





































English Language Teaching Educational Journal   ISSN 2621-6485 

Vol. 4, No. 3, 2021, pp. 213-224  

        10.12928/eltej.v4i3.2955                              http://journal2.uad.ac.id/index.php/eltej/index            eltej@pbi.uad.ac.id 

 

Perks and perils of adult learners in Communication English 

learning at English language centers in Vietnam 

Truong Minh Hoa 

College of Foreign Economics and Relations, 81 Tran Binh Trong Street, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 

tmh.camranh1991@gmail.com  

A R T I C L E  I N F O 

 

ABST RACT   

 

 

Article history  

Received 20 October 2020 

Revised 03 December 2020 

Accepted 30 December 2021 

 The teaching and learning of Communication English for adult learners is 
unlike that for children. Understanding of the differences between adult 
learners’ and young learners’ traits is considered a must for all English teachers 
so as to provide appropriate teaching methods and materials for adult learners 
in Communication English learning. Thus, this mixed-methods survey was 
conducted to investigate adult learners’ perks and perils in Communication 
English learning and suggested solutions for their better communicative 
performance. The sample of this study consisted of 148 adult learners from the 
five selected language centers in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Data were 
collected from questionnaire copies. The findings revealed that the adult 
learners had some perks including strong motivation, clear learning goal, good 
learner autonomy and able technology use for learning, or positive attitudes 
towards the existing teachers’ quality. Besides, some perils among these adult 
learners were sought, including low self-confidence, short time investment, 
and limited speaking practice environment. At last, they expected their 
teachers to make the lessons more interesting and realistic, and hoped their 
language centers to invite native language teachers. 

This is an open access article under the CC–BY-SA license. 

    

 

 
Keywords 

perks 

perils 

adult learners 

Communication English 

Vietnam 

 

 

 

How to Cite: Truong, M. H. (2021). Perks and perils of adult learners in communication English learning at 
English language centers in Vietnam. English Language Teaching Educational Journal, 4(3), 213-224.  

1. Introduction 

Being competent in oral communication is a growing desire of all English learners. And speaking 
is a fundamental skill that learners need to master in order to communicate effectively. Indeed, Ur 
(2013) states that of all the four language skills, speaking seems intuitively the most important one as 
the ability to speak skillfully provides for the speakers with a favorable condition to establish and 
maintain relationships, to negotiate, and to influence others. In the same fashion, Nunan (1991) views 
that to most people, success is measured in terms of the ability to carry out a good conversation in the 
target language. This increasing demand for good communicative skill in a globalized society 
activates English speaking learning around the world (Enever, 2018), including in Vietnam.  

Currently, Vietnam has been the member of many international organizations like Association of 
South-East Asia Nations (ASEAN); World Trade Organization (WTO); or Asia Pacific Economics 
Conference (APEC). In these communities, Vietnamese people who are not born as English speakers 
have learned English language in order to be able to communicate with other people. In other words, 
English is used throughout these communities as lingua franca, “the common language used by people 
of different language backgrounds to communicate with each other” (Kirkpatrick, 2007). As a result, 
the English language has shifted from being a language that was primarily used to serve native 
speakers’ intra-national and communal purposes to becoming an international medium in lingua 
franca communication (Kirkpatrick, 2007). In response to this change, Vietnamese people need to use 
English effectively to interact with others who come from different linguistic backgrounds. In order 

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214 English Language Teaching Educational Journal   ISSN 2621-6485 

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 Truong, M. H. (Perks and perils of adult learners) 

to do so, the language must be understood by both sides to make the communication successful. Thus, 
it is axiomatic that the utmost important goal of learning English is to be capable of communicating 
well in English; that is, the goal of language learning “is concerned with developing the ability to use 
language in communicative situations” (Larsen-Freeman, 2018). In reality, there have been more and 
more communication courses in Vietnam held to satisfy leaners’ need of improving English speaking 
ability. 

However, many Vietnamese learners still find it difficult to communicate fluently and confidently. 
This alarming predicament happens exactly to a large number of adult learners in Vietnam. After 
many years of being exposed to English in secondary and high schools, and even at tertiary level, 
many of them are still unable to perform a simple and short conversation in English (Pham, Than, & 
Truong, 2020) due to a set of complicated factors such as highly pressured performance conditions 
and limited listening ability (Heriansyah, 2012; Nguyen & Tran, 2015), low motivation and self-
confidence, and high anxiety (Juhana, 2012; Leong & Ahmadi, 2017), immature topical and linguistic 
input (Mazouzi, 2013; Hosni, 2014), counter-productive ELT materials and curricular, and inflexible 
teacher roles (Dao, 2017; Yaseen, 2018). Especially, adult learners may feel embarrassed about being 
students against for the feeling of being old and away from schools for many years (Singleton & 
Záborská, 2020).  

Notwithstanding the perils of learning Communication English mentioned above, there are still 
perks among Vietnamese adult learners, “persons over the normal age of traditional schooling, who 
freely choose to get involved in a particular form of instruction, to serve a professional, social or 
personal need and interest” (Cozma, 2015), contributing to their success in English learning. First, as 
they are adults, they are goal-oriented and experienced, and have much greater cognitive and linguistic 
capabilities than young learners (Kuklewicz & King, 2018). In specific, this group of learners are goal-
oriented and motivated since when they learn, they want to accomplish specific needs or demands 
such as to support their study, to be promoted in career, to make more friends or to be good language 
users (Merriam, 2017; Lavrysh & Lytovchenko, 2019; Lytovchenko, Ogienko, Sbruieva & Sotska, 
2018). That is the reason why “adult learners have better study habits than the younger learners in that 
they engaged in deeper learning than do the younger learners” (Xolmurodova, 2021). Second, thanks 
to the technology advancement (e.g., ICT, Internet) and the widespread establishment of English 
centers across Viet Nam, Vietnamese adult learners can seek a convenient English learning 
environment with their self-paid tuition fee.  

There are some problems among adults learning English as a second language (Madkur, 2018; Wu 
& Le, 2014). One noticeable problem, nevertheless, is that most of the adult learners attend to English 
classes empty-handed. It means that they just simply come to school to learn what they are taught 
without paying attention to both perks and perils they are possessing and facing. For adult learners, 
those aspects need considering carefully since they might directly affect the learning outcomes. It is 
witnessed that numerous adult learners who fail to communicate in English because of not being aware 
of the perks and perils of their learning process. Therefore, the present survey study was conducted to 
investigate two sides of adult learners when they are learning Communication English, then useful 
solutions for helping these adult learners improve their English communicative competence. To 
achieve this objective, the current paper aims to address the two following research questions: 

1.   What are the perks and perils of adult learners in Communication English learning? 

2.  What are the adult learners’ suggested solutions to strengthen the perks and to overcome the 
perils in Communication English learning? 

2. Method 

2.1. Research Locale and Participants 

The current study was carried out at the five selected language centers in Ho Chi Minh City, 
Vietnam. The most common trait of these five language centers was to provide learners with different 
Communication English courses, which were designed based on the adult learners’ existing 
proficiency levels. The research participants were 148 adult learners from the selected five language 
centers, whose background information is presented in Table 1.  

 



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Table 1.  Research Participants’ Profile 

N = 148 Frequency (F) Percentage (5) 

Gender 
Male 58 39.2 

Female 90 60.8 

Age  

(years old) 

18-22 60 40.5 

23-28 52 35.1 

29-35 26 17.6 
36-45 7 4.7 

Above 45 3 2.0 

Occupation 

Finance-Banking 20 13.5 

Tourism, Hotel 30 20.3 

Medicine 4 2.7 

Education 23 15.5 

Law 26 17.6 

Accounting 22 14.9 

Human resource 19 12.8 

Construction 4 2.8 

English learning experience 

(years) 

1-3 7 4.7 
4-7 47 31.8 

8-10 68 45.9 

Above 10 26 17.6 

 

As shown in Table 1, of 148 participants, there were 58 males (39.2%) and 90 females (60.8%). 
Their ages ranged variously from 18 to 45 years old, but most of them were from 18-22 (40.5%) and 
23-28 (35.1%). Regarding their occupations, these adult learners worked in different sectors of career 
like tourism, hotel (20.3%), law (17.6%), education (15.5%), accounting (14.9%), or finance-banking 
(13.5%), or human resource (12.8%), and so on. Furthermore, most of the respondents had learned 
English from 4 to 10 years; that is, 4-7 years (31.8%), and 8-10 years (45.9%).  

2.2. Research Design  

Overall, the present study was grounded by a survey design, which is “a procedure in which any 
researcher administers a survey to a sample […] to describe the attitudes, opinions, behaviors, or 
characteristics of the sample” (Creswell, 2019). This survey was to examine 148 adult learners’ perks 
and perils in Communication English learning and their own suggestions for better learning and 
teaching quality of Communication English.  

2.3. Research Instrument: Questionnaire 

Rationale 

In this study, the researcher deliberately used a questionnaire, a written instrument by which the 
respondents can select the best option from among existing answers (Iwaniec, 2019), to garner data 
for the present study due to two salient reasons. Among many advantages of using questionnaires, 
some of them include practicality, economy, feasibility, time, efficiency, versatility, ease of 
construction, and data analysis (Curle & Derakhshan, 2021; Patten, 2016). Furthermore, questionnaire 
is known to be one of the easiest methods to manage, especially with large numbers of subjects. 
Dörnyei & Taguchi (2010) highlight that questionnaires are very popular and one of the most common 
methods of data collection in L2 research because they are easy to construct, extremely versatile, 
capable of gathering a large amount of information quickly in such a way that is readily processable.  
Besides, questionnaire tends to be more reliable as it encourages greater honesty from respondents 
and saves the researcher’s and participants’ time and effort.  

Description 

The questionnaire consisted of nine questions in total. These nine questions covered sub-themes 
of the adult learners’ perks, perils, and suggested solutions for Communication English learning. The 
questionnaire was highly reliable and valid because the researcher constructed it in a highly-structured 
way, afterwards had experts to double-check its content, scales, layout of both English and Vietnamese 
versions, and finally conducted a pilot study. Below is the questionnaire’s detail. 



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Table 2.  Description of Questionnaire 

Sub-themes Questions Options 

Main motive 1-What is your main motive of learning Communication 

English? 

6 (=1 accepted) 

Self-Study Time Investment 2-Do you invest time for self-study every day? If yes, how long 
for each time of self-study? 

6 (=1 accepted) 

Communication English Use 

Outside Class 

3-Do you use English for communicative needs? If yes, in 

which cases? 

5 (>=1 accepted) 

Hindrances of Communication 
English Use 

4-In cases of using English for communicative purposes, what 
hindrances influence your speaking performance? 

5 (>=1 accepted) 

Overall Evaluation of 

Communication English Class 

5-How do you evaluate your Communication English class in 

general? 

5 (>=1 accepted) 

Self-Evaluation of Language 
Curriculum 

6-How do you evaluate the content of your Communication 
English curriculum at your language center? 

3 pairs 
1 pair: 2 (=1 

accepted) 

Perceived Possible Perks 7-What perks do you have when starting to learn 

Communication English? 

9 (>=1 accepted) 

Perceived Existing Perils 8-What perils do you face when learning Communication 

English? 

9 (>=1 accepted) 

Suggested Solutions 9-What are your suggestions to improve the quality of your 

Communication English courses? 

5 (>=1 accepted) 

 

2.4. Data Collection and Analysis 

On the chosen dates, the questionnaire copies which had been translated into Vietnamese 
beforehand were delivered to 148 adult participants. On the receipt of questionnaires from the 
respondents, the researcher found that all 148 copies (100%) were valid and accepted. Finally, the 
researcher employed Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0 to analyze the 
descriptive statistics of the collected questionnaires in terms of frequency (F, n) and percentage (P, 
%). Frequency (F, n) is a sort of tool which counts the number of times people did the same things, 
while percentage (P, %) is mostly integrated with frequencies to present a clear picture of a certain 
phenomenon.  

3.  Finding and Discussion 

3.1 Findings  

From Table 3, the adult learners attended the Communication English classes for different 
purposes. In details, more than one-third of the total sample (39.2%) learnt Communication English 
to help them negotiate effectively with either customers or colleagues. Likewise, approximately one-
third of the response community (33.8%) explained that meeting the qualification requirement at the 
workplace or school was the primary motive for their attendance in Communication English courses. 
Besides, some learning motives were also found but only at low rates; that is, going to study abroad 
(12.8%), seeking a new job conveniently (8.1%), relaxing and entertaining (4.7%), travelling (1.4%).  

Table 3.  The adult learners’ main motive of Communication English learning 

Main Motive F (n) P (%) 
I learn Communication English to negotiate in English for work 58 39.2 

I learn Communication English to seek a new job 12 8.1 
I learn Communication English to meet the qualification requirement at workplace/ school 50 33.8 

I learn Communication English to use it for traveling 2 1.4 

I learn Communication English to entertain (e.g. watch films, listen to music) 7 4.7 

I learn Communication English to use it for studying abroad 19 12.8 
Total 148 100.0 

 

 



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Table 4.  The adult learners’ time investment for self-study 

Self-Study Time Investment F (n) P (%) 
No time for self-study 25 16.9 

Less than thirty minutes 55 37.2 

From thirty minutes to one hour 46 31.1 

From more than one hour to two hours 20 13.5 
From more than two hours to three hours 2 1.4 

More than three hours 0 0.0 

Total 148 100.0 

 

As observed from Table 4, by the highest frequency number, there were 55/148 informants (37.2%) 
spending less than half an hour for each time of self-studying Communication English. By the second 
highest frequency number, nearly one-third of the total sample (31.1%) invested only from thirty 
minutes to one hour for each time of self-study. It is indicated that the more the time investment for 
each time of self-learning Communication English increased, the fewer there were adult learners; for 
example, only 13.5% of the entire sample utilized from more than one hour to two hours for their self-
study outside the class; more notably, only 1.4% of them used from more than two hours to three 
hours to practice or review Communication English lessons at home; surprisingly, no adult learners 
of this study invested more than three hours for their self-study outside the class. Especially, according 
to the revelation of 25 surveyed participants (16.9%), they did not have time fund to invest for self-
study outside the language center. In other words, these learners only acquired Communication 
English right at their language schools.  

Table 5.  The adult learners’ use of English for communicative needs outside the class 

Communication English Use Outside Class F (n) P (%) 
I use English for work 74 50.0 

I use English when participating English language clubs 53 35.8 

I use English to communicate with my foreign friends 30 20.3 
I use English for speaking practice with my friends 116 78.4 

I do not have realistic environment for using English outside the class 29 19.6 

 

As presented in Table 5, half of the total sample (50.0%) utilized Communication English for work. 
It is referred that these adults used English as a means of negotiating with their colleagues or clients. 
Positively, 35.8% of the response community reported that they used Communication English when 
taking part in the language clubs. In other words, these students had positive learning attitudes for a 
better communicative ability. Interestingly, outside the Communication English class, one-fifth of the 
adult learners (20.3%) immersed this language in communicating with their foreign friends or 
acquaintances. Most strikingly, beyond three-quarters of the participants (78.4%) used the learnt 
English for speaking practice activities with their friends. It is clear that these adult learners expected 
to improve their Communication English proficiency. Yet, there were still some learners (29/148, 
19.6%) unable to access to realistic environment for Communication English use.  

Table 6.  The adult learners’ perceptions of the hindrances on Communication English use 

Hindrances of Communication English Use F (n) P (%) 
I feel too anxious and scared to speak anything 81 54.7 

I am afraid that my inaccurate pronunciation makes listeners not understand 69 46.6 
I do not know how to start my speaking 52 35.1 

I hesitate to speak as I am afraid that I make incorrect utterances 95 64.2 

I do not have sufficient vocabulary for my speaking 121 81.8 

 

As can be seen from Table 6, several factors hindering the adult learners’ English speaking 
performance were ultimately found. To begin with, more than half of the participants (54.7%) felt 
seriously anxious and scared so that they could hardly make a perfect utterance. Likewise, in relation 
to the learners’ psychological aspects, nearly half of the total sample (46.6%) worried that they 
pronounced words inaccurately, leading to misunderstandings among interlocutors. Moreover, 35.1% 



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 Truong, M. H. (Perks and perils of adult learners) 

of the total sample often felt embarrassed, did not know how to start their speaking. To another 
noticeable finding, around two-thirds of the entire response community (64.2%) hesitated to make 
utterances as they were afraid of the inaccuracy of what they uttered in English. By the highest 
percentage, according to four-fifths of the participants (81.8%), one of the biggest hindrances on their 
oral performance derived from their limited vocabulary size.  

Table 7.  The adult learners’ overall evaluation on the Communication English class 

Overall Evaluation of Communication English Class F (n) P (%) 
There exist a lot of suitable speaking activities 107 72.3 

The teachers are enthusiastic and have understandable teaching methods 112 75.5 

There are many opportunities for English speaking practice throughout the class 95 64.2 
The class is little joyful, there are not many opportunities for English speaking practice 30 20.3 

The teachers have not still possessed interesting and vivid teaching methods 18 12.2 

 
One of key factors that directly affect the learning performance of Communication English among 

the adult learners is overall quality of the language center where they are following. From Table 7, the 
large number of the participants (72.3%) strongly agreed that the Communication English class at 
their language center provided them with several suitable speaking activities. Regarding the language 
teachers, the majority of the informants (75.5%) revealed that their language teachers were much 
enthusiastic and delivered their speaking lessons understandably. Besides, roughly two-thirds of the 
total sample (64.2%) applauded that they were exposed to many opportunities for English speaking 
practice during the class. Nonetheless, there were a few negative aspects of the Communication 
English class reported by the minority of the respondents; for instance, Communication English class 
was less joyful and exciting and English speaking activities were not enough for them to practice 
throughout the class (20.3%), as well as some teachers had not still owned interesting and vivid 
teaching methods (12.2%).  

Table 8.  The adult learners’ self-evaluation of the Communication English curriculum 

Self-Evaluation of Language Curriculum F (n) P (%) 
The language curriculum is vivid and interesting  119 80.4 

The language curriculum boring 29 19.6 

Total 148 100.0 

The language curriculum is suitable to my communicative needs  108 73.0 
The language curriculum is not consonant with my communicative needs 40 27.0 

Total 148 100.0 

The language curriculum is communicative competence-focused 124 83.8 

The language curriculum is grammar-focused 24 16.2 
Total 148 100.0 

 
Coupled with the overall evaluation (e.g. the teachers, the learning activities), the assessment of 

the adult learners to the curriculum content of their Communication English was also considered. As 
Table 8 illustrates, while four-fifths of the participants (80.4%) assumed that the content of 
Communication English courses was vivid and interesting, one-fifth (19.6%) reported that the 
curriculum at their language center was boring. In addition, nearly three-quarters of the respondents 
(73.0%) approved of the suitability of the curriculum content to adult learners’ communicative needs; 
by contrast, one-quarter (27.0%) stated that the curriculum content was not in accordance with their 
communicative needs. Positively, most of the Communication English curricular at the language 
centers were communicative competence-based, revealed by 83.8% of the target sample. Only 16.2% 
perceived that grammar-focused curriculum still survived at their language schools.  

As displayed in Table 9, there are several perks that adult learners could possess when learning 
Communication English. First, a greater part of the respondents (84.5%) had high motivation and 
strong determination before attending the Communication English class. To the most striking finding, 
nearly all the total sample (87.2%) identified a clear learning goal for their attendance to 
Communication English class. Besides, the vast availability of Communication English centers and 
courses was positively confirmed by more than two-thirds of the total informants (68.2%). 

 



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Table 9.  The adult learners’ perceived perks in Communication English learning 

Perceived Possible Perks F (n) P (%) 
I have high motivation and strong determination 125 84.5 

I set up my clear learning objectives 129 87.2 

Many Communication English courses are available 101 68.2 

I am capable of deploying the Internet for my learning 83 56.1 
There exist many opportunities for English speaking practice with foreigners 22 14.9 

I have a good foundation of grammar and vocabulary knowledge 69 46.6 

I am able to learn autonomously 92 62.2 

I know how to apply what I learned into reality 34 23.0 
I can establish my own environment for English speaking practice 28 18.9 

 

In addition, many of them unraveled that they had a good self-learning capacity; that is, learner 
autonomy (62.2%). Moreover, the learner autonomy of the adult learners was also reflected by their 
ability to use the Internet for their learning Communication English (56.1%). What is more, nearly 
half of the total participants (46.6%) equipped themselves with a good basis of vocabulary and 
grammar knowledge. Finally, some other perks belonged to the smaller part of the adult learners; for 
example, being capable of applying what they learnt into practical (23.0%), being able to create the 
environment of English speaking practice environment by themselves (18.9%). having realistic 
environment for their English communicative practice with foreigners (14.9%).  

Table 10. The adult learners’ perceived perils in Communication English learning 

Perceived Existing Perils F (n) P (%) 
I have no much time for my learning 88 59.5 

I face difficulty in pronouncing words accurately 62 41.9 

I have problems with listening comprehension 104 70.3 
I do not possess my clear learning goal 11 7.4 

I do not have effective learning methods 82 55.4 

I lack my self-confidence in my English capacity 95 64.2 

There is a shortage of practice environment 73 49.3 
I do not possess sufficient knowledge of vocabulary and grammar 77 52.0 

I do not still have a good language teacher 26 17.6 

 

Table 10 above illustrates some perils that the adult learners confronted during their learning of 
Communication English. To begin with, 59.5% of the respondents did not have much time for their 
immersion with Communication English. Similarly, based on the revelation of approximately half of 
the whole sample (49.3%), there was a severe lack of realistic environment for them to practice 
English speaking. In addition, roughly half of the entire sample (55.4%) did not possess effective 
learning methods and techniques. Besides, one of the commonly-faced perils in learning 
Communication English was the adult learners’ lack of self-confidence (64.2%). Table 10 also points 
out a set of different challenges on the adult learners’ speaking performance concerning language 
input (e.g., vocabulary, grammar, pronunciation, listening comprehension); for example, having 
trouble in accurate pronunciation (41.9%), in listening comprehension (70.3%), deficiency of 
grammar and vocabulary input (52.0%). Furthermore, 17.6% of the total sample did not still seek a 
good language teacher for themselves; and, 7.4% of this group not still having a clear goal for their 
learning of Communication English. 

As observed from Table 11, by the highest percentage, four-fifths of the participants (81.1%) 
expected the language teachers to supplement extra-curricular activities for their speaking practice. 
By the second highest percentage, a big portion of the adult informants (70.9%) looked forward to 
learning Communication English with foreign teachers more. More than two-thirds of the entire 
sample (65.5%) hoped the language teachers could offer them different amusing learning activities 
like watching movies, doing role play, jigsaws, game-like activities. Moreover, nearly half of the 
participants (45.3%) expected the language centers to minimize the number of the learners in each 
class so that the quality of their Communication English class could be improved. Finally, only a very 
small part of the total sample (9.5%) attributed the quality of their Communication English class to 
the regular presence of Vietnamese teachers.  



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Table 11. The adult learners’ suggested solutions for better Communication English learning 

Suggested Solutions F (n) P (%) 
Minimize the quantity of learners in each class 67 45.3 

Expand time of learning Communication English with foreign teachers 105 70.9 

Increase time of learning Communication English with Vietnamese teachers 14 9.5 

Supplement extra-curricular activities for speaking practice 120 81.1 
Offer different amusing learning activities like watching movies, doing role plays 97 65.5 

 

3.2. Discussion 

Research Question 1: Adult Learners’ Perks and Perils in Communication English learning 

First of all, the quantitative results indicated that all the participants came to the Communication 
English class due to their specific purpose. In common, these adults wanted to improve their English 
in terms of fluency and accuracy to serve communicative purposes at work, to meet the qualification 
requirement at school or workplace, and to seek a better job. According to Cozma (2015), unlike 
younger learners, the adults always have a reason why they are studying. Thus, the majority of the 
adult learners had strong inner motivation and established a clear learning goal. As the adult learners 
had well-defined motive for their learning, they participated in communicative activities actively. 
Actually, many adult learners used English for various communicative needs outside the class; for 
example, they practiced Communication English at workplace, at the English language clubs, in chat 
with foreign friends, in rehearsal with their friends or classmates. Obviously, adult learners, are goal-
oriented and motivated because when they learn, they want to accomplish specific needs such as to 
support their study, to be promoted in career, to make more friends or to be good language users 
(Brockett & Hiemstra, 2018). Their willingness to learn Communication English does not need to be 
told or forced to do it.  

As for their language centers and teachers, it is indicated the questionnaire results that the 
Communication English classes at their language centers provided them with several interesting and 
appropriate learning activities. In addition, they were exposed to many opportunities for English 
speaking practice during the class. In addition, their language teachers were enthusiastic and taught 
their speaking lesson in an understandable manner. These perks were perceived from the big part of 
the participants’ positive attitudes. Attitudes, which refer to students’ feeling about the language 
teacher or the language class, influence directly their language learning (Ahmed, 2015). Undoubtedly, 
the quality of teachers, language centers, and curriculum motivated the adult learners to constantly 
engage into their class. Furthermore, these good aspects could help the learners outperform their 
speaking ability.  

Coupled with the aforementioned perks, the adult learners also owned some perils in their learning 
Communication English. First of all, the results from the questionnaire copies showed that most of the 
adult learners only frequently spent around one hour for each time of their studying Communication 
English outside the class due to their workload or study mass. According Cozma (2015), adult learners 
have their multiple responsibilities; the adults generally come to the English classroom with a certain 
level of fatigue. Additionally, the findings of Baharudin, Murad, and Mat (2012) revealed that most 
of the adult learners found it very hard to manage their time between family, career and study. As a 
result, they often sacrificed their resting hour or their pleasure time in order to complete their tasks 
and finance their self-study. Wu, Wu and Le (2014) pointed out in their study that the most common 
obstacle to adults’ learning is lack of time. Similarly, the questionnaire results also documented that 
the majority of the adult learners felt unconfident when speaking English. In specific, their low self-
confidence derived from their lack of vocabulary size and grammar amount, their incorrect 
pronunciation. As a result of this, they became hesitant to speak anything. These findings are in the 
same lines with those of Wu, et al. (2014) that adults especially find difficulty in obtaining a native-
like accent, thus they partially lose confidence. Furthermore, adults often find it stressful when they 
are unable to express themselves clearly and correctly in a second language.  

Pertaining to the adult learners’ views of the language teachers and centers, the questionnaire 
results unraveled that although some language teachers were sufficiently enthusiastic and easy-going 
along with a comprehensible instructional path, they did not still innovate their teaching methods. 
According to some participants, those teachers did not impart the lessons vividly and interestingly. 



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Especially, some participants from the data source stated that the curriculum content appeared to be 
somehow grammar-based. In fact, the teachers tended to focus on imparting much more language 
knowledge and presenting some speaking tasks. Based upon De Bot (2015); Tsagari & Banerjee 
(2016); and Richards (2015), communicating effectively in a foreign language requires the speakers’ 
good understanding of linguistic (accurate knowledge of grammar and vocabulary), sociolinguistic 
(language in different social contexts), and strategic aspects (ability to use language to achieve 
communicative goals) of the target language. Indeed, the language teachers seemed to focus much on 
building up their adult learners’ linguistic competence. Therefore, the language teachers should 
develop these three constructs of communicative competence concurrently. Finally, the results of this 
study indicated that speaking activities and communicative environment were insufficient for many 
adult learners to practise. It should be noted that “practice makes perfect”; that is, the more the adult 
learners practise, the more they become competent English speakers.  

Research Question 2: Adult Learners’ Suggested Solutions for Communication English learning 

To the first solution group, the questionnaire results displayed that most of the adult learners 
expected the language teachers to supplement extra-curricular activities for their speaking practice. 
Based on their suggestion, they believed that these activities could make the class more comfortable 
and practical, which contributed to their learning success. As mentioned earlier, the adult learners 
were not provided with sufficient speaking activities and tasks; on the contrary, their language teachers 
sometimes over-emphasized their linguistic competence. Based on Richards and Rodger (2001) and 
Diane-Larsen (2019) the integrated components of speaking activities should comprise the aspects of 
three language models such as structural, functional and interactional use of language. It means that 
speaking activities used in Communication English classrooms need to focus on three equal 
components of speaking skills, including accuracy, fluency, and appropriateness. Especially, these 
extra speaking activities need to be interesting and motivating so the adult learners’ instrinsic 
motivation to Communication English learning increases. In academia, motivation becomes the 
driving force for learners to be persistent in tedious learning process (Alamer, 2015; Alizadeh, 2016). 
Thereby, the language teachers should create communicative and fun activities, and select appropriate 
topics in teaching so that adult learners are motivated to speak English (Heriansyah, 2012). 

To the second solution group, nearly half of the participants wanted the language centers to cut 
down the number of learners in each class so that the quality of their Communication English class 
could be better. It is inferred that the size of the class and the arrangement of seats detrimentally affect 
the speaking performance of the adult learners (Bhattacharya, 2017). A conducive and co-operative 
environment proves to be supportive for learners. It has been observed that adult learners are usually 
happier and more active in a small class. Kabir (2014) indicates large classes as an inhibiting factor 
for EFL learners’ speaking performance in relation to adult learners who have limited time to show 
their speaking ability. Teachers pay more attention to each learner, and consequently, learners get 
more involved in the speaking activities. Concurrently, the more frequent presence of native language 
teachers in their class was also suggested so that they could be familiarized by the native accents. 
Being immersed with different English language accents and rhythms can facilitate adult learners’ 
listening comprehension and pronunciation, which eventually leads to a positive change of speaking 
performance, that is, communicative competence (Nguyen, & Tran, 2015).  

4. Conclusion 

The adult learners had a plenty of perks when learning Communication English. First of all, almost 
all the participants came to the Communication English class due to their specific purpose. Secondly, 
the majority of the adults had strong inner motivation and established a clear learning goal. Thirdly, 
many adult learners utilized English for various communicative needs outside the classrooms. 
Fourthly, a large number of the students had positive attitudes towards their language teachers and 
centers, including: 1) their language center provided them with several appropriate learning activities, 
2) their language teachers were enthusiastic and taught their speaking lesson in an understandable 
manner. In general, motivation, clear goals, and positive attitudes can facilitate these adult learners to 
acquire Communication English with ease.   

Coupled with the aforementioned perks, the adult learners also faced some perils in their learning 
Communication English. First, most of the adult learners lacked time for Communication English self-
study outside the class due to their workload or study mass. Secondly, the majority of the adult learners 



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 Truong, M. H. (Perks and perils of adult learners) 

felt unconfident when speaking English, which could derive from their immature vocabulary and 
grammar input. Thirdly, a few adults had negative attitudes towards their language centers and 
teachers such as 1) some teachers did not deliver the lessons vividly and interestingly, 2) the 
curriculum content was grammar-based to some extent. Some solutions were ultimately made by the 
adult learners in this study. For language teachers, most of these adult learners expected their language 
teachers to furnish appealing extra-curricular activities for their speaking practice. For language 
centers, many adult learners also longed for these sites to curtail the quantity of learners in each class, 
to render more modern equipment for them to practice speaking tasks, and to invite native language 
teachers to their class more frequently.  

 

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