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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background and rationale
The use of English has been gradually increasing in Vietnam. Also, it has a stable ground in
the Vietnamese education system. English is introduced to the educational curriculum from
primary education (optional) to tertiary education (compulsory). Like many other universities,
teachers and students at V! "ere affected by the traditional philosophy of teaching and
learning. They "ere sub#ect to many influences of !onfucianism as "ell as by $rench and
%oviet education that focused on academic study of grammar and in&depth kno"ledge of
literary te'ts. As a result, many students lack the ability to communicate in oral English after
graduation from the university. This fact gives rise to the need of a more effective method that
creates opportunities for the learners, the sub#ect and the centre of the teaching and learning
process to bring full play their intelligence and creativeness.
ver the past fe" years, the application of the !ommunicative Language Teaching method
has been "idely adopted. This marked the beginning of a ma#or change in the language
teaching and learning at V!. And students speaking skill as "ell as communicative ability
has been improved remarkably.
V! $aculty of English has been ne"ly established for t"o years. Almost all of the teachers "ere
trained about !LT approach at the niversity and they fully understood the important role of
speaking ability among students. Therefore, they made all their effort to apply many kinds of
activities in speaking lesson to encourage students to engage in speaking activities in classroom.
As a teacher of the $aculty of English at Vietnam niversity of !ommerce, from her o"n
observations and e'perience, the present researcher has noticed that there are many speaking
activities in the speaking lesson of *st+ year students, but group "ork + key features of learner
+ centered orientation + have received more emphasis. The researcher as "ell as other teachers
at the niversity "as "ell a"are of the importance of using group "ork to energie the
speaking lesson of the first&year students. -evertheless, both teachers and students have faced
a lot of challenges in implementing and managing group "ork during speaking lessons. $or
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instance, the organiation of group "ork is noisy, teachers sometimes lose control of the class
or students tend to s"itch to use their mother tongue "hen not under the teachers eyes and so
on. oreover, the teachers procedure in organiing group "ork in speaking lesson "as notvery effective.
The above mentioned situation has urged the researcher to conduct a study to investigate
teachers group "ork organiation procedure, teachers strategies to foster students English
use and teachers and students difficulties / implementing group "ork, the researcher of this
study has decided to carry out a research into How group work is used in speaking lesson of
the 1st-year major students of English at Vietnam University of Commerce!This study is
intended to make a modest contribution to an increased understanding of using group "ork inthe speaking lesson at V!.
1.2. Ai! o" t#e !tud$
The purpose of this study is to e'plore the reality of the use of group "ork in the speaking
lesson of *st& year English ma#or students of English at V! "here the researcher is serving.
ore specifically, this study attempts to clarify the procedures of organiing group "ork
activity in the speaking lesson of *st&year ma#or students and to identify strategies used by
teachers to stimulate students use of English in group "ork and the factors bringing about
difficulties for the teachers and students in their application of group "ork. Another aim is to
find out teachers solutions to the difficulties. ne additional aim is to compare teachers
practice "ith students e'pectation. 0asing on the findings, the research further seeks to
suggest practical recommendations for the possibility of group "ork in the speaking lesson of
*st&year ma#or students at V!.
1.%. T#e re!earc# &ue!tion!
1n order to achieve the set goals, the research seeks to ans"er the follo"ing research
2uestions3
1! "hat procedures do teachers follow in organi#ing group work during speaking lessons
for the 1styear major students at University of Commerce$
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%! "hat strategies do teachers use to stimulate and foster English language use &y the 1st
year major students at University of Commerce in group work$
'! "hat hinders teachers at (aculty of English of the University of Commerce inimplementing group work$
)! "hat hinders the 1st-year major students at University of Commerce in participating in
group work$
1.'. (co)e o" t#e !tud$
Though group "ork is applied in any of the four macro&skills, the present researcher has
chosen to focus on speaking skill for the fact that mastering speaking is so central to language
learning that "hen "e refer to speaking a language, "e often mean kno"ing a language(4arimmkhanlui, 5667). Among four language skills, namely listening, speaking, reading and
"riting, group "ork is used the most fre2uently in the speaking lesson. Therefore, this
research tends to investigate the use of group "ork activity in the speaking lesson. Also, due to
the time constraints, this study only involves a small number of V! teachers and English&
ma#or students in their first academic year.
1.*. Bene"it! o" t#e re!earc#
The research is hoped to be valuable to both teachers and students of $aculty of English at
V!. $irstly, this study has been able to contribute to teachers kno"ledge of !LT approach
in general and group "ork activity in particular. %econdly, from the findings of this study,
teachers of English at V! can be provided "ith important kno"ledge and information "hich
may be very valuable for their future lesson planning. ltimately, the teachers transformation
in group "ork implementation "ill be beneficial to the students.
1.+. Organi,ation o" t#e !tud$
There are five chapters to the thesis. !hapter ne presents some background to the research
2uestions pursued in the study. 1n chapter T"o, the literature on !ommunicative language
teaching approach, the relation bet"een !LT and teaching speaking and group "ork in
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teaching speaking are revie"ed. !hapter Three describes the methodology used in the research
study. The findings of the procedures in organiing group "ork, strategies to foster and
stimulate English language use in group "ork, difficulties teachers e'perienced "henimplementing group "ork and difficulties students e'perienced "hen "orking in group
suggested by the participants of the study are reported and discussed in chapter $our. Then,
!hapter $ive voices some suggestions for improving effectiveness of group "ork in speaking
lesson and proposes areas for further research in the future. $inally, chapter %i' discusses
conclusions that can be dra"n from the study.
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CHAPTER 2: -ITERATURE REIE/
This study investigates the process of group "ork implementation in speaking lesson. 1t aimsat finding out ho" group "ork is organied in speaking lesson of *st year students at
niversity of !ommerce. 1t also aims to find out the strategies that teachers use to motivate
and foster students use of English in group "ork. The study also aims to find out the
difficulties that teachers and students encounter "hile implementing group "ork. This chapter
revie"s the literature on some concepts, characteristics as "ell as teachers roles in
communicative language teaching. 1n addition, the relation bet"een !LT and teaching
speaking skill is also addressed in this chapter. And definitions, benefits of group "ork, and
the implementation of group "ork in speaking lesson are mentioned at the end of the chapter.
2.1. Counicati0e -anguage Teac#ing C-T
2.1.1. (oe conce)t! o" C-T
The arrival of !ommunicative Language Teaching "as in the late *876s and its origins "ere
found in the changes in the 0ritish language teaching tradition. !ommunicative Language
Teaching (!LT) marks the beginning of a ma#or innovation "ithin language teaching for its
"idely accepted principles. !LT is no" regarded as an approach "hich aims to makecommunicative competence the goal of language teaching and to develop procedures for the
teaching of four language skills that ackno"ledge the interdependence of language and
communication (9ymes, *8:5).
9ymess theory of communicative competence "as a definition of "hat a speaker needs to
kno" in order to be communicatively competent in a speech community. 1n 9ymess vie", a
person "ho ac2uires communicative competence ac2uires both kno"ledge and ability for
language use "ith respect to3
& "hether (and to "hat degree) something is formally possible
& "hether (and to "hat degree) something is feasible in virtue of the means of
implementation available
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& "hether (and to "hat degree) something is appropriate (ade2uate, happy,
successful) in relation to a conte't in "hich it is used and evaluated
& "hether (and to "hat degree) something is in fact done, actually performed, and"hat its doing entails
According to ;ichards and ;odgers (*8
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& Efforts to make tasks and language relevant to a target group of learners through an
analysis of genuine, realistic situations
& The use of authentic, from&life materials
& The use of group activities
& The attempt to create a secure, non&threatening atmosphere
!ommunication competence is the goal of !LT, therefore a focus on communicative function
may be considered to be the most typical characteristics of !LT.
2.2. Teac#ing !)eaking !kill in C-T
2.2.1. Teac#ing !)eaking !kill.
%peaking skill plays a significant role in teaching and learning a foreign language. 1t not only
helps students kno" ho" to read, to "rite and to listen but also kno" ho" to communicate
"ith English speaking people. 1t is undeniable that the speaking ability is a good source of
motivation for most students. any students e2uate being able to speak a language to kno"ing
the language. Therefore, they vie" learning the language as learning ho" to speak the
language. According to -unan (*88*), success is measured in terms of the ability to carry out
a conversation in the target language.
Additionally, in the speaking class, if the right activities are taught in the right "ay, speaking
can be a lot of fun, raising general learner motivation and making the English language
classroom a nice and dynamic place to be.
2.2.2. T$)e! o" cla!!roo !)eaking )er"orance
0ro"n (*88?35:*&5:?) proposes si' categories applied to the kinds of oral production that
students are e'pected to carry out in the classroom3
& Imitative: takes a very limited portion of classroom speaking time "hen learners are
practicing an intonation contour or trying to pinpoint a certain vo"el sound, etc.
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&Intensive:includes any speaking performance that is designed to practice some phonological
or grammatical aspect of language.
& Responsive:is short replies to teachers or student initiated 2uestions or comments. These
replies are usually sufficient and do not e'tend into dialogues.
& Transactional (dialogue):is carried out for the purpose of conveying or e'changing specific
information. !onversations, for instance, may have more of a negotiative nature to them than
merely responsive speech. %uch conversations could readily be part of group "ork activity.
& Interpersonal (dialogue): carries out more for the purpose of maintaining social
relationships than for the transmission of facts and information. These conversations are alittle trickier for learners because they can involve some or all the follo"ing factors3 a casual
register, collo2uial language, emotionally changed language, and slang, etc.
& Extensive (monologue):students at intermediate or advanced levels are called on to give
e'tended monologues in the form of oral reports, summaries, or perhaps short speeches. 9ere
the register is more formal and deliberative.
These above si' categories of 0ro"n are highly valuable in offering a guide in "orking out the
types of classroom speaking performance. The teachers should consider these points "hen
teaching speaking skill.
2.2.%. ()eaking acti0itie!
any researchers discuss classroom activities and a lot of activities are designed based on the
theory and characteristics of !LT.
;ichards and ;odgers (*8
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to focus on completing tasks that are mediated through language or involve negotiation of
information and information sharing.
$rom the theory on speaking activities above, teachers should kno" ho" to adopt appropriate
speaking activities "hich can help learners develop speaking skill. roup "ork is one of the
main "ays that the teacher can help students practice "hat they have learnt, find "ays to
achieve communicative ob#ectives.
2.%. 3rou) 4ork in !)eaking le!!on
2.%.1. De"inition o" grou) 4ork
There are some definitions discussing about group "ork3
Boff (*8
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different opinions. They feel more e2ual to participate in group "ork and free to e'periment
and use the language. (0ro"n,566*).
According to 0ro"n (566*), there are four typical benefits of group "ork3
2.3.2.1. Group wor generates interactive language
The teacher talk is really dominant for a long time in so&called traditional language classes.
The teacher lecture, e'plain grammar points, conducts drills and spend a little time for "hole&
class discussions in "hich each student might have a fe" seconds of class period to talk. Dith
traditional methods, the teacher tends to be the only person "ho initiates language in an
artificial setting and the "hole&class becomes a =group interlocutor>. Thanks to group "ork,students opportunities for language practice as "ell as interaction are increased. 1n other
"ords, students have more chances to speak English in the classroom.
2.3.2.2. Group wor o!!ers a positive a!!ective climate
The second important benefit offered by group "ork is to make learners feel secure "hen
speaking on public. 1t is a nightmare for many students, especially the shy ones "hen being
called to speak in front of the class and the teacher. Their mind becomes completely empty
and even they cannot say a "ord. -evertheless, a small group of peers provides a relatively
intimate setting and a more supportive environment in "hich they "ill find it much easier to
share their points of vie" in a natural "ay.
2.3.2.3. Group wor promotes learners" responsi#ilit$ and autonom$
The "hole&class activities often give students a lot of time to rela' even in a small class of
fifteen to t"enty students. 0ut "hen they participate in group "ork "hich places responsibility
for action and progress upon each of the members of the group e2ually, it is difficult for them
to =hide> in a small group. 1n addition, group "ork allo"s students to make their o"n
decisions in the group "ithout being told "hat to do by the teacher.
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2.3.2.%. Group wor is a step toward individuali&ing instruction
Each student in a classroom has different language needs and ability. Therefore, the teachers
have some difficulties in managing the class "ith students at different levels of language. 0ut
small groups can help students "ith varying abilities to accomplish individual goals. 1n
addition to variability in specific language abilities, another kind of individual difference
among students are their age, se', attitude, motivation, aptitude, personality, interests and
language learning e'perience "hich can also be solved by group "ork. Dhen organiing the
class, the teacher can recognie and capitalie upon these differences by careful selection of
small groups and by administering different tasks to different groups.
2.%.%. T#e i)leentation o" grou) 4ork in t#e cla!!roo
According to 0ro"n (566*), if group "ork is not carefully planned, "ell e'ecuted, monitored
thoroughly and follo"ed up on in some "ays, it can go "rong. The follo"ing are practical
steps suggested by him to take to carry out successful group "ork in the classroom.
2.%.%.1. T#e !election o" a))ro)riate grou) tec#ni&ue!
The first step in promoting successful group "ork is to select an appropriate task. Typical
group tasks are defined and briefly characteried by 0ro"n (566*) as follo"s3
2.3.3.1.1. Game.
A game could be any activities that formalie a techni2ue into units that can be score in some
"ay. uessing games are common language classroom activities. $or e'ample, t"enty
2uestions are easy adapted to a small group. ne member secretly decides that he or she is
some famous person the rest of the group has to find out "ho, "ithin t"enty yesF no
2uestions, "ith each member of the group taking turns asking 2uestions. The person "ho is
=it> rotates around the group and points are scored.
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2.3.3.1.2. Role'pla$ and simulations
Role'pla$minimally involves giving a role to one or more members of a group and assigning
an ob#ective or purpose that participants must accomplish. A group role&play might involve a
discussion of a political issue, "ith each person assigned to represent a particular political
point of vie".
imulations usually involve a more comple' structure and often larger groups (of t"o or
t"enty) "here the entire group is "orking through an imaginary situation as a social unit, the
ob#ect of "hich is to solve some specific problem.
2.3.3.1.3. rama
Brama is a more formalied form of role&play and simulation, "ith a pre&planned story line
and script. %ometimes small groups may prepare their o"n short dramatiation of some event,
"riting the script and rehearsing the scene as a group. 0ut they are time consuming and rarely
can form part of a typical school curriculum.
2.3.3.1.%. *ro+ects
ainly for young learners "ho can greatly benefit from hands&on approaches to language,
certain pro#ects can be re"arding indeed. $or e'ample, the teacher choose a topic on
environment, various small groups could each be doing different things3 roup A creates an
environmental bulletin board for the rest of the school group 0 develops fact sheets group !
make a three dimensional display group B puts out a ne"sletter for the rest of the school
group E develop a skit, and so on.
2.3.3.1.,. Interview
A popular activity for pair "ork, but also suitable for group "ork, intervie"s are useful at all
level of proficiency.
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2.3.3.1.-. rainstorming
0rainstorming is often put to e'cellent use in preparing students to discuss a comple' issue. 1t
is a techni2ue "hose purpose is to initiate some sort of thinking process. 0rainstorming
involves students in a rapid&fire, free&association listing of concepts or ideas or facts or
feelings relevant to some topic or conte't.
2.3.3.1./. In!ormation gap
This techni2ue is one of the easiest and most interesting forms of communicative activity in
the speaking lesson. 1nformation&gap activities include a tremendous variety of techni2ues in
"hich the ob#ectives is to convey or to re2uest information. The t"o main characteristics ofinformation&gap techni2ues are their primary attention to information and not to language
forms and the necessity of communicative interaction in order to reach the ob#ective. The
information that students must seek can range from very simple to comple'.
2.3.3.1.0. *ro#lem solving and decision maing
Groblem&solving is also popular in speaking lesson of ma#or students. Groblem& solving group
techni2ues focus on the groups solution of a specified problem. The problem might be
relatively simple (such as giving directions on a map), moderately comple' (such as "orking
out an itinerary from train, plane, and bus schedules), or 2uite comple' (such as solving a
mystery in a =crime story> or dealing "ith a political or moral dilemma).
Becision&making techni2ues are simply one kind of problem&solving "here the ultimate goal
is for students to make a decision.
2.3.3.1.. pinion excange
pinion e'change is a difficult techni2ue for students to deal "ith at the beginning levels of
proficiency, but by the intermediate level, certain techni2ues can effectively include the
e'change of various opinions. %ometimes, opinions are appropriate sometimes they are not.
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1n opinion e'changes, the teacher must assure all students in the class that, "hile there may be
disagreement on issues, all opinions are to be valued, not scorned, and respected, not ridiculed.
2.%.%.2. 3rou) 4ork )lanning
There are some reasons for the breakdo"n of group "ork, but the most salient one is an
inade2uate introduction and lead&in to the task. According to 0ro"n (566*), after "e have
selected an appropriate type of activity, our group "ork planning should include the follo"ing
seven rules for implementing a group techni2ue3
2.3.3.2.1. Introducing te tecni4ue
According to 0ro"n (566*), the introduction of the techni2ue may simply be a brief
e'planation but it can decide the success of group "orks results. The introduction should
al"ays include a statement of the ultimate purpose so that students can apply all other
directions to that ob#ective.
2.3.3.2.2. 5usti!$ing te use o! small groups !or te tecni4ue.
As "e said before, many students are reluctant to participate in group "ork, they do not
understand "hy group "ork is used for this task. Therefore, in cases of necessity, the teacher
should tell them e'plicitly "hy the small group is important for accomplishing the task. At the
same time, the teacher should remind them that they "ill get an opportunity to practice certain
language forms or functions, and that if they are not "illing to speak up in front of the "hole
class, no" it is their chance to do so in the security of a small group.
2.3.3.2.3. 6odeling te tecni4ue
1t may not necessary to model simple techni2ues or the techni2ues that students have done
before. 0ut for a ne" and comple' task, it is very useful to make sure students kno" "hat they
are supposed to do.
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2.3.3.2.%. Giving explicit detailed instructions
Dhen students have understood the purpose of the task and ho" their discussion might
proceed, teacher should give them specific instructions on "hat they are to do. They include3 a
restatement of the purpose, rules they are to follo", a time frame (time needed to complete the
task), assignment of roles to students (if necessary).
2.3.3.2.,. ividing te class into groups
There are many "ays to divide the class into groups. 1f "e "ant to ensure participation and
control, "e can pre&assign groups in order to account for one or t"o of the follo"ing3
proficiency levels age or gender differences personality types cognitive preferencesinterests prior learning e'perience target language goals.
2.3.3.2.-. 7ecing !or clari!ication
0efore students start moving into their groups, the teacher should check "hether students all
understand their assignment by asking some of them to restate the purpose of this activity.
2.%.%.% T#e teac#er5! role in grou) 4ork
After completing the first t"o steps, the teacher plays the role of facilitator and resource. The
teacher should be "illing to be a helper or a guide "ho al"ays lets students kno" she "ill be
available for help and can make some suggestions to keep them on task. Dhen the time for
group discussion is going to be over, it is very important to circulate even the teacher has
nothing to say to a group, the teacher can listen to students and get a sense of the groups
progress and of individuals language production. (0ro"n, 566*)
According to 0ro"n (566*), the teacher should not do the follo"ing3
& Bont sit at your desk and grade papers
& Bont leave the room and take a break
& Bont spend an undue amount of time "ith one group at the e'pense of others
& Bont correct students errors unless asked to do so
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& Bont assume a dominating or disruptive role "hile monitoring groups
2.%.%.'. De6rie"ing
Bebriefing is the "ay that the teacher and students sit together to give comments on the task
they have done. 1t is an e'cellent time to encourage some "hole&class feedback "hich
provides motivation for further group "ork and is useful for the teachers ne't group "ork
assignment.
1n conclusion, group "ork is one of the techni2ues that is no" popularly applied to language
teaching and learning, especially, to speaking skill learning for its many advantages. Het, the
teacher also need to a"are of some dra"backs that may arise in the process. bviously, the
success of group "ork activity depends much on ho" "ell tasks are designed and ho" "ell
the teacher prepares students for the tasks. Therefore, it is essentially prepare "hat students
need. Buring the application of group "ork in speaking lesson, the teacher should "ork as an
organier, controller, as "ell as participant to help students learn better.
2.'. Pre0iou! re!earc# into grou) 4ork
2.'.1. A )roduct a))roac#
The use of group "ork in speaking lesson is not a totally ne" area to researchers. The
effectiveness of group "ork in language teaching and learning "as investigated by some post&
graduate students at 9anoi -ational niversity and other researchers.
A number of studies have found that group "ork helps develop students speaking ability and
increase the effectiveness of a speaking lesson. 9uong (5667) found that "hen applying group
"ork activities in speaking lesson, ma#ority of the students are interested in discussion.
Through group "ork, students have opportunities to help each other as "ell as e'change
e'perience to find a good "ay to improve on their o"n communication problems. 0ac (566@)
reports that the use of group "ork had good effect on students participation, for instance,
student&initiated interactions increased and contributions by students "ho "ere shy increased.
Bonough (566?) also reports clear positive effects that small group activities had on
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improvement of production of the target forms. Long, Adams, cLean, and !astanos (*8:7
cited in Long and Gorter, *8
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instructions), monitoring (listening to the pairsF groups during the activity and guiding F giving
supportF making notes) and "inding do"n (bring the activity to a close and providing
feedback).
9uong (5667) also took process of implementing pairs and group "ork in English speaking
lesson into account. The results did sho" that the success of communicative pairs and group
"ork activities is often determined by the "ork the teacher does before the students begins the
activities itself. ;ob Datkins (566@) suggested that the effectiveness of group "ork depends
on the types of motivation the teacher use in the class and the "ay they design group "ork
activity.
These studies have touched upon a domain "hich has been much concerned lately3 the
implementation process of group "ork. 9o"ever, these studies have focused on the process of
group "ork implementation in speaking lesson of non&ma#or English students. A research into
this area for English ma#ors is necessary in order to find out a better description and provide a
deep understanding of group "ork implementation process in different teaching and learning
conte'ts.
2.'.%. (uar$
1n summary, all of the studies mentioned above only considered the use of group "ork in
language teaching of English non&ma#or students. Additionally, the current body of research
mainly focuses on the product of group "ork implementation. Therefore, the researcher "ants
to investigate the use of group "ork in teaching speaking of English ma#or students "ith a
focus on the process of group "ork organiation in hope of finding information "hich is
necessary for teachers and students to improve their practice.
2.'.'. Re!earc# &ue!tion!
The present study is inspired by !LT theory and past research paradigm on group "ork use in
speaking lesson. 1t aims to e'amine the procedures in organiing group "ork and shed the
light on the areas that previous researches has not considered ade2uately. 1t also aims to find
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out any strategies that teachers use to encourage students to increase the English language use
"hen carrying out a speaking task in groups. And difficulties that both teachers and students
face in implementing group "ork "ere also addressed in this study. %pecifically, the studyaims to ans"er the follo"ing research 2uestions3
*. Dhat procedures do teachers follo" in organiing group "ork during speaking lessons
for the *styear students at niversity of !ommerceI
5. Dhat strategies do teachers use to stimulate and foster English language use by the *st
year students at niversity of !ommerce in group "orkI
C. Dhat hinders teachers at $aculty of English of the niversity of !ommerce in
implementing group "orkI?. Dhat hinders the *styear students at niversity of !ommerce in conducting group
"orkI
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CHAPTER %: 7ETHODO-O38
This chapter gives a thorough description of ho" the research "as carried out. The first part isthe description of the research conte't. The second part looks at the sample and sampling
procedure. The ne't part concerns the research methods used in the study. ;esearch materials
are addressed in the forth part. The data collection procedure is follo"ed and the data analysis
is in the last part. The details are going to be presented as follo"s.
%.1. Re!earc# conte9t
The study "as conducted at Vietnam niversity of !ommerce. The $aculty of English at
niversity of !ommerce "as ne"ly established t"o years ago "ith more than ?@6 English
ma#or students. 1n the past, it "as called the English Bivision "hich trained only English non&
ma#or students for other faculties of the niversity. There are no" t"o main streams at V!3
English non&ma#or classes and English ma#or classes. All students of the former are re2uired
to complete si' semesters of English as part of their general education re2uirements. 1n the
first three semesters, students finish the eneral English program, "hich accounts for :
credits. The remaining semesters are reserved for the E%G program "ith a total number of 7
credits. They follo" a curriculum "hich focuses mainly on developing reading and "riting
skills. The students of English ma#or classes use a curriculum "hich lays great emphasis on
four skills including listening, speaking, reading and "riting and other sub#ects related to
English theoretical linguistics. The total time allocation and the training curriculum for these
t"o streams are obviously different.
The current teaching material for speaking skill in 7 classes of the first&year English ma#or
students is =%peaking 1> collected by the t"o teachers "ho deliver speaking lessons and it is
covered "ithin one semester "ith C credits. There are about @6 students in each class of "hich
:@J comes from the countryside. 9o"ever, their English speaking ability is 2uite good and
homogeneous.
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%.2. (a)le and !a)ling )rocedure
At the moment, the number of teachers "ho teach English speaking skill for the first&year
students is 7. The number of the first&year English ma#or students is estimated at more than
C66. They come from various parts of the country. Their levels of English proficiency differ,
ranging from pre&intermediate, intermediate to advanced level. otivation in these classes is
generally high, most of the students have a strong sense of deriving or clear purposes for
studying English since it is their main and specialied sub#ect "hich helps much in their future
#ob. -evertheless, the results of a recent study carried out by the present researcher sho" the
English ma#or students have a lot of difficulties in learning the four language skills, of "hich
speaking seems to be the most difficult. 9ence, it is very important that the staff at the $aculty
of English of V! find out effective "ays and strategies to help these students overcome all
of their difficulties in speaking classes.
$ive female teachers and one male teacher of the Linguistic Gractice Bivision of the $aculty
of English at V! "ere selected to take part in the study. They "ere selected as a convenient
sample. The teacher participants age ranged from 5C to C< years old. T"o teachers have more
than five years e'perience in teaching and the other four have teaching e'perience ranging
from * to @ years. Three teachers are post&graduates, one is pursuing the post&graduate degree
and t"o are graduates. All of the teachers have e'perience "ith group "ork activity "hen they
"ere students. The group of sub#ects for the student 2uestionnaire included
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randomly from the 2uestionnaire sample as intervie"ees to gain information about their
e'pected procedure in organiing group "ork as "ell as their difficulties "hen "orking in
group "ork. They aged from *< to 56 years old and had been studying English for at leastthree years.
%.% Re!earc# et#od!
-o"adays, it is increasingly common for researchers to report the study on both 2uantitative
and 2ualitative findings, especially, in studies on English as %econd Language (E%L) (Adams,
$u#ii and ackey, 566@). Thus, in consideration of the researchs purposes, this study "as
done in the light of both 2ualitative and 2uantitative research in "hich the data is collected by
means of 2uestionnaires, classroom observations and intervie"s of both teachers and students.
%urvey 2uestionnaire is one of the most effective instruments for collecting data in social
science. Advantages of using 2uestionnaires that illham (5666) highlights are3 less pressure
on respondents, not under pressure of bias, and analysis of ans"ers is straightfor"ard.
!lassroom observation is a useful "ay to investigate e'ternal factors in L5 learning. Through
classroom observations, researchers can capture a "holistic picture of the natural setting. And
classroom observations are often used to supplement data obtained from intervie"s and2uestionnaires. (Adams, $u#ii and ackey, 566@). Like 2uestionnaire, intervie"s can allo"
researchers to investigate cognitive processes such as a"areness or constructs such as
perceptions or attitudes that are not directly observable.
The purpose of using 2uestionnaire, classroom observations and intervie"s as research
materials to collect data in this study is to triangulate the data and to overcome the limitations
or dra"backs of other methods because one can "ell support another "hich helps strengthen
the research findings.
%.'. Re!earc# aterial!
%.'.1. ue!tionnaire!
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The study employs t"o 2uestionnaires, one for teachers and the other for students.
The 2uestionnaire for teachers, adapted from ueller (*88:), "ritten in English consisting of
*6 2uestions "as delivered to 7 teachers "ho "ere teaching English speaking skill for the * st&
year students at V!. The 2uestionnaire "as used to e'plore information about their attitudes
to"ards group "ork use and their procedures in organiing group "ork during speaking lesson
as "ell as the difficulties they have e'perienced "hen applying group "ork in speaking class.
The survey 2uestionnaire administered to *66 students including < 2uestions "ith an aim to
get information about students opinion on and students desires in leaning speaking skill
through group "ork and difficulties students have e'perienced "hen "orking in group.
%.'.2. Inter0ie4!
Another research tool employed in this study "as semi&structured intervie"ing schedules. The
follo"&up intervie"s "ith teachers and students "ere carried out (7 items for the teachers and
7 items for students) to get more information about the procedures used in organiing group
"ork in speaking lesson and difficulties they cope "ith. These 2uestions "ere open enough to
allo" the intervie"ees to comfortably e'press their thoughts, feelings, or opinions. 0eforeofficially carrying out the intervie"s, the intervie" 2uestions "ere piloted "ith one teacher
and three students to identify the potential problems.
%.*. Data collection )rocedure
1n the first phase, 2uestionnaires "ere administered to *66 V! English ma#or freshmen at
the end of the first semester of the academic year 566
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ease and at a time they suggested. The intervie"s "ere all tape&recorded to free the
intervie"er to participate naturally in the discussion and to allo" the content to be revie"ed
carefully. 1n addition, in order to capture the comple'ities of the respondents individualperceptions and e'perience, the ten intervie"s "ere conducted in Vietnamese. At the
beginning of each intervie", the students "ere e'plained clearly, e'plicitly and
unambiguously about the nature of the study. Buring the intervie", the researcher modified
the 2uestions and procedures according to the sub#ects responses. The length of each
intervie" "as from *6 to *@ minutes.
0eside survey 2uestionnaires and intervie"s, classroom observations "ere also carried out to
collect more information about the e'act procedures occurring in the real classes as "ell as
difficulties the teachers coped "ith in practice. Each observation consisted of t"o steps3 before
the lesson and during the lesson. 1n before&the&lessons step, the researcher met the teacher to
kno" herF his aims in teaching the lesson, to read hisF her lesson plan. 1n the during&the&lesson
step, the researcher observed and took note the students activities and participation "hen
"orking in group and the teachers steps of group "ork implementation during speaking
lesson.
%.+. Data anal$!i!
The data of the study "as analysed both 2uantitatively and 2ualitatively. As for 2uantitative
analysis, "e used descriptive statistics to 2uantify the data in form of charts and figures. The
2ualitative data "ere revie"ed carefully and repeatedly to identify patterns and information
that helps to e'plain the 2uantitative findings. And at last, a comparison bet"een the teachers
present procedures used in organiing group "ork in the speaking lesson and the students
desires "hen "orking in group "as addressed.
1n short, the chapter has described in details the research conte't, sample and sampling
procedure, the research methods, the research materials and data collection procedures used in
this study. a#or findings "ill be presented and discussed in chapter four.
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CHAPTER ': ;INDIN3( AND DI(CU((ION
This chapter is consisted of t"o sections of findings and discussion. 1t sho"s an attempt to
ans"er the four research 2uestions posed at the beginning of the study.
'.1. 3rou) 4ork organi,ation )rocedure
%.1.1. Te organi&ation procedure o! group wor tat teacers o!ten used in speaing
lesson
0%
50%
100%
150%steps teachers followed in organizing group work
8igure 1: teps teacers !ollowed in organi&ing group wor
The data in $igure * sho"s clearly that, *66 J of the teachers chose the same 7 steps3 select
the task carefully, state the ob#ectives of the activity, give clear instructions, organie groups
of students, go around monitoring students performance and giving support and provide
feedback in organiing group "ork in their speaking lesson. @6J of the teachers praise and
encourage students. And providing the language students need to do the task accounted for
only *7.7J.
1t is found from the teacher 2uestionnaire that all of the teachers often used the same si' steps
in organiing group "ork as these might be the basic steps needed for it. 1n the intervie",
almost all of the teachers thought that providing the language students need to do the task is
not very necessary, students can manage themselves "ith the needed ne" "ords for the task
first. The teachers only provide students "ith the language in case they do not kno". 1t seems
that half of the teachers forgot to give complements "hen students did "ell in group "ork to
encourage them.
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0%
50%
100%
150%Activities teachers often selected for group work
8igure 2: 9ctivities teacers o!ten selected !or group wor
As for the kinds of activities used for group "ork, the given data in figure 5 implies that the
most fre2uently&used activities among teachers (*66J) in the speaking lesson "ere
intervie"ing, problem solving and decision&making and discussing. ames and ;ole&play and
simulations "ere follo"ed by @6J and 86J respectively. %i'ty si' percent "as the choice for
information gap activity. 0oth pro#ects and opinion e'change received the same percentage of
CC.C J. And drama activity had the least choice of *7.7J.
!oncerning the kinds of activities, the teachers all agreed that intervie"ing, problem solving
and decision&making and discussing activities are useful for group "ork. They sa" the
effectiveness of games and role&play and simulations in engaging students in group "ork but
they "ere afraid of making noise. Therefore, some of them ignored these activities. %ome
teachers also paid attention to the use of information gap or pro#ects or opinion e'change ifthey had much time. Brama seems to be the most difficult activities to apply for group "ork
because it is time&consuming and needs a lot of efforts from students.
0%
50%
100%
150%
Same Eproficiency
Mixed Eproficiency
Samepersonality
ifferentpersonality
Samelearnin!
experience
ifferentlearnin!
experience
sit ti n! nextto eac"
ot"er
Sameinterests
ifferentinterests
Same a!e ifferenta!e
Same sex ifferentsexes
#t"ers
ways teachers often used to group students
8igure 3: a$s teacers o!ten used to group students
As can be seen in $igure C, the "ays of grouping students varied from options to options. All
of the teachers (*66J) tended to group students sitting ne't to or near each other. And most of
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the teachers (
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of activities such as intervie"ing, discussing, and problem solving and decision&making
because they "ere afraid of making noise.
*n fact+ * want to create a funny and interesting atmosphere for students &y usinggames activity when they learn speaking skill+ * want my students to feel free to speak
and speak English in a natural way &ut * rarely used it &ecause * did not want to &e
complained a&out making noise in the lesson &y other teachers! ,.
/y students have to learn English all day and night so * like to help them learn
practice speaking English through some kinds of games which make them rela0ed and
funny! However+ * can not! ,.
All the intervie"ees (L, , G, 0, - and B) said that they grouped students sitting ne't to or
near each other regularly for its convenience. 1t "as easy to ask students sitting ne't to each
other to turn back and form a group, and it "as also not time&consuming. The second "ay that
ma#ority of the teachers used "as grouping students of different English proficiency because
students "ith lo" English proficiency could benefit a lot from students of higher one. All of
the teachers also e'plained that it "as really difficult and took time to understand each
students interests, personality, prior learning e'perience and ages. Therefore, it is not easy for
them to group students by these "ays. T"o teachers chose other "ays to group students. They
let students group themselves
%.1.2. tudents" expected group wor organi&ation procedure.
0%
50%
100%
150%
8igure %: teps students expected teacers to !ollow in organi&ing group wor
The data in $igure ? sho"ed clearly that *66J of the students thought teachers should follo"
7 steps in managing group "ork3 select the task carefully, state the ob#ectives of the activities,
give clear instructions, organie groups of students, go around monitoring students
performance and giving support, and provide feedback. Eighty percent of students find
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=providing the language students need to do the task> an essential thing that teachers should
do. ore than half of the students (@CJ) preferred the teacher to praise and encourage them
"hen they "ere "ell&done in group "ork.The data from 2uestionnaire, the information collected from observations and intervie"s
implied that all of the students hoped their teachers to use 7 steps in organiing group "ork3
select the task carefully, state the ob#ectives of the activities, give clear instructions, organie
groups of students, go around monitoring students performance and giving support, and
provide feedback. Almost all of students thought providing ne" "ords or e'pressions related
to the task should also be done by the teachers. $rom the researchers observations, the
students sometimes had to interrupt their teachers to ask for ne" "ords. And @ among *6
intervie"ees (9, !, -, A and ) said that about
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0%
50%
100%
Same Eproficiency
Mixed Eproficiency
Samepersonality
ifferentpersonality
Samelearnin!
experience
ifferentlearnin!
experience
sittin! next toeac" ot"er
Samein terests
ifferentinterest
Same a!e ifferenta!es
Same sex ifferentsexes
#t"ers
8igure ,: a$s students wanted teacers to put tem in group
As can be seen in $igure @, students different opinions "ere given on the types of partners
they "anted to "ork "ith. As regards students proficiency, 86J of the students responded
that they preferred to "ork "ith students of mi'ed proficiency "hile only *6J ans"ered they
"ould prefer students of the same proficiency. And ninety percent "anted to be grouped "ith
students sitting ne't to or near them. Dorking "ith partners of the same interests "as the
choice of @6J of the sample students. %urprisingly and interestingly,
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0%
50%
100%
150%
$ames %ole&play 'nter(ie)in!'nformation !ap rama *ro+ects *ro,lem sol(in! isc-ssin!#pinion exc"an!e
8igure -: 9ctivities students wised teacers to select !or group wor
%tudents preferences for kind of activities for group "ork "ere indicated in $igure 7. All of
the students (*66J) chose role&playing, games, information gap, discussing, intervie"ing and
problem solving to be their favorite activities. pinion e'change "as the choice of 76J of the
students. And Brama and pro#ects received only *6J and 56J of the students respectively.
A variety of reasons "ere given to e'plain students high appreciation for teachers selection
of games, role&playing, intervie"ing, information gap, problem solving and discussing for
group "ork. $irst and foremost, they e'plained that these activities often create e'citing
atmosphere, especially games and intervie"ing, and they are also not too difficult and time&
consuming for them to prepare and make presentation. %tudents sometimes "anted to
e'change opinion on some speaking topics, and almost of them did not like drama and pro#ect
activities as they are actually difficult and need much efforts to do.
%.1.3. 7omparison #etween teacers" group wor organi&ation procedure and students"
expectation
0%
50%
100%
150%teac"ers. ans)er st-dents. ans)er
8igure /: 7omparison #etween teacers" steps in group wor organi&ation and students"
expectation
!omparing the data from the teachers ans"er and students ans"er about the steps in
organiing group "ork in $igure :, "e can see that all of the teachers and students (*66J)
shared the same vie" on si' steps in organiing group "ork in speaking lesson3 select the task
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carefully, state the ob#ectives of the activity, give clear instructions, organie groups of
students, go around monitoring students performance and giving support and provide
feedback. These numbers implies that both teachers and students have good understanding ofnecessary stages in implementing group "ork activity. Around half of the teachers and
students (@6J and @CJ respectively) agreed that it "as important to praise and encourage
students "hen students "orked effectively in group. 9o"ever, for the fourth step + provide the
language students need to do the task + there "ere a big difference. Eighty percent (
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activities. The number of students choices "as nearly t"ofold in comparison "ith teachers.
The percentage for these activities "as *66J and @6J, *66J and 77.7J, and 76J and CC.CJ
respectively. This implies that teachers need to "ork closely to students "hen organiinggroup "ork in speaking lesson so as to understand more about their desires in learning
speaking through group "ork. $rom that, teachers can change their selection of activities for
group "ork to make the speaking lesson much more efficient. -evertheless, teachers are more
favored "ith the last t"o activities&drama and pro#ects&than students. *7.7J of the teachers
adopted games activity and students choice "as *6J. And pro#ects activity "as selected by
CC.CJ of the teachers and 56J of the students. These numbers indicated that drama and
pro#ects "ere not both students and teachers favorite activities. They used these activities
occasionally "hen they had much time and high motivation in learning speaking.
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
120%
/eac"ers. ans)er St-dents. ans)er
8igure : 7omparison #etween teacers" grouping strategies and students" expectation
rganiing students in groups is also an important factor to teaching speaking skill through
group "ork. The comparison of teachers and students ans"er about "ays of grouping
students is illustrated in $igure 8. The data in $igure 8 sho"s clearly that both students and
teachers nearly shared the same opinions on t"o "ays of grouping. The first "ay =group
students of different English proficiency levels> "as the choice of about
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*66J of the teachers and 86J of the students. 9o"ever, almost all of the teachers and
students had different vie" on the "ay of grouping students of the same or different se'es. $or
the former,
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"ork and establishing contracts "ith students in "hich they indicate ho" much English they
are "illing to use accounted for *6J of the teachers.
The findings indicate that the most regular strategy to foster students English use "as tohighlight the importance of using English to students. 1f students themselves have a full
a"areness of using English, they "ill use it more often and more effectively because they have
motivation and they "ill try their best to practice speaking English. 1n addition, almost all of
the teachers also understand that their students can use more English in group "ork "hen they
re2uired their students to increase the amount of English use day by day or "hen they
reminded students not to use their mother tongue in group "ork. Asking students to self report
on the percentage of L5 they use in group "ork and establishing contracts "ith students in
"hich they indicate ho" much English they are "illing to use are the t"o strategies that
almost all of the teachers found impossible to do.
1n the intervie", all of the teachers said that in order to increase the amount of English
language use among students in group "ork is a problem to teachers "ho teach speaking skill.
They have tried to make all efforts to encourage students to use English "hen organiing
group "ork. 0ut the teachers found that, at first, students often strictly follo"ed teachers rules
about using English but after only some minutes they s"itched from using L5 to L*
consciously or unconsciously. Therefore, it is necessary for teachers to find out some effective
strategies to help students be more a"are the importance of speaking English and they "ill
themselves use it in group "ork voluntarily "ithout teachers reminds and supervise.
0%
50%
100%
150%
Increase L2 use
requred by Ts
Raise Sts' awareness Sts suggest strategies Sts self-r eport on L2
use
Establish contract s
with Sts
Establish a warning
signal
Others
8igure 11: trategies students expected teacers to use to !oster and stimulate teir Englis use in
group wor
As apparent from the above $igure, the students valued the strategies "hich should be used by
teachers in the almost similar same "ay as the teachers. All of the students (*66J) "anted
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their teachers to raise their a"areness of the importance of English use and give them the
"arning signal to remind them to use English "hen they s"itched to use Vietnamese in group
"ork unconsciously. Dhen being intervie"ed, they e'plained that they have good a"arenessof using English because they are English ma#or students and they al"ays tried to speak
English in discussion through group "ork as much as they can. 0ut, they sometimes could not
find the e2uivalent structures bet"een English and Vietnamese so they s"itched to use
Vietnamese instead of English. They liked their teachers to remind them regularly about using
English in group "ork. ore than
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them lose control of the classes and lack of money for material and teaching aid development
to be the biggest problem. A ma#ority of teachers (
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grouping students, CC.CJ of the teachers said that they often used a variety of "ays to group
students and they tried to give all the students e2ual chance to present the ideas. They
supposed that these solutions "ere actually useful "hen they carried out group "ork activityin teaching speaking skills.
'.'. Di""icultie! !tudent! e9)erienced 4#en 4orking in grou)!
0%
50%
100%
/s. lo) En!l is" proficiency Sts. lo) proficiency Sts. passi(e learnin! styles 0ac3 of mater ials and learnin! aids #t"ers
8igure 1%: di!!iculties students experienced wen woring in groupsAn interesting fact dra"n from $igure *C "as that almost all of the students (86J) agreed that
the factors causing the difficulties "ere due to their passive learning style. This is not hard to
understand because Vietnamese students are strongly affected by !onfucianism that focuses
on academic study of grammar and in&depth kno"ledge. T"o intervie"ees confessed that3
* often come to class e0pecting my teachers to e0plain the whole lesson and wish the
teacher would not ask me to do any thing! ,6.
3ctually+ * am afraid of &eing called to answer the teachers4 7uestion or to present in
front of my friends! *n my class+ the num&er of students who are active in participating
in group discussion is small! "hen working in group * want to &e sit in silence and
listen to my friends! ,8.
!oncerning the factors that caused the difficulties,
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is a matter of bigger concern. Thus, the teachers need to keep mastering their English
proficiency and methodology to meet the students re2uirements.
CHAPTER *: CONC-U(ION
*.1. (uar$ o" t#e )a)er
This study set three&fold purposes3 $irstly, it aimed to clarify the procedures used in
organiing group "ork in speaking lesson of *st&year English ma#or students by the teachers of
English at V!. %econdly, it aimed to identify teachers strategies to foster and stimulate
students English language use in group "ork. $inally, it investigated difficulties teachers and
students e'perienced "hen implementing group "ork. Thus, the population of this research
study "as teachers and English&ma#or students at V!. 1n this study, 2uestionnaires,
intervie"s and observations "ere used as research instruments.
$rom their responses to the 2uestionnaires, intervie"s and observations, it is found that all the
teachers fre2uently used group "ork in their speaking lesson because they understood the
importance of group "ork in teaching speaking skill. And they all follo"ed the same basic
steps in organiing group "ork activity. 1t is also interesting that games and role&play are
favorite activities to all students mean"hile they "ere selected by only half of the teachers.
9o"ever, the students and teachers share the same opinion on the "ays of grouping, almost of
them chose to group students sitting ne't to or near each other and students of mi'ed
proficiency. As for strategies used to foster English use in group "ork, both teachers and
students thought it "as necessary to raise students a"areness of the importance of English
use. 1n addition, increasing the amount of English use re2uired by the teacher and reminding
students to s"itch back to English "hen they speak Vietnamese consciously and
unconsciously are t"o strategies "hich almost all of the students and teachers highly
appreciated. ;egarding the difficulties, three factors =students use too much Vietnamese>,=students make too much noise> and =there is a lack of money for material and teaching aid
development> "ere considered to be the biggest problems to all the teachers. And for students,
their biggest difficulties "ere due to their passive learning style, their lo" English proficiency
and classroom conditions and learning aid.
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0ased on the findings of the study, a number of suggestions "ere given to teachers and
students of English $aculty at V!.
*.2. Recoendation! "or teac#er!
$rom the findings, it is clear that the application of group "ork in speaking lesson "as not
totally efficient partly because of the teachers. Teachers play a very important role in
organiing group "ork activity. A number of recommendations for teachers "ill be discussed
belo"3
a) Emplo$ a variet$ o! criteria to group students.
Bepending on the difficulty of the assigned tasks, teachers might group students basing on
some criteria such as same common preferences, same or mi'ed level of proficiency, their
position in classroom, or random grouping (0ro"n, 566*). Teachers should be fle'ible to
decide "hat strategies they follo".
#) esign and select appropriate activities
A variation of activities that are suitable for students life and interest can motivate students
"ork in group in an effective "ay. Therefore, teachers should find out more about their
students interest in order to kno" "hat their favorite activities are. $rom that, teachers can
select appropriate activities for their students. oreover, they should spend a lot of time
before lessons to prepare material and select suitable tasks and activities for mi'&ability
students.
c) Raise students" awareness o! te importance o! Englis use
As students English use in speaking lesson comes from students self&consciousness, teacher
can only encourage them to use English rather than to force them to. The first step to do this is
to raise students a"areness of the importance of English use for their o"n learning. They
should be advised that they are the ones "ho are responsible for their success and failure, not
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the teachers or someone else. Then they "ill be "illing to speak English as much as possible
for their o"n sake.
d) Train students group wor sills.
An effective group "ork needs good cooperation bet"een the teacher and students. Therefore,
the teacher should train and instruct their students some skills to "ork in groups. Teachers
should also train the students to obey some rules in group "ork, for instance3 start and stop
"ork right after the teachers command be 2uick "hen moving to another activity be self
discipline and listen carefully teachers instructions.
*.%. Recoendation! "or !tudent!
a) 7ooperate wit teir teacers
As students in a learner¢ered class are the ones "ho are responsible for their success or
failure in their learning, they should be a"are of their active role in the process of learning by
choosing good learning strategies, and more importantly, cooperating "ith their teachers to
gain success.
#) Train temselves to #e e!!ective students
Each student should find a style of learning that suit himFher. Dhen he is in a learning
situation that he find difficult or boring, he is able to adapt it to his personal needs. 1n addition,
students should actively involve in the language learning process. And they must understand
ho" to improve their learning by emphasiing their strengths.
*.'. -iitation! o" t#e !tud$
There are t"o limitations that need to be ackno"ledged and addressed regarding the present
study. The first limitation has to do "ith the e'tent to "hich the findings can be generalied
beyond the samples studied. The number of teacher and student participants in the study "as
not big enough for broad generaliation. Though all the teachers "ere invited, there "ere only
7 teachers teaching speaking skill for the first year English ma#ors. And only *66 * st year
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English ma#ors "ere selected as sample "hile there "ere no students came from the second or
the third year. The second limitation concerns the scope that this study could cover. Bue to the
time constraints, many untouched issues on group "ork and the use of group "ork activity inother language skills such as listening, reading and "riting "ere not e'plored.
*.*. (ugge!tion! "or "urt#er !tudie!
As group "ork is a very common activity of !LT approach so that it "as applied "idely in
many kinds of language classes. $uture researchers can further e'plore the untouched issues
such as interaction process in group "ork, learner&learner interaction during small group
activity, strategies to involve student in group "ork activity and so on. ;esearchers
contemplating future studies in this area may "ish to e'plore the use of group "ork activity in
other language skills, namely "riting, reading and listening.
1n conclusion, by using a combination of methods, this study has been able to contribute to our
kno"ledge of !LT approach in general and group "ork activity in particular in "ays that "ill
benefit not only teachers but students of English as "ell. 9o"ever, due to the limitation of
time and e'perience, shortcomings are unavoidable. All comments, are therefore, greatly
appreciated.
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