Designing supplementary materials for teaching banking and finance vocabulary in context in preparation courses for toeic

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY- HOCHIMINH CITY
UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES
FACULTY OF ENGLISH LINGUISTICS & LITERATURE

DESIGNING SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS FOR TEACHING
BANKING AND FINANCE VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT
IN PREPARATION COURSES FOR TOEIC

A thesis submitted to the
Faculty of English Linguistics and Literature
in partial fulfillment of the Master’s degree in TESOL

By
NGUYEN MINH MAN

Supervised by
LE HOANG DUNG, Ph.D

HO CHI MINH CITY, JULY 2012




STATEMENT OF AUTHORITY
I certify my authorship of the thesis submitted today entitled

DESIGNING SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS FOR TEACHING
BANKING AND FINANCE VOCABULARY IN CONTEXT
IN PREPARATION COURSES FOR TOEIC

in term of the statement of requirements for theses in Master’s Program issued by

the Higher Degree Committee. The thesis has not previously been submitted for a
degree at any other institution.

Ho Chi Minh City, July 2012

NGUYEN MINH MAN

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RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS

I hereby state that I, NGUYEN MINH MAN, being the candidate
for the degree of Master of Arts in TESOL, accept the requirements of
the University of Social Sciences and Humanities relating to the retention
and use of the thesis deposited in the University Library.

In term of these conditions, I agree that the original version of my
thesis deposited in the University Library should be accessible for the
purpose of study and research, in accordance with the normal conditions
established by the Library for care, loan or reproduction of theses.
Ho Chi Minh City, July 2012

NGUYEN MINH MAN

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my sincere appreciation to my supervisor Dr.

Lê Hoàng Dũng, who has profound knowledge and his logical way as well as
his professional guidance and enthusiasm. He has provided his valuable time,
experience, patience, sympathy, encouragement and persuasive feedbacks as an
academic advisor for my thesis.
I am greatly indebted to all professors of the master program for their
dedication and instructions.
I am deeply grateful to the organizers of this master course and the
staff members because of their assistance throughout this entire process.
My special thanks go to the teachers and learners of the selected
English

language centers in Ho Chi Minh City for their cooperation and

participation in the study including AIES, CEFALT, VUS, FTUC, EL and
IWEP.
I would like to extend my gratitude regarding the help of teachers and
students in Economics University and Banking University of HoChiMinh City
as well as the managers and the employees of some branches of banking
system in Ho Chi Minh City, including Vietcombank, BIDV and HSBC.
I wish to express my warm thanks to my lovely friends for their
encouragement when I had the difficulties with my thesis.
I am indebted to my beloved family for their support. I thank my parents
who have devoted all their time to take care of my baby so that I could concentrate
on my thesis. I thank my lovely daughter because she is always with me and as
fresh as daisy when I am depressed. I deeply appreciate my husband’s love that
makes me feel peaceful when I am under the pressure. It is just their love that has
motivated me to lead a beautiful life and pursue my education.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Pages
STATEMENT OF AUTHORITY......................................................................... i
RETENTION AND USE OF THE THESIS ........................................................ ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................ iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................... iv
LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................. vi
LIST OF FIGURES .......................................................................................... viii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ............................................................................. ix
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................ x
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................... 1
1.1 Background and statement of problems ................................................... 1
1.2 Rationale of the research .......................................................................... 4
1.2.1 Overview of TOEIC ....................................................................... 4
1.2.2 Why is banking and finance vocabulary chosen in this study? ........ 6
1.3 Objective of the study............................................................................... 8
1.4 The research questions ............................................................................. 9
1.5 Scope of the study .................................................................................... 9
1.6 Organization of the thesis ......................................................................... 9
CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................. 11
2.1 Role of vocabulary in preparation courses for TOEIC ............................ 11
2.2 Vocabulary and context .......................................................................... 12
2.2.1 Overview of vocabulary in teaching and learning English ............ 12
2.2.2 Context and the role of context ..................................................... 13
2.2.3 The relationship of vocabulary and context .................................. 14
2.3 Application of strategies and activities to accelerate learners to study
vocabulary in the light of Communicative Approach.................................... 15
2.4 Teaching and learning materials ............................................................. 16
2.4.1 Overview of materials for teaching and learning TOEIC .............. 16

2.4.2 The importance of supplementary materials ................................. 17
2.5 Strategies in designing supplementary materials..................................... 19
2.6 Influence of learners’ needs on designing supplementary materials ........ 22
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2.7 Conceptual framework ........................................................................... 26
CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY ...................................................................... 29
3.1 Research questions ................................................................................. 29
3.2 Research Design ..................................................................................... 30
3.3 Subjects of the study .............................................................................. 32
3.3.1 Student respondents ..................................................................... 32
3.3.2 Teacher respondents ..................................................................... 33
3.4 Research instruments.............................................................................. 34
3.4.1Questionnaire to students .............................................................. 34
3.4.2 Questionnaire to teachers ............................................................. 36
3.5 Data collection procedures ..................................................................... 37
3.6 Data coding procedures .......................................................................... 38
CHAPTER 4 DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS ............. 41
4.1 Data analysis .......................................................................................... 41
4.1.1 Students’ responses to the questionnaire ....................................... 41
4.1.2 Teachers’ responses to the questionnaires..................................... 57
4.2 Discussion of results............................................................................... 69
4.3 Major findings of the study .................................................................... 72
4.3.1 Major findings conducted from teachers and learners’ responses.. 72
4.3.2 The findings conducted from the focus group interview between the
author and employees working in the industry of banking and finance .. 73
CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................ 75
5.1 Suggestions ............................................................................................ 75
5.2 Recommendations of future research ...................................................... 84

REFERENCES .................................................................................................. 85
APPENDIX 1 QUESTIONNAIRE FOR STUDENTS....................................... 90
APPENDIX 2 QUESTIONNAIRE FOR TEACHERS ...................................... 95
APPENDIX 3 BRIEF NOTES FROM STUDENTS’ RESPONSES ................ 100
APPENDIX 4 BRIEF NOTES FROM TEACHERS’ RESPONSES ................ 103

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LIST OF TABLES
Pages
Table 1.1: Summary of the main topics and themes in TOEIC materials ............. 5
Table 2.1: A framework for materials writing .................................................... 21
Table 2.2: List of needs identified in needs analysis literature ........................... 24
Table 3.1: Profile of students respondents ............................................................ 32
Table 3.2: Profile of teacher respondents .......................................................... 33
Table 3.3: Summary of research tools ................................................................ 37
Table 3.4: Coding of the items in the questionnaire ............................................ 39
Table 4.1: Students’ opinion on the role of TOEIC in their future career ............ 41
Table 4.2: Students’ reasons for participating in a TOEIC course ………………42
Table 4.3: Students’ reasons for improving banking and finance vocabulary ...... 44
Table 4.4: Students’ satisfaction with their current TOEIC materials in learning
vocabulary................................................................................................ ……....46
Table 4.5: Students’ difficulties in learning banking and finance vocabulary with
their current TOEIC materials .................................................... ………………..49
Table 4.6: Students’ responses to class-room activities of vocabulary suggested in
the supplementary materials ................................................................................ 52
Table 4.7: Teachers’ opinion on the role of TOEIC in learners’ future job.......... 57
Table 4.8: Reasons for students to attend a TOEIC preparation course based
on teachers’ perspective ...................................................................................... 58

Table 4.9: Reasons for students to improve their vocabulary in banking and
finance in a TOEIC course based on teachers’ perspective .................................. 60
Table 4.10: Teachers’ satisfaction with the current TOEIC materials for their
students to learn vocabulary ................................................................................ 62
Table 4.11: Teachers’ opinion on learners’ difficulties in learning banking and
finance vocabulary with the current TOEIC materials ......................................... 64
Table 4.12: Teachers’ opinion on class-room activities of vocabulary suggested in
the supplementary materials ................................................................................ 66
Table 4.13: Respondents’ perspective on learners’ needs in vocabulary of banking
and finance in preparation courses for TOEIC ..................................................... 69

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Table 4.14: Respondents’ level of satisfaction with the assessment of the current
TOEIC materials ................................................................................................. 70
Table 4.15: Respondents’ opinion on the class-room activities of vocabulary
suggested in the supplementary materials ............................................................ 72

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LIST OF FIGURES
Pages
Figure 2.1: Conceptual framework of the study .................................................. 27
Figure 3.1: Research design ............................................................................. 31
Figure 4.1: Students’ opinion on the role of TOEIC in their future career ......... 42
Figure 4.2: Students’ reasons for their vocabulary improvement in banking and
finance in a TOEIC preparation course ............................................................... 46
Figure 4.3: Students’ satisfaction with their current TOEIC materials in learning

vocabulary .......................................................................................................... 47
Figure 4.4: Students’ difficulties in learning banking and finance vocabulary
with their current TOEIC materials .................................................................... 51
Figure 4.5: S tudents’ responses to class-room activities of vocabulary
suggested in the supplementary materials .......................................................... 54
Figure 4.6: Teachers’ opinion on the role of TOEIC in their learners’ future
job ....................................................................................................................... 58
Figure 4.7: Teachers’ responses to the level of satisfaction with the current
TOEIC materials for their students to learn vocabulary ....................................... 63
Figure 4.8: Respondents’ level of satisfaction with the assessment of the current
TOEIC materials...……………………………………………………………......71
Figure 5.1: Diagram of word-web exercise………………………………………82
Figure 5.2: Model of word-web…………………………………. ...........................83

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
TOEIC: Test of English for International Communication
KPI: Key Performance Indicator
BIDV: Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam
HSBC: HongKong and ShangHai Banking Corporation
Vietcombank: Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam
AIES: Australia International English School
CEFALT: Center for Foreign Affairs and Languages
VUS: Vietnam – USA Society English Training Service Center
FTUC: Foreign Trade University Center
EL: Excellent Language School
IWEP: Europe – USA International English School

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ABSTRACT

Once there exist more and more international banks which penetrate into
the Vietnamese market, ability of applying English in communication is
considered as a key performance indicator to evaluate the employees for the
promotion in this industry. Therefore, students need to have the intelligent
orientation and careful preparation for their future job by improving their English
communication. And vocabulary plays an important role in communication.
Among a variety of English courses, the preparation course for TOEIC (Test
of English for International Communication) focused on vocabulary through the
contexts such as banking and finance, human management, traveling, restaurants
and hotel, etc. However, it seems that not many students at the centers where the
researcher has taught are able to apply English vocabulary in a specific context as
they may expect. In other words, learners’ needs in learning vocabulary seem not
to be satisfied with the current TOEIC materials. With limited time and resources,
the current study aimed to supplementary materials of vocabulary of banking and
finance so as to help TOEIC students apply banking and finance vocabulary better.
The study results therefore should be understood as an initial stage in the researcher’s
effort to design supplementary materials for TOEIC courses that cover a wide range
of topics in the future. The study dealt with two research questions: (1) What are
learners’ needs in banking and finance vocabulary in context in preparation
courses for TOEIC? (2) How should the supplementary materials for teaching
banking and finance vocabulary be designed to satisfy learners’ needs in
preparation courses for TOEIC?

The research used both qualitative data and quantitative data. Data
collection was carried out through delivering questionnaire to teachers and

students. The survey aimed at 183 TOEIC students whose majors were
banking and finance and 21 TOEIC teachers. The main findings were conducted
as follows: (1) Both the students and the teachers could see the importance of

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vocabulary and their responses were related to how to capture the context
meaning and how to use vocabulary precisely in the specific context. (2) There
existed the gap between the learners’ expectation and their difficulties in
understanding context meaning and using it in real situation. (3) There existed a
positive sign as both learners and teachers share the same perspective on using
teaching and learning activities in supplementary materials to support the current
materials. (4) TOEIC learners have strong demand in learning vocabulary
associated with activities other than just reading or listening in TOEIC
preparation courses. Because they would like to communicate effectively and
apply vocabulary in a specific context for their future job instead of only
studying to cope with a TOEIC exam. (5) Both teachers and students had a
negative feedback to the current TOEIC material: it was boring and ineffective to
accelerate students to apply vocabulary.

Deriving from the above main findings from responses of teachers and
students, the study gave the relevant suggestions and recommendations with the
hope that these recommendations contributed to the design of the supplementary
materials for teaching banking and finance vocabulary in preparation courses for
TOEIC.

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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

This chapter introduces the background of the thesis and statement of
problems. The purpose is to allow the reader to grasp the insight of the thesis.
Additionally, the objectives of the study, research questions, rationale of the
research, and scope of the study are also discussed. This chapter also summarizes
the organization of the thesis.
1.1 Background and statement of problems
Today in Vietnam, English has become more and more widespread, it is
used as the preferred business language in many industry sectors all over the world
in general and in Vietnam in particular. Since Vietnam entered the World Trade
Organization in 2007. Foreign investment has increased in Vietnam at the rate of
20% (Vietinbank & ITPC website). Many more foreign companies are interested
in investing in Vietnam due to its geographic position in Asia and relatively cheap
cost of labor as well as the population demographic of 46 million (CIA factbook,
2008). This trend has provided new employment opportunities for Vietnamese
people. However, with these opportunities come many challenges. Perhaps the
greatest challenge is the language barrier. Currently, English is communicated
broadly in many corporations and it is considered as one of the keys to success in
career. Using English has become a trend in a global economic climate. An
employee in an international company now is required to work with their
colleagues, partners and clients from other countries and English is essential for
communication, and often the medium that is used between even Asian cultures
where neither party is fluent in the others native language (for example,
communication between a Vietnamese and a Chinese). If an employee has both
working experience and English skills, he or she will have a better opportunity to
get promoted in his or her company. Therefore, recently Vietnam has seen many
people going to English learning centers to improve their English skills, especially

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communication skills. Among a wide variety of English courses, preparation
course for TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) has been
recognized as a popular course. Existing TOEIC material with the system of
vocabulary relating to many fields, such as: banking and finance, insurance,
management, traveling and restaurants and events, is one of the useful materials
that learners aim to learn. It is because it meets the expectations of those who
desire to get a good job. However, there have been problems based on which, this
thesis is aimed to point out and then to provide solutions.

Firstly, although TOEIC students can generally communicate well and have
knowledge of the basic English structures, they seem to have difficulties in
learning vocabulary. These difficulties are explored through the focus group
interview with students. Some preliminary answers from the author’s informal
sharing with different groups of TOEIC learners from different foreign language
centers indicated that these TOEIC learners usually encounter three major
difficulties including: (1) They don’t understand the context meaning. (2) They
lack vocabulary. (3) They have difficulties in applying their vocabulary correctly.
It is said that it is hard for learners to perform themselves persuasively because of
the shortage of vocabulary or not understanding the meaning. This results in them
not being able to express their ideas clearly and appropriately in a specific context.
Difficult but key words are often ignored by learners while studying because they
are impatient to try hard to understand the meaning of these words. Actually they
should make efforts in trying to absorb these words and employ them accurately in
specific contexts. Learners are confused and didn’t know how to overcome their
weakness in learning vocabulary including understanding the context meaning,
absorbing to enrich vocabulary and applying vocabulary.

Secondly, current materials lack real context examples in order for learners
to put vocabulary into practice. In reality, the classroom learning environment does
not always offer opportunities for students to use the vocabulary in a particular
context. They occasionally are confused because there exists a gap of

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understanding between the theory they have learned and the context they apply.
The main difference between teaching general vocabulary and context vocabulary
lies in the setting contexts. This will help TOEIC students practice vocabulary in
specific settings they may find themselves. Learners should be able to employ
vocabulary in real situations in order to understand the context meaning.
Therefore, it is suggested that there should be the supplementary materials for
improvement of understanding vocabulary in context so that learners are able to
develop their vocabulary.

Thirdly, the current materials in preparation courses for TOEIC cannot
satisfy learners’ needs as well as deal with their problems in vocabulary. Learners’
expectations are varied. For example, they would like to pass a TOEIC
examination with a high score because it is the requirement from the university or
the industry they are going to get involved in the future. Some would like to
improve their English skills as well as confidence in daily communication.
Another expectation is that students really hope to broaden their vocabulary or
extend their knowledge in other fields via vocabulary. There are also many
learners who wish to apply their vocabulary in future jobs. In this thesis, the
researcher will address a group of learners who have the desire to open up their
vocabulary so as to apply them in real working environment. It is because most of
the undergraduates will apply for jobs after graduation and they expect to use their
better English skills to get hired.

Lastly, as a matter of fact most of TOEIC teachers are under the pressure in
making efforts to help their learners with vocabulary and to improve the current
materials to be better. According to Lougheed (1999), “although the words in
TOEIC books are just general vocabulary (not specialized words), they are used in
the specialized contexts”. The problem here is even though TOEIC teachers have
both their knowledge of English and teaching methodology, they do not have
enough professional knowledge to explain the context meaning of the words.
Teachers sometimes confided in colleagues of their troubles in teaching

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vocabulary relating to banking and finance in teacher room, they discussed
together to find the solution. Some of their difficulties were exposed as follows:
some teachers failed to convey the knowledge with the vague explanation; and
they had difficulties in finding materials to get the related materials to support
them in teaching. Teachers probably find it very challenging on how to motivate
their learners to study vocabulary and explore the ways for improvement of the
current materials.

With the above reasons, this research aims to seek students’ need for
vocabulary and design supplementary materials for teaching banking and finance
vocabulary in context in preparation courses for TOEIC. In addition, the research
hopes to serve as a guideline for TOEIC learning centers to amend their
supplementary materials to help learners study better by satisfying their
expectations.

1.2 Rationale of the research
1.2.1 Overview of TOEIC

According to Rogers (2006), “The TOEIC Test is a standardized test
designed to measure a person’s ability to understand English as it is used in
international business situations”. Even though TOEIC test was first introduced in
Japan in 1979, it is now given in more than 50 countries all over the world.
Likewise, Lougheed (1999) stated that TOEIC test was to evaluate “English
proficiency” of people working in global environment. Lougheed stressed that
TOEIC did not specifically test specialized vocabulary, it focused more on the
“specialized contexts”. The worldwide development of TOEIC has made TOEIC
books available in the bookstores. TOEIC books have provided a wide variety of
choices on the topics of practice tests as well as the contexts in particular real life
situation. Popular TOEIC topics are in the fields of banking and finance, business,
economy, restaurants, hotels, and etc (see Table 1.1). Understanding these contexts
and the words used in these contexts will help the learners improve their score in
the TOEIC exam as well as put into practice when they start working in

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corporations. In order to succeed in TOEIC test or apply the knowledge in working
environment, the learners have to improve their vocabulary.
Table 1.1: Summary of the main topics and themes in TOEIC materials
(Adapted from Lougheed, L, 1999)

TOPIC & THEME
1

2

General business (Contracts, Marketing, Warranties, Business Planning,
Conferences)

Office Issues (Computers, Office Technology, Office Procedures,
Electronics, Correspondence)
Personnel (Job Advertising and Recruiting, Applying and Interview,

3

Hiring and Training, Salaries and Benefits, Promotions , Pensions, and
Awards)

4
5

6

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Purchasing (Shopping, Ordering Supplies, Shipping, Invoices, Inventory)
Financing and Banking (Banking and Finance, Financial Statements,
Budgeting, Accounting, Investments, Taxes)
Management Issues ( Property and Departments, Board Meetings and
Committees, Quality Control, Product Development, Renting and Leasing)
Restaurants and Events (Selecting a Restaurant, Eating out, Ordering
Lunch, Cooking as a Career, Events)

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Travel (General Travel, Air lines, Trains, Hotels, Car Rentals)

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Entertainment (Movies, Theater, Music, Museums, Media)

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Health (Doctor’s Office, Dentist’s Office, Health Insurance, Hospitals,
Pharmacy)

As shown in table 1.1, “banking and finance” is one of the main topics of
the TOEIC materials. However, in the researcher’s 6 years experience of teaching
TOEIC, she found limitation of published books relating to this field on the
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market. During a review of literature relating to TOEIC not many specific
materials relating directly to banking and finance were discovered. It is possible
for learners to find many TOEIC books with a diverse system of practice tests to
improve their score for TOEIC examination such as TOEIC Starter (Taylor &
Malarcher, 2006), TOEIC Developing (Edmunds & Taylor, 2007), TOEIC Analyst
(Taylor, 2006), TOEIC Target (Taylor, 2006), 600 Essential Words for the TOEIC
(Lougheed, 1999), TOEIC Bridge Test (Lougheed, 2004), TOEIC Complete Guide
(Rogers, 2006), Longman Preparation Series for the TOEIC Test (Lougheed,
2006), Tactics for TOEIC (Trew, 2007), TOEIC Icon (Hwang & Nam, 2009) and
so on. In contrast, it is really difficult for students to seek for several sources on
TOEIC materials of banking and finance vocabulary in context to support them in
learning. On the other hand, the different topics such as general business,
personnel, purchasing, management issues, restaurants and events, travel,
entertainment and health are not too difficult for learners to understand since they
often relate to English words and phrases that one would encounter in day to day
communication using English. Referring to banking and finance, TOEIC learners
cannot use the vocabulary of banking and finance effectively with the lack of the

context meaning and it is also impossible for them to express their ideas in real
situation for their future job. This results in a research gap for teachers to explore
and supplement materials for teaching banking and finance vocabulary in order to
support students in learning vocabulary relating to this field.

1.2.2 Why is banking and finance vocabulary chosen in this study?
1.2.2.1 From the real situation of English in banking and finance
Although there exists many contexts of vocabulary (see Table 1.1) in
preparation courses for TOEIC, vocabulary of banking and finance is suggested to
design supplementary materials because of the real situation of English in this
field.
According to a report of Vietcombank Securities Company, banking and
finance industry developed in number size and capital in the period from 2005 to
2010 (Vietcombank website). Government policy removed the limitations of time

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deposit, this permitted the international banks the opportunity to participate in the
equal competition with the local banks. Vietnam has witnessed the establishment
of joint-venture between foreign banks and their domestic partners or the
inauguration of foreign banks in Vietnam. One of the positive results of this policy
is that using English in communication and executing transactions with customers,
investors and business partners is required. Working in bank can be tough but it is
a rewarding experience. It is challenging because it requires interpersonal skills
and specific academic knowledge. Persons seeking a career in banking should be
honest, meticulous, customer oriented and have the ability to follow a proven
business system. While on an academic level, he or she should possess the ability
to understand natural sciences, such as: mathematics and computer skills. However
these requirements seem not to be sufficient enough in foreign related banks. The

administration procedures in foreign banks now are designed in both English and
Vietnamese. For instance, a time deposit slip is written in dual language because it
aims to serve both local and international clients. On a more sophisticated level, a
banking contract or an investment contract strictly requires a good command of
languages in order to translate it accurately. A poor translation risks commercial
damage for parties involved. Proficiency in both written and spoken English is
considered essential to succeed in this field.

Another school of thought concerning English capabilities of working
adults focuses on English specifically as a Key Performance Indicator (KPI) for
employee performance review. High ability in communication is truly appreciated
in banking corporations and it is served as a key performance indicator to evaluate
their employees. The communication abilities which are highly appreciated
including the ability to express themselves, the flexibility while handling
transactions, the cleverness in negotiation with their partners, and the convincible
skills while working with the clients. An interview with Wesley Grove of the
online magazine bwportal.com has showed that one of competitiveness of newly
graduated employees from banking and finance universities is their English skills

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(vietarrow.com). Those who have not a good English level will limit themselves in
a working environment where English is essential.

1.2.2.2 From the real demand of learners of banking and finance
In reality, the demand of learners of banking and finance vocabulary is real.
Learners whose major is banking and finance are expected by their university to
obtain TOEIC qualification in order to support their academic studies in their
chosen areas. Some universities of banking and finance have specific requirements

because they would like their students to improve English skills as well as
vocabulary of this field through TOEIC courses so that students can apply their
vocabulary once they graduate and enter the workforce. The supplementary
materials of banking and finance could be supposed to help learners achieve their
demand.

1.3 Objective of the study
Regarding three components of the language classroom: the teacher, the
learners and the materials; there exist the problems. (1) Students have difficulties
in learning vocabulary such as not understanding the context meaning, their
shortage of vocabulary and not applying vocabulary in the specific context
correctly. (2) Current materials of TOEIC cannot satisfy learners’ needs as well as
deal with their problems in vocabulary. (3) TOEIC teachers are under the pressure
in making efforts to help their learners with vocabulary and to improve the current
materials to be better. Therefore, the study pays attention to the exploration of
learners’ needs such as their difficulties, purpose or expectations in learning
vocabulary in order to suggest the supplementary materials to satisfy their needs.
The study aims to:
(1) Investigate the learners’ needs for additional vocabulary materials in banking
and finance of preparation courses for TOEIC
(2) Suggest how supplementary materials should be designed for teaching banking
and finance vocabulary in context in preparation courses for TOEIC

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1.4 The research questions
This study attempts to answer the two research questions as follow:
(1) What are learners’ needs in banking and finance vocabulary in context in
preparation courses for TOEIC?

(2) How should the supplementary materials for teaching banking and finance
vocabulary be designed to satisfy learners’ needs in preparation courses for
TOEIC?

1.5 Scope of the study
In order to provide boundaries to the research, the study focuses on
designing supplementary materials for teaching only banking and finance
vocabulary in preparation courses for TOEIC although there exists different
contexts which are used in TOEIC such as marketing, sales, contract negotiations
or management and so on (as indication in Table 1.1, p.5). This addresses the gap
in current research. Given such delimitation in the scope of the study, the study
results therefore should be understood as an initial stage in the researcher’s effort
to design supplementary materials for TOEIC courses that cover a wide range of
topics in the future.

1.6 Organization of the thesis
The thesis is divided into five chapters. Chapter 1 presents the research’s
background, objectives of the study, research questions, and rationale of the
research, scope of the study. Chapter 2 offers a review of literature relevant to the
research and shapes the theoretical framework for the study. In this chapter,
vocabulary and context, presentation of strategies and activities to accelerate
learners to study vocabulary in the light of Communicative Approach, overview of
TOEIC, materials, conceptual framework are focused on. Chapter 3 deals with the
design and methodology of the study. Chapter 4 provides the analysis of the data
collected from the responses of questionnaires for teachers and learners.
Accordingly, the discussions relating to the research are presented. Chapter 5

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discusses the benefits of designing supplementary materials. Then, suggestions of
the current study and recommendations of future research are conducted.

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CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter reviewed the relevant literatures relating to the thesis. In this
chapter, the definitions of vocabulary, context, materials and conceptual
framework were taken into consideration. The review served as a theoretical
foundation to the design of the study.

2.1 Role of vocabulary in preparation courses for TOEIC
Vietnam has seen TOEIC programs becoming popular in the companies as
well as government organizations. Organizations now standardize the ability of
English to consider for promotion. TOEIC is used as a standardized test to measure
employee’s English proficiency. TOEIC score is considered as a factor to make the
decision of human resources, such as: recruitment, promotion and arrange the staff
for the right positions. TOEIC preparation courses focus on two sections: reading
and listening. Each section tests the understanding of English vocabulary words.
For example, there are three parts in the Reading Section and the vocabulary is
crucial to answer these questions in these parts. In “incomplete sentence” part,
learners are asked to give correct answers by choosing the precise words or
sentences. In “error recognition” part, sentences are written with one or more
words used incorrectly. In order to recognize these errors, learners must
understand these words correctly and how they are used. In “reading
comprehension” part, it requires learners to understand what they are asked to
read. If the learners have strong English vocabulary, their reading speed is faster.

Moreover, they can grasp the information to answer the questions precisely due to
their sufficient vocabulary. Likewise, the Listening Section tests the ability to
comprehend what to be heard. The tape will not slow down if learners miss a
word. Learners will be at risk if they do not have a strong English vocabulary.
Therefore, possessing a strong vocabulary is crucial in TOEIC courses.

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2.2 Vocabulary and context
2.2.1 Overview of vocabulary in teaching and learning English
Although many researchers have agreed that vocabulary has play an
important role in language teaching and learning, there were many different
definitions or notions of vocabulary.

Oxford (2000) gave the definition of vocabulary as followings: (1) “all the
words that a person knows or uses”, (2) “all the words in a particular language”,
(3) “the words that people use when they are talking about a particular subject”,
(4) “a list of words with their meanings, especially in a book for learning a foreign
language”. Herrel (2004) listed four types of vocabulary: reading vocabulary,
listening vocabulary, writing vocabulary and speaking vocabulary. Meanwhile,
according to Folse (2004, pp. 2-18), there existed five kinds of vocabulary,
including single words, set phrases, variable phrases, phrasal verbs and idioms.
And Adger (2002) showed the concern regarding vocabulary with the meaning of
words and the way which vocabulary is structured.

Referring to vocabulary, there are many factors worthy of attention and they
are results of different schools of thoughts. In his research, Folse (2004, pp.10-18)
mentioned to the components of vocabulary consist of polysemy, denotation and
connotation, spelling and pronunciation, part of speech, frequency, usage,

collocation. On the other hand, Cunningworth (1995, p.38) focused on the
following factors to be exploited in the vocabulary development activities: (1)
“semantic relations – word groups according to meaning, synonyms, hyponyms,
opposites”; (2) “situational relationships – word sets associated with particular
situations, e.g. sport, transport, politics”; (3) “collocations- words commonly found
in association, e.g. food and drink, for better or worse, also noun + preposition
links and phrasal verbs (verb + particle links)”; (4) “relationships of form (often
referred to as “word building), e.g. long, length, lengthen”. Gairns and Redman
(1986) paid attention to some aspects such as boundaries between conceptual
meaning; polysemy; homonymy; synonymy; affective meaning; style, register,

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dialect; translation; chunks of language; pronunciation; homophony. In general,
knowing a lexical item means knowing a number of things (Gass, 1999).
Therefore, vocabulary and the factors of vocabulary play an important role in
teaching and learning language.

The importance of vocabulary has been paid more attention to through
certain periods of various teaching methods. It could be recognized that there
exists the difference between vocabulary teaching in the old days and nowadays.
In the old days, vocabulary was not given importance by teachers in language
teaching. Instead, grammar enjoyed more attention. For example, Grammar
Translation placed the emphasis on grammar rules. Besides, Direct Method got rid
the importance of vocabulary and only paid attention to skills such as listening and
speaking. All these reflected the fact that the above approaches did not consider
vocabulary as an essential component to language teaching and learning. However,
the role of vocabulary cannot be denied nowadays. It is said that without a good
command of vocabulary, language learners cannot provide good performance in

speaking, reading, writing and listening. In his research, Griffiths (2003, 2006)
referred to the significance of teaching and learning vocabulary. Similarly said by
Gass (1999), he suggested that learning vocabulary is crucial for learning
language. In short, in language learning, vocabulary and the factors relating to
vocabulary should be appreciated.

2.2.2 Context and the role of context
There existed many definitions of context. According to Oxford (2000),
context was “the situation in which something happens and that helps you to
understand it” or it consisted of “the words that comes just before and after a word,
phrase or statement and help you to understand its meaning.” However, Duranti
and Goodwin (1992) referred to context with four types, such as: setting (physical
and interactional), behavioral environment (nonverbal and kinetic), language (cotext and reflexive use of language) and extra-situational (social, political, cultural
and the like). Concept of context was described by Halliday (1991) as “the events

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