浸入式环境下幼儿英语情境化教学研究

发布时间：2016-05-18 05:31

Chapter One Introduction

At the same time, the advantage of children’s early second language learning has also beenconfirmed scientifically. In this situation, the age of English learners becomes younger andyounger. Various children English instruction modes and methods have appeared. Most ofchildren English instruction modes are the traditional “spoon feeding” education. In theseteaching modes, teachers occupy the main position and ignore children’s feelings. The mainadopted teaching method is that the teacher imparts while the students obtain by mechanicalimitation and memorization, which stifles children’s enthusiasm, influences the learning qualityand even forms the “dumb English”. This phenomenon has aroused more and more attention ofeducators; however, situational instruction can be a way to solve the problem. In spite that allkinds of teaching patterns were declared to use situational instruction. In fact, it was not appliedby most of schools and institutions, so the teaching quality is still unsatisfactory.Among many children English instruction modes, children English immersion situationalinstruction attracts people’s attention with its scientific teaching methods and teachingachievements. Immersion is a teaching mode using the second language as the instructionlanguage. This concept originated from the French immersion instruction in Canada in the 1960s.Children immersion English mainly began with the China and Canada education cooperationproject in 1997. It refers to the fact that teachers use English as the instruction language tocommunicate with children of the kindergarten, making them “immerse” in English. In this kindof mode, English is not only a learning object, but also a learning tool.

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Chapter Two Literature Review

2.1 Definition of Key Concepts

Children English immersion refers to a kind of children teaching mode using English as theteaching language. In this mode, teachers only communicate with children in English in all orpart time of the kindergarten, making them “immerse” in English language environment. In thiskind of mode, English is not only the learning object, but also a learning tool. In the Englishimmersion teaching mode, children “immerse” in all English environment, teachers’ teachingactivities and most of subject activities are also in English.In children English immersion situational instruction, the teachers will not clearly explain themeaning of words, phrases and sentences when they lead children to understand new things.However, they will use a variety of teaching methods to attract children’s attention and stimulatetheir interests. Therefore, children could be delighted to learn English and speak English. Thelanguage development of children comes from the language communication. In the Englishimmersion mode, children communicate and talk with each other in English. It can give full playto thecommunicative function of language, which could promote improving their languageabilities in this process. 

2.2 Previous Research on Children English Immersion Instruction

Among the world, Germany firstly applied the situational instruction in foreign languageteaching. In the 1890s, the German scholars put forward using the direct method to teach foreignlanguage. That means only using foreign languages to make conversations, communicate andread in teaching, but not trying to translate them into the native language. This also couldcultivate the thinking ability of foreign language with using real stimulus. At the beginning oftwentieth Century, the British linguists Palmer proposed the situation to manage the foreignlanguage teaching. In 1940s, France Saint-Cloud High Normal College created the audio visualmethod, which is also called situational method. It refers to using the slides and a tape recorderto create the language situational teaching. Then, the audio-visual equipment is used widely inFrance and America in foreign language teaching. In the early of 1980s, scholars from WesternEuropean Community countries created the functional method. They thought that verbalcommunication is always in the specific context, and the teaching process should pay attention tocreate a real communicative language environment. Krashen and Taylor (1977) put forward thenatural proposition, which advocated that teaching and using language knowledge in a situation.With the rise of task language teaching in the 1980s, it was thought that language tasks need tobe accomplished in the real situation and the task is to deal with the simulation or real lifeproblems with languages.In the 1960s, Canada first experimented French immersion instruction, and then manycountries referred and developed this instruction mode. English immersion instruction is alsoused widely. English immersion instruction of various countries is emphasized to be carried outin the real situation as much as possible. In the 1990s, Snow summarized 10 kinds of typicalimmersion skills, which included “providing full situational support for the teaching language”.But so far, the author has had no access to foreign research specifically for the contents ofEnglish immersion situational instruction at the preschool stage.

Chapter Three Methodology ........ 21

3.1 Research Questions ........... 21
3.2 Subjects ............................ 21
3.3 Research Instruments ............. 22 
3.4 Data Collection............. 24
Chapter Four Results and Discussion......... 26
4.1 Strategies used in children immersion situational instruction ........... 26 
4.2 Results of the Interview...................49
Chapter Five Conclusion.................52
5.1 Major Findings.....................52
5.2 Implications......................53
5.3 Limitations ...............57
5.4 Suggestions for the Future Work..............58

Chapter Four Results and Discussion

4.1 Strategies used in children English immersion situational instruction

In this lesson, the kids memorized of various animals’ characteristics by the role playing.Because of integrating the roles they played, kids cultivated a love for the beautiful forestnaturally. Through the situation “the king of the forest”, they understood every animal in theforest is a unique indispensable individual. Therefore, when the kids know the forest wasdestroyed, they have a better understanding of animals’ suffering and helpless. Their reflectionsare sincere and touching which moves the audiences and themselves deeply. The teacher was notthe protagonist in this show, but an assistant in her performance as the “Monkey”. In theinformal interviews of the teacher, she mentioned that her class is a large shift, and childrenexcelled in spoken English. Teaching courses in normal classroom environment is no rather than creating a situation in which children can play. This could achieve better teaching effect.Using this strategy, teachers should provide a large number of playing roles for children toselect. Before the playing, teachers should make full preparations, including teaching knowledge,materials, emotional provision and etc. Knowledge preparation includes learning related words,phrases, and sentence expression in advance. Materials preparation means a lot of things such asthe layout of the background, providing the suitable clothing, props, music and etc. Emotionalpreparation is the mental exchanges with the kids. During the performance, the teachers shouldcarefully perform as a guide and an assistant, making the students as the main body. They shouldfully trust their students and encourage them to play actively, to express themselves confidentlyand bravely.

4.2 Results of the interview

All of the four teachers express that the children on the whole hold positive attitudes towardsEnglish immersion situational instruction, while great individual differences exit among thegroup, for female students demonstrate significantly better English learning attitudes than malestudents. What’s more, four teachers and children all attach great importance to English learningmainly out of two reasons. The first reason is that teaching faculty and children have formed acorrect understanding of the position of English in their life, nearly all of whom agree that theimmersion situational instruction indeed plays an important role in improve their Englishlanguage abilities. The second reason stems from children’s interest. After all, for the younglearners, the interest is the direct power of learning. At the same time, it is their learning purpose.Q2: What do you think of English immersion situational instruction? Can it meet thechildren English learning needs in China?A comparatively common viewpoint can be drawn from the statement of four Englishteachers about the question. English immersion situational instruction is a revolutionary projectin Chinese context. In light of the language acquisition theories and the achievements in other countries, we need to develop such an instruction with Chinese and local characteristics. Therewere no signs of confusion between the two languages; instead, their developments in Englishand Chinese proved to be complementary. So that, it can meet the children English learningneeds in China. Teacher B points out the children showed good abilities in association andcreative thinking, and they were also starting to know about some cultural differences. Whilethey were gradually acquiring English, their Chinese language development did not seem to beaffected. On the whole, this English immersion situational instruction seemed to be a win-wingame.

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Chapter Five Conclusion

5.1 Major Findings

Learning a language requires cooperating in a corresponding linguistic environment. Byapproaching real situation, learners could better master and use this language. “The opportunitiesof autonomous learning and exchanging as well as the space of full self-performance” should besupported to student English learning, which is put forward in English Curriculum Standard. Foryoung learners, they are more dependent on language learning context because of young age,limited cognitive level and other reasons. For Chinese children, they communicate with eachother in Chinese context of their daily life, and they have less chance to be immersed in Englishcontext, which becomes obstacles in their English learning.The children English immersion situational teaching creates a real situation so that childrencould get the preliminary acquisition and initial use of English language under the naturecondition. The author found that, using situational teaching in children English immersionsituational instruction can not only give class vitality and energy, but also give children moreopportunities to apply the target language in context. Therefore, Children’s interests andself-confidence will enhance their motivation of communication. In the end, they have the desireto speak English fluently. With active cooperation between young learners, the teachers’teachingactivities can be carried out smoothly. And it is also easier to achieve teaching goals, which aimto develop young learners’second language abilities.

5.2 Implications

In children English immersion situational instruction, children is the active agent in learningsubject, and has the discourse right. The object of creating situations is to help children better usethe language. The situational teaching is important because it is not only to help childrenunderstand and memorize words, phrases and sentences, but also to provide an externalenvironment to use English.The teacher should take children as the center of teaching activities. With performances,games and other forms in the situation, teachers should give children more opportunities to“speak”. They should allow children to express their views freely. And the contents of theperformance can be determined by children themselves. In this way, children can really changethemselves from the passive role into the active role, which can fully demonstrate their dominantpositions in the class.In children English immersion situational instruction, the creation of situations regardschildren as the center. It is necessary to consider the children’s age, cognitive level, interests, It isno good creating too many situations once for all, or they will distract young learners and otherfactors. Only with a comprehensive understanding, the created situation could be perfectlyReasonable and suitable reasonable, which is easier to be accepted by students. For example, thesmall shift class children are young and have limited time using English. Teacher can use storystrategies, game, multimedia situational teaching strategies, and so on in the class; while for the large shift class children, they have a lot of language expression and life experience; teachers canuse role-play situational teaching strategies, problem-solving situational teaching strategies andetc. In a word, the situations created by teachers should meet most of children’s conditions in theteaching activities.

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参考文献（略）

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