An Investigation Of Students' Perceptions Of ESP Needs In Gansu Higher Vocational And Technical Colleges

At the Third National Education Conference the Ministry of Education proposed that Higher Vocational and Technical Education (HVTE) should be greatly developed and the development of HVTE is regarded as one of the key points of higher education reforms in our country. HVTE is an important component of higher education in China. It is different from general higher education because it is vocation-oriented and its objective is to cultivate practical talents in production, technology, service and management etc. Thus application and practicality is the distinguishing features of ELT of HVTE. However, ELT of HVTE has followed the teaching model of four-year undergraduate education for a long time. More importantly, the teaching effect isn't satisfactory. Graduates of HVTC (Higher Vocational and Technical College) find it difficult to deal with the matters in English in the real work..ESP (English for Specific Purposes) is an important branch of English Language Teaching and is based on a rigorous needs analysis of learners. As a new approach to language teaching that the contents and methods of ESP courses are determined by functional and practical English requirements of the learner, it can help learners acquire the specific abilities within the limited time. ESP is not only in accordance with the training goal of ELT of HVTE, but also can meet the social needs for practical talents of English. So it is reasonable and feasible to apply ESP approach into ELT of HVTE.ESP teaching of HVTC has been overlooked for a long time. Even some colleges haven't offered ESP courses so far. Although some colleges have ESP courses, they have been developed without conducting a needs analysis, which can not meet students' practical needs. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the perception that HVTC students have of ESP needs. In order to find out the students' practical needs, an investigation was carried out in six of Gansu HVTC in the form of questionnaire and interviews. Respondents included 601 students from six HVTC and 15 ESP teachers from three of six HVTC. The questionnaire distributed to students was designed on the basis of Tom Hutchinson & Alan Waters' framework of needs analysis. Survey information included respondents' opinions on (1) the necessity and the importance of learning the ESP course for students' English studies and future careers; (2) English language skills students expect to improve through learning ESP; (3) suggestions for development of an English language curriculum; (4) and ESP course design in terms of objectives, materials, teachers, teaching method and evaluation. Some interviews were conducted with 15 ESP teachers to obtain the relevant information and supplement students' views. Interviews involve 12 questions. Results indicate that ESP courses are perceived as important and necessary for students' English studies and their future work. Students desire two years of general English study and need to have an ESP course in the 3^rd year. They want to develop English proficiency, especially in listening & speaking. Based on the results of the investigation, some effective suggestions for improving ESP teaching and meet students' needs are proposed in the five basic aspects: introducing ESP course into the Basic Requirements; providing training courses to ESP teachers, analyzing students' needs; emphasizing the training of listening and speaking; adopting communicative approach in ESP teaching to make it more interactive and effective.