As the SLT meets the learning features of primary school students, the requirements of English curriculum standard and new PEP teaching materials for primary school, more and more primary school teachers choose to adopt the SLT to their teaching. However, there lacks an effective creation of situation in classroom and consequently, there are less opportunities to apply the language. Therefore, this paper focuses on studying the application of the SLT in English class at primary school. 

1.2 Research questions

The paper discusses the application of situational language teaching in English class at primary school. Situational language teaching is an approach that meets the learning features of primary school students, the requirements of English curriculum standard and teaching materials. Theoretically, if the SLT was effectively applied, it could well arouse primary school students’ learning interests and benefit their English learning. However, in real teaching situation, many teachers do not realize the core of the SLT and they are not professional enough to create situation for primary school students learning English. Therefore, studying the gap between the theory of the SLT and teachers’ views on it, and the methods to create situation can provide an overall situation about the application of the SLT in English class at primary school. Three research questions in the study are:

(1) What are teachers’ views about the SLT?

(2) What are the methods adopted in teaching practice to create language situation?

(3) What are the effects of applying Situational language teaching?

2. Literature review

2.1 A theoretical review of situational language teaching

2.1.1 Definition of the SLT 

Based on Longman Dictionary of applied linguistic, situation refers to a combination of all the things that are happening and all the conditions that exist at a particular time in a particular place. It focuses on the surroundings of a place; Situational language teaching (SLT) refers to a language teaching approach established by grammar and new language points are demonstrated and practiced by means of situations. Situational language teaching (SLT) is an approach derived from the Direct Method and developed by British applied linguists Harold Palmer and A.S. Hornby from the 1930s to the 1960s (Richard & Rogers, 1986). The structural view of language is the view behind the SLT. He (2011) pointed out that structuralism believes that speech is the basis of language and structure is regarded as core of the speech, and structure should be learned through practicing speech in situation. The SLT originally focus on controlling lexicon and grammar But it now emphasizes that in teaching process, teachers should create situation to introduce certain language items to students. The main character of the SLT is that new language points are introduced and practiced according to situation.

Xia (1989) put forward two types of situation that can be created in the SLT in Cihai, a large-scale Chinese dictionary. One is the authentic situation and the other one is inauthentic situation. Authentic situation means everything in situation is real. It allows the target language and real objects to establish direct contact. In authentic situation, students can directly percept the real world so that they can learn language easier. Except real objects, teachers also can create authentic situation by real question and answer. However, it is impossible for teachers to create authentic situation time by time. After all, teachers teach language and students learn language in the classroom. Teachers can’t bring all objects that relate the teaching materials to classroom. Therefore, creating inauthentic situation is necessary. Inauthentic situation reproduces real objects through pictures, videos, music, and role play and so on. Compared with authentic situation, inauthentic situation is more flexible and easier created. Ways to create such situations include pictures, songs, chant and videos.