Abstract

Due to the significance of the English language in international stage, the exploration of various methods of English acquisition has always been a heated topic for scholars and researchers all over the world. The Natural Approach proposed by Krashen and Terrel emphasizes the creation of a natural language environment and abundant language input for learners in order to generate effective output. As the Internet has been developing so rapidly these days, people begin to combine the Internet with English learning to facilitate second language acquisition, yet the effect of website learning has not been fully proved, and whether the sufficient input from these websites can lead to efficient output still remains questionable. Based on this universal concern, this thesis takes the perspective of The Natural Approach to examine the effect of English learning website and explore improvements of The Natural Approach to make it more suitable for language learners in non-English speaking countries. The author designs an investigation and invites twenty middle school students to join the online courses provided by English learning websites both at home and abroad in order to examine the changes in their English performance before and after taking online courses. According to the results and analysis, the author offers some suggestions for English learners and proposes enlightenment to traditional English teaching.

Key words: natural approach, website English learning, traditional English teaching 

Contents

Abstract

中文摘要

Chapter 1 Introduction-1

1.1 Background and Significance of the Study-1

1.2 Purpose and Methodology of the Study-2

1.3 Structure of the Thesis-3

Chapter 2 Literature Review-4

2.1 Previous Studies on English Learning Websites at Home-4

2.2 Previous Studies on English Learning Websites Abroad-6

2.3 Summary-8

Chapter 3 The Natural Approach-9

3.1 An Overview of The Natural Approach-9

3.2 An Analysis of the Theoretical Advantages and Limitations of The Natural Approach-9

3.3 An Improvement of The Natural Approach-10

Chapter 4 An Analysis of the Website Learning and the Enlightenment for Traditional English Teaching-12

4.1 Research Process-12

4.2 An Analysis of the Website learning-12

4.2.1 The Change of Test Performance before and after the Website Learning-12

4.2.2 Personal Viewpoints of the Participants on the Website Learning-15

4.3 The Enlightenment for Traditional English Teaching-17

Chapter 5 Conclusion-20

References-21

文献综述报告-23