A Study On Teaching Activities Of English Reading Class In Junior High School Based On English Subject Key Competencies

The English Curriculum Standards for Senior High Schools(2017 Edition)puts forward English subject key competencies(ESKC)as the specific objectives of English curriculum.And English reading class plays a key role in improving students’ ESKC.At present,theoretical studies on key competencies and the ESKC emerge in an endless stream both at home and abroad,most of which focus on their framework,connotation,implementation path,principles and strategies.However,there are few empirical studies on English reading class activities in junior high school based on ESKC.In order to make up for the shortcomings of previous studies,a four-month empirical research were carried out,aiming to analyze the implementation status of the reading class activities designed by the English teachers in junior high school based on the cultivation of ESKC,and three research questions were put forward as following:(1)What are the teachers’ perceptions of ESKC and the reading class activities based on ESKC?(2)What types of activities have the teachers designed in the English reading class of junior high school?(3)How is the cultivation of the ESKC embodied in English reading class activities?To answer these questions,this study combined quantitative research with qualitative research and conducted a questionnaire survey with 50 teachers,observed-16 reading classes of 4 teachers,and interviewed those 4 teachers at last.Through the analysis of data collected by the questionnaire,classroom observation and interview,the following conclusions are drawn:(1)Teachers recognize that reading class activities based on the ESKC is of great significance and is conducive to promoting the long-term and all-round development of students.However,their perceptions of ESKC are limited and need to be improved.(2)In reading class,the activities designed by teachers have played a certain role in the development of all the four competencies of ESKC.While different kinds of activities accounted for an imbalanced proportion.From the perspective of the cultivation of the ESKC,the proportion of activities,from highest to lowest,was activities pointing to the cultivation of language competence,thinking quality,learning ability and cultural awareness.Then from the perspective of VAEL,teachers design a large number of learning and comprehension activities(LCA),a small number of application and practice activities and almost no transfer and innovation activities(TIA).(3)Teachers cultivate students’ ESKC mainly by designing LCA.They tend to cultivate students’ ESKC through traditional and monotonous activities such as context creation,prediction,speed reading,intensive reading and mind mapping.