A Survey Of The Use Of English Picture Books In Rural Primary Schools In Yantai Area

With the implementation of English Curriculum Standards(2011),English picture books were introduced into primary and secondary classrooms because of their excellence in both illustration and diction,simplicity in language,repeatability in use,and their great educational value.As the use of English picture books in rural primary schools is still in its infancy,it is necessary to study its current situation.The present survey,therefore,attempts to find out:(1)What are the education administrators’ and teachers’ attitudes towards the use of English picture books?(2)What is the current situation of the use of English picture books in rural primary schools?(3)What are the difficulties and challenges in the use of English picture books? In order to answer these questions,this study takes 269 English teachers in Yantai rural primary schools as participants,collects data through questionnaires and interviews,and analyzes the data via Excel and SPSS19.0.Results of the survey demonstrates that:(1)Over 75% of the schools surveyed advocate the use of English picture books in EFL teaching and are willing to organize necessary training activities for this purpose.From the teachers’ points of view,83.27%of the teachers express their interest in English picture book teaching,but only 61.71%of them are familiar with picture books.As for the value of picture books in English teaching,what teachers favor most is its positive role in student-teacher interaction,and its improvement of English class efficiency.Teachers believe that the picture book is only a teaching material supplementary to English textbooks.(2)In the process of the adoption of English picture books,most picture books are purchased by teachers themselves.Among the factors considered in the selection of picture books,the most frequently considered one is whether it suits students’ English reading capacity,and whether it is relevant to the subject of the course and whether the picture book itself is interesting.As for the frequency of the use of English picture books,the fourth graders use them at the highest frequency,and the third and fifth graders use them slightly lessfrequently.Among the activities held in picture book teaching,storytelling,picture-book reading,and video-watching are the most frequent ones.Story-retelling and role play are favored as after-class activities.The most frequently used evaluation method is reading tests.(3)The three biggest obstacles faced in the use of English picture books are limited number of English class periods,insufficient proper English picture books and large-sized class teaching.Based on the findings,this study puts forward some tentative suggestions on the use of English picture books in rural primary schools,in the hope of enlightening the English teaching there.