New English Teaching of Network Era

Lisha

XIE

School of Foreign Languages, Leshan Normal University, Leshan, Sichuan, 614000, China

Keywords: Network Era, English Language, Teaching.

Abstract: Traditional teaching of English language has some drawbacks hindering student's personality and thinking.

The development of network brings more opportunity for English teaching, changing the traditional

methods of English teaching. In the Network Era, English teaching offers students authentic learning

environment and opportunities to practice. Students can learn through network independently and

communicate with foreigners to gain a variety of English language resources. However, the network also

has adverse effect on English teaching: failing to make good use of network tools, English teachers become

overly dependent on the network in teaching; advantages of the network have not been fully exploited.

Network Era puts forward higher requirements on English teaching, so teaching methods and content, as

well as ideas of teachers need to be further transformed.

1 INTRODUCTION

With the development of network, multimedia

technology has provided a convenient condition for

education. In Network Era, teaching and learning

methods of English have been changed, bringing

opportunities and adverse factors to English

teaching. Traditional methods of English teaching

have many problems, including the obsolete

teaching content, monotonous teaching method, as

well as students’ passive role and low interest in

learning. English teachers and students are equal in

the Network Era; students become more active to

initiatively manage their own learning progress, with

interactions with teachers and computers. However,

network also puts forward higher requirements on

English teaching, because English educators and

teachers need to learn how to fully use it.

2 DISADVANTAGES OF

TRADITIONAL ENGLISH

LANGUAGE TEACHING

During the decades of reform and opening up,

English language teaching in China has made a lot

of achievements. At any stage of socialism

development, the progress in English language

teaching was stimulating Chinese economy and

culture. In the 1980s, the purpose of English

language teaching was to improve students' reading

skills. During social progress, China has become

closer to various organizations in the world, holding

more and more international events, which put

forward higher requirements for English language

teaching. Currently, English language teaching

needs to train students' capacity in listening,

speaking, writing, reading, etc., thus letting them

keep up with the times. Traditional English language

teaching mainly focus on strengthening students’

response, and most English teachers emphasize the

method and enhancement of stimulation, while

neglecting student's own reaction. Therefore,

students lose the active position in learning English,

becoming the object of teachers’ stimulation.

Traditional English teaching was not conducive

to students' personal growth. And English teachers

were responsible for a whole class of students, so

they often failed to take care of every student's

experience and meet different learning needs in

teaching process. The difference between students

led to uneven development. Students' English

language knowledge and ability were trained mainly

by English teachers, so students lacked independent

thinking and learning ability, not to mention creative

thinking and innovation capability. Instructional

materials for traditional English teaching were

almost the same, because schools usually used the

same teaching material for many years in order to

maintain consistency. At first, some English

teaching materials were fresh. But they will lag

behind the development of the times a few decades

later, becoming obsolete English language lacking

practicability in real life. Most students spoke

270

Xie L.

New English Teaching of Network Era.

DOI: 10.5220/0006024002700273

In Proceedings of the Information Science and Management Engineering III (ISME 2015), pages 270-273

ISBN: 978-989-758-163-2

Chinese in learning process of English language;

teachers also taught English in Chinese and only

spoke English when asking questions. Some teachers

taught English using Chinese interpretation.

Students rarely spoke English in learning and

communication with others. The common use of

recorder and VCR in the English teaching has

constantly enriched teaching methods of English

language. However, students still passively listen to

the tape recorder and watch the image in VCR, with

no initiative and mastery on their learning.

3 BENEFICIAL EFFECTS OF

NETWORK ON ENGLISH

TEACHING

3.1 Equal Status of Teachers and

Students

Nowadays, computer is one of the basic skills that

people need to learn, and English has become an

essential language for everyone. Only by mastering

two powerful tools, English and computer, can

people achieve better performance at work. In 21th

Century, our society is in the rapid development of

the network era. The network has developed into a

new level, and network media is playing an

important role in people's learning, life and work.

People learn and work through the network. Besides,

network can achieve people’s entertainment and

communication with others.

In the Network Era, network has become a very

important tool with many advantages. It has greatly

changed the ways of English teaching. Getting rid of

traditional modes of teaching, network has brought a

more advantageous teaching model, transforming

the English teaching situation. Students are no

longer passive, and teachers will be more equal to

students. In the Network Era, online education also

becomes popular. Online education is utilized in

English training schools, English courses, overseas

training courses and postgraduate classes, enabling

students to learn English through computer. Online

learning environment contains many data and

information, as well as various helpful software and

communication platforms. This teaching model has

more advantages than traditional one: it can gather

more information in the form of text, sound and

video, and information is fast updated and timely

exchanged.

3.2 Free Forms of English Teaching

Through the networks, English teaching breaks

through the limitations of time with more free space

and greater openness. In the Network Era, there are

more and more abundant resources and information

for English teaching. We can acquire resources such

as English songs, MTV, movies, interview shows

and news programs in all countries and ages. Then,

students will truly know about veritable spoken

English without going to foreign countries. On the

computer, there are many libraries offering

electronic document for browsing and downloading.

Teachers and students can browse a variety of

English information from home and abroad, and

download to mobile device for learning when

necessary.

3.3 More Diverse Learning Methods

Network provides a vast ocean of information for

English teaching, and teachers and students can

enjoy it. In the Network Era, English teaching has

become more convenient. Students obtain English

resources in the forms of text, sound and video

through the computer, thereby practicing listening

and speaking in simulated English environment.

Computer also provides timely feedback for

students’ learning, with smaller chance of error than

teachers. Thus, online learning is faster and more

accurate. Instead of holding a thick Oxford

dictionary, students can learn massive English

vocabulary on computer. Computer teaches students

correct pronunciation and spelling of words, as well

as their recorded mistakes, so they can recall these

mistakes at any time and place. For each word,

students can learn its Chinese meaning, English

meaning, root, memory techniques, pronunciation,

phrases, synonyms, cognates and illustrative

sentence, thus having comprehensive and in-depth

understanding on it. Besides, they also can learn

words through a variety of word games, which

makes learning a fun process and improve learning

effect. In the multimedia language classroom,

English teachers can have dialogue with each

student.

3.4 More Networking Opportunities

and Faster Update and

Dissemination of Information

Network provides students with more opportunities

to communicate with foreigners: there are various

foreign chatrooms on the Internet, where students

can communicate with foreigners in text or e-mail.

Through the computer, students can also have verbal

and video communication with people from all over

the world, which are more real and strengthen the

interaction in English language communication. In

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learning English, they used to record the words and

phrases in a carry-on notebook. However, this

learning method has been changed with time:

students can have situational dialogue on the

computer, learning words through English

presentations.

In the Network Era, new vocabulary of English

teaching is spreading fast in more fields. Compared

with the fast update of information, the content of

English teaching book has fell behind the times.

Although students have enough knowledge to pass

examinations, the knowledge soon becomes obsolete

when they enter the society. To make progress, we

need to spend time to learn or go to school for

further study. But this will cost a lot of time, and

even delay our daily work. Through a computer,

people can learn new knowledge of English

language at any time and place. There is no

difference between the English teaching on the

network and classroom teaching, and the network

has more fresh English language knowledge.

3.5 Understanding English Culture

In the Network Era, English teaching has become

more diverse. Language and culture are inextricably

linked, and in order to learn the English language,

you need to learn English culture. English teaching

involves English and a number of languages used in

English speaking countries. American English and

British English have some differences in the

pronunciation of certain words, spelling, language

and customs, so we need to first understand their

culture in order to understand these differences.

Language is a part of culture. If English teaching

only teaches students vocabulary and grammar rules,

rather than letting them know English culture, then

they cannot really use English. Besides, the lack of

understanding of English culture will lead to a lot of

misunderstandings in the use of English, thus

hindering communication in English. Network Era

has liberated the traditional education, and teachers

need to diversify the teaching content, such as text,

images, sound and video. Thus, students will have a

real opportunity to speak English in network

environment, understanding the real life of English

speakers. Network makes language on the books

vivid by connecting knowledge to practices,

enriching the forms of English teaching.

4 ADVERSE EFFECTS OF

NETWORK

New things often have a tough beginning. In the

Network Era, English teaching will also inevitably

encounter some problems. Although traditional

English teaching is obsolete, its thinking and

methods of education have become more and more

mature. Network also has a negative impact on

English teaching. For example, software for network

English teaching is far from enough. In addition to a

large number of exercises and mini-games, there is

none better software been developed. With complex

technology, network English teaching is not simple

as other teaching techniques. Knowing nothing

about network technology, many experienced

teachers have been gradually eliminated by the

times. With skilled network technology, young

teachers are not enough in English language

knowledge. Learning network technology needs a lot

of time. Some English teachers have learned the

basic skills, but they have not utilized network tools

in English teaching. Most teachers can only use a

projector to display courseware and language lab for

listening, neglecting other advantages of network. In

fact, the network will make much more contribution

to English teaching than now, but most English

teachers can only use the basic function of the

network, failing to use all the advantages of the

network.

5 REQUIREMENTS FOR

ENGLISH TEACHING IN

NETWORK ERA

In the Network Era, a variety of resources can be

combined together to provide convenience for

today's teaching. The form of English teaching has

developed from text to multimedia courseware with

text and images, and with the development of the

network, video, animation and other forms will be

combined to make a diversified English teaching.

Traditional English teaching is a one-way learning:

students just browse and view. But in the Network

Era, this mode will be gradually transformed into a

two-way teaching. Network Era puts forward higher

requirements for English teachers. English teachers

need to reasonably design their teaching in many

aspects including teaching purpose, content and

evaluation. The goal is to train students’

comprehensive capacity, especially for

communication skills. In Network Era, students are

more active to study independently, managing their

own learning progress according to their learning

ability. Owing to the network, English teaching has

broken the boundaries of school, providing a life-

long learning platform for the whole society.

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6 CONCLUSIONS

In the Network Era, great changes have occurred in

English teaching. Network provides abundant

teaching resources for English teaching and a more

realistic learning environment for students, thus

enhancing their interest in learning English

language. Expanding students' horizons, network can

increase their chances of exposure to English and

practicing English, thus improving English

communication skills. With the network, English

teachers can enrich their teaching content and update

teaching methods, improving interaction with

students and teaching effectiveness. But there exist

some shortcomings in Network English teaching:

English teachers have not made good use of this

powerful tool.

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Television University.

Ma Jiqing, 2014 (07): 152-153. Requirements for

university English learning environment in the

network era, Campus English.

Jiang Yangjian, 2004 (24): 26-27. Promotion and

development of English teaching in the network era.

Education and Occupation.

Zhang Xuemei, 2006 (9): 33-42. Teaching of English

language in network era. Shaanxi Education.

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