Research Into Eclecticism In Teaching English In Chinese Secondary Schools

The last 30 years has witnessed a steady improvement of ELT in schools. However, ELT in many of China's schools is still far from being satisfactory, and unable to meet the needs of the political and economic development of the country. A national survey in 15 provinces and cities made by the State Education Commission revealed that most of middle school leavers found it hard to communicate even in simple English after spending 900 hours in English class. The Grammar Translation teaching method, the out-of-date language material, the shortage of qualified teachers and equipment, and the rigid written exams have hampered the effectiveness of both teaching and learning. During the last three decades, there have been significant developments in the theory and practice of TEL in the world. More emphasis has been put on the use of the language for purposeful communication. Although adoption of CLT in China was not accidental, it met with considerable resistance. After noting the obstacles faced by Chinese EFL teachers who have tried to implement the communicative approach, the author in this paper offers guidelines for integrating the communicative approach with traditional Chinese methods.