THE USE OF THE PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE BY VIETNAMESE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS[1]. __ Th_ Thanh Hà. QH.1.E

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z z

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

* *

Do Thi Thanh Ha

THE USEs OF THE PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE BY

VIETNAMESE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS

FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS (TEFL)

Hanoi, May 2010

VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

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UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FACULTY OF ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEACHER EDUCATION

* *

Do Thi Thanh Ha

THE USEs OF THE PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE BY

VIETNAMESE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS

FOR THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS (TEFL)

Supervisor: Pham Xuan Tho, M.A.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………………………………………………………………i

ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………...ii

LIST OF TABLES……………………………………………………………………....iii

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS…………………………………………………………...iv

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1. Rationale……………………………………………………………................1

1.2. Aims of the study……………………………………………………………...1

1.3. Research questions…………………………………………………………….1

1.4. Significance of the study………………………………………………………2

1.5. Scope of the study……………………………………………………………..2

1.6. Organization of the study……………………………………………………...2

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………4

2.2. Use systems……………………………………………………………………4

2.2.1. Four use system…………………………………………………………......4

2.2.2. Five use system……………………………………………………………..6

2.2.3. Six use system………………………………………………………………8

2.2.4. Seven use system…………………………………………………………..10

2.2.5. Eight use system…………………………………………………………...13

2.2.6. Nine use system……………………………………………………………15

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY

3.1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………..19

3.2. Participants…………………………………………………………………...19

3.3. Data collection instrument…………………………………………………...19

3.4. Data collection procedures…………………………………………………...22

3.5. Data analysis procedures……………………………………………………..22

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CHAPTER 4: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

4.1. The first and the second research questions………………………………….24

4.1.1. Use 1 (General truths, permanent situations and facts)……………………25

4.1.2. Use 2 (Repeated or habitual actions)………………………………………28

4.1.3. Use 3 (Perceptions, thoughts, feelings or acknowledgement)……………..30

4.1.4. Use 4 (Future meaning)……………………………………………………33

4.2. The third research question…………………………………………………..36

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION

5.1. Summary of the findings………………………………………………………39

5.2. Limitations of the study………………………………………………………..39

5.3. Implications for ESL teaching in Vietnam…………………………………......40

APPENDIX……………………………………………………………………………........43

REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………….......47

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STATEMENT OF AUTHORSHIP

I hereby state that I: Do Thi Thanh Ha, 06.F.1.E12, being a candidate for the

degree of Bachelor of Arts (TEFL) accept the requirements of the College

relating to the retention and use of Bachelor's Graduation Paper deposited in

the library.

In term of these conditions, I agree that the origin of my paper deposited in the

library should be accessible for the purposes of study and research, in

accordance with the normal conditions established by the librarian for the care,

loan or reproduction of the paper.

Do Thi Thanh Ha

Signed: ………………………………………

Date: ………………………………………...

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This graduation paper could not have been completed without the help,

encouragement and support from the people who deserve my gratitude, respect,

affection and appreciation.

First of all, I would like to express my great gratitude to Mr. Pham Xuan

Tho, my respectful supervisor for his careful reading, useful and critical

comments and continual guidance during the time of writing my thesis. His

contribution played an integral part in the completion of my graduation paper.

Without his help, I could not finish this study on time.

I am also greatly indebted to all the teachers in Faculty of English

Language Teacher Education, University of Languages and International

Studies. Vietnam National University, Hanoi for their devotion……Thanks to

them, I have been well-equipped with necessary knowledge and skills which

help me a lot in my study as well as my career in the future.

I wish to thank all of my friends in group 061.E12 as well as those in

Faculty of English Language Teacher Education, University of Languages and

International Studies. Vietnam National University, Hanoi for their support and

encouragement.

My great thank is also given to 150 10th – grade students at Thang long

High school, Hanoi for their willing participation in the study. I highly

appreciate their love for me, their enthusiasm and effort in doing the test..

Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to my family for their great love,

support, comfort and constant encouragement in the hardest times, which gave

me enough strength and determination to fulfill this graduation paper.

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ABSTRACT

This study is conducted to discover how Vietnamese high school students

master four uses of the English Present Simple Tense and which is the most

problematic use to them. The data collection instrument was a written test

consisting of three tasks done by 150 10th – grade students at Thang Long High

school, Hanoi. The findings pose that the Vietnamese high school students in

this study was quite good at using the PST, and in the four uses, Use 4 (Future

meaning) is the most difficult to them, next came Use 1 (General truths,

permanent situations and fact) and Use 3 (Perceptions, thoughts, feelings or

acknowledgement), and Use 2 (Repeated or habitual actions) is the easiest.

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Distribution of test items in three tasks.

Table 2: Numbers and percentages of correct and incorrect answers for Use 1 in

three tasks.


three tasks.


three tasks.


three tasks.

Table 6: Numbers and percentages of correct and incorrect answers for four uses

in three tasks.

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

PST: Present Simple Tense

PCT: Present Continuous Tense

U: Use

I: Item

T: Task

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CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. Rationale for the study

When learning English, Vietnamese high school students face many

difficulties. In the domain of grammar, using the tense system correctly is one

of the most difficult tasks for them. Among the tenses, the Present Simple Tense

(PST) is the most basic but the most challenging for students due to its

complicated uses. With the desire to get a profound insight into the uses of the

English PST and the hope to help Vietnamese high school students have clearer

knowledge of the uses of the PST, the researcher has chosen the topic “The

uses of the Present Simple Tense by Vietnamese high school students” for

her graduation paper.

1.2. Aims of the study

The study was undertaken to find out how well Vietnamese high school

learners can use the PST. The results of the study will serve as the basis for the

researcher to suggest some strategies to teach the PST. These aims are specified

in the research questions below.

1.3. Research questions

The research questions that the study addressed are:

i. Which use of the PST is the most difficult to Vietnamese high school

students?

ii. Which use of the PST is the easiest to Vietnamese high school students?

iii. How well can Vietnamese high school students use the PST in general?

1.4. Significance of the study

The study is of great importance for the following reasons. In the first

place, it supplies both Vietnamese teachers and high school students with deeper

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knowledge and clearer understanding of the PST from the different views of

different linguists. Secondly, the findings of the study will help find out the

most effective ways to teach and learn this tense in Vietnam. Last but not least,

the study may be a useful reference material for both teachers and learners who

want to do further research on this tense.

1.5. Scope of the study

Due to limitation of time, knowledge and materials, the researcher will

only focus on four main uses of the PST to identify the most difficult and the

easiest use of this tense to them.

1.6. Organization of the study

The study consists of five chapters.

Chapter 1 provides the rationale, the aims, the research questions, the

significance and the scope of the study.

Chapter 2 reviews the viewpoints of different linguists about the PST

before a four- use system which will be used as the framework for this study is

created.

Chapter 3 presents the methodology used in the study. It includes the

description of the participants, the data collection instrument, the data collection

procedures and the data analysis procedures.

Chapter 4 describes the results of the study and discussions based on

them. In this chapter, the three research questions set in Chapter 1 will be

answered in turn.

Chapter 5 is the last one in the paper. Firstly, a summary of findings is

presented. Secondly, some limitations of the study and suggestions for future

research are also given. The paper ends with some implications for teaching the

PST in Vietnamese high school.

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CHAPTER 2. LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1. Introduction:

In this chapter, the uses of the PST will be reviewed. Some justifications

will be made before a semantic system of the PST in English including four

main uses is created. It will be used as the theoretical framework for this study.

2.2. Use system

So far, linguists have not found a common answer to the question about

the uses of the PS and the description of their uses. Different works by different

authors present different number of uses ranging from four to nine.

2.2.1. Four uses system

Linguists commonly identify four main uses of the PST. Nevertheless,

their classification and description of these uses are not always the same.

Swan (2005) presents four main uses of the PST as follows.

1. Talking about permanent situations or things that happen regularly,

repeatedly or all the time.

E.g. What do frogs eat?

It always rains here in now.

I play tennis every Saturday.

2. Talking about “timetabled” future events.

E.g. The train arrives at 11.00.

Similarly, the PST is often used instead of “will” in subordinate clauses that

refer to the future.

E.g. I’ll kill anybody who touches my possession.

3. Giving suggestions

The PST is also used in suggestions with “Why don’t you …?”

E.g. Why don’t you take a day off tomorrow?

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4. Describing series of events: demonstrations, commentaries, instructions,

stories.

E.g. First, I take a bowl and break two eggs into it. Next, Leed passes

Taylor, Taylor shoots - and it’s a goal.

How do I get to the station? –You go straight on to the traffic

lights, and then you turn left.

So I go in to the office, and I see this man.

As can be seen that Use 1 should be divided into two separate uses (to

talk about permanent situations, and things that happen regularly or repeatedly)

to avoid the learners’ confusion. Moreover, in Use 3, the structure “Why don’t

you…?” can also be used to ask for more information besides making

suggestions, and thus, it should be included in this use.

Like Swan (2005), Bourke (2001) also presents four uses of the PST.

According to her, the PST is used:

1. To talk about people’s routines and habits

E.g. David goes for a run every morning.

We always spend the summer in Greece.

2. To talk about things that are permanent or always true, and in zero

conditional sentences

E.g. The office opens at 8.00 every morning.

Water boils at 100ºC.

If I say I love you, I mean it.

3. To talk about official scheduled or timetabled events, e.g. train timetables,

television listings, etc.

E.g. The train arrives in Newcastle at 8.28.

The film starts at 7.

4. With certain verbs, e.g. agree, believe, feel, hate, hear, know, like, love,

prefer, see, smell, taste, understand, etc.

E.g. She doesn’t understand the question.

Not: She isn’t understanding the question.

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I don’t believe in life after death.

Not: I’m not believing in life after death.

Two differences can be observed here. First, while Bourke (2001)

separated the first and second uses, Swan (2005) groups them together and in

Use 2, Bourke (2001) also mentions the use of zero conditional sentences.

Second, in Use 4, Swan (2005) talks about the use of the PST in series of

events, whereas Bourke (2001) gives a list of verbs used in the PST instead of

the PCT. Although Swan (2005) also mentions some verbs used “around the

present” in his note, this is not so clear and detailed as Bourke’s (2001).

2.2.2. Five use system

Murphy (2001) divides the uses of the PST as follows.

1. To talk about things in general

The PST is used to say that something happens all the time or repeatedly or that

something is true in general.

E.g. Nurses look after patients in hospital.

The earth goes round the sun.

I usually go away at weekends.

2. To say how often things are done

E.g. I get up at 8 o’clock every morning.

Robert usually goes away 2 or 3 times a year.

3. In phrases like: I promise, I agree…

E.g. I promise not to tell him.

I agree with you.

4. To talk about timetables, programs, etc. (for public, transport, cinema, etc.)

E.g. My train leaver at 11.30, so I need to be at the station by 11.15.

What time does the film begin this evening?

5. To talk about people if their plans are fixed like timetables, but the

continuous is more usual for personal arrangements

E.g. I start my new job on Monday.

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We can see that Murphy’s (2001) system of uses is similar to Swan’s

(2005) above when his Use 1 talks about general things. Furthermore, Use 1 and

Use 2 seem to overlap to some extent. Additionally, Use 3 is not very clear

when it only mentions two verbs “agree” and “promise” while many other verbs

are also used in fixed phrases and structures to talk about the present. Besides,

Use 5 appears to be confusing when he talks about people’s plans and

arrangements at the same time.

Like Murphy, Adamson (2001) also presents five uses of the PST though

there are some differences in his ideas. According to him, the PST is used:

1. To describe the habits and routines

E.g. What do you usually have for breakfast?

I usually eat a carrot and drink a glass of cold water.

2. To describe a series of happenings

E.g. First, you peel an onion and slice it, and then drop the slices into

hot oil and cook for two minutes.

3. To express an opinion and feelings

E.g. Do you like this necklace?

4. For events in the future which are part of prearranged programs or timetables

E.g. That film comes to the theatre this summer.

5. In negative questions with “Why” to ask for information or make suggestion

E.g. Why don’t you like her? (Ask for information)

Why don’t you come and see us? (Make suggestion)

It can be easily seen that Adamson (2001) completely ignores the use of

the PST to talk about general truths or facts even though it is the most common

use of the PST. We can also find some differences between the two linguists’

systems of uses. The first difference is that Adamson (2001) includes one use of

the PST to describe a series of happenings and another use with “Why” to ask

for information or make suggestion, whereas Murphy does not. The second one

is Adamson (2001) generalizes Use 3 of the PST, while Murphy (2001) only

lists some verbs relevant to this use of the PST.

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2.2.3. Six use system

According to Eastwood (1996), the PST is used for:

1. Thoughts and feelings

E.g. I think so.

I like it.

2. States, things staying the same, facts and things that are true for a long time

E.g. We live quite near.

3. Repeated actions

E.g. We come here every week.

4. In phrases like: I promise, I agree, etc.

E.g. I promise I’ll pay you back tomorrow.

5. In a negative question with “Why” to make a suggestion

E.g. Why don’t we go out?

6. For the future when we are talking about a timetable, usually a public one

E.g. The new term starts next week.

Close (1979) also gives account of a six-use system of the PST.

1. All or anytime not separated from the present

E.g. Paint contains a certain amount of lead.

The Rhine flows between Germany and France.

2. The present period as distinct from the past

In this case, the speaker may be thinking either of an activity that

continues throughout the period or of a whole series of acts performed

throughout the period.

E.g. I live in the country.

We all speak English at home.

3. The present moment

E.g. This tape- recorder is easy to work. Watch what I do. I switch it

on, press this button and it starts. (1)

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Switch, press and start refer to momentary acts considered as completed at the

moment of speaking. In (1), they are examples of a momentary present,

whereas in:

E.g. I (always) switch off all the lights before I go to bed.

Switch and go are examples of habitual present. The habitual present is often

reinforced by an adverb of frequency, though such adverbs can also be used

with the progressive.

4. The present moment: Declarations

E.g. I declare the meeting open. (formal remark by Chairman)

I pronounce you man and wife. (at a wedding ceremony)

We gladly accept your offer. (declaration of acceptance)

5. Future time, in temporal and conditional clauses

E.g. Mr X will telephone you as soon as he returns.

The police will take your car away if you park it there.

The meeting will be held out of doors unless it rains.

6. Past time, in newspaper headlines, sometimes in narrative and usually in the

synopsis of a novel or a play

(1) Earthquake rocks Nicaragua. (Headline)

(2) Tom stands up on the coach and looks back at his father’s figure.

(Narrative)

(3) That night Romeo sees Juliet alone in her balcony. (A play)

The newspaper article under the headline as in (1) would report the

incident of the past tense, (2) illustrates the use of the so-called HISTORIC

PRESENT; and in a synopsis as in (3), each new development in the story is

usually recorded in the PST.

2.2.4. Seven use system

Alexander (1980) mentions seven basic uses of the PST.

1. Permanent truths

E.g. The sun rises in the East.

Summer follows spring.

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Gases expand when heated.

2. “The present period”

E.g. My sister works in a bank.

3. Habitual actions

E.g. I get up at 7.00 every morning.

4. Observations and declarations

E.g. I love you, I hate him.

It says here that you are fined.

5. Future reference (for timetable, etc.)

E.g. The concert begins at 8.00 next Friday evening.

6. Instructions

E.g. First, you weigh the ingredients. Next,…

7. Commentaries

E.g. Decker serves to Lance, he shots.

We can see that it would be better if Alexander (1980) grouped Use 6

and Use 7 together because they are both talking about a series of events.

Parrot (2000) shares the same view with Alexander (1980) when he

provides seven uses of the PST for the teaching purpose. According to him, the

PST is used:

1. To talk about repeated events

E.g. I get up early.

He also adds that adverbs of frequency and expressions of repeated time are

often used with this use of the PST.

2. To talk about general facts

E.g. Ice melts at 0 degree Celsius.

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3. With state verbs referring to state, even when they are temporary, these

include verbs grouped under the following topics.

Existence

Mental states

Wants and looks

Possession

Senses

Appearance

be, exist

believe, doubt, know, realize, recognize, suppose,

think, understand

want, like, love, hate, need, prefer

belong, have, possess, own

feel, smell, taste

appear, look, seem

E.g. I don’t understand.

4. With perception verbs

In this use, he notes that perception verbs (e.g. hear, see, feel) were found

listed with stative verbs. However “can” and “can’t” tend to be used with those

perception verbs more often than the PST.

E.g. Can you hear anything?

5. In running commentaries

Sports commentators use the PST in “running commentaries” on

broadcast sports events. The PST helps save time when the action is fast.

E.g. Chang serves to Sampras and runs to the net.

6. In past narrative

In exceptional circumstances, we can also use the PST to refer to past

time. We sometimes use this tense instead of the Past Simple Tense to create a

sense of immediacy in certain kinds of informal, spoken narrative such as comic

and dramatic story– telling.

E.g. So this man walks into a bar and takes out a gun…

7. Verbs which change things

We also use the PST in making pronouncements which actually change

something. This involves a restricted number of verbs (e.g. arrest, baptize,

declare, pronounce) known as performative verbs.

E.g. I pronounce you man and wife.

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With this use of the PST, we generally have to have some special authority to

perform these actions.

As can be observed from the two authors’ classifications, except some

similar uses, they have different basis for distinguishing the uses of the PST.

2.2.5. Eight use system

Thomson and Martinet (1987) distinguish eight main uses of the PST.

They are described as follows:

1. The main use of the PST is to express habitual actions;

E.g. He smokes.

Dogs bark.

Cats drink milk.

The PST is often used with adverbs or adverb phrases such as always, never,

occasionally, often, sometimes, usually, every week, on Mondays, twice a year,

etc.

E.g. How often do you wash your hairs?

I go to church on Sundays.

It rains in winter.

or with time clauses expressing routine or habitual actions. Whenever and when

(= whenever) are particularly useful:

E.g. Whenever it rains the roof leaks.

When you open the door a light goes on.

2. It is used, chiefly with the verb say when we are asking about or quoting

from books, notices or very recently received letters.

E.g. What does that notice say?- It says, “No parking”

What does the book say? - It says, “Cook very slowly.”

I see you’ve got a letter from Ann. What does she say?- She says

she is coming to London next week.

Shakespeare says, “Neither a borrower nor a lender be.”

Other verbs of communication are also possible:

E.g. Shakespeare advises us not to borrow or to lend.

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A notice at the end of the road warns people not to go any further.

3. It can be used in newspaper headlines.

E.g. MASS MURDERER ESCAPES.

PEACE TALKS FAIL.

4. It can be used for the action or narrative.

This is particularly useful when describing the action of a play, opera, etc. and is

often used by radio commentators at sports events, public functions, etc.

E.g. When the curtain rises, Juliet is writing at her desk. Suddenly the

window opens and a masked man enters.

5. It can be used for a planned future action or series of actions, particularly

when they refer to a journey. Travel agents use it a good deal.

E.g. We leave London at 10.00 next Friday and arrive in Paris at 13.00.

We spend two hours in Paris and leave again at 15.00. We arrive in Rome at

19.30, spend four hours in Rome.

6. It must be used instead of the PCT with verbs which cannot be used in the

continuous form, e.g. love, see, believe, etc., so that we can say I love you but

not I am loving you.

7. If it is used in conditional sentences, type 1.

E.g. If I see Ann, I’ll ask her.

Unless you take the brake off, the car won’t move.

8. It is used in time clauses

(a) when there is an idea of routine:

E.g. As soon as he earns any money he spends it.

She takes the boy to school before she goes to work.

(b) when the main verb is in a future form:

E.g. It will stop raining soon. Then we’ll go out.

= when it stops raining, we’ll go out.

It is said that Thomson and Martinet’s (1987) classification is detailed but

quite complicated for the learners to memorize; they may solve this problem by

grouping some uses together.

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2.2.6. Nine use system

Sinclair (1990) gives an account of nine uses of the PST as follows.

1. To talk about the present moment

1.1. Thoughts and feelings at the present moment, or immediate reactions to

something

E.g. I’m awfully busy.

God, he looks awful!

1.2. Physical feelings

E.g. I feel heavy.

My stomach hurts.

1.3. Physical perceptions such as seeing and hearing with the modal “can”

E.g. I can see the fishing boats coming in.

I see a flat stretch of ground.

2. To talk about general presents including present moment

E.g. My dad works in Hanoi.

He is a very good brother. We love him.

3. To talk about general truths

E.g. A chemical reaction occurs in the fuel cell.

4. To describe regular or habitual actions

E.g. Do you smoke?

I get up early everyday.

5. In reviewing a book, play or a film

E.g. In those chapters, he does keep himself very much in the

background.

In the film he plays the central character of Charles Simpson.

6. In notes with the verb “say”

E.g. The Bible says love of money is the root of all evil.

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7. In commentaries

E.g. Andy Gray takes the ball up field again. He turns, shoots- and a

fine save from Grobbelaar.

8. In reporting

E.g. I’ve never been greyhound-racing myself, but they tell me it’s a

fascinating sport.

There are some fine railings in Westminster Abbey, I hear.

9. In commenting with performative verbs such as “admit”, “promise”, “reject”

or “enclose”

E.g. This, I admit, was my favorite activity.

I enclose a small cheque which may come in handy.

Despite of the fact that Use 1 is described very clear and easy to

understand when it is divided into three sub-uses, it cannot be denied that

Sinclair’s (1990) classification poses the same problem as Thomson and

Martinet’s (1987) owing to its length. As a result, Sinclair’s (1990) is too

detailed for learners to have an overview and master the main points in the uses

of the PST.

As we can see, the linguists above have different views on the uses of the

PST. However, their semantic systems include the following four commonest

uses of the PST:

1. General truths, permanent situations and facts

E.g. The sun rises in the East and sets in the West.

Air consists mainly of nitrogen and oxygen.

Oil floats if you pour it on water.

He works in a bank.

2. Repeated or habitual actions: with adverbs of frequency such as always,

usually, often, rarely, seldom, sometimes, every day/week/month, occasionally,

once a week, etc.

E.g. What do you usually do every night?

I rarely go away at weekend.

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How often does Jane go to the cinema?- Twice a week.

3. Perceptions, thoughts, feelings or acknowledgement: with the verbs grouped

below:

Existence

Mental states

Wants and looks

Possession

Senses

Appearance

be, exist

believe, doubt, know, realize, recognize, suppose,

think, understand

want, like, love, hate, need, prefer

belong, have, possess, own

feel, smell, taste, see, hear

appear, look, seem

E.g. Do you see that man over there?

I smell something burning.

I don’t understand what he is talking about?

This house belongs to the Smiths.

4. Future meaning: with events that are part of a fixed timetable, programme

or a plan, usually a public one.

E.g. The train leaves Lyon at 8.00 and arrives in London at 12.00.

What time does the lecture begin?

This semantic system will be used as the theoretical framework for the

present study.

In this chapter, different systems of uses of the PST by different linguists

have been reviewed, and a four-use system which is used as the theoretical

framework for this study has been created. In the next chapter, the methodology

used in this study will be presented.

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CHAPTER 3. METHODOLOGY

3.1. Introduction

In the previous chapter, different views of several linguists about the uses

of the PST were reviewed. To address three research questions and achieve the

aims mentioned in Chapter 1, a study was conducted among 150 EFL

Vietnamese high – school students. Details of the participants, the instrument,

the procedures of data collection and data analysis are given below.

3.2. Participants

The study was conducted among 150 students of Year 10 at Thang Long

High School in Hanoi. These students were randomly chosen to ensure the

objectivity, validity and reliability of the study. They have been studying

English since they were at Year 6; therefore, they must have had the basic

knowledge of English grammar in all the main aspects, namely relative clauses,

voice, reported speech and tenses, especially the PST.

3.3. Data collection instrument

The instrument exploited in the study was a test because data were

collected from learner’s performance. It is one of the most efficient research

instruments to collect information for the following reasons.

Firstly, tests can help the researcher get feedbacks from a large number of

participants with a high rate of accuracy and reliability (Vuuren, 2002).

Additionally, it is the most time – saving way to deliver and get

participants’ answers (Vuuren, 2002). The test used in this study was written in

the simple language with clear instructions to avoid ambiguity and

misunderstanding. The aims of the test is to identifying which use of the PST is

the most difficult and which use is the easiest; hence, it was designed with 3

tasks which requires the participants to do 3 different things. (See Appendix)

26

3.3.1. Task 1.

Task 1 consists of twenty test items. In each sentence, the participants

were required to supply the correct form of the verbs given in brackets. There

were sixteen items requiring the PST of the verbs in brackets (four items for

each use) and four items for the PCT. The four test items for the PCT were

added to make the test more natural.

Eg: How often you (read)………………………….a newspaper?

3.3.2. Task 2.

Task 2 also includes twenty test items. In each item, four options

corresponding to four tenses of the same verbs are given. The participants were

asked to choose the most suitable verb tense by circling one of the four choices.

In this task, the right forms of the verbs were in the PST and the PCT with

sixteen items used in the PST (four items for each use) and four items for the

PCT for the same reason mentioned above.

Eg: The café opens/ is opening/ opened/ will open tomorrow morning.

3.3.3. Task 3.

Task 3 requires the participants to make twenty sentences from given

keywords. The participants had to use the correct tenses of the verbs to make

complete sentences.

Eg: The curry/ taste/ salty.

27

The distribution of test items in the three tasks is given in Table 1.

Task

Tenses/ tense uses

Task 1 Task 2 Task 3

The

Present

Simple

Tense

Use 1

Items: 2, 6,

11, 16

Items: 2, 4,

15, 20

Items: 3, 8, 11, 19

Use 2

Items: 1, 7,

13, 19

Items: 3, 9,

14, 17

Items: 7, 10, 14, 16

Use 3

Items: 3, 8,

17, 20

Items: 7, 10,

13, 16

Items: 2, 4, 13, 17

Use 4

Items: 4, 9,

12, 15

Items: 1, 8,

12, 18

Items: 1, 5, 15, 18

The Present

Continuous

Items: 5, 10,

14, 18

Items: 6, 11,

17, 19

Items: 4, 9, 12, 20

Table 1: Distribution of test items in the three tasks.

28

3.4. Data collection procedures

The procedure of collecting data is divided into three stages.

Stage 1:

All the tasks of the test were designed. The test were piloted by the

supervisor and some non- respondents to avoid ambiguity, misunderstanding

and redundancy.

Stage 2:

In this stage, copies of the test were delivered to 150 chosen participants.

They were free to ask any questions and the researcher was always ready to

answer all the questions. The participants were given 45 minutes to do the test

in class. They were not told that the test aimed at the uses of the PST and not

allowed to use reference materials including dictionaries.

Stage 3:

The completed test papers were collected and marked.

3.5. Data analysis procedures

At first, the tests were marked. Then, the numbers of correct and incorrect

answers in each task was counted. Next, the numbers and percentages of correct

and incorrect answers of all test items relevant to each use of the PST were

compared to find out the answers to the first two research questions. Finally, the

numbers and percentages of correct and incorrect answers for four uses in all

three tasks were presented to answer the third research question. As the study

focused on the uses of the right tenses, lexical, spelling and other mistakes were

ignored.

In conclusion, Chapter 3 covers the methodology used in this research. In

Chapter 4, the results of the study would be presented and discussed so as to

answer the three research questions as stated in Chapter 1.

29

CHAPTER 4. FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

In this chapter, the three research questions of the study will be addressed

in turn. In the first place, the results of the test will be presented. Then they will

be discussed with the relevant examples from the collected data to gain the

“panoramic picture” of the uses of the PST by Vietnamese high school students.

4.1. The first and second research questions

1) Which use of the PST is the most difficult to Vietnamese high school

students?

2) Which use of the PST is the easiest to Vietnamese high school students?

So as to answer the first and second questions and to discover how the

Vietnamese high school students used the PST in this study, this section will

discuss how well the participants have mastered each use of the PST in turn. In

each use, the number and percentage of correct and incorrect answers to each

item in all three tasks will be given, then the results be discussed to seek the

possible explanations to the participants’ performance.

30

4.1.1. Use 1 (General truths, permanent situations and facts)

Table 2 presents the numbers and percentages of correct and incorrect

answers to each test item for Use 1 in the three tasks.

Answers

Tasks and Items

Total

responses

Correct answers Incorrect answers

No. % No. %

Task 1

2 150 120 80 30 20

6 150 110 73.3 40 26.7

11 150 150 100 0 0

16 150 150 100 0 0

Task 2

2 150 150 100 0 0

4 150 150 100 0 0

15 150 150 100 0 0

20 150 150 100 0 0

Task 3

3 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

8 150 150 100 0 0

11 150 150 100 0 0

19 150 150 100 0 0

Total 1,800 1,680 93.3 120 6.7

Table 2: The number and percentage of correct and incorrect answers for Use 1

in three tasks.

31

As can be seen from Table 2, the Vietnamese high school students in this

study were very good at using Use 1 of the PST with over 90% of the answers

being correct.

There are 9 test items in which they got 100% correct answers. They are:

I.11, T.1: Tom isn’t lazy. He (work)……………. hard most of the time.

I.16, T.1: Air (consist)…………….mainly of nitrogen and oxygen.

I.2, T.2: Vegetarians don’t eat/ aren’t eating/ didn’t eat/ won’t eat meat.

I.4, T.2: Bees eat/ are eating/ ate/ will eat honey.

I.15, T.2: Cuckoos don’t build/ aren’t building/ didn’t build/ won’t build nests.

They use/ are using/ used/ will use the nests of other birds.

I.20, T.2: Rice doesn’t grow/ isn’t growing/ didn’t grow/ won’t grow in cold

climates.

I.8, T.3: Most/ children/ learn/ speak/ 1 year old.

I.11, T.3: An interpreter/ translate/ one language/ another.

I.19, T.3: The moon/ go/ round/ the earth/ 27 days.

This can be explained by the fact that these test items are all about general

truths, and they are common sentences used in real life. In addition, one item

includes the adverbials most commonly used with the PST, namely “most of the

time”.

For the remaining items, the Vietnamese high school students appeared to

have problems with:

I.2, T.1: The weather generally (get)…………………..hot in July and August.

I.6, T.1: Oil (float)……………..if you pour it on water.

I.3, T.3: If/ heat/ water/ 100 degrees Celsius/ boil.

As for I.2, T.1, all thirty students giving wrong answer to this question

used the PCT. Therefore, the sentence was written as “The weather generally is

getting hot in July and August.” This may be because they usually see the verb

“get” commonly used in the “- ing” form. In addition, they might think “July”

and “August” in these sentences refer to “July” and “August” of this year, a

32

point of time in the future, without paying attention to the adverbial

“generally”.

In I.6, T.1, most of the students who got this item incorrect used the verb

“float” in the Future Simple tense. Hence, the sentence became “Oil will float if

you pour it on water.” They might have done so because they thought that this

was a conditional sentence type 1 instead of a zero conditional sentence in this

case.

For the same reason, in I.3, T.3, all 50 participants who gave wrong

answers to this item used the Future Simple tense and the sentence was written

as “If you heat water to 100 degrees Celsius, it will boil.” whereas the right

answer must be “If you heat water to 100 degrees Celsius, it boils.

33

4.1.2. Use 2 (Repeated or habitual actions)


answers to each item for Use 2 in three tasks.

Answers

Tasks and Items

Total

responses


No. % No. %

Task 1

1 150 150 100 0 0

7 150 150 100 0 0

13 150 150 100 0 0

19 150 150 100 0 0

Task 2

3 150 150 100 0 0

9 150 150 100 0 0

14 150 150 100 0 0

17 150 150 100 0 0

Task 3

7 150 150 100 0 0

10 150 150 100 0 0

14 150 150 100 0 0

16 150 150 100 0 0

Total 1,800 1,800 100 0 0


in three tasks.

34

As can be seen from Table 3, Vietnamese high school students in this

study seemed to have fully mastered this use of the PST with 100% of the

answers being correct. For this use, they had all twelve right answers. They are:

I.1, T.1: How often you (read)………………………….a newspaper?

I.7, T.1: Sir Thompson always (tell)…………………. funny stories after

dinner.

I.13, T.1: James usually (play)……………….tennis twice a week.

I.19, T.1: Julie (not drink)……………………….tea very often.

I.3, T.2: He leaves/ is leaving/ left/ will leave home at 8.00 everyday.

I.9, T.2: Tom never does/ is doing/ did/ will do any work in the garden. He

always works/ is working/ worked/ will work on his car.

I.14, T.2: We usually grow/ are growing/ have grew/ will grow vegetables in

our garden in summer.

I.17, T.2: He often drinks/ is drinking/ drank/ will drink coffee, but today he

drinks/ is drinking/ has drunk/ will drink tea.

I.7, T.3: How/ often/ go/ work?

I.10, T.3: Tom/ usually/ go/ cinema/ twice/ week.

I.14, T.3: Everyday/ population/ world/ increase/ 200,000 people.

I.16, T.3: Jane/ rarely/ go/ work/ bus.

This might be because all the test items for Use 2 contain adverbs of

frequency: often, always, usually, everyday, never, rarely, all of which are

commonly used with the PST, making it very easy for the students to recognize

this use.

35

4.1.3. Use 3 (Perceptions, thoughts, feelings or acknowledgement)


answers to each item for Use 3 in three tasks.

Answers

Tasks and Items

Total

responses


No. % No. %

Task 1

3 150 140 93.3 10 6.7

8 150 150 100 0 0

17 150 130 86.7 20 13.3

20 150 150 100 0 0

Task 2

7 150 150 100 0 0

10 150 150 100 0 0

13 150 150 100 0 0

16 150 150 100 0 0

Task 3

2 150 150 100 0 0

4 150 150 100 0 0

13 150 150 100 0 0

17 150 150 100 0 0

Total 1,800 1, 770 98.3 30 1.7


in three tasks.

36


study seemed to be very good at using this use of the PST withv98.3% of the

answers being correct. The participants got 100% of their answers correct in

most test items except I.3, T.1 and I.17, T.1.

In the case of I.3, T.1: “Yes, I (remember)………………that older fellow name

now.”

All ten students who answered this question incorrectly used the verb

“remember” in the PCT instead of the PST. They may have seen the word

“now” and came to the conclusion that the sentence must be : “Yes, I am

remembering that older fellow name now.”

As for I.17, T.1: “Ann (not seem)…………………….very happy at the

moment.”, twenty students giving wrong answers also used the PCT instead of

the PST with the word “seem”. Thus, the sentence was written as “Ann isn’t

seeming very happy at the moment.”. This can be explained by the presence of

the adverb of time “at the moment” at the end of the sentence. This phrase is

usually used with the PCT.

Apart from the two test items above, all the participants answered the

following 10 test items correctly. They are:

I.8, T.1: Nora says she is 17 but I (not believe)……………….

I.20, T.1: I (think)………………. Maria is Canadian, but I’m not sure.

I.7, T.2: Do you recognize/ Are you recognizing/ Will you recognize/ Did you

recognize that man?

I.10, T.2: I won’t tell you my secret unless you promise/ are promising/

promised/ will promise not to tell anyone.

I promise/ am promising/ promised/ will promise.

I.13, T.2: Do you love/ Are you loving/ Did you love/ Will you love him?

No, I just like/ am liking/ liked/ will like him very much.

37

I.16, T.2: The milk smells/ is smelling/ smelled/ will smell sour. Do you keep/

are you keeping/ have you kept/ did you keep milk a long time?

I.2, T.3: The curry/ taste/ salty.

I.4, T.3: Today/ Jess/ seem/ not/ happy.

I.13, T.3: You/ understand/ what/ teacher/ say?

I.17, T.3: I/ suggest/ discuss/ matter/ later.

The participants in this study might have been able to answer all these

questions correctly because they know that these verbs of perceptions should be

used in the PST.

38

4.1.4. Use 4 (Future meaning)


answers to each test item for Use 4 in the three tasks.

Answers

Tasks and Items

Total

responses


No. % No. %

Task 1

4 150 120 80 30 20

9 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

12 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

15 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

Task 2

1 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

8 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

12 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

18 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

Task 3

1 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

5 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

15 150 100 66.7 50 33.3

18 150 120 80 30 20

Total 1,800 990 55.5 810 44.5


in three tasks.

39

As can be seen from Table 5, this use of the PST seemed to be the most

difficult for the participants of this study with only 990 correct answers out of a

total of 1,800, accounting for 55.5%. The incorrect answers could be classified

into two main groups:

Group 1 includes:

I.4, T.1: What time the next train (leave)…….…………….?

I.12, T.1: That film (come)……………. to the local cinema next summer.

I.15 T.1: The new course (start)…………………….next month.

I.18, T.2: That film comes/ is coming/ has come/ will come to the cinema next

week.

I.1, T.2: The café opens/ is opening/ opened/ will open tomorrow morning.

I.1, T.3: This hotel/open/next week.

I.5, T.3: This semester/ start/ next month.

I.18, T.3: The next bus/ leave/ station/ 12.00.

66.7% and 80% of the participants giving incorrect answers used the

Future Simple tense or the structure “be going to do something” respectively

instead of the Present Simple tense, and this implies that the participants might

have associated the words “next” and “tomorrow morning” with future time

reference.

Group 2 consists of:

I.9, T.1: The concert (start)………………….. at 7.15.

I.8, T.2: The train leaves/ is leaving/ has left/ will leave Plymouth at 12.00

I.12, T.2: What time does the conference begin/ is the conference beginning/

have the conference begun/ will the conference begin?

I.15, T.3: The meeting/ begin/ 8.00.

40

66.7% of the participants who had wrong answers also used the Future

Simple tense or the structure “be going to do something” instead of the PST.

This might have resulted from the fact that they thought those events would

happen in the future with specific points of time (12.00, 8.00, etc.)

In conclusion, it can be seen from the data presented above that the forth

use of the PST (Future meaning) is the most difficult for the Vietnamese

learners of English in this study and the second use (Repeated or habitual

actions) is the easiest for them.

41

4.2. The third research question:

3) How well can Vietnamese high school students master the use of the PST

in general?

Table 6 presents the numbers and percentages of correct and incorrect answers

to each use across three tasks.

42

Use

Total

counted

answers

of three

tasks

Task 1 Task 2 Task 3 Total

CA ICA CA ICA CA ICA CA ICA

No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

U1 1,800 530 88.3 70 11.7 600 100 0 0 550 91.7 50 8.3 1,680 93.3 120 6.7

U2 1,800 600 100 0 0 600 100 0 0 600 100 0 0 1800 100 0 0

U3 1,800 570 95 30 5 600 100 0 0 600 100 0 0 1,770 98.3 30 1.7

U4 1,800 420 70 180 30 400 66.7 200 33.3 420 70 180 30 990 55.5 810 44.5

Total 7,200 2,120 88.3 280 11.7 2,200 91.7 200 8.3 2,170 90.4 230 9.6 6,240 86.7 960 13.3

Note: CA: Correct answers, ICA: Incorrect answers, U1, U2, U3, U4: Use 1, Use 2, Use 3, Use 4.

Table 6: The number and percentage of correct and incorrect answers to four uses in three tasks.

43


study seemed to be quite good at using the PST. Altogether, they got 6,240

correct answers out of the total 7,200 responses, accounting for 86.7%.

Nevertheless, they were not equally good at four uses. It can be seen from the

results that they were better at using Use 1, 2, and 3 with 93.3%, 100% and

98.3% of their answers being correct respectively. However, they did not use

Use 4 very well with just 55.5% of correct answers for this use.

To summarize, in Chapter 4, the three research questions of the study

were answered. It was found that in the four uses of the PST, the fourth use

(Future meaning) is the most difficult for Vietnamese high school students and

the second use (Repeated or habitual actions) is the easiest with 100% of

correct answers. Thus, in general, the Vietnamese high school students in this

study seemed to have mastered the uses of the PST quite well.

44

CHAPTER 5. CONCLUSION

5.1. Summary of the findings

The results of the study show that of the four uses of the PST, the fourth

use (Future meaning) was the most difficult for the Vietnamese high school

students in this study. The third use (Perceptions, thoughts, feelings or

acknowledgement) and the first use (General truths, permanent situations and

facts) came next. The second use (Repeated or habitual actions) was the easiest

to the Vietnamese high school students of English in this study. All in all, the

Vietnamese learners of English in this study were rather good at mastering the

uses of the PST with a high percentage of correct answers provided (86.7%).

5.2. Limitations of the study

Although this study provides some useful findings for learning and

teaching the PST in Vietnamese high schools, it still has certain limitations that

future studies in this field should take into consideration.

In the first place, the size of the participants in this study is not large

enough (150 students), and they came from only one high school in Hanoi

(Thang Long High school). Thus, the findings might not be sufficient to

represent the knowledge, understanding and abilities of Vietnamese high school

students of English in general. The solution to this may be conducting research

in all the high schools in Hanoi or in other provinces to get more reliable and

objective results.

The second problem came from the test used to collect the data. As can be

seen from the test, all the test items focus only on syntactic structure of the

tense. Therefore, future researchers should design the test with more tasks based

on real life situations in which students have to use the PST, and also use other

data collection instruments to make the study more valid and reliable.

45

5.3. Implications for ESL teaching in Vietnam

In teaching the uses of the PST to Vietnamese high school students, each

use requires the teacher to explain and design relevant activities for students in

order to help them master that use.

Use 1 is not very difficult to students. This use is so common to them

because it talks about general truths and facts which are easy to recognize.

However, the teacher should include the use of zero conditional sentence in Use

1 due to the fact that students, when doing exercises related to Use 1 of the PST

and being asked to supply the correct form of the verb, tend to use conditional

sentences type 1 instead.

Use 2 does not pose problems, as time reference, specifically the adverbs

of frequency, are often used. These adverbs are quite familiar to Vietnamese

high school students. Nevertheless, so as to make sure that students thoroughly

understand how to use these adverbs, several activities may be designed and the

activity below is an example.

46

Activity: How often do you do each of the following? Put a tick in the right

column. Then compare your answers with a partner’s.

always often sometimes rarely never

Get up early

Go to the

cinema

Watch TV

Listen to

music

……….

In teaching the third use of the PST, it is of great importance that the

teacher should provide students with the verbs only used in the PST, not in the

PCT. They are classified into a number of categories like verbs of existence,

verbs of mental states, verbs of possession, verbs of senses, and verbs of

appearance. Some examples should be given in each group of verbs.

The most problematic use of the PST is Future Meaning as this use does

not appear with the support of any adverbials. The best way to help learners

avoid making mistakes in this use is to help them learn how to recognize future

meanings can be expressed by present tense form in English. Specifically, the

PST is used in this case to talk about a public timetable, a programme or a plan,

usually a public one. It should also be pointed out that personal prearranged

plans must be expressed using the PCT.

In summary, the optimal way for learners to master the uses of the PST is

to give them more time to practice, (there is a saying that “Practice makes

47

perfect”) especially in contextual situations where they can learn how to

associate the form with its meanings.

48

APPENDIX

ENGLISH TEST

Time allowed: 90 minutes

Exercise 1: Give the correct form of the verbs in the brackets.

1. How often you (read)………………………….a newspaper?

2. The weather generally (get)…………………..hot in July and August.

3. Yes, I (remember)………………that older fellow name now.

4. What time the next train (leave)………………….?

5. Robert (arrive)………………………..on the 10.30 train.

6. Oil (float)……………..if you pour it on water.

7. Sir Thompson always (tell)…………………. funny stories after dinner.

8. Nora says she is 17 but I (not believe)……………….

9. The concert (start)………………….. at 7.15.

10. (At a party). Hello, Jane. You (enjoy)……………………….the party?

11. Tom isn’t lazy. He (work)……………. hard most of the time.

12. That film (come)……………. to the local cinema next summer.

13. James usually (play)……………….tennis twice a week.

14. Let’s go out now. It (not rain)…………… any more.

15. The new course (start)…………………….next month.

16. Air (consist)…………….mainly of nitrogen and oxygen.

17. Ann (not seem)…………………….very happy at the moment.

18. You always (watch)……………….television. You should do something more

active.

19. Julie (not drink)……………………….tea very often.

20. I (think)………………. Maria is Canadian, but I’m not sure.

49

Exercise 2: Circle the best answer.

1. The café opens/ is opening/ opened/ will open tomorrow morning.

2. Vegetarians don’t eat/ aren’t eating/ didn’t eat/ won’t eat meat.

3. He leaves/ is leaving/ left/ will leave home at 8.00 everyday.

4. Bees eat/ are eating/ ate/ will eat honey.

5. Nicky thinks/ is thinking/ thought/ will think of giving up her job?

6. Why do you walk/ are you walking/ did you walk/ have you walked so fast

today? You normally walk quite slowly.

7. Do you recognize/ Are you recognizing/ Will you recognize/ Did you

recognize that man?

I think that maybe I have seen him before.

8. The train leaves/ is leaving/ has left/ will leave Plymouth at 12.00.

9. Tom never does/ is doing/ did/ will do any work in the garden. He always

works/ is working/ worked/ will work on his car.

10. I won’t tell you my secret unless you promise/ are promising/ promised/ will

promise not to tell anyone.

I promise/ am promising/ promised/ will promise.

11. This is our itinerary. We leave/ are leaving/ left/ will leave home on the 8th

,

arrive/ are arriving/ arrived/ will arrive in Paris on the 9th

, and spend/are

spending/ spent/ will spend a day there.

12. What time does the conference begin/ is the conference beginning/ have the

conference begun/ will the conference begin?

13. Do you love/ Are you loving/ Did you love/ Will you love him?

No, I just like/ am liking/ liked/ will like him very much.

14. We usually grow/ are growing/ have grew/ will grow vegetables in our garden

in summer.

15. Cuckoos don’t build/ aren’t building/ didn’t build/ won’t build nests. They

use/ are using/ used/ will use the nests of other birds.

16. The milk smells/ is smelling/ smelled/ will smell sour. Do you keep/ are you

keeping/ have you kept/ did you keep milk a long time?

17. He often drinks/ is drinking/ drank/ will drink coffee, but today he drinks/ is

drinking/ has drunk/ will drink tea.

50

18. That film comes/ is coming/ has come/ will come to the cinema next week.

19. I can’t understand why he is/ is being/ was/ has been so selfish. He isn’t

usually like that.

20. Rice doesn’t grow/ isn’t growing/ didn’t grow/ won’t grow in cold climates.

Exercise 3: Make sentences, using the given words.

1. This hotel/open/next week.

…………………………………………………………………………………

2. The curry/ taste/ salty.

………………………………………………………………………………….

3. If/ heat/ water/ 100 degrees Celsius/ boil.

…………………………………………………………………………………

4. Tim/ never/ satisfied/ complain.

…………………………………………………………………………………

5. This semester/ start/ next month.

…………………………………………………………………………………

6. I/ suggest/ discuss/ matter/ later.

…………………………………………………………………………………

7. How/ often/ go/ work?

…………………………………………………………………………………

8. Most/ children/ learn/ speak/ 1 year old.

…………………………………………………………………………………

9. You/work/ hard/ today.

Yes, I/ have/ a lot/ work/ do.

…………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………

10. Tom/ usually/ go/ cinema/ twice/ week.

…………………………………………………………………………………

11. An interpreter/ translate/ one language/ another.

…………………………………………………………………………………

12. I/ get/ hungry. Let/go/ eat.

…………………………………………………………………………………

51

13. You/ understand/ what/ teacher/ say?

…………………………………………………………………………………

14. Everyday/ population/ world/ increase/ 200,000 people.

…………………………………………………………………………………

15. The meeting/ begin/ 8.00.

…………………………………………………………………………………

16. Jane/ rarely/ go/ work/ bus.

…………………………………………………………………………………

17. Today/ Jess/ seem/ not/ happy.

…………………………………………………………………………………

18. The next bus/ leave/ station/ 12.00.

…………………………………………………………………………………

19. The moon/ go/ round/ the earth/ 27 days.

…………………………………………………………………………………

20. Normally/ I/ start/ work/ 8.00/ this week/ start/ 7.00/ because/ we/ busy/ the

moment.

…………………………………………………………………………………

…………………………………………………………………………………

52

REFERENCES

Adamson, D. (2001). Practice Your Tenses. London: Longman.

Alexander, L. G. (1980). Longman English Grammar. London: Longman

Bourke, K. (2001). English Verbs and Tenses. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Close, R. A. (1979). A reference grammar for students of English. London:

Longman.

Eastwood, J. (1996). Oxford Practice Grammar (2nd

ed.). Oxford: Oxford

University Press.

Murphy, R. (2001). English Grammar in Use. G.B: Cambridge University

Press.

Parrot, M. (2000). Grammar for English language teachers. Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press.

Sinclair, J. (1990). English Grammar. London: Collins Publisher.

Swan, M. (2005). Practical English Usage (3rd

ed.). Oxford: Oxford University

Press.

Thomson, A. J., & Martinet, A. V. (1987). A practical English Grammar.

Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Vuuren, V. (2002). Data collection instruments. Research Methodology,

42 (1), 281.

Documents

THE USE OF THE PRESENT SIMPLE TENSE BY VIETNAMESE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS[1]. __ Th_ Thanh Hà. QH.1.E