iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
Declaration i
Acknowledgements ii
Abstract iii
Table of Contents iv
List of Abbreviations vii
List of tables viii
List of figures viii
PART ONE: INTRODUCTION 1
1. Rationale for the study 1
2. Aims of the study 2
3. Scope of the study 2
4. Significance of the study 2
5. Methods of the study 2
6. Structure of the study 3
PART TWO: DEVELOPMENT 4
CHAPTER ONE: LITERATURE REVIEW 4
1.1. Task-based language teaching 4
1.1.1. What is a task? 4
1.1.2. Task types 4
1.1.3. What is TBLT? 5
1.1.4. A framework for designing TB lessons 6
1.2. Speaking skill in language teaching 8
1.2.1. What is speaking skill? 8
1.2.2. The importance of speaking skill in language teaching programs 8
1.3. Factors affecting TBLT application in speaking skill 9
1.3.1. Teachers 9

2.3.2.3. Teachers’ attitude 26
2.3.2.4. Teachers’ method 26
2.3.2.5. Students 27 vi
2.3.3. The interview 28
2.3.3.1. The interview for teachers 28
2.3.3.2. The interview for students 31
2.4. Conclusion 33
CHAPTER THREE: FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 34
3.1. Findings of the study 34
3.1.1. Advantages 34
3.1.1.1. From the students 34
3.1.1.2. From the teachers 34
3.1.1.3. From the administrators 35
3.1.2. Disadvantages 36
3.1.2.1. From the students 36
3.1.2.2. From the teachers 37
3.1.2.3. From the administrators 37
3.1.2.4. From the syllabus 38
3.2. Recommendations for better TBLT application 38
3.2.1. For the teachers 38
3.2.2. For the students 39
3.2.3. For the administrators 39
PART THREE: CONCLUSION 41
1. Conclusion 41
2. Limitations of the study 41
3. Suggestions for further study 41
REFERENCES 43

viii
LIST OF TABLES Page
Table 1:
A framework for designing task-based lessons
6
Table 2:
Students’ evaluation of their English learning ability
18
Table 3:
Students’ attitudes of learning English speaking
19
Table 4:
Students’ opinions of the application of a task-based approach in learning
English speaking
20
Table 5:
Students’ advantages and disadvantages in learning English speaking
based on tasks
1
PART ONE: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale for the study
Nowadays, English is the language of international communication so it now plays
an important role in socio-economic development not only in Vietnam but also all over the
world. That is the reason why the demand for good English users is higher, especially in
the field of communication.
In Vietnam, English has been extensively studied and taught for decades. However,
how to effectively teach and learn English in general and English speaking in particular is
a matter of controversy. There exist some weakness in the teaching and learning of the
speaking skill in non-English major courses at colleges and universities with inappropriate
teaching materials and instructional techniques. Being a teacher of English at a university,
I realize that most of the students have faced many problems in learning this skill. It is due
to the fact that the common teaching approach applied is teacher-centered and lecture-
oriented, which normally results in learner passivity and non-involvement in English
speaking activities. Thus, it is necessary to change the learning process because if the
processes actively engage the learners, then a more positive outcome is assured. It is
obvious that in some recent years, many modern approaches have been applied in teaching
languages with the hope to achieve the expected communicative results. One of these is to
use Task-based language teaching. The task-based approach has numerous advantages.
Candlin (1987:3) asserted that “Task-based learning continues with and develop recent
attention to learner-centered approaches, and in particular the ideas of differentiation and
learner independence”, adding that “tasks serve as compelling and appropriate means for
realizing certain characteristic principles of communicative language teaching and
learning” (p.5). Tasks also provide input to learners and opportunities for meaningful

well as the first-year non English majors of HaUI.
4. Significance of the study
The study is an attempt to respond to the concern of teachers and administrator who
take responsibility of the course quality and students‟ learning. From the findings of the
study, teachers and administrator can find ways to most effectively apply task-based
approach in teaching languages in general, English speaking in particular. The teachers and
students will be able to use appropriate tasks to overcome difficulties and to improve their
process of teaching and learning English speaking.
5. Methods of the study
The study is conducted in the form of a survey research. To carry out the research, I
decided to use questionnaires with participation of 150 first-year non English majors and

3
30 teachers of Faculty of Foreign Languages at HaUI. In addition to the questionnaires,
class observation and interview with the student informants and interview with their
teachers were also employed.
6. Structure of the study
The study consists of three parts:
Part One: The Introduction:
This part presents the rationale, the aims, the scope, the significance, the methods and the
structure of the study.
Part Two: The Development includes of following chapters:
Chapter 1: Literature review
This chapter reviews basic issues on task-based language teaching (TBLT) with the
definition of a task, task types, the definition of TBLT and a framework for designing TB
lessons. An overview of speaking with the definition of speaking skill, the importance of
speaking skill in Language Teaching programs and factors affecting TBLT application in
speaking skill is also presented.
Chapter 2: The study
This chapter first refers to the current situation of teaching and learning speaking English

or simulations and decision making” (Breen 1987:23).
1.1.2. Task types:
Task types are very numerous. We can take into consideration some types of tasks
suggested by Long (1989) as follows:
The first is information gap tasks which includes one-way tasks and two-way tasks.
These tasks are information exchange tasks that are distinguished in terms of how the
information to be shared. In the case of one-way tasks, the burden of completing the task
successfully is placed on the participant who holds the information, although other
participants can contribute by demonstrating when they comprehend. In constrast, in two-
way tasks, all the participants are obligated to participate in order to complete the task.
However, Long (1989:13) claimed that “two-way tasks produce more negotiation work and
more useful negotiation work than one-way tasks”.
The second are the tasks related to task outcome. Those are open tasks and closed
tasks. Open tasks are those where the participants know there is no pre-determined
solution. For example, tasks in involving making choices, surveys, debates, ranking
activities, and general discussion are open because learners are free to decide on the
solution. Closed tasks are those that require students to reach a single, correct solution or

5
one of a small finite set of solutions. Long (1989) argues that closed tasks are more likely
to promote negotiation work than open tasks because they make it less likely that learners
will give up when faced with a challenge. In the case of open tasks such as “free
conversation” tasks there is no need for students to pursue difficult topics. They can treat
topics briefly and switch topic if necessary. In short, open tasks remove the need to make
an effort to communicate. In contrast, closed tasks require students to persevere to make
themselves understood, resulting in greater precision and more language recycling. It is
good for acquisition.
The third are planned tasks and unplanned tasks. Planned tasks are the ones that
are prepared and planned in advance to access their effects on written or oral work. For
example, planning the words, phrases and ideas before carrying out an interview.

classroom.
1.1.4. A framework for designing TB lessons
We can consider Ellis‟s model which provides a clear structure for a lesson and
allows for creativity and variety in the choice of options in each phase.
Phase
Examples of options
A Pre-task
Framing the activity, e.g establishing the outcome of the task
Planning time
Doing a similar task
B During task
Time pressure
Number of participants
C Post-task
Learner report
Consciousness raising
Repeat task

Table 1. A framework for designing task-based lessons (Rod Ellis, 2003:244)
It is important to consider three phases in the implementation of a task-based
approach in a lesson.
The pre-task phase
The purpose of the pre-task phase is to prepare students to perform the task in ways
that will promote acquisition. This phase concerns the various activities that teachers and
students can undertake before they start the task. For example, teachers provide an advance
organizer of what students will be required to do and the nature of the outcome they will
arrive at. Students are aslo given time to plan the performance of the task. Especially,

7
teachers will support students in performing a task similar to the task they will perform in

same conditions as the first performance , i.e. in small groups or individually, or the

8
conditions can be changed. When learners repeat a task, their production improves in a
number of ways, for example, complexity increases, propositions are expressed more
clearly and they become more fluent.
1.2. Speaking skill in language teaching
1.2.1. What is speaking skill?
Speaking skill is one of the most important skills in learning foreign languages.
Bailey and Savage (1991: vii) say “for many people, speaking is seen as the central skill
because of the desire to communicate with others, often face-to-face and in real time”. Ur
(1996) considers speaking intuitively the most important of the four skills: people who
knows a language are referred to as „speakers‟ of that language as if speaking included all
other kinds of knowing; and many if not most foreign language learners are primarily
interested in learning to speak.
According to Brown and Yule‟s (1983:127), speaking skill consists of short,
fragmentary utterance, in a range of pronunciation. There is often a great deal of repetition
and overlap between one speaker and another and speakers usually use non-specific
references. Brown (1994:45) defined that speaking is an interactive process of constructing
meaning that involves producing, receiving and processing information. When
participating in communicative activities, the speaker should choose the correct vocabulary
to describe the things they want to say about, to rephrase or emphasize words to clarify the
description to produce the expected pattern of specific discourse situations.
1.2.2. The importance of speaking skill in language teaching programs
Language is an effective means of communication through which we can convey
our ideas, our thought, or our desires. Human beings have never achieved such
developments as they have done these days without language. Speaking ability is
considered a measurement of knowing a language. It is very important to language teachers
and learners. Bygate, M. (1987:5) stresses that speaking “is also a medium through which
much language is learnt, and which for many is particularly conductive for learning”.

must plan it, organize it, start it, monitor it, time it and conclude it.
To summarize, teachers‟ beliefs and attitudes have an effect on the classroom
behavior, influence what learners learn, and are potent determinants of teachers‟ teaching
style.
1.3.1.2. Teachers’ qualities and personalities
It is generally accepted that the teacher‟s qualities and personalities play an
important role in the class. Teachers‟ qualities and personalities also affect to learners‟
attitudes toward their study. It is clear that teachers need to do everything possible to create
a good support with their learners. Partly this happens by providing interesting and

10
motivating classes; partly this comes from such things as treating all learners the
same and acting upon their hopes and aspirations. Most of it depends on paying more
attention to the learners than to the teachers. Nunan (1991:279) aslo give some advices to
the teachers when teaching speaking skill: (1)emphasizing on learning to communicate
though interaction in the target language, (2) introducing authentic texts into the learning
situations, (3) providing opportunities for learners to focus, not only on languages but also
on the learning process itself, (4) enhancing the learners own personal experiences as
important contributing elements to classroom learning, and (5) attempting to link
classroom language learning with language activation outside the classroom. If the
teachers‟ qualities are high, they can pay attention more to the quality of teaching method
and design effective and suitable tasks in activities in speaking lessons.
A teacher‟s personality is important because it helps build the learning environment
with good relationship between teachers and learners and increase learning motivation.
1.3.2. Learners
1.3.2.1. Learners’ motivation
Language learners‟ motivation is basically originated from goals of various kinds
and needs. It is popularly considered to play a very important role in learning. The
motivation is some kind of internal drive that encourages somebody to pursue a course of
action. Motivation is seen as the fulfillment of the goals and needs. It is considered to be

While learning environment can be seen physical conditions, textbooks and
teaching aids can be considered important resources. The textbook is essential in forming
comprehensible input. If the contents of the textbook are suitable and up to students‟
knowledge, they will much help develop students‟ speaking competence.
Teaching aids are also considered as an important factor affecting students‟
learning situation. They allow the teachers to talk less by dimissing the importance of the
verbal stimuli provided by the teachers‟ voice and allow the students to talk more.

12
CHAPTER TWO: THE STUDY
2.1 The context of the study
2.1.1. English language teaching at Hanoi University of Industry
Hanoi University of Industry is the multi-branch university. It is specializedly
controlled by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Since it officially became a university in
2005, the university has performed its function of training bachelors and high
technological engineers. There are fifteen departments: Mechanical Engineering,
Information Technology, Garment Technology and Faction Design, Automobile
Technology, Chemical Technology, Electrical Engineering, Electronics, Fundamental
Science, Economics, Teacher Training, In-service Training, Marxism-Leninism, Foreign
Languages, International Cooperation Training, Physical-National Defense Education.
The teachers in Faculty of Foreign Languages take responsibility for teaching
English all the students who are studying at HaUI. There are 2 categories of English – one
for students in Faculty of Foreign Languages who are called English majors, one for
students in other Faculties who are called non-English majors. In this study, I only focus

skill is an important skill in learning English.
Students are required to pronounce words and phrases in English, use English to
collect information by making questions, making conversations with everyday English
expressions, making presentations or sentences with tenses in English such as Present
Simple, Past Simple, Present Continuous and Present Perfect. I think this course book is
suitable for the first-year non English major students. It is not very difficult for the students
who have no experience in speaking English before.
The assessment is as follows. The students‟ studying result is the average of the
average of all the marks in class and the term-end test. All the marks in class include class
attendant, a midterm test and two other tests.
2.1.3. Teachers and students
There are 110 teachers in Faculty of Foreign Languages. All of them graduated
from the English Department of ULIS, VNUH or Hanoi University. 58 people are long-
term contracted teachers and the rest are short-term contracted teachers. 28 of them have
got an M.A degree. 30 are doing M.A. In general, the teaching staff is always eager for
knowledge, energetic, enthusiastic and willing to apply better ways to upgrade their
teaching quality.
The proficiency level of first-year non English major students at HaUI is generally
not high. This results from some reasons. The first one is that their academic results at
entrance examinations are not very high. The second reason is many students show a

14
passive learning way. They are still affected by the way of learning English at secondary
and high schools. Hence, they continue to adopt the teacher-dependent learning style. It
means that they only listen to the teachers‟ lectures and take notes. They have no their own
ideas and do not stand to think about the topics or problems which their teachers provide.
The third reason is that they only concentrate on grammar exercises and vocabulary. They
hardly have spoken English. The last reason is they are lack of confidence. Most of them
come from rural areas with no chances for learning English with enough four skills. They
are not dare to talk to the teachers and other students in English when they have opinion.

3. What could be done to surmount the disadvantages and exploit the advantages?
2.2.2. The participants
In order to gather information for the study, 150 freshman non English major
students at HaUI were chosen to answer the questionnaire. There are 140 male students
and 10 female students. Most of them are aged 18 (only 7 students are aged 20 because
they failed in the two previous university entrance examinations). The majority come from
the countryside. Some of them are from big cities such as Hanoi, Hai Phong, Nam Dinh or
Thanh Hoa. The differences of domicile partly lead to different ways of learning foreign
language.
30 English teachers aged from 26 to 37 were invited to answer the questionnaire. 4
of them are male and other 26 are female. The teachers have had the teaching experience
from 3 to 17 years.
20 students who are volunteers were chosen for the interview after the class
observation by the reseacher. 3 of them are female and the rest are male.
5 of 30 English teachers were invited to take part in the interview after they finish
teaching their speaking lessons observed by the reseacher. 2 of them are male and 3 are
female.
All these teachers and students are teaching and learning English speaking with
task-based approach.
2.2.3. Data collection instruments
To gather more accurate data, both quantitive and qualitative methods were used.
Quantitive data were gathered through questionnaire for both students and teachers and
qualitative data were collected via class observation and interviews of teachers and
students.
2.2.3.1. Questionnaire
The questionnaire is one of the most popular instruments in gathering data. It is
very suitable to implement a large-scale survey, the aim of which is to find out
participants‟ opinions and attitudes.

16

after-lesson stage, the reseacher concentrated on discussing and changing opinions with the
observed teachers.

17
2.2.3.3. Interviews
The interviews were implemented to 30 students in the observed class and 5
observed teachers. The objective is to get more in-depth information about the teachers‟
and students‟ perception of the advantages and disadvantages when applying task-based
approach in teaching and learning English speaking.
The interview for students was implemented in Vietnamese. It consists of 6
questions. Question 1 is used to find out the students‟ opinion of speaking English.
Question 2 is to investigate students‟ estimation of the importance of English speaking
skill. Questions 3 concentrates on the students‟ attitudes of learning English speaking with
task-based approach. Question 4, 5 are to gather students‟ opinions of the advantages and
disadvantages they faced with under TB instruction. Question 6 is aimed at students‟
suggestions to make use of advantages and surmount the disadvantages.
The interview for teachers includes 7 questions. Question 1 is to gather teachers‟
ideas of the importance of English speaking skill to the students. Question 2 and 3
investigates the attitudes of teachers about teaching English speaking, especially when
using task-based approach. Question 4 is about the opinion of teachers about their students‟
attitudes with the speaking lesson applied a task-based approach. Question 5 and 6 elicit
the advantages and disadvantages teachers coped with in teaching English speaking with
this approach. The last question - question 7 is to gather teachers‟ suggestions to apply
task-based approach more effectively.
2.3. Data analysis methods
In this section, the results of the study are presented. The data has been collected
from the questionnaires, the class observation and the interviews. The result will be
represented in forms of tables and figures.
2.3.1. The questionnaires
2.3.1.1. The questionnaire for students

8%
44,7%
29,3%
18%
3
3,4%
14%
28%
33,3%
21,3%
4
36%
32,7%
14%
12,6%
4,7%
Table 1 shows the results of students‟ English learning ability. According to the
figure collected in question 2, we can find that although most of students started learning
English from grade 6, their levels of English are not high. There are not any students who
are excellent at English (0%). Only 12 students (8%) are good at English. Meanwhile,
there are 67 students (44,7%) have a neutral level of English, 44 students (29,3%) have a
bad level and 27 students (18%) have a very bad level.
In question 3, when asked about the skill the students are good at, the majority (50
students – 33,3%) assumed that they are good at writing skill. 42 students (28%) think that
they are good at reading skill. Only 5 students (3,4%) are good at listening and 21 students
(14%) are good at speaking. Especially, 32 students (21,3%) think that they are not good at
any skills. We can see that the number of students who are good at reading and writing is
more than that of students who are good at listening and speaking.

19

16,7%
4,6%
The figures in table 2 show the result of students‟ attitudes of learning English
speaking. In question 1, 25 students (16,7%) are very interested in learning English
speaking and 60 others (40%) are interested in learning it. There are 35 students (23,3%)
are neutral. Meanwhile only 12 students (8%) are uninterested in learning this skill and 18
students (12%) are very uninterested in learning it. Therefore, we can see that the number
of students who like learning English speaking skill is quite big.
The result of question 2 shows that students‟ awareness of learning English
speaking is very high. Most of students (63,4% - 95 students) think that English speaking
skill is very important to them. 23,3% (35 students) think that it is important. Only 8% (12
students) think it is neutral and 5,3% (8 students) think it is unimportant. There are not any
students think it is very important.
When asked about the purpose of learning English speaking skill, a quite big
number of students (36,7% - 55 students) think that they learn this skill to pass the exam.
34.7% (52 students) want to get a good job in the future. 7,3% (11 students) want to
communicate with the foreigners. 16,7% (25 students) think that they have to learn it
because it is a compulsory skill in learning English at university and 4,6% (7 students)
learn it because of other reasons such as travelling abroad, living abroad in the future,
studying abroad after graduating from university, etc.
2.3.1.1.3. Students’ opinions of the application of a task-based approach in learning
English speaking

20
Table 4: Students’s opinions of the application of a task-based approach in learning
English speaking
Alternatives
Questions
a
b

English speaking with a task-based approach very much and 87 students (58%) like this.
Meanwhile, only 7 students (4,7%) disagree and 2 students (1,3%) strongly disagree with
learning English speaking based on tasks. 12 students (8%) are neutral. Thus, we can find
that most of students like learning English speaking with this approach.
The figures in question 2 show that most of students think learning speaking with
this approach is very suitable (30% - 45 students) and suitable (52,7%-79 students) to
them. Only 9 students (6%) are neutral and 11 students (7,4%) and 6 students (4%) think it
is unsuitable and very unsuitable respectively.
When asked whether their speaking skill is improved with this approach, the
majority (72 students – 48%) agree and 51 others (34%) strongly agree with this. Only 8
students (5,3%) are neutral, 11 students (7,4%) disagree and 8 others (5,3%) strongly
disagree with this.
The results in question 4 show that a big number of students (71 students – 47,3%)
strongly agree and 52 students (34,7%) agree to continue to learn English speaking with a
task-based approach next semester. Meanwhile, only 8 students (5,3%) are neutral, 11
students (7,4%) disagree and 8 others (5,3%) strongly disagree with this.
2.3.1.1.4. Students’ advantages and disadvantages in learning English speaking with a
task-based approach and possible suggestions
Table 5 : Students’ advantages and disadvantages in learning English speaking based on
tasks