DEVELOPING TEACHING MATERIALS FOR ESP PROGRAMS: AN EXAMPLE AT SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES – UEH

Vo Dinh Phuoc, M.A.

Introduction

The School of Foreign Languages at the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (SFL-UEH) is developing a new English training program for non-English major students. The goal is to replace the current General Business English program with English for Specific Purposes (ESP) programs, which will be more tailored to the students’ needs in their studies and future careers. In addition to developing the new programs, the SFL lecturers have compiled ESP teaching materials for several training majors at UEH. The materials design is undertaken under the approaches and models suggested by renowned scholars and educational experts. This paper briefly describes the process of designing ESP teaching materials with the aim of sharing experiences and highlighting the difficulties and challenges of this professional work.

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INVESTIGATING THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY DEVICES IN THE ENGLISH CLASSROOM FROM THE PERSPECTIVES OF THE STUDENTS AT VINH LONG CAMPUS – UEH UNIVERSITY

Nguyen Luong Hoang Thanh, M.A.

INTRODUCTION
In recent years, the proliferation of technology devices and their integration into various aspects of our daily lives has become increasingly evident. Among the various demographic groups, university students are known to be avid users of mobile devices, relying on them for communication, information access, and entertainment. However, the use of cellphones in educational settings, particularly in the classroom, has sparked debates and concerns among educators and researchers regarding its impact on students’ learning experience and academic performance. This research paper aims to explore the opinions and habits of university students regarding the use of technology devices in the classroom. By examining the attitudes of students and their actual habits during class time, this study intends to shed light on the reasons behind this behavior and its potential consequences.

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USING READABILITY TO MEASURE THE DIFFICULTY OF TEXTS IN ESP
MATERIALS DESIGN

                                                                                      Vo Dinh Phuoc, M.A.

Introduction

When dealing with materials design, teachers usually face issues such as material sources, appropriateness and relevance, teachability of content and tasks, or attuning to learners’ proficiency levels. In recent decades, many applications have been developed to assist language teachers and seemed to make innovative changes in teacher’s work. This paper addresses a tool of text analysis that scientifically interprets linguistic elements in measuring a text’s difficulty. This insightful method might have eliminated subjective judgments in selecting appropriate texts to develop materials suitable for their students’ difficulty level. In addition to providing a reliable measurement, this text analysis tool also helps save time, effort, and especially costs (most of which are free) to carry out activities and research projects related to language.

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LA LANGUE MATERNELLE EN CLASSE DE FLE

Nguyen Thi Thien Phuong

Résumé 

Dans le contexte éducatif contemporain, les approches pédagogiques relatives à l’enseignement des langues étrangères ont connu une évolution majeure, engendrant une réévaluation du rôle de la langue maternelle. Cet article analyse les courants méthodologiques du FLE afin de mettre en évidence les diverses fonctions de la langue maternelle dans le processus d’enseignement et d’apprentissage. La langue maternelle y apparaît tantôt comme une précieuse ressource, tantôt comme un écueil à éviter. Si certaines méthodes traditionnelles privilégiaient une immersion totale pour minimiser les interférences linguistiques, les avancées pédagogiques plus récentes reconnaissent les avantages cognitifs et linguistiques qu’elle procure. Ainsi, l’usage de la langue maternelle varie en fonction des approches méthodologiques adoptées, témoignant de l’évolution constante des courants didactiques.

Mots-clés : enseignement des langues – langue maternelle – courants méthodologiques

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UNDERSTANDING THE VALIDITY AND RELIABILITY OF
ASSESSMENT TESTS

Nguyen Luong Hoang Thanh, M.A.

ABSTRACT
It has long gone without saying that assessment has a crucial role to play in the process of teaching and learning of every subject. Another common knowledge is that designing an assessment procedure which appropriately demonstrates student capacity is not in the least easy. Among numerous characteristics of a well-designed test, validity and reliability should be attentively taken into account. If we are to interpret the score on a given test as an indicator of an individual’s ability, that score must be both valid and reliable (Bachman, 1990, 24). These two concepts are not only essential when analyzing and using measures of language abilities but also foremost to be considered when developing and giving tests. In light of this, the research paper will discuss in depth the validity and reliability of assessment tests as well as the intimate relationship between these two qualities.
Keywords: validity, reliability, assessment

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L’INFLUENCE DE LA LANGUE VIETNAMIENNE DANS L’APPRENTISSAGE DU FRANÇAIS LANGUE ÉTRANGÈRE (FLE)

Nguyen Thi Thien Phuong

Résumé

L’interaction entre la langue maternelle et l’acquisition d’une nouvelle langue est complexe. L’apprentissage des langues ne se limite pas au monolinguisme, mais implique des interactions interlinguistiques et culturelles. L’article explore comment le vietnamien peut faciliter l’apprentissage du français, grâce à des similitudes syntaxiques et des emprunts lexicaux. Utilisée judicieusement, la langue maternelle peut aider les débutants à surmonter les obstacles linguistiques, favorisant une expression orale fluide. Par ailleurs, les défis phonétiques et grammaticaux spécifiques aux locuteurs vietnamiens apprenant le français sont abordés. Une approche cognitive guidée par des enseignants compétents favorise la réflexion, la comparaison et la synthèse, renforçant la maîtrise linguistique. L’intégration avisée de la langue maternelle, la reconnaissance des similarités et différences entre les langues et une approche cognitive raffinée enrichissent l’apprentissage des langues étrangères, favorisant une compréhension et une maîtrise profondes.

Mots clés : Apprentissage – FLE – Langue maternelle – Approche cognitive

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HOW TO DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN THE PRESENT PERFECT AND SIMPLE PAST TENSES

Truong Thi Anh Dao, M.A.

When learning English, Vietnamese speakers often make grammatical errors related to tenses, especially when it comes to choosing between the simple past and present perfect tenses. For example, when translating a Vietnamese sentence that contains “đã” or “rồi” into English, learners often translate it using the simple past tense of the verb. This is correct when the action in the sentence is situated within a defined past time frame. However, when there is no specific time frame, these indicators can convey various meanings depending on the grammatical structure and context of the sentence.

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SMARTPHONE USE IN ENGLISH LANGUAGE CLASSROOMS

Thai Hong Phuc, M.A.

INTRODUCTION

A smartphone is a mobile phone that can be used as a small computer and that connects to the internet (Cambridge Dictionary). Its popularity has positively changed the ways people communicate and gain information. In addition to helping in communication, a smartphone is also an efficient mobile learning device which provides people with chances to learn anywhere and anytime.

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