An Empirical Study Of The Application Of Graded Original English Novel Reading In Junior High School

English is a widely used language in the world,and its importance has been widely recognized.English reading is one of the main ways of providing input in English language learning,thus it plays an important role in learning English.However,the existing English textbooks cannot meet the needs of all students;students do not read adequate English materials;there is a gap among the students in the same class in terms of English ability.In order to solve above problems,the thesis focuses on the application of literature circles to graded original English novel reading.The research questions are as follows: 1.What is the status quo of English reading in junior high school? 2.What effect does the application of literature circles to the graded original English novel reading have on English reading character of junior high school students?3.What effect does the application of literature circles to the graded original English novel reading have on the English reading proficiency of junior high school students?According to the above research questions,quantitative research and qualitative research are adopted.Through the questionnaire,this paper aims to find out the status quo and problems of English reading in Shanghai junior high schools.This thesis selects an experimental class in Grade Six in a junior high school in Huangpu District of Shanghai to apply literature circles to graded original English novel reading.According to the results of students’ Lexile test,interesting original English novels,which are suitable for students’ English levels,are selected to make sure to provide plenty of comprehensible input.Through the mode of literature circles,students with assigned roles read independently,discuss cooperatively,and then report once every two weeks.The data are collected through questionnaires,reading tests and interviews,and analyzed by SPSS statistical software.Based on the above research process,the findings are as follows: 1.Junior high school students in Shanghai have a positive attitude towards English reading,but some of them do not have strong intrinsic motivation for English reading.Besides,they are poor at peer sharing and have difficulty in keeping reading.Furthermore,they often read word by word.2.After the application of literature circles to the graded original English novels reading,in the experimental class,the students’ reading character,especially reading behavior,reading interest and cooperative learning ability improved a lot.3.After the experiment,the students’ English reading proficiency increased significantly.Based on the findings of the empirical research,and under the guidance of the relevant theories,this study offers the following suggestions.1.When choosing reading materials for students,students’ English level and characteristics should be taken into consideration.2.English teachers should assign less written homework and less post-reading activities so that students can do more extracurricular reading.3.Literature circles emphasizes the central position of students in reading,while teachers’ priority is to guide students and organize activities for students to read more effectively.