Research On The Teaching Beliefs And Teaching Behaviors Of Outstanding English Teachers In A Junior High School

Teaching beliefs are teachers' inherent and lasting concepts about teaching,including teachers' understanding of curriculum materials,teaching activities,student learning,students' characteristics,teacher-student roles and teachers' self-perception.These ideas guide and influence teaching behaviors,such as teacher planning,decision-making and evaluation.They permeate every link of teacher-student interaction and have a tremendous impact on teaching efficiency and quality.With the continuous improvement of teachers' professional requirements and the innovation of teaching concepts,teachers' teaching beliefs have become the key factors in teachers' growth and English education quality.What kind of teaching beliefs do excellent junior middle school English teachers hold? Are their teaching beliefs consistent with their teaching behavior? How did their teaching beliefs come into being? These discussions may help us explore the path of teachers' professional development and sustainable growth,understand the progress in the implementation of the new curriculum reform,and improve the quality of English teaching in compulsory education.In this study,excellent junior middle school English teachers are taken as the research subjects,and qualitative research methods are adopted.The study selected School W in Nanjing as the sample school,and after pre-interview and observation,six in-service teachers of different age groups were selected.Firstly,the researcher conducted in-depth interviews with the teachers and extracted the major compositions of their teaching beliefs through discourse analysis.Over the next two months,the study conducted a number of classroom observations,recorded their teaching behaviors and carried out a second round of interviews.The purpose of this research design is to cross-check the teaching beliefs in their diction with those displayed in actual classroom settings.Through long-term interviews and classroom observations,the conclusions of this study are shown as follows:1.The excellent junior middle school English teachers hold relatively similar teaching beliefs,which can be divided into five aspects: beliefs about English language,beliefs about English learning,beliefs about English teaching,beliefs about the role of teachers and students,and belief about teaching as a profession.In terms of English language,excellent junior middle school English teachers believe that English is mainly used as a tool for communication,and a mirror of Western cultural values.In terms of English learning,excellent junior middle school English teachers believe that the ideal way to learn English is to acquire it naturally in infiltration.To learn English well,junior high school students should put effort onto phonetics,culture,grammar and vocabulary.It is also necessary to combine memorizing and thinking.In terms of English teaching,excellent junior middle school English teachers believe that English should always be used in class.They also attach importance to the context of language,and encourage students to read more.In classroom interactions,teachers should be obliged to correct students' errors,but this should be selectively carried out.The key is to protect the learning enthusiasm of students.In terms of teacher-student roles,excellent junior middle school English teachers describe themselves as guides.Most teachers believe that students are the center of teaching,while one of them believes that the concept of “student-centeredness” is compromised and incomplete.In terms of teaching as a profession,excellent junior middle school English teachers believe that English teachers have high work pressure,low income and high professional requirements,yet the bright side is that it gives them a sense of individual value.Teachers can effectively improve their professional skills by taking part in demonstration classes,learning about educational theories and reading English books.2.The five aspects of teaching beliefs are systemetic.Beliefs about English language and beliefs about teaching as a profession serve as the foundation,supported by beliefs about English learning,and demonstrated in action are beliefs about English teaching and beliefs about teacher-student roles.The more foundamental the belief is,the more important role it plays in the overall development of teachers;the closer it is to the surface,the more intuitive impact it has on teaching behaviors.3.The teaching beliefs mainly stem from self-learning and teaching experience.According to word frequency in interviews,the influential factors are arranged as follows from high to low: impact from former teachers,experience in demonstration classes,daily classroom practice,their own English learning experience,overseas training,peer observation and theoretical learning.4.Teachers' teaching beliefs in interviews and their observed teaching behaviors are generally consistent.Although some beliefs are not directly shown in English teaching practice,the beliefs of English teachers function as a predictor for English teaching practice.Based on the above findings,the study puts forward some suggestions in light of promoting English teachers' professional development.Educational administrative departments need to improve the quality of teacher training and standarlize the education management and evaluation system.The schools and the teaching groups can encourage more famous teachers to set up workshops,and integrate the key competencies into the design of curriculums.Teachers themselves should keep acquiring pedagogical content knowledge,develop lifelong learning habits,persist in teaching reflection,and convert ideas into explicit,systemetic beliefs.