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1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES POST-GRADUATE DEPARTMENT TRầN KIM NGÂN AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY: MOTIVATING STUDENTS TO LEARN EFL WRITING BY USING PEER RESPONSE (T¹O HøNG THó HọC VIếT CHO SINH VIÊN THÔNG QUA NHậN XéT CủA B¹N HäC) Code: 601410 M.A MINOR THESIS HANOI 2007 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES POST-GRADUATE DEPARTMENT TRầN KIM NGÂN AN EXPERIMENTAL STUDY: MOTIVATING STUDENTS TO LEARN EFL WRITING BY USING PEER RESPONSE (T¹O HøNG THó CHO SINH VIÊN HọC VIếT THÔNG QUA NHậN XéT CủA B¹N HäC) Field: Code: Course: English Methodology 601410 K13 M.A MINOR THESIS Supervisor: Dr Trần Xuân Điệp HANOI 2007 ABSTRACT Looking at the teaching and learning English at the present it is found that there is a necessity to vary the methods of teaching as well as improve the teaching and learning condition so that the standard in studying foreign languages in general and English in particular can be higher and higher Further more, due to the application of communicative language teaching method (CLT), it is clear that students should be well-motivated and activated in learning a foreign language Therefore, in learning writing, it is suggested that activities which have been neglected now should be taken into consideration since it is believed to make the lesson more motivating There is no doubt that writing provides students chances to express themselves correctly and communicatively But the standard of writing of Vietnamese students is of low qualification due to the fact that both teachers and students are not very keen on writing practice since almost English tests focus on grammar and reading comprehension in stead of writing skill In order to motivate learners to write as well as improve their writing skill, this study aims to investigate peer response method in teaching students’ EFL writing Subjects for the study are 56 second-year students from English department of Hanoi University of Education divided into two groups, control and experiment groups An experiment on the use of peer response approach to writing is designed and conducted for 16 weeks of the second semester of 2006-2007 school year The outcomes show that (1) the new method improves students’ writing skill; (2) it has positive effects on students’ attitude and motivation Other results from data collected will provide teachers information on the technique for implementing peer response approach in teaching writing ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I certify that this minor thesis entitled “Using peer response to motivate students’ learning EFL writing” is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts is the results of my own work, except where otherwise acknowledge and that this minor thesis or any part of the same has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other university or institution To complete my thesis, I have received generous advice and assistance from many lecturers in the Post Graduate Department of College of Foreign Languages, Hanoi National University whose lectures are very practical and useful First and foremost, my deepest gratefulness is due to Dr Tran Xuan Diep, my supervisor, for his valuable advice, close guidance, constructive criticism and continual encouragement from the preparation to completion of this M.A thesis Without his help, this study could not have possibly been accomplished My earnest appreciation goes to teachers and second-year English major students at HUE for their enthusiastic cooperation during my experimental research Last but not least, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my dear family and friends who have constantly supported and inspired me during the time I carried out this study TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract Acknowledgements Definition of terms List of abbreviation List of tables, figures and appendices CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION I II III IV V VI Identification of the problem Purpose of the research Significance of the research Scope of the research Research methods Content of the Study CHAPTER TWO: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND I Overview of writing General concept Teaching English writing 2.1 Written versus spoken language 2.2 Approaches in teaching English writing 2.3 Microskills of writing 2.4 Writing activities II Overview of peer response Definition Advantages of peer response Guiding principles for effective peer response III Overview of motivation Definition and types of motivation Characteristics of motivated learners Strategies to boost students’ motivation Roles of motivation in foreign language learning CHAPTER THREE: METHOD AND PROCEDURES I Determining on the research hypothesis II Determining on the study design 2 3 5 5 10 11 11 11 12 13 13 15 15 16 17 17 18 III Participants The Subjects The Researcher IV Data collection procedures Data collection instruments 1.1 Questionnaires 1.2 Pre- and post-experimental test Data collection procedures 2.1 Before experiment period 2.2 During experiment period 2.3 After experiment period 19 19 20 20 20 20 21 22 22 23 25 26 CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF DATA 26 I Analysis of questionnaires 26 Students’ general information Students’ attitudes towards peer response method 29 Comparison of students’ attitudes before and after the experiment 30 33 Students’ opinions after peer response treatment 34 II Analysis of tests 34 Analysis of pre-test 34 1.1 Frequency distribution 35 1.2 Measures of central tendency 36 1.3 Measures of dispersion 37 Analysis of post-test 37 2.1 Frequency distribution 37 2.2 Measures of central tendency 38 2.3 Measures of dispersion 39 2.4 T-test for independent means 42 CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSION 42 Summary and discussion 43 Recommendations 45 Limitations 45 Suggestions for further studies References Appendices Definition of terms - - - - Central tendency: The tendency of a set of scores to cluster around a particular value The usual measures of central tendency are the mean, median, and the mode Control group: The group under normal situation (with traditional teaching/learning approach) Dispersion: The tendency for a set of scores to spread out or depart from the average or ‘typical’ values in the set of scores Dispersion is usually measured through the range, the mean deviation, the variance, and the standard deviation of the scores Experiment group: The group under experimental conditions (with innovative teaching/learning approach) Experiment: A procedure for testing a hypothesis by setting up a situation in which the strength of the relationship between variables can be tested In an experiment, the researcher’s goal is to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between two phenomena The researcher aims to establish that one variable, the independent variable, causes changes in another variable, the dependent variable - A true experiment consists of control and experiment groups to which subjects have been randomly assigned and tested before and after the intervention administered to the experiment group - A quasi-experiment has both pre- and posttest, and experiment and control groups, gut no random assignment of subjects Hypothesis: A formal statement about an expected relationship between two or more variables which can be tested through an experiment Interview: The elicitation of data by one person from another through person-to-person encounters Mean (Symbolized by X): - The average of a set of scores, obtained by adding the scores together and dividing by the total number of scores - The central tendency of the scores Mode: The value which occurs most frequently in a set of scores Median: The middle point in a distribution Population: All cases, situations, or individuals who share one or more characteristics - Qualitative data: Data which are recorded in non-numerical form, such as transcripts of classroom interactions - Quantitative data: Data which are recorded in numerical form - Questionnaire: An instrument for the collection of data, usually in written form, consisting of open and/or closed questions and other probes requesting a response from subjects - Range: Difference between the highest and lowest values in a set of scores - Raw score: The actual scores obtained on tests - Sample: A subset of individuals or cases from within a population - Standard deviation (SD): is the degree to which the group of the scores deviates from the mean The standard deviation is a very powerful measure of ‘dispersion’ Large SD shows: (a) the score distribution is wide; (b) the test has spread the students out; (c) there is a wide range of ability - T-test: A statistic procedure for testing the difference between two or more means The t test for independent means is used for differences between means of two groups The paired t test or the t test for correlated data is used for differences between means of the same group (that is, the experimental group) at two different points in time - Variable: A property or characteristic which may differ from individual to individual or from group to group (anything which does not remain constant) A great deal of research is carried out in order to identify or test the strength of relationships between variables When one variable influences or affects a second variable, the first variable is called an independent variable, and the second is called a dependent variable - Variance: The variance is a direct measure of the dispersion , calculated for a set of scores by subtracting each score from the mean, squaring the resulting values, adding these together, and dividing by the remainder of the number of the scores minus 10 List of Abbreviation C control D deviation E experiment EFL English as a foreign language f frequency with which a score occurs H hypothesis H0 null hypothesis = XE - XC = H1 positive hypothesis = XE - XC > Hanoi University of Education HUE N p SD tobs tcrit number of scores probability standard deviation observed statistic critical statistic raw score X the mean X the mean of experiment group XE the mean of control group XC the total amount (the sum) Σ ... to explore the effect of peer response method on students? ?? writing motivation and proficiency To find students? ?? attitudes towards peer response To suggest implications for teachers in order to. .. for implementing peer response approach in teaching writing 5 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I certify that this minor thesis entitled ? ?Using peer response to motivate students? ?? learning EFL writing? ?? is submitted... upon the issue of motivating students? ?? writing skill through peer activities For this reasons, I decided on choosing ? ?Using peer response to motivate students? ?? writing skill” as topic of my M.A