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A STUDY ON PROBLEMS FACED BY THAI STUDENTS IN
LEARNING ENGLISH IN UNISZA, MALAYSIA
By :
NUR EZZATI NABIHAH BINTI MOHAMAD ALI
A PROJECT PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT
OF THE DIPLOMA IN TEACHING ENGLISH AS A SECOND
LANGUAGE (TESL) COURSE
FACULTY OF LANGUAGES AND COMMUNICATION (FBK)
UNIVERSITY SULTAN ZAINAL ABIDIN (UniSZA)
CAMPUS GONG BADAK
GONG BADAK, 21300 KUALA TERENGGANU
TERENGGANU DARUL IMAN
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ABSTRACT
The research aims to survey the problems faced by the Thai students in learning English in UniSZA. The readers will actually get to know the problems that faced by the Thai students and finally know the solutions of this problem.
The objectives of this study was to identify the problems faced by Thai students in learning English and the factors that affecting the Thai students in learning English in UniSZA. The method uses in this study were questionnaire. 20 questionnaires were distributed to 20 Thai students from the Faculty of Islamic Contemporary.
It was found that the most serious English problem reported by the Thai students was speaking skills and this findings is similar to a research by Attapol KhamKhien ( 2010). Other problems revealed in this study were reading skills, listening skills and the least problematic skills is writing skills. Besides that, they also have problem in pronunciation. Some sounds are difficult for Thai learners to produce. The English final consonant may be the most difficult part of the word for Thais to pronounce.
Furthermore, Thai students also have intonation problems. Thai language does not use intonation to differentiate questions and statements. Factors that affecting Thai students faced problems in learning English are they do not prefer to learn English because they find the subject matter boring and they also did not have opportunity to use English in their daily lives. In rural area, the facility is not enough and teacher in Thailand keep pronounce English word using Thai style.
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DECLARATION PAGE
We hereby declare that this research paper is the result of our investigation, except where otherwise stated. Other sources are acknowledged by quotations, giving explicit references and the bibliography is appended.
Name : NUR EZZATI NABIHAH BT MOHAMAD ALI
Signature : ______________________ Date : ____________________
Name : NURUL SHAZWANY BT MOHAMED SALIM
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We would like to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation to many people for the invaluable help, support and encouragement without which we would not have been able to complete this project paper.
We are deeply grateful to our lecturer, Dr Normah Yusof, for her guidance, patience, her constructive comments and invaluable suggestions. we consider ourselves very fortunate for being able to work with a very considerate and encouraging lecturer like her. We are indebted with Thailand students from Faculty of Islam Contemporary in UniSZA because they willing to spend time to answer our questionnaire in order to complete this research.
We owe many thanks to our classmate and all of our friends, which always support and give full attention for us to solve our problem. They always help us in exchanging any ideas and give the enjoyable studying environment.
Lastly, we are most grateful to our parents, they have always loved us and supported our every choice and gives us money to complete this research.
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CHAPTER 1
1.1 Background of study
In the age of globalisation, English has played an increasingly important role as the medium of communication among people from different non-English speaking countries and Thailand is no exception. English is no longer a mere subject to be learnt in the classroom but also medium for social and practical use (Foley,2005). Therefore, English has come to be considered globally as the international or global language. The main use of English language is it helps Thai students in getting great job, improve communication skills and others. Eid & Jordan- Damschot (1989) stated that students language ability is also related to academic success. The main goal of the English courses on offer is to develop students’ communicative competence in both academic and non-academic English. In doing so, language learners are expected to be able to efficiently express themselves in the target language and successfully communicate in real-life situations ( Lightbrown & Spada, 1999 ).
According to Boonyakarn (1991), Thai students are expected to be able to communicate effectively in English but they have problem to differentiate English pronunciation from Thai language. They also still encounter problems of difficulties in their face to face oral communication although they use English most of the time in the classroom. According to Yarnruksa (1997), this may be partly due to a lack of confidence in expressing themselves in English. There are many solutions that might help Thai students to solve their problems in learning English in Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin ( UniSZA ).
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1.2 Statement of Problem
The internalization of the university requires UniSZA to have a certain number of international students. Some of these international students are from Thailand. These Thai students come here without sound knowledge of English. According to Jaiyai, Torwong, Usaha, Danvirattana, Luangthongkam & Piyadamrongchai ( 2005 ), many Thai students could not see English skills effectively, especially listening and speaking. So, they are having problems in the usage of English language. UniSZA has given 2 weeks of English classes to these Thai students as an entry requirement. However, these Thai students still encounter problems with English language. Hence, this research tries to find out the problems faced by Thai students in learning English.
1.3 Purpose of the Study
The purpose of the study is to find out the problems faced by Thai students in learning English language in UniSZA. Some may say that English language is not a problem to the students in the university but attention must also be paid on the Thai students as they are from other country. They are facing variety of problems in learning English. Certain actions can be taken to help them solve their proble
1.4 Objectives of the study
This study focuses on problems faced by Thai students in learning English language in UniSZA. The objectives are as below:
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1) To identify the problems faced by Thai students in learning English. 2) To identify the factors affecting Thai students in learning English.
1.5 Research questions
This study focus on why Thai students have problems in learning English language in UniSZA. Specific guiding questions are as below :
1) What are the problems faced by Thai students in learning English? 2) What are the factors affecting Thai students in learning English?
1.6 Significance of study
The study will give an overall picture of the problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA. This will be beneficial for them in order to improve their skills and academic achievements.
1.7 Scope and limitations
In this study, the researchers will use the help of 20 Thai students from semester 1, 3 and 5 from the faculty of Islamic Contemporary. This study utilizes the method of questionnaire as the research
1.8 Definition of terms
The researchers is using the term of “ESL” which means English as a Second Language where English taught to people whose first language is not English but who
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live in an English-speaking country and need English to communicate in daily life. (Macmillan, 2nd Edition: 498). The researchers also is using the term of “global language” which means a language spoken international which is learned by many people as a second language. (Oxford Online Dictionary). Besides, the researchers use the term of “internationalization” which means make something international or controlled by two or more countries. (Macmillan, 2nd Edition: 792).
1.9 Summary
This chapter explained about the background of the study, statement of the problem, purpose of the study, objectives of the study, research questions, significance of the study, scope and limitation, and the definition of terms. Basically, this chapter gives an overall explanation about the research topic which is “a study on problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA Malaysia”. In the background of the study, the researchers give a brief explanation about the English subject which is the global language that been used around the world. The researchers also stated the main goal of having English course for the Thai students that is to improve the Thai students’ English proficiency. This research is only focusing on Thai students who are studying in UniSZA not in Thailand. The researchers will identify even more specific problems in the literature review.
CHAPTER 2
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Introduction
In this literature review, the language learning theories, the benefits of learning English language, common mistakes made by Thai students in English language, factors affecting Thai students in learning English, problems that faced by Thai students in general and the past reviews about the Thai students’ problems in learning English will be discussed.
2.1 Theories of Language Learning
A theory of language learning is an account of the psycholinguistic and cognitive processes involved in learning a language and of the conditions that need to be met in order for these processes to take place. The Behaviourist Theory is the behaviourists believe that learning is a process of habit formation. Habits are formed by receiving the linguistic data from the surrounding environment and by the reinforcement received for the good attempts made to repeat or imitate certain pattern. Because behaviourists consider language maturation as a matter of forming habits, they assume that a learner acquiring a second language begins with habits related to the first language. These habits influence those required for second language acquisition, and the learner has to form new habits (Lado1964 in Lightbown and Spada 1993: 23). The behaviourists treat errors in second language acquisition as interference from first language habits. This psychological learning theory is often related to what is called the ‘contrastive analysis hypothesis’. The proponents of this hypothesis claim that if similarities between two languages exist, the language learner
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will acquire the second language more easily, but if differences are encountered the acquisition of the target language will be more difficult (Klein 1986: 25). Whereas it may be true that the first language has an influence on learning the second, it is also suggested that the learner uses the knowledge already acquired in learning another language (Lightbown and Spada 1993: 23). The Interactionist Theory Proponents of the interactionist view (Long 1985) claim that interactional modification makes input comprehensible which, in turn, facilitates and promotes acquisition. Therefore, interactional modification must be necessary for language acquisition. Long argues that there are no cases of acquiring a second language from natives without the modification of speech in some way. In fact, research shows that native speakers modify their speech when they talk with non-native speakers (Lightbown and Spada 1993: 30). Research which has been carried out to examine these claims proved that conversational tuning can aid comprehension, but no research provided conclusive evidence that comprehensible input causes or explains acquisition (Davies and Elder 2004: 518).
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2.2 Benefits of Learning English
One of the primary benefits of learning English is that it is often considered the language of global business. The international business community often uses it for communication, even among people who do not speak the same native language. Speaking and understanding English can let a person more easily communicate with others and find more job opportunities not only in his or her home country, but around the world as well. There are also many professional informative publications printed in English, which means it is often an essential language for anyone working in science or research. For many people, the benefits of learning English include broadening their employment opportunities, since it is used so commonly in business. People who speak two or more languages are often ideal candidates for jobs in travel, international business, or translation. Many government agencies and employers that offer work with the general public, such as positions in law enforcement or healthcare, often look for multilingual candidates. Besides that, Many people see the ability to communicate and talk with others as one of the major benefits of learning English. Even outside of a professional environment, people often like to be able to talk to individuals from around the world. Many people find great social and cultural benefits in having pen pals from other countries, and the Internet makes such communication fast and easy. Learning English language can enhance knowledge of English structure and vocabulary (Curtain & Dahlberg, 2004). Knowing English can broaden the types of people you can speak to, whether it is via email or on an online discussion forum. A tremendous number of websites are available primarily in English, and anyone who does not understand the language may have difficulty using them. For anyone interested in traveling to countries in which English is the primary or common
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language, it is often essential to understand and speak it. Throughout the United Kingdom, United States, and Canada, traveling and shopping are often made easier by speaking the language since many individuals may not speak any other language. One of the most important benefits of learning English is the ability to explore these regions and more easily communicate with locals to learn about places and events that might otherwise remain unknown. Many people in European countries learn English in school, so knowing it can also be of benefit when traveling in locations even where it's not the native tongue. Learning a language can also be a great way to meet people, even if you never plan on leaving home. A class at a local community center or college can introduce you to a wide variety of people who are also interested in English, and give you the opportunity to interact with them in a controlled setting. Language courses often encourage students to carry on conversations with each other in the language being learned, and this can be a great way to break the ice with new people. Immigrants to English-speaking countries who do not speak the language are often at a serious disadvantage economically. It's much more difficult to get and hold a job, find a place to live, and even do everyday tasks like grocery shopping if you don't understand the language. Students who master in English languages may have better career opportunities. (Carreira & Armengol 2001). Learning English not only benefits immigrants themselves, it also helps families by allowing parents to be involved more fully in their children's lives and education. In addition, these children don't have to translate for their parents, allowing them to be kids instead of interpreters. Furthermore, A huge amount of popular entertainment comes out of Hollywood, and nearly all of it is produced in English. American movies and TV programs are distributed all over the world, and are often subtitled for people who don't speak the language. Knowing English can allow you to better understand the subtleties of dialog
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that subtitles frequently miss. It can be a challenge to translate concepts and terms that don't match one-for-one between languages, and nuances of meaning can be lost. Language is an inherently cultural construct. How people speak, the words they choose, and the topics under discussion are deeply tied into the culture of a place. By learning English or any other language, you are putting yourself into the mind set of a native speaker and are introduced to many of the concepts that he finds important. Gaining a better understanding of other cultures can help you to enrich your own understanding of the world and how others see it. Many of the most prominent and well known publications throughout the world are written and printed in English. Scholars interested in doing research at an academic level, or working on new scientific developments, should consider the benefits of learning English to read these periodicals and publish their own work. Publication in peer-reviewed journals is often required for someone who wishes to remain in academia, and the ability to read and write in English may be necessary to maintain such a position. Even learning about current events often requires an understanding of the language, since so many global publications and news websites use it. Nowadays, English is a world language for many countries, many other nations teach it as a requirement in schools. It is estimated that over a billion people in the world speak English on at least a basic level. For many people, the benefits of learning English involve the new opportunities that become available to someone who understands it. Anyone interested in attending a university in the US, for example, needs to speak it or be able to pass a test proving that he or she is fluent. People who do decide to learn English may need to consider what type of English is best for them to know. The two most common forms are British English and American English, and they can be quite different in some respects. The fundamental underlying language is the same, and people who learn one
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are likely to still be easily understandable by someone who speaks the other, but there will be instances in which words are phrases don't mean the same thing. Many of the decision about which type of English to learn will depend on where a student is learning it and what his or her ultimate goals are. To understand the language generally, any type of class will be of help. Many people don't have a wide variety of options to choose from, and a local college may only teach British English, for example. Someone who lives in Europe is more likely to be taught this form simply because he or she is closer geographically to the United Kingdom. In shorts, there are many benefits of learning English and by learning it will be easy for us to survive in foreign country.
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2.3 Common Mistakes Made by Thai Students
Language is a cognitive skills, which includes productive skills of writing and speaking and receptive skills of reading and writing (Wongsothorn and Pongsarupipat, 1992). In most cases, pronunciation problems result from the loss of muscular plasticity in the mouth of an adult foreign language learner (Brown, 1987). In other words, it is hard for an adult language learner to pronounce certain sounds that are unfamiliar to them. Jotikasthira (1999) stated that the English sounds which are considered problem sounds for Thai can be divided into 3 categories. Firstly, sounds that do not occur in Thai. These sounds are /ϖ/. As example, van and every. /Τ /or /th/ represent thin and breath. Sounds of /∆ /or /th/ represent the word of mother, then /ζ/ shows the word of zero, and nasal. /Σ /or /sh/ e.g. share, notion; /Ζ / or /zh/ e.g casual, beige; /tΣ/or /ch/ e.g. future, cherry; /dΖ /or /j/ e.g. gentle, jelly and /γ/ e.g. gamble, legal. Normally Thai students cannot pronounce these sounds because they do not exist in the Thai language. Next, sounds that do not occur at the final position. They are different from Thai equivalents as to distribution, though existing in Thai. Although some English sounds exist in Thai, they do not occur at the final position in Thai and most Thai students fail to pronounce them when they appear finally in English words (Jotikasathira, 1999). As example, /p/, /b/, /t/, /d/, and /k/ are pronounced as unreleased instead of released sounds because these sounds are pronounced unreleased when they occur in final position in Thai words. Lastly,sounds that are phonetically different from Thai equivalents which are /r/, /i/, /e/, /u/, and /o/ that is, their production is not the same. The English /r/ sound can be formed in the ways depending upon different speakers and dialects. For example, retroflex and bent back is common throughout the Midland area (Francis, 1958). This retroflex /r/ is
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made by moving the sides of the tongue against the back teeth. The front of the tongue is lowered but the tip is turned upward. Thai people are confused by the sounds /l/ and /r/ as in rice and lice. The English final consonant may be the most difficult part of the word for Thais to pronounce. For example, Thai final stop sounds are all unvoiced. Therefore, it is hard for Thai students to produce a final voiced consonant such as bed, or bid. The influence of the voiced final consonant /d/ on the preceding vowel /ε/ and /I/ lengthens the sounds of the vowels. Thus, some Thai students tend to say bate instead of bed and beat instead of bid. Moreover, in many cases, final consonant sounds such as /d/ ,/s/,/∫//dz/ are changed into an alveolar stop sound such as /t/ as in English becoming Englit. The mispronunciation of English final consonants may make it difficult for English native speakers to understand Thai pronunciation. Problem in stress pattern also is one of the common mistake. Thais usually give a stress at the end of an English word. For Thais, there is no difference in the stress patterns of the pair. They pronounce economy and economic, library and librarian with the same stress pattern. Other mistake is problem in collocation. Some words cannot co-occur in English. However, some collocation restrictions are violated by Thai learners. For example: My hair is busy (instead of My hair is messy.) . In brief, the formation of words in the respective languages is different. In English, morphemes form a word, but in Thai, words are monosyllabic. Sometimes, compound words are formed. Therefore, Thai learners seldom retain English suffixes. English collocation restrictions are also violated. Besides, problem with grammar. Probably grammar is the most difficult part for Thai students. The difficulty results from many factors: the typological differences between the two languages and the negative influence of the mother tongue. The concept of subject verb agreement is hard for Thai learners because we do not have an obvious boundary of a sentence. In Thai, we can go from
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one sentence to another. The subject can be deleted if assumed known between the addresser and addressee. The verb or adjective is the center of a sentence. All these Thai sentential characteristics impede Thai students from developing an accurate English sentential concept. Futhermore, Thai students also have intonation problems. The pitch of the voice with which a voiced sound is pronounced is called it intonation. In Oxford English Dictionary, intonation is defined as "the rise and fall of your voice while you are speaking". In connected speech the voice-pitch is continually rising and falling. These variations produce intonations that may be described as 'tunes' or 'patterns'. When the pitch of the voice rises we have a rising intonation; when it falls we have a falling intonation; when it remains on one note for an appreciable time, we have level intonation(Jones, 1988). Intonation is another significant feature in English. Gilbert (1994) pointed out that the purpose of intonation is "helping the listener to follow". It is a navigation guide for the listener. Thai language does not use intonation to differentiate questions and statements. So it's not unusual that Thai students use rising tones for both Yes or No questions and Wh -questions or the tones used in the Yes-No questions or statements are not different.
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2.4 Factors Affecting Thai Students in Learning English
Most of students do not prefer to learn English because they find the subject matter boring and the four skills are quite hard for them. The subject matter is not familiar, and it is presented in a strange language which they have to try very hard to understand or express ideas effectively. Although people communicate on a daily basis, they do not always succeed in reaching their communication goals (Hybels & Weaver, 1995). When people from different countries interact in order to reach the goal of understanding each other, there are problems found within this group due to variations in the languages used by them. Teaching Methods are not attractive or engaging for students. Most of teachers still use grammar and rote learning methods for teaching English. They focus on reading and writing skills, not listening and speaking skills. They seldom set up interesting activities to encourage their students to have fun learning English. Besides that, they did not have opportunity to use English in their daily lives, lack of exposure about English language and do not have motivation to use English. Moreover, There is not enough technology support for language learning, such as ICTs as well as language laboratories, particularly for schools in rural or remote areas throughout the country. In contrast, big schools in Bangkok or other major cities are provided with such language learning support technology by PTA or NGOs. Altenberg’s study (2005) reported the interference of the first language in pronunciation. It was found in this study that the first language was the cause of mispronunciation in the second language. Similarly, Yamada’s study (2005) showed that the first language affects their speaking ability in the second one. Besides that, the borrowed words from English into Thai language are pronounced in Thai ways. This is can be include in speaking skills where the Thai students have
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problems in pronouncing English words. Thus, it can be one of the factors contributing to Thai students having problems in four skills. For example, the words of “computer, technology, cream, and etc”. All of these words are borrowed directly into Thai language without noticing that they are actually not in Thai vocabulary. So when Thai people meet these words, they tell themselves that they know them already and refuse to learn their intelligible pronunciations again and just because of this reason, when they use them they use the pronunciations that they knew before. They are saying that they have a lot of borrowed English words applied with Thai pronunciations. Those Thai pronunciations are not intelligible pronunciations. In other country, these pronunciations cannot be easily understood. Moreover, The Romanization of Thai language influences the pronunciation of English. It is very normal to read the word Kitima into Gidima, pum into born, Prance into branee, and so on. Thai students read all th into t, ph into p, kh into k, p into b, t into d, and k into g. This can be include in reading skills where they have problems in reading English words. This kind of articulation definitely has a strong influence on the students who have no chance to study English Phonics. This phenomenon are due to the phonemic inventory of the Thai language. Different languages distinguish different sets of phonemes as the minimum sound units that distinguish meaning among words. Thai intonations are applied into English pronunciations. Thai language can borrow English words and use them directly in their daily life without feeling anything awkward, at least to Thai language itself. For example, if Thai people borrow the word 'computer' from English and pronounce it like that(applying only a little Thai intonation), it's quite comfortable. This characteristic helps common Thai people learn English. It is quite normal to meet some uneducated people who can speak some English to you. Some teachers in Thailand use Thai style to pronounce English word is another cause
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of students' unintelligible English pronunciation. On the other hand, a language teacher's pronunciation is served as a model for the students. The students have to imitate their teacher’s pronunciation, otherwise the teacher will correct the students' pronunciation or they have to cover their ears. Since the teacher's pronunciation is in Thai style, the students' pronunciation will be the same. Thai final consonants are always unvoiced so it is difficult for Thai students to pronounce aspirated /p/ and /k/or voiced /m/ and /n/ in English words. Furthermore, cultural shock also is one of the factors affecting Thai students having problems in learning four skill in learning English. Culture shock usually occurs about six months after entering a new culture when the second language learner beings able to compare the values and pattern of the new country with those of his/her native country (Kim, 1997; Schumann, 1978). This can be related to this factors because the Thai students feel new and hard for them to communicate in English. This falls under a skill of speaking. In short, there are many factors that lead to on why Thai students having problems in learning four skills in learning English.
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2.5 Problems That Faced by Thai Students in General
English is generally the first foreign language that students must study in schools (O’Sullivan & Tajaroensuk, 1977). Thai students’ level of English proficiency is low compare to other countries in Asia such as Malaysia, Philippines, and Singapore. According to the Ministry of University Affairs, in March 2000 the average Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores of Thais were the same as for Mongolians but higher than for North Koreans and Japanese (Wiriyachitra, 2004). From the previous studies of the levels of Thai students’ English ability in speaking and listening between 1972 and 1988, Sukamolson (1989) concluded that students’ listening skill in Grade 7- 9 was very poor. Many Thai students have problems in listening to dialogues and texts as well as problems in pronunciation. Wiriyachitra (2001) asserted that researchers have also suggested that the English curriculum in the Thai university cannot meet the demands of English used in the workplace. The skills used most such as listening and speaking that are not the focus skills in the Thai tertiary education English curriculum. Though English has been compulsory for all Thais from primary school level to university level, but still they fail to enhance their English proficiency, especially in their listening and speaking skills (Srivarakan, 2002). The second language learners often have communicative intentions. They find difficulty in expression when they are engaged in communication. In Thailand, Ekwannang (2004) and Noreewong (2006) conducted similar studies regarding problems that affected communication between Thai people and foreigners in their workplace. The findings in these two studies showed the same types of difficulties during conversations. They concluded that problems occurred due to the following factors which are misinterpretation of the contexts and the contents,
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the accents of people from various parts of the world, and the level of language. Furthermore, they claimed that some cultural barriers such as common characteristics of the Thais and cultural differences resulted in miscommunication between the Thais and foreigners. As a conclusion, Thai students having many problems in learning English from the general scope of problems until the main problems that faced by them.
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2.6 Past reviews
There have been a number of previous research revealing problems of English teaching and learning at higher education institutions. Chanudom (1993) reported that teachers’ college students taking a Foundation English course had serious problems in listening comprehension, English speaking, reading for main ideas, and writing. Other problems that faced by them was lacking a language laboratory or having no chance to use it and the inadequate number of English teachers and English native speakers. Phofa (2003) explored the problems with advanced dramatic arts students in Colleges of Dramatic Arts in the central region. The previous study found that the students lacked responsibility in their English learning, teaching materials were neither adequate nor modern, and teaching methods were uninteresting. The students there preferred to practice speaking and reading skills with more contact hours. For specialized English courses, Sinthuchai (1991) reported that the second-year Business Administration students had difficulty in speaking related to business contexts. They had low ability in reading English newspapers and business letters and in writing credit letters, credit forms, and reference letters. As far as the need in English learning was concerned, the students wanted to practice the listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. In the context of physical education, Jai-ngam (1990) investigated problems and needs of English language teachers and students in Physical Education Colleges, Thailand. She found that students’ English language skills were at a very low level. Physical education students did not give any attention to the English subjects. The English content was too difficult for the Thai students to understand. English textbooks and chances to practice in a language laboratory were also rare and leads to the problems in learning English language. In relation to the needs, English
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teachers needed the English content to be improved to suit the ability and the professional area of the students. Appropriate English language textbooks, reference books, teaching aids and an effective language laboratory were needed. English language teachers would like to join a study tour abroad for a short period of time, participate in English teaching seminars or trainings in order to enrich themselves with language abilities and teaching methods. The problems and needs or wants of the previous studies were considered as a basis in designing an instrument used in this current study.
2.7 Summary
This chapter covers the theories of language learning, benefits of learning English, common mistakes made by Thai students and factors affecting Thai students in learning English and the past reviews about the problems face by the Thai students in learning English. The first sub-topic which is the theories of language learning give a specific information about the definition of the English and the theories itself in order to make it clear for the reader. Next, the researcher also give information about the benefits of learning English in general at first then specific it into the Thai students . This actually lead to the research questions in the chapter 1. The research also stated the common mistakes that always made by the Thai students. As example, the pronunciation of the Thai students. The method on how to do this study will be explained in chapter 3.
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CHAPTER 3
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Introduction
This section discusses the methodology of the research. The main purpose of this research is to study problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA and this research also will give an overview about problems faced by them in four skills which are speaking skills, reading skills, writing skills and listening skills. Data for this research were collected through primary data which are questionnaires. In this methodology it will conclude five sections which are introduction, research instruments, respondents of study, research procedure and the last part is summary.
3.1 Research Instrument
This research utilized quantitative research methodology. The instrument used to collect data was questionnaire. “The questionnaire is an important
instrument of research, a tool of data collection” (Oppenheim, 1992:47)
because the researchers will collect the results based on the questionnaires given to the respondents. A set of questionnaire containing 51 questions divided into 3 sections was developed based on a questionnaire used previously by another study (Ratana, 2007). Different question types such as yes-no, open-ended and scales were used in the questionnaire. The different
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sections of the questionnaire were a) demographic background, b) problems faced by Thai students in the skills which are speaking, listening, reading and writing and the last section is c) comments. The researchers had distributed the questionnaires at two locations in University Sultan Zainal Abidin, campus Gong Badak which were at cafeteria and student hall. The researchers had distributed 8 questionnaires at cafeteria and the rest (12) questionnaires at student hall. All the questionnaires have been distributed after class session. There are many benefits of using questionnaire as research instrument. According to Milne (1999), the responses are gathered in a standardized way, so the questionnaires are more objective rather than interviews, it is practical, it can be carried out by the researchers with limited affect to its validity and reliability and large amounts of information can be collected from a large number of people in a short period of time and in a relatively cost effective way.
3.2 Respondents of Study
The respondents of the study were first, second and third year undergraduates from Faculty of Contemporary Islam in various courses at University Sultan Zainal Abidin. A total of 32 questionnaires were distributed to the Thai students at a classroom of the university. Out of 32, only 20 students from various courses at UniSZA returned the questionnaires. Of these numbers, 2 were male students while the rest (18) were female.
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3.3 Research Procedure
The questionnaires were distributed at the various locations locations on campus which are cafeteria and student hall after class session. Appointment was set through a representative from Thai students to gather all the Thai students to distribute the questionnaire.
3.4 Summary
In chapter three, the researchers included introduction, research instruments, respondents of study, and research procedure. The respondents for this research were Faculty of Contemporary Islam students. The respondents were from semester one, three and five. The total numbers for the respondents were 20 students consist of 2 males and 18 females. The researcher used questionnaire as research instrument. The total number of questions for the questionnaire was 51. As a conclusion, the objective for the methods that have been used by the researchers during this research is to gain more information and data about problems faced by Thai students in learning English among semester one, three and five from University Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA) by using questionnaire.
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CHAPTER 4 DATA ANALYSIS Introduction
This chapter will present the research findings which are demographic background, the result of data analysis and research finding and discussion. The results of data analysis and research finding will explain about the result.
SECTION A: DEMOGRAPHIC BACKGROUND
Number Questions Yes (%) No (%) 2 Have you ever lived
in an English speaking country?
25 75
3 Do you think that it is important to speak with good pronunciation?
85 15
4 Do you think it is important for you to practices correct English in your classes?
65 35
5 Do you think that learning English will be interesting or important in your daily life?
29 6 Do you think it is important to increase people awareness to practise correct English? 75 15
7 Is it hard for you to practise English? 50 50 8 Do you have interests to study English? 95 5 9 Do you think it is possible to be a good speaker in English? 95 5 10 Is it important for you to make your English pronunciation sounds correctly? 90 10 11 Do you think it is important to communicate in English with your friends in a classroom ?
90 10
12 Do you refer to dictionary if you have problem to find certain words in English?
65 35
Number Question English (%) Native language (%) 13 Which language do
you prefer?
25 75
Table 4.1
As can be seen in table 4.1 above, from question number 2, 75% of respondents agreed that they have lived in an English speaking country. The rest of the respondents stated that they never lived in an English speaking country before. For question number 3, majority of the respondents agreed
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that it is important to speak with good pronunciation. Besides that, all of the respondents agreed that learning English will be interesting or important in their daily life. Majority of respondents agreed that it is important for them to practices correct English in their classes. The researchers think some of the respondents did not agreed with the question because they prefer to use their native language in classes. For question number 7, half of the respondents stated that it is hard for them to practice English language while the other half of the respondents stated that it is not hard for them to practice English. From questions number 8, 9, 10 and 11, we can see that majority of the respondents agreed that they have interests in study English, it is possible to be a good speaker in English, it is important for them to make their English pronunciation sounds correctly and it is important for them to communicate in English with their friends in a classroom. From question number 13, we can see that majority of the respondents prefer their native language rather than English language.
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SECTION B : PROBLEMS IN SKILLS SPEAKING SKILLS
Numbers Questions Always (%) Usually (%) Occasionally (%) Rarely (%) Never (%) 14 I can have an informal conversation in English 0 0 90 0 10 15 I can have a formal conversation in English 0 15 50 30 5 16 I can perform academic presentation in English in the classroom 0 5 30 65 0 17 I have an adequate English vocabulary for effective speaking 0 10 50 35 5 18 I can explain my idea clearly in English 5 0 40 50 5 19 My friend, a native speaker, understand my pronunciation 0 15 40 40 5 20 I find it easy 5 0 75 15 5
32 to express myself in English 21 I can ask questions in English in the classroom 0 5 35 50 10 22 I feel comfortable in talking with a native speaker instructor in the classroom 0 0 45 50 5 23 I never have a speaking problem 0 10 25 50 15 Table 4.2
As revealed in table 4.2, for question number 14, majority of the respondents can have an informal conversation in English occasionally while the rest of them which is 10% stated that they never have an informal conversation in English. For question number 15, 15% of the respondents usually can have a formal conversation in English, 50% of them occasionally, 30% of them rarely and another 5% never can have a formal conversation in English. Result from question number 16 stated that usually only 5% of the respondents can perform academic presentation in English in the classroom while 30% of them occasionally and majority of them rarely can perform academic presentation in English in the classroom. For question number 17, we can see that 10% of the respondents answered usually they have an adequate English vocabulary for effective speaking. Half of them occasionally, 35% of them rarely and 5% of the respondents never have an adequate
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English vocabulary for effective speaking. From question number 21, 5% of the respondents can ask questions in English in the classroom while 35% of them occasionally, half of them rarely and 10% of them never can ask questions in English in the classroom. Next is from question number 22, 45% of the respondents occasionally feel comfortable in talking with a native instructor in a classroom while 50% of them rarely and another 5% never feel comfortable in talking with a native instructor in a classroom.
LISTENING SKILLS
Number Question Always (%) Usually (%) Occasionally (%) Rarely (%) Never (%) 24 I understand the tone of voice of a native speaker 0 35 55 10 0 25 I can understand a native speaker speaking at normal speed 0 35 40 25 0 26 I can understand an attitude, customs, and social circumstances of a native speaker 10 40 45 5 0 27 I can understand classroom lectures in English 5 40 45 10 0 28 I can 0 45 45 5 0
34 understand comments given by native English speakers 29 I participate class discussions in English 0 45 40 15 0 30 I participate group discussions in English 0 45 45 5 5 31 I feel comfortable in listening a native speaker instructor in the classroom 5 45 50 0 0 32 I can understand the main idea of the native speaker instructor 5 40 50 5 0 33 I never have a listening problem 5 50 40 5 0 Table 4.3
From table 4.3 above, question number 24 stated that 35% of the respondents usually understand the tone of voice of a native speaker while half of them occasionally and 10% of them rarely understand the tone of voice of a native speaker. From question number 25, 35% of the respondents usually understand a native speaker speaking at normal speed while 40% of them occasionally and 25% of them rarely understand the tone of voice of a native speaker. Question number 27 stated that 45% of the respondents occasionally understand classroom lectures in English while 40% of them rarely understand
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classroom lectures in English. Moreover, 10% of the respondents usually understand and 5% of them not understand classroom lectures in English. From question number 30, 45% of the respondents stated that they usually participating group discussion in English, 45% of them occasionally, 5% of them rarely and another 5% of them never participate group discussion in English. Lastly, from question number 31, 5% of the respondents always feel comfortable in listening a native speaker instructor in the classroom while 45% of them usually and majority of them occasionally feel comfortable in listening a native speaker instructor in the classroom.
READING SKILLS
Numbers Question Always (%) Usually (%) Occasionally (%) Rarely (%) Never (%) 34 I can read an academic textbooks in English 0 25 35 25 15 35 I can read a magazine in English 0 10 45 25 20 36 I can guess the meaning of new vocabulary 10 20 40 25 5 37 I can understand English idioms 0 45 45 10 0 38 I can explain the main idea and summary the passage 5 35 55 5 0
36 39 I never have a reading problem 5 45 35 15 0 Table 4.4
From table 4.4 above, for question number 34, 25% of the respondents usually can read academic textbooks in English while 35% of them occasionally, 25% of them rarely and 15% of them never can read academic textbooks in English. From question number 35, we can see that 10% of the respondents usually can read a magazine in English while 45% of them occasionally, 25% of them rarely and 20% of them never can read a magazine in English. Next, question number 37 stated that 45% of the respondents usually can understand English idioms while 45% of them occasionally and 10% of them rarely can understand English idioms. For question number 38, half of the respondents answered they can explain the main idea and summary the passage occasionally while 35% of them can explain the main idea and summary the passage rarely. Furthermore, 5% of the respondents answered never and 5% of them answered usually they can explain the main idea and summary the passage.
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WRITING SKILLS
Number Question Always (%) Usually (%) Occasionally (%) Rarely (%) Never (%) 40 I can write an academic paper in English 10 25 55 10 0 41 I can write reports, projects, letters, and class assignments in English 15 60 20 5 0 42 I can paraphrase English passages 5 50 40 0 5 43 I can write an essay within limited time 5 40 50 5 0
38 44 I can use perfectly grammatical rules in writing any papers 10 60 25 5 0 45 I can choose appropriate vocabulary to write my paper 5 65 20 10 0 46 I have an adequate English vocabulary for writing essays 10 50 35 0 5 47 I am able to develop a suitable structure for the content 0 35 65 0 0 48 I never have a writing problem 0 50 40 5 0 Table 4.5
As can be seen in table 4.5 above, for question number 42, 5% of the respondents stated that they always can paraphrase English passages while half of them usually, 40% of them occasionally and 5% of them never can paraphrase English passages. From question number 45, majority of the respondents answered they rarely can choose appropriate vocabulary in their writing while 20% of them answered occasionally. Moreover, 10% of them
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answered usually and 5% of them answered they cannot choose the appropriate vocabulary in their writing. Next, from question number 46, 10% of the respondents stated that they always have an adequate English vocabulary for writing essays, half of them usually, 35% of them occasionally and 5% of them never have an adequate English vocabulary for writing essays. For question number 47, most of the respondents which is majority answered occasionally they able to develop a suitable structure for the content while 35% of the respondents answered rarely they able to develop a suitable structure for the content.
4.6 Findings
The most serious English problem reported by the Thai students was speaking skills and this findings is similar to a research by Attapol KhamKhien ( 2010). Other problems revealed in this study were reading skills, listening skills and the least problematic skills is writing skills. Major tasks of speaking skills problems are the ability to perform academic presentation in English in the classroom, ability to explain idea clearly in English and ability to ask questions in English in classroom. Besides that, they also have problem in pronunciation. Some sounds are difficult for Thai learners to produce. The English final consonant may be the most difficult part of the word for Thais to pronounce. According to Brown (1987), pronunciation problems result from the loss of muscular plasticity in the mouth of an adult foreign language learner.
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Furthermore, Thai students also have intonation problems. Thai language does not use intonation to differentiate questions and statements. So it's not unusual that Thai students use rising tones for both Yes or No questions and Wh-questions or the tones used in the Yes-No questions or statements are not different. Next, factors that affecting Thai students faced problems in learning English are they do not prefer to learn English because they find the subject matter boring. Most of teachers still use grammar and rote learning methods for teaching English. They also did not have opportunity to use English in their daily lives, lack of exposure about English language and do not have motivation to use English. Moreover, there is not enough technology support for language learning, such as ICTs as well as language laboratories, particularly for schools in rural or remote areas throughout the country. Besides that, there are some teachers in Thailand use Thai style to pronounce English word in classes.
4.7 Discussion
This study concluded that speaking skills was the most difficult English language problem that Thai students encounter, followed by reading, listening and writing skills. This may be because the cause of the speaking is the productive skills in the speaking mode. It is more complicated than it seems at first, and often seems to be the most difficult skills since it involves pronunciation, grammatical items and word choice. Besides that, they would have better performance in listening activities if native speakers spoke English more slowly. It is inappropriate for Thai teachers of English to simplify the native speakers’ speed rate due to scarcity of the authentic material and
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practice. Hence, the native-English speakers’ speaking factor seems to be another main obstacle in listening for Thai students. In reading skills, lots of practice is needed, and for readers to persist with a lot of practice, they must become engaged in some way captured cognitively or affectively by the texts they are reading. Michael John Strauss ( 2008 ) stated that this situation in Thailand is not so very different compared to the situation in the West. There are so many Thai people are reluctant readers not because of some exclusively Thai lack of reading culture, but because of elements in their home and education backgrounds which have not been conducive to the fostering of keen, independent readers. English language is not a familiar subject in Thailand, so they have to try very hard to understand or express ideas effectively. Peoples in Thailand prefer to speak in their native language, so the students did not have chance to practice English with their friend and family. In many places in Thailand, the facility in school is not enough for them to practice English. Computer or audio materials are useful for them to practice correct English pronunciation. Moreover, teachers in Thailand use Thai style to pronounce English word. We all know that teacher serves as role model, if teacher in Thailand keep doing mispronunciation, the students will have the same problem too.
4.8 Summary
Based on the data obtained by the researchers, it can be concluded that the most problematic skills faced by Thai students is speaking skills while the least problematic skills is writing skills. They occasionally can have an informal conversation in English and express themselves in English.
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Moreover, they did not really comfortable in talking with native speaker instructor in the classroom.
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CHAPTER 5
RECOMMENDATION AND CONCLUSION
Introduction
This research conducted to study the problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA. It is important to solve this problem.The results shows that the Thai students having problems in many aspects. One of the common problem that faced by the Thais is pronunciation problems. Pronunciation is a very important factor in the speech process (spoken language) when the speaker achieves the goal to communicate effectively by being understood. The speech process is a process that involves several stages, beginning with the speaker’s ideas and ending with the understanding of those ideas by the listener (Dauer, 1993). Pronunciation is not just a cognitive ‘knowing-that’, it is also a physical ‘knowing-how’, similar to playing a sport or musical instrument. The Thai students also have problems in terms of four skills which are speaking, reading, writing and listening. The results show that they have problems in terms of speaking. They are not able to speak in English. Furthermore, the Thai students itself have the problems in the writing skills because they lack in terms of vocabulary
5.1 Recommendation
The researchers recommended so many ways in order to solve the problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA. The ways to solve these problems are by
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giving motivation to the Thai students, UniSZA have to provide more English Classes for the Thai students and UniSZA also have to provide more facilities.
5.1.1 Motivation for Thai students
Learners need motivation and time to really practise pronunciation. It is worth spending class time discussing with learners their own ideas about what is involved in learning pronunciation. The teachers should motivate the Thai students by providing them with the benefits of learning English in order to grab their attention. This will make them feel eager and finally fall in love with English subject. The teacher also should motivate the Thai students by giving them a rewards if they done their best in learning the four skills which are speaking, reading, writing and listening. Maybe the teacher should motivate them by giving them benefits of learning writing and speaking skills. This is because when they are good in speaking skills, automatically they will be good in communication with other people surrounding them. As a whole, motivation is one the key that can lead them to love and start learning English .
5.1.2 UniSZA have to provide more English classes
Lu (2002) claims that learners suggest they should practise speaking. Learners need help in overcoming both their expectation that pronunciation is a subject which can be learned by listening to a teacher, and the psychological and social barriers that make it difficult for them to practise effectively. In addition, there is also a significant cognitive component in pronunciation learning, which is much less often acknowledged. It is useful to think of learning to pronounce a new language as
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involving a kind of concept formation rather than as a purely physical skill. Learners must be made aware of aspects of their pronunciation that result in other people being unable to understand them. The teacher and the UniSZA should set classroom environment to be less serious. They should be encourage more to speak English in and outside of the classroom often. Suter (1976) and Suter and Purcell (1980) concluded that pronunciation practice in class had little effect on the learner’s pronunciation skills. The teacher itself has to come out with variety activities such as practicing them in a group. They should have a discussion where they speak within each other in order to improve their pronunciation. In terms of improving the Thai students writing skills, the teacher itself may come out with a huge of vocabulary in the lecture. This will enhance the Thai students writing skills because they have been introduced with a variety of vocabulary in the class by the teacher.
5.1.3 UniSZA provides more facilities
Learners must be given the opportunity to practise aspects of the English sound system which are crucial for their own improvement (Avery & Ehrlich, 1992). There many ways to improve this pronunciation problems among Thai students. Pronunciation training includes micro-level skill (accuracy-based learning), macro-level skill (fluency-based learning) and awareness-raising classroom activities. At the micro-level skill, learners should be trained both in segmental (a study of sounds) and segmental features (training in stress, intonation, rhythm, linking) (Morley, 1979, 1991; Gilbert 1984 and Wong, 1987). Celce-Murcia, Brinton and Goodwin (1996), Gilbert (1990), and Morley (1991) describe segmental as the basic inventory of distinctive sounds and show the way that they combine to form a spoken language.
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The Thai students need to hear a lot of English words before they can develop a feel for the sounds of English. Thus, the learners become more confident and motivated in learning the language because of the teaching aids and materials such as tape recordings of native speakers, pictures of mouth and articulations used in the class along with the provision positive reinforcement (Phinit-Akson, 2002; Quilter, 2002; Estrada & Streiff, 2002; Wu, 2002; and Jay, 1966). UniSZA itself have to provide more facilities for this Thai student to learn English. Facilities such as audio-visual aids should be provided more to them in order to grab their attention and finally they practice themselves by hearing the pronunciation of each words in English using that kind of aids. UniSZA also have to provide more academic books at the library, so that they can read more and they will have a huge vocabulary indirectly through readings. This actually can give a positive effect in their reading skills indirectly. As a whole, good facilities in UniSZA can contribute to the solving of this problem.
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5.2 Conclusion and Further Research
This research was conducted to investigate the problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA. The objective of the study are the researchers wants to know the problems that faced by Thai students in learning English language. Besides, the researchers also want to identify the factors affecting Thai students in learning English. The respondents of this research involves were 20 Thai students consisting of two male and eighteen female from the Faculty of Islamic Contemporary.
The problems faced by researcher are the Thai students were not given full cooperation in order to answer the questionnaire and the feedback is not desired. To overcome this problems, researchers have make decision to give rewards to respondents and modified the questionnaire to be more specific. Researchers hope is that all of Thai students in UniSZA aware about the importance to have good and fluent English. Besides that, researchers also hope that they will improve their English proficiency.
5.3 Summary
This chapter covers the recommendation and conclusion for this study. In the recommendation part, the researchers gives an overall pictures of the problems faced by the Thai students in learning English in uniSZA based on the results that the researchers get through the questionnaire at the first place. Then, the researchers gives variety of ways to solve the problems that faced by Thai students in learning English
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in UniSZA. The researchers also conclude about the problems faced by Thai students in learning English in UniSZA in the conclusion part.
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APPENDIXES
QUESTIONNAIRE
A STUDY ON PROBLEMS FACED BY THAI STUDENTS IN LEARNING ENGLISH.
We are from UniSZA’s TESL 5 students. This questionnaire is to identify problems in learning English among Thai students in UniSZA.
SECTION A: DEMOGRAPHIC BACKGROUND
Please answer the following questions in the spaces provided. Course:
Program : Semester:
Please tick appropriate answer for this survey. Gender
Male Female Age:
18-20 21-23 24-26 1. At what age did you start to learn English?
5-6 7-8 9 and above 2. Have you ever lived in an English speaking country?
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3. Do you think that it is important to speak with good pronunciation? Yes No
4. Do you think it is important for you to practices correct English in your classes?
Yes No
5. Do you think that learning English will be interesting or important in your daily life?
Yes
No
6. Do you think it is important to increase people awareness to practise correct English?
Yes No
7. Is it hard for you to practise English? Yes No 8. Do you have interests to study English?
Yes No
9. Do you think it is possible to be a good speaker in English? Yes No
10. Is it important for you to make your English pronunciation sounds correctly?
Yes No
11. Do you think it is important to communicate in English with your friends in a classroom ?
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Yes No
12. Do you refer to dictionary if you have problem to find certain words in English?
Yes No
13. Which language do you prefer?
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SECTION B : PROBLEMS IN SKILLS
Please circle a number to indicate your most appropriate description you by using the scale below.
5 always 4 usually 3 occasionally
2
rarely 1 never
SPEAKING SKILLS
14. I can have an informal conversation in 5 4 3 2 1 English.
15. I can have a formal conversation in English. 5 4 3 2 1 16. I can perform academic presentation in 5 4 3 2 1
English in the classroom.
17. I have an adequate English vocabulary for 5 4 3 2 1 effective speaking.
18. I can explain my idea clearly in English. 5 4 3 2 1 19. My friend, a native speaker, understands my 5 4 3 2 1
pronunciation.
20. I find it easy to express myself in English. 5 4 3 2 1 21. I can ask questions in English in the 5 4 3 2 1
classroom.
22. I feel comfortable in talking with a native
5 4 3 2 1 speaker instructor in the classroom.
23. I never have a speaking problem.
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5 always 4 usually 3 occasionally 2 rarely 1 never
LISTENING SKILLS
24. I understand the tone of voice of a native 5 4 3 2 1 speaker.
25. I can understand a native speaker speaking 5 4 3 2 1 at normal speed.
26. I can understand an attitude, customs, and 5 4 3 2 1 social circumstances of a native speaker.
27. I can understand classroom lectures in 5 4 3 2 1 English.
28. I can understand comments given by native 5 4 3 2 1 English speakers.
29. I participate class discussions in English. 5 4 3 2 1 30. I participate group discussions in English. 5 4 3 2 1 31. I feel comfortable in listening a native 5 4 3 2 1
speaker instructor in the classroom.
32. I can understand the main idea of the native 5 4 3 2 1 speaker instructor.
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5 always 4 usually 3 occasionally 2 rarely 1 never
READING SKILLS
34. I can read an academic textbooks in English 5 4 3 2 1 35. I can read a magazine in English 5 4 3 2 1 36. I can guess the meaning of new vocabulary 5 4 3 2 1 37. I can understand English idioms 5 4 3 2 1
38. I can explain the main idea and summary 5 4 3 2 1 the passage
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5 always 4 usually 3 occasionally 2 rarely 1 never
WRITING SKILLS
40. I can write an academic paper in English. 5 4 3 2 1 41. I can write reports, projects, letters, and 5 4 3 2 1
class assignments in English.
42. I can paraphrase English passages. 5 4 3 2 1 43. I can write an essay within limited time. 5 4 3 2 1 44. I can use perfectly grammatical rules in 5 4 3 2 1
writing any papers.
45. I can choose appropriate vocabulary to write 5 4 3 2 1 my paper.
46. I have an adequate English vocabulary for 5 4 3 2 1 writing essays.
47. I am able to develop a suitable structure for 5 4 3 2 1 the content.
