A Study On Business English Course Design Of Guangxi Colleges And Universities Based On Needs Analysis

With the establishment of China-ASEAN Free Trade Area and the economic growth of Pan-Beibu Gulf, the bilateral trade has increased greatly and Guangxi has a growing demand for interdisciplinary English talents, especially for those who well command communication skills with proficient English competency and have a good knowledge of related business knowledge and practical skills. Therefore, in recent years, many colleges and universities in Guangxi have set up Business English as a major or orientation and expanded the enrollment to meet the social needs. In the process of cultivation on Business English (BE) talents, course design is an issue worthy of being studied, which directly affects the sustainability of special cultivation programs for BE talents.In this study, the author conducted sample surveys among six colleges and universities in Guangxi on the current situation of Business English course design with qualitative approach. The questionnaire design is based on the theoretical framework of Needs Analysis proposed by Dudley-Evans & St. John and investigations were carried out among 31 companies,296 senior BE students and 15 BE teachers among the six colleges and universities in Guangxi, which attempts to figure out whether the current BE course designs have satisfied the learners’ learning needs and employers’ requirements. Besides, the author collects and analyzes the cultivation programs of Business English in these six universities to make comparative analysis with The National Standards for BA Program in Business English (on trial).The results of needs analysis are concluded as follows:for employers, they emphasize graduates’ communication skills, application of English proficiency (especially listening, speaking and writing skills) and practical abilities and actively support the proposal of setting up some business-related courses with regional characteristics; for students, the present course design cannot well satisfy the students’ actual needs for business knowledge and skills, English practical skills and cross-cultural communication skills. Among these surveyed colleges and universities, the proportion of teaching hours distribution of business knowledge and skills and cross-cultural communication skills courses is commonly rather small, which cannot reach what is regulated by The National Standards and hardly meets the students’ needs. Furthermore, listening and speaking skills in the business context are predominantly students’ wants and lacks to which many universities pay little attention; for teachers, Business English teachers cannot meet the students’ needs. Survey shows that the weak teaching strength is the main factor that fails to satisfy students’ learning needs.At last, referring to the result of needs analysis and The National Standards as well as combining the regional characteristics, the author puts forward some suggestions on the improvement of Business English course design from the perspectives of talents cultivation objectives, teaching system and teachers’ professional development.