TEACHING SPEAKING LESSON BY USING GROUP WORK AND PAIR WORK AT HO TOWN SECONDARY SCHOOL

BAC NINH TEACHER TRAINING COLLEGE

TEACHING SPEAKING LESSON BY USING GROUP
WORK AND PAIR WORK AT HO TOWN
SECONDARY SCHOOL

Writer: Nguyen Lan Phuong
Class: SPTA – K34A
Guider: Nguyen Thi Thu Vien
Department: Foreign Language

Academic year: 2016 - 2017
THE TABLE OF CONTENTS


PART I: INTRODUCTION
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.

Reasons for choosing topic.
Aims of the study.
Research questions.
Scope of the study.
Methods of the study.

PART II: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS
Chapter 1: Theoretical foundation.
I.

II.

Overview of speaking skill.
1. Definition of speaking skill
2. Elements of speaking skill
2.1. Accuracy
2.2. Fluency
3. Teaching speaking skill
3.1. Methods of teaching speaking skill
3.2. Stages of a speaking lesson
Overview of group work and pair work.
1. Definition of group work and pair work
2. The organization of group work and pair work
II.1. The formation
II.2. Group size
II.3. Procedures for group work and pair work
II.4. Some common activities for group and pair work
II.5. Some problem in conducting group work and pair work

Chapter 2: Finding and discussion.
I.
II.
III.

The reality of using group work and pair work in speaking lesson of
teachers at Lien Bao secondary school.
Finding.
Applying “using group work and pair work” in speaking lesson.

PART III: CONCLUSION.
I.
II.
III.

Summary of the study.
Limitations of the study.
Recommendation for using pair work and group work .

REFERENCES


APPENDIXES
Appendixe: Questionaire for teachers.

PART I: INTRODUCTION
I.

Reasons for choosing topic:

Everybody has learned their language since they were children, especially
their mother tongue. The process occurs naturally and properly with a view to
communicate in society environtment.
Communication is a part of human’s daily activities. Through
communication by using language, we can share our ideas and thoughts with other
people. In that way, a smooth interaction between people can take place.


In line with the more sophisticated world, we are demanded to be able to
communicate not only by using our mother tongue but also by using a foreign

language, especially English which is obviously more difficult to do since we have
a limitation of knowledge about foreign language. On the other hand as an
international language, English is used to communicate information, chiefly in
science and technology.
English has been the first foreign language taught formally in Vietnam for
years. With regard to the new curriculum, students of primary beginning from the
threeth class have an opportunity to learn English at school. Thus, English
becomes a compulsory subject, taught to the students from primary school to
university. School as formal instituation not only has a role to expand academic
ability, but also other ability such as social skill and emotion.
Speaking, as one of the linguistic skills, is often perceived to be a task that
comes naturally to an individual. Culture plays a very significant role in determine
how a language is spoken.
Teaching speaking is not easy, moreover if the students do not use English
in their daily life as well. The students will not have a courage to speak without
enough knowledge and bravery. Besides, there are many aspects that discourage
the students to speak.
In this case I hope that the students can improve their ability to master
English, especially in speaking skill. The appropriate method in teaching speaking
to the students is really important especially for the students at Ho town secondary
school. For the reason above, I takes “Teaching speaking lesson by using group
work and pair work” as the title of this paper.
II.

Aims of the study:

This study is aimed at investigating the use of group work and pair work
techniques in speaking lesson at Ho town secodary school. To be specific, the
aims of the study are:
- To clarify the frequency of using group work and pair work activities in

speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school.
- To prove the hypothesis that the two techniques: group work and pair work will
help teachers increase students’ participation and interest in speaking lesson at
Ho town secondary school.
III.
Research questions:


1. How often are group work and pair work techniques applied in speaking lesson
at Ho town secondary school?
2. Does using group work and pair work teachniques increase students’ interest in
speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school?
3. Does using group work and pair work teachniques increase students’
participation in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school?
IV.
Scope of the study:
There are variety of techniques to encourage students to participate in
speaking lesson. However, it is not my intention to cover all of them because of
the time and the length of the study, only two techniques, group work and pair
work are investigated in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school. The
advantages of two techniques were found out by interviewing, surveying teachers
of English at Ho town secondary school.
V.

Methods of the study:

Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed to carry out the study.
The data were collected by means of questionaires and interviews.

PART II: FINDING AND DISCUSSION

Chapter 1: Theoretical foundation.
I.
Overview of speaking skill.
1. Definition of speaking skill.
As far as I am concerned, there has been a myriad of definition of speaking.
According to the Oxford Dictionary of Curent English (2009), speaking is “the
action of conveying information or expressing ones’ thoughts and feeings in
spoken language”.
Chaney (1998), however, considered speaking a process: “speaking is the
process of building and sharing meaning through the use of verbal or non-verbal
symbols in a variety of contexts”. Sharing the same viewpoint, Florez (1999)


added tht speaking is an “interative” process, which consists of three main stages
“procuding, receiving and processing information”.
In language teaching and learning, speaking is considered a skill to practise
and master. In this light, Nunan (2003) put it that “speaking is the productive oral
skill. It consists of producing systematic verbal utterance to convey meaning”.
Also considering speaking as a skill, Bygate (1987) investigated the distintion
between knowledge and skill in speaking lesson, which he considered as crucial in
the teaching of speaking. Indeed, to be a good learner of speaking, studying
knorledge of grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation, intonation, etc. is not enough
but the skill to use this knowledge to communicate successfully is indispensable.
In brief, there are different concepts of speaking, i.e. speaking as an action, a
process and a skill. In this study, the term “speaking” will be used to refer to a
skill related to language teaching and learning.
2. Elements of speaking skill.
2.1. Accuracy:
Recognizably, accuracy is one of the most important criteria to measure one’s
linguistic ability and to shelter language users from communication breakdowns.

According to Richards (1992), accuracy concerns “the ability to produce
grammatically correct sentence”. In other words, accuracy in language means
grammatical accuracy only. Nevertheless, in Thornbury (2000), the terms
“accuracy” seems to cover more than that. Specifically, speaking English
accurately means doing without or with errors on not only grammar but
vocabulary and pronunciation, as well. He also set the clear for assessment of
accuracy.
- Grammar: Students use correct words order, tenses, tense agreement, etc.
Students do not leave out articles, prepositions, or difficult tenses.
- Vocabulary: Students have a range of vocabulary that corresponds to the
syllabus year list and uses words you have taught.
- Pronunciation: Students speak and most people understand.
Even broader than that, Lim (1994) difined accuracy as “the ability to use
correct forms in which utterances do not contain errors affecting phonological,
syntatic, semantic and discourse features of the language”.
2.2.

Fluency:


Fluency is also used as a creterion to measure one’s speaking competence.
Speaking fluently means being able to communicate one’s ideas without having to
stop and think too much about what one is saying. Richards (1992) defined
fluency as “the features which gave speech the qualities of being natural and
normal.”
More specifically, Thornbuy (2000) pointed out the criteria for assessing
fluency:
- Lack of hesitation: Students speak smoothly, at a natural speech. They do not
hesitate long and it is easy to follow what they are saying.
- Length: Students can put ideas together to form a message or an argument. They

can make not only the simplest of sentence patterns but also complex ones to
complete the task.
- Independence: Students are able to express their ideas in a number of ways, keep
talking and ask questions, etc. to keep the conversation going.
3. Teaching speaking skill.
3.1. Methods of teaching speaking skill:
So far, teaching foreign language in general and teaching speaking skill in
particular has experienced three main methods, i.e. grammar-translation, audiolingual and communicative language teaching (CLT), respectively. Wheares the
two previous methods show a big number of drawbacks resulting in learner’s
failure to make achievement in speaking skill, CLT which emphasizes “learning
to communicate through interaction in the target language.” (Nuna, 1991)
considerably enhances students’ communicative skill. In the CLT classrooms,
students are supposed work in pairs or groups requiring negotiation and cooperation to do not only accuracy-based tasks but also fluency-based ones.
Besides, they are provided with authentic activities and meaningful tasks, students
feel free with real-life communication. As a result, they are active in producing
their own output and learning new language through doing with mistakes.
Teacher’s feedback, in this case, appears to be more important than ever.
3.2.

Stages of a speaking lesson:

In Terry (2008) ‘s presentation about “How to speaking in an EFL class”, it was
proposed that a speaking lessons consists of three main stages.
Specifically, in the pre-communicative stage, teachers are supposed to
introduce the communicative function, highlight the fixed expression, point out
the target structure and provide students with the necessary vocabulary and the
language of interaction.


In the parctice stage, teachers prompt and correct students if necessary. In the

last stage of communicative interaction, teachers encourage language negotiation
among students, take notes of any aspects that may hinder communication such as
pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, etc.
After this stage, teachers give students feedback on pronunciation, grammar
and vocabulary and ask students to repeat the task if necessary.
II.
Overview of group work and pair work.
1. Definition of group work and pair work:
Pair work is a process in which “the teacher devides the whole class in pairs.
Every student works with his or her partner in pairs, and all the pairs work at the
same time (It is sometimes called “simultaneous pair work”). This is not the same
aas “public” or “open” pair work, with pairs of students speaking in turn in front
of the class” (Doff,1988)
There are two main types of pair work: fixed pairs and flexible pairs given by
Byrne (1983). In the former, students work with the same partners they like. This
may make the activity more interesting but the class noiser.
It can be seen that pair work can get students to practise the target language
more and increase students’ talking time in the class.
Doff (1988) also defines group work as a process that “the teacher devides the
class into small groups to work together (usually four or five students in each
group, air in pair work, all the groups work at the same time”.
Like pair work, group work also gives students more opportunities to practice
the target language in the whole class. In addition, students can work
independently and freely under the teacher’s control without the pressure of the
whole class watching what they are doing.
2. The organization of pair work and group work
2.1. The formation.
We have decided how to put individual students into pairs and groups. There
are a number of factors we might consider when doing this. According to Harmer
(1999), we can base such decision on any of the following principles:

•

Friendship:
A key consideration when putting students in pairs or groups is to make
sure that we put friends with friends rather than risking the possibility of
people working with other whom they find difficult or unpleasant. However,


•

•

•

•
•
•

our observation may not always accurate and friendship can change from
time to time.
We can also ask students to get into pairs or groups with whom they like.
But letting students choose their partner(s) in this way may exclude less
popular students.
In addition, a sociogram can be used to group students. In this way,
students are asked to write their name, the students they like best in the class
on a piece of paper and the students they don’t like on the other side. The
teacher can use this information to make sociograms. However, sociograms
are time consuming and also fail to answer the problem of what to do with
unpopular students.
Streaming: Students can be streamed according to their ability.

The first suggestion is that pairs and groups should have a mixture of
weaker and stronger students. Therefore, the more able students can help
their less able students.
The second one is that we can create groups in which all the students are
at the same level. This may give us the opportunity to go to a group of
weaker students and give them special help they need. However, some of the
values of cooperative work may be lost.
Besides, we can stream students on the basis of participation. Students
less participating in the lesson may be put together in a group. However, the
teacher should observe and support them in order to make them concerntrate
more on the lesson.
Chance: Students can be put in pairs and groups by chance. This is the
easiest way since it demands little pre-planning. We can have students sitting
next to or near each other work in pairs or groups. Also, students can be put
in pairs or groups at random based on the order of their birthday, or some
similar features such as wearing glasses, wearing black, or green, having the
same occupation, etc.
Changing group: The group may change while an activity continues.
Students can first work in pairs then in groups of four, then groups of eight,
or even sixteen.
Additionally, teahcers can groups based on following criteria given by
Honeyfield (1991).
Free grouping: Students make their own decision about who to work with.
Same proficiency level grouping: students of the same proficiency level are
grouped together.
Mixed proficiency level grouping: students are grouped so that each group
has a mix of proficiency levels.


• Random grouping: students are located to group in some random way on the

basic of who is sitting next to whom in the class.
• Grouping based on other diffirences: in a mxed class, students are grouped
so that each group has a mix of some other characteristics, e.g. sex, age,
nationality, mother tongue or ethnic orgin.
In short, our parting and grouping decision is made based on a variety of
factors. We can put students in pairs or in groups diffirently according to our
own purpose or the class’s atmosphere or characteristic.
2.2. Group size:
Froup size is one thing we need to consider when getting studnets to form
groups. We may consider the question: “Are smaller groups better for learning
than larger ones?”
According to Honerfield (1991), the smaller group is, the more “talking time”
there is for each participant. If the time available is ten minutes, each member of
pair could talk for five minutes, while each member of a group of four could talk
for only two and a half minutes (provided that the participants share the talking
time equally).
However, Honeyfield (1991) also points out that “the smaller groups are, the
more groups there are, so the teacher has more motoring to do and the less
practical it is to have groups report back to the class.”
In addition, group size can be determined by types of tasks. Moreover, for realworrld tasks, “it may be necessary to have the same number of learners in a group
as would occur in real life” (Honeyfield, 1991). This group size is determined by
the nature of the task itself.
2.3.

Procedures for pair work and group work.

Harmer (1999) suggess three stages in carying out pải work and group work as
follows:
Before: we need to give instructions to let students understand what they are
going to do, give them ideas of when they will have finished the task they are

going to get involved in. Sometimes, we may ask them to repeat the instructions
or to translate them into their first language so as to check that they do understand.
In some cases, our instructions may involve a demonstration.
During: while students are working in pairs or groups we have a number of
options. We could, for instance, stand at the front of the side of the class or
anywhere else in the classroom, and keep an eye on what is happening. Therefore,


we can “tune in” to a particular pair or group from some distance away. We then
decide whether to go over or to help that pair or group.
Instead, we can also go round the class watching and listening to specific
pairs and groups. Then we may stop and intervene if it appropriate or necessary.
We can give them support and suggestions but it is vital that we bear in mind the
most appropriate way to do so.
After: when pairs and groups stop working together we need to organize
feedback. We may have a few pairs or groups quickly demonstrate the language
they have been using. We can then correct it, if and when necessary and this
produre will give both those students and the rest of the class good information for
future learning and action. Constructive feedback can greatly enhance students’
future motivation.
According to Sun Grek Ngoh (1991), there are others stages in implementing
group work that are listed below:
PLACE
Before entering the
classroom

STAGE
Planning stage

In the classroom

Practice stage

EXPLANATION
The teacher maps out
specific objectives she
intend to achieve, and the
tasks to realize the
objectives set.
The teacher equips the
students with the
necessary or vocabulary to
achieve the tasks set.

Instruction stage

The teacher gives clear,
detailed instructions for
the required tasks.

Organization stage

The teacher arranges the
students into groups,
making sure there is con
trol and order.

Process stage

The students are engaged i

oral interaction in groups
in order to achieve the
task assigned.
The group leaders present


Presentation stage

the product so that the
other students can hear or
read

Post small group work
stage

2.4.

The teacher assigns a
related task to reinforce
learning, and selfevaluates what has been
done, and makes
amendments to future
group work.
Some common activities for pair work and group work:

A variety of activities can be applied in communicative English classes through
the use of pair work and group work. The list of some common activities is given
below.
Role-play: the class is devided into pair or groups. Then these pairs and groups are
given roles to act out.

Information gap activities: each participant in pairs or groups has information not
shared by any other but require to complete.
Problem – solving: students are given some problems in real-life which need
solving. Then they work in pairs or in groups to find out solutions to these
problems.
The lost twin: each student ha a small card on which some features are printed.
There are two copies for each card. Students then have to go around the class to
find out who has the same card
Picture card activities:
Kim’s game: students in groups look at the items on a table for about thirty
seconds. Then the items are recovered, the groups have to describe and locate
them.
Spot the differences: students are given two pictures, then they work to spot the
differences.
What is my life: students in groups have to ask questions of another member
within a limited time span and discover his or her occupation.
2.5.

Some problems in conducting pair work and group work:


When conducting pair work and group work techniques, teachers may
encounter some problems as follows:
Harmer (1999: 125) points out thast “some pairs may find it impossible to
concentrate on the task in hand and instead encourage each other to talk about
something else, usually in their first language. In some groups, members may
defer to the oldest person there, or to the man in otherwise female group. People
with loud voice can dominate proceeding, less extrovert people may not
participate fully enough”.
He also states som following problems teachers deal with when applying pair

work and group work in their teaching. Firstly, pair work and group work are
frequently noisy, so teachers may lose control of their class. Secondly, some
students would prefer to the focus of the teacher’s attention rather than working
with their peers. Thirdly, individuals may fall into group roles that become
fossilized, so that some are passive wheares others may dominate. Finally,
students in pairs or groups may not focus on the point of their task, but talk about
something else, often in their mother tongue.
Obviously, it is difficult for teachers to control all groups and pairs at once,
Some students don’t like working in pairs or groups. Also, they sometimes use
their mother tongue instead of the target language when working in pairs or
groups.
In addition, Sim Grek Ngoh (1991) discovers that some studnets may choose to
remain silent or may not listen to the others because of culture differences or lack
of co-operation among the students in pairs or groups. He also adds that “students
who are linguistically deficient tend to resort to their mother tongue when they are
engaged in group work interaction”. Another problem given by Sim Grek Ngoh
(1991) is that “the administration of small group work is a demanding and
arduous process, as it is a careful planning, preparation and constant motoring”.
To sum up, teahchers have to deal with a number of problems while conducting
group work or pair work. However, those problems may be overcome if
“teachers consider various factors at different stages of pair work and group work
from planning, practice, instruction, organization and process stage to the
presentation stage” (Sim Grek Ngoh, 1991). Also, pair work and group qork can
be conducted successfully if an appropriate task is selected.

Chapter 2: Finding and discussion.


I.

The reality of using group work and pair work in speaking lesson of
teachers at Lien Bao secondary school.

After analyzing data of teacher’s servey questionaire and direct interview, I
received the results below:
1. What techniques are often used in English classes?
When asking five teachers of Ho town secondary school this question, all five
teachers often applied pair work and group work techniques in their teaching. This
meant pair work and group work were used more often than any other techniques,
which also indicated that the teachers here found these techniques suitable for
their teaching. Besides, they used other techniques such as individual work, giving
lectures, and questioning, in which individual work was used the most, 4 teachers
(80%) often used this technique, while only 1 teacher (20%) applied questioning
technique.
2. The frequency of pair work and group work activities.
 How often do you use group and pair work activities in 7th grade?
How often do you use group work and pair work
Number of
Percent
th
in 7 grade?
teachers
(%)
Very often
1
20
Often
3
60
Not very often

1
20
Never
0
0
Table 1. The frequency of pair work and group work activities
As can be seen from the Table 1, 60% teachers often used pair work and group
work activities in their English classes, and 1 out of 5 teachers said she always
asked students to work in pairs and in groups. It was obvious that pair work and
group work were used very often in English class at Ho town secondary school.
The reason was that these techniques might encourage students to work actively
and create English environment for them to practice the target language as well.
3. The students’ attitude to pair work and group work activities in English
class.
When asked about their students’ respond to pair work and group work
activities, almost the teachers (80%) said that their students were interested in
these activities. This showed that pair work and group work could increase
students’ interest in the lesson. Most students found pair work and group work
activities interesting, which made them participate more in the class.


4. The teachers’ opinion on pair work and group work.
 What do you think of pair work and group work activities?
Opinions on pair work and group work

Number of teachers

(A)It is noisy and a waste of time
0
(B)Students have more opportunities to

5
practice English.
(C)Group work and pair work make my
2
teaching more interesting.
(D)Group work and pair work make my
0
students lazier.
Table 2. Teachers’ opinion on pair work and group work.

Percent
(%)
0
100
40
0

As can be seen from the above table, all the teachers agreed that using pair
work and group work techniques enables their students to practice English more.
In other words, pair work and group work activities gave students more
opportunities to practice the target language in the class. This proved that these
two techniques could increase students’ participation in the class. Below is what
the teachers said:
- “When I ask my students to work in pairs and groups, all of them can practice
English.”
- “My students speak English more when they work in pairs and in groups.”
- “All of my students can practice the target language as they work in pairs and in
groups.”
- “When working in pairs and in groups, all my students’ even passive and quiet
ones can practice English.”

In addition, 2 out of 5 teachers said that pair work and group work made their
teaching more interesting. This showed that pair work and group work were also
considered as factors attracting students in the lesson. And none of the teachers
said that pair work and group work activities were noisy and made their students
lazier.
5. Students’ participation in English class.
 What do most of your students do when they asked to work in groups and
pairs?
What do your students do?
(A)Work with great interest.
(B)Remain silent all the time.
(C)Speak Vietnamese.
(D)Do other things.

Number of teachers
4
1
3
1

Percent (%)
80
20
60
20


Table 3. Students’ participation
According to the table 3, most of the teachers (80) claimed that their students
worked with great interest when they worked in pairs and in groups. Only 20% of

them said that their students did not co-oparate and remained silent all the time.
And some students even dis other things when they were asked to work in pairs
and in groups, which was said by 1 out of 5 teachers. Also, 60% teachers revealed
that their students often spoke Vietnamese in pairs and in groups. This was one of
main problems the teachers had to deal with when they asked students to in pairs
and in groups.
6. Difficulties the teachers have when organizing pair work and group work.
Do you find it difficult to organize pair
Number of teachers
work and group work activities?
(A)Yes, very often.
0
(B)Yes, often.
1
(C)Yes, not very often.
3
(D)No, never.
1
Table 4. The frequency of difficulties

Percent (%)
0
20
60
20

The data showed that more than half of the teachers had difficulties in
organizing pair work and group work activities, but not very often. And 20% of
them often encountered difficulties. However, 1 out of 5 teachers never had any
problems in conducting these activities.

Chart 1. Factors causing difficulties
According to chart 1, not providing students with enough vocabulary was one
main problem. Besides, the students spoke Vietnamese while working in pairs and
groups, which was one another problem given by 1 out of 5 teachers. Moreover, 1
teacher pointed that applying pair work and group work techniques were not
effective because some students did not co-oparate with their partners. None of
them said that their unclear instruction was the cause for the students’ difficulties.
7. The way of organizing pair work and group work activities.
 What do the teachers often do the most when their students work in pairs
and in groups?
Things the teachers often do
(A)Sit at the teacher’s desk and observe
(B)Go around the class and support

Number of teachers
0
2

Percent (%)
0
40


(C)Praise and encourage students
2
40
(D)Do nothing
0
0

(E)Both B and C
1
20
Table 5. Things the teachers odten do when the students work in pair and group
According to the table, the things the tachers usually dis most was going
around the class and supporting. Doing that would encourage the students to work
and control them as well. Also, the students would participate in the lesson more.
Moreover, they said that going around the class they could help the pairs or the
groups that had problems. None of them sits at the teacher’s desk and observed,
As for them, they could control the whole class and found out the pairs and the
groups working well or badly, and then gave recommendation. 40% of them
paising and encouraging students, which might make students more confident. In
addition, some of them even went around the class, supported their students and
encouraged them as well. They said doing that the interaction between them and
their students would be closer.
 How many students do you prefer to have in each group?
Number of students in a group
(A)3
(B)4-5
(C)6
(D)More than 6

Number of teachers
1
3
1
0
Table 6. Group size

Percent (%)

20
60
20
0

The data showed that almost all the teachers pointed out that each group
usually included 4 or 5 students. Besides, 1 out of 5 teachers often grouped 3
students together, wheares only 1 teacher preferred having 6 students in a group.
None of them would like to put more than 6 students in one group. The reason was
that having a lot of students in a group would be difficult for students to discuss,
and they would have fewer opportunities to practice the target language.
The way of grouping
Number of teachers
(A)Students at the same table
3
(B)Students who like to work with
1
each other
(C)Students with different proficiency 1
level of English
(D)Students with the same level of
0
proficiency
Table 7. How to group students

Percents (%)
60
20
20
0

According to table 9, many teachers prefered grouping students at the same
table together (60%), only 20% of them grouped students with different
proficiency level of English, wheares none of them likes putting students with the
same level of proficiency in a group.
II.

Finding.

This section presents the answer to the original research questions proposed at
the beginning of the thesis.
1. How often are group work and pair work techniques applied in speaking
lesson at Ho town secondary school?
It was obvious that the two techniques: pair work and group work were often
used in English classes at Ho town secondary school. Most of the students liked
working in pairs and groups as they could practice the target language more, and
learn from their oartners as well. Also, all the teachers confirmed that they often
asked their students to work in pairs or groups. This proved the importance of pair
work and group work techniques to teaching and learning process. However, some
students did not like working in pairs and i groups beacause of their low level of
proficiency especilly lacking vocabulary. Instead of discussing the problems
given, they talked about others in their mother tongue. This matter needs
considering when pair work and group work activities are taken place in classes.
2. Does using group work and pair work teachniques increase students’ interest
in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school?
The research results showed that most of the students found pair work and
group work interesting. In other words, they were interested in working in pairs
and in groups. This indicated that the students’ interest was increased when they
took part in pair work and group work activities. It was not surprising to find out

that the majority of the students felt active and free as they were put in pairs and
groups to work together. They became self-centered in their learning while their
teacher worked as a consultant or a supervisor. Working in pairs and groups, the
students could express their opinions without being afraid of losing their face.
Thus, they felt comfortable in the class. Therefore, their desire to learn the target
language would be raised.
3. Does using group work and pair work teachniques increase students’
participation in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school?


As can be seen from the study, pair work and group work activities gave the
students more opportunities to practice the tareget language, which was pointed
out by most of the teachers and the students. In other words, the students would
get more involved in the lesson. In addition, the students could help each other
and learn from each other in pairs and in groups. A large number of the students
revealed that they prefered working in pairs and groups as they were able to learn
a lot from their partners especially the ones who were at higher level of
proficiency. Therefore, pair work and group work activities could get almost the
students in the class to contribute to the lesson. However, the teacher should
provide the students in the class with necessary vocabulary and clear instruction in
order to make pair work and group work activities morw effective. Also, the group
size should include from 3 to 5 students who were at different level of proficiency.
Sometimes, the teacher could give students a chance to choose their partners,
which might increase their participation and interest in the task given.
III.

Applying “using group work and pair work” in speaking lesson.
UNIT 10: SOURCES OF ENERGY
LESSON 2: CLOSER LOOK 1

A. Aims:
- By the end of the lesson, ss will be able to pronounce stress three-syllable
words.
B. Language knowledge:
- Vocabulary: Talk about the advantages and disadvantages of different sources
of energy.
available, abundant, exhaustible, enormous, limited >< unlimited.
- Pronunciation: stress in three-syllable words.
C. Teaching aids: lesson plan, textbook, CD…
D. Skills: Speaking, Listening, Reading.
E. Procedures:
I.
Warm up:
- Greeting.
- Have some ss repeat the words/phrases indicating types of energy sources in
the present lesson: solar, wind, oil, nuclear, gas, coal, water.
II.
New lesson.


Contents
I, Pre-Speaking.
1, Vocabulary:
available (a): có sẵn
abundant (a): nhiều, phong phú
exhaustible (a): có thể cạn kiệt
harmful (a): có hại
enormous (a): to lớn
limited (a): hạn chế
>< unlimited (a): không hạn chế

2, Ex1 – page 40:
Put the words below into the table to describe
the types of energy.
*Key:
Sources of
Advantage(s) Disadvantage(
energy
s)
wind
abundant,
not available
unlimited
water/hydro clean and safe expensive, not
available
solar
renewable,
expensive
plentiful, clean
and safe
biogas
renewable,
harmful, polluting
plentiful,
available,
clean and safe.
nuclear
renewable,
expensive,
clean and safe dangerous
coal/oil/nat abundant

harmful,
ural/gas
exhaustible,
polluting.

II, While-Speaking:
1, Ex2 – page 40:
Compare your answers with a partner.
Example:
A: I think biogas is renewable.
B: Me too. I also think it is abundant and

Teacher’s activities

Students’ activities

-Elicits answers from
ss.
- Asks ss to read in
chorus and
individually.
- Checks and corrects
ss’ pronunciation.

-Give the answers.
- Read in chorus and
individually.
- Correct
pronunciation.

- Devides class into 2
groups and asks each
group to read the
words in the box and
discuss their
meaning.
- Explains the new or
different words if
necessary.
- Ask each group to
write on the board
words to describe the
advantages and
disadvantages of
energy sources in two
columns.
- Checks and
confirms the correct
answer as a class.

-Form two groups.
- Read the words in
the box and discuss
their meaning with
members in group.
- Ask T to explain the
hard words.
- Leader of each
group write on the
board words to

describe the
advantages and
disadvantages of
energy sources in two
columns.
- Check the correct
answers with T.

-Asks ss to work in
pairs.
- Asks a pair to read
the example in book.
- Asks ss to look at
the table in 1 and
share their ideas in

-Work in pairs.
- A pair read the
example in book.
- Share ideas as a
class.
-Correct
pronunciation with T.


cheap.

2, Ex3 – page 40:
Look at the pictures and complete these
sentences, using the words in 1.

*Key:
1. Solar, safe
2. non-renewable
3.wind, clean
4.expensive, dangerous
3, Pronunciation: stress in three-syllable
words.
-Verbs: stress on the second syllable
- Nouns and adjectives: stress on the first
syllable.
* Notice:
- The words end with “ient,ic, cial, ion…”
stress on the previous syllable.
- The words end with “ous, id, ian, ive..”
stress on the syllable preceding suffixes.
- The words end with “y” stress on the third
syllable from bottom to the top.
- The sounds /∂/ and /i/ haven’t stress.
Ex4 – page 40:
Which words are stressed on the first and
second syllable? Put them in the appropriate
columns.
*Key:
Ooo
oOo
dangerous
expensive
easily
abundant
limited

convenient

pairs.
- Checks and correct
ss’ pronunciation.
-Devides class into 4
groups.
- Asks ss to discuss
and elicit answers
from ss.
- Checks the correct
answers.

-Work in groups.
- Discuss and give
answers.
- Check with T.

-Give instruction.
- Provides the
syllable words have
stress.

-Observe and copy
down.

-Asks ss to work in
pairs.
- Plays the recording.
- Asks ss listen and

repeat the words.
- Asks ss to pay
attention to the
correct stress in the
three-syllable words.
- Asks ss to read
aloud in pairs and
write them in the
correct columns.
- Elicits answers from
each pair.
- Checks and
confirms the correct
answers.

-Work in pairs.
-Listen to the
recording.
- Pay attention to the
correct stress in the
three-syllable words.
- Read aloud with
partners and write
them in the correct
columns.
-Give the answers.
- Check the correct
answers with T.

energy
plentiful

enormous

III, Post-Speaking.
Ex5 – page 40:
Read the following sentences and mark (‘) the
stressed syllable in the underlined words.

-Asks ss to work in
pairs.
- Asks each pair read
the sentences and
mark (‘) the stressed
syllable and check
each other.
- Elicits answers from
ss.
-Plays the recording
and asks ss listen and
review ss’ answers.
- Checks the correct
answers.
- Asks ss to read the
stressed syllable.

III.
Homework:
- Learn by heart the new words.

- Practise pronouncing the three-syllable words.
- Prepare “A closer look 2”:
+ Revise “The simple future tense”
+ Passive voice: the future simple.

PART III: CONCLUSION
I.

Summary of the study.

-Work in pairs.
- Read the sentences
and mark (‘) the
stressed syllable and
check each other.
-Give answers.
-Listen to the
recording and check
answers.
- Check with T.
-Read the stressed
syllable.


The study was carried out at 12 classes from four grade at Ho town secondary
school. With the use of instruments such as two questionaires, and interview for
both students and teachers at Ho town secondary school, I have found out the
answers to my three research questions as mentioned in part I introduction.
For the first question “How often are group work and pair work techniques
applied in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school?” , both the teachers and

the students confirmed the frequency of the use of these two techniques in their
English classes. They also revealed that these two techniques were the most
important one because of their great benefits for both them and their students.
For the second question “Does using group work and pair work teachniques
increase students’ interest in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary school?” , I
found out that the students were more interested in thoes activities. To be specific,
the studnets felt more confident, comfortable and relaxed in working in pairs and
in small groups. Therefore, their desire to learn and their interest in the lesson or
the task given were really increased.
For the third question “Does using group work and pair work teachniques
increase students’ participation in speaking lesson at Ho town secondary
school?” , the answer was that most of the students and the teachers agreed that if
the class was devided into pairs or groups, almost students could have more
opportunities to practice the target language, to contribute to the lesson. In other
words, students talking time was increased. Besides, working in pairs and in
groups, the interaction between students were better as they could discuss freely
and learn from each othe as well.
However, there were some factors which needed considering when pair work
and group work activities took place. First of all, before asking students to work in
pairs and in groups, teachers should have given clear instruction, and provided
students with necessary vocabulary. Moreover, to get the whole class involved in
the lesson, the teacher should have moved around the class and helped the
students if necessary. Also, if the teacher, had praised students properly, they
would have worked more effectively. In addition, the way of grouping students
should be suitable for the task given and might encourage students to work more
effectively as well. Students liked to worked with the ones who were at higher
level of proficiency. Therefore, students with different proficiency level should be
arranged to sit together. Also, the number of students in each group shouldn’t be
too large. As found from the data collection, the suitable number for a group was 4
or 5 students.

To sum up, despite these problems, the use of pair work and group work
techniques really increased students’ interest and participation in activities.
II.

Recommendation for using pair work and group work.

At this point in my study, I would like offer a suggested procedure for using pair
work and group work that I have found to be generally successful:
1. Explain the activity. Make sure the learners know exactly what they have to
do. Go over directions carefully, and give them time to ask any questions they
may have.
2. Arrange the groups. Just telling the learners to "get into pairs/groups" is not
enough. Many times the teacher must actually show learners who they must
work with. If there is an odd number of students for the groups, incorporate the
"odd" learner into another group. Desks may have to be moved (if possible),
and roles as described above could be assigned at this point. Innovative seating
arrangements can be experimented with, such as "tango seating" (Samuda and
Bruton 1981). Also, learners can be regrouped from activity to activity using
techniques such as numbering off, giving out cards categorized into related
topics, separating learners according to the color of their eyes or clothing or
their sign of the zodiac, giving them pieces of a puzzle to put together, or even
pulling strings held by their classmates to find their partner.
3. Set time limits. Giving a rough time limit gives a sense of urgency to an
activity. It is also a good idea to stop an activity after most of the groups have
finished so that the whole class is not left waiting for the last ones to finish.
Those who are not allowed to completely finish do not lose much since the
activity will be spot-checked in some way (see below).
4. Give examples or demonstrations. Before the whole class is thrown into pairs

or groups, give as many examples as necessary to make sure the class has the
idea. The teacher can model the activity with a learner or two and then let other
learners perform the activity until the whole class can begin work on their own.
This ensures that the class understands what to do and how to do it and the
teacher does not have to interrupt them in order to give the instructions again.
5. Circulate. A teacher's work never ends! Some of the things a teacher should be
doing while the students are working away include playing "English Police"
(see above), making sure all students understand and are participating in the
activity, giving assistance when needed, making on-the-spot error corrections
when communication among the group members is hampered, and making
notes on errors that can be discussed after the activity.
6. Follow up. Let learners report to the class on either what their group discussed
or what their partner told them. For example, if the exercise is on likes and


dislikes, a few learners could tell the class what they learned about their
partner's preferences, instead of repeating what they told their partner about
themselves. It is not necessary that every student report, but it is important that
every learner have the chance to practice with their classmates during the
activity.

REFERENCES
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2. Berns M. (1984), Group Work Management, London.
3. Brown H. D. (1994), Teaching by Principles: An Interactive Approach to
Language Pedagogy, London: Prentice Hall Regents.
4. Doff A. (1988), Teaching English: A Training Course for Teachers,
Cambridge University Press.
5. Byrne D. (1983), Teaching Oral English, London: Longman.
6. Harmer J. (1991), The Practice of English Language Teaching, Longman.

7. Honeyfield J. (1991), The Formation of Small Group in the Language
Classroom, Guidelines – A periodical for Classroom Language Teachers, Vol.
13 No. 1 June 1991, SEMEO Regional Language Center.
8. Hylen K. (1991), Mananging Group Work, Guidelines, Vol. 14 no. 3, 28-29.
9. Ngoh S. G (1991), Small Group Work in the Classroom, Guidelines, Vol. 14
no. 3, 27-28.
10. Nunan D. (1992), Research Methods in Language Learning, Cambridge
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