The Application Of Mind Map In The Teaching Of English Reading In Senior High School

Based on the English Curriculum Standard,reading is crucial to acquire knowledge and improve students’ language ability in high school.Three teaching methods are popularly adopted by English teachers in the teaching of English reading in senior high school,the grammar-translation teaching method,top-down and bottom up teaching methods However,they focus more on teaching English knowledge rather than the improvement of students’ thinking ability.Therefore the efficiency of English learning is reduced.The mind map could be used as a supplementary teaching method in the teaching of English reading.Invented by Tony Buzan,the mind map is a schema that could motivate people’s process of thinking and make knowledge visible through colorful pictures,some key words and logical connections.It is logical,imaginary and easy to learn.However,the application of mind map in English leaning and teaching is still not enough.The application of mind map in senior high school English reading aims at answering the following two questions:1.Can mind map teaching methodology improve students’ interest in English reading?2.Can mind map improve students’ English reading ability?The research aims to improve students’ reading ability,interest and even thinking ability.This study takes place with 3 rounds of action research combined with questionnaires,interviews and testing.It lasts one semester and each round lasts half a month.One class of grade one in Tianshui No.1 high school is chosen as the target students.The author makes the first teaching program and then apply it in the action research.During the process,the teaching effectiveness and relevant data are recorded,with teaching program revised if necessary.Then the author makes the second and third teaching program after the adjustment.After 3 rounds of teaching,the data are collected and analyzed.The research result shows that mind map methodology significantly improves English learners’ learning interest.Students become more interested in answering questions and cooperating with their peers.The search of key words also help students understand the passage better and easily locate the exact paragraph related to the theme of the passage.At the same time,students’ reading speed is improved.Making mind map helps enhance students’ ability in summarizing the topic of a paragraph or passage,as well as their ability of logic thinking.Therefore the improvement of making the mind map also indicates the progress of English reading ability.