EXPERIENCES AND PERCEPTIONS OF SENIOR EFL STUDENTS ON PROJECT-BASED LEARNING IN A VIETNAMESE UNIVERSITY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46827/ejel.v11i4.6934Keywords:
project-based learning, experiences, perceptions, EFLAbstract
EFL (English as a Foreign Language) education plays a crucial role in a great number of universities where English is not a first or second language. In Vietnamese universities, students specialising in English are considered EFL learners. A lack of a language environment for language skills practice leads to students’ challenges in their language skills. Therefore, creating real-life learning activities for students both to learn the subject matter and improve language skills and other features is necessary. This research aims to investigate experiences and perceptions of thirty senior EFL students in a Vietnamese university towards PBL. The study was conducted with the use of mixed-method research. Findings showed that PBL could bring a number of benefits such as enhanced teamwork abilities, improved language skills, enhanced critical thinking and engagement. Additionally, students perceived the importance of PBL employed in course instruction and recognised the differences between traditional teaching techniques and PBL. Future research should be conducted on a larger scale, and there should be more empirical studies on the long-term impact of PBL concerning learning outcomes, the role of instructor support in PBL implementation and success, and strategies for addressing time management challenges and group dynamics in order to prove the effectiveness of PBL on EFL education.References
Allen, L. Q. (2004). Implementing a culture portfolio project within a constructivist paradigm. Foreign Language Annals, 37(2), 232-239. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2004.tb02196.x
Argawati, N. O., & Suryani, L. (2020). Project-based learning in teaching writing: the implementation and students’ opinion. English Review, 8(2), 55–226. https://doi.org/10.25134/erjee.v8i2.2120
Assaf, D. (2018). Motivating language learners during times of crisis through project-based learning: Filming activities at the Arab International University (AIU). Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 8(12), 1649–1657. https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.0812.10
Astawa, N. L. P. N. S. P., Artini, L. P., & Nitiasih, P. K. (2017). Project-based learning activities and EFL students’ productive skills in English. Journal of Language Teaching and Research, 8(6), 1147–1155. https://doi.org/10.17507/jltr.0806.16
Beckett, H. & Slater, T. (2005). The project framework: A tool for language, content, and skills integration. ELT Journal, 59(2), 108-116. https://doi.org/10.1093/eltj/cci024
Beers, S. (2011). Teaching 21st Century Skills: An ASCD Action tool. ASCD. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED523774
Bell, S. (2010). Project-based learning for the 21st century: skills for the future. The Clearing House: A Journal of Educational Strategies, 83(2), 39-43. https://doi.org/10.1080/00098650903505415
Boss, S., & Larmer, J. (2018). Project-Based Teaching: How to create rigorous and engaging learning experiences. ASCD. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED588649
Byram, M., Golubeva, I., Hui, H., & Wagner, M. (Ed.). (2018). Languages for intercultural for communication and education: From principles to practice in education for intercultural citizenship. UK: Multilingual Matters. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/From_Foreign_Language_Education_to_Educa.html?id=GicfZDsuZ3kC&redir_esc=y
Cao, L. (2024). A study of project-based learning to intermediate EFL learners in reading class: enhancing self-regulated learning of post-secondary students in Macao. Asian. J. Second. Foreign. Lang. Educ. 9, 71 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-024-00298-6
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. SAGE. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Research_Design.html?id=4uB76IC_pOQC&redir_esc=y
Crystal, D. (2003). English as a global language (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/English_as_a_Global_Language.html?id=jYoE2MGoVhQC&redir_esc=y
Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The “What” and “Why” of Goal Pursuits: Human Needs and the Self-Determination of Behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227–268. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15327965PLI1104_01
Hammond, T. (2010). “So What?” Students’ Articulation of Civic Themes in Middle-School Historical Account Projects. The Social Studies, 101(2), 54–59. https://doi.org/10.1080/00377990903283924
Helle, L., Tynjälä, P. & Olkinuora, E. (2006). Project-Based Learning in Post-Secondary Education – Theory, Practice and Rubber Sling Shots. High Educ 51, 287–314. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-004-6386-5
Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. (2014). Cooperative Learning in 21st Century. [Aprendizaje cooperativo en el siglo XXI]. Anales de Psicología/Annals of Psychology, 30(3), 841-851. Retrieved from https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2014-40212-008
Kartika, A. (2020). Indonesian undergraduate students’ perceptions of project-based learning in critical reading class. ELT Worldwide, 7(1), 9–23. https://doi.org/10.26858/eltww.v7i1.11976
Kolb, D. A. (2014). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. FT Press. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235701029_Experiential_Learning_Experience_As_The_Source_Of_Learning_And_Development
Kozinsky, S (2014). How Generation Z is Shaping the Change in Education. Retrieved 2 December, 2024 from https://www.forbes.com/sites/sievakozinsky/2017/07/24/how-generation-z-is-shaping-the-change-in-education/
Krajcik, J. S., & Blumenfeld, P. C. (2006). Chapter 19: Project-based learning. In R. K. Sawyer (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of the learning sciences (pp. 317-334). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139519526.018
Kramsch, C. (1993). Context and culture in language teaching. Oxford University Press. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/Context_and_Culture_in_Language_Teaching.html?id=73rFnM6qlrwC&redir_esc=y
Levine, G. S. (2004). Global Simulation: A Student-Centered, Task-Based Format for Intermediate Foreign Language. Foreign Language Annals, 37, 26-36. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2004.tb02170.x
Lombardi, M. M., & Oblinger, D. G. (2007). Authentic learning for the 21st century: An overview. Educause Learning Initiative, 1(2007), 1-12. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/220040581_Authentic_Learning_for_the_21st_Century_An_Overview
MacIntyre, P. D., & Gardner, R. C. (1991). Language anxiety: Its relationship to other anxieties and to processing in native and second languages. Language Learning, 41(4), 513-534. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-1770.1991.tb00691.x
Matsuda, A., & Friedrich, P. (2011). English as an international language: A curriculum blueprint. World Englishes, 30(3), 332-344. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-971X.2011.01717.x
Marx, R. W., Blumenfeld, P. C., Krajcik, J.S., & Soloway, E. (1997). Enacting project-based science: Challenges for practice and policy. The Elementary School Journal, 97 (4), 341-358. https://doi.org/10.1086/461870
Oyefusi, F. (2022). Team and Group Dynamics in Organizations: Effect on Productivity and Performance. Journal of Human Resource and Sustainability Studies, 10, 111-122. https://doi.org/10.4236/jhrss.2022.101008
Piaget, J. (1976). The Child and Reality: Problems of Genetic Psychology. California: Penguin Books. Retrieved from https://books.google.ro/books/about/The_Child_and_Reality.html?id=KUERAQAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y
Sadeghi, H., Biniaz, M., & Soleimani, H. (2016). The impact of project-based language learning on Iranian EFL learners’ comparison/contrast paragraph writing skills. International Journal of Asian Social Science, 6(9), 510–524. https://doi.org/10.18488/journal.1/2016.6.9/1.9.510.524
Stoller, F. (2006). Establishing a theoretical foundation for project-based learning in second and foreign language contexts. Project-based second and foreign language education: Past, present, and future, 19-40. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-60752-675-920251005
Sumarni, W., Wardani, S., Sudarmin, S., & Gupitasari, D. N. (2016). Project-based learning (PBL) to improve psychomotoric skills: A classroom action research. Jurnal Pendidikan IPA Indonesia, 5(2), 157–163. https://doi.org/10.15294/jpii.v5i2.4402
Tindowen, D. J. C., Bassig, J. M., & Cagurangan, J.-A. (2017). Twenty-First-Century Skills of Alternative Learning System Learners. Sage Open, 7(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017726116
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind in Society: The Development of Higher Psychological Processes. Harvard University Press. https://books.google.ro/books/about/Mind_in_Society.html?id=RxjjUefze_oC&redir_esc=y
Wijayati, N., Sumarni, W., & Supanti, S. (2019). Improving Student Creative Thinking Skills Through Project-Based Learning. KnE Social Sciences, 408–421. https://doi.org/10.18502/kss.v3i18.4732
Zhang, Z. G., & Wang, G. J. (2016). Study on application of project-based learning method to college English writing. Research in Teaching, 39(5), 88–90.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).


