The Impact of Total Physical Response Approach in Vocabulary Acquisition and Motivation among Rural Chinese Students

Abstract

Compared with traditional teaching, the application of Total Physical Response (TPR) teaching method in elementary school English teaching can improve students' learning effect and enhance classroom participation and engagement. TPR method combines language and body movement, teaching in various forms, and teaching process is rich, so it has been attracted the attention of different English teachers in recent years. The TPR method also plays an important role in teaching and learning English as a Second Language (ESL). Therefore, this study aims to apply the TPR method to stimulate classroom interaction and participation in order to improve the vocabulary level of elementary school students. By implementing the TPR module, physical movements and gestures are integrated into vocabulary teaching to mobilize multiple senses and cognitive processes to facilitate vocabulary learning. This research used a quantitative research method, combining pre-test and post-test questionnaires. This research randomly selected two grade 4 classes for an experiment in which one class received the TPR teaching method, and another one was taught through conventional methods; it got positive results that students' performance in the TPR group was significantly superior to the control group in terms of vocabulary memorizing ability and motivational performance. The findings indicated that TPR creates a participative, stress-free learning environment, and the depth of active vocabulary is achieved while keeping the learning rate high. Therefore, TPR can be one of the best ways to address educational challenges at rural sites that are poorly endowed with resources since its cognitive and affective benefits have a positive impact.