本科畢業(yè)設計-application-of-cultural-introduction-in-english-reading-teaching-英語專業(yè)

PAGEPAGE1Ⅰ.IntroductionManystudentsbelievethat,whenEnglishlearningachievedcertainlevel,mastertheaccuratepronunciation,learnalotofvocabularyandhavecompletegrammarknowledge,eveniflearnedlanguage,thuscanaccuratelyexpresstheirthoughts,freelywithforeignerscommunication.Andtheactualsituationisnotso.Forexample:in“readingcomprehension”,allwordsallunderstandingbutunderstandtherealmeaning;inthe“l(fā)anguage”,thearticlestructuresoflanguageunderstandable,butreal“Chinglish”,etc.Englishreadingabilityisacomprehensiveability,althoughinthereadingprocessdidn'tcomeacrossanewword,nogrammarobstacles,butwithoutcertainculturalbackgroundknowledge,yousometimesbaffled.Theresultisthedirectreason,studentsarelackofunderstandingtowesternculturebackground,existbecauseofthelanguage,national,culturaltraditionandthinkingmodeetccausedbythedifferentcommunicationobstacles.Ifnotputsomerelevantculturalbackgroundknowledgetostudentsasitisdifficulttoexplainclearlyisintroduced,thecontentofthematerial,studentsalsodifficulttograsptheconnotationofthecontent.Ithink,Englishteachingfortherelevantculturalbackgroundknowledgeintroductionisquiteimportant.EnglishreadinginSenorMiddleSchoolhasalwaysbeenconsideredoneofthemostimportantpartsofforeignlanguagelearning.Withoutreading,nothingcanbedoneinthedevelopmentofthecompetenceinlistening,speaking,writingandtranslating.Readingcourses,orrather,intensivereadingonesfillupalargecomponentofthecurricula.Obviously,studentsandteachershouldpaygreatattentiontotheimportanceofreadingcourses.HowcanChinesestudentsachieveproficientreading?Ⅱ.SomeproblemsinEnglishreadingA.KnowlittleabouttheculturalbackgroundknowledgeTheSenorStudents’knowledgenarrow,onlytotakethetextbookknowledgelearning,hasneglectedtheextracurricularknowledgelearning.Studentstotextvocabularybythevirtueoftheculturalbackgroundknowledgeknowverylittle.Whetherword,sentence,orunderstandingoftextualstructure,relyingonincertainsocialandculturalknowledge.Onlytoinfiltrateeachother'slanguageculturesto,canfeeleverythingbecomesvividrise,learningcanbefun,languageexpressioncanuseitfreely,wecanavoidEnglishlearningprocess,andwecanunderstandthearticledeeply,appreciateandexpressaccurately.B.LackofgrammarknowledgeGrammarlearningEnglishisveryimportant;somestudentsfocusonvocabularymemory,butignorethegrammarofmaster,it’salsothekeytomasterEnglishwell.C.LackofknowledgeintegrationPartofstudents’elementarylanguageknowledgeisnotsolid,suchasspellingwords,sentencesgrammarmistakesinclassicalthequestionnaire.Ⅲ.TheimportanceofintroducingculturalbackgroundknowledgeA.ThedefinitionofculturalbackgroundknowledgeCulturalbackgroundisthecontextofone’slifeexperienceasshapedbymembershipingroupsbasedonethnicity,race,socioeconomicstatus,gender,exceptionalities,language,religion,sexualorientation,andgeographicalarea.Thereisanextensiveterminologytodescribedifferentkindsofknowledge.Consistencyintheuseofthesetermsisarecognizedproblem;subtleanddramaticdifferencesexistbetweendifferentpeople’sdefinitionsofthesameterm(Alexander,Schaller&Hare,1991;Duchy&Alexander,1995).Backgroundknowledgeisallknowledge.Learnershavewhenenteringalearningenvironmentthatispotentiallyrelevantforacquiringnewknowledge(Batemans&Simons’1996).LearningEnglishistolearnacompletelydifferentcultureandChinese,arefamiliarwithEnglishculturewayofthinking,valuesandcustoms.Acollectiveexpressionforallbehaviorpatternsacquiredandsociallytransmittedthroughsymbols.Cultureincludescustoms,traditions,andlanguage.B.TheimportanceofculturalbackgroundknowledgeCulturalbackgroundknowledgeinEnglishteachingaroseineightiesofthetwentiethcentury.IthasbeencloselylinkedwiththereformationandopeninChina.CulturalbackgroundknowledgeisarrangedinvariouskindsofEnglishtextbooks.Theymakeeveryefforttoteachculturalknowledgeduringlanguageteaching.InordertohavestudentsexperiencetheculturalatmosphereoftheEnglish-spokencountriesunconsciously.However,atpresentinEnglishteachinginChina,teacherspaymoreattentiontoteachinglanguageknowledgewhileignorethecultureofthetargetlanguagecountries.Thebreakdownarisenfromthecross-culturalcommunicationbecauseofthelackofsocialcustoms,values,idea,clothing,food,shelterandtransportationandsoon.InEnglish-spokencountries,Nounderstandingtheculturalbackgroundknowledgeofthetargetlanguagecountriescanaffectthepracticeoflanguageknowledgeonthesignificance,goalandapproachesoftheculturalbackgroundknowledge.Howtodeveloptheculturalconsciousness,howtoknowthebehaviorandmannersofthepeopleinEnglish-Spokencountries,howtomakecomparisonwitheasternandwesterncultures.Throughthecomparison,wecanunderstandChineseculturaldeeply.ThroughEnglishstudywecanknowworldculturebetteranddevelopourworldconsciousness.Englishteachersrequiredtoteachstudentsbasiclanguageskills,totheneglectofEnglish-speakingcountriestoteachculturalbackgroundknowledge;studentslearnifknowledgeofthelanguagesimplydoesnotunderstandthelanguageandculturalsurvivaltodifficulttoaccuratelygrasp,understandanduselanguage.Someexperimentalresultsshowthatthereader'sexperiencecanmakereadersarefamiliarwiththearticlecontent,helpreadingcomprehension(Johnson1982);Hudson(1982)useschematheorystudyreadingandforeignlanguageskillsbackgroundknowledge,therelationshipbetweentheresultsofhisexperimentshowsthatforeignlanguagereaders'backgroundknowledgeinreading,onceinspiredthanforeignlanguageabilityproducebiggerrole.ItiswellknownthatreadingisofdecisiveimportanceinEnglishlearning.Englishsyllabusforseniorhighschooltakesreadingabilityasthefirstpriorityinfourbasicskills:listening,speaking,readingandwriting.HowtoimprovereadingabilityisagoalforSenorStudents.Itisagreedthatimprovementofreadingabilitydependsonlinguisticcompetence,readingstrategy,affectivefactor,priorknowledge,positivetransferofmothertongueonforeignlanguageandsoon,whileculturalbackgroundknowledgeplaysavitalparttosomeextent.Culturalbackgroundknowledgeisdefinedaspropertiesofgeography,history,economy,education,politicalinstitution,custom,art,religion,wayoflife,socialtradition,etiquette,etc,inagivencountryfromabroadviewpoint.Whenwedosomereading,culturalbackgroundknowledgerelatedcanfacilitatereadingdifficulty.StudentsmakecomprehensionmistakeswhenreadingEnglishtexts.ThiskindofunderstandingerrororcomprehensionbarriersiscloselyrelatedtotheculturaldifferencesreflectedbyChineseandEnglishlanguages.Foreignlanguagereadingcomprehensionis,infact,across-culturalcommunicationevent,andstudents’familiaritywiththetargetcultureisthepremiseofsuccessfulreadingcomprehension.IntheprocessofforeignLanguagereadingcomprehension,readers’taskisnotjusttoacquireknowledge,butmoreimportantly,tocommunicatecross-culturallywiththewriterandcriticallyabsorbtheculturalheritageinthetargetlanguage.(Byram22)Inrecentyears,moreandmoreEnglishteachersandlearnershaverealizedtheimportanceofcultureinthelearningandteachingofforeignLanguages;howevertherearestillquiteanumberofteacherswho,intheprocessofteachingreading,emphasizeonlylanguageitselfandneglecttheculturalknowledgeofthetext.Obviouslythismethodofteachingisnotveryhelpfulinimprovingstudents’abilitytocomprehendthetext.Actually,manyEnglishlearnersmightnotunderstandwhatasentencemeansorwhataparagraphisabouteventhoughtheyunderstandeverysinglewordandallthegrammaticalstructuresinthesentenceortheparagraph.ThisphenomenoncanbeexplainedasaresultofEnglishlearners’ignoranceofthesocialculturalbackgroundsoftheEnglishlanguage.InEnglish,somesimplevocabularyandphrasebecauseoftheuniquehistoricalandculturalbackgroundandbecomeaspecificmeaningofnouns.Waterloo（滑鐵盧）originallyreferstocentralBelgiumananonymoustownin1815napoleonrate,becauseinthisbattlearmiesworldfamous.ThebattleendedinnapoleondefeatofWaterloo,soawordwillbecome“fiasco”and“destruction”ofsuchtragicoutcomeofthenouns.Ifyoudon'tunderstandtheculturalhistorybackground,studentswouldnotunderstand“meetone’sWaterloo”therealmeaningthisidiom.Thiswordhasbecomeafamousmovietitle,namely“WaterlooBridge”,thetitleofthefilmdirectlyrevealsthetheme,butthetranslatorandtragedydidn'ttakeitfor《滑鐵盧大橋》,butsmartuseoftraditionalChineseculturalknowledgeinChinesehistory,borrowanotherscene,thefamouslovetragedy,translateitfor《魂斷藍橋》,andthefilm'sclassicsubjectcomplementeachother,beChineseaudiencebeloved.IfthetranslatorofEnglishculturebackgroundwithouttheunderstanding,isunabletotranslatesuchclassicoflovers.TheuniquehistoricalandculturalbackgroundsareimportantinEnglishreading.Lackofculturalbackgroundknowledge,understandingwillproducedeviation;usingjudgmentmayalsobeaffected.Forthepurposeofimprovingtheteachingofreadingcomprehensionandstudents"readingability,andmakingstudentsawarethatculturalknowledgeplaysavitalroleintextcomprehension,thecomprehensionbarriersChinesestudentsencounterwhenreadingEnglishtexts,andprovesthatthesecomprehensionbarriersallbelongtoculturalbarriers.AsourEnglishteachingmaterialsBritainandIrelandThedialogueitselfisverysimple.Zhoulan:AreyouEnglish?David:No,I'mnot.Zhoulan:ButyouspeakEnglish.David:That'scorrect.Zhoulan:Whereareyoufromthen?Canada?David:No,I'mfromBritain.Zhoulan:ButIthoughtyousaidyouweren’tEnglish.David:Right,I'mBritish,butI'mnotEnglish.Zhoulan:Whatareyouthen?David:I'mScottish,I'mfromScotland.Zhoulan:Where'sthat?David:It'stothenorthofEngland,itspartofBritain.Zhoulan:Haveyougotamaptoshowme?I'mpuzzled.InthisconversationwhydoesZhoulanfeelpuzzled?BecauseZhoulanislackofBritishculturalbackgroundknowledge.AlthoughEnglandandBritaincanrefertoandBritish,butstrictlyspeaking,EnglishespeciallyrefertoPeopleofEngland,becauseEnglandjustisapartofBritain,AlthoughEnglandishumongousandpopulation,butafterallitcannotrepresentScotland,WalesandIreland.Aspeopleintheseareas,theyusuallydon’twanttosayintoistheEnglandman,toacceptWelsh/Irish/Scottish,asforBritish,theyareacceptable,thisiswhyDavidsaid:“I‘mBritish,butI’mnotEnglish.I’mScottish”.Inthisdialogue,ifstudentsmasterthisbackgroundknowledge,itwillbeeasytomasterthisdialogue.Sointhisconversationonbackgroundknowledgeforstudentsappearextremelyimportantintroduced,thereisnowordsandgrammar'sexplanation.SomewordsinEnglishandChinesemaysharethesamerationalmeanings,butthemeaningsofemotion,feature,andcollocationarequitedifferent.Suchasword“dragon”whichisasymbolofanemperororsovereignpowerinChinesefigureanddoesnothaveanynegativemeaningatall,butinEnglish-speakingculture,theword“dragon”isasymbolofevilwhichisabarbaricmonsteranddragonwhichisanenemytopeople(Hu1996.243).ifsomeonesay“sheisadragon”whichmeansthewomanbelievesinaangryorunfriendlyway.Infollow,theworddragonhasdifferentimaginarymeaningsbetweenChineseandwesternpeople.Thereforelanguageisproductofculturebecauselanguageexpressesculturalreality,languageembodiesculturalreality.(kramsch2000).TwolanguagesystemsinChineseEnglishsomecorrespondingwordmeaningisroughlysame,butdifferentculturalcontentwillmakederivative,meaningonlyindifferent,differentculturalbackgroundandonthebasisofunderstandingtotheright.Thesamewordindifferentculturerepresentsdifferentculturalconnotationsindifferentculturebackground,theycreateassociationsalsocanhavedifferences.So,thosevocabularieshavericherculturalconnotation.Inadditiontoimproveliteralmeaningunderstandoutside,moreimportantistounderstandtheirsocialandculturalmeaning,thencanattaintothewordsapplicationfreely.TheuseofitChinese-Englishcolorwordsforexample,redinChinese-Englishtwolanguagesisthesameastheoriginalmeaningofexistinginnature,referstothe“redcolor”.Buttheexpressionofthesocialandculturalmeaningisquitetheopposite:inChineselanguageisthemostpowerfulcommendatoryword,Forexample“prosperous”,“GongBang”(紅榜),“redenvelop”,“red”and“off”,“redmay”,“redsun”“redheart”,etc;thereareweddingsonthebride,Heromodelwearstheredsilkinacelebrity,andwearredflower,allexpressedfestival,prosperity,andhappiness.ButEnglishiswidelydivergent;useittoshowanger,bannedanddangerous,forinstance,redalert,andredflag.TomostChineseandWesterners,whitehassomemeaningsincommon.Whitesuggestspurity,innocenceandhonesty.e.g.,Mary一isawhitegirl.(Pureandinnocent)Tomisaverywhiteboy.Henevertellslies.(Honest)Butinthissense,whatdoesthetermawhiteliemean?Canaliebepureandinnocent?Actually,awhitelieisaharmlessone,intendednottohurtsomeone.Forexample,yourmotherboughtadressforyouthatshewasverysatisfiedwith,andwantedtoknowifyoulikedit.Maybeinyourmind,itwasoutofthefashionorthecolorwasnottoyourtaste.Butyousaid,“Oh,Ireallylikeit”inordernottoletherdown.Itwasalie,butagood-intentionedlie.TheconnotationofwhiteinChinesealsoincludessomethingunhappy.Atfunerals,Chinesepayrespecttothedeadandexpresstheirsorrowbywearingwhiteandwritingelegiaccoupletsinwhitepaper.IntheWest,however,whiteisthetraditionalcolorforthebridesatweddings,andtowearwhiteatfuneralswouldbeoffensive.Socareshouldbetakenintranslatingthephrase紅白喜事.Toavoidmisunderstanding,wecanputitsimplyasweddingsandfunerals.Talkingaboutredandwhite,thereisaninterestingcoincidenceinChineseandEnglish.InChinese,thosewhoarepopularandfindfavorwiththeirbossesarecalledredguyliterally(紅人).ButIrishpeoplecallthemthewhite-headedboy.Inthissense,redequalswhiteinthetwocultures.Ⅳ.ThemethodsofintroducingculturalbackgroundknowledgeIntheteachingofEnglishreadingintoproperculturecontentcannotonlyimprovelearners'interest,andcanmeetthelearnerstocoordinatetheirknowledgestructureneeds,throughtheirpreviousexperience,andlanguagebackground,culturalframeworkforpositivesignificancetoconstruct,makeiteasierforthereadertoreadmove,unavoidablywillmeetwithdistinctivenationalculturecharacteristicsofidiomsorrelevantknowledge,thisneedsusinexplainingtheseidiomsorrelatedknowledgeproperintroductionofsomeculturalbackgroundknowledge,tohelpstudentsbetterunderstandteachingcontent,(Brown,H.D136)TeachersintroducethewesternculturalbackgroundknowledgetostudentinteachingEnglish,enablesthestudenthavesomeknowledgeaboutculturaldifferencesisquiteimportant.EnglishteachingthroughthefollowingseveralwayscanimplementculturalbackgroundKnowledgeteaching.A.CombinewiththetexttoculturalbackgroundknowledgeteachingThecurrentSenorSchoolEnglishteachingmaterialsconsciouslyEnglishcountry,Culturalbackgroundknowledge.Theselectedtextcontentwidespread,thegenreisdiversiform,involvingallaspectsofwesternsociallife,thetypicalandrepresentative.Practicehasproved,inEnglishteaching,combiningthepresentteachingmaterialofculturalbackgroundknowledgeteachingisfeasible,andtheeffectisobvious.Textbookscoversthecultureteachingcontentandteachingmaterials,iscloselylinkedtheextendinganddeepeningtextbookknowledge,canincreasetheinformativeandinterestingclassroomteaching,arousestudents'initiativeandenthusiasm.Westernersdon’tlike“13”thisnumber,think“13”isanunluckynumber,seeingitas“unfortunate”symbol.Ifyouforeignteachers'birthday,youbuyforeignteacherssentthirteenbranchrosesisunpopular.Therefore,insomehigh-risebuildingsandhoteldoesnotestablish13thfloor,alsohavenoroomnumber13,12thenis14,theexpressionofthefloorisdifferentinBritainandtheUnitedStates,buttheUnitedStatesandChinaarethesame,andBritishexpressionasthesecondfloorcalledthefirstfloor,theforthfloorcalledthethirdflooronthefourthfloor,thefirstfloorcalledthegroundfloor.SoinEnglishteachingeducationandimportanceofculturaldifferencesisnecessary.Teachersshouldfullyconsiderinpreparingtheculturalfactors,tomastercultureteachingtimeandheft,activelyandconsciouslywillculturalcontentnaturallypenetrationtostudents,tothatoftheclassroomteachingorganically.Throughtheintroductionoftheculturalbackgroundknowledge,enhancetheteachingknowledge,interesting,andalsodeepenthestudycontentdepthandbreadth,stimulatedthestudents'thirstforknowledge,activeclassroomatmosphere.B.ExplainidiomswiththelanguageofcultureImplicationcanreflectcultureshouldbelongtoalotofidiomsandproverbs.Englishidiomsandproverbsarethenationallanguageandcultureessence,canselectivelyteachstudents.Forexample,InApple．pieOrder(井然有序)、Romewasnotbuiltinaday(偉業(yè)非一日之功)、Onpinsandneedles(如坐針氈)、Lookahorseinthemonth(吹毛求疵)、Birdsofafeatherflocktogether(物以類聚，人以群分)、Wherethere’sawill，there’saway(有志者，事竟成)、Don'tjudgeabookbyitscover(人不可貌相，海水不可斗量),Suchas,phrases:havebutterfliesinone’sstomach(心慌、緊張)itsameasatwo-partallegoricalsaying(十五只吊桶打水——七上八下).C.ExpandextracurricularreadingorgivelecturesEnglishclass,theteachermustlimitednumberinestablishedwithinthetimelimitcompletedteachingplan,isimpossibletohaveplentyoftimeforfurtheranalysisofculturalbackground.Inaddition,socialcultureisconstantlychangingasthecarrierofculture,language,andthetexthastimelinessmaynotkeepupdate,contenthavecertainlimitation.Therefore,asaclassroomteaching,thestudentscancollectsomerelevantforeignculturalmaterial,suchaspictorial,magazines,pictures,etc,andUSESvideoandnetworkguidestudentstowatchtheEnglishnationalsocialcultureandsoonvariousaspectsoftheircircumstances,suchasfeed,clotheandshelter,interpersonal,recreation,theholidaycustomtoincludesocialcustoms,values,literaryallusions,culturalvocabularyandnon-verbalcommunication,andmanyotheraspectsofcontent.Encouragestudentstoreadextensively,includingnovels,magazines,andnewspapersetc.teachersshouldguidestudentstoaccumulaterelativeculturalbackgroundknowledgewhenreadingmaterial.Throughenormousreading,students’understandingofculturewillbecomeripeandcomplete.Thespeakeralsocancombinelearningspecificcircumstances;bothstimulatethelearninginterestofthestudents,andenrichthestudents'culturalbackgroundknowledge.D.Triggerstudents’interestsTheteachingprocess,theculturalbackgroundknowledgeintroduction,canleadthestudentstoenterthesameancientwithChinesecultureandthewesternculturalhall,grandideastounderstandwesternculture,enjoystyledifferentregionamorousfeelings,feelthewesternsocietydifferentcustoms.Brunosaid:“interestisthebestteacher.”Forstudentsareconcerned,alargevocabulary,grammar,readingtrainingwillinevitablymakesthemfeelboring;theirattitudeofEnglishismorepassivelyaccept.Timelyculturalinfiltrationcanletstudentslearninaboringknowledgewithpleasure.Theoriginalbehindalmosteverypointknowledgehavedeep,eventheculturaloriginofinteresting.Forexampleinteaching“Easter”,theteachercantellstudentsitisoneinthefirstfullmoonafterthevernalequinoxisthefirstSundaytocelebrateJesustheresurrectionfestival.OnEasterday,withtheharewouldlaylegend.SothefestivalactivitieshavechildrenplaywithpaintforgameofEasteregg.Doingsocanenlightentheirthinking.Encouragestudentstoreadextensively,includingnovels,magazines,andnewspapersetc.teachersshouldguidestudentstoaccumulaterelativeculturalbackgroundknowledgewhenreadingmaterial.Throughenormousreading,students’understandingofculturewillbecomeripeandcomplete.E.CarryoutrelevantactivitiesTeacheristheculturalcontenttransmissionsandgetculturalbackgroundknowledgeofpromoter,shouldmakegooduseofthecultureintroducinginthemethod,students'activitiesrelatedtolecture,holdingculture,richinculturalcontentsofthestudentformatting,andactivelyguidestudentslistofbooksreadalotaboutBritishandAmericanEnglishreading,especiallythenationalgeography,history,politics,economy,culture,education,sports,holidays,festivals,etc,maketheminextracurricularbooksreadtheexpandedaspectofknowledge,information,familiarwithBritishandAmericancountriesincreasedthehistoricalamorousfeelings,lifestyleandconceptofvalue,broadentheirhorizonsandimproveunderstandingability,realizeeffectiveculturalcommunication.F.UseEnglishvideotapesandfilmsUsegoodnativeEnglishvideotapesandfilmsinteaching,andthemorganizediscussions.USESvideoandnetworkguidestudentstowatchtheEnglishnationalsocialcultureandsoon.Variousaspectsoftheircircumstances,suchasfeed,clotheandshelter,interpersonal,recreation,theholidaycustom,etc.Whenwatchingvideotapesorseeingafilm,studentsandteachersshouldpaymuchattentiontothesceneofdailylife,suchasconversationsbetweenshopkeepersandclients,dialogueonthetelephone,chatinthestreet,andimitatethemtospeak.Etc,afterthat,teachersandstudentsmayexchangeviewsandreplenisheachother.Ⅴ.ApplicationofculturalintroductioninEnglishreadingteachingInthenewmaterials,theunitisdividedintosixparts.Warmingup,Listening,Speaking,Reading,LanguageStudyandIntegratingSkills,Amongthem,introductionnamely,Warmingupthebeginningofaunit,Thestudyoftheentireunitisveryimportant,sonewteachingmaterialinthearrangementofunitselectmaterialwhichrelatedthetopicoftheculture.Throughvariousformsextendstudents’culturalknowledge,suchaspictures,questionsandanswers,test,etc.HeretoseniorhighschoolEnglishforexampletoexplainbriefly.Thethemeofunit16isTheUnitedStatesofAmerica,beforethebeginningtoenterWarmingup;theteachermayputaquestiontodevelopstudents’thinking,namely“brainstorm”.Thenorganizestudentgroupdiscussion,studentslearntheknowledgeabouttheUnitedStatesfrommemorytoexpressinEnglish,italsoembodiestheinterdisciplinarycharacteristic.“HowmuchdoyouknowaboutTheUnitedStatesofAmerica?”O(jiān)r“whatcanyouthinkofwhenyouseethetitle?”Becausethestudentthoughtofknowledge,thenteacherswillleadstudentsintoWarmingup,teachingmaterialshowsthemapoftheworld,theCapitolandpicturesinManhattan,italsohassomejudgmentquestion,andteachersmayfirstguidestudentstodiscussthepictures:“Whatcanyouknowfromthepictures?”Makestudentshavegoalstodiscussrelevantculturalinformationtogether,thentoguidethestudenttocompletejudgequestions.