论激发在英语课堂上沉默的学生积极发言---以调查中和中学为例)　.doc

论文244教 学 论 文论文题目On Motivating the Silent Students to Speak more in the English Class -An Investigation in Jinning Zhonghe Middle School (论激发在英语课堂上沉默的学生积极发言-以调查中和中学为例) Contents1. Introduction 12. Literature review 22.1 Domestic studies 2 2.2 International studies 23. Methodology 43.1 Data collection 43.2 Data analyses 5 3.2.1 Their own characteristics 53.2.2 The students learning background. 53.2.3 The learning atmosphere 6 3.2.4 The teachers quality 63.2.5 Students learning motivation and interest 74. Theories related to the students speaking in the English class 74.1 Learning motivation 74.2 Learning interest 84.3 Learning attitude 95. Strategies for motivating the silent students to speak actively in the English class 95.1 Foster the students learning interest 95.2 Cultivate the right learning attitude 115.3 Emotional communication and pleasant classroom atmosphere 115.4 Pair work 135.5 Group work 145.6 Enhance the teachers teaching quality 155.7 Humanistic education 166. Conclusion 17References 19AbstractIn the teaching process, many teachers have come across the students who dont want to talk in class. Some teachers may face this difficult situation: the instructor asks a question, and no hands are raised up. And then perhaps the question is restated or rephrased, but still no response. Teachers sometimes complain about the students reluctance to speak actively in class. “Listen to teacher” has been the students most frequent classroom experience. To enliven the class atmosphere, and to improve the students communicative competence, a teacher should try to motivate the silent students to speak in class. It is useful and meaningful and necessary for the students lifelong learning and development. With this, this thesis intends to analyze the reasons why the students keep silent in the English class, and tries to find some ways to improve this situation. Data have been collected from 90 junior middle-school students sample survey by using the questionnaire. Investigation findings show that the main factors affecting the students speaking in class are the students own characteristics, the students learning background and environment, teachers quality, students learning motivation, learning interest and learning attitude. With this understanding, this paper suggests some teaching methods and strategies: firstly, stress the importance of motivation and interest and attitude, and then foster the students learning interest; secondly, cultivate right learning attitude; thirdly, create relaxed classroom atmosphere and attach importance to emotional communication; fourthly, use pair work and group work in the teaching; fifthly, enhance the teachers integrated competence; sixthly, apply humanistic approaches in the teaching, such as encouragement, appreciation, praise.Key words: silent students； motivate； speak； English class摘 要 在教学过程中，许多教师常常遇到一些在课堂上不愿发言的学生。许多教师常常经历此情形：教师提问，无学生举手发言。教师再次提问，但仍然没有学生回应。教师时常抱怨学生不愿在课堂上积极发言。听教师讲解已是学生最常见的课堂情形。为了建构一堂有效的课堂,为了活跃课堂气氛,为了提高学生的交际能力, 作为教师, 应该激发这些学生积极回答问题。这对学生的终生学习及发展很有意义。据此现象, 本文分析了学生在课堂上保持沉默的原因,并提出了一系列方法来改进这一问题。通过抽样问卷调查90名初中生取得的相应数据。调查结果显示影响学生在英语课堂上保持沉默的主要原因是学生自身的性格、学习背景、学习环境、教师素质、学习动机、兴趣及态度。据此原因，本文结合实际提出了相应的教学方法和策略：明确学习动机、态度、 兴趣的重要性，培养学生的学习兴趣；培养良好的学习态度；重视情感交流、建立轻松和谐的课堂气氛；在教学中采用小组活动；提高教师素质；在教学中应用人文关怀, 如: 鼓励、欣赏、赞扬。关键词：沉默的学生； 激发； 发言； 英语课堂21. IntroductionIn the traditional teaching of a foreign language, speaking opportunities always seem to belong to those students who are good at the performance. Others who are shy or not good at conversation dare not raise their hands to speak; even named by the teacher, they often have a tense psychology and play poorly. Day by day, they speak less and less, remain silent, and lose many opportunities for language practice in class. Besides, many teachers have come across lots of students who keep silent in the English class. They are often reluctant to communicate with teachers. In class, only a few students speak and respond to the teachers questions actively. It greatly influences the quality of classroom English teaching. It makes the atmosphere of class stifling and boring. It is also bad to these students lifelong learning and development. For an excellent and effective English class, we need students to learn by participation, experience and communication. For a meaningful class, we need to foster the students learning interest and help them set a correct learning attitude. Meanwhile, English teaching should embrace all the students and set a good foundation for the students lifelong learning and development. In order to construct an excellent, meaningful and effective class, to enlighten the atmosphere of class, to improve students communicative competence, and to improve the quality of English teaching, it is necessary to motivate silent students to speak actively in the English class. It is beneficial and valuable for their further study.There has been more than ten years since our country decided to put quality-oriented education into effect. During this process, teaching thoughts, teaching contents, and teaching methods have been reformed, and effective classroom teaching is emphasized. But many problems still exist. For example, there are few opportunities for the students to communicate with the teachers in class; teachers dominate the class and most students keep silent in class, and the teaching atmosphere is dull. There are many reasons why they are reluctant to talk, such as lack of learning motivation and communicative competence, the students own characteristics, and the poor learning background. Whatever the reason, it makes no sense to try and bully such students into talking. It will probably only make them more reluctant to speak. We need to study and analyze why they keep silent from different aspects and take feasible measures to motivate silent students to speak actively in the English class. Therefore, this thesis aims to discuss how to motivate the silent students to speak actively in the English class.2. Literature review2.1 Domestic studiesFrom the 1990s, the concept of cooperative learning and the group work in the classroom teaching have been brought into middle schools and primary schools in China. In recent years, nearly 200 research papers about it have been published (Lin Li & Wang Zhijiang, 2005). Group work is the fundamental teaching form of cooperative learning. It includes role-play, communicative learning, group discussion, and so on. All these require the students to participate actively. Wang Qiang states that many activities in the traditional pedagogy are aimed at developing language skills, but in fact they fail to do so. This is because the activities are not designed from a communicative point of view (Wang Qiang, 2000). In Wang Cairen opinion, for the English teaching, the essence of teaching is communication. He states that teaching is of communication, teaching is by communication, and teaching is for communication (Wang Cairen，1997). Besides, motivation is an internal and great driving force. In the language learning, motivation is closely related with attitude and interest. Fostering a correct attitude and learning interest can increase the learning effect (Huang Yuanzhen, 2006). According to the English curriculum standards for compulsory education in the ordinary high school, this curriculum innovation advocates students learning through experience, participation, cooperation and communication, and task-based teaching. It advocates such English teaching that embraces all students and sets a good foundation for the students lifelong learning and development (Ministry of education, 2001)2.2 International studiesAccording to the Jeremy Harmers opinion, motivation is some kind of internal drive that encourages somebody to pursue a course of action. It seems reasonable to suggest that the motivation of the students is perhaps the single most important thing that he brings to the classroom (Jeremy Harmer, 2000). Paul Davies & Eric Pearse hold a similar view that motivation is a complex phenomenon. Most teachers consider motivation essential for successful language learning (Paul Davies & Eric Pearse, 2002). Real success in English language teaching and learning is when the learners can actually communicate in English inside and outside the classroom. In Penny Urs opinion, group work is of course the increased participation. Students, who are shy of saying something，often find it much easier to express themselves in front of a small group of their peers. Many students find this type of practice easier for the student to be successful, and his confidence and self-esteem are boosted (Penny Ur, 1990). Research by Liu Shulin, Liu Chunyan, and Liu Yuewe (2006) showed that pair work increases the amount of the students practice, allows students to have participation and encourages students to cooperate. Usually silent and reserved students may become vocal participants in the process. Humanistic approaches emphasize the importance of the inner world of the learner and place the individuals thought, feelings and emotions on the forefront of all human development (Williams and Burden, 1977). According to this view, a lot of teaching techniques have been widely used, among which the effective activities and interactive activities are most popular.The above reviews give me a lot of enlightment. Through these reviews we can see that learning motivation plays an important role in the students learning. It is essential for successful language learning. Moreover, teaching is for communication. Communication is the key of English learning. Meanwhile, English curriculum standards advocates students learning through experience, participation, communication. Cooperative learning is also widely advocated for applying in the English teaching. In the teaching process, many teachers have come across students who dont want to talk, dont respond to teachers questions and keep silent to do other things. They are reluctant to communicate with the teacher in class. There are many reasons why they are reluctant to speak. However, whatever the reasons are, we must take feasible measures to gradually motivate these silent students to speak in the class for the students lifelong learning and development. 3. Methodology3.1 Data collection3.1.1 Participants90 junior middle school students from Jinning Zhonghe Middle School participated in the sample survey.3.1.2 ProcedureThe questionnaire of 8 selective questions and 10 unfinished selective questions, which are prepared in Chinese, was delivered to the students during their self-study class. The students were told to finish the questionnaire within 10 minutes. The questionnaire was translated from English to Chinese, and subsequently the questionnaire was carefully analyzed and summarized.3.1.3 Data resultsAccording to the results of the questionnaire, we can see only 10% of the students often answer the teachers questions actively and 34% of the students keep silent and dont answer the teachers questions until they are called. 38% of the students feel nervous when they answer the questions. 10% of the students are shy and self-abased. 10% of the students are timid so that they have no courage to respond to the teachers questions. 24% of the students are reserved and they dont like talking. 63% of the students fear being laughed at when they make mistakes. 17% of the students are afraid of being scolded by teachers if they give incorrect answers. For the way of answering questions, 65% of the students dont answer the teachers questions until they know clearly how to answer it. 44% of the students like to answer the questions after they discuss it with their partners. 17% of the students like to answer the questions independently. 18% of the students answer the questions after they have heard other students answers. For the teachers questions, 44% of the students can understand most of the teachers questions clearly, while 12% of the students almost have no idea of what the teacher is saying. Besides, 45% of the students like the questions that have no fixed answers. 28% of the students like to answer the questions that they can think over and get their own conclusions. For the purpose of studying English, 6% of the students study English for the exam and 4% of the students have no clearly purpose. 27% of the students study it to find a good job. For speaking in class, 7% of the students think speaking has no use in English study and 44% of the students think active speaking can help them study English. For the interest of studying English, 31% of the students like English very much and 43% of the students think English is interesting and are willing to learn it. For the teachers, 14% of the students dont like those teachers who treat the students unfairly and 26% of the students dont like the teachers who lack patience. For the learning environment, 32% of the students dont like the depressing and boring learning environment and 13% of the students dont like the immutable teaching steps. For the way of motivating silent students to talk, 36% of the students hope that the teachers can give them humanistic care. 37% of the students hope that the teachers can apply role-play activities in the teaching process and 10% of the students hope that the teachers use group work in the teaching activities.3. 2 Data analyses From the above data results, we can see there are many reasons why students do not want to talk in class, and the main factors that affect students speaking actively are the following:3.2.1 Their own characteristicsTo some degree, their own characteristics affect their speaking in class. Compared with those out-going students, the introverted students are inclined to keep silent. They wouldnt like to talk too much. Some students are very shy. They may feel embarrassed when they talk in class. Some timid students dare not talk in that they lack enough engagement and confidence. Some students also feel nervous when they are called to answer the questions. Besides, most students are self-abased so that they have no courage to answer the teachers questions.3.2.2 The students learning backgroundFor those whose English isnt very good, or whose English is just getting started, or those whose comprehension isnt good, it is difficult for them to follow the teachers. Sometimes, it is also difficult for them to understand what the teacher is saying. To some degree, it is also owing to their learning background. Some students arent used to talking freely, and others may suffer from humiliating when they talk or suffer from a fear of making mistakes and therefore “losing face” in front of the teachers and their peers. So, they dont want to talk in class. For some students, they have been used to following their learning habits. They dont answer the questions until they have thought them over carefully.3.2.3 The learning atmosphereThe learning atmosphere plays an important role in the students response. Sometimes, the class atmosphere is so depressing and monochrome that most students would lose interest in learning and they are not emotionally engaged with what is going on and unwilling to talk about it. Meanwhile, the teachers spend most time saying by themselves, and leaving little time to let students think or discuss. Some students cant follow the teachers teaching steps. Besides, the teachers always order the students to answer the questions and seldom give students a few chances to speak on their own, which is one case of the stressful learning atmosphere. Meanwhile, many teachers are used to adopting the same teaching method and seldom make any jokes in class. In these classes, students often feel bored and make day-dreams. However, under comfortable and easy learning conditions, the students may feel relaxed and happy, and would like to talk in class.3.2.4 The teachers quality The teachers quality is also related to the students talking. If the teachers treat students unfairly, show little sympathy for their pupils, have little patience, and humiliate the students when they make mistakes, the students will be unwilling to respond to the teachers questions. It may give rise to poor communication between the teacher and students, leaving the teacher speaking alone. On the contrary, those teachers, who give humanistic care and encouragement to students, who give students more chances to talk by students themselves, who possess good quality and personality, will receive more response. Whats more, the questions that the teachers ask also influence the students performance. Most students like answering questions that have no fixed answers. So, if the teacher always asks the questions that have only one solution or these questions are too difficult, the students wouldnt like to speak and even lose learning interest. Besides, the met