A Study On The Washback Effect Of English Reading In The High School Entrance Examination On English Reading Teaching In Junior High School

Backwash is also called washback effect.It refers to the influence of language testing on language teaching and learning.The development of knowledge and the revision of educational policy give rise to the amendment of syllabus and curriculum criteria,and the reform of English teaching in junior middle schools.Thus,a study on backwash effect of English reading test is conducted in response.Based on the theories of language test and backwash effect,the study analyzed the characters of English reading test in Chongqing Senior High School Entrance Examination from 2019 to 2021,and explored effects of backwash on the junior English reading teaching.Firstly,the previous research at home and abroad were summarized and the backwash effect of English reading test on English reading teaching were defined in the literature review.Secondly,through the analysis of testing paper in Chongqing Senior High School Entrance Examination,characteristics of reading questions were found out.Thirdly,52 English teachers in 5 middle schools in Wanzhou district,Chongqing were invited to answer questions mainly about their teaching materials,teaching methods and teaching assessment on the questionnaire,which was analyzed by SPSS Statistics 26.0.0.2 later.Then,6 teachers were interviewed before or after class on the backwash effect of senior high school entrance examination,meanwhile,their classes were observed.According to the research results,English reading test of Chongqing Senior High School Entrance Examination involves a wide range but disproportion of thematic context,type of discourses and questions.The English reading test in Chongqing Senior High School Entrance Examination has backwash effects on teaching materials,teaching methods,teaching concepts and teaching assessment.And they vary a lot because of teachers’ different teaching experiences and concepts.According to those teachers,backwash effect of the senior high school entrance examination English reading on reading teaching in middle school exists commonly including both positive and negative impacts.It’s crucial to overcome the negative impacts and take advantage of positive ones.Finally,on the basis of research results and views from teachers,the following suggestions are put forward to improve English reading teaching in middle school: update teaching concepts,select teaching materials,better teaching methods and enrich reading assessment.