Abstract
With the release of English Curriculum Standards for Senior High School, the cultivation of students’ key competencies of English subject has become the major concern of many English teachers in senior high schools. As an important part of English teaching, reading teaching is supposed to take the responsibility of helping students form key competencies. In this study, the current situation of English reading teaching in senior high schools is investigated to find out whether English teachers fully and efficiently carry out the cultivation of key competencies of English subject in practical teaching. Data from questionnaires and interviews of teachers indicate practical problems exist in cultivating students’ key competencies in English subject in senior high school, so teachers need to have a further understanding of them and take more innovative activities to help students develop their language competence, cultural disposition, thinking quality and learning ability.