The Use of Linking Adverbials by Chinese College English LearnersA Thesis Submittedto Faculty of International Studies of Henan Normal Universityin Partial Fulfillment of the Requirementsfor the Degree of Bachelor of ArtsByLiu HiataoSupervisor：Li QingdongMay 5, 20082AcknowledgementI would like to thank all those who have given me their generous helps, commitment and enthusiasm, which have been the major driving force to complete the current paper. AbstractThe aim of this research is, through a general comparison between learners corpora and NSs corpora, to probe into the characteristics of Chinese EFL learners with regard to their use of linking adverbials in writing and speaking, and give an impersonal description about the non-nativeness that the learners demonstrate in the use of linking adverbials. It is found that Chinese EFL learners have shown an overall overusing tendency in using linking adverbials in their speaking and writing. The results have shown that the factors which contributing to Chinese EFL learners use of linking adverbials are multifold, such as mother tongue transfer, pedagogical instructions, stylistic awareness, semantic understanding, and pragmatic considerations. Key Words: Linking Adverbials; Chinese EFL learners; Use; Teaching Table of ContentsAcknowledgement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .I摘要. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . II Abstract. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IIITable of Contents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IVChapter One Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11.1 Research Background. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11.2 Motivations and Objectives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 Chapter Two The Theoretical Framework of Child Language Learning. . . . . . . . . . . 52.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52.2 A Selective Review of Child Learning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52.3 Child Language Learning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 2.3.1 Child First Language Development. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 2.3.2 Child Second Language Development. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 2.3.3 Child Foreign Language Learning. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 192.4 Summary of Key Learning Principles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Chapter Three Some Critical Issues in Primary EFL Instruction in Chinese Context. . . . . . . . . . .25 3.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253.2 The Debate about the Inclusion of English in the Primary Curriculum. . . .25 3.3 The Contents of Primary English Curriculum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273.4 Approaches to Primary Instruction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 3.5 Assessment in Primary English Curriculum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34Chapter Four Research Design A Survey Study. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .374.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37 4.2 The Survey Background. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .374.3 Subjects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 4.5 Data Collection and Analysis. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43Chapter Five Results and Discussions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 5.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45 5.2 The Overview of Primary EFL Program in Henan Province. . . . . . . . . . . .455.3 The Current Situation of Primary English Classroom Instruction. . . . . . . .52 Chapter Six Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .696.1 Major Findings and Contributions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69 6.2 Recommendations for Future Research. . . . . . . .