The Application Of The Process Approach To English Writing Teaching In A Senior High School

Influenced by NMET (National Matriculation English Test) , English writing teaching in China has long been exam-oriented. In NMET, the writing section only covers 25 of the total 150 points. Therefore, grammar and language points are focused on by English teachers. Little importance is attached to the teaching of English writing, which is still dominated by the traditional product approach. This approach is teacher-centered; Teachers pay more attention to the product than the process;What's more,the system of evaluation in English writing is also far from satisfactory. As a result, writing teaching has become the weakest point in English teaching and students haven't attained the writing objectives required in the New English Curriculum Criterion in China.So this paper attempts to bring the process approach to English writing into senior high schools.This paper is intended to make the students aware of the process of their writing, to arouse their interest in English writing and reestablish their confidence by providing a positive, encouraging writing environment and to improving their writing abilities gradually as well.The major concern of the present thesis is to explore and apply a new process-oriented approach to teaching writing that may be suitable for Chinese High Schools. The study attempts to answer the following questions:1) Is the new approach to teaching writing helpful in changing the students' attitudes and enhancing their confidence and cooperation in English writing?2) Can students'writing competence be enhanced through the new approach?The subjects are 100 students in Senior One from Wuhan No.2 High School in Hubei province. Two classes (Class 6 and Class 7 in Senior Grade One) of the same proficiency were chosen as an experimental class and a control class. During four months'instructional intervention, the teacher carried out the process approach in the experimental class while the control class product approach. Three instruments are used in the research: two questionnaires related to writing attitudes and beliefs; writing exercises in students' textbooks; writing grades of the first week and final exams. By analyzing the collected data, the research finds:a.The students are feeling more confident about writing than before. They have not only changed their attitudes to English writing, but also gained greater interest in it.b.The new approach is helpful to the students in improving their writing ability. Student's writing competence ,both in form and content, has improved through the process writing approach.The study was only an exploratory one. So long as we high school teachers concern the process approach and integrate it in our practice of teaching together with other approaches properly, a suitable solution to the present problems in English writing is sure to be found.