The Application of Mother Tongue in Rural High School English Teaching母语在农村中学英语教学中的应用

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1、The Application of Mother Tongue in Rural High School English Teaching母语在农村中学英语教学中的应用AbstractHow to use mother tongue properly is a relatively old discipline in linguistic study. But few people study it in the condition of rural high school. Historically, the way to deal with the involvement of nati

2、ve language went to extremes: either excluding it or relying on it. However, in the past few decades, a trend of limiting the use of the native language has been in vogue. Approaches such as the Audio-Visual, the Functional Notional and Communicative, etc. adopted in current English teaching also ma

3、intain that native language should be abandoned or limited as much as possible. Up to now, it has long been a controversial issue whether native language should be involved in a foreign language teaching and learning. So, according to the language transfer theory, as an extension phenomenon, transfe

4、r has two types, namely, positive and negative transfer. The former has conductive roles to play in facilitating the target language learning while the later created hindrances for learners. Although the foreign language direct teaching method is very popular today, it is not scientific for us to lu

5、mp together all and ignore the proper application of the mother tongue in rural high school English teaching. In fact, it is impossible for the teachers of rural high schools to obstruct completely from mother tongue in foreign language teaching. The unitary foreign language teaching method based on

6、 the avoidance of the negative transfer of the mother tongue does not work. So the scientific utilization of the mother tongue in rural high school foreign language is important and needed to be done further research.Key words: mother tongue, Language transfer, positive transfer, rural high school E

7、nglish teaching内 容 摘 要在语言学的漫长发展史中，如何合理使用母语是一个相对古老的话题。但是却很少有人去研究在农村中学的实际条件下应如何合理使用母语。从历史上看，对于母语在外语教学中的地位问题的处理常走极端排斥或依赖。而近一二十年来的趋势是限制母语使用，如听说法、功能法及交际法等。直到今日，外语教学中母语是否应该介入一直以来都是语言教学界争论的话题。根据语言迁移理论，语言迁移一般有两种：正迁移和负迁移。来自母语的正迁移对外语学习有促进作用，而负迁移对外语学习有阻碍作用。尽管在外语直接法日益流行的今天，我们也不可一概而论，忽视了母语在农村中学英语教学中的地位和作用。事实上，在农

8、村中学英语教学中想完全摒弃母语思维，试图用全英语式的教学方法来避开母语的干扰是行不通的。因此，在教学中可以充分利用母语的正迁移影响，尽可能地发挥母语在外语教学中的作用。关键词：母语；语言迁移；正迁移；农村中学英语教学ContentsIntroduction11.Language Transfer and English Teaching21.1The Definition of Language Transfer31.2 The Influence of Language Transfer in EnglisTeaching52. The Analysis of Using Mother To

9、ngue in Rural High School English Teaching62.1 The Current Situation of Using Mother Tongue in Rural High School English Teaching72.1.1 The Problems of UsingMotherTongue in Rural High School English Teaching72.1.2 The Analysis of the CurrenSituation92.2 The Unreality of Abandoning Mother Tongue in R

10、ural High School English Teaching102.2.1 Incorrect Aim and Motivation112.2.2 LimitedContact Hours122.2.3 Learners Different Attitudes122.2.4 Inappropriate Teaching Materials132.2.5 TeachersLow Profession Level132.2.6 Students Unenergetic Participation143. The Application of Chinese in Rural High Sch

11、ool English Teaching153.1 The Solution of ProblemsCaused by Using MotherTongue163.2 The Proper Use of Mother Tongue in Rural High School English Teaching18Conclusion21Notes23Bibliography243Introduction For a long time, there are many problems in the English teaching and learning, such as, is it nece

12、ssary to use mother tongue in English teaching and learning? If not, is it possible to avoid the influence of native language while learning English in the Chinese should be environment? Up to now, it has long been a controversial issue whether native language should be involved in English teaching

13、and learning.Historically, the way to deal with the native language went to Extremes: either excluding it or relying on it. In the 18th century, native language was largely used in foreign language teaching and learning. Nowadays, a trend of limiting the mother tongue has been in vogue. Many linguis

14、ts think that it is beneficial for foreign language learner to get in touch with target language as much as possible. They also think that the positive transfer of mother tongue has conductive roles to play in facilitating the target language learning, but in fact, the positive roles of transfer hav

15、e largely been ignored. Methods such as the Direct Method, the Functional-Notional and Communicative, etc, adopted in current English teaching also maintain that native language should be abandoned or limited as much as possible. It is stated in the English teaching syllabus for high school in China

16、: teachers should use English most of the time and limit the use of mother tongue in teaching, the intention of which is to enable school children to gain near-native-like control of English just by virtue of being immersed in a classroom where the teacher speaks only English with them. Although the

17、 aims of these positions are laudable, it is also unrealistic for learners to abandon the native language. In fact, most of teachers in rural high school still use mother tongue appropriately in English teaching. The phenomenon comes from the current situation of rural high school. English language

18、is a compulsory subject in china. But students have only one English class every day. There are at least sixty students in a class in rural high school and in some schools even as many as over eighty. Sometimes, teachers have to use Chinese in order to complete the teaching task. Many students learn

19、 English just for passing all kinds of exams. A lot of factors decide that it is unrealistic that abandoning mother tongue in rural high school, such as the aim and motivation of learner, limited contact hours, the size of class and so on.According to language transfer theory, This paper focus on an

20、alyzing the current situation in rural high school English teaching and expound that it is impossible and unrealistic to abandon native language in English teaching in rural high school. At the same time, it is helpful for English teachers to realize the positive effect of using mother tongue, and i

21、t will be beneficial to English teaching in rural high school.1. Language Transfer and English TeachingIn English language teaching, language transfer has been a controversial topic and more linguistic researchers have a better and more comprehensive understanding of it. Transfer is “the influence r

22、esulting from the similarities and differences between the English language and mother tongue which has been previously acquired. Transfer can usually be classified as positive transfer and negative transfer. These terms refer to whether transfer results in something correct or something incorrect r

23、espectively (Gass, Selinker, 1994)1 Language transfer has been a central issue in applied linguistics and language teaching for at least a century. 1.1The definition of language transferThe term “Transfer” firstly appeared in the field of Learning Psychology. H. Ellis (1965)2 defined “Transfer” as “

24、A hypothesis concerning the influence of previous task A to task to B.” It was in the book entitled “Linguistics Across-Cultures” by American behaviorist Robert Lado (1957)3that the term “Language Transfer” was firstly introduced in the field of second language acquisition (SLA) and soon received ke

25、en attention from linguists. According to the book “Language Transfer in Language Learning” compiled by Gass and Selinker(1994)4 there are approximately up to seventeen ways of defining “language transfer” , which show the significance of the role of language transfer in SLA on one hand, on the othe

26、r, the inconsistency of peoples knowledge towards the issues. However, there is a working definition of language transfer by Odlin based on her decades research of language transfer phenomenon, which is widely recognized. She defined it, simply and precisely, in her influential work Language Transfe

27、r as follows (Odlin, 1989:27):5“Transfer is the influence resulting from similarities and differences between the target language and any other language that has been previously (and perhaps imperfectly) acquired.”To put it simple, language transfer is the cross-linguistic influences. Duo to its eff

28、ectiveness and comprehensiveness in the field of SLA, this definition is adapted in the present paper.Positive transfer is the transfer which makes learning easier, and may occur when both the mother tongue (MT) and the target language (TL) share some linguistic similarities. In this case, learners

29、MT can facilitate TL learning. Ellis (1994)6 refers to positive transfer as “facilitation”. Odlin (2001) 7points out that the facilitative effects can only be observed when learners with different native languages are studied and comparisons are carried out. Positive transfer is evident not so much

30、in the total absence of certain errors-as would be expected on the basis of behaviorist nations of positive transfer but rather in a reduced number of errors and ,also, in the rate of learning (Ellis,1994)61.2 The influence of language transfer in English teaching The influence of language transfer,

31、 which has been a central issue in applied linguistics, second language acquisition, and language reaching for at least a century, has long been a controversial topic. The controversy has had a long life not only among second language teachers and researchers, bur also among linguists interested que

32、stions of language contact and language learning factor to consider in theories times. In the 1950s, it was often deemed as the most important factor to consider in theories of second language learning as well as in approaches to second language teaching. In the 1060s, its importance was on the wane

33、d as learners errors were seen not as evidence of language transfer but rather of “the creative construction process.” Some researchers virtually denied the existence of language transfer in their enthusiasm for universalistic explanations. In recently years, however, a more balanced perspective has

34、 emerged in which the role of transfer is acknowledged and in which transfer is seen to interact with a host of other factors in ways not yet fully understood. While the conclusion was drown by researches on language transfer is clear that these researches have been shown that the manifestation of l

35、anguage transfer has been paid great attention to in the field of research on language teaching and learning. Many linguists think that the positive transfer of mother tongue has conductive roles to play in facilitating the target language learning while the negative transfer created hindrances for

36、learners, but in fact, the positive roles of transfer have largely been ignored.In China, only a few researches have been carried out in China concerning the positive impact of native language on target language (TL) learning. In a dynamic research into native language influence on TL writing using

37、the method of Thinking Aloud (TA), Guo Chunjie and Liu Fang (1997:30)8 pointed out that: (1) mother tongue influence plays a more significant role in target language production than traditionally supposed; (2) mother tongue influence on target language production is largely covert: it lies in the hi

38、gh-level cognitive operations in language production.A recent study by kern (Cohen, 2000:177)9with native English-speaking readers of French has suggested that there are positive consequences of mental translation into the first language while reading in a foreign language just as there are native o

39、nes.2. The Analysis of Using Mother Tongue in Rural High School English Teaching As we all know, any foreign language teaching and learning activities are conducted after the learners have acquired their native language. For example, in high school in China all the students begin to learn English af

40、ter they have acquired Chinese, which inevitably has some influence on their English learning. We can find out the reason from the current situation and practice.2.1 The current situation of Using Mother Tongue in Rural High School English TeachingIn front, we have discussed the controversial issue

41、of using native language and introduced some theories concerning language transfer. Now, according to the former linguists theoretic analysis, we can find out the current situation of using native language in rural high school English teaching and learning as follows: 1) Teacher should use Chinese m

42、oderately when necessary and translation teaching should be the main method of teaching English.2) Native language is playing a significant role in promoting English learning. The competence of mother tongue is directly proportional to the competence of target language. 3) Teachers should limit Chin

43、ese using in English class as much as possible. But mother tongue can save time and energy in English class.2.1.1 The problems of using mother tongue in rural high school English teaching In most rural high schools in China, the students are learning English in a Chinese environment, the teachers of

44、ten using mother tongue to help students to pass all the exams especially the entrance exams. So, it is obviously that there are two problems of using mother tongue in rural high school English teaching. 1) Result in ChinglishMother tongue transfer is usually considered to decline with proficiency a

45、s it is believed that the lower a students proficiency in English, the more likely that he /she will produce Chinglish. As we all known, students are learning English in a Chinese environment. At school, they have only one English class every day and all the other classes are given in Chinese and th

46、e chief objective for high school students to learn English is get enough scores to pass the national college entrance examination instead of using it as a living language. At the same time, teacher using too much mother tongue in class, they often using mother tongue to explaining the new words, ex

47、plaining the grammatical concept, explaining the difficult sentence in teaching text, etc. So, their limited experience of English restricts them from expressing them. It is often difficult for them to find the right English word or phrase or sentence to match what they are thinking in Chinese. And

48、as a result, it is inevitable for them to use mother tongue transfer strategy consciously and unconsciously in their written work, which is most likely to result in Chinglish.2) Low efficiency in learningIn practice, in most rural high schools in China, the class size is usually about 60 students, w

49、hich too crowed for all the learners to have enough chance to practice English. Besides, the students often have only one hour every day and four or five hours per week. So, they actually leave little time for their limited exposure to English inside class. As a result, they have little experience o

50、f English and have few chances to interact with teachers or with each other. The most important reason is that English material was translated into Chinese after it have been explained in English. So, it is obviously that the students have low efficiency in learning. 2.1.2 The analysis of the curren

51、t situation According to the description of the current situation, we can analysis the result as follows:1) There are two forms in using native language. One is that mother tongue was used all the time, such as in explained demand, in valuing students homework, etc. The other is that English materia

52、l was translated into Chinese after it have been explained in English.2) The aims of using native language include: explaining teaching demand; explaining the new words; explaining the grammatical concept; translating some into Chinese in sentence pattern teaching; explaining the difficult sentence

53、in teaching text; examining learners progress, etc.3) Most of teachers and students think that it is impossible to avoid native language in English teaching and learning. But they also maintain that native language should be limited properly. Most of them wish to take advantage of language positive

54、transfer and avoid language negative transfer in using native language in English class.2.2 The unreality of Abandoning Mother Tongue in Rural High School English TeachingIn recent years, English teaching in middle school in China has changed from teaching mainly grammar and translation to teaching

55、basic knowledge (including pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar) and basic skills (including listening, speaking, reading and writing). But in actual teaching process teachers purely lay stress on teaching linguistic knowledge in order to prepare students to pass all kinds of exams, especially entranc

56、e exams. After six years of learning English, students have only grasped some basic linguistic knowledge and skills to deal with split questions in exam papers. However, nowadays a trend has been in vogue. Many linguistic and teachers maintain that mother tongue should be abandoned or limited as muc

57、h as possible. Because they think that using Chinese in English class will lead to chinglish. But the outcomes of English teaching are not so satisfying as expect, especially in rural high school. In fact, it is quite unrealistic and impossible to do so in rural high school in China, for the avoidan

58、ce of mother tongue influence is possible only when a child is totally immersed in the L2 setting at an early age without being exposed to his /her mother tongue and he /she acquires L2 just as we acquired our mother tongue when we were young. Why is it impossible that abandoning Chinese in rural hi

59、gh school English teaching? The disadvantages of teaching in rural high school in China are as follows.2.2.1 Incorrect aim and motivation In most cases, English language is a compulsory subject in China. Many students learn English for no obvious reason. They learn English not for their own will but

60、 have to. They dont need what is being taught in order to survive in an English-Speaking environment. They are less motivated learners than the English country students. Of course, there is a source of motivation in China that is to pass entrance examinations and prepare themselves to find good jib

61、after graduation. So many students aim of learning English is just passing all kinds of exam especially entrance exam, In order to passing all kinds of exam, teachers have to spend lots of time in teaching vocabulary grammar because of schedule teachers have to use Chinese inevitable in English clas

62、s.2.2.2 Limited contact hoursAlthough the size of class is different places, it is common to have at least sixty students in a class in rural high school in china, and in some key school even as many as over eighty. English is generally treated as compulsory subject in middle school. The allocation

63、of teaching hours is similar to that of other subjects, often four to five hours per week. Large classes and limited contact hours are not beneficial to successful language learning. Students have few chances to interact with teachers or with each other. Given a chance, any teacher would opt for sma

64、ller classes and more contact hours. So, teachers have to use Chinese in order to complete the teaching task.2.2.3 Learners different attitudes Learners manifest different attitudes towards: (1) the target language, (2) target language speakers, (3) the target language culture, (4) the social value

65、of learning the L2, (5) particular uses of the target language, (6) themselves as member of their own culture. These attitudes are likely to reflect the particular social settings in which learners find themselves. Learners attitudes have an impact on the level of L2 proficiency achieved by individual learners and are influenced themselves by this success. Thus, learners with positive attitudes, who experience success, will have these attitudes reinforce. Similarly, learners negative attitudes may be strengthened by lack