts for negotiating meaning so that they can develop communicative competence This requires some changes in teaching approach from traditional ones which put emphasis on the production of accurate grammatical sentences into CLT approach which focuses on developing learners‟ communicative competence, i.e the ability to communicate through language In CLT, learner-learner interaction is paid more attention with such classroom tasks as problem solving, decision – making, opinion exchange, picture dictation and jig saw tasks, etc However, if teachers want to make these tasks beneficial and motivating to students, they should take into consideration the following questions raised by Hedge (2002: 263, cited in Rong, R & Lanying, X 2008): Which activities encourage participation from all students and so ensure that they all get practice opportunities? Which activities oblige negotiation of meaning? In order to determine the effectiveness of classroom activities, a search for teachers and students‟ perception of these activities is necessary otherwise students may undervalue the tasks assigned by teachers if there are any differences between their beliefs and teachers‟ ones, which may cause students‟ inactive participation and gradual loss of motivation in learning Considered an integral part of English learning, “communicative task” has been introduced at HaUI but implementing it is not a simple work Proper pedagogical tasks are of significance to the effectiveness of English course here However, little research has been carried out on this topic Hence, there exists a gap which the current study will be aimed at bridging The above reasons have urged the author to conduct a study to gain more insight into the current situation of using classroom activities with a focus on role-play tasks and try to draw some implications for using role-play to improve speaking skills for 1st-year students at the Faculty of Chemistry – Hanoi University of Industry (FC - HaUI) It is hoped that this study will lay a foundation on which subsequent research into this matter is based and developed 1.2 Aims of the study Firstly, this research is carried out in order to investigate the reality of applying role-play activities in teaching speaking skills to 1st-year students at the Faculty of Chemistry – Hanoi University of Industry Additionally, it is planned to explore students and teachers‟ attitude towards role-play activities as well as the difficulties in using these activities in improving speaking skills In brief, the research paper seeks the answers to the following questions: a What is the current situation of using role-play activities to teach speaking to 1st-year students at the Faculty of Chemistry – Hanoi University of Industry? b What are teachers and students’ attitude towards using role-play activities in speaking lessons? c What are the difficulties in using role-play activities to teach speaking skills to 1st-year chemistry majors at HaUI? d What are implications of making role-play activities successful in speaking class of 1styear FC students? 1.3 Scope of the study Within the scope of a graduation paper and due to the limitation of time, the study is confined to the Faculty of Chemistry, Hanoi University of Industry with focus on first-year chemistry majors Moreover, although role-play activities could be used extensively in different contexts and for different purposes, the study is dealing with role-play in developing speaking skills only 1.4 Significance of the study The study is carried out with the intention to provide teachers of English at FC – HaUI with a deeper understanding of using role-play activities in teaching speaking skills In addition, it is hoped that the study will be of great significance in helping teachers find an effective way to increase their students‟ participation in speaking lessons as well as supply them with successful communication outside classrooms 1.5 Methods of the study Questionnaires and interviews will be utilized to collect data for the whole paper A survey is done by delivering a questionnaire to 20 teachers of English and another questionnaire to 120 first-year students at FC- HaUI who are being taught speaking skills under the process-based approach After completing questionnaires, those who are willing to give further response on the issue will be invited to take part in semi-structured interviews All the collected information and data are then analyzed and discussed 1.6 Design of the study The thesis consists of four chapters as follows: Chapter provides a general introduction, including the rationale for the research and its aim, significance, scope, research questions and the design of the thesis Chapter is an attempt to review some theoretical background for the study The two underlying theories: communicative approach and cooperative learning - the background for role-play activities to occur are discussed In addition, the theory of teaching speaking and an overview of role-play activities are also presented Chapter presents the methodology of the study, including the background information of the context where the study is conducted, the subjects, the instruments used to collect data, and the procedures of data collection Furthermore, a detailed description of data analysis is presented; and some explanations and interpretations of the findings of the study are given in this chapter Chapter is the conclusion of the study, providing some pedagogical implications The limitations of the study as well as some suggestions for further research are also discussed in this chapter Summary In this first chapter, the following points have been discussed: (a) The rationale for the study (b) Aims of the study (c) Scope of the study (d) Significance of the study (e) Methods of the study (f) Design of the study These issues have not only justified the major contents and structures of the study but will also work as the guidelines for the rest of the paper CHAPTER II - LITERATURE REVIEW In this chapter, the writer attempts to provide a review of theoretical background of role-play activities 2.1 Communicative Language Teaching & Cooperative Learning 2.1.1 Characteristics of Communicative Language Teaching The communicative approach (Communicative Language Teaching or CLT) emphasizes communication as both the means and the goal of foreign language teaching and learning The communicative approach aims to help students use the target language in a variety of contexts Its primary focus is to help learners create meaning rather than help them develop perfect grammar or acquire native-like pronunciation This means that successfully learning a foreign language is assessed in terms of how learners have developed their communicative competence The communicative approach is usually characterized as a broad approach to teaching rather than as a teaching method As such, it is most often defined as lists of general principles One of the most recognized of these lists is five features of CLT pointed out by Nunan: - An emphasis on learning to communicate through interaction in the target language - The introduction of authentic texts into the learning situation - The provision of opportunities for learners to focus, not only on language, but also on the Learning Management process - An enhancement of the learner’s own personal experiences as important contributing elements to classroom learning - An attempt to link classroom language learning with language activities outside the classroom (David Nunan, 1991) These five principles show that the communicative approach focuses on the needs and desires of their learners Based on these principles of CLT, it can be concluded that any teaching practice that helps students develop their communicative competence in an authentic context is deemed an acceptable and beneficial form of instruction There are various classifications of activities that are typically found in a communicative language classroom, among which role-play is one of the most popular and often used at high frequency Paulston and Bruder (1976), in their book Teaching English as a Second Language: Techniques and Procedures, included role-play in the activity types that they thought were of maximum benefit in enabling students to attain communicative competence 43 This concluding chapter will summarize and evaluate the outcomes of the whole paper by summing up the findings, giving some pedagogical implications, outlining limitations of the research as well as putting forward several suggestions for further studies 4.1 Major findings of the study The paper has served as a thorough study on the current situation of using role-play activities in improving speaking skills of first-year chemistry-majored students at HaUI It also reveals teachers and students‟ attitude towards role-play as well as their difficulties and preference in the application process Based on those findings, pedagogical implications have been suggested for more effective role-play activities Firstly, role-play activities have been used quite widely and frequently at the Faculty of Chemistry, HaUI and both teachers and students have positive attitude towards using role-play activities to improve speaking skills Students also have good comments on teachers‟ work However, there is still a small gap between teachers‟ practice and students‟ expectations in the implementation of role-play activities Secondly, in using role-play activities, teachers and students have their own difficulties Students‟ limited linguistic level is the biggest problem for them to take part in role-play activities successfully whereas teachers consider class size and students‟ various levels two main causes of their difficulty in involving all students in role-play Thirdly, teachers expect for more students‟ participation, their positive response to role-play and the administrators‟ actions to make smaller classes with students of the same level In addition, students expect for more teachers‟ assistance during the activity which may give a helping hand to their limited ability and gradually improve their linguistic competence 4.2 Implications Role-play activities have an important place in the language classroom They stimulate learners to manipulate their foreign-language skills and linguistic knowledge to the full Role- 44 play activities are also user-friendly for the teacher to recycle previously taught information Sometimes RP activity is time consuming, but it is an investment well worth the effort 4.2.1 For teachers In order to make role-play activities effective, teachers should take into consideration the following things: Firstly, a well-planned lesson is always necessary to contribute to the effectiveness of RP activities Teachers should consider the following main issues in their lesson plans when deciding to choose any RP activity: the purpose and organization of the activity, the length of the lesson and students‟ ability level Moreover, preparing materials needed for the lesson and pointing out teaching procedures are also worth considering These preparations will help teachers practice well in class Secondly, when assigning the task, teachers should state the instructions simply and describe specific role or task for each student clearly In addition, instructions should not be too long to avoid confusion for students This will also decrease TTT (teacher talking time) and increase STT (student talking time) The result of the study shows that most teachers group students according to their proximate positions because it‟s time-saving However, where possible, breaking the class into groups according to students‟ ability helps teachers to assign suitable tasks to specific groups, to create more language opportunities for them and produce a secure, anxiety-free climate for learning In addition, due to students‟ low level of English, teachers should give praise to students in any achievement they make and assure them that they can succeed with learning as long as they try their best According to the data from the questionnaire, scaffolding, i.e the teacher helps with necessary language for the activity, is the factor that gives students motivation and confidence to use English in class Therefore, teachers should provide students with linguistic preparation such as vocabulary, structures or patterns that students need to carry out the task In addition, students should be provided with some useful strategies for expressing opinions or ideas and 45 how to ask for clarification and confirmation in order to encourage second language meaning negotiation in group contexts as well as to help them build confidence to communicate in the target language Students should also be taught more about strategic competence such as how to initiate, terminate, maintain, repair and redirect communication as well as the appropriate language to use in certain situations When students have fewer problems with language, they are more likely to take active roles in the class Moreover, interesting topics of acceptable language level are suggested to generate motivation for students to use more English in class When students are working in groups or pairs, teachers should circulate around classroom to ensure that students are on the right track and see whether they need help Staying at their seat and asking for students‟ participation, teachers cannot involve all students into the activity as well as control students‟ use of English Teachers should give corrective feedback on students‟ performance at the end of the task in order to avoid distracting students As the research result indicates, students sometimes receive too much criticism for their speaking task, which makes them discouraged Therefore, teachers should also balance positive and negative evaluation Last but not least, it is advisable for teachers to build a bank of role-play activities as supplementary to particular course books They can also share it with their colleagues, which would solve the shortage of applicable materials for teachers 4.2.2 For administrators To assist teachers in their teaching, administrators are recommended to form smaller classes and place students of the same level into one class These would create more teachers‟ efficiency in their jobs Besides, it is suggested that administrators should frequently organize training courses for teachers to improve their English proficiency, teaching methodology and management skills In these courses, teachers can exchange knowledge and experience with each other 46 Furthermore, teaching conditions and teaching aids should be among administrators‟ support If the classrooms are well-equipped and teachers are supplied with various and interesting teaching materials, students will be more excited to participate in the lessons 4.2.3 For students The most important thing to deal with students is that they should be made aware of the benefits of communicative activities in general and role-play in particular Once they consider studying languages for communication, they will have intrinsic motivation to use the target language instead of mother tongue In addition, students should realize that it is them who should be responsible for their English learning Instead of being passive in the class, they are expected to join all the activities conducted by teachers voluntarily and actively In short, role-play activities themselves cannot work effectively It takes time and requires effort of teachers, administrators as well as students for stable effectiveness to be reached 4.3 Limitations of the study Although the study is carefully and clearly designed and based on reliable data, it has the following major limitations: First, the study only considers the implementation of role-play activities in one particular pedagogical situation – the first-year speaking class If the research were conducted over longer period of time with various intakes, it would give more valuable, reliable and valid data Secondly, the validity of the findings and the reliability of any implications and recommendations would be maximized if the researcher could employ more research instrument like classroom observation Lastly, the study only focused on role-play activities as a single tool to improve students‟ speaking skills whereas there are many other instruments to enhance speaking competence 47 4.4 Suggestions for further research Using communicative activities in teaching speaking still remains a broad area to study Further research should have a deeper insight into the exploitation of others communicative activities to develop speaking skill As for exploiting role-play activities in teaching and learning speaking skills, I would suggest that research on criteria or guidelines, based on which suitable role-play activities can be designed, would be worth considering REFERENCES Breen, M & Candlin, C.N (1980) The essentials of a communicative curriculum in language teaching Applied Linguistics, (1), 89-112 Brown, H D (1994) Principles of language learning and teaching (3rd ed.) Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents 299pp Budden, J (2006) Role Play UK, London: BBC 48 Byrne, D (1986) Teaching Oral English: Longman Handbooks for English Teacher Singapore: Longman Group Cohen, E.G & Benton, J (1988) Making groupwork work American Educator,12, 10-17, 45-46 Crookal, D & R.L (1990) Oxford, Simulation, Gaming and Language Learning New York: Newbury House Doff, A (1988) Teach English: A Training Course for Teachers Trainers’ Handbooks The British Council: Cambridge University Press Inc Garibaldi, A (1979) Affective contributions of cooperative and group goal structures Journal of Educational Psychology, 71, 788-794 Harmer, J (1991) The practice of English language teaching London: Longman Hoang, X H & Nguyen, T T M (2006) Research Methodology Reading Package, Hanoi House, S (1977) An Introduction to Teaching English to Children Richmond Publishing Johnson, D & Johnson, R (1989) Cooperative learning: What special educators need to know The Pointer, 33, 5-10 Johnson, D., Johnson, R & Holubec, E (1994) The new circles of learning: Cooperation in the classroom and school Alexandria, VA: Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development Johnson, D., Johnson, R., & Smith, K (1991) Cooperative Learning: Increasing College Faculty Instructional Productivity, ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report No 4, Washington, DC: The George Washington University Kagan, S (1994) Cooperative Learning San Clemente, California: Kagan Publishing Kagan, S (1995) We can talk: Cooperative learning in the elementary ESL classroom ERIC Digest Reproduction No ED 382 035 Kressler, C (Ed.) (1992) Cooperative language learning: A teacher’s resource book Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents 257pp Ladousse, G P (1987) Role play Oxford: Oxford University Press Ladousse G P (1995) Role Play: Resources Book for the Teacher Series New York: Oxford University Press Larsen- Freeman, D (1986) Techniques & Principles in Language Teaching Oxford: Oxford University Press 49 Littlewood, W (1981) Communicative language teaching: An introduction Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press Lloyd, J.W., Crowley, E.P., Kohler, F.W., & Strain, P.S (1988) Redefining the applied research agenda: Cooperative learning, pre-referral, teacher consultation, and peer-mediated interventions Journal of Learning Disabilities, 21, 43-52 Morrow, K (1977) Techniques of evaluation for a notional syllabus Centre for Applied Language Studies: University of Reading Nunan, D (1991) Communicative Tasks and the Language Curriculum, TESOL Quarterly Vol 25, No 2, pp 279-295 Nunan, D (1998) Research Methods in Language Learning Cambridge: Cambridge University Press Olson, R.E.W-B, & Kagan, S (1992) “About Cooperative Learning” in Kessler, C (Ed.) Oxford Advanced Dictionary Oxford University Press, 1995 Paulston & Bruder (1976) Teaching English as a Second Language: Techniques and Procedure, Winthrop Publishers Rong, R & Lanying, X (2008) On designing group role-play tasks in college English classrooms – A comparative study of students and teachers perceptions Retrieved 18 November, 2010, fromhttp://www.celea.org.cn/teic/78/08070220.pdf Slavin, R.E (1987) "Cooperative Learning: Student Teams" 2nd Ed Washington, DC: National Education Association Slavin, R E (1995) Cooperative learning: Theory, research, and practice (2nd ed.) Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Wright, T (1987) Roles of teachers and learners Oxford: Oxford University Press I APPENDICES Appendix Questionnaire for students My name is Nguyen Thi Thuy Nga and I am doing my master thesis paper on the topic “Using role-play activities in improving speaking skills of first-year chemistry-majored students at Hanoi University of Industry” This questionnaire is aimed at seeking your responses on your attitude towards using role-play to improve speaking skills Your answer would make a great contribution to my work I hereby certificate that all of the information achieved from this questionnaire will be dealt with confidentially and anonymously Thank you very much for your cooperation Please answer the questions below How often you take part in role-play activities in speaking lessons? a Often b Sometimes c Rarely d Never Which language you use in role-play activities? a Using English only b Using more English than Vietnamese c Using more Vietnamese than English d Using Vietnamese only How much role-play activities motivate you to speak English? a Very much b Much c Enough d Little e Not at all What you think are the benefits of using role-play activities in speaking lessons? (You can choose more than one option) a Creating motivation b Improving accuracy c Improving fluency d Promoting learners’ cooperation e Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………………… Indicate the degree of your interest in each kind of role-play activities Please put an “X” in the box that best indicates your opinion Types of role-playing Strongly Dislike Fairly Fairly Like dislike dislike like Strongly like II Role-playing controlled through cued dialogues (each student has cues) Role-playing controlled through cues and information (1 student has cues, student has information) Role-playing controlled through situation and goals (situations and goals are set) Role-playing in the form of debate or discussion (topic for discussion is set) How you like to be chosen to form a pair/group for role-play activities? (You can choose more than one option) a At random b According to proximate seat positions c Of the same ability d Of mixed ability e Other (specify):……………………………………………………………………… Do you want your teacher to prepare you for a role-play activity by…? (You can choose more than one option) a Explaining the purpose of the activity b Providing you with background information on the topic c Pre-teaching necessary vocabularies and structures d Preparing the teaching aids e Other (specify):……………………………………………………………………… Do you want your teacher to monitor the role-play by…? (You can choose more than one option) a Staying at her seat and asking for students’ participation b Appointing a group leader to regulate participation c Going around and helping students with necessary clues d Going round to check students’ performance and keeping them on the right track e Other (specify):……………………………………………………………………… Do you want your teacher to correct your mistakes by…? (You can choose more than one option) a Intervening and providing correction as soon as you make mistakes b Encouraging students’ self-correction c Correcting each student’s mistake III d Correcting common mistakes made by many students without mentioning who made them e Others (Please specify):………………………………………………………………… 10 In the following table please indicate your evaluation of role-play activities that have been introduced in your speaking lessons by putting an “X” in the appropriate box Criteria Very good Somewhat good Not very good Not at all good Suitability for students’ linguistic level Suitability for students’ interests Teachers’ instruction Teachers’ preparation Teachers’ organization Teachers’ giving feedback 11 What difficulties you face in role-play activities? (You can choose more than one option) a Your limited linguistic competence b Your partner’s limited linguistic competence c Lack of motivation d Insufficient help from teachers e Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… 12 What you expect your teacher to for more effective role-play activities? (You can choose more than one option) a Prepare you with necessary vocabularies and background knowledge about the topic b Give clearer instructions c Choose more suitable topics d Offer help during the activity e Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… END OF QUESTIONNAIRE If you are interested in the report of this research, and would like to receive it, would you please leave me your address so I can contact you later: Your name:…………………Your address:……………….Your email:…………………………………… And if you have any questions, not hesitate to contact me on 0904832009 or through my email address: ngathuynguyen.hulis@gmail.com THANKS FOR YOUR COOPERATION! Appendix Questionnaire for teachers My name is Nguyen Thi Thuy Nga and I am doing my master thesis paper on the topic “Using role-play activities in improving speaking skills of first-year chemistry-majored students at Hanoi University of Industry” This questionnaire is aimed at seeking your responses on your attitude towards using role-play to improve speaking skills Your answer IV would make a great contribution to my work I hereby certificate that all of the information achieved from this questionnaire will be dealt with confidentially and anonymously Thank you very much for your cooperation Please answer the questions below How often you use the following kinds of role-play activities in speaking lessons? Types of role-playing always often sometimes rarely never Role-playing controlled through cued dialogues (each student has cues) Role-playing controlled through cues and information (1 student has cues, student has information) Role-playing controlled through situation and goals (situations and goals are set) Role-playing in the form of debate or discussion (topic for discussion is set) How you choose students to form a pair/group/team for role-play activities? (You can choose more than one option) a At random b Of the same ability c According to proximate seat positions d Of mixed ability e Others (please specify):……………………………………………………………… How you instruct your students? (You can choose more than one option) a Give simple and clear instructions orally b Write brief instructions on board c Demonstrate by modeling d Use video or cassette player e Others (please specify):……………………………………………………………… How you monitor the role-play? (You can choose more than one option) a Stay at your seat and ask for students’ participation b Appoint a group leader to regulate participation c Go round and help students with necessary clues d Go round to check students’ performance and keep them on right track e Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… How you encourage students to use English in role-play activities? (You can choose more than one option) V a Pre-teach necessary vocabularies and structures b Set a rule of no Vietnamese during the activity c Provide help in time d Set appropriate goal for the activity e Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… When you give students correction? (You can choose more than one option) a Right after they make mistakes b After one student’s turn c At the end of the activity d Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… How you correct your students’ mistakes? (You can choose more than one option) a Encourage students’ self-correction b Use peer correction c Provide your own correction for all mistakes d Provide your own correction for serious mistakes only Do you think your students enjoy role-play activities? a Yes Why? b No Why not? Do you think role-play activities have been conducted effectively in your speaking class? a Yes Why? b No Why not? 10 What difficulties you encounter in conducting a role-play activity? (You can choose more than one option) a Choosing suitable activities b Managing the class c Giving instructions d Getting all students involved e Encouraging students to use English in class f Giving feedback g Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… 11 What you expect for more effective role-play activities? (You can choose more than one option) a Smaller class size b Placement of students in groups of similar proficiency c Diverse sources of teaching materials d More students’ participation e Others (please specify):………………………………………………………………… END OF QUESTIONNAIRE VI If you are interested in the report of this research, and would like to receive it, would you please leave me your address so I can contact you later: Your name:………… Your address:………………………Your email:……………………… And if you have any questions, not hesitate to contact me on 0904832009 or through my email address:ngathuynguyen.hulis@gmail.com THANKS FOR YOUR COOPERATION! Appendix INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR STUDENTS What you think are the benefits of using role-play activities in speaking lessons? Why? What kinds of role-play activities you like? Why? How you like to be chosen to form a pair/group for role-play activities? Why? How you want your teacher to prepare you for a role-play activity? Why? VII How you want your teacher to monitor the role-play? Why? How you want your teacher to correct your mistakes? Why? What difficulties you face in role-play activities? Why? What you expect your teacher to for successful role-play activities? Why? Appendix INTERVIEW QUESTIONS FOR TEACHERS How you instruct your students? Why? How you monitor the role-play? Why? How you encourage students to use English in role-play activities? Why? When you give students correction? Why? How you correct your students’ mistakes? Why? Do you think your students enjoy role-play activities? Why or Why not? VIII Do you think role-play activities have been conducted effectively in your speaking class? Why or Why not? What difficulties you encounter in conducting a role-play activity? Why? What you expect for more successful role-play activities? Why? ... have different choices Kinds of role-play activities Role-playing controlled through cued dialogues Number of students Strongly dislike Dislike Fairly dislike Fairly like Like Strongly like 7... church hall Student C: Role: Mr David Hicks, headmaster of the local primary school You are anxious for the pupils at your school to play a role in helping the aged Student D: Role: Mrs Dorothy Foster,... time-saving out of 20 teachers paired or grouped students at random Only teacher chose students of the same ability and teachers chose students of mixed ability to form groups The most obvious reason for