Study On The Effects Of Theme-based CBI On EFL Learners’Motivation And Proficiency

Content-based instruction refers to a teaching approach which integrates language learning with subject learning. Under this approach, the teaching activities should focus on the subject content. In other words, language teaching and content teaching are conducted at the same time. CBI emphasizes the development of language skills in the process of language learning to gain subject knowledge. The content based instruction centers on the students and helps to nurture the students’logical development. It has the following features:using authentic language materials; taking content as the core; concerning on the students’linguistic, cognitive and affective needs.By employing quantitative and qualitative methods, the author conducted a theme-based CBI experiment in Central University of Finance and Economics. The study lasted for one academic year. The participants are82sophomore, none-English majors, who have similar educational background and age. In this study, there are two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The experimental group consists of41participants, who were under a theme-based CBI context, and the control group has41participants, who were taught in the traditional English class. Prior to the study, all the participants took the final examination as the pretest and pre-questionnaire in the first academic year. There is no significant difference in the learning motivation and English proficiency. At the end of the experiment, the participants took a similar test and questionnaire. The effect of theme-based CBI on English learning motivation and English proficiency is explored by analyzing the collected data in software SPSS19.0.The results reveal that the participants in the experimental group showed a stronger desire to learn. As for the learning motivation and English proficiency, the experimental group made greater progress than the control group did. At the same time, learners in theme based CBI context played an active role in the language learning process and were willing to finish different tasks. Therefore, the students not only developed their cultural knowledge, but also improved English proficiency.The thesis aims to draw attention to domestic educators on theme-based CBI by exploring the teaching mode of Chinese college English. This teaching approach is to meet the students’interest and needs and promote the development of Chinese college English teaching.