On the Application of Full Spectrum Teaching Method in Office Oral English in Higher Vocational College
2017-06-13施建丽
施建丽
【Abstract】Vocational teaching reform plays a very important role in deepening the reform of higher education. However, most of the present graduates have high scores but low ability, and lack of related professional quality for the target position. To narrow the gap between learning and application, its urgent to adopt a kind of advanced teaching approach by combining the characteristics of students with rules of talents development.
【Key words】FST method; Higher Vocational College; OE; office
1. Introduction
Vocational teaching reform is a very important part in deepening the reform of higher education, of which the reform of English teaching is the most difficult, far-reaching and significant one, especially the OE since the talents of communication is becoming more and more important in the opening world. But under the Chinese exam-oriented educational background, the cultivation of OE application ability is insufficient apparently especially in the ability that is related to profession. The higher requirement of students professional ability requires new and effective OE teaching method to adapt to.
2. The Definition of FST
The word “spectrum” comes from the Project Spectrum which was researched by a Harvard University professor named Howard Gardner and his group members. Full Spectrum Teaching was put forward formally by Peking University Resource College in 2010.
2.1 In the process of FST teaching, comprehensively build the real scene of office and operation of the enterprise; at the same time equip the schools with advanced facilities that are integrated with the industry. So that the students can fully exercise the practical skills while learning theory knowledge. Similarly, in the students management system, absorb the essence of the modern enterprise management system. Therefore, in the study life of university, students can not only gain the professional knowledge and practical skills, but also cultivate the professional quality.
2.2 Under the background of the 12th five-year plan, China is experiencing the transformation of the pattern of economic development and the adjustment of economic structure. So the industrys demand for talents is also changing with the times. The schools should have clear teaching targets by setting the specific training model and designing the certain courses according to the demands to fit the goal of cultivating application-oriented talents.
2.3 FST mode applies the “TEKH” (technology, emotion, knowledge, habit) value concept of talent training in the students cultivation. It focuses on the knowledge training, yet pays more attention to the cultivation of emotional intelligence and habits. At present, the enterprises require the talents not only have enough professional knowledge and skills, but also must have highly comprehensive qualities, such as communicating skills, team cooperation ability, anti-pressure ability and so on.
3. Characteristics of Full Spectrum Teaching
FST is developed on the basis of the Situational Teaching Approach and the Case-based teaching which both have their limitations respectively. Then, the FST method was born. It is not a kind of specific teaching method; it is at the core of autonomy, cooperation and inquiry teaching.
3.1 The design is open.
The traditional instructional design is based on a certain knowledge point or a knowledge frame. This kind of closed teaching design resulted in rigid learning goals, static content, and mechanical learning programs, which greatly affect the effective generation of the knoawledge. In the designing process of FST, we always adhere to the principal of openness: teachers open thinking and mentality is the premise, the open goal and content is the key, and the open methods and procedures is the guarantee. It is this moderately open teaching design that sets the teaching system in a very stable state, maintaining the liveness of the teaching and giving its potential a better development.
3.2 The content is generative.
The teaching design of the FST adheres to the principals of openness and is full of elasticity and tension. The teachers will consider the various possibilities when they are doing the teaching design. But a real educational process will be much more vivid and richer than scheduled. So no matter how elaborate the presuppose is, there will be a lot of unexpected. The reason is that the objects of education are students who are a group of living human beings and have their own knowledge, experience, thinking, inspiration, interests, needs and etc. The teachers who use the FST have a panoramic view, so they dont need to stipulate and restrict students stiffly with the preset content. They can give full play to the teaching wit, meanwhile sharply capture all kinds of valuable information that is generated in the classroom teaching.
3.3 The process is adaptable.
In FST, the teachers choice of teaching elements, expression of interpretation, speed of program arrangement and teaching should be adapted to the students original cognitive structure, existing ability of understanding and accepting. Although the content organization of the teaching material has a much rigorous and logical structure, teachers do not set the teaching material sorting as the guidelines any more.
If the teachers can organize the teaching activities according to the students cognitive regularity and psychological will in a natural, humanistic way, it can help students learn more happily. The FST requires teachers to respect the natural process of the class. They are going to give students enough time to feel the stimulation of scenario, let them approach the experience patiently and calmly, as well as explore the mysteries of knowledge by themselves.
3.4 The form is interactive.
The content of the FST is not prepared by teachers in advance, while it is reflected during the process of interaction between teachers, students and the environment. This teaching method stimulates the teaching information flow into different direction through the interactions between the teachers, the students and different kinds of media and with the help of different interactive ways, for example, communication, dialogue, and discussion, etc. the FST helps the teachers and students to understand each other in mutual communication, to make sparks of thought in mutual inspiration, to realize the growth of life in the mutual function.
3.5 The resource is situational.
In order to realize the panorama teaching, the teachers should mobilize information resources fully. They have to create lively, rich and vivid teaching situations. Because only in this way, teachers can evoke students vivid memories, arouse real living experience, and urge students to find some real problems that are associated with themselves. During the process of solving real problems, the students can get new knowledge and come into conclusions by themselves. In this way, the students can achieve the realm that go to the knowledge from life and go back to life from knowledge.
4. The application of FST in Office Oral English teaching
The teaching content selected as an example is Unit 9 Complaining and Apologizing from the textbook Office Matters, which is the textbook for Business English majoring students in Higher Vocational College.
4.1 Pre-class
Since the ECO office is set as the main line of the whole teaching material, the classroom is decorated into the ECO office with the help of some decorations like the brand with company logo, postcards and some AIDS etc. The teacher prepares the business suits and business card or something else for the students. The desks are not arranged in common groups, but like company arrangements with different position names on them. There are different positions of the company, for example, the manager, the secretary, the customer service etc. In a word, set the classroom as a real working site to students.
4.2 While-class
The teacher plays the role as the customer service manager in this class and gives a training lecture to the trainees about how to receiving a complaining call. During the teaching process, the teacher can use different teaching methods to achieve the teaching goal. Here we can integrate the TBLT into teaching. At pre-task stage, show students a video about one of our customer service who have received a complaining call last recently and ask them to point out the problems. At while-task stage, require the trainees to work in groups to improve the call with some help of the trainer. At post-task stage, choose some groups to report and the trainer make a conclusion about the strategies that we should know in dealing with complaining calls.
4.3 After-class
Only the 40 minutes in class is not enough for students to form their role senses and cultivate their professional qualities. So thats very important to further scenario setting out of the class. The department leader should organize his or her members to practice what we have got in todays lecture. Besides this, try to write a replying letter to the complainer with the help of the sentence structures that they can get from the printed paper.
5. Conclusion
In FST teaching, students are set to get knowledge and have communications with other students and teachers in a vivid office environment. The relationship is no more the teacher and students, but they are colleagues. All in all, the learning atmosphere is friendly and actively. Since motivation plays an important role in POE teaching in a HVC, students can get enough encouragement and have enough interest in taking part in the activities and open their mouths to speak English in this kind of learning atmosphere. In addition, by involving themselves in the real working conditions, the students can form good professional qualities while practicing.
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