An Experimental Study On Genre-Based Approach To English Summary Writing Instruction In Senior High School

Summary writing,as a compound task of "reading + writing",can not only assess the output and input of language,but can evaluate the key competencies of students.In the background of new curriculum reform,Zhejiang Province and Shanghai declared to adopt summary writing as a new pattern of English test in college entrance examination in 2016,which clearly shows its significance in senior high school English instruction.Through reading relevant literature,the author found that the text characteristics of the source text have a significant impact on summary writing,and the genre of text will also affect the learners’ ability of summary writing.Therefore,based on the theories related to genre-based approach,this study applies genre-based approach to English summary writing instruction in senior high school,the purpose of which is to analyze the feasibility and effect of it on summary writing.And the research mainly focuses on the following three questions:1)How is this approach conducted in English summary writing instruction ? 2)What impact does the application of genre-based approach to English summary writing instruction have on students’ ability of summary writing? 3)What impact does the application of genrebased approach to English summary writing instruction have on students’ attitude towards summary writing?A one-term teaching experiment was carried out in this study,and the subjects were the students of grade one from a senior high school in Zhejiang Province.Two different teaching approaches were adopted.The traditional teaching approach was used to conduct summary writing instruction in the control class,while the genre-based approach in the experimental class.Research tools include pretest and post-test,questionnaire and interview.Two summary writing tests were carried out before and after the experiment respectively,serving as the pretest and post-test.The conclusions of the study are as follows : 1)The application of genre-based approach to English summary writing instruction in senior high school can be conducted through the "4I" teaching mechanism: First,identify genre characteristics;Second,invent schema structure;Third,imitate genre analysis;Last,implement summary writing.2)The application of genrebased approach to English summary writing instruction can help students improve their summary writing ability,which is better than the traditional teaching approach.3)The application of genre-based approach to English summary writing instruction can stimulate students’ interest in summary writing,develop students’ good habits of summary writing and boost students’ confidence in summary writing.From this research,it can be concluded that the application of genre-based approach to English summary writing instruction in senior high school does work.In the daily teaching,teachers should provide more drills about genre to improve students’ summary writing ability.