A Study On The Application Of Worked Example In College English Writing Based On Cognitive Load Theory

English writing is a basic language skill that English learners need to master and it is the best way to reflect the comprehensive ability of students to use language.However,at present,English writing has always been a weakest skill of college students to learn English.Therefore,many scholars have carried out lots of researches on English writing from some professional perspectives to help students improve their English writing skills.Worked example instruction is a basic teaching method in English writing teaching.At present,worked example instruction is widely used in English writing teaching,but if it is not used properly,it will have a negative impact on teaching.The Cognitive Load Theory(CLT)proposed by Sweller et al.provides a new perspective for the study of worked example instruction.Therefore,this paper attempts to explore the influence of worked example instruction on college English writing from the perspective cognitive load,and raises the following three questions:1.What are the effects of worked example instruction based on CLT on English writing proficiency for college students?2.What are the effects of worked example instruction on students' cognitive load in English writing?3.What are the changes of students' attitudes towards college English writing?The subjects of this study are 60 sophomores from two classes of Finance major in a university in Liaoning Province.One class is an experimental class,who acceptworked example instruction based on CLT,and another class is control class,who are taught by traditional teaching method.The whole experiment lasts 10 weeks.The research tools used in this study include testing,writing cognitive load scale(WCLS),questionnaire and interview.Moreover,the data obtained through the test,writing cognitive load scale and questionnaire are analyzed by SPSS 18.0.The research proves that worked example instruction based on CLT plays an important role in college English writing teaching.The results of tests show that the students in the experimental class have significantly improved their writing proficiency in terms of content,organization and vocabulary.Moreover,the results of writing cognitive load scale show that the cognitive load required by the experimental class is lower than that of the control class.In addition,the results of questionnaire and interview also indicate that students have great changes towards college English writing.In a word,although this study has many limitations,it has also obtained certain research results,which has certain practical significance for English writing teaching.