An Experimental Study On The Teaching Effects Of Applying The Lexical Approach To College English Writing

Michael Lewis’lexical approach has gained wide recognition and vital status in the field of language teaching. Lexical chunk is fixed or semi-fixed structure which incorporates grammar, semantics and linguistic context. Studies were conducted to find that native speakers store lexis in the form of chunk instead of isolated fragments. This research is designed to apply lexical approach to college English class to exert a positive influence on students’achievement and cultivate their independent learning ability, including the level of learning strategy and academic motivation.In the light of the research purpose described above, this thesis puts forward research questions:(1) Is there any significant difference found among three writing scores during the experimental semester between the control class and the experimental class?(2) Is there any variation lied in EFL learners’ writing during two equal experimental periods (8weeks for each)? Do the students of CC and those of EC perform exactly same with each other during the two periods?(3) In the EC. is there any distinctive tendency of learners’ writing proficiency between high-proficiency group (HPG) and low-proficiency group (LPG)?Aiming at the above problems, this research took two A-level classes with141sophomore non-English major students from Nanchang University as objects, divided into an experimental class and a control class. In the experimental class which was designed to adopt the lexical approach, teacher firstly directed students to be aware of chunk, then imitate, and apply mechanically, after mastering grammar they can elastically utilize lexical chunks; whereas students in the control class attended traditional regular English courses that teacher only explained the text including key words, expressions and grammar without any intensive drills. I collected three composition quiz scores and two final exams before and after the experimental semester and conducted the independent sample t-test, paired sample t-test.By means of the above research methodology, the experimental result indicates:Firstly, the quantitative study which was carried out in the form of between-class comparisons and within-group comparisons shows a close correlation between lexical chunks and writing. Therefore, lexical chunk learning is indispensable for university students to improve their writing proficiency.Secondly, there is an interesting discrepancy discovered between two experimental periods. Overall, students in the latter period have made greater progress in both classes.Thirdly, in the experimental class, high-proficiency group and low-proficiency group display delicate differences.