An Action Research On The Application Of Cooperative Mind Mapping To English Writing Teaching In Junior High School

Writing plays a crucial role in English teaching.English Curriculum Standard for Compulsory Education(2022)also puts forward new specific requirements for junior high school students’ English writing proficiency.Therefore,more attention should be paid to the development of students’ writing proficiency.However,it has been found that improving junior high school students’ English writing proficiency has been a difficult task in writing teaching.Junior high school students also generally find it difficult to write and are prone to anxiety when writing.Therefore,the purpose of this study is to explore the teaching practice of combining mind mapping with cooperative learning to improve junior high school students’ English writing.This study adopts an action research approach to apply cooperative mind mapping to English writing teaching to investigate its effects on junior high school students’ writing.The study aims to address the following research questions:(1)What are the effects of cooperative mind mapping on writing proficiency in junior students’ English writing?(2)Could students’ writing anxiety be decreased after applying cooperative mind mapping in junior students’ English writing?The author conducted a 14-week action research with 50 students in a junior high school in Foshan city.Before the action,the problems in writing teaching were identified through questionnaires and tests,and the teaching plan was designed accordingly.Three rounds of action research were conducted to apply cooperative mind mapping flexibly in all stages of writing teaching.During the action process,after constant reflection and summary,adjustments were supplemented to the action research plan according to the actual teaching situation.After the action,writing tests,questionnaires,and interview transcripts were summarized,compared,and analyzed.The study found that applying cooperative mind mapping to teaching English writing in junior high school has a positive impact on students’ writing.This is mainly reflected in two aspects:students’ writing proficiency improved,both in terms of content and organization;students’ writing anxiety significantly decreased,with the most significant manifestation in conceiving anxiety,while classroom teaching anxiety,avoidance anxiety,and lack of confidence were also alleviated.The findings suggested that cooperative mind mapping is an effective and feasible approach to the English writing class in junior high school.In application,teachers should group reasonably,carry out various forms of cooperative activities actively,and pay attention to the change of teachers’ roles.