1 VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

ĐÀO THỊ THƢƠNG
DESIGNING A SUPPLEMENTARY READING SYLLABUS FOR
GRADE 10 ENGLISH GIFTED STUDENTS AT TUYEN QUANG
SPECIALISED UPPER SECONDARY SCHOOL

THIẾT KẾ CHƢƠNG TRÌNH ĐỌC HIỂU BỔ TRỢ CHO HỌC SINH LỚP 10
CHUYÊN ANH TRƢỜNG THPT CHUYÊN TUYÊN QUANG

MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS
FIELD: METHODOLOGY
CODE: 601410


FIELD: METHODOLOGY
CODE: 601410
SUPERVISOR: Dr. HOÀNG THỊ XUÂN HOA HANOI – 2010

6 List of abbreviations TQSS Tuyen Quang Specialised Upper Secondary School
MOET Ministry of Education and Training List of Tables

Table 1: Teachers‟ perception of students‟ difficulties in terms of reading exercises
23
Table 2: Teachers‟ perception of the necessity and interest in reading topics
25
Table 3: Teachers‟ perception of the necessity and interest in reading topics
26
Table 4: Students‟ perceptions of difficulties in terms of reading exercises
28
Table 5: Students‟ perceptions of the necessity and interest in reading topics
31
Table 6: Students‟ perception of grammatical items needed in a new syllabus
32
Table 7: Teachers‟ and the students‟ perceptions of the students‟ difficulties in reading exercises.
33
Table 8: Teachers‟ and students‟ perceptions of students‟ difficulties in reading comprehension
34
Table 9: Teachers‟ and the Students‟ perceptions of the necessity and the interest in reading topics
36
Table 10: Teachers‟ and the students‟ perceptions of the necessity of grammatical items
37
Table 11: The proposed supplementary reading syllabus for grade 10 English gifted students
(see Appendix 1)

List of Figures

iv
Lists of the tables
v
Part I: Introduction

1. Rationale
1
2. Aim of the study
2
3. Research questions
2
4. Scope of the study
3
5. Method of the study
3
6. Design of the study
3
Part II: Development

Chapter 1: Literature review
4
1.1. Theoretical background to Syllabus design
4
1.1.1. Syllabus and curriculum
4
1.1.2. Definitions of syllabus
4
1.1.3. Steps in designing a language syllabus
5
1.1.3.1. Needs analysis

14
2.1.2. The teaching staff
15
2.1.3. The students
16
2.1.4. Time allocation for English classes at TQSS
16
2.2. The study
17
2.2.1. The subjects
17
2.2.2. The instrument for data collection
17
2.2.3. Data collection procedures
18
2.2.4. Data analysis and major findings
19
2.2.4.1. Data from documents and the material
19
2.2.4.1.1. The requirements of the MOET on curriculum for gifted students
19
2.2.4.1.2. The requirements on tests for excellent students
20
2.2.4.1.3. The teaching materials
21
2.2.4.2. Data from survey questionnaires
22
2.2.4.2.1. Needs perceived by the teachers
22
2.2.4.2.2. Needs perceived by the students

Part III: Conclusion
43
References
45
Appendix
47 11 Part I: Introduction
1. Rationale
In the era of integration and globalization of the world economy, one cannot deny
the role of English as a bridge to link closely the nations all over the world. English is the
language that has spread throughout the world most extensively and is dominating in a
number of important fields international commerce, communication, tourism and science
and technology. English is both a means of and the latest achievement of science and

has been used to teach gifted students in nationwide schools. However, according to the
MOET, this textbook has not properly satisfied the talents‟ demand as well as met the
requirement of the national exam for the excellent. Hence, on November 6
th
, MOET issued
-a regulation No12856/BGDĐT- GDTrH - “A guideline in the contents for specializing
subjects taught for grade 10 at specialized upper secondary schools” (2006). According to
this regulation, gifted students are provided with 70 extra periods (including reading,
listening, speaking, writing and language focus) except for 140 compulsory periods in
order to enhance their level of English proficiency. This 70-period syllabus has not been
designed by MOET but it has been done by teachers themselves in each school who teach
the talents. In addition, MOET suggests that “the specific time allotment for each expanded
and advanced part depends on students‟ proficiency level as well as the real condition of
each school.” (A guideline in the contents for specializing subjects taught for grade 10 at
specialized upper secondary schools, 2006: 6). The flexibility and openness offer teachers
at specialized school in general and at Tuyen Quang Specialized Upper Secondary School
(TQSS) in particular more chances to select relevant materials to their class situation.
Because, however, the English supplementary materials specifically developed for the
gifted are inadequate, this flexibility also brings a lot of challenges to teachers of English
when making an attempt to find, select and adapt materials suitable for their students‟
needs. In order to help language teachers surmount the aforementioned difficulty and
provide students with a relevant supplementary reading syllabus, I have carried out a study
on “designing a supplementary reading syllabus for grade 10 English gifted students at
Tuyen Quang Specialized Upper Secondary School”.
2. Aims and objectives of the study.
The general aim of this study is to design a supplementary reading syllabus for grade 10

English gifted students at Tuyen Quang Specialized Upper Secondary School. Specifically,
the main objectives of this study are:
+ To find out the students‟ needs in terms of reading skills

 Part III is composed of concluding ideas and limitation of the study.

14 Part II: Development
Chapter 1: Literature review
1.1 Theoretical background to syllabus design
1.1.1. Syllabus and curriculum
The concept of a syllabus is hardly new in education but giving an exact definition
what a syllabus is in current literature is an uneasy task. Nunan (1988: 5) states that
“There are some confusing views on just what it is that distinguishes syllabus design from
curriculum development”. Therefore, showing a difference between syllabus and
curriculum is badly in need.
According to Allen (1984: 61), curriculum is a general concept. It involves
consideration of the whole complex of philosophical, social and administrative factors
which contribute to the planning of an educational program. Syllabus then refers to that
subpart of curriculum which is concerned with a specification of what units will be taught.
Curriculum as defined by Candlin (1984: 31) includes language learning, learning
process, and experience, evaluation, and the role relationships of the teachers and learners.
Syllabus, on the other hand, is based on accounts and records of what actually happens at
the classroom level as the teachers and learners apply a given curriculum.
In short, curriculum is a broader notion concerned with the planning,
implementation, evaluation, management, and administration of education programmes

which view to follow when designing a syllabus. As a point of departure to design a
supplementary for the gifted, the term "syllabus" only centers on the content of learning
and its organization, which means being narrowly defined.
1.1.3. Steps in designing a language syllabus
Different stages of designing a syllabus are proposed by different linguists.
According to Nunan (1988: 75-96), all the language programs should take their form of
departure from the goals and objectives that have been derived from an analysis of
learners‟ needs. For him, designing a syllabus is composed of such the steps as (i) needs
analysis, (ii) setting goals, (iii) selecting and grading content and (iv) selecting and grading
learning tasks. Taba (1962, cited in Brumfit, 1984: 268), however, points out seven steps
in designing a syllabus as follows: (i) needs analysis, (ii) formulation of objectives, (iii)
selection of content, (iv) organization of content, (v) selection of learning activities, (vi)
organization of learning activities and (vii) decisions about what needs evaluating and how
to evaluate. However, on discussing some issues related to communicative approach,
Munby (in Read, 1984: 58) suggests that designing a syllabus involves a logical sequence
of three stages: (i) need analysis, (ii) content specification, (iii) syllabus organization.
A syllabus design for an upper secondary school means designing a general-
purpose syllabus, but learner needs is also considered as the starting point of the syllabus
because, according to Hutchinson and Waters (1897: 53), any course should be based on an
analysis of learner needs. Moreover, Richards (1984: 7) points out that “students learning
English for general purposes for whom mastery of the language for its own sake or in order
16 to pass the general examination is the primary goal”. Therefore, designing a syllabus for
gifted students who also learn general purpose English consists of a following logical
sequence four steps: (i) Needs analysis (ii) Formation of objectives (iii) Selection of
content (iv) Syllabus organization
1.1.3.1. Needs analysis
1.1.3.1.1. Definitions of needs

of great importance to designers to analyze their learners‟ needs to design appropriate
course for them, motivate them and help them learn English more quickly and more
effectively. When discussing the significant role of the analysis of the learners‟ needs,
Hutchinson and Waters (1987: 53) argue that “If learners, sponsors and teachers know why
the learners need English, that awareness will have an influence on what will be acceptable
as reasonable content in the language course, and on the positive side; what potential can
be exploited”. With the share of Hutchinson‟s and Waters' view, Tudor (1996: 70) suggests
that “course content should be based on an analysis of the situations in which the learner
will be required to use the language”.
Thus, needs analysis has an importance in all kind of language learning and
teaching situations whether for specific purpose or general purposes and makes a learning
programme more relevant to the real life needs of the learners.
1.1.3.2. Goals and Objectives of the syllabus
The identification of learning goals and objectives is of great importance in the
development of a language program. These will provide a rationale for the course or
program.
Vale et al (1996: 32) draw an important distinction between goals and objectives. In
their opinions, goals are general statements from the teacher‟s perspective and provide
direction to the teaching and learning, while objectives spell out what learners will actually
be able to do. Sharing with Vale et al‟s ideas, Nunan (1988: 61) suggests that “goal
statements are relatively imprecise. While they act as a signpost, they need to be fleshed
out in order to provide information for course and programme planners. This can be
achieved through the specification of objectives”. In other words, goals are generally stated
whereas objectives express the specific ways in which the goals will be achieved.
In conclusion, clear-cut understanding of goals and objectives will help teachers to
make sure what materials should be taught, and when and how it should be taught.
1.1.3.3. Selection of content
After having specified the language needs of the learner, forming the goals and
objectives, the next step would be to decide on the content of the syllabus, i.e. specifying
the content that needs to be taught and then organizing it into a teaching syllabus of

analytic, experiential, or “natural growth” approach, which aims to immerse learners in
real-life communication without any artificial preselection or arrangement of items.
Wilkins (1976) feels that staging and sequencing should be carried out according to the
criteria of simplicity, regularity, frequency, and contrastive difficulty. With the share of
Wilkins‟s idea, Yalden (1983) suggests that more simple language should be taught before
the more complex so as to facilitate learning. Moreover, it should be noted that the syllabus
sequenced on particular views of learning may not only have to start with subject matter
which is more “familiar” to the learner before moving on to something which is
“unfamiliar”, but it may also represent a particular view of conditions offered by the
specific classroom situation.
19 In other words, if language is viewed as learned, then the logic of grammar rules
imposes a sequence. If language is viewed as acquired, then the linguistic content is not
restricted. If a syllabus is based on language use, a needs analysis would be required. In
this study, the selection of the topic-based or theme-based syllabus as the primary principle
organizing for the reading course, the syllabus will be organized in an integrated manner
including components: topics, skills, grammar and vocabulary.
1.2. Theoretical background to reading comprehension
1.2.1. Definitions of Reading and Reading comprehension
Along with the macro-skills, reading is also considered as the major centre of teaching and
learning a second or foreign language. This skill has received a great deal of attention as
well as investigation from a lot of researchers. Just like any other words our huge
vocabulary, reading may have a number of meanings depending on the different contexts.
We, therefore, should never expect one single definition of this term.
This is true considering the fact that in the history of pedagogy, different
pedagogists have made an attempt to define reading and reading comprehension in
different ways.
+ Reading

the use of the existing knowledge that the reader has on the topic of the text as well as the
text itself in order to create meaning.
From these ideas above, it can be concluded that there is no consensus of what
reading comprehension is as each writer comprehends and gives its different definitions
through his own point of view. However, they share some certain characteristics. Reading
comprehension not only includes linguistic recognition and cognitive understanding but
also tends to be affected the reader‟s appreciation. When reading, readers need to
understand, analyze, and response to what is written in order to comprehend the content of
the text and apply it in their own life as effectively as possible.
1.2.2. Models of reading process
As can be seen, there have been a great number of discussions and arguments among
methodologists about the reading process. According to Nuttall (2005), this process is
shown such some ways as bottom-up approach, top-down approach and the interaction of
top-down and bottom-up processing.
+ In the bottom-up reading process, Nuttall (2005: 17) points out that the reader
constructs meaning from a written text such as recognizing letters and words, working out
sentence structure. This model pays special attention to grammatical skills and vocabulary
development. Alderson (2000: 16), sharing with Nuttall‟s idea, states that “the reader
experiences an automatic process in which he begins with the printed words, recognizes
graphic stimuli, decodes them to sounds, recognizes words and decodes meanings”.
Comprehension at this process results in a relatively shallow understanding of what the
text stated directly. As a result, this process underestimated the contribution of the reader.
+ Top-down processing emphasizes the importance of the reader‟s background
knowledge, or the schemata. This theory argues that when reading a text, a reader has his
21 own knowledge, expectations, and questions, which he matches with the text. Silberstein
(1994: 7) presents that “readers use prior knowledge to make predictions about the data
they will find in a text”. According to Nuttall (2005: 16), this process helps readers see the

10. Identifying the main point or important information in a piece of discourse
22 11. Distinguishing the main idea from supporting details
12. Extracting salient points to summarise
13. Basic reference skills (understanding and use of graphic presentation, table of
contents and index, cross-referencing, card catalogue, phonetic transcription/
diacritics)
14. Skimming to obtain the gist of the text or a general impression of the text
15. Scanning to locate specifically required information
16. Transcoding information presented in diagrammatic display
On the other hand, on talking the ways to exploit the reading texts, Nuttall (2005) has
given several reading skills which are divided into three groups: word attack skills
(Structural clues, Inference from context, Using a dictionary, Ignoring), text attack skills
(Understanding syntax, Recognizing and interpreting cohesive devices, Recognizing text
organization, Recognizing the presuppositions underlying the text, Recognizing
implications and making inferences, Prediction) and Integration and application.
Even though the aforementioned lists of reading skills are more or less different from one
another, it is inevitable that they have some features in common such as recognitions skills,
decoding skills For the sake of the study, Nuttall‟s taxonomy will be selected since it best
describes skills that are relevant to those required in the textbook and the national exam for
the English aptitude students, who are the objects of this study.
1.3. Summary
In this chapter, the author has revealed the literature review of syllabus design and reading
theories, which will be the theoretical background for the study. As regards syllabus
definitions, the different points of views are discussed by such linguists as Yalden (1983),
Hutchinson and Waters (1987), Allen (1984) and Been (1984). Four main steps have been
identified in the process of designing the intended syllabus namely needs analysis,
objective settings, content selection and syllabus organization. Moreover, definitions of

province with the leading number of the students gaining the provincial and national prizes
and especially the annual number of students passing the university entrance exam. In spite
of the fact that it is the only specialized school in the province, the school still meets such
difficulties as materials, facilities and so forth.
Like many other upper-secondary schools in the province, the facilities of TQSS
are not paid much attention to. The school‟s only two modern classrooms which are
equipped with projectors and videos are used by teachers who teach different subjects. The
lack of modern classrooms causes teachers a lot of trouble in following communicative
language teaching approach. Moreover, reference materials for all the subjects are
extremely insufficient, especially English - the only foreign language taught at the school
for the time being. In fact, in the school library there is nothing but few English textbooks,
teachers‟ manuals and English reference books for university entrance exam, which were
24 all published years ago. No special rooms such as a multi-media room or a language
laboratory are equipped, no English magazines and newspapers are provided and the only
facilities for learning English are cassette players and tapes, which are in poor condition.
Actually, the school has an open policy for buying materials. Every two years, about three
or four subjects are provided reference materials but in the local bookshops there are not
enough appropriate English materials for teaching and learning at school. Therefore,
teachers usually have to go to Hanoi to seek for materials.
Since 2006- 2007 academic year, the English materials used to teach grade 10

students at school have been two new textbooks called the English textbook 10 (Tiếng Anh
10), and the

advanced English textbook 10 (Tiếng Anh 10 nâng cao), which are published
by Education Publishing House. The former consisting of 16 units with 105 periods for
two terms is used for the students of all the classes, the latter comprising 16 units with 140

th
year grade with good results
have to take part in a very hard examination of two compulsory subjects: mathematics,
literature and a specialized subject. For English gifted students, not all of them are good at
English, some of them are selected owing to their good results in mathematics and
literature. This will be a challenge for the school and the language teachers because having
good record in the provincial and national exams means that they need really potential
candidates who have an excellent command of English.
Since the academic year of 2007, the number of English gifted students who have
passed the university entrance exam and won the provincial exam is about 85 % - 90% on
average, the number of students gaining the achievements from the annual national exam
for the excellent students is lower than years ago. For example, in 2008, six students took
the national exam for excellent students, only two won the consolation prizes. In 2009, no
students got the prize, and only one student won the consolation prize in 2010. Apparently,
the students‟ English proficiency level is not high, which makes school leaders and
language teachers express their great concern as to what should be done and how this
should be done in order to improve their students‟ level of English proficiency and increase
the number of the students winning the national prizes, which is also one of the school‟s
main objectives in coming years.
2.1.4. The time allocation for English classes at TQSS
As discussed in the introduction, apart from 140 periods for the compulsory
textbook, the English gifted students are given 70 extra periods for further practice by the
MOET in order to enhance their communicative competence. These are used for the whole
academic year. However, the MOET has not fixed the time for four skills such as reading,
speaking and listening, writing and language focus, so the specific time for these skills is
assigned by the school itself. Of 70 periods, 30 periods are spent on teaching reading skills,
with which grammatical items are also taught in combination. Perhaps because the gifted
students at our school hardly have difficulty in grammar. The other periods are used for
speaking and listening and writing.


can get ideas about the level of students‟ difficulties in terms of reading skills and topics as
well as grammatical items for a supplementary syllabus. Two questionnaires, including
teacher questionnaire and student questionnaire, were conducted. The teacher
questionnaire (see Appendix 3) was administered to the English teachers at the school. The
questionnaire was divided into the two parts with each item designed on a 5-point Likert Scale.
Part 1 includes two questions about difficulties in terms of reading skills
experienced by students.
27 Part 2 comprises three questions which deal with the topics and grammatical items
that are in need of being consolidated in a supplementary reading syllabus.
The student questionnaire (see Appendix 4) was designed and written in Vietnamese for 35
gifted students of grade 10. The structure of the student questionnaire is the same as the teachers‟.
2.2.3. Data collection procedure.
The data collection was performed as follows:
For the survey questionnaire: Before directly delivering the questionnaire to the
students, the author explained clearly in Vietnamese the aim of the survey questionnaire.
When the students received the questionnaire, the author went over with the students in
class question by question to make sure that they could fully understand all the questions
before giving their final answers. After the students freely completed the questionnaire, the
author collected immediately. For the teachers, a survey questionnaire was delivered to
them at the English group meeting and all the teachers asked was expounded. It was
collected three days later in order for them to have enough time to respond to all the
questions exactly and fully.
For the informal conversational interview: 5 English teachers and 8 randomly
chosen students participated in the interviews. The informal interviews were conducted
after the survey had been obtained to clarify and supplement information from the surveys.
As mentioned above, data for this study were gathered from two main sources:
documentary analysis and survey questionnaire. Therefore, it requires both analytical and

English gifted students ought to enhance linguistic knowledge and master language skills
(listening, speaking, reading and writing), the contents and language items are more
complex and more difficult than those mentioned in the advanced English textbook 10
(Tiếng Anh 10 nâng cao).
With regard to topics, an emphasis the Ministry puts is that the contents of
language skills such as listening, speaking, and reading are not fixed in order to create
openness for teachers‟ material selection. However, the scope and the complexity of topics
should be paid attention so that their difficulty and contents are not too far from those
mentioned in the secondary educational curriculum.
Methodologically, the new curriculum is claimed to follow learner-centered
approach and the communicative approach with task-based teaching is the central teaching
method, which means that communication skills is the goal of the teaching and learning
process; linguistic knowledge is the means by which communication skills are formed and
developed and students play an active role in the teaching and learning process; teachers
are only organizers and guides. Therefore, the methodology used for specializing
curriculum must be followed the above mentioned approach.
In order to meet the students‟ demand for being specialized in English, some
reference materials are recommended. The aims of these materials are giving deeper
introduction of some contents that are not fully presented in compulsory curriculum. These
are composed of English textbooks and materials at pre-intermediate and intermediate
level, which are published by prestige publishing houses in the world.