A Research On The Role Of Cooperative Learning In The Improvement Of High School After-class English Reading

This thesis is an experimental study aiming to guide high school students'after-class reading using the theory of cooperative learning. It is designed to investigate whether this theory can improve the reading comprehension and overall English proficiency of high school students and whether cooperative learning can promote the effective use of the cooperative learning strategies in after-class reading by the students. In the final analysis, it is to be found whether the application of cooperative learning can increase the effectiveness of after-school reading.In this study,162 grade three students in three classes in Baoying High School, Yanzhou, Jiangsu Province, who are at the same level of English proficiency, are sampled for study. One of the three classes is taken as the experimental class and the other two as the control classes. The experimental class adopts a learning model the author introduces, known as Cooperative Approach to Extra-curricular Reading (CAER). Based on the theories and practice of cooperative learning, one concrete CAER has been designed. All the subjects take the pre-test and post-test and fill out a pre-treatment and a post-treatment questionnaire about their application of cooperative learning strategies. In addition, some of the subjects are interviewed afterwards. The scores and data are statistically analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 11.5 for Windows).The research result shows that cooperative learning can improve the students' effectiveness of after-school English reading and their overall English proficiency. Moreover, the cooperative learning strategies can also be widely used in after-class English reading.The thesis consists of five chapters. Chapter 1 is an introduction. Chapter 2 is the literature review, reviewing the domestic and international research on cooperative learning. Chapter 3 is the building of the mode on Cooperative Approach to Extra-curricular Reading (CAER). Chapter 4 is an experimental study on the effectiveness of applying cooperative learning in after-class English reading, including an analysis of the research result and the conclusion. Chapter 5 is the conclusion of the thesis, summarizing the main content of the thesis, putting forward its practical implications and limitiations and providing suggestions for further study.