Storytelling and Sustained Silent Reading in Foreign Language Acquisition: Evidence from Taiwan

Abstract

English education in Taiwan has been an issue for many years and the search for the core of the problem is still ongoing. What has been missing in our English education? This paper attempts to deal with several interrelated issues which are believed to be of vital importance when discussing the problem of our English education and when trying to determine ways of improving it: (1) storytelling as an indispensable first step; (2) storytelling as the bridge to independent reading; (3) extensive reading as the most enjoyable and effective means for continuing language acquisition, (4) extensive reading in the form of in-class sustained silent reading as the most important factor for developing one’s academic language as well as writing ability. Finally, (5) I intend to hypothesize, with the support of research and theory, that there is a developmental path for foreign language acquisition which corresponds very well with first language development.