A Study Of Overall Unit Instructional Design In Primary School English Teaching:Towards Deep Learning

The basic education curriculum reform is geared towards the development of students’ core literacy.Deep learning theory has been widely used in the field of education,providing new perspectives and opportunities for basic educational reform.The current condition of English instruction in primary schools neglects the the association between classes and the knowledge linkage of different units’ learning,diluting the in-depth exploration and value construction of discourse and hindering the deeper study of classroom activities and the development of students’ thinking abilities.Deep learning theory helps to break through the current dilemma by emphasizing the integration of language knowledge,by focusing on the construction of knowledge in the learning process and by facilitating the transfer and the innovation of learning outcomes,which coincides with the cultivation aim of the English subject for students’ core literacy.Based on this,this study strives to answer the following three questions:(1)What is the status quo of overall unit instructional design in primary school English teaching ?(2)How can deep learning theory be organically combined with overall unit instruction to build a framework for the design of the unit teaching of deep English learning in primary schools?(3)Can the framework be applied to teaching practices with specific lesson examples to facilitate to the occurrence of students’ deep English learning?Case study,classroom observation,interviews and questionnaires are adopted in this paper.Guided by the deep learning theory and combined with the practical needs of overall unit instruction in primary school English teaching,a framework model is designed followed by eight steps from unit content planning,unit pre-assessment,unit teaching preparation and design,activation of prior knowledge,acquisition of new knowledge,deep processing of knowledge,unit learning evaluation and reflection and improvement.Meanwhile,the author specifies the instructions on the principles,operation sequence and methods that should be followed in the framework design.In addition,the author constructs a framework of proficiency elements and specific performance indicators for English language proficiency in primary school based on the objectives of the English Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education(2022edition),the general framework of the English subject proficiency performance indicator system developed by Wang Qiang’s team,and the deep learning proficiency framework under the integration of the SDL project and the NRC.This study takes Unit 4 What can you do? in the first book of Grade 5 of Primary English of the People’s Education Press as the object of case design and conducts specific lesson practices,so as to evaluate the effects of students’ English deep learning ability.The research results show that overall unit instruction in primary schools English teaching towards deep learning helps students to master core language knowledge systematically,enhance their confidence in traditional Chinese culture and improve their higher-order thinking abilities,cross-cultural communication abilities,self-driven learning abilities and self-reflective homework abilities.Therefore,the overall unit instruction of English in primary school driven by deep learning can effectively trigger students’ awareness of deep learning,improve their deep English-learning abilities,realize the transformation of ability into literacy,which ultimately promotes students’ English core literacy.