BriefAnalysisofChineseStudents’ErrorsinEnglishReading
Huang Ming
(Medical Instrumentation College of Shanghai Science Engineering University, Shanghai 200093)
Abstract: On the basis of the theories of psycholinguistic perspective in language teaching and communicative approach in language learning, this paper analyses briefly some tangible errors for the Chinese students in their reading in line with the author’s own teaching experiences. The paper is an attempt at overcoming the obstacles existing between the text writers and the text readers and enabling the latter to become effective readers.
Key words: psycholinguistic, communicative, errors, reading comprehension
1. Instruction
English reading has always been considered one of the most important parts of foreign language learning. Without reading, nothing can be done in the development of the competence in listening, speaking, writing and translating. Reading courses, or rather, intensive reading ones, fill up a large component of the curricula. Obviously, students and teacher should pay great attention to the importance of reading courses. And what is reading? How can Chinese students achieve proficient reading?
2. Theory of psycholinguistic perspective and communicative approach
As we know, the psycholinguistic model of EFT is a meaning-based model proposed by Goodman (1967) and Smith (1971). Goodman thinks that in the reading process the “reader reconstructs, as best as he can, a message which has been encoded by a writer as a graphic display” (Goodman 1973). Smith says “···skill in reading actually depends on using the eyes as little as possible, ···as we become fluent readers we learn to rely more on what we already know, on what is behind the eyeballs, and less on the print on the page in front of us”(1978). The psycholinguists assume that if the reader has the ability to select the productive language cues, he can decode, through his psycholinguistic processing, the message in the text, and share much of information which the writer intends to convey.
The communicative approach of EFL, Which prevails after World War Ⅱ,holds that “The primary goal of most foreign language learning is to develop the ability to use real and appropriate language to communicate and interact with others, and the goal of foreign language teaching is to extend the range of communicative situation in which the learners can perform with focus on meaning without being hindered by the attention he must pay to linguistic form.”(Littlewood,1981). In communicative teaching model, the class is students-centred, and communicative activities are performed between students and the teachers, students and students. But efficient communication still depends on successful decoding of the “meaning” of the discourses, that is, a listener must instantly make out what a speaker wants to get across. And communicative efficiency means that