Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Volume 10. Number 4 December 2019 Pp. 374-386
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol10no4.27
English Majors’ Perceptions of Group Work and English Use in Group Activities
at Dong Thap University
Do Minh Hung
Foreign Languages Faculty, Dong Thap University, Cao Lanh City, Vietnam
Le Nhut Long
Foreign Languages Faculty, Dong Thap University, Cao Lanh City, Vietnam
Abstract
Pair/group work is now widely applied in virtually all types of classroom, and it is one of the prominent features of the learner-centered approach and the communicative method in English as a foreign language (EFL) classes. This study aimed to investigate three core questions (1) What do English majors at Dong Thap University perceive of group work? (2) How much do they use English in group work engagement? (3) What do they think about the given suggestions for English speaking deployment in group work? The data were collected via a questionnaire from 150 third/fourth-year English majors, Dong Thap University, Vietnam, and interviews with ten target students who had answered the questionnaire and agreed to partake in the interview. The obtained results show that most students highly appreciated the significant role of group activities and English use in group work. They also confirmed that Vietnamese speaking is still dominant in practice, and mostly agreed on several given suggestions to maximize generic benefits and other language learning merits produced by group work. Accordingly, the current study strongly advocates English use as much as possible in group activities performed by English majors.
Keywords: English majors’ perceptions, English use, group work
Cite as: Do, M. H., & Le, N. L. (2019). English Majors’ Perceptions of Group Work and English Use in Group Activities at Dong Thap University Arab World English Journal, 10 (4) 374- 386.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol10no4.27