An Experimental Study On Effects Of Question Chain Based On English Activity-based Approach Upon Senior High School Students’ Reading Literacy

Questioning,as a classroom instruction technique,stimulates students’ thinking and greatly affects students’ reading literacy development.General High School Curriculum Standards: English(2017 Version 2020 Revision)have raised the bar for classroom questioning and English learning activities,demanding targeted,transitional,and flexible questioning and comprehensive,related,and practical English learning activities.However,common problems are prevalent in actual lessons,such as superficial questioning,lack of logic and hierarchy.As a question design strategy,question chain is a series of logically connected questions that are closely related to the theme.Based on Constructivism and Problem Continuum Theory,this research,seeking to combine question chain and English activity-based approach(EABA),adopts question chain based on EABA in English reading lessons to explore its impacts on students’ reading literacy(including reading comprehension and reading experience).Therefore,this study was conducted for nearly three months with 90 Senior Two students in two parallel classes at a middle school in He Yuan,Guangdong.Question chain based on EABA was applied in the experimental class(EC),which involved the introduction question chain,exploration question chain,and transfer question chain.In contrast,the PWP teaching method was used in the control class(CC),which included pre-,while-and post-reading.This study aims to answer two questions: 1)Does question chain based on English activity-based approach affect senior high school students’ reading comprehension? If yes,in what aspects? If not,what might be the reasons? 2)Does question chain based on English activity-based approach affect senior high school students’ reading experience? If yes,in what aspects? If not,what might be the reasons?This study employed English reading comprehension tests,English reading experience questionnaires,and interviews as research instruments.Based on the data and interviews collected,it has been observed that the implementation of the question chain based on EABA has witnessed in a significant improvement in students’ reading comprehension and reading experience.Among the sub-dimensions,the application of strategies in reading comprehension and self-assessment in reading experience showed the most significant improvement.These results have important pedagogical implications for question chain teaching in senior high schools.Firstly,it is recommended that teachers deepen their understanding of EABA to equip the question chain with a gradient and hierarchy and realize integrated and in-depth reading teaching.Secondly,teachers are supposed to improve their ability to interpret the text to ensure coherence and logical flow in question chain.