An Action Research On The Implementation Of Project-based Learning Method In Senior English Teaching

The English Curriculum Standards of Senior High School(2017)puts forward the idea of cultivating students' core literacy in learning English.The new version textbook concentrates on contextualizing the teaching content under themes and promoting students' language competence,learning ability,thinking quality and cultural awareness.Project-based learning(PBL)method is a kind of student-centered teaching mode.It emphasizes that learning is the process of self-construction of learners,which gives students the opportunity to explore real life problems and develop their critical thinking ability.In the leaning process,they have learned to make reasonable judgments based on analysis,to question others' opinions and express their own opinions,to reconsider their views and alter plans in different situations.This thesis takes 30 students from a class in the first Grade of a senior high school as the research subjects.The purpose of this study is to explore the teaching steps of PBL method and find out the impact of PBL method on English learners.Therefore,this research mainly explores the following three questions:(1)How to implement PBL method in teaching English in senior high school?(2)What effects does the implementation of PBL method have on the students' English scores?(3)What is the impact of the implementation of PBL method on the development of students' critical thinking abilities?Two rounds of action are conducted,and the data are collected by using the instruments of English tests,the California Critical Thinking Dispositions Inventory(CCTDI)scales,students-oriented interviews and reflection logs.The results show that PBL method can be implemented in six steps: introduce the topic,investigate the problem,make a plan,create a product,present the product,evaluate and share the final product;the students' English scores have been improved and PBL method is conducive to the development of the students' English language ability;the students have got higher scores in the California Critical Thinking Dispositions Inventory scales and more students have showed positive dispositions in truth-seeking,open-mindedness,critical thinking self-confidence,inquisitiveness,cognitive maturity and the inclination to analyze and systematize.Strategies for implementing the PBL method are summarized as follows: teachers create a context related to the theme and encourage students to solve practical problems;students are divided into heterogeneous groups and work on projects under proper scaffolding and guidance from teachers;questions for critical thinking are discussed and analyzed in the learning process to improve the project.