探究式教学法在初中英语语法教学中的应用研究 109页

单位代码１０１６６：ＳＨＥＮＹＡＮＧ１６８１３０２６ＮＯＲＭＡＬＵＮＩＶＥＲＳＩＴＹ编号：教育硕士学位论文Ｓｔｕｄｏｎｔｈｅ－论文题目ＡｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎｏｆＩｎｕｉｒ：ＡｙｐｐｑｙｂａｓｅｄＴｅａｃｈｉｎｇｔｏＥｎｇｌｉｓｈＧｒａｍｍａｒＴｅａｃｈｉｎｇｉｎＪｕｎｉｏｒＨｉｇｈＳｃｈｏｏｌ探究式教学法在初中英语语法教学中的应用研究业教学部：学部专业名称：学科教学（英语）指导教师：吴金萍金冬梅提交时间：２０１８年４月４日沈阳师全日制教育硕士研究生√ 类全日制ｖ｜别在职教育硕士编号：教育硕士学位论文ｆ－题目ｄｏｎｔｈｅＡｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎｏＩｎｕｉｒｂａｓｅｄＴｅａｃｈｉｎ：ＡＳｔｕｙｐｐｑｙｇｔｏＥｎｇｌｉｓｈＧｒａｍｍａｒＴｅａｃｈｉｎｇｉｎＪｕｎｉｏｒＨｉｇｈＳｃｈｏｏｌ探究式教学法在初中英语语法教学中的应用研究专业教学部：英语专业教学部专业名称：学科教学（英语）指导教师：吴金萍金冬梅研究生：周晶提交时间：２０１８年６月４曰沈阳师范大学教育硕士研究生院制 类全日制教育硕士√别在职教育硕士教育硕士学位论文题目：探究式教学法在初中英语语法教学中的应用研究论文编号：专业名称：学科教学英语专业教学部：教育硕士研究生院沈阳师范大学教育硕士研究生院制 ＡＳｔｕｄｙｏｎｔｈｅＡｌｉｃａｔｉｏｎｏｆｐｐＩｎ－ｂａｓｅｄＴｅａｃｈｕｉｒｙｉｎｔｏＥｎｌｉｓｈｑｇｇＧｒａｍｍａｒＴｅａｃｈｉｎｇｉｎＪｕｎｉｏｒＨｉｈＳｃｈｏｏｌｇＡｔｈｅｓｉｓＳｕｂｍｉｔｔｅｄｔｏｔｈｅＳｃｈｏｏｌｏｆＦｏｒｅｉｎＬａｎｇｕａｇｅｓｇＳｈｅｎａｎＮｏｒｍａｌＵｎｉｖｅｒｓｉｔｙｇｙＩｎＰａｒｔｉａｌＦｕｌｆｉｌｌｍｅｎｔｏｆｔｈｅＲｅｑｕｉｒｅｍｅｎｔｆｏｒｔｈｅＤｅｇｒｅｅｏｆＭａｓｔｅｒｏｆＡｒｔｓＢＺｈｏｕＪｉｎｙｇＵｎｄｅｒｔｈｅｓｕｐｅｒｖｉｓｉｏｎｏｆＰｒｏｆｅｓｓｏｒＷｕＪｉｎｐｉｎｇＪｕｎｅ２０１８ 沈阳师范大学教育硕士学位论文独创性声明本人所呈交的学位论文是在导师的指导下取得的研宄成果。据我所知，除文中已经注明引用的内容外，木论文不包含其他个人己经发表或撰写过的研宄成果。对本文的研究做出重要贡献的个人和集体，均已在文中作了明确说明并表示了谢意。作者签名、：沟４曰期：ＴＭｉｂｆ沈阳师范大学教育硕士学位论文著作权使用声明本人授权沈阳师范大学教育硕士研究生院，将木人硕士学位论文的全部或部分内容编入有关数据库进行检索；有权保留学位论文并向，国门或其指定机构送交论文家主管部的电子版和纸质版允许论文被、查印、阅和借阅有权可以采用影缩印或扫描等复制手段保存汇编；学位论文。。保密的学位论文在解密后适用本规定為：作者签名：曰期項Ｍ AcknowledgementsI’dliketotaketheopportunitytoexpressmydeepestthankstoalotofpeoplewhohavegenerouslyprovidedtheirhelpandassistance.Firstly,I’dliketoshowmydeepestgratitudetomysupervisor,ProfessorWu,arespectable,responsibleandresourcefulteacher,whohasgivenmebounteoushelpandunflagginginstructionsforalongtime.Withoutherhelp,Iwouldnotcompletemythesisinsuchashorttime.MytutorProfessorWuguidedmeallthetimeandgavemechancetoteachseniorhighschoolstudents.Secondly,IalsoownaspecialdebttoalltheteachersandthestudentsinLiaoningProvinceShiyanHighSchool.TheyhavegreatlybroadenmyhorizonsinthefiledofEnglisheducation.Thirdly,I’dliketoexpressmygratitudetomyclassmateswhogavemeconfidenceandofferedtheirhelpwhenIwasconfused.WhenIchosethetopic,Ifeltverynervous.Myfriendsandmyclassmatesgavemealotofhelp.Theyprovidedmaterialsandvideosforme.Withthesematerials,Ifinishedmythesis.Finally,mygenuinegratitudemustbegiventomyfamiliesfortheirgreatconfidenceinme.TheygavemuchsupportformeandencouragedmetoovercomethedifficultieswhenIcompletedmythesis.TheygavemuchconfidenceformewhenIcouldn’tsolvesomeproblems.Iwouldtaketheopportunitytoexpressmydeepestthanksforthem.i AbstractsAsweallknow,grammarplaysanimportantroleinEnglishteachinginjuniorhighschool.Itisobviousthatgrammarlearningisimportantforstudentsinjuniorhighschool.Inquiry-basedteachingcanimprovestudents’grammarabilityandstimulatestudents’interestingrammarlearning.Studentscanbemoreactiveinlearninggrammarratherthanpassive.Thethesisaimstoapplyinquiry-basedteachingmethodinjuniorhighschool.Researchercarriedoutanexperimentfornearlyfourmonths.Thesubjectswere98studentsinajuniorhighschoolinShenyang.FiftystudentswereselectedfromClassfiveGradeeight,whileforty-eightstudentswereselectedfromClasssixGradeeight.Theauthorappliedinquiry-basedteachingmethodofteachinggrammarinClasssixGradeeight.Theauthoradoptedfourinstrumentswhichwerequestionnaire,interview,pre-testandpost-test.Students’scorescouldbecollectedandanalyzedbySPSS20.0.Thedatashowedthatinquiry-basedteachingcanattractstudents’interestandimprovestudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Thethesisincludesfiveparts.Chapteroneismainlyaboutintroductionofthethesis.Chapteroneincludesthebackgroundofthestudy,thesignificanceandpurposeofthepresentstudyandoverallstructureofthethesis.Chaptertwoisaboutliteraturereview.Thechapterintroducesinquiry-basedteaching’sdefinition,characteristicsandmodels.Atthesametime,chaptertwointroducesthetheoreticalbases,suchascooperativelearningtheoryandcognitivelearningtheory.Chaptertwoalsoii introducestherelationbetweeninquiry-basedteachingandgrammarteaching.Chapterthreeintroducesresearchquestions,researchsubjects,instruments,procedures,datacollectionanddataanalysis.Chapterfourisabouttheresultsanddiscussionofthethesis.Chapterfiveintroducesthemajorfindings,pedagogicalimplication,limitationsofthestudyforfurtherresearch.Keywords:inquiry-basedteaching,grammar,juniorhighschool,studentsiii 摘要众所周知，英语语法在初中英语语法教学的过程中发挥着重要作用。由此可见，初中生英语语法的学习也是非常重要的。探究式教学法能改善学生学习语法的能力，并且能激发学生学习英语语法的兴趣。学生对于英语语法的学习更加积极主动而不是被动消极了。本文致力于应用探究式教学法教初中生学生学习英语语法。研究者花费三个月时间进行这个实验。研究对象是来自沈阳某所学校的98名中学生。其中从八年五班选出五十名学生，从八年六班选出48名学生参加实验。在八年六班，作者采用探究式教学法来教授语法。作者采用了四种研究工具，分别是问卷法，访谈法和前后测。学生成绩通过SPSS.20.0进行分析。数据表明探究式教学法能吸引学生学习的兴趣和提升学生学习英语语法的能力。本文包含五部分，第一章主要介绍论文的研究背景、研究目的、研究意义和本文的全文结构。第二章是文献综述部分，主要介绍探究式教学法的定义，特点和类型。同时本文也介绍了一些探究教学法的理论基础，比如认知主义和合作学习理论。并且继续介绍了探究式教学法与语法教学之间的关系。第三章主要介绍了研究问题、研究对象、研究方法、研究过程、数据收集和数据分析等。第四章是关于论文的结果和讨论分析。第五章介绍了主要结论、合理的假设和研究的局限性。关键词：探究式教学法；语法；初中学校,学生iv ContentsAcknowledgements········································································································iAbstractinEnglish·····································································································iiAbstractinChinese···································································································ivListofTables·············································································································viiiChapter1Introduction····························································································11.1BackgroundofthePresentStudy·······························································11.2SignificanceandPurposeofthePresentStudy········································41.3OverallStructureoftheThesis···································································6Chapter2LiteratureReview··················································································82.1Inquiry-basedTeaching·················································································82.1.1TheDefinitionsofInquiry-basedTeaching···································82.1.2TheCharacteristicsofInquiry-basedTeaching····························102.1.3TheModelsofInquiry-basedTeaching·······································132.1.3.1TheLearningCycleModel··············································132.1.3.2InquiryTrainingModel···················································142.1.3.35ELearningModel··························································152.2TheoreticalBasisforInquiry-basedTeaching········································222.2.1CooperativeLearningTheory························································222.2.2CognitiveLearningTheory····························································232.2.3ConstructivistLearningTheory·····················································24v 2.2.4HumanisticTheory······································································252.3GrammarTeaching···················································································262.3.1TheDefinitionsofGrammar·······················································272.3.2TheModelsofGrammarTeaching············································282.4RelationbetweenInquiry-basedTeachingandGrammarTeaching············292.5PreviousStudiesonInquiry-basedTeachingAppliedinGrammarTeaching······················································································································312.5.1PreviousStudiesatHome································································312.5.2PreviousStudiesAbroad·································································32Chapter3Methodology··························································································363.1ResearchQuestions·····················································································363.2ResearchSubjects························································································363.3Instruments···································································································373.3.1Questionnaire····················································································383.3.2Interview···························································································403.3.3Pre-testandPost-test······································································413.4Procedure······································································································433.5DataCollection····························································································453.6DataAnalysis······························································································47Chapter4ResultsandDiscussion······································································484.1Results··········································································································484.1.1ResultsoftheQuestionnaires························································48vi 4.1.2ResultsoftheInterview································································584.1.3ResultsofthePre-test····································································624.1.4ResultsofthePost-test··································································634.2Discussion····································································································684.2.1DiscussiononEffectsofInquiry-basedTeachingonStudents’GrammarLearningProficiency··································································684.2.2DiscussiononChangesontheStudents’InterestsonGrammarTeaching······································································································70Chapter5Conclusion····························································································735.1MajorFindings····························································································735.2PedagogicalImplications··········································································765.3LimitationsoftheStudy··········································································785.4SuggestionsforFurtherResearch····························································80References···················································································································84AppendixAPre-questionaire··························································.·····················87AppendixBPost-questionaire····································..·········································88AppendixCInterviewQuestions························································..················89AppendixDPre-test·······························································································90AppendixEPost-test······························································································93vii ListofTablesTable4.1TheDescriptiveDataofPre-questionnaire···············································49Table4.2TheDescriptiveDataofPost-questionnaire·············································53Table4.3TheDescriptiveDataofPre-test······························································62Table4.4IndependentSamplesTestofthePre-test·················································62Table4.5TheDescriptiveDataofPost-test·····························································64Table4.6IndependentSamplesTestofthePost-test···············································65Table4.7PairedSamplesTestoftheCC·································································66Table4.8PairedSamplesTestoftheEC·································································67viii Chapter1Introduction1.1BackgroundofthePresentStudyAsapartofjuniorhighschool’Englishteaching,grammarteachingplaysaveryimportantroleinEnglishteaching.TheNationalCurriculumStandardforJuniorHighSchoolEnglishclearlystressesthattheobjectiveofEnglishteachinginjuniorhighschoolsistocultivatestudentscomprehensivelanguagecompetencebasedonwhattheyhavelearnedinjuniorhighschools.Asweallknow,Englishlearningisdividedintofourparts,whicharespeaking,listening,writingandreading.Theycanusegrammaticalrules.Ifstudentscanlearngrammarwell,theycanspeakcorrectlyandwritecorrectly.GrammarplaysaveryimportantroleintheprocessofEnglishlearning.GrammaristhefoundationofEnglishlearning.However,whensometeachersteachEnglishgrammar,theystresstoexplaingrammaticalrulesanddogrammarexercises.Nevertheless,thecurrentsituationofEnglishgrammararenotoptimistic.Itisthecommonsituationthatteachersteachstudentsgrammaticalrulesandstudentsdogrammarexercisesinjuniorhighschools.Afterdoingaseriesofresearches,someteacherspaylessattentiontostudents’explorationabilityanddevelopmentability.Therearemanyproblemsofsometeachers’teachingmethods.Thecurrentteachinggoalsaretocultivatestudents’abilityandbroadenstudents’horizons.Somegrammarteachingmethodsareineffectiveforachievingtheteachinggoalsexceptinductivemethodanddeductivemethod.Consequently,cultivatingandimprovingstudents’grammaticalskillshas1 becomeahotissueinEnglishgrammarteachinginjuniorhighschools.Allinall,Englishgrammarisveryimportantanditisverynecessaryforstudentstomastergrammaticalrules.Therearesomeproblemsofstudents’learningEnglishgrammar.Firstly,studentsarenotinterestedinstudyingEnglishgrammar.TheystressthatEnglishgrammarlearningistooboringanduseless.Atthesametime,Englishgrammarisalittledifficultforthemtolearn.Studentsneedtoremembergrammaticalrulessometimes.Secondly,teachersandstudentspaylessattentiontoEnglishgrammar.ThereisalmostnotoomuchEnglishgrammarclassinmanyjuniorhighschools.SomeEnglishlearnersabsorbknowledgemechanicallyandrecitegrammaticalrulessothattheycanhavehigherscores.Inotherwords,studentsdonothaveabetterunderstandingaboutgrammaticalrules.Atthesametime,whensomejuniorhighschoolstudentsspendlittletimeinlearningEnglishgrammar,studentsmayhavepoorEnglishgrammar.Thirdly,students’EnglishlearninginjuniorhighschoolslaysasolidfoundationfortheirEnglishlearninginseniorhighschools.Soitisveryimportantforstudentstomastersomegrammaticalrules.However,somestudentsspendlittletimeongrammarlearning.Atthesametime,somestudentsloseself-learningabilityandexplorationability.Theyhavebeenusedtoacceptingknowledgeandlostinterestedinlearninggrammar.Itisineffectiveforstudents’furthergrammarlearninginjuniorhighschools.Theresultisnotgoingwell.2 Nevertheless,thecurrentsituationofgrammarlearningispessimistic.Atthesametime,Englishgrammarteachingisinadilemma.Ontheonehand,theroleoftheteachersarecontrollersandtimekeepers.Studentsloseindependentthinkingabilityandcreativeability.ItisineffectiveforstudentstomasterEnglishgrammaticalrules.Itcanresultinstudentsmoredependent.Ontheotherhand,studentscannotunderstandthegrammaticalrulesandsentencestructureswell.Itseriouslyhampersstudents’development.Bytheway,studentsmayloseinterestingrammarlearningstepbystep.Astoteachers,therearesomeissueswhentheyteachEnglishgrammar.Theystillteachstudentsinatraditionalway.AccordingtoNewCurriculumStandard,teachersshouldrequirestudentstospendmoretimeongrammarlearningandcultivatetheirownability.Therearemanyteachingmethods,suchastask-basedlearningmethodandcommunicativeapproach.Thereisapositiveimpactongrammarteachingintheseteachingmethods.Theinquiry-basedteachinginNewCurriculumStandardisdifferentfromsomegrammarteachingmethods,whetherinteachingobjectivesorinteachinginstruction.Studentsneedtoadoptthenewteachingmethodsandtheyneedtoimprovetheirlearningability.Inthepast,someteacherslistedarangeofgrammaticalrulesontheblackboard.Someteacherstaughtgrammaticalrulesandstudentslearnedtorecitethegrammaticalrulesmechanically.Studentsmaynotunderstandhowtousegrammaticalrulesproperly.Nowadays,teachersusemultimediaratherthanblackboard.TeachersalsolistsomegrammaticalrulesonPPT.Manyschoolsdon’t3 payattentiontousingnewteachingmethods,suchasinquiry-basedteaching.Basedontheteachingsituation,havingabetterunderstandingofthesignificanceoflearninggrammariscruciallyimportant.1.2SignificanceandPurposeofthePresentStudyEnglishgrammarlearningplaysanindispensableroleonstudents’Englishlearninginjuniorhighschool.Thejuniorhighschoolknowledgepavesthewayforstudents’furtherstudyinseniorhighschool.ItisobviousthatEnglishgrammarisimportantforstudentstolearninjuniorhighschool.Theinquiry-basedteachingapproachisanewteachingmethod.Inquiry-basedteachingpromotestocultivatestudents’grammaticalability.Studentscancommunicatewiththeirgroupmembersandunderstandotherstudents’thoughtsintheprocessofinquiry-basedteaching.Studentscanabsorbothers’suggestionsandbroadentheirhorizons.Inquiry-basedteachingcanmakefulluseofstudents’potentialandhelpstudentslearnhowtoanalyzeproblemsandsolveproblems.Inquiry-basedteachingcanstimulatestudents’motivationstomastergrammaticalrules.Moreimportantitcanofferstudentsinstructionsonbothlanguageknowledgeandgrammaticalrules.Theteachingmethodcanenhancestudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Theteachingmethodmakesstudentsmoreactiveandstimulatestheirinterestinlearninggrammar.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodavoidsthedisadvantagesofsometeachingmethodsoflearninggrammar.Studentsfocusonpracticalproblems.Studentscanmastergrammarrulesandstrategiesbytheirindependentlearningand4 independentthinking.Studentsbecomemoreactiveinlearninggrammarratherthanpassive.Studentshavetheopportunitytounderstandthesignificanceofinquiry-basedteachingmethodinlearninggrammar.Withtimegoingby,newerarequiresnewteachingmethodsandnewteachingaids.Someteachingwayscannotfitsociety’sdevelopment.Thereisahigherrequirementforteachers.Therolesofteachersareguiders,assessorsandhelpers.Atthesametime,teachersmustapplyinquiry-basedteachingintheprocessofteachingactivities.Inquiry-basedteachingisanewteachingmethodanditcanbeappliedinteachinggrammar.Inquiry-basedteachingisbeneficialtostudents’independentthinking.StudentscanbeinvolvedintheclassandgettheabilityofputtingEnglishintopractice.Inquiry-basedteachingcanchangethesituationofstudentsgainingknowledgemechanically.Studentsaretheclasscenterandtheycanlearngrammarknowledgeactively.Ontheonehand,Inquiry-basedteachingcanstimulatestudents’potentialandachievestudents’value.Inquiry-basedteachingcanimprovestudents’learninginterestandcanmakestudentslearntocooperatewithothers.Ontheotherhand,teacherscanunderstandthemainideaofReformingProgramofBasicEducationbetter.Inquiry-basedteachingcanputforwardhigherrequirementsandsethighergoalsforstudents.Thestudyappliesanewteachingmethodandteachingstrategy.Inquiry-basedteachingaimstoachievethegoalofEnglishgrammar.Itreflectstheteachingobjectivesofstudentscenter.Inquiry-basedteachingprovidesaneffectivemethodformanagingcourse.Practically,anexperimentisdesignedinthisstudytotestthevalidityandthefeasibilityoftheinquiry-basedteachingmethodinEnglishgrammar5 learninginjuniorhighschool.Inaddition,thestudyalsocanraiseboththeEnglishteachersandstudents’awarenessofimportanceofEnglishgrammarandthenallocatemoretheirtimeandenergytowriting,whichisthepremisetoimprovethepresentsituationofEnglishgrammar.Moreover,thestudycaninduceEnglishteacherstoreflectontheirownEnglishgrammarteachingandthentounderstandandemploymorescientificandreasonableteachingapproachtoteachEnglishgrammar.1.3OverallStructureoftheThesisThestudyincludesfiveparts.Thethesisofthepaperappliestheinquiry-basedteachingmethodtoimprovethesituationoflearninggrammar.Chapteroneismainlyaboutintroductionofthethesis.Itincludesthebackgroundofthestudy,thesignificanceandpurposeofthepresentstudyandoverallstructureofthethesis.Chaptertwoisaboutliteraturereview.Thechapterintroducessomedetailedinformationaboutinquiry-basedteaching,suchasitsdefinitions,thecharacteristicsandthemodelsofinquiry-basedteaching.Atthesametime,theoreticalbasesforinquiry-basedteaching:CooperativeLearningTheory,CognitiveLearningTheory,ConstructivistLearningTheoryandHumanisticTheoryarereviewed.Italsoreferstotherelationbetweeninquiry-basedteachingandgrammarteachingandpreviousstudiesoninquiry-basedteachingappliedingrammar.Chapterthreeismainlyaboutmethodology,suchasresearchquestions,researchsubjects,instruments,procedure,datacollectionanddataanalysis.Theinstrument6 includesquestionnaire,interview,pre-testandpost-test.TheexperimentlastsforfourmonthswithonehundredstudentsfromLiaoningProvinceShiyanHighSchool.Chapterfourisabouttheresultsanddiscussionofthethesis.Itshowstheresultsofthestudyandthediscussiononeffectsonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandstudents’interestongrammarlearning.Inthelastchapter,itismainlyaboutthemajorfindings,pedagogicalimplication,limitationsofthestudyforfurtherresearch.7 Chapter2LiteratureReviewThechapterismainlyabouttheintroductionofinquiry-basedteaching,whichincludesthedefinitions,thecharacteristicsandthemodelsofinquiry-basedteaching.Inthefollowingparts,itmainlyreferstotheoreticalbasisforinquiry-basedteaching:CooperativeLearningTheory,CognitiveLearningTheory,ConstructivistLearningTheoryandTheStudent-CenteredTheory.Itintroducestherelationbetweeninquiry-basedteachingandgrammarteachingandpreviousstudiesoninquiry-basedteachingappliedingrammar.2.1Inquiry-basedTeachingInquiry-basedteachingisanindividualorgrouplearningprocesswhichisdrivenbyquestioning,hypothesizing,investigatingandanalyzingthequestions,redefiningaconceptanddevelopingnewunderstandingbasedonanobservation,etc(Laxman,2003).Nowadays,inquiry-basedteachingisanewconceptinthecurriculumteaching.Teachingresearcherspaymuchattentiontothenewteachingmethod.Inquiry-basedteachingisthenewtendencythatchangestheroleofteachersandstudents.Thispartismainlyaboutthedetailedinformationaboutinquiry-basedteaching.Thepartincludesthedefinitions,thecharacteristicsandthemodelsofinquiry-basedteaching.2.1.1TheDefinitionsofInquiry-basedTeaching8 Inordertounderstandtheinquiry-basedteachingmethodwell,thedefinitionofinquiry-basedteachingshouldbepresentedfirst.Manyeducatorshavedefinedinquiry-basedteachingfromdifferentaspects.Slavin(2004),theleadingadvocateofinquiry-basedteaching,describedthedetaileddefinitionaboutinquiry-basedteaching.Inquiry-basedteachingwassuchanactivitythatchildrengetnecessaryinquiringabilitytoresearchthenaturethroughautonomousparticipationofknowledgeacquisitionprocess,thencultivatetheactiveattitudetoexploretheworld.Therearealsodefinitionsofinquiry-basedteachinginTheOxfordEnglishDictionary.AccordingtoTheOxfordEnglishDictionary(2001),inquiry-basedteachingreferredtoexploratoryresearch,whichmeanttryingresearchers’besttoexploreknowledgesoastosolveproblemsandfindsolutions.AccordingtoChineseDictionary(2000),inquiry-basedteachingwasdefinedastheactionofseekingforinformationorknowledge,especiallypursuingthetruth.Inquiry-basedteachingwasaninvestigationorinquiryprocessaimedatresearch,investigationandinspection.Itwasanactivitytoaskquestionandqueryaswell(TheOxfordEnglishDictionary,2001).InChina,WenYule(2015)claimedthatthereweretwodefinitionsofinquiry-basedteaching.Thefirstdefinitionofinquiry-basedteachingwasthatinquiry-basedteachingwastheabilitytosolveallkindsofproblemsindependently.Theseconddefinitionofinquiry-basedteachingwasthatinquiry-basedteachingmainlyreferredtoscientificinquiry(Wen,2015).Inaword,inquiry-basedteaching9 wasawayforhumanstobetterobserveandunderstandtheworld.Inquiry-basedteachingwasnotonlyjustapracticalactivity,butalsoequaltoscientificmethods.Laxman(2003)stressedthatpeopleshouldhavescientificattitudeandcriticalthinkingmode,followthespecificproceduresofscientificinquiry,usescientificmethodsandskillstoexplorethetruthintheinquiry-basedteaching.AmericanNationalScienceEducationalStandards(1995)definesinquiry-basedteachingasfollows:(1)Certainprocesswasinvolvedinscientificinquiry.(2)Inquiry-basedteachingwasessentiallyakindofthinkingwaythroughwhichhumanscouldsolvescientificproblemsinnaturalarea.(3)Inquiry-basedteachingrequiredaseriesofcomponents,forexample,scientificmethods,scientificprocessorinquiryskills.Inaconclusion,inquiry-basedteachingisawayforhumanstobetterobserveandunderstandtheworld.Studentsplayaveryimportantroleintheclass.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodcanhelpstudentsbecometheclasscenterandmasterthemainideasofthecourses.2.1.2TheCharacteristicsofInquiry-basedTeachingWangDan(2008)proposedthecharacteristicsofinquiry-basedteaching.Heclaimedthatthecharacteristicsofinquiry-basedteachingincludedstudentscentered,questionfocusedandactivitiesfocused.Thedetailedinformationarepresentedasfollows.(1)Studentscentered10 Inquirybasedteachingmethodstressesthatstudentsarethecenteroftheclass.Ininquiry-basedteaching,everystudentcanbeinvolvedintheclassandbecomethecenterofclass.Ininquiry-basedteaching,studentsareactiveintheclassandtheyareinvolvedintheclass.Inquiry-basedteachingcanensurethatlearnerscantakepartinthediscussionandhavetheirownideas.Studentscanexpresstheirthoughtbravelyandexchangetheirideaswiththeirgroupmembers.Underthesituation,theycangettheabilityofself-management.Accordingtothenewcurriculumcourse,teachersshouldchangetheirrolesandbecomefacilitators,organizersandresourceproviders.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodstressesstudents’statusintheclass.Studentscanhavetheirownthoughtsandideas.Theycancommunicatewiththeirgroupmembersratherthanrecitingthegrammaticalrules.Studentscanhavethechancetoexploreanswersinsteadofrememberingtheruleswhicharegivenbyteachers.Inquiryisanimportantstepforteachinggrammar.Inquiry-basedteachingcanmakestudentsgainlearningabilityandachievetheirvalue.Studentsarethemainparticipantsintheclassandteachersareguidersandestimators.Inquiry-basedteachingisanewmethodwhichrequiresgroupwork.Thelearnersneedtoworktogetherandcommunicatewitheachother.Thelearnersnotonlyneedtoworkcooperativelywiththeirgroupmembersbutalsotheirteachers.Inquiry-basedteachingcancultivatestudents’independentspirit.Studentscansharetheirideaswiththeirgroupmembers.Inquiry-basedteachingisanewtendencyforeducation.Teachersmustgiveenoughspaceforstudents’development.Studentscanexpresstheirthoughtbravelyandexchangetheirideaswiththeirgroupmembers.Underthesituation,theycangettheabilityof11 self-management.Ininquiry-basedteachingmethod,studentscannotonlylearnknowledgebutalsogetability.(2)QuestionfocusedQuestionfocusedisanothermaincharacteristicofinquiry-basedteaching.Inquiry-basedteachingisdifferentfromotherteachingmethods.Inquiry-basedteachingcancultivatestudents’abilityofanalyzingproblemsandsolvingproblemsbytheirownexploration.Ininquiry-basedteaching,teachersinspirestudentsbyshowingaseriesofquestions.Ininquiry-basedteaching,teachersputforwardquestionsandpointsoutthekeynote.Teacherscanattractstudents’attentionandguidesstudentstothinkdeeplyaboutaseriesofquestionsbyinquiry-basedteaching.Thequestionscanbeservedasalinkbetweennewknowledgeandpriorknowledge.Learnerscansearchfortheanswersunderteachers’guidance.Studentsareabletodealwiththosequestionsthroughinquiringorsearchingrelatedscientificknowledge.Inaddition,thequestionsshouldbeeasytounderstandandthedesignofthesequestionsshouldconformtostudents’developmentlevel(Akar,2005).Teachersgiveenoughspaceforstudents’development.Teachersasksomequestionsandstudentsanswerthequestions.Inthisperiod,teacherscanhavethechancetoarousestudents’interestandbroadenthelearners’version.Throughteachers’questions,thestudentsexplorethefinalsolutionstotheproblems.Thewholeclasswasfilledwithquestions(Day&Bamford,1998).Underthesituation,studentscancomeupwithmorequestionsandtrytheirbesttosolvethequestions.Inquiry-basedteachingcanmakefulluseofstudents’potential.Atthesametime,inquiry-basedteachingputforward12 higherrequirementsforteachers.Teachersneedstomakemorefullpreparationforclass.(3)ActivitiesfocusedThereisacharacteristicofinquiry-basedteachingthatisactivitiesfocused.Teachersdesignmanyactivitiesintheclass,suchasindividualstudy,groupdiscussionandsoon.Learnerscancommunicatewithothersandsharetheirsuggestions.Theysolveproblemsthroughworkingtogether.Intheinquiryprocess,studentscangetenoughrespectandattention.Sostudentsareactiveingrammarlearning.Withthehelpoftheactivities,studentscanunderstandtheteachingcontentbetterandcultivatetheirabilityproperly.Theactivitiescanbroadenstudentsversionandgivesstudentsnewexperience.Studentscangetmorerealexperiencefromtheseactivities.2.1.3TheModelsofInquiry-basedTeachingLaxman(2003),awesterneducator,wasthefirstonetoproposethemodelsofinquiry-basedteachingandsortedoutinformationaboutthemodelsofinquiry-basedteaching.Laxman(2003)claimedthatthemodelsofinquiry-basedteachingincludedthelearningcyclemodel,inquirytrainingmodel,5Elearningmodel.Thefollowingsarethemodelsofinquiry-basedteaching.2.1.3.1TheLearningCycleModelThelearningcyclemodelwasdevelopedbyCook.Thelearningcyclemodelreferredthatlearnersgotknowledgeandappliedtheknowledgeintheirlives(Cook.,2003).Atfirst,thelearningcyclemodelwasdesignedformeetingtheneedsof13 enrichingsciencecourses.Thelearningcyclemodelhadbeenwidelyusedineducationalsystemandputintoeffectforalongtime.Inthepreliminarystage,thelearningcyclemodelincludedthreepartswhichwerepreliminaryexploration,inventionanddiscovery.Intheperiod,educatorsspentmuchenergyandachievedthegoal(Cook.,2003).AfterlearningPiaget’stheory,Cookcreatedanewmethodcalledlearningcycle.Afterfurtherresearches,Cookdividedthemethodintothreestageswhichwereconceptexplanation,conceptintroductionandconceptapplication.Inthefirststage,studentshadthechancetoexperienceandwentthroughthedailylife.Studentshadtheirownthoughtsaboutnewconcept.Inthesecondstage,studentsgottheproperanswerswiththeguidanceofteachers.Theycorrectedtheirwronganswersandcameintonewvalue.Itwasthemostimportantstepforlearners.Inthethirdstage,studentsshouldtolearnhowtousethetheoryandputitintopractice.Theycouldenrichtheirownlivesandgotenoughexperience(Cook.,2003).Afterthesestages,studentscouldgetafullandclearconceptaboutthemethod,whichcouldhelpthemestablishaclearcognizancefortheirlives.2.1.3.2InquiryTrainingModelRichardSuchman(1993)wasthefirstonetoproposetheinquirytrainingmodel.Inquirytrainingmodelincludedfourstageswhichwerepresentingthequestion,bringinguphypothesisandcollecting,testing,makingconclusions.Inquirytrainingmodelindicatedthatallthestudentscouldunderstandtheideasandtheexperimentresultsatthelast.Afterlearningtheteachingmethod,studentscouldcultivatetheirthinkingabilityandlearnhowtoanalysethequestionsandhowtosolvethe14 questions.2.1.3.35ELearningModel5ELearningModelwasthemainmodelamongtheseinquiry-basedteachingmethods.5ELearningModelcouldbedividedintofiveparts,engagement,exploration,explanation,elaboration,andevaluation(Akar,2005).(1)EngagementAtfirst,teacherscanfindsometeachingsituationsandcreatesomesignificantteachingsubstance.Thepurposeoftheteachingmethodistoattractstudents’attentionandarousestudents’curiosity.Atthesametime,itistimetoestablishanewsituationtolearningknowledge.Thereisacloselyrelationbetweenthecontextandtheirpriorknowledge.Throughaseriesofrelatedquestionsandsomepictures,teachercanarousestudents’interestandattractstudents’attention.Withfullpreparationofthegrammarteaching,teachercansetupthecentralproblems.Theproblemsmustbeworthconsideringandshouldberelatedtothecontentoftextbook.Sincestudentsareinspiredbysomepictures,studentsmaybemuchcuriousaboutthelearningmaterial.Forexample,theknowledgeobjectiveistomakestudentslearnmorenewwordsandphrases,teachercanusesomepicturesrelatingtothewords.Fortheteenagers,stimulatingcuriosityisthemostimportantthing.Thereisaconnectionbetweenstudents’priorknowledgeandnewknowledge.Intheperiod,therearetotaltwogoalsaboutengagement.Thefirstoneistoremindstudentsoflifeexperience.Thesecondoneistomakestudentsbepreparedforthenewknowledgeandstimulatestudents’curiosity.Afterstudents’predictingforthelesson,students15 aredesiredtolearnthematerialswithahighmotivation.Inthisperiod,teachersshouldknowhowmuchknowledgestudentshaveknowninadvance.Atthesametime,teacherscanpreparesomequestionsforstudentsinadvance.What’smore,teachersshouldavoidtellingstudentsanswersandgrammaticalrulesdirectlyintheperiod.Inthetraditionalway,teachersshouldgivethedefinitions,explainthegrammaticalrulesandlistsomeexercises.Intheinquiry-basedteachingmethod,teachersareallnotsupposedtodo.(2)ExplorationTeacherscanbecontrollersandguidersintheclass.Withthehelpofteachers,studentscanexploremoreknowledgeandbecomethecenteroftheclass.Throughgroupworkanddiscussion,studentscanimprovetheircommunicationabilityandpaymuchattentiontohowtoexplorethequestions.Intheperiod,studentscanhavethechancetodeveloptheirskillsandpresentconceptfortheirfurtherstudy.Thegoalofexplorationistoassiststudents’studywiththeguidanceofteachers.Undertheguidanceofteachingobjectives,teachingaidsandteachingmethods,studentscanmakeadirectconnectionbetweentheirlifeexperienceandnewknowledge.Thus,theycanhaveabetterunderstandingaboutteachingmaterials.Intheperiod,studentsshouldbeencouragedtothinkandevaluatethings.Afterteachers’explanation,theymayhavegeneralimpressionsontheirteachingmaterials.Studentscanhavethecouragetopredictandexplorethenewknowledge,collectresourcesandmaterials,makeconclusionsandcompletetheirself-evaluations.16 Studentshavesomechancestoworktogetheranddiscusstogether.Studentscanhavetheirownthoughtswithoutteachers’directinstructions.Cooperativelearningisimportantforteenagers.Whenstudentssittogetheranddiscusslearningmaterials,teachersshouldlistentotheirthoughtscarefullyandrecordtheobservationsinsteadofpointingoutstudents’mistakesdirectly.Itisnecessaryforteacherstoofferhelpandgivesuggestions.Onthecontrary,teachersshouldnotprovidetheanswersandmakeaconclusionrightnow.Ininquiry-basedteachingmethod,groupmembershavechancestosharetheirideasandthoughts.Studentshavetheirowndiscussiongroupforalongtime.Intheprocessofdiscussing,somequietstudentshavetodiscusswiththeirgroupmembersandsharetheirideas.Itisanopportunityforthemtoshowthemselvesintheclass.Whenstudentsneedhelp,theyhavetoasktheirunfamiliarclassmatesforhelpandsupport.Itisgoodforstudentsbecausetheycancommunicatewiththeirclassmatesfreelyandworktogethertotrytheirbesttosolvetheproblems.Itisalsogoodforteachersbecausetheycantakepartinstudents’discussionandknowstudentsbetter.Inthegroups,thereareguiderscontrollingtheproceeding.Therearepromotersraisingquestions.Therearetimekeepersmanagingtimeduringthediscussion.Therearepresentersshowingtheirfinalresults.Studentshavetheirownassignments.Teachersdon’tneedtoworryaboutstudents’activities.(3)ExplanationThepurposeofexplanationistomaketeachingmaterialseasierthanbeforethroughteachers’explanation.Throughexplanation,studentscanunderstandthe17 definitions,conceptsandgrammaticalrulesbetter.Throughexplanation,thereisarelationbetweenteachersandstudents.Intheperiod,studentscangainanewexperiencewhichcandevotethemselvestoengagingandexploringknowledge.Beforegivinganofficialanswer,studentsshouldgivetheirownexplanationsaboutthelearningmaterials.Thenteacherspresentthetrueexplanationsinadirectandaformalway.Theexplanationmustberelatedtostudents’lifeexperience.Inaddition,basedonlifeexperience,theexplanationmustbeclosetolifeandbeeasiertobeacceptedbystudents.Intheperiod,theclasscanbeteacher-centeredandbook-centeredclass.Intheperiod,studentsarerequiredtosparenoefforttoexplainthedefinitionsandgrammaticalrulesandfindtheevidencefortheirexplanations.Inaddition,studentsareaskedtodiscusswithothersabouttheshowingexplanations.Atthesametime,studentscantakecriticismandcorrectothers’errors.Insteadofteachers’explanations,theirself-evaluationscanshowtheir’reallearninglevels.Intheinquiryprocess,studentspresenttheirexplanations,sharetheirunderstandingsforlearningmaterials,makeconclusionsandfindoutothernewexplanations.Itisachanceforstudentstothinkandcollectarichsupplyofdata.Atfirst,teachersshouldmakeadequateassessmentsonstudents’activities.Atthesametime,throughengagementandexploration,teacherscanhaveabetterunderstandingaboutstudents.Afterexplanations,studentscanasksomequestionswhattheydonotunderstand.Theycanfindanswersbythemselvesorwiththehelpofteachers.Then,itisthemostimportantperiodthatteachersmakeexplanationsaboutteachingmaterials.Teacherscanmakecommentsoneachgroup’sbehaviorandpoints18 outstudents’errors.Theguidelinetobeobservedisthatstudentsshouldfindoutgrammaticalrulesbythemselves.Teachersshouldnotdisturbortroublestudents.Afterteachers’teaching,studentsmayhavegeneralimpressiononthecontext.Sostudentscanusetheirownwordsormakepresentationstoexplaintheknowledge.Inotherwords,theycanshowtheirfinalresults.(4)ElaborationThemainpurposeofelaborationistogivestudentshandstounderstandthedefinitionsandconcepts.Byexpandingstudents’knowledge,theycanhaveabetterunderstandingaboutteachingmaterials.Throughhypothesizing,forminggeneralizations,learningandpracticing,studentscanlearntoapplynewknowledgetolife.Practicemakesperfect.Intheperiod,studentscanhavetimeandspacetothinkanddiscussaboutthelearningmaterials.Teachersareobligedtoremindstudentsofexploringandsolidifytheirunderstandingsoftheconceptandtrystudents’besttoapplynewknowledgetorealworld.Allinall,teachersareguiders,helpers,consultantsandassessorsratherthancontrollersandtimekeepers.Teachersdonotgivestudentsanswersdirectly.What’smore,teacherstakemuchofresponsibilityfortheobservationsratherthaninstruction.Theclassisstudents-centeredclassratherthanteachers-centeredclass.Teacherscannotexplaingrammaticalrulesbythemselvesorexplainhowtodealwiththeproblems.Asforstudents,theyneedtolearnmoreknowledgeandskillswiththeassistofteachers.Studentsalsoneedtolearnapplyingnewknowledgetonewsituation.Studentsneedtobroadentheirhorizonandenrichknowledgetoexperienceadifferentworld.Studentscanusethe19 priorknowledgetoputforwardquestionsandcarryoutexperiments.Studentscandiscusswithothersandsharetheirideasfromdifferentaspects.Teachersoffertheiropportunitiestoexpresstheirthoughtsofscienceandeducation.Studentscanobtaindifferentopinionsfromdifferentlearninglevels.Afterlearningthematerials,studentscanusedetailedwordstodescribethecontext.Thereisachanceforstudentstolearnknowledgemorespecifically.Theycanhaveadeepunderstandingthroughtheirownexploration.(5)EvaluationAfterteachers’teachingandstudents’discussing,studentsneedteachers’evaluation.Evaluationisthefinalperiod.Studentscangetevaluationasmuchaspossible.Withthehelpofteachers,studentscangetimprovementandpromotetheirownabilities.Classroomevaluationsshouldtakeplaceintheclass.Afterstudents’activities,teachersgiveevaluationsabouttheirbehaviors.Itisrelatedtocognitivestrategies.Oxford(1990)dividedevaluationintothreecategories.Thefirstoneisself-monitoring.Itmeansthatlearnersareaskedtonoticeandcorrecttheirownerrorsbythemselves.Theotheroneisself-evaluation.Itmeansthatlearnersshouldkeepaneyeontheirprogress(Oxford,1990).Thepurposeistoencouragestudentstoestablishtheirconfidence.Studentscanhavegeneralimpressionsontheirlearning.Intheperiod,evaluationcanbedividedintostudents’self-evaluationandteachers’evaluation.Inordertogettrueinformationwhatstudentshavelearned,studentsarerequiredtodomoreexercisesandapplythemtorealworld.Afterdoing20 exercises,teachersfetchouttheexaminationpapertoteststudents.Intheperiod,studentsdoexercisesbythemselves.Teachermayhavegeneralimpressionsonstudents’learninglevels.Basedonthestudents’exercises,teacherspointoutsomeerrorsandgivesomesuggestionsonstudents’learning.Teacherspresentdetailedinformationaboutstudents’problems.Atthesametime,teachersenrichstudents’knowledgeandconsolidatetheskills.Teachersshouldmakefullpreparationforevaluation.Althoughtheevaluationisthelastperiodforteachingprocess,itisalsoimportantperiodforteacherstoprepare.Astoteachers,theycanmasterwhatstudentshavelearnedbeforewiththeircriticalthinking.Teacherscangivesuggestionswiththeirprofessionalknowledge.Theycanenrichandconsolidatestudents’skillswiththeirlongteachingexperience.Asforstudents,theycangainmoreprofessionalknowledgeandskillsfromtheirteachers.Throughstudents’self-evaluation,studentscanunderstandtheirowninadequaciesandcorrectthem.Atthesametime,studentscanhaveemotionalcommunication.Ithasapositiveeffectonimprovingstudents’learning.Throughaseriesofobservations,evidencesandpreviouslyevaluations,studentscanimprovetheirindependentthinkingabilityandcreativethinkingability.Itmustbenoticedthatanymeaninglesstopicisnotworthdiscussing.Inaword,thosevitalteachingmethodscanplayasignificanceroleonstudents’learningandteachers’teaching.Basedonthoseteachingmethods,teacherscanhaveabetterunderstandingabouttheteachingmaterials.21 2.2TheoreticalBasisforInquiry-basedTeachingThefollowingsaremanytheoreticalbasesforinquiry-basedteaching.Thereisadetailedintroductionaboutthebasictheoriesofinquiry-basedteaching.2.2.1CooperativeLearningTheorySlavin(2004)proposedthatcooperativelearningtheoryisavarietyofEnglishteachingtechniquesinwhichstudentscarryouttheactivityoflearningwithingroupsandtheyareawardedbytheirgroup’sachievementandproficiency.Cooperativelearningcanshowteamworkspiritandsavestudents’timetosolvequestions.Teamworkisaheatedwordandispopularwithpeople.AccordingtoLaxman(2003),cooperativelearningisdefinedasusingsomesmallgroupssothatstudentscanworktogethertomaximizetheirownandeachothers’learning.Intheprocessofworkingwithothers,studentscangaintheabilitiesofcommunicatingwithothersandteamworkspirit.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodneedscooperativelearningsothatinquiry-basedteachingmethodcancontributetostudents’development.Cooperativelearningprovidesapracticalbasisforinquiry-basedteaching.Forexample,whenstudentshavegroupwork,theycandiscusswitheachotherandcommunicativewiththeirgroupmembers.Itisobviousthatcooperativelearningcanbeappliedininquiry-basedteaching.Cooperativelearningisagroupworkandlearnersneedtocommunicatewithgroupmembers.Studentscanexpressthemselvescompletely.Atthesametime,studentscanbecomethecenteroftheclass.22 2.2.2CognitiveLearningTheoryThetermcognitivismisoftenusedinEnglishteachingandlearningtodescribeprocessesinwhichstudentsarerequiredtothinkindependently.Cognitivelearningtheoryhasapremisethathumansgenerateknowledgeandmeaningthroughsequentialdevelopmentofanindividual’scognitiveabilities(Richards&Rodgers,1996).Manycognitivists,suchasBrunerandVygotsky(1990),advocatedthatcognitivelearningwasaprocessofexplanationsandorganizationtohelplearnerssetupthecognitivelearningsystemsothatlearnerscouldstrengthentheirsynapsesinthebrain.Withthehelpofteachers,studentscanintegratetheirnewknowledgewhattheyhavegained.Atthesametime,studentscandeveloptheircommunicatingabilityandstrengthentheircognitivelearningability.Bruner(1990)advocatedthatthecognitivelearningprocessincludedthreestages,acquisition,transformationandevaluation.Thestagesinfluencethelearners’cognitivelearningacquisitionalmostatthesametime.Bruner(1990)believedthatthegoalofeducationwasintellectualdevelopment.Cognitivelearningtheoryhadfourcomponents,curiosityanduncertainty,structureofknowledge,sequencingandmotivation.Brunerrecommendedthatinstructorscreatecognitivelearningenvironmentthatallowedstudentstointeractwithothers,connecttopriorknowledge,andexpresstheexperienceeitherverballyormathematically(Bruner,1990).Inaword,allthestudiesofcognitivelearningtheoryofferalotoftheoreticalbaseforinquiry-basedteaching.Cognitivistspaycloseattentiontothecombinationofstudents’priorEnglishknowledgeandstudents’newEnglishknowledge.Duetothe23 diversityofthestudentsanddistinctionsofindividuals’cognitivestructure,thecurriculumdesignshouldcorrespondtolearners’levels.2.2.3ConstructivistLearningTheoryGlasersfeld(2001)indicatesthatconstuctivismisawayofexploringknowledge.Atthesametime,constructivistlearningcanrecognizetherealworldasasourceofknowledge.Constuctivismisbasedonthetrueexperienceandtruelife.Studentscangainmuchknowledgefromtheirlives’experienceandtheknowledgeisclosedtotheirlives.Basedonthis,knowledgeisnotillusory.Itisgoodforthesestudentstohavealotoflifeexperience.Genuineknowledgecomesfrompractices.Itiscertainthateducationcanmakearelationbetweennewknowledgeandlifeexperience.Thefinalpurposeoflearningistousewhatpeoplehavelearnedratherthanrepeatfrommemory.JohnDewey(1990),whowasthefirstonetoproposeconstructivistlearningtheory,advocatedthatlearningwastobuildarelationbetweentheirlearningandtheirlivesexperience.Teachersattempttoarousestudents’interestandengagestudentsinlearningactivities.Slavin(2004)advocatedthatconstructivistlearningstrategieswereoftencalledstudent-orientedinstruction.Fromthesentence,wecanseeconstructivistlearningtheorypaysmuchattentiontostudents-centeredclass.Teacherschangetheirrolesfromclasscontrollerstoguiders,assessors,facilitatorsandhelpers.Inaword,constructivistlearningtheoryprovidesafoundationforinquiry-basedteaching.Byestablishingtherelationshipbetweenstudents’interestandgrammar24 teaching,studentscanhavethechancetoexploregrammaranswersratherthanrememberinggrammaticalruleswhicharegivenbyteachers.Intheprocess,studentscannotonlygaingrammaticalrulesbutalsocultivatetheirownthinkingabilityandcreativityability.Studentscannotonlylearngrammaticalrulesbutalsogetlearningability.Theycanlearnhowtoanalyzeproblemsandsolveproblems.2.2.4HumanisticTheoryHumanistictheorystressesthatstudents’roleintheclass.Ininquiry-basedteachingmethod,studentsareinquirersinsteadofpassivereceiversintheprocessoftransmissionofknowledge(Glasersfeld,2001).Studentscanhavetheirownthoughtsandideas.Studentscancommunicatewiththegroupmembersratherthanlisteningtoteachers.Teacherscanencouragethemandguidethem.StudentsareactiveparticipantsinlearningEnglishgrammarininquiry-basedteachingmethod.Questionsraisedinclasshelpstudentsunderstandandsynthesizeknowledgebetter(Bucker&Kim,2014).Humanistictheorypaysmuchattentiontoindividual’sdevelopment.Inquiry-basedteachingmethod,whichisdifferentfromthetraditionalteachingapproach,isbasedontheconceptthathumansareactiveconstructorsoftheirownknowledge,insteadofpassivereactorstotheenvironmentorareproducerofotherpeople’sunderstanding(Bucker&Kim,2014).Studentscangainknowledgebycommunicatingwithothersanddiscussingwithclassmates.Studentscansharetheirideasandinquiremoreknowledge.Fromtheviewofhumanism,thelearnerisanactiveparticipatorwhousesintellectual,social,emotionalandphysicalresourcesand25 isthereforenotmerelyacognitiveinformationprocessingmachine(Wang,2008).Firstly,studentslearntogetknowledgefrompreviousexperience.Andthentheypredictwhatwillbethenextstep.Teachingmethodsemployastrategyandacommitmenttogroupwork.Studentsneedtocooperatewithotherstostrengthentheirunderstandingsofthelearningmaterials(Liu,2016).Studentsarethecenteroftheclass,sotheyshouldoccupythedominantposition.Laxman(2003),oneofthegreatesthumanisticeducatorsclaimedthatallthestudentsweretreatedfairlyandwereputintothecenterofthewholeclass.Inaword,peopleneedtobeallrounddevelopmentandadaptthemselvestothesociety’sdevelopment.Soteachersmustcultivatestudentsindependentabilityandinquiryability.Thepurposeistoacceleratestudents’physicaldevelopmentandmentaldevelopment.Humanistictheoryalsoprovidesatheoreticalbasisforinquiry-basedteaching.Accordingtothetraditionalteachingmethod,teachersteachknowledgeandstudentsacceptit.Theteachingmethodisinflexibleandrigid.Inquiry-basedteachingaimstoimprovestudents’abilityandcultivatetheirscientificquality.Inquiry-basedteachingstressesthatstudentsarethecenterintheclass.Teacherscanencouragestudentsandguidethem.Studentscanhavetheirownthoughtsandideas.Studentscancommunicatewiththegroupmembersinsteadoflisteningtoteachers.Studentscanhavethechancetoexploregrammaranswersinsteadofrememberingthegrammaticalruleswhicharegivenbyteachers.26 2.3GrammarTeachingThefollowingsarethedefinitionandthemodelsofgrammar.Thedetailedinformationaboutgrammarwillbeintroducedinthefollowingpart.2.3.1TheDefinitionsofGrammarTherearemanydefinitionsofgrammar.Differenteducatorsandresearchershavedifferentdefinitionsofgrammar.Thefollowingsaredetaileddefinitionsofgrammar.Browndefinedgrammarasasystemofrules.Learnerscanchangewordsandphrasesformsandcombinethemintosentences(Brown,1994).Itisobviousthatmuchattentionshouldbepaidtotheorganizationofthewords.Bastone(1994)stressedthatgrammarwasnotonlyalanguagebutalsoatool.Grammarnotonlyincludeslanguagestructuresbutalsocontainsmanygrammarrules.Atthesametime,grammarisatool.Learnerscanuseittocommunicatewithotherpeopleandsharetheirideasandthoughts.Itisobviousthatthedefinitionofgrammarpaysmuchattentionstoitspracticalapplication.RichardSuchman(1993)claimedthatgrammarwasadescriptionofthelinguisticunits.Grammarcandescribelanguagestructures,wordsandphrases,compriselanguagesentences,whichusuallyincludesthemeaningsandthefunctionsofthesentencesineachlanguagesystem.Larsen-Freeman(2003)stressedthatgrammarwasaskillratherthanknowledge.Learnersneedtopayattentiontogrammarrulesandgrammarforms.Atthesametime,learnersneedtounderstandthedefinitionofgrammarandusegrammarproperly.Educatorsgavedetaileddefinitionsofgrammar.Fromthedefinitionsof27 grammarlistedabove,whenweneedtodescribeandorganizelanguage,wecanregardgrammarasaruleandasystem.Atthesametime,whenweneedtousegrammarinourpracticallives,wecanregardgrammarasaskill.OnlyinthiswaycanwehaveagoodcommandofEnglishgrammar.2.3.2TheModelsofGrammarTeachingTherearemanydifferentmodelsaboutgrammarteaching.Amongthesemodelsofgrammarteaching,deductivemethodandinductivemethodmostlyarewellknownbypeople(Wen,2015).Thedetailinformationarepresentedasfollows.Thedeductivemethodisbasedonreasoning,analyzingandcomparing.Atfirst,teachersexplainthegrammaticalrulesandwriteanexampleontheblackboard.Teachersshouldexplaintenses,formsandpositionsaboutthegrammaticalrules.Studentslistentoteachers’requirementanddotheproperexercises.Withtimelyexercises,studentscanhaveabetterunderstandingaboutthegrammaticalrules.Atthesametime,thelearningactivitiescanhaveagreateffectonstudents’learning.Studentscanpracticerulesinflexibly.Theinductivemethodmainlystressesthatacquiringgrammaticalrulesnaturally.Inotherwords,ifgivenmoresentencesexamples,studentscangainmoreinformationabouttherules.Studentscaninducethegrammaticalrulesbydiscussingwithothersorinquiry-basedteaching.Churchman(1990)concludedthatinductivemethodcouldbecalledasdowntotoplearningmethods.Larsen-Freeman(2003)madethedefinitionmorespecificallythatteachercreatedtheauthenticlanguagedataforstudentsandtriedtoinducethelearnerstoconcludetheruleswithoutmany28 explanations.2.4RelationbetweenInquiry-basedTeachingandGrammarTeachingGrammarteachingisveryimportantintheclass.Firstly,itisthemostessentialpartinEnglishlearning.Listening,speaking,readingandwritingallneedgrammartosupport.Withtimegoingby,Englishplaysanimportantroleoninternationalcommunication.Nowadays,moreandmorepeoplepayattentiontotheimportanceoflearningEnglish,especiallyinreadingandgrammar.ItisabigchallengewhenstudentscannotlearnEnglishgrammarwell.However,itisstillteachers’centerclassratherthanstudents’centerclass.Teacherscontroltheclassandbecometheclassmasters.Afterlistinggrammaticalrulesontheblackboardandintroducingthemintheirmothertongue,studentsmaydoexercisesasmuchaspossible.Itisahightimetochangethetraditionalwayofgrammarteachingandstudentsshouldbeputinthecentraloftheclassroomteaching.Studentsshouldbeguidedtolearnthegrammaritemsbyindividualstudyingandteamwork.Basedontheinquiry-basedteaching,whenteachinggrammar,teachersshouldstressthestudents’ownexploration,whichcanmakestudentshaveabetterunderstandingontheusageofgrammaticalrules.Theinquiry-basedteachingcontainsseveralsteps,butthemaincourseofthemethodistomakefulluseofthestudents’independentthinking,self-explorationandteamworkspirit.Atthesametime,inquiry-basedteachingcanreduceteachers’workstressandgiveteachersmore29 freedom.Inquiry-basedteachingcaninvolveallthestudentsintheclass.StudentswhohavegoodEnglishfoundationsandhighgradescanhelpthosestudentswhohavelowgradeanddonotunderstandEnglishgrammarlearngrammarbetter.Thereislearningatmosphereintheclass.Studentscandiscusswiththeirgroupmembersandsharetheirownideaswhentheyresearchthecommontopic.Itcanacceleratestudents’developmentandgivestudentsmanychancestothinkofquestions.Studentswilllearnthematerialseffectivelyandhappily.Atthemeanwhile,studentscanimprovetheircommunicatingabilityandbroadentheireyes.Theycanpondergrammarproblemscomprehensivelyanddiscusswiththeirgroupmembers.Inquiry-basedteachingcanenhancethesubjectconsciousnessandasenseofparticipation.Themostimportantthingisinquiry-basedteachingcancultivatestudents’learninghabits.Withteachers’guidance,studentscanfindgrammaticalrulesbythemselves.Teacherisahelper,aguidanceandanassessorratherthanacontroller,amaster.Inquiry-basedteachingplaysanimportantroleingrammarteaching.Inotherwords,inquiry-basedteachingstressesthestudents’comprehensivelearningabilities.Withtheteacher’sguidance,thestudentscanobtaingrammarknowledgeactively,theycanmakefulluseoftheirformerknowledgeandlifeexperience.Oncethegrammaticalrulesareformedintheirmindscorrectly,theycanrememberthegrammarpointslongerandeasier(Larsen-Freeman,2003).Consequently,thestudents’understandingofthegrammarpointaredeepenedwiththehelpofinquiry-basedteaching.Littlebylittle,thestudents’interestsingrammarteachingcan30 beimproved.Atlast,students’scorecanalsobeincreasedininquiry-basedteaching.2.5PreviousStudiesonInquiry-basedTeachingAppliedinGrammarTeachingTherearemanypreviousstudiesoninquiry-basedteaching.Thechapterincludespreviousresearchesoninquiry-basedteachingabroadandpreviousresearchesoninquiry-basedteachinginChina.Thefollowingisthedetailedinformation.2.5.1PreviousStudiesatHomeLarsen-Freeman(2003)isthefirstpersonwhoadvocatedinquiry-basedteachingandappliedtheinquiry-basedteachingintheexperiment.Studentsareencouragedtothinkofquestionsandexploretheanswersbythemselves,whichistheprototypeofinquirybasedteaching.Teacherwouldnotgivestudentshintandhelpuntiltheyhadgonethroughactiveandinvestigativelearningsothatstudentscouldhaveadeeperunderstandingaboutwhattheyhadlearned(Qi&Liang,2014).WangDan(2008),agreateducatorinChina,putforwardthatlearnersshouldnotrecitethetextbook’scontextwithoutthinking.Larsen-Freeman(2003)assertedthatlearningknowledgeisaperson’slifelongcareerandpeopleshouldlearnindependentthinkingandindependentlearning,whichweretheessenceofinquiry-basedteaching.Theoreticalresearcheshavebeendevelopedrapidlyattheendof1990s.ShanxiProvinceheldanexperimentaboutGuiding,ThinkingandInquiringExperimentin1991.AresearchintoteachingmethodwouldbeheldinGuangdongProvincenextyear.Withtimegoingby,theteachingmethodofinquiry-basedteachingcomesinto31 being.In1993,BrendaLansdown,anAmericaneducator,didaseriesofexperimentstoillustratehisproposal.Atthesameyear,manyscholarsandeducatorswereinfluencedbythisbook,ElementarySchoolScienceEducationofExploration-DiscussionTeachingMethod,werecontinuingtosearchandexploreinquiry-basedteaching.ThefirstBasicEducationCurriculumReformsymbolizedaneweraforinquiry-basedteaching.Itwasthefirsttimetohaveasystemforcurriculum.Italsogaveresearchersmorechancestodevelopnewteachingmethods.TheBasicEducationCurriculumReformOutlinewaspublishedin2001whichmeanseducatorsputtingmuchenergyoninquiry-basedteaching.TheEnglishCurriculumStandardrefersthatteachingobjectivesaredividedintothreeparts,knowledgeobjects,abilityobjectsandmoralobjects.StudentsnotonlyneedtolearnmanyEnglishvocabulariesandphrasesbutalsoneedtodeveloptheirabilitiesoflistening,reading,writingandspeaking.Differentteachingmethodscanmakestudentsbeinterestedinstudy.StudentsareeagertogetmoreknowledgeaboutEnglishgrammarandfrightentoexpresstheiropinionsinEnglish.Inaword,manyresearchesandstudiesareimpartedfromforeigners.ManyChinesescholarsandeducatorsneedtospendmoreenergyonexploringinquiry-basedteaching.Englishgrammarresearchersalsoneedtolearnhowtoapplythenewteachingmethodtoclassandhowtoplayaroleonclass.2.5.2PreviousStudiesAbroadTherearemanystudiesaboutinquiry-basedteachingfromhometoabroad.Inthewesterncountries,H.E.Armstrongwasthefirstpersonwhoputforwardthe32 inquiry-basedteaching.H.E.Armstrong(1993)demandedstudentstolearnbythemselvesandthinkbythemselves.Inquiry-basedteaching,justlikeothergrowingthings,hasdevelopedrapidly.Itneedstohavearootandgrowup.David(2001)pointedoutthataneffectivelanguagecommunicationwasacombinationoffunctionalunderstanding,properformandfunction.Aneffectivelanguagecommunicationshouldbeunifiedwiththecombinationoflingualcontextandnon-lingualcontextlanguageteaching.Inthe20thcentury,FrencheducatorJ.J.Rousseauenrichedanddevelopedthetheteachingmethod.Inquiry-basedteachingbegantoberecognizedandacceptedwidelyasanewteachingmethod.Peoplehavethenaturalmindofinquiringandthinking,whichmeanslayingfoundationsforinquiry-basedteaching.In1993,itisthefirsttimeforGermaneducatorDeccotoputforwardtheword“exploration”.GermaneducatorDecco(1996)thoughtinquiry-basedteachingmethodshouldbeappliedtosciencefieldratherthaneducationfield.Sothereisalongtimeforwesterneducatorsresearchingmistakenly.Atlast,H.E.Armstrong(1994),whowasaBritishchemistandeducator,stressedapplyingtheword“inquiry”toteaching.Attheendof20thcentury,J.Deweywhowasfamousforresearchingteachingmethodputforwardthatinquiry-basedteachingshouldbeappliedintheclass.Becauseoftheimportantdecision,manyscholarsandeducatorsdevotedthemselvestoeducation.J.Deweyhadrecognizedtheshortcomingsoftheexistinginquiry-basedteaching.Sohemadeadecisionthathewouldworkonresearchinginquiry-basedteaching.Thetheoryofinquiry-basedteachinghadbeenpopularwithpeopleforalongtime.Atthattime,33 anotherAmericaneducatorSlavinwasconcentratedonstudytheteachingmethodmorecarefully.Asisknowntousall,theinvestigatordevotedhimselftotheresearch.Theresearchsubjectiscompletelyconvincedbypeople.Thetheorybecamemorespecificandlogical.Slavin(2004)namedthetheoryas“inquiry-basedteaching”formally.Soafterthat,somescholarsandresearchersalldevotedthemselvestoconservingandappreciatingthevalueofinquiry-basedteaching,suchasBrunerandSuchman.Atthemiddleof20thcentury,therewasanewfindingaboutinquiry-basedteaching,whichisnamedas“DiscoveryLearning”.From1980to1990,becauseinquiry-basedteachinghasbeenrecognizedbyalleducatorandscholars,othersbegantoresearchsometeachingmethodsaboutinquiry-basedteaching.Itwasahighlysignificantdiscoveryforresearchfield.In1990,ithadbecomeaoutstandingtheoryandhadestablishedanewpatternforeducationcurriculum.What’smore,itisnotonlyateachingmethodbutalsoacriteriontochooseteachingcontentforacourse.In1990,moreandmoreeducatorsandscholarswereinterestedininquiry-basedteaching.Sincetherevolutionofscienceeducationbrokeoutinsomewesterncountries,somecurriculumstandardspromotedinquiry-basedteaching,suchastheAmericanNationalScienceEducationStandards,BritishNationalScienceEducationStandards.Inaddition,thereweresomebooksadvocatingsometheoryasapracticeguidinginquiry-basedteaching.Inaword,H.E.Armstrongwasthefirstoneadvocatinginquiry-basedteaching.Atthesametime,thetheoryhasbeenenrichedanddevelopedforalongtime.With34 timegoingby,morerefinedmethodshavebeengiven.Moreover,inquiry-basedteachingisprovedtoberightconstantly.Researchersandscholarshavemadecontributiontoexploringthetheorybasesofinquiry-basedteaching.35 Chapter3MethodologyBasedonwhathavementionedinchaptertwo,chapterthreeincludestheresearchquestions,subjects,instrumentsandprocedures.Withtheguidanceofthesetheories,practicemayhavegreatimprovement.Thechapterismainlyabouttheexperimentandresults.3.1ResearchQuestionsTheauthorappliedinquiry-basedteachingtojuniorhighschoolEnglishgrammarteaching,intendingtotestifytheeffectsofthethisteachingmethodinEnglishgrammarincludingtheeffectsonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesofstudents’interestsingrammarlearning.Thoseweretheresearchquestions:(1)Whataretheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency?(2)Whatarethechangesofstudents’interestsingrammarlearning?Thesetwoquestionswillbeexploredthroughtheinstrumentofquestionnaires,thepre-testandpost-test,theinterviewandthewholeexperimentalprocess.3.2ResearchSubjectsThesubjectswere98studentsfromLiaoningProvinceShiyanHighSchool.Theywerealltheparticipantsinthisexperiment.Allofthemhadalreadyachieveda36 certainlanguageabilityandhadmasteredsomewordsandthebasicgrammaticalrules.Furthermore,allofthesestudents,whowerementallyindependentandfullofcuriosity,wereactiveinlearninggrammar.Andtheyhadacertainabilityofteamwork,sotheywereabletofinishallthegrammartasksinthisexperiment.ThestudentswereinGrade8.50studentswereinClass5,while48studentswerefromClass6.Therewere30boysand20girlsinClass5.Therewere26boysand22girlsinClass6.Theaverageageoftwoclasseswas15years.TherewasthesameEnglishteacherteachingbothclasses.Atthesametime,98studentsallusedthesametextbookwhichwaspublishedbyPEP.Thetwoclasseshadgotnearlysamegradesinlastsemester.Atthepresenttime,itwasagoodchancefortheauthortostarttheexperiment.Class5wasselectedasthecontrolclasswhereteacherteachEnglishgrammarinatraditionalway.Class6wasselectedastheexperimentalclasswhereteachertaughtEnglishgrammarininquiry-basedteachingmethod.Inordertoavoiddataerror,theauthordidnottellanyonethattheteachingmethodsusedintwoclasseswasdifferent.Toensurethevalidityandthereliabilityoftheexperiment,allthestudentsintheECandtheCCwereaskedtoparticipateinthepre-testtofindoutwhethertheirlearningabilitywereatasimilarlevel.Theteachingmethodsinthesetwoclassesweredifferent.Theauthortaughtgrammaticalrulesasusualinthecontrolclass.Theauthortaughtthesamegrammaticalrulesininquiry-basedteachingintheexperimentalclasswhichemphasizedmoreontheessenceoftheactivities.What’more,thesetwoclassedhadthesamegrammartaskseachperiod.37 3.3InstrumentsTheexperimentwasaimedatfindingoutthespecificeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesofstudents’interestsinngrammarlearning.Inordertoensurethedatacorrectandreliable,theauthoradoptedfourkindsofinstrumentsintheresearch.Theywerequestionnaire,interview,pre-testandpost-test.Throughtheanalyzingoftheexperimentalresult,theauthorcouldgetaconclusionaboutthedifferencebetweenthetraditionalteachingwayandinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Thequestionnairecouldbeusedtwicewhichwerebeforethestudyandafterthestudy.Beforethestudy,thequestionnairecouldbeusedtofindoutthedifficultyofstudents’learningEnglishgrammar.Interviewinstrumentcouldguaranteethetestresults’authenticity.Eachofthemwerepresentedinadetaildescriptioninthefollowingparts.3.3.1QuestionnaireTheauthoradoptedtwokindsofquestionnaireswhichwerepre-questionnaire(seeAppendixA)andpost-questionnaire(seeAppendixB).Therewere10itemsaltogetherinthisquestionnaire.Allthesequestionsweredesignedtoinvestigatethecurrentsituationaboutstudents’attitudesandopinionstowardsEnglishgrammarbeforetheexperimentintheexperimentalclass.Thequestionnairewasadoptedintheexperimentalclassaftertheexperiment,whichwasaimedatknowingthechangeofstudents’attitudesandopinionstowardsEnglishgrammarafterthisexperiment.Andthecomparisonofthesetworesultscouldindicatetheeffectsofapplying38 inquiry-basedteachinginEnglishgrammarteaching.Thetwokindsofquestionnaireswasconductedintheexperimentalclass.Studentswereaskedtofinishthepre-questionnairebeforetheexperiment.Atthesametime,studentswerealsoaskedtofinishthepost-questionnaireaftertheexperiment.Toensurethatallthestudentscouldunderstandthequestionsandchosetheproperoptions,thetwokindsofquestionnairesweredesignedinChinese.Eachquestionnairehadtenquestions,whichincludedmanyaspects.Inthepre-questionnaire,question1,2weremainlyaboutwhetherstudentswereinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammarornot.Question3,4werestudents’learningattitudetowardsEnglishgrammar.Question5,6,7werelearningobstaclesaboutgrammarlearning.Question8,9,10weresomeevaluationsafterEnglishgrammarlearning.Inthepost-questionnaire,question1,2wasstudents’evaluationaboutinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Question3,4paidmoreattentiontotheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Question5,6,7werestudents’interestandattitudetowardslearningEnglishgrammar.Question8,9,10werethestudents’grammarlearningsatisfactions.Beforetheexperiment,studentswererequiredtowritethepre-questionnaire.Inaddition,alltheresponsesofthesequestionsweredesignedinthefive-pointscale,stronglyagree,agree,uncertain,disagreeandstronglydisagree.StudentsweredemandedtochooseonlyoneanswertoexpresstheirideasaboutEnglishgrammarlearning.Afterfinishingthequestionnaire,studentswererequiredtowriteanswerswithouttheirnames.Thegradesandpercentagescouldrepresentstudents’attitudes39 towardsEnglishgrammar.3.3.2InterviewTheauthorconductedaninterview(seeAppendixC)aftertheexperimentasasupplementaryinvestigationtofindoutthestudents’subjectiveideasoftheapplicationofinquiry-basedteaching,fromwhichtheauthorcouldmakeananalysisabouttheeffectiveofinquiry-basedteachinginEnglishgrammarteaching.Theinterviewcanteststudents’learninginterestandtheirchangestowardsEnglishgrammarlearningexactly.Theinterviewwouldbecarriedoutaftertheexperiment.Theauthorchoseninestudentswhohaddifferentlearningabilityfromexperimentalclassrandomly.Threewerehigh-levellearners,threeweremiddle-levellearnersandthreewerelow-levellearners.Allofthemwereinterviewees.Theinterviewhappenedinteacher’sofficesothatalltheintervieweescouldexpresstheirthoughtsaccurately.ThequestionswhatweredesignedareChineseversionsothatstudentscouldunderstandthembetter.StudentswereallowedtoanswerthesequestionsinEnglishorinChinese,becausethemainpurposeofthisinterviewwastocollecttheirviewsabouttheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingandtheiropinionstowardsEnglishgrammarafterthisexperimentstudy.Thecontentsofthequestionsweremainlyaboutstudents’learninginteresttowardsEnglishgrammarlearningandeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Duringtheinterview,allstudents’wordswererecordedbythetaperecordersincaseofmakingmistakes.Thefirstquestionwasdesignedtofindoutstudents’achievementwhenapplying40 inquiry-basedteachingmethodtotheclass.ItcouldreflectwhetherstudentshaveimprovementinEnglishgrammartosomeextent.Atthesametime,itcanaskstudentstoprovidesomeadviceonimprovingtheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Thesecondquestionwasdesignedtoinvestigatewhethertherewasadifferencebetweeninquiry-basedteachingandotherteachingmethods.Itcouldhelptheauthortomakesomesupplementinfurtherstudies.ThethirdquestionwasdesignedtofindoutwhetherstudentslikedtheEnglishclassthatusedinquiry-basedteachingmethod,fromwhichtheauthorcouldfindoutstudents’attitudetowardsEnglishgrammarclasses,anditcouldreflectwhetherstudentswereinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammartosomeextent.Thefourthquestionwasdesignedtoinvestigatewhethertheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachinginjuniorhighschoolEnglishgrammarwasfavorabletoimprovingstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyornot,whichcouldprovidetheauthorageneralideaabouttheefficiencyofinquiry-basedteachinginthisexperiment.Thelastquestionwasdesignedtoaskstudents’groupdiscussionintheclass,whichcouldreflectwhetherstudentswereactiveinlearningEnglishgrammar.3.3.3Pre-testandPost-testThereweretwokindsoftests,includingthepre-test(seeAppendixD)andpost-test(seeAppendixE).TheauthorchosethefinalEnglishtestpaperofthesecondtermin2015-2016asthetest.Thetotalscoreofeachtestwas75.Thecontentoftest41 includederrorcorrection,clozetestandblankfilling.Studentswereaskedtofinishthetestinfortyfiveminutesinthesameperiod.Toensurethevalidityandreliabilityoftheexperiment,allthetestpapersofthepre-testandpost-testwerescoredbythesameteacher.Inaddition,theteacherhadthesamemarkingstandards.Pre-testplayedaveryimportantroleontestingstudents’grades.Thepre-testwasconductedintheexperimentalclassandthecontrolclassinthesameperiodbeforetheexperimentteachingtofindoutwhetherthereweresignificantdifferenceaboutthestudents’grammarlearningproficiencyinthesetwoclasses,whichintendedtoensurethereliabilityoftheexperiment.Thepre-testwasaboutthepresentcontinuoustensewhichwasrelatedtotheteachingmaterialsintheexperimentalclass.Thecontentofpre-testincludederrorcorrection,clozetestandblankfilling.Inquiry-basedteachingwithdifferentgroupsdiscussiondidmakesomeinfluenceontheeffectofinquiry-basedteaching,andtheimprovementinthegrammarlearningproficiencyofthemixedgroup,whichconsistedofstudentsindifferentlearningability,wasthebest.Itcanensurethevalidityandthereliabilityofthisexperiment.Beforetheexperiment,thetwoclasseshadthenearlysamegradesintheformalend-termexamination.Sotheyallhadthesamedegreeoflearninglevels.Inordertoavoidpreparationforthepre-test,studentstooktheexaminationbeforethebeginningofthefirstEnglishclass.Thepost-testwhichwasaimedatconfirmingtheeffectsofapplyinginquiry-basedteachingtoEnglishgrammarteachingwascarriedoutaftertheexperimentteachingintheECandCCinthesameperiodtofindoutwhetherthere42 weredifferencesaboutthestudentsgrammarlearningproficiencyintheexperimentalclassandthecontrolclass.Thecontentofpost-testincludederrorcorrection,clozetestandblankfilling.Itismainlyaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.TheresultsofthesetwotestwereanalyzedquantitativelybyusingSPSS22.0tofindouttheeffectofthisexperiment.3.4ProcedureTheexperimentwasconductedinShenyangJuniorHighSchool.Therewere98studentsfromeightGradeastheparticipants,fromSeptember11thtoDecember28thin2017.Theexperimentwasgoingonfornearlythreemonths.Inthisexperiment,theauthorwastheEnglishteacherofthesetwoclasses.Duringthethree-monthexperiment,theinquiry-basedteachingmethodwasusedinexperimentalclass.ThestudentslearnedEnglishgrammarasusualinthecontrolclass.Andthereweretotally8-timegrammarteachinginthewholeexperimentintheexperimentalclassandeachgrammarteachingcostonelesson.Eachlessonlastedfor45minutes.ThestudentsintheECclassweredividedintoseveralgroupsaccordingtotheirseatarrangementandeachgrouphasfourstudentsforthesakeofsomeparticularteachingstepsoftheinquiry-basedteaching.Allstudentswerewillingtocooperatewiththeauthoranddidtheexperiment.Thefollowingisthebasicprocedureofinquiry-basedteachinginexperimentalclass.Thelessonwasunit5fromthetextbookandthetopicwas“IamwatchingTV”.ThetextbookwaspublishedbyPEP.Studentsneedstolearnhowtousethepresent43 continuoustense.Step1,lead-in.Theauthoraskedstudentstolookatthepicturesonthetextbook.Theauthorgavestudentsthirtysecondstothinkaboutthequestionswhatstudentscouldseeinthepicture.Thentheauthoraskedsomestudentstoanswerthequestions,suchassomeonewaswatchingTV,aboywasreadingabookandagirlwasdoingherhomework.Sincestudentswereinspiredbythesemeaningfulsentences,studentsmightbemuchcuriousaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.Step2,groupdiscussion.Afterknowingaseriesofthepresentcontinuoustensesentences,studentsdiscussedwiththeirgroupmembersandsharedtheirownthoughtsaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.Studentsexploredthethebasicstructureofthepresentcontinuoustensebythemselves.Studentstriedtheirbesttogeneralizethesimilaritiesandgavethebasicstructureofthepresentcontinuoustense.Studentsworkedingroupsanddiscussedwhetherthereweresomesimilaritiesamongthesesentences.Studentsmadeadefinitionforthepresentcontinuoustenseandnoticedthechangeoftheverb“be”withthechangeofthesubject.Atthesametime,studentsnoticedwhatwordswereregularandwhatwordswereirregular.Studentsrememberedthewordswhethertheyneedtotakeoff“e”adding“ing”ordoublewritethelastletteradding“ing”.Step3,presentation.Studentspointedoutthebasicstructureofthepresentcontinuoustenseandtriedtheirbesttogivemuchexamples.Atlast,studentsgavethesummaryaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.Finally,theauthormadeasummaryaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.44 Step4,explanation.Theauthorgaveanexplanationaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.Afterexplanation,manystudentshadbeenawareofthegrammaticalrules.Therulewas“subject+be+doing”.Thedefinitionofthepresentcontinuoustensewasthatthesubjectwasdoingsomethingatpresentoratthepresentstage.Step5,practice.Theauthoraskedstudentstodosomeexercisesaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.Studentsneedtodoexercisesaboutthebasicstructureofthepresentcontinuoustense,thechangeoftheverb“be”andsomeregularwordsandirregularwords.Studentscandiscusswitheachotherwhentheyhavequestions.Finally,studentsgavetheanswersabouttheexercises.Theauthorgavetherightanswerandmakeasummaryaboutthepresentcontinuoustense.Step6,homework.Theauthoraskedstudentstodosomeexercisesaboutthepresentcontinuoustense,suchasthebasicstructureofthepresentcontinuoustense,thechangeoftheverb“be”andsomeregularwordsandirregularwords.Atthesametime,studentsneedtothinkwhattheyhadlearnedintheclass.3.5DataCollectionThedatawereallcollectedtogetherbytheauthorfromthejuniorhighschool.Inthisexperiment,theauthoradoptedtwotesttocollecttherelateddata,includingthepre-testandpost-test.TheauthorchosethefinalEnglishtestpaperofthesecondtermin2015-2016asthetest.Andthereweretworeasonschoosingthetestpaper.Ontheonehand,itcouldguaranteethevalidityandauthorityoftesting;ontheotherhand,thetestpaperwascoincidentwiththeirteachingschedulewhichcouldensurethat45 studentswerefamiliarwiththegrammarlearningandhadacertaingrammarfoundation,whichcouldensurethefeasibilityandcredibilityoftheresearch.Atthebeginningofthisstudy,thepre-testwasconductedintheexperimentalclassandthecontrolclasstoinvestigateallthesestudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandtotestifytherewasnosignificancebetweenstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyinthesetwoclassesbeforetheexperiment.Allthetestpaperswerescoredbytheauthoraccordingtothesamemarkingstandards.Meanwhile,thepre-questionnairewasconductedintheexperimentalclasstofigureoutstudents’opinionstowardsEnglishgrammarlearning.Allthestudentswereaskedtofinishthequestionnairesin10minutes.Andattheendofthestudy,thepost-testwascarriedoutinthesetwoclassestoinvestigatetheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency,andallthetestpaperswerescoredbytheauthoraccordingtothesamemarkingstandards.Thescoresofallthesestudents’inthepre-testwereusedforthecomparativeanalysiswiththescoresofallthesestudents’inthepost-testtoverifytheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Andthepost-questionnairewascarriedoutintheexperimentalclasstofigureoutstudents’opinionstowardsEnglishgrammarlearningaftertheexperiment.Allthestudentswereaskedtofinishthequestionnairesin10minutes.Theinterviewwasalsoconductedintheexperimentalclassattheendoftheexperimenttoinvestigatetheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesofstudents;interestingrammarlearning.Nine46 studentswereinterviewedindividuallyintheteachers’office,andtheyexpresstheirideasinChineseorEnglish,andtheiropinionswerewrittendownanonymouslyonlywiththeclassificationofdifferentgroups.3.6DataAnalysisTheauthorusedquantitativeandqualitativemethodtoanalyzeallthedataobtainedfromtheinstruments.Allthetestpaperswerescoredbythesameteacheraccordingtothesamestandardmarkingrules.TheresultsofthesetwotestswereanalyzedthroughusingtheSPSS22.0.Andthestatisticalanalysisofthepre-testresultensuredwhethertherewasdiscrepancyaboutstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyintheexperimentalclassandthecontrolclass.Andthecomparinganalysisbetweenthepre-testandpost-testresultsdemonstratedtheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Theresultscanprovedtheeffectivenessoftheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachinginthisstudy.Andthequantitativeandqualitativeanalysisoftheresultsofthequestionnairesalsotoldtheeffectivenessoftheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachinginthisstudyandthushelpedtoanswertheresearchquestions.Thequalitativeanalysisoftheinterviewresultsactedasasupplementaryinstructionofthestudy.47 Chapter4ResultsandDiscussionTheChapterincludesageneralintroductionaboutthefinalresultsandthediscussion.Itincludestwoparts.Thefirstpartcontainsthedetailedinformationaboutresults.Thesecondpartincludesthediscussiononeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesonstudents’interestongrammarteaching.Alldataisgiventrulyandeffectively.4.1ResultsTheresultsofthethesiswerecollectedfromquestionnaires,interview,pre-testandpost-test.Bothquantitativeandqualitativemethodswereusedtoanalyzetheresearchdata,whichcouldplayaneffectiveroleinexplainingtheresearchquestionsmentionedinChapterthree.Thequantitativemethodscouldprovidesystematicalanalysisfortheexperiment,whilethequalitativemethodsplayaroleinexpoundingtheinternalreasonsoftheresearchquestions.4.1.1ResultsoftheQuestionnairesStudentsintheexperimentalclasswereaskedtodothesamequestionnairebeforetheexperimentandaftertheexperiment.Thepurposewastoexplorethechangesonstudents’interestingrammarlearning.Therearestudents’attitudestowardsEnglishgrammarlearninginthefollowingtable4.1.48 Table4.1TheDescriptiveDataofPre-questionnaireChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion136%1838%510%1838%48%Question2510%36%1634%36%2144%N=Number,P=PercentageInthepre-questionnaire,question1,2mainlyinvestigateswhetherstudentsareinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammarornot.Inthetable,ontheonehand,44percentstudentsareinterestedinlearningEnglish.Amongofthem,6percentstudentshavestronglyinterestsinEnglishgrammar.Ontheotherhand,46percentstudentsarenotinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammar.TheystressthatEnglishgrammaristoodifficulttolearn.Amongofthem,8percentstudentsstronglydisagreethattheylikeEnglishgrammarlearning.10percentstudentsareuncertainwhethertheyareinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammarornot.Astoquestion2,thestudentswhoareinterestedinEnglishgrammarlearningarewillingtospendtheirsparetimeonEnglishgrammarlearning.Butonly16percentstudentsarereadyforlearninggrammarandtheyspendsparetimereviewingEnglishgrammar.Amongofthem,10percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheyarewillingtospendtimeonlearningEnglishgrammar.50percentstudentsdonothavetimeinlearningEnglishgrammar.Amongofthem,44percentstudentsstronglydisagreethatstudentsshouldreviewEnglishgrammarknowledge.34percentstudentsareuncertainwhethertheyhavesparetime49 andwhethertheyarewillingtospendsparetimereviewingEnglishgrammar.ChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion32042%24%1021%1021%612%Question41225%12%1123%2042%48%Question3,4areaboutstudents’learningobstacles.Astoquestion3,46percentstudentsstronglyagreethatgrammarlearningisimportantinjuniorhighschool.Amongofthem,42percentstudentsstronglyagreethatstudentsshouldlearnEnglishgrammarwellinjuniorhighschool.33percentstudentsdon’tagreethatgrammarlearningisimportantinjuniorschool.Amongofthem,12percentstudentsstronglyagreethatEnglishreadingandwritingareimportantpartinjuniorhighschool.21percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Itisobviousthattheyhavebeenawareoftheimportanceofgrammarlearning.Astoquestion4,27percentstudentsagreethatthebiggestobstacleoflearningEnglishisgrammar.Amongofthem,25percentstudentsstronglyagreethatEnglishgrammarplaysanimportantroleinEnglishlearning.50percentstudentsdon’tagreethatEnglishgrammarisdifficult.Theythinkreadingandwritingarealsodifficult.Amongofthem,8percentstudentsstressthattheyhaveconfidenceinlearninggrammar.11percentstudentsshowthattheyareuncertainwhichpartisthemostdifficultpart.50 Question5,6,7areaboutlearningobstaclesaboutgrammarlearning.Astoquestion5,51percentstudentsagreethattheyhaverecitedgrammaticalrulesdayandnight.Amongofthem,32percentstudentsstronglyagreethatteacherswritedownthegrammaticalrulesontheblackboardsothatstudentscanrecitetherules.45percentstudentsagreethatEnglishteachersdon’tlistaseriesofgrammaticalrulesontheblackboardandstudentscangetgrammaticalrulesbythemselves.Amongofthem,35percentstudentsstronglystressthattheycanexplorethegrammaticalrulesbythemselves.4percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Astoquestion6,41percentstudentsgetgrammaticalrulesbyrecitingtherules.Amongofthem,35percentstudentsstronglyagreethatmanystudentsrecitegrammaticalrulesdayandnight.47percentstudentshaveotherwaystolearnEnglishgrammar.Amongofthem,35percentstudentsstronglystressthattheycanlearnEnglishgrammarbywatchingTVandseeingfilms.6percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Astoquestion7,58percentstudentscanmasterthegrammarknowledgewhatteachershavetaughtintheclass.Amongofthem,25percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheycanhaveabetterunderstandingtowardsEnglishgrammarlearning.20percentstudentscannotmasterthegrammarknowledgecompletely.Amongofthem,1051 percentstudentsstronglystressthattheycannotunderstandgrammarknowledge.22percentstudentsdon’thaveconfidenceandtheyareuncertainaboutthequestion.ChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion81021%48%1531%919%1021%Question948%1633%1532%48%919%Question1012%2042%1123%1225%48%Question8,9,10aresomeevaluationsafterEnglishgrammarlearning.Question8isaboutstudents’reactionwhentheyhaveEnglishgrammarclass.29percentstudentsagreethattheyareinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammarandarewillingtotakepartindiscussionactively.Amongofthem,21percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheylovelearningEnglishgrammar.40percentstudentsagreethattheyarenotinterestedingrammarlearning.Amongofthem,21percentstudentsstronglystressthattheycannotbeinvolvedintheclass.Astoquestion9,41percentstudentsagreethattheyliketheinquiry-basedteachingmethodbecausetheycangethighscores.Amongofthem,8percentstudentsstronglystressthattheyliketheinquiry-basedteachingmethodbecausethemethodcanimprovetheirlearningabilityandstrengthentheirconfidence.27percentstudentsexpressthattheydon’tlikethecurrentteachingmethod.Amongofthem,19percentstudentsstronglystressthattheywanttotryotherteachingmethods.32percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestionandtheydon’thaveothersuggestions.Astoquestion10,44percentstudentsagreethat52 teachersshouldchangetheirteachingmethodsandexploreanewteachingmethod.Amongofthem,2percentstudentsstronglystressthatteachersshouldexploresomenewteachingmethods.Itisobviousthatstudentslikeinquiry-basedteachingmethod.33percentstudentsagreethatthetraditionalteachingmethodiseffectiveforteachinggrammar.Amongofthem,8percentstudentsstronglystressthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodisgoodenough.Teachersdonotneedtoexploreothernewteachingmethods.23percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Post-questionnairewerecarriedoutbytheauthorattheendoftheexperiment.Experimentalclassstudentsfinishedthepapersandgavetheiropinions.Inthepost-questionnaire,question1,2isstudents’evaluationaboutinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Question3,4paymoreattentiontotalkingabouttheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Question5,6,7mainlytalkaboutstudents’interestandattitudetowardslearningEnglishgrammar.Question8,9,10arethestudents’grammarlearningsatisfactions.Thepurposeistoresearchtheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesonstudents’interestongrammarteaching.Thefollowingsaretheresults.Table4.2TheDescriptiveDataofPost-questionnaireChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion12042%48%36%2042%12%Question22042%1941%36%23%48%N=Number,P=Percentage53 Aftertheexperiment,question1,2arestudents’evaluationsaboutinquiry-basedteachingmethodwhenstudentsdidtheexperiment.Theexperimentalclassstudents’attitudetowardslearningEnglishhavebeenchanged.Astoquestion1,50percentstudentsagreethatinquiry-basedteachingmethodisgoodforgrammarteaching.42percentstudentsstronglyagreethatinquiry-basedteachingmethodimprovestudents’learningability.44percentstudentscannotaccepttheteachingmethodbecauseinquiry-basedteachingmethodisanewteachingmethodandstudentsarenotfamiliarwiththeteachingmethod.6percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Astoquestion2,morethan80percentstudentsagreethatthegrammarteachingactivitiesareveryinteresting.42percentstudentsstronglyagreethatstudentsneedmoreteachingactivitiesintheirclass.11percentstudentsagreethattheylikethetraditionalteachingmethod.6percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Thedataprovesthatmanystudentscanacceptthenewteachingmethodinsuchashorttime.ChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion32042%36%36%36%1736%Question41225%2042%510%48%715%Question3,4areaboutthechangesonstudents’interestingrammarlearning.Astoquestion3,48percentstudentsacceptinquiry-basedteachingmethodandagreethattheteachingmethodisgoodforgrammarteaching.Amongofthem,42percent54 studentsstronglyagreethatinquiry-basedteachingcanimprovestudents’learningability.42percentstudentscannotaccepttheteachingmethod.Amongofthem,36percentstudentsstronglydisagreethatinquiry-basedteachingcanimprovestudents’grammarlearning.6percentstudentsareuncertainwhichteachingmethodisbetter.Astoquestion4,67percentstudentsagreethatlearningEnglishgrammarisnolongeradifficultthing.Studentsdonotrecitegrammaticalrulesmechanically.Amongofthem,25percentstudentsstronglyagreethatstudentscancommunicatewiththeirgroupmembersandunderstandotherstudents’thoughts.23percentstudentsstillrecitegrammaticalrules.Amongofthem,15percentstudentsstronglydisagreethatinquiry-basedteachingcanchangetheirlearninghabits.Theyarestilllessactiveandlessinterestedinlearninggrammar.ChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion51532%1735%715%48%510%Question62042%1124%612%612%510%Question72042%2246%24%24%24%Question5,6,7areaboutstudents’interestandattitudetowardslearningEnglishgrammar.Astoquestion5,67percentstudentsagreethatlearningEnglishismoreinterestingthanbeforeandtheyhavenewexperienceintheclass.Amongofthem,32percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheylikelearningEnglishgrammar.18percentstudentsarestillnotinterestedinlearningEnglishgrammar.Amongofthem,3255 percentstudentsstronglydisagreethattheylikelearningEnglishgrammar.15percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Astoquestion6,66percentstudentscantakepartinthediscussionandanswerteachers’questionsactively.Amongofthem,42percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheycantrytheirbesttolearningEnglishgrammarandspendallenergyonthediscussion.22percentstudentsthinktheycannotbeinvolvedintheclassandtheyarenotconcentrateongrammarlearning.Amongofthem,10percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheyaretriedofEnglishgrammarlearning.Theycannotadapttothenewteachingmethod.15percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Astoquestion7,88percentstudentsagreetheinquiry-basedteachingcanarousestudents’interestandattractstudents’attention,whichistheadvantageofinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Amongofthem,42percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheycanbemoreinterestedingrammarlearning.8percentstudentsarestillnotinvolvedinthegrammarlearningclass.4percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.ChoicesStronglyAgreeUncertainDisagreeStronglyagreedisagreeQuestionsNPNPNPNPNPQuestion81838%2042%24%48%24%Question92042%2246%24%36%12%Question102042%1226%510%510%612%Question8,9,10arethestudents’grammarlearningsatisfactions.Astoquestion8,78percentstudentsshowtheirlovetoinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Theylikethe56 teachingmethodthattheycanhavechancetoexploregrammarknowledgeandcultivatetheirthinkingability.Amongofthem,38percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheyareinterestedininquiry-basedteachingmethod.12percentstudentsdon’tlikethenewteachingmethod.Theyarenotinterestedinthegrammarlearning.4percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Theydonotknowwhethertheylikethetraditionalteachingmethodbetterorinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Astoquestion9,88percentstudentsagreethattheycanexplorenewgrammarknowledgewiththepriorgrammarknowledge.Amongofthem,42percentstudentsstronglyagreethattheycanmakearelationbetweenthenewgrammarknowledgeandpriorgrammarknowledge.6percentstudentsarefailedtomakearelationbetweenthenewgrammarknowledgeandthepriorgrammarknowledge.2percentstudentsarerefusedtoexploreknowledgewiththeirpriorgrammarknowledge.4percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Astoquestion10,78percentstudentsexpressthatteachersshouldteachstudentsinthenewteachingmethodallthetime.Studentslikethenewteachingmethodandwanttousethemethodintheclass.22percentstudentshopethatteachersadoptinquiry-basedteachingmethod.10percentstudentsareuncertainaboutthequestion.Aftertheexperiment,studentsareawareoftheimportanceoflearningEnglishandtheinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Althoughstudentscanhavenochancetolearnbythemselves,theystillhaveenthusiasmforeverything.Studentshavetheirownthoughtsaboutnewconcept.Studentscangettheproperanswerswiththeguidanceofteachers.Theycancorrecttheirwronganswersandcomeintonewvalue.57 Consideringquestionisthemostimportantstageforlearners.Studentsshouldtolearnhowtousethetheoryandputitintopractice.Theycanenrichtheirownlivesandgetenoughexperience.Inaword,studentswelcomethenewteachingmethodandwanttocontinuetheinquiry-basedteachingmethodintheirfurtherstudy.4.1.2ResultsoftheInterviewAfterthepost-questionnaire,theauthorhadachancetohaveinterviews.Thepurposewastogettheresultsofthechangesofstudents’learninginteresttowardsEnglishgrammarlearningandtheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyexactly.Theauthordesignedaninterviewwhichhadthreequestionstotally.Theinterviewwascarriedoutaftertheexperiment.Theauthorchosethreestudentsfromexperimentalclassrandomly.Oneofthemwasahigh-levellearner.Oneofthemwasamiddle-levellearnerandoneofthemwasalow-levellearner.Allofthemwereinterviewees.Thecontentsofthequestionsweremainlyaboutstudents’learninginteresttowardsEnglishgrammarlearningandeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Duringtheinterview,allstudents’wordswererecordedbythetaperecordersincaseofmakingmistakes.Theinterviewquestionscouldbethefollowings.Forexample,whatwasstudents’evaluationaboutinquiry-basedteachingmethod?Didstudentsthinktherewasadifferencebetweeninquiry-basedteachingandthetraditionalteachingmethod?Whatwasthedifference?Didstudentslikeinquiry-basedteachingmethod?Werestudentsmoreinterestedingrammarlearningnow?Astothefirstquestion,onestudentwhowasthehigh-levellearnerinsistedthat58 heacceptedtheinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Inhisopinion,inquiry-basedteachingmethodcouldcultivatestudents’abilityandbroadenstudents’horizons.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodwasgoodforstudents’development.Onestudentwhowasthemiddle-levellearnerinsistedthathecouldalsoaccepttheinquiry-basedteachingmethod.HestressedthathecouldnotonlylearnEnglishknowledgebutalsogetlearningability.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodcouldhelpstudentslearnhowtoanalyzeproblemsandsolveproblems.Onestudentwhowasthelow-levellearnerinsistedthathewasinterestedintheinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Hehopedthatteacherscoulduseinquiry-basedteachingmethodintheclassallthetime.Whenitcametothesecondquestion,allthestudentswantedtosharetheirideas.Theexperimentalclassstudentsansweredthequestioneasily.Onestudentwhowasthehigh-levellearnerinsistedthattheinquiry-basedteachingcouldgivestudentschancestodeveloptheirabilityandexploreknowledgebythemselves,sostudentslikedtheteachingmethodverymuch.Onestudentwhowasthemiddle-levellearnerstressedthattheinquiry-basedteachingapproachwasanewteachingmethod.Theteachingmethodadvocatedtocultivatestudents’independentthinkingabilityandcreativityability.Inquiry-basedteachingapproachcouldmakestudentscommunicatewiththeirgroupmembersandtheyunderstoodotherstudents’thoughts.Itcouldbroadentheirhorizonandabsorbothers’suggestions.Theteachingmethodmadestudentsmoreactiveandstimulatedtheirinterestinlearninggrammar.Studentsfocusedonpracticalproblems.Onestudentwhowasthemiddle-levellearnerstressedthatinquiry-basedteachingapproachhelpedstudentslearnEnglishknowledgeand59 gotlearningability.Studentscouldlearnhowtoanalyzeproblemsandsolveproblems.Theycouldmastergrammarrulesandstrategiesbytheirindependentlearningandthinking.Studentsbecamemoreinitiativeinlearninggrammarratherthanpassive.Studentshadtheopportunitytoexperiencethesignificanceofinquiry-basedteachingapproachinlearninggrammar.Comparedwithotherteachingways,inquiry-basedteachingapproachcouldattractstudents’interest.Studentscouldbecomethecenteroftheclassandcouldbeinvolvedintheclass.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodcouldmakesurethatlearnerscouldtakepartinthediscussionandhadtheirownideas.Itwasthebiggestdifferencefromotherteachingmethods.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodstressedstudents’roles.Atthesametime,learnerscouldcommunicatewithothersandsharetheirsuggestions.Theysolvedproblemsthroughworkingtogether.Intheprocess,studentscouldgetenoughrespectandattention.Theycouldimprovetheirthinkingabilityandcultivatecreativeabilitythroughconsideringquestions.Astothethirdquestion,alltheintervieweesstressedthattheylikedtheteachingmethodverymuch.Onestudentwhowasthehigh-levellearnerstressedthathewasnolongerafraidoflearninggrammaranymore.Hebecamemoreinterestedandconfidentinlearninggrammar.Onestudentwhowasthemiddle-levellearnerpointedoutthathewasmoreactivethanbefore.Hecouldexplorethegrammaticalrulesandsummarizemanyrulesbyhimself.Itmadeagreatprogressonlearninggrammar.Onestudentwhowasthelow-levellearnerpointedoutthathewouldnotspendmostofhimtimeontakingnotesandrecitinggrammaticalrules.Hewasmoreinterestedin60 learningEnglishgrammar.Whenitcomestotheforthquestion,studentswanttosharetheirideas.Onestudentwhowasthehigh-levellearnerstressedthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodcanimprovestudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Theteachingmethodismoreeffectiveinimprovingstudents’learningability.Onestudentwhowasthemiddle-levellearnerpointedoutthatinquiry-basedteachingcouldhelpstudentsmastermoregrammaticalrules.Studentscanmastermoregrammaticalrulesintheteachingmethod.Onestudentwhowasthelow-levellearnerpointedoutthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodcanhelpstudentsgetlearningability.Astothelastquestion,thestudentswantedtosharetheirideasactively.Onestudentwhowasthehigh-levellearnerstressedthattheyhadgroupdiscussionandtheymustsharetheirideas.Groupmemberscommunicatedwitheachotheractively.Onestudentwhowasthemiddle-levellearnerpointedoutthattherearediscussionsintheclass.Teacherspayedmuchattentiontostudents’discussionandgavestudents’evaluation.Onestudentwhowasthelow-levellearnerpointedoutthathetookpartinthediscussionactivelyandhewereinterestedinlearninggrammar.Afterdiscussion,therewerestudents’self-evaluationsandteachers’evaluations.Inaword,theinterviewprovedthatstudentsweremoreinterestedininquiry-basedteachingmethod.Throughinquiry-basedteaching,studentscouldgainmoreknowledgethanbefore.Studentscouldimprovetheirthinkingabilityandindependentability.Theypaycloseattentiontogrammaticalrulesandsentencesstructures.61 4.1.3ResultsofthePre-testBeforetheexperiment,boththestudentsfromECandCCwererequiredtodothepre-testinordertoinvestigatewhethertheirgrammarperformancewasatthesamelevel.ThefigureswillbeanalyzedbySPSS.20.Thefollowingsaretheresultsofpre-test.Table4.3TheDescriptiveDataofPre-testClassNumberMeanStd.DeviationStd.ErrorMeanCC5027.6807.58541.0727EC4827.3656.6210.9557Thetableshowsthat50studentsfromthecontrolclassand48fromtheexperimentalclasshavebeenparticipateintheexperiment.Itclearlyshowsthatthemeanscoreoftheexperimentalclassis27.365andthecontrolclassis27.680.Thereisalittledifferencebetweencontrolclassandexperimentalclass.What’smore,thestandarddeviationofthecontrolclassis7.5854andtheexperimentalclassis6.6210.Thestandard.errormeanoftheclasshavealittleofdifference.Itisobviousthattwoclassstudentsnearlyhavethesamelearninglevel.Table4.4IndependentSamplesTestofthePre-testTypeofNumberMeanStd.tSig.QuestionsDeviation(2-tailed)Cloze5020.1603.181.813.4184820.6883.24562 Blank504.6804.883.483.630filling484.2194.555Error502.8402.262.925.358correction482.4581.786Theindependentsamplestestofthepre-testintable4.4indicatesthatthereisnosignificantdifferencebetweentheexperimentalclassandthecontrolclass.Afterresearchingcloze,blankfillinganderrorcorrection,itisobviousthatbothexperimentalclassandcontrolclassdon’thavebigdifference.Forinstance,themeanscoreofcontrolclassis20.160,butthemeanscoreofexperimentalclassis20.688.Itsuggeststhatthetwoclassstudentsmayhavethesamelearninglevelbeforetheexperiment.Fromthesecondtable,wecanseethedifferencefromthecorrespondingSig.(2-tailed)value.IfSig.(2-tailed)valuedismorethan0.05(>0.05),itmeansthatthevariancesofthetwofiguresareequal.Inotherwords,P=0.813>0.05,itindicatesthatthedifferencebetweenexperimentalclassandcontrolclassisnotremarkablesignificance.4.1.4ResultsofthePost-testThereisapost-testattheendoftheexperiment.Theexperimentalclassandcontrolclasshavethetestatthesametime.Thentheauthorcollectsthedataandmakeacomparisonaboutthetwoclasses.ThroughtheanalysisbySPSS,theauthorfindsoutwhetherinquiry-basedteachinginfluencejuniorhighschoolstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandarousetheirinterestinstudyingEnglishgrammar.Table4.5describesthefiguresaboutthepost-testoftheexperimentalclassandthe63 controlclass.Table4.5TheDescriptiveDataofPost-testClassNumberMeanStd.DeviationStd.ErrorMeanCC5033.3596.8584.9612EC4843.8764.1594.5764Thetable4.5showsthatthemeanscoreofcontrolclassis33.359,whilethemeanscoreofexperimentalclassis43.876.Itmeansthatstudents’scorehavebeenimprovedrapidly.Italsoprovesthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodhasagreateffectonstudents’grammarlearning.Bothstudentsofthetwoclasscanmakeaprogressonrememberingvocabularies,sentencesstructuresandgrammaticalrules.ComparedthemeansCC,themeanscoreofECismuchhigher.Thestd.Deviationofcontrolclassis6.8584,whichishigherthanexperimentalclass.Itprovesthatstudents’scoreismorestableinexperimentalclass.Theapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingmethodcanhaveaeffectonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Inordertogetmoreinformationabouttheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingmethod,theauthordesignstheindependentsampleofpost-test.64 Table4.6IndependentSamplesTestofthePost-testTypeofNumberMeanStd.tSig.QuestionsDeviation(2-tailed)Cloze5022.5815.640-3.719.0004825.8793.102Blank509.6132.866-6.679.000filling4813.6531.606Error503.6421.890-7.655.000correction486.4531..347Thetable4.6cangiveadetailedinformationaboutthefinalresultoftheexperiment.Everyitem’sscorehasshownthatPvalueissmallerthan0.05(<0.05)inthetable.Itexpressesthatthevariancesofthetwosamplesdon’tkeepinthesamelevel.Thecontrolclassstudentsandtheexperimentalclassstudentshavedifferentscores.Althoughtheymayhavethesamelearninglevel,thetwoclassstudentshavedifferentlearningattitudeandideastowardsgrammarlearning.WecanseethatthemeansscoreofECstudentsismuchhigherthanmeansscoreofCCstudents.Inotherwords,inquiry-basedteachingmethodhasagreateffectonstudents’grammarlearning.Students’learningattitudeandlearninglevelhavechangedalotinEC.Inordertogetmorefurtherinformation,theauthorcomparethedataofpre-testandpost-test.Thefollowingistheresult.65 Table4.7PairedSamplesTestoftheCCTypeofTestNumberMeanStd.tSig.QuestionsDeviation(2-tailed)ClozePre-test5020.1603.181-1.684.098Post-test5022.5815.640BlankPre-test504.6804.883-7.246.000fillingPost-test509.6132.866ErrorPre-test502.8402.262-1.329.190correctionPost-test503.6421.890Accordingtothefiguresinthetable4.7,wecanseethereisnobigdifferenceinclozetestanderrorcorrection.Studentsinthecontrolclassdon’thaveimprovementnearly.Itindicatesthatthetraditionalteachingmethodcannotarousestudents’attentionandgivestudentsimprovement.Asforblankfilling,tvalueis-7.246andthePvalueissmallerthan0.05(<0.05)inthetable.Sothereisimprovementinblankfilling.Itprovesthatthetraditionalteachingmethodcanimprovestudents’scoresinblankfillingratherthanclozeanderrorcorrection.Thus,thereisdefectintraditionalteachingmethod.Studentscannotgetimprovementinallitemontheexaminationpaper.Itcanconcludethatthetraditionalteachingmethodcannotadapttonewenvironment.Thereisnobigdifferencebetweenpre-testandpost-testinthecontrolclass.Onthecontrary,thefollowingresultscangivethedetailedinformationthattherearesignificantdifferencesintheexperimentalclass.Thefollowingtableisthe66 pairedsamplestestoftheexperimentalclass.Table4.8PairedSamplesTestoftheECTypeofTestNumberMeanStd.tSig.QuestionsDeviation(2-tailed)ClozePre-test4820.6883.245-6.380.000Post-test4825.8793.102BlankPre-test484.2194.555-13.208.000fillingPost-test4813.6531.606ErrorPre-test482.4581.786-10.249.000correctionPost-test486.4531..347Accordingtothetable4.8,theauthoranalyzesthefiguresofthepairedsampleofEC.Thestudentsfromtheexperimentalclasshaveabigdifferenceonthescoresofeveryitem.Inthepre-test,theyhavelowermeanscoresandhigherstd.Deviation.ThePvalueis0.000whichissmallerthan0.05(<0.05).Itindicatesthatstudents’scoreinthepre-testismuchlowerthanpost-test.Inotherwords,throughinquiry-basedteaching,studentscangetgreatimprovementingrammaticalrules.StudentscanhavegreatlearninglevelonEnglishgrammar.Ingeneral,studentscanhaveabetterunderstandinginclozetest,blankfillinganderrorcorrection.Thedataanalysisindicatesthatstudents’grammarabilityofECisstrengthenedandtheyhavesurpassedthecontrolclassalot.Inthepast,theexperimentalclassandthecontrolclassmayhavethenearlysamelearninglevel.Thestudentsofthetwoclasseshavegotnearlysamegradesinthetest.Atpresent,theexperimentalclasshasmadegreat67 progresswiththehelpofinquiry-basedteaching.Fromtheabovefigures,wecangetaconclusionthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodhaveanadvantageoverthetraditionalteachingmethod.IfteacherscanteachEnglishgrammarininquiry-basedteachingway,studentscanmakegreatprogressattheendofsemester.Atthesametime,studentscangainmuchknowledgeandgainmuchchancetogrow.4.2DiscussionInthispart,thediscussiononeachresearchquestionispresentedrespectively.Accordingtotheresultsofpre-testandpost-test,thediscussionontheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyisfirstlypresented.Inaddition,thechangesonthestudents’interestsingrammarteachingisillustratedindetailedonthebasisoftheresultsofpre-testandpost-test.4.2.1DiscussiononEffectsofInquiry-basedTeachingonStudents’GrammarLearningProficiencyThefirstresearchquestionisaimedatfindingtheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Beforetheexperiment,studentsintheCCandtheECwerealmostatthesamegrammarlearninglevel.Duringthethree-monthexperiment,withtheselectionofthesamematerial.IttooktheauthorequaltimetoteachEnglishgrammarinthetwoclasses.Firstofall,throughinquiry-basedteachingmethod,studentscanhaveabetterunderstandingaboutgrammaticalrules.Allthedataandinformationfromthepre-test68 andpost-testprovethattheapplyinginquiry-basedteachingmethodinEnglishgrammarlearninginjuniorhighschoolaremoreeffectiveinimprovingstudents’learningability.Comparedwiththecontrolclass,thestudentsintheexperimentalclasscanhavehigherscores.Inaddition,studentscanmastermorevocabulariesandsentencestructuresthanbefore,whichisthetraditionalteachingmethodcannotreach.Inaword,studentscanbenefitmuchthroughtheinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Secondly,studentscancommunicatewiththeirgroupmembersandunderstandotherstudents’thoughts.Inquiry-basedteachingcanattractallthestudents’attentionintheclass.StudentswhohavegoodEnglishfoundationandhighgradescanhelpthosestudentswhohavelowgradeanddonotunderstandEnglishgrammarbetter.Studentscaninducethegrammaticalrulesbydiscussingwithothersininquiry-basedteachingmethod.Studentshavetheopportunitytoexperiencethesignificanceofinquiry-basedteachingmethodinlearninggrammar.Studentscanmastergrammarrulesandstrategiesbytheirindependentlearningandindependentthinking.Studentsbecomemoreinitiativeinlearninggrammarratherthanpassive.StudentscanlearnEnglishgrammareffectivelyandhappily.Ifstudentsrecitegrammaticalrules,theywillbepooringrammarlearning.Mostteacherspaymuchattentiontolistthegrammaticalrulesontheblackboardandstudentscopythegrammaticalrulesontheirtextbooks.Studentsspendmostoftimeontakingnotesratherthanexploringthegrammaticalrulesbythemselvesintheclass.Studentscannotunderstandthegrammarrules.Ininquiry-basedteachingmethod,teachersguidestudentstoexplore69 grammaticalrulesbythemselves.Teachersgivesstudents’chancetodiscusswitheachother.Studentscangetgrammaticalrulesbyexploringandanalyzingthematerials.Atthemeanwhile,studentscanimprovetheircommunicatingabilityandbroadentheireyes.Studentscanthinkthereadingmaterialcomprehensivelyanddiscusswiththeirgroupmembers.Inquiry-basedteachingcanenhancethesubjectconsciousnessandgivestudentsasenseofparticipation.Thirdly,inquiry-basedteachingmethodispropitioustorealizetheteachinggoal.Itcanchangethesituationofstudentsgainingknowledgemechanically.Studentsarenottheclasscenterandacceptknowledgepassively.Ontheonehand,inquiry-basedteachingmethodcanstimulatestudents’potentialandachievestudents’value.Itcanimprovestudents’learningabilityandhelpstudentslearntocooperatewithothers.Ontheotherhand,teacherscanunderstandthemainideaofReformingProgramofBasicEducationbetter.Teachersputforwardhigherrequirementandsethighergoalsforthemselves.Thecurrentteachinggoalsaretocultivatestudents’abilityandbroadenstudents’horizons.Atthesametime,inquiry-basedteachingmethodcanchangeteachers’teachingmethodsandstudents’learningmethods.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodcanattractstudentsandcausesstudentstothinkdeeplyaboutaseriesofquestions.StudentscannotonlylearnEnglishknowledgebutalsogetlearningability.Studentscanlearnhowtoanalyzeproblemsandsolveproblems.Soinquiry-basedteachingmethodcangivealotofhelpforallthesubjectsincludingEnglish.Itcanhelpstudentslearngrammarmoreeffectivelythanbefore.4.2.2DiscussiononChangesontheStudents’InterestsinGrammarTeaching70 Thedataprovesthatinquiry-basedteachingcanattractstudents’interestandmakestudentsgetmorehigherscoresthanbefore.Themostimportantpartisthattheteachingmethodcanchangestudents’interestongrammarlearning.Atthebeginningoftheexperiment,thetwoclassesmaintainthesamelearninglevel.Thereisthesameteacherteachingbothclass.Atthesametime,98studentsusethesametextbookwhichispublishedbyPEP.Thetwoclasseshavegotnearlygradesinlastsemester,whichcanensurethemtobethesamelearninglevel.Studentsarethemainparticipantsintheclassandteachersareguidersandestimators.Intheprocessofinquire-basedteaching,everystudentcanbeinvolvedintheclassandbecomethecenterofclass.Theteachingmethodmakesstudentsmoreactiveandstimulatestheirinterestinlearninggrammar.Teachersgiveenoughspaceforstudents’development.ThepurposeofstudyingEnglishgrammaristomakesentencesrightandhelpstudentscommunicatewellwithothers.TheproblemsoflearningEnglishgrammararethatgrammaticalrulesaresodifficultandboring.Itistoodifficultforstudentstorememberthesentencestructures.Somestudentshaveproblemsinvocabulariesandsomestudentsarepooringrammarusage.StudentscommitthattheyhavedifficultinsentencestructuresandhavenointerestinlearningEnglishgrammar.Studentscannotgraspthemainsentencestructuresandmisssomedetailedinformation.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodavoidsthedisadvantagesofsometeachingmethodsoflearninggrammar.Studentsfocusonpracticalproblems.Studentscanmastergrammarrulesandstrategiesbytheirindependentlearningandindependentthinking.Studentsbecomemoreinitiativeinlearninggrammarratherthanpassive.Students71 havetheopportunitytoexperiencethesignificanceofinquiry-basedteachingmethodinlearninggrammar.Studentscanexpresstheirthoughtbravelyandexchangetheirideaswiththeirgroupmembers.Studentscanlearnhowtocommunicatewithothersandhowtodiscusswiththeirgroupmembers.Intheprocessofdiscussing,studentscanlearnhowtoanalyzeproblemsandsolveproblems.Studentscangaingrammarknowledgeandlearnhowtousethelanguage.Studentsaremoreinterestedinlearninggrammar,whichcanmakefulluseofstudents’potential.Underthesituation,studentscangettheabilityofself-management.Therearesomanydifferencesbetweenthetraditionalteachingmethodandinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Atthequestionnaire,80percentstudentsstressedthattheylikedinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Studentsliketheteachingmethodthattheycanhavechancestoexploregrammarknowledgeandcultivatetheirthinkingability.What’smore,studentssharetheirideasaboutEnglishgrammarlearning.Studentshopetherearemorequestionsaboutgrammarlearning.Thequestionswhatareputforwardaregoodforstudents’furtherstudy.ManystudentsthinklearningEnglishismoreinterestingthanbeforeandtheyhaveanewexperienceintheclass.Studentsbecomethecenteroftheclassratherthanteachers.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodchangesthesituationofteachers’controllingclass.Teacherscanbeassessors,guiders,organizers,organizers,helpersandsupervisorsratherthancontrollers.Inaword,theinquiry-basedteachingmethodismuchmoreeffectivethanthesometeachingmethods.StudentswanttocontinuelearnEnglishgrammarininquiry-basedteachingmethod.72 Chapter5ConclusionInordertoinvestigatetheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesonstudents’interestingrammarteaching,thischapterismainlyabouttherelationshipbetweeninquiry-basedteachingandgrammarlearning.Thefollowingsarethedetailedinformationofthemajorfindings,pedagogicalimplications,limitationsofthestudyandsuggestionsforfurtherresearch.5.1MajorFindingsAfterthisthree-monthexperiment,throughconductingthetests,questionnairesandtheinterview,andtheanalysisoftheresultsqualitativelyandquantitatively,theauthormakestheconclusionthattheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingiseffectiveinstudents’grammarlearning.Inquirybasedteachingmethodcanattractstudents’interestingrammarteachingandimprovestudents’grammarteachingproficiency,anditisfeasibleinEnglishgrammarteachinginjuniorhighschool.Firstly,inquiry-basedteachingcanattractstudents’interestingrammarteaching.Comparedwiththeotherteachingways,inquiry-basedteachingcanattractstudents’interestingrammarlearning.Studentscanbecomethecenteroftheclassandcanbeinvolvedintheclass.Inquiry-basedteachingcanensurethatlearnerscantakepartinthediscussionandhavetheirownideas.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodisdifferentfromotherteachingmethods.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodstressesthestudents’73 rolesintheclass.Atthesametime,learnerscancommunicatewithothersandsharetheirsuggestions.Studentscansolveproblemsthroughworkingtogether.Therolesofteachersareencouragement,enlightenmentandevaluation.Intheprocess,studentscangetenoughrespectandattention.Theycanimprovetheirthinkingabilityandcultivatecreativeabilitythroughconsideringquestions.Atthesametime,questionfocusedisanothermainfeatureofinquiry-basedteaching.Inthisperiod,teacherscanhavethechancestoarousestudents’interestandbroadenthelearners’version.Atthesametime,inquiry-basedteachingputsforwardhigherrequirementforteachers.Teachersneedsmorefullpreparationforclass.Studentscanexpresstheirthoughtbravelyandexchangetheirideaswiththeirgroupmembers.Underthesituation,studentscangettheabilityofself-management.Throughinquiry-basedteaching,students’interestshavebeenencouragedverymuch.Studentscanlearngrammarwithoutmuchprompting.Studentsshouldhavespaceandtimetothinkandexploregrammarknowledge.Inthepast,studentscouldnotexpressthemselvescompletelyandsometeachingmethodsolidifystudents’thinking.Inquiry-basedteachingcanmakestudentsexpressthemselvescompletely.Itisgoodforstudents’development.Thejuniorhighschoolplaysaveryimportantroleonteenagers’period,whichcanlayafoundationforstudents’furtherstudy.Teenagersabsorbknowledgeandgetdevelopmentstepbystep.Intheimportantperiod,Englishgrammarplaysanimportantroleonstudy.What’smore,studentssharetheirideasaboutEnglishgrammarlearning.Studentshopetherearemorequestionsaboutgrammarlearning.Thequestionsaregoodforstudents’furtherstudy.Inquiry-basedteachingisanew74 methodwhichrequiresgroupwork.Thelearnersneedtoworktogetherandcommunicatewitheachother.Itcancultivatestudents’independentspirit.Studentscansharetheirideaswiththeirgroupmembers.Throughinquiry-basedteachingmethod,studentscanimprovetheirthinkingabilityandexplorationability.Withouttheshortcomingsofthetraditionalteachingmethod,teacherscanspendalltheirtimeonteachingandavoidclassesbeingboring.Teachers’encouragementtakeagreateffectonstudents’learning,whichcaninspirethemtogoahead.Aftergettingamorescientificandacademicapproach,studentshopetochangetheirattitudetowardEnglishgrammarandtheyareeagertoexploregrammaticalknowledge.Secondly,inquiry-basedteachingcanimprovestudents’grammarteachingproficiency.Studentscaninducethegrammaticalrulesbydiscussingwithothersandtheycanlearnthegrammaticalruleseffectivelyandhappily.Atthemeanwhile,studentscanimprovetheircommunicatingabilityandbroadentheirversion.Studentscanthinkthereadingmaterialcomprehensivelyanddiscusswiththeirgroupmembers.Inquiry-basedteachingisaprocesswhichpeoplecanfindquestions,analyzequestionsandsolvequestions.Inquiry-basedteachingcanenhancethesubjectconsciousnessandgivestudentsasenseofparticipation.Teachinggrammaticalitemsisdifferentfromcultivatingstudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Ifeachgrammaticalitemtraditionallytaughttostudents,studentsjustkeepsomesortofmechanicalrepetitionsoffragmentmorphologicalorsyntacticstructures,whichleadstothedisorderofstudents’grammaticalsystemandthefaultsoftheirknowledgestructures.Studentshavetheirownthoughtsandideas.Theyshouldnotonlyaccept75 grammaticalrulesbutalsocanexploregrammaticalrulesbythemselves.Atthesametime,inquiry-basedteachingmethodcanstimulatestudents’interestoflearningEnglishgrammarandtakeactivelypartinactivities.Itcanchangethesituationofstudentsgainingknowledgemechanically.Studentsaretheclasscenterandacceptknowledgeactively.Teacherscanencouragestudentsandguidethemtoexploregrammaticalrules.Studentscanhavetheirownthoughtsandideas.Theycancommunicatewiththegroupmembersratherthanlisteningtoteachers.Studentscanhavethechancetoexploreanswersratherthanrememberingtheruleswhicharegivenbyteachers.Intheprocess,studentscannotonlygainknowledgebutalsocultivatetheirownthinkingabilityandcreativityability.Intheteachingprocess,theauthorusedindividual,groupwork,discussion,5E’slearningcycleandtask-basedteachingmethods.Theteachingmethodscanimprovestudents’grammarlearningproficiency.Inaword,thevitalteachingmethodcanplayasignificanceroleonstudents’learningandteachers’teaching.Basedontheteachingmethod,teacherscanteachstudentsintheclassproperly.5.2PedagogicalImplicationsThroughtheexperiment,moreandmorestudentsandteacherspaymuchattentiontoinquiry-basedteachingmethod.Becauseofitsadvantage,inquiry-basedteachingshouldbeadoptedbyjuniorhighschoolinapracticallyway.Therearesomepedagogicalimplicationsforteachersandstudents.Firstofall,differentstudentshavedifferentlearninglevels,soitisvery76 importanttoencouragetheirpotential.Theymayhavedifferentcharacters,differentpersonalitiesanddifferentgrowingenvironment.Whenteachersusenewteachingmethod,theyneedtogivestudents’timeandspacetoadaptthemselvestothenewenvironment.Teachersneedtoconsidertoseveralfactorsfromstudents’view.Whenstudentscanacceptthenewteachingmethodgradually,theycangainknowledgereally.Studentsalsoneedtolearnmoreknowledgefromtheirlives.Asisknowntousall,Englishhasbecameaninternationallanguage.Itiswidelyusedbypeoplefromallovertheworld.Teachershavepaidmuchattentiontocultivatestudents’ability,especiallystudents’Englishability.Studentsnotonlylearnsgrammarknowledgebutalsolearnshowtouselanguage.Englishisthecommunicatemeasureratherthanlanguagecode.Itisimportanttonotethatteachinggrammarrequiresteacherstohavehigherlevelsofcommunicativecompetence.Teachersarealsorequiredtodevelopsawiderrangeofskillsbeyondthepresentationandexplanationofgrammaticalstructures.Secondly,astheoldsayinggoes,“Giveamanafishandfeedhimforaday;teachhimhowtofishandfeedhimforalifetime.”EnglishnotonlymeansapartofcollegeentranceexaminationbutalsoaspokenlanguageinChina.LearningEnglishissoimportantformanystudents.Englishhasbecameamajorsubjectinjuniorhighschool.Injuniorhighschool,teachershavetheresponsibilitytosupervisestudentsandguidestudentstocultivategoodlearninghabits.Inthepast,teacherslistaseriesofgrammaticalrulesontheblackboardandteachersexplaintherulescarefully.Teachersgivesomeproblemsandquestionsabouttherules.Afteraseriesofpractice,77 studentscansolidthegrammaticalrules.Finally,teachersmakeaconclusionaboutthegrammaticalrules.Theteachingmethodisinflexibleandrigid.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodcanbesupposedasaskill.Studentscanlearnhowtoanalyzetheproblemsandsolvetheproblems.Itisclearthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodisaimedtodevelopstudents’communicativecompetence.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodaimstoimprovestudents’abilityandcultivatetheirscientificquality.Atthesametime,studentscannotonlyacquiregrammarknowledgebutalsounderstandthewayhowtousegrammarknowledge.Asforteachers,theyshouldpreparetheteachingmaterialsinadvanceandcollectstudents’feedbackafterclass.Asforstudents,theyneedtopreviewandreviewintimesothattheycanunderstandteachingmaterialsbetter.Studentsneedtoknowwhattheteachingmaterialstalkabout.Previewingandreviewingareimportantpartforstudentstolearngrammar.Lastbutnotleast,studentsandteachersshouldfollowtheprinciplethatlearnersshouldlearnknowledgestepbystep.Inaword,inquiry-basedteachingisausefulandeffectivemethod.5.3LimitationsoftheStudyThethesisismainlyaboutastudyontheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingtoEnglishgrammarteachinginjuniorhighschool.Theresearchquestionsaretheeffectsofinquiry-basedteachingonstudents’grammarlearningproficiencyandthechangesonthestudents’interestsingrammarlearning.However,therearesomelimitationsabouttheresearch,suchastheauthor’sknowledgelimitationandother78 factors.Firstly,theinstrumentscannotmeettheneedoftheresearch.Intheresearch,theauthorusedquestionnaire,interviewandtest,whichcouldgivesupportforthedatacollection.98studentsfromLiaoningProvinceShiyanHighSchoolhaveparticipatedintheexperiment.Morestudentsandinstrumentsshouldbeinvolvedintheexperimentinordertomakesurethedataaccuracy.What’smore,maleandfemaleshouldkeepbalancedintheresearch.Intheexperiment,thereare30boysand20girlsinClass5andthereare26boysand22girlsinClass6.BecauseboysandgirlshavedifferentattitudetowardsEnglishgrammarlearning,Differentnumberofstudentsmayleadtothedatainaccuracy.Sotheresearchersshouldtrytheirbesttokeepnumbersbalanced.Secondly,theexperimentislastedfornearlyfourmonths.ItstartsfromSeptember1st,2017toDecember31st,2017.Infact,reducedbydesigningteachingactivitiesandholidaymanagement,itonlygivestheexperimenttwomonths,whichmeansnoenoughtimetomaketheresearch.Atthesametime,inquiry-basedteachingmethodmakesahigherrequirementforteachersandstudents.Teachersneedtospendtimemakingfullpreparationforthegrammarknowledgeandstudentsneedtospendtimepreviewingthegrammarknowledge.Althoughinquiry-basedteachingissoeffective,studentscannotdoenoughexercises.Studentscannotmakefulluseoftheirpotentialandunderstandtheinquiry-basedteachingmethodcompletely.Atthesametime,grammarlearningneedsalong-termeffortsandaccumulations.Fourmonthsistooshortfortheexperiment.Theconclusionmaybevariedinalongtime.79 Iftherearemoretimetodothisexperiment,thedatamaybemorebelievable.Thirdly,inquiry-basedteachingcontainsmanyteachingmodels,whichisgoodforgrammarteaching.Buttheauthoronlyuses5E’slearningcycle.Although5E’slearningcyclehasagreateffectonstudents’grammarlearning,itisnottypicalandrepresentativefortheresearch.Sotheresearchershouldapplymoreteachingmodelsingrammarteaching.Atthesametime,theresearchersshouldconsiderthequestionsinmanyaspectsincasethattheresearchersmakemistakes.Finally,thetestiscredibletocollectexperimentaldata.However,theinterviewmaynotreflectthedataandresultsaccurately.Becausethetimeislimited,therearefourquestionstobeaskedintheinterview.Studentscannotthinkaboutthequestionscarefully.Studentsmayhaveideasontheirgrammarlearning.Becausetimeisup,studentshavetoendtheirinterview.Sotheresearchersneedmoretimetodotheinterview.Atthesametime,thequestionsofinterviewshouldbegivenmoreaccurately.Inaword,theexperimentisperfectandgoessmoothly.Buttherearesomeshortcomingsthatisworthtochangeandimprove.Inthisway,thenextexperimentwillbemoreprefectandhaveresearchvalue.5.4SuggestionsforFurtherResearchIthasbeenprovedthatinquiry-basedteachingmethodisaneffectiveteachingmethod.Thefigurescanprovesthatinquiry-basedteachingcanmakegreatprogressonstudents’grammarlearning.Inquirybasedteachingmethodcanattractstudents’80 interestingrammarteachingandimprovestudents’grammarteachingproficiency.Eveniftherearemanylimitationsinthisstudy,theresearchalsoachievedanobviousimportanceforEnglishgrammarlearninginjuniorhighschool.However,thisstudyisapreliminary,researchersshouldbedonealotinthefuture.Infact,thereisn’tprefectteachingmethodingrammarteaching.Herearesomesuggestionsforfurtherstudy.Firstly,thetimeoftheexperimentshouldbelonger.Ontheonehand,differentstudentshavedifferentabilitytoacceptgrammarknowledgeandlearnnewmethods.SomestudentswhohavethehigherEnglishlevelaremoreinclinedtomastergrammaticalrules.Onthecontrary,somestudentsnotonlyneedgrammaticalrules,butalsoneedteacherstogivemoreexplanationsandanalysis.Learningknowledgemeansachanceandachallengeformanystudents.Sothesestudentsneedmoretimetoimprovetheirgrammarlearningproficiency.Theyneedmoretimetoabsorbgrammarknowledgeandgivefeedbacktotheirteachers.Ontheotherhand,inquiry-basedteachingmethodmakesahigherrequirementforteachersandstudents.Teachersshouldspendmoretimemakingpreparationforthegrammarknowledgeandstudentsneedtospendtimepreviewingthegrammarknowledge.Althoughinquiry-basedteachingmethodissoeffective,studentsneedtimetodoenoughexercises.Becauseoflesstime,studentscannotmakefulluseoftheirpotentialandcannotunderstandtheinquiry-basedteachingmethodcompletely.Secondly,theresearchermayincreaseparticipantsinordertoensuretheaccuracyoftheresults.Participantsarefromdifferentdistrictsandhavedifferentgrades.Theyhavedifferentlearninglevels.Somestudentsmaybegoodatgrammar81 learning,whileotherstudentsarenotgoodatgrammarlearning.Theyhavedifferentgradesinthesameclass.Soitisimportantforresearcherstosurveyandinterviewmorestudents.Moreover,inordertoacquiremoreaccurateresults,otherinstrumentsshouldbeappliedintheexperiment,suchasclassroomobservation,teachingdiariesandsoon.Morestudentsandinstrumentsshouldbeinvolvedintheexperimentinordertomakesurethedataaccuracy.Thoseinstrumentscangivesupportforthedatacollection.Thirdly,theresearchneedstoconsiderthelearninglevelsofdifferentstudents.Differentstudentshavedifferentlearningbackgroundanddifferentattitudestowardsgrammarlearning.SomestudentspaymuchattentiontoEnglishgrammarlearning,whileotherstudentsdonotspendalltheirenergyonEnglishgrammarlearning.Forexample,therearefiveinterviewquestions,oneofwhichisthatwhatdifferencebetweenthetraditionalteachingmethodandinquiry-basedteachingmethodis.Itisveryeasyforthosestudentswhoaregoodatgrammarlearningtoanswerthequestion.Butthosestudentswhoarenotgoodatgrammarlearningcannotanswerthequestionquickly.Itisobviousthatdifferentstudentscanhavedifferentideasaboutgrammarlearning.Itcausesthatmanyintervieweesspendalotoftimeansweringthequestion.Researcherswastetimequestioningandintervieweeswastetimeanswering.Atthesametime,thosestudentswhoarenotgoodatgrammarlearningmaylosttheirconfidenceandbeafraidofEnglishgrammarlearning.Sotheinterviewshouldbearrangedmoreproperly.Fourthly,theresearchershouldtrytheirbesttocreatearelaxingatmospherein82 whichstudentscandiscussfreely.Ininquiry-basedteachingmethod,studentsmaybecuriousaboutgroupdiscussionandtheymaygivetheirfullattentiontogrammarlearning.Atthesametime,itisgoodforstudentstocommunicatewithothersanddiscusswithgroupmembers.Studentsneedarelaxingatmospheretostimulatetheirpotential.Finally,theauthorhopesthatthereisasignificanceandprofoundstudyontheapplicationofinquiry-basedteachingtoEnglishgrammarteachinginjuniorhighschool.Atthesametime,theauthormustsparenoefforttochasethegoal.Inquiry-basedteachingmethodrepresentsanewrequirementforteachersandstudents’qualities.83 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吴子健(Wu,Zijian).(2007).探究学习与教师行为改善．上海：上海教育出版社.尹晓梅(Yin,Xiaomei).(2012).探究式学习在高中英语阅读教学中的应用.重庆师范大学出版社.周文涵(Zhou,Wenhan).(2011).探究式学习在高中英语阅读教学中的应用研究.河北师范大学出版社.86 AppendixAPre-questionnaire英语语法教学调查问卷表这是一份关于初中英语语法教学现状的调查问卷本调查仅作研究使用，不会对学生造成任何影响，其目的是为了了解初中英语语法教学中的一些情况，从中总结经验，发现问题，为改善今后的教学提供依据。请依实作答，不计姓名，谢谢！每道题均为单选题，请向符合自己选项的方框里打“√”。选项非常同不确不同非常不题目同意意定意同意1.我喜欢学习英语语法。2.我会在课下时间主动学习英语。3.我认为语法在高中很重要。4.我认为高中语法比较难，语法是我学习英语的一大障碍。5.老师会在课堂上罗列出许多语法规则，以便课下背诵。6.我是通过反复背诵语法规则来学习语法。7.老师在课堂上所讲的语法知识点我都能接受并掌握。8.我能在课堂上积极回答问题。9.我喜欢目前的语法教学方法。10.我希望老师探索新的语法教学方法。87 AppendixBPost-questionnaire亲爱的同学：你好！本调查问卷旨在调查同学们对于探究性教学在语法课堂中运用的效果及其态度。本调查仅为研究所用，不会对学生造成任何影响，请如实填写，不计姓名，谢谢！每道题均为单选题，请将符合自己选项的方框里打“√”。选项非常同不确不同非常不题目同意意定意同意1.目前的英语学习方法对我很有帮助。2.课堂上老师开展的语法教学活动很有趣。3.我认为这种语法教学方式有利于我们语法学习的系统化。4.现在学习英语语法我不会再机械地背诵语法规则。5.现在我认为学习语法很有趣。6.我现在能参与到课堂的讨论中。7.课堂上老师的语法教学能吸引我的注意力。8.我喜欢现在的语法教学方式。9.我能运用以前学过的知识进行探究。10.我希望老师能继续采用现在的方法进行语法教学。88 AppendixCInterviewQuestions1.自从使用探究式教学法教授语法，你最大的收获是什么？2.你认为本学期的英语语法教学方法与以前的教学方法有差别吗？差别在哪里？3.你喜欢现在所采用的语法教学形式吗？这种方法让你感觉语法学习比以前更感兴趣吗？4.探究式教学法教授语法对你英语语法能力有所提升吗？表现在哪些方面？5.英语语法课堂上，运用探究式教学法，教师会安排小组讨论吗？你们开展情况如何？89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96