Theory Of Teaching Styles And Its Implications For EFL Teaching In Middle Schools

Teaching and learning styles are the behaviors or actions that teachers and learners exhibit in the learning exchange. Research supports the concept that most teachers teach the way they learn. Teaching style is defined as the totality of instructional approaches, methods, and decisions a teacher prefers and feels most comfortable with.To reach desirable teaching goals, the EFL teachers should be conscious of their preferences when creating and delivering instruction in EFL classroom. However, teaching styles and learning styles have not been dealt with in the Teaching Syllabus set by the Ministry of Education (say nothing of being developed or applied in EFL classrooms). No wonder in China today, the EFL teachers have little research on teaching styles and learning styles to turn to for aid and guiding in teaching practice. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the teaching style theory and the learning style theory as well as their influence on EFL in Chinese middle schools.This paper tries to do some research on the teaching styles and its implications for middle school EFL teachers. The purpose of the study was to identify the teaching styles used at middle school and the students'preferred teaching styles and to examine whether there is a difference between the teachers'teaching styles used and the students'preferences toward the teaching styles. In addition, the author makes suggestions as follows.Firstly, both the teachers and the students should be well aware of the fact that there is a gap between the teacher teaching styles and the student preferences for teaching styles. Secondly, the EFL teachers should try to apply holistic thinking in EFL, employing a comprehensive employment of different kinds of teaching skills in achieving desirable teaching goals. Thirdly, all teachers should identify their own preferred learning styles and preferred teaching styles in order to understand the interaction between learning and teaching. Fourthly, helping students to link what they are learning to daily living experiences keeps them engaged and motivated in the learning process. Last but not least, good relationship needs to be built between teachers and learners.