Revising English Language Course Curriculum Among Graduate Students: An EAP Needs Analysis Study

Abstract

Although English for Academic Purposes (EAP) needs among undergraduate and graduate students in both English as a second language and English as a foreign language contexts have been widely researched, there is still a scarcity of research on the EAP needs of graduate students in less-developed parts of China. Adopting a mixed-methods approach (MMR) and collecting data through a questionnaire from student and teacher interviews, this study examined the views of graduate students at a public university in northwestern China on the importance of academic speaking, listening, reading, and writing skills. The study also examined the graduate students’ general perceptions of their English classes, and the problems they had with academic speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Additionally, students’ and teachers’ perspectives on EAP were compared and contrasted. The findings revealed that productive skills were rated as more important as compared to receptive skills. Furthermore, over 82% of the comments on their English classes were negative. Several important issues and specific pedagogical implications for curriculum design were discussed.