Instructional Design Of Senior English Grammar Under Experience-based Approach

The instructional design, under the experience-based approach, is concerned with an English Grammar and usage section, preposition+which and preposition+whom; relative adverbs:when, where, and why, in Unit2, Module1, Advance with English. The theoretical bases of the instructional design are systems theory, constructivism learning theory and schema theory. Its significance lies in three aspects:helping to stimulate students’interest in English grammar, maximizing the effectiveness, efficiency and appeal of English grammar instruction and providing some reference for the future senior English grammar instruction.The instructional design is mainly made up of three parts:pre-design analysis of its major elements, design of teaching process and post-design reflections.Before the instructional design, its major elements are analyzed in terms of learners, teaching content and teaching objectives. In terms of learners, since they are from Cheqiao Senior High, a rural regular school in Huaian and almost all of them are from rural areas, their foundations are weaker than their peers’in key schools. They are short of interest, motivation, self-confidence, and anxious in class. However, they are relatively unsophisticated with a strong curiosity. In terms of teaching content, the author chooses the Grammar and usage section. In terms of teaching objectives, four main perspectives including language skills, language knowledge, affective factors and learning strategies are analyzed. The language skills in this instructional design focus on speaking and reading practice, with some importance attached to listening and writing practice; language knowledge concentrates on the rules and the real application of attributive clauses introduced by preposition+which/whom and relative adverbs; affective factors involves interest, mood and anxiety; learning strategies include induction, choice and voice.The specific instructional design consists of six steps. Lead-in is designed to review the attributive clauses introduced by relative pronouns and attracts students’interest and attention. Experience-based approach including concrete experience, reflective observation, abstract conceptualization and active experimentation is applied to the whole instructional design. Consolidation is saying according to pictures taken in the Chuxiu Park last week. This step requires students to use as many attributive clauses as possible to speak what happened in the park by pair work. Homework is a follow-up activity, which requires students to finish the exercises of C1and C2on page96in the workbook, search for some related materials about attributive clauses to compare them with what we have learnt during the class and share them with each other, use as many attributive clauses as possible to write a composition which should be at least150words.The reflections on the instructional design consist of three parts. The first part is about the reflections on the teaching objectives; the second about the teaching process and the third about the revised instructional design based on the reflections. Generally speaking, the teaching objectives are achieved. To be more specific, except for their over-simple English and some mistakes, the objectives for language skills are basically attained; for affective factors, their interest and confidence in learning English are somewhat enhanced; for learning strategies, their listening, speaking, reading and writing are improved to various extent. In terms of the teaching process, the overall design is successful but with some problems such as a little dull and boring atmosphere; listening, speaking, reading and writing cannot be practiced enough at the same time because of the limited time; PPT with too many beautiful flowers and lovely animals distracts a few students’attention from the class. In terms of the revised instructional design, three main revisions are made. Firstly, the author plays a soft English music throughout the class. Secondly, the author requires students to search for some related materials about attributive clauses to share with each other. Thirdly, the author deletes the distracting pictures from PPT.