Áp dụng kĩ thuật vòng tròn văn học vào hoạt động nhóm nhằm thúc đẩy việc học tập hợp tác trong giờ học nói tiếng anh lớp 10 tại trường THPT lương thế vinh tỉnh quảng ninh

..

THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

VU THI THU HIEN

APPLYING LITERATURE CIRCLE TECHNIQUE
TO GROUP-WORK ACTIVITIES
TO ENHANCE COOPERATIVE LEARNING
IN ENGLISH SPEAKING LESSONS AT GRADE 10
IN LUONG THE VINH UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL
QUANG NINH PROVINCE
(Áp dụng kĩ thuật Vòng tròn văn học vào hoạt động nhóm nhằm
thúc đẩy việc học tập hợp tác trong giờ học Nói tiếng Anh
lớp 10 tại trường THPT Lương Thế Vinh, tỉnh Quảng Ninh)

M.A. THESIS

Field: English Linguistics
Code: 8220201

THAI NGUYEN – 2019


THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES

VU THI THU HIEN

APPLYING LITERATURE CIRCLE TECHNIQUE

TO GROUP-WORK ACTIVITIES
TO ENHANCE COOPERATIVE LEARNING
IN ENGLISH SPEAKING LESSONS AT GRADE 10
IN LUONG THE VINH UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL
QUANG NINH PROVINCE
(Áp dụng kĩ thuật Vòng tròn văn học vào hoạt động nhóm nhằm
thúc đẩy việc học tập hợp tác trong giờ học Nói tiếng Anh
lớp 10 tại trường THPT Lương Thế Vinh, tỉnh Quảng Ninh)

M.A. THESIS
(APPLICATION ORIENTATION)

Field: English Linguistics
Code: 8220201
Supervisor: Dr. Đặng Thị Thu Hương

THAI NGUYEN – 2019


THE CANDIDATE'S STATEMENTS
I hereby declare that the minor thesis entitled “Applying literature circle
technique to group-work activities to enhance cooperative learning in English
speaking lessons at grade 10 in Luong The Vinh Upper Secondary School, Quang
Ninh province” is my own work. To the best of my knowledge, it contains no
materials previously published or written by another person, or substantial
proportions of material which have been accepted for the award of any other degree
or diploma at SFL or any other educational institutions. The thesis has not been
submitted to any other examining body and has not been published. Any contribution
made to the research by others is explicitly acknowledged in the thesis.

The candidate

Vu Thi Thu Hien

Approved by
SUPERVISOR

Dr. Dang Thi Thu Huong

i


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To complete this study, I am indebted to many people for their thoughtful help.
I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Dang Thi Thu Huong,
for supporting me from the proposal stage to the completion of my thesis. She helped
me begin my project and provided guidance and suggestions throughout all of my
drafts. She spent a great deal of time working with me to help me through the multistep research process by emails or in person. She tirelessly edited my thesis proposals,
drafts and final thesis.
I would also like to acknowledge a particular debt to Dr. Nguyen Trong Du for
his valuable advice and patient guidance though he is not my supervisor.
I would also like to thank the staff and students at my school, Luong The Vinh
Upper Secondary School, Quang Ninh province, for their support. They assisted my
goals by being flexible, lending resources and engaging in informal discussions about
my challenges over the course of the project.
Most importantly, I wish to acknowledge my family, who has patiently allowed
me the time to work on my thesis. They were invaluable to the success of this paper
and I thank them for believing in my accomplishments.

Thai Nguyen, June 2019

Vu Thi Thu Hien

ii


ABSTRACT
Cooperative learning is undeniably helpful to students, especially to those who
are studying a foreign language. Practice of speaking is considered as one of the most
important factors for the acquisition of languages. This study is conducted to examine
the effectiveness of literature circle technique on cooperative activities inside the
classroom in English speaking lessons for students grade 10, Luong The Vinh Upper
Secondary School, Quang Ninh province. Particularly, the researcher aims at
collecting factual evidences about difficulties that teachers face while applying the
cooperative learning technique (what difficulties do teachers face in typical
Vietnamese classrooms while applying the cooperative learning technique?). An
action research has been carried out experimenting the application of modified
literature circle technique in that context (does the adapted literature circle technique
help enhance cooperative learning in Vietnamese classrooms?). The findings indicate
a significantly positive effect of literature circle technique which helps enhance
cooperative learning considerably in English lessons. Practical exercises and lessons
learnt from the study suggest the use of literature circle technique in other places in
Vietnam.

iii


TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................... ii
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................... iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .............................................................................. vii
LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................. viii
LIST OF CHARTS ................................................................................................ ix
PART A: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 1
1. Rationale ..................................................................................................... 1
2. Aims of the study and research questions .................................................. 1
3. Scope of the study ...................................................................................... 2
4. Significance of the study ............................................................................ 2
5. Method of the study .................................................................................... 2
6. Organization of the study ........................................................................... 3
PART B: DEVELOPMENT................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE
REVIEW............................................................................................................. 4
1.1. Cooperative Learning .............................................................................. 4
1.1.1. Definition .......................................................................................... 4
1.1.2. Characteristics of a cooperative learning group. ............................ 5
1.1.3. The roles of cooperative learning in language education ................ 5
1.1.4. Challenges in applying cooperative learning group work ............... 6
1.2. Literature circle technique ....................................................................... 6
1.2.1. Definition .......................................................................................... 6
1.2.2. The use of literature circle techniques for cooperative learning
group work in improving speaking skills ................................................... 7
1.2.3. Limitation of using literature circle in real classrooms and the
adapted model ............................................................................................ 8
CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .............................................. 10
2.1. Research context .................................................................................... 10
iv


2.2. Research questions ................................................................................ 11

2.3. Research approach ................................................................................. 11
2.3.1. An overview of action research ...................................................... 11
2.3.2. Rationale for the use of an action research ................................... 12
2.4. Description of the research .................................................................... 12
2.4.1. Population ...................................................................................... 12
2.4.2. Data collection instrument ............................................................. 13
2.4.3. The action procedures .................................................................... 13
2.4.4. Data collection procedures ............................................................ 15
2.4.5. Data analysis procedure................................................................. 16
2.5. Summary................................................................................................ 17
CHAPTER 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .............................................. 19
3.1. Research question 1 ............................................................................... 19
3.1.1. Pre-questionnaire for teachers ....................................................... 19
3.1.2. Pre-questionnaire for students ....................................................... 24
3.2. Research question 2 ............................................................................... 30
3.2.1. Observation .................................................................................... 30
3.2.2. Post-questionnaire for students ...................................................... 33
3.2.3. KII with teachers ............................................................................ 36
PART C: CONCLUSION .................................................................................... 39
1. Conclusion ................................................................................................ 39
2. Implications .............................................................................................. 40
3. Limitations of the study ............................................................................ 40
4. Suggestions for further research ............................................................... 41
REFERENCES ..................................................................................................... 42
APPENDIX I: Pre-questionnaire for teachers ......................................................... I
APPENDIX II: Pre-questionnaire for students ..................................................... V
APPENDIX III: Post-questionnaire for students.................................................VII
APPENDIX IV: Questions for KII with teachers ................................................ IX
v

APPENDIX V: Instructions for teachers’ using literature circle technique.......... X
APPENDIX VI: Sample lesson plan ................................................................. XIII
APPENDIX VII: Observations form ................................................................ XIIII

vi


LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
CLT : Communicative Language Teaching
EFL : English as a Foreign Language
KII : Key Informant Interview
: first language/mother tongue
L1
L2
SFL

: second language
: School of Foreign Languages
: Students’ Talking Time

STT
TTT : Teachers’ Talking Time

vii


LIST OF TABLES
Table 1: The characteristics of a traditional group .................................................. 20
Table 2: The benefits of cooperative learning group activities to the students ....... 22

Table 3: Observation table of checklist ................................................................... 31

viii


LIST OF CHARTS
Chart 1: Responses from selected teachers selecting characteristics of a traditional
group versus a cooperative learning group ............................................................... 21
Chart 2: The number of responses by teachers about the benefits of cooperative
learning group activities to the students ................................................................... 23
Chart 3: How often teachers organise group activities during speaking lessons .... 24
Chart 4: How much students like working in groups ............................................. 25
Chart 5: How much the majority of students spoke during group work ................ 26
Chart 6: Students prefer stay in the same group or move around and join more than
one group during speaking lesson ............................................................................ 26
Chart 7: Students’ perception about the importance they have in the group work. 27
Chart 8: Students’ feeling of engagement and interaction with other group members
.................................................................................................................................. 28
Chart 9: Current speaking lessons’ attractiveness to students ................................ 29
Chart 10: Observation results after 4 experimental lessons .................................... 32
Chart 11: How much the same students like working in group before and after 4
experimental lessons ................................................................................................. 33
Chart 12: How much the same students increase their amount of speaking time in
group activities ......................................................................................................... 34
Chart 13: Students’ feeling as important in the groups before and after experimental
lessons ....................................................................................................................... 34
Chart 14: How much students interact with other members ................................... 35

ix

PART A: INTRODUCTION
This is a study on the influence of modified literature circle techniques on
cooperative activities inside the classroom in English speaking lessons. This chapter
starts with the rationale of the study. Then, the aims, scope, significance and method of
the study will be presented.
1. Rationale
Under the draft new curriculum (version May 2018) for comprehensive education
reform, secondary students are expected to develop communication and collaboration
abilities as one out of ten core competencies (Thao, 2018).
For English as a school subject, communicative language teaching has been taken
as the approach. Standard national high school curriculum is designed according to CLT
approach which takes speaking, listening, reading and writing competencies as the end
products of the teaching and learning process (Van, 2011, p.98).
Therefore, it can be said that a language classroom teaches more than the language
itself – students are to be given chance for both communication and collaboration skills
improvement.
The need is becoming increasingly vital for teachers in Vietnam to apply methods
and techniques which enable students to interact, exchange ideas using the language, and
develop their collaboration skills.
Of numerous techniques, cooperative learning and literature circle technique are
assumedly significant as they are suggested by some progressive educators recently. In
the meantime, they are predicted to cause failures if neglectfully applied in Vietnamese
school contexts.
From this suggestion and above initial problems, the author decided to do an action
research project to examine the effectiveness of literature circle technique on cooperative
activities inside the classroom in English speaking lessons for students grade 10, Luong
The Vinh Upper Secondary School, Quang Ninh province.
2. Aims of the study and research questions
First of all, the research sought for understanding of cooperative learning and

literature circle techniques as the theoretical bases. The framework shaped after the
review of journal articles and books has informed a design of a minor survey into the
practice of cooperative learning activities in language classrooms in Quang Ninh, a
1


typical Vietnamese province. The survey first aimed at collecting factual evidences about
difficulties facing teachers while applying the cooperative learning technique.
Research question 1: What difficulties do teachers face in typical Vietnamese
classrooms while applying the cooperative learning technique?
Next, a type of action research has been carried out by experimenting the application
of modified literature circle technique in that context. Data gathered was analyzed to
decide the level of appropriateness of the technique in enhancing cooperative learning
activities.
Research question 2: Does the adapted literature circle technique help enhance
cooperative learning in Vietnamese classrooms?
All those practical exercises and lessons learnt from the study helped extent the use
of literature circle technique to a larger geographical region for future research.
3. Scope of the study
The study was conducted on 84 students from classes 10A9 and 10A10 at Luong
The Vinh Upper Secondary School during the second semester and restricted to the
second semester of 2018-2019. The study focused on exploring the current state of
cooperative learning activities and then experimented the adapted literature circle
technique on grade 10 in an average upper secondary school in North Vietnam, especially
for the effectiveness on improving students’ speaking skills.
4. Significance of the study
On completion, the study provided an insight into the effects of using literature
circle techniques on EFL high school students’ interest and acquirements during
cooperative learning activities. What has been achieved in this research would help
teachers consider utilizing literature circle techniques to improve students' oral

competences in English speaking lessons. Moreover, this study is much beneficial to
students who wonder how to develop their speaking skills as well as their collaboration
teamwork.
5. Method of the study
This study is conducted as an action research because action research is the best
choice for the purpose of improving the current state of affairs within educational context
in which the research is carried out. In order to get data, a combination of different
instruments, namely questionnaires, pre-questionnaire and post questionnaire,
2


observation, and key informant interview (KII), was used. The data collected through the
questionnaire has been analyzed by quantitative method, using an MS Excel spreadsheet
and calculation. The KII and observation inputs have been discussed qualitatively.
6. Organization of the study
The study consists of three parts:
Part A. Introduction: presents the rationale, aim, scope, significance and method
of the study
Part B. Development: comprises three chapters:
- Chapter 1: Theoretical Background and Literature Review covers the overview of
the literature which includes relevant theoretical background and reviews of related
studies concerning literature circle techniques and cooperative learning in language
teaching.
- Chapter 2: Research Method continues with the research method including
participants of the study, the instrumentation, the methods and procedures of data
collection and data analysis.
- Chapter 3: Findings and Discussion demonstrates the findings accompanied by
data analysis and discussion.
Part C. Conclusions: recapitulates the major findings of the study and represents
further recommendations for the implementation of literature circle techniques.

3


PART B: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER 1: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
AND LITERATURE REVIEW
In this chapter, a review of literature in theory and practice on literature circle
techniques and cooperative learning is provided. First, the definition, principles,
effectiveness as well as challenges of cooperative learning approach in language teaching
are introduced. Second, literature circle techniques and their use in EFL classrooms are
presented. Next, the adapted model of literature circle including members’ roles and steps
in organising are discussed. Following this, the implementation of literature circle
techniques in cooperative learning is reviewed.
Upon initial research into the literature, the researcher has gained some knowledge
about literature circle techniques and cooperative learning. Literature about both
cooperative learning and literature circle is briefly stated as below:
1.1. Cooperative Learning
1.1.1. Definition
The research adopts Kagan & Olsen's (1992, quoted in Lin, 2009) definition of co
operative teaching as follows:
“Cooperative learning is group learning activity organized so that learning is
dependent on the socially structured exchange of information between learners in groups
and in which each learner is held accountable for his or her own learning and is
motivated to increase the learning of others.” (p. 56)
Co-operative learning, in other words, can be understood as closely planned and
organized teaching strategies that retain learners in tiny organizations and work together.
It is worth noting that participants in the same group are not competing with each other
to win the reward for themselves, but all as a group are doing their utmost to contribute
to the group's ultimate accomplishment. Members have to assist each other and promote

each other to learn to create the group rewarded. This technique therefore enables to boost
student motivation to study.
Likewise, Williams (2002) defines cooperative learning as a teaching technique that
is supposed to assist learners enhance their learning by interacting in tiny organizations
with their colleagues. Jacobs, et al. (2002, reviewed in Lin, 2009) proposed that
4


cooperative learning offers students the opportunity not only to work together, but also
to make the most of their peer communication and learning as well as their own teaching.
Johnson & Johnson (1994), Kagan (1994) and Jacobs (2002) shared the same six
fundamental co-operative teaching features:
1.
Positive Interdependence
2.
3.
4.

Individual Accountability
Cooperative Skills
Equal Participation

5.
6.

Simultaneous Interaction
Group Processing

1.1.2. Characteristics of a cooperative learning group.
Jacobs (1998, as cited in Lin, 2009) points out seven characteristics of a cooperative

learning group as follows:
 Group formation: teachers (and students) plan group size and composition so as
to maximize the potential of the groups.
 Seating arrangements: group members sit in such a way as to see and hear one
another easily, and at the same time, bother other groups as little as possible.
 Collaborative skills: collaborative skills are explicitly taught.
 Duration of Groups: groups often stay together for more than one activity perhaps
for weeks or months and spend time discussing how they can work together better.
 Group solidarity: teachers attempt to build group solidarity.
 Individual participation and learning: teachers encourage each group member to
feel responsible for participating and learning.
 Teachers’ roles: teachers actively monitor groups to see if they are learning and
functioning smoothly.
1.1.3. The roles of cooperative learning in language education
In Lin (2009), the technique of cooperative learning was assessed as an efficient
teaching method because it offers more possibilities for learners to enhance their
communication skills. Several advantages can be mentioned below:
 Develop group work skills;
 Increase students’ talking time;
 Forster and develop interpersonal relationships and build positive friendships;
 Help students use language creatively and confidently;
5


 Enhance students’ satisfaction with the learning experience;
 Create an environment of active, involved, exploratory learning. (p. 79)
Matikainen (2009) claims in the same vein that cooperative learning maximizes
interactive communication between learners, leading to their language enhancement.
1.1.4. Challenges in applying cooperative learning group work
However, there are some challenges to teachers when applying traditional

cooperative learning method and these may cause failures in language classrooms,
especially for oral activities and in Asian contexts. According to Wang (2017), the most
emerging limitation of traditional cooperative learning method is that of students’
unequal speaking opportunities within groups. The more capable students will get more
chances to speak in groups than the lower achievers. Zhang (2010, as cited in Wang,
2017) explains that while the less able students need more time to think about teacher’s
questions and to arrange their ideas, the others get the answers before them, and they
often lose the opportunities to speak in class. In addition, it is often suggested that group
leaders respond to the teacher's issues and be the representatives to make speeches in
front of the school. If there is no group leader, the elevated attainders will have the
opportunity to talk in school, and students with low oral English skills will not have the
opportunity to talk.
1.2. Literature circle technique
1.2.1. Definition
Daniels (2006) identified: circles of literature are tiny debates among learners in a
group about commonly selected tales. Students themselves lead these conversations, and
the interactions between the members are essential. Each student must play his/her part
in this reading circle in each group, and then the others will offer them some feedback
and questions. The groups have regular meetings with discussing roles rotating each
session. When finishing reading the stories, the groups can share their discussions to the
whole class. Finally, the circles are completed. The new circles continue to be formed
basing on the books or stories that students choose.
Daniels (2002, quoted in Bedee, 2010) proposed 11 key literature circle
characteristics:
 Students decide which stories to read;
 Students who choose the same stories form temporary groups;
6


 Each group has a different story;

 Participants in each group build up regular schedules to meet each other and
discuss about what they have read;
 The group discussions are peer-led;
 The groups choose their own topics for the discussions;
 The groups’ meetings should be open, friendly, and favorable;
 During the groups’ discussions, the teacher should act as the observer, and
facilitator, not a group member or instructor;
 Evaluation is based on the teacher’s observation and students’ peer-evaluation;
 The learning environment in the classroom should be exciting and fun;
 When one story is finished reading, the groups have to report to the whole class
about the stories they have read, then the groups are broken, and the new ones are formed
basing on the new common stories of the group members.
1.2.2. The use of literature circle techniques for cooperative learning group work
in improving speaking skills
Cooperative learning difficulties can be overcome by applying literature circle
method to educators. Each student becomes active learners by working within literature
circles (Daniels, 2002, quoted in Bedee, 2010). Different roles are allocated that require
individual job, followed by unique sharing, exchange and cooperation. By exchanging
views, personal experiences and reactions to the same materials, literature circles enable
learners to collaborate and learn with each other in a secure learning setting because of
their particular characteristics. The learners often give their views orally in most of the
debates; therefore, their speaking abilities can be significantly created. In this manner,
the communication skills of learners are significantly enhanced when participating in a
literature circle exercise, and most importantly quite similarly among participants. In
brief, the method of the literature circle can assist address the unequal speaking issue of
learners in cooperative learning operations.
In addition, according to Long and Gove (2003, quoted in Bedee, 2010), literature
circle practices provide learners with possibilities to improve their critical thinking,
"become more reflective, and push themselves outside the box to read, speak, question,
feel, and believe." During their debates, students use various abilities: "oral language,

making personal connections, and critical thinking” (Carrison, 2005). Both Jacobs (2015)
and Carrison (2005) agreed that with the participation in literature circles, students gain
the greater sense of responsibilities to their roles in group and to the development of the
7


group discussions. Daniels (2006) pointed out that, with literature circles, students are
asked to do the same tasks that adults do in a book club. Therefore, literature circles are
more interesting for students than the teacher-centered activities in traditional classroom.
1.2.3. Limitation of using literature circle in real classrooms and the adapted
model
However, Furr (2004) asserted that when educators adapt the literature circle
method in EFL schools, all of the 11 above characteristics as listed in Section 1.2.1. of
this thesis are not really appropriate. He talks about the difference between L1 classrooms
and EFL classrooms, so we can't adapt this technique without altering.
In this study, the researcher decided to adapt the 11 essential features of a literature
circle to form the modified literature circle technique as below:
Those elements are similar as in Daniels’s (2006) model:
 The group discussions are still peer-led;
 The group working environment is also open, friendly, and favorable;
 The teacher’s role during the group discussions is an observer and facilitator;
 Marks are given based on both the teacher’s observation and students’ selfevaluation;
 The learning inside the classroom should be interesting and fun;
 Once the topic is finished, the groups have to report to the class what they have
discussed, then the new circles continue to be run, and the roles in the groups are rotated
among the group members;
Implemented features:
 Instead of students’ choice of book as Daniels’s model, the teacher is the one to
choose the topic for the students to discuss about;
 The groups are formed by the students sitting near one another in the class (4

students will form a group). Teacher can make changes in the participants of the groups
appropriately;
 All the groups have the same topic;
 Students will work in literature circles inside the classroom (it means that there
will be no regular schedules for students to meet apart from the lessons);
Surprisingly, despite all these above stated strengths and the possibility to be
adapted, the literature circle was not widely used in Vietnam for unstated purposes. Few
educators are thought to have applied the methods in reading courses to some extent. The
8


current research is therefore significant in fulfill the gaps with understanding about the
application of literature circle techniques in speaking classes.

9


CHAPTER 2: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This chapter provides background information about action research, the current
situation of implementing cooperative learning, the states of teaching speaking lessons at
Luong The Vinh Upper Secondary School and the description of methodologies
employed to collect data for the study.
2.1. Research context
It is clear that English language education in Vietnamese high schools has recently
changed and got much better results thanks to the adjustment of textbooks and teaching
methods. Particularly, the textbook series – Tiếng Anh 10, Tiếng Anh 11, Tiếng Anh 12
(English 10, English I1, and English 12)- introduced into schools since 2005 has attracted
both teachers and students by introducing a theme-based, task-based, and communicative
approaches. However, while teaching, the researcher found that many students at Luong
The Vinh Upper Secondary School had difficulties in developing their spoken

communication abilities. When interviewed, the students claimed that speaking lessons
seemed to be far from effectiveness for them.
The main reason, as investigated, is that teachers failed to overcome the challenges
posed from organising students in traditional group work and had difficulties to organise
cooperative learning groups. They might have to invest too much time preparing lessons
following cooperative learning approach while their students still showed less interest in
group work in class.
One of the researcher’s colleagues has introduced literature circle techniques
recently which possibly effective to solve the problems as noticed at the school.
A study should have been conducted at Luong The Vinh Upper Secondary School,
where all the students have learned English for about nine years and have three English
classes per week and half of them have one optional lesson every week. The new textbook
series English 10 to English 12 is taught and the students have to take the entrance exam
including English as a compulsory subject. The physical condition of the school can
provide a supportive environment for language teaching and learning with favorable
facilities such as rooms equipped with overhead projector, screen, loud speakers, CD and
CD player, and especially movable chairs and desks.

10


2.2. Research questions
As previously mentioned in the Introduction, this study aims to deal with these two
research questions:
Research question 1: What difficulties do teachers face in typical Vietnamese
classrooms while applying the cooperative learning technique?
Research question 2: Does the adapted literature circle technique help enhance
cooperative learning in Vietnamese classrooms?
2.3. Research approach
2.3.1. An overview of action research

The term “action research” refers to two dimensions of activity: the word “research”
refers to a systematic approach to carrying out investigations and collecting information
that is designed to illuminate an issue or problem and to improve classroom practice,
meanwhile the word “action” refers to taking practical action to resolve classroom
problems (Richards, 2005). Therefore, action research achieves both action (change or
improve) and research (understanding).
According to Cohen and Manion (2007), action research is “small-scale
intervention in the functioning of the real world and a close examination of the effects of
such intervention”.
Kemmis and Mc Taggart (1988) identify three characteristics of an action research,
which are “carried out by practitioners”, “cooperative” and “aimed at changing things”.
Tsui (1993) suggested 5 steps in conducting action research: Identifying problems;
Finding causes of the problem; Designing strategies for improvement (plan for action)
and writing a proposal for action research; Trying out the strategies (action) and keeping
a diary of what happened in the class; and Evaluating the try-out. Whereas, Nunan (1992)
defines the framework of a research as consisting of seven steps as follows:
 Step 1: Initiation (Identify the problem)
 Step 2: Preliminary investigation (Collect data through a variety of means)
 Step 3: Hypothesis (Develop research questions)
 Step 4: Intervention (Devise strategies and innovation to be implemented)
 Step 5: Evaluation (Collect data again and analyze it to work out the findings)
 Step 6: Dissemination (Report the result by running workshops or issuing a paper)
 Step 7: Follow-up (Find alternative methods to solve the same problem)
11


Different from Tsui, Nunan (1992) suggested that teachers should observe and take
notes on what their learners said and did in class, and then, based on these observation,
identified positive ways to bring about this change.
A necessary component of action research is the collaboration among different

teachers, their colleagues and students, who should be willing to talk with each other
about the problems and find out the solutions together, as well as help each other in
implementing classroom-centered action research projects. It also needs the cooperative
efforts of students who participate in the action research project. Students' collaboration
plays an important role in the success of the action research project.
In this study, the researcher followed Nunan’s action research model.
2.3.2. Rationale for the use of an action research
Cohen and Manion (2007) state that the aim of action research is to improve the
current state of affairs within educational context in which the research is carried out.
Koshy (2005) also maintains that action research is a powerful and useful
model for practitioner research because research can be set within a specific situation and
researchers can be participants - they do not have to context or be distant and detached
from the situation. Teachers in general and teachers of English in particular actually carry
out research for most of their time. Whenever s/he identifies a problem which is
happening in the class, it is his/her task to find ways to solve that problem. Therefore,
action research is inevitably a very common practice.
2.4. Description of the research
2.4.1. Population
Five English teachers at Luong The Vinh Upper Secondary School participated in
the survey as informants as they completed questionnaires and let the researcher observe
one lesson each to find out about the difficulties they might have while applying the
cooperative learning technique. Only two of them was chosen to deliver experiment
teaching lessons during the action part of the research.
The 84 students of two classes 10A9 and 10A10 at Luong The Vinh Upper
Secondary School have been selected to participate in the action part of the research
where the researcher conducts speaking lessons applying adapted literature circle
technique. Basing on initial analysis of the students’ previous test scores and the
researcher’s personal experience with them, the two classes are different on certain
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aspects. Class 10A9 has more male students who are much more active in lessons where
games and other creative activities are applied. However, their cooperativeness among
themselves seem to be looser than that of class 10A10’s.
2.4.2. Data collection instrument
Using questionnaires, observation and interviews, the researcher collected raw data
for the evaluation of the experiment.
Questionnaires: Three questionnaires were employed in the research, one for
teachers and two for students. To remove one of the limitations of using questionnaires
(respondents must be able to read the questions and respond to them), both of them might
be in Vietnamese. The one for teachers was used in the mini-survey to collect information
about their awareness of cooperative grouping, their perception of the actual effectiveness
of cooperative learning, as well as the difficulties they might have to face when promoting
cooperative learning. The other two for students were pre- and post-experiential, so they
were administered before and after the lessons to collect feedback on literature circle
technique’s enhancement on cooperative learning from students’ points of view in
comparison with their own feelings and thought before the experiment.
Observation: Before the application of literature circle technique, observation was
employed to verify the researcher’s assumption about difficulties the teachers might have
to face when applying cooperative learning techniques. During the experiment teaching
lessons, standardised control observation form was used to assess how much the literature
circle technique enhances cooperative learning and check if the teachers have to face the
same type of difficulties as before or not.
Interviews: There has been a KII with teachers after the lessons. The KII is
effective in providing useful information that questionnaire or observation alone or even
the combination of them fails to provide. More specifically, the KII sought for the
experiment teachers’ qualitative comments and comparison about the differences they
noticed at their students before and after the intervention.
2.4.3. The action procedures
The action was conducted during four weeks of the second semester of school year

2018- 2019 from February 12th to March 19th, 2019. Adapting steps in Nunan (1992)’s
action research cycle, the action was developed in four main steps as follows:
Step 1: Problem identification
During the teaching process in the school-years 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 for the
10th form students, the researcher and her colleagues discovered that their students were
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generally weak at speaking skills. They were not keen on joining group activities. The
researcher discussed her concern with other teachers, and they admitted that their students
have the same problems. Moreover, the time for in class practice is not enough, which
means students have to extend their self-grouping and practicing outside the class time to
improve their speaking skills as well as their collaborative competences. This urged the
teacher to find a better way to work with her new classes in the school-year 2018- 2019.
The researcher got interested and decided to collaborate with the teacher and conduct an
action research.
Step 2: Preliminary investigation
After observing and analyzing the results from many tests, especially the fact that
only 12.1% of the students got mark 5+ in the GCSE exam at the end of the 2017-2018
school year, the researcher found that, in general, the students’ English competence is
rather low. Meanwhile, initial interviews with students showed that almost all of them
found speaking lessons not enough interesting and helpful, even when their teachers
applied collaborative learning approach.
Therefore, the researcher raised two questions for exploration: “What difficulties do
teachers face in typical Vietnamese classrooms while applying the cooperative learning
technique?” “Does the adapted literature circle technique help enhance cooperative
learning in Vietnamese classrooms?”
To answer these questions, a questionnaire for teachers was administered. The
collected data were analyzed to point out some possible challenges for the teachers, from
which the researcher had belief that literature circle technique would be used to raise

students’ interest so that the problem would be solved. That was the reason why the
researcher decided to introduce literature circle technique to her students.
Step 3: Intervention
To solve the problem, the teacher decided to use literature circle technique for
cooperative learning activities. This step of intervention was carried out as follows:
The researcher asked the Head Master of the school for permission to recruit 84
students from classes 10A9 and 10A10 at the school during the second semester of the
school year 2018-2019.
Firstly, the students of both groups gave their comments about their experience of
speaking lessons by answering seven questions in the pre-questionnaire.
Then a series of four lessons were prepared basing on the adapted literature circle
technique.
The teachers and the students had one experimental lesson every week. The
researcher conducted the observation along.
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