An Investigation Into Students' Needs Of Foreigners Learning Chinese In China

Needs analysis has been viewed as a key factor for non-native language learning since the 1970s. Needs is the fundamental driving forces for language learning, and it helps students go through the learning process.To develop a clear understanding of foreign students'needs in learning Chinese is important. The results of needs analysis of foreign students learning Chinese can be used to improve and implement language learning programs which will, in the long run, help attract more foreign Chinese learners and increase the influence of Chinese culture over the world.This study is based on a questionnaire as well as auditing the Chinese class and in-depth interview with some of the subjects. The subjects,102 non-native Chinese language learners, are divided into two groups by the length of which they learn Chinese in China:one group come to China to study Chinese for a short term (half a year or less than that), the other stay in China for a long time for the language learning (one year or more than that). In this study, the students'needs questionnaire is designed with the Hutchinson & Waters framework (1987), considering the objects characteristics (foreign Chinese learners in China) and aiming at improving the current Chinese learning situation. The questionnaire is designed to investigate the students'needs, taking the schooling length as a breakthrough, to find out the essential difference in target needs and learning needs between the two groups. Recommendations about learning program design, textbook compiling, and teaching approaches are made based upon these differences. The following conclusions can be drawn from the descriptive statistic analysis of the survey data:(1) The major of students has a significant impact on the choice of schooling length--students majoring in linguistics, Chinese culture prefer the long term study. (2) The long-termed students usually have better understanding of Chinese language than the short-termed ones, and they are also more active in using available resources and methods to help studying. (3) The needs of long-termed students are focused on job hunting, while the short-termed students are more interested in knowing the Chinese culture. (4) Students in long term program are clearly more satisfied with the courses and textbooks, compared to whom in a short term program. Based on the results of this study, the following recommendations are made:(1) The needs of students should be taken into account in designing Chinese learning program, which includes the target need such as the expected learning objects, and the study needs such as environment, facility, and the preferred teaching methods; (2) More activities other than classroom teaching should be designed, helping learners combine all the learning resources available.