Using video clips in teaching vocabulary to intermediate level students at the asian international school

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING
HO CHI MINH CITY UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

USING VIDEO CLIPS
IN TEACHING VOCABULARY TO
INTERMEDIATE LEVEL STUDENTS AT
THE ASIAN INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
Submitted to the
Faculty of English Language
in partial fulfillment of the Master’s degree in English Language

Course code: 60220201
By
TRAN THI HONG TUOI

Supervised by
NGUYEN DANG NGUYEN, Ph.D.

HO CHI MINH CITY, DECEMBER 2020


The thesis entitled Using Video Clips in Teaching Vocabulary to Intermediate Level
Students at The Asian International School was successfully defended and approved
on December 22nd at Hochiminh City University of Technology (HUTECH).

Academic supervisor : ………………………………………………………………...

Examination Committee
1. ……………………………………………………….

Chair

2. ……………………………………………. …………

Reader 1

3. ……………………………………………………….

Reader 2

4. ……………………………………………………….

Member

5. ………………………………………………………..

Secretary Member

On behalf

of the Examination Committee
Chair


HCMC UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
POSTGRADUATE INSTITUTE
HCMC , October 26, 2020

MASTER’S THESIS REPORT
Student name: Tran Thi Hong Tuoi

Sex: Female

Date of birth: 29/8/1994

Place of birth: Long An

Major: English language

Student code: 1841900005

I- Thesis title:
Using video clips in teaching vocabulary to Intermediate level students at the Asian
International school
II- Objectives and contents:
In this thesis, the researcher investigated effects of using video clips in teaching
vocabulary to Intermediate level students at the Asian International school. The researcher
aimed at evaluating effects of using video clips in improving learners’ vocabulary
performance and enhancing learners’ learning attitudes.
III- Starting date: October 30th, 2019
IV- Completing date: October 26th, 2020
V- Academic supervisor: Nguyen Dang Nguyen, Ph.D.

ACADEMIC SUPERVISOR

FACULTY DEAN


CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY

I certify my authorship of the Master’s Thesis submitted today entitled: Using

Video Clips in Teaching Vocabulary to Intermediate Level Students at The Asian
International School.
In terms of the statement of requirements for Theses in Master’s programs
issued by the Higher Degree Committee of Faculty of English Language, Ho Chi
Minh City University of Technology.

Ho Chi Minh City, October 26th, 2020

TRAN THI HONG TUOI

i


RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS
I hereby state that I, Tran Thi Hong Tuoi, being a candidate for the degree of Master
of Arts (English Language) accept the requirements of the University relating to the
retention and use of Master’s Theses deposited in the Library.
In terms of these conditions, I agree that the original of my Master’s Thesis deposited
in the Library should be accessible for purpose of study and research, in accordance
with the normal conditions established by the Librarian for the care, loan, and
reproduction for theses.

Ho Chi Minh City, October 26th, 2020

TRAN THI HONG TUOI

ii


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would first like to express my deepest gratitude to Dr. Nguyen Dang Nguyen, my
supervisor, for his patience, guidance, insightful advice, and constant encouragement
through the whole research process. Without his support and guidance, this thesis
would never have been completed. Besides, without the help of all teachers at
HUTECH University, this thesis would not be completed. I would like to send my
best gratitude to all the teaching staffs in the foreign language department.
Secondly, I would like to send my love and appreciation to my Dad and my Mom,
who gave me the best condition as well as great encouragement to complete this
thesis.
Finally, I honestly want to send my gratitude to my boyfriend. He gave me a lot of
useful advice and valuable reference materials.

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ABSTRACT
With the rapid growth of technology, video clips take priority in educational settings
around the world. Unlike schools in developed countries, only some schools in big
cities of Vietnam have been newly equipped with this teaching aid, including the
Asian International School - Van Thanh Campus. Due to its new application,
therefore, the overall aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of using video
clips in vocabulary lessons to enhance the ninth graders’ vocabulary performance and
positive learning attitudes towards vocabulary learning. The fourteen-week quasiexperimental study was conducted on the two classes 9/1 and 9/2 with the
participation of 43 ninth graders as the control group and the experimental group,
respectively. The instruments included two vocabulary tests (e.g. one pre-test and one
post-test) and the attitudinal questionnaire. The quantitative data obtained from these
tools were statistically analyzed by SPSS 20.0. The findings of the study showed that
the video clips positively contributed to the ninth graders’ vocabulary performance.
Based on the results of the vocabulary post-test administered after the treatment, it
could be concluded that the newly introduced educational tool did affect the

experimental group’ vocabulary performance in a positive manner in terms of word
forms, word meaning and word use. Moreover, the ninth graders’ level of motivation,
positive thought, and active behaviors in learning vocabulary considerably increased
thanks to the video clips. Based on the research findings, the paper concluded some
pedagogical implications and a recommendation for further study in line with research
on the application of video clips. Based on the research findings, the paper concluded
with some pedagogical implications and a recommendation for further study in line of
research on the video clips application.

Keywords: video clips; teaching vocabulary; performance; attitudes

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Certificate of originality ............................................................................................. i
Retention and use of the thesis ................................................................................... ii
Acknowledgements .................................................................................................. iii
Abstract ..................................................................................................................... iv
Table of contents ........................................................................................................ v
List of tables ........................................................................................................... viii
List of figures.............................................................................................................. x
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the study .................................................................... 1
1.2 Statement of the problem ................................................................... 7
1.3 Aims and objectives of the study ....................................................... 8
1.4 Hypotheses ......................................................................................... 9

1.5 Scope of the study .............................................................................. 9
1.6 Significance of the study ..................................................................... 9
1.7 Organization of the thesis ................................................................ 10
1.8 Definitions of key terms .................................................................... 10
CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Vocabulary in English language classrooms .................................... 11

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2.2 Teaching vocabulary in English language classrooms .................... 13
2.3 Using video clips in teaching vocabulary in English language
classrooms ............................................................................................................... 16
2.4 Learning attitudes towards using video clips in teaching vocabulary19
2.5 Previous studies ................................................................................ 21
2.6 Conceptual framework ..................................................................... 25
2.8 Chapter summary ............................................................................. 26
CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY
3.1 Research setting ............................................................................... 27
3.2 Research design ................................................................................ 29
3.3 Training procedures .......................................................................... 30
3.4 Research instruments ........................................................................ 34
3.5 Data collection procedure ................................................................. 36
3.6 Data analytical framework ............................................................... 37
3.7 Methodological issues: Reliability, validity ..................................... 38
3.8 Chapter summary .............................................................................. 40
CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
4.1 Data analysis ..................................................................................... 41
4.2 Discussion ........................................................................................ 53
4.3 Chapter summary ............................................................................. 57

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CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION
5.1 Conclusion ........................................................................................ 58
5.3 Implications ...................................................................................... 59
5.2 Limitations ....................................................................................... 59
5.4 Recommendations for further research ............................................ 60
5.5 Chapter summary ............................................................................. 61
REFERENCES ...................................................................................................... 62
APPENDICES ........................................................................................................ 67
APPENDIX A.1: Pre-test sample ........................................................................... 67
APPENDIX A.2: Post- test sample ........................................................................ 69
APPENDIX B.1: Questionnaire in English ............................................................ 72
APPENDIX B.2: Questionnaire in Vietnamese ..................................................... 74
APPENDIX C.1: Scores of the pre- test and post- test of the two groups .............. 76
APPENDIX C.2: Questionnaire in Vietnamese ...................................................... 77
APPENDIX D.1: Consent form for the leader in Vietnamese ................................ 78
APPENDIX D.2: Consent form for the student participants in Vietnamese .......... 79
APPENDIX E: The pre-test and post-test scores of two groups............................. 80

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LIST OF TABLES
Page
Table 3.1: Research Design ..................................................................................... 30
Table 3.2: Content of the Training Material ............................................................. 30
Table 3.3: Time allotment for the study .................................................................. 31
Table 3.4: Overview of the used language videos .................................................... 34

Table 3.5: The link between research hypotheses and instruments ......................... 34
Table 3.6: Quality justification of research instruments .......................................... 39
Table 4.1: Shapiro-Wilk test of normality ............................................................... 41
Table 4.2: Description of the pre- test scores of the two groups ............................. 42
Table 4.3: Comparison of the pre- test scores between the two groups ................... 43
Table 4.4: Description of the pre- test and the post- test scores of the control group44
Table 4.5: Comparison between the pre- test and the post- test scores of the control
group ......................................................................................................................... 47
Table 4.6: Description of the pre- test and the post- test scores of the experimental
group ......................................................................................................................... 45
Table 4.7: Comparison between the pre- test and the post- test scores of the
experimental group ................................................................................................... 46
Table 4.8: Description of the post- test scores of the two groups ........................... 46
Table 4.9: Comparison of the post- test scores between the two groups ................ 47
Table 4.10: Reliability analysis (Cronbach’s Alpha) ............................................... 48
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Table 4.11: The students’ affective attitudes ............................................................ 49
Table 4.12: The students’ cognitive attitudes ........................................................... 50
Table 4.13: The students’ behavioral attitudes ......................................................... 52

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LIST OF FIGURES
Page
Figure 3.1: Framework of data analysis of the tests ................................................. 40

x

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS
AIS

The Asian International School

AERO

American Education Reaches Out

EFL

English as a foreign language

MOET

The Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training

PPP

Presentation- Practice- Production

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background to the study
It is vocabulary that plays a crucial role in acquiring a new language. Without
sufficient sources of vocabulary, learners can neither understand others nor express their

own ideas. Vocabulary knowledge is the background of developing other skills
including listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Vocabulary is obviously a main tool
for different purposes such as communicating with a native speaker, watching and
understanding a foreign film, or even writing a letter to a pen pal. Nothing can be
conveyed without vocabulary. In teaching and learning English, regardless the level of
learners’ competence in grammar and pronunciation, they cannot have effective
communication without sufficient vocabulary knowledge. Many linguists have
underscored the vital roles of vocabulary acquisition in acquiring second language
competence (Laufer & Nation, 1999; Read, 2000; Gu, 2003; Marion, 2008; and Nation,
2011).
Schmitt (2000) points out that “lexical knowledge is central to communicative
competence and to the acquisition of a second language” (p. 55). As mentioned in
Brown, Waring and Donkaewbua (2008), vocabulary is one of linguistic components
influencing the development of communicative competence as well as their language
skills. In addition, “lexis is the core or heart of language” (Lewis, 1993, p. 89). In fact,
a child can manage to convey his desire to adults even when he has no definition what
grammar is, providing that they own some necessary vocabulary items. Communication
activities can also be done without grammar, but it is not true with vocabulary. Because
of these inarguable reasons, teaching vocabulary should be put much effort. Language
instructors may follow a variety of different teaching methods and techniques in
teaching vocabulary. Different teaching methods and techniques can be appropriate for
different contexts and situations. That is the reason why identifying a suitable
vocabulary teaching method is definitely essential. Henceforth, vocabulary instruction
became the focal point of the present study.
Globally, there are different methods and techniques for a better teaching and
learning of vocabulary. In the early days of the Grammar-Translation Method, the
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primary aim of foreign language study was to learn a language to read its literature or

to benefit from its mental discipline and intellectual development (Harmer, 2006).
Vocabulary was presented in the form of isolated words. They were taught through
bilingual word lists, dictionary study, memorization, and their translation equivalents.
Little attention was paid to the context in which the words were used and the examples
and sentences chosen to practice has no relation to the language of real communication.
This method encourages word translation, which makes students keep translating and
kill their senses. There are not enough conversations in target language. It means spoken
language is not practiced frequently in the classrooms and learners’ speaking and
listening skills are not improved. Gradually, this method could not fulfill learners’ and
instructors’ expectation. Then, Direct Method appeared as an answer to the GrammarTranslation Method, based on inductive rather than deductive learning, advocating
learning a new language through direct association of words and phrases with objects
and actions and development of the ability to think in the language (Richards &
Rodgers, 2003). Concrete vocabulary was taught through mime, demonstrations, and
pictures. Abstract vocabulary, on the other hand, was taught by association of ideas.
Vocabulary is studied in a natural conversational context whereas textbook explanations
are presented later. Vocabulary is preferred to grammar, but only everyday vocabulary
is taught. The Audiolingual Method, like the Direct Method, concentrated largely on
listening and speaking skills (Harmer, 2006). In this method, vocabulary teaching,
however, was kept to a useful minimum so that the students may concentrate on
establishing a firm control of structures. The introduction of Communicative Language
Teaching in the 1970’s helped to emphasize the role of vocabulary, allowing learners
to have freer choices in creating answers for class exercises, which will vary according
to their reactions and responses. The communicative value of a core vocabulary has
been recognized; in other words, vocabulary acquisition is the most important. The
recent trend has proved that course books include more activities than specifically
targeted vocabulary. More attention is given to a collection of vocabulary items, the
grammar of words, collocations, semantic relations between lexical items and word
frequency. The lexical approach to second language teaching has received interest in

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recent years as an alternative to grammar-based approach. This approach entails
teaching words already in their chunks as opposed to individual items (Newton, 2001).
In the Vietnamese context, vocabulary has not been a particular subject for
students to learn, but has been taught within lessons of speaking, listening, reading and
writing (Khuat & Nguyen, 2003). During the lesson, students use their own vocabulary
and are introduced to new words provided by the teacher and classmates which they
apply to classroom activities. According to Nguyen (2018), a number of learners may
share the same experience of looking up words in a bilingual dictionary to find their
meanings or definitions when they encounter new words. They may even write down
lines of new words without any idea of the real use of them in context. Working this
way, after a short period of time, many learners may find out that learning vocabulary
in lists does not satisfy themselves, and they think the cause for it is just their bad
memorization (Nguyen, 2018). Furthermore, some other students may require teachers
to give meaning and grammatical function for words that they are not familiar. Learners
just wait for teachers who control the lesson to provide new forms of words then they
write those words in their notebooks or complete their exercises (Luu, 2012). Decarrico
(2001) states that words should not be learnt separately or by memorization without
understanding since “learning new words is a cumulative process, with words enriched
and established as they are met again” (Nation, 2000, p. 6). This kind of rote verbal
memorization is good to a certain extent since it helps learners learn and use the correct
form of words. However, according to Decarrico (2001), the vocabulary used in such
context is rather simple because grammatical and phonologic aspects are emphasized;
and as a result, the lexical aspect is neglected. In other words, learners just know how
to use the vocabulary in an exact form, but they do not know how to use it with different
shades of meanings.
It is suggested that each teaching method has its own characteristics which make
learning vocabulary effective or not in different contexts. While Grammar Translation,
Direct Method and Audiolingual approach focus on learners’ vocabulary acquisition

with memorization, Communicative Language Teaching motivates learners to use new
words to conduct communicative activities. The combination of these methods is
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preferably used in a lot of language classrooms. In this way, learners are supported to
memorize words as well as apply what they have learnt in real contexts. In modern
classrooms, many kinds of technology devices can be utilized as teaching tools. Media
is obviously one of them. It can be easily seen that people in general and teenagers in
particular in the modern society spend lots of their time surfing the Internet every day.
Face-to-face communication is partially replaced by online chatting, and some social
network apps such as Facebook, Instagram or Scout Chat turn to be super common.
Therefore, in the modern language classrooms, teachers can also take advantages from
the tremendous potential provided by technique devices such as television, video,
projector, laptop, or DVD player. In fact, learning vocabulary can be not only from
course books but also from some other media sources due to different benefits. And,
one of the most useful media resources is video clip (Tatsuki, 1999; Canning-Wilson,
2000; Harmer, 2001; Köksal, 2004).
According to Harmer (2001), audio-visual is the combination of various digital
media types such as text, images, sound, and video into an integrated multi-sensory
interactive application or presentation to convey a message or information to an
audience. In Canning-Wilson (2000), video clip is selection and sequence of messages
in an audio-visual context. The first benefit of video clip in vocabulary instruction is
that it provides visual stimuli such as the environment and this can lead to and generate
prediction, speculation and a chance to activate background schemata when viewing a
visual scene reenacted (Tatsuki, 1999). It means that video clip can help learners
understand the use of vocabulary items in specific contexts (i.e. word meaning and use).
The second benefit of this video-based instruction is that video clip can help learners
retain word spellings longer when it establishes auditory, visual and mental links that
help improve their long-term memory (Köksal, 2004). The third benefit of using video

clip in vocabulary instruction is that video clip can help learners improve their word
pronunciation since the fact that it contains live speech, including word stress, rhythm
and intonation which are important factors in understanding the speaker’s intention
(Köksal, 2004). The fourth benefit of video clip in vocabulary instruction is that video
clips can accelerate learners’ enjoyment in, attention to and motivation to vocabulary
learning (Tatsuki, 1999). He emphasizes that vocabulary learning is a happy experience,
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and video creates an attractive enjoyable learning environment. In reality, video clip
can satisfy learners with different styles of learning; they may prefer a visual (seeing),
auditory (hearing), kinesthetic (moving) or tactile (touching) way of learning. In brief,
video clip, which is one kind of media resources, has hugely positive correlation with
vocabulary acquisition owing to such four benefits such as improving the learners’ word
knowledge of spellings, pronunciation, meaning and use, and stimulating their
motivation as well.
Notwithstanding the benefits mentioned above, there has been a scarcity of
exerting video clips in vocabulary lessons in many educational settings, including the
Vietnamese context. The first issue in utilizing video in EFL classrooms is the teachers’
capability in selecting appropriate video that can effectively support the students in
developing their communicative competence (Çakır, 2006). Actually, there are
numerous English videos produced nowadays, they can be accessed or downloaded
easily in internet. However, the videos that will be used in the class should be in line
with the purpose of teaching the language. The video should be selected based on some
criteria, such as students’ learning topics that refer to syllabus of the school and also
students’ English level. Unfortunately, not all teachers realize about those things, so it
influences to the effectiveness of learning process by using video. In short, the teachers
have to be able to provide appropriate videos that will be presented based on the
students’ needs. The teachers consume much energy to seek appropriate video clips
serving for the coming lessons. The second issue that the teachers have to face relates

to their capability in deploying video in the classroom and utilizing other technology
devices (Hadijah, 2016). Laptop, projector, earphones, and some other programs or
tools are commonly found in EFL classrooms. The teachers have to be the one who
knows very well how to use the devices to facilitate the students during the teaching
and learning process. Even they did not learn about technology in specific, but they
have to be knowledgeable figures. But in Vietnam, it is pointed out that the current
methods and classroom practices have not been appropriately updated, still relying on
teacher- centered pedagogical techniques and rote learning. (Nguyen, 2010). Then, it is
difficult for them to be able to apply some techniques in using the video and the other
devices, and also figuring out some barriers that may appear in the class that can
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influence the students’ impressions in learning. By that reason, they become fear of
technology deployment. Nonetheless, the benefits of using video clips outnumber the
challenges, so the teachers should be encouraged to utilize video clips in vocabulary
lessons.
With the necessity of equipping fundamental modern technological device and
classroom facilities to the language classrooms and the stipulation of Foreign Language
Project 2020 mandated by the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (MOET)
which includes guidelines for English teachers to follow, including applying technology
such as using foreign language labs, audio- visual labs and multimedia labs in language
instruction (MOET, 2007), the Asian International School (AIS)-Van Thanh Campus
has made a lot of effort to enforce and develop school facilities to be granted as standard
international studying environment. AIS-Van Thanh Campus has built the systems of
blackboards, projectors, computers, speakers, or even the interactive smart boards in
classrooms. This school also sets a system of online library which enables learners to
assess millions of great sources of valuable books. With this support, students are
expected to be active in their learning progress and achieve high academic results. In
fact, AIS-Van Thanh Campus has applied many means of media in teaching English

with the aim at improving students’ English knowledge and develop students’ English
skills so that they can become proficient English users. At the AIS-Van Thanh Campus,
most of the teachers only use video clips on speaking, listening, or writing lessons
excluding vocabulary lessons. More specifically, video clips appeared to be absent from
vocabulary lessons, which were revealed by 12 English teachers at AIS-Van Thanh
Campus through private talks prior to the present study. The researcher also conducted
a preliminary survey on 20 students at Pre-intermediate level about their attitudes
towards learning vocabulary with the presence of video clips. Intriguingly, most of them
expressed their strong preference on this application. Therefore, it was necessary for the
researchers as an English teacher here to carry out a study on the introduction of video
clips to vocabulary lessons.

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1.2. Statement of the problem
After many years of learning English, a lot of learners in the Asian countries
cannot communicate with confidence or success to meet the demand to use English for
their careers (Xiao & Petraki, 2007; Chuanchaisit & Prapphal, 2009; Kawale, 2011).
And, Vietnam is not an exception (Nguyen & Khuat, 2003; Luu, 2012; Nguyen, 2018).
Reasons for this problem relate to vocabulary knowledge such as understanding and use
of words. In learning any foreign languages, vocabulary is one of the most significant
components. Without sufficient vocabulary, learners may be discouraged to use the
target language (Richards & Renandya, 2002).
At the Asian International School, classrooms are equipped with many hi-tech
devices such as computers, projectors, laptops, speakers, even interactive boards.
Moreover, school’s online library also provides teachers and students with thousands
of valuable materials. However, applying these tools in teaching vocabulary to
Intermediate level students at this school has not been analyzed in any research before.
Currently, teachers and students at this school still meet a lot of difficulties in teaching

and learning vocabulary. Students have difficulties in pronouncing the words correctly,
memorizing words’ meanings and spellings. There are a lot of mistakes related to
pronunciation when students make the speech or have their oral presentations. Besides,
some teachers, especially the old, are not well prepared with knowledge about new
technology. They did not have opportunities to be trained how to use media tools as
well as modern device in teaching English. Therefore, they are not confident in utilizing
media tool such as video clips in teaching, and students cannot study vocabulary in a
newer, more appropriate and more effective way. That is also one of the reason video
clips should be applied in teaching and learning English vocabulary.
Indeed, the popularity of English learning and teaching videos nowadays can
present that technology has been greatly integrated in English language acquisition.
Harmer (2006) pointed out that video can benefit for students’ learning experience,
develop students’ experience about language in use, improve students’ understanding
about cross cultural knowledge, develop their creativity and increase their motivation
in learning English. However, teachers have to deal with numerous challenges in
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designing a lesson with the application of video clips. The first problem is the capability
of exploiting video clips in the classrooms (e.g. Palfrey & Gasser, 2008; Jacobs, 2013).
In a lot of classrooms in the world, learners may be very excited at first to be announced
that they would study a new lesson with the support of some video clips. However, their
positive feeling may disappear when the technical problems happen. Therefore, teachers
must be the ones who can predict what barriers can influence their lessons and enrich
themselves with good skills related to technique. The second problem is that selecting
a good source of videos is also an issue for many teachers (Boud & Prosser, 2002). Even
though there are various high quality videos which can be utilized in education, it is not
ensured that they can be chose appropriately with the purpose of the lesson. Moreover,
how to apply a video clip in a lesson also plays a really important role. If a good video
clip is used in a wrong situation, it can be a waste of time or even lead to

misunderstandings from students. Ultimately, in order to fulfill learners’ need,
application of video clips must be considered carefully. The research would also be
conducted to check the success of applying the video clips in vocabulary classrooms.
1.3. Aims and objectives of the study
This study aims at investigating the effects of video clips on teaching-learning
vocabulary quality to Intermediate level students at the Asian International School. The
specific objectives of this study were clearly stated as follow:
1- To clarify the effects of employing video clips on the Intermediate level students’
vocabulary performance at the Asian International school through the
implementation of pre-test and post-test.
2- To assess students’ attitudes towards learning vocabulary with video clips at the
Asian International School by the use of questionnaire.
Based on the objectives mentioned above, this study attempted to answer these
research questions as follows:
RQ-1: To what extent do video clips affect students’ vocabulary performance?
RQ-2: What are students’ attitudes towards learning vocabulary with video clips?

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1.4. Hypotheses
Hypothesis 1: Using video clips positively affects students’ vocabulary performance.
Hypothesis 2: Using video clips enhances students’ positive attitudes towards learning
vocabulary.
1.5. Scope of the study
This study was conducted at The Asian International School. The study
attempted to evaluate the effectiveness of video clips on teaching-learning vocabulary
quality to Intermediate level students at The Asian International School (AIS). AIS is
an international school offering studying programs from Grade 1 to Grade 12. It consists
of 7 campuses in total which are located in Districts 1, 2, 3, 10, Tan Binh and Binh

Thanh Districts. Students in this school contact with two compulsory programs, i.e.
Vietnamese and International programs. The Vietnamese program is designed based on
the national curriculum from the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training, and
the international program is constructed following American Education Reaches Out
(AERO) and Common Core Standard (American). The researcher decided to conduct
this study at Van Thanh campus of AIS, which is located at 151 Vo Oanh Street, Binh
Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City. The participants in this current study were all
students from two classes of 9/1 and 9/2
1.6. Significance of the study
As stated in the background to the study, the benefits of video clips in education
are abundant. However, if teachers do not have comprehensive understanding about it,
it would be a huge waste. That is why the researcher conducted this study. This study
was expected to provide English teachers with a clear and sufficient overview about
using video clips in teaching vocabulary. For students, it was expected that they would
be more interested and motivated in learning English vocabulary so that they could
possess a great source of English language words. Besides, some of the researcher’s
solutions were expected to facilitate teachers and students to have a great modern and
effective teaching and learning environment. Discovered facts about using video clips
at this school were hoped to help in improving and developing teaching quality.
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1.7. Organization of the thesis
This thesis paper is comprised of five consecutive chapters: introduction,
literature review, methodology, results and discussions, and conclusion. In the
introduction, the researcher provided the readers with some background information
about the research so that they would feel interested in this research and know how it is
related to some other relevant research papers. The objectives and two research
questions were also listed in this chapter. The scope of the study clarified how the
research was narrowed. The next chapter, literature review, explained and defined terms

used in the research and listed some previous studies to show similarities and
differences among them and this research. Meanwhile, this chapter showed the research
gap which leaded to the new points in the recent research. Methodology chapter showed
the research design which includes the set of methods and procedures of collecting and
analyzing variables and samples. The results and discussions chapter provided readers
with the collected and analyzed data which answered the research questions. Besides,
in this chapter, the researcher also included some recommendations to solve the
problems of the study. The last chapter pointed out the summary and conclusion of all
previous statements.
1.8. Definitions of key terms
Video clip is defined as an “extremely dense” medium which combines visual
elements, sounds effect, and audio. (Richards & Renandya, 2004)
Vocabulary refers to “all the words in a language, the entire vocabulary of a
language” (Barcroft, Sunderman, & Schmitt, 2011, p. 571).
Harmer (1991) summarized that knowing a word means knowing about its
forms, meaning, and grammatical use.
Allport (1935) defined learning attitude is “a mental and neutral state of
readiness, organized through experience, exerting a directive or dynamic influence upon
the individual response to all objects and situations with which it is related” (p. 810)

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CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Vocabulary in English language classrooms
2.1.1. Definitions and aspects of vocabulary
Vocabulary is typically understood as words of a language (Ur, 1996; Nunan,
1999). Vocabulary refers to “all the words in a language, the entire vocabulary of a
language” (Barcroft, Sunderman, & Schmitt, 2011, p. 571). According to Richards and
Renandya (2002), “vocabulary is the core component of language proficiency and

provides much of the basis for how well learners speak, listen, read, and write” (p.
255). Besides, vocabulary refers to “a list or set of words for a particular language or
a list or set of words that individual speakers of language might use” (Hatch & Brown,
1995, p. 1).

However, vocabulary is much more than just single words, but

combination of words to convey communication purposes, including “single words,
compound words, and idioms” (Richards, Platt, & Platt, 1992, p. 400).
Harmer (1991) summarized that knowing a word means knowing about its
forms, meaning, and grammatical use. Although there is a variety of definitions of
vocabulary, what the language instructors need to include in presenting words in
process of teaching are word form, word meaning, and word use.
Word form
Nation (2001) stated that word form involves its pronunciation and spelling
(spoken form and written form), and any other word parts that make up this particular
item (prefix, root, and suffix). First, even when learners produce minor inaccuracies
in vocabulary and grammar, they are more likely to communicate effectively when
they own good pronunciation (Burns, 2003). Second, word spelling is one of the
matters to consider with acquiring English language competence. Hornby (2000)
refers spelling as a process of phonemic orthography. It is the act of forming words
correctly from the combination of individual letters. Good spellers can express their
thoughts on paper without any interruption (Burns, 2003). Thus, the importance of
correct spelling can be approved.

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