Tài liệu Large class management to improve students' participation in speaking lesson an action research

M INISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING H A N O I U N IV E R S IT Y N GU Y EN T H I P H U O N G LAN LARGE CLASS MANAGEMENT TO IMPROVE STUDENTS’ PARTICIPATION IN SPEAKING LESSONS: AN ACTION RESEARCH SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF REQUIREMENTS OF THE DEGREE OF MASTER IN TESOL S U P E R V IS O R : N G U Y E N N G U Y E T M IN H , M.A f . w i y 9 -----------------~ TRUNG TÀM TH Ú N G TIN TI N 1Ĩ H Ư V I Ệ N THỒNG FO E VĨL Hanoi, October 2007 A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T S ....................................................................................................... v A B S T R A C T ...................................................................................................................................vi L IS T O F A B B R E V I A T I O N S ............................ .................................................................... vii L IS T O F T A B L E S .....................................................................................................................viii L IS T O F F I G U R E S .................................................................................................................. viii L IS T O F G R A P H S ....................................................................................................................viii C H A P T E R 1. I N T R O D U C T I O N ............................................................................................ 1 1.1 Background to the study and statement o f the problem........................................ 1 1.2 Scope o f the study......................................................................................................... 4 1.3 Aims o f the study...........................................................................................................4 1.4 Overview o f the th esis..................................................................................................5 C H A P T E R 2. L IT E R A T U R E R E V I E W ............................................................................... 6 2.1. Large classes...................................................................................................................6 2.1.1. Advantages o f large classes...................................................................................6 2.1.2. Disadvantages o f large classes............................................................................. 7 2.2. Large class m anagem ent.............................................................................................. 9 2.2.1. The definition of class m anagem ent................................................................... 9 2.2.2. Approaches to large class m anagem ent......................................................... 10 2.2.2.1. Conventional Approach to the Management o f a Large C lass............. 10 2.2.2.2. Alternative Approaches to the Management o f Large Classes............... 11 2.2.3. Keys aspects o f large class management in speaking classes................... 13 2.2.3.1. Getting attention and participation............................................................. 13 2.2.3.2. Giving and checking instructions................................................................16 2.2.3.3. Personalizing a large c la ss .............................................................................18 2.2.3.4. Developing good discipline.......................................................................... 21 2.2.3.5. Managing pair and g ro u p w o rk ..................................................................... 23 2.2.3.6. Giving feedback................................................................................................25 Sum m ary...................................................................................................................................28 C H A P T E R 3. T H E M E T H O D O L O G Y ............................................................................. 29 3.1. Research m eth o d s....................................................................................................29 3.1.1. Action research.................................................................................................... 29 3.1.2. Action research procedure...................................................................................31 3.1.2.1. Identifying the problem (weeks 1 - 2 ) ...................................................... 31 3.1.2.2. Collecting initial data (weeks 3 - 5 )............................................................ 31 3.1.2.3. Analyzing data and generating hypotheses (week 6 ) .............................32 3.1.2.4. Planning action (week 7 ) ............................................................................... 32 3.1.2.5. Implementing action (weeks 8 - 13 )............................................................33 3.1.2.6. Collecting data to monitor change (weeks 8 - 13)................................... 33 3.1.2.7. Analyzing and evaluating students’ participation after action plan (weeks 14 - 1 5 )................................................................................................ 33 3.2. Data collection instrum ents....................................................................................... 34 3.2.1. Survey q u estio nn aire.......................................................................................... 34 3.2.1.1. Rationale behind the use o f survey questionnaire................................... 34 3.2.1.2. Description o f questionnaires....................................................................... 35 3.2.1.2.1. Questionnaire 1 (Appendix A ).............................................................. 35 3.2.1.2.2. Questionnaire 2 (Appendix B ).............................................................. 35 3.2.2. Teaching d ia r y ....................................................................................................... 36 3.2.2.1. Rationale behind the use o f teaching diary................................................36 3.2.2.2. Teaching diary (Appendices D, E and F ) .................................................. 37 3.2.3. Classroom observation......................................................................................... 38 3.2.3.1. Rationale behind the use o f classroom observation.................................38 3.2.3.2. Observation sheet: on-task behaviour (Appendix C )............................. 39 3.3. The participants............................................................................................................40 3.3.1. The teacher researcher......................................................................................... 40 3.3.2. The observers......................................................................................................... 40 3.3.3. The student subjects..............................................................................................40 3.4. S um m ary..........................................................................................................................41 C H A P T E R 4. T H E R E S U L T S ............................................................................................... 42 4.1. Initial d a t a .......................................................................................................................42 4.1.1. Students' on-task b eh av io u r...............................................................................42 4.1.2. Students’ interaction self-report........................................................................43 4.1.3. Students’ attitudes to speaking and text b o o k ............................................... 44 4.1.4. Ways to learn speaking and problems encountered in speaking sessio n s..................................................................................................................... 45 4.1.5. Reasons for poor participation........................................................................... 46 4.1.6. Students’ attitudes to large class........................................................................47 4.1.7. Preferences for speaking activities................................................................... 48 Sum m ary................................................................................................................................... 49 4.2. Planning action s te p s ...................................................................................................49 4.2.1. Getting attention and participation................................................................... 50 4.2.2. Giving and checking instructions......................................................................51 4.2.3. Improvements in managing pair and groupwork...........................................52 4.2.3.1. G rou ping............................................................................................................. 52 4.2.3.2. Circulating the class..........................................................................................53 4.2.3.3. Muni lining tim e...................................................... ............................54 4.2.4. Personalizing the large class...............................................................................54 4.2.5. Giving feedback..................................................................................................... 55 4.3. Data collected in the action s ta g e .............................................................................56 4.3.1. Students’ on-task b ehaviour................................................................................56 4.3.2. Students’ interaction self-report.........................................................................59 4.3.3. Students' participation as perceived by the te ach er....................................... 63 4.3.4. Students' opinions on the action im plem ented............................................... 64 4.4. Action research evaluation........................................................................................ 65 4.4.1. Students' on-task behaviour before and after the action p la n .......................66 4.4.2. Students’ interaction before and after the action p l a n ................................... 67 4.4.3. Summary o f major findings.................................................................................68 C H A P T E R 5. C O N C L U S IO N AND R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S .................................70 5.1. A summary o f the action research........................................................................... 70 in 5.2. Recom m endations....................................................................................................... 71 5.3. The limitations and suggestions for further research....................................... 72 R E F E R E N C E S ............................................................................................................................74 Appendix A: Questionnaire 1 .................................................................................................78 Appendix B: Questionnaire 2 .................................................................................................83 Appendix C: Observation sheet............................................................................................. 85 Appendix D: Teaching diary 1 ...............................................................................................87 Appendix E: Teaching diary 2 ................................................................................................ 91 Appendix F: Teaching diary 3 ................................................................................................95 Appendix G: Students’ interaction self-report................................................................ 99 Appendix H: Speaking lesson plan (Action stage).........................................................100 Appendix H .l: Additional material.................................................................................... 105 Appendix H.2: Additional pictures.................................................................................... 106 Appendix I: Speaking lesson plan (Pre-action sta ge)..................................................110 Appendix 1.1: Pictures for students to describe........................................................... 114 Appendix J: Speaking feedback form ................................................................................116 A CKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deepest thanks to my supervisor, Mrs. Nguyen Nguyet Minh, (M.A) for the wholehearted guidance she gave me while I was doing this research. I am truly grateful to her for her ideas, comments and instructions, as well as encouragement and constant support. Without these, the thesis could not have been completed. My special thanks are sent to Mrs. Nguyen Thai Ha, (M.A) from the Department o f Post Graduate Studies o f Hanoi University for her valuable guidance and advice. 1 would also acknowledge my great gratitude to all the lecturers and organizers o f this Master Course at Hanoi University. My special thanks are expressed to my friends for their great help and comments. Also, my attitude goes to my colleagues and fifty-five students taking part in my research. I ast hut not least. I am deeply greatful to my parents, my husband, my sister and my son for their support, encouragement and love, which were extremely important for the completion o f this thesis. ABSTRACT Improving students' participation in large speaking classes o f 40 - 50 students is a challenge for any teachers. In order to address this issue, many authors have documented different management methods to increase learners’ involvement. This study attempts to investigate some key aspects o f large class management to engage students in speaking sessions. To do this, an action research with fifty-five first-year English majors at HPU No. 2 was carried out in term 2. The data in both pre and post stages were collected using questionnaires, teaching diaries, classroom observation and students’ self-report. The pre-action stage revealed that poor management was the major cause o f students' low participation. The hypothesis formed was im proving class m anagem ent will im prove stu den ts' participation in speaking lessons f o r large-sized classes. The evaluation o f the action plan implementation proved that since the teacher employed the new techniques o f managing large speaking classes, students’ participation has gradually increased. The results o f the study confirm that new rules in class management do help to enhance students’ involvement in speaking activities. HPU N°. 2 Hanoi Pedagogical University N°. 2 AR Action Research EFL English as a Foreign Language ESL English as the Second Language LI The first language L2 The second language Table page Table 1 Speaking in six semesters 1 Table 2 Students' interaction in lesson 3 42 Table 3 Students' interaction in lesson 8 57 Table 4 Students'interaction in lesson 9 58 Table 5 Students' interaction in lesson 10 58 Table 6 Students' interaction in lesson 11 59 Table 7 Students'interaction in lesson 12 60 Table 8 Students' interaction in lesson 13 60 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Action research cycle 29 LIST OF GRAPHS Graph 1 Students’ on-task behaviour 65 Graph 2 Students’ interaction in a 10-minute groupwork 66 Graph 3 Students’ interaction in a 45-minute speaking lesson 67 Vlll CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION This chapter presents the background to the study, the statement o f the problem, the scope, the aims and the organization o f the thesis. 1.1 Background to the study and statement of the problem. Hanoi Pedagogical University N°. 2 (HPU N° 2) was founded in 1967 in Vinh Phuc province, responsible for teacher training for the North o f Viet Nam. In 2003, the first course o f English majors was started and so far there have been five classes taught by twenty teachers o f English. The aims o f this four-year course is to enable the students to work as secondary school teachers o f English after graduation. It is divided into two stages. The first three years is to develop the four language skills i.e listening, writing, speaking and reading from the pre-intermediate level to high-intermediate so that the students could deal with subjects o f their specialization such as Language learning theories, L a n g u a g e t e a c h in g m e th o d o lo g y in th e last year with relative ease. 1,080 45-minute periods are allocated for the four skills, which means in each semester 45 periods are saved for each. Regarding speaking skills, as can be seen in Table 1, semesters 1 and 2 are intended to allow the students to work with social English. They are exposed to English used in various social situations such as asking for direction, ordering food and practice essential communication skills like initiating, maintaining and closing conversations. Semesters 3 and 4 are saved for more academic English with the emphasis on skills and language needed for academic meeting and discussions while the last semesters o f stage 1 are scheduled for academic presentations. Table 1: Speaking in Six Semesters Semester Focus Time allocation Social English with topics such as hobbies, family, I 75 homes and houses, stores and shopping, friends, jobs and the future. Social English with topics such as customs and traditions, the physical world, people's appearance and characters, health and injuries, raising a family, crime II 75 and punishment, happiness, love and marriage, environment, travel and tourism, violence on TV and helping the poor. Academic English (language o f meeting and discussion) with topics such as archeology, biology, environmental III 75 studies, media studies, folk art, business, psychology, technology, astronomy, linguistics and history. Academic English (language o f meeting and discussion) with topics such as communication study, statistics, IV 75 cognitive science, sociology, astronomy, fashion design, behavioral sciences and computer sciences. Academic English (presentations) with skills e.g giving introductions, V 75 referring to visuals, concluding the presentation and handling questions and topics such as comics, advertising, computer crime, memory and non­ verbal communication. Academic English (presentations) with topics such as VI 75 filmmaking process, effects o f the Sun, mystics and prophets, geology and biological clock. In speaking term 2, which is the topic-based speaking, a lot o f speaking activities such as discussion, small talks, describing pictures, information-gap, etc. are usually used at class aiming at developing students' ability to socialize in English in familiar contexts. Five features o f good communicative activities i.e role, outcomes, split information, challenge and procedure (Nation, 1989) are usually observed. The problem that most teachers and I sensed taking speaking classes the first term is students' poor participation in class activities. Learners' participation in class is one o f the aspects o f classroom interaction (Ellis, 1994). It is a process in which opportunities are created for learners to practice the L2 and to produce output. According to Hunter (1993), learner active participation is “the ability o f the learner to be consistantly engaged in what is to be learned” . Students' participation in speaking classes in this study refers to the time they speak in English to one another and to the teacher to offer ideas, opinions, make questions, comments or respond. It also includes paying attention when others or the teacher talk. If this definition is used, then a successful speaking lesson should be the one where all students are willing to take chance to initiate conversations, to be communicatively noisy. There should be plenty o f interaction between the students and the teacher and among students themselves. However, this was not the case at all however hard I tried. In this class o f fifty-five students, only a small number o f learners were active. Many just tried to avoid doing their tasks, which were to c o m m u n i c a t e w ith p ee rs in speaking sessions. Others were only on-task when the teacher turned attention to them, which she could not always do with this large-sized class. Some learners reported that they did not feel the need to speak as the teacher would not know and there would not be any punishment or reward either. Also if the students were asked to speak in front o f this big audience they tended to feel more intimidated and failed to say what they planned to. This actually has limited their will to volunteer to perform in font o f friends and the teacher and left them with the choice to maintain their state o f anonymity. This state was very annoying and brought a sense o f failure and frustration to both parties: the teacher and the students, especially those who meant to work hard. A solution must be found to solve this problem to relieve the situation and enhance the effectiveness o f the lessons. The question posed then was W hat was th e m ain cause o f the p ro b le m ? Previous studies have shown that the level o f participation could be closely associated to cultural, linguistic, or/and psychological factors. Those could be the students’ passive leaning style; their limitations in pronunciation; vocabulary; grammar; background knowledge and cultural norms, teaching methods and ways o f managing class, etc. (Zhao, 1998; Burns & Joyce, 1997). Among these factors poor class management could be identified as a major one, especially in large classes (Nakabugo et al., 2006; Venema 2006; Zhao 1998). The literature on the close connection between class management and participation in speaking sessions has been quite rich and this encouraged the researcher to initiate a study to find the solutions to the problems o f poor involvement in speaking lessons. 1.2 Scope of the study Students’ poor participation in speaking sessions is a common phenomenon in large classes which may be caused by many factors and can be dealt with using a variety o f approaches. This study, however, limits itself to one major cause o f poor participation, which is poor class management (as identified in one o f the action stages documented in Chapter 4). This means that the researcher only focuses on the influence o f classroom management on students’ participation. Some key aspects o f classroom management applied in large speaking lessons have also been studied. The re la tio n s h ip b e tw e e n large class m a n a g e m e n t and s t u d e n t s ’ participation in speaking sessions is the subject o f investigation, too. This study only involves one English major class in the second term at HPU N°. 2, which definitely limits the general izability o f this study to a bigger language learner body. 1.3 Aims of the study The study is aimed at finding out ways to improve students’ participation in large speaking sessions at HPU No. 2. To achieve this aim, the research attempts to find out the causes o f poor participation in first year speaking lessons for large-sized classes of English majors and the activities should be done to improve students’ participation. As explained later in Chapter 4, p o o r participation in large speaking lessons was found to be closely linked to poor targe classroom m anagem ent. Thus, the aim o f the study is to find out what should be done to improve large class management to improve students' participation in speaking sessions and how successful the measures applied are. 1.4 Overview of the thesis The thesis consists o f five chapters, organized as follows Chapter 1, Introduction, provides the background to the study, statement o f the problem, the aims, the scope o f the study. It also outlines the thesis. Chapter 2, Literature Review, presents a review o f related literature that provides the theoretical background o f large classes and general principles o f large class management. This review also provides key aspects o f large classroom management that plays a role in improving students’ participation in speaking lessons. Chapter 3, The M ethodology, describes the research method. It is composed o f the description o f the subjects and the data collection instruments. Detailed information about the research procedures is also provided. Chapter 4, The Results, analyses and discusses the initial data as well as presents the hypothesis. An action plan is worked out and implemented. The data to monitor the changes and evaluate the action research are also presented. The chapter concludes with major findings o f the study. Chapter 5, Conclusion and Recommendations, summarizes the action research, which is hoped to be o f some help to the improvement o f students’ participation in speaking sessions at HPU N°. 2. Limitations o f the study and the recommendations for further study are also given in this chapter. CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW This chapter attempts to provide a theoretical background o f large class management, including the conventional methods, some alternative approaches and key aspects o f large classroom management. 2.1. Large classes Large is o f course a relative term, and what a large class is will vary from place to place. In some private language schools, a group o f twenty students may be considered large. Teachers who are used to groups o f fifteen to twenty students might find a group o f thirty to be rather threatening. Teachers with a large group o f forty or fifty students may be relieved when they have only thirty (Nolasco & Arthur, 1998). It is indicated that an average perception o f a large class may be around fifty students (Coleman et al., 1989). With a language class, if it has around fifty students, it must be considered a large class. In my teaching situation, there are fifty-five students in an English m ajor class, which is certainly considered a large language major class. It is believed that th e re are alw a y s two sides in everv thing, and large class size is not an exception. Large classes have both advantages and disadvantages. Unfortunately, the former is outweighed by the latter. This will be reviewed and critically discussed in the two parts that follows. 2.1.1. A dvantages of large classes Most EFL teachers object to teaching in large classes as they think that there are more negative points than positive points when teaching in these classes. However, it cannot be denied that there are still some significant advantages o f teaching and learning in large classes. For many students, large classes are the best places to meet with other students (Wangsa, 2004). There is more variety o f people to communicate with, to compare notes, to have fun and to form study groups together. Other students are essential for the students to allow them to form more meaningful interaction in the classroom. It is also suggested that “students may work by themselves in the large classroom, as a large class gives them a feeling o f independence so that learning was assisted by reliant self and having to study and learn themselves” (Wulff, Nyquist and Abbot, 1987, p. 21). The content o f the large class provides general information which is easy to digest in the large classrooms. As it is stated that “ It is usually good for any person to learn, as the content is less detailed, more general and broader” (Wulff, Nyquist and Abbot, 1987, p. 22). It is also imperative to ensure that in large classes students understand the material well. The use o f repetition in the class may “act as a map to help them know where the class has been and where it is going” (Carbone, 1998, p. 21). When there are many students in a class, obviously, they can share many different ideas and interesting life experiences. This stimulates the students and enlivens those parts o f our lessons where students can discuss and learn from each other. During project work, students can learn to share responsibility and help each other. This also brings variety and speeds up the work. In short, although it is believed that teaching in large classes is a big challenge with the teacher, it still has a few advantages for both teachers and learners. Because o f these advantages, when teachers have to give lectures to large classes, it is advisable to make the best o f these good points to have good teaching result. 2.1.2. Disadvantages of large classes The issue o f large classes is indeed a pressing matter to many EFL teachers. Many teachers have realized the negative influence that large class size can have on the quality of teaching and learning. The teaching o f large classes is truly challenging and requires more conscious effort and planning in order to make learning and teaching more effective in such an environment. Many experts believe that small classes achieve better results than large ones do. Most EFL teachers in the world reject teaching in large classes as they often mean heterogeneous ages and abilities with many difficulties in learning and individually giving and getting attention. A large class makes teachers difficult to motivate students’ participation, difficult to make interaction with students, and difficult to give feedback to them. Conant (2003) states that teaching large classes is demanding and difficult. Among other things, as the size o f a class increases, the challenges associated with building a participation-based class culture intensify. Sometimes students do not prepare as well for a large class because they believe they will not be called upon. Perhaps the sheer size of the room is intimidating and inhibits some from speaking. Maybe students are not as motivated to share their thoughts and observations because no formal incentives exist (e.g., their grade is not participation-based). Whatever the reason is, it is clear that as the size o f a class increases, it is more and more difficult to keep everyone involved in the discussion. It is believed that the opportunity for contact between students and lecturers in a large class is significantly reduced, which results in less individual attention for the student. A more restricted range o f teaching a n d le a r n in g a c tiv ities is a v a ila b le and it is much harder to effectively manage group work. Many studies show that students prefer to have small classes, as large ones impinge on the quality o f education they receive. Some students view that large classes lessened individual responsibility where they do not have to be responsible for answering questions, they do not have to pay attention in the class or attend the class. There are a lot o f students who feel that large classes decrease motivation, as they feel left out or lost. The existence o f large number o f students makes them invisible. They are students in the crowds who will graduate unnoticed and feel insignificant and anonymous. Moreover, other tangible issues such as physical space, inadequate equiptment and overcrowding also contribute to the disadvantages o f learning process in large classrooms. The shortage o f seats in an overcrowded room creates an uncomfortable environment to study. The problem with microphone may impinge the quality o f the lecture, as students cannot hear clearly. The far distance from the professor may easily decrease motivation, which results in losing interest in the classroom. Cao Xia (2006) states some major problems in a large class. There is little chance for teachers to check individual student’s performance and for students to practice and lack o f teacher-student interaction, which is unfavorable for language learning and teaching. Such being the case, it is not surprising if teachers feel there is a gap between the theory o f teaching methodology and reality o f their own teaching situation. Challenges o f teaching a large class include the difficulties in keeping good class discipline; giving each student individual attention he or she needs; providing for more students o f different ages and different abilities who want to learn different things at different speeds and in different ways. From the student’s perspective the main problem with large classes is the feeling o f anonymity, which makes it harder for them to be motivated. Many feel too intimidated to ask questions or to p a rtic ip a te in c lass d is c u s s io n (Isla m , 2001). Because o f those disadvantages, it is not surprising that non-native teachers o f English often find it difficult to carry out their teaching in a more effective and efficient way, which may involve the full participation and contribution o f students. 2.2. Large class management 2.2.1. The definition of class management Classroom management is a broad term and there are various definitions o f this. Beckman and Klinghammer (2006) define that classroom management is “all aspects o f the classroom the teacher may have some arrangement of space, student disciplinary techniques, etc.” motivation, influence over, e.g., physical teaching approach, lesson plans, Brown (1994. p. 411) reports that classroom management “encompasses an abundance o f factors ranging from how you physically arrange the classroom to teaching style to one o f my favourite notions: “classroom energy”. Richard, Platt and Weber (1985, p. 39) define that classroom management is the way in which students behaviour, movement, interaction, etc., during a class is organized and controlled by the teacher (or sometimes by the learners themselves) to enable teaching to take place most effectively. Classroom management includes procedures for grouping students for different types o f classroom activities, use o f lessons plans, handling o f equipment, aids, etc., and the direction and management o f students' behaviour and activity. It cannot be denied that the definition o f classroom management o f Richard, Platt and Weber (1985) is the most detailed, and the researcher will do this research based on this definition. 2.2.2. A pproaches to large class management 2.2.2.1. Conventional Approach to the M anagement o f a Large Class Teachers are always under considerable pressure with large class, both because they are obliged to complete the syllabus within limited time available and because they have to manage teaching activities (Cao Xia, 2006). Teacher-centered “ lock-step”, where all the students are working with the teacher, all “ locked into” the same rhythm and pace, the same activity is considered as the easiest and common way o f coping with such a class. Mariner (1993) states that this teacher-centered lock-step has some certain advantages. When all the class are concentrating, the teacher can usually be sure that everyone can hear what is being said, and the students are also getting a good language model from the teacher. However, lock-step unavoidably has its disadvantages as well. Firstly, working in a whole group, students will get little chance to practice or to talk at all. In a large class