Vietnam national university, haNoi College of foreign languages Post- graduate department Hong Thị Hơng Giang A study on using self – assessment in the classroom to increase learning motivation in Learning English at Hanoi University of Industry (Nghiªn cøu vỊ việc sử dụng phơng pháp tự đánh giá lớp học nhằm tăng động lực học tiếng Anh trờng Đại Học Công nghiệp Hà Nội) Minor programme thesis Field: Language Teaching Methodology Code: 601410 Hanoi – 2008 Vietnam national university, haNoi College of foreign languages Post- graduate department Hoμng Thị Hơng Giang A study on using self assessment in the classroom to increase learning motivation in Learning English at Hanoi University of Industry (Nghiªn cøu vỊ viƯc sư dơng phơng pháp tự đánh giá lớp học nhằm tăng động lực học tiếng Anh trờng Đại Học Công nghiƯp Hµ Néi) Minor programme thesis Field: Language Teaching Methodology Code: 601410 Supervisor: Nguyen Thi Vuong, M.A Hanoi- 2008 i DECLARATION I, Hoang Thi Huong Giang , hereby declare that the work contained in this thesis, other than that specifically attributed to another source, is the result of my own research It is recognised that, should this declaration be found to be false, disciplinary action could be taken and penalties imposed in accordance with University policy and rules Signature Hoang Thi Huong Giang ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor – Mrs Nguyen Thi Vuong for her insightful comments and suggestions on various parts of this thesis My thanks also go to all my lecturers from Vietnam National University for their valuable lectures which help me to orient the topic I also would like to express my thanks to Mrs Ngo Thanh Thuy, the staff member of Postgraduate Studies Department for her help and support during my studies I am most thankful to my colleagues and undergraduate students at Hanoi University of Industry for their support in data collection Finally my special thanks go to my father, my husband and my son, for their love and support throughout this project Without their encouragement I could not have completed this thesis iii ABSTRACT Motivation is considered to be one of the most important elements in language learning Understand the role of motivation and the related theoryof self- assessment method has the potential to inform classroom teaching in important ways If selfassessment method can indeed increase learners’motivation, then teaching and using selfassessment skills to learners may have direct implications for English classroom The primary goal of this study is to investigate learners’ motivation in learning English before and after using continuous self – assessment questionnaire Then it refers to ideas of other teachers of English at HAUI about self- assessment method Lastly, this study seeks to discover some typical techniques related to self- assessment method in order to increase learners’motivation in learning English.The results of the study and some recommendation will bring in practical benefits to teaching and learning English Teachers and learners will realize the useful role of self-assessment method and use some selfassessment techniques effectively iv Table of content DECLARATION ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ABSTRACT TABLE OF CONTENT i ii iii iv Chapter I: Introduction 1 Rationale Aim of the study Research questions Significance of the study Scope of the study Method of the study Design of the study Chapter II: Literature review 5 Theoretical backgrounds of motivation 1.1 What is motivation? 1.2 Types of motivation in second language learning 1.2.1 Integrative Motivation 1.2.2 Instrumental Motivation 1.3 The importance of motivation in L2 learning 9 Theoretical backgrounds of self - assessment method 2.1 Definitions of self – assessment 2.2 Why use self - assessment in second language learning? 10 2.3 Self-assessment techniques in L2 learning 11 2.3.1 Self-marking 11 2.3.2 Portfolios 12 2.3.3 Pre- and post-course writing 12 2.3.4 Learner contracts 13 2.3.5 Student progress card 13 2.3.6 Learner diary 14 v 2.3.7 Self assessment questionnaire 14 2.3.8 Videotape 14 2.3.9 Teacher-student interviews 14 Chapter III: The study 15 Research questions 15 Null and alternative hypotheses 15 Research design 15 3.1.Research question 15 3.2.Research question 16 Participants and settings 16 Instruments : Motivation questionnaire 18 5.1.Motivation questionnaire 18 5.2 Self- assessment questionnaire 18 Results 19 Data analysis 23 Chapter IV: Discussion 27 Summary of the topic and need for the study 27 Implications in the classroom 28 Limitations and implications for future research 30 REFERENCES I APPENDIX A: Motivation questionnaire IV APPENDIX B: Self – assessment questionnaire VII CHAPTER I: Rationale English has proved to play the important role as an international language and has a huge impact on the lives of people in many countries Understanding the importance of mastering this language, in Viet Nam, our government has given a lot of suitable policies in education in order to encourage universities and schools to achieve the best quality of teaching and learning Hanoi University of Industry (HAUI) has tried to become an open educational institution, to cater for learners and interested parties, train labor at various levels and meet the demand of socio-economic development It is continuously improving the teaching methodology with the learner focus approach; applying strictly information technology in managing, teaching and learning; experimenting the credit model in education for a throughout application of this module; expanding the training cooperation with universities, schools, technical and economic institutions inside the country and overseas; encouraging creativity and learning Hanoi University of Industry also focuses much on teaching English beside other majors Students at HAUI have to learn English as a compulsory subject and have lots of chances to take part in many activities in English Teachers at HAUI usually organize professional meetings, contests of good teaching, English speaking clubs and many activities in order to improve the quality of teaching and learning English here However, they have a great deal of difficulties with the syllabus, curriculum, materials, and learners ‘motivation, etc…Especially the question: “How to increase learners’ motivation?” is a big question that comes form many teachers This is of great concern to teachers of English here Being a teacher of English at HAUI, I often try to find out suitable methods of teaching to different levels of students Accidentally, I read some articles related to using self – assessment method in language teaching, and I find it interesting and useful In my teaching, I sometimes use this method in simple ways in some classes and it often gives positive results(for example: Self-marking; Portfolios; Pre- and post-course writing; Learner contracts; Student progress card; Learner diary; Self assessment questionnaire; Videotape; teacher-student interviews, etc…) Because of the scope of the study, I choose Self assessment questionnaire as the main technique which follows through the study because I find it a useful one And I often apply this technique in my teaching most of the time For the above reasons, I carry out this study to investigate deeply the effects of selfassessment method, especially Self assessment questionnaire (weekly self-evaluations) to English learning and with the hope of sharing this method to all teachers of English Aim of the study: The primary goal of this study is to investigate learners’ motivation in learning English before and after using continuous self – assessment questionnaire Then it refers to ideas of other teachers of English at HAUI about self- assessment method Lastly, this study seeks to discover some typical techniques related to self- assessment method in order to increase learners’motivation in learning English Research questions: The study was intended to answer the following questions: + Is the self – assessment method used in English classroom at Hanoi University of Industry? + Does the self – assessment method increase HAUI students’ motivation in the classroom? Significance of the study Motivation is considered to be one of the most important elements in language learning Without appropriate motivation, it is unlikely that learners will succeed with the language Understanding the role of motivation and the related theory of self- assessment method has the potential to perform classroom teaching in important ways If self- assessment method can indeed increase learners’ motivation, then teaching and using self- assessment skills to learners may have direct implications for English classroom The results of the study and some recommendations will bring about practical benefits to teaching and learning English Teachers and learners will realize the useful role of self-assessment method and use some self- assessment techniques effectively Scope of the study Firstly, the study is conducted to find out whether or not self- assessment method increases learners’ motivation in learning English Secondly, the study is carried out with the hope of testing how to use some self- assessment techniques effectively in English class Other approaches of how to increase learners’ motivation are beyond this study Method of the study The purpose of this study was to find out if the incorporation of self- assessment exercises in English classroom directly helps increase learners’ motivation In order to accomplish this goal, my thesis is the combination of different methods in education research Knowledge and experience that I have gained from learning and teaching with a lot of materials, articles, books, websites, etc…helped me much in writing the thesis, especially the literature review Given the desire to assess a cause- effect relationship between the variables in research questions, an experimental research design was used In order to achieve the above mentioned aims and objectives to make the study more practical, data were collected by questionnaire and analysis The primary data analysis is of quantitative method with scale question in the questionnaire designed for students’ motivation analysis In a more detail, this study is to prove for the following two main hypothesises: Null hypothesis: There is no statistically significant difference between posttest ratings of motivation among students who receive a weekly classroom self- assessment component for one semester and those who not, after controlling for the effect of pretest motivation ratings in both groups Alternative hypothesis: Students who receive a weekly classroom self- assessment component for one semester will report higher posttest ratings of motivation compared with those who not, after controlling for the effect of pretest motivation ratings in both groups 26 The primary objective of this study was to determine if the introduction of a self-assessment instrument influenced students’ overall motivation in learning English in classroom Findings showed that students’ motivation scores improved significantly more from pretest to posttest if they were engaged in self-assessment throughout the semester (i.e., the treatment group) than if they did not (i.e., the control group) This change was expected and in fact hoped for because it demonstrates that as students learn during an English course More saliently for this study, however, the increase in learners’ motivation was markedly (and statistically significantly) higher when students also engaged in continuous self-assessment regarding their own strengths and weaknesses throughout the semester This finding yields an affirmative answer to research question, and provides direct evidence that the inclusion of a self-assessment component increases the motivation of the students in an English course As results show, the more students self-assessed, the more their motivation increased, showing that they felt they exercised control over their learning process, not the other way around Given that self-assessment opportunities in this research allowed the learners to set goals and be self-motivated, it can be assumed that their assessment of their academic attainment was correct 27 Summary of the topic and need for the study In the field of second and foreign language learning, motivation has been shown to be a key factor of interest for learning language Knowing how and why students engage with their learning, rather than approaching classroom experiences with disinterest, is of particular concern for teachers of subjects typically considered challenging, such as foreign languages Self-assessment has been defined as the generation of information about th e learners provided by the learners themselves The purpose of this study was to investigate whether students increase learning motivation if they engaged in weekly task related self-assessment exercises than if they did not If self-assessment can indeed enhance students’ motivation, then introducing self-assessment in the foreign language classroom and teaching self-assessment skills directly to students, may have direct implications on how quickly and easily students learn a foreign language Theoretically, in the classroom, Self-Assessment is a key component of the pathway described above is the continuous nature of self- assessment students engaged in throughout the semester Self-assessment has been found to work better when it is used in a conti nuous way (Oskarsson, 1997) Self-assessment provides learners with more opportunities to develop self-guided appraisal strategies The more students are comfortable and skilled with this process, the more likely classroom learning experiences will translate into mastery experiences In the classroom, self assessment can be a very valuable tool Self assessment is related to motivational processes Self-assessment can help advance this process, given that the instructors receive information directly from learners and can then tailor their classes to take advantage of learners’ strengths If self-assessment becomes part of the overall curriculum in the classroom, both learners and instructors benefit: learners may feel more empowered because they can effectively reflect on their learning process; instructors can better help learners enhance their motivation Therefore, it is important that instructors promote students’ truthful self-assessment throughout the learning of a specific topic (or even a course) Instructors, through self- 28 assessment could monitor the learners’ expectations for and gauge their determination and resilience in the face of tasks they consider difficult This study suggests that, if instructors focus more on assessing learners’ self- assessment, they can become more aware of what learners believe they need to improve to be successful in a course, and learners’ motivation related to those tasks It is therefore useful for instructors to use the information generated by self-assessments to measure and ultimately enhance learners’motivation In summary, results of this study support assertions that (a) motivation is an important variable leading to learners’ success as defined by goal attainment and it may increase persistence and motivation, (b) that instructors should be cognizant of students’ motivation throughout a particular course, Results of this study may also support contentions stating that (a) self-assessment exercises are associated with increased motivation , (b) self-assessment exercises should be incorporated into course curricula because it may lead to learner independence and subsequent locus of control development, (c) self-assessment information (i.e., students’ personal evaluations) should not be directly linked to their course grades, and (d) information gleaned from self generated appraisals (i.e., students’self-assessments) should be used by instructors as a means of enhancing teaching methodology Strategies for using this information during classroom instruction were provided above Implications in the classroom Findings from this study can be inferred to suggest that potentially instructors can therefore help low-achieving students perform better and persist in studying a FL by benefiting from the effects that the introduction of continuous self-assessment brings to a learner’smotivation Results of this study show that self-assessment and motivation are related and mutually reinforcing, self-assessment should relate to motivation What is important for motivation should also be nature of important for self- assessment, and instructors should be aware of this fact when constructing self-assessment questionnaires so they are compatible with a schema that the learners will find more easy to use and more integrated to the instruction they are receiving It is important for instructors to be aware of the motivation of the students, because in this way, they would be able to tailor their instruction in a way that learners’ motivation is can more easily be increased By modifying classroom practices to assess and promote 29 motivation in the classroom instructors may ultimately help learners gain motivation When assessing motivation in the classroom, instructors should be aware that motivation is an inferential process in which learners weigh and combine the contributions of personal factors Instructors would be wise to help learners become more aware of the benefits of mastering specific tasks and their ability to complete them in the classroom As we have seen in previous chapters, self-assessment has been widely used in many fields In this study, instructors in the treatment group used self-assessment to provide self- guidance and reflection by stating from the beginning the fact that self-assessment did not have any effect on their grade in the course That may have motivated some students to be more candid and forward with what they considered as their problems in the course Furthermore, self-assessment seems to work by boosting learners’ motivation As seen in this study, self-assessment in the classroom can also have other goals, such as enabling learners to assess their total achievement at the end of a course or course unit, or as a positive influence on the overall learning process We could then use self-assessment as part of the overall learning process to help learners understand their behaviors, helping them re- cycle what they have learned, and at the same time boosting their selfmotivation Self-assessment can also be used to provide the learners with an end-of-course view of their learning process as well as a step-by- step account of it As this study demonstrates a combination of ranking items and feedback items can benefit learners For example, some items could use a 4-item scale ranging from “not at all” to “thoroughly/extremely.” In some items learners should be asked to describe their weaknesses, and the changes they would make to their study habits The more specific and focused a self-assessment instrument is the greater and more objective it will be when the learners self-assess their behaviors Information generated by students on the self-assessment questionnaire provides additional support for the usefulness of self-assessment by instructors Students, when self-assessing their own learning needs, also consider how instructors can help reinforce their own learning process As explained above, instructors can use students’ self- guided appraisals as information that may enhance future teaching methodology 30 Limitations and implications for future research Although results of this study were statistically significant, and the research design and instruments were sound, the study was not without limitations These limitations must be considered when attempting to generalize results to educational settings For example, one limitation of this study included the fact that self-assessment exercises were carried out over a short period of time Because the courses selected for study occurred over the semester, the length of classes was reduced to weeks As a result students completed only self-assessment questionnaires Although this seemingly led to a significant increase in students’ motivation, the overall impact of selfassessment on students’ learning process must have been limited In a longer time the use of self-assessment may become easier for students, more comfortable, and it would be more continuous in nature A 8-week semester implies intensive study time and a rigorous curriculum for the students, who may feel rushed or without time to thoroughly digest and reflect upon what has been taught It is possible that studying a longer semester may provide a better opportunity to fully discover the benefits of self-assessment Finally, this study was limited to second year students Even though results may be applicable to this population, caution is urged when generalizing the results to other populations (e.g., level students) and settings (e.g., high schools) Since different English levels emphasize different skills, the link between self- assessment and motivation among skills not focused on in this study cannot be guaranteed Regarding recommendations for future research, it would be helpful to know if the relationship between self-assessment and motivation holds for intermediate and advanced students When conducting this type of study, it would be important to create new instruments, adjusting them accordingly Moreover, the link between motivation, self-assessment and language achievement could be explored in more detail by correlating self- assessment experiences, motivation measures and final grades (or other indices of student achievement) Future researchers are advised to investigate the influence of demographic variables’ influence on motivation, an aspect that was not incorporated into the current research design Perhaps future researchers could add simple personality instruments to their research design in order to rule out this factor as a confounding variable when studying self- assessment and motivation It is also 31 recommended that future researchers use a larger and more geographically diverse sample when studying this phenomenon It would be interesting to discover whether motivation increases at a different rate for students with different cultural backgrounds, or if students from different geographic locals are more or less comfortable using selfappraisal during the learning process I References Trần Thị Huyền (2007), A study on how to motivate students at Ha Noi University of Industry to speak English, MA thesis, Vietnam National University TrÇn Long (2005), Motivating students to learn English: A study on HaNoi industrial college students, MA thesis, Vietnam National University Ngun ThÞ Thu Lan (2006) , Using visual aids to motivate the first year student at Hanoi University of Industry to learn vocabulary, MA thesis, Vietnam National University Vị ThÞ Ngäc Minh ( 2006), A study on the adaptation of activities in the textbook “ new headway- elementary” to teach grammar in the light of CLT to 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Language learning motivation: Pathways to the new century (pp 9-70) Honolulu: University of Hawai'i, Second Language Teaching & Curriculum Center 37 UR, P A course in language teaching Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996 38 Usioda, E (2003) Motivation as a socially mediated process In Little, D., Ridley, J & Ushioda, E (Eds), Learner autonomy in the foreign language classroom: Teacher, learner, curriculum and assessment (pp 90-102) Dublin: Authentik 39 WILLIAMS, M.; & BURDEN, R.Psychology for language teachers: a social constructions approach Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997 40 15 WLODKOWSKI, R Enhancing adult motivation to learn San Francisco: Jossy Bass Publishers, 1985 41 http://exchanges.state.gov/forum/vols/vol40/no1/p16.htm 42 http://www3.telus.net/linguisticsissues/selfassess.html IV Appendix A: Motivation questionnaire for students Motivation scale student: _ Directions: Please read each of the following items carefully, thinking about how it relates to you when learning English , and then indicate how true it is for you Use the following scale to respond: not at all true very true For me learning English is a hobby Learning English is an exciting activity I am learning English to become more educated The more I learn about English the more I like it If I spoke English I could a more interesting job I plan to learn English as much as possible 7 7 7 10 11 I often review last lesson and want to learn new things It is interesting and easy to learn new words and new grammar I think that English is an important school subject Even though I make mistakes when I learn English, I still feel sure of myself There is much opportunity for me to decide for myself how to learn English in class 12 I am free to express my ideas and opinions in class 13 I really enjoy learning English 14 I find the English class motivating 15 Thanks to English I can broaden my cultural horizon 7 16 17 The course has helped me develop my ability to work both individually and in group I look forward to attending all my classes, unless I V am sick My teachers make a real effort to understand any 18 difficulties I have and motivate me to my best work 19 20 Overall, I am satisfied with the quality of this class It is made clear right from the start what is expected from students 7 21 English enables us to become part of the world 22 In class, we are very active and creative 23 English exercises is interesting for me to 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 Our teacher teaches English in a very interesting way English is a very interesting language English enables me to communicate with many people I expect to learn English well in my classes in college My teacher of English motivates me to learn When I don’t understand something from class, I find someone who can help me I often make good use of my study time 7 7 7 7 7 During English classes I'm always in panic because I 31 know I will not understand the teacher when she addresses me 32 33 I often get bored in class The expectations of me on this course is too high VI 34 I don’t like going to English class 35 Too much theory, not practical in English class 36 I don’t know how to learn English well 37 Too many new words and structures, I can’t remember them 7 38 Learning English is too difficult to me 39 Our teacher pays too much attention to good pupils 40 I My parents force me to learn English VII Appendix B: Self- assessment questionnaire Student name: …………………………………………………………………… Class: …………………………………………………………………………… In the past week, what three topics have you studied/practiced/worked on? (Fill in the spaces with topics and areas of study that are relevant to your case, for example, “Health”) Note: The “new words” you have used/learned will be covered under Items and , so please don’t include vocabulary in this section a b c In your estimation, how well can you deal with each topic you listed in Section 1? Not at all To some extent Very well Thoroughly a b c To what extent you find the topics you listed in Section important in relation to your own goals for the course? Not at all Not important important very Very important Extremely important a b c What three new vocabulary topics have you learned ( Write down your native language equivalent if it’s easier for you) VIII a b c In your estimation, how well you know the vocabulary/areas you mentioned in section 4? Not at all To some extent Very well Thoroughly a b c To what extent you find the vocabulary /areas in section important to your own course goals? Not at all important Very important Extremely important Thinking about the past week in English class, I feel that I have learned Nothing at all Not very important Very little Enough A lot Looking back, I realize that I should change my study habits / learning approach / priorities in the following way: IX Overall, I think I still need to work on: 10 I would want to see the instructor provide more lessons on the following points/ skills/areas: 11 Thinking about this English class, I feel that I have learned: Nothing at all Very little Enough A lot ... Hanoi University of Industry (Nghiªn cøu vỊ viƯc sử dụng phơng pháp tự đánh giá lớp học nhằm tăng động lực học tiếng Anh trờng Đại Học Công nghiệp Hà Nội) Minor programme thesis Field: Language Teaching... lectures which help me to orient the topic I also would like to express my thanks to Mrs Ngo Thanh Thuy, the staff member of Postgraduate Studies Department for her help and support during my... considered as a potential part of the overall evaluation for a course Most teachers, however, strongly resist such a move, arguing that self-assessment is subjective, unreliable, open to cheating,