A Study of Sydney School’s Genre-Based Pedagogy in Chinese College English Education

Yilong YANG

Abstract


To solve the dilemma faced by current college English education in China, as well as to reform and adapt to the call of the time in college English education, its future development is studied by drawing on Sydney School’s genre-based pedagogy. The research finds that, in listening, guided by genre-based pedagogy students become familiar with a variety of language genres and their variants, and as a consequence they can successfully predict related information included in the language. In speaking, students led by the theory of potential genre structure could comprehend the changing principles of the three language variables, namely field, tenor, and mode. This helps students understand the overall structure of such genres in the discourse, so that they will be able to follow the general structure to open up their topics in sub-structures and sub-lines. In reading, employing genre analysis methods students master text characteristics in the general, and understand its structure and semantics in details, so as to effectively enhance their reading speed and reading quality. In writing, genre-based scaffolding pedagogy helps students achieve the purpose of “reading to learn”. A systemic and effective guide is then realized through its scaffolding philosophy and carefully designed teaching steps. Ultimately, current issues concerning Chinese college English education can be comprehensively and systemically resolved by genre-based pedagogy, detailing in the four abilities, i.e. listening, speaking, reading and writing

Keywords


Chinese college English education; Systemic functional linguistics; Genre-based pedagogy

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References


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DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3968/n

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