Section 1 Student-centred Principle

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I.Thinking

【Case Reflection】

Mr K is a young English teacher who has just started his career. His students' marks were relatively bad at the time of enrollment. In order to be able to achieve his teaching objectives, he designs each class, arranges the teaching schedule, selects the teaching materials, organizes teaching activities and adopts teaching methods according to the requirements of the syllabus. Mr K also asks his students to listen carefully and to take notes conscientiously in class. In order to give students more knowledge of the language teaching points, he eliminates interaction time with them. However, one semester has passed, and the students' exam scores are still not satisfactory, so Mr K is very anxious and he doesn't know what the problem is.

Please help Mr K to analyse the possible causes.

II.Content of Student-centred Principle

The principles of teaching are guidelines based on certain education concept, and should be followed in teaching activities. The principles of English teaching in elementary and middle schools should be followed as the basic guidelines in training, capacity-building, intercultural education and in other educational activities.

With the ongoing reform of English curriculum, the position of teaching principles has become particularly prominent in English teaching. Correctly understanding and applying the principles of English teaching in elementary and middle school will help teachers to grasp the objective laws of English teaching, to improve the effect of English teaching and to achieve the goals of English teaching in elementary and middle school.

Students are both the subject of, and interactive participants in, teaching activities. Focusing on the student and giving full play to student initiatives are good guarantees of improving the quality of teaching and completing teaching tasks.

The student-centred principle in elementary and middle school English teaching is to design and develop teaching activities according to the real learning goals, learning mechanisms, motivation, interests and difficulties of the students, to encourage students' participation in activities which are designed to cultivate their language ability, communication skills and capacity for sustained development. The student-centred principle requires teachers to create a liberal, democratic and harmonious atmosphere, to establish an equal, consultative, cooperative teacher-student relationship, to give full play to students' initiative, in order to complete the task of teaching efficiently and to improve teaching quality. The purpose of the implementation of this student-centred principle is not to create a student-led self-learning process, but to foster understanding of the learner's purpose, motivation, self-confidence, anxiety etc., to develop student potential and guide them to find ways to solve problems so as to improve and maintain their self-confidence and to speed up the process of language acquisition.

III.The Need for the Student-centred Principle

1.The changes in concept resulting from the study of modern foreign language teaching theories are mainly reflected in the following:

●the emphasis in foreign language learning and teaching research changes from how to teach to how to learn;

●the focus of teaching content shifts from language skills to language content;

●attention to students increases; and

●the way in which teaching content is presented has changed.

This requires reformation in elementary and middle school English teaching, which should switch from listing language points to letting students explore language; from teaching “examination-oriented English” to teaching “applied English”; from “full-class pour-in teaching” to self-motivated, cooperative, inquiry-based learning; from reading textbook to using them to teach; from “learning by listening” or “learning by reading” to “learning by doing”, and “learning by using”. In short, all the changes in English teaching are centred on students, and are all for the benefit of students.

2.The National Curriculum Standards for English in Schools in China (2001) clearly pointed out that “The development of students is the foundation and destination in English curriculum. English curriculum should highlight the idea of student-centred teaching in the aspects of goal-setting, teaching process, curriculum evaluation and teaching resources development. Curriculum implementation should become a process of building knowledge, improving skills, tempering will, enlivening thinking, showing personality, developing intelligence and broadening vision under the guidance of teachers.” Therefore, teachers should awaken students' sense of enterprise, encourage their participation and innovation. A teacher's role is that of a supporter, helper and guide of students as they build their knowledge. This will require that elementary and middle school English teachers give particular emphasis to the student-centred teaching.

IV.Implementation Methods of the Student-centred Principle

The student-centred principle not only requires that the teaching process in elementary and middle school be student-centred, but also that the teaching objectives, tasks, materials, plans, assessment of teaching effects, analysis of materials, and activities (and their design) be student-centred. The ability of elementary and middle school students to acquire English skills should also be regarded as central. All student-centred teaching activities and activity objectives should serve the overall teaching objectives and ensure the effectiveness of teaching and learning activities. The implementation of the student-centred principle in elementary and middle school English teaching should be conducted in the following aspects:

1.Draw up rational teaching programs

Formulate elementary and middle school teaching programs consisting of rational teaching objectives, tasks, materials, plans and assessment of teaching effects according to what is expected of elementary and middle school students in terms of language level and the actual language skills.

2.Reflect on the student-centred principle in teaching processes

In elementary and middle school English teaching, teachers should highlight the role of students in teaching materials analysis, lesson preparation, teaching activities design and teaching methods.

(1) Textbook analysis

The implementation of a student-centred principle requires teachers to fully understand the teaching content during the analysis of the teaching materials. Teachers should adjust teaching objectives and teaching tasks according to the stages of development of their students and their learning profiles. They should also adapt the content of teaching materials and activities according to the students' psychological needs, so as to connect teaching materials with experience the students have had. They should use the contents of teaching materials to encourage students' inquiries and to promote conversations between teachers and students, thereby enabling teaching materials to serve the achievement of learning objectives.

(2) Lessons preparation

Understanding students is an important part of lesson-preparation. Teachers can understand their students' current knowledge and skill levels from student feedback through discussions, questions and answers in class, homework, tests and other means. In addition, teachers can design and adjust teaching activities according to students' learning abilities, learning methods, learning styles and learning attitudes. They can also be more open-thinking and empathic in lesson preparation to achieve the teaching objectives. In short, teaching preparation and teaching activities should be viewed from the perspective of the students, so that the vast majority of the students can be fully involved at the centre of the learning process.

(3) Teaching activities

Teachers should plan and prepare varied teaching activities with clear objectives, substantive content, reasonable timing and pacing according to the knowledge structures, learning motivation, interests and other characteristics of the students. This can avoid low level of student participation, low enthusiasm, failure to obtain teaching objectives and unsatisfactory teaching effects. Teachers should give close attention to understanding students' differing physiological and psychological stages of development and see it as the starting point of teaching. For students of different ages, the student-centred principle will be manifested in different forms. Even students of the same age differ in personality. For example, extroverted students may take a more dominant position in group work, while introverted students may participate passively, or not at all. Such differences require teachers to arrange teaching activites according to students' individual needs.

(4) Teaching methods

Implementation of the student-centred principle requires teachers to adopt varied teaching methods. Inductive teaching methods can help students to feel and understand language intuitively, and enhance their memory through looking, listening and speaking, so as to arouse students' interests. The use of visuals can stimulate interest and curiosity, so teachers should select media such as video recordings and pictures. This can encourage students' participation. Teachers should make good use of classroom space to establish a conducive and immersive learning environment. This will help students comprehend language, be more interested and become more enlightened thinkers in the process of understanding language. In order to maintain and improve students' enthusiasm for learning in the classroom, teachers should monitor performance and give students encouraging and appropriate feedback, thereby constantly improving the level of student participation.