VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -  - TRẦN THỊ PHƯƠNG NGA INTEGRATING DISCUSSIONS ON CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS INTO SPEAKING ACTIVITIES TO INCREASE STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN ENGLISH LESONS: AN ACTION RESEARCH AT THE INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS AND TECHNOLOGY COLLEGE (Lồng ghép việc thảo luận chủ đề gây tranh cãi vào hoạt động nói để tăng cường tham gia học sinh học Tiếng Anh: Một nghiên cứu hành động trường CĐ Công Nghệ Kinh Tế Công Nghiệp) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Ha Noi, 2014 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES -  - TRẦN THỊ PHƯƠNG NGA INTEGRATING DISCUSSIONS ON CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS INTO SPEAKING ACTIVITIES TO INCREASE STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN ENGLISH LESONS: AN ACTION RESEARCH AT THE INDUSTRIAL ECONOMICS AND TECHNOLOGY COLLEGE (Lồng ghép việc thảo luận chủ đề gây tranh cãi vào hoạt động nói để tăng cường tham gia học sinh học Tiếng Anh: Một nghiên cứu hành động trường CĐ Công Nghệ Kinh Tế Công Nghiệp) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology Code: 60140111 Supervisor: Assoc Prof, Dr Le Hung Tien Ha Noi, 2014 DECLARATION I hereby state that I TrầnThịPhươngNga, being an M.A candidate of the Faculty of Postgraduate Studies, ULIS, VNU, certify my authorship of the study entitled ―Integrating discussions on controversial topics into speaking activities to increase students’ participation in English lessons – an action research at the Industrial Economics and Technology College (IETC)‖ The thesis is the study of my own research and the substance of the thesis has not, wholly or partially, been submitted for a degree to any other universities or institutions Ha Noi, August 2014 TrầnThịPhươngNga i ACKOWLEDGEMENTS To complete the task, I have received a great deal of useful and practical support from many people First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor Mr LêHùngTiếnfor his scholarly knowledge, wholehearted supervision, insightful invaluable guidance and constructive critical feedback He has inspired and encouraged me during the steps of the thesis Also, my special thanks are sent to my colleagues and my beloved second-year students in two classes, K6A-KT and K6A-KTD at the Industrial Economics and Technology College for their participation in as well as their strong support for the research with comments, useful materials and classroom observation opportunities without which my work would have not been completed Last but not least, I would like to convey my heartfelt thanks to my family and all of my close friends for their love, care, encouragement and financial as well as spiritual support for me to fulfill this thesis Ha Noi, August 2014 TrầnThịPhươngNga ii ABSTRACT Students at the Industrial Economics and Technology College (IETC) often neglect themselves from speaking activities for a number of factors including inadequate vocabulary, incorrect pronunciation and insufficient confidence Controversial topics are proved to encourage students to think critically and speak actively Therefore, the author of the study decided to conduct an action research to integrate discussions on controversial topics into speaking activities The action research was carried out among 47 second-year students of Accounting and Electrical Technique classes with the aims of increasing students‘ participation and changing their attitude towards speaking The research was conducted through seven steps with data collected from observation, pre and post intervention questionnaires, interviews and students‘ reports The result of the study shows that total amount of participation increased significantly; students participate more voluntarily and confidently Moreover, their attitudes towards speaking changed when they expressed their willingness, interest and agreement on the benefits of controversial topics iii LIST OF TABLES Table 1: Participants‘ description Table 2: Total supporting ideas for each topic LIST OF CHARTS Chart 1: Frequency of participation in class K6A-KT Chart 2: Frequency of participation in class K6A-KTD Chart 3: Level of volunteer to speak in class K6A-KT Chart 4: Level of volunteer to speak in class K6A-KTD Chart 5: Degree of participation before intervention Chart 6: Degree of participation in class K8A-KT during the intervention Chart 7: Degree of participation in class K8A-KTD during the intervention Chart 8:The frequency of ideas per person in class K8A-KT Chart 9:The number of ideas per person in class K8A-KTD Chart 10: The benefits of controversial topics Chart 11: Level of confidence after the intervention Chart 12: Students‘ feeling about controversial topics iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Declaration i Acknowledgements ii Abstract iii List of tables and charts iv Table of contents v PART A: INTRODUCTION 1 Rationale for the study Aims of the study Research questions Scope of the study Methods of the study Significance of the study 6.1 Theoretical significance of the study 6.2 Practical significance of the study Design of the study PART B: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 Teaching Speaking Skills: 1.1.1 Definition of speaking 1.1.2 Components of speaking skill 1.1.3 Characteristics of a successful speaking activity 1.2 Action research v 1.2.1 Definition of action research 1.2.2 The stages of an action research 1.3 Discussion 10 1.3.1 Definitions of discussion 10 1.3.2 Purposes of classroom discussions 11 1.3.3 How to have a good classroom discussion 11 1.4 Controversial topics 12 1.4.1 Definition of controversial topics 12 1.4.2 Definition of discussion on controversial topics 13 1.4.3 Controversy, conflict and debate 13 1.4.4 Advantages of using controversial topics 14 1.4.5 How to deal with controversial topics 15 1.5 Definition of classroom participation 16 1.6 Related studies 16 CHAPTER 2: METHODOLOGY 19 2.1 Setting of the study 19 2.1.1 The teaching and learning condition 19 2.1.2 Description of material used 20 2.1.3 The teachers 20 2.1.4 The students 20 2.2 The participants 21 2.3 Action research procedures 21 2.3.1 Initiation 22 2.3.2 Preliminary investigation 23 2.3.3 Review of research questions 23 vi 2.3.4 Intervention 24 2.3.5 Evaluation 26 2.3.6 Dissemination 26 2.3.7 Follow-up 26 2.4 Data collection instruments 26 2.4.1 Classroom observation 26 2.4.2 Questionnaire 27 2.4.3 Interview 27 2.4.4 Students‘ reports 27 2.5 Procedure of data collection 28 CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSIONS 29 3.1 Research question 29 3.2 Research question 32 3.3 Research question 37 PART C: CONCLUSION 41 Summary of findings 41 Concluding remarks 42 Limitations of the study 42 Recommendations 42 REFERENCES 44 APPENDICES I vii PART A : INTRODUCTION Rationale of the study: It is of no suspicion that English has become an international language for decades It has been considered a means of international communication and the most common instrument to interlink countries worldwide This results in an increasing demand of learning English as a foreign language To learn English communicatively, listening and speaking skills should take a predominant position However, in most primary, lower secondary and upper-secondary schools in Vietnam, English learning limits itself at grammar introduction and writing but neglects the importance of listening and speaking skills, especially speaking Therefore, students learn English passively; they keep silence, listen, take notes and hesitate to express their ideas orally Because students learn and are taught in a passive way, they can hardly express their own viewpoints due to lack of vocabulary, poor pronunciation and inadequate confidence At IETC, most students are at considerably average and low levels They rarely take part in classroom activities except for being urged to give their own words Hence, speaking lessons not work well because only some are willing to take part in oral activities while most of the others keep silent or are incapable of expressing their own opinions They are not interested enough to involve in speaking activities This results from both sides teachers and learners The teachers introduce a new language in a traditional method which focuses mainly on grammar and writing During speaking lessons, it has been found out that students, for some reasons, lack confidence to speak or even neglect classroom activities A preliminary investigation shows that normally the students spend only 20 to 40 percent of their time participating into classroom activities and a similar number remain silence unless they are asked to speak The most frequently found problem in learning speaking skill is the influence of their native language Other obstacles are the lack of motivation, vocabulary, enjoyment to practice the foreign language Of these obstacles, motivation seems to be a leading factor helping increase the number of participation among students Once they have a given motivation, they will be ready to speak The author of this research has considered the problem and does believe that one of the main discouraging factors is that they are not given the right topic which can activate their classes and in all skill lessons (not only speaking ones) at the same time so that we can have a broader and more general conclusion on the effectiveness of controversial topics Moreover, the researcher has carried out an action research To reach a higher reliability, the researcher wishes to have a chance to carry out an experimental research to investigate the application and effectiveness of controversial topic discussions in other classes by other teachers at IETC Finally, the researcher wishes to have agreement of the Head Master on the opening of an English- speaking club where students have more opportunities to discuss controversial topics outside classroom to improve their speaking skill and to increase their confidence 43 REFERENCES Brown, H D (1994) Principles of language learning and teaching 3rd edition Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall Regents Burn, A & Joyce H (1997), Focus on Teaching, National Centre for English Language Teaching and Research Bygates, M (1987) Speaking Language Teaching- A Scheme for Teacher Education.Oxford University Press Fallahi, C R & Haney, J.D (2007) Using Debate In Helping Students Discuss Controversial Topics Central Connecticut State University Farrel, T S C (2007) Action Research in Reflective Language Teaching: From Research to Practice Michigan University Continuum Press Fowler, C.A & Thompson, J.M (2010) Listeners’ perception of “compensatory shortening.” Attention, Perception & Psychophysics Harwood, Angela M.H & Carole L (1990) Controversial Issues in the classroom Heyman, J.E & Sailors, J.J (2011) Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education Hymes, D (1972) Models of the interaction of language and social life Johnson D W & Johnson, R T (2009) Energizing Learning - The Instructional Power of Conflict Educational Researchers Minesota University Johnson, D.W & Johnson, R.T (2009) Creating Effective Peace Education Programs University of Minesota Johnson, D.W, Johnson R.T., & Smith, K J (Jan–Feb 2000) The educative power of intellectual conflict Change - Constructive controversy Kennedy, R (2007) In-Class Debates- Fertile Ground for Active Learning and the Cultivation of Critical Thinking and Oral Communication Skills Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania Klippel, F (1985) Communicative fluency activities for language teaching - Keep Talking Cambridge University Press 44 Kunzman, R (1994) Dealing with Morally Controversial issues in the classroom State University of New York Press Larson, B E and Keiper, T A (2002) Classroom Discussion: Learning in two arenasContemporary Issues in technology and Teacher Education Western Washing University Larson, B.E (1997) A method of instruction and a curriculum outcome - Classroom Discussion Western Washing University Larson, B E (1999) Influences of Social Study- Teachers Use of Classroom Discussion Western Washing University Lewin, K (1946) Action Research and Minority Problems- A Journal of the Society for the Psychological study of Social Issues Volume McCully, A.W & Barton , K.C (2007) Teaching History Teaching Controversial Issues where controversial issues really matter Nunan, D (2001) Action Research and Professional Growth Cambridge University Press Nunan, D (2001) Research Methods in Language Learning Cambridge University Press Petress, K (2006) An Operation Definition of Class Participation Richards, J C (2006) Communicative Language Teaching Today Cambridge University Press Richards J.C & Roger T.S (2001) Approaches and Methods in Language Teaching, Cambridge University Press Wallace (1998) Action Research For Language Teachers.Cambridge Teacher Training and Development Cambridge University Press Wassermann, S (2010) Effective Classroom Discusions Volume 67 Number 45 Unpublished thesis: Binh, D.T.T (2010) Using stimulating activities to improve 10th form students’ English speaking skills Unpublished M.A Thesis English Methodology, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi Duong, D.V.T (2011) Using debate topics to increase students’ participation in speaking classes at national Economic Technical College Unpublished M.A Thesis English Methodology, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi Ha, N.T.M (2010) Enhancing third-year non-English major students’ participation in speaking lessons through collaborative activities at Hanoi University of Business and Technology Unpublished M.A Thesis Linguistics, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi Hieu (2009) conducted an action research on enhancing students’ motivation to speak English in the class through discussion of real-life issues Unpublished M.A Thesis English Methodology, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi Hoa, N.T (2011) The exploitation of authentic tasks in speaking classes for English non-major refreshment at Hanoi University of Industry Unpublished M.A Thesis English Methodology, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi Le, T B T (2006) An Action Research on the Application of Cooperative Learning to Teaching Speaking to the Second-year Students at the Department of English, Gia Lai Tearchers' Training College Unpublished M.A Thesis English Methodology, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi Lien, D.Q (2012) Teaching speaking skills through problem-solving activities to secondyear non-English major students at Hanoi University of Business and Technology Unpublished M.A Thesis English Methodology, College of Foreign Languages, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Hanoi 46 APPENDIX 1: PRE-TASK QUESTIONNAIRE Do you like learning English? Yes Is English difficult? Normal No No Difficult Very difficult What is the most difficulty when you learn English? Pronunciation Vocabulary Grammar Reading Writing Listening Speaking How often you take part in classroom activities? Never Very rarely Rarely Sometimes Usually How many percent of time on-task you often contribute to an English lesson? 0-20% 20-40% 40-60% 60-80% 80-100% When your teacher raises a speaking activity, you: Do not speak Speak if the teacher calls Volunteer to speak In your opinion, which factor discourages you from speaking? - Poor pronunciation - - Poor grammar Unintersting speaking topics - classmates - Incorrect pronunciation When your teacher asks you to speak, you want to: I Silence from other Work individually Discuss in group In your opinion, how are the topics that your teacher should choose: - Close to real life - Wide - Funny - Controversial ( 2sides – agree or disagree) - Non-controversial (always true or always false) - Concerning history and politics 10 Which topics you like best: ( Arrange the topics in order from 1-10 is the topic you like best, 10 is the topics you like least) - Plastic surgery Good or bad? - A nice girl is not a good girl - Talk about a person you like most - Parks in Ha Noi - Food and drink - Love is more important than money - Teenagers are becoming more and more violent - Men can more than women - Towards the East Sea - Special occasions II APPENDIX POST-TASK QUESTIONNAIRE – YOUR FEELING ABOUT CLASSROOM SPEAKING ACTIVITIES– Do you enjoy participating in classroom activities? Yes No In your opinion, are speaking topics that the teacher gave interesting? Yes No How many percent of time on-task you often contribute to an English lesson? 0-20% 20-40% 40-60% 60-80% 80-100% When your teacher raises a speaking activity, you: Do not speak Speak if the teacher calls Volunteer to speak How you feel about the controversial topics that the teacher gave you? Uninteresting Normal Interesting Very interesting Do you feel excited while discussing and speaking? Unexcited Normal Excited Very excited Do you feel more confident about your speaking ability after this course? No Slightly more confident Confident Very confident During your group discussion, how you feel about other members in your group? They are neglected They discuss together They talk about personal issues III In your opinion, are the controversial topics that the teacher gave you beneficial? Yes No 10 If the answer in Q.9 is Yes Tell me why: They help brainstorm They help practice speaking They help improve group work skill They help increase participation Other reasons: ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… …………………………………………………………………… Thanks for your cooperation! IV APPENDIX WORK-GROUP OBSERVATION SHEET Students’ on-task (Adapted from Wallace 2001:117) Students’ distribution of participation (one-minute sweep) A B C D E F 10 Students’ nature of participation (Adapted from Wallace 2001:117) Categories: A B C = initiation = response – simple agreement = response – agreement and development D E F = response – simple disagreement = response – disagreement and V development = structuring move (e.g Why don’t we discuss…?) Students’ off-task (Adapted from Hopkins 1993:105) A Talking not related to task assigned Doodling Daydreaming Wandering around Working at other tasks/ subjects Physically bothering other students Attempting to draw attention Other VI B C D E F APPENDIX Speaking Communicative observation form (adapted to Elli, 2003) Name of lesson:………………………………………………………………… Date:………………………………………………………………………………… Observer:…………………………………………………………………………… Performance Learner is active to use English while solving problems Learner enjoys doing activities Learner is self-confident to make conversations between their friends Learner provides ideas in classroom Learner asks some questions about the task Learner tried to interact during the task Learner uses sentences while using language The speed of learner‘s speed seems to be slightly affected by language problems Learner uses appropriate vocabulary to make conversations VII 10 Learner pronounces clear pronunciation ( For teacher) Performance Students 4 10 11 12 13 VIII 10 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 (For group secretaries) IX APPENDIX Interview Questions for students (Before the intervention) How important is the speaking skill to you? Do you like your speaking lessons you are having? Why? Why not? What you think about English speaking activities given by your teacher now? What are the reasons for the difficulties you are facing in speaking class? X APPENDIX Interview Questions for students (After the intervention) Do you feel interested in speaking activities? Do you feel more confident? What you think are the benefits of controversial topics to speaking lessons? How you feel about the class atmosphere during the discussions? XI ... ECONOMICS AND TECHNOLOGY COLLEGE (Lồng ghép việc thảo luận chủ đề gây tranh cãi vào hoạt động nói để tăng cường tham gia học sinh học Tiếng Anh: Một nghiên cứu hành động trường CĐ Công Nghệ Kinh... at the Industrial Economics and Technology College for their participation in as well as their strong support for the research with comments, useful materials and classroom observation opportunities... as a noun to refer to a dispute, argument or debate which concerns a matter in which there is a strong disagreement Controversies unlike most disputes are usually carried by the press or public