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DECLARATION
I hereby state that I, Trần Thị Hà Thu, being a candidate for the Degree of Master of
Arts, accept the requirement of the University relating to the retention and use of M.A.
Thesis deposited in the library.
I certify my authorship of the thesis: An investigation into using compilation of
theme – based lexical lists on primary students’ vocabulary retention is the result of
my own, and this thesis has not been submitted for any degree at any other university or
institution.
Hanoi, 2019
Tran Thi Ha Thu
i
ACKNOWLEDMENTS
First and foremost, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my supervisor,
Dr, Mai Thị Loan for her valuable guide, patient support and encouragement in the
completion of this M.A. Thesis.
I am so grateful to the writers of many books and Web pages I read which have
stimulated my thinking on doing this paper.
This study has been also completed with the invaluable help and the co – operation
of the students and the English teachers at Khanh Nhac A Primary School. Without their
enthusiastic contribution and cooperation, this research would certainly not have been
completed.
Finally, I am greatly thankful to my family and friends, who are forever a great
source of support and encouragement.
ii
ABSTRACT
The study aims at finding out the students’ attitudes and expectations through the
teacher’s using compilation of theme – based lexical lists at a primary school in Ninh
Binh. In order to fulfill the aim of the study, two instruments employed to collect data
were questionnaire for the students and teachers’ teaching diaries. The results of the data
analysis indicate that the students gave prominence to vocabulary teaching and learning
through compilation of theme – based lexical lists. The students also achieved
considerable progress in their vocabulary retention after attending vocabulary lessons
using compilation of theme – based lexical lists. In addition, the findings of the research
point out the students’ expectations in vocabulary lesson using compilation of theme –
based lexical lists relating to the ways of presenting new words, kinds of tasks, themes to
be introduced and kinds of activity organization. Based on the students’ expectations,
some recommendations were given to better situation for the benefits of the students,
some of which are choosing well – suited materials, using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists in combination with other activities such as games and testing students’
vocabulary. The study is hoped to meet the students’ needs, increase the motivation of
learners and teachers during learning vocabulary process.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION ................................................................................................................... i
ACKNOWLEDMENTS .......................................................................................................ii
ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iii
LISTS OF ABBREVIATIONS ..........................................................................................vii
LISTS OF TABLES AND FIGURES .............................................................................. viii
PART I – INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................... 1
1.
Rationale .................................................................................................................... 1
2.
Aims and objectives of the study............................................................................... 2
3.
Research questions .................................................................................................... 2
4.
Method of the study ................................................................................................... 2
5.
Scope of the study...................................................................................................... 2
6.
Design of the study .................................................................................................... 3
PART II – DEVELOPMENT ............................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW.............................................................................. 4
1.1.
Vocabulary in English teaching and learning ............................................................ 4
1.1.1. Definition of vocabulary ............................................................................................ 4
1.1.2. Types of vocabulary .................................................................................................. 5
1.1.3. Aspects of vocabulary knowledge ............................................................................. 7
1.1.4. The role of vocabulary in English teaching and learning .......................................... 9
1.2.
Teaching English to young learners ........................................................................ 10
1.2.1. Characteristics of young learners ............................................................................ 10
1.2.2. Teaching English vocabulary to young learners ..................................................... 11
1.3.
Methods in vocabulary teaching .............................................................................. 13
1.3.1. The Grammar – Translation Method ....................................................................... 13
1.3.2. The Direct Method ................................................................................................... 13
1.3.3. The Audio – Lingual Method .................................................................................. 14
1.3.4. Communicative Language Teaching ....................................................................... 14
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1.4. Compilation of theme – based lexical lists in English vocabulary teaching and
learning ............................................................................................................................... 15
1.4.1. Theme – based teaching approach ........................................................................... 15
1.4.2. Planning vocabulary teaching using compilation of theme – based lexical lists .... 16
1.5.
Summary .................................................................................................................. 18
CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ................................................................ 19
2.1.
The setting of the study ........................................................................................... 19
2.1.1. The current situation of English teaching and learning at Khanh Nhac A Primary
School ................................................................................................................................. 19
2.1.2. Participants .............................................................................................................. 19
2.1.3. Material description ................................................................................................. 20
2.2.
Data collection instruments ..................................................................................... 20
2.2.1. Questionnaire ........................................................................................................... 20
2.2.2. Teaching diaries ....................................................................................................... 21
2.3.
Data collection and data analysis............................................................................. 22
2.4.
Summary .................................................................................................................. 22
CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION................................................... 23
3.1.
Data analysis ............................................................................................................ 23
3.1.1. Analysis of the questionnaire .................................................................................. 23
3.1.2. Analysis of teaching diaries ..................................................................................... 33
3.2.
Discussion ................................................................................................................ 37
3.3.
Summary .................................................................................................................. 40
PART III – CONCLUSION ............................................................................................... 41
1.
Recapitulation .......................................................................................................... 41
2.
Concluding remarks ................................................................................................. 41
3.
Limitations and suggestions for further study. ........................................................ 43
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................... 44
APPENDIX 1A: QUESTIONNAIRE (ENGLISH VERSION) ........................................... I
APPENDIX 1B: QUESTIONNAIRE (VIETNAMESE VERSION) .................................IV
v
APPENDIX 2A: CRITERIA FOR TEACHING DIARIES ............................................. VII
APPENDIX 2B: TEACHING DIARIES ........................................................................ VIII
APPENDIX 3: A SAMPLE VOCABULARY TEST .................................................. XVIII
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LISTS OF ABBREVIATIONS
CBI
:
Content – Based Instruction
CLT
:
Communicative Language Teaching
GTM :
Grammar Translation Method
UK
:
United Kingdom
US
:
United States
%
:
Percentage
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LISTS OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Table 1.1. What is involved in knowing a word…………….…..……….……
9
Figure 1.1. Brainstorming and making webs…………….……………………. 18
Table 3.1. The teachers’ frequency of applying compilation of theme – based
lexical lists in English classes………………………………………………….. 23
Figure 3.1. Students’ comments on English lessons using compilation of
theme – based lexical lists……………………………………………………...
24
Figure 3.2. Students’ involvement in English classes using compilation of
theme – based lexical lists…………………………………………………….
25
Figure 3.3. Students’ assessment of the difficulty of learning vocabulary
through compilation of theme – based lexical lists…………………………….
26
Figure 3.4. Students’ assessment of their vocabulary retention after lesson
using compilation of theme – based lexical lists……………………………….
27
Table 3.2. Things students want teachers to do in English lessons………….… 28
Figure 3.5. Ways of presenting the meaning of words that students like…….
29
Figure 3.6. Kinds of tasks students would like to be involved………………..
30
Table 3.3. Students’ preferred themes in English lessons implementing
compilation of theme – based lexical lists……………………………………... 31
Figure 3.7. Students’ favorite kinds of activity organization in English classes
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PART I – INTRODUCTION
1.
Rationale
Today, with the world’s borders more porous than ever, coming along with the
international globalization and technological advancements, the importance of foreign
languages is obviously proved. Foreign language can be considered as an effective tool to
deepen our understanding and appreciation for the rich and complex world we are living
in. English, which is the most common language, has been now widely taught in almost
every school in Vietnam. Besides four main skills of English including listening, reading,
speaking and writing, it is necessary to consider the importance of vocabulary which is
not only the tool for expressing ideas but also the background to improve the four skills.
Underlining the essential role of vocabulary acquisition, Schmitt (2000:55) likens lexical
knowledge to center of communicative competence and the acquisition of a second
language”. Therefore, vocabulary is presented throughout every unit in the English
textbook published by Ministry of Education and Training, integrating into both four
skills in English lessons.
Being a teacher of English, the researcher is well aware of the importance of
applying effective methods in teaching vocabulary to primary students. The previous
studies have provided various methods of teaching vocabulary at primary schools. Pham
(2012) conducted a study on teaching vocabulary to primary students by using story
telling method. Vu (2012) introduced an action research on using stories and drama in
vocabulary teaching. Besides, Naveen (2009) proved the effect of other vocabulary
teaching methods including definitions, antonyms, synonyms, pictures and drawings.
However, to the researcher’s experience, the application of compilation of theme – based
lexical lists at primary schools, especially in Khanh Nhac A Primary School, has not been
considered by the teachers of English. In other words, the teachers are not aware of
teaching vocabulary to primary students based on a theme thorough the whole lesson.
This motivates the author to conduct the study “An investigation into using compilation
of theme – based lexical lists on primary students’ vocabulary retention”.
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2.
Aims and objectives of the study
The study focuses on teaching English vocabulary for primary students by using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists.
This overall aim leads to the following objectives:
(1) To investigate the 4th grade students’ attitudes toward learning vocabulary through
compilation of theme – based lexical lists at Khanh Nhac A Primary School.
(2) To find out the students’ expectations about teaching vocabulary using compilation
of theme – based lexical lists.
3.
Research questions
Based on the aims of the study, the following questions are raised for exploration:
(1) What are the 4th grade students’ attitudes toward learning vocabulary by using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists?
(2) What are the students’ expectations about teaching vocabulary using compilation
of theme – based lexical lists?
4.
Method of the study
The study was carried out by these steps:
First, the teaching diaries were made by the researcher to discover lesson
procedures and students’ participation, teacher’s instruction, materials, tasks and
suggested changes.
After that, the questionnaire was delivered to eighty - nine students of 4th grade to
investigate their attitudes toward learning vocabulary through compilation of theme –
based lexical lists as well as their recommendations to promote teaching and learning
vocabulary in classes.
Finally, the collected data was summarized and analyzed to lead to the major
findings and give the answers to the research questions.
5.
Scope of the study
The study was conducted with the participation of eighty – nine 4th grade students
at Khanh Nhac A Primary School to investigate the use of compilation of theme – based
lexical lists on primary students’ vocabulary retention. Therefore, teaching vocabulary to
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students in other grades and the teaching of the other vocabulary strategies would be
beyond the scope.
6.
Design of the study
The study consists of three parts. Each part deals with different aspects of the
study:
Part I presents the introduction of the study including the rationale, aims and objectives,
research questions, method, scope and design of the study.
Part II, the Development, consists of three chapters:
Chapter I is the Literature Review. In this chapter, the writer focuses on some main
points: the role and types of vocabulary in English teaching and learning, the importance
and the characteristics of teaching vocabulary to primary children, methods of vocabulary
teaching and compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary teaching.
Chapter II focuses on Research Methodology which includes the description of the setting
and the participants of the study. Data collection instruments and data analysis procedure
are also introduced.
Chapter III – Data analysis and Discussion aims at analyzing the collected data. Based on
the analysis, some discussion on the use of compilation of theme – based lexical lists on
primary students’ vocabulary retention was given.
Part III provides the summary of the main issues and some recommendations for the
effective use of the compilation of theme – based lexical lists in English teaching. The
limitations as well as some suggestions for further study are also included in this part.
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PART II – DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1.
Vocabulary in English teaching and learning
1.1.1. Definition of vocabulary
Many different definitions of vocabulary have been given by linguists.
Wilkins (1972: 11) stated that vocabulary is an important part of language learning
and the human existence, without which no communication can be successful.
Vocabulary is collection of all words that constitute a language under discussion or a
particular subject. According to Richards and Renandya (2002: 255), vocabulary is the
core component of language proficiency and provides much of the basis for how well
learners speak, listen, read, and write. Richards (2000: 70) says that vocabulary is one of
the most obvious components of language and one of the first things applied linguistics
turned their attention to.
In Advanced Learners Dictionary of Current English, Hornby (2006: 1645) states
that vocabulary is: (1) all the words that a person knows or uses, (2) all the words in a
particular language, (3) the words that people uses when they are talking, and (4) a list of
words with their meanings especially in a book for learning a foreign language. A
vocabulary, usually developed with age, serves as a useful and fundamental tool for
communication and acquiring knowledge. Acquiring an extensive vocabulary is one of
the largest challenges in learning a second language.
Furthermore, according to Hamer (1991: 151 – 161), teaching vocabulary is clearly
more than just presenting a new words. This may, of course have its place but there are
other issues too. However, not all vocabulary can be learned through interaction and
discovery techniques. Thus, statement implies that learning vocabulary cannot always be
done through interaction and discovery techniques for the beginners. The reason is that, in
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doing such as technique, the learners are demanded to have an adequate number of
vocabularies that have been mastered before.
From the above definitions, it can be concluded that vocabulary is all about words
– the words in language or a special set of words we are trying to learn.
1.1.2. Types of vocabulary
Hatch and Brown (1995: 181 – 243) enumerates at least five kinds of vocabulary:
word classes, word families, word formation, collocation and homonyms. Gruneberg and
Sykes (1991) distinguish the two types of vocabulary. The first type of vocabulary refers
to the one that the students have been taught and that they are expected to be able to use.
Meanwhile, the second one refers to the words which the students would recognize when
they meet them, but they would probably not be able to pronounce. However, by
investigating the classification of Carter (1987), Nation (2001) and Schmitt (2000), the
writer divides vocabulary into many types based on different criteria as following.
1.1.2.1. Classification by origin
According to the origin of words, there are two types which are native words and
loan words. Loan words are words adopted from one language and incorporated into
another language without translation like cookie, kindergarten. Native words are words
that are not borrowed from another language, but are inherited from an earlier stage of the
language like foot, hand.
1.1.2.2. Classification by notion
According to the notion, vocabulary is classified into function words and content
words. Function words are words that have little lexical meaning or have ambiguous
meaning and express grammatical relationships among other words within a sentence, or
specify the attitude or mood of the speaker. Function words include categories of words
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like determiners, conjunctions or auxiliaries. Content words are words that name objects,
qualities, actions or states. They are usually nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs.
1.1.2.3. Classification by the part of speech
The eight main parts of speech are nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs,
prepositions, conjunctions and interjections. Nouns are words that describe a thing and
can be generic (common nouns) or specific (proper nouns). They can serve as the subject
or object or a verb or as a possessive or the object of a preposition. Pronouns are
nonspecific words that take the place of nouns. They are small, short words that help
avoid repetition and cut back on the need for longer nouns. Verbs are words that describe
an action and come in many different tenses and forms. Adjectives are words that
describe nouns. They usually come before the noun they modify. Adverbs are words that
describe verbs. Prepositions are words used to describe the relation between words in a
sentence and are the beginning to a prepositional phrase. Conjunctions are words used to
bring two or more different clauses, phrases, or items together in a sentence. Interjections
are words used to show a quick and immediate emotion. They often stand by themselves
and are followed by an exclamation mark.
1.1.2.4. Classification by the concept of morpheme
Basing on the concept of morpheme, there are simple words, derived words and
compound words. Simple words are words consisting of one root morpheme. Derived
words are words consisting of one root morpheme and one or more derivational
morphemes. Compound words are word consisting of at least two roots with or without
derivational morphemes.
1.1.2.5. Classification by level of usage
According to the level of usage, vocabulary can be divided into common, literacy,
colloquial, slang and technical words. Common words or popular words often connect
with the ordinary things or activities and make up the biggest part of the vocabulary with
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its core as basic words stock. Literacy words are chiefly used in writing, formal and
elevated in style like the word purchase/ buy. Colloquial words are used mainly in
speaking to colleagues or friends and in informal writing. Slang words are words of
vigorous, colorful, fictitious or taboo nature, invented for specific occasions or uses or
derived from the unconventional use of the standard vocabulary. Technical words are
used in various special fields with functions partly to denote things or processes which
have no names in ordinary English, and most remain essentially foreign to outsider, even
to educated native speakers.
1.1.2.6. Classification by the usage of the word
Vocabulary can be divided into productive and receptive vocabulary. Productive
vocabulary is defined as all the words that are retrieved from a person’s memory and can
be used at suitable time and in suitable situation. Receptive vocabulary refers to all the
words that can be understood by a person, including spoken, written, or manually signed
words.
1.1.3. Aspects of vocabulary knowledge
Linguists have conducted studies that address different aspects of vocabulary
knowledge. Schmitt and Meara (1997) investigate how learners of English developed
their vocabulary size and two aspects of vocabulary knowledge (affix and association)
over a year. They found that the vocabulary size correlated with affix and association
knowledge and that there was an interrelationship between the two aspects of vocabulary
knowledge. Shimamoto (2000), in her cross - sectional study, addresses four aspects of
receptive vocabulary knowledge including spoken form, written form, paradigmatic and
syntagmatic knowledge. She found that the four aspects of vocabulary knowledge were
interrelated with each other and they were also correlated with the learners’ vocabulary
size.
Nation (2001) has another point of view in vocabulary knowledge that he focuses
on three significant aspects of a word that certainly need to be considered: form, meaning
7
and use. Accordingly, the form of a word involves its pronunciation (spoken form),
spelling (written form), and any word parts that make up this particular item (such as a
prefix, root, and suffix). For example, in the word “unsuccessful”, the prefix un- means
negative or opposite, success is the root word, and –ful is a suffix means full off or
having. Here, they all go together to refer to someone or something that is not able to
communicate, hence uncommunicative. Nation (2001) also states that meaning
encompasses the way that form and meaning work together, in other words, the concept
and what items it refers to, and the associations that come to mind when people think
about a specific word or expression. Use, as Nation (2001) notes, involves the
grammatical functions of the word or phrase, collocations that normally go with it, and
finally any constraints on its use, in terms of frequency, level, and so forth. For form,
meaning, and use, Nation (2001) declares there is both a receptive and productive
dimension, so knowing these three aspects for each word or phrase actually involves 18
different types of lexical knowledge, as summarized in the following table.
Aspect
Component
How is the word
like?
pronounced?
What does the word look
How is the word written and
like?
spelled?
What parts are recognizable
What word parts are needed
in this word?
to express the meaning?
form and
What meaning does this
What word form can be used
meaning
word form signal?
to express this meaning?
What is included in this
What items can the concept
concept?
refer to?
written
word parts
concepts and
Meaning
Productive knowledge
What does the word sound
spoken
Form
Receptive knowledge
referents
associations
What other words does this
make people think of?
8
What other words could
people use instead of this
one?
grammatical
functions
Use
collocations
In what patterns does the
In what patterns must people
word occur?
use this word?
What words or types of
words occur with this one?
constraints on
Where, when, and how often
use (register,
would people expect to meet
frequency…)
this word?
What words or types of
words must people use with
this one?
Where, when, and how often
can people use this word?
Table 1.1. What is involved in knowing a word. Source: Nation (2001: 27)
The researcher strongly agrees with Nation (2001) that form, meaning and use are
three significant aspects of vocabulary knowledge. Knowing a word is a complex process
that involves learning several different but interrelated types of word aspects.
1.1.4. The role of vocabulary in English teaching and learning
Nation (2001) describes the relationship between vocabulary knowledge and
language use as complementary: knowledge of vocabulary enables language use, and
conversely, language use allows people to increase vocabulary knowledge. In other
words, a person cannot use a language without having certain knowledge of vocabulary.
Wilkins (1972) strongly confirms the importance of vocabulary. Indeed,
vocabulary knowledge helps people with language comprehension. It is clear that to
successfully comprehend a text, students need to have sufficient word knowledge. The
comprehension of a language depends on the amount of words that are known in that
language. According to Nation (2001), readers need to know at least 97% of the
vocabulary in a text for an adequate understanding of it. Without knowledge of the key
vocabulary in a text, a learner may have serious trouble in understanding the message,
that is, word knowledge is crucial to reading comprehension and determines how well
students will be able to comprehend the texts they read. Therefore, having students with a
large amount of vocabulary knowledge is essential to language comprehension.
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Additionally, vocabulary also helps people with language production. Hubbard
(1983) states that the more words a student knows, the more precisely that student can
express the exact meaning he/she wants to. Based on this view, to communicate
effectively students need to know a large number of word meanings. Furthermore,
according to Cardenas (2001), vocabulary is used to determine the proficiency a student
has in oral context. Since vocabulary is an essential component to determine how much a
student is able to communicate successfully, students have to overcome the lack of
vocabulary knowledge in order to communicate effectively. Language teachers should
focus on effective instruction to teach vocabulary to help students to develop their
vocabulary knowledge in order to communicate successfully.
The above arguments on the role of vocabulary are all to say that vocabulary is an
essential component to determine how much a student is able to communicate
successfully. It serves as an indispensable part of language through which thoughts, ideas,
feelings, experience are conveyed. For mastering a language, one definitely needs to have
good stock of vocabulary.
1.2.
Teaching English to young learners
1.2.1. Characteristics of young learners
For the successful teaching of English in primary schools, above all, it is essential
for the teacher to understand the young learners’ characteristics, instincts, and interests in
their cognitive, linguistic, and emotional aspects.
Brumfit (1997) gives a list of the characteristics which young learners share:
1. Young learners are only just beginning their schooling, so that teachers have
a major opportunity to mould their expectations of life in school.
2. As a group they are potentially more differentiated than secondary or adult
learners, for they are closer to their varied home cultures, and new to the conformity
increasingly imposed across cultural grouping by the school.
10
3. They tend to be keen and enthusiastic learners,
4. Their learning can be closely linked with their development of ideas and concepts,
because it is so close to their initial experiences of formal schooling.
5. They need physical movement and activity as much as stimulation for their
thinking, and the closer together these can be the better.
According to Phillips (1995), in learning a language, young learners respond to the
language, depending on what it does or what they can do with it rather than treating it as
an intellectual game or abstract system. Brewster (1991) supports it by saying that
theories of the children’s learning require that young learners be supported by moving
from the abstract to the concrete and through being involved in activity. It can be
understood that the children need activities that are more concrete rather than abstract and
to be involved in those activities in order that they can learn the language well.
In short, children bring many different experiences and knowledge to their learning
and it is likely that each child learns different from the same activity they involve. In
addition, it is easy for young learners to learn things they can see and feel, what they have
experienced or things related to their daily activities, what they are curious about, what
they care about and what they like.
1.2.2. Teaching English vocabulary to young learners
It is clear that children have learned their native language with apparent ease. In
other words, children can learn their native language without knowing they are learning.
According to Philips (1993), there are many factors influencing children’s maturity such
as environment, culture, sex and experience. In order to be successful in teaching English
to children, teachers have to deeply understand their children’s characteristics, goals and
motivation.
Rixon (1999) claims the importance of the condition under which young learner
programs are offered. These include conditions inside the classroom and outside the
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classroom such as the social, cultural, economic value of the language. Read (2003)
clarify the condition by suggesting that young learners are better when learning is:
 Natural
 Contextualized and part of a real event
 Interesting and enjoyable
 Relevant
 Social
 Belongs to the child
 Has a purpose for the child
 Builds on things the child knows but also challenges thechild
 Supported appropriately
 Part of a coherent whole
 Multisensory
 Active and experimental
 Memorable
 Designed to provide for personal, divergent responses and multiple
intelligences
 Offered in a relaxed and warm learning atmosphere
In fact, we cannot expect our young students to learn the items we teach and
remember all the words in the lessons. Although children can learn new words very
quickly, they will also forget them quickly. Therefore, new words should be introduced
repeatedly in different situations in the following lessons. Since mere practicing can be
extremely boring and tiring to young learners, teachers should be creative enough to wrap
practicing in games, role plays and in singing songs, activities that seem to be fun and
interesting.
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1.3.
Methods in vocabulary teaching
Le (2003) affirms that a new approach to English language teaching is needed due
to the status of English as an international global language. Indeed, in order to bring
students with the large amount of vocabulary, it is extremely important for teachers to
apply various methods and techniques in language teaching. Some major foreign language
teaching approaches are briefly given as following.
1.3.1. The Grammar – Translation Method
The Grammar – Translation Method (GTM) derived from traditional approaches to
the teaching of Latin and Greek and it was the predominant method in Europe in the 19th
century. The method focuses on the teaching of the foreign language grammar through the
presentation of rules together with some exceptions and lists of vocabulary translated into
the mother tongue. GTM was used for the purpose of helping students read and appreciate
foreign language literature and hoped that the students would become familiar with the
grammar of the native language through the study of the grammar of the target language
and that familiarity would help them speak and write better in their native language
(Larsen – Freeman, 2000:11). The main procedure of an ordinary lesson follows this plan:
a presentation of a grammatical rule followed by a list of vocabulary and, finally,
translation exercises from selected texts while little or no attempt is made to teach
pronunciation.
1.3.2. The Direct Method
The Direct Method, as the name suggests, is a method of teaching English directly
through English. Stern (1983) points out that the Direct Method is characterized by the
used of target language as a means of instruction and communication in the language
classroom, and by the avoidance of the use of the first language and of translation as a
technique. Correct pronunciation and oral skills are stressed because of the principle that
speaking a language is more important than being able to write it. The emphasis was on
everyday vocabulary and sentences which are taught through demonstration, objects, and
pictures while abstract vocabulary was taught by association of ideas. The Direct Method
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is useful in that, as River (1968) states, it provides an exciting and interesting way of
learning foreign language through activity. The method is proved to be successful in
releasing students from the inhibitions all too often associated with speaking a foreign
tongue, particularly at the early stages.
1.3.3. The Audio – Lingual Method
The Audio – Lingual Method (also called Army Method, Mim – mem Method or
Aural Oral Approach) is derived from The Army Method, so called because it was
developed through a U.S. Army programme devised after World War II to produce
speakers proficient in the languages of friend and foes. As Thornbury (2000) states, the
Audio – Lingual Method considered language simply as form of behaviour to be learned
through the formation of correct speech habits. Audio Linguists believe in the separation
of the four language skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. The Audio Lingual
Method uses certain practical techniques like mimicry, memorization, pattern practice and
the language laboratory; it encourages the use of dialogues and substitution tables. In the
Audio – Lingual Method, like the Direct Method, students are taught a language directly
without using the students’ native language. However, while the Direct Method focuses
on teaching vocabulary, the Audio – Lingual Method drills students in the use of
grammar.
1.3.4. Communicative Language Teaching
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) is an approach to language teaching
that emphasizes communication as both the means and the goal of language learning.
Learners converse about personal experiences with partners, and instructors teach topics
outside of the realm of traditional grammar, in order to promote language skills in all
types of situations. According to CLT, the goal of language education is the ability to
communicate in the target language. This is in contrast to previous views in
which grammatical competence was commonly given top priority. CLT also focuses on
the teacher being a facilitator, rather than an instructor. Furthermore, the approach is a
non – methodical system that does not use a textbook series to teach English, but rather
14
works on developing sound oral/verbal skills prior to reading and writing. Among all
methods used and practiced so far, CLT has been considered as the best practice in
English language teaching (ELT) because it offers communication means enabling
learners to develop the communicative ability (Power, 2003).
1.4.
Compilation of theme – based lexical lists in English vocabulary teaching and
learning
1.4.1. Theme – based teaching approach
In order to help students learn the important part of a language, which is
vocabulary, many researchers have been researching for more efficient teaching methods
to apply in English classes.
One of the language teaching methods that is considered to be the new approach to
language is by creating learning activities through theme – based teaching in which the
process of teaching and learning is presented based on the themes that will be expanded to
other subjects. The integration of theme – based instruction into language teaching
originates from general primary education and, as stated by Cameron (2001), “has been
practiced since the 1960s in UK primary classrooms, where children typically spend all
day with the same teacher”. Brinton (2001) defines theme – based as an approach to
language teaching with the whole course structured around certain themes or topics. In
other words, theme – based teaching is a teaching approach with the large model of
content – based instruction (CBI) in which the emphasis is on exposing students to a
highly contextualized second language environment by using the subject matter as the
content of language learning. In a theme – based course, different activities are linked
together by their content and the theme or topic runs through everything that happens in
the classroom and acts as a connecting thread for pupils and teacher.
A considerable advantage of theme – based teaching approach is to avoid
fragmented and unconnected skill exercises and to bring learners variety of activities with
a meaningful content that provides learners with motivating and meaningful uses of the
language. Cameron (2001) points out the other reasons for using theme – based approach
15
in language teaching, including the fact that new vocabulary items can be learned easily,
with the theme providing a meaningful context for understanding, and for the natural use
of a wide range of discourse types, both written and spoken. Furthermore, the integration
of theme – based teaching can help identifying learner’s individual difficulties since they
might come across new content. When supported by meaningful content, “children may
be able to work out the meaning of new or unfamiliar language, or motivated by real
interest in a topic, they may struggle to communicate their knowledge to someone else”
(Cameron, 2001:191). Vale and Feunteun (1995) claim that English is not an isolated
educational issue. Accordingly, they consider language as only one part of child education
and suppose to supply a balance between different subjects and the use of themes as the
source for teaching. Halliwell (1992:131) also states that “learning other things in English
will help children to learn English”. Thus, it is considered to be very helpful to bring
meaning to language learning.
In short, compilation of theme – based teaching is a method that lets students
memorize words based on a common theme by making their own connections between
words and possibly organizing them in a spider diagram or on the special corner of their
notebooks.
1.4.2. Planning vocabulary teaching using compilation of theme – based lexical lists
As effective theme – based teaching is extremely demanding, language teachers
are supposed to creatively plan, implement and possess their own knowledge of a wide
repertoire of activity types and resources. Even expert teachers need a careful planning of
a theme, to prepare sub – themes and to identify the language learning goals so that
teachers become coordinators or facilitators, who maintain a sense of the whole picture
and a vision of the skills the students need to acquire through classroom activities.
Based on the viewpoints of Cameron (2001), Mumford (2000) and Michael (1999),
the writer offers three steps of planning theme – based vocabulary teaching which should
be carried out by language teachers.
16
Finding a theme
Concerning the very first step of planning theme – based teaching, Cameron
(2001:185) believes that teachers should think about some choice points in order to decide
which activity to do or how much time to be spent on it. The students are encouraged to
be involved in finding the theme by suggesting the theme, or selecting a theme for the
term from a list. Mumford (2000:6) states that it is advisable to integrate the students in
the planning process because when learners choose their methods and topics of study,
their learning becomes more meaningful, and then the model of lifelong learning is
brought into the school setting. In addition, Mumford (2000:4) also supposes that it might
be useful to share ideas with other colleagues and therefore work in collaboration with
others.
Planning content
Two basic planning tools Cameron (2001) mentions are brainstorming and making
webs. These facilitate collecting ideas and connecting them not only in a linear direction,
so that themes and sub – themes can easier be developed from them.
Brainstorming, according to Michael (1999), is the unrestrained offering of ideas
or suggestions by all members of a committee, conference, etc. in an effort to find a
solution to a problem, generate fresh ideas, etc. A web is a way of writing down ideas and
connections without forcing them into linear form as in a list or in text. The figure below
is an example of brainstorming and making webs in planning theme – based language
teaching.
17
Figure 1.1. Brainstorming and making webs
Planning language leaning tasks
Having identified sub – theme and guiding questions by taking a content
perspective on the theme, planning then has to bring a language leaning perspective to it
so that planning moves from content to foreign language classroom activities, with
discourse types and aspects of language use guiding the construction of language learning
task with clear goals and stages.
1.5.
Summary
In short, the chapter has clearly presented the relevant literature which has been the
basis for the study to be carried out. The definition, types and some aspects of vocabulary
are firstly concerned. The second part deals with compilation of theme – based lexical
lists in vocabulary teaching and learning. The following Chapter 2 will discuss the
methodology by which the research was conducted.
18
CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2.1.
The setting of the study
2.1.1. The current situation of English teaching and learning at Khanh Nhac A
Primary School
The study was conducted at Khanh Nhac A Primary School which is located in
Ninh Binh Province. In the school year 2018 – 2019, the school has the total of 634
students divided into 18 classes from grade 1 to grade 5 and 36 teachers of different
subjects.
The four teachers of English have at least three years of teaching experiences.
They graduated from different universities in Vietnam. The researcher also worked as an
English teacher in this primary school before attending an MA course at University of
Language and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi. The researcher
received the permission of the principle and the support of other teachers of English to
carry out the research.
English is optional for students from grade 1 to grade 2 and compulsory for
students from grade 3 to grade 5. Because of the importance of English as an international
language, many activities are regularly held for students outside the classrooms. English
club has been established and operated weekly in order that students can improve their
English skills and help each other learn English. Moreover, the school coordinates with
the Venus English Center so that students have chances to speak English to native
speakers every Wednesday afternoon. In addition, a lot of extra – curricular activities
such as English Festival, English Speaking Contest, The Olympiad of Talent in English
have been held in the school in order to motivate students to learn English and create an
English environment for both English teachers and students.
2.1.2. Participants
The participants are eighty – nine 4th grade students of three classes 4A, 4B and 4C
in Khanh Nhac A Primary School. These students have been studied English as a
19
compulsory subject since grade 3. Each week, the participants have four periods of
English and the total of English periods in a school year is 140.
All the participants had been divided into three classes since grade 1 and there is
almost no change of class distribution through years. There are 36 students in class 4A in
which the number of girls is 16 and the number of boys is 20. Class 4B has 29 students
including 15 girls and 16 boys. In class 4C, there are 15 girls and 13 boys. Class 4A is
considered as a gifted class that most of students got better marks at the entrance
examination to primary school and have good academic performance. All of the
participants were willing to join the course.
2.1.3. Material description
The textbook used as the official English material for 4th grade students at Khanh
Nhac A Primary School is Tieng Anh 4 – standard syllabus published by the Ministry of
Education and Training (MOET). The textbook consists of 20 units related to different
topics, each unit is divided into three lessons in which speaking, listening, writing and
reading skills are integrated.
2.2.
Data collection instruments
2.2.1. Questionnaire
A questionnaire is defined as a document containing questions and other types of
items designed to solicit information appropriate to analysis (Babbie, 1990: 377). In this
study, the researcher applied questionnaire as the main means of data collection because
of some advantages. Firstly, the large amount of information can be collected from a large
number of participants in a short period of time. Secondly, since the respondents are free
to express their own opinion without providing their private information, the results of
questionnaires are accurate and objective.
The questionnaire used in the research (see Appendix 1) includes 10 questions
which were written in both English and Vietnamese in order that all the students could
fully understand the questions and truthfully give their own answers. The first five
questions were designed to seek the data for the first research question. They focused on
20
the students’ attitudes toward learning English vocabulary through compilation of theme
– based lexical lists. The next five questions were used to collect students’ expectations
about teaching vocabulary using compilation of theme – based lexical lists.
2.2.2. Teaching diaries
Richards and Lockhart (1996:7), in their book, point out two purposes for keeping
a teaching diary. The first is to record ideas and events in order to reflect on them later. In
other words, teaching diary supports the author's memory and can inspire new ideas for
use in the future lessons. The second purpose is that the process of writing itself helps
trigger insights about teaching. In this sense, writing can be considered as a discovery
process.
In the study, parallel with the survey questionnaire, teaching diaries were also
conducted in order to find out how compilation of theme – based lexical lists were applied
in English classes. By writing diaries, the researcher could have time to rewind learning
experiences and think of it quietly on the affected behavior of students after teaching.
Accordingly, the researcher could adjust teaching methods to effectively apply
compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary lessons. In addition, the
researcher has chance to analyze the learning process and identify some disastrous
moments during the class room environment that helps the researcher in reframing and
restructuring the methodology and refines the learning environment. Totally, there were
four teaching diaries written after each English lessons using compilation of theme –
based lexical lists in which the researcher took a close look into what happened in the
vocabulary lessons, how compilation of theme – based lexical lists was applied and how
students reacted in these lessons. In order to provide insights into teaching vocabulary
using compilation of theme – based lexical lists, the teaching diaries were written based
on some criteria (see Appendix 2). Accordingly, lesson procedures and students’
participation aim at investigating students’ attitudes and involvement in English lesson
using compilation of theme – based lexical lists. Teacher’s instruction, materials and tasks
focus on students’ expectations in vocabulary lessons. In addition, suggested changes
21
provide data which leads to implications for teachers’ vocabulary teaching using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists.
2.3.
Data collection and data analysis
The questionnaire was sent to eighty – nine 4th grade students to investigate their
views on teachers’ applying compilation of the – based lexical lists and their expectations
in the English classes. Since the primary students’ English competence is limited, the
questionnaire was translated into Vietnamese in order that all the students could fully
understand the questions and truthfully give their own answers. After the questionnaire
was completed by the 4th grade students in November 2018, the data was analyzed and
generalized.
In addition to questionnaire, the researcher also conducted four teaching diaries in
different classes to gain more accurate understanding about the methods which the
teachers applied in English classes using compilation of theme – based lexical lists and
the participation and involvement of the students in these classes.
From the results of questionnaire and teaching diaries, the data was processed and
summarized in percentage and words so that the researcher could give the general
conclusion and suggestions.
2.4.
Summary
The chapter has presented a complete description of the research methodology by
which the study was carried out. In addition, the research design including data collection
instruments (questionnaire for students and teaching diaries), data analysis is also fully
described.
22
CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
3.1.
Data analysis
3.1.1. Analysis of the questionnaire
3.1.1.1.
The teachers’ frequency of applying compilation of theme – based lexical
lists in English classes.
Concerning the first question which was designed to investigate the teacher’s
frequency of applying compilation of theme – based lexical lists in English classes at
Khanh Nhac A Primary School, the collected data is summarized in Table 3.1.
Question 1
A
Options
B
C
D
How often do your teachers use compilation of
theme – based lexical lists in English classes?
A. Always
34%
B. Sometimes
43%
23%
0%
C. Rarely
D. Never
Table 3.1. The teachers’ frequency of applying compilation of theme – based lexical
lists in English classes
From the figure in Table 3, we can see that about one third of students (34%) were
always taught vocabulary with compilation of theme – based lexical lists. Nearly half of
them sometimes participated in English classes using this method. About one fourth said
that their teachers rarely apply the method and the portion for never applying is 0%.
Through the results, it is clear that all the teachers at Khanh Nhac A Primary School used
compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary teaching. However, the frequency
of applying this is different for different teacher.
23
3.1.1.2.
Students’ comments on English lessons using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists
When asked about students’ feelings of lessons using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists, more than half of them (55%) expressed their interests in the lessons when
compilation of theme – based lexical lists was applied. The number of students feels
rather interesting is 11%. A pretty high portion (30%) of them thought that the lessons
were a bit interesting. In contrast, only 4% felt boring in all the lessons using this method.
The collected figure showed a fairly optimistic result that most of the students have
positive attitudes toward using compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary
lessons. (See Figure 3.1).
4%
Very interesting
30%
55%
Rather interesting
A bit interesting
11%
Boring
Figure 3.1. Students’ comments on English lesons using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists
24
3.1.1.3.
Students’ involvement in English classes using compilation of theme –
based lexical lists
40%
35%
30%
25%
39%
20%
15%
10%
20%
18%
5%
10%
13%
D
E
0%
A
B
C
Figure 3.2. Students’ involvement in English classes using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists
A. Participate actively in all activities
B. Only pay attention to the part I like
C. Find it difficult to concentrate on the activities
D. Not participate in any activity
E. Do other things instead
As can be seen from the figure above, 18% students involved in the lessons when
the compilation of theme – based lexical lists applied. They are willing to join the
activities in the English class. Other 39% only paid attention to the part they like and one
fifth (20%) had difficulties in concentrating on the activities. It is considerable that the
number of those who did not participate in any learning tasks or did other things in
lessons is rather high (10% and 13% respectively). From the results of this question, the
challenge is posed that how teachers can inspire their students who are not involved in the
vocabulary lessons in order to make their teaching as effective as possible.
25
3.1.1.4.
Students’ assessment of the difficulty of learning vocabulary through
compilation of theme – based lexical lists
19%
25%
Very easy
Quite easy
24%
A bit easy
32%
Difficult
Figure 3.3. Students’ assessment of the difficulty of learning vocabulary through
compilation of theme – based lexical lists
When asked about their appreciation of applying compilation of theme – based
lexical lists in English classes, one fourth of students said that it is very easy. Nearly one
third of them (32%) said the lessons are quite easy. The number of those who found the
lessons a bit easy is 24% and the rest (19%) said it is difficult for them. (See Figure 3.3).
26
3.1.1.5.
Students’ assessment of their vocabulary retention after lessons using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists
40%
35%
30%
25%
20%
38%
35%
15%
20%
10%
7%
5%
0%
Much better
Better
Little better
Not better at all
Figure 3.4. Students’ assessment of their vocabulary retention after lessons using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists
Figure 3.4 reveals students’ assessment of their vocabulary retention after lessons
in which compilation of theme – based lexical lists was applied. A rather high number of
students (38%) admitted that their vocabulary retentions were much better owing to the
method. They claimed that they were more interested in the vocabulary lessons, they
could understand better and found vocabulary easier. The proportions of 20% and 35%
are correspondingly numbers of those whose vocabulary retention were better and little
better. These students said they liked to take part in English lessons with compilation of
theme – based lexical lists, but they sometimes found it difficult to be involved in the
tasks. Among all students, only 7% did not find the lessons effective so that their
vocabulary was not improved. In general, almost all students believed that they made
27
much progress in their vocabulary retention after English lessons implementing
compilation of theme – based lexical lists.
3.1.1.6.
Things students want teachers to do in English lessons
Students’ expectations are very important to teachers who want to gain their
English lessons’ objectives. In order to understand students’ desires, questions from 6 to
10 were given to them with many choices.
What would you like your teachers to do in English lessons using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists? (You can choose more than
Results
one)
A. Create a comfortable environment for students to learn
83%
B. Provide many examples of word use
48%
C. Instruct how to pronounce words correctly
56%
D. Explain the word meaning in Vietnamese
24%
E. Review your vocabulary regularly
31%
F. Provide more vocabulary exercises
34%
Table 3.2. Things students want teachers to do in English lessons
The environment seems to be the most essential thing that students wish in their
classes that a majority of them (83%) wanted their teacher to create a comfortable
environment. Besides, due to the students’ limitation in pronunciation, more than half of
respondents (56%) would like their teachers to focus on how to pronounce words. A
similar portion (48%) is the number of those who asked for many examples of word use.
More than one third of the students preferred vocabulary exercises, about 31% thought
teachers’ regularly reviewing their vocabulary may be helpful and about one fourth said
that teachers should explain the word meaning in their native language. (See Table 3.2).
28
3.1.1.7.
Ways of presenting the meaning of words that students like
Use visual aids
Translate the words into
Vienamese
28%
60%
Explain the meaning of the
words in English
9%
7%
Play language games
Figure 3.5. Ways of presenting the meaning of words that students like
With such amount of vocabulary presented, there are many different approaches in
English lessons. Students in Khanh Nhac A Primary School had their own favorite ways
that their teachers used to introduce new words in classes which are shown in Figure 3.5.
A great numbers of respondents (60%) said they would like to play language games in
classes. The results clearly improved the characteristics of children that had been
considered in Part I. Most of young students are interested in games or songs which make
them relax in the lessons. Besides, the number of students preferring visual aids is pretty
high (28%) in comparison with the number of those who wish their teachers to translate
into Vietnamese or explain words in English (9% and 7% correspondingly).
29
3.1.1.8.
Kinds of tasks students would like to be involved
70%
60%
50%
40%
65%
30%
20%
46%
38%
36%
10%
9%
0%
Matching
Odd one out
Listing
Ordering
and shorting
Others
Figure 3.6. Kinds of tasks students would like to be involved
Question 8 was designed to examine the students’ favorite kinds of tasks in
English lessons using compilation of theme – based lexical lists. As can be seen from
Figure 3.6, of the four kinds of tasks given, odd one out is favored by most of respondents
(65%). In other words, most of students are inspired by the tasks in which they are asked
to find out the one which is different from the others. The rest kinds of tasks are also good
choices for teachers that considerable numbers of students choose those as tasks they
want to be involved in classes. Listing, in which students are requested to list the words
belonging to the same theme, accounts for 46%. The numbers of students like matching,
ordering and shorting are respectively 38% and 36%. Some students also suggested the
other kinds of tasks such as multiple choice and gap filling. Since the difference between
the numbers is not much, the teachers can consider using one or many kinds of tasks in a
lesson in order to encourage students to participate in the vocabulary activities.
30
3.1.1.9.
Students’ preferred themes in English lessons implementing compilation of
theme – based lexical lists
Considering the themes that should be presented by teachers in English lessons,
Question 9 was given. The results of the question express the students’ various attentions
which are shown in Table 3.3.
Which themes would you like your teacher to present in English
lessons implementing compilation of theme – based lexical lists? (You
Results
can choose more than one)
A. Hobbies
88%
B. Foods and drinks
73%
C. Toys
79%
D. Others: ……………
52%
Table 3.3. Students’ preferred themes in English lessons implementing compilation of
theme – based lexical lists
As can be seen from Table 3.3, students are interested in familiar themes around
their lives. Being rated by most of all students (88%), the theme “hobbies” is the most
interesting theme for students. It is easy to understand because the theme is about the
things they want to do every day and they can have a great knowledge of it. The theme
“toys” ranks the second in the preferred themes (79%). Since the young students are very
active, they are always interested in things that bring them fun. Therefore, there is no
doubt that many students choose “toys” as the theme which should be presented in
vocabulary lessons. “Foods and drinks” is rated the third with the agreement of nearly two
third of students (73%). Besides, various themes for implementing in vocabulary classes
are suggested by students. A considerable number of respondents express their interests in
pets. Some want to be taught about school things while many others pay attention to
sports and free time activities. It can be concluded that, for most of students, familiar
31
themes are best choice to be presented in vocabulary lessons because they are easy and
simple for most of them to understand and to practice after classes.
3.1.1.10. Students’ favorite kinds of activity organization in English classes
8%
Group work
31%
61%
Pair work
Individual work
Figure 3.7. Students’ favorite kinds of activity organization in English classes
The results of investigating students’ favorite kinds of activity organization in
English lessons using compilation of theme – based lexical lists are displayed in Figure
3.7. More than three fifth of the respondents would like to work in groups so that they can
discuss with their friends to share their ideas in the vocabulary lessons. A pretty high
portion (31%) were fond of pair work in which they do the tasks in group of two. Only
8% of them were willing to work individually in English lessons. Accordingly, group
work and pair work are preferred by most of the students.
32
3.1.2. Analysis of teaching diaries
In order to help the researcher verify the findings from questionnaire and take a
closer look at what was happening during the lesson using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists, the researcher wrote teaching diaries after four lessons in which the method
was appled. The analysis of teaching diaries shows some dominant issues about lesson
procedures and students’ participation, teacher’s instruction, materials, tasks and
suggested changes.
Lesson procedures and students’ participation
Considering lesson procedures and students’ participation, the teaching diaries
indicated that compilation of theme – based lexical lists was applied in different stages of
the lesson. Beginning the lesson with a warm – up activities using compilation of theme –
based lexical lists can motivate students to participate actively in the following activities
of the lesson as the researcher noted in her teaching diaries:
In this lesson, I applied compilation of theme – based lexical lists at the beginning
with previewing task. When I wrote the theme “OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES” on the
blackboard, a lot of students were very excited that they clapped their hands and smiled.
They actively discussed in group to find out phrases related to the theme and many
answers were given after group work.
(3rd teaching diaries – dated November 7th 2018)
Compilation of theme – based lexical lists could be implemented by the teacher in
the while - stage as well. In this case, the activity of introducing new words was turned
into a task in which students were asked to think about words which might be never
presented by the teacher before. Since new vocabulary was the main focus of the lesson,
the teacher could spend more time guiding and explaining students about words. Also,
students had much time to think about the theme and do the tasks.
“HOBBIES” seemed to be a very interesting and familiar theme to the students so
that some students volunteered to give examples of the answer right after I explained the
requirement of the task that they had to discuss in group to find some words and phrases
of the theme. They exposed some answers such as badminton, music and video game.
33
Their answers were correct, but they were not the phrases I intended to present so I
praised them for the answers and introduced the others – watching TV, playing chess.
After taking some minutes to think about my suggestion, the students gradually
understood and they started to discuss.
(4th teaching diary – dated November 22nd 2018)
The teaching diaries also showed the application of compilation of theme – based
lexical lists at the last stage of the lesson in which the material is reviewed and learning is
reinforced. At the stage consolidation of the third lesson, the teacher asked students to
make a vocabulary web to summarize words they had learnt from the lesson. The students
worked individually drawing webs and they even found the theme themselves. By this,
the students had chances to systematically revise the lesson and therefore, it was easier for
them to understand and remind.
Also based on the teaching diaries, the researcher found that compilation of theme
– based lexical lists could be implemented in combination with the other strategies such
as games, mind – mapping. The association might improve the effectiveness of the
method and motivate students to join the tasks, as noted:
In order to check the students’ ability of remembering the phrases they had found,
I told students that they were going to play a game named Kim’s game. I asked them to
close their eyes while I erased some of phrases on the blackboard. After they opened their
eyes, the classroom started to be noisy because of their discussion. The students were very
excited and many of them raised hands to fill in the erased parts in compilation on the
board. The classroom atmosphere then was really good. Thus, I saw that with the
combination of compilation of theme – based lexical lists and games, the lessons might be
more exciting and challenging.
(2nd teaching diary – dated October 15th 2018)
Concerning the students’ participation, the teaching diaries announced that the
students got involved in the lessons more and more actively and enthusiastically. As
written in the teaching diaries, the students did not pay much attention to the teacher’s
instruction at the first lesson.
34
At the beginning of the lesson, many students seemed not ready for any activities.
They just kept chatting, smiling or teasing other classmates while I was trying my best to
make them attentive. I felt very disappointed and annoyed. Only when I started to write
the theme of the task on the blackboard, the number of students paid attention to the
lesson increased.
(1st teaching diary – dated October 2nd, 2018)
The situation was gradually much better in the rest lessons that students attended
the classes with high motivation and positive attitudes. They participated actively in the
activities given by the teachers with much more correct answers for the tasks.
The teaching diaries also pointed out that when students worked in pairs or in
groups, they were more active and confident. After discussing in pairs or groups, many
students were ready for the teacher’s questions so that the class atmosphere became more
exciting.
When being asked to fill the blanks with the related words individually, instead of
looking at the books and do the task silently, most of students asked and discussed with
their friends about the task.
(3rd teaching diary – dated November 7th 2018)
Teacher’s instruction
Regarding to the teacher’s instruction, in the first teaching diary, the researcher
noted:
The students were very excited when I presented the theme and the task they had to
do. However, because of the pressure of time, I did not give them any example for
clarification. Therefore, most of students did not know how to do the task when I gave
them time to practice in groups.
(1st teaching diary – dated October 2nd 2018)
Therefore, from the second lesson, the teacher spent about two or three minutes
explaining the requirements of the tasks and gave them some examples for more
understanding. The students then understood the instruction clearly. As a result, almost all
students seemed to work better in the rest lessons.
35
The teaching diaries showed that the teacher clearly gave students instruction of
the tasks with compilation of theme – based lexical lists she presented in her lessons.
Firstly the teacher gave an explicit description of the tasks. Secondly, the teacher modeled
how to do the tasks by giving an example. Thirdly, the teacher called one or some
students to do the tasks. Finally, the teacher guided the whole class to carry out the tasks
in group or independently.
Materials
Regarding to the materials used in the lessons, the teaching diaries showed that the
students were really interested in the theme “Hobbies” and “Weekly activities”. One of
the reasons for this might be the fact that these themes are enjoyable and familiar to
students so that they could give many words and phrases related to the themes. The other
themes such as “Date” and “Streets” seemed to be more difficult to the students because
they might have little knowledge about the themes.
The students seemed not to be interested in numbers and orders when I introduced
the theme “Date” which is the dominant focus of the lesson. Only some students tried to
discuss about the theme while many of them got bored and did other things instead. The
theme was not familiar to them.
(2nd teaching diary – dated October 15th 2018)
Tasks
Reflecting on the tasks, the researcher wrote in the teaching diaries that the
students expressed their most interests in odd – one – out exercises. This kind of tasks
helped students to find out the words which are not related to the theme and seemed to be
useful and easy for them to work with. Besides, the other kinds of tasks such as matching,
listing and sorting were also preferred by a lot of students. They felt challenging and
exciting doing these tasks. In shorts, various kinds of tasks can be applied with
compilation of theme – based lexical lists based on the objectives of the stages and the
lessons.
Because vocabulary was the main focus of the lesson, I gave students a big
exercise to do. I wrote a disorder list of words about days of a week, days of a month,
36
months a year, seasons of a year. I asked them to discuss in group in order to sort those
words in to four groups.
(2nd teaching diary – dated October 15th 2018)
Suggested changes
As noted in the teaching diaries, the writer outlined some good points of the
teacher’s application of compilation of theme – based lexical lists in the lessons. Group
work was considered as an effective way to organize language activities so that the
teacher let students work in group in most of the lessons. In addition, using compilation of
theme – based lexical lists in combination with games was also appreciated by the writer.
The teaching diaries also pointed out some limitations and drawbacks after the
lessons implementing compilation of theme – based lexical lists. Therefore some
suggested changes were noted for the teacher to avoid these limitations in the other
lessons. Besides finding students’ favorite themes to introduce and preparing exciting
tasks in the lessons, the writer affirmed the importance of giving clear instruction for
students to do the tasks.
I found that the students were not able to do the task because I did not give them
clear instruction of the task. In the next lesson, I should spend time giving them examples
so that it could be easier to them.
(1st teaching diary – dated October 2nd 2018)
3.2.
Discussion
Based on the results of the above data analysis, some main recommendations are
suggested for the teachers to apply compilation of theme – based lexical lists in in
teaching vocabulary.

Choosing well – suited materials
The analysis of materials in the teaching diaries and the results of questionnaire
proved the importance of materials in applying compilation of theme – based lexical lists.
Accordingly, the students paid more attention to the themes which are familiar and easy
37
to them while they were hardly interested in the unfamiliar ones. Therefore, the
familiarity of the themes should be considered carefully when preparing materials for the
lessons. Instead of completely relying on textbooks, the teacher should consider preparing
materials based on the students’ familiar themes such as hobbies, toys, foods and drinks.
The difficult and unfamiliar themes should be introduced with the clear instruction
of the teachers. In order to make the themes easier to the students, the teachers should
provide the words related to the theme or use some support tools such as pictures,
flashcards, etc.

Giving clear instruction
Based on the analysis of teaching diaries and the questionnaires, it is obvious that
providing students with the clear and detailed instruction could lead to a successful
application of compilation of theme – based lexical lists. The instruction should include
the explicit description of the task and the examples through which the students
understand how they can do the task.

Designing interesting tasks
The analysis of teaching diaries and the results of questions in the questionnaire
showed that choosing and designing suitable task is also a very important step when
implementing compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary lessons. Most of
the students participate actively and enthusiastically in exciting task. The analysis also
pointed out some kinds of tasks that delight students to be involved such as odd – one –
out, matching, listing and shorting. A lot of students found these kinds of tasks useful and
interesting. Therefore, when planning for the lessons, the teacher should consider
designing interesting and suitable tasks.

Using compilation of theme – based lexical lists in combination with other
activities
The analysis of teaching diaries announced the effectiveness of applying
compilation of theme – based lexical lists in combination with the other activities.
Accordingly, the integration of various methods with compilation of theme – based
lexical lists can lead to successful lessons in which students have chance to experience
38
enlarge and review their vocabulary retention. The example of combining compilation of
theme – based lexical lists and games in the second teaching diary is an obvious evidence
for the researcher suggestion. Compilation of theme – based lexical lists may also be
applied in combination with songs, chants, visual aids, etc. In short, combining different
activities in vocabulary teaching is necessary.

Focusing on students’ pronunciation
Since pronunciation is one of the most difficult aspects the students face, when
applying compilation of theme – based lexical lists, besides spelling and meaning, the
teachers should focus on the pronunciation of words. The students might be unconfident
or embarrassing to express their ideas in English lessons because of the poor
pronunciation. As a result, the students do not actively participate in the tasks and
activities given by the teacher. Therefore, the teacher should pay much attention to the
pronunciation of words they present in the lessons by letting students listen to the
recording or the teacher’s pronunciation and repeat the words many times.

Letting students work in groups
According to the results of questionnaire and the analysis of teaching diaries, most
of students preferred working in groups to doing tasks individually. The significant
benefit of group work is that students have chance to share their ideas and discuss with
the members in group so that they can help each other. Additionally, working in groups in
vocabulary learning helps students broaden their vocabulary retention by apprehending
their friends’ words and phrases. As a result, the teacher should let students work in
groups in vocabulary lessons.
For better organizing activities in groups, firstly, the teacher explains the
requirements of the task and gives examples for the answer. Secondly, the teacher lets
students discuss in groups for about two or three minutes to find out the answers. Next,
the groups present their answers for the others to give comments. Finally, the teacher
corrects and summarizes their answers.
39

Testing students’ vocabulary
Based on the analysis of the question 6 in the questionnaire, it is suggested that the
teacher should test students’ vocabulary capacity after vocabulary lesson in order that
students can know how much they have learnt from the tasks and activities in the lessons.
In addition, by testing students’ vocabulary after each lesson, the teacher can make
adjustment for application of theme – based lexical lists in presenting new words in next
lessons. The test might last for two to three minutes at the pre – stage or post – stage of
the lesson and might be designed as a small exercise in which all the words and phrases
introduced in the lessons are reviewed (see Appendix 3).
3.3.
Summary
This chapter has presented the data, which were collected from survey
questionnaire and teaching diaries. The data were analyzed to find out the students’
attitudes toward learning vocabulary using compilation of theme – based lexical lists and
the students’ expectations about teaching vocabulary through the method. Accordingly,
the students affirmed the improvement of their vocabulary retention after English lessons
with compilation of theme – based lexical lists. The students also gave some suggestions
about teaching vocabulary in their class including creating a comfortable environment in
class, providing language exercises and games, presenting familiar themes and interesting
tasks. The analysis of questionnaires and teaching diaries allows the researcher to give
some recommendations for the teachers to effectively apply compilation of theme – base
lexical lists for the benefit of the students including choosing well – suited materials,
giving clear instruction, designing interesting tasks, using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists in combination with other activities, focusing on students’ pronunciation,
letting students work in groups, and testing students’ vocabulary.
40
PART III – CONCLUSION
1.
Recapitulation
Vocabulary plays an important role in language teaching and learning. Nowadays,
many teachers of language in primary schools are aware of the importance of teaching
methods and techniques to maximize the students’ vocabulary retention. The situation
leads the researcher to conduct the study in order to investigate the application of
compilation of theme – based lexical lists at Khanh Nhac A Primary School and the
impact of the method on the students’ vocabulary retention.
The participants of the study were 89 4th grade students in class 4A, 4B, 4C at
Khanh Nhac A Primary School. Two data collection instruments including questionnaires
and teaching diaries were employed. Firstly, the questionnaires were given to the students
at three classes to examine their ideas about learning vocabulary through compilation of
theme – based lexical lists in their classes. The questionnaire includes 10 questions related
to three research questions the researcher aimed at. Secondly, the students participated in
English lessons applying compilation of theme – based lexical lists with the textbook
“Tiếng Anh 4” published by Ministry of Education and Training. The teaching diaries
were written by the researcher to seek data for the study.
The data collected from questionnaires and teaching diaries were analyzed and
concluded in order to lead the researcher to the findings of the study.
2.
Concluding remarks
The study aims at investigating the use of compilation of theme – based lexical
lists on primary students’ vocabulary retention. Based on the collected and analyzed data,
some important ideas have been concluded.
Considering the first research question, the analysis of teaching diaries declared
that vocabulary tasks using compilation of theme – based lexical lists seemed to be
attractive for students in language classes. When students were given the tasks, they
actively and enthusiastically discussed in pairs or groups. Compilation of theme – based
41
lexical lists made the class atmosphere more exciting that most of students took part in
doing the tasks. Moreover, also thanks to compilation of theme – based lexical lists, the
teachers encouraged students to find and remember the words themselves. Therefore,
their vocabulary retentions were improved naturally and effectively. In addition, the
results of questionnaire also proved that most of students had progressed a lot after
attending vocabulary lessons using compilation of theme – based lexical lists. The
students also admitted the obvious effectiveness of the method in the lessons. With
compilation of theme – based lexical lists, the vocabulary lessons became more
interesting and they found it easier to understand. In short, the application of compilation
of theme – based lexical lists brought a considerable improvement to the students’
vocabulary retention.
Regarding to the second research question, the students’ expectations about
teaching vocabulary using compilation of theme – based lexical lists were summarized
based on the analysis of the questionnaire and teaching diaries. Accordingly, the students
would like their teachers to provide them a comfortable environment with more language
games and exercises. The teachers’ clear instruction was also expected by the students in
order that they thoroughly understand the requirements of the tasks in the lessons. The
students are willing to work in pair or in group to carry out language activities presented
by the teachers in the lessons so that they can share and discuss about their ideas. Some
kinds of task such as out one out, listing and some familiar themes were also proposed for
the teachers to apply in vocabulary lessons.
Based on the findings, some suggestions were given to effectively implementing
compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary lessons. Firstly, materials should
be appropriately chosen for students to work with. Secondly, teachers should give
students clear and detailed instruction of the tasks with compilation of theme – based
lexical lists. Thirdly, interesting and useful tasks should be prepared to motivate and
encourage students. In addition, using compilation of theme – based lexical lists in
combination with other activities, focusing on students’ pronunciation, letting students
42
work in groups also helps students involved in the lessons. Last but not least, the teacher
should test student’s vocabulary after each vocabulary lesson.
3.
Limitations and suggestions for further study.
The study is a small – scale research project carried out with the 4th grade students
at Khanh Nhạc A Primary School. There are some limitations that should be considered.
First, the participants were students in grade 4 and teaching diaries were only
carried out in three classes. Therefore, to some extent, the findings may not be
generalized to all students in the primary school.
Second, the study only focuses on the use of compilation of theme – based lexical
list in English vocabulary teaching. Beyond the method, there are many different
techniques for teachers to improve student’s vocabulary retention.
Moreover, the study cannot focus on other factors affecting the application of
compilation of theme – based lexical lists in vocabulary teaching. Thus, this calls for the
further study in which valuable and critical ideas and comments from all the teachers and
the people who care for this topic can be discussed.
For future research, it is recommended to investigate the effectiveness of using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists to improve students’ other skills such as
listening, and speaking.
43
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23. Michael, E. (1999). Webster's New World College Dictionary. 4th ed. United States:
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24. Mumford, M. D. and Diana, M. (2000). Planning a theme based unit. Canada:
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25. Nation, I. and Coady, J. (1988) Vocabulary and reading. In R. Carter and M.
McCarthy (Eds.), Vocabulary and Language Teaching. London: Longman.
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27. Naveen, K. M. (2009). Vocabulary Teaching: Effective Methodologies. India: The
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knowledge framework: word associations and verbal suffixes. Studies in Second
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41. Setyawan, A. D (2011). Total Physical Response. A short Introduction TPR.
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teachers of English to children. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
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language teaching and learning. Harlow: Longman.
47
Vietnamese authors
1.
Lã Thị Thu Thủy (2007) Difficulties in learning vocabulary of high school students
and some solutions, Unpublished MA Dissertation CFL – VNU.
2.
Lê Thị Lệ Thương (2005) An investigation into some approaches to vocabulary
teaching and learning and the application of games in teaching and learning
vocabulary at pre-intermediate level at foreign language center – Hai Phong
University, Unpublished MA Dissertation CFL – VNU.
3.
Lê Văn Canh (2003), Local mind, global practice: English language teaching in the
context of globalization – Kumamoto Gakuen University, Japan.
4.
Phạm Thị Thu Trang (2012) Teaching vocabulary to primary children by using
story telling method, Unpublished MA Dissertation CFL – VNU.
5.
Trần Thị Thu Trang (2011) Learning vocabulary through language games of 7th –
form students at Phuong Nam Private Lower Secondary School, Unpublished MA
Dissertation CFL – VNU.
6.
Vũ Thị Thanh Tâm (2012) An action research on using stories and drama in
teaching English to primary students at Quan Tru primary school, Unpublished MA
Dissertation CFL – VNU.
48
APPENDIX 1A: QUESTIONNAIRE (ENGLISH VERSION)
Using compilation of theme – based lexical lists on primary students’
vocabulary retention
Dear students,
This survey questionnaire is aimed at investigating the use of compilation of theme –
based lexical lists on 4th grade students’ vocabulary retention at Khanh Nhac A Primary
School. All the information provided by you is sorely for the study purpose. Thank you
very much for your cooperation!
1.
How often do your teachers use compilation of theme – based lexical lists in
English classes?
A. Always
B. Sometimes
C. Rarely
D. Never
2.
What do you think about the English lessons using compilation of theme –
based lexical lists?
A. Very interesting
B. Rather interesting
C. A bit interesting
D. Boring
3.
What do you often do in English lessons using compilation of theme – based
lexical lists?
A. Participate actively in all activities
B. Only pay attention to the part I like
C. Find it difficult to concentrate on the activities
I
D. Not participate in any activity
E. Do other things instead
4.
How do you find it to understand words when learning English vocabulary
through compilation of theme – based lexical lists?
A. Very easy
B. Quite easy
C. A bit easy
D. Difficult
5.
To what extent does compilation of theme – based lexical lists affect your
vocabulary retention?
A. Much better
B. Better
C. Little better
D. Not better at all
6.
What would you like your teachers to do in English lessons using compilation of
theme – based lexical lists? (You can choose more than one)
A. Create a comfortable environment for students to learn
B. Provide many examples of word use
C. Instruct how to pronounce words correctly
D. Explain the word meaning in Vietnamese
E. Review students’ vocabulary regularly
F. Provide more language exercises
7.
Which way of presenting the meaning of new words do you like? (You can
choose more than one)
A. Use visual aids (pictures, flashcards, etc.)
B. Translate the words into Vietnamese
C. Explain the meaning of the words in English
D. Play language games
II
8.
What kinds of tasks in theme – based lessons would you like to be involved in?
(You can choose more than one)
A. Matching
B. Odd one out
C. Listing
D. Ordering and shorting
E. Others: ………………………………….
9.
Which theme would you like your teacher to present in English lessons
implementing compilation of theme – based lexical lists? (You can choose more
than one)
A. Hobbies
B. Foods and drinks
C. Toys
D. Other:……………………………………
10. What is your favorite kind of activity organization in English lessons using
compilation of theme – based lexical lists?
A. Group work
B. Pair work
C. Individual work
III
APPENDIX 1B: QUESTIONNAIRE (VIETNAMESE VERSION)
Phiếu khảo sát về việc dạy từ vựng cho học sinh tiểu học thông qua phương pháp
sưu tập từ theo nhóm
Các em thân mến,
Phiếu khảo sát này nhằm mục đích tìm hiểu việc sử dụng phương pháp sưu tập từ theo
nhóm trong dạy học từ vựng cho học sinh lớp 4 tại Trường Tiểu học Khánh Nhạc A.
Thông tin mà các em cung cấp chỉ được sử dụng cho mục đích nghiên cứu. Vì vậy, rất
mong các em trả lời trung thực các câu hỏi trong phiếu này.
Xin chân thành cảm ơn các em!
1.
Giáo viên của em có thường xuyên sử dụng phương pháp sưu tập từ theo nhóm
trong các giờ học không?
A. Thường xuyên
B. Thỉnh thoảng
C. Hiếm khi
D. Không bao giờ
2.
Em thấy thế nào về các giờ học tiếng Anh với phương pháp sưu tập từ theo
nhóm?
A. Rất thú vị
B. Khá thú vị
C. Thú vị một chút
D. Nhàm chán
3.
Em thường làm gì trong các tiết học tiếng Anh với phương pháp sưu tập từ
theo nhóm?
A. Tham gia vào tất cả các hoạt động
B. Chỉ chú ý đến phần em thích
C. Cảm thấy khó tập trung vào các hoạt động
IV
D. Không tham gia vào hoạt động nào
E. Làm việc riêng
4.
Em có cảm thấy dễ hiểu bài khi được học các tiết học với phương pháp sưu tập
từ theo nhóm?
A. Rất dễ hiểu
B. Khá dễ hiểu
C. Dễ hiểu một chút
D. Khó hiểu
5.
Khả năng nhớ từ của em cải thiện thế nào sau các tiết học này?
A. Tốt hơn nhiều
B. Tốt hơn
C. Tốt hơn một chút
D. Không tốt hơn chút nào
6.
Em muốn giáo viên làm gì trong các tiết học với phương pháp sưu tập từ theo
nhóm? (Em có thể chọn nhiều đáp án)
A. Tạo môi trường thoải mái cho học sinh
B. Đưa ra nhiều ví dụ về cách sử dụng từ
C. Hướng dẫn cách phát âm từ chính xác
D. Giải thích nghĩa của từ bằng tiếng Anh
E. Thường xuyên kiểm tra từ vựng của học sinh
F. Đưa ra nhiều bài tập ngôn ngữ
7.
Em thích cách dạy từ mới nào sau đây? (Em có thể chọn nhiều đáp án)
A. Dùng các công cụ như tranh ánh, flashcard
B. Dịch từ sang tiếng Việt
C. Giải thích nghĩa của từ bằng tiếng Anh
D. Chơi các trò chơi ngôn ngữ
8.
Em thích loại bài tập nào trong các tiết học này? (Em có thể chọn nhiều đáp án)
A. Nối từ
V
B. Tìm từ khác nhóm
C. Liệt kê từ
D. Sắp xếp từ
E. Loại bài tập khác: ……………………
9.
Chủ đề nào em thích giáo viên giới thiệu trong các tiết học với phương pháp
sưu tập từ theo nhóm? (Em có thể chọn nhiều đáp án)
A. Sở thích
B. Đồ ăn và đồ uống
C. Đồ chơi
D. Khác: ………………………..…
10. Em thích cách tổ chức hoạt động nào trong các bài học với phương pháp sưu
tập từ theo nhóm? mong muốn gì trong các tiết học từ vựng với phương pháp
sưu tập từ theo nhóm?
A. Làm việc theo nhóm
B. Làm việc theo cặp
C. Làm việc cá nhân
VI
APPENDIX 2A: CRITERIA FOR TEACHING DIARIES
Concern areas
Lesson introduction
Guiding questions
 What are the objectives of the lesson?
 How much time is spent for vocabulary teaching?
 Which stages of the lesson did the teacher applied
compilation of theme – based lexical lists?
 How was the compilation of theme – based lexical lists
Lesson procedures
implemented?
 Was the method used in combination with the other
activities? To what extend did the combination affect the
lesson?
Teacher’s instruction
 What did the teacher do to give students instruction?
 How did the instruction work?
 How did the students participate in the lesson?
Students’ participation
 Did students join in the task?
 Did the students volunteer to do the tasks?
 Did the students work individually? In pairs? In groups?
Materials
 Were the students interested in the theme?
 Was the theme familiar to the students?
 What kinds of tasks were applied in the lesson?
Tasks
 Did the students enjoy the tasks? Which tasks did the
students prefer?
Suggested changes
 What changes will you make in the next lessons? Why?
VII
APPENDIX 2B: TEACHING DIARIES
1st teaching diary
Unit 3: What day is it today?
Lesson 2
October 2nd 2018
The objective of the lesson was to help students ask and answer questions about
weekly activities using sentence pattern: What do you do on Monday? Because the main
focus of the lesson was speaking skill, I intended to spend about eight to ten minutes
teaching vocabulary.
Lesson procedures and students’ participation
At the beginning of the lesson, almost all students in the class seemed not ready for
any activities. They just kept chatting, smiling or teasing other classmates while I was
trying my best to make them attentive. I felt very disappointed and annoyed. Only when I
started to write the theme of the task on the blackboard, the number of students paid
attention to the lesson increased.
In this lesson, I applied compilation of theme – based lexical lists in the while –
stage. After reviewing the previous lesson and introducing the objectives of the new
lesson, I wrote on the board “WEEKLY ACTIVITIES” and asked them to do a task. I
gave them a description of task in which they had to discuss in group in about five
minutes to list out words and phrases related to the theme I had given. Then one student in
each group would be appointed to write their answers on the blackboard. The group with
more correct answers would be the winner. I intended to give them some examples to
make the task clear for them to do. However, I thought it might be time – consuming so I
skipped the step. As a result, most of the students seemed to be confused when practicing
the task in groups. Therefore, the group work even took much more time than I planned.
All the groups had various answers with many activities such as play the piano, go to
school, visit grandparents, play football. I called a student from the best group to
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summarize their answers in a web so that the dominant vocabulary of the lesson looked
clear and systematic. Then I had the whole class read aloud all the words and phrases they
found in the board.
The following tasks became easier because the students got a thorough
understanding of words in the lesson. The students listened the record twice and practiced
the dialogue in pair. Especially, when I asked students to practice asking and answering
the question “What do you do on Monday?” using the words and phrases they had found
in the previous task, the classroom atmosphere was really good. The students were
excited to go around the class and practice with others and gave comments on the task.
At the last stage of the lesson, I spent time give feedback and praised some
students that were active and hard – working during the lesson. I also encouraged them to
practice at home and prepare for the next lesson.
Teacher’s instruction
At first, I gave a description of the task with compilation of theme – based lexical
lists. The students were very excited when I presented the theme and the task they had to
do. However, because of the pressure of time, I did not give them any example for
clarification. Therefore, most of students did not know how to do the task when I gave
them time to practice in group.
Materials
Almost all students were interested in the theme “WEEKLY ACTIVITIES” so that
they joined the tasks actively and enthusiastically. As a result, students found out much
more answers than I expected. Some of them even asked for more time discussing
because they had many other answers.
Tasks
In the lesson, the students seemed to enjoy the listing task in which they were
allowed to discuss with their friends and list out words and phrases related to the theme.
They actively worked in groups and gave many correct answers.
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Suggested changes
Since the task of listing words and phrases seemingly worked well in this lesson, I
thought it would be great to apply the task in the next lessons with compilation of theme –
based lexical lists.
I found that the students were not able to do the task because I did not give them
clear instruction of the task. In the next lesson, I should spend time giving them examples
so that it could be easier to them.
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2nd teaching diary
Unit 4: When is your birthday?
Lesson 1
October 15th 2018
The lesson aimed at providing students with the question and answer about dates
which were integrated in speaking and listening skill. Therefore, I thought it was
reasonable to spend seven to eight minutes for vocabulary teaching.
Lesson procedures and students’ participation
Compilation of theme – based lexical lists was applied in the while – stage of the
lesson, in the activities of finding new words and consolidating the words. After playing
the record twice for students to listen, I wrote the theme “DATE” on the board and asked
students to discuss and find out some words and phrases related to the theme. However,
most of them seemed to be not interested in the theme. Therefore, I had to end the
discussion early and gave them some suggestions. Some phrases were found and written
on the board.
In order to check the students’ ability of remembering the phrases they had found,
I told students that they were going to play a game named Kim’s game. I asked them to
close their eyes while I erased some of phrases on the blackboard. After they opened their
eyes, the classroom started to be noisy because of their discussion. The students were very
excited and many of them raised hands to fill in the erased parts in compilation on the
board. The classroom atmosphere then was really good. Thus, I saw that with the
combination of compilation of theme – based lexical lists and games, the lessons might be
more exciting and challenging.
The students then were given five minutes to practice asking and answering about
date in pair. Most of them did the tasks actively while some groups stopped and asked me
how to pronounce some words. I called some of them to practice in front of the class and
asked the others give comments.
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At the end of the lesson, I encouraged them to revise the phrases they had found at
home and prepare for the next lesson.
Teacher’s instruction
Because “DATE” is not an exciting theme to students, I had spent much time
explaining the tasks and giving them two examples of date. To make the task clear to
students, I also called two of them to stand up and find two phrases related to the theme.
The students get stuck at first but they gradually understood and participated in the group
work.
Materials
The students seemed not to be interested in numbers and orders when I introduced
the theme “Date” which is the dominant focus of the lesson. Only some students tried to
discuss about the theme while many of them got bored and did other things instead. The
theme was not familiar to them.
Tasks
Because vocabulary was the main focus of the lesson, I gave students a big
exercise to do. I wrote a disorder list of words about days of a week, days of a month,
months a year, seasons of a year. I asked them to discuss in group in order to sort those
words in to four groups.
Suggested changes
The combination of Kim game and compilation of theme – based lexical lists
seemed to be interesting to most of the students. However, since the theme “DATE” is
difficult and unfamiliar to students, the classroom atmosphere was not good at first. I
thought that it was more effective if I found some of the students’ favorite themes to
introduce in the next lessons.
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3rd teaching diary
Unit 6: Where is your school?
Lesson 1
November 7th 2018
The lesson aimed at asking and answering question about where a school is so that
I intended to spend about ten minutes teaching words and phrases related to places and
streets.
Lesson procedure and students’ participation
In this lesson, I applied compilation of theme – based lexical lists at the beginning
with previewing task. When I wrote the theme “OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES” on the
blackboard, a lot of students were very excited that they clapped their hands and smiled.
They actively discussed in group to find out phrases related to the theme and many
answers were given after group work. Most of students remembered vocabulary they
learnt in the previous lesson.
The method was also implemented in the second task of the new lesson with the
use of visual aids. I stuck six pictures of streets on the board and asked students to
individually look at the pictures and complete the answer for the question Where is your
school? However, when being asked to fill the blanks with the related words individually,
instead of looking at the books and do the task silently, most of students asked and
discussed with their friends about the task. After about three or four minutes of group
work, the students were allowed to go around the classroom to practice asking and
answering the question with their friends. Most of the students talked freely and naturally.
I also went around in order to help them with the pronunciation of some words. To end
the task, I called two pairs to speak in front of the class and asked the others to give
comments on their practice.
For consolidation, I spent time restating the question and praised some students
that had been active and hard – working in the lesson. I also encouraged them to revise
the lesson at home and prepare for the next lesson.
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Teacher’s instruction
In the previewing stage, because the theme of the task was introduced in the
previous lesson, I did not spent much time guiding them to do the task. Nevertheless,
most of them understood the requirement of the task and did it well.
In the new lesson, I explained the task’s requirements twice in order that all
students knew how to do the task. In spite of understanding the task, a considerable
number of students did not pay attention. Therefore, I had to go around the class, help and
encouraged them to do the task.
.Materials
“STREET” is not an ideal theme to introduce in the lesson because most of
students had little knowledge about it. Although I gave them six pictures of streets,
students ran into difficulty when identifying the streets to fill the blanks.
Tasks
The students seemed to prefer joining the listing task at previewing stage to the
task of filling the blanks with the names of streets. They were also keen on the practicing
task in which they were allowed to go around the class to ask and answer questions.
Suggested changes
Besides the use of visual aids in introducing new vocabulary, the activity of free
talking with their friends might be a good point in the lesson.
In the next lesson, I should introduce them an interesting and familiar topic so that
they can pay more attention to the lesson. In addition, I should consider preparing exciting
tasks for them to do.
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4th teaching diary
Unit 7: What do you like doing?
Lesson 1
November 22nd 2018
The lesson focused on asking and answering questions about what someone likes
doing based on words and phrases of hobbies. Since it is the first lesson of the unit, I
intended to spend about ten to twelve minutes introducing vocabulary to the students.
Lesson procedures and students’ participation
In this lesson, I chose to apply compilation of theme – based lexical lists in the task
of introducing new words. At the beginning of the lesson, a considerable number of
students paid little attention to the previewing task. They kept talking with their friends so
that I had to ask them to be quiet. However, when the theme of the new lesson was
written on the board, most of them smiled and even clapped their hands. They started to
be actively involved in the lesson.
“HOBBIES” seemed to be a very interesting and familiar theme to the students so
that some students volunteered to give examples of the answer right after I explained the
requirement of the task that they had to discuss in group to find some words and phrases
of the theme. They exposed some answers such as badminton, music and video game.
Their answers were correct, but they were not the phrases I intended to present so I
praised them for the answers and introduced the others – watching TV, playing chess.
After taking some minutes to think about my suggestion, the students gradually
understood and they started to discuss. The answers they gave after discussion were out of
my expectation. Besides some suggestions written in their textbooks, the students felt
elated exposing their own hobbies such as dancing, planting flowers, playing the piano.
All the answers were written on the board before I asked the whole class to read aloud.
I introduced them the main question of the lesson What do you like doing and give
an example of the answer. Two pairs were called to practice the question in front of the
class so that the others could clearly understand the task. Then the students were free to
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go around the class to ask about their friends’ hobbies and take note. The classroom was
noisy but the atmosphere was really good. After three minutes of practicing, I called two
students to stand in front of the class to talk about their friends’ hobbies. The others
listened carefully and gave comments on the speech.
At the end of the lesson, I repeated the question What do you like doing? for some
students to answer. I encouraged them to practice the question at home by asking their
family members’ hobbies.
Teacher’s instruction
Because the vocabulary teaching was an important part of the lesson, I pay much
attention to giving them explanation of words and requirements of the tasks. To make the
task clear, I gave them some suggestions of the answers and called some pairs to practice
in front of the class to make sure that they know how to do. Therefore, most of students
understood and do the tasks correctly.
Since some students’ pronunciation was not good, I also went around the class to
help students when they practiced with their friends.
Materials
“HOBBIES” was a great theme to introduce in the lesson because it is the interest
of almost all students in the class. Thanks to the familiar theme, the lesson was really
attractive to the students that they discussed and practiced enthusiastically and positively
in many tasks of the lesson.
Tasks
When introducing vocabulary in the new lesson, listing task seemed to work well
so that the students found out many correct answers for the task. In addition, students
were interested in the task of presenting their friend’s hobbies in front of the class. There
were more than ten students who volunteered to do the task but I only called two of them
because of the pressure of time.
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Suggested changes
Letting students to interview their friends about hobbies seemed to be an effective
task that enhanced students to naturally practice the question What do you like doing?
Presenting in front of the class was also attractive to students so that I should consider to
apply in the next lessons.
However, I should prepare an interesting task for the previewing stage in the next
lesson in order that students pay much attention to the lesson right from the beginning. I
should also call one or two more students to speak in front of the class after practicing.
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APPENDIX 3: A SAMPLE VOCABULARY TEST
Full name: ………………………….
Class: ……………………………….
TEST 1 – UNIT 7
Complete the sentences with the suitable phrases.
1. Mai doesn’t like ……………………
2. I like ………………………………….
3. Mai likes ……………………………
4. They like ……………………………..
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