Increasing grade 10 students’ motivation in learning english by using oral presentation an action research at doan thi diem private high school

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN HOÀNG HUYỀN
ABSTRACT

INCREASING GRADE 10 STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION IN LEARNING
ENGLISH BY USING ORAL PRESENTATION: AN ACTION RESEARCH
AT DOAN THI DIEM PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOL
(Sử dụng hoạt động thuyết trình nhằm nâng cao động lực học tiếng Anh của học
sinh lớp 10: Nghiên cứu hành động tại trường THPT Dân lập Đoàn Thị Điểm)
M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field:

English Teaching Methodology

Code:

60.14.10

HANOI – 2011


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES

NGUYỄN HOÀNG HUYỀN
ABSTRACT

INCREASING GRADE 10 STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION IN LEARNING
ENGLISH BY USING ORAL PRESENTATION: AN ACTION RESEARCH
AT DOAN THI DIEM PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOL
(Sử dụng hoạt động thuyết trình nhằm nâng cao động lực học tiếng Anh của học
sinh lớp 10: Nghiên cứu hành động tại trường THPT Dân lập Đoàn Thị Điểm)
M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS

Field:

English Teaching Methodology

Code:

60.14.10

Supervisor: Hoàng Thị Xuân Hoa, PhD.

HANOI - 2011


4

TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Declaration…………………………….

i

Acknowledgement

ii

Abstract

iii

List of tables and figures

vii

List of abbreviation

viii

PART A: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale of the study

1

2. Aims of the study

2

3. Scope of the study

3

4. Methods of the study

3

5. Significance of the study

4

6. Design of the study

4

PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. An overview of motivation

5

1.1.1 Definition of motivation

5

1.1.2 Classifications of motivation

6

1.1.3 A model of components of foreign language learning motivation

8

1.1.4 Classroom behaviors and foreign language learning motivation

9

1.1.5 Factors demotivating foreign language learning

10

1.2. Dornyei’s framework for motivational strategies

12

1.3. An overview of oral presentation activity in an FL class

12

1.3.1. Definitions of oral presentation

13


5

1.3.2 Types of oral presentations

14

1.3.3 Oral presentations in EFL classroom settings

14

1.3.4 Advantages and disadvantages of oral presentation activity

16

1.3.5 Stages of training oral presentation skill

17

CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
2.1. The background of the study

19

2.1.1. The school context

19

2.1.2. Current learning and teaching of English at DTD PHS

19

2.1.3. Identification of the problem

20

2.2. Participants

21

2.3. Instruments of data collection

21

2.3.1. Description of the pre and post-treatment questionnaires

21

2.3.2. Semi-structured interview

22

2.4. Implementation of the action research

23

2.4.1. Rationale for the use of an action research

23

2.4.2. The action procedures

24

2.5. Data collection procedures

26

2.6. Data analysis procedures

27

CHAPTER 3: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
3.1.

Research question 1: The students’ motivational state

28

3.1.1. Attitudes toward learning English

28

3.1.2. The linguistic self-confidence

29

3.1.3 Classroom behaviors

29

3.2. Research question 2: The students’ demotivating factors

30

3.3. Research question 3: Students’ evaluation of the oral presentation

32

activity’s effectiveness


6

3.4. Research question 4: Students’ motivational state after the OPA

33

3.4.1. Attitudes toward learning English after the OPA

34

3.4.2. Linguistic self-confidence after involving in OPA

35

3.4.3. Classroom behaviors after involving in OPA

35
37

3.5. Summary of the findings
PART C: CONCLUSION
1. Conclusion

38

2. Pedagogical implications from the findings

38

3. Limitations of the study and suggestions for further study

40

REFERENCES

41

APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: Components of foreign language learning motivation

I

APPENDIX 2: English & Vietnamese version of pre-treatment questionnaire

II

APPENDIX 3:Results from the pre-treatment questionnaire

VIII

APPENDIX 4: English & Vietnamese version of post-treatment questionnaire

XI

APPENDIX 5:Results from the post-treatment questionnaire

XV

APPENDIX 6: Questions and the results of the interviews
APPENDIX 7: A lesson plan for the oral training program introduction

XVIII
XX

APPENDIX 8: Handouts for the lesson

XXIII

APPENDIX 9: A sample of student presentations after the program.

XXXI

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Tables

Page

Table 1: Interpretation of score results in terms of motivation level

27

Table 2: Overall descriptive statistics of the 8 items on ALE

28


7

Table 3: Overall descriptive statistics of the 7 items on the linguistic selfconfidence
Table 4: Overall descriptive statistics of the 7 items on classroom behaviors
Table 5: Overall descriptive statistics of the 13 items on students‟ evaluation of
OPA
Table 6: Descriptive statistics of the 3 items on students‟ attitude toward learning
English

29
30
32
34

Table 7: Descriptive statistics of the 5 items on students‟ linguistic self-confidence

35

Table 8: Descriptive statistics of the 8 items on the students‟ classroom behaviors.

36

Figures

Page

Figure 1: English subject as a burden

29

Figure 2: Regular voluntary participation

30

Figure 3: Demotivating factors

31

Figure 4: Preferred classroom activities

31

Figure 5: OPA improves student self-confidence

32

Figure 6: English as a favorite subject

34

Figure 7: Regular voluntary participation

36

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

EFL

English as a Foreign Language

DTD PHS

Doan Thi Diem Private High School


8

L2/ FL

Second or Foreign Language

OPA

Oral Presentation Activity

SD

Standard Deviation

PART A: INTRODUCTION
7. Rationale of the study
It is an incontrovertible fact that the need of using English as an efficient means to
be successful in such an integrated world has been increasing among the youth when they
start their real careers. Although this has become a great motive that considerately
enhances the situation of teaching and learning English language in Vietnam, students‟
attitudes and motivation to learn the subject are completely different from region to region,
even classroom to classroom. While many Vietnamese youngsters put a lot of their time
and efforts in learning English, many others appear to be too indifferent to the necessity of
mastering the language. The issue might stem from various reasons but above all, it is
supposed to be students‟ low motivation to learn this subject that causes the problem. It is
because among various influential factors, Gardner (2001) states that “motivation is a

central element along with language attitude in determining success in learning another
language in the classroom setting” (p.2) since he believes “many of these other variables
are dependent on motivation for their effects to be realized” (Gardner, 2001: 2). Other
researchers such as Ely (1986); Spolsky (1989), and Scarcella and Oxford (1992) shared
the same view that motivation determines how much effort students make, how often
students use second/foreign language learning strategies, how much students interact with
native speakers, how much input they receive in the language being learned, how well they
do on curriculum-related achievement tests, how high their general proficiency level
becomes, and how long they preserve and maintain second/foreign language skills after
language study is over.
Among the high school students the author has worked with, some students seem
naturally enthusiastic about learning, but many need or expect their teacher to inspire,
challenge, and stimulate them. There have been many times when the author finds herself


9

in a passive class, where students are unresponsive and avoid interaction with the teacher
even when they have enough knowledge to enthusiastically participate in the lessons. As a
result, many of them have a lot of difficulties in communicating with native speakers of
English even though they have learned English for five or six years or even ten years. As a

teacher of English, when experiencing the situation in her own classrooms, the author
understands that "effective learning in the classroom depends on the teacher's ability to
maintain the interest that brings students to the course" (Ericksen, 1978: 3)
On the other hand, the new sets of English textbook that have been applied at high
schools in the whole country for a few years have brought about a new approach to
teaching and learning the language in Vietnam. The theme-based textbooks provide a wide
range of practical topics and require students to practice all the four essential skills:
reading, speaking, listening and writing. However, as a matter of fact, it has been found out

that merely following the syllabus with the textbook is not interesting enough to students
of the high-tech world today. There, consequently appears a need to experiment something
new and different from what the students are experiencing.
Furthermore, presentation activities have recently been cast light on in English as a
Foreign Language (EFL) classroom as an innovative means of developing students‟ skills
in public speaking and hence promoting their motivation in English. Presentation activity
is a great way to have students practice all language systems areas (vocabulary, grammar,
discourse and phonology) and skills (speaking, reading, writing and listening) (Hayton,
2005). They also build confidence, and presenting is a skill that most people will need in
the world of work. The students who are good presenters are better communicators, since
they are able to structure and express their ideas clearly.
Therefore, after having considered some basic data from the preliminary
investigation, the writer decided to choose oral presentation among many methods to
motivate students to get more involved in learning English and then to improve their
communication skills in English. The decision was inspired from the required presentations
that the author had conducted when she was a student at her university and the oral
presentation activity that she had applied to some of her previous classes.
8. Aims of the study
The study was an attempt to find a way of making the act of learning English more
inspiring and interesting to a group of grade 10 students at Doan Thi Diem Private High
School (DTD PHS) so that they can get involved better in classroom activities. Among


10

many motivational strategies, the writer chose one activity, namely oral presentation that
evokes more students‟ participation in the learning process. Specifically, it addressed the
following research questions:
1. What are the contemporary English language learning motivational states of the
students of class 10A1 in DTD PHS?

2. What are the factors that negatively affect their motivation in learning English?
3. How useful is the oral presentation activity to the students’ learning English, as
perceived by the students?
4. To what extent does the applied oral presentation activity affect those students’
classroom motivation in learning English in terms of the level of their classroom
attention and task participation?
From the findings, the researcher would recommend some pedagogical implications
to applying oral presentation as a strategy for fostering students‟ motivation in learning
English.
9. Scope of the study
It is said that motivation may greatly affect the efficiency of teaching and learning
of a foreign language. In this study, however, the writer does not have an ambition to take
all the aspects of the concept into consideration. Due to time constraints, the study as an
action research, merely examined the English learning motivational state of 28 grade 10
students at DTD PHS before and after the oral presentation training program in their
learning process during the second semester of the 2010 – 2011 school year. The
participants also include the teacher-researcher, who is in charge of teaching the class and
plays the role of the researcher at the same time. In order to achieve the aims of the study
only employed two data collection instruments: survey questionnaire and semi-structured
interview. Moreover, instead of aiming at oral presentation activity in general, the study
only referred to applying group oral presentation activity to reduce student anxiety when
using English within a foreign language classroom context.
10. Methods of the study
The research approach employed in this study is action research, whose procedures
were guided by steps in the action research cycle by David Nunan (1992: 17), with the use
of two data collection instruments, namely student questionnaires and semi-structured
interview. The action that the study actually took was an oral presentation skill training


11

program designed for the duration of ten weeks. Instead of seven steps of the action
proposed by Nunan (1992), four were developed and implemented as follows:
Step 1: Problem identification: The researcher recognized the problem that in her
class 10A1 at DTD PHS, during English lessons, the atmosphere was hardly ebullient and
it was easy to see passiveness in the students‟ classroom behaviors.
Step 2: Preliminary investigation: Pre-treatment questionnaire was distributed to
measure the students‟ English learning motivational state and ask for students‟ preference
for classroom activities. Then, the survey‟s data was analyzed to work out a remedy plan
for improving the situation. From the result, it was supposed that the students‟ low level of
motivation was resulted from impractical and uninteresting classroom language activities.
It was then supposed that applying some new kind of classroom activity like oral
presentation could stimulus their better engagement and motivation.
Step 3: Intervention: The researcher applied the oral presentation training program
in her class, following Dörnyei (2001b) framework of motivational strategies.
Step 4: Evaluation: After the project, post-treatment questionnaire was conducted
to evaluate the impact of the applied activity on students‟ English learning motivation.
Besides, semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather more in-depth data for the
survey. The analysis of the data brought about findings on the use of oral presentation
activity as a motivational strategy in this particular context.
11. Significance of the study
First and foremost, the level of class 10A1 students‟ active engagement in English
lessons at DTD PHS will hopefully be improved. The students can have more participation
in the learning process by making some oral presentations of the topics they are interested
in. By this way, the researcher hopes that the students‟ motivation in learning English can
be raised and nurtured. Second, the study offers an example of how learner motivation can
be fostered in an EFL context. It is expected that the study will contribute an insightful
picture of the practice of motivating students to learn English in general.
12. Design of the study
This study is composed of three following parts:

Part A: Introduction presents the background, aims, research questions, the
significance, the scope, and the design of the study.
Part B: Development is organized around three chapters as follows. Chapter 1Literature review, conceptualizes the framework of the study through the discussion of
issues and ideas on definitions of motivation, types of motivation and oral presentation


12

activity. Chapter 2 – Research Methodology, presents the context, the methodology used
in this study including the subject, data collection instruments, data collection procedure
and analysis. Chapter 3 – Results and Discussions consists of a comprehensive analysis of
the data and a discussion on the findings of this study.
Part C: Conclusion, offers a summary of the findings, recommendations,
limitations, and directions for further study.


13

PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter offers a review of the literature related to motivation in learning
English and oral presentation activity. In each section, the definition or explanation of the
key terms is presented together with the studies worldwide.
1.1. An overview of motivation
Most teachers feel that motivation is a key factor in successful language learning,
but what is motivation? According to many researchers, there are so many definitions of
what motivation is and what is not (William and Burden, 1997; Lambert, 1963; Gardner &
Lambert, 1972; Gardner, 1985a; Dörnyei, 1998; Krause, et al, 2003; etc). In the field of
second and foreign language acquisition, the concept of motivation came from social
psychology. Therefore, the first purpose of this literature review is to find the motivation

definition and discover the types of motivation in this paper.
1.1.1. Definition of motivation
Motivation is one of the most important concepts in psychology. Theories
concerning motivation attempt to explain nothing less than why humans behave and think
as they do. In the literature on motivation, very rarely is one single, integrated definition of
motivation included. Instead, the focus is what specific factors work together to create
motivation William and Burden (1997: 112) define motivation as “a state of cognitive and
emotional arousal which leads to a conscious decision to act, and which gives rise to a
period of sustained intellectual and/or physical effort in order to attain a previously set goal
(or goals)”. According to these researchers, the concept of motivation is composed of
many different and overlapping factors such as: interest, curiosity or a desire to achieve.
The notion is also of great importance in language education. It has been widely accepted
by both teachers and researchers as one of the key factors that influence the rate and
success of second/foreign language (L2/ FL) learning.
Another pioneer in this field, Gardner (1985a), defines L2 motivation as “the extent
to which an individual works or strives to learn the language because of a desire to do so
and the satisfaction experienced in this activity” (p.10). According to this definition,
motivation consists of three components: (1) effort expanded to achieve a goal, (2) a desire
to learn the language, and (3) satisfaction with the task of learning the language (Gardner,
1985:13).


14

Besides, in his education-oriented theory, Keller (1983) defined motivation as “the
choices people make as to what experiences or goals they will approach or avoid and the
degree of effort they will exert in that respect” (p.389). In relation to this concept, Keller
(1983) also asserted four motivational conditions that teachers should know in order to
motivate students to learn. They are (1) Interest (Attention) that refers to whether learner‟s
curiosity is aroused, (2) Relevance refers to whether the highly desired goal is perceived to

be related to the instruction of the teacher, (3) Expectancy (Confidence) refers to whether
the learner perceives the likelihood of success, and (4) Satisfaction (Outcome) refers to
whether extrinsic rewards and intrinsic motivation meet the learners‟ anticipations (Keller,
1998: 395).
Another recent influential researcher of motivation, Zoltan Dörnyei, also gives a
comprehensive definition of motivation. Motivation, from his process-oriented point of
view, is “a process whereby a certain amount of instigation force arises, initiates action,
and persists as long as no other force comes into play to weaken it and thereby terminate
action or until the planned outcome has been reached” (Dörnyei, 1998: 118).
For this study, 'motivation' is defined in the terms put forward by Crookes and
Schmidt (1991: 498-502): interest in and enthusiasm for the materials used in class;
persistence with the learning task, as indicated by levels of attention or action for an
extended duration; and levels of concentration and enjoyment.
In brief, each approach to motivation reflects a different perspective from which
second or foreign language learning motivation is conceptualized. There are differences in
the way different researchers define motivation because they study motivation from the
perspectives of different languages in different contexts, with different subjects and
different learning conditions. However, from whatever angle the researchers look at the
concept of motivation in L2/FL learning, most of them have identified three crucial
components of motivation: (1) the conscious decision directed to the goal of learning a
language, (2) the effort expanded to achieve that goal, and (3) the sustenance of that
goal/effort.
1.1.2. Classifications of motivation
Gardner (1985; Gardner & Lambert, 1972) proposes that motivation is influenced
by two orientations to language learning. An integrative orientation is typical of someone
who identifies with and values the target language and community, and who approaches


15

language study with the intention of entering that community. Such an individual is
thought to have an internal, more enduring motivation for language study. However,
Gardner (1985a) claims, “an integrative motive is not the only predictor” (p.83) of
achievement in L2 but simply those who are integratively motivated will be more
successful in language learning than those who are not so motivated (Gardner, 1985a).
Instrumentally motivated learners, on the other hand, are more likely to see language
learning as enabling them to do other useful things, but as having no special significance in
itself. Such learners will be motivated if they see language learning as having beneficial
career prospects or something that will enable them to use transactional language with
speakers of the foreign language.
Gardner and his colleagues found that integrative motivation, which refers to “a
sincere and personal interest in the people and culture represented by the other language
group” (Lambert, 1974: 98), was a more powerful predictor of linguistic achievement as it
was consistently correlated with L2 linguistic achievement. Meanwhile, one area where
instrumental motivation can prove to be successful is in the situation where the learner is
provided with no opportunity to use the target language and therefore, no chance to interact
with members of the target group. These integrative and instrumental orientations are very
famous in the field of motivation; however, Ely (1986) argues that it is not always easy to
distinguish between integrative and instrumental motivation. Personally, the researcher
agrees with Ely that it is not always easy to tell one from the other. For example, there are
students who do not like to study, but they have to, because they have pressure from their
parents, peers, teachers, and so forth. This is also a type of motivation which cannot belong
to either of the two motivational orientations.
Furthermore, students‟ learning goals also proved to break up into different
motivation clusters, the definition of which varies depending upon the socio-cultural
setting in which the data are gathered (Clėment et al., 1994; Oxford & Shearin, 1994).
Thus, new motivation clusters have been identified such as intrinsic and extrinsic
motivations, orientations for travel and becoming intellectual which are considered specific
types of orientations for learning the target language (Clėment et al., 1994; Clėment &
Pelletier, 2001; Oxford & Shearin, 1994). Indeed, Deci and Ryan‟s (1985) theory of

intrinsic/extrinsic motivation and self-determination is one of the most influential theories
in mainstream motivational psychology (Dörnyei, 2001a: 58). Extrinsic motivation, like


16

instrumental orientation, refers to the desire to learn a second/foreign language because of
some pressure or reward from the social environment (such as career advancement or a
course credit), internalized reasons for learning an L2 (such as guilt or shame), and/or
personal decisions to do so and its value for the chosen goals (Noels et al., 2001).
Intrinsically motivated students, like integratively motivated ones, learn an L2 because of
the inherent pleasure in doing so; they are expected to maintain their effort and engagement
in the L2 learning process, even when no external rewards are provided (Oxford &
Shearin, 1994; Noels et al., 2001).
Although intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation are typically considered unidimensional constructs, Vallerand (1997) has divided intrinsic motivation into three subtypes and extrinsic motivation into four sub-types. Intrinsic motivation is subdivided into
intrinsic motivation to know, intrinsic motivation toward achievements, and intrinsic
motivation to experience stimulation (Dörnyei, 2001a: 28). Meanwhile, extrinsic
motivation is divided into four subtypes, namely external regulation, introjected regulation,
identified regulation, and integrated regulation.
Of the two motivation types, extrinsic motivation has traditionally been viewed as
something that can undermine intrinsic motivation (Dörnyei, 2001a). Some studies have
confirmed that students will lose their natural intrinsic motivation in an activity if they
have to do it to meet some extrinsic requirement. However, as Deci and Ryan (1985)
argued, external rewards can be combined with or can even lead to intrinsic motivation if
they can enhance the feeling of competence.
In conclusion, either integrative and instrumental orientations or intrinsic and
extrinsic motivations contribute to the learning of an L2/ FL. Nevertheless, as to which one
is more important varies from context to context. Likewise, students in different contexts
may be motivated to learn an L2/ FL by different orientations. This is why the issue is still
worth further exploration in situations with different groups of learners.

1.1.3 A model of components of foreign language learning motivation
In one attempt to make sense of the different components involved in L2/FL
motivation, Dörnyei (1994) proposes a three-level categorization. In his model, the
language level encompasses various orientations and motives related to aspects of the
second language, such as the culture and the community, and the usefulness of the
language. These will influence the goals learner set and the choices they make. Dörnyei‟s


17

learner‟s level involves individual characteristics that the learners bring to the learning
task. Key features of this level are in need for achievement and self-confidence. Finally,
the situation level includes components related to the course, the teacher and the group
dynamics. (See appendix 1)
Studying this model, William and Burden (1997: 118) affirm that this formulation
is helpful as it highlight a point that motivation is a multifaceted construct which will be
affected by situational factors.
1.1.4 Classroom behaviors and foreign language learning motivation
Because of the broad spectrum of the various components of motivation, the
starting point in any research in this area is the clarification of how foreign language
motivation will be specifically targeted. Although this may sound obvious, according to
Dörnyei (2001a: 186), “the failure to consider this issue explicitly has resulted in a great
deal of disappointing results and frustration in past research”.
In organizational behavior and management classes, it is believed that one of the
best ways to evaluate performance on the job is to develop a set of behavioral indicators of
good performance specific for a given job (Dörnyei, 2001a). Behavioral indicators can be
evaluated much more objectively than, say, characteristics or traits (e.g., positive outlook,
enthusiasm, commitment). Furthermore, they can be assessed at frequent intervals, unlike
final output which can only be assessed irregularly.
Moreover, it is because motivation – by definition- is related to action and therefore

motivational relevance can only be specified in the light of the target behavioral domain. It
is also believed that the motivated learners will demonstrate more efforts and persistence in
their task behavior. Therefore, “if we want to draw more meaningful inferences about the
impact of various motives, it is more appropriate to use some sorts of behavioral measure
as the criterion/ dependent variables” (Dörnyei, 2001a:197). As a result, this research
selected to target students‟ classroom behaviors as important indicators for their level of
engagement, and therefore, of English learning motivation. In terms of observable
behaviors, two categories will immediately suggest themselves: on-task behaviors and offtask behaviors. According to Hopkins (1993: 105), among off-task behaviors are: “1.
Talking not related to task assigned; 2. Daydreaming; 3. Working at other tasks; 4.
Physically bothering other students” and so on. Meanwhile, Morgan (2008) tried to
identify on-task behaviors, such as: “listening to instructions; doing what the teacher


18

instructed; making eye contact with the task or teacher when either is required; seeking
help in the proper manner (e.g., raising hand); being in the proper geographical location
(e.g., in seat when seat work is required)” (p.85)
Consequently, to provide appropriate data, this study investigated levels of
students‟ motivation by asking the students about their classroom behaviors. Classroom
attention and task participation including on-task and off-task behaviors in their English
classroom were observable indicators that were selected to be criteria for the questionnaire
design process.
1.1.5 Factors demotivating foreign language learning
There have been some studies on the factors affecting students‟ motivation in
learning a foreign language so far. Among those are two L2 motivation frameworks that
refer to some factors such as language level, learner level, learning situation level
(Dörnyei, 2001a) and internal and external factors (Williams and Burnden, 1997).
Regarding Dörnyei‟s model, the Language Level addresses the social side of L2
motivation, subsuming Gardner's Integrative and Instrumental concepts. The Learner Level

represents individual characteristics of the learner, and concerns internal desire for
achievement and issues related to self confidence. The Learning Situation Level is
associated with classroom specific motivational factors: Course-specific, Teacher-specific,
and Group-specific motivational components. Although researchers have had some
different views in this issue, they all have come to an agreement with a list of common
factors affecting students‟ motivation. These factors can be divided into three groups:
teacher‟s factors, students‟ factors and learning condition factors.
However, a feature shared in most FL classrooms where the language in question is
a required subject, is the problem of demotivation. The following behaviors described by
Chambers (1993: 13) will be familiar to many foreign language teachers, including the
author of this study: “poor concentration; lack of belief in own capabilities; no effort made
to learn; “What‟s the use?” syndrome; negative or nil respond to praise‟ lethargy; lack of
cooperation; disruptive; distracted; distracts other students; produces little or no home
work; fail to bring material lessons; claims to have lost materials”
In fact, the weakness of English language learners in general has been attributed to
various factors such as teaching methodology, lack of the target language environment, and
the learners‟ demotivation. Therefore, it is important for the teachers at least to be aware of


19

the possible factors that may be able to develop strategies to help solve the problems that
arise relating to students‟ motivation and desire to learn English as an FL.
Much research has been conducted on language learning motivation but less on the
demotivation factors in learning an L2 and a few studies address them. Dörnyei & Otto
(1998) do not perceive motivation or demotivation as a static phenomenon. On the
contrary, they are considered as dynamic, increasing and declining, affecting language
achievement and being affected by the surrounding learning context. The demotivated
learner is defined by Dornyei as the one who is originally motivated and lost his/ her
motivation because of negative external factors. Some studies have shown relatedness

between demotivation and the learning context such as classroom environment, teaching
methods and curricula (Gardner, 1985a; Skehan, 1991; Sivan, 1986).
Chambers (1993) (in Dörnyei, 2001a) investigated demotivation in language
learning in four schools in the UK. The study was conducted on the school students and
their teachers. The results showed that students placed most blame on the teachers and
learning materials. Meanwhile, the teachers claimed that the students‟ motivation caused
by psychological, social and attitudinal reasons.
Keblawi (2005) conducted a study to explore the factors affecting negatively
learning English in Palestine high schools. The data revealed that English teachers were
referred to directly or indirectly as demotivators by almost half of the respondents.
Interestingly, the study revealed that about half of the respondents referred to aspects of
English (grammar, vocabulary) as main demotivators. Furthermore, depending on the
results of a study conducted on secondary students in Budapest who were identified as
demotivated, Dörnyei (2001a) categorized nine demotivating factors in order of most
common to least: a) the teacher – personality, commitment, competence, teaching method;
b) Inadequate school facilities – group is too big or not the right level; frequent change of
teachers; c) Reduced self-confidence – experience of failure or lack of success; d) Negative
attitude towards the L2; e) compulsory nature of L2 study; f) Interference of another
foreign language being studied; g) negative attitude towards L2 community; h) attitude of
groups members; i) Course book.
Generally, most studies conducted in the field of motivation and demotivation as its
flip side found out that the personality of the teacher, teaching methods, learning context in
addition to the learners‟ attitude towards the language could play a vital role in the


20

students‟ motivation or demotivation toward learning languages. As a part of this research,
the factors negatively affecting students‟ motivation, whose criterion were based on the
above-mentioned studies, would be investigated through a multiple choice item in the pretreatment questionnaire.

1.2. Dornyei’s framework for motivational strategies
Motivational strategies refer to (a) instructional interventions applied by the teacher
to elicit and stimulate student motivation and (b) self-regulating strategies that are used
purposefully by individual students to manage the level of their own motivation; the
motivational strategies discussed in this article belong to type (a). The central question in
designing a framework of motivational strategies is to decide how to organize them into
separate phases. The most systematic attempt to date to produce such taxonomy was made
by Dörnyei (2001b), who proposed a parsimonious system of four main dimensions: The
key units of the taxonomy are as follows:
 Creating basic motivational conditions by establishing a good teacher student rapport,
creating a pleasant and supportive classroom atmosphere, and generating a cohesive
learner group with appropriate group norms.
 Generating initial motivation, that is, “whetting the students‟ appetite” by using
strategies designed to (a) increase the learners‟ expectancy of success and (b) develop
positive attitudes toward the language course and language learning in general.
 Maintaining and protecting motivation by promoting situation-specific task motivation
(e.g., through the use of stimulating, enjoyable, and relevant tasks), providing learners
with experiences of success, allowing them to maintain a positive social image even
during the often face-threatening task of having to communicate with a severely
limited language code, and promoting learner autonomy.
 Encouraging positive retrospective self-evaluation by promoting adaptive attributions,
providing effective and encouraging feedback, increasing learner satisfaction, and
offering grades in a motivational manner.
This motivational strategies framework served as background to develop the application of
oral presentation activity in this study so as to motivate student to learn English.
1.3. An overview of oral presentation activity in a foreign language class
In general, motivation is the "neglected heart" of our understanding of how to
design instruction (Keller, 1983, quoted in Dörnyei, 2001b: 116). Many teachers believe

21

that by sticking to the language materials and trying to discipline their refractory students,
they will manage to create a classroom environment that will be conducive to learning.
Nevertheless, these teachers seem to lose sight of the fact that, unless they accept their
students' personalities and work on those minute details that constitute their social and
psychological make-up, they will fail to motivate them. Learning a foreign language is
different to learning other subjects. Therefore, language teaching should take account of a
variety of factors that are likely to promote, or even militate against, success. Language is
part of one's identity and is used to convey this identity to others. As a result, foreign
language learning has a significant impact on the social being of the learner, since it
involves the adoption of new social and cultural behaviours and ways of thinking. Among
many classroom activities, oral presentation is likely to be the one that is able to
compensate for such shortage in teacher‟s instruction in order to reinforce each learner‟s
well-rounded language skill.
1.3.1 Definitions of oral presentation
Oral presentation skills are important in nearly every career. Scientists and
engineers present at conferences, to students, to their peers, etc.

Administrators and

managers may give talks to committees about their work, or to groups of people in
training. As for students, presentation skills

can

lead

to

new

opportunities

in

employment and in education.
Generally, presentation is defined in the 7th edition of Oxford Advanced Learner‟s
Dictionary (2005:1190) as “an act of showing something or of giving something to
somebody” or “a meeting at which something, especially a new product or idea, or piece of
work is shown to a group of people”. Therefore, oral presentations or speeches are not
limited to the stage, or for large audiences, but are also the means by which one can
communicate daily in a workplace, teach in the classroom, give opinions and express
oneself in a situation that requires explanations in clear and precise speech.
However, the concept has far narrower sense, which this research would like to
refer to. By presentation, this study means: “a short talk by one person to a group of people
introducing and describing a particular subject” (Essberger, 1998). In some few studies on
oral presentation, this kind of activity is associated with expressing some ideas. According
to Jing (2009: iii), “Oral presentation is an important skill to convey one‟s ideas in
communication.” Kaul (2005: 41) also asserts, “Presentations are ideas, concepts or issues


22

that are talked about or shared with a group of people or an audience”.
Generally, a presentation is a formal talk to one or more people that "presents"
ideas or information in a clear, structured way. Oral presentation is a means to show
knowledge, give a lecture, be tested in a classroom, and build confidence to speak to an
audience. A presentation consists of four basic elements: the presenter, the audience, the
message and the tools.

1.3.2 Types of oral presentations
There are many ways of classifying types of presentation. Some people may define
them basing on the purposes (Iftimie & Chang, 2008). Some may define them basing on
the manners of delivery. However, the most common types of presentation are suggested
by Whatley (2001) as follows:
Firstly, he mentions informative presentation. Informative presentation brings the
audience up to date on projects or events, telling how things are going, or provides
information about products and procedures, rules and regulations, and operations, etc. This
is the type that the researcher applied in the intervention step of this current study.
The second type of presentation is instructional. The purpose in an instructional
presentation is to give specific directions or orders. In an instructional presentation, the
listeners should come away with new knowledge or a new skill.
Another presentation is arousing. The purpose in an arousing presentation is to
make people think about a certain problem or situation. This presentation arouses the
audience's emotions and intellect so that they will be receptive to presenter‟s point of view.
Persuasive is the next type of presentation. The purpose in a persuasive
presentation is to convince listeners to accept proposal. A convincing persuasive
presentation offers a solution to a controversy, dispute, or problem.
Finally, it is a decision-making presentation. The purpose in a decision-making
presentation is to move audience to take the presenter‟s suggested action. A decisionmaking presentation presents ideas, suggestions, and arguments strongly enough to
persuade an audience to carry out presenter‟s requests. A decision-making presentation
must tell the audience what to do and how to do it.
In short, there are many types of presentation but each type requires a specific
organization technique to assure it is understood and remembered by the audience.
1.3.3. Oral Presentations in EFL classroom settings
It is well known that giving oral presentations in English is not a simple matter of
learning language and following instructions; rather, it is a skill requiring complex
sociolinguistic as well as cognitive understandings, especially for learners of English as a
Foreign Language.

23

Teaching oral presentation skills is usually based on conventionally accepted
criteria. First, students must obviously have command of their content material (field
knowledge), and be able to organize their ideas in an appropriately logical sequence (text
structure). They also need an adequate level of grammatical competence, and the ability to
deliver their talk in a presentation style appropriate for English (paying attention to eye
contact, voice quality, body language and so on).
Presentation skills are extremely useful both in and outside the classroom. After
completing a project, a presentation is a channel for students to share with others what they
have learned. It is also a chance to challenge and expand on their understanding of the
topic by having others ask questions. And in the world of work, a confident presenter is
able to inform and persuade colleagues effectively. Presentations can also form a natural
part of task based learning. By focusing on a particular language point or skill, the
presentation is a very practical way to revise and extend book, pair and group work. The
audience can also be set a task, for example, making a set of questions to answer on the
presentation, or filling in a peer evaluation sheet, which is a way of getting students to
listen to each other (Hayton, 2005).
However, it is obvious that some students may dislike the activity, especially when
they have to prepare for their presentations. This is caused by consumption of time,
problems with using a PowerPoint software, and deprivation of leisure. In contrast, after
the presentations, haft of students have positive feelings of success, and the two thirds of
relief, satisfaction and pleasure. Moreover, good practice in teaching presentations includes
three key points; dealing with anxiety and fear of speaking, guiding learners in preparation
and performance stages, and delivering feedback after performance.
Even for native speakers, the delivery of an oral presentation can be a source of
extreme anxiety. As King (2002) notes, particularly in the Japanese/Asian EFL context,
oral presentations are usually a face-threatening activity. Therefore it is the teacher‟s
responsibility to properly organize and guide the activity of oral presentations so that

learners might be equipped with life-long skills that will be beneficial in a variety of
contexts. The following suggestions, which are taken from Ronald L. Partin‟s study (2009:
223), might be adapted to improve students‟ presentation.
 To reduce anxiety of talking in front of the group, begin with safe topics the
students know well. Themes such as “My dream vacation” or “My favorite leisure
activity” tap a student‟s experiences.


24

 Letting two or more students do a presentation together provokes less anxiety for
the presenters.
 Have students read magazine articles together related to an assigned subject area.
The student should take notes summarizing the key points of the articles and
prepare a four to five-minute talk on what they have got.
 In most instances, individual parts should be limited for less than 10 minutes. Few
students possess the skills and enthusiasm to hold their listeners‟ attention longer.
Generally, the presentation assignment has two major purposes: first, it provides a
framework for students to apply the literacy skills they are learning in an environment that
encourages interaction with others. Second, it provides opportunities for students to create
and share their personal interpretations of text with an audience. In our classrooms, we
refer to the application of students‟ English literacy skills as a "presentation" to improve
their active engagement and motivation in learning the English subject.
1.3.4. Advantages and disadvantages of oral presentation activity
Advantages and disadvantages of applying oral presentation activity in classroom
can be found in different pieces of research (see Ali Said Al-Issa, 2010; Josef Essberger,
1998; Marmienė, 2006). Particularly, oral presentation activity brings about a number of
benefits to language learning students as can be found in Marmienė (2006):


Increased motivation - learners become personally involved in the presentation.



All four skills, i.e. speaking, listening, reading and writing are integrated:
Speaking: presenting information, describing graphs, pictures in slides,
responding to feedback; Listening: critical listening for details, asking for
clarification; Reading: skimming and scanning for information, reading for
detail; Writing: reformulating texts, making and taking notes, writing reviews.



Autonomous learning is promoted as learners become more responsible for their
own learning.



There are learning outcomes – learners have an end product.



Tasks are authentic and therefore the language input is more authentic.



Interpersonal relations are developed through working as a group.



Content and methodology can be decided between the learners and the teacher

and within the group, so the task is more learner-centered.



A break from routine and the chance to do something different.



A context is established which balances the need for fluency and accuracy.


25



The learners‟ awareness of non-verbal communication is raised and their use of
natural language is improved.
However, every coin has two sides. Marmienė (2006) outlines some

disadvantages of presentations. The first difficulty is “the choice of the material”.
Nowadays, there are many sources where information can be taken. However, not all
of them are accurate and authentic. Therefore, one of the most important skills to
develop is that of effective searching. Second, students often overuse PowerPoint or
visual aids. They use too many pictures and illustrations or show too many words on
the screen. As a result, all they have to do is just to read everything on the screen. It
makes the audience annoyed and they bored with their presentation. In the third place,
making presentation is time-consuming both at home and in class. Last but far from
the least, one disadvantage of applying presentation in classroom is that the effect of
it maybe not as expected because the presenter has nothing to say or the audience
does not listen to the presenter.

All in all, applying oral presentation in EFL context has many advantages as well as
disadvantages. Since the improvement of oral presentation requires both skills and
practice, it is suggested that both teachers and students should raise the awareness of
importance of developing the skill, learn the presentation skills, increase the opportunities
for practice, and teachers should implement oral presentation effectively in ESL
classrooms.
1.3.5 Stages of training oral presentation skill
There are different stages in making a good presentation with different skills
required, and the teacher is supposed to carefully facilitate his/ her students with the skills.
The following procedures, which were found in Marmienė (2006), were actually what
the researcher put into practice in her oral presentation training program:
Preparation stage: Students get an idea of what presentations are and what they
should be aiming to produce. Careful and thorough preparation is the key to a successful
presentation (Seely 2000: 65). The learners are asked to begin their research by
brainstorming everything they know about the topic, to make notes, draw mind maps, use
whatever technique they find best for developing lots of information. After explaining the
idea behind the presentation learners are asked to propose a scheme of work: what they
want to include in the presentation, who will be responsible for a particular issue, an idea
of the time it will take to produce each part of the project, any material or resources they


26

might need. The teacher would then sit down with each group for ten minutes to discuss
their proposals. At this point the evaluation and assessment procedures would also be
explained.
The stage of material collection and arrangements is the point at which students
search the web for information, select it, generate ideas, discuss them in groups, and make
short personal notes and appropriate slides. Once they have made their notes, they begin to
sort them into must, should, and could refer back to the objective to help at this stage.

Learners are asked to contact the teacher via e-mail, negotiate the choice of the material
and prepare Power Point variant for making a presentation in front of the audience.
Introducing and reviewing structures such as imperatives, conditionals and passive voice,
conversion of written language into spoken is needed at this stage.
Rehearsal stage: Once students have prepared presentations, they must rehearse
them. They need to structure the activity in advance, to prepare an outline of it and practise
the whole presentation at home. They can also be asked to practise by first giving a three
minute presentation.
Delivery stage: The students present information to the audience and they need to
use not only their speaking skills but their communicative skills as well.
Follow-up stage: The students ask questions and share information about the
problems they had during the performance, and discuss the problems they might have had
and what needs to be improved. Later students produce short written reviews of the
presentations. In that way, oral presentations can be successfully transformed into written
assignments.
The stage of evaluation and assessment Self- and peer- evaluation of the
performance has a great impact on the learning process and it can be a part of the
assessment of the entire presentation. This enables students to note what they have learned
about the presentations, i.e. to revise the topic they have heard and to review lexis. As with
any piece of work a presentation needs to be acknowledged and evaluated. It is not enough
to just say „that is great‟ after all the work learners have put in.