Current Problems With Regards To Roles Of Maritime English Teachers In China And Suggested Solutions

The present study has probed into the current problems with regards to the roles of Maritime English teachers (METs) in China and suggested some solutions to such problems. A survey was carried out on 50 METs and 150 junior and senior nautical students of Dalian Maritime University, Shanghai Maritime University and Jimei Navigation Institute of Jimei University by means of questionnaires and interviews. Relevant information was also collected by interviewing administrative staff of the above-mentioned three universities. In addition, a one-month observation on Maritime English class teaching activities at Dalian Maritime University was undertaken. The data collected in the above ways was analyzed within the theoretical framework named as PAS Model constructed with five roles of METs and needs analysis proposed by Dudley-Evans and St. John collectively (1998) as well as motivation theory put forwards by Bellott and Tutor's (1990).The problems are as follows: 1) English-trained METs (EMETs) lack enough maritime knowledge, while maritime-trained METs (MMETs) do not have good command of English, both of them are not fully qualified; 2) intramural and inter-mural cooperation is not close enough, and the exchange between METs and Maritime English Learners (MELs) is little; 3) METs are not capable of designing reasonable course and select appropriate teaching materials; 4) METs are weak in research, especially on academic dissertation; they fail to verify the effectiveness of their teaching materials and curriculum design due to failure in understanding students' requirements for the course; 5) METs fail to design effective evaluation methods which can reveal the true ability of students. All these problems have side effects on the teaching quality, which in turns compromises students' mastery of maritime English.It is also found through this research that the underlying reasons for the current problems outlined above are the absence of efficient training programs and...