A Case Study On Students' Appliation Of Autonomous Learning Strategy To English Reading

Since the early sixties of last century, some educationists in western countries have been advocating the development of learner autonomy as an educational goal. It is widely-acknowledged that the traditional teacher-centered classroom teaching should give way to new types of classroom teaching which emphasize student-centeredness and autonomous learning. In China, researches on learner autonomy began from the late 1990s. Compared with educators abroad, the researchers who work on foreign language teaching and learning in China pay more attention to the importance and feasibility of cultivating learner autonomy in China's educational atmosphere. The cultivation of autonomous learning caters for both the era's requirement for life-long study and the development of learners' individualization.In this background, the thesis discusses the existing problems in normal higher college students' English reading with special concern about the necessity of cultivating learner autonomy. Based on learner autonomy theories, the author designed the investigation into the factors which affect the development of learner autonomy. It aims to inquire into the English majors'application of autonomous learning strategies in English reading, the relationship between strategy using and reading achievements, and the English teachers'understanding of learner autonomy and their instructions on autonomous reading in order to cultivate learner autonomy in English reading in more scientific and more effective ways.CET-4 test papers for English reading comprehension and two questionnaires were used for the investigation into the situation of English sophomores'application of autonomous learning strategy to English reading in Tangshan Teachers'College, Yutian Branch. One interview was used to investigate English teachers'understanding of learner autonomy and their instructions on autonomous reading. All the data collected from the test and questionnaires are analyzed by SPSS 14.0.The results of data analysis show that the reading proficiencies of the competent and incompetent students have significant difference. The awareness and ability of autonomous learning exerts great influence on reading achievements. The teachers are supposed to improve their understanding of autonomous learning and there is a long way to go to assist students with practical directions in cultivating learner autonomy systematically.