A Comparative Study Of English Autonomous Learning In Private And Public Senior High Schools

Autonomous learning has been an important aspect researched by scholars in recent years. Great changes have taken place in English learning from the teacher-centered to the students-centered. Therefore, students' development of autonomous learning receives much more attention in second language learning and teaching. During the education reform, a number of private schools have emerged. However, there is little research on autonomous learning in private schools. This thesis aims to investigate English autonomous learning in private schools and public schools in the hope to find the differences between students in private schools and public schools.In the study,149 students from a public school and a private school were investigated through a questionnaire and an interview on current situations of English autonomous learning. Comparative analysis was made on the differences concerning English autonomous learning between students of arts and students of science, and between boys and girls. The data were analyzed through SPSS software and a t-test was carried out to verify the results.The results have shown that there are significant differences in the ability of English autonomous learning among students between a private school and a public school. The ability of students of arts and students of science is significantly different. However, there is no significant difference between boys and girls in a private school and a public school. According to the results of the research, the author makes some suggestions about senior students'autonomous learning.