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An Experimental Study of the Use of College English Teaching Materials by Means of Affection Processing Strategy

Author: LiJianMei
Tutor: MaWen
School: Shandong University
Course: English Language and Literature
Keywords: affection processing teaching materials college English
CLC: H319
Type: Master's thesis
Year: 2010
Downloads: 55
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Abstract

It is widely acknowledged that language learning is easily influenced by affective factors. Affection has been paid much attention by many scholars and teachers both home and abroad in the long run as a vital influential factor, but it is not easy to be studied systematically in FLT due to its own uncertainty, complexity and individuality. Though many research achievements have been achieved in the domain, there are still much space left for further exploration on affective language education. For instance, the field of teaching materials concerning affection is seldom explored in the previous researches and studies.Aiming at filling in the gap, and based on Humanistic Approaches and Affection Teaching Psychology, the researcher plans to conduct the affective research of college English teaching materials. The researcher tries to answer the following questions:①Whether college English teaching materials by means of affection processing strategy can facilitate students’language learning, namely, cognitive development? If yes, which aspects of cognition can be facilitated?②Whether college English teaching materials by means of affection processing strategy can promote students’ positive affection experience and positive affection development? If yes, which aspects of affection can be promoted with affection processing strategy?To make the research objective, an empirical study in Shandong Agricultural Administration College has been conducted with 93 English major sophomores as the subjects, who are clear and rational about their affection status and their learning experience in first half year of 2010. The experimental class and control class are chosen randomly between Class One and Class Two.In order to have the practical application value, the field experimental approach is adopted in the thesis. There are questionnaires, test papers and interview designed and employed to carry out the research. Questionnaires and test papers are applied to investigate the cognitive and affective status of participants in the experimental process, while interview is employed to make clear the students’ feelings in class and further exploring desire after class.To ensure validity and reliability of experiments, three lessons are chosen and three teaching experiments are conducted. The lessons are respectively as follows:Charlie Chaplin, The Council of Dads, The Rescue and Relief in Yushu. The results of the questionnaires and test papers are collected and input into the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS 13.0) for further analysis.Affection is "the very center of human mental life" (Oatley & Jenkins,1996:122), and the research results have proved that the application of affection processing strategy to the use of college English teaching materials is beneficial to both extended cognitive learning and affective development of learners. In general, the positive influences shown in cognition are mainly on extended cognition; the influences on instant cognition test are uncertain and needs further investigation. In affection, the application of affection processing strategy can facilitate the positive affection development of learners. To summarize, the variables such as attention, interest and class atmosphere have shown highly significant difference in each experiment, which proves affection processing strategy is very helpful to improve learners’attention, and enhance learning interest as well as create an open and harmonious atmosphere in classroom; as for other affective variables, they have significant difference in statistics but not as significant as the above ones, such as affective touch and appetite to further exploration, status of being pleased and active thinking, affective echo, participation. The statistics can illuminate that the affection processing strategy can bring about affective touch and affective echo of learners, make them pleased and actively participate in the teaching activities as well as have desire to further exploration; but the degree to the influence and particular influential variable might be different according to different texts and affection content. For all the nine affective items listed in affection questionnaires, no one is beyond the influence of affection processing strategy.The important implications brought to us are as follows:first, the popular practice neglecting or not attaching much importance to affection and its significance should be abandoned. Second, teachers as facilitator of the class should pay much attention to affection and try to exert the impetus function of affection into full play, to conduct affective teaching and to realize both cognitive and affection development of learners. Third, college English teaching pattern should be changed from knowledge imparting to affection penetrating, and the more real the affection penetration is, the more satisfying and high the result and efficiency of language teaching are.

An Experimental Study of the Use of College English Teaching Materials by Means of Affection Processing Strategy

Abstract

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