An Application Of Task-based Language Teaching To Art Students’ English Reading Teaching In Vocational College

Task-based language teaching (TBLT) is an influential teaching approach putforward by a number of foreign language researchers through their many-yearresearch and practice at the end of1970s. Its core concept is learner-centered,emphasizing learning by doing. It lays stress on learner’s interest, authentic experienceand cognitive level. TBLT enables every learner to experience, participate,communicate and cooperate with other members of the group. In this way learner’scomprehensive ability of using language can be improved. The teacher elaboratelydesigns a series of tasks that are closely connected with communicative objectives andlanguage items. After performing and fulfilling the tasks, learners can achieve thepurpose of using language correctly.English teaching in vocational college (VC) in China is different fromuniversities and colleges. The English teaching goal of VC is to foster students’practical ability of English communication and make them become practical assets.Art students English study in VC is also different from other major students, includingnegative and positive features: having much lower English level, having little interestin English study, having complex student sources; being optimistic in character,having more colorful imagination, being more active in thinking and creation.Reading ability is one of the abilities that an English learners must possess. It has abearing on the learner’s English level. At present, English reading teaching in ChineseVC mainly employs teacher-centered model which neglects the development oflearners’ reading ability. The investigations of task-based English reading teachingmodel in VC are just at the starting stage. At the same time, it is lack of profoundnessand systematicness. Therefore, the author of te thesis chooses the investigation oftask-based English reading teaching model for art students in VC as its research objectand attempts to have a systematic study of TBLT from perspectives of background,theoretical groundwork and framework. The purpose and significance of the study is to provide teacher-centered English reading teaching in VC with some usefulsuggestions and strategies.On the basis of Jane Wills’s framework for TBLT, the experiment is carried outwithin one semester from September,20,2011to December,30,2011. The subjectsare the freshmen of Grade2011from the Department of Costume Designing in HebeiWomen’s Vocational College, Class One, the experimental class, and Class Two, thecontrolled class. Each class has30students. The experimental class adopts thestudent-centered TBLT, while the controlled class adopts teacher-dominated PPPmodel (presentation, practice and production). The methods employed in theexperiment include questionnaire, interview and classroom experiment. Theconclusion drawn from above qualitative and quantitative analysis proves that artstudents’ English reading ability in vocational college has been improved by theimplementation of TBLT, their English reading interest has been stimulated throughimplementing reading tasks, their confidence has been established, their teamconsciousness and cooperation have been fostered.