International Conference: language education for sustainable development

Mr Enze Guo, Postgraduate Teaching Assistant and Research Assistant at University College London

The promotion of Global Citizenship (GC) has become a goal of higher education in many countries. It has been recognised that the important contribution that language education can make in particular to the promotion of GC. English language education also receives much attention on its promotion of GC. However, there is a particular lack of empirical research on English language teachers promoting GC, especially in the Global South. Furthermore, the significant role of English language teachers is underestimated. Listening to university English language teachers’ voices and researching their experiences are valuable to explore the phenomena. Thus, this research explores the topic of promoting GC within universities in China, and it focuses on current university English language teachers’ dilemma and voices. Through interviews with 25 teachers from universities in China, the study discusses English language teachers’ understanding, interpretation and experiences of promoting GC. The findings demonstrate that university English language teachers’ perceptions of GC in China are driven by nationalism discourse, Confucian thoughts and globalisation understanding. Meanwhile, university English language teachers confront some barriers when promoting GC: Firstly, English language curricular ideological and political education has been strengthened in Chinese universities. The second concern is teacher’s limited and unequal access to training resources and sessions. There are disparities in the exchange learning and training resources available to teachers because of the type of university. Even within the same university, those who fully implement university or institute policies are given privileged access to more teacher education and training opportunities. Third, teachers are under pressure about employment accountability from both students and universities. Student expectations of English language teaching regarding National English Language Test and accountability from universities and faculty for students’ employment upon graduation further impact English language teachers’ performance in the courses.