THANH HOA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HOANG HOA HIGH SCHOOL EXPERIENTAL INITIATIVE MAKING FULL USE OF THE APPLICATION OF PROJECT BASED LEARNING IN TEACHING SPEAKING SKILL, ENGLISH TEXT BOOKS, EDUCATION PUBLISHING HOUSE Author: Dang Thi Hoai Thu Position: Teacher Subject: English THANH HOA, 2019 TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents Page I- INTRODUCTION…………………………………………… 1 Rationale…………………………………………………… Aims of the study…………………………………………… Objects of the study………………………………………… Methods of the study………………………………………… II- CONTENTS OF THE STUDY…………………………… Theoretical background………………………………… Practical background…………………………………… Applying PBL in teaching English …………………… Results of applying method…………………………… 15 III- CONCLUSION…………………………………………… 18 Reference books Appendix 1: PROJECT TEAM WORK PLAN Appendix 2: GUIDELINES FOR POSTER LAYOUT Appendix 3: GUIDELINES FOR ORAL PRESENTATION Appendix 4: CHECK LISTS FOR POSTER Appendix 5: ASSESSMENT FOR GROUPWORK SKILL Appendix 6: TEACHER AND PEER’S ASSESSMENT Appendix 7: VIDEOS OF GROUPWORK LIST OF RECOGNIZED EXPERENTIAL INITIATIVES I- INTRODUCTION Rationale Today the demand for English to study, research, work and live in the domestic and international conditions is increasing in both quantity and quality Especially, in the context of rapid and deep integration as today, the need becomes even more urgent for not only individuals but also the whole nation The needs of teaching and learning foreign languages require a comprehensive change in all levels of education, disciplines, materials, facilities, methods and motivational attitudes of all participants in the process of teaching and learning foreign languages, in English Facing such demands, the Ministry of Education and Training has implemented the project of foreign language 2020 according to Decision No 1400 / QĐTTg (Decision of Prime Minister) dated 30 September 2008 The project has set the overall goal of "comprehensive reform of teaching and learning foreign languages in the national education system" By 2020 most Vietnamese young people will be able to use their competence of foreign language confidently in communication, learning to work in an environment of integration, multi-lingual, multicultural; Foreign languages become the strength of Vietnamese people, serving the industrialization and modernization of the country." To achieve that goal, the Ministry of Education has implemented a number of specific measures, including changing textbooks as one of the solutions to help teaching and learning foreign languages have many positive changes The new English book 11 is one of the pilot materials in some high schools nationwide In the book, the difference from the old one is the Project section at the end of each unit To better understand the methodology of project-based teaching, as well as to maximize the effects it brings, I forcefully chose and applied Project based learning (PBL) in teaching many units in English textbook, Education Publishing House, with the aim of enabling my students to “experience what they are learning about and the opportunity to relect on those activities” (Silberman, 2007:8), since “learning is the process whereby knowledge is created through transformation of experience” (Kolb, 1984) In what follows I shall concentrate on “Making full use of the application of PBL in teaching speaking skill in English textbooks, Education Publishing House”, but many of the points apply to other languages, too Aims of the study This paper endeavors to demonstrate the value of PBL in ELT in general and English teaching in particular Therefore, my theme focuses on making clear about some issues below: - What is PBL? - Why is PBL? - How is PBL applied? Objects of the study This study was conducted in Thanh Hoa province, Vietnam It has 3,496,000 inhabitants (GSOV, 2014) In this province, the predominant native language is Vietnamese However, English is currently the most used language in the world (Michel, 2014) in different fields such as science, technology and education This is the reason why there are many bilingual schools and schools that teach ESL in Thanh Hoa province Here, there are a total of 798 high schools: 89.6 % public schools and 10.4 % private schools (GSOV, 2012) This study was carried out at a public high school that teaches ESL: Hoang Hoa high school, Thanh Hoa province The participants were 11 th grade students In total, 100 students took part in this study, all of them have fulfilled English text book 10 in the previous school year Methods of the study My study is conducted by qualitative methods in order to collect a number of information, compare, and then, analyse data By using the combination of these methods, my theme will make clear the questions in this topic, and reach effectively the targets of the essay II- CONTENTS OF THE STUDY Theoretical background According to Wikipedia, Project-based learning (PBL) is a studentcentered pedagogy that involves a dynamic classroom approach in which students acquire a deeper knowledge through active exploration of real-world challenges and problems.[1] Students learn about a subject by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to a complex question, challenge, or problem.[2] It is a style of active learning and inquiry-based learning The experience of thousands of teachers across all grade levels and subject areas, backed by research, confirms that PBL is an effective and enjoyable way to learn - and develop deeper learning competencies required for success in college, career, and civic life Why are so many educators around the world interested in this teaching method? The answer is a combination of timeless reasons and recent developments • PBL makes school more engaging for students Today’s students, more than ever, often find school to be boring and meaningless In PBL, students are active, not passive; a project engages their hearts and minds, and provides real-world relevance for learning • PBL improves learning After completing a project, students understand content more deeply, remember what they learn and retain it longer than is often the case with traditional instruction Because of this, students who gain content knowledge with PBL are better able to apply what they know and can to new situations • PBL builds success skills for college, career, and life In the 21st century workplace and in college, success requires more than basic knowledge and skills In a project, students learn how to take initiative and responsibility, build their confidence, solve problems, work in teams, communicate ideas, and manage themselves more effectively • PBL helps address standards The Common Core and other present-day standards emphasize real-world application of knowledge and skills, and the development of success skills such as critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration, communication in a variety of media, and speaking and presentation skills PBL is an effective way to meet these goals • PBL provides opportunities for students to use technology Students are familiar with and enjoy using a variety of tech tools that are a perfect fit with PBL With technology, teachers and students can not only find resources and information and create products, but also collaborate more effectively, and connect with experts, partners, and audiences around the world • PBL makes teaching more enjoyable and rewarding Projects allow teachers to work more closely with active, engaged students doing highquality, meaningful work, and in many cases to rediscover the joy of learning alongside their students • PBL connects students and schools with communities and the real world Projects provide students with empowering opportunities to make a difference, by solving real problems and addressing real issues Students learn how to interact with adults and organizations, are exposed to workplaces and adult jobs, and can develop career interests Parents and community members can be involved in projects Practical background It is a matter of fact that TIENG ANH 11 is the second of a three-level English language set of textbooks for the Vietnamese upper secondary school It follows the systematic, cyclinical and the theme-based curriculum approved by the Ministry of Education and Training on the 23 rd November 2012 The aim of this set of textbooks is to develop students’listening, speaking, reading and writing skill with a focus on communicative competence so that when finishing upper secondary school, they will have achieved level three of the Foregn Language Proficiency Framework for Viet Nam (Equivalent to B1 in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) GETTING STARTED contains a menu listing and the skills taught in the unit, a conversation introducing the overall topic of the unit, some topic-related vocabulary and the main grammar points, a number of activities to check’s students’ comprehension and provide practice of the teaching points in this section LANGUAGE includes Vocabulary, Pronunciation as well as Grammar Vocabulary give in- depth practice of the words and phrases presented in GETTING STARTED and additional vocabulary for use later in the unit Pronunciation include aspects of pronunciation that can be problematic to Vietnamese students such as sound clusters, weak form, stress patterns and intonation Grammar introduce and practice the main grammar points in focus They are presented in meaningful contexts and follow the thre- stage approach to language teaching SKILLS includes Reading, Speaking, Listening and Writing Reading contain a topic- related reading text developed to suit students’ interest and age The vocabulary and grammar points learnt in the previous sections are recycled in the reading text The text also provide an imput of language and ideas for students to use in the Speaking, Listening and Writing sub- sections that follow Speaking includes three or four activities which are designed and sequenced in a way that ensures an uninterrupt link between them Listening consists of four or five activities which aim to develop listening skills such as listening for general ideas and/ or litening for specific tinformation Writing guide students through the writing process and focus on the specific text types rewuired by the syllabus COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE includes sub - sections Communication provide language consolidation and free practice of intergrated skills This section recycles what students have learnt in the previous sections and introduces extra vocabulary for extension The activities are less controlled Students are encouraged to express their ideas and opinions freely Culture providing information about the ASEAN countries and English speaking countries around the world connected to the cultural aspects of the unit topic It helps students to broaden their knowledge of the world cultures as well as deepen that of their own Vietnamese culture LOOKING BACK offers revision and consolidation of the language learnt in the unit PROJECT is aimed at providing students with an opportunity to apply the language and skills they have learnt throughout the unit to perform a task in real – life situation Students are aked to survey or carry our research to get information about their friends, their neighbourhood or to broaden their knowledge about the real world The project activities often involve teamwork which develops team spirit Much of the work for the Project can be done outside of class, at home or during break time It goes without saying that many teachers have been trying hard to find suitable teaching methods and, to a certain extent, these methods can fulfil the aim of helping students understand and know thoroughly the contents of the lessons Nonetheless, how will the class be if these methods are applied in all the lessons? Will the students find it interesting to learn whereas they can find the exact answers for the tasks in many reference books? Will the completing tasks in the text book help students learn how to take initiative and responsibility, build their confidence, solve problems, work in teams, communicate ideas, and manage themselves more effectively? Will the students have chance to build important skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, collaboration, communication in a variety of media, and speaking as well as presentation skill? More important, will the students be connected with comunities and the real world while studying in textbook only? PBL bearing many good points as mentioned above can bring to a new change in teaching process I therefore forcedly implemented PBL in teaching many units, of which Unit 9, English text book 11, Education Publishing House brought my students as well as my teaching much joyful experience and core value Applying PBL in teaching Speaking skill in English text books, Education Publishing House The process of PBL can be varied, depending on the real situation in terms of students’ ability and the content of each unit By my experience in learning and teaching English, instead of teaching lessons in each units; that means teaching Reading, Speaking, Listening, Writing skills and language focus in turns traditionally, I have forcefully and successfully applied PBL in teaching speaking skill, English text books, Education Publishing House in the following stages Sample English 11, Unit 9: CITIES OF THE FUTURE, P 57 (Volume 2) Project: CITIES OF THE FUTURE Work in groups of four to six Discuss and decide on your own ideal city of the future You can expand the ideas you braned stormed in the COMMUNICATION section Include the following points: - The city’s name - Geographical features: location, area, population, weather conditions - Infrastructure: means of transport, environmental conditions, energy souces, treatment of waster - People’s life and work: education, health care, working hours Take notes of your group’s ideas and think about how to organize them Then design a poster to promote your ideal city Add some pictures to illustrate it Introduce your poster to the class Present the features of your city and explain what makes it the most liveable city in the world Time: days 3.1 Stage 1: Discovering real situation related to the content of the lesson Many students find schoolwork meaningless because they not perceive “a need to know” what they are being taught They are unmotivated when told they will need it later in life or simply because “it’s going to be on the test” With a compelling student project, the reason for learning relevant material becomes clear: I need to know this to meet the challenge I have accepted In this stage, as a classroom teacher, I could powerfully activate my students’ need to know content by launching a unit in a way that engages interest and inititates questioning This could take the form of a lively discussion Also, in this stage, I gave out many driving questions to my students Good driving questions capture the heart of the project in clear, compelling language, giving students a sense of purpose and challenge The question should be provocative, open-ended, complex, and linked to the core value of what you want students to learn It could be abstract (What are features of a liveable city?/ to what extent you think a liveable city should be?); concrete (Is the city you are living in a liveable one?); or focused on solving a problem (How can we change the attitude of the people to make a liveable city?) 3.2 Stage 2: Negotiating the Criteria for Evaluation I and my students decided that the projects should be assessed by fullfiling the questions in rubrics including self assessment rubric, peer assessment rubric and teacher assessment rubric (See Appendix 6) and checklist (See Appendix 4) Once the criteria were clearly defined, the students realized that they might have to be modified in the future 3.3 Stage 3: Deploying projects - Dividing groups (Students assessed peer’s work) (Teacher evaluated, commented, and gave marks) Results of applying PBL in teaching speaking skill, English text book 11, Education publishing house In order to assess the effectiveness of applying this method to teaching unit 9, I have compared my work within many classes (11 A1, 11A7, 11 A3, 11A10 school year 2017-2018) 16 At the beginning of the school- year, before I apply PBL approachin teaching, I tested attitude of 100 students from classes: 11 A1, 11A7, 11 A3, 11A10 (in which there were many good students in 11A1 and 11A10) The statistics was shown as follows: Before the application of PBL Number of Percentage students makes school more engaging for students improves learning provides opportunities for students to use technology connects students and schools with communities and the real world 40 40 % 11 11 % 20 20 % 5% 10 10 % helps address standards (skills such as critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration, communication in a variety of media, and speaking and presentation skills After a year of applying PBL, the result is better: After the application of PBL Number Percentage of Compared with a year ago students makes school more engaging for students improves learning provides opportunities for students to use technology connects students and schools with 95 95 % increase 55 % 83 83 % increase 72 % 65 65 % increase 45 % 90 90 % increase 85 % 17 communities and the real world helps address standards (skills such as critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration, communication in a variety of 95 95 % increase 85 % media, and speaking and presentation skills The result means that the implementation and solutions used in the school year 2017-2018 have brought good effect on students’ learning attitude Before using this method, most of my students could traditionally complete all the tasks in the text book, with the help of their teacher However, they easily forgot the vocabularies, the topic as well as the contents of the unit To a certain extent, after each lesson, students seemed to know the floating part in an “ice berg”, not really understand the deeply sinked part in the unit, in other words, it is the core value of the lesson (class without appying PBL ) 18 It is a matter of fact that when applying applying PBL in teaching in general and teaching speaking skill in particular, my students enjoyed working together to creat their groups’ outcomes, they seemed to be very eager for each unit because they like dealing new challenges Here, I enclosed video clips recording my students’ presentation ( Please, watch video source in the CD enclosed) (Class with PBL application) Here, I felt the sense that schoolwork is more meaningful when it is not done only for the teacher or the test When students presented their work to real audience, they cared more about its quality Once again, it is the more, the better when it comes to authenticity and even more important than any other things, all the students could find out the core value of their projects; that is: “To make a city liveable and sustainable, it is our responsibility” Additionally, all the students in my class also had the chance to express their wish in the name of the cities such as: “SPEL CITY” (Group 2); “SINGAPORE CITY” (Group 3); “HAPPY CITY” (Group 4); “PARADISE CITY” (Group 1); “DREAM CITY’ (Group 5); “SMART CITY” (Group 6); “NATURE CITY” (Group 7) III- CONCLUSION Conclusion 19 Teaching method is a product connecting theory and practice in order to help students acquire knowledge, practice their skills and solve the problems Changing teaching method, according to me, firstly is changing the phylosophy of teaching By the end of the lesson, students can find out the core value of the problem and apply them in to their real life Besides, changes is also shown as the role of the teacher from the provider into a consultant; students will fulfil the demand of knowledge themselves It is clearly that in my class, with PBL, each unit indeed is appealling to students because they are solving their realproblem in their life When students practice decision making and deductive reasoning and are exposed to examples from real life, they are able to expand their skills, evaluate their options, and think critically The activities in this section help students visualize how events actually unfold by having students conduct research, discuss and write about the material, collect or draw illustrations, and reflect on their work Students learn from each other by analyzing and synthesizing material, reinforcing main points, and moving information from short- to long-term memory Most importantly, students content- basedly talk and write for a purpose, because their work is often presented in front of their peers I myself find it is relaxing to be a facilitator, an adviser, a coach, a co-learner instead of being a translator and a leader, for all the activities in the classroom PBL is a dynamic approach to teaching in which students explore realworld problems and challenges With this type of active and engaged learning, students are insprired to obtain a deeper knowledge of the subjects they’re studying When designing or planning projects the work or task is meaningful if it fulfills two criteria First, students must perceive the work as personally meaningful, as a task that they want to well Second, a meaningful project fulfills an educational purpose Suggestion 20 Basing on practical teaching English text book 10, 11, 12 Education Publishing House, I suggest that there should be no multiple choice questions in examinations in order to assess the real ability of students and to avoid students’ laziness This is my little experience in finding methods to help students find learning is acquiring actively by themselves I hope that you will use these hands-on, interactive strategies to motivate and engage your students, and to foster an environment that makes learning fun I hope to receive your reading and comments as well as contribution to make this theme more perfect so that it can be applied widely Thanks for your reading! THE CONFIRMATION OF Thanh Hoa, May 26 th 2019 THE HEAD MASTER I hearby assure this is my experience initiative, without copying the contents of other people Author Đặng Thị Hoài Thu 21 REFERENCES Bibliography: Kolb, D A (1984) Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall Silberman, M (2007) The Handbook of Experiental Learning San Fransisco: Pfeiffer Webliography: Project-Based Learning, Edutopia, March 14, 2016 Retrieved 2016-0315 What is PBL? Buck Institute for Education Retrieved 2016-03-15 http://www.unesco.org/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/INSTITUTES/UIL/con fintea/pdf/press/confinteavi_statement_delors_en.pdf https://youtu.be/iRQBMa63UUw APPENDIX 1: PROJECT TEAM WORK PLAN Project name Team members Product: What need to be Who will this done? part? Due: By when? Where? APPENDIX 2: GUIDELINES FOR POSTER LAYOUT Your PROJECT POSTER may follow the layout below (or may creat your own layout) Location (pictures) Waste processing centres (pictures) NAME OF PROJECT:………… Weather condition (pictures) CITY (symbol/ name) Environmental conditions (pictures) Education & Healthcare (pictures) Means of transport (pictures) SLOGAN:………………………… APPENDIX 3: GUIDELINES ORAL PRESENTATION GROUPFOR MEMBERS: 1………………………………… Name of the project:…………………………… 2……………………………… 3………………………………… Names of the Group Members: I- INTRODUCTION Group members Introducing name of project Reasons for choosing this aspect of city II- CONTENTS Topic Supporting ideas proofs III- CONCLUSION IV- QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS APPENDIX 4: CHECK LISTS FOR POSTER MARKING CRITERIA YES(V)/ NO(X) NAME OF THE Have you chosen one of aspects of PROJECT city? Have you had a group leader? Have your leader assign tasks to the members? Have you searched the information PREPARATION from magazines, newspapers, the Internet, and liberies? Have you taken your own photos of the city? Have you complied, evaluated, and synthesized the relevant information? Have you discuss an aspects of city in terms of: Location? DISCUSSION OF Weather condition? THE ASPECTS Environmental conditions? Means of transport? RELATED TO Education & health care? WOMEN Energy saving? Waste processing centres? Have you found some pictures/ photos to illustrate the aspects of ILLUSTRATION women in terms of: Location? Weather condition? Environmental conditions? Means of transport? Education & health care? Energy saving? Waste processing centres? Have you had a clear, beautiful and understandable illustration of each COMMENTS aspects? Have you made a poster including DESIGN the following: Title of project Name of group Main contents with each aspects Have you presented your contents in a logical and understandable way? APPENDIX 5: ASSESSMENT FOR GROUPWORK SKILL Group:…………………………………………………… Class:…………………………………………………… Skills Discussing What we did Our group discussed the same content, each member proved their Deciding own answer We made dicision Voting together We voted for each Agreeing decision We agreed with this Listening voting We listened to each Sharing ideas members We shared ideas Working together We worked in group together Concentrating We concentrated on Solving our task We solved our groups’ Always Sometimes Never problem Encouraging problem We encouraged one Proving another We proved our answer by concrete supporting ideas APPENDIX 6: TEACHER AND PEER’S ASSESSMENT Group: ……………………………………………… Criteria Mark Teacher’s Peer’ s assessment assessment Content of the project Form of the project Presentation Fully research The content is 10 fully illustrated on the project Fullfil the question in the lesson Real connection 10 MARK 30 The lay out is clear and reasonable The letter are easy to read Pictures, graphics are beautiful, attractive Writing Error MARK 20 Confident, flexible, 10 attractive Group has cooperation in presentation time Group know the content 10 well Presentation is smooth Time is not over mins Clarify the problem Attractive Presentation go with poster MARK TOTAL MARK 5 5 50 100 Clasification: D: under 50 marks B 70-80 marks C: 50-60 marks A: 80-100 marks LIST OF RECOGNIZED EXPERENTIAL INITIATIVES Full name: Dang Thi Hoai Thu Position: Teacher School: Hoang Hoa high school TT Tên đề tài SKKN Số, ngày, Cấp đánh giá tháng, xếp loại năm (Phòng, Sở, Kết đánh Năm học đánh giá xếp loại “Dùng tranh vẽ để dạy nói cho học sinh lớp 10” “Đổi cách kiểm tra miệng tiết dạy tiếng Anh” “Applying mind maps in reading lessons from unit định công nhận, quan ban hành QĐ Số 59/QĐSGD& ĐT, ngày 24/2/2006 Số 539/QĐSGD &ĐT, ngày 18/10/2011 Số 753/ QĐ-SGD& ĐT, ngày 03/11/2014 to unit 16 – English Tỉnh ) giá xếp loại (A, B, C) Tỉnh B 2004-2005 Tỉnh C 2010-2011 Tỉnh B 2013-2014 Tỉnh B 2015-2016 text book 104 publishing house” “Applying project based learning in teaching unit 15, English text book 12, Education Publishing House Số 972/ QĐ-SGD& ĐT, ngày 24/11/2016 ... 1984) In what follows I shall concentrate on Making full use of the application of PBL in teaching speaking skill in English textbooks, Education Publishing House , but many of the points apply... applied PBL in teaching speaking skill, English text books, Education Publishing House in the following stages Sample English 11, Unit 9: CITIES OF THE FUTURE, P 57 (Volume 2) Project: CITIES OF THE. .. marks) Results of applying PBL in teaching speaking skill, English text book 11, Education publishing house In order to assess the effectiveness of applying this method to teaching unit 9, I have