Vietnam national university, haNoi
College of foreign languages
Post- graduate department

Hong Thị Hơng Giang A study on using self assessment in the
classroom to increase learning
motivation in Learning English at Hanoi
University of Industry

(Nghiên cứu về việc sử dụng phơng pháp tự
đánh giá trong lớp học nhằm tăng động
lực học tiếng Anh ở trờng Đại Học Công
nghiệp Hà Nội) Minor programme thesis
Field: Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 601410

Field: Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 601410
Supervisor: Nguyen Thi Vuong, M.A
Hanoi- 2008 i
DECLARATION
I, Hoang Thi Huong Giang , hereby declare that the work contained in this thesis, other
than that specifically attributed to another source, is the result of my own research. It is
recognised that, should this declaration be found to be false, disciplinary action could be
taken and penalties imposed in accordance with University policy and rules

Signature Hoang Thi Huong Giang iii
ABSTRACT
Motivation is considered to be one of the most important elements in language
learning. Understand the role of motivation and the related theoryof self- assessment
method has the potential to inform classroom teaching in important ways. If self-
assessment method can indeed increase learners’motivation, then teaching and using self-
assessment skills to learners may have direct implications for English classroom.
The primary goal of this study is to investigate learners’ motivation in learning
English before and after using continuous self – assessment questionnaire. Then it refers to
ideas of other teachers of English at HAUI about self- assessment method. Lastly, this
study seeks to discover some typical techniques related to self- assessment method in order
to increase learners’motivation in learning English.The results of the study and some
recommendation will bring in practical benefits to teaching and learning English. Teachers
and learners will realize the useful role of self-assessment method and use some self-
assessment techniques effectively.


2. Theoretical backgrounds of self - assessment method. 9
2.1. Definitions of self – assessment 9
2.2. Why use self - assessment in second language learning? 10
2.3. Self-assessment techniques in L2 learning. 11
2.3.1. Self-marking 11
2.3.2. Portfolios 12
2.3.3. Pre- and post-course writing 12
2.3.4. Learner contracts 13
2.3.5. Student progress card 13
2.3.6. Learner diary 14

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2.3.7. Self assessment questionnaire 14
2.3.8. Videotape 14
2.3.9. Teacher-student interviews 14

Chapter III: The study 15
1. Research questions 15
2. Null and alternative hypotheses 15
3. Research design 15
3.1.Research question 1 15
3.2.Research question 2 16
4. Participants and settings 16
5. Instruments : Motivation questionnaire 18
5.1.Motivation questionnaire 18
5.2. Self- assessment questionnaire 18
6. Results 19
7. Data analysis 23

Chapter IV: Discussion 27

increase learners’ motivation?” is a big question that comes form many teachers. This is of
great concern to teachers of English here.
Being a teacher of English at HAUI, I often try to find out suitable methods of
teaching to different levels of students. Accidentally, I read some articles related to using
self – assessment method in language teaching, and I find it interesting and useful. In my
teaching, I sometimes use this method in simple ways in some classes and it often gives
positive results(for example: Self-marking; Portfolios; Pre- and post-course writing;
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Learner contracts; Student progress card; Learner diary; Self assessment questionnaire;
Videotape; teacher-student interviews, etc…)
Because of the scope of the study, I choose Self assessment questionnaire as the main
technique which follows through the study because I find it a useful one. And I often apply
this technique in my teaching most of the time.
For the above reasons, I carry out this study to investigate deeply the effects of self-
assessment method, especially Self assessment questionnaire (weekly self-evaluations) to
English learning and with the hope of sharing this method to all teachers of English.
2. Aim of the study:
The primary goal of this study is to investigate learners’ motivation in learning
English before and after using continuous self – assessment questionnaire. Then it refers to
ideas of other teachers of English at HAUI about self- assessment method. Lastly, this
study seeks to discover some typical techniques related to self- assessment method in order
to increase learners’motivation in learning English.
3. Research questions:
The study was intended to answer the following questions:
+ Is the self – assessment method used in English classroom at Hanoi University of
Industry?
+ Does the self – assessment method increase HAUI students’ motivation in the
classroom?
4. Significance of the study
Motivation is considered to be one of the most important elements in language

motivation among students who receive a weekly classroom self- assessment component
for one semester and those who do not, after controlling for the effect of pretest motivation
ratings in both groups.
Alternative hypothesis: Students who receive a weekly classroom self- assessment
component for one semester will report higher posttest ratings of motivation compared with
those who do not, after controlling for the effect of pretest motivation ratings in both
groups.
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7. Design of the study
The thesis consists of fours chapters as follows:
Chapter I: provides a general introduction, the background for the study, its aim,
significance, scope, research questions, method and the design of the thesis.
Chapter II: provides the literature review of the thesis and consists of two main parts:
theoretical backgrounds of motivation, theoretical backgrounds of self - assessment
method.
Chapter III: is the study which focuses on: research questions; null and alternative
hypotheses; research design; participants and settings; procedures; instruments (Motivation
questionnaire; Self- assessment questionnaire); data analysis; summary of methodology;
results.
Chapter IV: presents the summary of the study and discussion is given to point out
implication for teaching.
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CHAPTER II: Literature review
1. Theoretical backgrounds of motivation
1.1. What is motivation?
According to Dörnyei, Z. (2001), perhaps the following item about motivation
that many researchers admit is that motivation concerns the direction and magnitude of
human behavior, that is:
+ the choice of a particular action
+ the persistence with it

or difficult tasks in order to have a good excuse for why failure occurr. However, when
learners want to achieve success they try to select moderately difficult tasks, which will
provide an interesting challenge for them to keep the high expectations for success.
What is motivation in EFL learning? Motivation may be defined as “a state of
cognitive and emotional arousal, which leads to a conscious decision to act, and which
gives rise to a period of sustained intellectual and/or physical effort in order to attain a
previously set goal or goals” (Williams & Burden, 1997 p. 120). In other words, a person
gets interested in some way and this interest may be started by different causes, maybe
internal ones, coming from inside the learner such as an interest in the activity or a wish to
be successful. Other causes may be external, for example the influence of another person or
even an event. However, whatever the cause, the person’s interest is activated, leading this
person to make a conscious decision to act in certain ways in order to achieve a goal or
goals related to the activity undertaken. Once the activity has started the person has to
persist in achieving the goals and all this is influenced by the context and situation, and will
be personal to the individual.
Specifically in EFL learning, motivation is “a complex phenomenon which can be
defined in terms of two factors: learners’ communicative needs, and their attitudes towards
the second language community” (Lightbown & Spada, 1993 p. 40). It means that if
students need to speak the foreign language in a variety of social situations or maybe to get
a better job they will notice the importance of the foreign language and consequently will
be motivated to learn it. Likewise, if students have positive attitudes towards the speakers
of the language, they will probably want to have more contact with them.
Ur (1996), who is concerned with English language teaching, also sees motivation as
a very important phenomenon. As she considers motivation difficult to give a definition,
she prefers to think about motivation in terms of ‘motivated’ learners, that is, learners who
7
are willing to involve themselves in learning activities to progress. Ur (1996) states that
teaching and learning can become much easier and more pleasant when there is learners
motivation.
Who And What Motivates Foreign Language Students? It is important to say that

concrete from the study of a second language In this circumstance, the aim of language
acquisition is more practical, for example: meeting the demand of school or university
graduation, applying for a job, asking for higher pay, researching technical material, work
related to translation or gaining higher social status. Instrumental motivation is normally
distinctive of second language acquisition, in which little or no social integration of the
learner into a community using the target language takes place.
Instrumental motivation is marked by the fact that the learner studies the L2 with a
utilitarian purpose in mind, such as a better job or a higher salary. Thus, no matter what
type of motivation students have, foreign language teachers have to keep in mind that the
strength of motivation depends on the state of a student’s needs and goals.
Integrative and instrumental motivation are both necessary components for the
success of language learning , but integrative motivation has been found to maintain long-
term success when learning a second language (Ellis 1997; Crookes et al 1991). In some
researches conducted by Gardner and Lambert integrative motivation was seen as being of
more importance in a formal learning environment than instrumental motivation (Ellis
1997). In other studies, integrative motivation has continued to be pointed up, although
now the importance of instrumental motivation is also emphasized.
Nevertheless it is significant to notice that instrumental motivation has only been
admitted as a significant element in some studies but integrative motivation is linked to
successful second language acquisition. It has been proved that commonly students choose
instrumental reasons more frequently than integrative reasons for their study of language.
Those who follow an integrative approach to study language are always more highly
motivated and more successful in language learning.
Brown (2000) points out that integrative and instrumental motivation are both not
incompatible. Learners don’t often select one kind of motivation when learning a second
language. In his opinion, it is the combination of the two types of motivation.
Motivation is an important component in L2 acquisition. That is why it is important
to classify both the type and mixture of motivation that helps in the successful acquisition
of a second language. Moreover, it is essential to look at motivation as one variable in a
9

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concept as
“useful information about students’ expectations and needs, their problems
and worries,
they feel about their own learning process, their reactions to the materials
and methods being used, what they think about the course in general” (p. 36). Oscarson
(1997) explains that the field of self-assessment of language proficiency is concerned
with knowing how, under what circumstances and with what effects learners and users
of a second language (SL) or a foreign language (FL) judge their own ability in the
language. Ability here refers to both achievement and proficiency. Self-assessment,
according to Oscarson (1997) comes from the realization that effective learning is best
achieved if the student is actively engaged in all phases of the learning process. Self-
assessment promotes learning autonomy and it positively affects motivation and
outcomes of learning mainly when self-assessment becomes part of day-to-day
teaching and when learners who do it for monitoring progress and improvement, not for a
grade or placement.
Self-assessment is useful because it has been considered that rather than
giving a comprehensive diagnostic test to have a glimpse of possible problem areas for
the students, it is much faster to ask students directly what problems they feel they
have (Harris & McCann, 1994). At the same time, it has been found that self-assessment
provides students with a useful tool to make decisions about particular material that
might be useful for them outside the classroom, and also to become more aware of
their learning style. Moreover, Dodd (1995) suggests that self-assessment is the best
way to promote understanding and learning; supporting the belief that students who feel
ownership for the class or task and believe they can make a difference, become more
engaged in their own learning
process.
2.2. Why use self - assessment in second language learning?
From (Using Self-Assessment for
Evaluation - Richard Watson Todd (Thailand), several reasons for using self-assessment

reliable enough to persuade most teachers to include them as part of the final score for a
course.
To increase reliability, self-assessment on open-ended tasks needs to be clearly
guided by detailed scoring criteria. The easiest way to generate such criteria is to break
down the task into smaller components. For example, for a letter-writing task, the finished
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product could be self-marked for how well it follows the standard letter-writing
conventions, such as introducing the purpose of the letter in the first paragraph, assigning
each topic to a separate paragraph, and so on. The close guidance of scoring criteria such as
these is likely to increase the reliability of the learner’s self-assessment, making it more
palatable for inclusion in the final score for a course.
2.3.2. Portfolios
The most obvious and widely-used learning instrument that could be used as input for
self-assessment is the portfolio. A portfolio is “a purposeful collection of students’ work
that demonstrates to students and others their efforts, progress, and achievements in given
areas” (Genesee and Upshur 1996:99). Since the portfolio is evidence to learners of their
own efforts, progress, and achievements, it is suitable for self-assessment. To use a
portfolio as self-assessment for evaluation purposes, questions to guide the self-assessment
must be provided. Sample questions could include the following:
 To what extent did you achieve your goals in learning during this course?
 To what extent did you improve your reading? List some of the problems you faced
while reading and how you solved those problems.
 To what extent has your knowledge of vocabulary improved? List the new words you
have learnt from your portfolio.
 To what extent has your confidence in using English improved?
By referring to their portfolios in answering these questions, learners have concrete
evidence of their performance and are not forced to rely on their intuition and possible bias
about their performance or ability.
2.3.3. Pre- and post-course writing
Learners can be asked to write two essays about their attitudes towards learning

teacher column) the activity once the learner has mastered it.
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2.3.6. Learner diary
Learner diaries and dialog journals have been proposed as one way of systematizing
self-assessment for students (Oscarsson 1984; Dickinson 1987). Learners should be
encouraged to write about what they learned, their perceived level of mastery over the
course content, and what they plan to do with their acquired skills.
2.3.7. Self assessment questionnaire
A popular technique in the area of self-assessment has been the use of rating scales,
check lists and questionnaires. These three techniques have been used as a means where
learners could rate their perceived general language proficiency or ability level. A lot of
developmental work has been done in this area through the use of “ability statements” such
as “I can read and understand newspaper articles intended for native speakers of the
language.” (Coombe 1992; Oscarsson 1984).
2.3.8. Videotape
Video can be exploited in a number of ways to encourage self-assessment in the
classroom. For example, students can be videotaped or they can videotape each other and
then assess their language skills. An obvious advantage to the use of video in self-
assessment is that students can assess not only their communicative or language skills but
their paralinguistic (i.e. body language) skills as well.
2.3.9. Teacher-student interviews:
Interview students to determine what they believe they do well or areas in which they
need to improve. Teacher-student interviews are productive means of assessing individual
achievement and needs. During these discussions, teachers can discover students'
perceptions of their own processes and products of learning. When teachers ask questions
that promote student reflection upon what they understand and how they work and learn,
the rich data collected can support instructional decisions. Interview questions can be
developed to meet the needs of specific students and to fit the curriculum
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Chapter III: The study

And this approach not only promotes autonomy in student learning but also helps the
teachers measure the students’ progress in the course. But because self assessment is
performed through complex processes, there still remains much disagreement in the
discussion regarding the effective use of self assessment. That is why teachers at Hanoi
University of Industry are very careful when using this method although they consider it as
an interesting method.
3.2. Research question 2:
Ratings of motivation among students studying English at HAUI are measured by a
motivation questionnaire. The self assessment questionnaire, which was incorporated into
the treatment group on a weekly basis, included questions related to what the student have
studied the previous week, how well they think they have performed in those areas, how
important those areas were to learning English as well as what they think are their main
strong and weak points in the course. The participants of this study were divided into those
who are in the control group (i.e .not receiving a self assessment component) or those in the
experimental group (i.e., receiving a self assessment component)
In this study, data were collected using a measurable instrument (motivation scale),
the analysis of data was quantitative .An experimental, pretest/posttest control group
design was used in this study. First, the classrooms asked to participate in the study
included 180 second year students studying at HAUI. They were mainly college
students at HAUI.
4. Participants and settings
The participants are: 30 students (Faculty of Electronics); 30 students (Faculty of
Information technology); 30 students (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering); 30 students
(Faculty of Automobile Technology); 30 students (Faculty of Electrical Engineering);
30 students (Faculty of Chemical Technology).
These are second year college students, non- majors of English and at pre-
intermediate level.
The teacher randomly selected classrooms to receive a self-assessment component
(i.e., the treatment group) and the remaining participating classrooms did not receive
the self- assessment component (i.e., the control group). Next, a pretest (motivation

were then read an informed consent script describing the purpose and procedures of
the research study.
Two questionnaires were handed out and responded to by the treatment group
students (i.e., the self-assessment questionnaire, the motivation questionnaire).For both
groups the motivation questionnaire was first completed and handed in during the first
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week of semester. In only the treatment group, the self-assessment questionnaire was
completed and handed in on a weekly basis throughout the semester (i.e., 8 times ).
For both groups the motivation questionnaire was then completed and handed in during
the final week of semester.
All questionnaires were completed anonymously and the students did not have
their names mentioned at any time during the collection or coding of research data. .
5. Instruments:
The instruments adopted for this study included: a motivation questionnaire (A 7-
point Likert-scale questionnaire); a self- assessment questionnaire adapted from Blanche
& Merino (1989).
5.1. Motivation questionnaire:
In order to fit language curricula in English classroom at HAUI, motivation
questionnaire was created for students’level of a pre- intermediate English course. A
7-point Likert-scale questionnaire was constructed based on studies in the field of L2
learning. The questionnaire consisted of two sections. Section I was made up of 30 items
(from 1-30) related to positive motivation toward learning English in class and Section II
was made up of 10 questions (from 30-40) related to negative motivation and attitudes (see
Appendix B)
Motivation questionnaire was created with the scale from 0 ( not at all true) to 7( very
true) .The adaptation included variations in wording to fit a classroom as a second
language classroom. Given that the purpose, constructs, quantity, or types of questions
were altered.
5.2. Self -Assessment Questionnaire
The self-assessment questionnaire was adapted from Blanche and Merino (1989) In