On-the-Necessity-of-Game-Teaching-浅谈游戏教学在小学英语课堂的重要性

毕业论文毕业论文院别外国语学院系别英语系专业英语(教育)年级2008学生姓名学号论文题目浅谈游戏教学在小学英语课堂的必要性指导教师完成时间2012年5月2日肇庆学院教务处制OntheNecessityofGameTeachingUsedinPrimaryEnglishClassroomAThesisSubmittedtotheSchoolofForeignLanguagesof···UniversityinPartialFulfillmentoftheRequirementsfortheDegreeofBachelorofArtsBy···Supervisor：···May2,2012AbstractThenewcurriculumstandardsofprimaryEnglishpointsoutthatstimulatingstudents’learninginterestisthetargetinprimaryEnglishteaching.Howtostimulatestudents’interestandchangethetraditionalteachingmodelwhichdominatedtheclassroomteachingprogressforalongtime?Thisthesis,afterstudyingthesituationinprimaryEnglishclassroom,basedonthemethodofgameteaching,combinedwiththerelatedviewpointsinpedagogy,psychology,andlinguistics,pointsoutthatgameteachingisnecessaryinprimaryEnglishteaching.Gameteachingisprovedscientificwiththeoreticalbasisafterstudyingthosetheories’backgroundsmentionedabove.Besides,somestudymethodsareadoptedinthisthesisastheproofsbythewriter.Thestatisticalfiguresindicatethatprimaryschoolstudentsareinterestedinplayinggamesinclass.Theinterviewsurveydeclaresgoodrelationshipbetweenstudentsandteacherbenefitschildren’slearning.Writer’spersonalexperienceshowsgameteachingcanmakegreatimpactonstudents’abilitiesandcharacters.SotherearefouradvantagesforstudentsinEnglishlearning.Firstly,gameteachingcanstimulatestudents’interestinlearningEnglish,becausechildrenneverfeelboredwhileplayinggames.Secondly,gameteachingcanestablishequalitybetweenteachersandstudents,butnotteacher-centreclassroommodelanymore.Thirdly,gameteachingisgoodforstudentstodeveloplisteningandspeakingabilities,changingthesituationofhighscoresandlowabilities.Lastly,ithelpschildrenbuildgoodcharacters,whichmakeacontributionfortheeducationforall-rounddevelopment.Attheendofthisthesis,thewritermakesaconclusionthatitisnecessarytousegameteachinginprimaryEnglishclassroom.Thestudyonthenecessityofgameteachingcanmakeallteachersandstudentshaveaproperrecognitionofitsimportanceadvantages.Usinggameteachinginclassroomcancreaterelaxandhappyatmosphereforstudentstostudy,whichcanpromotethedevelopmentofcurriculumandthequalityofeducation.Moreover,adviceisfurtherputforwardforbothstudentsandteachersbasedupontheresearchresults.Whileemployinggameteaching,gamesshouldbeacknowledgedastoolsservedforteachingplan,sogamesshouldnotbetotallyadopted.Inotherwords,theselectionofgamesshouldbepaidattentionto.KeyWords:Gameteaching;Primaryclassroom;Englishteaching内容摘要我国《小学生英语课程标准》中明确指出：激发学生的英语学习兴趣是小学阶段英语教学的首要目标。如何激发学生兴趣和转变传统枯燥的教学模式？本文根据小学英语课堂的现状，以游戏教学作为研究基础，结合心理学，教学法和二语习得中的相关观点指出游戏教学在小学英语教学中具有必要性。各种理论观点证明了游戏教学具有科学的理论基础，同时笔者通过采访调查，统计数字和亲身经历的具体事实论证得出游戏教学不仅有利于提高学生英语学习兴趣，建立平等的师生关系，还有利于学生听说能力的提高和良好性格的塑造。最后，笔者得出结论认为在小学英语课堂中运用游戏教学是必要的。这一研究可以使广大师生对游戏教学的作用有一个正确的认识，尝试运用游戏教学，让学生在轻松愉快的氛围下参与课堂活动，促进课程的发展，提高教学质量。同时，笔者还对游戏的选择性提出了建议。关键词：游戏教学；小学课堂；英语教学AcknowledgementsOnthecompletionofmythesis,Ishouldliketoexpressmydeepestgratitudetoallwhosekindnessandadvicehavemadethisworkpossible.Iamgreatlyindebtedtomysupervisor,…….OutlineThesisStatement:GameteachingisnecessarytobeadoptedinprimaryEnglishclassroomforitsscientifictheoreticalbasisandgreatbenefitstostudentsthemselves.1.Introduction2. ReviewoftheLiterature2.1 CharacteristicsofGame2.2 DefiningGameTeaching3. TheoriesBackgroundinGameTeaching3.1 PedagogicalBackground3.2PsychologicalBackground3.3LinguisticBackground4.AdvantagesofGameTeaching4.1StimulateStudents’LearningInterestandMotivation4.2EstablishEqualitybetweenTeachersandStudents4.3DevelopStudents’ListeningandSpeakingAbilities4.4BuildGoodCharacters5.TheSelectionofGames6.ConclusionTableofContents1. Introduction…………12. ReviewoftheLiterature…………….22.1 CharacteristicsofGames…………………..…...22.2 DefiningGameTeaching……………..………...43. TheoriesBackgroundinGameTeaching…………....73.1 PedagogicalBackground……...………….…………….………73.2 PsychologicalBackground………3.2.1PsychologyofSchoolchildren…………….3.2.2InvoluntaryAttention……………..……….83.3LinguisticBackground………4.AdvantagesofGameTeaching………4.1StimulateStudents’LearningInterestandMotivation…………….4.2EstablishEqualitybetweenTeachersandStudents…………….4.3DevelopStudents’ListeningandSpeakingAbilities…………..4.4BuildGoodCharacters…………5.TheSelectionofGames…………….6.Conclusion………….Bibliography……………1.IntroductionEnglishhasbeenpaidmoreandmoreattentioninChinaforitsnecessityinthesocialactivitiesandtheinternationalassociation.It’sessentialforchildreninprimaryschoolstoacceptEnglisheducation.Thetraditionalteachingmethodisprovednotsuitforthestudents’Englishlearning.Onthecontrary,studentsfeelboredinclassroomandhavelittleinterestinEnglish.ThenewprimaryEnglishcurriculumstandardspointsoutthatstimulatingstudents’interestisthetargetinprimarystage.Howtostimulatestudents’interest?Howtochangetheboringtraditionalteachingmodel?Ithinkgameteachingmethodcanhelpus.GameteachingisnecessaryinprimaryEnglishteaching.Sincechildrenarehardtoconcentratethemselvesonthewholeclass,weneedtoemploygamestoserveforteachers’teachingplansintheclassroom.Asweallknow,childrenlikeplayinggames.Becauseoftheirphysicalandpsychologicalcharacteristics,theyarealwayspassionateinplayinggames.Sogameteachingsurelycanachievethegoaltoarouseprimaryschoolstudents’interestinlearningEnglish.What’smore,gameteachinghasotheradvantages.Usinggameteachinginclassroomnotonlycanestablishequalitybetweenteachersandstudents,butalsocandevelopstudents’listeningandspeakingabilities;besides,itisgoodforshapingchildren'scharacters.Nowadays,manyresearcheshaveprovedthatthemethodofgameteachinghaspositiveimpactonprimarystudents’learning,anditcanpromotethedevelopmentofcurriculumandthequalityofeducation.2.ReviewoftheLiterature2.1CharacteristicsofGamesWhatisagame?“Agameisanactivityprovidingentertainmentoramusement;itisacompetitiveactivityorsportinwhichplayerscontendwitheachotheraccordingtoasetofrules.”1“Gamesarereflectingchildren’sreallifeandtheyrepresentchildren’sbasicsurvivalstate.”2Gamesarethebestfriendsofachild.Wearefamiliarwithgamesbecausewehadourchildhoodswhicharefulloffunofgames.Whygamesaresoattractivetochildren?Itisbecausegameshavesomespecialcharacteristics.Fistofall,gamescancreatearelaxatmosphereandbringplayersgoodmood.Byrne(1995)suggestedthatgamesshouldbeenjoyedandfun.Thatisthemostbasiccharacteristicofagame.Peoplecanhaveaneffectivelearningwhileinhappy,sodochildren.Secondly,gamesaremorevaluedintheirprocessthantheirresults.Childrenseldomcareabouttheresultinagame,butweathertheycantakepartinthegameandhavefunduringtheprocessofthisgame.Gamesareessentialactivitiesofhumanbeings,aswellaschildren’sstagetoshowtheirlivesandenergy.Asakindofnon-utilitarianactivity,playinggameplaysaspecialroleinchildren’sstudylearning.Applyinggamesinschoolteaching,especiallyinprimaryschool,ismoreconcernedbymanyEnglishteachingnowadays.2.2 DefiningGameTeaching2.2.1WhatIsGameTeachingGameteachingmethodisavividandinterestingteachingmethodadoptinggamesinclassroomprocess,inordertochangethoselifelesslanguagephenomenaintolivinglearningactivities.2.2.2CharacteristicsofGameTeachingFirst,theprocessofgamesiscontrollabledesignedbytheteacheraccordingtoteachingaimsandcontentofcourses.Second,theinterestingameteachingcanstimulatechildren’smotivationinlearning.Third,therewillbeasituationsetupbasedonteachingcontent.Lastbutnottheleast;gamesareservedforteachingaims.ApplyinggamesintoprimaryclassroomsuitablyisgoodforEnglishteaching,whichalsocorrespondwiththe“intereststudy”principle.StudentscanacquireEnglishknowledgewhileplayinggames.Thequintessenceofgameteachingmethodislearninghappily.3.TheoriesBackgroundinGameTeaching3.1 PedagogicalBackground3.1.1Student-centerednessInthefieldofpedagogy,therearetwooppositeviewpoints:teacher-centerednessandstudent-centeredness,whichhascausedheateddiscussionforyears.BytheproposaloftheNewCurricularStandard,whichsuggeststeachersshouldpaymoreattentiontostudents’subjectivity,wecanfindtheshadowofstudent-centeredness.Student-centerednessismorecaredaboutchildren’sfeelingandinitiative,whileteacher-centerednessisbelievedthatteacheristheauthorityintheclassroom.Chenzhili,theministeroftheministryofeducationpointedout:"thedevelopmentoftimes,ischangingthewaytoeducatefromthetraditionalimpartknowledgetocultivatestudents'creation,fromteacherorientationtostudents'initiativedevelopmentasthecenter."3Sincegamesrequirestudentsasthemainplayersintheclassroom,gameteachingmethodisthetypicalclassroomactivitycooperatingwithstudents-centerednessprinciple.Studentsarethemastersofstudy,butnottheteacher.3.1.2LearningMustBeFunBritishlinguistsIckxconsideredthat"interesting"isalwaysthetoppriorityinEnglishteaching,anditisthepremisetomakeEnglishteachingeasier.4Aforeignlanguageisalwaysdifficultandstrangetostudents.WhentheyfeelEnglishistoodifficulttolearn,theyfeelfrustrateandstudyitwithoutpassion.Playinggamesisagoodwaytoavoidsuchissue.Itcancreateaneaseandhappyatmosphereforchildrenwheretheycanenjoythemselves,sothatchildrenwillacceptEnglishlearningeasily.3.2 PsychologicalBackground3.2.1PsychologicalCharacteristicsofChildrenChildreninprimaryschoolstagearecurious,active,andtheyareperformanceandimitationfavorers.Theyprefertocatchothersattentionandarebraveenoughtomakeamistake.Theyhaveagoodmemoryandgoodatthinkinginimages,butlackoflogicalthinking.Usuallychildren’sattentionspanisshort.However,thenormalclasstimeinaprimaryschoolis40minutes,whichisdifficulttokeepthemquiteandconscientiousinthewholeclass.TodesignsomegamesinanEnglishclassiscoincidentwithstudents’psychologicalcharacteristics,anditcanmaketeachingandlearningmoreeffective.3.2.2TheUtilizationofInvoluntaryAttentionAttentionisthepsychologicalactivitiesoforientationandconcentrationonacertainobject.Attentioncanbedividedinto:involuntaryattention,voluntaryattention,andpostvoluntaryattention.Inprimaryschoolage,children’sattentionisinstable.Itwasfoundthat7to10yearsoldchildren’sattentionspanisabout20minutes,10to12isabout25minutes,morethan12isabout30.5Soprimaryschoolteachingshouldavoidthoseboringclassroomactivities.Gamesteachingmethodisagoodwaytomakeuseofinvoluntaryattention.Byapplyinggamesinteaching,studentscanlearnandplay,whichisconsideredasaneffectivemethodtolearnEnglish.3.3LinguisticBackgroundTheAmericanlinguistStephenKrashen’sinputhypothesisfirstlymakesadistinctionbetween"acquisition"and"learning".Intheprocessofsecondlanguageacquisition,Englishshouldbelearntnaturallyandunconsciouslyjustlikenativelanguageacquisition.What’smore,StephenKrashenputforwardtheconcept:comprehensibleinput,whichalsocalled“i+1”theory.Forexample,ifalearnerisatastage“i”,thenacquisitiontakesplacewhenthelearnerunderstandslanguagecontaining“i+1”,where“understand”meansthattheacquirerisfocusedonthemeaningbutnottheformofthemessage.6Inotherwords,theinputlanguageknowledgecannotbetoodifficult,anditshouldbeabithigherthanalearner’soriginalknowledgelevelinordertoensurethecomprehensibilityforthelearner.Inthatway,theforeignlanguageacquisitionofalearnerwouldbeeasilytriggered,whichcanboosthisorherlanguagelearninggradually.What’smore,thereisacriticalperiodhypothesisinlinguisticarea.Duringthecriticalperiodhypothesisinsecondlanguageacquisition,languagelearningwillbecomeeasierandmoreeffective,whichisbelieveditthatcanbeclosetothenativespeaker’slevel.Thereisnoaspecifyverdictwhichageswouldbethecriticalperiod,however,mostlinguistsbelievetheoptimumperiodisnomorethan15yearsold.ItisimportantforchildrentolearnEnglishduringstudyinginprimaryschools,sincethenine-yearcompulsoryeducationputintoeffect,whichmeansthat6or7yearsoldmustgotoschool.Thatistosay,school-agechildrenhavethecriticalperiodtoacquireforeignlanguage.AccordingtoStephenKrashen’sinputhypothesis,wecanmakeaconclusionthatgame-teachingmethodisavailableinEnglishteachingforthefollowreasons:1.ThenaturallearningenvironmentThenaturallearningenvironmentisbeneficialtoEnglishacquisition.Gameteachingprovidesafree,natural,andhappystudyenvironmentforchildrentostudy.Inotherwords,childrencanmasterEnglishunconsciouslyinsuchanunstructuredbutproductiveway.2.ComprehensibilityoflanguageinputComprehensibleinputisthepremisetostudy.Gamesareeasilyacceptedbychildren.Soaccordingto“i+1”principle,whentheteacheraddsnewknowledgeintoagame,studentscanbeeasilycomprehensiveandunderstandingtothenewknowledge.4.AdvantagesofGameTeachingThroughthetheoriesaboveweknowthatmanypsychologistsandlinguistssuggestEnglishteachersshouldobeythenaturallawseitherinhuman’spsychologicalneedorlanguageitselfwhileteaching.Playinggamesischildren’snature,sogameteachingmethodisworthytobeappliedinEnglishteaching.Duringmyinternshipperiod,IfoundthatmostoftheprimaryEnglishteachersprefertousegameteachinginclass,andtheyagreethatgamesinlanguageclassroomsurelydohelpfortheteaching.UsinggamesinEnglishclassroomhasmanyadvantagesforteaching.Therearefourmainadvantagesasfollow.4.1StimulateStudents’LearningInterestandMotivationAlbertEinsteinsaid,“Interestisthebestteachertolearneverything.”Interestplaysaveryimportantroleinstudents’learning.Someoneequalsinteresttomotivation,andbothofthemareconsideredasthedrivingpowerstostudy.Studiesshowthatchildren’sstudymotivationiscloselylinktointerest,andtheybelongtotheinnerstudysystem.7Primaryschoolstudentsloveasubjectmostlybecausetheyareinterestedintheclasscontentandthevividinteractionbetweenteacherandstudents,ortheyhavethethirsttoseekknowledge.However,childrenhavenospecificstudyobjectives;theyareinterestedinEnglishmaybejustbecausetheythinktheactivitiesinclassaresointeresting.Aclasswithgamesisparadisetochildren.Gamesaregreatlyattractedbychildren.Oncegamesareproperlyappliedinprimaryschoolteaching,studentscanplayinlearning,andthenEnglishknowledgecanbeimpartedtochildrenviainterestinggames.Thereisasurveyof77pupilsabouttheirattitudetotheEnglishteaching:96.01%pupilsrespondthattheyliketoplaygamesinEnglishclass;88.3%pupilsthinktheycanfocusagreatattentiontothegames8.Frommyownexperience,itdidreceivetheidealeffectandallthechildrenfeltexcitedwhenIappliedgamesinteaching.Forinstance,hereisaninterestinggamecalled“findthetreasure”appliedinlearningnewwordssuchas“balloon”.(1)Theteacherdividesthewholeclassintotwogroups,group1andgroup2.(2)ThentheteacherasksstudentAtostandforgroup1tostandinfrontoftheclassroomandturnhisbacktothewholeclass.Theteacherhidestheballoonpictureinadeskofastudent.(3)StudentAseeksthehiddenpictureof“balloon”whiletheteachercountstime.Atthesametime,studentsofgroup1speakouttheword“balloon”withdifferentvolumeaccordingtothedistanceofthestudentAandthehiddenpicture.(4)StudentBstandsforgroup2todothejob.IfstudentBfindsthetreasureinshortertime,group2wins,andviceversa.Thisgamehasstronginterest,andchildrencangraspthenewwordwhileplayinggame.Inthisway,childrenwon’tthinkthatlearningnewwordsisnomoreboring,butsointerestinginstead.Thus,children’slearningmotivationcanbesimulated,sothattheywillstudyactively.4.2EstablishEqualitybetweenTeachersandStudentsThetraditionalconceptinclassisconsideredthatteachersareinthecommandingposition.Theyaretheauthoritativeandtheycontrolthewholeclass,whilestudentsarelistenersandactors.WhenIwasaprimaryschoolstudent,Iwastoldtowritedowneverythingontheblackboardorrecitethepassages,sowehadnoourcommentsoropinionsintheclass.Itisobviouslyakindofpositioninequalitybetweenteacherandstudents.TheNewCourseStandardestablishestheteachingtheoryofequalteacher-studentsrelationshipinclass.Teacher-studentsrelationshipmeansaspecialrelationshipbetweenteachersandstudentsineducationteachingactivities,includingtheposition,interaction,recognitionandattitudetoeachother.Equalteacher-studentsrelationshiprequiresequaldialogue,mutualunderstanding.Beawarethatstudentsarethemastersintheirstudyandtheyhavetheirownpersonalitiesasindependentpersonswithindividualdifferencesandrichpotential.Equalityhassignificantmeaningineducation,andgameteachingmethodexactlyreflectsthethemeofequalteacher-studentsrelationship.Herecomesanexample,agametouse“run,walk,sit,swim,skate,playfootball,playbasketball”.(1)Ateacherreadsthesewordswithcorrespondingactionswhiletheteacherhasstudentsreadafterhim/herinordertoletstudentsunderstandanddistinguishthesewordspreliminarily.(2)Theteacherjustactswithoutspeakingthenewwords,butallthestudentsmustguessandspeakoutthewordaccordingtotheteacher’saction.(3)Theteacherselects4studentsrepresenting4groupstostandontheplatformfacingthewholeclass.(4)Theteacherliftsthepicturesofthosewordsandperformsthemonebyonebehindthefourstudents.Eachtime,otherstudentswillspeakthewordinthepicturetothefourstudents,whomustperformitproperlyassoonaspossible.(5)Theslowestandthewrongdoershouldbeeliminatedeachtimeuntilthewinnercomesout.Inthisgame,theteacherusedhis/herbodytoperformlikeotherstudentsdid.Theteacherisoneoftheparticipantsmorethananorder.Inmanycases,astudentlikesasubjectbecauseoftheteacher.Ifateacherhastheequalpositionamongthestudents,studentswillmoreprefecttoplaytheirpartsintheclassasthemainbody.Thankstogameteachingmethod,teacherscanbeclosertotheirstudents,whichcanleadtoapeaceful,equalandharmoniousteachingatmosphere.4.3DevelopStudents’ListeningandSpeakingAbilitiesCommunicativecompetencetrainingisthemaingoalinprimaryEnglishteaching;andEnglishlisteningandspeakingabilitytrainingistheimportantandprimarytaskinprimaryEnglisheducation.InearlyEnglishlearning,somestudentsareoftenafraidtospeak.Childrenarelackofabstractthinkingabilityandtheyfeeldifficulttoimagine.Gamesarehelpfultomakestudentstakepartinlanguagepractice,andstudentswillnotfeelanypressurewhileplayinggames.Whisperinggameisthetypicalgameusedtotrainstudents’listeningandspeakingabilities.(1)Teachershowsasentencetothestudentssittinginthelastseatsineverygroup.(2)Thosestudentsbegintowhisperthesentencestothosesittinginfrontofthemaftertheteachersays,“Ready?Go!”(3)Thestudentssitinfrontruntotheblackboardandwritedownthesentencetheyheard.Thefastestandaccurategroupwinsinthisgame.Thereareothergamescanbeusedintrainingstudents’listeningandspeakingabilities,suchasroleplayinggame,Bingo,andguessinggame.Childrencandeveloptheirlisteningandspeakingunconsciouslywhileplayinggames.4.4BuildGoodCharactersQualityeducationisclearlyaskedfortopayattentiontostudents’charactersbuilding,whichrequiresteachersfocusonchildren’squalitycultivateatthesametimewhenimpartingknowledgetothem.Primaryschoolageisanimportantstageforapersontoformcharacter.Goodcharacterssuchaspositivecanbenefittochildren’sstudy.Andgameshavecertainpositiveeffecttobuildgoodcharacters.Severalgamesforexamplesarefollowing.(1)SimonSaysSimonSaysisatraditionalgameplayedamongchildreninEngland.Teacherchoosessomestudentsasgrouprepresentativestobetheplayersinthisgame,andoneistheorder.Thesestudentsmustrespondwhattheordersayswith“Simonsays…”withtheirphysicalperformances.Forexample,whentheordersays“Simonsaystouchyourfeet”,theygivetheresponsebytouchingtheirownfeet;whilethesentencegavewithout“Simonsays”,theyjuststandanddonothing.Thosedothewrongrespondshouldbeobserved,whiletheoneleaveslastisthewinner.Thisgamenotonlytrainsstudents’listeningability,butalsotrainstheirquickreactioncapability.(2)GoldenTouchItisatypicalcollectiveconfrontationgame.Theteacherwritesdownsomewordsoralphabetsontheblackboard.Aftertheteacherspeaksoutawordinthebackoftheclassroomsoftly,theotherstudentsrepeatthewordonetimeloudlytothegrouprepresentativeswhoshouldusetheirfingerstopointouttheword.Thefirstoneiscalled“goldentouch”andcanget2pointsforhisorhergroup.Thisgameensureseveryonetakespartintheactivity.Sincethegroupmemberswillconcentratetheirmindtowhattheteachersysandrepeatitloudlytotheirrepresentativesinordertogetpoints,thisgameisausefulwayforstudentstopracticetheirquickthinking;tobuildcompetitiveawareness;toformcooperativeandcollectivespiritinteammembers.Generallyspeaking,gamesareoftenusedtoactiveclassroomatmosphere,andconsolidateknowledge.Themoreimportantisthatweshouldusedgamestodevelopandcultivatestudents’goodqualityorcharacters.5.TheSelectionofGamesAppropriategamesusedinclassroomcanhaveapositiveeffectinteaching.However,weshouldnotmakesweepinggeneralizations.Gamesshouldbeselectedbyteacherswhichareservedforteachingplans.Therearesomesuggestionsneedtobepayattentiontowhenselectinggames.(1)Thereshouldbeaclearaimtoapplyagameinclass.Thegameshouldberelatedcloselytoteachingcontents;wecan’tplayagamejustforfuninclass.(2)TheNewCourseStandardEstablishtheTeachingTheoryof"BasedonPeople”.“Compulsoryeducationmustfaceallstudents,andpayattentiontoqualityeducation”.Thus,thegameswedesignedshouldgiveequalchanceforeverystudent.(3)Gamesdesignedshouldbefitwiththechildren’scharacters.Asthesayinggoes,“Notlongtoplaytricks”.Variousgamesarenecessaryandneedtobeupdatedbyteacherstotakestudents’fancy.(4)Timeforgamescannotbetoolong;class