On The Cultivation Of Critical Thinking Skills Through English Language Writing In Junior Middle Schools

In junior middle school English teaching,writing is regarded as one of the most important skills that can truly reflect students‘ thinking process.In recent years,critical thinking skills have sparked a heated discussion in the field of education and cr itical thinking skills are essential thinking qualities for students to interpret,analyze,evaluate,infer,explain and self-regulate.Many experts and scholars have recognized the importance of critical thinking skills in promoting students‘comprehensive development and state that the cultivation of critical thinking skills should be a crucial aim in the New English Curriculum.This thesis aims to investigate the present situation of students‘ critical thinking skills development in English writing class in junior middle schools and the author will explore it from the following three aspects:1)What is the current situation of critical thinking skills development in junior middle school English writing teaching? 2)How do experienced and extraordinary English teachers develop students‘ critical thinking skills in their teaching? 3)What are the problems of English writing teaching for cultivating students‘ critical thinking skills in junior middle schools?The research subjects are seven teachers from Lao Shan No.7 Middle School and observations and interviews are employed in this thesis.The results are as follows: firstly,teachers ignore writing practice and teachers use activities,like ask ing open questions and discussions that can truly improve students' critical thinking skills.Secondly,the experienced and extraordinary teachers admit the importance of critical thinking skills for promoting students‘ overall development.They use activities like guessing based on clues,introducing relevant background knowledge,asking questions based on students‘ experience and organizing discussions in groups to cultivate students‘ critical thinking skills.Thirdly,there are still problems in English writing class for cultivating students‘ critical thinking skills.Teachers ignore the in-class writing practice and use relatively simple activities to motivate students‘ thinking process.Moreover,little effective guidance is introduced during the writing process.Inspiring teaching ideas were proposed to cultivate students‘ critical thinking skills effectively.Teachers are suggested to improve their levels of English writing by reading and practicing,renew their teaching perception,provide more inspiring writing instructions and good writing samples for students and create a positive learning atmosphere and cooperative learning environment.In the teaching process,teachers are suggested to ask questions based on students‘experience,organize debates in groups and apply the Process Approach to teaching English writing.