A Study on the Application of Input Hypothesis in English Teaching of Junior High School

Since Input Hypothesis was proposed, it has attracted the attention of domestic and foreign linguists. However, Input Hypothesis is still a “virgin land” in the teaching practices of primary and high schools. This paper aims to investigate the teaching of junior high school English so as to find out the applications of Input Hypothesis in junior high school English teaching and then propose a series of strategies that can be applied in junior high school English classes in accordance with the four principles of Input Hypothesis. The study was carried out in seventh grade of a junior high school. The researchers observed the English lessons of two classes in seventh grade for three months, analyzed the teaching plans and interviewed the teacher of the two classes. This paper found out that many teaching strategies that the teacher used are theoretically related to Input Hypothesis. However, the teacher has never learned about this theory. In order to bridge the gap between Input Hypothesis and English teaching in junior high school, this paper explained four principles of this hypothesis and put forward some possible strategies. This paper hopes to make contributions to the application of linguistic theories in English teaching og junior high school and urge teachers to equip themselves with these theories.