Comparison of Korean and Vietnamese University Students in Blended English Classes

Abstract

This study was conducted to compare and analyze the perceptions, satisfaction, and learning strategies of Korean and Vietnamese university students in blended English classes. Vietnamese students had higher negative perception than Korean students for blended English classes, indicating the use of relatively complex methods in blended English classes was a burden on foreign learners. There was a statistically significant difference in the instructor's lecture items in the satisfaction of blended English classes. This suggested that the role of instructors in English classes was very crucial. In learning strategies, interacting with an instructor appeared as a common learning strategy. This further revealed the importance of interaction between instructors and students. In addition, cross-analysis revealed that the rate of using learning strategies in non-native learners was relatively evenly distributed compared with Korean language users. This demonstrated that foreigners who had to pursue classes in a language other than their mother tongue tended to use all the strategies they could for successful learning.
 As the demand for blended learning is increasing, instructors need to develop suitable teaching materials, curriculum, and textbooks so that learners can use blended English classes more effectively when learning English. This will require support from higher education institutions, such as providing training programs for instructors, or developing special classes tailored to students pursuing blended English classes.