(such as open-ended, structured, teacher-fronted, small group, and pair work), and have discussed teacher’s roles and other factors that contribute to successful language learning in TBLT such as the factor that students are the center of classroom and they can acquire language competence, knowledge and skill in the process of accomplishing tasks (Bygate 46). This approach also lights classroom atmosphere and offering language practices for students.
However, traditional Chinese classroom oral English teaching usually emphasizes a lot on language input while ignoring the output of students and most students in class are unwilling to communicate. To overcome such problems, this thesis provides reasons of those problems and then states principles for oral English teaching in junior middle school. With the discussion of the role that TBLT plays in meeting the demands of oral English teaching in
junior middle school, some applications will be discussed and they are useful to solve the current problems.
3. The Problems in Current Middle School Oral English Teaching
Researches have proved that tasks and activities are effective in second language acquisition to initiate communication in target language, exchange of meaning, and enhance language input and output (Xie 81). However, there are still many problems in current classroom oral English teaching in junior middle school. There are many reasons for these problems, including traditional grammar-translation method in class teaching, large class size, students’ character and teacher’s negligence of oral English consolidation in class.
3.1 The traditional grammar-translation method in class teaching
In a traditional classroom teaching, the learning of grammar and translation is considered as the most important thing. As a result, teacher is the center in classroom activities, while students are passive learners who are encouraged to listen to teachers, take notes, and then recite the notes mechanically. Thus, this way of classroom teaching provides a lot of input of reading for students’ language learning but can hardly ensure the output of speaking. Since the introducing of TBLT in 2000, a new concept that students should be the center when finishing tasks, which increases their output, has been widely advocated to overcome the disadvantages of grammar-translation method.文献综述
3.2 The problems caused by large class size
The small class size makes it possible for teacher to pay attention to the needs of every student, while the large class size poses a certain degree of difficulty for class activities. The main problem is that it’s unpractical to help every inpidual in a class. If teacher frequently communicates with a single student in a class, the communication between other students will be insufficient, and most of the students will be listening passively during class. Language learning needs a lot of communicative activities, which means it’s impossible to leave a class
entirely on teachers’ explanation, ignoring the opportunities for students’ practices. Teachers
find it difficult to concern about every of the 50~70 students in class or give specific instructions on the difficulties and problems of inpidual students. What’ more, some active and confident students want to answer first, which occupies other students chances of participating in the communication in activities. In essence, these are just activities and tasks for particular students and teachers, not for the whole class.
Thus, it’s necessary to find a way that creates more chances for students to practice and communicate during the limited class time (40~45min). Group work and pair work are quite beneficial, providing more opportunities for learning and the using of target language (Lu 187). 任务教学在初中英语口语教学的应用(3):http://www.751com.cn/yingyu/lunwen_78637.html