A Correlational Study Of Teacher-Student Relationship And Middle School Students' Self-access Learning In English

One of the main changes that have taken place in the field of foreign language education in our country is the shift of focus from the teachers' teaching to the students' learning in recent years. In February, 2003, the ministry of education of our country promulgated "The New Curriculum Criteria for English Courses of Fulltime Compulsory Nine Year Middle School Education". The New Curriculum Criteria focus on students' affections and their self-access learning in English.Teachers and students are the subjects of educational activities. The relationship between teachers and students (TSR) is one of the most important and basic human relationships. A good TSR plays a vital role in the teaching process. As a kind of language teaching, English teaching urgently needs the aids of affective communication between teachers and students because of its characteristics of communication.During the practical teaching process, the author of the thesis has found that TSR and students' self-access learning are two vital factors that affect students' learning results and their physical and mental development. With the reformation of the New Curriculum Criteria, this study seeks verification of the correlation between TSR and students' self-access learning in English. The purpose of this present study is to make clear whether there is a relation between TSR and students' self-access learning in English, and what kind of the relationship it is if there is. It is expected to help teachers recognize the importance of TSR and self-access learning in English.In the study, we first defined TSR and self-access learning, and then reviewed some literatures. Our research questions are 1) What is the state of the present TSR? 2) How is middle school students' self-access learning in English? 3) What is the relation between TSR and students' self-access learning in English? By employing three questionnaires on the present TSR and students' self-access learning in English, we did a survey of four hundred students and their teachers, who are from four different middle schools in Changsha, including the one where the author works. And we randomly interviewed ten students and their English teachers to get more exact information about TSR and students' self-access learning in English. Besides these we attended eight English classes to observe the present situation of TSR and the level of students' ability of self-access learning in English. Microsoft Excel 2003 for Windows was used to analyze the data. On the basis of data analyses, we have come to the conclusion that a positive correlation exists between TSR and middle school students' self-access learning in English.