Abstract:Language is a part of culture, which is influenced and shaped by culture. English reading comprehension is a part of language studying. Cultural background knowledge plays an important role in English reading. Through reading we can understand the culture and then grasp the language. However, it is often found that students cannot understand or just misunderstand what they are reading even though they know all the words and grammar structures in reading. One of the main reasons is that they lack the necessary cultural background knowledge of the language. This thesis analyses the current situation of cultural background knowledge teaching based on a survey carried out in the Grade Two of No.15 Middle School in Tonghai. The situation tells English teachers it is necessary to pass on cultural background knowledge and how to pass on cultural background knowledge in their teaching. 

　　　The thesis consists of five sections. Section one introduces the relationship between language and culture. The second section is the importance of cultural background knowledge in English reading comprehension. Section three is the current situation of application of cultural background knowledge in English teaching. The fourth part is how to pass on cultural background knowledge in class as foreign language teachers and improve the ability of students’ English reading comprehension. The last section is conclusion, which introduces the importance of cultural background knowledge in reading comprehension and what should be done in teaching as foreign language teachers.

Key words: language; culture; cultural background knowledge; English reading comprehension

摘要:语言是文化的一部分，文化影响并制约着语言的发展。英语阅读理解是语言学习的一个重要的部分，通过阅读我们可以了解其文化并掌握其语言。但是教师们发现:有些学生在阅读时，即使认识所有的词汇，而且能分析语法结构，但是却不理解句子或是文章的意思，造成这种情况的根本原因之一是学生缺乏对所学语言文化背景知识的了解。本论文通过对通海县第十五中学初二年级英语文化背景知识教学运用情况的调查分析，使教师认识到教授文化背景知识的重要性并提出几点关于怎样教授的建议。

　　.本论文分为六个部分：第一部分介绍语言和文化之间的关系；第二部分介绍文化背景知识在英语阅读理解中的重要性；第三部分介绍文化背景知识在英语教学过程中运用的现状；第四部分介绍教师应该怎样在课堂教学中教授文化背景知识，以帮助学生提高英语阅读理解能力。第五部分是对文化背景知识在英语阅读理解中的重要性和英语教师应怎样教授文化背景知识做一个总结。

关键词: 语言; 文化; 文化背景知识; 英语阅读理解