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Running Head: ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT 1

Action Research Project

Carole A. Hanna

The University of Southern Mississippi

ACTION RESEARCH PROJECT 2

Abstract

The lack of effort in using the L2 in the classroom is always a problem and is a problem

in the classroom and naturally it is discouraging. The fact that normally outgoing students retreat

from making even the least amount of effort when pressed is a problem which is recurrent. I

asked students directly about this reaction and wanted to address it concretely.

An interview was conducted and 10 individuals were questioned as to what might make

this an easier transition and help the students to overcome this fear. Data was collected through

written responses, a questionnaire, interviews, and video-recording. The feedback from these

responses was implemented over a two week period and the results were helpful. Each student

responded in a similar fashion saying they were more comfortable working with a partner or very

small group to speak in the L2. Also the implementation of games and role playing was the most

popular suggestion.


Study

Step 1: Problem

What I wanted to look at during these two weeks was a way to better facilitate

speaking in the L2. Despite the comfort level and familiarity of the students with one another,

the problem remains entrenched and they seem to withdraw when pressed to speak. It is apparent

that the idea of speaking in French is an overwhelming, intimidating idea and the students go to

great lengths to avoid speaking in more than one or two word outbursts. If I call on them

individually, they will respond but not beyond the actual question asked and in the fewest words

possible. Even the more outgoing students are reticent when confronted with the idea of speaking

spontaneously. So I set about trying to ascertain what the problem was and how best to

implement a way to overcome it.

Step 2: Question formation

The goal I would like to achieve in my class is to have more spoken spontaneous

discourse in the L2. I wanted to ask how I can implement a plan to resolve this issue. It is a

source of irritation to me that the students are timid in the approach of anything that pushes them

out of their comfort zone and when something is presented, I still hear pockets of English being

spoken and very little French is carrying the conversation. The class I chose to work with is

comprised of ten students and the size of the class really plays in my favor to be able to force

these students to use more of the L2 in authentic second language discourse. The students are

able to understand a great deal of conversation in the L2 and are quite capable of responding to


questions with one or two word answers. However, it is difficult to get them to attempt to

actually converse with one another without resorting to almost English only scenario. As it is a

small group of only ten students and I have a good working relationship with them and a history

of almost three years of teaching, I am confident that I will have a response which is honest and

concrete.

Since the students I have in this class are generally cooperative and willing to

complete almost anything I give them, I decided this was definitely the class to approach with

some solid ideas. I devised a series of questions and put them into a questionnaire and asked

them to complete it for a quiz grade. I explained to them that the only requirement was that they

complete all the questions and that they were honest. If they did answer the questionnaire

honestly they would receive a 100% for the completion grade. I explained to them that I was not

at all interested in them being nice or reporting to me what they thought I might want to hear. I

only wanted their honest input for my own understanding. They met this idea with openness and

were willing to respond. They took the questionnaire home as I had asked that they give it some

reflection time before answering the more difficult questions. I have included the questionnaire

in the appendix.

I observed the students are afraid to speak without the control they have with the

L1 and they expressed the idea that they may look stupid or not be in control when they speak

and they find it very intimidating. Also the idea that they will fail because they lack the

vocabulary or the ability to speak prevents them from speaking or even attempting to speak

spontaneously.

The class I had chosen to look carefully at is interesting because I had taught

them already for the past two years. I am very aware of their strengths and weaknesses. I have


always used the L1 in the classroom for explanations and to help the students to be able to look

at differences and commonalities between the two languages. With the emphasis on

Communicative Language Teaching made, I wanted to take another look at the idea of

integrating the L1 in the classroom. The concept of using the mother tongue as a resource or as a

way to implement teaching to further encourage the TL is supported (Halasa, 2012). Alternating

languages to improve the student’s language skills and attempt to create a stronger base in the L2

is also important (Halasa 2012). Support from literature indeed justifies the use of the L1 to

explain concepts but after a concept is clarified, the use of the L2 should be more cohesive for

the student. Often students get caught up with something they do not understand and the L1

should be a tool to unblock the student to be more confident in the use of the L2. It is apparently

common for language students to shy away from using the TL in the classroom setting but since

others have encountered this difficulty, I was anxious to find remedies that have been tried by

others to overcome the problem. Without a strong guided exercise, it is noted that students will

avoid using structures of speech patterns which they do not feel they have mastered (Hubert,

2011). After discovering this idea, I decided to create an exercise which was controlled in scope

with a guided direction that the students would be able to elaborate on but still have a marked

framework to follow.

Another aspect that I considered for addressing the issue of authentic speech was

my own proficiency in the language. One reason I sought to take the MATL was to ameliorate

my own ability in the language, along with sound pedagogical study to be able to implement

actual use of the L2. I have always tried to either speak the TL or read the TL as much as

possible to maintain an ease and comfort level with the language. Armengual-Pizarro

emphasizes the need for the teacher in the language classroom to strive in achieving higher levels


of proficiency in the L2 and this in turn increases the facilitation of the L2 in the classroom and

also causes the teacher to exhibit confidence and by default promotes stronger teaching

(Armengual-Pizarro, 2007). This makes sense because the more comfortable I am in the target

language, the more relaxed the atmosphere becomes for my students. If indeed the students have

anxiety in attempting spontaneous discourse, the more at ease I am the more at ease the

ambiance for the student will become. Being immersed in the target language pushes the student

to be exposed to more vocabulary and a natural assimilation of new understanding. As the

student hears more of the L2, the language is more familiar and even if the response in speech is

delayed, the comprehension is augmented.

Step 3: Data Gathering

I set out to gather data to find out some ways to resolve the issues by

interviewing the students within the ten student class. The students responded with almost the

same answers. They were intimidated to speak with the entire group present and found it much

easier to speak with one or two others in a small group or paired setting. The idea of having a

specific task or assignment where there was role playing or acting out of a scenario was what

they thought was the best way to not fall back on English conversation. This was supported by

the study by Mikulec and Miller in using Project-Based Instruction. The use of communication

in meaningful tasks engages the students to use situations which serve a purpose and when they

work in pairs assist the learners to attain communicative competence (Mikulec, 2011). Seven out

of the ten students said they would do better in small groups where they had specific role play

activities to practice communication. If the activities were one on one, or small group settings

they were more comfortable. All ten of the students liked the idea of game playing because they

get very involved. Since the idea of communicative language teaching emphasizes the


development of communicative competence, developing a curriculum or choosing a curriculum

which allows the student to experience the L2 is the best way to accomplish what I want to

achieve (Savignon, 1987). Letting the students interact in a role playing scenario or a play acting

situation is not only a natural extension of normal activities carried out in childhood but also a

way to engage second language acquisition. These activities can engage the student

intellectually but also by using physical responses, the learning process is heightened (Savignon,

1987). Since the students seemed to be in agreement with controlled play acting scenarios, I

decided to attempt to implement this by giving the students small roles to play based on the

curriculum but allowing them to expand on the characters and make them their own. By using

the information gained already in the curriculum and personalizing it, the students would be able

to apply the knowledge gained and implement it into real life scenarios which will be more

readily accessible in non -scripted situations (Chiu-Yin, 2012). The other aspect the students

expressed was that they compared themselves to each other and to me and were acting under the

assumption that they were never going to be good enough or as good as the others around them

and this was a great intimidating factor. All of the students liked the immersion aspect of the

class because they expressed that it did help them with retention and they found the class became

easier over time. Once they got over the fear factor of not understanding everything immediately,

and understood that this is a natural way to learn language, they tried to develop what they did

know. The specific curriculum which is being used in class has a strong video component which

they like because it exposes them to other people who speak French and not just me or their

peers. . The exposure is also in a natural, controlled setting. Each lesson is a small slice of life

which they can easily apply to their own lives and thus the vocabulary should easily lend itself to

natural conversation. I need to develop an extension to the lesson which implements dialogue


and takes into account the lesson objectives without omitting the communication aspect I see as

necessary to really retain the information. They hear the video, they hear me and they need to

hear each other. The idea that they listen to many people speaking the target language is

important and aids a confidence in speaking and comprehension (Roy, 2012). I asked how much

they thought they actually spoke in the target language and the results were divided into three

camps. Four of the students who are generally shy shared similar responses for this answer.

(Group A) They said they spoke little, Responded that they actually avoided speaking in the

target language and that they were least comfortable speaking French when they thought anyone

could hear them. The middle group (Group B) which felt they didn’t avoid speaking the language

expressed that they were uncomfortable because they felt they simply were just not good enough

in the target language to make themselves understood, or couldn’t “dumb down” their thoughts

to the level of their French. The last three students (Group C) really liked to try and speak

because it was very helpful for them to learn how to express themselves. These three students

were generally the more outgoing, stronger students. All the students liked being asked questions

and they truly want to be able to speak in the target language.

Step 4: Plan

I decided to distribute a questionnaire to my students asking them what

they felt the best way to speak French more would be and when they felt the most comfortable or

the least comfortable speaking French. I also inquired as to how much they perceived they spoke

the target language and if they avoided speaking. Finally I asked if they would like to speak

more. I individually polled them to clarify a few responses and then watched a video of them

interacting in class. Prior to implementing a series of lessons to make them more interactive, I


noted each student’s oral contribution to the class. This was noted over 4 days. I also noted the

spontaneous interaction in the class to see the changes in interaction with the implementation of

the lesson plans.

Having looked at the results of the questionnaire, it was evident that my students

desire to speak the target language and in spite of some fears and discomfort, are willing to try.

For a week prior to implementing several lesson plans which expanded on the curriculum to

emphasize speech. I kept a record of how many times during the class the students spoke out in

the target language during the class. The results fell into the three camps. The students who were

in Group A were reluctant to speak and always made an attempt to answer me in the target

language if I asked them a direct question. None of them spoke out in a discussion spontaneously

during a discussion of the story or in response to anything unless they were directly questioned.

Group B offered a few spontaneous responses but also were willing to answer direct questioning.

Each offered a few spontaneous response per class period but only one word answers and very

hesitantly. The third group (C) was quick to answer oral questioning and offered short little

responses spontaneously.

The first few days of the lesson plans we had finished learning how to describe

each other and I implemented a game where the students had to draw a name out of a hat and

describe the person they chose in four to five short sentences so the others could guess who they

were describing. Each student had to do this spontaneously and the response was excellent. The

sentences varied in complexity based on the students ability but each student was involved and

seem to forget they were worried about the French and were more involved in the game. Each

student had no difficulty in expressing themselves and there was a lot of laughter and they

enjoyed the game. Afterwards they were pleased with their French and commented to each other


how much fun it was and asked to do it again. Over the next several days the assignment was

expanded to include anyone in the school which would be guessable to the other students. They

were excited to play again and seemed to forget it was in French. This time the students even

asked a few questions in French to clarify some points that were not clear. They offered

assistance in the form of correction and corrected each other with certain agreement issues and I

didn’t need to say anything. Although the sentences were simple in nature, they were able to

communicate spontaneously after learning the vocabulary and sentence structures given within

the story direction. The fact that they were able to apply the information to the situation of the

game was exciting. They were not ready to leave when the bell rang. It is obvious that the game

environment is a successful way to get their minds off the aspects of speaking that leave them

nervous and allow them to focus on the play at hand. The students who normally only respond

when spoken to or when asked a direct question responded. They volunteered to try to stump

their classmates. It was a joy to watch them come alive in the target language.

The following few days, an assignment was given to have the students pull a

question in the hat which concerned the story line. They had to answer the question for their

peers. They were to use 3-5 sent4ences and were able to also act out whatever necessary using a

charade type response. The students had to come up with the question which their peer gave the

answer to. Again the response was surprising. This was a bit more challenging but after several

questions, the students seemed to do better and again were assisting one another and having fun.

The interaction was truly spontaneous and the role play/game scenario seemed to take the

emphasis off the anxiety which was exhibited by the students, particularly Group A. Although it

took longer for them to be more comfortable in the role play, they too were able to participate

and communicate. I started the more gregarious students first so the more shy students could see


how the interaction took place and this also seemed to alleviate some anxiety as well. This game

required the students to use the vocabulary but also to apply what they had learned to a different

situation. By being able to guess what the question is to the answers provided, the students

became more comfortable in speaking out and also forming sentences in general. I was easily

able to see after several sessions that the sentence formation and the comfort level in producing

the L2 was coming quicker and with fewer mistakes. Since they were able to help one another, I

saw less discomfort in being corrected. Also noted was the fact that they self-corrected. There

was a moment when I noted several students who having heard themselves speak, they paused

and rephrased the sentence, correcting the previous grammatical mistake. The students really

were visibly pleased with the progress they made in speaking and have asked for more situations

where they can interact in the target language.

Step 5: Analysis and Reflection

At first the scenarios were more or less finite in nature; the results were more or

less stilted and had very little creativity in going past the boundaries set by the assignment. The

assignment was repeated several times and each time we expanded assignment and changed it

slightly to permit more spontaneity and involve different students. Finally with different

promptings on my part to expand on what they just said or by asking specific questions to have

them elaborate more, the students started to branch off of the initial scenario and make it more

realistic in nature and conversation started to take place. It was not very sophisticated but was

somewhat spontaneous and still went beyond the given assignment (Kahn, 2012). After having

the students describe scenes that came from the story line in their curriculum, the other students

were asked to find the question the other students were giving the answer to, the students


continued to apply the lesson to a more real life scenario and became more comfortable applying

the target language and their speed in speaking was more spontaneous as well.

By adding carefully open-ended questions into the dialogue, I was able to prompt

the students to continue without taking part in the role-play. I attempted to really exhibit more

positive reactions to their responses and affirming them as much as possible (Roy, 2012) this in

the hopes of changing a disparaging view of second language failure image. I feel the

intervention made a big difference. The students affirmed they were afraid to speak in the

questionnaire and when the situation of a game was presented, they were able to become so

involved with the game that their competitive natures overshadowed the fear to speak and within

a short amount of time the atmosphere of the class was different. It was not completely gone but

it was enough to note the ease in which the students were interacting. I believe the more

situations presented, the easier it will become for the students. Perhaps the fact these students

love to compete for grades and in sporting events assisted the outcome of the game in class. I

was generally surprised at the willingness of the more reticent students to want to participate.

What I learned most is that each class is unique and has its own flavor. I managed to tap in to the

interests of the students here by taking the time to ask what their likes and dislikes are so I was

able to tailor lessons to their particular interests within the context of the curriculum. I believe

that I will implement the use of a questionnaire with classes in the future because I see how

much more involved the students have become when they feel they have a say in the way they

can interact. Also the other question I wish to investigate is: Are there other areas of French

language learning they would like to explore? At first I was hesitant to do this in the classroom

because I thought I knew my class and the results from this project have shown me that I need to

be open to new ideas and be teachable like I expect my students to be teachable. It is also easy to


forget how difficult it is in the early stages of language acquisition to be overwhelmed and even

paralyzed when it is necessary to speak without any assistance.

Any area that can alleviate some of the stress and create an atmosphere of safety and security is

essential. These projects made the students feel as though they had a guideline and a well-

defined topic which gave them time to prep and review what they thought to be necessary for

their own comfort. The fact that they went beyond the defined borders of the assignment was a

plus and also helped me as well as the students to see what they were capable of.

Pre-Investigative Observation Data

Amount of spontaneous speech used in class prior to implementation of game/role play

scenarios. I have divided the students in this class into three groups which are described as

follows. I have done this so I could observe the changes based on what I already knew of the

students in the class. I felt this would delineate the changes and mark the differences in terms of

slight to dramatic if this was to be the case.

Students in Group A are generally more reticent and reserved and are not very

talkative in English. This group is very self-conscious and fears failure. On their questionnaires,

they all wished to speak more French, admitted avoiding any attempts to speak the language

unless spoken to, and thought they spoke little in the classroom. Their grades are on the average

in the B-B+ range.

The students I have marked in the Group B are the strongest grade-wise but are

not bold in attempting to speak out. They are high achievers on paper and have a grasp of the

information but are afraid of making mistakes orally. Grades are important and they are

somewhat of perfectionists. They thought they spoke an average amount in class, also admitted


to avoiding spontaneous speech for fear of making a mistake and looking “stupid”. But, each

stated that they desired to be able to speak more.

Group C is the boldest orally and academically they range from high to low.

They like to try to speak out and are less self-conscious. One student is top of the class and one is

at the bottom. They felt they spoke out a great deal, did not avoid speaking the language and

wanted to speak more. I recorded their oral participation over a 4 day period prior to

implementing a series of games. Each attempt at oral participation is marked with a slash.

Maria-Bllll

Brennan-Clllll lllll lllll lll

Lauryn-Alllll l

Antoine-Clllll lllll ll

Pete-Clllll lllll lllll llll


Post-Investigative Observation Data

This is the number of times spontaneous speech was observed when the lesson plans were

implemented and the role play/games occurred. This was during a six day period.

Suzanna-Alll

Megan-All

Pat -Clllll lllll lllll ll

Hailey-Blllll l

Kirsten-Bll

Maria-Blllll lllll ll

Brennan-Clllll lllll lllll lllll

lllll lll

Lauryn-Alllll lllll lllll l

Antoine-Clllll lllll lllll llll

Pete-Clllll lllll lllll lllll

lllll lllll llll


In comparing the spontaneous attempts of conversation I saw a marked increase

with the Group A, and a rise in Group B. Group C was improved but since I don’t have the issue

of being fearful or really intimidated by the others, I didn’t expect as dramatic a rise. After

looking at the increase with groups A & B, I feel the implementation of the new lesson plans was

successful.

Suzanna-Alllll lllll l

Megan-Alllll lllll lll

Pat -Clllll lllll lllll llll

lllll lllll ll

Hailey-Blllll lllll lllll

Kirsten-Blllll lllll llll


References

Amengual-Pizarro, M. (2007). How to respond to the demands set by the communicative

approach? New challenges second-language (L2) teachers face in the classroom.

European Journal of Teacher Education, 30(1), 63-73. doi:10.1080/02619760601120007

Brown, H.D. (2007). Principles of language learning and teaching. White Plains, NY: Pearson

Education.

Chiu-Yin, W. (2012). A Case Study of College Level Second Language Teachers' Perceptions

and Implementations of Communicative Language Teaching. Professional Educator,

36(2), 18-34.

Halasa, N., & Al-Manaseer, M. (2012). The use of the first language in second language learning

reconsidered. College Student Journal, 46(1), 71-81.

Hubert, M. D. (2011). Foreign language production and avoidance in US university Spanish-

language education. International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 21(2), 222-243.

doi:10.1111/j.1473-4192.2010.00276.x

Kahn, G. (2012). Open–ended tasks and the qualitative investigation of second language

classroom discourse. Journal of Ethnographic & Qualitative Research, 6(2), 90-107.

Mikulec, E., & Miller, P. (2011). Using Project-Based Instruction to Meet Foreign Language

Standards. Clearing House, 84(3), 81-86. doi:10.1080/00098655.2010.516779

Roy, S. (2012). Qui décide du meilleur français? Représentations des variétés linguistiques

du français en immersion. (French). Canadian Journal Of Applied Linguistics, 15(1),1-19.

Savignon, S. J. (1987). Communicative Language Teaching. Theory Into Practice, 26(4), 235.


Questionnaire Nom____________________________________________

1. How much do you think you speak French in the classroom?

2. Would you like to speak more French?

3. Do you avoid speaking French in the classroom?

4. Do you try to speak French in the classroom? When?

5. When do you feel most comfortable speaking French? (context)

6. When do you feel least comfortable speaking French? (context)

7. What activities would make you speak French more?

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