The development of the intensive English course for Buddhist missionary monks using task-based instruction / Nopphawan Chimroylarp

Abstract

The study was aimed at developing an intensive English course for Buddhist missionary monks. The objectives of the study were as follows: (1) to investigate the English-language needs of Buddhist missionary monks, (2) to develop a syllabus and materials for an intensive English course based on their needs using task-based instruction, (3) to study the effects of task-based instruction on the learning outcomes of the students as well as to explore their views on TBI; and lastly (4) to propose how to implement an intensive English course for Buddhist missionary monks using TBI. The study was conducted in a class of 77 students of the Buddhist missionary monk training program. Thirty students were systematically selected to be the subjects of the study, and they were to be used as a sample for obtaining the quantitative data. Based on their pre-test scores, twenty students were selected to be the representatives of the high ability group and the low ability group. The members of these two groups provided qualitative data by writing students' logs during the course and being interviewed at the end of the course. A few months after the end of the program, a questionnaire was sent to the monks to follow up on the outcome of the students using English in the real situations. The main findings from the study can be summarized in three areas: needs analysis, learning outcomes, and course evaluation. It was found that monk students and the Buddhist missionary monks on duty needed to use English in order to accomplish fifteen top tasks, which can be divided into two categories: work-related and survival skills. These needs were incorporated into lesson topics and the contents of the course using task-based instruction as the principal method of teaching. After implementation, the post-test scores of skills, but not in listening skills. In particular, they improved substantially in grammar and fluency. The majority of both the students and the graduates felt that the course helped a lot in preparing them for their mission abroad. The findings from qualitative data indicated that when implementing TBI, more practice time was needed and the authentic props as well as modern multimedia would be useful classroom materials.