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UNIVERSIDAD DE JAÉN Centro de Estudios de Postgrado

Master’s Dissertation

EXPLORING NEW

METHODOLOGIES TO

TEACH ENGLISH

GRAMMAR IN

SECONDARY EDUCATION. A CASE STUDY.

Student: Pérez Fresneda, Nuria Tutor: Dr. Alfonso Jesús Rizo Rodríguez Dpt.: English Philology

November, 2016

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CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION 3

2. LITERATURE REVIEW 4

2.1. Towards the teaching and learning of Grammar 4

2.2. Towards the use of writing for learning a second language 7

2.3. Towards group learning to increase motivation 7

2.4. Towards the use of films when learning a foreign language 10

2.5. Towards the use of texts for learning a language 12

3. METHODOLOGY 14

3.1. Investigation type 14

3.2. Study questions 15

3.3. Research hypotheses 16

3.4. Research design 17

3.5. Sample 17

3.6. Variables 18

3.7. Instruments 19

3.8. Data collection

4. DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS

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4.1. Creation of a tale in groups 20

4.2. Studying a film sequence 22

4.3. Reading a text 23

4.4. Preferred method 24

4.5. Observation 24

4.6. Discussion of results 26

4.7. Limitations of the study 29

4.8. Suggestions for further research 30

5. CONCLUSION 32

6. REFERENCES 34

7. ANNEXES 41

7.1. Annex I: Film worksheet 41

7.2. Annex II: Text worksheet 42

7.3. Annex III: Tale questionnaire 43

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7.4. Annex IV: Film sequence questionnaire 44

7.5. Annex V: Text questionnaire 45

7.6. Annex VI: Permission 46

7.7. Annex VII: Observation questionnaire 47

TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1: Gender and frequencies of participants 17

Table 2: Gender and age 18

Figure 1: Creation of a tale in groups 21

Figure 2: Studying a film sequence 22

Figure 3: Reading a text 23

Figure 4: Preferred method 24

Table 3: Researcher’s observation 24

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1. INTRODUCTION

The teaching of grammar has been for decades a subject of study. The best way of introducing

grammar points, if it exists, has not been discovered yet, and some teachers keep presenting

structures as if they were teaching mathematics. Therefore, students learn by heart language

rules and grammar structures. The Spanish government is trying to alleviate the deficiencies

of the system, implementing a plan to compensate the low level of English that the students

are acquiring: bilingual education. Nonetheless, this practice needs time to consolidate and

demonstrate the expected results.

The present practical research is not aimed at discovering the best way of introducing

grammar aspects, but to determine whether different methods affect their motivation and level

of participation; its objective is to help bilingual and not bilingual students to learn grammar,

to raise their motivation and encourage them to continue learning English. ‘Grammar is the

art of rightly expressing our thoughts by words’ (Lowth, 1799: 1). As Lowth indicated,

grammar is needed when speaking and writing, and likewise to understand what is said and in

black and white. There are multiple ways of presenting grammar for the first time to the

students, taking into account that ‘for the first time’ refers to students in a standard educative

environment. The participants of the current study have experienced three different methods

of having first contact with specific grammatical aspects. In the first part, the students dealt

with grammar through the creation of a tale in a group task after investigating a specific

grammar structure themselves; the next method used to learn grammar was through a film

sequence in which the grammatical point was actively used and, finally, the last technique

studied was the reading of a text that included the content to be acquired. The students have

graded their degree of motivation when working the different approaches and their

participation has also been assessed since it could be related to their interest in the activity.

Finally, they have given their opinion about the usefulness of the methodologies used. The

students’ opinion together with the researcher’s observation will help to conclude which of

the approaches are most motivational.

This master’s dissertation is the product of the knowledge acquired in the online

master of English Studies. Different subjects have provided the necessary tools to carry out a

piece of research and others have furnished us with vital content to investigate in the

classroom. The ones directly related to this study are Research methodology and Academic

English, whose aim was to establish the basics in developing a research; Second Language

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Acquisition, which formed the basis of this study; and Research into Language Competence,

which demonstrated how to conduct research and analyse it.

In the present study the reader will find details of the methodology used in order to

collect, analyse and interpret the data. The aspects we are paying attention to in the research

are presented in the variables section, followed by the information about how and when the

data are collected. The techniques used to analyse the data are also specified and the results

will be presented at the end, accompanied by a discussion. Every research is limited by some

aspects and the researcher needs to define the deficiencies so as to guide further investigation;

therefore, the limitations will follow the results obtained. A complete list of references will be

provided at the end, but first of all, before carrying out the research, a revision of what has

been published is done, in order to investigate existing theories and approaches. Empirical

data will provide the starting point of our research, paying attention to the results of studies

directly connected to our investigation.

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1. Towards the teaching and learning of grammar

For decades different techniques have been used to teach grammar, always trying to ascertain

the best one. As Widodo (2006: 123) points out, ‘in the context of English as a Foreign

Language (EFL), teaching grammar has traditionally been dominated by a grammar-

translation method where the use of mother tongue is clearly important to elicit the meaning

of target language by translating the target language into native languages’. The Grammar

Translation Method (GTM) was renowned in the mid-nineteenth century, when Latin was the

language learnt so as to understand the written classics. Therefore, students only translated

and read texts for almost a century.

Due to the fact that GTM was the only known method of learning a second language,

the same technique was employed to learn other languages (Richards & Rodgers, 2014: 3).

Reactions to the GTM forced the appearance of a more practical technique, the Direct

Method, which focused attention on how children learn the mother tongue to apply it to

foreign language learning. The lessons were directed in the target language, no translation

was permitted, oral communication was essential, grammar was taught inductively and many

more procedures that are apparent when learning a second language were implemented. The

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Direct Method did not succeed as only native people could conduct the lessons and public

education could not afford such teachers (Richards & Rodgers, 2014: 4).

In the 1950s psychology started to be applied to language learning and different

approaches emerged. The Audiolingual Method ‘stressed habit-formation, pattern practice,

and inductive training procedures’ (Danesi, 2000: 7). On the other hand, the Audiovisual

Method was very similar to the Audiolingual but with one significant difference: it introduced

visual material that would be an improvement in the field (Danesi, 2000: 7). Both methods

were not practical for the students they trained spoke the foreign language as if they were

robots. Humanistic approaches would surface in the 1970s, instructional-oriented in

preference to content-oriented (Knibbeler, 1989: 8). In the Silent Way developed by Caleb

Gattegno, the teacher remains silent and the students discover the language with the help of

coloured rods that represent sounds (Knibbeler, 1989: 9). This approach let the students be the

axis of the lesson. Another method that appeared was Suggestopedia, created by Lozanov,

who believed the atmosphere where learning takes place must be comfortable, soothing and

appealing (Knibbeler, 1989: 9). However, although the idea of boosting the students was

valued, the technique he used was translating texts into the first language, which was not very

practical.

The next approach to be mentioned is the Community Language Learning developed

by Charles Curran; in this method we find the students making active use of the language at

their convenience, they are not forced to participate until they are ready. Materials are given

when the students require them and the teacher is a facilitator of knowledge, not the leading

role (Knibbeler, 1989: 10).

James J. Asher hypothesized that students would learn the second language as they

learnt their first one, following commands and reacting with their body. He called the method

Total Physical Response (Dhority, 1999: 30). This method seems useful when learning active

verbs and specific vocabulary, but when dealing with abstract concepts other resources would

be needed.

The last humanistic approach presented is the Natural Approach, designed by Stephen

Krashen and Tracy Terrell. Their objective was to teach communicative abilities taking into

account different hypotheses about factors that typify the students: the Acquisition-Learning

Hypothesis, which distinguishes different ways of mastering a language; the Natural Order

Hypothesis, because the authors believe that learning a language follows an order that will

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occur naturally; the Monitor Hypothesis, which integrates the students as capable critics of

their own productions; the Input Hypothesis, as the learners need to be exposed to as much

language as possible before producing output; and finally the Affective Filter Hypothesis

focusing on the need of the students to be comfortable when using a language, and their need

to be attracted to learning. (Krashen & Terrell, 1995: 57).

After the aforementioned approaches took their part in developing the field of

language learning and teaching, the Communicative Approach occurred. In Flowerdew and

Miller’s words (2008: 12) ‘the communicative approach is based on the premise that what we

do in the classroom should have some real-life communicative value’. The communicative

approach focuses on communicative activities; it considers acceptable every grammatical

form used as long as the student accomplishes the task (Flowerdew and Miller, 2008: 13).

One of the latest methodologies employed is the Content Language Integrated Learning

(CLIL). This approach integrates language and content; through the teaching of content in the

second language, the students are expected to acquire the language while they focus the

attention on learning the content (Ruiz & Jiménez, 2009: 63).The approaches that have

emerged in the language teaching arena since the nineteenth century have led practical

implementations to supersede passive practices. The current approaches employed in the

classroom emphasize the role of the learner as an active participant, establishing the goal in

making them productive agents in society through activities that allow them to use the

language in a practical way.

The aforementioned distinction of learning and acquisition made by Krashen, is

pivotal in the language teaching scenario. As Gass (2013: 282) posits: ‘acquisition is used in

language production, when learners are focused on meaning. Learning then checks what is

generated by that acquired system to ensure that the forms are accurate’. Consequently,

acquisition is unconscious; the learner does not learn a specific grammar point on purpose but

absorbs it while focusing on a different content. On the other hand, while learning, the

individual is aware of the process.

When teaching grammar, a distinction must be made between deductive and inductive

learning; in the former procedure, grammatical rules are presented before completing specific

tasks, so that students learn the norm and then apply it; in the latter, examples are given first

and the learners deduce the rules, therefore the elucidation of rules is the last step (Dash &

Dash, 2007: 95).

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The study of the different approaches used is the cornerstone of our study, in order to

present different methods of introducing grammar to the students to discover the most

motivational one. Acquisition and learning, deductive and inductive grammar, active

participation of the students and the role of the teacher as a facilitator are some features that

are implemented in our research.

2.2. Towards the use of writing for learning a second language

Productive skills seem to be the hardest to develop. Teaching writing is a complicated task,

and trying to motivate students through the creation of a composition sounds even tougher.

The aim of the study is not to develop writing skills, but to determine whether creating a

composition to practice a specific grammatical aspect motivates students and its results in

language learning. Different studies have been developed to examine how students can feel

motivated to writing, such as the one by Buyse (2006), who researched different techniques to

stimulate students to write texts; and the research carried out by Vengadasamy (2002), which

studied the different responses students have when receiving directive and facilitative

feedback of a composition. As has been mentioned, the goal of the inclusion of writing in this

study is a different one; it will focus on the technique as a way to promote motivation. Far too

little attention has been paid to use the creation of compositions as a driver of motivation.

This study will start to fill that gap.

Related to the use of writing for learning a second language in this research is group

learning. The argument that group working increases motivation has already been developed

by scholars and researchers.

2.3. Towards group learning to increase motivation

The teaching of languages has changed a lot since the characteristics of the students have also

varied. Nowadays, students demand new methods to work with new content, new approaches

to fully activate their brain’s machinery. According to Elwyn, Greenhalgh and Macfarlane

(2004: 8) “learning is best done by reflecting, discussing and doing, rather than by receiving.”

Group learning presents an activity that must be done in groups, where each member plays a

role and the whole group benefits from their individual work. This technique helps the

students to discover content, share the acquired knowledge, benefit from the qualities of other

members of the group and advantage the one that has difficulties in learning. As Elwyn,

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Greenhalgh and Macfarlane (2004: 8) posit “group work is an extremely powerful tool for

achieving deep learning in an educational setting, building teams and effecting organisational

change, undertaking complex tasks such as problem solving, strategic planning and

redesigning processes.” The aim of this practice is to make the students active agents in the

learning process, discovering the content in a cooperative way while promoting social skills.

Existing empirical evidence supports the use of group learning to increase motivation,

participation and learning. Drakeford (2012) conducted a study of cooperative learning

strategies on two secondary students. The focus were two male students whose contribution in

class was deficient. Both learners were involved in small group working and the time they

participated in the task was measured. Results revealed that students increased their

participation indicating that small group work is effective in this area.

Alezi (2016) carried out a quasi-experimental study to find out the effects of

cooperative learning strategies on reading skills and their attitude to the technique. The results

demonstrate that cooperative learning improves reading skills as the experimental group had

better outcomes than the control group. It also proved that the students’ attitude towards the

method studied was more positive than the attitude of those following a traditional technique.

In a study that sought to identify gender-related effects of group learning on

Mathematics achievement, Hossain (2012) studied male and female students’ performance in

group learning. The sample was made up of 168 students from four secondary schools; 84

were assigned to the control group and 84 were part of the experimental group. The findings

support the use of group learning to improve the students’ Mathematics achievement. The

researcher highlights the effects of group learning on shy students, who increased their

participation thanks to the methodology. Finally, female students outperformed male students

on Mathematics achievement, so it suggests that a gender difference exists when working on

Mathematics in groups.

The present methodology has not only been the focus of attention for primary and

secondary teachers and researchers; university students have also taken part in the study of the

success of group learning. Wen & Shoukuan (2014) carried out some research that

underscored the satisfaction of graduate students with group learning in comparison with

traditional instructor-led lessons in EFL. The study involved 74 graduate students, 35 were

part of the experimental group and 39 followed a traditional methodology in the control

group. The results indicated that the learners involved in group-based learning instruction

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were more satisfied than the ones following the traditional method. The findings also support

the success of group learning in promoting effective student learning.

The differences among students are noticeable; a teacher cannot expect that all the

students that take part in a class learn the same way. Therefore, learning styles have been the

matter of study of several researchers and the opposition individual-group learning has been

scrutinized. Unexpectedly, the results of the majority of the studies point at individual

learning as the chosen one before group learning. Reid (1987) studied the learning styles of

1,388 native and non-native speakers of English from nine countries. The styles that Reid paid

attention were visual, auditory, kinaesthetic, tactile, group and individual. The author created

the Perceptual Learning Style preference Questionnaire (PLSPQ) to develop the investigation.

The vast majority of the participants preferred kinaesthetic learning, followed by tactile,

auditory, visual, individual and group learning. Malaysian students rated group learning the

highest compared to the other learners. On the other hand, English speakers rated individual

learning the highest.

Reid’s questionnaire was used by Karthigeyan and Nirmala (2013). Their objective

was to ascertain the predominant learning style predilection of English language learners. 582

students from higher secondary schools were taken as participants. The study took into

account demographic variables such as gender, locality, nature of school board and the

characteristics of the class they were studying. The preferred learning style was visual,

followed by auditory, individual, group and kinaesthetic. Analysis show that girls preferred

group learning rather than individual, opposite to boys. The same way, students from rural

areas, unlike urban people, preferred group learning.

Bokyung and Haedong (2014) studied the learning style preferences of 496 Korean

university-level EFL learners. This quantitative analysis examined whether the students

preferred auditory, visual and individual learning styles or tactile, kinaesthetic and group

learning styles. The results indicate that the students adapt to every method and their reactions

are favourable. However they show their preference for auditory, visual and individual styles.

Although Reid’s study was made in a different century, Karthigeyan and Nirmala

(2013) and Bokyung and Haedong (2014) obtained the same results regarding group learning.

They also agreed that further investigation needs to be done on the matter, as a different

learning environment could lead to different results, paying attention to the learning practices

of the time and the culture.

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There is ample evidence that group learning can collaborate to motivate students,

which supports the presence of such methodology in the current research. However, as has

been noted before, when analysing different learning styles group learning is not among the

favourite. The present study is going to help to continue the investigation and examine the

preferences of a group of students and the most motivational and fruitful learning style.

Apart from group working, another methodology used in this study to introduce grammar is

through films.

2.4. Towards the use of films when learning a foreign language

Films have been used in the teaching of languages for decades, as it is a way of introducing

new settings, characters and dialects. Vizcaíno (2007: 16) notes that “el cine está visto como

un acto y situación de comunicación. Es en este tratamiento en donde se exponen de forma

más explícita las funciones, los recursos lingüísticos y las situaciones reales en las que el

alumno se puede encontrar, y la manera de afrontarlo con éxito”. Donaghy (2014) defends the

use of films as a tool to teach languages as they are part of the students’ lives. Therefore, it

seems pivotal to present everyday instruments available at every home to teach a language.

Moreover, he states that the use of films in the class is a motivating way to make the subject

engaging and enjoyable. According to the same author, an entire film or sequence is useful to

practice reading and listening, and can be used as an exemplar for speaking and writing.

Discussions, role plays, debates and summaries are follow-up tasks that can be done thanks to

the viewing of films.

The inclusion of videos to motivate students and facilitate the learning of languages

has been studied by many researchers. Ljubojevic, Vaskovic, Stankovic and Vaskovic (2014)

studied the efficiency of videos in increasing learners’ awareness of important data in lectures

and their motivation for learning in Bosnia and Herzegovina. A homogeneous group of 46

undergraduate people were taken as participants. During a lecture, supplementary videos were

inserted before, in the middle and after the lecture. After the speech, the participants had to

answer 20 questions related to the lesson they had just received. The research demonstrates

that videos engage and motivate students’ learning. The division of the lecture in different

parts separated by videos proved to be very effective. Finally, the most efficient method of

inserting supplementary videos is in the middle of the speech, although the presence of one

video at the beginning could motivate students towards learning.

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Gaudence, Too and Nabwire (2013) carried out an experimental research to investigate

how videos improve motivation and enhance learning of landform in Geography. The

research embraced 194 participants in secondary education residents in Kenya. The

experimental groups were taught using videos and control groups followed traditional

instruction for four weeks. The results of the pre-tests and post-tests show that a high

percentage of the participants were motivated to study on their own as their interest increased.

Moreover, the study concludes that video facilitates the understanding of contents compared

to conventional teaching techniques.

A piece of research carried out by Hsin and Cigas (2013) studied the effects of adding

relevant videos to an online course in Computer Science/Mathematics in the USA. The data

collected compares the results of the same course in 2005, 2009, 2011 and 2012. In 2011 the

instructor of the online course wanted to alleviate the number of questions and doubts the

students had. In order to do that, the teacher recorded a video to clarify doubts the third week

of the course, creating more videos for the remaining weeks. A total of 60 videos were

recorded by the instructor due to the positive feedback received. In 2012 the instructor

continued creating videos and the results indicate that the recordings helped students to

improve retention, and their performance in the specific tasks posed by the teacher was higher

due to their motivation.

However, not only instructional videos related to the content to be studied could be

used in the class; as has been said before, films are relevant tools that could be applied in the

teaching of languages. A case study developed by Tuncay (2014) in Turkey studied the use of

films in the EFL class. The participants, 100 students at the tertiary level, were surveyed to

analyse the consequences of the integration of films in the syllabus. The results revealed that

the use of films motivate students, help them to develop listening skills and make them aware

of different accents and informal vocabulary and expressions. However, the study indicates

that using films without previous and post-viewing work would decrease the positive

influence of the resource.

Ismaili (2013) studied the effectiveness of films in the EFL classroom. The

participants, 60 students between the ages of 18-25 from Macedonia, took park in the research

that lasted three months. The experimental group worked with videos of a specific novel and

the reading of the text and the control group followed a conventional methodology. The

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results show that movie-based teaching increases motivation, which leads to a more effective

learning of the content.

One of the most recent studies is the one made by Kabooha (2016) in Saudi Arabia.

The aim of the research was to examine the attitudes of learners and teachers towards the use

of films to develop the students’ skills. Fifty female intermediate students were the

participants of the research, who had to complete some questionnaires and interviews.

Additionally, teachers were interviewed and they had to write reflective journals regarding

their experience of using films to motivate students as well as improving linguistic skills. The

outcomes of the research point at films as a resource that has beneficial effects on improving

linguistic skills, a resource that encourages students to participate in discussions and that

motivates them to learn a second language.

The research that has been made on the topic gives enough background as to continue

investigating the use of films as a motivating way of presenting grammar. On the other hand,

reading is another practice that is expected to increase motivation while learning a second

language.

2.5. Towards the use of texts for learning a language

Reading a text is a tactic of working on grammar and vocabulary in context; new

words and structures come to life thanks to the grammatical items that surround them and let

them have meaning and sense. Connected to this, Outaleb (2015) carried out a piece of

research to investigate the grammar teaching techniques used in the Moroccan University

EFL classrooms. The author found out that the vast majority of the teachers employ a

deductive approach, while the students consider the inductive one more appropriate as

grammar is presented in a practical way. Reading is an output resource that lets the students

have contact with grammar and vocabulary in context, which is pivotal to language learning.

Falvey and Kennedy (2006) state that literary texts are not present in the foreign language

classroom since the learners will not need to read literature in their forthcoming jobs or such

reading will not help them with their exams; however, texts should be used as an incentive

and not an ideal to imitate. Different authors support reading texts as a motivating activity and

developer of language learning. Schraw, Flowerday and Lehman (2001) explored different

techniques of increasing interest in the classroom. Among their proposals was the selection of

well-organized texts, which proves to be an engaging activity if the texts are coherent,

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relevant and vivid. Knutson (1998: 3) argues that ‘when readers are asked to read a text with a

particular focus or angle, both their reading interest and retention of text material are

heightened’, so, the students will acquire better the content if they are aware of the purpose of

the reading.

Using texts to improve language learning has attracted the interest of researchers.

Related to that issue, Zhang (2012) studied how previous grammatical knowledge and

vocabulary contributed to second language comprehension. The participants were 190

advanced Chinese students of English as a second language. The results demonstrate that

previous grammar knowledge is not as strongly predictive of students reading comprehension

as vocabulary knowledge. Therefore, when working with a new grammar content in a text,

students would understand the information if the vocabulary is familiar to them.

A study made by Rodrigo, Krashen and Gribbons (2004) involved 23 intermediate

English-speaking learners of Spanish. They were divided in three groups; the first practiced

extensive reading, the second developed reading-discussion activities and the third was the

control group. The objective was to study the relationship between reading and the

development of grammar in second language. The study revealed that the reading-discussion

group improved meaningfully, showing a great difference. The reason is that students of the

reading-discussion group took part in debates and their participation was very active.

Another piece of research carried out by Mahmoudian, Ramezaney, Safari and

Rezvanifar (2011) investigated if exposure to grammatical structures in readings improved the

students’ mastery of grammar. Sixty 15-year-old students participated in the study that lasted

two months. Thirty students formed the experimental group and the other half composed the

control group. The results conclude that extensive reading can be extremely effective to learn

grammatical structures. In addition, the attitude of the students in the experimental group

towards grammar improved considerably.

Extensive reading consists in the reading of many texts for general understanding,

enjoyment and facilitating the acquisition of a language. Dupuy (1997) examined the

preferences of 49 intermediate-level students of French as a foreign language involving two

teaching practices: traditional grammar presentation and practice, and extensive reading.

Different text types were studied in the class and little time was devoted to grammar

instruction. The participants also had to read self-selected texts at home. The results of the

research show that the vast majority of the students prefer a combination of assigned readings

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and self-selected ones rather than grammar instruction and practice. They defined extensive

reading as enjoyable, challenging and very useful. On the other hand, they described

traditional grammar teaching as tedious and boring.

University students have also been the target of this type of research. Alzu’bi (2014)

investigated the effectiveness of extensive reading on improving EFL students’ reading,

grammar and vocabulary. Forty-one students from Jordan took part in the research that lasted

three semesters. The findings of the study show that extensive reading improves the students’

reading speed, it stimulates learning to read in order to enjoy the content of the texts,

vocabulary and grammar are improved with this practice and, finally, motivation increased as

the students were able to understand more unknown words through context as they read more

texts.

The inclusion of texts as a resource to acquire grammar aspects and increase

motivation is necessary according to previous research, which demonstrates that is an

effective tool for every level that allows students to learn in a practical way.

3. METHODOLOGY

3.1. Investigation type

The present practical research is a small investigation executed in a class with the purpose of

evaluating the increase of students’ motivation and participation using different techniques to

present grammar. Three types of presentation are used:

1) Creation of a tale in small groups. The acquisition of the grammatical aspect is

expected to develop through their work on the content of the composition. Past Perfect

is the structure practised with this technique. The students have to find information

about the Past Perfect tense and use it in a tale. This productive technique has its focus

in the way students work in groups; gathering and sharing information about a specific

tense, and the tale that is created; how they are able to produce a text with content they

have learnt themselves.

2) The use of a film sequence to introduce the Third Conditional. Before studying the

structure, the students become aware of the use of it by watching a scene of The

Curious Case of Benjamin Button, where the grammatical structure is used in context.

After the film sequence, there is a follow up activity to reinforce the learning (see

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annex I). This receptive technique focuses on how the learners process the new

language and how they understand what is presented.

3) Reading a text where Reported Speech is included. Again, before studying the

structure, the participants find on a printed page the new grammatical aspect to be

acquired (see annex II). After the reading activity, the students are encouraged to find

the structures written in Indirect Speech and to guess how they would be in Direct

Speech. This is a receptive method whose aim is to determine to what extent reading

helps to integrate new grammar into the students’ minds.

The first technique includes a brief explanation of the verb tense made by the students,

while the others introduce in an indirect way the content to be studied. Therefore, there is a

deductive methodology in which the students have to learn the rules and apply them

consciously, and two inductive techniques that allow the students to internalize the rules

according to context.

After the introduction of each teaching method, the participants follow the activities

designed in the students’ book assigned for the course. The activities contain exercises to

practice the specific grammatical aspect, a text that includes the new content followed by

questions of general and specific understanding (in the last technique which presents Indirect

Speech through a text, the students read a different one), a listening activity focused on the

grammar and vocabulary of the unit and a speaking activity that forces the learners to apply

what has been studied in different practical contexts.

This study is aimed at answering some questions related to the motivation of the

students and the different ways used to present grammar.

3.2. Study questions

Several questions focus the attention of the research:

Which technique motivates the students most?

Is their motivation related to their participation?

Which is the most useful method to present grammar?

Do students prefer to learn grammar in an inductive or in a deductive way?

The research instruments are questionnaires and observation. One questionnaire is

completed after working each of the contents of the different techniques (see annexes III, IV

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and V) and a specific question is included in the last questionnaire to gather information to

compare the three methodologies. The first question posed in the research will be answered

thanks to the questionnaires used. The response of the second question will result from the

comparison between the data collected about their motivation and their degree of

participation. The third question will be answered thanks to the students’ opinion and the

researcher’s findings. Finally, the last question will be analysed thanks to specific question

that can be found in the final questionnaire. The results will be analysed in a different section.

This research possesses several characteristics of qualitative and quantitative research. It

is qualitative since the data have been collected through observation and questionnaires.

Nonetheless, the questions designed for the questionnaires (see annexes III, IV and V) were

prepared in a way that they could be quantified.

3.3. Research hypotheses

The hypotheses made are based on the revision of previous research and previous work with

the group of learners.

Traditional grammar teaching does not motivate students; they can find motivation in

working in groups and watching films. Through group work the learners share their

knowledge, work with their friends and the atmosphere is appropriate to learning.

Films have a visual and auditory impact that attract the students’ attention, which may

be a necessary characteristic to engage them into learning.

A student that is motivated to learn and understands the content that is being worked

will feel inspired to participate and share their knowledge, because motivation is

connected to confidence.

The most useful methods to introduce grammar to students are the use of films and the

creation of a tale. Motivation and participation would increase with these methods as

people like watching films and working in groups is an active way of learning. These

techniques may help the students to acquire the language in context, which is said to

be more fruitful.

Inductive learning is best, as it is unconscious and the student makes little effort to

assimilate the information. On the other hand, this type of learning may be ineffective

to people that do not usually deduce content for some reasons such as not having

practice at deducing, or being unable to reason alone. Therefore, it is expected that the

17

participants select deductive learning as their preference since they are not used to

induce grammar content.

3.4. Research design

Our practical research is carried out putting into practice the different theories based on

motivation and having as a basis the previous research made on the topic. The study is

analytical, focusing the attention on how the different methods stimulate the learners.

According to the purpose, the study is heuristic or inductive as it seeks to derive general

principles. This primary research is centred on students who are learning English as a second

language. Given the fact that the participants are part of a small group which was already

established, we are referring to a case study. As has been mentioned before, the type of data

collected in this quasi-experimental research is quantitative and qualitative. Lastly, although

the data will be collected after the practice of each methodology and when finishing the three

techniques, the research is cross-sectional as the first, second and third questionnaires are

made at a specific points in time and the extra question included in the third questionnaire

aims at gathering conclusive information, not changes over time. The method of analysis

followed is both interpretive and statistical; it will take into account the researcher’s notes and

observation as well as the data gathered with the questionnaires.

3.5. Sample

The participants of the case study are 30 members of the I.E.S. Francisco de Quevedo in

Villanueva de los Infantes, Ciudad Real. Their age is between 15 and 17 years and there are

different levels of English language in the class; the vast majority have an intermediate level,

some are elementary and a few are high-intermediate. They belong to 4th

of Compulsory

Secondary Education. The number and gender of participants are presented below, as well as

their age:

Gender Frequencies Percentage

Male 17 56.7%

Female 13 43.3%

TOTAL 30 100%

Table 1: Gender and frequencies of participants

18

15 years old 16 years old 17 years old Total

Males Females Males Females Males Females

5 5 9 5 3 3 30

16.7% 16.7% 30% 16.6% 10% 10% 100%

33.4% 46.6% 20% 100%

Table 2: Gender and age

As can be read in the charts, the majority of the participants are males whose age is 16

years old. Women represent 43.3% of the participants and their age is well distributed. Those

students whose age is 17 are repeating the year.

The course book followed is English Alive 4 (Oxford), and the grammatical points

studied correspond to units 8 and 9. Nevertheless, the texts used to acquire the Reported

Speech have been taken from Passport for ESO 4 (Burlington) The research was undertaken

in the last months of the third term of the course 2015-2016 (18th

April – 16th

June). The

duration of the session of grammar introduction through a film sequence is 50 minutes, as

well as the session of grammar acquisition through texts. Four lessons of 50 minutes each

were dedicated to the creation of a tale.

The goal behind gathering data from this group is to increase motivation and

participation as the learning of grammar is a difficult task for them. They were aware that they

were taking part in a piece of research and their attitude was favourable. As the participants

are under age, an authorization was signed by their legal tutors (see annex VI).

3.6. Variables

The objective of the present research is to determine whether different techniques increase the

learners’ motivation and to define if their participation is related to that. Therefore, the

methodologies used (presenting grammar through films, texts and the creation of a

composition in groups) are the independent variables as they are the fixed components of the

study. On the other hand, the dependent variables are the students’ satisfaction with the

activity, their participation and their degree of motivation. The moderator variables in this

case are gender, the attendance to private lessons of English as a Foreign Language and the

linguistic competence of the students.

19

3.7. Instruments

The research is qualitative and quantitative, mainly qualitative due to the nature of the

information it gathers, which is degree of motivation, participation and the learners’

preferences. These aspects are difficult to be numbered, but the questionnaires have been

designed to give approximate quantities to both facets. The questionnaires (see annexes III,

IV and V) have been done after the students completed the examination of each grammatical

aspect and after they finished the three teaching methods. The questions, which are written in

Spanish, are aimed at collecting information about the point of view of the students and to

measure, as far as possible, the response to every technique. There are 3 questions in the

questionnaire made after the use of each teaching method (see annexes III, IV and V), the aim

of questions 1-2 is related to the motivation driven by the presentation of the grammar aspects

and the task that followed. Question 1 refers to the students’ motivation produced by the

activity, which determines if they believe the methodology has altered their motivation. The

second question is a self-assessment about their participation in the activities proposed. The

last question discusses the learners’ opinion about the methodology used, gathering in an

approximate number their belief in the usefulness of the methods. In the final questionnaire

made by the participants (see annex V) there is an extra question that gathers the students’

preference towards the different methods of introducing grammar. This question includes the

traditional method that was used during the rest of the course, which embraces the teacher as

the main instructor of grammar points. At the end of each questionnaire the students are given

the option to append any comment about the research, the aspects studied and everything they

consider important to mention.

Regarding the observation, the researcher had to complete a different questionnaire

(see annex VII). The number of students present in each lesson was taken into account, since

the absence of one of them could modify the results. There are four questions in the

questionnaire: the first one assesses the attention paid by the participants according to the

observation of the researcher. Question 2 refers to the level of the students’ participation in

the tasks presented. The third question refers to the teacher’s intervention to assist the

participants in the process of learning the grammatical aspect and the last one gathers

information about the effectiveness of the teaching method. A final option is given for the

investigator to write different observations and commentaries that could be significant for the

research.

20

3.8. Data collection

The data collection began after establishing the research questions according to a situation

that was observed in class: the lack of motivation when presenting grammar aspects. The next

step was examining previous research and publications about the different methods used to

approach grammar. Once the publications had been reviewed, the design of the study was

made, the objectives established and the methodologies selected. The development of the

study produced results that permitted us to draw conclusions to answer the questions posed.

4. DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS

The findings of the present research have been divided into six sections; the first three

sections are devoted to discovering the level of motivation and participation provoked by the

different teaching methods and the usefulness of each technique according to the participants’

opinion. The fourth section is devoted to comparing the different methods. The fifth section

concludes which method is preferred by the students according to the last question of the third

questionnaire (see annex V). Finally, the data collected by the researcher is shown in the sixth

section.

4.1. Creation of a tale in groups

The following section provides a summary of the responses given in the student questionnaire

items related to the introduction of a grammar aspect through the creation of a tale in groups.

21

Figure1: Creation of a tale in groups

As indicated in Motivation in Figure 1, 10% of the participants strongly disagreed that

creating a tale in groups increased their motivation, 23% disagreed, 30% remained neutral,

while 20% agreed and 17% strongly agreed.

As to students’ responses about their participation in the activity, none of the learners

strongly disagreed that creating a tale in groups increased their participation, 20% disagreed,

27% remained neutral, 33% agreed and 20% strongly agreed.

An examination of the utility of the teaching method in figure 1 reveals that 10% of

the participants strongly disagreed that it is a useful technique, 23% disagreed, 37% remained

neutral, while 17% agreed and 13% strongly agreed.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Motivation Participation Utility

10%

0%

10%

23%

20%

23%

30%

27%

37%

20%

33%

17% 17% 20%

13%

Per

cen

tage

of

freq

uen

cies

Opinion given

Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree

22

4.2. Studying a film sequence

Figure 2: Studying a film sequence

On the basis of an assessment of responses, none of the participants strongly disagreed that

studying a film sequence to learn a grammar aspect increased their motivation, 7% disagreed,

36% remained neutral, 30% agreed and 27% strongly agreed.

Regarding participation, as indicated in Figure 2, 3% of the students strongly

disagreed that the activity increased their participation, 13% disagreed, 27% remained neutral,

33% agreed and 20% strongly agreed.

As to students’ responses about the utility of film sequences to learn a specific

grammar aspect, none of them disagreed, 40% remained neutral, 27% agreed and 33%

strongly agreed.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Motivation Participation Utility

0%

3%

0%

7%

13%

0%

36%

27%

40%

30%

33%

27% 27%

20%

33%

Per

cen

tage

of

freq

uen

cies

Opinion given

Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree

23

4.3. Reading a text

Figure 3: Reading a text

On the basis of an assessment of responses about motivation when reading a text to learn a

specific grammar aspect, 3% of the participants strongly disagreed that their motivation

increased when working with the text, 23% disagreed, 47% remained neutral, 17% agreed and

10% strongly agreed.

Regarding participation, as indicated in Figure 3, 3% of the participants strongly

disagreed that their participation increased thanks to the technique, 30% disagreed, 37%

remained neutral, while 13% agreed and 17% strongly agreed.

Based on students’ responses about the utility of the reading of a text to acquire a

specific grammar aspect, 10% of the participants strongly disagree that it is a useful

technique, 20% disagree, 33% remained neutral, 20% agreed and 17% strongly agreed.

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Motivation Participation Utility

3% 3%

10%

23%

30%

20%

47%

37%

33%

17%

13%

20%

10%

17% 17%

Per

cen

tage

of

freq

uen

cies

Opinion given

Strongly disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Strongly agree

24

4.4. Preferred method

Figure 4: Preferred method

As indicated in figure 4, 37% of respondents prefer watching a movie in order to acquire

grammar. An identical percentage of students (26%) selected the creation of a tale and the

figure of the teacher explaining the rules and uses of a specific grammar aspect. 10% of

learners chose reading texts as their preferred way of learning grammar.

4.5. Observation

This section analyses the data obtained by the researcher when each technique was being

developed.

Never/

none

Occasionally/

few students

Sometimes/

some students

Generally/

many students

Always/ all

the students

MOTIVATION

1. The participants attend to

the activity

Reading text Watching film,

Creation of tale

2. The students participate

actively in the activity

Reading text Watching film,

creation of tale

26,5%

37%

10%

26,5%

Tale

Movie

Text

Teacher

25

METHODOLOGY

3. The students have needed

help when completing the

activity

Creation of tale Reading text,

watching film

4. The teaching method seems

effective to introduce

grammar

Reading text Creation of tale Watching film

Table 3: Researcher’s observation

On the subject of attention, the result of the students’ attention when reading a text to

learn a specific grammar aspect was measured as sometimes/some students. The researcher

indicated that while reading the text some students were not paying much attention and most

of them did not seem very interested. On the other hand, other techniques such as watching a

film sequence and creating a tale in groups, engaged many students. The researcher

mentioned that the vast majority of the participants were very involved when watching the

film sequence. Apart from that, while working in groups they seemed very active.

Regarding participation, when reading a text the participants sometimes partook in the

activity. The researcher indicated that the consequence of the students not paying attention

was that they could not participate in the after-reading activities. Watching a film sequence

and working in groups to create a tale were marked by the researcher as a technique in which

many students participated. The notes of the researcher point at the film as an engaging

activity that achieved high participation. The creation of a tale forced the students to

participate, although some commentaries indicate that it was difficult to measure in a precise

way who was participating in a practical way or who was merely distracted.

Concerning the autonomy of the participants when learning the grammar content, in

the technique that involved the creation of a tale in groups, the researcher declared that she

had to take part sometimes as many students needed clarifications. The researcher declared

that most of the students were able to understand the verb tense thanks to their investigation

and the help of the members of their group, therefore few guidelines were provided.

Nevertheless, while reading a text and watching a film sequence the researcher had to

intervene to clarify doubts to all the students about as is indicated in table 4.

The last aspect to be mentioned in this section is the effectiveness of each method to

introduce grammar. According to the information gathered by the researcher regarding the

26

usefulness of reading a text, the data show that it was useful sometimes and for some students.

On the other hand, creating a tale in groups was considered to be effective for many of the

students. The researcher indicated that this last method made the students work hard to

understand the grammar aspect and those who did not comprehend it were helped by the

members of the group, who achieved a high level of learning. Watching a film is considered

the most useful method to introduce grammar, as the students paid attention and participated

in the activities.

4.6. Discussion of results

In this section, the findings of the study will be discussed in relation to the research questions.

In an attempt to measure the repercussion of the results of the study and draw conclusions,

references will be made to the background of the theoretical framework and review of

literature.

Which technique motivates the students most?

It is significant that a high percentage of students remained neutral when being asked about

their motivation. This could be caused by their lack of linguistic awareness or because self-

reflection has not been achieved. Therefore, in order to draw conclusions, we are paying

attention to the positive and negative opinions.

In view of the results, it can be concluded that studying a film sequence to learn a

grammar aspect is the method that most motivates the students. The notes of the researcher

also point at the mentioned technique as one of the most engaging. The possibility of listening

to the real voice of known actors and actresses is one of the reasons that the students

mentioned when referring to their increase in motivation. It is essential to refer to the

hypothesis made about this aspect, asserting that using film sequences is one of the methods

that most motivate students. On the basis of this finding, it can be concluded that the present

research backs the conclusions drew by Ljubojevic, Vaskovic, Stankovic and Vaskovic

(2014), Gaudence, Too and Nabwire (2013), Hsin and Cigas (2013), Tuncay (2014), Ismaili

(2013) and Kabooha (2016), which present videos and films as increasers of motivation.

On the other hand, the method that least motivates the students and the one that

obtained more neutral opinions is the creation of a tale in groups. The participants remarked

27

that it was difficult to work with some of their classmates since the division of tasks was

made but not accomplished and some students did not work much. Moreover, some of them

found it difficult to produce a story as they defined themselves as “short of creativeness”.

When referring to previous research developed to study the students’ motivation involving

writing activities, it was mentioned that no attention was paid to that technique. In this

research, it has been discovered that a writing task does not motivate students, although it has

proved to be an encouraging one, with an increase in the students’ participation.

Drakeford (2012), Alezi (2016), Hosain (2012) and Wen & Shoukuan (2014) carried

out studies that found that cooperative learning enhances motivation, indicating that working

in groups is an effective method to improve learning. Nonetheless, the present study supports

the findings of Reid (1987), Karthigeyan & Nirmala (2013) and Bokyung & Haedong (2014),

whose studies indicated that students prefer individual tasks.

Is their motivation related to their participation?

In this case, reading a text is the technique that obtained more opinions that are neutral.

Although it was not a predominant opinion in the rest of the techniques, the percentage is still

noteworthy. The reasons for this condition may be the same mentioned in the previous

analysis about motivation. However, analysing the results, it could be said that the methods

that achieve more participation are the creation of a tale in groups and the study of a film

sequence. These results coincide with the observation made by the researcher. When working

in groups to perform a task, the students are forced to participate. Drakeford (2012) studied

cooperative learning strategies on two secondary students whose participation in class was

deficient. Drakeford’s findings are linked to the ones of the present research, which connects

working in groups with an increase in participation. However, this method was the least

motivational according to the students’ opinion, so in this case motivation is not related to

participation. On the contrary, studying a film sequence was the most motivational for the

participants and their participation increased with this method. Contrary to the creation of a

tale in groups, studying a film sequence relates motivation with participation. The second

hypothesis cannot be confirmed as the results that link motivation and participation are not

conclusive.

On the other hand, reading a text to learn grammar is the technique that achieved less

participation. Analysing the data, 33% of the participants declared that they were not being

28

engaged to participate, contrary to 30% who agreed it was an engaging method. Paying

attention to motivation, 26% declared that they were not being motivated and 27% felt

motivated. The results between motivation and participation are very similar, so it is evident

that motivation and participation are related to each other in this case.

Which is the most useful method to present grammar?

As happened in motivation every method obtained a significant percentage of neutral

opinions. This is important as points at the students as individuals without linguistic

awareness or unable to make a self-reflection and, therefore, inadequate to value the utility of

the different methods. Nonetheless, we are going to pay attention to the positive and negative

opinions, taking into account that a high percentage of the participants remained neutral.

In view of the results, the most useful way of learning grammar according to the

students’ opinion is through scenes of films. It is the method that most engages the students to

participate and the one that achieves more participation. This result coincides with one

obtained by the researcher, although the participants needed extra clarifications to fully

understand the grammar structure. On the contrary, reading texts is the least useful method

used to teach grammar according to the participants’ opinion.

Do students prefer to learn grammar in an inductive or deductive way?

Stephen Krashen (Krashen & Terrell, 1995: 57) made the distinction between learning and

acquisition, that is to say, conscious and unconscious, deductive and inductive learning. The

objective of asking the students about their preference towards the different methods to learn

grammar is to determine their preferred method and relate it to deductive or inductive

learning. The findings indicate that watching films is the favoured technique and the use of

texts to present grammar aspects is the least fancied. This would confirm the hypothesis that

inductive learning is preferred. The findings of the present research would support Reid’s

conclusions (1987), whose study concluded that students prefer visual and auditory learning

styles to group styles. Moreover, Karthigeyan and Nimala (2013) ascertained that visual and

auditory styles are the ones preferred by the students. However, there are some remarks that

should be taken into account. Paying attention to the researcher’s remarks about her

intervention in the activities, it was difficult for the students to acquire the verb tense. In the

29

light of the results, it cannot be concluded that the students prefer to learn grammar in an

inductive way, but in a deductive way. The reason might be the habit of the students to learn

grammar through the explanation and examples of the teacher. If we take into account that

they have studied English the same way for almost all their life, it may be difficult for them to

acquire the language without studying it. Therefore, it can be concluded that the hypothesis

made about the students’ ability to acquire knowledge with few instructions and rules given,

is supported by the findings and the remarks made by the researcher, which point at inductive

learning as ineffective in the context of this research.

4.7. Limitations of the study

The present research presents some limitations. The first one is the number of participants

involved in the research. A bigger sample would allow the existence of a control group. The

advantage of carrying out this research with an experimental and a control group would be

that all the grammar aspects studied could be presented in a class where traditional methods

are used. Therefore, the results of both groups regarding motivation, participation and

preferences could be compared, obtaining more precise data.

Another limitation of this study is the time for implementation. Implementing this

research over a long period of time may yield different results. The research was limited to a

few months due to the length of the master degree, the time devoted to its preparation and the

few months left to the end of the course. These circumstances limited the time dedicated to

the investigation, which had to be performed in 3 months. Furthermore, the present research is

cross-sectional; a longitudinal study would obtain precise results collecting data at different

points in time. Dedicating more time to the different techniques would allow the presence of

more aspects to be studied; introducing several grammar aspects would produce more data to

compare and analyse. Connected to time restrictions is some unexamined data. Information

gathered about students who attended private lessons, age and the distinction between males

and females were not analysed.

The third restriction of the present research is the number of researchers. As has been

mentioned before, the lack of time to prepare and develop the study has been crucial. Finding

more researchers that could be involved in the project would yield more data regarding

observation, objectivity would be implemented and more aspects could be improved.

30

A different limitation is the quantity of sources used to collect data. Due to previous

limitations mentioned such as the limited number of researchers and the restricted time, the

methods used to gather data are scarce. Using a variety of methods would assure the validity

of the research since data triangulation is paramount in every research.

The last limitation to be mentioned is the content to be introduced by the different

techniques, which is dependent on the law that regulates secondary education in Castilla-La

Mancha (Royal Decree 1105/2014). The objective of this research is to study motivation and

participation when introducing new grammar through different methodologies. New grammar

is introduced every year, but most of it is implemented at the end of the course, when

previous knowledge is reviewed. Therefore, the amount of grammar aspects that could be

worked are few and delimited by the government.

4.8. Suggestions for further research

The present study opens a gate to some areas for further research. When researching students’

motivation the different motivations that exist should be taken into account: intrinstic and

extrinsic. Extrinsic motivation would lead the students to engage in an activity to get a good

grade, for example. Intrinsic motivation implies that the learners take part because they enjoy

the activity and find it fun and exciting (Sansone and Harackiewicz, 2000). Being aware of

the difference between both, intrinsic motivation is the one that should be pursued, as it would

entirely engage the students in learning English. The relationship between the different

motivations and the methodologies used should be investigated.

As has been mentioned in the previous section, the time available to develop this research

was limited. Although the findings support previous research, implementing a longer study

would lend support to the outcomes about methods that motivate students. Investing time to

work each methodology with at least two grammar aspects would back this study.

Studying the increase in motivation and participation that different methodologies

provoke can be studied through vocabulary introduction. Apart from grammar aspects, a

language is composed by nouns used to make reference to a specific thing, adjectives to

describe and adverbs to delimit. Developing a study investigating motivation and participation

when working different techniques to present vocabulary would obtain interesting results that

could be compared to the present study.

31

In this research, the election of the methods and the grammar aspects included has

been arbitrary. Consequently, a productive investigation could be the study of the same

grammar aspects with different techniques. Similarly, different grammar aspects could be

investigated using the same technique, as the same method could be successful to learn one

structure but ineffective to learn a different one.

In the research presented, the distinction between female and male students was

mentioned but not improved. Previous research developed by Hossain (2012) showed that

girls achieve better outcomes when working in groups. Researching gender differences related

to preferences and results could lead to important findings. Related to that, differences

between students that take part in private lessons and those who do not could be notorious. A

different way of posing it, motivation and participation could be interconnected with the

students’ level of English; those with a high level would find the task easier to understand and

would partake actively in the activities proposed. This does not imply the assumption that

learners who learn the foreign language in a private way outside the school have a higher

level, but it could interfere in the results.

The fact that the teacher had to intervene in almost every technique examined in the

present research to clarify doubts about the grammar aspects introduced could be vindicated

by the traditional education the students have received for years. The participants are used to

the teachers’ grammar explanation full of rules, exceptions and examples, followed by graded

exercises. An interesting and revealing study would be the introduction of simple grammar

aspects in younger students who are not used to the teacher’s explanations. Through this

practice, acquisition may occur revealing that nowadays the educators are accustoming

children to learn in a specific manner. Instructors are, somehow, in charge of making the

students acquire before learning and deduce before inducing grammar rules. This

methodology may be under study nowadays.

The last suggestion for further research is connected to some studies aimed at

practicing extensive reading to improve grammar knowledge (Zhang, 2012; Rodrigo, Krashen

and Gribbons, 2004; Mahmoudian, Ramezaney, Safari and Rezyanifar, 2011; Dupuy, 1997;

Alzu’bi, 2014), as well as different methods such as visual, auditory and kinaesthetic (Reid,

1987; Karthigeyan and Nirmala, 2013; Bokyung and Haedong, 2014). The techniques

proposed in this study are a few examples compared to the variety of methods available and

32

those that are to come. Investigating new approaches, creating new activities and rethinking

existing practices are areas that should never be forgotten.

5. CONCLUSION

This practical research investigates the increase in motivation and participation when working

with a number of methodologies. The methodologies applied are the creation of a tale in small

groups, the introduction of a grammar structure through a film sequence and the use of a text

that contains the content to be studied. In this case study, 30 students make the experimental

group. The method of analysis followed is both interpretive and statistical, as the research is

qualitative and quantitative. The findings are revealed by the research instruments used,

which are questionnaires and observation, in a cross-sectional system. This heuristic study

seeks to derive general principles about the use of different methods to introduce grammar

structures, and based on the findings the following conclusions have been derived.

It is clear that studying a film sequence to study a grammar structure is the most

motivational method according to the students and the researcher. This conclusion supports

the findings of previous research made on the topic. On the other hand, the creation of a tale

in groups is the least motivational method, opening the field of study related to writing as a

source of learning. This conclusion is opposed to some findings that support cooperative

learning as an approach that enhances motivation. Nevertheless, other studies show that

students prefer individual tasks, which is supported by the present research.

It is evident that creating a tale in groups and studying a film sequence are the methods

that achieve an increase in participation according to the students’ opinion and the

researcher’s observation. Nonetheless, taking into account that the creation of a tale was the

least motivational method, it cannot be concluded that motivation and participation are related

to each other. On the other hand, studying a film sequence achieved both motivation and

participation; therefore in this case both could be linked.

Regarding the utility of the different methods introduced, in view of the students’

opinion, the most useful one to introduce grammar structures is through scenes of film, as

they feel motivated to the tasks that followed. In contrast, according to the researcher’s

observation, the most effective method is the creation of a tale in groups, since the

33

participants could study the content in a better way. It is clear that both parts paid attention to

different facets, then there are different conclusions on this aspect.

It is apparent that the favored method involves the use of films, therefore it could be

concluded that inductive learning is preferred by the students, which supports previous

research on this topic. Nevertheless, taking into account the researcher’s intervention in the

course of the unit worked, acquisition did not take place in any method and the students

demanded traditional teaching to fully understand the grammar aspects. This detail does not

support the idea of the method mentioned as being an inductive one. In the light of the results

presented, it can be concluded that the use of films is a good way to motivate students and

engage them to participate, but it does not ensure them to acquire the language, as they

demand deductive learning.

The present study shows limitations of time, with only 3 months available to perform

the investigation due to the end of the course and the time left when finishing the subjects of

the master’s degree. The sample available was also limited, although enough to make

generalizations. The number of researchers was restricted as well, which can be connected to

the restricted quantity of instruments used to collect the data. Finally, the last limitation

mentioned is the new grammar content that could be used to implement the different

methodologies.

Further investigation must be done in the different types of motivations that make the

students participate and learn English as a foreign language, as intrinsic motivation should be

the one pursued. A longer study must be conducted in order to devote more sessions to each

technique, increasing the opportunities to acquire the content, practicing different

grammatical aspects or even the same, as well as introducing vocabulary. Attention could be

paid to some factors that have not been studied in this research and can be conclusive, such as

gender distinction and the results of those students who attend private lessons. Another

investigation connected to the present study is the analysis of participants that have been

taught from the beginning through deductive practices; their opinion about motivation and

increase in participation may be different to the results obtained by this research and previous

research. The last suggestion is to implement extensive reading to continue prior

investigations as well as different methods like visual, auditory and kinaesthetic.

The present research is a master dissertation that puts into practice all the content

learned through the course. A real investigation has been carried out, a complete revision of

34

publications that exist at the moment in an online format has been made and instruments to

gather data have been designed. The final conclusion embraces both the findings of the study

and the experience gained through its implementation. The former is the product of the latter,

which could be said to be, in some way, the main objective of the study.

6. REFERENCES

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41

7. ANNEXES

7.1. Annex I: Film worksheet

THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON

Sometimes we’re on a collision course and we just don’t know it. Whether it’s by accident or by design, there’s

not a thing we can do about it. A woman in Paris was on her way to go shopping. But she had forgotten her

coat, went back to get it. When she had gotten her coat, the phone had rung. So she had stopped to answer it

and talked for a couple of minutes. While the woman was on the phone, Daisy was rehearsing for a

performance at the Paris Opera House. And while she was rehearsing, the woman, off the phone now, had

gone outside to get a taxi.

Now a taxi driver had dropped off a fare earlier, and had stopped to get a cup of coffee. And all the while Daisy

was rehearsing. And this cab driver, who dropped off the earlier fare and had stopped to get the cup of coffee,

he picked up the lady who was going shopping and had missed getting the earlier cab. The taxi had to stop for a

man crossing the street, who had left for work five minutes later than he normally did because he forgot to set

his alarm. While that man, late for work, was crossing the street, Daisy had finished rehearsing and was taking

a shower. And while Daisy was showering, the taxi was waiting outside a boutique for the woman to pick up a

package which hadn’t been wrapped yet, because the girl who was supposed to wrap it had broken up with her

boyfriend the night before and forgot. When the package was wrapped, the woman, who was back in the cab,

was blocked by a delivery truck. All the while, Daisy was getting dressed. The delivery truck pulled away, and

the taxi was able to move, while Daisy, the last to be dressed, waited for one of her friends who had broken a

shoelace. While the taxi was stopped, waiting for a traffic light, Daisy and her friend came out of the back of

the theatre. And if only one thing had happened differently, If that shoelace hadn’t been broken…

Or that delivery truck had moved moments earlier, or that package had been wrapped and ready

because the girl hadn’t broken up with her boyfriend, or that man had set his alarm and got up five minutes

earlier

Or that taxi driver hadn’t stopped for a cup of coffee, or that woman had remembered her coat and got into an

earlier cab

Daisy and her friend would have crossed the street, and the taxi would have driven by.

Match the sentences to express what would have happened.

If the woman had remembered her coat …

If she hadn’t answered the phone…

If the taxi driver hadn’t dropped off a fare earlier…

If the taxi driver hadn’t stopped for a coffee…

If the man hadn’t forgotten to set the alarm…

If the shop assistant had wrapped the package…

If the shop assistant hadn’t broken up with her

boyfriend…

If the shoelace hadn’t been broken…

Daisy wouldn’t have waited for the man.

She would have wrapped the package.

He wouldn’t have been late for work.

He wouldn’t have picked up the lady.

He wouldn’t have stopped for a coffee.

She would have taken an earlier cab.

She wouldn’t have answered the phone

She wouldn’t have waited.

42

7.2. Annex II: Text worksheet

43

7.3. Annex III: Tale questionnaire

Fecha SEXO: H / M EDAD: Asisto a clases particulares/academia SI NO

UNIT 8 En esta unidad has trabajado la estructura Past Perfect mediante la creación de un cuento

en grupo. A continuación vas a realizar un cuestionario sobre la presentación de dichos aspectos

gramaticales en clase. Marca con una X la respuesta más apropiada para ti.

Muy en

desacuerdo

En

desacuerdo

Neutral De acuerdo Muy de

acuerdo

MOTIVACIÓN

1. La actividad ha incrementado mi

motivación

2. La actividad ha incrementado mi

participación en clase

METODOLOGÍA

3. Crear cuentos en grupo es útil para

aprender gramática

Comentarios:

44

7.4. Annex IV: Film sequence questionnaire

Fecha SEXO: H / M EDAD: Asisto a clases particulares/academia SI NO

UNIT 9 En esta unidad has trabajado la estructura Third Conditional mediante la escena de una

película. A continuación vas a realizar un cuestionario sobre la presentación de dichos aspectos

gramaticales en clase. Marca con una X la respuesta más apropiada para ti.

Muy en

desacuerdo

En

desacuerdo

Neutral De acuerdo Muy de

acuerdo

MOTIVACIÓN

1. La actividad ha incrementado mi

motivación

2. La actividad ha incrementado mi

participación en clase

METODOLOGÍA

3. Trabajar extractos de películas es

útil para aprender gramática

Comentarios:

45

7.5. Annex V: Text questionnaire

Fecha SEXO: H / M EDAD: Asisto a clases particulares/academia SI NO

UNIT 9 En esta unidad has trabajado Reported Speech mediante la lectura de un texto. A

continuación vas a realizar un cuestionario sobre la presentación de dichos aspectos gramaticales en

clase. Marca con una X la respuesta más apropiada para ti.

Muy en

desacuerdo

En

desacuerdo

Neutral De acuerdo Muy de

acuerdo

MOTIVACIÓN

1. La actividad ha incrementado mi

motivación

2. La actividad ha incrementado mi

participación en clase

METODOLOGÍA

3. Leer textos es útil para aprender

gramática

4. El método que prefiero para aprender gramática

es…

Crear un

cuento en

grupo

Ver una

película

Leer

textos

Que el

profesor lo

explique

Comentarios:

46

7.6. Annex VI: Permission

Autorización informada para la participación en un proyecto de

investigación

Con el fin de investigar y desarrollar experiencias educativas innovadoras para la mejora

permanente de la calidad educativa, se ha propuesto el curso de su hijo/a como grupo

experimental para estudiar la motivación y participación al trabajar diferentes metodologías.

El estudio se realizará en la clase de inglés, siendo la investigación parte del trabajo fin de

máster de doña Nuria Pérez Fresneda, profesora y tutora del grupo. NO se va a proceder a

grabar a los alumnos en vídeo, NO se tomarán fotos, SI tendrán que participar en las

actividades que se propongan y rellenar unos cuestionarios relacionados con la metodología.

Dichas actividades conllevan la creación de un cuento en grupos en clase de inglés, visionado

de una escena de la película El Curioso Caso de Benjamin Button y lectura de un texto. NO se

publicarán los nombres ni datos personales de los alumnos en el trabajo.

Al ser alumnos menores de edad se hace indispensable contar con autorización de los tutores

legales de nuestro alumnado para la realización de dichas actividades en periodo escolar.

Agradecemos su participación en esta actividad, necesaria para mejorar la práctica docente y

el método de aprendizaje de los alumnos.

------------------------------ recortar y entregar a la profesora -------------------------------

Sr. / Sra.__________________________ con DNI _______________o Pasaporte

___________

Marcar el que corresponda: SI NO autorizo que mi hijo o hija:

_____________________________________, de ______ años de edad, pueda formar parte

del proyecto de investigación llevado a cabo por Doña Nuria Pérez Fresneda, sólo con

finalidad educativa e investigadora y no comercial.

En ___________________________ a _____ de _____________ de 20__,

Fdo.:___________________________________

El padre, madre, tutor o tutora del alumno o alumna (nombre, apellido y firma)

47

7.7. Annex VII: Observation questionnaire

DATE: NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS:

Select the best option in the following aspects according to the participants’ attitude and the

methodology used.

Never/

none

Occasionally

/ few

students

Sometimes/

some

students

Generally/

many

students

Always/

all the

students

MOTIVATION

1. The participants attend to the activity

2. The students participate actively in the

activity

METHODOLOGY

3. The students have needed help when

completing the activity

4. The teaching method seems effective to

introduce grammar according to the general

impression

Notes: