Efl high school teachers' and students' perceptions about online English language teaching and learning = Nhận thức của giáo viên và học sinh THPT về dạy học tiếng Anh trực tuyến

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

QUY NHON UNIVERSITY

PHAM NGOC AN

EFL HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS' AND STUDENTS'

PERCEPTIONS ABOUT ONLINE ENGLISH

LANGUAGE TEACHING AND LEARNING

Field: Theory and Methodology of English Language Teaching

Code: 8140111

Supervisor: Le Nhan Thanh, PhD

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BỘ GIÁO DỤC VÀ ĐÀO TẠO

TRƢỜNG ĐẠI HỌC QUY NHƠN

PHẠM NGỌC AN

NHẬN THỨC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN VÀ HỌC SINH THPT

VỀ DẠY VÀ HỌC TIẾNG ANH

TRỰC TUYẾN

Chuyên ngành: Lý luận và phƣơng pháp dạy học bộ môn Tiếng Anh

Mã số: 8140111

Ngƣời hƣớng dẫn: TS. Lê Nhân Thành

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

The work contained in this thesis has not previously been submitted

for a degree or diploma in any university. I certify that, to the best of my

knowledge and belief, my thesis contains no material previously published or

written by any other person except where due reference is made in the thesis

itself.

Signed:

Date: 31/10/2022

Phạm Ngọc An

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This work would not have been possible without my supervisor, Dr.

Le Nhan Thanh, who has been extremely helpful. I owe a great deal to my

supervisor since he inspired me and kept me on track from the study proposal

to the final of this report with his wide knowledge, real-worlding experience,

infectious excitement, and thorough attention to detail.

I would like to offer my special thanks to those who participated in

my research for their valuable time fulfilling the questionnaire and insightful

information from the interview. If it had not been for their willingness and

enthusiasm, I could not have collected important data for my study.

My deepest gratitude also extends to all of my wonderful classmates

for the time we shared as well as the information and experience we gained

from one another. Their continuous support and encouragement mean a lot to

me inthe accomplishment of this study.

Last but not least, I want to express my love and thanks to my family

and friends for their commitment and years of support during my thesis

studies, which served as the cornerstone for my work.

In closing, I extend my gratitude and blessings to everyone who

helped me finish the thesis.

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ABSTRACT

During the social distancing period in Vietnam due to the Covid-19

pandemic, online learning was implemented as an emergency replacement for

traditional, face-to-face teaching and learning. This study hence employed

Collins and Berge’s (1996) criteria for the success of online learning to collect

quantitative and qualitative data from 51 EFL teachers who have been

teaching English at 8 high schools in Song Cau and Tuy An districts, and 165

EFL students at Nguyen Viet Xuan High School, Phu Yen Province. The

questionnaire results indicate that the teachers and students showed more

positive responses toward the benefits than the challenges. The interview data

is not only consistent with the questionnaire data but also uncovers new and

interesting results. The benefits of online teaching and learning from the

viewpoints of the EFL teachers include easy access to online learning

platforms; the ability to record, archive, and share lectures; and exams that are

aligned with the lectures' content. The drawbacks of online teaching and

learning from the viewpoints of teachers include the need for instructors to

have a fundamental understanding of using digital forms of learning. These

findings provide a better understanding of the context of online learning

during the Covid-19 pandemic which serves as a guide for the optimization of

this type of teaching and learning in the new age of technology.

Keywords: EFL, online learning, online teaching, perceptions

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP .................................................................. ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................. ii

ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................ iv

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS.......................................................................... vi

LIST OF TABLES, FIGURES....................................................................... vii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION..................................................................... 1

1.1. Background of the study......................................................................... 1

1.2. Rationale for the study ........................................................................... 4

1.3. Aim and objectives of the study ............................................................. 4

1.3.1. Aim of the study............................................................................... 4

1.3.2. Objectives of the study..................................................................... 5

1.3.3 Research questions............................................................................ 5

1.4. Scope of the study .................................................................................. 5

1.5. Significance of the study ........................................................................ 5

1.6. Structure of the thesis............................................................................. 6

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW.......................................................... 8

2.1. Online learning ....................................................................................... 8

2.1.1. Definitions of online learning........................................................... 8

2.1.2. Opportunities and barriers to implementing online learning.......... 11

2.1.3. Online learning in Vietnam during the Covid-19 pandemic .......... 11

2.1.4. Computer-mediated communication (CMC).................................. 12

2.1.5. The role of the instructor/ teacher in an online classroom.............. 15

2.1.6. Teachers and students’ perceptions of online learning................... 16

2.1.7. Suggested solutions for online learning problems during the

Covid-19 pandemic .................................................................................. 19

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2.1.8. Teachers and students’ roles in online teaching and learning ........ 20

2.2. Previous related studies........................................................................ 20

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY.................................................................. 27

3.1. Research approaches ............................................................................ 27

3.2. Research setting and participants......................................................... 28

3.3. Data collection instruments.................................................................. 31

3.3.1. Questionnaires................................................................................ 31

3.3.2. Interview......................................................................................... 32

3.4. Data collection procedure..................................................................... 33

3.4.1. Administering the questionnaire .................................................... 33

3.4.2. Administering the interview........................................................... 33

3.5. Data analysis methods.......................................................................... 34

3.6. Summary .............................................................................................. 35

CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION............................................ 36

4.1. EFL teachers’ reasons for online English language teaching............... 36

4.2. EFL teachers’ perceptions of the advantages of online English

language teaching........................................................................................ 41

4.3. EFL teachers’ perceptions of the disadvantages of online English

language teaching........................................................................................ 46

4.4. EFL students’ perceptions of the advantages of online English

language learning. ....................................................................................... 48

4.5. EFL students’ perceptions of the disadvantages of online English

language learning. ....................................................................................... 55

4.6. Summary .............................................................................................. 57

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND IMPLICATIONS ................................ 58

5.1. Summary .............................................................................................. 58

5.2. Research Implications .......................................................................... 59

5.2.1. Implications for educators.............................................................. 59

5.2.2. Implications for school administrators........................................... 60

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5.2.3. Implications for teachers................................................................ 60

5.3. Limitations of the study........................................................................ 61

5.4. Recommendations for further studies................................................... 61

REFERENCES............................................................................................... 64

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

CMC: Computer-mediated Communication

EFL: English as a Foreign Language

EL: English Language

ICT: Information and Communications Technology

MOET: Ministry of Education and Training

TAM: Technology Acceptance Model

UNESCO: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural

Organization

VCTs: Video Conferencing Tools