KHMER CULTURE IMPACTING STUDENTS’ ENGLISH-SPEAKING PERFORMANCE IN ETHNIC MINORITY BOARDING SCHOOLS

Tuyen Thanh Pham, Tuyen Thanh Kim

Abstract


This study aims to determine the main problems that hinder Khmer students’ English-speaking performance. A quantitative approach was used to understand the factors influencing the poor English-speaking performance of Khmer students. In this work, questionnaires were employed as a research instrument to collect quantitative data. The sample was Khmer students, aged from 15 to 18 years old at ethnic minority boarding schools in a province in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam. The results from the questionnaire show that Khmer cultural factors, namely students’ characteristics as well as the boarding school educational system could hinder students’ English-speaking performance. Based on the problems found, this study gives suggestions to help bilingual students in Vietnam improve their English-speaking performance. It is believed that this research forms the basis for future studies on bilingual students learning English in Vietnam.

 

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Keywords


Khmer culture, English speaking performance, ethnic minority boarding schools

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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.46827/ejfl.v6i3.4413

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