A Study On The Application Of Situational Method To HVTC English Teaching

Economic and cultural globalization has set an increasingly high demand on Higher Vocational and Technical Education (HVTE hereinafter). English, as an international language, has been one of the most important courses in the college curriculums. But the teaching outcome is not as satisfactory as widely expected despite the efforts of both teachers and students. As a matter of fact, the current situation of English teaching in higher vocational colleges is that English teachers still adopt the traditional teaching methods, which can not arouse the students'interests and motivation. In order to change the situation, an increasing number of teachers are exploring new teaching methods, of which the Situational Method (SM hereinafter) is regarded as the optimum model in English teaching according to the characteristics of higher vocational college students. Referring to the findings by teachers and scholars, the author attempts to implement SM with adjustments in English teaching for the purpose of improve the teaching quality of English course and realizing the objectives of higher vocational education English course.It is argued that though the SM to language teaching in its original sense has not been theoretically hot issues, it has for an almost equally long time at least potentially existed in a new form in our modern society, and continues to thrive. The aim of this action research is to find out whether SM is suitable for vocational and technical college English classrooms, whether SM can improve classroom atmosphere and what changes will happen in students' attainment in English class when SM is employed. This paper, in perspective of problem solving, advances the model of instructional design process for SM in English classroom of Higher Vocational and Technical (HVTC hereinafter). Under the guidance of constructivist learning theory and Krashen's input theory, the author made a survey as well as an analysis of the current conditions of English teaching and learning in Shandong Vocational College of Economic and Business and worked out the teaching scheme for SM teaching, which aimed at inspiring students' interest in English learning and heightening awareness of learning autonomy.The research shows that by designing some real situations, providing ample and vivid examples by multimedia, learners are activated in the language learning. It is beneficial to the students to master knowledge in various situations, increase the students' interest and change dull atmosphere of English teaching. It helps students to get a practical command of the four basic skills of language (listening, speaking, reading and writing). It gives Chinese students a favorable language atmosphere and pays attention to training the ability of communication. It also makes English classes more interesting and lively. In a word, SM can solve some problems in vocational college English teaching and make the teaching more efficient and effective.