An Investigation On The Classroom Participation Of English Majors

Great importance has been attached to the student’s participation in the teachingand learning process. Students’ active participation in classroom is directly reflectedby their subjectivity. In China, the classroom is the main place for foreign languagelearners to learn. Only when the students initiatively participate in classroom activitiesand think intelligently can they internalize what they have been taught in theclassroom. The very importance of classroom participation has raised wide concernamong scholars domestic and overseas. Some studies have been conducted tostudents’ participation mode, and others have focused on the relationship betweenlearners’ second language achievements and their classroom participation pattern.However, scant attention has been paid to the influence of personality factors onclassroom participation, and most studies concentrated on the non-English majors.The present study attempts to get a clear picture of English majors’ classroomparticipation in the actual learning situation and try to explore the correlationsbetween personality factors and the students’ classroom participation behavior.The subjects of this study were206sophomores who have already taken theTEM4test from a University in Jiangxi Province. The data were collected throughquestionnaires which include three parts: a self-revised classroom participationquestionnaire, Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised, Short Scale for Chinese(EPQ-RSC) and the students’ self-report questionnaire.The results indicate that most of the students’ attitude toward classroomparticipation is positive and they can actively take part in classroom activities. Nosignificant difference is founded between the students’ attitude and their differentpersonalities. Compared with verbal activities in class, the students prefer nonverbalactivities. Significant differences are founded between the introverted and unstablelearners and the other three types of students. Main factors which influence thestudents’ classroom participation relate to their own internal factors such as anxiety, self-confidence, personality and motivation, their high expectations for the teacherslike the teachers’ own spirit condition and their teaching methods, the classroomatmosphere etc.It is suggested that the advantages of small class teaching should be made fulluse of and the interactions (teacher-student interaction and students-studentinteraction) in class ought to play an important role. Classroom atmosphere whichcould make both the teacher and students feel at ease and relaxed as well as a kind ofappropriate psychological environment are most helpful for the language learning tooccur. The students’ personality traits and individual needs should be taken intoaccount. Teaching reflections must be put emphasis on. The teacher need to renewtheir teaching philosophy, and realize that the students’ subjectivity and teaching goalscan only be achieved by students’ active participation.