外语纵横

美国高校英语专业的“衰落”及其对我国英语专业转型发展的启示

  • 姜亚军 ,
  • 石琳霏
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  • 西安外国语大学, 西安, 710128
姜亚军,西安外国语大学教授、博士生导师。主要研究方向为应用语言学、外语教育学。电子邮箱:jiangyajun@xisu.edu.cn
*石琳霏,西安外国语大学副教授、硕士生导师。主要研究方向为政治语篇分析、外语教育学。电子邮箱:SLFSerena@163.com

网络出版日期: 2026-01-28

基金资助

*教育部首批新文科研究与改革实践项目“西部高等外语教育区域协同、多元融合的人才培养共同体探索与实践”(2021090090);陕西高等教育教学改革研究重点攻关项目“《习近平谈治国理政》多语种版本‘三进’工作背景下外语类专业课程思政建设路径探索与实践”(23BG035)

The “Decline” of the English Major at American Universities and Its Implications for English Programs in China

  • JIANG Yajun ,
  • SHI Linfei
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Online published: 2026-01-28

摘要

美国高等院校的英语专业在经过半个多世纪的规模扩张之后,自20世纪70年代以来因招生人数骤降等原因而显现“衰落”之势,随之进入以设置专业方向为特征的多元化发展时期,专业内涵发生巨大变化。本文对美国英语专业兴起、规模扩张和专业内涵调整的发展历程进行梳理,对其“衰落”的内部和外部原因做了分析,在此基础上从多元化发展、自主知识体系构建和特色发展三个方面对我国英语专业探索创新发展之路提出意见和建议。

本文引用格式

姜亚军 , 石琳霏 . 美国高校英语专业的“衰落”及其对我国英语专业转型发展的启示[J]. 当代外语研究, 2025 , 25(6) : 10 -19 . DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1674-8921.2025.06.002

Abstract

Following over half a century of expansion, the English major in American universities has exhibited increasing signs of “decline” since the 1970s, precipitated primarily by plummeting student enrollment. This contraction catalyzed a transformative phase of disciplinary diversification, marked by the proliferation of specialized academic tracks and fundamental reconceptualization of the field’s epistemological boundaries. By examining the trajectory of the English major, this study interrogates the endogenous and exogenous factors driving its perceived decline. Built on this analysis, the paper makes recommendations for revitalizing China’s English programs: fostering curricular pluralism through interdisciplinary hybridization, architecting epistemically sovereign pedagogical paradigms, and nurturing discipline-specific institutional ethos.

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