Teachers and students’ perceptions of a good teacher of english= nhận thức của giáo viên và sinh viên về một người giáo viên tiếng anh tốt

Vietnam national university
University of languages and international studies
FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES

DIÊM THỊ HẢO TÂM
M.A. MINOR THESIS

TEACHERS AND STUDENTS’ PERCEPTIONS OF
A GOOD TEACHER OF ENGLISH
(Nhận thức của giáo viên và sinh viên về một người
giáo viên tiếng Anh tốt)

Field: English teaching methodology
Code: 60 14 10
Supervisor: Nguyễn Minh Huê ê, M.A.

Hanoi, 2010


DECLARATION

I, Diem Thi Hao Tam, certify that this thesis is the result of my own research and the –
substance of this thesis has not, wholly or in part, been submitted for a degree to any other
university or institution.
Hanoi, September 2010
Diem Thi Hao Tam


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and foremost, I would like to express my special and sincere thanks to my
supervisor, Ms. Nguyen Minh Hue, who has given me great help with this thesis. Without

her experienced guidance, valuable suggestions and dutiful supervision, my research would
be far from finished.
I also wish to acknowledge my debt of gratitude to the staff members of the
Postgraduate Department and the lecturers at College of foreign Languages, Vietnam
National University for their valuable lectures, which provide me with scientific
knowledge that help to fulfill the study.
I am also thankful to all the teachers and students at Haiduong Medical Technical
University for answering the questionnaires and interviews.
Last but not least, thanks go to my family, especially my husband, who has given
me so much love, patience and encouragement.
Hanoi, September 2010
Diem Thi Hao Tam


TABLES OF CONTENTS
PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Statement of the problem and rationale for the study……………………………..

1

2 Research aims and questions………………………………………………………

2

3. Significance of the study…………………………………………………………

2

4. Chapter arrangements............................................................................................

3

PART B : DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW

4

I.1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………

5

I.2. Definition of a good teacher ……………………………………………………

5

II.2.1. General views about a good teacher…………………………………...

6

II.2.2. Specific attributes of a good teacher …………………………………..

10

I.3. General views and specific attributes of a good English teacher ………………..

10

II.3.1. General views about a good English teacher…………………………...

11

II.3.2. Specific attributes of a good English teacher………………………...

14

II.3.3. Perceptions of students and teachers on a good language teacher……..

17

I.4. Studies on teachers and students’ perceptions of a good teacher of English ……

17

I. 5. Summary………………………………………………………………………..
CHAPTER II: METHODOLOGY

19

II.1. Research context………………………………………………………………...

19

II.2. Participants………………………………………………………………………

19

- Teachers………………………………………………………………………………

19

- Students……………………………………………………………………………….

20

II.3. Data collection methods and procedures ……………………………………….

20

II.3.1. Questionnaires .......................................................................................

21

II.3.2. Interview................................................................................................

21

II.4. Data analysis ........................................................................................................
CHAPTER III: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

22

III.1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………
III.2. Teachers and students’ perceptions of the personal qualities of a good teacher
of English………………………………………………………………………….…..

22


III.3. Teachers and students’ perceptions of professional development and academic

23

requirement for a good teacher of English ……………………………………………

26

III.4. Teachers and students’ perceptions of the roles of a good teacher of English….

31

III.5. Teachers and students’ perceptions of the importance of classroom practices…

34

III. 6. Summary……………………………………………………………………….
PART C: CONCLUSIONS

36

1. Summary of the findings ……………………………………………………….

36

2. Implications …………………………………………………………………….

38

3. Limitations and recommendations for further research………………………..

38

4. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………...
REFERENCES
APPENDICES


LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

ESL: English as a second language
GED: General Educational Development
CLT: Communicative language teaching
ESP: English for special purpose
Q 1: Question 1


LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS
Chart : Teachers and students’ perceptions of the personal qualities .....................

23

Table 1: Teachers and students’ perceptions of professional development and
academic requirement.................................................................................................

24

Table 2: Teachers and students’ perceptions about roles of a language teacher........

26

Table 3: Teachers and students’ perceptions of the importance of classroom

practices.......................................................................................................................

31


ABSTRACT
During the past few decades there have been major changes in English language
teaching, particularly in teaching English as a foreign or second language. These changes
first emanated from dissatisfaction with traditional approaches based on teaching the
foreign language. For example, language teachers often put much attention to grammar
and translation, which is no more suitable to teaching and learning intention. So, the language
teachers are constantly faced with the problem of what to teach and how to do it.
Moreover, many language teachers always wonder how best, or perhaps, how appropriately,
the teaching and learning of English as a foreign language can be tackled. The purpose of
this study is to investigate the teachers’ and learners’ perceptions of a good English teacher.
Survey questionnaires and interview were designed and given for the students and teachers at
Haiduong Medical Technical University. The students and teachers’ perceptions were
compared to find out the similarities and differences. The results showed that the teachers and
students had different views of the main attributes of good English teachers. Teachers put
emphasis on the role of a good English teacher while students placed teaching practice in the
classroom to be the most important in considering good English teachers. The literature with
the present research incorporating students and teachers’ ideas would comprise a useful model
of the good English teacher. The model may be helpful for teacher self-development and selfassessment.


PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Statement of the problem and rationale for the study
A question that many teachers often ask is: I like my job, and I love the students,
but how can I become a good language teacher? The answer is not easy. It is clear that
whether someone can become a good foreign language teacher does not solely depend on

his /her command of the language. Some linguists assume that those who are engaged in
language teaching profession have the burden of keeping up-to-date, not only with the
language which is taught but ever changing learner needs and profiles as well (Kayhan,
1999). According to Schrier (1994), along with subject matter knowledge, professional
good foreign language teachers must also have “the ability to reflect, analyze critically,
select the tools and materials of

teaching, and evaluate the products and

performance of the learners” (p.220).
Wing (1995) emphasized that today’s language teachers are expected to have
multiple roles along with target language competence:
‘In structuring the foreign language environment, the teacher needs to be a manager
who facilitates language acquisition; a resource developer who uses to the greatest
advantage the target and native languages, materials, and technology; an analyst who
observes and evaluates what is happening in the classroom (p.168).’
Cross (1995) identified several ingredients of an ideal language teacher. According
to him, an ideal language teacher should have high level of education, subject matter
competence, professional competence which involves lesson planning, textbook selection,
materials and tests design, awareness of current teaching approaches, and educational
theory.
According to Williams (1975), in order to teach the language effectively, a teacher
needs two major competencies as well as having excellent knowledge of the target
language s/he is teaching, s/he should have teaching skills to apply in the classroom.
According to Williams’ argument, a language teacher should have a good blend of
target language knowledge on the one hand and skills to present and teach the target
language to the students on the other.
As a language teacher, it is necessary to know what a good English teacher is.
Needless to say, knowing how to be a good English teacher can improve the qualities of
teaching and help students learn English effectively and efficiently. Teacher’s personalities

and teaching methodologies will affect how students learn. Moreover, Jersild (1955) says
that the teacher’s understanding and acceptance of himself are the most important
requirement in any effort he makes to help students to know themselves and to gain healthy
attitudes of self-acceptance.
This study is conducted with the aim to find out the perceptions of students and
teachers of good teachers of English. By means of survey research based on questionnaires
and interviews completed by students and teachers, I try to define the characteristics of a
good English teacher both from teachers and students’ point of view. I hope that the views
from the participants are essential as a whole picture of teaching and learning language
activities. Though students’ perceptions instead of actions were the main focus in the
present study, it may be that people cannot implicitly understand the problems or the
factors of hindrance without looking at the whole picture from students and teachers.
Therefore, I would like to find out the differences between teachers’ and students’
perceptions in order to improve the quality of language teaching.
2 Research aims and questions
This study is carried out to:
a. to investigate teachers’ and students’ perceptions of a good teacher of English
b. To find out the differences between teachers and students of a teacher of English.
In order to achieve these aims, the study seeks to answer the following research
questions:
1.What are the perceptions of “a good teacher of English” held by students and
teachers of English at Haiduong Medical Technical University?
2. What are the commonalities and differences between the teachers’ and students’
perceptions of a good teacher of English?
3. Significance of the study
English as a second language (ESL) teachers often encounter student resistance to
some of their activities. Some students want more opportunities for free conversation
while others complain about the pattern drill. When language teachers fail to meet student

expectations, students can lose confidence or interests in the teacher and their ultimate
achievement can be limited. It is true that teacher’s performance have a strong impact on
the students’ ultimate success in language learning. Due to this reason, I decided to carry
out this study in order to explore a whole picture of what a good English teacher is, both


perceptions of teachers and students are crucial in this study. The students in the study
might have similar perceptions or very different perceptions from the English teachers.
Thus, looking for ways to use insights from the research might help English teachers
understand what to expect from students, or it might give teachers ideas for tasks,
assignments or assessment.
4. Chapter arrangements
The minor thesis consists of six chapters. The first chapter includes a statement of the
problem and rationale for the study, the aims, significance of the study as well as chapter
arrangement of the study. The second chapter includes five parts. The first part is
introduction, the second part is definition of a good teacher, the third is qualities of a good
English teacher, the following part is studies on teachers’ and students’ perceptions of a
good teacher of English and the last one is research questions. The third chapter is research
method: part one is research context, part two is participants, part three is data collection
instrument and procedures and part four is data analysis. In chapter four, the researcher
shows results and discussion about findings. Chapter five gives some implications. The last
chapter is about limitations and conclusions of the study.


PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
I.1. Introduction
In a study with 200 foreign language teachers teaching English, French,
Arabic,

Brosh (1996) identified the perceived characteristics of effective language

teachers. According to the results of this study, desirable characteristics of effective
language teachers include: knowledge and command of the target language, the ability to
organize, explain, and clarify, and the ability to arouse and sustain interest and motivation
among students. Many language teachers have the same point with Hammadou and
Bernhardt (1987):
“Language teachers differ from other teachers in that they do not teach a ‘factual
product’ but rather a process of communication and that they may lose the use of the
process if they themselves do not use it on a regular basis” (p. 302)
Included in many factors that directly influence the success of language teachers
are also conditions such as: teaching resources, administrative support, and physical
facilities in schools where teachers work (Crookes, 1997). In order to keep up with such a
demanding profession foreign language teachers need be in the development of
professional competence, which is the state or quality of being adequately qualified for the
profession, and armed with a specific range of skills, strategies, knowledge, and ability.
Moreover, they have to try their best to become a good language teacher. A question is
raised that how can one become a good language teacher? And to answer this question
each language teacher has to understand definitions and characteristics of a good language
teacher, which are mentioned in the following parts.
I.2. Definition of a good teacher
What is a good teacher? What characteristics should a good teacher possess? What
makes good teachers better than others? Buskist et al.’s (2002) study on students’
perceptions on what qualities “master” teachers possess produced a list of 28 traits. Such
qualities as knowledgeable, wellorganized, hardworking were all featured in the list.
However, it is interesting to note that more than half qualities in the list were
interpersonal in nature. Furthermore, the five most

valued characteristics were:

understanding, personable, respectful, happy, and caring. A good language teacher
should conduct interesting classes, emphasize

good pronunciation, give clear


explanation, have a good knowledge of the target language, have no favouritism, try to
involve the students into the classroom activities, and be patient. He/she should be
friendly, prepares good notes, can tell jokes, plays games with the students, treats the
weak learners well, and acts like a comedian. A good teacher should be able to explain
lessons clearly and arouse students’ interest. All responsible English teachers have ethic
devotion, and they are supposed to make their personal styles compatible with their work.
These two aspects, which are beyond the scope of this book, can be achieved as long as the
teacher himself has the willingness to do so. Moreover, he/ she should be kind, responsible
and establish good relationship with students. This review is aimed at finding out the
perception and qualities of a good teacher from different perspectives.
I.2.1. General views about a good teacher
For a teacher, years of teaching experience and knowledge of teaching methods do
not guarantee effective teaching. Teachers should constantly look for ways to develop
themselves professionally and sharpen their teaching skills along with the subject matter :
"One who teaches effectively, teaches not only his subject but himself. Personality
is that part of the teacher's self which he/she projects into every classroom activity, thereby
affecting and conditioning every learning situation" Penner (1992: p.45).
A language teacher's professional competence is much more difficult than a driver's
skill to handle a car, and is more complicated than student's competence of speaking a
foreign language. It involves more factors and longer learning time, and may never be
really finished. Good teachers must posses a number of approaches and patterns of
working and the flexibility to call on several different strategies in the space of one lesson.
Sound planning and skilful management are needed to blend class, group and individual
work to provide a wide range of learning activities, to observe, to solve problems, to offer

explanations and to apply skills and ideas. Regarding the communication, it means the
quality of interest in other people, especially students and being able to demonstrate that
interest through ideas and stories, as well as through shared values. Many students were
asked to give expected characteristics from their teachers; they said that they wished their
teachers to have some qualities as follows:
- They must be passionate about teaching, and patient, adapting to the level of the students
- A good teacher must be strict, friendly, interesting” “should be passionate and intelligent”
- They should not rely on the course book only


- They must know students’ individual needs” “help students make progress”
- They can give interesting lessons” “be kind”
- They have a good sense of humour
- They must be patient, flexible and creative
- They know the students’ names” “you must know your students” “must care”
I.2.2. Specific attributes of a good teacher
Teaching is as an art, it is true. Being a teacher is difficult but being a good teacher
is much more difficult. It demands each teacher must be creative, has sense of humor,
flexible, sometimes behaves as an ‘actor’, motivating, enthusiastic, is able to
communicate freely, and has positive attitude, etc. When being a teacher, he/ she often
worries and wants to answer the question that “What is a good teacher?” and we all find
that there are different qualities shaping a good teacher. As teachers we have to discover
essential elements as well as characteristics of becoming a good teacher. In my opinion, I
believe that if any teacher wants to become a good teacher, he/she will have the abilities to:
a. Motivate students to learn
Noone can deny that students’ motivation to learn is one of the most important
factors to create success for each lesson. Teachers are able to motivate the students by
using creative and inspirational methods of teaching. Each teacher has a different approach
and that makes students stand out from the crowd, share views and opinions without fear of
intimidation. Hence the reason why students enjoy their classes and seek the teacher out

for new ideas. If students have low motivation in learning it will be one of the problems
for teachers. According to Carroll (1977), successful second language learners are nearly
always highly motivated to learn the language. How to improve and sustain their interests
in learning is thus the responsibility of a good teacher.
b. Be a good model
Being a teacher is a way of life. Teachers are the window through which many
young people will see their future. According to Kottler and Zehm (2000), the best teachers
are those who have worked hard to practice what they know and understand in their own
personal lives. If they can preach to others some important values such as importance of
truth, honesty, self-discipline, knowledge, growth and taking constructive risks, then they
practice these same values in their own lives. As a result, the teachers become living
examples for their students as they can show what they say is important enough for the


students to apply to their own lives. The responsibility involves more than presenting
subject knowledge or making sure the students score high examination marks. Being a
teacher is a way of life. You are a teacher not only when you stand in front of the
classroom but also as you walk through life, applying what you know and understand and
can do.
c. Establish good relationship with students
Teachers who have good relationship with their students generally teach more
effectively. The reason is because the connection between students and teachers brings the
teachers to learn about each student as unique from others, and also enables them to
understand the diversity of all the students. This shows the importance of establishing good
relationships with students. Good teachers are usually associated with teachers who have
maintained a good relationship with their students. This assertion is reiterated by Palmer
(1999)
"Good teaching isn't about technique. I've asked students around the country to
describe their good teachers to me. All of them describe people who have some sort of
connective capacity, who connect themselves to their students, their students to each other,

and everyone to the subject being studied." (p. 27).
Good teachers are usually associated with teachers who have maintained a good
relationship

with

their students. The significance to students of

their teachers’

interpersonal posture is one of the reasons why some teachers are better than others.
d. Obtain personal qualities
In order to be a good teacher, patience, smart, honesty and creativity, sense of
purpose and sense of humor are necessary (Kottler and Zehm, 2000). One of the most
significant traits of an excellent teacher is patience. “With patience, teachers are likely to
react in an assertive attitude, giving students respect but simultaneously being able to retain
that firmness to control the class”( Gibb, 1961, p. 142). Without patience, it is likely that
teacher is unable to maintain a steady relationship with the student. The result of
impatience usually involves frustration, yelling and screaming, irritation, aggressiveness
and intolerance. These negative effects create a high anxiety-prone atmosphere, as well as,
perhaps disrespect for the teacher and bad attitude or behaviour in class.
Patience often comes from teacher’s empathetic understanding. Smart may refer
to intelligence. Teachers are perceived as being intelligent not just in ‘book smarts’ but


also in other aspects. In view of honesty, the writer explains that honesty means
teachers “can be trusted” and to tell the truth. Creativity is regarded as one of the
important elements in teaching, teacher should keep students on their toes, for
example, some interesting and motivational activities are introduced in the classroom
learning. Another quality of good teachers is a sense of purpose, teachers have an

expectation of success for every student, or a goal for students to complete certain tasks by
themselves after the course. Without a purpose, there is no meaning to teaching and
learning. In addition, a good teacher needs a sense of humor in classroom teaching. A
great sense of humour reduces barriers and lightens the atmosphere especially during
heavy periods. An ability to make students laugh will carry teachers far and gain the
teachers more respect. Kottler and Zehm (2000) state ‘if there is one major premise of
effective teaching, it is conveying the idea that learning is enjoyable.’
e. Understand students’ needs and difficulties
"As a teacher, this means that you know what your students expect, and you make
plans to meet those expectations. If you teach a GED class, you spend time explaining the
format of the test and helping students to improve their test-taking skills." (Hassett,2000,
p:46) being a good teacher, he/she has great efforts to understand of students’ modes of
learning, to understand that each student has diverse talents and interests, and take account
of this diversity in their teaching. Teachers know how to help students focus their
potentials on learning and growth, how to match appropriately teaching methods, processes
of inquiry, resources and content with the developmental level, temperament and learning
style of students. Teachers also respect students as individuals, and adapt their teaching to
suit the individual learning needs of all their students.
f. Have good mastery of knowledge
Gammage (1971) states that the teacher should be a prime source of knowledge. If
the teacher fails as a ‘prime source’ for his/her students, they will
knowledge of their teacher is inadequate. It is indispensable that

think

that the

he/she builds up

knowledge of the subject and masters the teaching materials well. Good mastery of content

is, therefore,a kind of professional development. A good teacher needs to effectively adapt
their practice on the basis of continual critical reflection on and evaluation of their
teaching, and seek feedback and appropriate support from other professionals. A good
teacher cannot lack of knowledge “since it is easy to burn out if teachers are not learning


and teaching something new periodically in their life” (Kohl, 1986, p. 54)
g. Have good teaching practice in classroom
Good teaching is associated with good classroom practice. Morgan and Morris
(1999: p.16) state that classroom practice can be divided into three aspects namely the
method of presentation, explanation or giving feedback and classroom control. There are
some principles of a good teacher’s presentation:
-

effectively select and sequence learning activities, and manage and pace teaching
time to achieve planned student outcomes;



apply a variety of human, material and technological resources to maximise
learning;

-

are as impartial as possible when discussing controversial matters with students;

-

create and maintain a learning environment which:
+ is interesting and challenging

+ is orderly and purposeful
+ is safe and supportive
+ is positive and enjoyable
+ encourages students to take control of their own learning
+ encourages students to take intellectual risks
+ respects the right of each student to form his/her own judgments based on
appropriate knowledge
+ fosters self-discipline, responsibility and creativity
+ develops in students an awareness of the consequences of their own behaviour
+ encourages cooperative learning
+ enhances each student’s psychological, emotional and physical well-being
+ encourages effective resolution of conflict
+ fosters cultural identity;
+ develop sound routine procedures to manage recurring tasks;
+ respond appropriately to situations which may arise incidentally;
+ maintain effective records for purposes of student assessment, evaluation of
teaching, counselling of students, reporting to parents, recording critical incidents;
+ effectively complete administrative tasks associated with teaching and pastoral
care.


Vernon (1953) states “Teachers are as diverse in their psychological traits as any other
occupational group, it is fallacious to talk of the teaching personality as something distinct
and consistent” (p.482). If teachers can make an interesting and exciting presentation,
students’ views a teacher is possessing good teaching practice.
To sum up, it can be said there are no standard or definite answers of looking at how good
a teacher is.
I.3. General views and specific attributes of a good English teacher
I.3.1. General views about a good English teacher
As I have already mentioned above, we studied the general views and the special

attributes of a good teacher. As a language teacher, I want to have a deeper study to answer
the question that what personal qualities, characteristics or classroom practices that help
make up a good language teacher? This answer is considered as a vital role in teaching
English process because perceptions of the language teacher’s role have changed
considerably. Nowadays language teachers are no longer seen exclusively as individuals
who hold and transmit language (like any other teachers), but as people who assist the
learners to develop a natural capacity to communicate in another language. With the
question that what personal qualities, characteristics or classroom practices that help make
up a good language teacher? I can take evidences from the study of Richards, Tung and Ng
(1992) as my own answer. The qualities as: good language teachers are able to motivate
students (52%), they are able to diagnose students’ weakness (26%), they know the subject
matter well (26%), they assist students in their development (24%), and they are wellorganized (22%).In fact, every teacher tries to do his/her work better every day and lots of
teachers whose interest in their students drives them to a constant search for more
motivating activities, more efficient teaching methods and better designed materials for
their classes. They spend a lot of time, inside and outside their classes, thinking how to
help their pupils.
Prodromou (1991) wrote a very precise and clear article. In it he reported the
results of a survey designed to discover students' views of good and bad language teaching.
Over 40 students (intermediate to advanced level) were involved in the survey. Some of the
characteristics of the good language teacher were: friendly, explained things, gave good
notes, knew how to treat someone who sits at a desk for six hours, let the students do it by
themselves- group work, etc. In his book, Scrivener (1994: p.15) lists some pieces for


advice for language teachers: Be as honestly yourself as you can be, encourage a friendly,
relaxed learning environment, ask open questions, allow time for students to listen, think
and process their answers, increase opportunities for student talking time, make use of
pairs and small groups, encourage co-operation rather than competition, encourage
interaction between students, use gestures, etc.
I.3.2. Specific attributes of a good English teacher

In addition to the general views about the qualities of good English teachers in
the previous section, there is other more subject specific attributes of being

a

good

English teacher. It is worthwhile to look at the following specific attributes of good
English teachers.
a) Understand students’ needs and difficulties
The needs and difficulties of each student may be different. In order to attain
successful learning by students, language teachers should be able to identify the needs
and abilities of individuals. If a good English teacher can find how students feel about
activities and tasks in the foreign language learning process, then it can be a relatively easy
task to make the adjustments necessary to increase the students’ learning potential. Yamoor
(1985) suggests that teachers have to change or eliminate those elements that evoked
negative attitudes which hinder learning.
b) Motivates students to learn English
Motivation of learners does seem to be one of the key factors in teacher- student
relationships. Wright (1987) points out that a primary function of teachers’ management
role is to motivate the learners who are unmotivated and to nurture those who are already
well motivated to the task of learning a foreign language. This can be achieved, for
example, by giving students meaningful, relevant and interesting tasks to do and involving
the learners more actively in the classroom process in activities that demand inter-student
communication and co- operative efforts on their part.
c) Use different teaching approaches and practices in classroom
Many teachers adopt the traditional ‘chalk and board’ approach in their language
teaching classroom. The teachers in Richards, Tung and Ng’s (1992) study were asked to
tell which teaching methods they used most frequently in their classes. The results showed
that 59% used a grammar-based

approach, 58% used a functional or communicative

approach and 44% used a situational approach. Moreover, when asked, many students


often complained that they had to do exercises most of the time during lessons; teachers
seldom play games and interesting activities with them in the English lessons. This idea
can be illustrated in the survey of Richards, Tung and Ng (1992). The teachers ranked the
classroom activities they most frequently employ in their teaching were ranked as:
1. doing reading and writing exercises from the textbook,
2. doing written grammar exercises,
3. composition,
4. pair or group work tasks,
5. reading aloud,
6. dictation,
7. oral grammar exercises.
It implies that teachers can try to change their teaching practices in the lessons
from drilling to more communicative tasks.
d) Create an interesting and relaxing environment
It is crucial to provide a motivating linguistic environment for the students once
they start learning English. This can be made by introducing more games and meaningful
activities during language lessons. Meanwhile, teachers’ encouragement and reinforcement
are both key factors in creating positive language learning environment. Teacher
encourages all students to contribute to the academic activities of the class. And he/she
establishes a classroom

in which one’s peers were not only willing but eager to draw

reluctant classmates into the activities.

e) Accept students’ mistakes
According to Rubin (1995), the process in learning a new language appeared to
involve trail and errors. They could be expected to make mistakes as they worked
toward understanding the many details of a language. As a result, the function of a
language teacher is to facilitate communication about matters of common interest, not to
provide a host of additional constraints to the learning process.
f) Balancing the use of four skills in English
In language classrooms the receptive skills of listening and reading have received
less attention than had the productive skills of speaking and writing historically. Teachers
might focus on oral language, so they fail to train students in listening and reading skills
effectively. As a result, students could not receive sufficient attention in each skill in


language learning. Language teachers should take their prominent place in a language
classroom; students will be provided opportunities to practise these skills. Since the four
skills have shown significant relationships, helping students acquire and develop the
four skills – reading, listening, speaking and writing in English lessons is put in high
priority. This is stressed by The Department of Education and Science in Great Britain
(1985) that students of any age need a satisfying balance between oral, practical and
written tasks providing scope for extended discussion as well as for sustained writing of
many different kinds.
g) Encourage students to speak and participate in English activities
In learning a foreign language, we find that four skills have to draw equal attention.
However, speaking may be one of the most difficult and complex skills for language
learners. In most situations, speaking involves more than talk, that means most speaking
tasks are interactive. Students lack the ability to communicate in the language, so they
do not have confidence to speak English.A good English teacher has the responsibility to
help students become proficient speakers through extensive and varied exposure to the
language.
To help students become

proficient speakers of target language,

the target

language needs to be used as much as possible in the classroom. Frequent and sustained
opportunities for interaction provide students with practice in both producing meaning
and in checking the comprehensibility of their messages (Long, 1983). As a result, our
students would have more opportunities to engage in speaking tasks in the classroom. In
turn, students will benefit most from tasks in which real meanings are conveyed, and in
which students perceive a purpose for speaking.
h) Give clear explanation
One of the main tasks of a good language of teacher is to help students understand
the language. In order for students to produce language spontaneously, they must first
understand it. There were some studies have put emphasizes on giving students clear
explanation. In the study done by Morgan and Morris (1999), students associated good
teaching with explanation which was made to the whole class as well as to the
individuals. Furthermore, good explanation is expected from a good English teacher.
Brown (1994) describes that good explanation skills include clarity and fluency of the
language used, emphasis and interest through voice, using examples, organization of ideas


and feedback to the students.
i) Being Up-to-date
It is better for a language teacher to catch up what changes are taking place in the
English curriculum nationally and what their own students are reading or seeing or
listening to. In order to help keep English teachers up-to-date, they need to stretch out and
touch the world. They should read some professional publications, novels, magazines,
classics and English journals. They should stay alert to changes in the youth culture,
especially changes in language, dress, and music. By doing so, teachers can understand

what moves, disturbs, or stimulates young people in language teaching.
I.3.3. Perceptions of students and teachers on a good language teacher
Teachers are constantly being enriched by daily contact with their learners which put
them in touch with different perspectives and ways of looking at things. Learning is more
effective if both teachers and students are actively involved in the teaching-learning
process. The problem, however, is that in most learning–situations in different parts of the
world, the teacher has the final word regarding classroom teaching. This stands in
contradiction to the belief that the learner has an equal part in the learning process.
According to Yorio (1989) “The experiences that students bring with them are important
in their learning and should, in consequence, also be important in our teaching, this is
particularly true in second- language classes where we deal with students of varied social
and cultural backgrounds and where what we do as teachers might be socially and/or
culturally alien to the students” (p.34) English-language teachers should learn continually
from their students and from other colleagues’ experience and knowledge with the purpose
of incorporating everything they learn into their teaching. The idea of considering the
learners’ and teachers’ perceptions as much as possible is directly connected with the
answer to the question what makes a good English language teacher?
a.

Teachers’ perceptions
For the language teachers themselves, motivating students to learn English is a

prerequisite to become a good English teacher. A good teacher or a good English teacher is
expected to assume his/her professional responsibilities at schools as whole-heartedly as
he/she can. When the teachers were asked about the views of their primary roles and main
roles of a language teacher, they described the roles clearly as follows:
* Primary role as a teacher in the classroom:


- to provide useful learning experiences,

- to provide a model of correct language,
- to answer learners’ questions, and
- to correct learners’ errors.
* Main roles as an English teacher:
- to help students discover effective approaches to learning
- to pass knowledge and skills to pupils
- adapt teaching approaches to meet students’ needs
The good teacher of modern languages (Sanderson 1983):
1. uses the foreign language predominantly,
2. is vigilant about pronunciation, intonation and stress,
3a. uses the foreign language for classroom instruction,
3b. uses the foreign language for the teaching/learning message,
4a. praises correct responses,
4b. is sympathetic/positive about wrong responses,
4c. conveys warmth in delivery of the message,
4d. conveys warmth through facial expression,
5. engages in intensive oral exploitation of material,
6. promotes understanding by non-verbal cues,
7. relates the foreign language to the target culture,
8. explains tasks clearly,
9a. is varied with regard to materials,
9b. is flexible with regard to objectives,
10. builds up on pupil error,
11. provides a variety of language activity,
12. involves the whole group,
13. is skilled in handling equipment,
14. promotes use of the foreign language by pupils.
b. Students’ perceptions
In addition to teachers’ persceptions, students’ perceptions on a good language
teacher are also essential. Some students were asked about what constituted a good teacher

of foreign languages in Altmann’s (1981) study and some viewpoints described by the


students are as follows:
- A real second language teacher is on my side
- A real second language teacher lets me be me and tries to understand what it’s like to be
me
- A real second language teacher accepts me whether he or she likes me or not.
- A real second language teacher doesn’t have expectations of me because of what I’ve
been or what he or she has been.
- A real second language teacher is more interested in how I learn than what I learn.
- A real second language teacher doesn’t make me feel anxious and afraid. He/ she
provides many choices
- A real second language teacher lets me teach myself even if it takes longer. A real
language teacher talks so I can understand what he or she means to say.
- A real second language teacher can make mistakes and admit it
- A real second language teacher can show his or her feelings and let me show mine.
- A real second language teacher wants me to evaluate my own work.
From the above description, the characteristics are unique and specific to the teacher of
foreign languages. Girard(1977) carried out a similar study and a thousand French school
pupils of different age groups were asked to make a list of the qualities of a perfect foreign
language teacher. The following ten descriptors are found to be the best qualities of a
good language teacher:
1. The good language teacher makes his course interesting.
2. He teaches a good pronunciation.
3. He explains clearly.
4. He speaks good English.
5. He shows the same interest in all the pupils.
6. He makes them participate.
7. He shows great patience.

8. He insists on the spoken language.
9. He makes pupils work.
10. He uses an audio-visual method.
It can be seen that the above general statements could apply to teachers of any
subjects, in which we find that statements 2, 4 and 8 are specifically for describing


language of foreign teachers.
I.4. Studies on teachers and students’ perceptions of a good teacher of English
Being a good English language teacher, students’ ways of learning a language is a
crucial piece of information. At the same time, knowing how students

see a good

language teacher is also important. It is believed that students hold a wide variety of beliefs
about language teacher. Some beliefs are likely influenced by students’ previous
experiences when they received education from their teachers. There have been few studies
on good English teachers (Richards et al., 1992; Urmston et al., 1996; Peacock, 2002) and
Riddell (2001). Besides these studies, there were some other western studies done by
Gorham (1987), Kutnick & Jules (1993) and Aksoy (1998). They have discussed most
of the characteristics of a good teacher, for instance, personality,instruction, relationship
and classroom management. Cortazzi & Jin (1996a) also carried out similar research
on the characteristics of a good language teacher in Tianjin. They asked 135 university
students to write essays on the expected characteristics of ‘A Good language Teacher’. In
the open-ended responses, most of the students felt that a good language teacher should be
patient, humorous, friendly and be a good moral example. Other qualities of a good teacher
were also mentioned, such as he/she teaches student about life; arouses students’ interest;
is warm-hearted and understanding; uses effective teaching methods; is caring and helpful;
and explains clearly.
However, I wonder whether the characteristics of a good language teacher found in

the above studies are appropriated for English teaching and learning in Vietnam.
Meanwhile, there seems to be no study on teachers and students’ perceptions of a good
English teacher in Vietnam. As a language teacher, who is teaching English in Vietnam, I
want to investigate what main characteristics Vietnamese students desire from their
language teachers.
I. 5. Summary
In Vietnam, English has always played a crucial role within the education system.
Language development is an important focus of education both for teachers and students.
If an English teacher requires certain level of skills and abilities in teaching English
effectively, including reading, writing listening, speaking and classroom language
assessment, a good English teacher needs to have more qualifications. They have to know
what students’ interests, needs and difficulties are. A good English teacher should have a