A study on the reflections of giving presentations in speaking 1 class among english majored freshmen at iuh

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 

1.1 Background of the study 
Public speaking is a vital skill required in various fields, including academia, business, and even daily
communication. At universities, students are often required to give presentations as a part of their
coursework, and it can be a daunting task for many students, particularly for those who are not
confident in their language proficiency. Presentations can impact a student's academic
performance, self-confidence, and future career opportunities. Students, especially freshmen who
are new to the language and university culture, often find giving presentations stressful and
intimidating.
With presentation skills being a crucial factor in today's education, it is essential to develop
strategies to teach and motivate students to overcome their fears and concerns about public
speaking. Several previous studies have been conducted in this area, aimed at improving students'
confidence and performance in public speaking. For instance, a study by Wijayati and Sudiro in 2018
revealed that motivation, knowledge, and fear of failure are significant determinants of students’
presentation skills. Another study by Ferguson and Dorman in 2003 found that anxiety, preparation
time, and delivery style are the major factors influencing students' presentation performances.
However, most of these researches deal with general principles, without distinguishing between
specific groups of students or considering the particularities of a particular course of study.
Therefore, this study aims to investigate students' perceptions and attitudes toward presentations
in Speaking 1 among English-majored freshmen at IUH. It also seeks to identify factors that affect
students' performance in public speaking and to examine the effectiveness of different instructional
strategies and their potential impact on students' presentation skills. The results of this research can
help in the development of new pedagogical methods aimed at enhancing students' abilities and
boosting their confidence in giving presentations.
2.2 Gap of the study
Although several studies have examined the factors affecting students' presentation skills and
confidence levels, there is still a gap in the literature on the reflections of giving presentations
specifically among English-majored freshmen in Speaking 1 class at IUH. The current study seeks to
address this gap in the literature by focusing on English language learners at a specific university
taking a specific course.

While previous studies have identified various strategies and factors that can improve presentation
skills, they have not been tested specifically for English-majored freshmen in Speaking 1 class at
IUH. As such, this study aims to fill this gap in the literature by investigating the specific challenges
and reflections of giving presentations for English language learners in this context.
2.3 Objectives


The goal of this research study is to determine the problems that English major freshman
at IUH must confront. 
The specific objectives of this research are: 
1. To know how students react when giving speaking presentations in front of the class.2.
To identify the problems that English-majored freshmen at IUH face and recommend
some possible solutions.
2.4 Research questions
In this research, the following issues must be addressed: 
1. How do English-majored freshmen at IUH reflect when giving presentations in
Speaking 1 class?
2. What are some difficulties that Freshmen at IUH face when giving presentations?
And what are some possible measures to minimize these problems?
2.5 Scope of the study
This survey was done using intuitive and objective survey tables. Most importantly, the scope of the
investigation was limited to the Industrial University of Ho Chi Minh City (abbreviated IUH), and the
main subjects to be mentioned in the study were first-year students majoring in English at IUH, so
the survey results will not be applicable to second, third, or fourth year students.