On The Impacts Of Culture Introduction Upon The Effects Of The Teaching Of English Vocabulary In Junior High Schools

The purpose of this thesis is to explore effects of the application of cultural introduction on the teaching of English vocabulary in junior high schools.The theory of this study was based on cultural adaptation.This study focuses on three research questions:（1）What are the main problems in English vocabulary teaching in relation to culture introduction of junior high schools?（2）What are the perceptions of students and teachers on cultural introduction in vocabulary lessons?（3）What effects have the application of cultural introduction exerted on English vocabulary teaching in junior high schools?The subjects of this study were 80 first-grade students of Taihang High School in Nanyang City,Henan Province,and 30 English teachers in their junior high school.The reasons why they were selected were that they were taught by the same teacher,that they had similar English backgrounds and English levels,and that they were cooperative.The experimental class was provided with the vocabulary teaching method based on cultural introduction method,and the comparison class with the traditional method for vocabulary teaching.Target words were chosen from the book they would use in the following semester.Vocabulary test papers,questionnaires,and in-depth interviews were applied as research tools,and the research data were obtained during the usage of these tools.When analyzing the data,scoring,independent samples t-test,paired samples t-test,and were applied so as to check if there exist significant statistical differences between the experimental and comparison classes in the tests so that the problems and reasons behind the teaching of the cultural introduction of English vocabulary in junior high schools and the effect of cultural introduction on vocabulary teaching can be studied and investigated.This study has achieved three main findings:First,the analysis of the teachers’ and students’ questionnaires shows that,with the implementation of the new curriculum reform,the introduction of culture has attracted the attention of junior high school English teachers and students,but their understanding of cultural introduction is not comprehensive,due to insufficient attention.Second,the main problems are as follows:English vocabulary classes in junior high schools still focus on language narration and do not pay attention to cultural introduction;cultural materials are difficult to obtain;and teachers’ cultural introduction methods are single.Meanwhile,the reasons for the above problems are as follows:It is difficult for teachers to obtain cultural resources;test paper setting is weakly correlated to cultural content;teachers’cultural literacy is insufficient;and class hour is inadequate.Third,it can be seen that the application of cultural introduction has a positive impact on students’ learning of cultural-loaded words in general.In the post-test period,the total score of the experimental class increases by 10.22 points with a significant difference.This result is consistent with Schumann’s cultural adaptation theory,which states that language learning can be facilitated provided that learners are well integrated into the culture of their second language,both socially and psychologically.Moreover,the cultural introduction method can shorten the psychological distance between learners and the target language and at the same time,improve their efficiency of vocabulary learning.Additionally,the application of the cultural introduction method has a positive impact on all four categories of cultural-loaded words,namely colors,idioms,animals,and festivals.It can be observed that the score of the color vocabulary category improved the most,by 3.1 points.The idiom vocabulary increased by 2.9 points,the animal and the festival vocabulary increased by 2.7 points.The reasons for this phenomenon are as follows:First,the application of the cultural introduction method can improve students’ interest in learning English.Both language knowledge and cultural knowledge can be acquired in English learning.Next,the cultural introduction method can help students to understand connotations of different vocabulary.Many words are often endowed with specific cultural information,and it is difficult for students to appreciate the difference between the cultural connotation of a word and the meaning of a Chinese word just through Chinese interpretation.The application of the cultural introduction method can help students comprehend the real meaning of these words.The implications of this study for teaching and learning can be concluded as follows.On the one hand,from the perspective of cultural adaptation theory,the cultural introduction method can be applied to four major categories of vocabulary:festivals,animals,colors,and idioms.It can shorten the psychological distance between learners and the target vocabulary and improve learners’ efficiency in learning vocabulary simultaneously.Since students are easily attracted by Chinese and foreign cultural knowledge their interest in learning will be greatly stimulated if appropriate materials are prepared.On the other hand,the results of the questionnaire and the experiment also show some information.First and foremost,the cultural introduction method is necessary and useful.Second,the cultural introduction method can increase students’ interest in learning English vocabulary.Third,the cultural introduction method can promote students’ motivation in English learning.Therefore,teachers should fully explore teaching materials and arrange teaching contents reasonably in accordance with different needs of the class.And of equal importance,teachers should integrate more cultural information to vocabulary teaching so as to provide students with a suitable cultural background for their vocabulary learning.