The Application Of Games In Primary School English Class To Increase Migrant Workers’ Children’s Learning Interest

In 2001 in China, Basic Demands for Primary School English Teaching were issued by the educational department, this document made the essential aims of primary school English teaching quite clear, namely, to stimulate and cultivate students? learning interest through various activities containing listening, speaking, reading and watching, to help them form good learning habits, to help them comprehend English in a direct-percieved and perceptual way. These efforts are made in order to help students to grasp the basic language skills, to be able to make simple daily oral communications, to enhance their intellectual development and thinking ability, to construct their viewpoints towards world, life and value, to have cross-cultural consciousness. Also, the document Standards for English Curriculum in Full-Time Compulsory Education emphasized on the concept of “people-orient”. It pointed out that people should get full growth both physically and mentally through education. As for the functions of classroom teaching, many scholars hold the viewpoint that cultivating students? learning interest should come to the very first place. Interest is the impetus for further study.The author of this thesis comes from Xilinhot No. Ten Primary School, which is located in the far east of the city Xilinhot and contains more than 70% migrant workers? children. Because of the fact that most of the migrant workers have comparatively low social status and they belong to the vulnerable group of people in society, migrant workers? children tend to be more self-abased and lacking the sense of belonging due to their family and social background. In English classroom teaching, teachers can easily spot them absent-minded, slow-responded, low-spirited and most of all, lacking of learning interest. Through the questionnaires and interviews in this thesis, it can be found out that most of the students are very interested in game teaching. Based on the theory of motivation, the theory of cognitive development and the theory of constructivism, the author draws the following conclusions: children?s interest in games in primary school can be their intrinsic motivation to learn initiatively and effectively. By Piaget?s cognitive development theory, the majority of primary school students are at the stage of concrete operations, their cognition cannot be developed without concrete images. Appropriate game teaching meets the demand of these students? physical and psychological development.The main purpose of this research is to increase migrant workers? children?s English learning interest by applying appropriate games that comply with their physical and psychological development. The author carried out the research using questionnaires, classroom observation and interviews as instruments and the fourth-graders, which are her students, as subjects. The research question is as follows: Can migrant workers? children?s English learning interest be increased by teacher?s application of games in English classroom teaching? After a term?s experiment with the experimental class and the control class, the conclusion is yes, migrant workers? children?s English learning interest can be increased by teacher?s application of games in English classroom teaching.