A Study Of English Coursework Burden Of Grade 3 To Grade 5 Primary School Pupils After The “Double-Reduction”

For a long time,the burden of schoolwork has been concerned.There are numerous related studies,but fewer studies on the English burden of primary school pupils.On July 24,2021,the General Offices of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the State Council issued the highest "burden reduction order"--Opinions on Further Reducing the Homework Burden and Off-campus Training Burden of Students in Compulsory Education（hereinafter referred to as the "double reduction" opinions）,marking a new historical stage in the governance of the academic burden of primary and secondary schools.How effective is the implementation of "double reduction" ?It has become a focus.Therefore,in the context of the "double reduction",this paper timely investigates the English coursework burden of Grade 3-5 primary pupils in Guilin City and tests whether the proposal is effective.It aims to provide reference for the English teaching and research of primary schools in Guilin City and enrich the relevant theories of English coursework burden.Basing on Cognitive Load theory,Student-centered theory and Comprehensive Index of Primary and Secondary Education Quality,this study investigates the English coursework burden of 180 primary school pupils in Grade 3 to 5 and four primary school English teachers in Guilin City.Questionnaire and interview are the research tools with SPSS 26.0 for statistical analysis.And the questionnaire is modified from Chen Guoming’s survey of middle school students’ academic burden,with a reliability of 0.861.The purpose of this study is to answer the following questions: 1)After the“double-reduction”,what is the overall situation of English coursework burden of Grade 3-5 primary school students in Guilin City? 2)After the "double reduction",what are the characteristics of the English coursework burden in Grades 3-5 primary school students in Guilin City? 3)After the "double reduction",what are the influences of grade,gender,school,parents and other factors on the English coursework burden of students in Grades 3-5 primary schools in Guilin City?The results of the study are summarized below: 1)Compared with previous studies,the current English coursework burden of Grade 3-5 primary school students in Guilin City has been greatly reduced,which fully meets the requirements of the Ministry of Education.Moreover,the school does not deliberately increase students’ learning tasks for external factors such as enrollment rate.2)（A）In terms of objective sources,the four dimensions of English class,English homework,English examination,English after-class tutorial all meet the requirements of the“double-reduction”,which objectively will not cause the coursework burden to students.（B）In terms of subjective feelings,although most students feel relaxed and pleasant when learning English,there are still a small number of students who feel nervous and annoying about English classes,English homework and English exams.3)（A）In terms of grade,it has an effect on the English coursework load of primary school students.The research shows that the coursework burden of Grade 5 is the highest,followed by Grade 3 and Grade 4.（B）In terms of gender,the schoolwork burden of primary school students is not affected by gender.（C）School requirements and parents’ expectations have a great negative impact on students’ English coursework burden,but students’ subjective feelings can positively adjust their own responses to the burden.Based on the above research results,some suggestions are proposed: 1)Schools should effectively reform the concepts of education,comprehensively improve the quality of classroom teaching and optimize the evaluation methods of teachers.2)Teachers should establish a scientific view of teachers and students,flexibly use a variety of teaching methods,optimize students’ homework design,and provide students with positive feedback and comprehensive evaluation.3)Parents should enhance their understanding of family education,reduce blind obedience and anxiety about their children’s growth,and actively cooperate with school education.However,due to the limitations of time,space and author’s ability,this study still has some limitations.The sample is small,and only 180 students and 4 teachers in Guilin are selected as the research objects;Questionnaires and interviews are carried out simultaneously,which makes it difficult for them to make up for each other.Therefore,future studies should expand the sample.Various research methods such as classroom observation and case study should be adopted,and interviews should be conducted after the survey of questionnaires.