第八届全国高中英语教师教学论文评选贵州省贵阳市白云二中赵俊

The Application of Group Cooperative Learning in Senior English Teaching 作者姓名 赵 俊 工作单位 贵州省贵阳市白云区第二中学 职 称 中教一级 The Application of Group Cooperative Learning in Senior English Teaching Abstract Cooperative learning originated in the U S A in the 1970s is a creative and effective teaching theory and strategy system which is generally used in many countries in the world Combined with the actual situation of Guizhou ordinary high school English teaching and the students in the school the author put forward the group cooperative learning into high school English teaching and put it into teaching practice The practice was undertaken for the purpose of finding a rational method of English learning to help senior students learn English more effectively change their learning methods and attitudes towards English learning and improve their learning ability Key Words Group Cooperative learning Senior English teaching Teaching model Introduction In July 2010 new curriculum experiment came into the ordinary high school in Guizhou province According to the new curriculum ideas high school English teaching objectives include language knowledge language skills learning strategies emotional attitudes and cultural awareness of learning emphasizing the development of students comprehensive ability of using language autonomous and cooperative learning Ministry of Education 2003 Due to the traditional teaching mode the ability of students cannot function effectively and they just accept knowledge passively Thus under the new concept of curriculum reform to build a new type of teaching environment and develop an autonomous cooperative and inquiry teaching and learning way become the theme of the class which can not only realize the function of the teacher but also manifest the students status In order to adapt to the need of talent of future society we should change our concept of education teaching mode and students learning methods Besides the high school new curriculum reform emphasizes on the change of learning styles and mentions that the curriculum must serve for students life and the development Ministry of Education 2003 However students had to accept the single mechanical learning way for a long time So it is necessary to change the student s ways of learning English What s more students should be encouraged to learn cooperatively under the guidance of teachers Therefore the group cooperative learning becomes the focus of high school teachers and the study will be of important significance In order to better implement the spirit of Basic Education Curriculum Reform Program Trial and fully carry out the task of Guizhou Ordinary High School Curriculum Reform Experimental Implementation Plan Trial the author puts forward the group cooperative learning into high school English teaching and good results have been achieved The Application of Group Cooperative Learning 2 1 The Teaching Philosophy of Group Cooperative Learning The teaching philosophy of group cooperative learning is a new concept which is a creative and effective system of educational theory and policy Fu Yongshu 2007 and its teaching philosophy is as follows First the groups focus on the cooperative learning between various factors in multidimensional dynamic interactive unity Second cooperative group learning highlights the affective functions of teaching and pursuits the cognitive and learning strategies emotional attitudes and values to achieve harmony and unity in teaching Third group cooperative learning stresses that teachers as good guides and the students as good actors enable students to reflect their dominant positions Fourth group cooperative learning emphasizes the combination of group cooperation competition and individual behaviors Fifth group cooperative learning emphasizes the criterion referenced assessment 2 2 The Teaching Premise of Group Cooperative Learning According to social cohesiveness theory cooperative learning group performance is based largely on group cohesion as a medium and efforts of the team members are motivated by the strong cohesion within the group Therefore the formation of cooperative groups is a prerequisite for group cooperative learning and also the fundamental to the success of group cooperative learning First the group size According to my school class size the group made up of 5 6 students is considered to be appropriate because such a number could be sufficient to protect the expressing opportunity of each student in a group and can better take personal responsibility reduce stress and promote positive group interaction Second the heterogeneous group When dividing the class into several groups the teacher should consider the students achievement gender ability social and cultural backgrounds different learning styles and other features completely which ensure that the team members have different characteristics but the overall situation of the group is roughly the same Wu Xinchun Guan Lin 2010 Just like what social contact theory points out that the heterogeneous students learning together can promote excellent students and help the students with learning difficulties Third the formation of groups After completing the group division the teacher should guide the students to name their own group make a plan for the development of group choose group songs and group logo which can help to form the group culture and thus always to spur students to realize the value of group cooperative learning 2 3 The Teaching Model of Group Cooperative Learning During the experiment the author adopted the GCL teaching model to teach the subjects in the experimental class which include four steps 1 Preview before the Class As teachers we have to be clear about the changes of our roles in group cooperative learning situation act as a counselor helper and facilitator and realize that as learner s expertise in learning autonomy increases the teacher s involvement inevitably decreases So we should consciously create an active learning environment in both classroom and outside classroom if possible Before the class the teacher will firstly design the students learning plan and then Preview before the class Result show and cooperative inquiry Summarizing Consolidation and Evaluation guide the students to learn new knowledge by self learning and cooperative learning Second the students will bring the problems that they have met during the preview to the class In this way the students can apply learning methods of their own to try to experience to develop self study habits thus to form the self learning ability gradually As Mr Rogers said an intelligent student can determine what his goals and behavior are and will strive to achieve the targets in a safe environment if the teacher can give him proper help and can provide abundant learning resources This is in keeping with the ideas of free learning theory Yu Xia 1992 2 Result Show and Cooperative Inquiry In this period the writer applies the social interdependence theory to the step According to the theory positive interdependence has a positive interaction among individuals to encourage and promote the students mutual efforts to learn Besides all members of the group help each other and promote each other for a common goal who regards the success as a sign of their success and the joy of the group as their own happiness During the class firstly the teacher let the student groups show their learning results before the class and then the teacher makes necessary comments about the preview Secondly the students go into the cooperative inquiry The teacher should design some inquiry questions and then the students should explore the questions through group cooperative learning Third ask someone to show the results of the content of class exploration Finally the teacher again makes timely comments about the students shows This step aims to train students in independent thinking active inquiry and cooperative learning In the classroom the groups form an explorative and competitive atmosphere Under such atmosphere students can not only learn the knowledge actively in this competition cooperative interaction of the classroom but also meet the student s sense of accomplishment During this time teachers can let students learn new knowledge through the cooperative activities which enable them to discover research and solve problems Meanwhile the students take an active part in the language learning process rather than listen to the teacher s instruction passively since they need to work out the answers through group discussion consulting dictionary and other reference books and learning from the group members which could cultivate students cooperative learning ability so as to build up their confidence in language learning 3 Summarizing After the students achieve the knowledge and ability goals by self learning and cooperative exploring the teacher explains the important and difficult points for the students and then helps them summarize the knowledge of this section to build the right knowledge system Students can take advantage of the opportunities to reinforce what they have learned in the classroom such as vocabularies language points grammar items and writing skills and so on With improved learning ability and highly stimulated motivation students are sure to make progress in English and complete their study successfully 4 Consolidation and Evaluation Consolidating the knowledge is the practical aspect of cooperative exploring According to the specific content of the lesson consolidation can be divided into two parts namely classroom exercises and homework Teachers design a good amount of multilevel and flexible exercises which is the necessary link of consolidation but also the effective means to test the quality of learning After the students complete the class exercises let the students make a peer assessment then teachers on the key points After that the homework requires the students to complete independently and teachers then give them an evaluation As learning is something for the learners themselves to do evaluating the process in learning must also be for the learners themselves to do Yu Lin 2007 Therefore whether the group cooperative learning is workable needs the teachers and the students feedback to evaluate them so as to make further improvements to satisfy the students needs and aspirations In this way the timely exercises and homework as well as the timely evaluation can enhance the quality of teaching and develop the students problem solving skills Given the appropriate formats and types of evaluations in teaching learning activities both teachers and students can benefit from them And in this step the members evaluate each other and recognize each other which meet their needs for self realization Conclusion Cooperative learning is a creative and effective teaching theory and strategy system which is generally used in many countries in the world First group cooperative learning changes individual competition into collective cooperation The group cooperative learning strategies changed the only first in traditional classroom teaching which turned to cooperation within the group and the formation of competition From a psychological point of view this approach will reduce the anxiety of the students to learn something new Second group cooperative learning truly reflects the student centered teaching system A new round of basic education curriculum reform the student centered concept determines the most basic concept of classroom teaching Ministry of Education 2003 In this concept the group cooperative learning as one of the basic strategy under the new educational environment both concerns about how the teachers teach and how students learn emphasizing those students should be the subject of study Third group cooperative learning contributes to the transformation of slow students who can t learn English very well Because of heterogeneous groups group cooperative learning can play a very important role in the transformation of slow students with the help of good students who are capable of learning English well Lin Li Wang Zhijiang 2005 At the same time the pressure of slow students can be reduced with the helps given by members of their groups Besides the every success of the group also contributes to the sense of accomplishment of slow students Through a year of research the author tried to change the teaching mode and the students learning ways hoping that the teaching process is truly established on