| English teaching is an activity which combines theory with practice.This activity depends on the teacher’s instructional ideas of how to design the activity, how to choose teaching contents and how to carry out the activity.What sustains all the actions is a series of theories of language nature, language learning, second language acquisition and language teaching,etc..The series of theories make up English teaching paradigm when becoming part of teacher’s belief.So when talking about what directs an English teacher’teaching, teaching paradigms are well worth thinking and studying such as the definition, the paradigms in English history,the paradigm suitable for the present and even the future English teaching. In this study, It will be discussed and constructed about the defining, the diachronic analysis and the synchronic investigation of English teaching paradigms on the basis of linguistics, culture, psychology and even philosophySix parts comprise this study.Introduction In this part, the reasons of this study and the literature are analyzed here. The research route and methods are described, and so do the study aims and significance, the important points and the difficult ones as well as the innovations.Part I The definitions of some important concepts are dealt with in this part. On the basis of defining of paradigm and teaching paradigm, the concept of English teaching paradigm is analyzed carefully and deeply. English teaching paradigm is defined as compound theories as teaching belief by an English teacher community which are used as directions in their teaching. The English teaching paradigm owns some characteristics except those of paradigms and teaching paradigms. The special characteristics are persistence, variety and unique. Persistence means a teaching paradigm will be used persistently by a teacher as theoretical direction in his English teaching once accepted. Variety means there were many kinds of teaching paradigms in history and some teaching paradigms co-existing in a period of English teaching. Unique means English teaching paradigms cannot be adopted to direct the teaching of other subjects but English.Part Ⅱ Part Ⅱ deals with the English teaching paradigms in Chinese English teaching history with the method of diachronically analysing English instructional syllabuses or curriculum standards in the five periods. There were five kinds of English teaching paradigms in all, namely, Grammar-Translation Paradigm, Listening-Speaking-Training Paradigm, Language Pattern-Imitation Paradigm, Function-Practice Paradigm and Competence-Construction Paradigm, each of which presented different characteristics. In China, English teaching started from Westernizaion Movement when the Qing Period imperial court had to deal with foreign affairs in English. So the paragram to direct English teaching came into being. Grammar-Translation Paradigm, the first paradigm in English teaching history in the period of time from the late Qing Period to the year1911, focused on vocabulary and grammar and made reading and writing skills the language learning aim. It emphasized literary reading believing that there were authentic grammar which could be reduced to teach students. Translation Method was the popular method in English teaching. The teacher was authoritative and the students were regarded as object. Its strength lies in demanding less of teachers who can carries out teaching with only grammar knowledge and teaching materials. The weakness is that teaching can be boring and tedium through rote learning and memorizing grammar without exploring teaching media. Next came Listening-Speaking-Training Paradigm during the period of time from the year1911to the year1949which made up the weakness of Grammar-Translation Paradigm that could not make fluent speaking and good listening. This paradigm set emphasis on speaking and listening that could made an authentic English speaker. Pronunciation was valued in the teaching of English, so the teacher should be a native speaker for the fluent and authentic speaking. Grammar was ignored in English teaching because it was regarded unimportant for speaking training. This paradigm did not take reading and writing skills seriously. From the year1949to the year1991, Language-Pattern-Imitation played an important part in English teaching. In its direction, language was contracted to sentence patterns, or rather, grammar was transformed into patterns. This paradigm thought that learners could learn English well through imitating all the patterns. So drilling is the main language learning form. The teacher was centered and students were obedient to the teacher. Context began to be valued in teaching. In the1990s, teaching reform was an salient characteristic in English teaching, and so came a new teaching paradigm which was named Function-Practice Paradigm. This paradigm valued the meaning of language. So the functions of language were thought to be the most important. Accordingly, culture was taken variously and students were regarded as the subject of language learning. So, firstly, students, culture, learning and language were thought together in language teaching. When time came into the new century, Competence-Construction Paradigm began to rule English teaching.This paradigm was based on structural linguistics, cognitive linguistics, psycholinguistics, sociolinguistics,cognitive psychology, developmental psychology and humanism psychology.ln the class, students were regarded to be the most important because learning is the matter which should be dealt with by students. Language was regarded to be related to culture. So target language culture should be learned while language.was learned. Intercultural Communication Competence is regard as the aim of language learning. Through the analysis of the paragrams in English teaching history, some characters can be found. They are social conditions and historical development, opposing and relativity, prospect and lagging. From the perspective of intercultural communication, something can be found that culture being focused on went through culture unconsciousness-culture spontaneousness-culture awaking-culture consciousness. Points which are emphasized are knowledge-skills-students-culture and students. All these show that English teaching paradigms are becoming growingly mature.Part Ⅲ The status quo of English teaching paradigms in Chinese middle schools is analyzed synchronically in this part with the methods of literature review and case study. Through the analysis of the Curriculum Standard promulgated in2011which has directed the English teaching since then, Competence-Construction Paradigm still directed middle school English teaching. Information from class observation and interview, some facts are reflected about teaching paradigm. Firstly, besides Competence-Construction Paradigm, some teaching paradigms still exist in the present English teaching, such as Grammar-Translation Paradigm,Pattern-Imitation Paradigm, and Function-Practice paradigm. Secondly, there are some problems which exist in the English teaching directed by Competence-Construction Paradigm. For example, some activities are not exactly interaction; some sub-aims cannot be achieved through the teaching; the subjectivity of the double-subject is hard to present; traditional methods are popular with English teachers. All the phenomena imply that Competence-Construction Paradigm has been displaced by others as the dominant paradigm. Thirdly, Competence-Construction Paradigm cannot keep its directive position in English teaching because of its own shortcomings.Part IV In this part, English teaching paradigms are considered under the background of intercultural communication. Teaching paradigms like other things, keeps changing all the time with the development of society. Faced with the intercultural background, it’s necessary and important to think about the suitableness of teaching paradigms. Interculture means that the gifts that English teaching educates should have the competence of communicating with people from different cultures. It also means that English teaching is a system which has the characteristics of complexity, dynamic nature and variety. These characteristics imply that teaching paradigms must be cultural self-conscious. Cultural self-consciousness has two meanings. One is that English paradigms should have commensurability which makes paradigms have the power to well direct the complex English teaching. The other is cultural nature which can make sure that paradigms direct cultural teaching and set up cultural context. But competence-construction paradigm cannot direct the English teaching under the background of intercultural communication. A new paradigm should come into being. Here in this study, a new paradigm is conceived, which is named Culture-Interaction Paradigm. This paradigm contains the following teaching ideas. English is acquired through interaction between teacher and students. The process and the products have the same importance in language learning and activities are particularly important. The students’subjectivity and cognitive processes play an important role in language learning. Culture learning can both stimulate the achievement of the teaching aim of intercultural communication competence and the development of the students into perfect persons. This paradigm puts stress on cognition, subjectivity and the creative thinking which are the key factors in language teaching. And it also puts fucus on digging the students’potentials and meeting the student’self-directed learning.Part V To put Culture-Interaction Paradigm into direction, it is important to conceive the following teaching ideas. The teacher should be cultural self-conscious. The double properties of English subject should be kept that English is instrumental and humanistic.The value of English teaching results in students’development. The teaching aims of English are multi-dimensional and dynamic. The teaching contents contains language knowledge and culture. The teaching process is dynamic and the teaching forms are various. The teaching valuation is aimed at stimulating students’ self-development. All the seven teaching ideas can make sure the achievement of the Culture-Interaction Paradigm together. None of them can be ignored.The creative points of this research lie in three aspects Firstly, The theme is creative. On the basis of former research on English teaching paradigms, this study, exploring and analyzing the English teaching paradigm systematically and deeply, has got profound and comprehensive research outcomes. Secondly, The research angle is creative. It is for the first time that English teaching paradigms have been studied from the angle of intercultural communication. There are seldom studies which have explored English teaching paradigms from the angle of intercultural communication while studies on English teaching paradigms have growingly increased, and there is also much research on intercultural communication, Thirdly, The idea is creative. Faced with the international situation of intercultural communication, a new paradigm has been put forward,that is, Culture-Interaction Paradigm which can be used to better guide English teachers in their teaching practice. |
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