Exploration and Reflection on College Online English Teaching in Henan Police College

SHI Li-dan

Under the background of the Internet Plus， the research on the online and offline integrated teaching mode is particularly important. Therefore， based on the teaching of Henan Police College and taking the college English course as an example， this paper investigates and analyzes the online teaching situation. The results show that there are significant differences between gender and grade in students’ online English learning； the biggest difficulty for students in online English learning is the lack of learning materials like textbooks and the simultaneous use of multiple equipment in class； the biggest problem in the ideological and political integration of English course is that the way of ideological and political integration in English class lacks of variety. Through this research， it is hoped to help teachers in HNP college improve the online teaching mode， improve the online teaching quality， and promote the normalization of online and offline teaching mode.

Keywords： online and offline integrated teaching mode， online English learning， new normal

1. Research Background and Purpose

In 2020， online education at all levels and types of schools across the country is in full swing. It is necessary to actively solve the problems in online teaching and accumulate successful experience， so as to prepare for the normalization of the teaching mode of the integration of online and offline teaching in the future. Therefore， this paper carries out a web-based questionnaire survey on college English online teaching in Henan Police College in the first half of 2020 to keep abreast of the situation of college English online teaching in Henan Police College， and to provide some teaching suggestions and guidance for college English online teaching in Henan Police College at the same time. At same time it is hoped to provide some experiences about English “flipped classroom” teaching for police colleges.

2. Research Methods

2.1 The Method and Object of This Investigation

This study adopts two ways： online questionnaire survey and structured interview. The subjects of this survey are all the freshmen and sophomores of Henan Police College. A total of 2186 questionnaires were collected， with an effective rate of 100%. Among them， boys accounted for 77.63%， and girls accounted for 22.37%； freshmen accounted for 46.43% and sophomores accounted for 53.57%. （see Table 1）

2.2 Analysis of the Reliability and Validity of the Questionnaire and the Contents of the Survey

The reliability of the questionnaire was analyzed by SPSS 20.0. The results showed that the Crobacha coefficient was 0.704， which indicated that the reliability of the questionnaire was good. A total of 29 questions were designed in this questionnaire， which mainly include the following aspects： students’ basic information， students’ overall attitude towards online English teaching in our college， evaluation of students’ English online learning， students’ evaluation of online teaching， students’ difficulties in online learning， evaluation of integrating ideological and political education into online English teaching， comparison between online and offline learning effects and suggestions for English online teaching.

2.3 Investigation Process

Through the network platform， English teachers organize students to fill in the questionnaire carefully. The questionnaires collected were sorted and analyzed by SPSS and EXCEL software. In order to ensure the true validity of the students’ answers to the subjective questions of the questionnaire， another 10 students （five freshmen， five sophomores， five males and five females） were selected for telephone interviews. At the end of the interview， the content of interview was directly transcribed into the form of written materials.

3. Results and Discussion

3.1 Students’ Overall Attitude Towards Online English Teaching in Our College

The survey found that the students are quite satisfied with the overall attitude towards the online teaching of college English in our college， accounting for 70.77%. At the same time， it also shows that the English teachers in our school can actively adapt to the new teaching challenges and provide students with high-quality English courses even though English lessons are taught online.

3.2 Basic Situation of Students’ Online English Learning

3.2.1 Students’ preparation before class

Before each class， the teacher will assign the students learning tasks related to this class and ask the students to prepare well for each lesson.

The results of the survey show that 89.98% of the students are basically able to prepare before class and prepare well in advance. This shows that most of the students have a correct attitude towards online English learning. There are also 10.02% of the students with little or no preparation before class. English teachers need to strengthen the pre-class guidance for these students and do a good job in checking the students’ homework before class， so as to urge the students to prepare well before class and cultivate their self-study ability and improve the effect of learning in class. In addition， according to the independent T test results of SPSS software， there is a significant difference between gender and grade in whether the students are ready for class in advance according to the teacher’s requirements. Girls are better able to prepare before class， and freshmen are better at preparing for class. This difference may be due to the fact that freshmen still maintain their enthusiasm for learning in high school when they have just entered college， while sophomores may lose their enthusiasm for learning in high school when they stay in college for a long time.

3.2.2 How do students solve problems they meet on online English learning

Learning is not only a process of passively accepting knowledge， but also a process of actively discovering， analyzing and solving problems. Solving the problems encountered in the learning process is also a way to increase knowledge and improve ability. The survey found that 50.91% of the students like to ask questions directly to solve their doubts when studying online， 15.46% of students turn to their teachers for solving problems offline， 22.37% of the students discuss and solve problems with their classmates， and 10.61% of the students solve them by themselves. Only 0.64% of the students ignore the problems they encounter. This shows that most students can actively think about problems and solve them when they encounter them in the process of online English learning. In addition， the survey shows that there are significant differences in how students solve difficult problems in grade （t=3.192， p=0.001）. Freshmen prefer to ask questions directly online to solve problems， and sophomores tend to discuss with classmates or solve problems by themselves. This shows that freshmen prefer to interact with teachers online.

3.2.3 Students’ performance on online English learning

In order to make online English teaching better reflect the educational concept of “student-centered” and make online classroom activities be carried out centering on students， the author makes a survey of students’online English performance.

The data show that 81.75% of students can actively participate in online learning activities， 85.5% of students think carefully about teachers’ questions， 79.64% of students can actively answer teachers’ questions in class， and 81.47% of students think that their interest in learning can be stimulated. But 18.62% of the students are interested in online English activities， 18.44% of the students read other books irrelevant to English， 21.78% of the students are easily distracted and inattentive， and 20.82% of the students doze off in the online class. These data show that English teachers can still actively practice the educational concept of “student-centered” in online classes， guide students to actively think about problems and stimulate students’ interest in online English learning. Students can also overcome all kinds of difficulties， actively adapting to the new class style， actively participating in classroom activities， thinking carefully and answering questions.

The reasons for such bad phenomena in online English classroom are： first of all， the speed and stability of the network are the main reasons that affect students’ attention and make them be distracted easily in online learning. The second is that students are not supervised by teachers on the spot and they have poor self-control ability. Besides when they study at home， influenced by surroundings， they cannot have a good environment for learning. In addition， some teachers’ online teaching design is boring and unattractive， which also accounts for a small part of the reason. Other reasons are that it is very inconvenient for students to learn by the mobile phone； they cannot catch up with what teachers teach in class as the result of the poor English； staring at the computer for a long time make students’ eye fatigue and so on.

3.2.4 Students’ favorite activities on online English learning

The author makes a survey of students’ favorite English classroom learning activities in order to provide suggestions for better and more reasonable design of teaching contents and methods in the future.

The survey results show （such as the picture above） that the top three classroom learning activities that students like are cultural background introduction， curriculum ideological and political integration and text structure analysis， each accounting for 88.52%， 86.92% and 86.01% respectively. The proportion of grammar explanation， sentence pattern practice and vocabulary practice is 82.62%， 80.69% and 83.30% respectively. Homework comments rank last. This shows that on the one hand， English teachers attach importance to the introduction of cultural background in class， and at the same time， students also hope to understand the similarities and differences between Chinese and Western culture， history， politics and economy through the study of cultural background knowledge. On the other hand， it shows that the ideological and political content in English classroom is in line with the interests of college students’ cultural choice， which promotes the coupling of the supply of English education and college students’ cultural “sense of gain”. That’s why students like the course of thinking and politics in English class （Li， 2019）. Less students’ preference for homework comments also suggests that English teachers can appropriately reduce the time of homework comments and spend more time on other classroom activities.

3.2.5 The quality of students’ assignments

In order to test the effect of students’ online learning in each class and help students review online learning content， English teachers assign relevant assignments or tasks in time after each class and ask students to submit them online.

For after-class homework， 89.16% of the students were able to complete and submit their homework in time each time. This shows that most students can take their homework seriously and consolidate what they have learned in English class in time. However， 7.04% of the students need to be reminded by their teachers before they can complete and submit their homework， and 3.66% of the students will not be able to finish their homework on time. According to the data obtained from the later interviews and the filling of the students’questionnaire， because each teacher assigns more homework and forgets the English homework， sometimes the teacher needs to remind the teacher to finish the homework in time； or sometimes the evening test of a certain subject leads to time conflict and forgets to complete the English homework； some students also mentioned that it is easy to forget to submit the homework because it is submitted online.

3.3 Students’ Evaluation of English Teachers on Online English Learning

3.3.1 Students’ perception of online English Teaching Rhythm

In classroom teaching， teachers serve the students chiefly with sound， which determines that the voice language expression of information and the information reception of students are carried out at the same time. Teachers’ speaking speed has a direct impact on the teaching effect， especially for English classroom teaching（Liu， 2012）. This investigation found that 64.32% of the students thought that the online teaching speed of English teachers was moderate， but 34.63% of the students thought that the speaking speed was fast. In addition， the results show that gender has a great influence on the general perception of English online teaching rhythm， showing a significant difference （t=-7.474， p=0.000）. Boys generally think that teachers speak faster in class than girls. It also suggests that English teachers should adjust their speaking speed appropriately according to the gender differences in class to ensure that most students can keep up with the classroom rhythm and make the classroom more effective.

3.3.2 Evaluation of English teachers’ online teaching

In the process of teaching， teachers should carry out teaching activities always revolving around students. Evaluation of classroom teaching should also recognize and give full play to the main role of students. Doing a good job of students’ evaluation of English teachers’ online teaching is of great significance to teachers’“teaching” and students’ “l(fā)earning”. Through the survey， 98% of students believe that： teachers dress neatly according to the dressing requirement for police， always ready for classes， and have classes on time； the teaching objectives in class are clear， and the teaching content can reflect the latest information and achievements； teachers’ expression is standardized and concise； teaching rhythm is moderate and expression is fluent.

3.4 Evaluation of the Integration of Ideological and Political Content Into Online English Courses

3.4.1 The general evaluation of ideological and political content integrated into English online classroom

With the development of globalization and the strengthening of international exchanges， western ideas and culture have been gradually introduced into China. Chinese college students are more and more fond of foreign culture， such as more and more students are keener on “foreign festivals”， but lack of enthusiasm for local culture. The integration of ideology and politics in English classroom is not only a way to impart English knowledge to students， but also a position for students to understand the cultural differences between China and the West and to strengthen the guidance of students’ culture and values. In view of the importance of ideological and political integration in English classroom， the author makes a special investigation on the ideological and political integration in English classroom in our school. The survey results show that 99% of the students think that there is a high degree of ideological and political integration in our English classroom， and English teachers can guide students to actively discuss ideological and political topics in online class， compare the similarities and differences between China and the West， and help students establish a correct outlook on life， world and values. This shows that English teachers can make good use of their unique advantages in ideological and political education and fully tap the knowledge about humanity in the curriculum to inculcate students’ in ideological， political and moral aspects without their noticing.

3.4.2 The way of ideological and political education in English online classroom.

The way of ideological and political integration in online English classroom has a great influence on students’ ideological and political education and knowledge imparting. The survey shows that most of the English teachers integrate ideological and political content via videos in class （53.15%）， 23.24% present the red resources educate students only by language （23.24%） and lead students to learn by free discussion （19.99%）. In addition， students mention that their teachers mention some ideological and political knowledge points occasionally or ask students listen to bilingual news about red resources. This result shows that the form of ideological and political integration in English classroom is various， but teachers prefer video. In addition， according to the data analysis， grade has a great influence on the way of ideological and political education in college English online classroom， and there is a significant difference （t=-4.047， p=0.000）. Most teachers teaching sophomores use video to carry out ideological and political education. Through the survey， these three ways of ideological and political integration are liked by students to the same extent. It also suggests that English teachers should combine three ways to integrate ideological and political education in the classroom so as to maximize the effect of ideological and political education for students.

3.4.3 Problems in ideological and political integration in online English class

In order to do a better job of ideological and political integration in English classroom， the author makes a survey on the problems existing in ideological and political integration in English classroom. Most of the students（65.14%） think that the way of ideological and political integration in English classroom is mainly language itself. In addition， some students （17.43%） do not have the awareness of ideological and political education and a small number of students think that the teaching design is a bit unreasonable. Besides， some students mentioned that English is a language learning course， and it will be abrupt and “unprofessional” to integrate ideological and political content into English class.

3.5 The Difficulties for Students in Online Learning

The research shows that lack of learning materials such as textbooks and frequent use of two electronic devices （mobile phone and computer） in class are the biggest difficulties for students in online learning （33.49%）， followed by network instability and lagging （31.93%）， installation different types of software and APPs （17.43%）， insufficient mobile data （12.58%）， and no network （1.56%）. The results show that the biggest difficulty in online teaching comes from the lack of learning materials and network. Through data analysis， there are significant differences in learning difficulties among different grades. English teachers should pay more attention to understanding the learning difficulties of students of different grades， specifically aiming at these difficulties to help students improve their enthusiasm in English learning.

3.6 Comparison Between Online and Offline English Teaching.

In order to better get ready for new semester and make an effective connection between online and offline teaching， the author makes a survey on the students’ evaluation of online and offline English teaching. Most students consider that online English learning is better than traditional offline English learning， accounting for a higher proportion （88.74%）. Students （55.95%） indicate that they are willing to accept the mixed online and offline teaching mode after they return to school. However， the data analysis shows that there are significant differences in the mixed teaching mode between boys and girls after going back to school， and girls are more willing to accept the mixed teaching mode.

4. Suggestions for Teaching

4.1 Optimize the Network Facility and Adopt the Same Live Broadcasting Platform

The college should provide a stable network environment for teachers to ensure the smooth progress of the classroom. Teachers should try to unify the live broadcast platform as far as possible， so that students can reduce the installation of all kinds of learning software and facilitate students’ online learning.

4.2 Make a Good Teaching Design in Accordance with the Features of College

Due to the limitation of live broadcast on the Internet， most of the online English teaching focus on reading and listening， with little practice on students’ writing and oral English. In order to cultivate students in an all-round way， some writing and oral English classes can be arranged appropriately in online English classes. The design of teaching content should be more interesting so as to improve students’ attention and increase students’sense of participation in classroom. Teachers should set up more questions in class to increase the chances of interacting with students， and to get more students actively participate in the online discussion. The teaching content can appropriately include some CET-4 and CET-6 content to prepare students for CET-4 and CET-6. With regard to the ideological and political content of English course， teachers should try their best to integrate the ideological and political content of the curriculum into the whole classroom by combining it with current affairs and politics to strengthen the ideological and political education of students. In addition， as there are more boys than girl in police college and data analysis suggests that gender has great influence on preparation for class， teachers should remind male students to prepare well for the class. English teachers should also pay attention to the characteristics of sophomores， improve their learning enthusiasm and ask them to get ready before class.

4.3 Solve Students’ Online Learning Difficulties and Ensure Students’ Learning Efficiency

In view of the fact that some students cannot afford the network expenses， the school can provide some subsidies for the network expenses for the students appropriately. In addition， for those students who are unable to get involved into live broadcast online， teachers can record the lessons to facilitate the study of these students and the reviewing of lessons （Lin， Chen， Shen， & He， 2021）.

4.4 Assign Homework Reasonably and Test Students Regularly

Teachers should assign different tasks according to the students’ language ability， which can reduce the students’ weariness of learning. Teachers should also check the students’ homework regularly and urge them to correct their homework seriously.

5. Conclusion

It is true that online live screaming can ensure that classes will not be suspended to a certain extent， but there are also problems in it. To solve the problems in online learning， flipped classroom is a good choice. Flipped classroom is a hybrid teaching mode with the combination of online and offline， which can effectively solve the online problems and cultivate students’ autonomous learning ability. At the same time， teachers can also build their own online English teaching resources corpus. Mixed teaching is a new thing for both teachers and students， which is challenging and needs a period of running-in and adaptation， as well as teachers’ continuous summary and improvement in the process of practical teaching （Zhao， 2019）. In order to respond more positively to the English teaching reform of the Ministry of Education， train high-quality police personnel and make full use of the accumulated online teaching experience， the police college should normalize the online and offline teaching mode.

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