A Study On Cultural Instruction Into Teaching Of EFL Reading In Junior Middle School

As English plays an important role in international communication and national affairs,people pay more and more attention to foreign language education and gradually realize the importance of culture in English learning.Language is always closely related to culture,so to truly grasp a language we must strengthen the study of cultural knowledge.English reading is one of the most important language skill and input mode for Chinese students.Lacking cultural knowledge directly affects students' comprehension ability and thus affects their reading effect.Based on the schema theory and intercultural communication teaching theory,this thesis discusses the attitudes of both teachers and students towards cultural instruction in EFL reading teaching,the contents and methods of cultural instruction in EFL reading teaching,and analyzes the obstacles of cultural instruction in EFL reading teaching.30 English teachers and 120 students from a junior middle school were investigated by using the questionnaires and interviews.This study aims to improve teachers' awareness of cultural instruction in reading teaching and to point out the direction for English teachers so as to enhance their cultural instruction ability,improve the status of implementation of the cultural instruction.Through the analysis of the results of questionnaire and interview,we can draw the following conclusions: Firstly,most teachers and students realize the significant role of cultural knowledge in reading and maintain a positive attitude towards cultural instruction.Secondly,the contents of cultural instruction in EFL reading teaching is one-sided,and the methods of cultural instruction is greatly influenced by the traditional educational concepts and teaching methods.Finally,the limited teaching time,the shortage of cultural instruction materials and the insufficient cultural instruction ability of teachers and other obstacles make cultural instruction difficult.This study further illustrates the significance of culture schema in English reading;in addition,it has positive significance in deepening English teachers' understanding of cultural instruction,improving teachers' teaching ability and students' English reading ability.