A Case Study Of High School English Teachers’ Vocabulary Teaching Beliefs

Teaching belief refers to views that teachers held and believed on related factors such as,teaching aims, teaching contents, teaching methods, teachers and students during their teachingprocess. It is associated with their teaching practice and experience and affects teachers’ teachingbehavior in classroom, individual growth and professional development. In the past twenty years,an increasing number of researchs begin to focus on foreign language teachers’ teaching beliefs,behavior and the relationship between them. However, even if vocabulary plays an important rolein English teaching and learning, few studies have focused on English teachers’ vocabularyteaching beliefs and their vocabulary teaching behavior. High school students have learned acertain amount of vocabulary, mastered some word knowledge such as word-formation and so on,but problems still exist such as, students purely use rote learning style and mechanical method tolearning vocabulary, vocabulary memory difficulties and easily forgetting and students’ learninglag behind teacher’s teaching. Problems existing in vocabulary learning closely related to teachers’classroom teaching behavior. So what kind of vocabulary teaching beliefs teachers held, what kindof relationship between teachers vocabulary teaching beliefs and their classroom teaching behaviorare particularly prominent. With the approach of questionnaire, interview and classroomobservation, this study carries on a case study of teachers’ current situation of vocabulay teachingbeliefs and the relationship between their vocabulary teaching beliefs and classroom teachingbehavior on three high school English teachers through get along with them.The study found that1. Teachers have formed relatively complete belief system and have acertain understanding on vocabulary teaching aims, contents, approaches, and vocabulary tests.2.Teachers’ vocabulary teaching beliefs influence their teaching behavior in classroom, and this is atwo-way influence. Teachers’ vocabulary teaching beliefs have an influence on the methods andteaching design adopted by teachers, and also affect the performance of students in classroom. Onthe contrary, teachers’ teaching behavior in classroom will influence the formation of teachers’vocabulary teaching beliefs.3. Teachers vocabulary teaching beliefs have variability, but lackmotive to change. In the process of new curriculum reform promotion, some changes took place ongoals setting, content determing and teaching methods for adapting to the new curriculum reform.Vocabulary teaching beliefs also change accordingly. However, this change is often become amere formality, lack of positive and initiative. And put forward the following suggestions:1.Reshape teachers’ vocabulary teaching aims and pay attention to students’ needs.2. Broaden thechannels for vocabulary learning and cultivate students’ vocabulary learning autonomy.3. Reflect on vocabulary teaching belief and adjust the vocabulary teaching behavior.4. Encourage teachersto participate in scientific research to actively explore new vocabulary teaching theories.