a descriptive study on the misusage of the communicative approach at liceo nocturno de desamparados...

UNIVERSIDAD MAGISTERFACULTAD DE EDUCACIÓN

CARRERA DE LICENCIATURA EN LA ENSEÑANZA DEL INGLÉSMEMORIA PARA OPTAR AL GRADO DE LICENCIATURA EN LA ENSEÑANZA DEL INGLÉS

“A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY ON THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE MISUSAGE OF THE COMMUNICATIVE APPROACH AT LICEO NOCTURNO DE DESAMPARADOS IN 2014”

KIMBERLY LEIVA ARAYA KARINA ZAPATA CHACÓN

SEPTEMBER 2014

PROBLEM STATEMENT

• The Communicative Approach usage in the English lessons.

• English teaching and learning process.

• Lack of English knowledge from the students.

GENERAL OBJECTIVE

To mention the implications of the misusage of the

communicative approach putting in evidence that the students

are not able to communicate in a foreign language.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES• To obtain teachers’ opinions in regards to limitations presented by the students

when learning a second/foreign language.

• To identify the teaching method that is used in the English class by the teacher.

• To distinguish how the environment affects the teachers and students

commitment within the teaching and learning processes.

• To determine the learning barriers faced by the students in

second language acquisition.

• To elaborate a workshop for the English teachers about the

Communicative Approach.

VARIABLES

1. The teacher.

2. Teaching Methods.

3. The teacher’s and student’s commitment with the language.

4. The student.

INSTITUTION

Liceo Nocturno de Desamparados, as a public educational institution,

was founded in 1968. Located in an area with difficult socioeconomic

characteristics, the population of this high school has personal

shortcomings.

This center has 84 scholarships and applies the curricular

accommodations necessaries for the students.

It has the services of cafeteria, library, and photocopying. It is

important notice that this center involves its students in cultural

and sports activities.

In addition, in the subjects are included accounting and

computer science but the focus of those subjects are poor.

DISTRICTS OF DESAMPARADOS CANTON

POPULATION SAMPLE

The population in this research consists in the English teachers from

Liceo Nocturno de Desamparados and its students. Regarding to the

sample, there is one group by level.

DATA COLLECTING INSTRUMENTS

• Observation: some observations were made in order to detail the

English lessons and how those are developed.

• Survey: there was a survey applied to the students with the purpose

of being conscious about specific details about them.

• Interview: with the intention of knowing more about the teachers’

profile, an interview was applied

• Specific Objective 1: To obtain teachers’ opinions in regards to limitations presented by the students when learning a second/foreign language.

• Variable or category: The teacher

• Conceptual definition: The teacher is the person that guides the daily activities of the students in each English lesson, including in the study of this variable the methods applied by him/her as part of the teaching process.

• Operational Definition: In order to measure this variable, the English teachers are asked about their English lessons, how they develop them, what method they consider the most effective and the techniques applied to promote the four skills on the students.

• Instrumental Definition: In order to obtain the information for this variable, there is one observation applied for two of the lessons of the English teachers and they also have to complete an interview that will help to know more about the commitment from them respect to what they do in the class.

• Specific Objective 2: To identify the teaching method that is used in the English class by the teacher

• Variable or category: Teaching Methods

• Conceptual definition: The methods are the techniques used by the teacher to instruct English as a second language. The methods applied by the teachers in their lessons should promote the development of the four skills on the students.

• Operational Definition:To measure this variable, teachers are asked about the methods they use in their English lessons, how those methods are developed and how those methods help on the four skills’ improvement of the students.

• Instrumental Definition: In order to obtain the information for this variable, there is one observation applied on two lessons of each English teacher to identify the usage or misusage of the Communicative Approach. There is an interview applied to the teachers that provides to the researchers, the educators’ opinion about the Communicative Approach. The students have to answer a survey to identify their preferences during the learning process.

• Specific Objective 3: To distinguish how the environment affects the teachers and students commitment within the teaching and learning processes.

• Variable or category: The teachers and students` commitment with the language.

• Conceptual definition: For this research, the commitment with the language from both parts is the responsibility to be interested as students for getting the knowledge of the English language and as teachers to transmit to the students through the learning process the ability of transmit a message in English.

• Operational Definition: To measure this variable, teachers and students are asked about the barriers they consider as the most relevant that affects the English learning process, as well as their points of view regarding the English lessons. The teachers are asked about the solution they put in practice to eliminate those barriers.

• Instrumental Definition: In order to obtain the information for this variable, there is one observation applied to the lessons of each English teacher, also all of English teachers and students have to complete an interview and survey respectively to know the feeling they have at the time to share an English lesson.

• Specific Objective 4: To determine the learning barriers faced by the students in second language acquisition.

• Variable or category: The student

• Conceptual definition: For this research, the student is the person who is guided for the teacher to learn a new language, transmitted by the teacher that use different methods and strategies to achieve it; and as a part of the teaching and learning process is important to know how they acquired a second language.

• Operational Definition: To measure this variable, the students are asked about their points of view about the English lessons they receive as well as their learning preferences at the time of learning this second language in order to identify the interested presented on them for the language.

• Instrumental Definition: In order to obtain the information for this variable, there is one observation during the English lessons, and also some questions applied to the students as part of the survey.

Graph 1 CURRICULAR ACCOMODATION

(BYLEVEL)

Source: Survey applied to students from LiceoNocturno de Desamparados, 2014.

Graph 1 STUDENTS` OPINION ABOUT ENGLISH AS A DIFFICULT SUBJECT

(Total-Percentages)


Graph 1 APPREACION FOR THE ENGLISH

(TOTAL PERCENTAGES)


Graph 1 STUDENTS` LEARNING STYLE

(BYLEVEL)


Graph 1 STUDENT`S MOTIVATION TO LEARN ENGLISH

(TOTAL PERCENTAGES)


Graph 1 LANGUAGE USE IN THE CLASSROOM

(TOTAL PERCENTAGES)


CONCLUSIONS

• The Communicative Approach is not being applied during the English lessons.

• The students are not able to transmit a message in English and they do not show confidence

regarding the oral skills.

• There is a constant use of the Grammar Translation approach that brings as consequence the

monotonous classes and the lack of interest from the students to the subject.

• Due the population that includes different ages, is difficult for the teachers to control the behavior

of the students and to get the compromise from them to the subject.

• It is important to mention how affected are the lessons because of the dinning schedule that

interrupts the classes, for this reason some students loose the program of the class.

RECOMMENDATIONS • Teachers should apply the Communicative Approach in English lessons to help the students to develop their

skills.

• The English lessons need to include the four skills in order to provide to the students the confidence they

need at the time of speaking, through the activities developed in the lessons. To do that the student speaks in

English should be the main goal of English teachers.

• Teachers should make use of the Communicative Approach and change the routine on the lessons; they have

to increase the interest of the students using different techniques.

• Teachers should find different strategies to catch the students’ attention, and provide to the students

information about the importance of having a second language in order to increase the commitment with

English.

• The administrative part has to change the schedule for the students to take the dinner without affect the

lessons.

PROPOSAL

• General Objective: To develop activities based on the Communicative

Approach to promote its use in the classrooms at Liceo Nocturno de

Desamparados.

Specific Objectives:• To promote the implementation of the Communicative Approach in

the English lessons.

• To apply the different techniques and methodologies that Communicative Approach involves.

• To show the situation in which the students are involved in each

English class, to motivate the teachers to use the Communicative Approach.

a descriptive study on the misusage of the communicative approach at liceo nocturno de desamparados...

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