Developing Speaking and Listening Competence among Grade 5 Students in Vietnamese Language Education: A Needs-Informed Three-Stage Pedagogical Framework

Abstract

Speaking and listening are central components of language competence and essential for students’ participation in learning and everyday communication. This study examines Grade 5 students’ speaking and listening competence and develops a needs-informed pedagogical framework for Vietnamese language lessons. A descriptive needs analysis was conducted with 231 Grade 5 students and 15 teachers from three primary schools in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam. Student self-assessment addressed presenting before the class, organizing ideas, identifying main ideas while listening, participating in group discussion, and responding to different viewpoints; teacher data focused on instructional difficulties and techniques used in speaking and listening lessons. The findings indicated uneven student competence, particularly in organizing spoken ideas, identifying key information while listening, and providing constructive responses. Teachers also reported limited use of interactive techniques beyond familiar pair-sharing practices. Drawing on competency-oriented education, communication theory, curriculum requirements, and the identified classroom needs, the study proposes a three-stage framework comprising preparation, practice and interaction, and post-practice consolidation and transfer. Brainstorming, mind mapping, inside-outside circle, fishbowl discussion, and synthesis activities are integrated according to their pedagogical functions. Two classroom illustrations demonstrate how the framework can support presentation- and discussion-oriented Grade 5 speaking and listening lessons.