(SKKN HAY NHẤT) the problems in teaching english speaking skills to the minority students at nghe an ethnic boarding high school and some suggested solutions

a study on the problems in teaching english
speaking skills to the minority students at
NGHE AN ethnic boarding high school and some
suggested solutions
SUBJECT: ENGLISH

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NGHE AN EDUCATION AND TRAINING DEPARTMENT

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

a study on the problems in teaching english
speaking skills to the minority students at
NGHE AN ethnic boarding high school and some
suggested solutions
SUBJECT: ENGLISH

Tác giả: Lê Sa
Tổ bộ môn: Văn – Ngoại Ngữ

Năm học: 2020 - 2021

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.........................................................................3
PART I: INTRODUCTION...........................................................................1
1. Rationale........................................................................................................1

2. Aims and Significance of the study...............................................................2
3. Research questions:.......................................................................................2
4. Scope of the study.........................................................................................2
5. Method of the study.......................................................................................3
6. Design of the study........................................................................................3
PART II. CONTENT......................................................................................4
I. Theoretical background.................................................................................4
1.1.1. Definition of Communicative Language Teaching.................................4
1.1.2. Characteristics of Communicative Language Teaching..........................5
1.1.3. The Teachers’ and Students’ roles in Communicative Language
Teaching............................................................................................................5
1.2. Speaking Skills...........................................................................................7
1.2.1. Definitions of speaking...........................................................................7
1.2.1. The characteristics of speaking...............................................................7
1.2.2. The role of speaking in language teaching and learning.........................8
1.2.3. Approaches to the teaching of speaking..................................................9
1.2.4. Problems with speaking activities.........................................................11
II. The study....................................................................................................11
2.1. Research setting........................................................................................11
2.1.1. An overview of the research site...........................................................11
2.1.2. Description of the teachers of English in Nghe An Ethnic Boarding
High School.....................................................................................................12
2.1.3. The students at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School.......................12
2.1.4. The current situation of English teaching and learning at Nghe An
Ethnic Boarding High School.........................................................................12
2.2. Methodology study...................................................................................13
2.2.1. Participants............................................................................................13
2.2.2. Research instruments.............................................................................14

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2.2.3. Data analysis.........................................................................................14
2.3. Presentation of the statistical results........................................................14
2.3.1. Data analysis of teachers’ survey questionnaire...................................14
2.3.1.1. Methodology......................................................................................14
2.3.1.2. The findings........................................................................................15
2.3.2. Data analysis of students’ survey questionnaire...................................22
III. Findings and Suggested solutions.............................................................31
3.1. Findings....................................................................................................31
3.1.1. Problems from the teachers...................................................................31
3.1.2. Problems from the students...................................................................33
3.1.3. Other problems......................................................................................34
3.2. Suggested solutions..................................................................................35
3.2.1. Improving CLT knowledge for teachers...............................................35
3.2.2. Using suitable techniques for error correction in English speaking
lessons.............................................................................................................36
3.2.3. Implementing some kinds of communicative activities........................36
3.2.4. Providing more interesting topics to encourage students’ participation
.........................................................................................................................37
3.2.5. Providing more opportunities to practise speaking English..................38
3.2.6. Helping students to be confident...........................................................38
3.2.7. Building a habit of speaking English for students in the class..............38
3.2.8. Training students to become efficient speakers....................................39
3.2.9. Making good use of emotional factors..................................................39
3.2.10. Equipping teaching facilities...............................................................40
PART III: CONCLUSION...........................................................................41
1. Summary of the study.................................................................................41
2. Limitations of the study..............................................................................41
3. Suggestions for further studies...................................................................41

REFERENCES..............................................................................................43

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
CLT: Communicative Language Teaching.
SLL: Second Language Learning.
ELT: English Language Teaching.
NEBHS: Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School.
MOET: Ministry of Education and Training.

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PART I: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
In Vietnam, in the recent years, the teaching and learning of English
have been gaining significance firstly because it is an international language;
secondly it is also seen as a means to promote mutual understanding and
cooperation between Vietnam and other countries, especially since Vietnam
became an official member of WTO. There have been an increasing number
of people desiring to know English with the hope of keeping up with the latest
modern technology in the world. English has now been taught not only at all

universities and colleges, but also at almost every senior high school and it is
considered as a compulsory subject at secondary school.
To meet the demand of learners of English, teachers of English in
Vietnam have been trying to find out the most suitable and effective method
of teaching English. They have always tried to catch up with the world’s
latest frameworks of English Language Teaching. As in other countries,
teachers of English in Vietnam are now using Communicative Approach to
teach English to learners of all levels. They hope to provide learners with a
means of communication, namely English which is vital for them to be
successful in their job and to fulfill their social demands in the time of
globalization.
At Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School, where the author studies,
English is a compulsory subject in the curriculum and it is considered as a
major subject for the high school examination. It is taught with the purpose
that students have some basic knowledge of English in order to communicate
and to use it as a key to science and technology. However, there still exist
many difficulties facing English language teachers in Vietnam in general and
English language teachers at Nghe An Ethnic
Boarding High School in particular in teaching speaking skills to
students. The teachers of English at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School
find it difficult to teach speaking successfully.
In the teaching situations, the students usually keep quiet in speaking
lessons; they mind speaking English. There are many students who have good
knowledge of grammar which works wonderfully at reading and writing
exercises but they can not express themselves in English. What is more, in
real-life situations, students find it hard to communicate with English
speaking people; it is hard for them to response spontaneously and naturally.
Certainly, there are many reasons for this. If those difficulties are not
found out and no solutions can be given, the speaking classes cannot be
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successful and students will be fed up with learning English if they find it
worthless to study the subject.
All of the above reasons have inspired the author to do the research on
“The problems in Teaching English Speaking Skills to the Minority
students at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School and some Suggested
Solutions” with the hope to make a small contribution to the quality of
teaching and learning speaking skills at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High
School.
2. Aims and Significance of the study
This study is aimed at finding out the areas of difficulties in teaching
English speaking skills to the minority students at NEBHS. Also, it is
expected that some solutions to overcome difficulties encountered will be
suggested.
To be more specific, in realizing this study, the objectives are:
- Investigating the current situation of teaching and learning of speaking
skills at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School.
- Investigating the areas of difficulties and obstacles that the teachers at
NEBHS have encountered when teaching the speaking skills.
- Suggesting some solutions with the hope of helping English language
teachers at NEBHS improve the quality of their teaching, this later helps
improve students’ learning quality.
3. Research questions:

In order to achieve the above aims, the research questions are as follows:
(i)What are the current methods and techniques of teaching speaking
skills used at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School?
(ii) What are problems experienced by the teachers in teaching English
speaking skills at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School?
(iii) What are feasible solutions to overcome those difficulties?
4. Scope of the study
The study focuses on the difficulties that the English language teachers
have met when teaching speaking skills to the minority students at NEBHS
and some suggested solutions which help them improve the quality of their
teaching.
The study of difficulties, some suggested solutions to other skills and
levels would be beyond the scope of the study.
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5. Method of the study
In order to realize the aims of the study, quantitative method was used.
Two survey questionnaires were used to collect information and evidence for
the study:
- The first survey questionnaire is carried out on 140 students at
NEBHS.
- The second survey questionnaire is carried out on 4 English language
teachers of NEBHS.

All comments, remarks and recommendations given in the study were
based on the data analysis.
6. Design of the study
This study consists of three parts: Introduction, Content and Conclusion.
 Part I: Introduction
 Part II: Content
The development comprises three chapters:
I : Theoretical Background
II : The study
III: Data analysis and Discussion of the findings
Part C: Conclusion

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PART II. CONTENT
I. Theoretical background
1.1.

Communicative Language Teaching.

1.1.1. Definition of Communicative Language Teaching
Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) appears in the 1960s and
1970s and was thought as a resolution against the Audio- lingual Method. It is

an outcome of more attention to learners’ effective and appropriate use of
language learnt. It is pointed out by Brindley (1986: 11) that “The 1970’s and
1980’s could be regarded as the era of Communicative Language Teaching”.
Communicative Language Teaching also marks the beginning of a major
innovation within language teaching because of its superior principles which
are widely accepted nowadays. So far, several researchers have done the work
on CLT and different authors view CLT differently.
However, it is difficult to define it in a satisfactory way. There is a
variety of definitions about CLT and each of them developed her / his own
ideas regarding CLT. As for Nunan (1989: 194), Communicative Language
Teaching means:
CLT views language as a system for the expression of meaning.
Activities involve oral communication, carrying out meaning tasks and using
language, which is meaningful to the learners. Objectives reflect the needs of
the learners; they include functional skills as well as linguistic objectives. The
learner’s role is as a negotiator and integrator. The teacher’s role is as a
facilitator of the communication process. Materials promote communicative
language use; they are task- based and authentic.
It is thought that the definition contains aspects that are common to
many other definitions. The definition above, as with any definitions of the
language teaching method (Penny Cook, 1989), represents a particular view
of understanding and explaining language acquisition. It is socially
constructed and must be seen as a product of social, cultural, economic, and
political forces.
Williams (1995) summarizes the CLT classroom as one in which there is
an emphasis on the use of authentic language and unpredictable input.
Negotiation of meaning between students and teachers should be essential in
the implementation of tasks with resulting comprehensible input. Risk talking
which leads to successful communication is also very important. In his
viewpoint, Williams emphasizes the lack of focus on the direct instruction of

language rules and error correction. A major emphasis is on learner
autonomy.
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According to Bock (2000) CLT is tailored to get at meaning and learners
negotiate meaning in class. Meaning is considered as what is communicated.
The negotiation of meaning can be implicated through pair work, group work
in problem- solving tasks. He also states: “Authentic materials, functional
tasks, and groups and pair work are significant aspects of CLT”.
1.1.2. Characteristics of Communicative Language Teaching.
The theory of language in CLT shows that language is used as a means
of communication. Characteristics of CLT are given by Richards and
Rodgers( 2001) as follows:
Language is a system for the expression of meaning.
The primary function of language is to allow interaction and
communication.
The structure of language reflects its functional and communicative
uses.
The primary units of language are not merely its grammatical and
structural features, but categories of functional and communicative meaning
as exemplified in discourse.
Thus, the objective of language teaching is to develop “communicative
competence”. Richards and Rodgers (2001 : 155) show that CLT aims to “

make communicative competence the goal of language teaching” And
communicative competence is defined by Hymes( 1972 : 7): “
Communicative competence as speaker needs to know to communicate
effectively in culturally significant setting.”
Another characteristic of CLT is the introduction of authentic material
(Dublin, 1995; Larsen- Freeman, 1986; Long and Crooks, 1992; Nunan,
1990; Widdwson, 1996). In CLT, it is considered desirable to give learners
the opportunity to response to genuine communicative needs in realistic L2
situations so that they develop strategies for understanding language as
actually used by native speakers (Canale and Swain, 1980).
1.1.3. The Teachers’ and Students’ roles in Communicative Language
Teaching.
Teacher roles:
As Communicative Language Teaching is learner- centered, the teachers,
though, are still the people to set up activities and give instructions to
students, they step back to listen and monitor the class rather than talking
much.

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Breen and Candlin (1980) describe teacher roles in CLT in the following
terms:
The teacher has two main roles: the first role is to facililate the

communication process between all participants in the classroom, and
between these participants and the various activities and texts. The second
role is to act as an independent participant within the learning- teaching
group. The latter role is closely related to the objectives of the first role and
arises from it. These roles imply a set of secondary roles for the teacher; first,
as an organizer of resources and as a resource himself, second as a guide
within the classroom procedures and activities…A third role for the teacher is
that of researcher and learner, with much to contribute in terms of
appropriate knowledge and abilities, actual and observed experience of the
nature of learning and organizational capacities.
It is clear that teachers have many roles; however, they need to try hard
and to be supported to fulfill these roles. They should have adequate
knowledge of CLT, they should have chances to access the authentic
materials, etc. For those who never or rarely attend any courses on CLT,
training and retraining in CLT is necessary as teachers’ competence decides
the success or failure of applying CLT in ELT.
Student roles:
On their part, learners in CLT classes, far different from those found in
traditional second language classrooms. Breen and Candlin (1980) state that:
The role of learner as negotiator- between the self, the learning process,
and the object of learning- emerges from and interacts with the role of joint
negotiator within the group and within the classroom procedures and
activities which the group undertakes. The implication for the learner is that
she/ he should contribute as much as she / he gains, and thereby learn in an
interdependent way.
From the description above, it could be seen that the learners find
themselves talking more and frequently moving around to accomplish the
tasks. That is the reason why classroom is no longer the scene of order and
quiet classes. The excessive noise is sometimes unavoidable. That makes
some teachers feel reluctant to carry out communicative activities due to the

fear of losing control over their classes.
CLT methodologists consequently recommend that learners learn to see
that failed communication is a joint responsibility and not the fault of speaker
or listener. Similarly, successful communication is an accomplishment jointly
achieved and acknowledged.

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1.2. Speaking Skills
1.2.1. Definitions of speaking
Of the four skills ( listening, speaking, reading and writing), speaking
plays a vital role since it is the step to identify who knows or does not know a
language. Pattison (1992) confirms that when people know or learn a
language, they mean being able to speak the language. The nature of speaking
has been discussed by many scholars.
According to Brown, G. and Yule, G. (1983), spoken language
consists of short, fragmentary utterances in a range of pronunciation. There is
often a great deal of repetition and overlap between one speaker and another,
and speakers usually use non- specific references. They also point out that in
speaking the loosely- organized syntax, and non- specific words and phrases
are used. Spoken language is, therefore, made to feel less conceptually dense
than written language.
Brown, G. and Yule, G. (1983) point out that the ability to give

uninterrupted oral presentation (monologue) is rather different from
interacting with one or more other speakers for transactional and international
purposes. It is much more difficult to extemporize on a given subject to a
group of listeners. That explains why speaking skills generally have to be
learnt and practiced carefully before giving a presentation.
Another author examining the nature of speaking is Bygate, M.
(1987), who shows that in order to be able to speak a foreign language, it is
obviously necessary to have micro- linguistic skills, that is, to understand
some grammar, vocabulary and the rules governing how words are put
together to form sentences. However, these motor- perceptive skills, as
Bygate, M. calls them, are not sufficient since while producing sentences, we
often have to adapt them to the circumstances. He then presents the second set
of speaking skills: the interaction skills, which involve using knowledge and
basic motor- perception skills in deciding what to say and how to say it, while
maintaining the intended relation with others.
1.2.1. The characteristics of speaking
According to Bygate, M. (1985), in almost speaking, the person to whom
we are speaking is in front of us and able to put us right if we make mistakes.
He or she can generally show agreement and understanding or
incomprehension and disagreement as well. Unlike readers or writers,
speakers may need patience and imagination, too. While talking, speakers
need to take notice of the other and allow listeners chance to speak. It means
that we often take turns to speak.

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To be more specific, Bygate (1987) assumes that conversation can be
analyzed in terms of routines, which are conventional ways of presenting
information.
To sum up, in learning speaking skills, the learners can be much more
confident with clear understanding and governing these skills. Moreover, the
oral skill depends much on knowledge of language they can learn such as
grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary.
In addition, learners rely on common conventional expression of
communicating specific meanings, particularly on the language environment.
It is clear that practice in classroom might not be similar to oral
communication outside classroom. In a foreign language classroom, practice
is rather simple and far from real life.
And it is undeniable that speaking is a key to communication. By
considering what good speakers do, what speaking tasks can be used in class,
and what specific needs learners report, teachers can help learners improve
their speaking and overall oral competency.
1.2.2. The role of speaking in language teaching and learning
Speaking in a second or foreign language has often viewed as the play
most demanding of the four skills. On the other hand, speaking plays an
utmost important role among the four language skills since it helps identify
who knows or does not know a language.
According to Pattison (1992), when people mention knowing or learning
a language, they mean being able to speak the language.
It can not be denied that in our daily lives most of us speak more than we
write. Speaking when compared with writing according to Wilkin (1979; cited
in Nabiar 1985), is the essential form of language and writing is ranked
second after it and derived from it.

When talking about the role of speaking, Bygate (1987: 7) claims that:
“It is the vehicle of social solidarity, of social ranking, of professional
advancement and of business”.
In language teaching and learning, speaking is a medium through which
much language is learnt, and which is particularly useful for learning.The
ability to communicate in a second language clearly and efficiently
contributes to the success of the learners in school and success later in every
phase of life. (Kayi, 2006).
More than this, speaking is regarded as the first step to confirm who
knows or does not know a language. Ur, P( 1996) shows that people who
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know a language are referred to as “ speakers” of that language as if speaking
included all other kinds of knowing.
Too many language learners “mastering the art of speaking is the single
most important aspect of learning a second language or foreign language, and
success is measured in term of ability to carry out a conversation in the
language”. (Nunan 1991: 39).
It can be inferred from Nunan’s viewpoint that speaking is a very
important skill among the four basic ones. Therefore, having dealt with the
importance of oral skills in language teaching and learning it is essential that
language teachers should pay more attention to teaching speaking skills. In
order to carry out many of the most basic transactions, it is necessary for

learners to speak with confidence.
1.2.3. Approaches to the teaching of speaking
According to Byrne (1991:23- 24), there are three phases to develop
learners’ oral ability:
Phase 1: The presentation phase
In this phase, teachers play a centre role in learning and teaching
process. They work as an information provider as they know English, select
teaching materials and the ways to present the materials. And in this first
phase, students usually observe and listen to the teacher, i.e. they passively
receive information. As we know, oral materials are written mainly in two
forms, which are dialogues and prose. Thus, it is obviously that these two
different forms need presenting in different ways.
Byrne, D. (1991) summaries ten different steps to present a dialogue as
follows:
1. Establish setting by using pictures. At this step, English is used as
much as possible.
2. Draw out learners’ experience related to situation.
3. Explain some key words.
4. Set the listening task by asking key information of the dialogue
5. Ask learners to listen without looking at the dialogue.
6. Allow learners to have a look at their book when necessary.
7. Ask learners to listen and repeat.
8. Ask learners to pick up difficulties and explain them.
9. Ask them to practice ( role- play)
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10. Ask them to dramatize the dialogue.
From the steps above, we can see that they are perfectly and logically
arranged. However, not all of them need to use for presenting a dialogue, it
depends on the learners’ English competence.
To present a prose, Byrne (1991:26) suggests that teachers should use
the following nine steps:
1. Introduce the topic by asking learners to look at the pictures or asking
them about related things.
2. Introduce the text. New words and structures are given.
3. Provide relevant practice.
4. Set the reading task: make questions.
5. Ask the learners to read the passage in silence and find the answers.
6. Ask learners to read again aloud and ask for the answer.
7. Explain difficulties they still have.
8. Do silent reading again because learners need to go on with step nine.
9. Get the learners to talk about what they have to learn based on the
previous answers.
To increase the learners’ motivation, these steps should also be used
suitably.
Phase 2: The practice phase
This phase is the time for learners to do most of talking as they are
provided maximum amount of practice in the form of controlled and guided
activities to improve vocabulary and grammar knowledge as well as fluency
of speaking. The learners, at this phase, answer the teacher’s guided
questions, discuss with their partners to find new ideas related to the topic.
Phase 3: The production phase
This is the phase in which learners are given chances to speak English

freely. Being in a real situation, learners use English by themselves, not
depend on the teacher. They can develop their own ideas and their friends’
ideas. A real chance to speak English takes place when the learners can use
English naturally for themselves, not for their teacher. Pair work and group
work are of great importance and effectiveness at this phase as all learners
have chance to participate in talks: Moreover, this can save a great deal of
time and learners seem to be more confident.

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In short, to improve speaking ability for learners in the process of
teaching speaking, teachers should follow these phases orderly. However, the
practical application much depends on such factors as the time available, the
target learners’ level and the material used, etc…
1.2.4. Problems with speaking activities
Whether or not the success performance of speaking activity depends on
a number of factors. There are a lot of factors affecting the degree of success
of speaking activities. Some factors which have negative effects on the
speaking activities and therefore impede the success are usually referred to as
problems facing teachers and learners in their attempt to promoting speaking
skills.
We strongly agree with Ur, P. (1996: 82) when she points out four
characteristics of a successful speaking activity: learners talk a lot, even

participation among the students, student strong motivation to speak and
comprehensibility of the students’ language. She also points out the following
common problems that tend to occur in a speaking class:
The students are inhibited about trying to say things in the classroom.
Students can not think of anything to say.
Some students dominate while others speak very little or not at all.
 Students tend to use their mother tongue instead of the foreign
language.
From Ur’s viewpoint above, for a successful speaking lesson, the
teachers and learners should be aware of these problems in order to have
appropriate and effective solutions to help learners develop speaking skills.
II. The study
2.1. Research setting
2.1.1. An overview of the research site
Nghe An is a province in the middle of Vietnam. Over 20% people here
belong to ethnic groups. There have been many difficulties in life as well as in
educational development, especially in the development of teaching a foreign
language like English. Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School which is
situated in Nghi An village, Nghi Loc district, Nghe An province and was
established in 2010. It has for 10 years been the reliable address for minority
students of all the districts in Nghe An province. At present, there are 16
classes with over 500 students placed into three different grades: grade 10 th,
11th and 12th. The11teaching staff composes of 45 teachers of 14 compulsory
subjects, of who one- third is young and creative whereas the others are
experienced and enthusiastic. English is taught here as a compulsory subject.
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2.1.2. Description of the teachers of English in Nghe An Ethnic Boarding
High School
If students are the most important factor in the learning process, teachers
are the most important factor in the teaching process. In NEBHS there are 6
teachers of English currently working. Five of them are female ranking from
35 to 48. Their experience in teaching English varies from 7 to 12 years.
Obviously, the age of the English teachers reveals the fact that all of them
were trained in the traditional method- the Grammar- Translation One. Few of
them have taken retraining courses to improve their English and their teaching
method.
2.1.3. The students at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School
Although my school is located in Vinh city, all of students come from
remote and mountainous areas of Nghe An province. Therefore, there are
many difficulties in the teaching and learning. Most of the students at my
school live far from the district center and come from low-income families. In
spite of the difficulties, the students are given a chance to go to school.
The school has 16 classes with over 500 students ranged from grade 10
to grade 12; most of them are aged from 15 to 20. Most of them have been
learning English since they were at 6th form.
The students at NEBHS come from every part of the province and
belong to different ethnic groups of Thai, Mong, Tho, Thanh, Kinh. They are
brought up by scholarships from national and provincial budget. The Ethnic
students are often lack of proper teaching and learning materials when they
were at primary and secondary schools. Teachers of the schools have to work
harder than their colleagues at other upper secondary school in the province to
help their students study effectively. Because their students are struggling to

catch up with general knowledge of most subjects and they have to learn
about the ethnic language in order to help students understand the lessons.
English here is considered as one of the compulsory subjects. The
students study English in order to pass the examinations. In the reality,
teaching of English in general, and teaching speaking English in particular
have encountered a great deal of difficulties. The students are good at
grammar but not speaking. They can do grammar exercises very quickly and
well but they can not speak it fluently and most of them do not feel confident
in communicating in English.
2.1.4. The current situation of English teaching and learning at Nghe An
Ethnic Boarding High School
2.1.4.1. The materials of teaching and learning
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At Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School, English is one of the
compulsory subjects in the curriculum and students have to pass at the
national examination by the end of grade 12 to be qualified for the secondary
school diploma.
The text books currently used to teach English to the students are: “
Tieng Anh 10”, “ Tieng Anh 11”, “ Tieng Anh 12” published by Ministry of
Education and Training (MOET). Students who have finished senior high
school are supposed to widen and enrich their knowledge with the basic,
modern and systematic English language. Moreover, the students are

supposed to acquire the general knowledge of the people and cultures of
several English- speaking countries. The textbooks cover four skills:
speaking, listening, reading and writing. And at the end of each semester,
students are assessed based on a test of reading, writing, speaking and
listening skills.
2.1.4.2. The teaching and learning English speaking skills
It can be seen that communication is the goal of English language
teaching. The proper purpose of English language teaching is to help students
develop their communicative ability. This makes teaching and learning
speaking skills seem to be an important part in any English course. At the
secondary school level, and especially in senior years, the students will be
provided with the real opportunities for developing their four language skills
at their classroom equally. Like many other high schools in Vietnam, teaching
and learning speaking skills at NEBHS are affected by some constraints such
as large class size, students’ unfamiliarity with CLT, students’ low English
proficiency, students’ low participation in class. Besides, lack of training in
new teaching methods, especially CLT makes it difficult for the teachers to
teach English speaking skills. All the above factors make the teaching and
learning speaking skills more challenging.
2.2. Methodology study
2.2.1. Participants
In order to get information to fulfill the aims of the study, two survey
questionnaires have been designed. The first questionnaire was administered
to 4 teachers who have been teaching English to the minority students at Nghe
An Ethnic Boarding High School. They were invited to join the study with the
hope of finding out the teaching techniques they have currently applied in
teaching English speaking skills and the difficulties they have encountered
when teaching the speaking skills.
The second questionnaire was administered to 140 minority students of
grade 11 at the school. Their ages varied from 17 to 18. They are 94 males

and 46 females. Their time length of English learning is different: 90% started
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learning English at grade 6; only 5% started at grade 10. The researcher
delivered the questionnaire to those students in order to investigate the
problems facing the learning of English speaking skills at Nghe An Ethnic
Boarding High School. The reason for the choice of grade 11 is that they have
been learning English here for at least nearly two years so they are
accustomed to the environment, teachers and friends, method of teaching and
learning at high school.
Moreover, the textbook that is currently used for them is “Tiếng Anh 11”
which has just been in use for the first time.
2.2.2. Research instruments
The instrument used to collect data was two questionnaires for both
students and teachers. The study only used survey questionnaire as the
instrument because of its convenience and the limitation of scope of this
study.
2.2.3. Data analysis
This part of the thesis is the analysis of all the data collected from the
survey questionnaires conducted on 4 teachers and 140 minority students of
Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School. The scheme and coding categories in
this research emerged from an examination of data rather than being predetermined and imposed on the data.
2.3. Presentation of the statistical results

2.3.1. Data analysis of teachers’ survey questionnaire
2.3.1.1. Methodology
The questionnaire for the teachers (see appendix A) includes 13 openended questions written in English was delivered to 4 English teachers at the
research site. The purpose of this questionnaire was to find out the teachers’
perception of CLT, the difficulties they have encountered in their teaching of
speaking skills and their techniques and methods in dealing with these
difficulties. The questions focused on the following categories:
Teachers’ experience.
Teachers’ attitudes towards speaking skills.
Teachers’ attitudes towards teaching English speaking skills in the
textbook “Tieng Anh 11”.
Teachers’ opinions on the Communicative Language Teaching.
Teachers’ difficulties in teaching speaking skills to the minority
students at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High School.
Teachers’ attitudes towards reluctant speakers.
Techniques in minimizing the difficulties encountered in teaching
speaking.
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Techniques applied currently in teaching speaking.
Teachers’ attitudes.
2.3.1.2. The findings
4 copies of the first questionnaire distributed to 4 teachers were

responded and the data is analyzed in this part of the study in the following
tables.
Teachers’ experience in teaching English
Year of teaching

Number of teachers

Percentage ( %)

1–5

1

25%

6- 10

2

50%

11 - 15

1

25%

Table 1: Description of teachers’ experience in teaching English.
Question 1: In the questionnaire was designed to measure the teachers’
experience in teaching English. The result of Question 1 is presented in Table

1. The table shows that English language teachers at Nghe An Ethnic
Boarding High School have good experience in teaching English. Two out of
four teachers (50 %) have been teaching foreign language for more than
fifteen years. However, she used to be That explains why there is only one
teacher (25%) with more than 10 years of teaching English although 2 of
them are over 45 years old.
Teachers’ attitudes towards speaking skills and Teaching English
speaking skill in the textbook “Tieng Anh 11”.
No of
teachers

%

 the most important

0

0

 as important as other skills

4

100%

 no so important as other skills

0

0

 others

0

0

 good but difficult

3

75%

 Good and appropriate

0

0

 Bad book

0

0

 Others:

1

25%

Questions

Question 2

Question 3

Options

Table 2: Teachers’ attitudes towards speaking skills and teaching
English speaking in the textbook.
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Table 2 Shows the teachers’ attitudes towards speaking skills in
comparison with the other three skills. All the teachers (100%) in the school
agree that speaking skills is as important as other skills (reading, listening and
writing)..
The purpose of the question 3 in the questionnaire for the teachers was to
find out the teachers’ opinions on the new English textbook for grade 11 th. As
presented in table 2, three out of four teachers (75%) agree that “Tieng Anh
11”is a good book but difficult for the high school students, none of the
teachers think that the book is good and appropriate and even 25% of the
respondents affirm that the textbook which was designed in the light of CLT

was not totally appropriate for the examination which just focused on
accuracy, not on fluency. Thus, the statistical results above show that the
textbook may become an obstacle in teaching speaking skills.
Teachers’ opinions of Communicative Language Teaching
As we know that, Communicative Language Teaching is an approach
that aims to make communicative competence the goal of language teaching
and it is now the dominant English language teaching approaches; however,
not all teachers at NEBHS have been trained in CLT. The result is presented
in Table 3 below:
N of
teachers

%

 no, I have never been trained in CLT

2

50%

 yes, in English Teaching- Training course

0

0

 yes, in English Language Teaching
workshops

2

50%

 Others:………

0

0

Question 4

Options

Table 3: Teachers’ CLT training background.
The result from table 3 shows that only two teachers at Nghe An Ethnic
Boarding High school have been trained in CLT in ELT workshops, and the
rest 2 (50%) have never received any kind of training in CLT. However, they
still have improved the knowledge of CLT by self-study.This could be one of
the difficulties which influenced the CLT application in teaching speaking
skills.

Question 5

Options

N of

%

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teachers
 is learner- centered

4

100%

 always emphasizes on fluency more
than accuracy

2

50%

 focuses on meaningful tasks rather on
language themselves

3

75%

 does not teach grammar

1

25%

 is used only for teaching speaking skills,
not other skills

2

50

 considers the teacher as a facilitator

1

25%

 gives students opportunities to
communicate with each others

4

100%

Table 4: Teachers’ perception of CLT.
Question 5: Aims at finding out the teachers’ perception of
Communicative Language Teaching. The results indicate that 100% of the
teachers asked think that CLT is learner- centered and they all agree that CLT
gives students opportunities to communicate with each others. Some of the

respondents (25%) assume that CLT does not teach grammar. A half of the
teachers (50%) believe that CLT focuses on fluency rather than on accuracy.
There are still 2 teachers (50%) to put it that CLT only concentrates on
speaking skills, not on other skills. In many of the teachers’ opinions (75%),
CLT focuses on meaningful tasks rather than on language itself. Only one of
them (25%) think that in CLT the role of the teacher is to facilitate students’
learning process.
From the statistics above, we can see that the teachers at Nghe An Ethnic
Boarding High school have some knowledge of CLT. However, their
understanding of this approach is not sufficient enough, which is a hindrance
to their adopting CLT in teaching speaking skills.
Question 6

Options
 yes
 No. I use……

N of
teachers

%

3

75%

1

25%
( use Grammar Translation

Method)

Table 5: Number of teachers who have applied CLT in teaching speaking skills.

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The responses in Table 5 show that most of the teachers (75%) have
applied CLT in their teaching. Only one teacher (25%) has used the
traditional method. This fact indicates the gradual change in English language
teaching techniques by teachers under the guideline of the MOET. However,
they also assert that sometimes they find it very hard to apply CLT in their
teaching. In other words, the teachers at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High
school have encountered many difficulties when teaching speaking skills in
the light of CLT.
The next question (Question 7) attempts to find out the difficulties
experienced by the teachers in teaching speaking skills to the minority
students at NEBHS.
Teachers’ difficulties in teaching English speaking skills.
Question 7

Options

N of teachers

%

 students’ low level of English

4
100%

 students’ shyness

4
100%

 students’ lack of motivation

3
75%

 lack of time

2
50%

 students’ use of mother- tongue
during group work/ pair work

3
75%

 large- sized classes

4
100%

 difficult speaking topics

1
25%

 Others:

3
75%
(Poor teaching
condition: lack of
equipment……)

Table 6: Teachers’ difficulties in teaching speaking skills to the minority
students.

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According to the information obtained from the survey, the teachers
have encountered several problems when teaching speaking English to the

minority students. Table 6 gives us a fact that the time is a problem for
teachers in teaching speaking skills (50%). They complain that a 45- minute’s
period is too short for them to organize speaking activities after teaching
vocabulary and grammar of a lesson. 100% find it hard to teach speaking
because of various reasons such as: students’ low level of English, students’
shyness, large- sized classes: it is difficult to manage the class as well as
organize classroom activities. Many teachers (75%) accept that the students’
lack of motivation is a trouble to their teaching. The same number of the
respondents (75%) confirms that the students’ use of mother- tongue during
pair-work or group-work is a constraint for them. Difficult speaking topics are
causes that prevent teachers from teaching speaking skills (25%).
Besides, not having money for preparation of teaching aids is seen as
difficulties by some others (75%).
To conclude, there are a number of factors, both objective and subjective
preventing the teachers from applying Communicative Language Teaching in
teaching speaking at NEBHS. And these findings also reflect the common
problems of teachers at high schools as well.
The teachers’ attitudes towards reluctant speakers
N of
teachers

%

 get angry and ask them to stand

0

0

 get them to speak

1

25%

 encourage them to speak by asking
easier questions

2

50

 let them sit down without asking
them again

1

25%

 others:

0

0

Question 8

Options

Table 7: The teachers’ attitudes towards reluctant speakers.

From the above analysis, it can be concluded that the number of teachers
who often encourage reluctant students by asking easier questions accounts
for 50%. However, the remaining 25% of the respondents get the students to
speak. Similarly, the same number of those involved in the survey (25%)
admits that they let reluctant students sit down without asking them to answer
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the questions again when they make mistakes. All of them are not angry when
the students are unwilling to speak.
Techniques in minimizing the difficulties in teaching speaking
Table 8 Includes three questions ( Question 9, Question 10, Question 11)
dealing with the techniques in minimizing the difficulties encountered by
teachers in teaching speaking to the minority students at Nghe An Ethnic
Boarding High school.
N of
teacher
s

%

 suggest interesting topics for discussion

3

75%

 let them choose topics to discuss

1

25%

 carry out on- going assessments

2

50%

 use authentic materials

2

50%

 do nothing

1

25%

 select and organize simple communicative
activities

3

75%

 give students chances and allotted time to prepare

2

50%

 give instructions in Vietnamese

3

75%

 criticize them for their level

1

25%

 neglect them

1

25

 move around to observe

4

100

 remind them to speak English

2

50%

 let them be

1

25%

 criticize them

1

25%

Questions

Question 9

Question 10

Question 11

Options

Table 8: Techniques to minimize the difficulties in teaching speaking.
Teachers at Nghe An Ethnic Boarding High school have tried to
overcome the problems in different ways.
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