Strategic, lexical and syntactic competencies in English of freshman students in Thai Nguyen university: basic for drill exercises

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THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

Socialist Republic of Vietnam Republic of the Philippines

STRATEGIC, LEXICAL AND SYNTACTIC COMPETENCIES IN ENGLISH OF

FRESHMAN STUDENTS IN THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY:

BASIS FOR DRILL EXERCISES

A Dissertation

Presented to

The Faculty of Graduate School

Batangas State University

Batangas City, Philippines

In Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements for the Degree

Of Doctor of Philosophy

Major in English

By:

NGUYEN THI THANH HONG

April 2015

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APPROVAL SHEET

This dissertation entitled “STRATEGIC, LEXICAL AND SYNTACTIC

COMPETENCIES IN ENGLISH OF FRESHMAN STUDENTS IN THAI

NGUYEN UNIVERSITY: BASIS FOR DRILL EXERCISES” prepared and

submitted by NGUYEN THI THANH HONG in partial fulfillment of the

requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy major in English has

been examined and is recommended for Oral Examination.

AMADA G. BANAAG, Ph.D.

Adviser

PANEL OF EXAMINERS

Approved by the committee on Oral Examination with a grade of ________.

DR. MATILDA H. DIMAANO

Chairman

DR. MARIA LUISA A. VALDEZ DR. FELIX M. PANOPIO

Member Member

DR. MYRNA G. SULIT

External Representative

Accepted and approved in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

degree of Doctor of Philosophy major in English.

Comprehensive Examination: ____________

_____________ MATILDA H. DIMAANO, Ph.D.

Date Dean, Graduate Studies

College of Arts and Sciences

PASSED

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THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

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ABSTRACT

Title: Strategic, Lexical and Syntactic Competencies in English of

Freshman Students in Thai Nguyen University: Basis for

Drill Exercises

Author: Nguyen Thi Thanh

Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Major: English

Year: 2015

Adviser: Amada G. Banaag

Summary

English as an international language is spoken in many countries both

as native and as a second or foreign language. It is the world‟s dominant

language because aside from being designated as an official among sixty

two nations, it has the greatest number of speakers. In most international

organization, English is the official and working language aside from being

the most taught foreign language across the globe. People with knowledge

in English language have better career and pay as well as communication

with the outside world.

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In globalization where English language and communication play a

crucial role, the ability to communicate in English is now a necessity. People

with different linguistic background believe that if one communicates in

English fluently and proficiently he has an edge over the other since English

as the language of the global village serves as a neutral language to all.

This study aimed to assess the strategic, lexical and syntactic

competencies in English of Freshman students in Thai Nguyen University.

The subjects of the study comprised of 382 college students selected through

random sampling out of 8,540 total population and 57 teachers of the five

universities in Thai Nguyen City. Descriptive method of research was utilized

with teacher made test and survey questionnaire as instruments used in

gathering data.

Results of the study indicate that majority of the freshman students of

Thai Nguyen University employed strategic competencies to cope and

promote their communication skills. In terms of lexical competencies,

freshman students have poor performance in the areas of vocabulary, idioms

and word formation but have better performance in synonyms and antonyms.

As regards to syntactic competencies, freshman students demonstrate poor

performance in the areas of verb tenses, direct and indirect speech, but have

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better or remarkable performance in the areas of subject verb agreement,

pronoun references and phrases and clauses.

Further, there is no significant relationship that exists between students‟

lexical and syntactic competencies. Teachers‟ assessed that freshman

students did not frequently used or practice their lexical and syntactic skills

as indicated by their mean score of 3.0. There exists a relationship between

teachers‟ assessment and the level of students‟ lexical and syntactic

competencies. The drill exercises formulated contains activities geared

towards improving freshman students‟ lexical and syntactic competencies.

The study recommended that English teachers handling the subjects maybe

given more trainings and workshops in teaching content areas of the course;

that the proposed drill exercises maybe presented to school administrators

for review, suggestions and evaluation; and that follow up studies maybe

conducted on aspects related to the variables of the study.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The researcher would like to express her profound gratitude to the

following persons who in one way or another help to make this humble work

a reality.

Dr. Matilda H. Dimaano, Dean of the Graduate Degree Studies of

Batangas State University and chairman of the panel for oral defense, for her

intellectual suggestions and meaningful recommendations;

Dr. Amada G. Banaag, her adviser, for the genuine concern, guidance

and encouragement that led the completion of this research;

Dr. Myrna G. Sulit, external representative, for her very insightful

suggestions;

Dr. Felix M. Panopio, statistician, for his kindness in sharing his

mathematical expertise;

Dr. Maria Luisa A. Valdez, panel member for her comments and

encouragement;

Dr. Remedios Magnaye, recording secretary, for writing down all the

suggestions of the panel for the improvement of this work;

To the participants in this study and colleagues at Thai Nguyen

University, who rendered help in the collection of data for this study;

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To her family whom she selflessly and unconditionally love; her mother

for believing that she can accomplish anything she sets out to do; her sisters,

who have always given her a lot of encouragement and her beloved husband

for his steadfast love, patience and support for making sure that she could

devote all her time to this research endeavor.

Finally, the researcher is entirely indebted to all her friends for their

generosity. Thank you!

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DEDICATION

This humble work is wholeheartedly dedicated to my loving and ever

supportive husband, my sons, to my family and to all my colleagues in Thai

Nguyen University.

Nguyen Thi Thanh Hong

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

TITLE PAGE............................................................................................i

APPROVAL SHEET................................................................................ii

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

ACKNOWLEDGMENT............................................................................vi

DEDICATION..........................................................................................viii

TABLE OF CONTENTS..........................................................................ix

LIST OF TABLES...................................................................................xii

LIST OF FIGURES.................................................................................xiv

CHAPTER

I. THE PROBLEM

Introduction.............................................................................1

Statement of the Problem ......................................................8

Scope, Delimitation and Limitation of the Study.....................9

Significance of the Study .....................................................10

II. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Conceptual Literature ..........................................................13

Research Literature ……………………………………….......51

Synthesis …………………………………………………….....59

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Theoretical Framework……………………………………. .....62

Conceptual Framework …………………………………….....68

Hypothesis …………………………………………………. .....69

Definition of Terms ………………………………………… ....69

III. RESEARCH METHOD AND PROCEDURE

Research Environment.........................................................71

Research Design ……………...............................................76

Subjects of the Study …………………..................................77

Data Gathering Instrument ……………………………….......78

Data Gathering Procedure …………………………...............80

Statistical Treatment of Data ……………………………….....81

IV. PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION OF

DATA……………………………………………………………..82

V. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

Summary of Findings.. ..……………………………………..153

Conclusions………………………………………………… ...163

Recommendations ……………………………………… ......164

BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………..165

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APPENDICES

A. Questionnaire for Students………………………………….173

B. Questionnaire for Teachers…............................................184

. C. Validation Letters……………………………………………..198

D. Request Letters...................................................................201

E. Documentations

(1) Validation of Questionnaires in

Batangas State University ......................................205

(2) Photographs of the Research Sites .........................206

(3) Photograph of the Researcher with the

Heads of Institutions for the Approval for the

Conduct of the Study ................................................207

(4) Photographs of the Teacher Respondents ..............208

(5) Photographs of the Student Respondents ...............209

. F. Psychrometric Conversion Table ……………...…...............210

CURRICULUM VITAE

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LIST OF TABLES

Table Title Page

1 Distribution of the Respondents of the Study........................77

2 Student Skills Evaluated as to Strategic Competencies.........83

3 Student Skills According to the Frequency of Use……..........86

4 Student Skills According to the Degree of Importance...........88

5 Performance of Student Respondents

on Lexical Competence..........................................................90

6 Performance of Student Respondents

on Syntactic Competence.....................................................94

7 Relationship Between Each Pair of Students‟ Lexical

Competence..........................................................................100

8 Relationship Between Each Pair of Students‟ Syntactic

Competence..........................................................................101

9 Relationship Between Each Pair of Students‟ Lexical

and Syntactic Competence..................................................103

10 (a) and (b) Student Skills on Lexical and Syntactic

Competencies................................................................................105

11 Students‟ Lexical and Syntactic Skills According to the

Frequency of Use..........................................................................109

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12 Students‟ Lexical and Syntactic Skills

According to the Importance..............................................110

13 Bases for the Design of Drill Exercises..............................113

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THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

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Figure Title Page

1 Research Paradigm on Strategic, Lexical

and Syntactic Competencies in English

of Freshman Students............................................68

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THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

Socialist Republic of Vietnam Republic of the Philippines

1

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM

Introduction

English language is considered a significant tool for communication in

the 21st century as the world becomes global business. It is also the

language that plays an important role in government diplomacy, science,

medicine and other profession. In the world also connected by bits and

bytes, English language is also important as it emerged as a common vehicle

for communication.

In globalization where English language and communication play a

crucial role, the ability to communicate in English is now a necessity. People

with different linguistic background believe that if one communicates in

English fluently and proficiently he has an edge over the others since English

as the language of the global village serves as a neutral language to all.

In many countries, English has become the language of power and

prestige. As a gatekeeper to social and economic progress, many countries

give importance to English language as it serves as a pathway towards

progress and learning. Understanding and communicating English is a factor

for a person to learn and progress faster because most of the information is

available in the English language and for that reason to be globally competitive,