Research On Fostering Autonomous English Learning In Junior Middle School

To push forward the "quality-oriented education" process, we adopt actively the new teaching methods to accelerate the curriculum development. The current curriculum reform needs us to help students transform their studying modes and arouse their interests in learning. Autonomous learning is essential to the implementation of the curriculum reform since it is not only a new tendency of English teaching and learning in middle schools, but also an important factor affecting junior students’English learning. The objective of cultivating middle school students’autonomous learning ability is to let them know how to learn in order to help them lay a foundation for lifelong learning. Meanwhile autonomous learning and interests’development are closely connected and inseparable.In this thesis, the author first defines the term "learner autonomy" and reviews the current relevant literature and researches at home and abroad, then illustrates his methods to improve the learners’autonomy abilities which are mainly focusing on how to train the students to set goals autonomously, select the effective learning methods, make independent inquiry and self-evaluation.In practice, the author performed an experiment in the experimental class. The experiment lasted18weeks, data was collected through the following instruments-questionnaires which are used twice (before and after the experiment), interviews and two tests (pre-test and post-test). The research findings show that it is an effective way in arousing students’ English-learning interests and cultivating their English autonomous learning awareness. Through this training, students learn to arrange their time properly and set reasonable plans as well as to assess themselves timely and to use and adjust the learning environments have been built which are helpful for students improve their English performance.