VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES
********************* ĐỖ THỊ HẠNH A STUDY ON THE INFLUENCES OF SOME FIRST CULTURAL
FACTORS ON FIRST YEAR NON-ENGLISH MAJOR STUDENT’S
PARTICIPATION IN ENGLISH SPEAKING LEARNING AT
HANOI UNIVERSITY OF INDUSTRY

(NGHIÊN CỨU VỀ SỰ ẢNH HƯỞNG CỦA MỘT SỐ NHÂN TỐ VĂN HÓA MẸ ĐẺ LÊN
VIỆC THAM GIA HỌC NÓI TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH VIÊN KHÔNG CHUYÊN
NĂM THỨ NHẤT TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC CÔNG NGHIỆP HÀ NỘI) M.A MINOR PROGRAMME THESIS Field: English Teaching Methodology
Code: 60140111
HA NOI - 2014
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DECLARATION

I hereby certify that the thesis entitled
A study on the influences of some first cultural factors on first year non-English
major students’ participation in English speaking learning at Hanoi University of
Industry
is the result of my own research for the Degree of Master of Arts at University of
Languages and International Studies, Vietnam National University, Hanoi and that it
has not been previously submitted to this University or to any other institutions in
application for admission to a degree, diploma or other qualifications.

Signature

Đỗ Thị Hạnh
Date: August 10
th
, 2014
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

First and foremost, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my academic
supervisor Dr. Hoàng Thị Xuân Hoa for her conscientious guidance, helpful

research are made with the hope for better methods to help the teachers reduce their
students’ negative effect of these factors during the process of learning speaking
English.
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LIST OF ABBREVIATION AND SYMBOLS

HaUI
: Hanoi University of Industry
CLT
SLA
ESL
EFL
E.g.
UK

US
: Communicative Language Teaching
: Second Language Acquisition
: English as a Second Language
: English as a Foreign Language
: Example
: United Kingdom
: United State
L2
: Second Language

v

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

iii
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS…………………………………
iv
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES………………………………………………
vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS…………………………………………………………
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PART A: INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………
1
1. Rationale for the study…………………………………………………………
1
2. Aims and objectives of the study ……………………………………………
2
3. Scope of the study ………… …………………………………………………
3
4. Significance of the study ………………………………………………………
3
5. Methods of the study….………………………………………………………
3
6. Research questions of the study ……………………………………………
7. Organization of the study………………………………………………………
3
4
PART B: DEVELOPMENT………………………………………………
5
CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW………………………………………
5
1. Culture……………………………… ………………………………………
5
1.1. Definitions of culture…….…………………………………………………

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1.3. The course book ……………………………………………………………
18
2. The instruments………………………………………………………………
18
3. Subjects………………………………………………………………………
19
4. Data collection procedures….…………………………………………………
CHAPTER 3: DATA ANALYSIS ………………………………………………
1. Situation of students’ participation in learning speaking in classroom lessons
1.1. Speaking activities used by teachers………………………………………
1.2. The frequency of teachers’ current teaching activities …………………
1.3. Students’ participation in speaking activities ……………………………
1.4. Activities motivate students to take part in speaking lessons ……………
1.5. Students’ comfort when speaking English ………………………………
1.6. The frequency of students’ speaking English in class ……………………
1.7. Students’ questioning or interrupting the teachers ………………………
1.8. Students’ frequency of expressing their own opinions …………………
2. The influence of some first cultural factors on students’ participation while
learning speaking English in the classroom ………………………………
3. Students’ desire in order to overcome those difficulties …………………
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22
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22
23
24
25
26
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39
40
PART C: CONCLUSION ………………………………………………………
41
1. Recapitulation ………………………………………………………
2. Pedagogical implications………………………………………………………
41
42
3. Limitations and suggestions for further studies ……………………………
43
REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………….
45
APPENDIXES……………………………………………………………………
I

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PART A: INTRODUCTION
In this study, there are six sections. After the introduction, the second section presents
a rationale based on theoretical, pedagogical and contextual grounds, which serve as a
foundation for the study. The third section gives the methodology of the research. The
focus of the study is lined in the fourth and fifth sections. The final section describes
the conclusion of the study.
1. Rationale
Culture plays a significant role in language teaching and learning. It may decrease
learners’ involvement in classrooms. Being aware of cultural differences and knowing
how to deal with related differences are critical for the success of teaching and learning
in general, and learning participation in particular. According to Wright (2010),
participation is central to second language acquisition (SLA) and therefore, language

2. To find out how some first cultural factors influence students’ participation in the
classroom while learning English speaking, such as the traditional learning style,
collectivism rather than individualism and the fear of losing face.
Based on the findings, the researcher gives some suggestions for teachers to stimulate
students in speaking English and overcome the difficulties they have to face with in
teaching speaking English for university students.
3. Scope of the Study
There are so many aspects relating to English speaking learning including strategies,
methods, ways of learning (learning in class, or learning at home), etc. The above
aspects can be influenced by learners’ first culture. In this study, for the limitation of
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time, conditions, and materials, this study only focuses on participation of students
with two main issues: the present situation of HaUI first year non-English major
students’ participation in learning speaking and the influence of some first cultural
factors on their classroom involvement while learning speaking English including the
traditional learning style, collectivism and the fear of losing face.
The study involves the participation of 60 first year non-English major students at
HaUI. They have experienced one semester studying English at this university.
4. Significance of the Study
The significance of the present study would be to contribute some useful information
which teachers can consider in their real English speaking classrooms so as to help
students have more effective speaking lessons.
5. Methods of the Study
In the study, both qualitative and quantitative methods are used. The data will be
collected by means of classroom observations and questionnaires. After the data is
collected, analyzed and discussed, some conclusions will be drawn and some
suggestions will be made in the thesis.
6. Research Questions
In the thesis, the following questions will be answered.

example, national, ethnic, religious) resulting from common language and
communication style , customs, beliefs, art, music and all the other products of human
thought made by a particular group of people at a particular time. It also refers to the
informal and often hidden patterns of human interactions, expressions and viewpoints
that people in one culture shared”. Levine and Adelman compared culture with an
“iceberg”. The visible part of an iceberg or culture consists of appearance, food,
language, tradition and customs… and the invisible part includes values, beliefs,
attitudes and communicative styles, perceptions, etc. The visible part of culture is a
small part of a much bigger whole. Therefore, people cannot see the significant
influence of culture on an individual behavior and interaction with others.
According to Oxford Advanced Learner’s dictionary (1995: 285), culture is “art,
literature, music and other intellectual expressions of a particular society or time”
(1995). This concept mentions general culture relating to the exposed parts of culture,
which are easily recognized such as language, food, clothes, etc.
Ferrando (1996, cited in Quang, Nguyen. 2006:16) asserted that “Culture is everything
that people have, think and do as a member of a society” (2006). The concept of
culture, therefore, involves the way people from a particular cultural background think,
feel, act, make friends, worship and behave in a community. Culture distinguishes one
human group from others. It also distinguishes human being from animals. Culture is
shared, learned symbolic system of values, beliefs and attitudes that shapes and affects
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people’s behaviors, norms, values, attitudes, customs, lifestyle, perceptions, taboos,
communicative styles, art, history, geography, economics and political systems…
In short, culture has been defined in different ways by many scholars. Culture is
sometimes identified with notions of personal space, appropriate gestures, time and so
forth. Culture is something to learn, it affects the way we act and respond, including
the visible aspects and taboos of working in other countries.
1.2. Elements of Culture
Because of different ways of defining the culture, there are different classifications of

 The outer layer, artifacts and products, is the most explicit part including
language and food, architecture and style etc.
 The second layer is norms and values.
 The inner most layer, basic assumptions, represents the core assumptions of
what life is, assumptions about how to handle everyday problems that have
become self-evident, that is communication.
1.3. Some cultural factors in the teaching and learning of speaking skills
in classrooms
Today, educators have become aware of not only the importance of cultural factors in
the teaching of speaking skills but also the great influence of inferences between two
cultures-target and learner’s cultures-on the way of teaching and learning speaking
skills.
Firstly, “influenced by their traditional learning style, Vietnamese students are quiet
and attentive in class” whereas “teachers are considered the complete source of
knowledge”. “The students wait until called upon to answer the questions asked by the
teachers, instead of volunteering”. They are also “good at memorizing and following
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directions, reluctant to participate (though knowing the answers), meticulous in note-
taking, shy away from oral skills (being more comfortable with grammar and writing
exercises) and from group interaction” (Hung Tuong, Nguyen 2002). In addition,
“students often regard the teachers as information providers or knowledge givers. They
pay a lot of respect to teachers by keeping silent and asking no questions in the
classroom. Students, as well as society keep the belief that teaching is the noblest
profession, and therefore, teachers need to be highly respected” (Thuy Duong, Nguyen
2010). Thus, “being talkative, interrupting, questioning, bragging, or challenging the
teachers are not typical of Vietnamese culture. Such behavior is strongly criticized and
avoided”. “Americans, in contrast, regard silence as no communication, non-
cooperative attitude, and often try to fill the emptiness. Silence is treated as passive or
negative reaction” (Hung Tuong, Nguyen 2002). Furthermore, Vietnamese students

1.4. The role of culture in language teaching and learning
To emphasize the importance of culture in learning and teaching foreign languages, Eli
Hinkel (1999) said: “Applied linguists and language teachers have become increasingly
aware that the second or foreign language can rarely be learnt, or taught, without
addressing the culture of the community in which it is used .This can be with the idea
that culture plays an important role in teaching and learning language”.
To emphasize the influence of cultural factors on the teaching and learning of speaking
skills in classroom, Kramsch (1993) asserted that “culture in language learning is not
an expendable fifth skill tacked on, so to speak, to the teaching of speaking, listening,
reading and writing. It is always in the background, right from day one, ready to
unsettle the good language learners when they expect it least, making evident the
limitations of their hard-won communicative competence, challenging their ability to
make sense of the world around them” (1993:1).
In conclusion, language teaching and learning require much more than words and
grammatical structures. It goes without saying that culture is regarded “as mere
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information conveyed by the language, not as a feature of language itself, culture
awareness becomes an educational objective in social practice, and culture becomes
the very core of language teaching” (Kramsch, 1993:8).
2. Speaking skills
2.1. Definitions of speaking skills
According to Chaney (1998), speaking is “the process of building and sharing meaning
through the use of verbal and non-verbal symbols, in a variety of contexts” (1998).
Speaking in a foreign language has been viewed as the most demanding of the four
skills. It plays a vital role because it is the step to identify who knows or does not know
a language. When attempting to speak, learners must muster their thoughts and encode
those ideas in the vocabulary and syntactic structures of the target language.
Speaking is not spoken writing. It is different from other skills in the teaching and
learning of language. It needs limited time in response, for example, and it is not easy

 Transactional language, carried out for the purpose of conveying or exchanging
specific information, is an extended form of responsive language. Tasks are oral
interviews, discussions and conversations.
 Interpersonal, like in the transactional, also carried out in a dialogue. It is
purposed for maintaining social relationships than for the transmission of facts
and information.
 Extensive usually occurs when students are asked to give oral reports,
summaries or short speeches. The kind of register is more formal and speaking
performance is carefully produced. Oral presentations, storytelling, retelling a
story or news event and reporting information are some types of monologue.
Nakamura (2006) suggested a framework of three-dimensional constructs: monologue,
dialogue and multilogue.
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 Monologue encompasses a range of one-way speaking proficiencies from a
simple phonetic level check (Pre-Monologue) to advanced oral presentation
skills (Creative Monologue).
 Dialogue, of course, refers to two-way, reciprocal speaking ability, but in this
framework two sub-types are distinguished: Transactional, the ability to
exchange information in situations where the context is well defined and with
fixed conventions of speech e.g. classroom situation; and Interpersonal, the
ability to perform in consideration of deeper or less predictable social
relationships.
 Multilogue refers to a speaker’s discussion ability among multiple participants,
not only as a participant but also in such more formalized roles as chairperson.
2.3. Characteristics of a successful speaking activity
Classroom activities would be an important component of a language course.
Successful speaking activities in class can result in great improvement of students’
speaking skills. According to Ur (1996: 120), there are four characteristics for a
successful speaking activity.

answer the questions raised by teacher or share their knowledge or personal
experiences” (Thi Thao, Tran 2010).
In order to have a successful lesson, students’ participation must be active and even.
There are varieties of factors relating to the quality of students’ involvement in
classroom oral activities.
One of the factors is teacher’s role in language teaching and learning. With an
increasing concern about the CLT approach, in which learners are the centre of the
lesson, the teachers act as controllers, prompters, participants, resources, tutors,
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organizers, assessors or observers (Harmer 1999:57-62). In a lesson, he/she not only
plays the role of the organizer of classroom activities, the prompter to students’
questions but also works as the participant to engage in the communicative activities
along with the students.
Unlike Harmer, Byrner (1986:2) stated the roles of the teacher according to the stages
of teaching speaking: the presentation stage, the practice stage and the production one.
At the first stage, the teacher acts as an informant. He/she prepares the materials and
presents the language as clearly as possible and the students listen and try to
understand. At the practice stage, it is time for students did most of the talking and the
teacher’s role is a skillful conductor of an orchestra giving each of the performers a
chance to participate and monitoring the performance. At the final stage, the
production one, the teacher takes on the role of manager and guide. Above all, the most
important role of the teacher through stages of speaking lesson is a motivator.
Whatever the teacher does in the classroom, the ability of motivating the students to
arouse their interests and to involve in what they are doing will be crucial.
In addition, teacher’s characteristics are also very important to students’ engagement.
The teacher should be natural, warm, pleasant, approachable and tolerant (Barry 1993).
These characteristics can help students feel more comfortable, so they could better
participate in speaking activities.
Furthermore, learners’ learning style indicates different ways they perceive

th
grade students at Doson high school and
some possible solutions. In the study, the researcher found out the students’ level of
participation in class oral activities, their attitudes towards the applied teaching
techniques, as well as the factors affecting students’ participation such as teacher’s
factors, students’ factors, classroom factors and materials factors. Then she gave some