Analysis on English learning needs for the Art major students at tertiary level in China A case study in Shaanxi Normal University

摘要：近年来，国内外研究者们分别从不同角度进行了需求分析的相关研究。然而笔者发现针对艺术专业大学生英语学习需求分析的研究较少。因此，本文以陕西师范大学艺术类大学生为研究对象，运用需求分析理论，结合哈饮森提出的需求分析的模式，采用问卷调查的方式，对90名艺术类学生的学习需求进行调查分析。研究的内容包括：艺术专业学生的英语学习目标和期望是什么？艺术专业学生希望学习哪些英语知识，掌握哪些英语技能？艺术专业学生最喜欢的学习方式和学习风格是什么？通过分析艺术专业学生的学习需求，探讨其原因并且提出若干建议使教师在今后的大学英语教学中更好地教授艺术专业学生知识。即：引导学生建立正确的学习目的并设计满足学生需求的教学目标和教学材料，教师应该关注学生的全面综合能力并且提供更多的机会给艺术专业学生来应用英语。教师应该教授一些实用的学习策略并设计以专业英语为内容的各种课堂活动来激发学生的学习兴趣。教师在加强学生自主学习意识的同时，引导和督促学生课后学习任务的完成。

关键词：艺术专业学生；需求分析；英语学习需求

Introduction

In recent years,domestic scholars pay more and more attention to the ap plication of the needs analysis theory in foreign language teaching.In 2007,the Chinese Ministry of education issued College English Curriculum Requirements,which is intended to provide requirements for the nation-wide reform of the traditional College English teaching and curriculum development.The College English Curriculum Requirements states as following,each college should design its own college English curriculum system based on its actual conditions,curriculum requirements and distinct English objectives or goals,etc.the compulsory courses and selective courses should be combined.Complying with the trend,courses of English for Special Purposes that based on the teaching content like basic language knowledge are being tapering off gradually,while the courses of English for Special Purposes are increased.Therefore,each school should organize the courses of ESP and EGP according to the actual situation（Wang,2010）.However,the construction of college English courses should always take learners' needs into consideration.After the reform of college English,college English pay more attention to designing personalized curriculum.Need analysis should be the first step in the process of course design and it is the important link in the process of curriculum design.Students,whose major is art,belong to the special group of college students.Their characteristic is that their Basic English levels are not high; therefore,teachers can not use the same way to teach art major students as ordinary students.Teachers should understand the learners' study needs,and design a scientific,systematic College English syllabus based on the learners'learning needs,which can make college English teaching more effectively.

Needs analysis especially learners' needs analysis,can help teachers fully understand the learning conditions of learners,learners' knowledge,learners' skills and strategies,and learners' learning motivations,etc.And it also can help students identify their learning purposes; make them utmost participate in the teaching process.Then it can stimulate students'learning interest and enthusiasm.Evans and John（Evan&John,1998）concluded that the professional English teacher should be also a researcher and should continuously pay attention to students' needs and wants.College students' English learning needs analysis has a great guiding significance in foreign language teaching,such as students' needs of classroom learning; students' needs of teaching methods;students' needs of learning content,etc.It also can be used to understand the students' demand for foreign language teaching,to analyze the weak aspects of the students' achievements,to determine the problem in the process of foreign language teaching.In our country,teachers often ignore that students also play an important role in English teaching.Teachers don't pay attention to students' learning needs,which may lead English teaching disconnected,and the learning efficiency is low.

In order to understand the learning needs of art major students in Shaanxi Normal University and to promote college English teaching for art major students,to make college English teaching more effectively,this article studies art major learning needs of college English.Using the theory of needs analysis combines with the model of needs analysis put forward by Hutchinson and Water as theoreti cal foundation.The purpose of the article is going to answer the following research questions: 1）What are the learning objectives and expectations of art major students in learning English?2）Which content of English knowledge,language skills do they prefer to learn?3）Which English learning methods and forms do they prefer?Through the analysis of art major students' learning needs in learning English,the study aims to find out some specialties of art major students in learning English and tries to give some proposals for the college English teaching.

Literature Review

About needs

In terms of the definition of Needs Analysis,the definition of“needs”should be taken into consideration at first.In the case of language program,different scholars and experts have illustrated the definition of needs in different points of views.Widdowson（1978）defines the needs as“learners”present study and future job requirement,that is,what they have to be able to do at the end of the course.Richterich（1983）states the language needs consists primarily in compiling information both on the individuals or group of individuals who are to learn a language and on the use which they are expected to make of it when they have learnt it.Brindley（1989）notes needs may be equal to learners' wants and desires which refer to what the students themselves want to learn and in addition to the program requirements.The idea of needs is widely used,but its connotation doesn't have a final conclusion.A famous scholar,who named West（1994）according to teaching practice,thought that the need is the gap between the expected and the current situation,which is widely accepted by scholars.Long（2005）cites four reasons for performing needs analyses:“First,to determine the relevance of the material to the learners' situations; second,to justify the material in terms of relevance for all parties concerned（teacher,learner,administration,parents）; third,to account for differences in learner needs and styles,fourth,to create a syllabus which will meet the needs of the learners as fully as possible within the context of the situation”（Long,2005）.