Luận văn thạc sĩ an investigation into teachers’ facilitation of learners’ active learning in the classroom a case study at a rural secondary school in bac ninh province

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES
*********************

NGUYỄN THỊ THÙY LINH

AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ FACILITATION
OF LEARNERS’ ACTIVE LEARNING IN THE CLASSROOM:
A CASE STUDY AT A RURAL SECONDARY SCHOOL IN BAC
NINH PROVINCE

(Nghiên cứu về cách thức giáo viên tạo điều kiện thuận lợi cho học sinh
chủ động học trong lớp học: một nghiên cứu trường hợp ở một trường
trung học cơ sở ở nông thôn trên địa bàn tỉnh Bắc Ninh)

M.A MINOR THESIS (Type I)

Field: English Teaching Methodology
Code: 8140231.01

Hanoi – 2019


VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES
*********************

NGUYỄN THỊ THÙY LINH

AN INVESTIGATION INTO TEACHERS’ FACILITATION
OF LEARNERS’ ACTIVE LEARNING IN THE CLASSROOM:
A CASE STUDY AT A RURAL SECONDARY SCHOOL IN BAC
NINH PROVINCE

(Nghiên cứu về cách thức giáo viên tạo điều kiện thuận lợi cho học sinh
chủ động học trong lớp học: một nghiên cứu trường hợp ở một trường
trung học cơ sở ở nông thôn trên địa bàn tỉnh Bắc Ninh)

M.A MINOR THESIS (Type I)

Field: English Teaching Methodology
Code: 8140231.01
Supervisor: Dr. Lê Thị Hồng Duyên

Hanoi - 2019


DECLARATION
I hereby certify that this thesis entitled “An investigation into teachers’ facilitation
of learners’ active learning in the classroom: A case study at a rural secondary school
in Bac Ninh province” is entirely my own work.

This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any
other degree or diploma in any university.
To the best of my knowledge and belief this thesis contains no material
previously published by any other persons.
Hanoi, August 2019
Signature

Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The completion of this study would not have been possible without the assistance
of many special and wonderful people.
First of all, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Dr. Le
Thi Hong Duyen for her valuable advice, guidance and suggestions as well as her
constant support during all stages of the study.
My profound thanks also go to all teacher staffs and students in Minh Dao
secondary school in Bac Ninh province for their tremendous supports in the
collection of data and information for my study.
My appreciation also goes to my parents whose understanding, caring and
sharing are invaluable to me in completing my thesis.
Finally, this thesis is the product of my long-term study, so I wish to express my
acknowledgement to other individuals who have indirectly contributed to the
completion of this thesis.
To all these people I hope that the achievement of the thesis will be favorable
enough to satisfy their expectations.

Hanoi, August 2019
Signature

Nguyen Thi Thuy Linh

ii

ABSTRACT
The main objective of this study was to explore teachers’ practices and
challenges in implementing active learning in teaching English for secondary
students. In conducting the study, the researcher employed qualitative approach.
To collect the data for the study, two main research instruments were employed.
They are: class-room observation and semi-structured interviews conducted
with two teachers of English at the secondary school. Accordingly, the findings
from classroom observation indicated that the teacher made an effort to
facilitate her students to learn actively; however, there were some barriers that
made her effort unsuccessful. In their best attempt to implement the strategy,
the techniques those teachers of English frequently used were question-andanswer, think-pair-share, discussion and games to solve various problems.
However, some motivational techniques that the observed teachers were
employing in the class did not facilitate students’ active learning. The results
from the interviews with those teachers, revealed that most teachers had the
perception that active learning was one of the significant strategies which could
help students to facilitate independent learning. Nevertheless, most teachers of
English did not put it into practice fully due to various reasons. According to
the researcher’s exploration, the difficulties that were identified as major
constraints affecting the implementation of active learning for students at
secondary schools were content covering, preparation before class, lack of
materials and equipment, class size and student factors. Finally, implications
and further studies were proposed.

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Pre.I

Pre interview

CO

Class observation

PO

Post interview

T

Teacher

Ss

Students

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LIST OF TABLES
Table 3.2.1: Information about two teachers of English ……………………….19
Table 3.6.2: Information about classroom observations……………………….22
Table 6.3: Initial codes of aspects of active learning…………………………..25
Table 6.4: Activities to facilitate student’s active learning…………………….26
Table 4.1: Number of activities that teachers used in all 8 lessons and their
effectiveness…………………………………………………………………….28

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TABLES OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION ............................................................................................... i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................ ii
ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................... iii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................ iv
LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................... v
TABLES OF CONTENTS ............................................................................. vi
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ................................................................... 1
1.1 Rationale of the study .................................................................................. 1
1.2 Aims and research questions of the study .................................................... 2
1.3 Scope of the study ........................................................................................ 3
1.4 Significance of the study .............................................................................. 3
1.5 Organization of the thesis ............................................................................ 3
CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE ................................................ 5
2.1 What is active learning? ............................................................................... 5
2.2 Benefits of active learning ........................................................................... 7
2.3 Activities facilitating active learning ........................................................... 9
2.4 Barriers to active learning .......................................................................... 13
2.5 Previous studies about active learning ....................................................... 15
CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ........................................ 18
3.1 Setting of the study .................................................................................... 18
3.2 Participants ................................................................................................. 19
3.3 Reasons to choose methodology to the study ............................................ 20
3.4 Research procedure .................................................................................... 24
3.5 Data collection methods ............................................................................. 21
3.5.1 Semi-structured interviews ..................................................................... 21
3.5.2 Classroom observations .......................................................................... 22

3.5.3 Post-class observation interviews ........................................................... 23

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3.6 Transcription of the data ............................................................................ 24
3.7 Data analysis .............................................................................................. 24
3.7.1 Analysis of the interview data................................................................. 24
3.7.2 Analysis of the observation data ............................................................. 24
CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .......................................... 28
4.1 Teachers’ use of techniques to facilitate learners’ active learning .....Error!
Bookmark not defined.
4.2 Teachers’ failure in facilitating learners’ active learning .......................... 34
4.3 Factors affect teachers’ facilitation of students’ active learning in the
classroom ......................................................................................................... 38
4.3.1 Content covering ..................................................................................... 39
4.3.2 Preparation before class .......................................................................... 42
4.3.3 Lack of equipment or materials .............................................................. 41
4.3.4 Class size ................................................................................................. 42
4.3.5 Students’ attitude about active learning .................................................. 43
CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION...................................................................... 45
5.1 Summary of the findings and discussion ................................................... 46
5.2 Implications of the study ............................................................................ 46
5.3 Limitations ................................................................................................. 47
5.4 Further studies ............................................................................................ 47
REFERENCES .................................................................................................. I
APPENDICES ................................................................................................ IV
APPENDIX A .................................................................................................. IV
APPENDIX B: .............................................................................................. VII
APPENDIX C: ............................................................................................. VIII

APPENDIX D: .............................................................................................. XIII
APPENDIX E: ............................................................................................ XVV
APPENDIX F:..............................................................................................XVII

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
This paper is entitled “An investigation into teachers’ facilitation of learners’
active learning in the classroom: A case study at a rural secondary school in Bac
Ninh province”. It is divided into five chapters: introduction, literature review,
methodology, findings and discussion, and conclusion. In the first chapter,
rationale of the study, aims of the study, scope of the study, significance of the
study, design of the study is mentioned.
1.1 Rationale of the study
English has played an important role in the development of many fields such as
culture, economy, and so on. Strongly recognizing the importance of this global
language, Vietnamese Ministry of Education has required students from the age
of 8 to at least 18 to learn English language as a compulsory subject (Vietnam
education strategies 2008-2020, p.19). Besides, according to the Project
“Teaching and learning foreign languages in the national education system for
the period 2008 – 2020”, it is aimed at comprehensively reforming the teaching
and learning of foreign languages in the national education system, and
developing new language teaching and learning programs at all educational
levels. In particular, it is stated that “in every school, teachers have to change
their teaching methods, guide students in learning so that students are more
positive, active and creative. Moreover, students can propose different ways to

improve their learning.” (Official document 10234/BGDĐT-VP). Therefore,
educators of Vietnam are attempting to find the best ways to help develop our
educational system, especially focus on students’ active learning. To help
students learn this language more actively, the role of the teachers is very
important. In other words, teachers in classroom should act as a facilitator and
encourage students’ active learning.

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In the Vietnamese context, some researchers have examined the effectiveness of
teachers’ delivery of certain teaching methods in EFL classrooms (Nguyen,
2013; Tomlison & Dat, 2004), or Vietnamese student motivation in learning
English (Phan, 2011). However, there are few studies investigating the ways
English teachers facilitate students to learn actively, especially in secondary
school contexts. This research gap could be fulfilled.
Another rationale for this study is from my observation over some years teaching
English at a secondary school, students seem not to learn effectively and actively
as desired. This raises the question of the teachers’ roles in facilitating students to
learn. A range of questions have been pondered in my mind: how teachers
interpret the concept of active learning, what they are doing to help students learn
actively, what factors hinder or support them to do that, and so on. Therefore, I
am motivated to explore teachers’ facilitation of students’ active learning.
For all the reasons mentioned above, I desire to do the research on teachers’
facilitation of students’ active learning at a secondary school in Bac Ninh
province.
1.2 Aims and research questions of the study
This study is designed with the aims to
-

Explore teachers’ activities to facilitate students’ active learning in the

classroom
- Identify factors affecting teachers’ activities to facilitate students’ active
learning in the classroom. In order to meet the aforementioned aims, this study
seeks to answer the following research questions:
1. How do the English teachers facilitate students’ active learning in the
classroom?
2. What factors affect those teachers' facilitation of students’ active learning?

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1.3 Scope of the study
The study is about how teachers facilitate students’ active learning in the
classroom at a rural secondary school in Bac Ninh province. However, due to the
limited scope and time, it is confined to examining the activities teachers use to
facilitate students’ active learning and the factors that affect teachers’ promoting
students’ active learning in the classroom.
In this study, pre-interviews, class observation and post-class interviews are
conducted with the two teachers to find out how they facilitate their students’
active learning in the classroom and factors affecting their instruction.
1.4 Significance of the study
It is hoped that the study will make significant contributions in the teaching and
learning English in Vietnamese context. First, it will help to raise teachers’
awareness of the ways they facilitate students to learn actively and effectively.
Second, this study will contribute to the literature of Vietnamese teachers’
instruction and behaviors in the classroom. Lastly, it may bring more insights
into the contextual factors that affect teachers’ choice in the classroom. From
that, it might contribute to the policy of teaching and learning English in

Vietnamese context.
1.5 Organization of the thesis
There are five chapters in the study: introduction, literature review, methodology,
findings and discussion, and conclusion.
The first chapter is the introduction, which points out the rationale, aims, scope,
and significance of the study. Research questions are also specifically defined to
serve as guidelines for the whole paper.
The second chapter is the literature review. In this part, the contents are presented
related to definition of active learning, benefits and barriers of active learning,
learning activities used to motivate students’ active learning and previous studies.

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The third chapter presents the methodology of the study. It includes careful
description of, , the setting of the study, the participants, the selection of research
methods and methods of data collection and analysis.
The next chapter is to present findings and discussion. In this part, interviews and
classroom observations collected from the teachers at this secondary school are
analyzed to find out the teachers’ typical activities of teaching and factors
affecting their facilitation of students’ active learning.
The last chapter of the study is the conclusion, which summarizes the main
findings of the study and offers recommendations for further studies.

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CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Active learning is a core element of the 21st century classroom. A lot of studies
have shown that as students are allowed to play a more central role in classes,

their performance can be improved. This chapter explores what active learning is,
its benefits in promoting learning, and some barriers that may prevent teachers
from motivating students’ active learning process. A number of techniques of
facilitating active learning in the classroom are also demonstrated in this chapter.
The chapter ends with some results from previous studies, which reveal some
research gaps that the current study may fill in.
2.1 What is active learning?
For many years, active learning has received considerable attention. It is not a
new term; however, it has appealed to teachers and researchers who seek other
ways to traditional teaching methods. Bonwell and Eison (1991) noted that the
term “active learning” seems to lack an identifiable origin or a common
definition although it is reported frequently in the literature. In a classic work
“Democracy and Education”, John Dewey (1924) said that “learning is
something an individual does when he studies. It is an active, personally
conducted affair” (p. 390). Simons (1997) pointed out that students should plan
and prepare the learning process themselves, engage in learning, regulate their
learning, control it and persist in the learning activities. Every student must
prepare carefully for their learning course. They should make use of all the
knowledge that is instructed by their lecturers at school to do the tasks. Besides,
they ought to seek for other useful information from different sources to
complete the exercises. When someone is self-aware of the aim of learning, he
will be responsible for his work.
Some other scholars and authors also share some viewpoints about active
learning. Ryan and Martens (1989) defined that “active learning is more likely to

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take place when students are doing something besides listening” (p. 20). It can be
implied that instead of using the traditional method in which students only hear

and teacher mainly talks, students had better learn by themselves, do not depend
too much on the teacher. Nevertheless, it is also understood that learning is not
just listening to the teachers; students have to gain knowledge from other fields
in life such as their experience, their work, their friends, etc.
In a broader sense of the term, active learning is defined as:
“such learning that enables students to have a high level of autonomy and selfmonitoring, and to apply various mental strategies and specific cognitive skills to
differentiate between important and unimportant information, analyze and
compare, construct new knowledge on the previous experiences and think
critically” (Peko & Varga, 2014, p. 60).
Since studying is a process in which learners have to apply not only all their
skills but also their experiences to promote the understanding of what they need
to learn. Obviously, to reach the goals, learners must have the right attitude and
be serious to the subjects.
When referring to active learning, it is also defined as any instructional method
that engages students in the learning process. Hence, active learning requires
students to do effective learning activities and think about what they are doing
(Prince, 2004). Similarly, Rodríguez (2018) defined active learning, understood
as an instructional method that engages students in the learning process, seems
fundamental in the new teaching/learning paradigm in which teachers work as
the instructors while students have to search and learn on their own . The core
elements of active learning are students’ activities and engagement in the
learning process. By that way, active learning is often contrasted to the
traditional lecture where students passively receive information from the
instructor.
Regarding such point of view, Good & Brophy (1989) argued that active learning
involves providing pupils with an opportunity in which they raise their own

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questions and use teachers and other resources to pursue self-defined goals.
Sharing the same viewpoint, Kyriacou (1992) claimed that “active learning, in
essence, can be described as the use of learning activities where pupils are given
a marked degree of ownership and control over the learning activities used,
where the learning experience is open-ended rather than tightly predetermined,
and where the pupil is able to actively participate and shape the learning
experience”. (Kyriacou, 1992, p.310).
Although there are different ways to define active learning, in this paper, active
learning can be defined as something students do on their own and engage in
what they are doing. Therefore, teachers’ facilitation of students’ active learning
can be understood as activities teachers organize in order to help students do, act
and enjoy the lessons rather than passively listen to teachers’ instruction.
2.2 Benefits of active learning
It seems to be widely accepted that active learning should constantly be present
in classrooms since students benefit from it in numerous ways (Kyriacou, 1992).
First, active learning may support students using current knowledge to construct
new knowledge by their own. With traditional teaching method, the teacher talks
and students listen passively; therefore, students only know the things the teacher
instructs them in class. In contrast, active learning enhances students’ ability to
find new things by themselves. They can explore numerous interesting things
which their teachers have never mentioned before. Kennedy (2009) stated that
“students place a higher value on learning by participating than on learning by
being lectured at and receiving information passively” (pp. 225-226). Lectures
can be effective if used in conjunction with active learning activities. In addition
to that, Cherney (2008) stressed, “active learning enhances student retention of
concepts, particularly when the students are the authors of their own learning”
(p.155). Students learn best when they actively participate in the learning
process. Therefore, by engaging students in their learning, educators can nurture

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a deeper understanding of the materials and assist students to perform high-order
thinking (Shin, Sok, Hyun, & Kim, 2015).
Second, students may be excited and enjoyable when taking part in an active
learning lesson because active learning involves students in doing activities and
engaging in learning. Teachers that have implemented active learning approach
generally find that students learn more, and the courses are more enjoyable
(Limbach & Waugh, 2010). Since students are individuals, and each learns in a
unique way, it is important for facilitators to find the key learning styles and then
employ them in the classroom so as to satisfy different types of students.
Third, active learning can improve productivity and ensure that students are
better able to understand the content (Bonwell & Eison, 1991). The students in an
active-learning classroom are able to be creative and make meaning of the class
work. Moreover, active learning helps foster understanding which students can
then apply to diverse contexts and problems. Every student learns differently, and
an active learning model will improve understanding. In a study on memory and
active learning, Cherney (2008) indicated, “it is important to consider presenting
information in multiple modalities to accommodate different learning styles” (pp.
154-155).
Finally, active learning fosters students’ learning and their autonomy, giving
them greater involvement and control over their learning and giving them skills
to foster lifelong learning in the future. It is closely associated with learning how
to learn (Bonwell and Eison, 1991). Active learning enables students to act
autonomously and have control over the classroom activities. It plays a
significant role in student motivation since it links problem-based teaching to
innate curiosity and the need for exploration of every child. It gives a new kind
of quality to the school experience. It has greater influence on students' everyday
lives. The experience of active learning has a strong impact on personality and it
makes school more similar to real life (Bonwell and Eison, 1991).

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As it can be seen, there are a lot of advantages when teachers employ active
learning approach in the classroom. However, it is also noted that “the benefits of
active learning in lectures are maximized when tasks are authentic and reflect
how knowledge is used in real life” (Cavanaugh, 2011, p.24).
2.3 Teaching activities foster active learning
In order to help students develop their learning especially active learning,
numerous active learning strategies should be applied in the teaching process.
The use of these techniques in the classroom is vital because of their powerful
impact upon students’ learning. Several studies have shown that students prefer
strategies promoting active learning to traditional lectures.
There are plenty of strategies of active learning that can be applied in the
classroom. However, in this paper, some of them are mentioned in terms of
individual and collaborative activities.
In terms of individual activities, such techniques as question-and-answer, mindmapping, think-pair-share and one-minute paper are often used in the class.
Question-and-answer is considered as one of the most common techniques used
to enhance student’s active learning (Bonwell & Eison, 1991). It is also easy to
apply because the teachers can ask students many things related to the lesson
from easy level to difficult one. The teachers can know the knowledge their
students have achieved through specific questions.
Mind-mapping
A mind map is considered an easy way to brainstorm thoughts systematically. It
lets students visually structure their ideas to foster students’ analysis and recall.
First, in order to do this technique, the students need to identify and place the
central topic at the center of mind map. It will act as the central image or the
main point of the map. Second, the main themes of the central topic are
developed from the central image. This method is a great way for students to

categorize and organize the ideas they brainstormed and identify the relationships

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among those. By using a single page or space students can already place a huge
amount of information and check its connections. This will enhance students’
active thinking in connecting prior knowledge with the new one.
Think-pair-share
This technique sometimes is similar to pair-work, it can be applied for both
individual and collaborative form of activities. The teachers bring out the
problem and get students to work on it individually for a short time; then have
them form pairs, discuss and improve their solutions; and finally call on several
individuals or pairs to share their responses. This structure takes a bit more time
than a simple group activity, but it includes individual thinking and leads to
greater learning.
One-minute paper
Originally mentioned by Angelo and Cross (1993), this technique has been
adapted for use in every discipline. It is a highly effective method for checking
student progress and for providing a consistent means of communicating with
students. In order to implement this method, the instructor simply stops class a
few minutes early or at some point during a lecture, ask a specific question and
give students one minute to respond. Students’ responses will tell the instructor
whether their students understand the lesson or not. Besides, it is a quick way to
collect all the ideas from all students in the class. This technique can help the
teachers to save time but still activate students’ active learning.
In terms of collaborative activities, strategies promoting active learning can also
be applied in class such as discussion, debates, drama, role play, games and
brainstorming.
Discussion

Discussion is considered the most common way for teachers to engage students
in active learning; however, the technique is not universally admired. In order to
achieve a good discussion, except for careful planning and thoughtful
implementation, supporting learning environment and enthusiastic instructions

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from teacher are very necessary. Also, discussion topics are very important since
they are the core element so that students can think over what they need to
investigate. First, teachers ask students to work individually in two or three
minutes to answer one question and then exchange it to their small group. Next,
ask one of the members in group talks before class. Teachers can divide the
classroom into bigger groups after they get used to with this technique.
Debate
Debate is not only used in high school or college but it is really comfortable to
apply in the classroom from grade 6 to 9 at secondary school. For grade 6 and 7,
simple topics had better be used, meanwhile more complicated ones ought to be
applied for grade 8 and 9 depending on their learning course. Schroeder and
Ebert (1983) noted some benefits for students when they debate such as forcing
students to deal with their own biases; enhancing students’ skills in doing
research; promote logical thinking, increasing skills in oral communication.
However, when organizing this activity, the teachers must consider the ideas
from the two sides conveniently. To have a good debate, students also prepare
their ideas very carefully and logically based on the instruction of the teachers.
Drama
It is said that drama is rarely used in a class because of limited time. However, if
possible, teachers can guide students to prepare a very short drama depending on
the content of the lesson. Sometimes, using the plays in the classroom will make
students more enthusiastic and interested in the lesson. Because of the limitation

of time and based on the content of the lesson, teachers can choose the right
topics for students to act before class. The meaning of the play should be related
to the topic of the lesson. In short, it is an interesting technique to help teachers
facilitate students’ active learning.
Role-play
Role-play has been very familiar to students for many years. It is also an easy
way to attract students to the lessons. It helps students experience “stressful,

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unfamiliar, complex, or controversial situations” by creating circumstances that
are close to real-life situations, thereby letting students develop and practise
those necessary skills (Davison 1984, p. 91). It also strengthens group-work,
generate motivation and enthusiasm. Role-playing has been used in different
settings from elementary schools to graduate and professional training. It is often
short or sometimes long but it helps to practise structures and sentence patterns
effectively.
Games
Games are known as one of the most interesting techniques to apply in the
classroom. There are so many types of games teachers can use depending on the
content needed transferring. With secondary students, simple games are
suggested such as clapping the board, crosswords, magic wheels, who is the
millionaire, and so on. However, teachers should not use games rationally so that
the lesson is effective and helps to activate students’ learning.
Brainstorming
Brainstorming enhances students’ reaction and thinking speed. When given a
topic, students have to think as quickly as possible to finish the task. This
technique requires students to draw on prior knowledge and experience. Besides,
teachers can examine students’ understanding for a short time. Moreover, this

strategy helps students to develop their logical thinking and fast reaction to the
problem. To implement this technique, it is necessary to get one topic. Then
teachers can divide the class into small groups, and ask them to write everything
related to the topic as quickly as possible. After that, teachers call some groups to
report the results. Finally, teachers give feedback and guide them more if
possible. By that way, students are given opportunities to work on their own and
be engaged in learning.
To sum up, there are a lot of activities which can be used to foster learners’
active learning. However, not all activities are effective to facilitate students’
active learning. It may depends on the teachers who conduct those activities.

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2.4 Barriers to active learning
Bonwell and Eison (1991, pp. 59-64) noted five of the commonly mentioned
barriers to using active learning strategies: (1) one cannot cover as much content
in class; (2) active learning requires too much time in preparation for class; (3) it
seems impossible to use active learning approaches in large classes; (4) materials
and resources are lacking; and (5) there are many risks to be considered,
including how colleagues will perceive the legitimacy of the approaches, how
student evaluations might be influenced, and how promotion and tenure might be
affected.
The first difficulty is content covering. In order to make students concentrate on
the lecture, the teachers have to use many strategies especially active learning
techniques. However, those strategies often take lots of time, as a consequence,
the whole content of the lesson cannot be transmitted to students.However, some
research stated that the teachers do not need to cover all the content in one lesson,
they can focus on the important knowledge. To overcome this barrier, teachers
should keep in mind that:.

In terms of content, there is little a lecturer can say (that) she or he cannot
write more concisely. What makes a course more than the sum of the
readings on which it is based is the social experience: the sets of
relationships between teacher and students and students with one another
(Eisenberg 1987, p. 18).
Due to the lack of time, many teachers try to find other ways to ensure that
students can gain knowledge. One way to help promote students’ success in such
efforts is to provide explicit, discipline-special training in study skills in the
context of ongoing activities (Davies 1983; Eison 1988). Another helpful strategy
involves the preparation of self-instructional materials for students’ use (Bedient,
Garoian, and Englert 1984). When students manage to achieve knowledge, a
large number of studies report that they do not want their teachers to teach the
same materials in class.

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Comment [WU1]: Chỗ này không nên nói về
thực trạng của VN vì mình đang review bối
cảnh chung, trong tổng quan tài liệu, phần nói
về bối cảnh Việt Nam sẽ được nói ở phần
Discussion sau này.  không được lẫn lộn ý


The second barrier is the preparation before class. Many teachers believe that to
apply active learning in a lecture, they will spend a lot of time to prepare the
lesson carefully. And many teachers fear that the use of active learning requires
the immediate and total revision of all class notes for every class they teach. One
helpful suggestion is to “select a single course to work with, perhaps beginning
with the course one teaches most often and is most familiar with, rather than
attempting to change several courses simultaneously” (Bonwell & Eison, 1991,

p. 61)
The third barrier is the class size. Large classes might preclude the use of some
strategies promoting active learning. However, they cannot prevent the use of all
possibilities. Sometimes, the quality of a class does not depend on the class size
but concerns the teachers’ instruction.
The lack of materials or equipment needed for implementing active learning in
the class can be another barrier to the use of strategies promoting active learning
in the classroom. However, that is not all the things we can use in the class. If
teachers have difficulties in finding suitable materials or equipment, they can
seek for other simple and effective ways to help student study. For example,
asking students to summarize or writing the material they have read or forming
pairs to evaluate statements or assertions requires no equipment (Bonwell &
Eison, 1991)
Student factors are also difficulties that teacher have to face with. Active learning
in the classroom can result from students themselves. For example, some
students will always resist the use of active learning because it provides a strange
and dramatic contrast to the familiar passive listening role to which they have
become accustomed. Although listening is sometimes not what they want to do
but they consider listening easier than working in the class. (Bonwell& Eison,
1992)
Last but not least, it is the “risk to try to implement new method” (Bonwell&
Eison, 1992. “To understand the adoption and transformation of innovative ideas

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in the classroom, one must also understand the phenomenology of the teacher's
world” (House 1974, p. 79). This view is divided into two sides: one is the
students’ reaction to active learning; another is the teachers’ attitudes about their
ways of teaching. With regard to the first, the risk is that students will not take

part in the lesson actively togain enough knowledge or use high-order thinking
skills. One question is “What if my students don’t want to participate actively?”.
Perhaps the answer depends on the teachers’ ways of teaching and many other
factors.
Therefore, a number of developing instructional strategies to help students learn
to think creatively and critically has become recognized. They are considered as
one of the most pressing educational challenges facing educators today. Besides,
teachers also risk not feeling control of the class, not processing the essential
skills or being viewed by others. For example, for some active learning activities,
teachers have prepared a lesson very carefully with the right objectives, good
organization of presentation, some jokes or interesting questions, selection of
materials to write on the whiteboard. When using active learning, teachers. might
have to change the usual class rules, which might bring about some risks for
teachers.
2.5 Previous studies about active learning
There are a lot of studies which may be related to active learning topic (Peko &
Varga, 2013, Nguyen-Phuong-Mai, Cees Terlouw & Albert Pilot 2012, Tran,
2012, Phan, 2018). However, most of them were conducted at colleges and
universities or some at primary schools. Besides, little research has been done
with teaching English but with other subjects Peko and Varga (2013) did a
research about active learning focusing on teaching Croatian language in lower
and higher primary schools. The aim of the study was to explore how frequent
was the use of certain active learning strategies in contemporary classroom. The
result revealed that there was more active learning among younger students

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