English Teaching Perspective Based on Empiricism andRevisionism

Abstract

English teaching has been prevailing in the world since 20(superscript th) century, in which empiricism and revisionism have had civilizing influences on English education and some teaching respects including teaching materials, teaching methods, teaching strategies, teaching skills, multiple evaluation and teacher-/student-centered instruction have experienced different challenges and responses from traditional steps to new creative ones.As a matter of teaching materials, ESP teaching has been emphasized than before, because there are clear advantages in setting up an ESP course where students have specific needs. Besides, ESP teaching is more attractive for learners than general English (EGP), because its aims are widely accepted by learners (Dudley & St. John, 2000, pp. 9-10).As a matter of English teaching methods, the traditional teaching methods such as the audiolingual method and the new-developed teaching methods such as the communicative approach can be complemented each other and relied on each other, but the new-developed teaching methods will be still more popular and more prevailed in real topic study and in practical teaching activities.As a matter of teaching strategies, no matter how effect and function the teaching strategies may be, the conventional teaching strategies such as bottom-up model and new-created teaching strategies such as ”i+1 Input” model can be used flexibly although the contrast and the opposite are really in different teaching strategies.As a matter of 4 skills teaching or 5 skills teaching, four skills are emphasized and prevailed in English teaching processes since the late 19(superscript th) century and early 20(superscript th) century, in which the most teaching activities nowadays mostly lie in speaking, listening, reading, and writing. From 1990s up to now, 5 skills are adopted gradually in English class, in which speaking, listening, reading, writing, and translation are flexibly involved in teaching activities, because translation training for students is more necessary for international communication.As a matter of teaching evaluation, the multiple assessment is a new teaching indicator of teaching activities, in which the traditional evaluation of Paper-Pencil Test is still prevailed in English teaching processes and new additional evaluation such as Portfolio Assessment and Classroom Observation are just implementing for the purposes of promoting teacher's teaching achievements and students' learning results.As a matter of teacher-centered instruction and student-centered instruction, improvements for students' needs in English teaching materials, teaching methods, teaching strategies , teaching skills, and teaching evaluation are evidently emphasized since 1970s up to now, in which the more attractive teaching materials such as ESP, the more humanistic teaching methods such as the Communicative Approach and the more effective teaching strategies such as Interactive Model are used not only for enhancing teaching function and learning effectiveness but also for emphasizing the needs of changing and balance for important role play between teacher and students.