English Extensive Reading Needs Autonomous Learning

Reading is a useful skill. The new syllabus asks for higher reading abilities and autonomous learning has become one of educational objectives. Communicative language teaching and task-based instruction, which are popular in EFL teaching, are founded on the learner-centered view. However, they have influenced positively in the language class, not including after-school activities. Extensive reading has long been downplayed so that many learners don't get enough input. To enhance extensive reading and foster autonomous learning, this thesis attempts to set forth the idea of autonomous learning of EFL extensive reading: students try to read by taking responsibilities of self-direction during reading processes. The author addresses the following research questions: the general situation of extensive reading in Chinese high school; students' reading habits; the relationship between autonomous learning and extensive reading achievement; the effect of the training of autonomous learning on extensive reading achievement and on individual students' awareness and behaviors of autonomous learning.The following discoveries are made from the empirical study: the teachers don't take any actions on extensive reading except advising students to read some reading comprehension books; students have some bad habits in reading progress; the level of autonomy is positively correlated to writing achievement; the students trained with autonomous learning perform better than those without training and they correct some bad reading habits.Hopefully the findings of this thesis will be enlightening to educational practitioners.