The effect of using flipped classroom on grammar learning for non-English majored freshmen at FPT University Ho Chi Minh city

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

THE EFFECT OF USING FLIPPED CLASSROOM

ON GRAMMAR LEARNING

FOR NON-ENGLISH MAJORED FRESHMEN

AT FPT UNIVERSITY HCMC

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

for the degree of Master of Arts (TESOL)

Submitted by ĐOÀN HỒNG VÂN

Supervisor: LÊ THỊ THANH THU, Ed.D.

HO CHI MINH City, September 2019

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

------------------------------

ĐOÀN HỒNG VÂN

THE EFFECT OF USING FLIPPED CLASSROOM

ON GRAMMAR LEARNING

FOR NON-ENGLISH MAJORED FRESHMEN

AT FPT UNIVERSITY HCMC

Major: TESOL

Major number: 60 14 01 11

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

for the degree of Master of Arts (TESOL)

Supervisor:

LÊ THỊ THANH THU, Ed.D.

HO CHI MINH City, September 2019

i

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I certify that this thesis entitled: “The effect of using flipped classroom on

grammar learning for non-English majored freshmen at FPT University

HCM” is my own work.

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis does not contain

material published elsewhere or extracted in whole or in part from a thesis by

which I have qualified for or been awarded another degree or diploma.

No other person’s work has been used without due acknowledgement in the main

text of the thesis.

This thesis has not been submitted for the award of any degree or diploma in any

other tertiary institution.

Ho Chi Minh City, 2019

Doan Hong Van

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I have secured a lot of assistance and advice from many people to complete

my thesis. I am very grateful for this help.

I would first like to sincerely thank my thesis supervisor, Dr. Le Thi Thanh

Thu, for her great care, enthusiasm, extensive knowledge and devotion. I have been

extremely lucky to have a supervisor who gave insightful comments, and who

provided me with invaluable support to the completion of my thesis.

Secondly, I would like to express my deep gratitude to FPT University,

HCMC, the Leader of English Department, and the students in the Fall semester of

the school year 2018-2019 who kindly accepted to participate in my thesis. Special

thanks go to my colleagues at FPT University HCMC who were willing to share

their experience and give the best suggestion for my thesis.

Finally, words cannot reveal my appreciation to my family: my father, my

mother, my sister, and my husband. Without their endless love, understanding and

absolutely support, I could never overcome the difficulties in my life to complete

this thesis.

iii

ABSTRACT

The flipped classroom has become a popular pedagogical tool around the

world in the 21st century (Webb & Doman, 2016) because it contains a lot of

benefits in promoting learning the English language. The main purpose of this

study was to examine the effect of the flipped classroom at FPT University HCMC

to non-English majored freshmen’s grammar learning. Besides, this study aimed to

explore how students perceived the benefits and challenges of this application in

the classroom. The participants include 56 non-English majored first-year students

in two classes of FPT University HCMC which were chosen randomly as the

control group and the experimental group. The flipped classroom was applied in

the experimental group. Students were required to watch the online video clips of

the new grammar lessons at home then asked for clarification at class to maximize

the time for students’ activities in groups or pairs, and they did not do homework at

home, whereas the control group was taught with the current teaching method

including the lecture at class and the exercises at home.

After 7 weeks of the experiment, the data were collected through the test

results and students’ questionnaires. Also, the data were analyzed via the mean, the

percentages and confirmed by the Independent samples t-test. The results showed

that the experimental group outperformed the control one in terms of grammatical

knowledge, especially the students of weak and fairly good levels. Moreover, the

respondents in the experimental group had considerably positive reflections

towards the benefits of the flipped classroom as (1) the flipped classroom primarily

provided opportunities to practice English grammar, (2) then enhanced

relationships in class, (3) then created student-centered learning environment and

(4) the last, improved learner autonomy. The participants also approved two

challenges including (1) the students’ pressure for the active role and (2) the

distractions from surroundings, social networks, entertaining websites while they

almost rejected the technical problems and Internet access as their challenges.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP .....................................................................................i

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

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

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

LIST OF FIGURES..........................................................................................................viii

LIST OF TABLES .............................................................................................................ix

ABBREVIATIONS .............................................................................................................x

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................1

1.1. Rationales of the study ...............................................................................................1

1.2. Statement of purposes ................................................................................................3

1.3. Research questions.....................................................................................................3

1.4. The significance of the study......................................................................................3

1.5. Background to the study.............................................................................................4

1.5.1. The school ..........................................................................................................4

1.5.2. Description of the English syllabus for English non-majored

freshmen at FPT University HCM ................................................................................5

1.5.3. Description of the textbook “Topnotch 3” ...........................................................6

1.5.4. The test and the students .....................................................................................6

1.6. Overview of thesis chapter .........................................................................................7

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................9

2.1. Grammar....................................................................................................................9

v

2.1.1. Definitions of grammar.......................................................................................9

2.1.2. The role of grammar in language learning and teaching..................................... 10

2.1.3. Approaches to teach English grammar .............................................................. 11

2.1.4. Processes in teaching grammar.......................................................................... 13

2.1.5. How to learn grammar effectively ..................................................................... 14

2.2. Flipped classroom .................................................................................................... 16

2.2.1. Definition of the flipped classroom ................................................................... 16

2.2.2. The characteristics of the flipped classroom ...................................................... 18

2.2.3. How to conduct the flipped classroom............................................................... 21

2.2.4. Selection of videos material .............................................................................. 22

2.2.5. The benefits of the flipped classroom in learning English

language ..................................................................................................................... 23

2.2.5.1. Improving learner autonomy............................................................. 24

2.2.5.2. Enhancing the relationships in classroom.......................................... 24

2.2.5.3. Creating the student-centered learning environment.......................... 25

2.2.5.4. Providing students with opportunities to practice English grammar... 26

2.2.6. The challenges when applying the flipped classroom ........................................ 27

2.3. Prior studies............................................................................................................. 28

2.4. Chapter summary ..................................................................................................... 33

Chapter 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY................................................................... 35

3.1. Research setting ....................................................................................................... 35

3.2. Flipped classroom materials..................................................................................... 36

3.3. Research design ....................................................................................................... 37

3.3.1. Participants....................................................................................................... 38

3.3.2. Procedures of the experiment ............................................................................ 38

3.3.3. Learning and teaching grammar in the CG and EG............................................ 41

vi

3.3.3.1. Learning and teaching in the control group ....................................... 42

3.3.3.2. Learning and teaching in the experimental group .............................. 42

3.4. Data collection instruments...................................................................................... 43

3.4.1. Tests................................................................................................................. 44

3.4.1.1. Pre-test ............................................................................................. 44

3.4.1.2. Post-tests .......................................................................................... 45

3.4.2. Questionnaire.................................................................................................... 47

3.5. Chapter summary ..................................................................................................... 49

Chapter 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .................................................................... 50

4.1. Analytical framework............................................................................................... 50

4.2. Test data analysis..................................................................................................... 51

4.2.1. Pre-test analysis ................................................................................................ 51

4.2.2. Post-tests analysis ............................................................................................. 52

4.2.2.1. Test 1 results..................................................................................... 52

4.2.2.2. Test 2 results..................................................................................... 54

4.2.2.3. Test 3 results..................................................................................... 56

4.3. Questionnaire data analysis ...................................................................................... 62

4.3.1. Student’s reflection towards learning English grammar before

applying flipped classroom......................................................................................... 62

4.3.2. Students’ perceived the benefits of the flipped classroom.................................. 63

4.3.3. Students’ perceived the challenges of the flipped classroom.............................. 66

4.4. Discussions .............................................................................................................. 69

4.4.1. Research question 1: To what extent does the flipped

classroom affect grammar learning of FPT University HCMC non￾English majored freshmen?......................................................................................... 69

4.4.2. Research question 2: How do they perceive the benefits and

challenges in studying grammar with the flipped classroom? ...................................... 71

vii

4.4.2.1. Discussions on the benefits of the flipped classroom......................... 71

4.4.2.2. Discussions on the challenges of flipped classroom .......................... 73

Chapter 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................... 76

5.1. Main findings of the thesis ....................................................................................... 76

5.2. Implications ............................................................................................................. 79

5.2.1. Implications for school administrations............................................................. 79

5.2.2. Implications for teachers................................................................................... 79

5.2.3. Implications for students................................................................................... 81

5.3. Limitations of the study............................................................................................ 82

5.4. Recommendations for the further research................................................................ 83

REFERENCES.................................................................................................................. 84

APPENDICES ................................................................................................................... 97

viii

LIST OF FIGURES

Page

Figure 2. 1. Stages of the flipped classroom..........................................................21

Figure 4. 1. The Post-test 1 results........................................................................53

Figure 4. 2. The Post-test 2 results........................................................................55

Figure 4. 3. The Post-test 3 results........................................................................57

Figure 4. 4. The percentages of weak students of the three tests............................59

Figure 4. 5. The percentages of average students of the three tests........................59

Figure 4. 6. The percentages of fairly good students of the three tests...................60

Figure 4. 7. The percentages of good students of the three tests............................61

ix

LIST OF TABLES

Page

Table 2. 1. The activities of the flipped classroom compared to those of the current

classroom practice ................................................................................................17

Table 3. 1. Summary of the experiment procedures ..............................................39

Table 3. 2. Grammar learning activities................................................................41

Table 3. 3. The structure of three Post-tests..........................................................46

Table 3. 4. The purpose and format of the questionnaire.......................................48

Table 4. 1. Results of the Pre-tests for two groups................................................51

Table 4. 2. Results of the Post-test 1 for two groups.............................................52

Table 4. 3. Results of the Post-test 2 for two groups.............................................54

Table 4. 4. Test 2 vs. Test 1..................................................................................55

Table 4. 5. Results of the Post-test 3 for two groups.............................................56

Table 4. 6. Test 3 vs. Test 2..................................................................................58

Table 4. 7. Students’ reflection towards learning English grammar ......................62

Table 4. 8. How students perceived the benefits of the flipped classroom.............64

Table 4. 9. How students perceived the challenges of the flipped classroom.........67

x

ABBREVIATIONS

CALL Computer Assisted Language Learning

CG Control group

EG Experimental group

HCMC Ho Chi Minh City

ICT information, communication, and technology

LMS Learning Management System

MOOC Massive Open Online Course

PPP Presentation, Practice, Production

SPSS Statistical Package for the Social Sciences

T Teacher (the researcher)

Ss Students

1

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION

Chapter 1 provides information for the background of the study connected

with the rationales for conducting this thesis and the purpose of the study. Also, two

research questions, and the significance of the study will be introduced in this

chapter. In the end, the organization of the study which consists of five chapters will

be presented.

1.1. Rationales of the study

English as a foreign language is one of the essential and required subjects at

FPT University HCMC (Ho Chi Minh City). All students who would like to learn at

this school must complete six levels of general English, which is seen as a

necessary standard for students to learn their major subjects in English. The

common practice of almost all teachers at FPT University HCMC in teaching

general English as that of the others is that students listen to a lecture in class and

then go home to do homework (Jalal, 2016). However, I realize that when teaching

English for non-English majored freshmen who are obliged to learn English in the

first year with the current teaching practice at FPT University HCM, students might

play quite passive roles and tend to wait for the main source knowledge from their

teachers in class. Particularly, in teaching grammar, teachers explain the grammar

points thoroughly in class but students hardly remember and apply them not only to

complete the test but also to practice speaking and writing. Moreover, the lesson’s

objective of the course book is to help students use their grammar knowledge to

pass the grammar test and create the English environment for students so that they

can apply their grammar, vocabulary, and knowledge to role-play the conversation

naturally. However, with such current teaching practice, it seems difficult to make

students more interested in communicative learning (Nguyen, 2018).

2

Different ways have been applied at FPT University HCMC as getting

students to work in groups, asking them to set themselves the English study target

and punishment if they do not complete their homework to promote students’

engagement in learning English but the results are not as expected. Anyhow, the

above difficulties might be addressed with the new technology. As for language

learning and instruction, Thaichay and Sitthitikul (2016), Bergmann and Sams

(2012), Kostaras (2017) suggested that “Flipped classroom”, one type of CALL

(Computer Assisted Language Learning), comes into effect with active learning

(Bergmann & Sams, 2012) and classroom interaction (Egbert, Herman & Lee

2015). For English teaching and learning, the flipped classroom, a specific type of

blended learning design that lectures or explanations would be done at home by

using technology, and homework or assignments would be guided in class instead

of at home (Bergmann & Sams, 2012) to ask the students to learn grammar lesson at

home by watching some grammatical online videos before coming to class.

Theoretically, the flipped classroom changes passive students into active

students when creating the environment for students discover and manage their

knowledge by themselves not only receiving the information from their teachers.

Students, therefore, tend to love technology and complete all assignments by

watching videos before going to class. Furthermore, this technique improves the

relationship between teachers and students because students have more time to

communicate with the teacher in class. Moreover, with the flipped classroom,

students enjoy more time to practice speaking with their friends after learning and

understanding all grammar points at home.

At FPT University HCMC, no one has done the research relating to the

flipped classroom in teaching English before although this approach has been

applied by teachers of other subjects at school and it is highly advocated by the

Academic department. Furthermore, in Vietnamese teaching, the flipped classroom

has not been implemented by many researchers, and that is the reason why I am

encouraged to conduct the research of the flipped classroom.

3

1.2. Statement of purposes

The main purpose of this study was to examine the effect of applying the

flipped classroom at FPT University HCMC to non-English majored freshmen’s

grammar learning. Besides, this study aimed to explore how students perceived the

benefits and challenges of the flipped classroom in their grammar learning.

1.3. Research questions

In order to fulfill the two objectives stated above, two research questions

were addressed as follows:

1. To what extent does the flipped classroom affect grammar learning of FPT

University HCMC non-English majored freshmen?

2. How do they perceive the benefits and challenges in studying grammar

with the flipped classroom?

1.4. The significance of the study

The study proves to be significant in many ways. Firstly, this study is

expected to provide an evidence of the flipped classroom’s benefits to facilitate

teachers’ teaching English and arouse students’ interest in learning English

grammar. As for the students trained with the flipped classroom, their grammar

performance could be enhanced, which is useful for them to learn further English

skills. Moreover, the flipped classroom, one type of the effectiveness of technology

tools, could motivate students in learning English, reduce teacher’s workload at

class, increase students’ chances to acquire the language naturally and help students

have more time to interact with teachers instead of lecturing in the classroom.

Furthermore, this study encourages English language teachers to use the flipped