An Action Research On Oral English Learning Strategies Training Through The Internet For Middle School Students

Speaking is one of the main factors in English learning. Although educators have paid a raising attention to the importance of oral English and we have witnessed the primary achievements, the current situation that oral English learning has largely been neglected by both students and teachers has not changed because of the influence of examination-oriented system and the traditional grammar-focused teaching methods. Even after years of English learning, some students cannot communicate with foreigners fluently. In order to help students to overcome obstacles of communication, scholars have endeavored to find language learning strategies, for it is widely testified that appropriate and sufficient language learning strategies may lead to a better result and enable the learners to be more successful in language learning [1]. With the emergence of the internet, the time and space of English teaching and learning have been overwhelmingly extended, students’ learning methods have been enriched and teachers’ thinking patterns and teaching strategies have changed. English learning has not been confined to a small classroom, instead, it has been expanded to anywhere with the internet. Since the network-based language learning is suggested as a supplement to the conventional EFL learning, more and more teachers have integrated networking with traditional classroom teaching which requires them to explore various effective new teaching models as participants, learners, trainers and researchers. These factors are inseparable parts of action research. Thus action research, a scientific research approach, has become increasingly popular in foreign language teaching circles recently.This action research mainly focuses on the internet-based oral English learning strategies training for middle school students. The research subjects are 94 students in Grade 7 from Wenjiang Middle School in Chengdu, Sichuan Province. After a week’s interview and questionnaire research, the writer finds that most middle school students are not fully aware of the importance of oral English learning strategies. What’s more, their oral English learning interest has decreased because of the nervousness generated through face to face communication. In order to solve these problems the writer designs a series of oral English learning strategies training classes by means of action research, trying to discuss the following questions:(1) Is it feasible to develop middle school students’ oral English ability and stimulate their interest by taking full advantage of the Internet in and out of class?(2) According to learning features of middle school students, which oral English learning strategies should be emphasized during the teaching process?(3) What is the effect of the combination of training learning strategies and action research on middle school students’ oral English learning?This thesis is presented in five chapters. Chapter 1 introduces the purpose, significance as well as the structure of the thesis. Chapter 2 is the literature review of foreign language learning strategies and action research. Chapter 3 is about the research methodology and data collection. Chapter 4 is the practical analysis and discussions. Chapter 5 comes to conclusions, which summarizes the whole thesis, including findings, hints, tips, limitations and suggestions for future studies.The author hopes that this action research can provide some valuable proposals for other researchers who are interested in conducting this type of research.