Khóa luận A study on extra-Activities to improve english speaking skill of qttn class at haiphong private university

Nội dung text: Khóa luận A study on extra-Activities to improve english speaking skill of qttn class at haiphong private university

1. BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC DÂN LẬP HẢI PHÒNG ISO 9001 : 2008 KHÓA LUẬN TỐT NGHIỆP NGÀNH: NGOẠI NGỮ HẢI PHÒNG – 2012 1
2. HAIPHONG PRIVATE UNIVESITY FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT GRADUATION PAPER A STUDY ON EXTRA-ACTIVITIES TO IMPROVE ENGLISH SPEAKING SKILL OF QTTN CLASS AT HAIPHONG PRIVATE UNIVERSITY By: Ta Thi Minh Phuong Class: NA1202 Supervisor: Mrs. Nguyen Thi Quynh Hoa HAI PHONG – 2012 2
3. BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC DÂN LẬP HẢI PHÒNG Nhiệm vụ đề tài tốt nghiệp Sinh viên: Mã số: Lớp: .Ngành: Tên đề tài: 3
4. Nhiệm vụ đề tài 1. Nội dung và các yêu cầu cần giải quyết trong nhiệm vụ đề tài tốt nghiệp ( về lý luận, thực tiễn, các số liệu cần tính toán và các bản vẽ). 2. Các số liệu cần thiết để thiết kế, tính toán. . . 3. Địa điểm thực tập. . 4
5. CÁN BỘ HƯỚNG DẪN ĐỀ TÀI Người hướng dẫn thứ nhất: Họ và tên: Học hàm, học vị: Cơ quan công tác: Nội dung hướng dẫn: Người hướng dẫn thứ hai: Họ và tên: Học hàm, học vị: Cơ quan công tác: Nội dung hướng dẫn: Đề tài tốt nghiệp được giao ngày tháng năm 20 Yêu cầu phải hoàn thành xong trước ngày tháng năm 20 . Đã nhận nhiệm vụ ĐTTN Đã giao nhiệm vụ ĐTTN Sinh viên Người hướng dẫn Hải Phòng, ngày . Tháng năm 20 . HIỆU TRƯỞNG 5
6. GS.TS.NGƯT Trần Hữu Nghị PHẦN NHẬN XÉT TÓM TẮT CỦA CÁN BỘ HƯỚNG DẪN 1. Tinh thần thái độ của sinh viên trong quá trình làm đề tài tốt nghiệp: 2. Đánh giá chất lượng của khóa luận (so với nội dung yêu cầu đã đề ra trong nhiệm vụ Đ.T. T.N trên các mặt lý luận, thực tiễn, tính toán giá trị sử dụng, chất lượng các bản vẽ) 3. Cho điểm của cán bộ hướng dẫn : (ghi bằng cả số và chữ) Hải Phòng, ngày tháng năm 20 Cán bộ hướng dẫn (họ tên và chữ ký) 6
7. NHẬN XÉT ĐÁNH GIÁ CỦA NGƯỜI CHẤM PHẢN BIỆN ĐỀ TÀI TỐT NGHIỆP 1. Đánh giá chất lượng đề tài tốt nghiệp về các mặt thu thập và phân tích tài liệu, số liệu ban đầu, giá trị lí luận và thực tiễn của đề tài. 2. Cho điểm của người chấm phản biện : (Điểm ghi bằng số và chữ) Ngày tháng năm 20 Người chấm phản biện 7
8. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT In the process of completing this graduation paper, I have received a great deal of help, guidance, and encouragement from many teachers, friends and my family. I have faced to many difficulties, but thank to your help, I overcame all troubles and completed my graduation paper. First of all, I would like to express my grateful thanks to Ms. Nguyen Thi Quynh Hoa, M.A – my supervisor – for her constant and tireless support throughout this study. During my studying process, she has willingly and readily, suggested and given me valuable advice and detailed comments about my study. Furthermore, my sincere thanks also go to other teachers in foreign language department for their teaching which helps me much in completing this study. Especially, I am profoundly grateful to all the members in my family and friends, who always beside me, supporting time to complete this study. Finally, I would like to thank all those who have kindly given their advice and helped me with source material during the writing of this graduation paper. Hai Phong, December, 2012 Ta Thi Minh Phuong 9
9. TABLE OF CONTENT PART I : Introduction . .1 1. Rationale . 1 2. Aims of the study . . 2 3. Scope of the study . . 2 4. Methods of the study . 2 5. Design of the study 3 PART II: Development . 4 Chapter1: Theoretical background . 4 1. Speaking 4 1.1. Definition of speaking 4 2. Factors affecting learners’ speaking skill . 5 2.1. Listening 5 2.2. Grammatical accuracy 6 2.3. Understanding pronunciation . 7 2.4. Accent neutralization . 9 2.5. Organization ideas 11 2.6. English fluency 14 2.7. Enthusiasm .15 2.8. Self-confidence 16 2.9. Paralinguistic communication skills 17 2.10. Length of answers 18 3. Extra –activities 18 3.1. Definition of extra-activities 18 3.2. Some form of extra-activities 19 Chapter 2: Research Methodology . 40 1. Introduction 40 2. The Objective of the Survey . 40 10
10. 3. Subjects 40 4. Methodology and Method of the Survey 41 4.1. Methodology . 41 4.2. Method 41 5. Procedures 41 Chapter 3: finding and discussion 42 3.1. Students’ English ability 42 3.2.Students’ attitude towards how speaking important to them . 43 3.3.Students’ taking part in extra-activities . 43 3.4. Taken Forms of extra-activities . 44 3.5. Students’ opinion about extra-activities . 44 PART III: Conclusion . 46 1. Conclusion . 46 2. Suggested techniques . . 47 3. Suggestions for further study . . 51 References Appendixes Student’s questionaire 11
11. PART ONE : INTRODUCTION 1. Rationale Speaking skill is one of the important factor for judging a person‟s English ability. In the international relationship, English speaking ability is very important to be able to participate in the wider world of work. The speaking skill is measured in terms of the ability to carry out a conversation in the language. This reality makes teachers and parents think that speaking ability should be mastered by students As a master of fact, it is not easy to study well a foreign language like English. Almost students have difficulties in communication. In fact, communication well is one of the key which helps learners step by step discover this interesting language. To the non-major students especially business administration students, speaking English is increasingly is important factor, plays an essential role in integrating new flat working environment. However, not all people are aware of this. From my point of view , there is a need for business administration students to be prepared for more business related communication in addition to the more social and casual day- to -day communication skills that the majority of the business administration students can master. With this graduation paper, the writer wishes to stress the importance of extra- activities to improve English communication of business administration students, especially QTTN‟ students All the above reasons have inspired the writer to choose the subject “ A study on extra-activities to improve English speaking skill of QTTN class at HPU” to do research 12
12. 2. Aims of the study With the hope of helping the business administration students make progress in studying English speaking through extra-activities, the graduation paper aims at finding out problems and expectations in English speaking study. Moreover, some suggestions on appreciate techniques to study English speaking have been given. Hopefully, students will be interested in learning English speaking. So that they will pay much attention to the lectures and get better results/ 3. Scope of the study In fact, there are lots of various techniques to study English communication. It requires much of time and effort. However, due to the limitation of time, resources and knowledge of mine, this study con only focus on study some effective techniques in studying English speaking for the business administration students. 4. Methods of the study English speaking is a big theme; however, because of the limited time and my knowledge, in this paper, the writer only focuses on note taking skill problems in listening faced by business administration students and some techniques for teaching English to solve these problems. The study limits itself at finding out the difficulties in learning speaking skill of QTTN students. Moreover, the researcher concentrates on improving note taking skill in speaking class accessed in the view of both students and lecturers 13
13. 5. Design of the study The study contains 3 parts Part I: Introduction presents the rationales, aims, research questions, scope, method and design of the study. Part II: Development consists of three chapters Chapter 1 THEORETICAL BACKGROUND - deals with the concepts including speaking and factors effected to speaking skill. Chapter 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY - gives the situation analysis, subjects, and data collection instruments. Chapter 3: FINDING AND DISCUSSION – shows the results of the survey and a comprehensive analysis on the data collected. Part III: Conclusion presenting an overview of the study, suggestions for further research and limitations of the study. 14
14. PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUNDS 1. Speaking 1.1. Definition of speaking In Oxford Advanced Dictionary the definition of speaking is to express or communicate opinions, feelings, ideas, etc, by or as talking and it involves the activities in the part of the speaker as psychological, physiological (articulator) and physical (acoustic) stages. According to Chaney, speaking is the process of building and sharingmeaning through the use of verbal and non-verbal symbols, in a variety of contexts. While another expert, Theodore Huebner said “Language is essentially speech, and speech is basically communication by sounds” And according to him, speaking is a skill used by someone in daily life communication whether at school or outside. The skill is acquired by much repetition; it primarily a Oxford Advanced Dictionary, p. 13 A. L. Chaney and T. L. Burke, Teaching Oral Communication in Grades K-8 (Boston: Allyn &Bacon, 1998), p. 13 From the above definition, it can be inferred that speaking is expressing ideas, opinions, or feelings to others by using words or sounds of articulation in order to inform, to persuade, and to entertain that can be learnt by using some teaching learning methodologies. 15
15. 1.2. Learning speaking Speaking is a crucial part of second language learning and teaching. Despite its importance, for many years, teaching speaking has been undervalued and English language teachers have continued to teach speaking just as a repetition of drills or memorization of dialogues. However, today's world requires that the goal of studying speaking should improve students' communicative skills, because, only in that way, students can express themselves and learn how to follow the social and cultural rules appropriate in each communicative circumstance 2. Factors effecting learners’ speaking 2.1. Listening Listening comprehension is a very basic skill one must have in order to be a good English speaker. One of the most common and critical mistakes non-native speakers of English make is focusing their time and effort in improving their English speaking skills without first assessing and practicing their English listening comprehension skills. A lot of them actually know grammar rules pretty well and can construct even complex sentences. Surprisingly, just when you thought they can communicate well in English, they suddenly come to a halt when asked questions. Some non-native speakers cannot understand the question/s, because the one asking speaks too fast or because of the speaker‟s accent (in case of an Australian or a British speaker for example). They would often ask the speaker to repeat the question several times or request the speaker to speak more slowly, before they finally understand the question. Some, on the other hand, answer the question/s impressively (with not many mistakes in grammar and pronunciation; good explanations and examples; 16
16. amazing fluency) just to find out in the end that he or she misunderstood the question, and therefore gave an inappropriate answer. 2.2 Grammartical Acurracy Some people wonder why there is a need to have grammatical accuracy in English, when even some native English speakers commit grammatical mistakes themselves. Native English speakers can say what they want without much difficulty due to their familiarity of the language. If they have difficulty expressing a certain concept/thought in a certain way, they can just use other ways of saying those things. They may commit some mistakes in grammar, but the mistakes do not distort or change the meaning of the sentences they want to convey, thus, it doesn‟t give the listener much of a problem understanding them. On the other hand, the mistakes many non-native speakers of English commit are those that often change the meaning of sentences they want to express, and thus create a misunderstanding. That‟s exactly the reason why non-native speakers have to study grammar more than native speakers. Example : . Pronouns Ex. Everybody have their work to do. (The indefinite pronouns each, anyone, anybody, , everybody and everyone are referred to by singular pronouns. The sentence should have read “Everybody has his work to do.) Ex. I watched a movie with my wife last night. He liked it very much. (He‟s talking about his wife and then he used “he” to refer to her afterwards.) • Adjectives Ex. She is the most fairest girl I have ever seen. Ex. He is worst than my ex-husband. 17
17. (If only two things/people are being compared, “worse” should be used instead of “worst”.) Ex. I met little people in the conference. (“Little” is used to refer to noncount nouns. “Few” should have been used in the sentence above, unless of course the writer/speaker was referring to midgets or dwarfs, or if he used the word little “figuratively”.) • Verbs Ex. Few is expected to fail the test. (The indefinite pronouns both, many, several and few take a plural verb.) Ex. They hanged the old fiddle in the woodshed. (Some are confused with hanged and hung. “Hanged” means to kill somebody or yourself by fastening a rope around the neck and removing any other support for the body. “Hung”, on the other hand, means to suspend or fasten something so that it is held up from above. In this sentence, it seems as if the old fiddle was killed, which of course doesn‟t make any sense.) Ex. I go to school yesterday. (The word “yesterday” indicates a past event, so the verb used should have been “went”.) Ex. She swimmed very fast the last time we were at the beach. (“Swam” should have been used instead of “swimmed.”) Ex. He don‟t know anything about it. (“Doesn‟t” should be used instead of “don‟t” because the subject “he” is singular.) 2.3. Understanding pronunciation It is quite common for non-native speakers of English to mispronounce English words. However, it is not something we have to be ashamed of, but something learners ought to understand. They have to get to the root/s of the problems, in order for us to improve our pronunciation. English is not phonetic Unlike other languages, English is not phonetic. What does that mean? It means 18
18. we don‟t always say English words the way we spell them. Let‟s compare two languages as an example. Ex. The Japanese word “honto” (really) is pronounced the way it is spelled. The English word “really” is not pronounced as "re-a-li" or "re-a-lai", nor is the word “really” spelled as “rili”. Ex. Another example is the word “read”. At times it is pronounced as [red] and at times as [ri:d]. Although the spelling may not change, the way it is pronounced changes depending on the tense you are using. That‟s one of the main reasons non-native speakers of English get confused in pronouncing many English words, especially if their native tongue is phonetic. The Sounds of -ed The past simple tense and past participle of all regular English verbs end in “ed”. However, the “ed” added to the verbs may have different sounds which depends if the base verb‟s sound is voiceless or voiced. What is the difference between voiced and voiceless sounds? VOICED -A consonant is voiced when it makes the vocal cords vibrate. VOICELESS -When a consonant is pronounced without vibrating the vocal cords, it‟s voiceless. There are three ways of pronouncing the –ed sound. / Id/ or / t/ or / d/ 19
19. Keep in mind that it is not the spelling but the sound that is important. For instance, „wax” ends in x but the sound is /s/. There are some exceptions though. The following words used as adjectives are pronounced with / Id/. blessed, aged, ragged, wretched, naked, crooked Two ways of pronouncing “the” hen used before a vowel sound, we say “the” as “thee”. Keep in mind that it is the sound we should listen to, not the letters themselves. Ex. The apple is pronounced as “thee apple”. The hour is pronounced as “thee hour”. (hour sounds like our) When used before a consonant sound, we say “the” as “thuh”. Ex. The graduates is pronounced as “thuh graduates”. The university is pronounced as “thuh university”. (university sounds like yuniversity) 2.4 Accent neutralization What is accent? Who has an accent? What do we do to neutralize our accent? These questions and more will be answered by this post. Everyone has an accent. So, when listeners hear some people say, “She‟s good 20
20. in English. She doesn‟t have an accent,” they will find it a bit amusing. Accent usually reflects the place where a person comes from, that‟s why it‟s easy to say if someone is Korean, American, Filipino, British, Australian, etc., even if they all speak in English. Accent is also one of the main reasons why people have a hard time understanding each other, and thus many people strive to change their accent. I said “change their accent” not “get rid of their accent”. People can actually change their accent by studying another accent and imitating it. When people say “neutralize” or “remove one‟s accent”, what they often mean is to get the standard American English accent. So, how can we have this kind of accent? First, we ought to study our native tongue‟s vowel and consonant sounds and compare it to the Standard American English vowels and sounds. By doing this, we will know why we‟re having difficulty imitating their accent and how we can succeed on doing it. Ex. Tagalog (Philippine language)for instance have only 5 vowel sounds. A E I O U (as in father) (as in bet) (as in indeed) (as in all) (as in ooze) English, on the other hand, although has the same vowels, each vowel has many different sounds. A (as in father) A (as in mate) A (as in map) I (as in ice) I (as in intention) U (as in umbrella) U (as in university) Hence, when some Filipinos speak in English, they tend to sound the English vowels a, e, i, o, u the same way they sound in their native tongue. This is what happens most of the time to other people of other languages. They carry over the sounds of their vowels when they speak in English. Another problem is the aspirating sound of the English consonants, which is not done in one‟s native tongue. 21
21. Ex. The Tagalog consonant sounds for instance need no air to be pushed out from the mouth when they are pronounced unlike English consonants. Tunay (true) vs true Pahina (page) vs page For other languages, the problem is the lack of some consonant sounds in their native tongue, such as j, z, l, r, f, p. Ex. In Japanese language, the L sound is nonexistent. Thus, when they say an English word with an L sound, they tend to sound it like an R which is the nearest sound to L in their native language. In English, stress in words and sentences as well as intonation patterns is also a part of the so-called accent. So when we stress the words/sentences or use intonation patterns that are different from Standard American English (since we often carry over the stress and intonation patterns of our mother tongue to English), our accent would then sound different from Americans. Ex. Remember that yes/no questions usually have a rising intonation and that wh questions usually have a falling intonation. Are you okay? What time is it? Also, remember that the keywords in a sentence are the ones enunciated well while the articles are glided over, so as not to sound robotic and monotonous. Accent is the rhythm or music of our speech. Acquiring another accent is like learning songs. When learners try to learn a new song, they study both its lyrics and its melody. If they just study the lyrics (in this case, the grammar of the language we‟re studying) and we just ignore the melody by using the melody of the song we are most familiar with (using the accent and pronunciation of our mother tongue), we sound different from what is expected. Each language and dialect has its own rhythm which explains why we have different accents even if 22
22. we all speak in English. The key to acquiring another accent is to understand and study that language (like English) as a totally different language (new song which melody and lyrics we both have to know), thus, following the pronunciation of its sounds, the intonation and stress patterns, etc., instead of linking it to our mother tongue. Do not carry over the rules of our language to the one we try to acquire. 2.5 Organization of ideas When learners read a news article, they read the first paragraph (also called the “lead”) It is safe to say that almost everyone reads the lead first before the other paragraphs in the news article. If ever there are cases where the person reads the last paragraph first, the question is, “Why?”. News articles are structured in a way that the readers would be able to grasp the gist of the news right away even if they don‟t have enough time to read the whole article. The most important pieces of information are already in the first two paragraphs of the article. So, if the readers are in a hurry, they can still understand the main idea and get the most important information about the article. If we could only air our thoughts the same way, the people we‟re talking to would understand us more easily. Also, they would not get bored with our responses. What are the common problems about organizing ideas when responding to questions? Novelist Speakers What in the world is a novelist speaker? They are the people who tend to talk so much in response to a very simple question. They have a tendency to digress from the topic and even forget what the original question was. Repeat Again Have you ever heard someone tell ,” Sorry, I don‟t understand the question. Can you repeat again please?” If you weren‟t able to identify what‟s wrong with the 23
23. latter sentence, you probably have the same problem. The word “again” is the same as “repeat”, so it‟s redundant to say “repeat again”. Now, the problem with some speakers is that they repeat not only the words, but also the content of their responses. At times, they have a very long response but the content is just the same as what they‟ve already said before. Story-teller Style In some stories, you have to read the whole story first before you understand the lesson. It is the same with some speakers. It‟s very hard for them to go straight to the point. You have to wait for them to finish speaking before you can finally understand what he‟s trying to say. Many people don‟t have time to listen to everything you will say, so say the most important things first. Say the main idea first before elaborating on reasons and giving examples. Disoriented At times, we encounter people who would talk about topic A and go to topic B and then go back to topic A and afterwards move to topic C. They have no focus of what they would like to talk about, so the people they talk to get dizzy talking to them. Try to talk about topic A first and try to finish everything you have to say about it before moving on to another topic. 24
24. 2.6 English fluency English fluency means being able to use the language with ease. How can learners assess our English fluency then? Below are questions that they ought to ask themselves to gauge our English fluency. Do they say “ahh” or “uuhmm” many times be suitable for my sentences? Do they often say “you know” to replace the phrases Dothey speak so slowly, because they too careful not to make mistakes in my sentences, that their listeners already tend to look drowsy? Do they make the pronunciation of certain words indistinguishable intentionally, because they are not sure how those words should be pronounced? If learners answered “yes” to these questions, then they do have a problem in English fluency. In order to be more fluent in the said language, it is suggested that learners practice speaking English as often as possible. However, it‟s not enough to practice all the time. They have to make sure you practice speaking English the right way. They can do this by practicing with a buddy who can speak English well, so that he/she can correct your mistakes if you commit any. Also, surround yourself in an all-English atmosphere. Listen to English songs, read English books, and watch English TV programs and movies. You can also try to record yourself as you speak English, and then listen to the recording afterwards. Listen for the mistakes that you commit repetitively and study the rules behind those mistakes. Be more careful not to commit those mistakes the next time you speak. 25
25. 2.7. Enthusiasm This post teaches how one could speak with enthusiasm and how this would help one become a great English speaker. it is sure that almost everyone has experienced listening to speeches. It may be during our elementary or high school graduation given by the guest speakers or valedictorians, or during election campaign periods when politicians would recite a long list of promises to the voters, or even during special occasions like weddings and birthdays. Whatever the case may be, it all boils down to one thing. Most probably, learners didn‟t even care about what they were talking about. Most people who are asked to give speeches are those who are intelligent and those who can speak very well. So, what could probably have went wrong? Speaking well does not only involve the right grammar, pronunciation, accent and proper use of words. A person might be good in all these aspects yet not many people would like to listen to what he has to say. Why? A good English speaker (or speaker for that matter), can catch and hold the attention of his/her listeners. How can he/she do this? Speak up! If you speak too softly, how in the world will people be able to hear clearly what you have to say? Do not expect the listeners to be the ones to exert effort in trying to understand somebody , if a learner is the one who wants to convey a message. Be a singer Listen to songs. A good song has soft and loud parts, slow and fast parts. The changes in the volume and the rhythm makes the tune catchy, nice to listen to and even easy to remember at times. The learners should speak the same way. They should not speak in a monotonous tone that would 26
26. put the listeners to sleep. They should sometimes speak fast, speak slowly, speak softly and speak loudly, depending on the ideas we would like to get across. Feel it If learners can‟t feel what you say, they would expect the message to have an impact to the ones listening? Whether they are giving a speech, or taking an English exam, or answering a question, they should not sound as if they are reading something from a very boring textbook. They should put more feelings into it. It‟s not just the content that matters, it‟s the delivery! 2.8 Self-confidence Did people already know how to ride a bike the moment you were born? Tthey had to study it ,practice, fall down at times and learn from your mistakes, until you finally got it right. If they just studied about how to ride a bike and did not even try it, would you learn? No. they would still probably be reading a Dummies Guide to Riding a Bike until now. Learning the English language is the same thing. It‟s not enough that you study about it. They should practice it! Do not be afraid to make mistakes. It‟s a part of the learning process. There are a lot of people who are good in English but are not that confident to use the language, thus, they waste their talents. There are also know many people who commit many mistakes in grammar, pronunciation and word usage, yet because of their self-confidence they even landed a job which is in line with English. Here‟s a friendly advice to the former group of people: “If you don‟t believe in yourself, who will In my experience as an English trainer, I‟ve met some people who were 27
27. supposed to take English language examinations such as TOEFL, TSE, IELTS, etc During our mock interviews, many of them would say “I‟m not very good in English”, as parts of their responses to certain questions. If I were the real examiner, why would I give you a high score in this exam if you yourself admit you‟re not good in English? Why are you taking this exam in the first place if you know you deserve to fail? So like what I said, believe in yourself, and everything will start falling into place. 2.9 Paralinguistic Communication skills What is paralinguistic communication skills? Does it help one become an effective English speaker? Read this post to find out. Many romantic movies and TV sitcoms have that kind of line. So, why is the person forced to look into the other‟s eyes and say he/she doesn‟t love him/her anymore? Why not just say it? What is the need for the eye contact thing? It‟s because words don‟t say it all. Interviewing applicants is a part of my job. When people talk to each other , they don‟t just listen to what they have to say, they observe the manner in which they say it. They look into their eyes, they observe their gestures and mannerisms, their sitting position, everything, because those paralinguistic cues reveal more information about them than what they are saying. To become an effective speaker, they must be able to use these paralinguistic cues for us, not against us. Whether they are going to have a job interview or deliver a speech or just plainly talk to someone we hardly know, knowledge of paralinguistic cues is an effective way of making them see what we just want them to see. In job interviews for example, it‟s just natural for applicants to be nervous. 28
28. Some people unconsciously reveal their nervousness either by having too many hand gestures or being to stiff. Knowing this, we can avoid making those unnecessary movements or being dead stiff. Also, when people talk about their knowledge and abilities, they tend to look down or look in different directions, either to avoid the interviewer‟s gaze, out of shyness or to think of answers. Whatever the case may be, it shows lack of confidence and sincerity, so the interviewees ought to meet the interviewer‟s gaze. (however, this depends on the culture of both). In some cultures, looking into the interviewer‟s eyes is considered impolite. One‟s sitting position should also be taken into consideration. Slouching would of course reveal an overconfident personality. One should sit upright near the edge of the seat to show attentiveness in interviews. 2.10. Length of answer How long should one's answers be? The length of one‟s answers depends on the situation. If it‟s just a conversation between friends, where you are telling someone a story which is very interesting for him/her, going into details and a long answer is okay. However, when one is in a job interview or an English examination, wherein the interviewer does not have much time to speak with you, you ought to give answers that are brief and detailed. Make sure you have already answered what has been asked, before moving on to elaborate on the details of the answers 3. Extra-activities 3.1. Definition of extra-activities Extra activities are activities performed by students that fall outside the realm of the normal curriculum of school or university education. Extra activities exist at all levels of education, form 4th -6th , junior high/ high school, college and university education. 29
29. Such activities are generally voluntary as opposed to mandatory, non-paying, social, philanthropic as opposed to scholastic, and often involve others of the same age. Students often organize and direct these activities under faculty sponsorship, although student-led initiatives, such as independent newspapers, are common. 3.2. Some form of extra- activities 3.2.1 English corner and English club. It should be initiated from the beginning and kept all the time. Many activities can be carried out at such places. A dominant activity at English corner is free talk, which usually works effectively to ease the tension within the students when they speak English. Some other activities can be introduced to make the English corner more entertaining. As long as the players are amused, challenged, intrigued or surprised during the playing period, the meaning of the language they listen to, speak, and write will be more vividly experienced and, therefore remembered .So attention should be given to enhance the quality of the games. While at English club, activities can be more various and enlightening, such as video show, simulations, debates etc. Activities like these not only provide good contexts for students to interact in English but also help to enrich their knowledge and perspectives of the world 30
30. Purpose of English clubs An English Club is a place for language learners to use English in a casual setting. Practising your skills in the classroom is important, but it is not like real life. In the classroom, you often focus on one skill and one item (for example: grammar - future tense). After learning the rules your teacher gives you time to practise using the item. Will you remember how 31
31. to use your skills next week, or next year? In an English Club, you get a chance to practise many different skills in a setting that is more like real life. Though your English teacher understands your English, your English Club friends will require you to speak more clearly and listen more carefully. Places for English clubs At an English School The easiest place to hold an English Club is in a spare classroom at an English school. After classroom hours, most schools remain open for an hour or two so that teachers can prepare for their classes. This is also a convenient location because some or all of the members will already be in 32
32. the school and will have no excuses for missing a club meeting. You will also have access to materials and television equipment. In members' homes You may want to take your club out of the classroom in order to make it feel less academic and more social. If you decide to operate your club from a personal home, try to find more than one person who is willing to host the meetings. You will need to choose homes that are in a central location. Within the home, choose a room with a lot of space and few distractions. Don't forget to turn off the telephone. You may want to serve coffee or tea. At a cafe or restaurant This type of setting will likely involve a fee. The manager may allow you to reserve a small room in the back if you choose a time of day when there are few customers. You will likely be expected to purchase beverages and tip a server (depending on what country you are in). Operating your club out of a cafe may make it difficult to incorporate movies, music, and other listening practice. A cafe is a good option for a small conversation club (less than 6 people). Outdoors One of the best places to hold an English Club is outside. This may only be possible during certain warm months depending on what country you are in. Choose a location where shelter can be found in case of rain. Though the beach might sound like a great place to practise your English, remember that you will probably be using papers and books which will be difficult in the breeze. A park with picnic tables and shady trees might be better. Consider atmosphere Wherever you hold your club, remember that it is a club, not a class. To change the atmosphere in a classroom you might want to open windows or have background music or candles (if the school permits). A pot of coffee 33
33. or a bowl of popcorn can also make the meeting feel more like a club than a class. Why not encourage members to take off their shoes when they walk in the door, or sit on the floor instead of chairs. Remember, the purpose of the club is to use English in a life-like situation. Do what feels natural and comfortable. Time for English Clubs About once a week Some clubs fail because they expect too much of the members. It is hard to find time to commit to something outside of school, work, and family. Meeting once a week for about two hours is a good start. Some English Clubs also meet for an additional excursion once a month. As you make friends you will probably begin to get together in pairs or smaller groups outside of the club meetings. The best time of day 34
34. Choose a meeting time that is convenient for the group. Usually late afternoons, evenings, or weekend days are chosen so that the meetings don't conflict with work or school. The time that you choose will also depend on when the room/space is available. If you make your meetings too early or too late you may find that people come to the first few meetings and then drop out. Stop and begin again Start a new club session approximately every three months. This will keep the club alive! Another good time to take a break is during holiday times, such as New Year's or Spring Break. Some members will return and others will move on to other things. Invite new people to join to fill the empty 35
35. spots. Change activities/themes that didn't work the first time. Keep adding new ideas, but try to maintain a club identity. Activities in a English clubs Establish a warm-up routine You will notice that teachers often start class with a game or conversation exercise. They do this to wake you up! They also want to help you focus on a classroom activity that will follow. In a club that tends to have more of an academic focus the warm up could be three new vocabulary words. The leader could teach a noun, a verb, and an adjective each session. The group practises making sentences with the new words. In a club that is more social in nature, find an activity that makes people laugh. This will bring positive energy into the room. Here are ten fun warm-up activities that are guaranteed to turn your brains to English quickly! Themes or Skills You can organize your club in many ways. Some clubs will be full of members that only want to practise one skill, such as conversation. Conversation club meetings are often very casual and require little planning. Everyone can write down a topic that they want to debate, or you can talk about popular culture and current events. Someone can bring in a newspaper article and everyone can read it together and discuss it. Reading clubs are another type of English Club. Each person reads the same book (outside of group time) and the club discusses aspects such as what they liked about it, who their favourite characters were, etc. 36
36. The majority of English Clubs, however, are designed for people who want to improve their English in all skill areas. If this is the type of club you want to create it is useful to divide the meetings in terms of themes or skills. Each member of the club can choose from a list of dates. You can suggest topic ideas, or ask members to come up with their own. Always give members the option of bringing in their own idea (leave a blank space for OTHER on the theme/skill schedule). See sample meeting schedule for ideas for your own club. The leader for each meeting is in charge of everything including the warm-up, the focus, and the dividing of members into groups or pairs. This gives everyone in the group an opportunity to show their leadership and creative skills. If someone is extremely shy and unwilling to be a leader, you can still allow them to join the club. Perhaps they will agree to be a leader a few months later in the next session when they have more confidence in English. 37
37. Have backup ideas on hand What if your leader for the day doesn't show up? In a classroom, you usually get a substitute teacher when your instructor is sick or unavailable. This should be the same in a club. If members know they are going to miss a meeting that they are supposed to lead, they should call another member and give them instructions about what was planned. However, it is likely that a day will come when no leader shows up at all. It is a good idea to have a back up plan in case of this problem. The easiest thing to do is keep a list of discussion questions in the location of the meetings. Put them in an envelope or in the classroom, or give one to each member to keep in their notebook. You can cut them up and put them in a hat and take turns picking questions. Another idea is to get out a dictionary and learn ten new words. The group can practise using them and then write a group play that involves all ten words. A deck of playing cards is also a good thing to keep in case of extra time. You can play a game of cards in English. Teaching each other rules in English is a great way to practise speaking and listening. You will also have to ask lots of questions when you learn a new game. 38
38. Use a suggestion box If it's possible, keep a suggestion box in the room where you hold your club meetings. At the end of each meeting the leader should encourage members to write a comment or suggestion for the group.Examples: I want to practice pronunciation more. Let's keep track of our new vocabulary. Does anyone want to practice idioms with me? It's too cold in this room! Why don't we all bring a snack to share next week? 39
39. Go on excursions as a group Outside of your weekly meetings, it is a good idea to have one excursion a month. This helps create stronger bonds within the group. It is always fun to have something to look forward to as well. Go out to a movie. Play a sport. Do community service together. Give blood. Go sightseeing. Have a picnic. Go dancing. Have a potluck dinner. Whatever you decide to do, everyone should speak English at all times. 40
40. 3.2.2. English outdoor classes Outdoor education and English speaking outdoor classes promote active learning through direct personal experience and offer excitement, fun and adventure within a framework of safety. Active learning and adventure outdoors can take place in a variety of environments: rural and urban, local and more remote. Outdoor education, training and recreation involve both English major students and business administration students in a wide range of experiences, including adventurous activities on land and water and activities with an English speaking skill. Methods used include skills-focused learning, problem solving, team building and self-reliant journeys and activities, with residential experience in English language. Challenging experience outdoors impacts powerfully upon a person‟s intellectual, physical, spiritual, social. Use of the outdoors makes a major contribution to physical and English vocabularies . It contributes to personal growth and social awareness and develops skills for life and the world of work. Qualities such as a sense of responsibility and a purpose in life are nurtured. There is also a great deal of intrinsic enjoyment and satisfaction to be experienced from participation in outdoor activities. Building self-confidence and self-esteem is fundamental to any young person‟s development. Outdoor activities provide valuable alternative, often non-competitive, avenues for achievement, as well as opportunities to develop independence and self- reliance. Through successfully facing up to the challenges which outdoor activities provide, overcoming fears and apprehensions along the way, young 41
41. people make major strides in confidence, with implications for all aspects of their development. A positive attitude to learning is essential if young people are to make the most of their English education. Participation in exciting and enjoyable outdoor activities with teachers, youth workers and peers reinforces a positive attitude to education and contributes significantly to the general ethos of a school or youth group. Direct experience out of doors stimulates and reinforces learning across many areas of the curriculum, and the use of the outdoors encourages young people to take greater responsibility for their own learning. Awareness of the needs and contributions of others and the ability to sustain effective relationships, at work and in the family, are vital in today‟s society. Experience in the outdoors provides rich opportunities for personal and social development through carefully structured group work in challenging situations. Trust, care, tolerance and the willingness to give and accept support are all encouraged and anti-social behaviour is challenged. Opportunities are presented to exhibit and develop effective inter-personal behaviour and to work co- operatively and effectively in teams. The purposeful use of leisure time is increasingly seen as making an important contribution to a fulfilling lifestyle. Outdoor recreation introduces young people to a range of worthwhile leisure pursuits which will enrich their future lives, and develops the skills and knowledge essential for safe participation. Outdoor exercise contributes greatly to health and fitness and continuing participation in outdoor pursuits encourages the maintenance of a healthy lifestyle into middle age and beyond. 42
42. Our relationship with the environment is a key issue facing tomorrow‟s citizens. Active learning and adventure outdoors introduces young people to the environment in a way which develops understanding appreciation, awe, wonder and respect. It fosters sensitivity to the environment, helps young people to see themselves in a global context and helps to develop citizens with an awareness of the need for sustainable use of the world‟s natural resources. Tomorrow‟s successful citizens will possess the adaptability to cope with a rapidly changing world of work and the responsibility to be an effective member of a community. Challenging outdoor experiences promote the development of communication, problem solving and decision making skills which have currency across a range of occupations. They encourage a positive "opting in" and "can do" attitude. 43
43. Young people‟s horizons are broadened, new challenges come to be relished rather than shunned, and perseverance and determination are reinforced. Values and attitudes developed in a context of shared endeavour help to form a sound basis for responsible citizenship. How to teach English outdoor classes It‟s that time of year again when the flowers begin to bloom, snow begins to melt and writers tend to start using all sorts of done-to-death clichés. It‟s also a time of year when the weather begins to become more clement, creating a unique opportunity to throw away the whiteboard markers and head outside for some super-creative lesson plans that both teacher and student will thoroughly enjoy. Heading outside isn‟t only fun, but it also gives the chance to teach a highly-focused lesson while offering students the chance to learn vocabulary through a wide range of realia - ESL jargon for real life things. Spring allows teachers with a real chance to liven up their lessons and to experience the great world around us. Here‟s some cool ideas for your class that you can use with your classes outdoors. Spring Ideas For Outdoors English Lessons Go on a Lovely Picnic 44
44. A picnic is a fantastic idea for any kids class as it gives them the chance to escape the classroom and get some fresh air. As they run around, chase each other and have a good time, you can play some activities and games with them to help expand their vocabulary. „I spy‟ is a great game for younger kids outside, allowing them to use a wider range of vocabulary in the classroom. A picnic allows you to take a walk with your students and practice outdoors vocabulary that they would usually learn in a textbook. A picnic in a park allows you and your students to take a leisurely stroll around while expanding on the vocabulary such as various flowers, hobbies, animals and anything else that can be found in a park. Give Your Students a Cultural Treat and Take Them to a Restaurant 45
45. With the permission of parents and your school, take your students to a restaurant that specialises in western cuisine. This is great as it helps them with the vocabulary that is related to western food. Students should always be encouraged to use and order in English. Going to a restaurant, practicing the ordering phrases and vocab is a fun way for students to finish a unit on food and dining, as it gives the students a chance to practice in a real-life situation. It also gives them the chance to gorge on some high cholesterol, fatty French fries, burgers and hotdogs. Introduce Your Students to a Summer Sport The perfect way to reward your students for all the hard work and effort put in during the bitterly cold winter is to take them outside and introduce them to a summer sport that is played in your home country. Cricket and baseball are two sports that are often played in the west during the warmer months that work a treat for teenage students. While competing with each other, they will learn vocabulary relating with sport, as well as some culture from your country. Plan an Excursion to the Zoo Brilliant for younger learners, a field trip to the zoo makes for the ultimate day out. Students could be given a task such as find out about a certain animal and describe it using a range of adjectives. For lower level learners, an activity eliciting whether an animal „can‟ or „can’t‟ do something is also beneficial. A trip to the zoo would usually be a whole day out, and the inclusion of a picnic for lunch wouldn‟t go astray. 46
46. Do an Outdoor Science Activity If you have the outdoor space available to you, one little gem of an activity teach your students to make bottle rockets. An activity like this works on so many levels, as it involves a fair amount of planning and construction, which also involves using a large amount of vocabulary. The fun part is taking the students outside and holding a competition to see which flies the highest. Go Shopping These days, many language centres are conveniently placed in locations where there is a lot of pedestrian traffic. In recent years, many have begun to crop up in shopping malls everywhere. While the crowds can sometimes cause the teacher a major headache having to go there every day, it leaves the option open for an excursion to the numerous shops around, casually chatting with the students and getting them to describe the various shops and items that they sell in English. With older students, a novel way to finish off this short excursion is to stop by a 47
47. coffee shop, sit down over a cappuccino and build the all-important rapport with your students. Relax, Listen and Describe Ideal for students of all ages, this simple activity is ideal if you want to get the students outside without the luxury of time. Once outside, the teacher must instruct the students to close their eyes for a minute-or-so, and describe all of the sounds that they can hear. This activity works for a variety of different topics, from animals, to describing a city, and is a great warmer activity at the start of a unit. By getting outside of the classroom, you don‟t just only provide students with a fun activity, but you give them a realistic experience that provides them with an insight into culture and the real world – something that can‟t be learnt from a textbook. 1. 2.3. Daily Talk Activity I t should be made a rule as well as flexible and entertaining. The rule can be like this, students should speak English in their dormitories, Vietnamese is allowed only when the speaker doesn‟t know the English equivalent. To make it 48
48. fun, the punishment to the rule breaker is to hand in a coin each time to the fund of the dormitory. In this way, the dormmates would feel fun as well as moderately pushed to speak English while fancying what to do with the fund accumulated. For freshmen and sophomores, the English they learn in the class is mainly about the daily life. So this activity give them chances to put what they have learned into use immediately. What‟s more, as the dormitory is a place of everyday life, students‟ emotions flow naturally, thus the students will learn to speak English with real emotions. Therefore the more the students speak English, the more natural they will feel with English. Here one point is noteworthy, that is, the teacher‟s visit to the students is conducive to the success of this activity. On the one hand, the teacher can offer help to solve the language problems by checking students‟ dormitory diary on which students may keep a record of all the language difficulties they meet. On the other, the teacher can give supervision and a little push to the students so as to get rid of their sloppiness. Besides, psychologically when the teacher shows his concern and care to the students by visiting them, the students will feel closer to the teacher and then become more cooperative. . 3.2.4. Drama Society. Drama is quite different from role-play. It has a beginning, climax and ending, that is, a plot, it is usually rich in culture and language. The setting that can be imagined and simulated and the specific situations provide a context and a stimulus for realistic language use. Furthermore, the use of language in a dramatic situation is likely to include the full complexity of language use: emotional overtones, postures, gestures, and appropriate actions. Therefore, students will have a better understanding of the language and culture as well as learn to cooperate more harmoniously. Drama society can be held at three levels: primary drama society, secondary drama society and advanced drama society. At primary drama society, one-act or two-act plays are more suitable and a relatively ample background is 49
49. preferred for it‟s easier for students to understand the story. Plays like Cinderella, the King and His New Clothes are fit for the case. At secondary drama society, multi-act play can be introduced and the plot can be more complex. More acting skills and settings should be added to upgrade the quality of the play. Plays like the Merchant of Venice and The Inspector Calls are suitable. At the advanced drama society, the classics like the Shakespeare's and the Epson‟s and even some of the Chinese playwrights‟ can be tried. At this level, more and more efforts will be put into the understanding of the language, the plot and the background of the story. Students will learn to appreciate the classical literature and meanwhile improve their literary tastes. 3.2.5. Specialty Training. It aims to develop students‟ translation, interpretation and writing skills so as to upgrade students overall English proficiency. Compared with other activities, this activity is relatively less interesting. But for these highly goal- oriented students, they will feel greatly motivated to take part in such an activity. In this activity, pair-work pattern will function well. Students are encouraged to work in pairs, proof- reading each other‟s drafts, discussing the right way to translate and practising interpretation in turn. By the way, the teacher should encourage the students to publish their articles in newspapers and also recommend them to work for a commercial interpretation & translation house. That‟s to say, give the students any chances to practise in real life. By doing so, students language skills will be developed to the full. Besides the entire above, there is still something note-worthy. One is holding contests of all kinds like drama contest and speech contest to increase the students' interest as well as to give the teacher a chance to make assessment. Another is holding meetings in English such as class meeting, meeting within the students‟ union. In this way, students can learn to adapt themselves to a more formal English-speaking atmosphere. The last is holding outdoor activities in 50
50. English-speaking atmosphere, such as picnics, barbecue and meadow dance ball. In so doing, English learning is more closely interwined with student‟s daily life and thus English learning is made more fun, pleasure and meaningful 51
51. CHAPTER II: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 1. Introduction The chapter in the previous section of the thesis provides an overview of note- taking in QTTN class, drawing on pertinent theories, examples and illustrations from linguistics research literature, which have been conjoined with personal analyses, assessments, suggestions and deductions. In the forthcoming section, an empirical report is presented based on the findings from a survey. The section starts with a brief description of the survey purpose, subjects, method and procedures. 2. The Objective of the Survey The purpose of the quantitative survey is to explore how speaking students think about the speaking skill in English speaking class. From their own points of view and through their practical experience, how important extra-activities might be, what may be the basic requirements for a good note and also what they would do in some specific situations during the process of taking part in these activities, etc. The survey is not an ambitious plan to examine the students‟ acquisition of note-taking skill or to study how they actually take notes in reality. 3. Subjects In fact, QTTN of Hai Phong Private University mainly offers many speaking courses , the survey is conducted with one group of 35 QTTN students of the year 2011 -2013. The subjects are chosen for the following reasons: (i) they have finished first terms of studying speaking; (ii) many of them have practical experience in speaking. Therefore, to some extent, they are already aware of the role of speaking when taking part in extra- activities. Their responses are mainly based on the experiences that they have accumulated through the past terms of studying speaking at the school. 52
52. 4. Methodology and Method of the Survey 4.1. Methodology As mentioned above, the main aim of the study is to impartially record the findings about speaking students‟ personal opinions on extra- activities. It is obvious that the methodology of quantitative best suits the aim. With this type of research, the results are given numerical values and evaluated through some mathematical treatment and then put in form of a report of quantitative data analyze. 4.2. Method A survey is designed with the types of “Group Administered Questionnaire” that allows getting the survey results in one space of time and also ensures a very high responses rate. The fact is that 30 copies of the survey were handed out and the number of returns is 25. There are 4 questions which are made in form of scaled items where the subjects choose only one point on a scale that best represents his or her view. 5. Procedures Twenty five students were asked to complete the survey. They were given 10 minutes to consider and answer 4 questions. On each copy of the survey, there is a clear introduction to the purpose and a simple instruction about how to respond to questions, therefore, no other verbal explanation was given out. The sample questionnaire is available in the appendix at the end of the thesis. 53
53. CHAPTER 3: FINDING AND DISCUSSION In this chapter, with data collected from the survey questionnaires, a comprehensive analysis will be presented. It is the reorganization of the students‟ common difficulties when studying speaking skill with extra-activities through the data from the questionnaire by the means of pie charts and columns, laid our corresponding to the sequence of the questions and draws out immediately conclusions at each figure. 1. Analyzing from the students’ survey questionnaire 1. 1. Student‟s English ability Figure 1: Students‟ English ability As can be seen from the pie chart 0% of the students who judged their English excellent in studying English. 50% of them judged themselves normal. Some are good at English (20%) .In addition, all of them have from nine to thirty English periods a week in the first year. In comparison with other non-major students of Haiphong Private University, QTTN had more time exploring English. 1.2. Students‟ attitude towards how speaking important to them 54
54. Figure 2: Importance of English speaking The above chart illustrates the role of speaking approaching from the students‟ viewpoint, 100% of the students admitted that speaking is very important to them. As a result, it can provide much motivation as well as affect rightly to the students in studying speaking . 1.3. Student‟s time taking part in extra- activities Figure 3: Student‟s time to take part in extra-activities As can be seen from the chart, up to 35% of the students sometimes or rarely taking part in extra-activities and only 10% of them do it usually . Students‟ time for joining these activities is also a problem and it affects the learners very much in mastering the self-confidence skill 55
55. 1.4. Forms are taken part in by the students 36% 40% English clubs outdoor activities class activities 24% Figure 4:The Students‟ activities When be asking about taking part in some activities there are only 24% students always join outdoor-activities and 36% of them are sometimes join English club or English corner. On the other hand, 40% of the students join class activities. It means that they join majority of indoor activities. They have no chance to join outdoor activities. To sum up, many students currently seldom take part in outdoor activities. They must spend time for studying in the classes. It is one the reason why students cannot be self confident outside. 1.5. Students‟ opinion about extra-activities 56
56. Figure 5: Students‟ opinion about extra-activities In answer to this question 79% of interviewees replied that they thought English extra-activities are interesting. 21% of people said that they feel neutral about these activities. I think, Students are interested in English activities they will be good at public English . And Students should take part in more 57
57. PART III: CONCLUSION 1. Conclusion From the abovementioned, we can draw a conclusion that the systematic operation of extracurricular activities can approximate the conditions in the general model of an optimal language -learning environment in the following aspects: 1) Holding extracurricular activities systematically can guarantee that students get enough opportunities to practicing using language in a large of contexts likely to be encountered in the target culture. 2) Since extracurricular activities are closely knitted into students‟ daily life, it provides good reasons for them to share ideas and information, thus adds great authenticity to the language use in terms of both audience and task. 3) The richness of extracurricular activities ensures that students get adequate input and are prompted to create language of their own. 4) The involvement of teacher as a multi-role player can enhance students‟ intentional cognition as well as provide a moderate level of anxiety which functions to facilitate learning. Therefore, if extracurricular activities aided teaching and learning is made a supplementary method to ELT&ELL , English learners can greatly benefit from it. This paper has focused on the advantages of some extra activities for learning English skill of QTTN‟s students who are reluctant to speak in the English classroom and suggested a range of techniques that can be used to address the problem. It should be noted that the list of techniques is far from comprehension. Teachers need to adapt these techniques to suite their class situation. Furthermore, many of these solutions should be implemented simultaneously so that they can supplement each other in 58
58. tackling the problem from different angles, creating a better chance that the problem will successfully be solved. 2. Suggested techniques 2.1. Some suggested techniques 1.Discussion After a content-based lesson, a discussion can be held for various reasons. The students may aim to arrive at a conclusion, share ideas about an event, or find solutions in their discussion groups. Before the discussion, it is essential that the purpose of the discussion activity is set by the teacher. In this way, the discussion points are relevant to this purpose, so that students do not spend their time chatting with each other about irrelevant things. 2. Role Play Students pretend they are in various social contexts and have a variety of social roles. In role-play activities, the teacher gives information to the learners such as who they are and what they think or feel. Thus, the teacher can tell the student that "You are David, you go to the doctor and tell him what happened last night, and " (Harmer, 1984) 3. Simulations Simulations are very similar to role-plays but what makes simulations different than role plays is that they are more elaborate. In simulations, students can bring items to the class to create a realistic environment. For instance, if a student is acting as a singer, she brings a microphone to sing and so on. 4. Information Gap In this activity, students are supposed to be working in pairs. One student will have the information that other partner does not have and thepartners will share their information. Information gap activities servemany purposes such as solving a problem or collecting information. Also,each partner plays an important role because the task cannot be completedif the partners do not provide the information the others need. 5. Brain Storming 59
59. On a given topic, students can produce ideas in a limited time.Depending on the context, either individual or group brainstorming iseffective and learners generate ideas quickly and freely. The goodcharacteristic of brainstorming is that the students are not criticized fortheir ideas so students will be open to sharing new ideas. 6. Storytelling Students can briefly summarize a tale or story they heard fromsomebody beforehand, or they may create their own stories to tell theirclassmates. Story telling fosters creative thinking. It also helps studentsexpress ideas in the format of beginning, development, and ending ,including the characters and setting a story has to have. 7. Interviews Students can conduct interviews on selected topics with variouspeople. It is a good idea that the teacher provides a rubric to students sothat they know what type of questions they can ask or what path to follow, 8. Story Completion For this activity, a teacher starts to tell a story, but after a fewsentences he or she stops narrating. Then, each student starts to narratefrom the point where the previous one stopped. Each student is supposedto add from four to ten sentences. Students can add new characters, events,descriptions and so on. 9. Reporting Before coming to class, students are asked to read a newspaper ormagazine and, in class, they report to their friends what they find as themost interesting news. Students can also talk about whether they haveexperienced anything worth telling their friends in their daily lives beforeclass. 10. Playing Cards In this game, students should form groups of four. Each suit willrepresent a topic. For instance: diamonds represent earning money, heartsrepresent love and relationships, spades represent an unforgettablememory, and card represent best teacher. Each student in a group willchoose a card. Then, each student will write 4-5 questions 60
60. about that topicto ask the other people in the group. For example: if the topic "diamonds:earning money" is selected, here are some possible questions: Is moneyimportant in your life? Why? or What is the easiest way of earningmoney What do you think about lottery? Etc.However, the teacher should state at the very beginning of the activitythat students are not allowed to prepare yes-no questions, because bysaying yes or no students get little practice in spoken languageproduction. Rather, students ask open- ended questions to each other sothat they reply in complete sentences. 11. Picture Narrating This activity is based on several sequential pictures. Students areasked to tell the story taking place in the sequential pictures by payingattention to the criteria provided by the teacher as a rubric. Rubrics caninclude the vocabulary or structures they need to use while narrating. 12. Picture Describing For this activity students can form groups and each group is given a different picture. Students discuss the picture with their groups, then as pokes person for each group describes the picture to the whole class. Thisactivity fosters the creativity and imagination of the learners as well astheir public speaking skills 13. Find the Differences For this activity students can work in pairs and each couple is giventwo different pictures, for example, picture of boys playing football andanother picture of girls playing tennis. Students in pairs discuss thesimilarities and/or differences in the pictures. 61
61. 2.2. Guidance for Teachers in Teaching Speaking Here is some guidance for English language teachers while teaching oral language: Provide maximum opportunity to students to speak the target language by providing a rich environment that contains collaborative work, authentic materials and tasks, and shared knowledge. Try to involve each student in every speaking activity; for this aim , practice different ways of student participation. Reduce teacher speaking time in class while increasing student speaking time. Step back and observe students Indicate positive signs when commenting on a student's response. Ask eliciting questions such as "What do you mean? How did you reach that conclusion?" in order to prompt students to speak more . Provide written feedback like "Your presentation was really great. It was a good job. I really appreciated your efforts in preparing the materials and efficient use of your voice Do not correct students' pronunciation mistakes very often while they are speaking. Correction should not distract student from his or her speech . Involve speaking activities not only in class but also out of class; contact parents and other people who can help Circulate around classroom to ensure that students are on the right track and see whether they need your help while they work in groups or pairs. j. Provide the vocabulary beforehand that students need in speakingactivities.k. 62
62. Diagnose problems faced by students who have difficulty in expressingthemselves in the target language and provide more opportunities topractice the spoken language 3. Suggestions for further study The authors hope that they would go further with their research on other aspects of speaking English such as: - How to motivate students speak English inside and outside classroom - Techniques to help students produce a natural Standard English. However, due to time constraints, limited reference resource and especially the researchers‟ ability, suggestions and recommendations are most welcomed. 63
63. REFERENCES Ellis, R. (2005). Planning and task-based performance: Theory and research. In R. Ellis (Ed.), Planning and Task Performance in a Second Language (pp. 3-34). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company. Janusz Krzyzy Nski, A study of the attitudes and motivation of learners of English, University of Wrodaw. Markmee, Kand and Sheila Taylor (2001), Ongoing Teacher Development Initiatives, Thai TESOL, 14(1), 10-13. Nation, P. (1997). L1 and L2 use in the classroom: a systematic approach. TESL Reporter, 30(2). 19-27. Nation, I.S.P. (2000). Creating, adapting and using language teaching techniques. English Language Institute Occasional Publication No. 20. Victoria University of Wellington. Nation, I.S.P. (2007). Vocabulary learning through experience tasks. LALS, Victoria University of Wellington. Oxford, R.L. (1999). Anxiety and the language learner: new insights. In J. Arnold (Ed.), Affect in Language Learning (pp. 58-67). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. R.C Gardner (1968), Attitudes and motivation: their role in second language acquisition, University of western Ontario. Richards, Jack C, Approaches & Methods in Language Teaching, Cambridge University Press. Tsiplakides, I. and Keramida, A. (2010). Promoting positive attitudes in ESL/EFL classes. The Internet TESL Journal, XVI(1). Tsui, A.B.M. (1996). Reticence and anxiety in second language learning. In K.M. Bailey and D. Nunan (Eds.), Voices from the Language Classroom: Qualitative Research in Second Language Education (pp. 145- 167). New York: Cambridge University Press. 64
64. Young, D.J. (1991). Creating a low-anxiety classroom environment: What does language anxiety research suggest? The Modern Language Journal, 75(iv), 426-439. 65
65. QUESTIONAIRES 1. Your English ability A. Excellent B. Good C. Normal D. Bad E. Very bad 2. How important is speaking? A. Very important C. neutral B. Important D. not important 3. Which form of extra- activities did you join? A. Clubs B. Outdoor classes C. Class activities 4. How often do you take part in extra-activities? A. Usually C. rarely B. Sometimes D. never 5. What do you think about extra-activities A. Interesting B. Normal C. Boring -THE END- THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN 66