An Empirical Study Of The Natural Approach In Changyang Junior Middle School English Teaching Of Zhouzhi County

With China’s Reform-Opening up policy、the entrance of the "WTO", as well as the "globalization" process, English, as a tool of international communication, not only has become one of the basic qualities required in China, but also a compulsive examination subject for students stepping into a higher grade, entering college or universities or for adults promoting their positions. English has become a main subject officially opened in Chinese primary schools, middle schools and colleges. In cities, Junior Middle School students’English level has improved a lot thanks to high qualified teachers, advanced teaching facilities. But in Zhouzhi County of Shan’xi Province, Junior Middle School students have comparative low level of English, besides their listening, speaking, reading and writing are poor, their average examination results are only half of those of city students’. As to the reasons, the traditional teaching methods can’t escape their responsibilities. So in Zhouzhi County teachers and researchers have been exploring more effective teaching methods applicable to Zhouzhi English teaching context.The Natural Approach created by Terrell and Krashen in1983is based on Krashen’s theory of second language acquisition and grounded with empirically studies. It aims to improve personal communicative ability. Its characters are teachers’class design must be interesting and abundant with imagination. Teachers don’t force students to express the idea before full understanding. Teachers should reduce students’ affective filter factors, such as lack of confidence or over-anxiety. These characters of the Natural Approach can help improve Zhouzhi English teachers’professional skills and change their teaching views and methods. They also can enforce low-achievement students’ confidence, create chances for them to speak English and build up rural students’interests and inarticulate defects. In addition, the Natural Approach doesn’t need modern teaching facilities, and it is appropriate for local teaching situation. So it has some feasibility in Zhouzhi Junior Middle School English teaching.This thesis takes the Natural Approach as its theoretical basis of study. It analyzes strengths and weaknesses of the Natural Approach, and combines present English teaching condition of Junior Middle Schools so as to establish a theoretical Local Natural Approach in Zhouzhi County. In order to combine theory and practice and test the feasibility of the Local Natural Approach, the author has made teaching practice in Changyang Junior Middle School where she used to work. Two classes of Grade Eight students who have similar English level were chosen. One as the subjects, the other is comparative one. Two different teaching methods were used to two different classes, experimental class with the Local Natural Approach, and the comparative class with the "New Five Step" method, In practice the author employed questionnaires, observation of classes, interviews and examinations and collected the objective data. Then she used self-examination, induction, Excel data analysis to deal with the data. After exploring diversities of two different teaching methods, the author tried to explain their internal reasons and external constraining factors to optimize foreign language teaching method and test local Natural Approach’s feasibility.Research results show the Local Natural Approach even though it doesn’t have obvious impact on students’ written exams; it has high impact on oral exams. It aims to improve students’ oral communicative ability. After the case study, experimental students’ affective filters have reduced obviously. Students learning interests and confidence have improved a lot. And their utilitarian of learning motivation has reduced, but practical utility increased. Thus it can be seen that students like this teaching method. If insist on employing this method, it may get obvious results. According to the optimistic practice result, the author plans to construct the Local Natural Approach appropriate to Junior Middle Schools of Zhouzhi County.