A Study On The Independent English Learning Ability Of The Hani Students Of Rural Junior High Schools In Honghe Prefecture In Yunnan Province

As the new round of curriculum reform continues to play out,the cultivation of independent learning ability has come to the forefront of these curriculum revisions.Independent learning has been a hot topic in the educational field for years,and the focus of the English teaching model has gradually shifted from teachers' teaching to students' learning,which has led to more and more studies on independent learning.However,most studies only focus on students in colleges and urban middle schools,with only a few studies on middle school students in rural areas.As for the large group of students in rural areas — minority students in high schools,the studies are minimal,and there is no research on English independent learning of junior high school Hani students in rural areas.Therefore,the research on this topic can not only provide a new research perspective,but also enrich the theory of independent learning and allow the rural junior high school English teachers realize the importance of cultivating students' independent learning ability,as well as provide constructive suggestions for cultivating the independent learning ability of junior high school Hani students in rural areas.By analyzing foreign and domestic research into independent learning including its definition,characteristics,and influencing factors,this research aims to answer the following 4 research questions:(1)What is the status of Hani students' independent learning ability in rural junior high schools of Honghe Prefecture?(2)What are the factors affecting Hani students' independent learning ability in rural junior high schools?(3)What strategies can be used to cultivate Hani students' independent learning ability in rural junior high schools?(4)What is the relation between students' independent learning ability and academic achievement in Hani rural areas? This study adopted a combination of quantitative(questionnaire)and qualitative(interview)as research methods.A total of 206 questionnaires were distributed and collected inBaohua Middle School of Honghe County,Honghe Prefecture,fifteen students and all three English teachers in the eighth grade of the school were selected for interviews.One of the teachers was of Hani ethnic background.The questionnaire used in the study was from Liu Juncai — Questionnaire for English Independent Learning of Rural Middle School Students(2017),the author fine-tuned the questionnaire according to the research needs.The collected data were analyzed by using SPSS18.0 and EXCEL software with descriptive statistic analysis,independent t-test analysis,and correlation analysis.The results of the analysis show that:(1)Rural junior high school Hani students have a low level of English independent learning ability,most students do not have learning confidence and do not believe they can learn English well.There is a significant difference between male students and female students in terms of independent learning ability.The students in key classes have a stronger independent learning ability than those in ordinary classes.(2)Combined with questionnaire dimensions and interviews,learning confidence,learning goals and plans,learning strategies,self-monitoring,self-evaluation,self-control and laziness,teaching methods and evaluation methods,the degree of difficulty of textbooks,trilingual background,and family,were all found to be the internal and external factors which affect the junior high school Hani students' independent learning ability in rural areas.The students interviewed all believe that it is internal factors that affect their independent learning ability.(3)Combined with influencing factors and teacher interviews,students' independent learning ability can be cultivated from three aspects:education authority,schools and teachers,and family.The cultivation of independent learning ability cannot be achieved overnight.It requires a long time and a joint effort of all parties.(4)There is a significant correlation between independent learning ability and academic achievements of Hani students in rural junior high schools.There are also correlations between academic achievements and classes.Students with strong independent learning ability have higher scores than those who have a relatively weak independent learning ability.Students' independent learning in the high group is better than those of the low group students.Due to the influence of the local economic conditions,the limited educational resources,and the influence of their mother language,the students' English academic performance is somewhat unsatisfying and failed to reach the passing score of 72 points.The current independent learning ability of Hani students in rural junior high schools is very low through this study.Due to the influence of the trilingual background,students' learning confidence is the lowest among the six dimensions of independent learning ability,and it is one of the internal factors affecting the independent learning of Hani students and it has a correlation with academic achievement.Therefore,school teachers should combine the students' trilingual background with the teaching conditions to improve the students' interest in learning English.If teachers gradually help students increase their learning confidence,this,in turn,will improve their independent learning ability and help students lay a solid foundation for lifelong education.Although this study achieved the expected results,there are still limitations,such as small sample size,no classroom observation,and no experimentation on training strategies for independent learning ability.Therefore,the author suggests that future research should focus on the independent learning ability of Hani students in rural junior high schools,and the research should be more comprehensive and in-depth in order to contribute to the primary education in rural minority areas.