Nghiên cứu thái độ của giáo viên đối với việc dạy ngữ pháp theo đường hướng giao tiếp cho sinh viên không chuyên năm thứ nhất tại trường ĐHKT Y tế Hải Dương

Vietnam National university, ha noi
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
Post graduate department

NGUYEN THI THANH LOAN

TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS GRAMMAR
TEACHING IN THE LIGHT OF COMMUNICATIVE
APPROACH TO FIRST YEAR NON-MAJOR ENGLISH
STUDENTS AT HAIDUONG MEDICAL TECHNICAL
UNIVERSITY
(Nghiên cứu thái độ của giáo viên đối với việc dạy ngữ pháp theo
đ-ờng h-ớng giao tiếp cho sinh viên không chuyên năm thứ nhất
tại Tr-ờng ĐHKT Y Tế Hải D-ơng)
M.A minor thesis

Field: english teaching methodology
Code: 601410

Hanoi, 2009


Vietnam National university, ha noi
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES & INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
Post graduate department

NGUYEN THI THANH LOAN

TEACHERS’ ATTITUDES TOWARDS GRAMMAR
TEACHING IN THE LIGHT OF COMMUNICATIVE
APPROACH TO FIRST YEAR NON-MAJOR ENGLISH

STUDENTS AT HAIDUONG MEDICAL TECHNICAL
UNIVERSITY
(Nghiên cứu thái độ của giáo viên đối với việc dạy ngữ pháp theo
đ-ờng h-ớng giao tiếp cho sinh viên không chuyên năm thứ nhất
tại Tr-ờng ĐHKT Y Tế Hải D-ơng)
M.A minor thesis

Field: english teaching methodology
Code: 601410
SUPERVISOR: LE VAN CANH, M.A

Hanoi, 2009


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Pages
Declaration

i

Acknowledgements

ii

Abstract

iii

Abbreviations

iv

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale

1

2. Aims of the study

1

3. Significance of the study

1

4. Scope of the study

2

5. Research questions

2

6. Methods of the study

2

7. Design of the study

2

CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Definitions of attitudes

3

2.2. Definitions of teachers’ attitudes

3

2.3. Factors affecting teachers’ attitudes

4

2.4. The interplay between teachers’ attitudes and their teaching

7

2.5. Previous studies on teachers’ attitudes to grammar.

8

2.6. The interplay between teachers’ attitudes and their grammar

11

teaching
2.7. Conclusion

14

CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1. An Overview on the Context of Study

15

3.2. Participants

15

3.3. Instrumentation

16

3.3.1. The Interviews

16

3.3.2. Classroom observations

17


3.4. The procedures

17

3.4.1. The interviews

17

3.4.2. Classroom observations

17

CHAPTER IV: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
4.1. Introduction

19

4.2. Data analysis and Discussion

19

4.2.1. Interviews.
4.2.1.1. Teachers’ attitudes towards grammar and grammar

19

4.2.1.2.

23

teaching
Teachers’

attitudes

towards

teaching

grammar

communicatively
4.2.1.3. Factors affecting teachers’ attitudes towards grammar

27

and grammar teaching.
4.2.2. Classroom observations
4.2.2.1. Communicative grammar teaching

31

4.2.2.2. Non-communicative grammar teaching

34

4.2.3. Conclusion
4.3. Conclusion

36
37

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION
5.1. Summary of major findings

38

5.2. Implications

38

5.3. Limitations of the study

39

5.4. Suggestions for further study

39

5.5. Conclusion

40

References
Appendix

41


CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale:
English language plays many roles in the modern era of globalization. In Vietnam,
English is taught as a compulsory subject in many schools and universities. For many
teachers of English, teaching English means teaching grammar. Linguists have pointed out
a lot of methods to teach English. At present, there are many different views on grammar
teaching. One of the most effective ways to teaching English grammar is through an

approach called Communicative Language Teaching (CLT). In my workplace, Haiduong
Medical Technical University, English teachers have used many teaching methods. CLT is
not a new approach for them to teach their students English grammar. However, different
teachers have different attitudes. Some teachers view grammar teaching as unnecessary
while some other teachers are obsessed by it. Some teachers have positive attitudes, but
some have negative attitudes towards grammar teaching through CLT. In order to
understand the reason why the teachers in my university have various attitudes, I would
like to study the teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching in general and
their attitudes towards grammar teaching through CLT approach with their textbook, New
Headway Pre Intermediate in particular.
2. Aims of the study:
The aims of the study are as follows:
-

To investigate into teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching.

-

To find out factors affecting teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and grammar
teaching communicatively.

-

To find out the interplay between teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and their
grammar teaching communicatively with reference to the New Headway PreIntermediate.

3. Significance of the study:
It is hoped that this study will be of some use in understanding teachers‟ attitudes
towards grammar teaching to first-year non English major students through CLT in
Haiduong Medical Technical University. The findings of the study will also contribute to

my understanding of how grammar should be treated communicatively in the context of
my university.


2

4. Scope of the study:
As it has been stated above, the study is only designed to investigate the teachers‟
attitudes towards grammar teaching through communicative approach at Haiduong
Medical Technical University.
5. Research questions:
What are the teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching?
What are the factors affecting teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and grammar
teaching communicatively?
What is the interplay between teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and their grammar
teaching communicatively with reference to the New Headway Pre- Intermediate?
6. Methods of the study:
In order to do the research, I selected a number of reference books and articles. Six
teachers of English at Haiduong MTU were interviewed about their attitudes towards
grammar teaching communicatively. In addition, a classroom observation was carried out
to investigate how teachers dealt with grammar using the course book New Headway Pre
Intermediate. All the collected data were analyzed and discussed.
7. Design of the study:
The minor thesis consists of 5 chapters:
Chapter I is the introduction, which presents the rationale, aims, significance, scope,
methods and design of the study.
Chapter II, Literature Review, is aimed at exploring theoretical background for the
thesis. This chapter will focus on six main points: definitions of attitudes and teachers‟
attitudes; factors affecting teachers‟ attitudes; previous studies on teachers‟ attitudes
towards grammar; the interplay between teachers‟ attitudes and their teaching in general

and their communicative grammar teaching in particular.
Chapter III, Research Methodology, presents an overview on the context of the study,
participants, instruments used to collect the data, and the procedure of data collection.
Chapter IV, Data Analysis and Discussion, is devoted to a detailed description of data
analysis and a discussion of the findings of the study.
Chapter V is the conclusion of the thesis, which concludes some major findings, gives
some implications, limitations of the study and suggestions for further study.
CHAPTER II: LITERATURE REVIEW


3

2.1. Definitions of “attitudes”
There are various definitions of “attitudes”. The Oxford Advance Learners‟ Dictionary
of Current English(1995:66) defines attitudes as “…the way that you think and feel about
somebody or something; the way that you behave towards somebody or something that
shows how you think and feel”. This definition centers mainly on how a person believes,
feels and then behaves in a certain way that reflects his established belief and feeling.
Richardson (1996) provides comprehensive definition, which is adopted in this study,
attitudes and beliefs can be used interchangeably, "Attitudes and beliefs are a subset of a
group of constructs that name, define, and describe the structure and content of mental
states that are thought to drive a person‟s actions" (p. 102). From this definition, attitudes
are defined within the framework of social psychology as a subjective or mental
preparation for action. Attitudes are outward and visible postures. Attitudes determine
what each person will see, hear, think and do. Attitudes can be positive and negative.
According to Good (1973), attitudes are “The predisposition or tendency to react
specifically towards an object, situation, or value, usually accompanied by feelings and
emotions; attitudes cannot be directly observed but must be inferred from overt behavior,
both verbal and nonverbal”.
Lastly, Petty and Cacioppo (1986) describe attitude and behavior comprehensively as

“individuals‟ general evaluations about himself/herself, others, other objects, events and
problems”.
2.2. Definitions of teachers’ attitudes.
It is known that attitudes have a profound impact on teacher practices and behaviors.
Teachers‟ attitudes mean teachers‟ view and behaviors in school. There is now agreement
in general education studies that teaching is a cognitive activity and that teachers' beliefs
greatly impact their instructional decisions in the classroom (e.g., Shavelson, & Stern,
1981; Tillema, 2000). Within second language education, teaching is also now viewed as a
complex cognitive activity (Borg, 2003). As Borg (2003) suggests, "teachers are active,
thinking decision-makers who make instructional choices by drawing on complex
practically-oriented, personalized, and context-sensitive networks of knowledge, thoughts,
and beliefs" (p, 81). Indeed, research has indicated that teachers possess a vast array of
complex beliefs about pedagogical issues including beliefs about students and classroom
practices (Berliner, 1987; Borg, 1998, 2003; Burns, 1992; Shavelson & Stern, 1981). These


4

beliefs are said to form a structured set of principles and are derived from a teacher's prior
experiences, school practices, and a teacher's individual personality (Borg, 2003).
Furthermore, and as noted by Shavelson and Stern (1981), what teachers do in the
classroom is said to be governed by what they believe and these beliefs often serve to act
as a filter through which instructional judgments and decisions are made.
Johnson (1994) has suggested that teachers‟ attitudes or beliefs are neither easy to
define nor study because they are not directly observable. What we do know is that
teachers‟ attitudes or beliefs consist of tacitly held assumptions and perceptions about
teaching and learning (Kagan, 1992), that they are generally stable and that they reflect the
nature of the instruction the teacher provides to students (Hampton, 1994). According to
Johnson (1994: p.439), educational research on teachers' attitudes share three basic
assumptions: (1) Teachers' attitudes influence perception and judgment. (2) Teachers'

attitudes play a role in how information on teaching is translated into classroom practices.
(3) Understanding teachers' attitudes is essential to improving teaching practices and
teacher education programs. In the area of language teaching, teachers‟ attitudes have been
examined to see how personal attitudes and knowledge of the pedagogical systems of
teaching have informed the instructional practices and decisions of teachers of English as a
second language (e.g., Borg, 2003; Burns, 1992; Golombek, 1998).
In addition, the study of teachers‟ attitudes, as Richards, Gallo, and Renandya (2001)
have pointed out that "forms part of the process of understanding how teachers
conceptualize their work" (p.42.)
Finally, Ng & Farrell, ( 2003) and Yim (1993) investigate on teachers‟ attitudes and
suggest that what teachers say and do in the classroom is governed by their attitudes.
In conclusion, teachers‟ attitudes are teachers‟ view and behaviors in school. These
attitudes are implicit and unconscious, teachers‟ personal pedagogical knowledge. These
attitudes also include cognitive and affective components; create links between practice,
experience and decisions which have to be made. These attitudes greatly impact their
teaching in class.
2.3. Factors affecting teachers’ attitudes
As I have mentioned above, teachers‟ attitudes determine their actions in the
classroom. Different teachers can have positive and negative attitudes to their teaching
because there are different factors their attitudes to teaching. In this part, I only mention


5

factors affecting teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar communicative language teaching to
prove that there have been many factors affecting the teachers‟ attitudes. As KaravasDoukas (1996) stated, “one of the first factors affecting many teachers‟ attitudes is culture
values”. EFL teachers' attitudes and practices are related to cultural values and their
practices. According to Gamal and Debra, teachers are seen as knowledge holders and they
might consider that if they play games with students or ask students to role-play in class,
they might not be seen as doing their job. This finding corresponds with Burnaby and Sun's

(1989) findings that Chinese teachers felt they were not teaching when they use CLT
activities and anticipated that the students would complain against them. Ellis (1994)
investigated the appropriateness of the communicative approach in Vietnam. It was found
that one of the basic problems in implementing a communicative approach in Vietnam was
the teachers' holding on to the deep-rooted tradition. This problem, according to Ellis, was
compounded by two traditional practices: the cultural reluctance of the Vietnamese to
challenge written words, and the focus on grammar translation in the examination system.
The study also reported that Vietnamese teachers believed that they did not have necessary
knowledge of the target language culture. Therefore, they felt CLT does not culturally fit.
Based on the findings of the study on Vietnamese pedagogical beliefs, Ellis (1994)
concluded that CLT approach in its original form is not suitable for Vietnamese conditions
and that "although there is a strong demand for communicative competence in Vietnam, it
is not matched by adequate teacher training, communicative language materials and
suitable learning environments" (p. 69). He has suggested that, "the ways of making
communicative approach culturally acceptable to the Vietnamese are in keeping with their
own cultural values embedded and reflected in their language they use" (p.71).
Another factor affecting teachers‟ attitudes is teachers' experience in English language
learning. As teachers practices can be affected by their own language learning experience,
this may form a vicious cycle in which the pedagogic style of potential teachers are
moulded by the style of their own teachers and when they become teachers, their
traditional style will be passed on to the next generation of teachers. As noted by Freeman
(1992:3), language teachers' own language learning experience affects their future thinking
and practices. He states that 'the memories of instruction gained through their
"apprenticeship of observation' function as de facto guides for teachers as they approach


6

what they do in the classroom'. Freeman (2002) puts forward that English and foreign
language teaching is mediation between how the teacher conceives of, and represents,

content to students.....' (p.9) and the past 'becomes one more vantage point on current
activity'. Thus, prior experiences are likely to be integrated into the teacher's present
thinking. This means that the grammar learning experience of a teacher affects the teacher's
belief about the value of learning and teaching grammar. This view is supported by Bailey
et al. (1996) who studied language teachers' own experiences as language learners and
examined the potential impact these experiences had on each individual's teaching
philosophy and practice. They found that teachers had been witnesses to both 'good' and
'bad' teaching and these different styles of teaching influenced teachers and contributed to
their beliefs about the kind of teachers they wanted to be in the future. As language
teachers, we usually have a 'purposeful selection of the best traits of the teachers we most
admired' (p.15). Thus, teachers would adapt a grammar teaching approach that they
experienced as effective in helping them to acquire grammar knowledge and tend to ignore
approaches that they could not benefit from during their grammar learning stage.
Johnson (1994) also found that pre-service ESL teachers' beliefs were based largely on
their images of their own formal and informal language learning experiences, and such
images represented their dominant model of action during their teaching practices.
Experiences in teachers own grammar learning play a central role in formulating teachers'
images and thus affect their beliefs about and practices of grammar pedagogy.
The argument that a teacher's experience in learning and teaching grammar plays a
major part in formulating his own grammar pedagogic practices is supported by Borg
(1998) who found that his subject's experience of her own language education played a
powerful role in defining her position and her belief about grammar teaching. She learnt
her own LI at a time when England adopted the anti-grammar system. Thus, her LI
education did not involve her into detailed and formal analysis and description of the
language. At the same time, her foreign language learning experience also affected her
greatly. Her experience of learning French was meta-linguistically-rich and grammar
played a central role in her French lessons. It was frustrating for the subject and did not
enable her to develop any communicative competence in French. Such negative feelings
about studying grammar limited her teaching practices to dealing with grammar only
superficially and promoting the use of meta-language was not a priority in her lessons.

7

Apart from the cultural values and the teaching experience of teachers affecting
teachers‟ attitudes, there are many other factors as follows, different English proficiency
and communication skills of the students, lack of resources and large-sized unequipped
classrooms. Many researchers find that teachers‟ attitudes have been affected by large–
sized classrooms in applying CLT to teach grammar. Gamal and Debra (2001) have found
that the limited resources made Egyptian EFL teachers difficult prepare and present the
teaching according to the CLT approach. They also find that EFL teachers' lack of English
proficiency and limited knowledge of CLT pedagogy as constraints.
In conclusion, there are various factors affecting teachers‟ attitudes, namely, traditional
culture, students‟ proficiency, teaching experience or physical facilities (lack of resources,
large-sized unequipped classrooms).
2.4. The interplay between the teachers’ attitudes and their teaching.
As discussed in the previous section, teachers' attitudes are affected by various factors.
This section is extended to the argument that teachers' attitudes affect their teaching.
Teachers bring their personal characteristics into the style of their teaching. These
characteristics include attitudes that have developed over their lifetimes, and are the result
of accumulated events and knowledge of the world. These attitudes are firmly entrenched
by an individual. Teachers‟ educational attitudes have an effect on their teaching styles.
Teachers‟ styles, and mainly their attitudes, are strong context outcomes, rooted in
experience and do not become automatic routine conducts, in the sense that they are
developed via very slow interactions (action/ reaction). In that sense, attitudes can be
modified only by each individual.
Burns (1996), Clark and Yinger (1979) believe that what teachers do is affected by
what they think and the kinds of pedagogical beliefs that they hold. She elaborates that
thinking and beliefs teachers hold are 'fundamental in motivating classroom interactions.
They determine what is represented for learning and how the representation of content

takes place' (p.154). She proposes that teachers' thinking coheres around interconnecting
and interacting 'contextual' levels - 'the intercontextuality of teacher thinking and beliefs'
(p,158) in which the second contextual level involves the personal philosophies, thinking,
attitudes, beliefs and expectations that the teacher had developed about language, learning,
and learners. Thus, she argues that critical insights into what constitutes language teaching
need to give voice to the perspectives of teachers themselves.


8

Wray (1993) studied student-teachers' knowledge and beliefs about language and he
notes that teachers' beliefs about various aspects of language and literacy might strongly
influence their approaches to teaching these areas. Woods (1996) holds similar views that
teachers' interpretations of classroom events were greatly influenced by their beliefs.
Similar conclusions were drawn by Johnson (1994) and Tudor (1996). Johnson (1994)
found that the pre-service teachers' images of teachers and teaching formed a model for
their instructional practices and even though these pre-service teachers wanted to alter their
instructional practices, their lack of alternative images in their mind limited them to make
changes in a practicum environment. Tudor (1996) suggested that teachers have subjective
needs and perceptions of the classroom and these influence their attitudes and behaviour in
the classroom. Thus, teachers have their own private agendas and sets of beliefs about
language teaching which they bring with them to the language classroom.
It can be obvious that different factors affect either positive or negative attitudes of the
teachers. Baily (1992) and Golombek (1998) affirm the notion that changes in teacher‟
attitudes precede changes in their teaching practices. Similarly, Hampton (1994) notes that
teachers‟ beliefs or “personal construct” determine how they approach their teaching.
These beliefs may be general or very specific. Harste, Woodword, and Burke (1984)
identified that teachers‟ beliefs strongly affect the materials and activities they choose for
the classroom. As a result, teachers‟ attitudes have relationship with their teaching in class.
Teachers‟ attitudes determine their teaching, the methodology they choose for their

students in class.
2.5. Previous studies on teachers’ attitudes to grammar and grammar teaching.
As I have mentioned above, teachers‟ attitudes affect their teaching styles. English
language teachers have different attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching. Some
have positive attitudes, others have negative attitudes to grammar and grammar teaching.
Some applied linguists have argued strongly that grammar is not important and grammar
teaching should be minimized.
Even applied linguists have different stances to grammar and grammar teaching. Some
have argued that the teaching of grammar is either impossible (e.g. Prabhu, 1987) or
unnecessary (e.g. Krashen, 1988 and Nassaji & Fotos, 2004). Others think teaching
grammar is necessary (e.g. Rutheford, 1987).


9

Prabhu (1987) has argued that grammar teaching is impossible for the knowledge used
in a language by a speaker is too complex.
For Krashen (1988), grammar teaching is unnecessary as knowledge is a kind that can
not be passed on with rules, but can only be acquired unconsciously through exposure to
the language.
Nassaji & Fotos (2004), agree with Krashen (1988), claim that language learning is not
conscious, but unconscious. He supports his argument with cases where speakers of
different mother tongues learnt English morphemes in a similar sequence. According to
this result, it can be said that the same process lies behind both L1 and L2 learning.
Consequently, if learners do not need formal instruction to obtain L1 but can acquire it
through nature exposure, they also do not require grammar lessons to learn L2.
For those who support grammar teaching, grammar is “a necessary component of any
language teaching programme” (Rutheford, 1987:9), and thus plays an important role in
language teaching. However, the focus on grammar in language teaching was challenged
with the emergence of teaching methodologies based on different learning theories, Such a

challenge influenced not only the content and the curriculum in language teaching, but also
the implication for teaching grammar.
According to Chandler (1988), 84% of the teachers taught some grammar, many of
these said their own language learning experiences at school were their main source of
grammatical knowledge (and hence, Chandler concluded, of their inevitably outdated
practices). On the basis of teachers‟ responses to questions about the importance of
knowing about language for their work, Chandler was also very critical of teachers‟ lack of
awareness of the role of language understanding in all facets of their work, leading him to
describe the attitude of the teachers in his study as one of „confident ignorance‟ (Chandler,
1988: 23).
Teachers' firm attitude of the importance of grammar is also found in the study by
Burgess & Etherington (2002) who found that the majority of teachers in this study
appreciated the value of grammar for their students and agreed that grammar could be
viewed as a framework for the rest of the language and that grammatical accuracy is
integral to language and communication. Teachers also felt that explicit teaching of
grammar is favored by the students because of expectations and feelings of security.
In the model of communicative competence, which was proposed by Canale (1983)


10

and Swain (1980), the significance of grammar is clearly illustrated. In this model,
grammar is an essential component. Without grammar, learners can communicate
effectively only in a limited number of situations. They may be able speak sentences with
simple structures, mostly about daily life conversational sentences. However, if they have
to present in formal situations, such as a graduation seminars, they will not be able to
create complete sentences which they would only be able to produce until they have
accumulated a certain amount of grammar knowledge. In “The Place of Grammar
Instruction in the Second/ Foreign Language Curriculum”, Rod Ellis points to much recent
research on ESL/ EFL learning and acquisition and notes that without grammar instruction,

learners frequently fail to achieve advanced level of grammatical competence. He further
finds that it is possible to include a grammar component in the language teaching
curriculum together with the instruction centered around communicative tasks. He
emphasizes that research has shown that grammar instruction can improve the quality of
second and foreign language learning.
Some linguists take a middle point view. They argue that grammar can still be taught,
but less systematically, in traditional ways alongside more innovative approaches.
Savignon (2002:7) says "... for the development of communicative ability [communication
depends on grammar], research findings overwhelmingly support the integration of formfocused exercises with meaning-focused experience". Grammar is important; and learners
seem to focus best on grammar when it relates to their communicative needs and
experiences. Disregard of grammar will virtually guarantee breakdown in communication
(Savignon 1991, 2001; Thompson 1996). Savignon (2002:7) remarks that, "communicative
language teaching does not necessarily mean the rejection of familiar materials [grammar]"
Rivers in her famous statement strengthened Savignon's remark in that "Saying that we do
not need to teach grammar is like saying that we can have a chicken walking around
without bones" cited in Arnold (1994:122). Nowadays, it seems that educators accept that
an appropriate amount of class time should be devoted to grammar, but this does not mean
a simple return to a traditional treatment of rules. Rather "the focus has now moved away
from the teacher covering to the learners discovering grammar" (Thompson 1996:11).
Regarding teachers‟ attitudes on grammar and grammar teaching was conducted by
Eisenstein-Ebsworth and Schweers (1997), who used questionnaires with a total of 60
university teachers of ESL in New York and Puerto Rico, and informal interviews with


11

eight of these, to explore their views about conscious grammar instruction. The majority of
the teachers felt grammar should be taught at least sometimes, with the Puerto Rico
teachers more in favor of conscious instruction than the New York group. This was
explained partly in terms of the more traditional approach to language teaching generally

advocated in Puerto Rico; as one teacher in the latter group explained, „grammar has
always been part of our language learning experience. We see no reason to abandon it
totally (Eisenstein-Ebsworth & Schweers, 1997: 247). Forty-one of the teachers reported
having a well-defined approach to teaching grammar that they were confident in. In a tone
strikingly more positive than Chandler (1988), the authors report that: teachers‟ ideas
regarding grammar were generally well-developed. This was confirmed by their abilities to
express clear and coherent rationales for their approaches to curriculum and pedagogy.
(Eisentein-Ebsworth & Schweers, 1997: 251)
Finally, Burgess and Etherington (2002) used a questionnaire to examine the beliefs
about grammar and grammar teaching held by 48 teachers of English for academic
purposes (EAP) in UK universities. Overall, the teachers in this study reported positive
attitudes towards formal

instruction; they felt it had a contribution to make to the

development of their (normally advanced) EAP students‟ proficiency and that conscious
knowledge of grammar played a role in these students‟ use of language (as the authors
note, the absence of detailed qualitative data precluded further insight into these
views).Over 90% of the teachers in this study felt that their students expected them to
present grammar points explicitly.
2.6. The interplay between teachers’ attitudes and their grammar teaching.
Some teachers have positive attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching. They
argue that there are a lot of suitable grammar teaching methods which depend on their
attitudes to students‟ levels, classroom sizes, equipped materials and other things. Ellis
expresses that beginning students whose language base is comparatively small may not be
ready for explicit grammar instruction and that exposure to structural work can begin once
learners have had an opportunity to increase their lexical repertoire and language base.
Ellis‟ model for grammar teaching at subsequent levels can be designed to address learner
problems with grammar directly by focusing on the areas that have been identified as
particularly difficult to acquire. He emphasizes that the primary goal of explicit and

focused grammar instruction is to heighten learners‟ awareness of grammatical features


12

and systems, and most importantly, to promote learners “noticing” of grammar regularities.
He points out that traditional ways of teaching grammar, in which rules are presented and
drilled, have not been successful, but grammar instruction to enhance noticing by means of
discovery tasks can lead to acquisition and automatization.
Similar to Ellis‟ attitude to teaching grammar effectively through communicative tasks,
Jack Richards holds a positive attitude to the effectiveness of grammar learning when
students are engaged in communicative tasks. He points out that in task work, noticing
linguistic forms and the environments in which they occur often leads to learners‟
increases abilities to identify the grammatical systems of the second and foreign language.
In addition, task work can allow students to experiment and restructure their hypothesis
about the target language and stresses that the grammar gap in task work needs to be
proactively addressed. In his view, language instruction needs to include focused tasks to
facilitate learners‟ noticing grammatical forms and to promote accuracy in communicative
teaching.
New Perspectives (2002:240) experts also agree that grammar should be taught
communicatively, meaningfully, and in the context of use and that it should not be treated
or taught separately from discourse. Most instructors realize this to varying degrees,
though they also see how tough it is to carry out the creed. While both teachers and
students may experience inadequate language facts to bolster all the established
grammatical principles, they can also argue that a great many of language details contrive
to stand out against the unity of any such principles even with the limited learning material
at hand.
According to Thompson (1996), teachers have different attitudes towards grammar
teaching because of their misconceptions of CLT. One of the persistent misconceptions is
that CLT means not teaching grammar although "the exclusion of explicit attention to

grammar was never necessary part of CLT" (Thompson 1996:10). In CLT involvement in
communicative event is seen as central to language development, and this involvement
necessarily requires attention to form (structure). In fact, it is certainly understandable that
there was a reaction against the heavy emphasis on structure at the expense of natural
communication. Nonetheless, it would seem foolish to make mistakes on the side of using
communicative approach exclusively and totally disregard grammar teaching. In this
regard, Celce-Murcia (1991) comments:


13

In spite of the intuitive appeal and the anecdotal
evidence

supporting

proposal

for

exclusively

communicative language teaching, there is equally
appealing and anecdotal evidence... that a grammarless
approach ... can lead to the development of a broken,
ungrammatical, pidgenized form of the target language
beyond which students rarely progress (p 462).

Positive attitudes towards communicative language teaching and positive intentions to
do it in the classroom may be influenced by factors that may be divided into two broad

categories: (1) internal and (2) external constraints. Internal constraints represent those
factors that come from within teachers themselves, such as poor subject knowledge.
External constraints refer to factors that come from structural and organizational factors,
which teachers have no control over like students and parents' beliefs, lack of resources or
administrative obstacles. The two sets of constraints are interdependent. Hui (1997)
classifies constraints in CLT into five: economic, administrative, cultural, population, and
the teachers' academic ability. By economic factors, Hui means that the unavailability of
resources such as: photocopying, over-head projectors and computers, absence of enough
English books, etc. The influence of administrators is observed, especially when teaching
performances are evaluated, the focus is on the teachers (how well they speak English, how
well they use the blackboard, etc.) rather than students and their learning processes. "As a
result, teachers are more active than students, who simply follow their teachers rigidly and
mechanically (1997:38). Anderson (1993) says the most obvious obstacle to teaching
communicatively is the great demands it places upon the teacher. Similarly, Maley (1993)
argues that CLT is demanding to teachers in many ways, including the students‟
unfamiliarity to the approach. He goes on to state that this [communicative] approach
perhaps the greatest [difficulty] of all.
The effect could be recognized by teachers through practices in teaching. CLT does
never refuse grammar teaching. Some linguists and teachers always stresses grammar is
necessary for communication. But at the same time, others put stress on pair work.
However, it is an issue about how to learn grammar. Perhaps the view is too simplistic that
grammar is impossible to teach for it is too complex. Students will learn more effectively if


14

they participate in communicative activities actively about what they are learning. It means
that the students will discover grammar not their teachers. They talk at most of time under
the teachers‟ guidance about the language knowledge.
Richards, Gallo, and Renandya (2001) using a self – report questionnaire with

participants in an in-service have found that although many stated they followed a
communicative approach to teaching, "many of the respondents still hold firmly to the
belief that grammar is central to language learning and direct grammar teaching is needed
by their EFL/ESL students" (p. 54).
2.7. Conclusion
Teachers differ in their attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching because they
are influenced by a variety of different factors. First, the lack of consensus among applied
linguists on the role of grammar confuses teachers about the role of grammar. Second,
teachers‟ limited pedagogical knowledge and the target language proficiency also
influences they way they view grammar. Finally, contextual constraints such as lack of
resources and work pressure may make teachers resist to new options for teaching
grammar.

CHAPTER III: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1. An overview on the context of study.


15

Haiduong Medical Technical University was founded in 1960. The aim of the
university is to train successful future medical technicians who are well-equipped with
medical technical specialized knowledge. In addition, English is also considered as an
important subject in the training program because it is a means of international
communication which is very helpful to the students after their graduation.
The university has always provided good conditions for English learning and teaching.
Overhead projectors, videos, cassettes are available which enable the teachers and the
students to perform their teaching and learning.
However, there have been some problems that should be solved. The classes are quite
big. There are more than 50 or even 65 students in each class. As a result, it is too difficult
for the teachers to control the class. The students do not have enough time to practice

English in the class. Furthermore, the students in my university have various English
qualifications. Some of them come from the mountainous areas, in which they have never
been taught any foreign languages before. Some of the others studied other foreign
languages like French, Russian or Chinese. In addition, the students‟ communicative
competence is not good. They hardly have opportunities to communicate with foreigners,
especially with native speakers.
The final goal of English teaching program at MTU is that the students are able to
communicate with foreigners both in spoken and written English at intermediate level. In
order to do this, the students need general knowledge of English grammar. They are taught
New Headway Pre Intermediate in three terms. At the end of each term, the students are
required to take written tests only. That is why some of the teachers focus on teaching
grammar in the way so that the students can pass the exams.
3.2. Participants
This study was carried out with six teachers of English, aged from 25 to 50, who are
working at English – Informatics Department, MTC. Their experience of teaching English
varies from 3 years to 27 years. Of the six teachers, two are master holders; one is doing a
master course at Vietnam National University. The rest have graduated from universities of
Foreign Languages.

This is a profile of the participants:


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Name

Gender

Age

Teaching

Qualification

Experience
Mai

Female

52

23 years

Master

Ha

Female

44

18 years

Bachelor

Tuan

Male

46

20 years

Master

Trang

Female

30

6 years

Bachelor

Huong

Female

30

5 years

Bachelor

Thoa

Female

27

2 years

Bachelor

3.3 Instrumentation
This study, as indicated in Chapter one, was intended to find out the attitudes of the
English language teachers in MTU towards the communicative approach to English
grammar teaching. For this purpose, therefore, a descriptive research method was chosen
as it is used to describe a phenomenon. Interviews and classroom observations seemed to
be appropriate instruments to collect data for the study. The interview was a structured one
in which the “agenda is totally predetermined by the researcher, who works through a list
of set questions in a predetermined order” (Nunan 1992: 149). According to Nunan (ibid),
“the type of interview one chooses will be determined by the nature of the research and the
degree of control the interview wishes to exert” (p.149). This study was aimed at finding
out the teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar teaching through CLT. Therefore, I chose the
interview in order to have more in-depth information. Beside the interview, classroom
observation was conducted to clarify and test the validity of the obtained information about
the teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar teaching through CLT.
3.3.1. The Interviews
All six teachers of English were asked to follow the textbook New Headway Pre
Intermediate to teach the first-year non English major students. They are completely aware
of grammar points presented in the book. Thus, the interviews were carried out to
investigate the teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar teaching and their current methods of
teaching grammar.

3.3.2. Classroom observation


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Along with the interview, classroom observation was also conducted in order to
bolster the quantitative results. The observation in this study was done through real
teaching. The observation was conducted in several English periods with different classes
of first year students who were learning New Headway Pre Intermediate at MTU.
3.4. Procedures
3.4.1. The Interviews
Selinger and Shohamy (1989) point out that the use of interview as a data collection
instrument permits a level of in-depth information, free response, and flexibility that can
not be obtained by other procedures. The interview questions were designed to elicit
information about the teachers‟ attitudes regarding grammar and grammar teaching, and
about the teachers‟ attitudes to the approach CLT (Q1, Q6, Q8). Other questions were
aimed at obtaining information about factors affecting teachers‟ attitudes towards
grammar and grammar teaching communicatively (Q2, Q3) as well as interplays between
teachers‟ attitudes towards grammar and their communicative grammar teaching with
reference to the New Headway Pre Intermediate (Q4, Q5, Q7). Before being interviewed,
the six teachers were briefed about the aim of the interviews. Then they were asked to
express their opinions. Each of the interviewee was asked 8 questions (see Appendix). The
interview lasted from 30 – 45 minutes in length. All the interviews were audio-recorded
and then transcribed in written form. In order to make the participants be confident and
easy to express their opinions as much as possible, all the interviews were conducted in
Vietnamese and then translated into English.
3.4.2. Classroom observation
It is true that observation has always been considered as a major data collection tool
in second language acquisition researches, because it allows the study of a phenomenon at
close range with many of the contextual variables present (Selinger and Shohamy 1989;
Koul 1984). Thus, the main purpose of having classroom observation was to ascertain the
prevalent problems given by the teachers during the interviews. This is to say that the
observation was mainly done to cross-check whether the problems forwarded by teachers
exist or not. The observation had nothing to do with the lessons taught rather its purpose

was to confirm how far the teachers‟ responses during the interview were serious enough
to affect the teaching process. Six classroom lessons were observed. In each lesson, one
teacher (who took an interview) was observed. In all the observations made, I took the


18

position where my presence did not disturb the class. In other words, the observation was
made without intervention in any way.

CHAPTER IV: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION


19

4.1. Introduction
In the previous parts, the subjects and instruments of the study were described. In
this section, the collected data were presented and interpreted. Once the research data were
collected using different types of data collection procedures as described in the previous
chapter, the next step is to analyze those data. It generally consists of presentation of the
detail descriptions of the interviews and observations‟ result.
4.2. Data Analysis and Discussion
4.2.1. The Interviews
4.2.1.1. Teachers’ attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching
In order to study the teachers‟ attitudes about issues of grammar and grammar
teaching, I interviewed six teachers six questions (Questions 1,2,3,4,6 and 8). For the first
question about the role of grammar in learning English, all of six teachers have positive
attitudes towards grammar and grammar teaching. They all say that grammar is very
important for their students in learning English. This contradicts Krashen (1988)‟s view
that grammar teaching is unnecessary as knowledge is a kind that cannot be passed on with

rules, but can only be required unconsciously through exposure to the language. One
teacher said in the interview that,
“Grammar is an important role in learning foreign language in general and
in learning English in particular. In order to study well any foreign
language, students must know how to use the simple structures of that
language.” (Mai)
Most of the teachers participating in the interviews stated their beliefs that knowledge of
grammar would help their students analyze grammatical elements of utterances and
sentences. Their students could make correctly grammatical sentences.
“I think that grammar is important for my students. Mastery of grammar
helps my students analyze grammatical elements of utterances and
sentences. When they are good at grammar they can make sentences
correctly” (Ha)
“In my opinion, grammar is very important because it helps learners speak
or write logically and grammatical correctly. Grammar is especially
important to my students for some reasons. Firstly, all exercises are
designed to test the students‟ usage of correct structures and the final


20

examinations all are in written form to check their understanding of
grammar. If they are good at grammar, they are easy to do exercises
correctly to get good marks. Moreover, my students‟ English proficiency is
limited so grammar is considered the first favor in English learning and
teaching” (Trang)
In addition to their concern about accuracy, the teachers believed that grammar
played an important role in enabling their students to use English more effectively. They
made the point that:
“Grammar is a typical base to help my students improve their language

skills (Listening, Speaking, Reading and Writing) and their communicative
competence.” (Thoa)
“It is important for my students to learn grammar so that they are able to
express personal thoughts in the appropriate syntax. Effective use of syntax
is important to show different attitudes and express power and identity.
Some incorrect forms of grammar may even be interpreted by the
listener/reader as being rude or impolite. The more precisely an individual
can express their thoughts and meanings, the more effective their
communication will be, and the more potential for success they will have in
their interpersonal and business communications throughout their lives"
(Tuan).
"The correct use of tense is an important skill for students to have and the
lesson plans developed to address this directly will help them communicate
effectively with co-workers and people in the community as to what they
want and need, what they have had and have done ". (Huong)
The teachers in this study held the opinion that if they did not teach grammar, the
students could not use English correctly. They would face up with many difficulties in
learning four language skills. In their opinion, grammar was useful for students to improve
their students‟ language skills. Because their students had different English proficiency,
they taught them grammar to help them master in grammar and practice their language
skills, and then they would feel confident in communicating with others. All of them stated
that if the teachers did not teach grammar, the students could not use English correctly.
They were likely to face up with many difficulties in learning four language skills. Trang


21

also gave an example in learning listening skill, “If the students do not understand the
usage of grammar, they will not understand the listening”. Besides that, the students could
not practice communication competence if they did not understand the correct grammar.

Trang said that “teaching grammar help my students in guessing words, phrases and even
sentences during listening; understand and use grammatically correctly during writing”.
She added, “Grammar helps my students the most in writing. For writing, the students
must apply different grammatical rules, and a good grasp of these rules made it easier for
them to identify their mistakes. Grammar is also very helpful for my students in reading.
When they read, they face some grammatical rules that they have not used in speaking and
writing. If their grammar is not good, it is too difficult for them to understand the reading”.
Thoa also confirmed that her students would be active and confident in communicating in
English with their friends if they mastered grammar. She expressed, “The correct use of
tense is an important skill for the students to have and the lesson plans developed to
address this directly will help them communicate effectively with co-workers and people in
the community as to what they want and need, what they have had and have done and also
to establish their identity based on their past history and future wants”. From the teachers‟
attitudes, I can find a high number of positive responses about the role of grammar and
grammar teaching in communicative competence. It seems that this group of teachers
believed that grammar was facilitating their students‟ language communication in
speaking, writing, reading, and speaking. Their perceptions supported the study by Ikpia
(2001) that students valued explicit grammar instruction because it enabled them to speak
and write English properly. These attitudes are also similar to the ideas proposed by Canale
(1983) and Swain (1980). In the model of communicative competence, the significance of
grammar is clearly illustrated. It has been established that the traditional grammar teaching
method is not an effective way to develop learners' communicative competence (Krashen,
1985, 1992; Nunan, 1989). Many researchers believe that if grammar is taught in a
communicative way, mastering grammatical knowledge is important to learners' overall
development toward target language use (Ellis, 1994, 1995; Lightbown, 1991 ;Lightbown
& Spada, 1990; Littlewood, 198 1; Savignon, 1991 ; Smith, 198 1 ; Widdowson, 1996)

Therefore, teachers in MTU seem to be aware of the need of grammar for achieving
communicative competence and they are teaching grammar to students may be to facilitate