A study on the opportunities for and constraints on developing students’ oral skills at an upper-Secondary school

that students’ attitudes to speaking skill are not very good. About the active participation in the activities (Question 3), 69 students (43.2%) disagree that they actively participate, 49 students (30.6%) have a neutral idea. Only 42 students (26.2%) agree that they positively participate in activities in speaking lessons. In conclusion, all the results shown in Table 3 can reveal that students at DL1USS have little interest in learning speaking skills. Table 4: Students’ satisfaction with their speaking proficiency and the speaking activities inside and outside the school Questions No of responses Percentage You always read English books and talk to your brothers, sisters and friends in English? Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree 0 109 26 25 0 0 68.2 16.2 15.6 0 Your school always organize extra activities for students leaning English? Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree 0 147 13 0 0 0 92 8 0 0 You always speak English outside the class& school? Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree 0 116 29 15 0 0 72.6 18.1 9.3 0 Activities of speaking skill in the course books are suitable for your level? Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree 0 152 5 3 0 0 95.1 3.1 1.8 0 Looking at the results of Question 1, we can see that 109 students (68.2%) disagree that they always read English books and talk in English to their friends, brothers and sisters, 26 students (16.2%) have a neutral opinion, while 25 students (15.6%) agree with the ideas. These results reflect the fact that students are maybe very lazy at home or they do not have good experience of English learning. Answering Question 2, 147 students (92%) disagree that their school always organize extra activities for students learning English. And 13 students (8%) have a neutral answer to this statement. From these results, it can be referred that the administrators do not take enough care of students’ English speaking skill. According to the answers to Question 3, 116 students (72.6%) disagree that they always speak English outside class or school, 29 students (18.1%) express their neutral answer and 15 students (9.3%) say that they usually speak English outside class and school. These data help us to know that most students do not practice their oral skill much. When asked if activities of speaking skill lessons in the course books are suitable for students’ level (Question 4), 152 students (95.1%) show their disagreement, 5 students (3.1%) have a neutral idea, and only 3 students (1.8%) think the activities suitable. It can be inferred from the results of Table 4 that most students do not satisfy with their speaking skill and activities inside and outside the school. Table 5: Students’ opportunities for and difficulties in speaking skill Questions No of responses Percentage What opportunities do you have in learning English speaking skill? Your teachers always help you. You can practice speaking with friends. You have opportunities to speak English. You can help friends to speak English. 121 132 125 27 75.6 82.5 78.1 16.8 What difficulties do you have while learning English speaking skill? Unable to find words and ideas. Not enough time to prepare. Many friends resist speaking. Teachers speak non-standard English. I’m afraid of losing face. I’m not taken care of by teachers. 113 141 65 36 52 59 70.6 88.1 40.6 22.5 32.5 36.8 As for the opportunities when learning speaking skill in Question 1, 121 students (75.6%) say that they are helped by their teachers, 132 students (82.5%) answer that they can practice speaking English with their friends, 125 students (78.1%) say that they have opportunities to speak English. Only 27 students (16.8%) think that they can help their friends speak English. About the difficulties in learning English speaking skills in Question 2, 113 students (70.6%) are unable to find words and ideas, 141 students (88.1%) say that they do not have enough time to prepare, 65 students (40.6%) blame that many of their friends are lazy and resist speaking. 36 students (22.5%) are to blame for their teacher’s non-standard English speaking. 52 students (32.5%) are afraid of losing face and 59 students (36.8%) say that they are not taken care of by their teacher. It can be seen from data of Table 5 that students have many difficulties in learning English speaking skill. Table 6: Factors needed by students to develop their speaking skill Questions No of responses Percentage What factors are needed for students to develop their speaking skill? Students need encouragement and better care from teachers and family. The syllabus should be adjusted by teachers to suit their students’ level. Teachers should prevent their students from speaking Vietnamese. Teachers should have more suitable methods. 160 137 124 142 100 85.4 77.5 88.7 What should students do to improve their speaking skill? Have a right attitude to speaking skill. Always practice speaking English at school and at home. Cut down on speaking Vietnamese in class. Participate in different activities and share ideas with others. 160 160 152 155 100 100 95 96.8 Discussing factors needed by students to develop their speaking skill, 160 students (100%) support the idea that they need encouragement and better care from teachers and family, 137 students (85.4%) agree that the syllabus should be adjusted by teachers to suit their students’ level. 124 students (77.5%) cite that teachers should prevent their students from speaking Vietnamese. 142 students (88.7%) choose the idea that teachers should have more suitable methods. To find out solutions to the difficulties, 160 students (100%) recommend that they should have a right attitude to speaking skill and always practice speaking English at school and at home, while 152 students (95%) share the same idea that they should reduce speaking Vietnamese in class and 155 students (96.8%) suggest that they should participate in different activities and share ideas with others. 3.1.2. The questionnaire for teachers 3.1.2.1. Methodology In order to find out the teacher’s perception of the opportunities they have and difficulties they encounter in their teaching of oral skill and their techniques in dealing with these difficulties, the second questionnaire is distributed to 10 English teachers at DL1USS. The questionnaire consists of 10 questions (Appendix 1) with 6 different categories: -Teachers’ experience in teaching English -Teachers’ interest in teaching English and English Speaking skill -Teachers’ perception of the importance of speaking skill -Teachers’ opinions of speaking activities and of students’ attitude to speaking lessons -Teachers’ opportunities for and difficulties in teaching English speaking skill -The factors needed and teacher’s techniques 3.1.2.2. Results: Figure 3: Teachers’ experience in teaching English According to Figure 3, we can see that three of the ten teachers have the teaching experience from 1 to 5 years, taking 30 percent; four of them have been teaching from 6 to 10 years, taking 40 percent, two of the teachers have the teaching experience from 11 to 15 years. Only one of them has been teaching for over 16 years, accounting for 10 percent. In fact, this teacher had been teaching Russian for nearly 20 years before he started his English teaching career. In conclusion, from the data, we can affirm that most of the teachers at DL1USS are very young, energetic, creative and enthusiastic. Table 7: Teachers’ interest in teaching English and English Speaking skill Questions No of responses Percentage Do you like teaching English speaking skill very much? Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree 0 0 2 7 1 0 0 20 70 10 Of the four skills, which skills do you like teaching most? Speaking Listening Reading Writing 4 1 3 2 40 10 30 20 Table 7 shows us the results of 2 questions. As for Question 1, 7 of the 10 English teachers (70%) agree that they like teaching English speaking very much, 1 of them strongly agrees to the idea. In fact, this teacher always gives good lessons on speaking skills. Meanwhile, 2 of the teachers say that they like teaching speaking skills as much as other skills. Interestingly enough, all the teachers like teaching English speaking skills. It is likely that this is a good opportunity from teachers for developing students’ oral skill at DL1USS. Looking at Question 2, we can easily see that 4 of the 10 teachers (40%) like teaching English speaking skill most, 3 (30%) like teaching reading skill, 2 (20%) like teaching writing, and only one (10%) likes teaching listening skill. It is obvious that the number of the teachers who like teaching speaking is bigger than teaching other skills. Figure 4: Teachers’ perception of the importance of speaking skill The result of Figure 4 shows us that 5 of the ten teachers (50%) agree that speaking skill is an important skill to students. Meanwhile, two of them (20%) strongly agree that it is the most important skill. Only three of them (30%) consider speaking skill as important as the other three skills. During the interview, these three teachers explain that speaking skill is the most important in theory, but in fact it is not very important because most exams, according to them, are carried out in written English. Especially, no teacher considers English speaking skill unimportant or very unimportant. Table 8: Teachers’ opinions of speaking activities and of students’ attitude to speaking lessons Questions No of responses Percentage How do you think about the speaking activities in the course books? Very difficult Difficult Neutral Easy Very easy 2 4 4 0 0 20 40 40 0 0 What are your students’ attitudes to the speaking lessons? Very bored Bored Neutral Interested Very interested 0 3 5 2 0 0 30 50 20 0 Being asked about their opinions of speaking activities in the course books (Question 1), 2 teachers (20%) say that speaking lessons are very difficult for teachers and students to teach and learn. 4 teachers (40%) state that they are difficult while 4 (40%) cite that the contents are neutral. There is nobody to share the ideas that speaking lessons in the course books are easy or very easy for students to learn. According to the results of question 2, 3 teachers (30%) say that their students feel bored with the speaking lessons and 2 teachers (20%) have an idea that their students are interested in speaking lessons, whereas there are 5 teachers (50%) pointing out that their students have the same attitudes to speaking lessons as to the lessons of other skills. Nobody thinks that their students feel very bored with or very interested in the speaking lessons. Table 9: Teachers’ opportunities for and difficulties in teaching English speaking skill Questions No of responses Percentage What opportunities do you have during speaking lessons? Have a good contact with students. Develop your speaking skill. Be aware of your students’ ability. Be more confident (step by step) in speaking skill. 10 7 10 8 100 70 100 80 What difficulties do you face with during speaking lessons? Large& multi-level classes. Students’ low level of spoken language. Students’ low motivation. The syllabus is not suitable. Lack of teaching experience. Students’ Vietnamese use & noise making. 10 10 10 7 5 8 100 100 100 70 50 80 As it is seen in Table 7, there are 2 questions for teachers. The results of Question 1 of teacher’s opportunities tell us that all the 10 teachers (100%) agree their opportunities are to have a good contact with their students and to be aware of their students’ abilities. Meanwhile, only 7 of the teachers (70%) answer that they can develop their speaking skill via speaking activities and 8 of them (80%) cite that they can be more confident with speaking skill. With the results of Question 2, it is clear that 10 teachers (100%) share the same options that their difficulties are caused by large and multi-level classes, students’ low level of spoken language and students’ low motivation. 8 teachers (80%) say that their difficulties come from students’ Vietnamese use and noise making. 7 teachers (70%) blame for the syllabus unsuitability. Surprisingly enough, only a half of the teachers accept that their lack of teaching experience cause difficulties for themselves. Table 10: The factors needed and teacher’s techniques In Table 10, as for factors needed for a good speaking lesson (Question 1), all the 10 teachers (100%) agree that teachers should have a suitable method and students should have a right attitude to speaking lessons. 6 teachers (60%) say that the contents of the course books should be equal to students’ proficiency level while 7 teachers (70%) think that the administrators should supply good class environment and facilities. Questions No of responses Percentage What factors are needed for a good speaking lesson? Teachers should have suitable methods for speaking skill. Students should have right attitudes to speaking skill. The contents of the course books should be equal to students’ proficiency level. The administrators should supply good class environment and facilities. 10 10 6 7 100 100 60 70 What should you do to help your students speak English better? Organize pair and group work activities. Use authentic materials (songs, films...) Organize communicative activities. Encourage collaborative work from students. Move around to help the less able students. Encourage students to speak English and prevent speaking Vietnamese. 9 8 8 9 10 10 90 80 80 90 100 100 When discussing the teacher’s techniques to help students to develop speaking skill (Question 2), most of the teachers (over 80%) agree with the techniques proposed. 3.2. The class observations 3.2.1. Methodology Observations are carried out by the researcher in 5 classes 10A1 10A7, 10C2, 11A3 and 11C5 with 5 different teachers from April 1st to April 29th, 2008. They are focused on Class environment, Teacher’s preparation, Teacher’s Characteristics, Teacher’s presentation, Teacher’s methods and Students’ motivations. The results of the observations were presented in the observation sheet in Appendix 3. 3.2.2. Result * The class environment: In all classes I observed the class size is a visible reality. The number of students in the five classes I observed: 10A1, 10A7, 10C2, 11A3 and 11C5 were 55, 51, 50, 52 and 50 respectively. From the fact, we can see that the class environment in observed classes is not suitable for a speaking lesson. This is a problem which has great influence on English teaching and learning, especially on teacher’s management. *Teacher’s preparation Most of the teachers I observed had prepared their speaking lessons comparatively well. They prepared different teaching aids for their lessons. For example, in order to prepare the speaking lesson of unit 14 “The World cup” in English 10, one teacher used copies of the pictures of football teams in the course book. Another observed teacher used some pictures of some Vietnamese and foreign famous singers for the speaking lesson of unit 12 “Music” of English 10 and some pictures in the course book for unit 13 of English 11 “Music”. From teachers’ preparations for speaking lessons, the researcher has come to conclusion that all the teachers have always carefully prepared their lessons before giving them to students. It is true that these teachers are very young, active and enthusiastic. This is one of the opportunities from teachers. *Teacher’s characteristics Although the five teachers I observed sometimes made mistakes in pronunciation and their accents are not as good as that of English teachers in cities and of native people, their voice is rather clear and audible. Moreover, in class, they always have acceptable use of language, which help their students understand what their teachers told them to do. *Teacher’s presentation During the class observations, the observer sees that all the observed teachers have showed their interest in teaching English speaking lessons, which is very important and necessary. Their good point is that most of the observed teachers know how to use authentic materials rather suitably, which interests students to learn the language. However, the most popular teaching aids for their lessons are only pictures. When teaching, they always have a thought in their mind that their students’ knowledge of English is low, so after giving instruction in English, they tend to interpret the instruction into Vietnamese. For example, in Task 1 of the speaking lesson of unit 13 “Hobby”, of English 11, at first, teacher said: “Now, class. I want you to work in pairs and discuss which of the following activities you like or not like to do and why” and then she said “Các em hãy làm việc theo cặp và nói về những hoạt động mà em thích hoặc không thích và nêu lý do”. This is maybe their bad point and is one of the causes which make their students lose interest in learning. *Teacher’s method Dealing with the teacher’s method in the observed classes, the researcher can see some good points. The teachers had a good and suitable use of teaching aids, such as pictures, samples of real things, etc…. During the lessons, they applied many things, but some limitations occurred. The first limitation is that most of them find it difficult to control the class, to motivate and to encourage students in the activities. This brings about that some stronger students always monitor the class and do the activities very hard while weaker students are usually timid and have no opportunities to express their ideas. Another limitation is that the time for activities is short. Teachers used so many activities in every lesson that the students had to carry out them in a hurry and practiced speaking very little. This is the ineffectiveness of activities. * Students’ motivation In the classes I observed, students hardly involved in and concentrated on the activities, especially in pair and group work. Weaker students find pair and group work convenient to talk and use Vietnamese while a few stronger students did the activities. The biggest limitation is that students’ proficiency level is very low. This limitation makes them take part in the activities ineffectively. They find it difficult to express their ideas, and they only answered ‘yes’ or ‘no’ of even kept silent with smile when asked. Another limitation, in my opinion, is that the contents of speaking lessons in the course books are difficult for the teachers to initiate activities. For example, in the speaking lesson of unit 14 “The World Cup” of English 11, after showing the pictures, the teacher asked her students to look at the pictures and tell her what they knew about the football teams. All the female students kept silent. It turned out to be unfamiliar with most girls. 3.3. The interview So as to gain more in-depth data, 5 observed teachers who had finished their speaking lessons were invited and 25 students in the observed classes were randomly selected among the respondents for the two interviews. The two interviews were conducted in Vietnamese to have the truthfulness and precise of the information in case the teachers and students were not confident in answering in English. The full transcripts of the interviews were translated and given in Appendixes 4&5. 3.3.1. The interview with teachers 3.3.1.1. Methodology The researcher invited the 5 observed teachers to participate in the interview to get more information about the opportunities for and constraints on developing students’ oral skill. The answers of the teachers were note-taken and tape-recorded. The interview for teachers consisting of 8 open-ended questions covers 3 following categories: -Teacher’s awareness of and attitude to speaking skill and syllabuses (Qs 1, 2, 3, 5) -Teacher’s opportunities for and difficulties in teaching speaking lessons (Q 4) -The factors needed and teacher’s ideas to develop students’ speaking skill (Qs 6,7,8) 3.3.1.2. Results The result of the interview for teachers is presented as follows: *Teacher’s awareness of and attitude to speaking skill and syllabuses When asked how important is English speaking skill to their students (Question 1), 4 of the interviewees strongly respond that it is very important because English now is one of the most popular languages nowadays and the aim of learning a language is to communicate with people. Meanwhile, one of the interviewees reluctantly answers that it is rather important because in fact because most tests are taken in written English. To respond to Question 2 about which skill they like teaching, 4 of the interviewees answer that they like teaching speaking skill very much because when teaching speaking they can find more confident, have good contact with my students, know more about their students’ level of English to find out a suitable method to teach their students. One of the interviewees responds that he likes teaching reading because it is his strength and he adds that he feels that his students seem to be more excited when he is teaching reading skill. As for Question 3 about students’ interest in and attitude to speaking lessons, all the interviewed teachers respond that most students are not interested in speaking lessons. They turn to speak Vietnamese or make noise. The interviewees blame for the reasons that students’ attitudes to speaking lessons are not good; students feel reluctant and afraid of being criticized and losing face; there is nothing to say; class size is too big; and local accent reduces excitement. With regard to the speaking lessons in the new syllabuses (Question 5), only one teacher answers that they are neutral but short of illustrations. Contrary to this point of view, the four other interviewees respond that the speaking lessons are rather difficult; the contents of the speaking lessons are too long, compared to the allotted short time; some of the topics are out of teachers’ knowledge, which makes teachers hard to teach and students difficult to learn. She took an example of unit 15 “Space conquest” of English 11. She said that the topic of the lesson is too difficult; there are too many events and many new words in the lesson. *Teacher’s opportunities for and difficulties in speaking lessons In regard to opportunities teachers have when teaching speaking skill (Question 4), all the 5 interviewees reply that the teachers can have a good contact with students, know about their students’ ability to find suitable methods to teach students as well as improve their own oral skill. In considering difficulties and the reasons, all the interviewees state that there are so many difficulties as large& multi-level classes, students’ low level of spoken language, students’ low motivation, the big class size, students’ Vietnamese use and noise making, the unsuitable syllabuses; and the interviewees also come to the conclusion that these reasons root in the fact that students come from different areas where the conditions for living and studying are restricted. At school, students have to learn many subjects, which are very difficult, so they have no time for practice. Then, one of the interviewees, a new teacher, adds that teacher’s lack of teaching experience is the reason. Obviously, there are many reasons which have great influence on students’ learning speaking skill. *The factors needed and teacher’s ideas to develop students’ speaking skill When asked to describe successful speaking lessons (Question 6), all the interviewees have the same idea. They conclude that a successful speaking lesson is a lesson during which teacher prepares the lesson carefully, presents the lesson clearly, uses authentic materials, asks students to work effectively in pairs or groups; the topics are not too difficult and the language is easy to use; and students highly involve in and concentrate on the activities, make only good noise, try their best to express their ideas in English, feel interested in the speaking topics and have more opportunities to practice speaking English. As for the factors are needed for the success of speaking lessons (Question 7), all the interviewed teachers agree that the success of speaking lessons depends on the topic of the lesson, students’ right attitude, students’ proficiency level, students’ much practice of speaking, teachers’ suitable method, teacher’s use of good teaching aids and facilities. With regard to teacher’s techniques (Question 8), the 5 interviewees have the following ideas: making the contents of speaking lessons less difficult for students to learn: using simple language; organizing communicative activities and collaborative work from students in order for them to help each other; encouraging them to speak English frequently with friends, brothers, sisters and anybody, listen to the radio or watch TV programs in English to develop their vocabulary and pronunciation as well as to give gentle and helpful corrections when students make mistakes. 3.3.2. The interview with students 3.3.2.1. Methodology In order to affirm the right information for the study, the researcher carried out interviews for students. After the 5 class observations, 5 students in every class were randomly chosen to be interviewed about the reality of their learning English, opportunities for and constraints on developing their oral skill. The total number of the interviewed students was 25. The answers of the interviewees were note-taken and tape-recorded. The interview for students with 9 open-ended questions (Appendix 4) covers 3 categories as follows: -Students’ attitudes to Speaking skill and Syllabuses (Questions 1, 2, 3 and 9) -Students’ ways of learning speaking skill (Questions 4, 5, and 8) - Students’ opportunities and difficulties & Solutions (Questions 6, and 7) 3.3.2.2. Results The result of the interview for students is presented as follows: *Students’ attitudes to Speaking skill and Syllabuses Regarding the interest in speaking skill (Question 1), 23 of the 25 interviewees say that they like speaking English very much and think that speaking skill is necessary to them because, as they say, English is the most popular language in the world. English is the most effective means of communication nowadays, especially, Vietnam is now a member of the WTO, and speaking English well can help them to find a good job in the future. However, 2 of them do not share the same ideas. They consider that they do like but not now because they are focusing on writing and reading skills to pass the exams. Being asked which skills they are good at or bad at (Question 2), nearly all of them answer that they are good at writing and reading since they like and usually practice these skills; in contrary, they are bad at listening and speaking as their vocabulary is not enough and their pronunciation is not good, which makes them hard to listen and speak. Only one interviewee says that he is good at listening and speaking and wants to learn these two skills most. When the researcher asks them whether they are satisfied with their recent English speaking skill (Question 3), all of them but one respond that they are not because their speaking skill is very bad. They cannot speak English fluently as well as not find words or ideas when speaking. Most of them also add that their speaking and listening skills are worse than the two others. As for students’ point of view about the speaking lessons in the course books (Question 9), one interviewee responds that it is suitable whereas the 24 others say that many of the activities for speaking lessons in the course books are too difficult for students of medium proficiency level. The time for speaking lessons is too short, so students do not have enough time to prepare and have little chance to practice speaking. Also, there is a shortage of illustrations for speaking lessons, which makes speaking lessons less exciting. *Students’ ways of learning speaking skill In response to the way of learning speaking at home (Question 4), nearly all of them say that they reread the lessons to improve their vocabulary and pronunciation and sometimes speak English with their neighbor friends, their brothers and sisters and add that that way of learning does not help them a lot to improve their English speaking skill. Only one of them affirms that he usually practices speaking skill with others and his way is very effective. In respect to the way of learning speaking in class (Question 5), most interviewees say that they are sometimes asked to practice speaking in pairs or in groups and they try their best to speak English, but this way of learning seems to be ineffective. Their English speaking skill does not improve. Only one of the interviewees actively participates in activities to communicate with his teacher and classmates and his English improves rapidly. Mentioning the activities during speaking lessons (Question 8), all the interviewees respond that they are usually asked to work in pairs or in groups and in many other activities, but they add that those activities are not effective since some stronger students are dominant while other weaker students feel reluctant and tend to make noise or speak Vietnamese. *Students’ opportunities, difficulties and solutions Regarding the opportunities in learning English speaking (Question 6), the interviewees answer that they can get help from their teacher and classmates, but it is not much because of what is mentioned above. However, those activities help them feel more confident and improve their vocabulary and pronunciation. About the difficulties (Question 7), the interviewees state that difficulties come from the following reasons: Their vocabulary isn’t enough, their pronunciation is not good, many grammar structures are difficult to remember, their teacher doesn’t take enough care of all the class, so many turn to be making noise. Moreover, they have to learn many subjects at school, so they do not have enough time to learn English. However, all students affirm that they have to find their own solution to these problems. 3.4. Conclusion As mentioned in this chapter, the researcher has collected information for the study from the three sources and discussed the results of the questionnaires, observations and interviews. In this small part, the researcher has come to conclusion that all the results of the questionnaires, observations and interviews, in general, are the same. The only thing that makes the researchers wondered is the contradictions between what students said and what students did in class. In the questionnaires, most students said that they like English speaking skill very much, but during the class observations, students seemed to be lazy and did not involve in and concentrate on the activities. The researcher was forced to think that students’ liking to English speaking skill is by feeling and compulsive and that they do not learn English in general and English speaking skill in particular as a hobby. CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND SOME RECOMMENDATIONS Depending on the data colleted in chapter 3, in this chapter, the researcher will come to the findings of the opportunities for and constraints on developing students’ oral skill, and then present some recommendations in the hope of helping the teachers and students at DL1USS to solve the problems. 4.1. Findings 4.1.1. Opportunities for developing students’ oral skill The opportunities for developing students’ oral skill can be classified into four following main points: -Opportunities from the administrators -Opportunities from the syllabuses -Opportunities from the teachers -Opportunities from the students 4.1.1.1. Opportunities from the administrators The administrators are well aware of the importance of English teaching, encourage the teachers and students to teach and learn better, and are ready to provide in their ability with what teachers and students need. 4.1.1.2. Opportunities from the syllabuses Different from the old syllabuses, the new ones are considered much better. The topics in the course books are various and much more authentic. The topics refer to many fields of real life; and the contents are updated with the beautifully designed illustrations. Undeniably, these play an important role in helping students with interest in learning. 4.1.1.3. Opportunities from the teachers All the teachers have a good attitude to speaking skill. Most of them agree that speaking skill is the most important in language teaching. In fact, nearly all of the teachers at DL1USS are very young and energetic as well as they have a good background of vocabulary and grammatical structures. They are always willing to learn to improve their teaching method. To do this, they spend their spare time attending other teachers’ classes to learn vie experience; or looking for information on the internet. It is clear that all these are the opportunities needed from the teacher at DL1USS. 4.1.1.4. Opportunities from the students Students have a good awareness of the importance of learning English. They agree that they like speaking English and English is very necessary to them at present and in their future. When learning English in general as well as speaking skill in particular, most students get encouragement from their family, teachers, and even from their friends. Many parents buy their children radios, cassette players, and cassette tapes, CDs or VCDs with the hope to help their children with the best conditions to learn English well. During speaking lessons, students have more chances to help each other to practice English as well as to have a good contact with their teachers to shorten the gaps between them. 4.1.2. Constraints on developing students’ oral skill Constraints on developing students’ oral skill can be classified into four following main points: - Constraints from the administrators - Constraints from the syllabuses - Constraints from the teachers - Constraints from the students 4.1.2.1. Constraints from the administrators Constraints from administrators consist of the large class size, multi-level classes and lack of conductive facilities. This school year, DL1USS has 43 classes. In every class, the number of students in a class is from 45 to 55, which is difficult for teachers to teach a foreign language. In a large class, the teacher finds it very difficult to manage the class because of being afraid of the fact that students make noise when doing activities, which have negative influence on nearby classes. Moreover, teacher feels unable to pay enough attention to each of students. More especially, in a large class, many students take advantage of teacher’s lack of management to talk or do different unwanted things. All these things make teachers lose interest in teaching. In fact, however, large class size is problematic not only at DL1USS but also at any school in the countryside. Multi-level classes are the second constraint. Students at DL1USS come from different areas of the district. In general, students from the centre of the town or nearby have better knowledge of the English language than those who come from farther areas. However, at school, these two different groups of students are set in the same classes, so that there are big gaps among the students. In class activities, better students of English proficiency are always dominant while students of low English proficiency keep silent or get bored. It seems impossible for teachers to design communicative lessons for students. It would be much better if only students at the same levels were put in the same classes. Nevertheless, it would be impossible since students at DL1USS have to learn many other subjects. The third constraint from the administrators is a lack of facilities. Despite the fact that DL1USS is a central school, the supply of facilities is very poor. The school has no language lab. The classrooms are not large enough for activities in group work. The library has few English books, papers or magazines for students’ further reading. The school has only 3 overhead projectors for nearly 100 teachers of 12 different subjects who are in need of them. Obviously, it is very difficult for teachers to teach English communicatively in the condition of facilities unavailable. 4.1.2.2. Constraints from the syllabuses As mentioned in the results of the questionnaires and interviews, although they are much better than the old syllabuses, the new ones for grades 10 and 11 are considered rather difficult for students of general level of English. The contents of the speaking lessons are too long for the short allotted time. Some of the topics are out of teachers and students’ comprehension. The illustrations are not enough. So, there seems to be contradictions between the contents of the new syllabuses and Krashen’s Input Hypothesis ‘i+ 1’, which make teachers and students lose interest in teaching and learning. Also, in a speaking class, students have few opportunities to speak English in front of the others. In short, with the new syllabuses, teachers as well as students are obliged to try their best to reach their final destinations of teaching and learning. 4.1.2.3. Constraints from the teachers Constraints from the teachers are lack of experience, low income and deficiency in speaking English. In order to organize a successful speaking lesson, many activities suitable for students’ level should be carried out. According to the results, most of the teachers have a lack of teaching experience and one of them who is much older is affected by the traditional teaching method. Teachers’ low income is problematic. With low income, teachers find it difficult to use many authentic materials in a great deal. It is infrequency of presenting authentic materials that makes their students lose interest in learning. Also, at present time, the most effective material for teachers is a laptop. However, with low income, all these seem to be out of the question. Another constraint is teachers’ deficiency in speaking English. When learning speaking, many students blame that their teachers’ English is much different from the language on the radio or TV. It is true because most teachers are affected by dialect accents, which make students hard to listen and speak. Teachers’ ineffective management is also a constraint. Most students admitted that their teachers usually ask them to work in pairs or groups, but these activities seem to be ineffective. Good students are always dominant while bad students are always reluctant to speak. In other words, there are many constraints from the part of teachers which need to be dealt with as soon as possible. 4.1.2.4. Constraints from the students From the results of the survey, we can come to the conclusion that constraints from students are caused by: low language proficiency, lack of motivation, reluctance of participating in activities, using Vietnamese or doing other things. Most of the participants of the study admitted that students have very low English proficiency. Although most students started learning English at the early age, their vocabulary, structures and pronunciation are not enough for them to practice speaking skill. It is considered to be the greatest constraint. With low language proficiency, students feel uninterested in speaking skill, and afraid of losing face or being criticized when they make mistakes. All these make them reluctant to participate in activities and tend to speak Vietnamese and doing other things, making it difficult for teachers to develop students’ oral skill. 4.2. Some recommendations 4.2.1. Recommendations for the administrators The administrators should have a better thought of importance of English teaching and learning at the time when our Vietnam is a member of the WTO and a nonpermanent member of the United Nations; give mental and physical encouragement to teachers and students by supplying enough teaching materials; and provide chances for English teachers to organize a speaking English club. Altogether, the administrators should find ways to increase the teachers’ life if possible. 4.2.2. Recommendations for the teachers In order to overcome the constraints on developing students’ oral skill, it is the teacher that plays an important role to solve the problems. As for the constraint from the syllabuses, teachers should make them suitable for students’ level. Because replacing the present syllabuses with new ones is out of the question although the present syllabuses are considered rather difficult. To solve the constraint of the administrators’ lack of conductive facilities, it seems to be effective for teachers to create do-it-yourself aids or encourage students to make such materials and aids as pictures or simple things. In respect to the constraint of the large class size, an effective solution for the teachers is to gain students’ cooperation, to prepare teaching aids and to develop teachers’ skills of group work and class management. With regard to the constraint of multi-level classes, teachers should organize group work in which both good and weaker students are required to do activities together to encourage students’ collaborate work. Regarding the constraint of teachers’ lack of teaching experience, it is necessary for teachers to self study, observe classes to learn more from their colleague’s experience as well as to use the internet to search for information to improve their teaching method. As to solve the constraint of teachers’ deficiency in speaking English, teachers should use more radios and tape, CD or VCD players as well as regularly practice their pronunciation. When teaching English speaking, teachers should use simple language in order for students to understand what teachers say. In considering the constraint of students’ low language proficiency, teachers should take better care of weaker students, encourage them to participate in activities so that they can improve their speaking skill, for instance, weaker students should be required to repeat sentences with simple structures and to express their ideas in situations which are not difficult for them. To come to solution to the constraint of students’ low motivation and reluctance of participating in activities, it is very important for teachers to vary their techniques and activities so as to involve their students in the lesson and reduce the boredom of the lesson. It is a good idea to use teaching aids like pictures, games, songs, funny stories to reduce tension during the lesson. Moreover, it is the teacher’s behavior that is a decisive factor to increase students’ motivation. The teacher’s helpfulness, enthusiasm, friendliness and sense of humor make students interested in learning. Also, the administrators and teachers should organize an English speaking club in the school to increase students’ interest in learning English. So as to overcome the constraint of students’ Vietnamese use, teachers should go around the class and encourage students to speak English and to avoid using Vietnamese during the activities. 4.2.3. Recommendations for the students To overcome the constraints on developing their own oral skill, students should have a better attitude to the importance of learning English speaking. Good speaking skill can help students to learn better other three skills. For that reason, students should always be more hard-working and practice speaking English wherever they can and actively participate in activities in and outside the class to improve their oral skill. PART THREE: CONCLUSION This part will deal with limitation of the study, the recommendations for further study, as well as a conclusion of the study. 1. Limitation of the study In spite of the fact that the study has offered some insightful findings, like many other studies, there are some following limitations. Firstly, the limitation of the study is that the study may not really show all the opportunities and the constraints teachers and students are facing in teaching and learning speaking skill. Secondly, the questions in the questionnaires and the interviews may not cover all the important information for the study. Moreover, the answers of the teachers and students to the questionnaires may not reflect what they thought and did in class or at home. Thirdly, the observations were conducted but not frequent. The results of the observations are maybe not true because when observed, the teachers may teach differently from the way they usually teach for fear of being negatively evaluated. Finally, this research is only applied for DL1USS. Thus, the results are not completely popularly true and do not cover many teachers and students of many other schools in Nghean. 2. Recommendations for further study This research focuses on the opportunities for and constraints on developing students’ oral skill at DL1USS, a school in the countryside of Nghean. There are some recommendations for further research to be taken as follows: -A study on the strategies for improving students’ oral skill at an Upper-Secondary School in Nghean. -A study on the combination of teaching speaking skill and grammar for developing students’ oral skill with fluency and accuracy. 3. Conclusion Teaching and learning speaking skill at Upper-Secondary Schools are considered problematic. In this study with the title “A study on the opportunities for and constraints on developing students’ oral skill at an Upper-Secondary School”, I have mentioned an understanding of the definition of speaking skill as well as some literature reviews related to speaking skill. In addition to this, presented in the study are the results of the questionnaires, class observations and interviews about teachers and students’ attitudes towards the position of speaking skill; the current situation of teaching and learning English speaking skill at DL1USS; teachers and students’ preferences and demands in teaching and learning English speaking skill; as well as the opportunities and constraints when teaching and learning English speaking at DL1USS. 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