The Problems in Rural English Teaching and the Optimization Path: A Study Based on the Chinese General Social Survey Data

The new curriculum, new ideas and new requirements concerning English teaching have made the rural English teaching face unprecedented challenges. There are many problems contributing to the poor effect of rural English teaching, such as outdated teaching equipment, unreasonable curriculum design, insufficient teaching staff, asymmetrical teaching content, family education and students' personal problems. Based on the Chinese General Social Survey data, it is found that in terms of English reading, English speaking or English writing, the current English level of China's rural residents is lagging behind. From the average, the reading level of rural residents is better than the speaking and writing level, but the paired T-test results show that there are no significant differences between them, suggesting that under the current system of rural English teaching, the English level of rural residents is constrained to a low level. To improve the rural English teaching in the future, it is necessary to pay close attention to the following aspects: stabilizing the investment in rural education; optimizing the English teaching content; converting the philosophy of education; increasing teacher training; establishing the new linkage system.