Luận án Primary school English teacher agency enactment in implementing the English curriculum

Nội dung text: Luận án Primary school English teacher agency enactment in implementing the English curriculum

1. MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING HO CHI MINH CITY OPEN UNIVERSITY Primary school English teacher agency enactment in implemen�ng the English curriculum Major: Philosophy in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages DOCTORAL DISSERTATION HO CHI MINH CITY, 2024 i
2. STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP The Doctoral Dissertation titled “Primary school English teacher agency enactment in implementing the English curriculum” has been submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Except for the references cited in this dissertation, I hereby declare that the whole or parts of this dissertation have not been published or used to obtain the degree elsewhere. No other person’s work/ research may be used in this thesis that is not properly cited. This thesis had never been submitted for any degree at any other university or training institution. Ho Chi Minh City, / /2024. Tran Thi Thao ii
3. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT “Primary school English teacher agency enactment in implementing the English curriculum” Doctoral Dissertation has been completed at Ho Chi Minh City Open University. I would like to express my deepest thanks and heartfelt attitude to those who have made contribution to my research journey. Firstly, my profound gratitude goes to my supervisors, Dr Le Thi Thanh Thu, and Dr Nguyen Huy Cuong for their expert guidance, wholehearted support, and comprehensive knowledge. They spent a lot of time reading the drafts of the thesis, offered constructive advice for me to make useful improvements on my thesis, and shaped my research skills. I am deeply indebted to the Graduate Lecturers at Ho Chi Minh City Open University. Their deep knowledge and considerable experience have intensively improved not only my theoretical but also practical knowledge and laid the basic foundation for my research. I would like to thank Associate Professor Pham Thi Huong for her critical comments and Mr Le Minh Quang in the post-graduate post office for his continuous help during my research journey. I wish to acknowledge the primary school English teachers who volunteered to participate in my study. Their life stories and professional stories have contributed to the completion of my thesis. The thesis would not have been completed without their enthusiastic support, voluntary help, and active encouragement. Finally, I am immensely grateful to my family, classmates, and friends. Their real love, substantial assistance, and absolute belief have always encouraged me during my research journey. They have always the strong motivation for me to complete my thesis. iii
4. ABSTRACT Teacher agency plays an importance role in teachers’ teaching performance as well as their operation of the curriculum as a consequence. Despite its significance in the curriculum reform, it received little attention from researchers in Vietnamese setting. Researchers have conducted research into teacher agency under the National Foreign Language Project 2020 while little has been done on new general education curriculum issued by the MOET in 2018, particularly at the primary level which constitutes the largest proportion of the curriculum. Therefore, more studies should be carried out and looked into teacher agency at the primary level within the Getting-to-know-English curriculum. Grounded on the ecological model proposed by Priestley et al. (2015), the study examines teachers’ individual agency, collective agency, and the bilateral interactions between them to give impetus or hindrance to teacher agency enactment as a whole. With the case study design, the study collected data from three sources namely documents, semi-structured interviews and observations. The findings found out that teachers showed their strong senses of individual agency which were enacted in four main forms: acceptance, resistance, hidden resistance, and adaptation. In addition to the three common forms mentioned in the previous studies, this study, however, identified another form of teachers’ individual agency, that is, hidden resistance. Most of the teachers demonstrated their hidden resistance to the prescribed lesson planning. Certain factors were identified in this study to exert direct influence on the ways teachers enacted their individual agencies namely the professional development program, students’ parents’ expectations, time constraints, insufficient teaching resources, small classroom size, students’ learning outcomes, and students’ English proficiency level. The study also pointed out that teachers not only enacted their individual agency but also collective agency in the implementation of the curriculum, however, the role of the collective agency was blurred. More specifically, the collective actions did not significantly affect the individual agency of teachers in implementing certain aspects of the Getting-to-know-English curriculum namely teaching methods, assessment methods, teaching materials, mistake correction techniques, feedback giving, and classroom management. In addition, forms of teachers’ collective agency could be seen through teacher collaboration with their colleagues through lesson planning in the professional development program, peer observation discussions at the primary schools in the iv
5. previous studies. This study, however, identified another form of teachers’ collective agency, that is, informal meetings at the foreign language center. The study also revealed that two participating teachers had the tendency to adapt their colleagues’ ideas due to their previous professional experience. They made adaptation to their colleagues’ views based on their previous professional experience with the goal of suiting their students and helping them achieve their full potential of learning English. However, the other teachers showed their resistance to follow their colleagues’ ideas, which was informed by their habits, prior knowledge, time constraints, and isolation with their colleagues. The ways teachers made individual contribution to the collective actions could also be seen through the peer observation discussion. Teachers could take the role of the leader, supporter, and follower in the peer observation discussion. The findings of the study provide pedagogical implications for MOET, textbook authors, and teachers, teacher education program, and primary schools. v
6. Contents List of figures .......................................................................................................................xiv List of tables .......................................................................................................................... xv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 1 1.1. Background to the study .............................................................................................. 1 1.1.1. The curriculum reform ........................................................................................ 1 1.1.2. The Getting-to-know-English curriculum for Grade 1 and Grade 2 .............. 2 1.1.3. The issues of teachers in implementing the Getting-to-know-English curriculum .......................................................................................................................... 4 1.2. Research rationale ........................................................................................................ 6 1.3. Aims of the study .......................................................................................................... 8 1.4. Research questions ....................................................................................................... 8 1.5. Scope of the study ......................................................................................................... 8 1.6. Significance of the study .............................................................................................. 9 1.7. The organization of the thesis ................................................................................... 10 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW ........................................................................... 12 2.1. Agency ............................................................................................................................ 12 2.1.1. Agency from the sociological approach ............................................................... 13 2.1.2. Agency from the social cognitive approach ......................................................... 14 2.1.3. Agency from the positioning approach ................................................................ 15 2.1.4. Agency from the sociocultural approach ............................................................. 17 2.2. Teacher agency and teacher agency enactment ......................................................... 19 2.2.1. Definition of teacher agency enactment ............................................................... 19 2.2.2. Types of teacher agency enactment ...................................................................... 20 2.2.3. Ecological approach to teacher agency ................................................................ 22 2.2.3.1. The iterational dimension ................................................................................. 22 2.2.3.2. The practical-evaluative dimension of agency ............................................... 23 2.2.3.3. The projective dimension of agency ................................................................ 24 2.2.4. Types of agencies .................................................................................................... 25 2.2.4.1. Individual agency .............................................................................................. 26 2.2.4.2. Collective agency ............................................................................................... 26 2.3. The Getting-to-know-English curriculum .................................................................. 27 2.3.1. The design approach of the Getting-to-know-English curriculum ................... 28 2.3.2. The Getting-to-know-English curriculum objectives ......................................... 28 2.3.3. Learning outcomes ................................................................................................. 28 2.3.4. The Getting-to-know-English curriculum content ............................................. 28 2.3.5. Assessment methods .............................................................................................. 29 2.4. Textbooks “Family and Friends” for Grades 1 and 2 ............................................... 30 vi
7. 2.5. Teaching English to young learners ............................................................................ 31 2.5.1. Definition of young learners .................................................................................. 31 2.5.2. Characteristics of young learners and teaching methodology ........................... 31 2.6. Previous studies ............................................................................................................. 32 2.6.1. Teachers’ individual agency enactment ............................................................... 33 2.6.2. Factors affecting individual agency enactment ................................................... 38 2.6.3. Teachers’ collective agency enactment ................................................................ 39 2.6.4. Factors affecting teachers’ collective agency enactment .................................... 42 2.6.5. The interactions between teachers’ individual agency and collective agency .. 42 2.7. Research gaps ................................................................................................................ 47 2.8. The conceptual framework of the study ...................................................................... 50 2.9. Summary of Chapter 2 ................................................................................................. 54 CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................... 55 3.1. Research philosophy ..................................................................................................... 55 3.2. Research design ............................................................................................................. 55 3.3. Research setting ............................................................................................................. 58 3.3.1. Tran Hung Dao primary school ........................................................................... 59 3.3.2. Bong Sao primary school ...................................................................................... 60 3.4. Participants of the study ............................................................................................... 61 3.4.1. Selection .................................................................................................................. 61 3.5. Data collection instruments for the main study ......................................................... 64 3.5.1. Documents .............................................................................................................. 64 3.5.2. Interviews ................................................................................................................ 67 3.5.2.1. Preliminary interviews ..................................................................................... 68 3.5.2.2. Pilot interviews .................................................................................................. 68 3.5.2.3. Actual interviews ............................................................................................... 70 3.5.2.3.1. Interviews before observing teachers’ individual agency in enacting the Getting-to-know-English curriculum ........................................................................... 70 3.5.2.3.2. Interviews after observing teachers’ individual agency in enacting the Getting-to-know-English curriculum ........................................................................... 71 3.5.2.3.3. Interviews after peer observation discussions ............................................. 73 3.5.3. Observations ........................................................................................................... 74 3.5.3.1. Observations of teachers’ individual teaching practices ............................... 75 3.5.3.2. Observations of teachers’ collective actions and individual teachers’ contribution to the collective actions ............................................................................ 76 3.6. Data collection procedures ........................................................................................... 77 3.7. Data analysis methodology ........................................................................................... 81 3.7.1. Thematic analysis ................................................................................................... 82 vii
8. 3.8. Validity and reliability .................................................................................................. 84 3.9. The role of the researcher in the study ........................................................................ 87 3.10. Ethical considerations ................................................................................................. 87 3.11. Summary ...................................................................................................................... 88 CHAPTER 4: DATA ANALYSIS ...................................................................................... 89 (DESCRIPTION OF CASES) ............................................................................................. 89 4.1. Case Hoa ..................................................................................................................... 89 4.1.1. The iterational dimension for Hoa ....................................................................... 89 4.1.1.1. Hoa – a trained teacher with a three-year BA by a local college and two professional training programs ..................................................................................... 89 4.1.1.2. Hoa – an experienced communication teacher ............................................... 90 4.1.2. The practical-evaluative dimension for Hoa ....................................................... 90 4.1.2.1. A school culture of creativity and performativity .......................................... 90 4.1.2.2. Good relationship between teachers ................................................................ 91 4.1.2.3. A school with insufficient teaching facilities ................................................... 91 4.1.3. The projective dimension for Hoa ........................................................................ 91 4.1.3.1. Hoa’s expectation of her students’ communication skills ............................. 91 4.1.4. Hoa’s compliance with the curriculum mandated teaching methods, assessment methods, and lesson planning...................................................................... 92 4.1.4.1. Hoa’s common teaching methods: TPR and experiential learning .............. 92 4.1.4.2 Hoa’s assessment method: communicative activities ...................................... 95 4.1.4.3. Hoa’s lesson plan: follow the prescribed lesson plans ................................... 96 4.1.5. Hoa’s adaptation to teaching content and her colleagues’ ideas ....................... 97 4.1.5.1. Hoa’s agency in teaching content: concentration on vocabulary and communication skills ...................................................................................................... 97 4.1.5.2. Hoa’s colleagues’ ideas impacted her teaching methods, error correction techniques, teaching materials and feedback giving ................................................... 98 4.1.6. Hoa’s contribution to the collective actions: a leader ................................... 100 4.1.7. Hoa’s overall agency enactment ...................................................................... 103 4.2. Case Hang ................................................................................................................. 103 4.2.1. The iterational dimension for Hang ............................................................... 103 4.2.1.1. Hang – a trained teacher with a three-year BA by a local college and two professional training programs ................................................................................... 103 4.2.1.2. Hang – a communication teacher ................................................................. 104 4.2.2. The practical-evaluative dimension for Hang ............................................... 105 4.2.2.1. Hang works under a culture of creativity and accountability outcomes .. 105 4.2.2.2. Good relationship between teachers and students’ parents ...................... 105 4.2.2.3. Insufficient teaching materials...................................................................... 105 viii
9. 4.2.3. The projective dimension for Hang ................................................................ 106 4.2.4. Hang’s compliance with the prescribed teaching methods .......................... 106 4.2.5. Hang’s resistance to the prescribed lesson planning .................................... 108 4.2.6. Hang’s adaptation to teaching content, assessment methods, and her colleagues’ ideas ............................................................................................................. 109 4.2.6.1. Hang’s teaching content: focused on vocabulary and communication skills 109 4.2.6.2. Hang’s assessment methods: communication and writing activities ........ 110 4.2.6.3. Hang’s colleagues’ ideas impacted her teaching methods, assessment methods, and mistake correction ................................................................................ 112 4.2.7. Hang’s individual contribution to the collective actions: a supporter ........ 114 4.2.8. Hang’s overall agency enactment ................................................................... 116 4.3. Case Huong ............................................................................................................... 117 4.3.1. The iterational dimension for Huong ............................................................. 117 4.3.1.1. Huong – a trained teacher with BA degree from a local college ............... 117 4.3.1.2. Previous professional experience .................................................................. 118 4.3.2. The practical-evaluative dimension for Huong ............................................. 118 4.3.2.1. Huong – worked under the culture of open-mindedness and collaboration 118 4.3.2.2. Good relationship between teachers, teachers and students’ parents ...... 118 4.3.2.3. Insufficient teaching materials...................................................................... 119 4.3.3. The projective dimension for Huong .............................................................. 119 4.3.4. Huong’s irregular teaching methods: TPR and experiential learning ........ 119 4.3.5. Huong’s resistance to the prescribed teaching methods, assessment methods, and lesson planning, her colleagues’ ideas .................................................................. 120 4.3.5.1. Huong’s common teaching methods: grammar-translation and audio- lingual 120 4.3.5.2. Huong’s assessment methods: repetition and translation activities, workbook exercises, and final tests ............................................................................ 122 4.3.5.3. Huong’s lesson plan: traditional ................................................................... 124 4.3.5.4. Huong’s colleagues’ ideas on her teaching methods, teaching activities, teaching materials, and classroom management ....................................................... 124 4.3.6. Huong’s adaptation to the textbook content: focusing on vocabulary pronunciation and spelling ............................................................................................ 126 4.3.7. Huong’s individual contribution to the collective actions: a follower ......... 128 4.3.8. Huong’s overall agency enactment ................................................................. 130 ix
10. 4.4. Case Nhi........................................................................................................................ 130 4.4.1. The iterational dimension for Nhi ...................................................................... 130 4.4.1.1. Nhi – a novice teacher ..................................................................................... 130 4.4.1.2. Nhi – an unexperienced teacher ..................................................................... 131 4.4.2. The practical-evaluative dimension for Nhi................................................... 132 4.4.2.1. Nhi – working under a culture of sharing and traditionalism ................... 132 4.4.2.2. Supportive structure ...................................................................................... 132 4.4.2.3. Inadequate but felt satisfied .......................................................................... 133 4.4.3. The projective dimension for Nhi ................................................................... 133 4.4.4. Nhi’s compliance with the textbook content .................................................. 134 4.4.4.1. Nhi’s teaching content: covering the textbook content .............................. 134 4.4.5. Nhi’s resistance to the prescribed teaching methods, assessment methods, lesson planning, and her colleagues’ ideas .................................................................. 134 4.4.5.1. Nhi’s common teaching methods: grammar-translation and audio-lingual 134 4.4.5.2. Nhi’s assessment methods: repetition and translation activities, workbook exercises and final tests ................................................................................................ 136 4.4.5.3. Nhi’s lesson plan: traditional ........................................................................ 138 4.4.5.4. Nhi’s colleagues’ ideas on her classroom management and teaching materials ........................................................................................................................ 138 4.4.6. Nhi’s contribution to the collective actions: a follower ................................. 139 4.4.7. Nhi’s overall agency enactment ...................................................................... 141 4.5. Summary of cases ..................................................................................................... 142 CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSION ............................................................................................. 144 Theme 1: Teachers’ individual agency in implementing the Getting-to-know-English curriculum ........................................................................................................................... 144 5.1. Teachers’ compliance with the prescribed teaching methods ................................ 144 5.2. Teacher’ s compliance with the prescribed assessment methods and lesson plan 147 5.3. Teacher’s compliance with the textbook content ..................................................... 149 5.4. Teachers’ resistance to the prescribed teaching methods ....................................... 150 5.5. Teachers’ resistance to lesson planning .................................................................... 154 5.6. Teachers’ resistance to the prescribed assessment methods ................................... 155 5.7. Teachers’ adaptation to the textbook content .......................................................... 158 5.8. Teacher’s adaptation to the prescribed assessment methods ................................. 160 5.9. The influence of the iterational, practical-evaluative, and projective dimensions on teachers’ individual agency ............................................................................................... 161 5.9.1. The influence of the iterational and practical-evaluative dimension on teachers’ enactment in teaching methods .................................................................... 161 x
11. 5.9.2. The influence of the iterational, practical-evaluative, and projective dimensions on teachers’ enactment in teaching content ............................................ 163 5.9.3. The influence of the iterational, practical-evaluative, and projective dimensions on teachers’ enactment in assessment methods ...................................... 166 5.9.4. The influence of the iterational and practical-evaluative dimension of agency on teachers’ enactment in lesson planning .................................................................. 168 Theme 2: The influence of collective actions on individual agency ............................... 170 5.2.1. Teachers’ adaptation to their colleagues’ ideas ................................................ 170 5.2.2. The influence of teachers’ iterational dimension on their adaptation to their colleagues’ ideas ............................................................................................................. 173 5.2.3. Teachers’ resistance to their colleagues’ ideas .................................................. 175 5.2.4. The influence of teachers’ iterational and practical-evaluative dimensions of agency on their resistance to their colleagues’ ideas .................................................. 177 Theme 3: Individual contribution to the collective actions ............................................ 180 5.3.1. Teacher as a leader .............................................................................................. 180 5.3.2. Teacher as a supporter ........................................................................................ 181 5.3.3. Teachers as followers ........................................................................................... 183 CHAPTER 6: CONCLUSION .......................................................................................... 185 6.1. Findings ........................................................................................................................ 185 6.1.1. Findings from the research question 1 ............................................................... 185 6.1.1.1. Teachers’ frequent acceptance to the prescribed teaching methods, assessment methods, and lesson plan ......................................................................... 186 6.1.1.2. Teacher’s frequent acceptance to the textbook content .............................. 187 6.1.1.3. Teachers’ resistance to the prescribed teaching methods and assessment methods ......................................................................................................................... 188 6.1.1.4. Teachers’ adaptation to the textbook content .............................................. 189 6.1.1.5. Teachers’ adaptation to the prescribed assessment methods ..................... 190 6.1.1.6. Teachers’ hidden resistance to the prescribed lesson planning .................. 190 6.1.2. Findings from the research question 2 ............................................................... 191 6.1.3. Findings from the research question 3 ............................................................... 192 6.1.3.1. The influence of collective actions on individual agency ............................. 192 6.1.3.2. Individual contribution to the collective actions .......................................... 194 6.2. Contributions of the study .......................................................................................... 195 6.3. Implications of the study ............................................................................................. 196 6.4. Limitations ................................................................................................................... 201 6.5. Recommendations for future research ...................................................................... 202 REFERENCES ................................................................................................................... 203 APPENDIX 1: Circular 32 (2018)..................................................................................... 218 xi
12. APPENDIX 2: Directive 681 (2020) .................................................................................. 234 APPENDIX 3: Preliminary interviews ............................................................................. 239 APPENDIX 4: Pilot interviews ......................................................................................... 244 APPENDIX 5: Interview 1: demographic information (before conducting observations) ....................................................................................................................... 248 APPENDIX 6: Interview 2: (after conducting observation 1) ....................................... 252 APPENDIX 7: Interview 3: (after conducting observation 2) ....................................... 257 APPENDIX 8: Interview 4: (after conducting observation 3) ....................................... 261 APPENDIX 9: Interview 5 (after peer observation discussion 1) ................................. 265 APPENDIX 10: Interview 6 (after peer observation discussion 2) ............................... 267 APPENDIX 11: Interview 7 (after peer observation discussion 3) ............................... 269 APPENDIX 12: Observation: Teachers’ individual agency .......................................... 271 APPENDIX 13: Observation: Teachers’ collective agency (peer observation discussion) ........................................................................................................................... 273 APPENDIX 14: Observation: Individual teachers’ contribution to the collective actions (peer observation discussion) ............................................................................... 276 xii
13. List of abbreviations The Ministry of Education and Training MOET The Getting-to-know-English for Grade 1 and Grade 2 The Getting-to-know-English curriculum The Common European Framework of Reference CEFR Ba Ria Vung Tau province BRVT Bong Sao primary school BS Tran Hung Dao primary school THD Department of Education and Training DOET Ba Ria Vung Tau University BVU Vietnamese American school VA S Natural English school NES Ba Ria Vung Tau College of Education BVCE Total Physical Response TPR Ho Chi Minh City Open University HCMC OU Division of Education and Training DET xiii
14. List of figures Figure 2.1. Teacher agency in the ecological model (Priestley et al., 2015) Figure 2.2. Teacher agency enactment in implementing the Getting-to-know-English curriculum Figure 3.1. Data collection procedures xiv
15. List of tables Table 2.1. Main definitions of agency Table 2.2. Summary of types of teacher agency enactment Table 3.1. Description of the schools Table 3.2. Description of participants Table 3.3. Vietnamese documents relevant to this study Table 3.4. Private documents examined in the study Table 5.1. Teachers’ teaching activities xv
16. CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the setting of the study and the rationales. The aims of the study, its scope, the significance, and the organization of the thesis are also presented. 1.1. Background to the study 1.1.1. The curriculum reform The economic development brings about the positive changes to human life; however, it also causes many serious issues for countries, especially the developing ones. To be more specific, major problems such as environmental pollution, resource degradation, biodiversity loss resulted in the substantial challenges worldwide. In order to develop sustainably, nations make efforts to create new changes to their education system to upgrade the quality of the human resources, equip the future generations with high adaptability to the societal and natural changes. In Vietnam, during the era after 1954, schools offered instruction in four foreign languages: English, Russian, Chinese, and French. English received minimal emphasis during this time. Nevertheless, English Language Teaching (ELT) in Vietnam underwent a revival after 1986, in response to a change in the country's political trajectory. This modification was implemented to bolster Vietnam's ability to attract international investment. The demand for English as a means of communication has risen, especially in major urban areas. This phenomenon can be attributed to the escalating influx of non-native individuals and the rising prevalence of English as a means of global interaction. In 1996, English was implemented as an optional subject across the entire country starting from Grade 3. Schools were eligible to offer English if they had suitable teaching environments and if there was enough interest from parents. The English course consisted of two periods per week. In 2010, a mandatory English language program for primary school students was introduced. The curriculum consisted of four periods per week, starting from Grade 3. In addition, curriculum reforms such as the new general education curriculum reform (2018) have been launched to respond to the global changes and maintain the sustainable development of the nation. The current curriculum reform or the new general education curriculum was issued in 2018 through Circular 32. The goal of the new general education curriculum is to shift the knowledge transfer-based education to a competency-based 1
17. development orientation. This could help students effectively apply knowledge they acquire in the school into practice and increase their lifelong learning capabilities; enable them to have the appropriate career orientation, and facilitate them in building and improving the societal relationships, developing their dynamic personality and good soul. In addition, students are ultimately expected to make substantial contributions to the development of the country and the world (Circular 32). Circular 32 also presented the main objective of the primary education which is “to support students’ physical and mental growth, to educate them on individual, family, and community values, as well as individual habits and social norms” (Moet, 2018, p.6). The curriculum reform requires teachers to go through professional training programs in order to gain deep understanding about the requirements, content, and implementation of the curriculum reform. In 2018, the current curriculum reform known as the new general education curriculum was introduced by the MOET through Circular 32 (Appendix 1), which also promulgated the Getting-to-know-English for Grade 1 and Grade 2- an optional curriculum (hereafter referred to as the Getting-to-know-English curriculum) while English is considered as an obligatory subject in the General Education English Language Curriculum for students from Grade 3 to Grade 12 (hereinafter referred to as the general education English language curriculum). The aim of the Getting-to-know-English curriculum is to help students form and develop their basic communicative English. Students explore and experience to form English skills in contexts suitable to their emotional, psychological and mental capabilities, which helps them gain more confidence when they enter Grade 3 and develop their love for English. In addition, this subject also enables students to strengthen their general capabilities, to better learn other subjects and to enhance their life-long learning (Moet, 2018). 1.1.2. The Getting-to-know-English curriculum for Grade 1 and Grade 2 The expected learning outcomes of the Getting-to-know-English curriculum are listed as follows: students are able to (1) listen and recognize the English alphabets, (2) listen and recognize some basic phonetics in English, (3) listen and understand numbers under 20, (4) listen and comprehend familiar words in contexts, (5) listen and respond to basic and simple conversations, (6) listen and understand basic instructions in the class. Furthermore, students are able to (7) answer simple questions relevant to their experiences, (8) give basic 2
18. instructions when taking part in simple activities in the class, recognize and read simple phrases, (9) write simple words of familiar topics, and develop their love for English (Moet, 2018). Circular 32 also suggested the nine considerations in implementing the Getting-to- know-English curriculum as follows. First, concerning the teacher resources, there must be enough teachers for Grades 1 and 2. At the same time, teachers must have adequate proficiency competence and suitable teaching methods, possess not only profound knowledge of not only students at the primary level but also of the Getting-to-know-English curriculum. Second, concerning the English teacher competence, teachers need to achieve B2 level of English according to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) or the Vietnamese six level Framework of Reference for Foreign Languages (Circular 1/2014). Third, pertaining to teaching methods, teachers need to combine different teaching methods suitable for their particular students and specific local conditions. Through teaching methods such as Project-based learning, Experimental learning, and Task-based learning, teachers help students experience English naturally with the aim of enabling them to explore and love English. Fourth, concerning the materials, teachers need to provide students enough materials to support their speaking process. Students listen and take part in communicative activities in contexts, but they are not required to join speaking activities if they are not ready. The reading and writing activities are introduced which are suitable to their perceptions and in accordance with the reading-writing period of their mother tongue. Fifth, teachers should employ fun activities such as games, songs, chants, stories, pictures, drama, and cartoons to help students get to know the English phonetics, recognize the basic vocabulary in communicative English, be able to join short and simple conversations and create joy and motivation for students. In the process of developing students’ communicative competence, listening comprehension should be developed on the basis of good phonetics. Sixth, teachers should also use up-to-date information technology, namely projector, smart television, smart board and computer connected with Internet and plentiful materials in the teaching process to enhance the quality of teaching and learning. Seventh, as regards to 3
19. teachers’ knowledge of students, teachers need to gain an insight into the psychological features of students at this level (Moet, 2018). Eighth, with reference to knowledge of the program, teachers should undergo comprehensive and extensive training with regards to the requirements of the program, learning materials, and implementation techniques (Moet, 2018). Last but not least, in terms of infrastructure, there must be spacious rooms for students at this level, with relevant equipment served for teaching and learning as proposed by MOET. 1.1.3. The issues of teachers in implementing the Getting-to-know-English curriculum The execution of the Getting-to-know-English program, however, has presented numerous difficulties. Regarding teachers, there are multiple concerns to be addressed. Firstly, regarding the quantity of teachers, it is hard to recruit the adequate number of teachers to put the Getting-to-know-English curriculum into practice. This is because there is no payroll about this job in the occupation project (Nguyen, 2020). There are lots of primary school English teacher recruitment targets on a yearly basis, however, there are not enough applicants for the vacancy (Tran, 2019). Pursuant to Article 72 of the Education Law 2019 on the requirements for teacher at primary level, a primary school English teacher must have a bachelor’s degree in TESOL and obtain B2 certificate in order to be eligible for teaching at primary level (Moet, 2014). This makes recruiting primary school English teachers extremely challenging. Another issue that results in the shortage of primary school English teachers is the low salary, while university English-majored graduates, they might have many job opportunities with high salary, flexible working hours, fringe benefits, and excellent promotion possibilities. Furthermore, they have more chances to work in international companies which help them to go abroad and experience new things. Due to the poor pay, lack of professional development opportunities, high stress level, and large amount of paperwork associated with teaching at the elementary level, it is challenging to recruit enough English teachers. (Nguyen, 2020). Secondly, concerning the quality of teachers, four issues regarding the quality of primary school English teachers have been acknowledged are their low language proficiency, inadequate training, low status and motivation, and unsuitable teaching methods (Moon, 2005). There is a serious shortage of well-qualified teachers due to the fact that English is 4
20. considered as the optional subject at primary level. Some primary schools only have one or two primary school English teachers, so they only teach the obligatory programme for Grade 3, 4, and 5. The schools mainly rely on contractual teachers, which makes it hard to ensure the quality of these teachers (Nguyen, 2020). Pertaining to English proficiency, primary school English teachers usually have less English proficiency level of all. Normally, teachers with good qualifications, full-time training will be assigned to teach at a higher level. Teachers at high schools with lesser levels of knowledge can be transferred to secondary schools, and instructors at secondary schools with inadequate English proficiency can be transferred to primary schools. They usually do not have a good command of English since they have difficulties with their pronunciation, word endings and fluency (Moon, 2005). While, according to Cameron (2003) and Halliwell (1992), primary school English teachers need to have a high standard of language proficiency with a wide range of vocabulary and appropriate teaching methods for children. Another issue is their insufficient professional training. English is not an obligatory subject for Grade 1 and 2 so most of the teachers are contractual teachers. The vast majority of these teachers earned their degrees through in-service or remote learning they may not have majored in TESOL. They therefore might have inadequate training which leads to poor knowledge and unsuitable teaching methods. Therefore, it is challenging for them to fulfill the teaching responsibilities required by the Getting-to-know-English curriculum's implementation. In addition, teachers are hired from other sources, therefore, they might lack commitment to the school, have low status and motivation which hinders their motivation and dedication to teaching students at primary level (Anh, 2020). The last issue is the unsuitable teaching methods due to a lack of suitable training. This is because most of the teachers have been trained to teach at high school or secondary, not primary level. Moon (2005) mentioned that the current teaching methodology at primary level is actually adult-oriented which provides few chances for children to practice their communicative activities, focus much on the receptive skills (reading and writing) from the beginning stage, give attention to accuracy rather than fluency, high employment of repetition drills and whole class chorus work to enable children to learn vocabulary easily. Cameron 5