DECLARATION
I, Nguyen Thi My Hao, certify that this thesis is the result of my own research and
the substance of this thesis has not, wholly or in part, been submitted for a degree to any
other university or institution.
Hanoi, May 2008
Nguyen Thi My Hao
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
First and foremost, I would like to express my deep gratitude to my supervisor, Mr.
Le Van Canh, M.A for his invaluable comments and suggestions, generous assistance and
continual encouragement in completion of this research.
Secondly, my special thanks go to all the teachers and students of the classes I have
visited in order to gather information for my survey questionnaire and classroom
observations.
My gratefulness is to my husband, who has given me so much love, patience and
encouragement, who spent hours working with the computer to help me with computer
entry and processing.
In addition, I am in debt of my mother-in-law, who has constantly supported and
encouraged me to carry out this thesis, who has shared with me all the housework so that I
could concentrate on doing research.
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ABSTRACT
Reading is a very important skill because together with listening, reading provide
indispensable input for students. However, the teaching and learning reading in many
schools in Viet nam in general and at Phan Boi Chau specialized school in particular is still
far from satisfactory.
Students’ satisfaction with the reading lessons is of great concern. In fact, there are
many factors affecting the students’ satisfaction that are worth considering such as
students’ interest, needs teachers’ activities, the topic of the text, the text type…This thesis

learning reading at the school.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS i i
DECLARATION i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii
ABSTRACT iii
LIST OF TABLES AND CHARTS viii
PART ACHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION 1
I.1. Rationale of the study 1
I.2. Aims of the study 2
I.3. 2
Research questions 2
I.4. Scope of the study 2
I.5. Methods of the study 3
I.6. Significance of the study 3
I.7. Design of the study 3
PART B: DEVELOPMENT 5
CHAPTER II. 5
LITERATURE REVIEW 5
1II.1. Introduction 5
5
II.21. Learner- centred approach 5
II.23. Teaching styles and lLearning styles: The need to narrow the gap between the
teachers’ teaching styles and the students’ learning styles 7
II.23.1. Learning styles: 7
At this point you need to discuss further how the issue of learners’ statifaction is related to
teaching styles and learning styles 9

III.1.2. Subjects 19
III.23. Instruments: 20
IHow was observation carried out? And how was the data analysed? 21
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Hopefully, with four different teachers, four different classes and four different units, the
researcher can get a lot of choice for the reading activities and can get involved in various
classroom settings 22
II.34. Data analysis process 22
CHAPTER IIIIV 23
DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 23
IVIII.1. Survey questionnaire 23
IIIIV.1.1. Students’ attitudes towards the teacher’s reading activities 23
26
IIIV.1.2. The current situation of using reading activities in a reading lesson at Phan Boi
Chau school 26
IIIV.1.3. Students’ preferences for reading activities 30
IIIIV.1.4. Students’ satisfaction and dissatisfaction with the teacher’s ways of teaching
reading 31
IIIV.2. Classroom observations 33
CHAPTER IV. 38
FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 38
FOR USING READING ACTIVITIESFOR MAKING STUDENTS SATISFIED WITH
THE READING LESSONS 38
IV. 1. Findings: Most important in this is WHAT ARE YOUR ANSWERS TO THE TWO
RESEARCH QUESTIONS? 38
IV.1.1. The students’ attitudes towards the teacher’s reading activitiesThe importance of
reading activities: 39
IV.1.2. The current situation of using reading activities at Phan Boi Chau school 39
V.1.2.1. The frequency of reading activities used by the teachers at Phan Boi Chau school

satisfaction. If it is true that we cannot teach the language to the students , but just create
conditions for the learning to happen, it is crucial to make our students satisfied with their
lessons. This is because students cannot be sufficiently motivated to learn without feeling
satisfied with what they are provided for
In teaching and learning English as a foreign language, reading has always received
a great deal of attention. This is understandable because where English is learnt and taught
inis a non-English environment, so reading is not only an important means to get
knowledge but also a means of further study. According to Richard (1993:9), “Becoming
an effective and fluent reader in another language has a number of important benefits for
the learner”. In order to motivate learners to learn and become fluent readers, it is
necessary for teachers to understand students’ degree of satisfaction with the way the
reading skills are taught so that improvements can be made on the part of the teachers.
Despite the need of understanding how students evaluate the lessons teachers teach, there
has yet been a single study that looks into this matter in my school.
When dealing with a reading lesson, the teachers always try to their best to make
the reading lesson a success. However, because of the differences between the teachers and
the students with regard to the experience in using the language and expectation as well as
to cognitive styles, teachers’ satisfaction with their teaching does not necessarily mean
students’ satisfaction. it seems that some of them are not satisfied with their learning.
Actually, satisfaction is a very necessary element in learning in general and in learning
reading in particular but helping students to be satisfied with their reading lessons is a
challenging task. There are many factors that are worth considering such as students’
needs, interest, teachers’ reading activities, the topic of the text, the text type.
As said above, the issue of students’ satifactionsatisfaction remains unexplored in
my school, this study was an attempt to fill the gap. However, with the limitation of the
time, the author only intends to pay more attention to investigate the students’ satisfaction
with the teachers’ reading activities because reading activities play an important role in
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making students satisfy with their reading lessons. Suitable reading activities can enhance

- To what extent are they satisfied with their reading comprehension lessons in
general?
I.4. Scope of the study
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As mentioned above, students’ satisfaction with their reading lessons depends on
different factors such as students’ needs, interest, teachers’ reading activities, the topic of
the text, the next type. All these factors can not be covered in this paper. So, the author
only intends to study on reading activities that may affect students’ satisfaction in learning
English in general and in reading comprehension in particular. More specifically, the
author only focuses on investigating reading activities employed by teachers at Phan Boi
Chau school and students’ preferences for these reading activities. After that, some
suggestions are given for the teachers to improve their reading activities to satisfy their
students.
I.5. Methods of the study
In order to achieve the goal of the study, which was to investigate the studnents’
degree of satisfaction with their reading comprehension lessons, a questionnaire survey
was chosen for this study. In addition to the questionnaire, which was administered to the
students, classroom observations were also made to help the researcher interpret the
questionnaire data more accurately.The study was carried out on the basis of material
collection, survey questionnaire and class observation.
For the theoretical basic, materials are collected, gathered and analyzied carefully.
For the practical basic, questionnaires and class observation are carried out with
target teachers and students to collect the most reliable data for the thesis.
I.6. Significance of the study
The students’ satisfaction with their teachers’ reading activities plays a very
important role to the reading lessons. This contributes to make the lesson successful or not.
The findings of the study are believed to be useful for teachers to realize the essential role
of reading activities to the students’ satisfaction with their reading lessons. More
importantly, the recommendations for reading activities hopefully can help the teachers to

learning styles is briefly discussed. This will be followed by the why and the how of
narrowing such a gap. Finally, the definition of reading and some common reading
activities will be presented. the issue of students’ statisfcationstudents’ satisfaction in
language learning will be discussed.

II.21. Learner- centred approach.
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Recently, there has been a shift in focus from the teacher to the learner, from
exclusive focus on how to improve teaching to an inclusive concern for how individual
learners go through their learning. There are two reasons for this shift. The first reason is
that the goals of language learning as well as insights into language and into the process of
language learning have changed. The second reason is that learner-centredness is not a
theory about teaching, but rather a theory about learning. Each individual decides what is
important and what is relevant to construct a meaningful concept.
According to Nunan Nunan (20001988:11), learner-centred classrooms are the
places where “key decisions about what will be taught, how it will be taught, when it will
be taught, and how it will be accessed will be made with reference to the learner”.
In fact, the concept “Learner- centred approach” is not a new one in the world. It
rooted from the ancentancient times based on a lot of the famous educationalist’ points of
view. This was then strongly developed and applied to language teaching.
In Viet Nam, this viewpoint was also paid a lot of attentionlearner-centeredness has
been encouraged and promoted for several years, especially in education and training a
long time ago. In 1986, at the 6
th
congress of the Communist Party of Viet Nam, the policy
of DOI MOI (Renovation) was adopted. New approaches to planning in all fields emerged,
affecting all sectors of society. Education is just one of them.
The view was presented clearly in Article 35 of the 1992 Constitution of Viet Nam
as follows:

own syllabus.
II.23. Teaching styles and lLearning styles: The need to narrow the gap
between the teachers’ teaching styles and the students’ learning styles.
II.23.1. Learning styles:
The first step in pursuing more learner-centred teaching is to understand students’
learning styles so that every student can be well catered for. An area of research which has
received a lot of attention in many areas of education is the issue of learning style. The idea
of learning style comes from general psychology. It refers to the characteristic ways in
which individuals orientate to problem-solving. Keefe (quoted in Ellis 1994:499) defines
learning style as “the characteristic cognitive, affective and physiological behaviours that
serve as relatively stable indicators of how learners perceive, interact with and respond to
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the learning environment…Learning style is a consistent way of functioning, that reflects
underlying causes of behaviour”
According to (the teachers’ Edition (November 2001)Richard and Lockhard
(quoted in Record, D 2001:27)which author?), learning styles are defined as
“predispositions to particular ways of approaching learning and are intimately related to
personality types” (Richard and Lock hard). Another definition is: “A student’s orientation
toward learning” (Numan). Mariani defines learning styles as “a learner’s overall approach
to learning his or her typical consistent way of perceiving and responding to learning
tasks”.(Mariani:, quoted in Record, D 2001:27).
Although several learning style tests are available, each with lightly different
categories, Richard and Lock hard (cited in Record, D 2001:27). classified the following
learning styles:This is NOT the right way of citation!- quoted in Teacher’s Edition 2001)
classified the following learning styles:
• Visual learners: These learners respond to new information in a visual fashion
and prefer visual, pictorial, and graphic presentations of experiences. They benefit most
from reading and learn well by seeing words in books, wordbooks, or on the blackboard.
They can often learn on their own with a book, and they take note on lectures to remember

Besides, when the teachers apply suitable teaching methods to teach their students,
they will be able to understand the lessons mmore easily. The more suitable and relevant
the teaching and learning styles are to the students’ interests, habits and learning ability…,
the more they can get from the lesson. Therefore, they are more satisfied with their lessons.
At this point you need to discuss further how the issue of learners’ statifaction is
related to teaching styles and learning styles
II.23.2. The need to narrow the gaps between the teacher’s teaching style and
the learners’ learning styles:
Narrowing the gaps between teaching style and learning style is of great
importance. Kumaravadivelu (1991:98) states that “…the narrower the gap between
teacher intention and learner interpretation, the greater are the chances of achieving desired
learning outcomes”
In fact, there is always a gap between teaching and learning. This is because
students are always different in terms of needs, purposes for learning, and ways of
obtaining knowledge. Teachers also apply many ways of teaching. What the teacher
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teaches, in many cases, does not mean what the students learn. Therefore, mismatching
between teaching and learning is understandable. So that, in a class when such a mismatch
occurs, the students tend to be bored and inattentive, do poorly on tests, get discouraged
about the course and may conclude that they are not good at the subjects of the course and
give up (Oxford et al, 1991)
It’s necessary to narrow the gap between teaching and learning. According to
Brown (1994), it is when students’ learning styles are matched with appropriate
approaches in teaching that their motivation, performances, and achievements will increase
and be enhanced.
There are some approaches to match teaching styles with learning styles in East
Asia settings adapted from Zhenhui (2001):
+ Diagnosing learning styles and developing self-aware EFL learners: Effective
matching between teaching style and learning style can only be achieved when teachers

+ Providing activities with different groupings: It is always helpful for the teacher
to divide the students into groups by learning styles and give them activities based on their
learning styles. This should appeal to them because they will enjoy them and be successful.
The teacher can also use style-varied groups for generating greatest flexibility of styles and
behaviours. But before being divided into groups, students should be aware of the divisions
and understand what they are doing and why they are doing it. In addition, no matter how
students are to be grouped, teachers should make a great effort to include various learning
styles in daily lesson plan.
In conclusion, bringing the gap between teachers’ and learners’ perception,
narrowing the gap between teaching and learning play “an important role in enabling
students to maximize their classroom experience” (Zhenhui: 2001). However, there are
probably as many ways to teach as there are to learn. Moreover, a study method which may
be intolerably boring, confusing or intimidating for one student may prove comfortable and
effective for another. It can result in the assumption that any teacher is likely to confront
mismatch between teaching and learning. This gap can be narrowed only when it’s
necessary to narrow the gap between the teacher’s teaching style and the learners’ learning
styles. This can only be done when all students’ needs, expectation, habits….are met. To
understand and respect each student’s learning styles, teachers are suggested to employ
instruments to identify students’ learning styles and provide instructional alternatives to
address their differences. Teachers should also plan lessons to match students to diversify
their learning style preferences. For students, they should also cooperate with their teachers
in matching teaching and learning styles. They should try to change their learning habits to
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become more effective language learners. This may lead to general improvement of
teaching and learning, which both teachers and students expect to make. As a result of this,
the students feel more satisfied with the lessons.
Again, how this is related to learners’ satifaction? Clarify
I.3. Learners’ perceptions/satisfaction in language education
II.4. Reading and reading activities

intended to indicate the basic structure of the text, and help students’ anticipation.
Actually, asking students questions will make them think about the topic they are going to
read. By doing this, students can build their prior knowledge and at the same time, use
vocabulary and structures that are connected with a particular function. Above all, it makes
students feel interested and gets them involved in the coming listening activities.
II.4.2.2. Using a class discussion
It’s necessary for the students to discussion in pairs or in groups before and after
reading. For the pre-reading stage, this activity helps activate students’ background
knowledge and ideas and then encourages them to share with friends. It also helps students
to get more involved and to concentrate on the task. For the post-reading stage, it develops
students’ skills of arguing, giving opinions about the text or related topics. What’s more,
this activity helps students develop speaking and listening skills.
II.4.2.3. Pre-teaching new vocabulary and structures.
There is a fact that vocabularies and structures in a reading text has have a great
influence on the students’ understanding. For them, a large number of unknown words and
structures may hinder reading, and certainly lower their motivation and confidence.
Therefore, it is necessary to pre-teach new vocabulary and structures, especially the
difficult ones. There are many ways of presenting new vocabulary: using games, visual
aids, definition, explanation or translation. Basing on particular contexts, the teacher can
apply a suitable activity.
II.4.2.4. Giving a simple and short introduction about the text
According Nguyen Bang & Nguyen Ba Ngoc (2001)m it is important to introduce
the text before the teacher asks students to read it. This serves two purposes:
- to help students in their reading, by giving them some ideas what to expect
- to increase their interest and so make them want to read text.
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The introduction, in fact, is not necessary long. A simple and short introduction is
enough for the students to know and to be ready for what they are going to read.
II.4.2.5. Asking students to tasks in a limited time.

practice grammar. With this activity, the students can remember the text deeply after the
lesson.
II.4.2.10. Applying rewards and punishment policy.
This activity encourages students to learn. Receiving rewards from the teacher
makes them feel happy and eager to learn. Punishment makes them remember their
mistakes and at the same time is a motivational tool which makes them have to try their
best another time.
To sum up, no one can deny the importance of reading activities in satisfying the
students in reading comprehension lessons. In fact, they motivate, keep the students’
interest in learning, help them understand and remember the reading text better and
therefore can make them satisfy with the lessons. Needless to say, it is necessary for the
teachers to know and apply the reading activities their students would like to take part in.
The above ones are the most common for the teachers to employ.there are numberous
reading activities. Basing on different reading contexts and for different purposes, teachers
may chooseuse different and suitable activities. However, all of them serve the same goal:
helping the students understand the reading text better and therefore can improve their
reading skill.
In what way is the discussion of this related to the issue of learners’ satisfaction.?
Have a CONCLUSION section: What are the major points from the literature
review that is connected to your topic of investigation – learners’ satisfaction with
reading lessons?
II.5. Conclusion
In this chapter, I have presented a variety of issues relevant to my topic of
investigation. These include the learner-centred approach, learners’ learning styles and the
need to narrow the gap between teaching and learning styles to achieve more learner-
centredness in language classroom and some common reading activities that help satisfy
the students in reading lessons. The next chapter will present The study
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