Communicative Theory of English Teaching

Author: Wang Cai-ren
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1999-03-01
Features: Preface to the Series This series of books, starting from the publication of the first edition of Mathematical Learning Theory in March 1991, has now been in circulation for six years. If we count from the initial planning of the series on mathematical teaching theory in early 1988, it has spanned nine years. Today, the teaching theory series for five major subjects—mathematics, physics, chemistry, Chinese, and foreign languages—have been fully developed, with six books per subject, totaling 30 volumes, named Modern Educational Theory Series for Disciplines. With tens of millions of words, it has not only formed the theoretical foundation for basic subjects but also established the core project and educational theory publishing identity of our press. It took nearly a decade to construct a comprehensive series of educational theories with Chinese characteristics, and the twists and turns, joys and sorrows along the way are beyond words. However, from the perspective of reflecting teaching reform achievements and serving teaching reform, it is our bounden duty. Considering the construction of our press's publishing personality and culture, it holds profound significance and great value. In the new historical period of reform and opening-up, what can sustain a press? What can it compete with? What can drive its development? What can it contribute? The answers can be many, and strategies can be numerous. But fundamentally, there are at least two key pillars: one is the core project, and the other is renowned premium products. The core project represents the strategic layout of a press, while premium products embody its soul and lifeblood. Their perfect integration forms the quality, credibility, reputation, and cultural sophistication of a press—it is the foundation of its existence, a means of competition, the driving force for sustainable development, the core of cultural accumulation, and the fundamental guarantee of contributing outstanding culture to the people. With this understanding and pursuit, we have published this series. Of course, there are also other series. We look forward to the readers' judgment. We welcome the market's test. We also long for support from the education and theoretical communities. We will continue to strive with unwavering dedication, doing everything possible to offer more premium products to education, the nation, and the future.
Guangxi Education Press
Book Description This book conducts a comprehensive examination of the English teaching process using the communicative theory model. Based on analyzing the interaction between teachers and students, interpreting the concept of teaching levels, and clarifying the dual nature of English information, it systematically discusses the mechanisms, procedures, and operations of English information input and output. Through case studies and demonstrations of teaching steps, it proposes that the foundational stage of English teaching should shift teaching methods, cultivate communicative competence, and enhance students' overall quality. This book is suitable for English teachers, English curriculum specialists, and graduate students in English teaching theory. It can also be referenced by subject-specific teaching theory teachers and researchers.
Excerpt: However, while futurists predict a surge in technological advancements in the new century, they also highlight the crises humanity faces. The social development of this century has posed us with the question: every technological progress has both positive and negative aspects. New technologies can improve living conditions and grant humanity greater freedom, but they also produce side effects, even causing losses and costs for humanity. The invention of the steam engine greatly boosted productivity but also led many countries to become colonies. The emergence of relativity provided humanity with more energy, yet it was followed by continuous wars of increasing scale. The widespread use of computers significantly enhanced work efficiency but also led to more unemployment. Modern communication equipment and mass media have shortened interpersonal distances, yet interpersonal interactions have diminished, with a trend of machine-human relationships replacing human relationships. People's sense of loneliness has grown stronger, and humanity has begun to feel anxious. Scientists predict that in the 21st century, population crises, ecological crises, energy crises, unemployment crises, and interpersonal relationship crises will further intensify. In this context of coexisting development and crisis, humanity must recognize the need for international division of labor, cooperation, and coordinated development to achieve mutual survival and progress. Today, the world is interconnected, forming a multipolar, which requires all countries to implement reform and opening-up. Self-imposed isolation means self-isolation, making it difficult for technology and the economy to develop, placing one in a passive position, and making it hard to escape the dilemmas of human development or even bear disasters transferred by others. To open up and participate in international division of labor and cooperation, foreign languages are an indispensable tool, which necessitates the development of foreign language education. If a nation's average foreign language proficiency is low and it lacks foreign language talent, effective communication becomes difficult, making it easy to be dominated by others, by nature, and to struggle to stand tall among the nations of the world. It is clear that in the coming century, foreign languages are a vital tool, enhancing human strength to seek survival and development. Obviously, foreign language education, in its essence, is about enhancing human strength.
Two Dual Tasks Facing Foreign Language Education
With China's reform and opening-up, it has had a profound impact on the international structure and world economy, greatly elevating its global status. The reason is obvious: China cannot afford to be isolated from the world, and the world needs China. If our past reform and opening-up primarily focused on imports, the future should emphasize going global, participating in international division of labor and cooperation in science, technology, and trade. In this way, foreign language education in China faces a new task: improving the average foreign language proficiency of the entire nation. That is, learning and using foreign languages should no longer be the responsibility of a few English professionals, nor just for those in management, trade, or science and technology, but rather every citizen should master at least one foreign language to some extent. This is an arduous task. It requires a significant development in foreign language education—on one hand, expanding specialized foreign language education to cultivate a large number of qualified diplomats, foreign language researchers, and foreign language teachers; on the other hand, strengthening basic foreign language education, especially at the primary and secondary levels. The nine-year compulsory education full-time English teaching syllabus has already been implemented, with the teaching objective stated as: "The purpose of full-time junior high school English education in compulsory education is to enable students to acquire basic English knowledge and preliminary communicative competence through listening, speaking, reading, and writing training." The focus is on popularizing foreign language education and improving the quality of the next generation, which is key to raising the average foreign language proficiency of all citizens. If a solid foundation is laid and the starting point is high, further studies will be easier. Some secondary school students, after entering higher education, will continue to improve their foreign language skills while studying their majors, adapting to the needs of international communication; the majority of students, after graduating from high school, will further study foreign languages through work or vocational training, engaging in various professions and contributing to China's "imports," thereby improving the foreign language environment of China's reform and opening-up. Currently, foreign language education in China faces a heavy workload. China is vast, with uneven economic development, resulting in significant disparities in foreign language education. We are not lacking in high-level foreign language teaching or excellent foreign language teachers, but the average teaching level of foreign languages is not yet high, and the number of outstanding teachers is relatively small. The current state of foreign language education and teacher training greatly lags behind the current pace of reform and opening-up, and should attract serious attention from relevant authorities. To adapt to the large-scale development of foreign language education, comprehensive planning must be strengthened, teacher training emphasized, and foreign language teaching research vigorously expanded to continuously improve teaching quality.