摘要
Teaching English to large classes is a common phenomenon in developing countries, and China is no exception. Such an issue has attracted attention of many researchers worldwide over the past two decades. However, such research in China has been relatively rare. This paper reports an investigation into teachers＇ perceptions and practices of teaching English to large classes in Chinese schools. The study used both quantitative and qualitative methods to explore teachers＇ attitude towards their perceived problems regarding teaching English to large classes, and the strategies they used to cope with large classes. Results show that an overwhelming majority of the Chinese English teachers （92.6%） hold a negative attitude towards teaching English in large classes. Pedagogical issues, management-related difficulties and psychological burden emerged as major obstacles. Despite these problems, teachers were seeking strategies to cope with the problems in their daily practices with more or less success.
英语大班教学这一现象是发展中国家的一个常见的现象,中国作为最大的发展中国家,大班教学非常普遍。在过去的二十年中,英语大班教学引起全世界范围内的研究者的持续关注。但是,在中国有关英语大班教学的实证研究相对较少。因此,本研究将采用定量和定性研究相结合的方法调查中国中学英语教师对大班教学的看法以及他们在教学实践中应对大班教学的策略。450多名中学教师参与了本调查,其中的6名教师参与了本研究的半结构化访谈。研究表明:绝大多数(92.6%)的中国中学英语教师对英语大班教学持消极态度,认为在大班教授英语的过程中存在教学问题、教学管理问题以及心理负担沉重等问题。尽管大班教学面临着众多的问题,但是,教师们还是在自己日常教学中探索出一些解决这些问题的策略,并取得一些成功。
