A STUDY ON THE USE OF EDTECH TOOLS TO ENHANCE GRADE 8 STUDENTS’ MOTIVATION IN LEARNING ENGLISH AT A SECONDARY SCHOOL IN THAI NGUYEN PROVINCE

Abstract

This research was conducted at Tan Thinh Lower Secondary School in Thai Nguyen city, where most of the students are supported learning devices, including high-tech tools such as smartphones, computers, tablets, and laptops. The school year 2021-2022 is the third one in which teachers and students have to face the COVID-19 pandemic, so there have been a lot of online lessons to be done. The research, therefore, focuses on the use of EdTech tools to increase grade 8 students’ motivation in learning English at Tan Thinh Lower Secondary School. By using four different tools of EdTech, the researcher set out to investigate whether these EdTech tools enhance student motivation to learn, and if so, to what extent. The research described a cycle of action research conducted on eighty-four students in grade 8. The data were collected through questionnaires, interviews, and students’ diaries. The research results showed that the use of EdTech tools increased the students’ motivation in learning English in the classes at school and in online lessons significantly. Some pedagogical implications are also suggested in the hope of assisting Vietnamese teachers in teaching and increasing learners’ interest in learning English.