Application Of Task-Based Instruction In Senior English Reading Teaching

Teachers and students are the most important factors in teaching. In recent years in the field of education, people pay more attention to the students than to the teachers and the class is student-centered. The object of teaching is not only to improve students'communicative competence but also to reach a higher level in reading. As a result of the change in the teaching concept, the Task-based Instruction (TBI) has come into use. The main characteristic of TBI is to improve the integrated skills of the students. English should be taught as skill not as knowledge. Task-based Instruction has become a heated topic in L2 acquisition and EFL teaching since its appearance. In the past 20 years and over, many experts in applied linguistics not only do research into Task-based Instruction in theory but also explore it in practice. Thanks to their contributions to this field of linguistics, a lot of volumes of literatures have come into being. It is becoming an important and influential language-teaching mode.But at present, some teachers, especially some teachers in high schools in China, think that task-based teaching method is only helpful for the improvement of the oral competence of the students and it is of little help for improving students'reading ability. It is known that reading is still important in university entrance exam, so some teachers still employ the traditional way of teaching in reading class, which does not benefit the students. What's more, it is not in agreement with the New English Curriculum Standards. Therefore, the author of this paper reckons that it is necessary to elaborate on Task-based Instruction to make sure that more English teachers know that the Task-based Instruction is efficient and practical in English reading teaching and can be integrated into their English reading teaching.The thesis is made up of six chapters. Chapter One gives a brief account of the background of the research concerning with this topic. It also gives a short description of the realities of senior English reading teaching and the significance of the research. In the end, it provides the structure of the thesis.Chapter Two concentrates on a survey of literatures. This chapter overviews the theoretical basis of TBLT, including Krashen's input hypothesis, and discusses the elements such as task design, task-related factors and the principles, including the authenticity principle, the form-function principle, the task dependency principle and learning by doing. It also presents Willis'task-implementing model:pre-task phase, task cycle and language focus, and elaborates the characteristics of this model. Besides,it describes the disadvantages of the PPP model: presentation, practice and production from a critical viewpoint, which aims at a narrowly predetermined set of objectives and procedures for the teacher and is not helpful in English language teaching though it is helpful in learning the language knowledge. And it also probes the theory underlying in the reading process. Meanwhile it highlights the differences between the traditional model and TBI in reading teaching. Based on all above, the author comes up with her own definition that a task is an activity that requires learners to use the target language, with meaning at the core, to achieve an objective.Chapter Three is about the research design and the classroom experiment. The purpose of the current paper is to bear testimony to the hypothesis that the task-based teaching method can be used in reading class effectively and it can enhance students'learning interest and improve their reading ability. The current thesis tries to get the approval by means of carrying out task-based reading experiments in No. l8 Senior Middle School, Shi Jiazhuang, Hebei Province, with two classes (experimental class and controlled class) in Grade Two in the first term of academic year of 2006-2007. At the beginning of the experiment, the students in the experimental class and the controlled class were required to take part in the pre-test. The results of the pre-test were collected and recorded for later analysis. At the end of the experiment, all the subjects in the two classes took the post-test and the results were collected and recorded for later analysis. Also two different teaching plans using Task-based Instruction and traditional PPP method are presented.Chapter Four presents results and analysis. First the author analyzes the results of the pre-test and draws the conclusion that the two classes are almost at the same level before the experiment. Then the author gives analysis to the results of the post-test of the two classes, and gets the following findings: the reading speed of the students in the experimental class improves a lot compared with the reading speed of the students in the controlled class. Before the experiment the students'reading speed is 50 words per minute, while after the experiment it reaches 70 words per minute. And their mean score in reading comprehension improves by 6.05. The results of the questionnaire and the classroom experiment indicate that the students show greater interest in English classes. This shows that task-based teaching method is practical and effective in reading class so long as the tasks are designed properly. Therefore task-based teaching method can be used in reading class effectively.Chapters Five and Six offers some suggestions and conclusion. Task-based Instruction has many advantages, such as stimulating students'interest and evoking their enthusiasm in learning and improving their reading performance and integrating skills. When applying Task-based Instruction in practical teaching, people should take notes of the experiences that they get from the experiment. Also the author gives some suggestions of implementing TBI, including developing the teacher's qualities, scientific grouping, making full use of school recourses, to those who hope to do further research.