Teaching English in China:Language,literature,culture,and social implications

The teaching of English in China started with the establishment of the Interpreters' College in 1862 as a response to the pressure of Western imperialist powers, but also for the purpose of China's self_strengthening and modernization. For a long time, however, owing to political and ideological reasons, English was taught as a language, while English literature and Western culture were suppressed as politically suspect and dangerous. As a result, graduates from China's English departments are generally ill_equipped to communicate effectively and to deal with the task they face in today's competitive world for lack of literary competence and cultural knowledge. We need to reexamine the entire curricula and design courses not only in English literature and culture, but in Chinese and comparative studies as well so that we may produce students with better linguistic skills, adequate cultural knowledge, and a mature and critical mind.