Interaction in EFL （English as a foreign language） classrooms has received much attention in recent years However, little research exists that has investigated interaction in Chinese EFL classrooms. To bridge this g...Interaction in EFL （English as a foreign language） classrooms has received much attention in recent years However, little research exists that has investigated interaction in Chinese EFL classrooms. To bridge this gap, the current research investigates interaction in EFL classrooms in middle schools in China in terms of： （1） the amount of teacher talk and interaction; （2） the type of teacher questions and teacher feedbacks; and （3） the amount and forms of meaning negotiation. The data set include observation records and observation reports of 140 naturally occurring lessons in middle schools in China. The findings reveal that there is not much interaction in EFL lessons in middle schools in western areas of China, which is shown by class time dominated by TTT （teacher talking time）, teacher questions and feedbacks that do not encourage students＇ responses and very little negotiation of meaning Possible causes are analyzed, and implications of this research for EFL teaching in China, teacher development and further research are also discussed展开更多
Following Dornyei and Csize r＇s （1998） theoretical hamework of motivational strategies in the L2 classroom, this paper, through a case study, looks into the common use of motivational strategies in Chinese middle s...Following Dornyei and Csize r＇s （1998） theoretical hamework of motivational strategies in the L2 classroom, this paper, through a case study, looks into the common use of motivational strategies in Chinese middle school EFL classroom.展开更多
Error correction, in recent times, is seen as one of the important teaching processes in L2 （second language） learning, because comprehensible inputs alone is insufficient for acquisition of language. However, few L...Error correction, in recent times, is seen as one of the important teaching processes in L2 （second language） learning, because comprehensible inputs alone is insufficient for acquisition of language. However, few L2 teachers know much about error analysis and how to correct errors in the L2 classroom. Error correction is a very complicated and a thorny issue in L2 teaching and learning. L2 teachers, therefore, need to be armed with ways in which errors can be treated to ensure maximum effect yet with less harm to learners. Identifying learners＇ errors is very important in L2 learning, but how to correct them to give the desired effect is equally important and very challenging to L2 teachers. It is therefore crucial to initiate a study in Ghana to find out how errors are corrected in the Ghanaian English language classroom. This case study used complete observation and semi-structured interview as data collection strategies to identify error correction strategies/types English teachers use in the Ghanaian JHS （Junior High School） classroom and how error correction/treatment can be improved to facilitate English language teaching and learning. The findings of the study showed that explicit error correction technique was the most commonly used followed by recast, elicitation, metalinguistic clues, clarification request, repetition, and cues. It was also found that the causes of the disparity in the use of the various error correction types were inadequate teacher preparation, incompetence in English language, limited knowledge in error correction, caliber of students, and insufficient teaching time. This study identified that the situation can be improved through effective teacher training, in-service training, learner involvement, and effective planning.展开更多
When it comes to the practical use of English, the traditional college English class, which has big size and uses lecture-style teaching, has increasingly showed its disadvantages. The English Department of Harbin Eng...When it comes to the practical use of English, the traditional college English class, which has big size and uses lecture-style teaching, has increasingly showed its disadvantages. The English Department of Harbin Engineering University has initiated a mini-class model in recent years, which has received positive responses from both teachers and students who have experienced the class. By comparing the lecture-style class with mini-class, this paper will introduce the strengths and weaknesses of mini-class according to the author＇s observation of the class as well as the feedbacks from teachers and students. As is found out, its strengths far outweigh its weaknesses, and therefore the model is highly recommended for college English class in other schools展开更多
The gap between the theories of second language acquisition and their practice in materials development has been a controversial issue in the field of applied linguistics. Recently, the findings of corpus linguistics ...The gap between the theories of second language acquisition and their practice in materials development has been a controversial issue in the field of applied linguistics. Recently, the findings of corpus linguistics have narrowed the gap. However, their practice, especially in the realm of vocabulary acquisition, has encountered pedagogic problems in the classroom because the authentic nature of the words in corpus-based examples was beyond the level of learners＇ comprehension which paves the way for the practice of pedagogic corpus linguistics. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to practice pedagogic corpus linguistics, and mainly data-driven learning, with the first year secondary school English language learners in Iran in terms of their vocabulary acquisition. To do so, 28 students participated in the study. Examples from the British National Corpus for the main words of each unit of their course book, Prospect 1, were presented to them in a course of 16 sessions. Those which were beyond their understanding were eliminated and those comprehensible for them, the pedagogic ones, were selected based on their reports regarding the comprehensibility of each corpus-based example.展开更多
As a new affective variable in the field of L2 （Second Language） Acquisition, the study of WTC （Willingness to Communicate） has attracted widespread attention since the 1990s, which is not only an effective way to...As a new affective variable in the field of L2 （Second Language） Acquisition, the study of WTC （Willingness to Communicate） has attracted widespread attention since the 1990s, which is not only an effective way to promote language learning but also an important language target itself. Based on the data got from the questionnaire, the present study intends to explore the level, gender difference, correlation with academic .performance, and influencing factors of English majors＇ WTC inside classroom using both quantitative and qualitative research method. The results reveal that English majors＇ WTC inside classroom is comparatively high; there is no significant gender difference in English majors＇ WTC inside classroom, and there is significant positive correlation between WTC inside classroom and academic achievement; furthermore, language capacity, language anxiety, and communicative atmosphere are the main influencing factors展开更多
English practice teaching has outstanding superiority over the extension and supplementation of English classroom teaching, and practice teaching is an indispensably important part of college English teaching. To stud...English practice teaching has outstanding superiority over the extension and supplementation of English classroom teaching, and practice teaching is an indispensably important part of college English teaching. To students, cultivation of the ability of practice is vital, affecting students＇ employment and future. To universities, teaching quality has a direct impact on the development prospect of schools and decides the future of schools. Moreover, local normal universities also undertake a more important task to cultivate local high-quality talents teaching primary and junior high schools. These teaching talents undertake the great task of English teaching over primary and junior high school students, and thus the construction and implementation of practice teaching system of English major in normal universities are urgent.展开更多
At present, some problems are gradually appearing in college English class teaching, such as, communication activity among students, reflection of individual＇s advantage, the transition of study main body, etc. The a...At present, some problems are gradually appearing in college English class teaching, such as, communication activity among students, reflection of individual＇s advantage, the transition of study main body, etc. The article mainly studies the problem of communication activity among students with questionnaire method, and puts forward some strategies.展开更多
This action research explores the use of the flipped classroom approach in an English speaking class with 25 students at intermediate level in a vocational college in China's Mainland. It aims at motivating Englis...This action research explores the use of the flipped classroom approach in an English speaking class with 25 students at intermediate level in a vocational college in China's Mainland. It aims at motivating English learners and helping them develop communicative language skills more effectively and efficiently. Both qualitative and quantitative methods are adopted to analyze the data collected through interviews, teaching logs, as well as anonymous questionnaires and a summative assessment. Results show that the flipped classroom approach does stimulate students to invest more time and effort prior to instruction and during class learners do participate in communicative language exercises more enthusiastically. As a result, conceivable progress has been made in learners＇ performance. Possible recommendations of incorporating periodic rotation within the class, adding certain teacher-led instruction, and informal evaluation with group members, are raised at the end of the paper to help further improve the teaching/learning outcome of the flipped classroom approach.展开更多
With the aim of investigating the longitudinal washback of the innovated College English Test （CET） on College English （CE） classroom teaching and learning and ascertaining what changes the test innovation has bro...With the aim of investigating the longitudinal washback of the innovated College English Test （CET） on College English （CE） classroom teaching and learning and ascertaining what changes the test innovation has brought to CE in China, this study compares CE classes of a university in 2003 with those in 2009 through classroom observations, supplemented with interviews and questionnaire survey. The results indicate that the CE teaching model remains nearly the same before and after the CET innovation, but obvious changes are observed in terms of semester teaching plans, teaching content and teaching methods. It seems that the CET innovation is one of the main factors contributing to these changes, which, however, may also be attributed to other factors such as The College English Requirement, curriculum design, the use of CET results, teachers＇ individual differences, and students＇ English proficiency.展开更多
Automated writing evaluation （AWE） technology is being adopted in classrooms in China and the USA. This paper presents the results of a case study of the application of AWE in Dalian, China. The quasi-experimental s...Automated writing evaluation （AWE） technology is being adopted in classrooms in China and the USA. This paper presents the results of a case study of the application of AWE in Dalian, China. The quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2010 in Chinese middle school English language classrooms. An effect size of 0.30 was found in favor of the experimental group using AWE as an online formative assessment. Student survey responses and teacher observations are presented as convergent evidence to illustrate the impact AWE technology has on teachers, students, and student achievement in English writing.展开更多
文摘Interaction in EFL （English as a foreign language） classrooms has received much attention in recent years However, little research exists that has investigated interaction in Chinese EFL classrooms. To bridge this gap, the current research investigates interaction in EFL classrooms in middle schools in China in terms of： （1） the amount of teacher talk and interaction; （2） the type of teacher questions and teacher feedbacks; and （3） the amount and forms of meaning negotiation. The data set include observation records and observation reports of 140 naturally occurring lessons in middle schools in China. The findings reveal that there is not much interaction in EFL lessons in middle schools in western areas of China, which is shown by class time dominated by TTT （teacher talking time）, teacher questions and feedbacks that do not encourage students＇ responses and very little negotiation of meaning Possible causes are analyzed, and implications of this research for EFL teaching in China, teacher development and further research are also discussed
文摘Following Dornyei and Csize r＇s （1998） theoretical hamework of motivational strategies in the L2 classroom, this paper, through a case study, looks into the common use of motivational strategies in Chinese middle school EFL classroom.
文摘Error correction, in recent times, is seen as one of the important teaching processes in L2 （second language） learning, because comprehensible inputs alone is insufficient for acquisition of language. However, few L2 teachers know much about error analysis and how to correct errors in the L2 classroom. Error correction is a very complicated and a thorny issue in L2 teaching and learning. L2 teachers, therefore, need to be armed with ways in which errors can be treated to ensure maximum effect yet with less harm to learners. Identifying learners＇ errors is very important in L2 learning, but how to correct them to give the desired effect is equally important and very challenging to L2 teachers. It is therefore crucial to initiate a study in Ghana to find out how errors are corrected in the Ghanaian English language classroom. This case study used complete observation and semi-structured interview as data collection strategies to identify error correction strategies/types English teachers use in the Ghanaian JHS （Junior High School） classroom and how error correction/treatment can be improved to facilitate English language teaching and learning. The findings of the study showed that explicit error correction technique was the most commonly used followed by recast, elicitation, metalinguistic clues, clarification request, repetition, and cues. It was also found that the causes of the disparity in the use of the various error correction types were inadequate teacher preparation, incompetence in English language, limited knowledge in error correction, caliber of students, and insufficient teaching time. This study identified that the situation can be improved through effective teacher training, in-service training, learner involvement, and effective planning.
文摘When it comes to the practical use of English, the traditional college English class, which has big size and uses lecture-style teaching, has increasingly showed its disadvantages. The English Department of Harbin Engineering University has initiated a mini-class model in recent years, which has received positive responses from both teachers and students who have experienced the class. By comparing the lecture-style class with mini-class, this paper will introduce the strengths and weaknesses of mini-class according to the author＇s observation of the class as well as the feedbacks from teachers and students. As is found out, its strengths far outweigh its weaknesses, and therefore the model is highly recommended for college English class in other schools
文摘The gap between the theories of second language acquisition and their practice in materials development has been a controversial issue in the field of applied linguistics. Recently, the findings of corpus linguistics have narrowed the gap. However, their practice, especially in the realm of vocabulary acquisition, has encountered pedagogic problems in the classroom because the authentic nature of the words in corpus-based examples was beyond the level of learners＇ comprehension which paves the way for the practice of pedagogic corpus linguistics. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to practice pedagogic corpus linguistics, and mainly data-driven learning, with the first year secondary school English language learners in Iran in terms of their vocabulary acquisition. To do so, 28 students participated in the study. Examples from the British National Corpus for the main words of each unit of their course book, Prospect 1, were presented to them in a course of 16 sessions. Those which were beyond their understanding were eliminated and those comprehensible for them, the pedagogic ones, were selected based on their reports regarding the comprehensibility of each corpus-based example.
文摘As a new affective variable in the field of L2 （Second Language） Acquisition, the study of WTC （Willingness to Communicate） has attracted widespread attention since the 1990s, which is not only an effective way to promote language learning but also an important language target itself. Based on the data got from the questionnaire, the present study intends to explore the level, gender difference, correlation with academic .performance, and influencing factors of English majors＇ WTC inside classroom using both quantitative and qualitative research method. The results reveal that English majors＇ WTC inside classroom is comparatively high; there is no significant gender difference in English majors＇ WTC inside classroom, and there is significant positive correlation between WTC inside classroom and academic achievement; furthermore, language capacity, language anxiety, and communicative atmosphere are the main influencing factors
文摘English practice teaching has outstanding superiority over the extension and supplementation of English classroom teaching, and practice teaching is an indispensably important part of college English teaching. To students, cultivation of the ability of practice is vital, affecting students＇ employment and future. To universities, teaching quality has a direct impact on the development prospect of schools and decides the future of schools. Moreover, local normal universities also undertake a more important task to cultivate local high-quality talents teaching primary and junior high schools. These teaching talents undertake the great task of English teaching over primary and junior high school students, and thus the construction and implementation of practice teaching system of English major in normal universities are urgent.
文摘At present, some problems are gradually appearing in college English class teaching, such as, communication activity among students, reflection of individual＇s advantage, the transition of study main body, etc. The article mainly studies the problem of communication activity among students with questionnaire method, and puts forward some strategies.
文摘This action research explores the use of the flipped classroom approach in an English speaking class with 25 students at intermediate level in a vocational college in China's Mainland. It aims at motivating English learners and helping them develop communicative language skills more effectively and efficiently. Both qualitative and quantitative methods are adopted to analyze the data collected through interviews, teaching logs, as well as anonymous questionnaires and a summative assessment. Results show that the flipped classroom approach does stimulate students to invest more time and effort prior to instruction and during class learners do participate in communicative language exercises more enthusiastically. As a result, conceivable progress has been made in learners＇ performance. Possible recommendations of incorporating periodic rotation within the class, adding certain teacher-led instruction, and informal evaluation with group members, are raised at the end of the paper to help further improve the teaching/learning outcome of the flipped classroom approach.
基金part of the achievements funded by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities in China(No.0205005201030)the National Scholarship Council of China(No.2010850066) granted to the second author to support a one-year visiting professorship and period of collaboration with University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations from October 2011 to September 2012
文摘With the aim of investigating the longitudinal washback of the innovated College English Test （CET） on College English （CE） classroom teaching and learning and ascertaining what changes the test innovation has brought to CE in China, this study compares CE classes of a university in 2003 with those in 2009 through classroom observations, supplemented with interviews and questionnaire survey. The results indicate that the CE teaching model remains nearly the same before and after the CET innovation, but obvious changes are observed in terms of semester teaching plans, teaching content and teaching methods. It seems that the CET innovation is one of the main factors contributing to these changes, which, however, may also be attributed to other factors such as The College English Requirement, curriculum design, the use of CET results, teachers＇ individual differences, and students＇ English proficiency.
文摘Automated writing evaluation （AWE） technology is being adopted in classrooms in China and the USA. This paper presents the results of a case study of the application of AWE in Dalian, China. The quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2010 in Chinese middle school English language classrooms. An effect size of 0.30 was found in favor of the experimental group using AWE as an online formative assessment. Student survey responses and teacher observations are presented as convergent evidence to illustrate the impact AWE technology has on teachers, students, and student achievement in English writing.
