The Influence of Teaching Strategies on the English Speaking Motivation of Non-English Majored Students: A Case Study at Hoa Sen University

Abstract

Although speaking plays a pivotal role in the successful conveyance of meaning, Vietnamese tertiary education still lays lesser emphasis on this basic language skill. With a view to fill the current literature gap in Viet Nam, the study aimed at investigating how EFL teachers at Hoa Sen University implemented different teaching strategies to intrinsically motivate non-English majored students to speak English. The study incorporated three data collection methods to gather data from a convenience sample size of 291 first- and second-year students enrolled in the EIC 3 level and eight EFL teachers. Firstly, quantitative questionnaire surveys were conducted to provide preliminary findings on students’ perceptions of their teachers’ teaching strategies in terms of (1) their frequency of use, (2) their efficacy in intrinsically motivating students to speak English, and (3) the students’ attitudes towards performing these strategies. Secondly and lastly, focus groups discussions and individual interviews were carried out with a few exemplary students and the teachers, respectively, to find out more detailed findings on their perceptions. The findings indicated that the strategies of Discussion, Gamification, and Roleplay received the highest rating in all three criteria (1), (2) and (3). The Debate and Storytelling strategies were low in criterion (1), but was perceived as moderate in criteria (2) and (3). On the other hand, the Presentation and Speech strategies were perceived lowest in all three criteria. Details of the sample’s perceptions also revealed several benefits of these strategies, including students’ increased interest in communicating in English, learning engagement, self-confidence, classroom interaction, creative thinking, critical thinking, and concentration. In light of the study’s findings, the researcher advocated appropriate application of the examined teaching strategies to optimize students’ English communication.