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Communicative teaching: what do PRC students think?
James JenkinAcademic Director, i-to-i TEFL
About i-to-i TEFL
First two-day intensive TEFL course (1994)
World’s largest teacher training organisation
Now deliver Level 5 Pearson EDI CertTEFL internationally
Since 2011 major focus on China: local and foreign teacher training and professional development
First online TEFL course (1999)
About me
1994
1997
2003
2011
The issue
Have you heard foreign teachers say …
But what do Chinese students themselves think?
Chinese students don’t like playing games.
Chinese students don’t like speaking in class.
Chinese students don’t like expressing opinions.
Aims of this session
We’ll hear what Chinese students actually say.
• research
• six interviews
• impressions
Aims of this session
I’ll offer some suggestions – and we want to know your opinion!
We’ll explore: what does this mean for teaching communicative classes for Chinese students?
What do we mean by …
‘Students from the PRC’
‘Communicative teaching’
Received views
• less autonomous, more dependent on authority figures, and conforming to rules (Sue & Kirk 1972)
Chinese students have been described as:
• reticent and passive learners (Tsui 1996)
• less willing to participate in classroom communication (Jones 1999)
‘Chinese culture’ the primary reason (e.g. Flowerdew & Miller 1995)
Challenges to received views
Liu and Littlewood (1996): Hong Kong secondary students like ‘group discussions’ best
In Littlewood’s (2001) survey of 13 countries, PRC students:
• question the ‘traditional authority-based, transmission mode of learning’
• wish to participate actively • have positive attitudes towards working in groups
(with a purpose)
Further studies (e.g. Kim 2006, Littlewood 2010) suggest Chinese students prefer communication-type activities over form-oriented instruction.
Sandy: I feel happy when people get involved and together and we have this activity … I feel a sense of achievement.
Vivi: [With chances to use English] It’s the first time I find English is a very happy thing
Sabrina: The teacher don’t mind what ideas you have. This is positive.
Why the mismatch?
Cheng (2000) suggests if Chinese students seem to be reticent in particular circumstances, it’s likely to be ‘situation specific’ rather than ‘culturally pre-set’.
Link between culture and classroom preferences is not clear-cut.
According to students, what hinders their participation?
Students feel unprepared
1. Don’t have language to attempt the task
2. Don’t understand topic
3. Expectation to contribute increases pressure
Sandy: It’s the unsystematic things, it’s too challenging for the beginners … they lose their confidence
Sabrina: Students couldn’t understand what the English teacher [teaches]… so they feel really stressful.
Students feel unmotivated
1. Can’t relate to an unfamiliar topic
2. Can’t see the link between English and real world
3. See mismatch between foreign teachers’ lessons and institutional requirements
4. Don’t understand aim (of lesson or activity)
5. Don’t receive feedback
Sandy: The part I don’t really like [in Australia] it’s quite unorganised.
Sandy: Chinese people [are] really good at systematic actions …. Every time they have a meeting with you. The teacher gives us feedback quite often, so you know how to improve.
Sabrina: I think the casual and the professional [should] combine together.
Suggestions: preparing students
1. Staged and systematic teaching and practice
2. Teach discourse features
3. Staged exposure to a new topic
4. Safe environment: small groups, reduced pressure to perform
Suggestions: motivating students
1. Lead-ins to topics
2. Appeal to real-life aspirations
3. Find out students’ needs inside and outside school
4. Explicit lesson aims, signposting of activities, and review
5. Provide formative feedback
What do you think?
What will help Chinese students feel:
• prepared?
• motivated?
