From General English to EST: A Proposal to Reform China's Service English Teaching

Abstract

This paper gives a brief survey of service English teaching in China and proposes reform based on the theory and practice of the ESP/EST approach. The survey describes the course materials, classroom teaching activities, and students' reactions to them under the General English approach now prevalent in China, while at the same time noting an apparent upsurge of interest in EST among Chinese learners and teachers of English. The proposal argues for a shift from General English to EST and offers solutions to such problems as the preparation of EST course materials, the training of EST teachers, and the testing of EST learners. The paper also reveals how expatriate teachers of English working in China could assist in the reform and why textbooks produced in the U.S. and Britain do not suit Chinese students of science and engineering very well.