The Department of Foreign Languages of Beijing University of Chemical Technology enjoys rich experience in teaching and the ability to innovate. It undertakes the tasks to give lectures on College English and the other foreign languages to both undergraduates and postgraduates. The core group shoulders the responsibility for the entire department. There are altogether seven teaching and research groups, including Group I, Group II, Group III, Group for Excellent Students, Group for Extended Curriculum, Group for Minority Languages, Group for Postgraduate Students. Apart from this, several working groups are assigned to fulfill the tasks of teaching, researching, testing, evaluating textbooks, developing multimedia courseware and holding extracurricular activities. They not only actively explore the new modes and the novel paths which are based on the modern technology and the combination of online and offline College English teaching reform, but also make full use of the language labs and other resources, thus formulate a set of scientific, systematic and comprehensive College English and achieve the goal of developing the students’ language skills, enhancing their humanistic spirits and cultivating the talents equipped with professional knowledge and enriched with international vision.
The Department of Foreign Languages has made remarkable achievements in years of teaching reform. College English was awarded the Elaborate Course in Beijing in 2006, College English Teaching Team was entitled as Excellent Teaching Innovation Team both in Beijing and in BUCT in 2007. With the concerted efforts, Beijing University of Chemical Technology has been granted Demonstration University of English Teaching Reform by the Ministry of Education as one of the first 31 universities in China. In 2019, College English Courseware was awarded Excellent Courseware for Undergraduate Studies in BUCT. English Reading and College English were entitled First Class Undergraduate Courses in BUCT in 2018 and 2020 respectively. In 2021, College English was awarded Demonstration Course for Ideological and Political Education in BUCT.
At present, there are 47 teachers in the Department of Foreign Languages, with one professor, 17 associate professors and 29 lecturers. The construction of teaching staff has been greatly emphasized with the schemes scientifically worked out to encourage the faculty members to actively participate in academic discussions and research projects. The training programs have been diversified and normalized with the combination of short term and long term, home and abroad, on campus and off campus, refresher training and academic enhancing.
Most teachers have the experiences of pursuing overseas studies, going to certain universities as visiting scholars or as language teachers. They are conscientious and meticulous, with excellent performances in teaching. In recent years, in the teaching contests held in China, one of the English teachers has won the national award, six have won the provincial award, sixteen have won the university award; two have been granted the honorary titles of Distinguished Teacher and Distinguished Young Teacher in BUCT; four have been entitled Excellent Teachers in BUCT; one has been entitled Excellent Educator in Beijing; four have won Dabao Teaching Award in BUCT; one has been granted the honorary titles of Model of Teacher’s Ethics in Beijing; two have been entitled Woman Pacesetters.
In recent years, the Department of Foreign Languages has accomplished approximately 20 projects of teaching reform of all levels, ranking from the Ministry of Education, Beijing and Beijing University of Chemical Technology. Undergraduate courses, courseware and achievements have been granted eight different awards, among which three projects of teaching reform have been awarded the first prize in Outstanding Achievement in Teaching Reform in BUCT. Six textbooks have been entitled the Textbooks of Supreme Quality in Beijing, among which three have been selected as General Higher Education Eleventh Five-Year National Planned Textbook and the national project planning.
The Department of Foreign Languages has made outstanding achievements in talent cultivation. With the endeavour of all the faculty members, the first pass yields of CET-4 & 6 have been significantly improving, students’ language competence has been apparently enhanced, the scores of postgraduate entrance exams are higher than the average levels of similar college rankings and the number of students who have been granted the awards in the provincial and national contests has been increasing constantly in the past four years - two have been awarded the Grand Prize, forty-six have been granted the first prize. Thirty-four teachers have been entitled the excellent instructors in the past four years.
