A STUDY IN CHINA ON SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS' VIEWS ON LEARNING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE.

Abstract

The Chinese secondary school system is an ideal instance of how the English language's globalisation has impacted teaching and learning. The country's considerable student population, standardised academic culture and focus on international competition may deliver the exemplary context for gaining insight into students' perspectives on English as a foreign language (ELF) education. The elements that affect Chinese secondary school students' views and behaviours towards learning English include their teachers' competence, test pressure, peer influence, reasons to learn and resources available to them. This research employed a quantitative technique and stratified sampling to ensure equal representation across regions, school types and grade levels. A total of 654 valid answers were gathered from students. ANOVA were used to assess the data and find significant associations. The results indicate that the effectiveness of English language acquisition is significantly impacted by the competence of teachers. Learners of English showed more enthusiasm, faith and flexibility when instructed by teachers who were both highly competent in the language and familiar with their pedagogical practices. On the other side, teachers who recognise excessive emphasis on tests, employ too much memorisation and fail to offer students enough opportunities to practice communicating effectively were seen as barriers that lowered motivation and made it difficult to use language in contexts other than tests. Differences in funding across schools in urban and rural areas and a lack of budget for teacher education were other challenges. The objective of the project is to enhance English teaching in a way that can be sustained and ensure that secondary school students succeed in college, in their careers and in global communication by addressing these problems.