The impact of cooperative learning on non-English major students' anxiety level in EFL class

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING

HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY

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TRAN THI NHU Y

THE IMPACT OF COOPERATIVE LEARNING ON NON - ENGLISH

MAJOR STUDENTS’ ANXIETY LEVEL IN EFL CLASS

Major: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages

Major code: 60140111

MASTER OF ARTS IN TESOL

Supervisor: Ph.D. NGUYEN THI THANH HA

Ho Chi Minh City, 2018

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I certify that this thesis entitled “The impact of cooperative learning on non -

English major students’ anxiety level in EFL class” is my own work.

Except where reference is made in the text of the thesis, this thesis contains no

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 acknowledgements in the

thesis.

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

any other tertiary institution.

Ho Chi Minh, March 2018

Tran Thi Nhu Y

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to send my gratitude and thankfulness to all including my advisor, my

family, my friends and my colleagues for helpful advice and support to finish my

MA thesis period. Many thanks!

First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my supervisor

PhD. Nguyen Thi Thanh Ha for the continuous support throughout my thesis, for

her patience, motivation, and immense knowledge. Her guidance helped me in all

the time of research and writing of this thesis. One simply could not wish for a more

caring and better supervisor.

I am grateful to my father and my brother - Tran Hoa and Tran Hieu, who have

provided me through moral and emotional support. I am also grateful to my

deceased mother - Vo Thi Thu Bong, who was always a great motivation to make

me become more optimistic and mightier whenever I feel depressed in life.

A greater gratitude goes out to my special ones – Le Nguyen To Quyen, Le Nguyen

Ngoc Quyen, Le Thi Hanh Phuong, Diep My Phuong and Phan Phuoc Y for their

caring from meals to mind and giving me a hand whenever I need.

With a special mention to Nha Nam Books and Coffee as well as the lovely staffs

who gave me a silent place to accomplish my thesis conveniently.

And, last but not least, my thanks also go to students in Ho Chi Minh City Open

University for their participation in my thesis. This accomplishment would not have

been possible without them. Thank you.

Author

Tran Thi Nhu Y

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ABSTRACT

Cooperative learning creates a good environment and provides a less anxiety -

producing context in terms of discussing, creating and thinking in a group.

However, little attention has been devoted to the impact of the cooperative learning

on EFL learners’ anxiety level in the context of Vietnam universities. This study,

therefore, aimed at investigating the perceived impact of cooperative learning

method on non-English major students’ anxiety level in EFL classes in the context

of Ho Chi Minh City Open University. Besides, it also explored the differences in

the perceived impact of cooperative learning on non-English major male and female

students’ anxiety level.

To achieve these purposes, relevant literature on cooperative learning, anxiety,

foreign language anxiety as well as the previous studies related to the impact of

cooperative learning on students’ anxiety level and the differences in this impact

between male and female students were reviewed in literature review chapter to

shape the theoretical framework of this study.

Based on the reviewed literature, the study was conducted at at Ho Chi Minh City

Open University with 200 participants who were first-year students. Data collection

was carried out on 25th March, 2017 for questionnaire and on 30th March, 2017 for

interview. Data were collected through the tools of a questionnaire and an interview

for students, and then analyzed with SPSS version 18.0.

The findings of the study indicated that students still suffer anxiety in EFL class,

however, they also show positive signs of the impact of cooperative learning on

their anxiety level. Besides that, there were no statistically significant impacts of

cooperative learning on students’ anxiety level in terms of genders.

Based on the research findings, the paper concluded with some pedagogical

implications and a recommendation for further study in the line of research on

cooperative learning to reduce EFl learners’ amxiety level.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT...................................................................................................ii

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

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

LIST OF TABLES............................................................................................................viii

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

1.1 Statement of the problem .............................................................................................1

1.2 Purpose statement.........................................................................................................5

1.3 Research questions.......................................................................................................5

1.4 Overview of the thesis..................................................................................................5

Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................7

2.1 Cooperative learning ....................................................................................................7

2.1.1 Nature of cooperative learning ..............................................................................9

2.1.1.1 Positive interdependence ..............................................................................11

2.1.1.2 Individual accountability ..............................................................................12

2.1.1.3 Face-to-face promotive interaction...............................................................12

2.1.1.4 Social skills...................................................................................................13

2.1.1.5 Group Processing..........................................................................................14

2.1.2 Forms of cooperative learning groups.................................................................15

2.1.2.1 Pair work.......................................................................................................15

2.1.2.2 Group work ...................................................................................................16

2.1.3 Benefits of cooperative learning..........................................................................17

2.2 Anxiety.......................................................................................................................18

2.2.1 Definition of anxiety............................................................................................18

2.2.2 Anxiety and fear ..................................................................................................19

2.2.3 Types of anxiety ..................................................................................................20

2.3 Foreign language anxiety ...........................................................................................21

2.3.1 Definition of foreign language anxiety................................................................21

2.3.2 Causes of foreign language anxiety.....................................................................22

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2.3.2.Communication apprehension .........................................................................23

2.3.2.2 Fear of negative evaluation...........................................................................24

2.3.2.3 Test anxiety...................................................................................................24

2.3.3 Non-English major anxious students in foreign language learning.....................25

2.3.3.1 Anxious students in foreign language learning.............................................25

2.3.3.2 Non-English major anxious students in foreign language learning..............27

2.4 Impact of cooperative learning on students’ anxiety level and differences in impact

of cooperative learning on anxiety level between male and female students ..................28

2.4.1 Impact of cooperative learning on students’ anxiety level..................................28

2.4.2 Differences in impact of cooperative learning on anxiety level between male and

female students.............................................................................................................30

2.5 Summary ....................................................................................................................31

Chapter 3: METHODOLOGY.........................................................................................32

3.1 Research questions.....................................................................................................32

3.2 Research design..........................................................................................................32

3.3 Research sites and participants...................................................................................33

3.3.1 Research sites ......................................................................................................33

3.3.2 Participants..........................................................................................................34

3.3.2.1 Participants for pilot study............................................................................35

3.3.2.2 Participants for main study ...........................................................................35

3.4 Instruments.................................................................................................................36

3.4.1 Questionnaire.......................................................................................................37

3.4.1.1 Questionnaire design.....................................................................................37

3.4.1.2 Structure of questionnaire.............................................................................39

3.4.1.3 Questionnaire piloting...................................................................................41

3.4.2 Interview schedule...............................................................................................43

3.5 Reliability and validity...............................................................................................43

3.5.1 Reliability and validity of questionnaire .............................................................43

3.5.1.1 Reliability of questionnaire...........................................................................43

3.5.1.2 Validity of the questionnaire.........................................................................50

3.5.2 Reliability and validity of interview....................................................................51

3.5.2.1 Reliability of interview .................................................................................51

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3.5.2.2 Validity of interview.....................................................................................52

3.6 Data collection ...........................................................................................................52

3.7 Data analysis ..............................................................................................................54

3.7.1 Questionnaire data analysis.................................................................................54

3.7.2 Interview data analysis........................................................................................55

3.8 Summary ....................................................................................................................55

Chapter 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION ...................................................................56

4.1 Questionnaire findings...............................................................................................56

4.1.1 Research question 1: What is the perceived impact of cooperative learning on

non-English major students’ anxiety level in an EFL class?........................................57

4.1.1.1 The perceived impact of cooperative learning on students’ communication

apprehension .............................................................................................................57

4.1.1.2 The perceived impact of cooperative learning on students’ test anxiety......60

4.1.1.3 The perceived impact of cooperative learning on students’ fear of negative

evaluation..................................................................................................................62

4.1.2 Research question 2: Is there any difference in the perceived impact of

cooperative learning on students’ anxiety level between males and females in an EFL

class?.............................................................................................................................65

4.1.2.1 The difference of perceived impact of cooperative learning on males and

females’ communication apprehension ....................................................................65

4.1.2.2 The difference of perceived impact of cooperative learning on males and

females’ test anxiety .................................................................................................66

4.1.2.3 The difference of perceived impact of cooperative learning on males and

females’ fear of negative evaluation.........................................................................67

4.2 Interview findings ......................................................................................................68

4.2.1 Research question 1.............................................................................................68

4.2.2 Research question 2.............................................................................................72

4.3 Discussion of the findings..........................................................................................73

4.3.1 Research question 1: What is the perceived impact of cooperative learning on

non-English major students’ anxiety level in an EFL class?........................................73

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4.3.2 Research question 2: Is there any difference in the perceived impact of

cooperative learning on students’ anxiety level between males and females in an EFL

class?.............................................................................................................................75

4.4 Summary of chapter 4 ................................................................................................77

Chapter 5: CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS.....................78

5.1 Major conclusions of the study ..................................................................................78

5.2 The implications and suggestions for the teaching and learning ...............................79

5.2.1 For the teachers or instructors .............................................................................79

5.2.1.1 Deploying cooperative learning’s stages......................................................80

5.2.1.2 Giving students overall picture of a cooperative learning class ...................80

5.2.1.3 Creating an informal, relaxing and supportive environment ........................81

5.2.2 For the students....................................................................................................83

5.2.2.1 Maximizing the use of English .....................................................................83

5.2.2.2 Using self-management ................................................................................83

5.3 Limitations of the study .............................................................................................84

5.4 Suggestions for further research.................................................................................85

REFERENCES...................................................................................................................86

APPENDICES....................................................................................................................99

APPENDIX A......................................................................................................................99

APPENDIX B....................................................................................................................102

APPENDIX C....................................................................................................................105

APPENDIX D....................................................................................................................106

APPENDIX E ....................................................................................................................107

APPENDIX F ....................................................................................................................113

APPENDIX G....................................................................................................................119

APPENDIX H....................................................................................................................124

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1 The relationship between the essential concepts of cooperative

learning and the theoretical constructs of Vygotsky's sociogenetic theory .......10

Table 3.1 The proportion of participants by gender...........................................36

Table 3.2 Eliminated items from the original FLCAS.......................................37

Table 3.3 Content of questionnaire ....................................................................40

Table 3.4 Item-Total Statistics of Cronbach’s Alpha of communication

apprehension scale..............................................................................................44

Table 3.5 Cronbach’s alpha reliability statistics of............................................46

Table 3.6 Item-Total Statistics of Cronbach’s Alpha of Test anxiety scale.......46

Table 3.7 Cronbach’s alpha reliability statistics ................................................48

Table 3.8 Item-Total Statistics of Cronbach’s Alpha of fear of negative

evaluation scale ..................................................................................................48

Table 3.9 Cronbach’s alpha reliability statistics ................................................50

Table 3.10 Cronbach’s alpha..............................................................................50

Table 4.1 Descriptive statistics of total scale of perceived impact of cooperative

learning on students’ communication apprehension ..........................................58

Table 4.2 Descriptive statistics of individual items in the scale of perceived

impact of cooperative learning on students’ communication apprehension ......59

Table 4.3 Descriptive statistics of total scale of perceived impact of cooperative

learning on students’ test anxiety .......................................................................60

Table 4.4 Descriptive statistics of individual items in the scale of perceived

impact of cooperative learning on students’ test anxiety ...................................61

Table 4.5 Descriptive statistics of total scale of perceived impact of cooperative

learning on students’ fear of negative evaluation...............................................63

Table 4.6 Descriptive statistics of individual items in the scale of perceived

impact of cooperative learning on students’ fear of negative evaluations.........63

Table 4.7 Independent samples test of communication apprehension...............65

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Table 4.8 Independent samples test of test anxiety............................................66

Table 4.9 Independent samples test of fear of negative evaluation ...................67

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Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Statement of the problem

Taking care of the issues which negatively impact on English language learners is

considered as a test towards the governmental authorities, scientists, linguists,

instructors and also all of educators up until this point. Referring to the issue,

Skehan (as cited in Wu, 2010) records an assortment of elements affecting the

learning of foreign language, for example, “intelligence, motivation, attitude, age,

gender, personality, anxiety, and so on” (p.174). Of these full of feeling variables,

anxiety has been given much consideration. Horwitz, Horwitz and Cope (1986)

characterize this kind of mental state as a subjective feeling of “tension,

apprehension, nervousness, and worry associated with an arousal of the autonomic

nervous system” (p.125). Indeed, many previous studies demonstrate the proof that

anxiety has more debilitating effects on learners’ foreign language learning than

facilitating effects (Howitz et al., 1986; Lucas, Miraflores & Go, 2011; Mahyuddin,

Yakkub & Elias, 1994; Chan & Wu, 2004). A great deal of research which has

discovered that one-third of foreign language learners suffer a moderate level of

anxiety are also mentioned in the studies. In other words, it can be seen that anxiety

might be discovered as a blocking factor which influences on second language

learners’ learning progress. Accordingly, how to limit anxiety in terms of English

learning is a big challenge which linguistic analysts never ignore for decades,

particularly in foreign language anxiety field.

So as to settle this provoking issue, many linguistic scientists pay attention to an

approach called cooperative learning. Cooperative learning is an approach that

involves students working in teams to complete a common goal, under conditions

which include seven elements: positive interdependence individual accountability,

face-to-face promotive interaction, appropriate use of collaborative skills or social

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skills and group processing (Felder & Brent, 2007). In the past years, some

educational research has provided ample support for the assertion that cooperative

learning provides a positive impact on students’ foreign language anxiety level

(Suwantarathip & Wichadee, 2010; Pattanapichet & Changpueng, n.d; Duxbury &

Tsai, 2010; Yan-hong, 2013; Nagahashi, 2007). According to these authors,

cooperative learning approach solves the causes of anxiety containing

communication apprehension, fear of negative evaluation and test anxiety. Besides,

it creates a good environment in which students are not worried by talking about

and helping each other during group times. Unlike working alone, cooperative

learning provides a less anxiety-producing context in terms of discussing, creating

and thinking in a group (Wichadee, 2010).

Vietnamese EFL learners, especially non-English majors, have rather high levels of

anxiety in terms of English language learning (Tran, Moni & Richard, 2012). First,

Tran, Moni and Richard (2012) found that non-English major students feel nervous

in learning English because of an internal factor which is low English proficiency.

Low-proficient students are afraid of expressing their thought during group

discussions or specific communication situations. Second, the traditional teacher￾centered approach and poor learning condition which are common in English

classes in Vietnam is another cause of anxiety (Nguyen, n.d). Vietnamese teachers

only implement cooperative learning in special occasions for embellishment

purpose, for instance, when the classes are visited by their principals, headmasters,

colleagues, etc. (Pham, 2013). As a consequence, Vietnamese students lack an

English-speaking environment (Nguyen, Fehring & Warren, 2015). They do not

often have an opportunity to participate in cooperative learning so that they feel

unconfident and anxious when communicating in English. Third, Ting (2015) has

suggested that a large part of Vietnamese students have to face with academic

anxiety or academic stress. The author explains that they are obsessed by

performing well at schools and examinations because of their parents’ heavy

expectation on their educational level and high demands of teachers. To achieve that

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high expectation, “many students have devoted their time to attend these kinds of

tutoring for several years which may result in increasing their exposure to academic

stress” (Pham, 2015, p.5). Besides that, the pressured teachers with the demand of

high test scores also stress their students. Also, students might be under the

overburden of class activities or exercises which also lead them to be stressful as

well. As noted earlier, most of Vietnamese EFL learners have been facing a big

challenge in anxiety management to improve their own English proficiency,

performances. However, little attention has been devoted to the impact of the

cooperative learning on EFL learners’ anxiety level in the context of Vietnam

universities. The innovation which is based on cooperative learning method is rarely

evident in Vietnam (Pham, 2013). Undoubtedly, it is essential to have more

remarkable contribution to the research area in terms of the impact of the

cooperative learning approach on the students’ anxiety level in Vietnam.

Besides, there has been an inconclusive debate in previous studies about whether

male and female learners’ anxiety level is distinctive in terms of English language

learning. Specifically, some studies observe the difference straightforwardly in

student’ genders in terms of language learning tension level (Meihua, 2014;

Fariadian, Azizifar & Gowhary, 2014; Hossein, & Khazali, 2013; Cui, 2011; Mesri,

2012, Lewinsohn, Gotlib, Lewinsohn, Seeley & Allen, 1998). Besides that, some

show the proof that male respondents show a higher anxious level in foreign

language compared to female students’ (Meihua, 2014; Fariadian et al., 2014; Cui,

2011). However, other studies found that females experienced an anxiety level

higher than males (Mesri, 2012; Lewinsohn et al., 1998; Hossein & Khazali, 2013).

It can be seen that the anxious male and female learners in previous studies have to

suffer a certain and different level of anxiety. However, the research on the impact

of cooperative learning on learners’ anxiety level in the field as well as in Vietnam

context in terms of gender is scarce. Consequently, it is essential to study about the

impact of cooperative learning approach on male and female learners’ level of