ISSN 2959-6122(Print) ISSN 2960-1304(Online) Editor-in-chief ： Murtaza Hussain（Xi'an Jiaotong University） Associate Editor： Zulqarnain Mushtaq（MIT-Global Scale） Editorial Board Member： Muhammad Idrees（Govt. College University Faisalabad） Wei He（Xi'an Jiaotong University） Arts, Culture and Language that is dedicated to promoting cutting-edge research and scholarship in the areas of arts, culture, and language. This journal is a must-read for anyone who is interested in the dynamic intersection between these important fields. The journal's editorial board is comprised of leading experts in the field, and they carefully evaluate each submission to ensure that it meets the journal's high standards. This journal recognizes that arts, culture, and language are all intimately connected, and it provides a forum for scholars from a wide range of disciplines to engage with each other's work. This interdisciplinary approach encourages new ideas and perspectives, which can help to push the field forward. All articles will be submitted to Google Scholar, Crossref, U.S. Librarian Database, ProQuest(part of Clarivate’s Web of Science), Ulrich's Periodicals Directory, SEMANTIC SCHOLAR, OpenAlex.
Research on Packaging Design and Brand Visual Strategy of Cultural and Creative Products: A Case Study of the Palace Museum’s Cultural and Creative Products
Against the backdrop of the rapid development of the cultural and creative industry, this study focuses on the interactive relationship between the packaging design of cultural and creative products and brand strategies. Taking the Palace Museum’s cultural and creative products as a case study, it analyzes the connection between packaging design and brand visual strategy, revealing their mutual influence. Besides, this study mainly relies on the official website of the Palace Museum and relevant literature to analyze the specific manifestations of its design practices and brand development. The results demonstrate that, in order to further enhance the artistic expression and cultural content of packaging design for cultural and creative products, and to establish a personalized brand visual identity, accurate brand positioning must be carried out first. Based on this, relevant design elements should be gathered, with a focus on visual value, to endow the brand with artistic independence, achieving effective brand communication and independent visual extension. Moreover, continuous management and innovation of design imagery should be fully implemented to ensure sustained, theme-based output.
Copyright (c) 2026 Arts, Culture and Language
A Comparative Analysis of Tragic Prototypes in Chinese and Western Disaster Myths: Taking Gun’s Efforts in Flood Control and Prometheus’ Act of Stealing Fire as Examples
In ancient times, prior to the establishment of written records, early civilizations often relied on oral narratives to cope with frequent yet inexplicable natural disasters. The resulting disaster myths underwent continuous evolution yet eventually crystallized through intergenerational transmission and evolved into a distinct form of collective identity endowed with unique ethnic traits. This paper focuses on the types of natural disasters in mythological narratives, selecting two classic mythological tragedies—Gun’s attempt to tame the floods and Prometheus’ theft of fire—with the aim of comparing the differences between Chinese and Western myths through dimensions such as mythological settings, central figures, and underlying logic, and thereby exploring how national myths articulate distinctive cultural features. By comparing the typical cases of disaster deepening tragedies in China and the West, it can not only help us gain insight into the profound differences between different cultures, but also provide a feasible approach for modern people to solve the problem of disaster response, and even play an important role in the process of continuing the collective memory and cultural genes of the nation.
The Sociocultural Influence of British and American Accents on English Teaching in China: Identity Formation and Teaching Implications
In China, English is the principal foreign language for studying, working, and communicating abroad. In this context, both British and American accents have become symbols of language and culture, influencing learners and teachers’ understanding of English. Based on a review of literature and educational practices, this study explores the historical development and social functions of Standard Pronunciation (RP) and General English (GA) in the United States, as well as their impact on the construction of learner identity in Chinese English education. The results show that RP is typically seen as prestige and authority, whereas GA is associated with accessibility and practicality. Learners show their tendency through accent choice. But in some classes, exam-oriented teaching, inconsistent teacher’s accent, and bias against different accents hinder education. In response, this study proposes pedagogical approaches that value accent diversity, prioritize intelligibility, and support identity development. By analyzing accents, authentic interaction, and intercultural exchanges, students can develop linguistic adaptability and intercultural competence and at the same time reinforce their cultural identity and sense of belonging.
Mandarin Transfer and Chinese Primary Pupils’ Learning of English Connected Speech: From Evidence to Classroom Moves
In the context of globalization, English proficiency constitutes a crucial component of intercultural communication and educational competitiveness. However, Chinese primary English-as-a-Foreign-Language (EFL) classrooms have long disproportionately focused on segmental features at the expense of suprasegmentals such as rhythm, reduction, and connected speech(liaison). This study employs literature analysis and case analysis to explore how Mandarin transfer both facilitates and hinders children’s acquisition of English inter-word transitions. Furthermore, it investigates the localization of these theoretical insights into practical pedagogical designs. Findings from previous research indicate that connected speech can be explicitly taught through perception-to-production tasks, and that first language (L1)-based pre-task planning enables learners in allocating cognitive resources to pronunciation and prosody, thereby improving accuracy and fluency. Under the lens of superdiversity, this paper also emphasizes the pedagogical value of translanguaging, which legitimizes the strategic use of Mandarin as a pedagogical scaffold to enhance intelligibility and reduce learner anxiety. Synthesizing the reviewed evidence and case interpretation, a five-step pedagogical framework—contrast, annotate, L1 outline, shadow, and bilingual reflection—is proposed to integrate positive transfer and mitigate negative transfer in primary EFL contexts. The study aims to provide a theoretically grounded yet contextually adaptable framework for teachers seeking to enhance pupils’ connected-speech competence, particularly within the constraints of exam-oriented classrooms.
Copyright (c) 2025 Arts, Culture and Language
The Pathways for “Cross-Cultural Initiation” in Primary School English Teaching: Designing Cultural Perception Activities Based on Picture Books and Nursery Rhymes
Against the backdrop of educational globalization, crosscultural initiation in primary school English teaching has emerged as a crucial component for cultivating students’ intercultural communicative competence. It facilitates learners’ exposure to and understanding of diverse cultures from an early age, laying a foundation for cross-cultural communication and interaction. Picture books and nursery rhymes, characterized by simple language, rich illustrations and profound cultural connotations, have become unique teaching tools for cross-cultural initiation, rendering abstract cultural knowledge more accessible to primary school students. This study employs literature analysis and case analysis methods to explore the application pathways of picture books and nursery rhymes in cross-cultural initiation. The research findings indicate that picture books can facilitate cross-cultural initiation through pre-class cultural exploration, in-class cultural interpretation and post-class cultural extension. The cross-cultural initiation of nursery rhymes is primarily facilitated through three stages: pre-class cultural interpretation, in-class cultural immersion and post-class application. Both picture books and nursery rhymes have been shown to enhance the effectiveness of cross-cultural initiation in primary school English education.
The Conversational Art of Talk Show Hosts Under the Constraint of Politeness Principles - A Case Study of High-End Interviews
In the current media communication landscape, highend interview programs are key platforms for delivering in-depth information and promoting cultural exchange, while the host’s conversational art directly affects program flow, audience experience, and information dissemination effectiveness. Therefore, studying the conversational art of talk show hosts under the constraint of politeness principles is of great significance for maintaining a harmonious communication atmosphere, respecting interviewees, and gaining the trust of the audience. This paper examines the high-end interview programs broadcast on CCTV and hosted by Zou Yun and Wang Guan, focusing on exploring the hosts’ conversational art under the constraint of politeness principles. The study adopts literature analysis method and case analysis method. Through literature analysis, it systematically reviews theories related to politeness principles and conversational art. With case analysis, it analyzes specific clips of the programs. The study finds that the two hosts flexibly use conversational skills in three aspects: appropriateness of language expression, listening and responding, and balance of conversation. These skills align with the requirements of politeness principles and effectively improve the program quality. This study enriches the research on the conversational art of talk show hosts and provides practical insights for the development of the profession.
The Role of Classroom Interaction in Second Language Oral Acquisition: A Case Study of Primary English Education
With the new standards of the English curriculum, primary school English teaching places greater emphasis on developing students’ oral expression and communicative competence. According to the Input-Interaction-Output Hypothesis in classroom contexts, it is the interaction in the classroom that is essential in driving the language input, the meaning negotiation and the language output, which is the output of the students. This study focuses on primary school English classrooms and examines how classroom interaction influences students’ oral English development within the framework of second language acquisition (SLA) theory. The study conducts a systematic literature review and synthesis of research on classroom interaction in primary school English within domains of domestic and international studies based on the literature analysis and case study of the past decade summarising the principal characteristics of interactions, as well as the factors that influence these interactions. This study explores the theoretical and practical roles and significance of classroom interaction in second language acquisition. The results show that the effective use of high-quality teacher-students interaction and peer-student collaboration can improve oral proficiency and motivation towards learning among students; this provides valuable insights for optimizing primary school English teaching models.
Against the “Meme Machine”: Normativity, Qualia and “Self”
This paper critiques the strong “meme theory” advanced by Susan Blackmore, which claims that all mental phenomena like consciousness, agency, and selfhood can be reduced to the replication and competition of memes. While memetics offers valuable insights into cultural evolution, its explanatory power becomes limited when extended to the philosophy of mind. Two main challenges have developed. First, the problem of normativity: humans evaluate ideas by standards of truth, rationality, and ethics, capacities that cannot be fully explained by replication success alone. Drawing on the notion of innate cognitive structures, the paper argues that evaluative reasoning reveals a layer of mental autonomy beyond memetic causation. Second, the problem of consciousness: eliminative interpretations within strong memetics fail to account for the irreducible reality of subjective experience (qualia). Even if memes construct a “selfplex” that produces an illusory sense of self, the persistence of phenomenological experience resists full reduction. The paper concludes that memetics remains insufficient as a complete theory of mind, despite its insights on cultural theory.
Faith and Identity in Migration: A Comparative Study of Religious Practices among Filipino and Indonesian Migrants in Singapore
As a highly diverse immigrant society, Singapore has long attracted substantial numbers of labor migrants and settlers from the Philippines and Indonesia. These migrants constitute not only a vital segment of Singapore’s labor force but also play a significant role in shaping its cultural and religious landscape. In the context of transnational migration, religion functions as more than a source of spiritual solace—it also serves as a key mechanism for sustaining cultural identity and maintaining social networks through rituals, religious organizations, and everyday practices. This study conducts a comparative analysis of Filipino and Indonesian migrants in Singapore, focusing on the intersection between religion and cultural identity. It explores how religious practice becomes a central means through which migrants negotiate belonging, preserve cultural continuity, and forge social connections in a foreign environment. Grounded in the theoretical frameworks of transnationalism and cultural identity, this study synthesizes insights from academic literature, data from governmental and international organizations, and existing ethnographic sources. Using comparative and qualitative methods, it examines the everyday religious practices of these groups within churches, mosques, and faith-based communities, identifying both divergences and convergences in organizational participation, ritual engagement, and communal interaction. By illuminating the ways in which migrants confront cultural difference and seek belonging, this paper highlights the crucial role of religion in shaping migrant identity and social cohesion in the host society.
Conscription and Maintenance of the French Colonial Empire in West Africa from 1857-1960
Older historical accounts of the French colonial period, particularly surrounding France’s 20th century objectives to civilize and economically exploit Africa, fail to capture the full breadth and complexity of France’s late-colonial administrative strategies. To challenge the validity of traditional narratives, this essay utilizes the 1919 Conscription Act to examine how conscription was implemented within French West Africa’s existing administrative framework during the pre-WWI era. From there, it analyzes how conscription of the Senegalese Tirailleurs evolved into a core theme of colonial administration during the interwar period and ultimately shaped the fate of French colonial empire after WWII. Given that no single colonial priority held uniform significance across all territories, it follows that a regionally specific priority, such as conscription in French West Africa, cannot be overgeneralized to all French colonies. In other words, current research paradigms and historiographic approaches to French colonial history must be adjusted accordingly to reflect this new truth. By uncovering alternative possibilities that have been suppressed within traditional narratives, the essay hopes to resolve the contradictions inherent in older accounts, thereby deepening our understanding of France’s late-colonial administrative strategies.
Religion as Premise for Revolution: Refinement, Challenge
This essay examines the relationship between religion and revolution in Marx’s work. Incorporating the point made in Marx's work that breaking the illusion of religion is the only means to revolution, this essay explores how refining and challenging religion catalysts revolutionary actions. For Marx, man recognizing religion as part of the superstructure shaped by material conditions, and mobilizing collective class consciousness are the important premises for revolution. The essay highlights how transformations in the economic base could reshape religious emphasis from obedience to advocacy of reforms. This illustrates how religion could become a catalyst for social change when confronted with material contradictions. In other cases, challenging the sacred nature of religion also means to normalize social structure and realize all social structure is a product of man. This self activation realization helps set up the groundwork for revolution. Ultimately, the essay argues for religion’s potential to fuel revolution through being refined and affirm humanity’s ability to reshape social orders through being challenged.
Functional and Lyrical Ghost: A Comparative Study of the Narrative Modes of Supernatural Characters in Chinese and Western Drama
Based on the knowledge of narratology and comparative literature theories, this paper mainly studies the narrative modes of the ghost characters in Shakespeare’s dramas and traditional Chinese Yuan Zaju. It addresses a research gap in cultural supernatural symbolism by comparing their roles in different works, including plot narration, religious standpoints, forms of existence, and narrative outcomes. The ghosts in Shakespeare's dramas mainly serve as the core of action and strengthen individual conflicts, while in Chinese Yuan Zaju, the “hundan” primarily acts as an emotional carrier and serves the reconciliation of collectivist ethics. Ghosts in Shakespeare’s plays primarily drive action and amplify internal conflict, and ghosts always reflect Renaissance individualism and Christian cosmology. Comparatively, “hundan”, as an emotional implement, upholds collectivist ethics, often ending with moral reshaping. The comparison underscores how different cultural values and religious ideologies can shape the presentation and purpose of ghost characters in theater. Ultimately, this research illustrates that some different ways in which supernatural characters both reveal and emphasize the ethical and narrative characteristics of their respective literary traditions.
Spectacles and Narratives:The Illusion of the Cinema in Singin' in the Rain
This essay argues that Singin’ in the Rain collaborates narrative and spectacle to investigate and embody cinema’s core illusion. Building on Tom Gunning’s “Cinema of Attractions,” this analysis demonstrates how musical set-pieces and cinematic practices serve as modern attractions that are narratively motivated rather than plot-disruptive. Through Rick Altman’s concepts of dual focus and audio/video dissolves, the analysis demonstrates how sound and image transit from diegetic realism to idealized fantasy, most vividly in the title number’s audio dissolve and the “Broadway Melody/Veil Ballet” passage’s visual dissolve, so viewers feel the transition without losing orientation. Drawing on Michel Chion, the essay reads the disastrous Dueling Cavaliers test screening and the curtain-pull finale as lessons in synchresis and de-acousmatization, revealing how fragile and yet potent audiovisual editing can be. With André Bazin’s emphasis on deep-space staging and long takes, the “You Were Meant for Me” sequence reveals the visible machinery that manufactures romance while sustaining the illusion of belief. Synthesizing Geoff King’s claim that spectacle is most powerful at narratively heightened moments, the essay concludes that acknowledged illusion is not deception but a vehicle for emotional truth and transformation. Singin’ in the Rain lets us immerse in its artificial illusion, showcasing its spectacles, and, paradoxically, deepens our enchantment — presenting cinema’s value in fostering optimism and resilience.
Social Differentiation and Mortuary Rituals at the Xigongqiao Site: Insights into the Dawenkou–Longshan Transition in Southern Shandong
The Xigongqiao site in Tengzhou is a representative Dawenkou Culture site in eastern China, specifically in southern Shandong Province, yielding abundant mortuary materials. All tombs at the site date to the late middle to late phase of the Dawenkou Culture, essentially belonging to the early Longshan period. This study employs basic research methods to statistically analyze tomb structure, the types of grave goods, and their placement within the tombs, resulting in the identification of three hierarchical tomb grades. The differentiation in tomb hierarchy at Xigongqiao indicates that the site's inhabitants had already developed disparities in private wealth and social status. Concurrently, evidence suggestive of the emergence of mortuary ritual systems is also present within the mortuary context. On one hand, the site inherits the Peiligang Culture's mortuary concept centered on the concept of food and drink, manifested further in the spatial separation of drinking-related and eating-related grave goods. On the other hand, the concept of treating the deceased as if living, which later became widespread and profoundly influential throughout Chinese history, may have already begun to germinate at this site. The mortuary remains at Xigongqiao reflect key social transformations during the Yangshao-Longshan transition, including social differentiation and the emergence of mortuary ritual systems. Future research employing scientific archaeological techniques, such as isotope analysis and residue testing, will be crucial for probing the deeper drivers behind these transformations.
The Tamed Rebel: Violence and the Dilemma of Choice in A Clockwork Orange
Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange (1971) remains a seminal work in dystopian cinema, provoking intense debate about free will, state control, and the ethics of behavioral conditioning. This study examines the film’s psychological and philosophical dimensions, focusing on protagonist Alex DeLarge’s transformation under the Ludovico Technique—a state-mandated aversion therapy that strips him of autonomy. Employing textual analysis and psychological frameworks (including Self-Determination Theory and behaviorism), the paper dissects how Kubrick uses cinematic techniques (e.g., ocular symbolism, classical music juxtaposition) to critique dehumanizing social engineering. The findings reveal that forced behavior modification, while superficially effective, destroys intrinsic motivation and identity, reducing individuals to "clockwork" mechanisms. By contrasting Alex’s performative violence with his post-treatment emptiness, the study concludes that authentic humanity requires imperfect freedom, even at the cost of moral ambiguity. The film’s warning resonates in contemporary discussions about AI, surveillance, and state power, urging a balance between social order and individual agency.
Niche in the Age of Algorithmic Recommendation: How Niche Music Communities Construct "Resistance Identity"
this study aims to elaborate on the current state of research at the intersection of algorithmic recommendation mechanisms and subcultures. The study finds that existing literature often remains at the level of "technological determinism," viewing algorithms as a unilateral, hegemonic, and irresistible force impacting society. This research identifies three main core gaps: (1) insufficient understanding of the nature of algorithms as a "technology-society" interplay; (2) a lack of in-depth exploration into the current understanding of "resistance"; (3) a deficiency in research on the uniqueness of the interaction between China's platform ecosystem and "Generation Z" youth in the context of music. Based on this, the innovation of this article lies in adopting the perspective of "technology-society" interplay to analyze the underlying mechanisms through which niche music communities construct a resistance identity in the algorithmic age, and to provide new ideas for the future improvement of algorithmic mechanisms.
A Study on Translation Strategies for Character Development in Video Games: Taking Stardew Valley as an Example
This study takes the independent video game Stardew Valley as an example to explore the strategies and effects of translating the original English character dialogue into Chinese, with a focus on how translation serves to recreate character personalities and localize cultural contexts. Guided by the theories of functional equivalence and pragmatic translation, the study selects five representative characters with distinct styles (Shane, Abigail, George, Emily, and Haley) from the game. Through a dialogue comparison analysis method, the study evaluates aspects such as tone, speech style, emotional expression, and cultural adaptation. The study found that translators retained the original personalities while adopting moderate stylistic adjustments and cultural softening strategies, achieving good functional equivalence. However, the simplification of language style for some characters also led to a dilution of their individuality. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of game character translation practices and provides case references for game localization work.
Mahler's Symphonies: The Artistic Transition from Romanticism to Modernism
This paper takes Gustav Mahler's symphonies as the object of study, to sort out their stylistic transition between the two musical traditions of Romanticism and Modernism, as well as their psychological lineage. Through a combination of documentary research and music ontology analysis, the paper focuses on modernist elements such as fragmentation of motifs, tonal ambiguity and the use of dissonance, as well as Romantic features such as melodic lyricism, rich harmonic colors and orchestral innovations, and explores in depth the mapping mechanism of Freud's theory of the unconscious and Jung's concept of the collective subconscious in the work. It also assesses the inspiration and influence of Mahler's stylistic innovations on subsequent composers such as Arnold Schoenberg, Dmitri Shostakovich, and Olivier Messiaen. It is found that Mahler, through the transformation of psychological concepts and musical elements, both expanded the expressive dimensions of symphonic writing and provided a source of motivation for the development of modernism. This paper provides a new academic perspective for understanding the deeper significance of Mahler's works and their positioning in the history of modern music, as well as pointing out the direction for contemporary symphonic writing and interdisciplinary research.
Writer Lin Zhao breaks away from conventional novelistic conventions, where plot becomes secondary. Her works emphasize linguistic finesse and imaginative depth, infused with Western modernist and postmodern narrative techniques. Yet she maintains Lingnan cultural authenticity through her literary choices. Through narrative analysis of character archetypes, narrative perspectives, and environmental settings, the study highlights Zhang Zao'er—a Lingnan maiden whose vivid portrayal captivates readers, along with the magical journey brought by the fictional giant frog. The region's multifaceted magic forms both Lin Zhao's lived experience and the enduring essence of her literary creations.
Comparative Analysis of English Vocabulary Learning Apps——taking “Bubeidanci” and “Shaguayingyu” as example
English is a main bridge of international communication, and there is an increasing need for people to learn English. The popularity of electronic devices expands ways of English learning, leading great popularity of mobile learning tools. The research plans to deeply analyze two vocabulary learning apps— “Bubeidanci” (Effortless Vocab) and “Shaguayingyu” (Easy English) popular on the market so as to explore their performance in these four aspects—the abundance of resources, the mechanism of learning and reviewing, convenience of operation, and the fun of learning. The research aims at offering scientific suggestions for English learners, that is, to help them choose suitable learning tools based on their learning habits and needs.
L2 Learning Motivation and Academic Achievement: A Literature Review Focusing on Chinese English Majors
This literature review investigated the relationship between second language (L2) learning motivation and academic achievement among Chinese English majors, synthesizing findings from 17 studies retrieved from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) database. The analysis indicates that empirical research dominates current studies (94%), with most employing quantitative methodologies such as questionnaires and statistical analyses, whereas theoretical exploration remains limited. The theoretical frameworks underpinning this field encompass Gardner and Lambert’ 's distinction between integrative and instrumental motivation, alongside Dörnyei’s L2 Motivational Self System (L2MSS), which highlights the triadic structure of the "ideal L2 self," the "ought-to L2 self," and the "learning experience." Findings reveal a significant positive correlation between motivation and academic performance, with highly motivated students demonstrating greater effort and goal-oriented behavior. Studies also identify discipline-specific differences, such as arts students’ heightened sensitivity to external pressures and anxiety in English-medium instruction (EMI) contexts. Despite methodological advancements, limitations persist, including overreliance on quantitative tools and insufficient methodological diversity. Future research should integrate qualitative approaches (e.g., classroom observations, reflective journals) and interdisciplinary perspectives to enrich understanding. This review underscores the critical role of motivation in L2 learning and calls for innovative strategies to enhance English education outcomes in China.
English Learning Anxiety and Its Effect on the Academic Performance of Chinese University Students
Anxiety is widely regarded as a significant factor in foreign language learning. To explore the anxiety levels of Chinese university students in university stage’s English learning, this study investigated 41 students from a university in Shanghai, China and employed SPSS 24.0 to conduct a quantitative research. The results found that students generally hold a relatively high level of anxiety in English learning (r=-0.483, p<0.01). Using the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCA), the study identified four key types of anxiety and each variable negatively influences communicative performance. Among these four dimensions, Communicative Anxiety had the most negative effect (r=-0.500, p<0.01), especially when speaking a foreign language in classroom settings. Further analysis of specific questions, such as discomfort in speaking before peers (Q24), reveals substantial score disparities between high- and low-anxiety groups, with differences exceeding 80 points. Furthermore, the paper discusses potential underlying causes of these findings and provides practical suggestions for educators to relieve students’ anxiety, thereby fostering a more beneficial learning environment.
The Effect of Native Language Transfer in Second Language Acquisition: Example of English Vowel Acquisition
This paper places significant emphasis on the influence of native language transfer on English vowel acquisition and systematically reviews related studies. At the theoretical level, the continuous evolution of contrastive analysis hypotheses and other hypotheses has revealed the complex mechanism of native language transfer in the process of English vowel acquisition. Empirical studies show that learners from different native language backgrounds are affected by native language transfer in various ways in the perception and output of English vowels. Based on this, pedagogical insights such as acoustic feedback and tiered instruction are proposed to address the challenges posed by migration. However, existing studies suffer from sample limitations and insufficient consideration of social context. Future research can combine interdisciplinary approaches to explore the neural mechanisms in depth and expand the sample scope. Simultaneously, expanding the sample scope will make the research results more representative and applicable, thus providing more robust support for enhancing the quality of English vowel acquisition teaching and improving learners' language proficiency.
The Study of Foreign Language Anxiety, L2 Motivation, and Self-Efficacy on English Speaking Performance Among Chinese Non-English Major Undergraduates
College students sometimes struggle with oral English performance due to foreign language anxiety (FLA). This study investigates whether motivation and self-efficacy act as mediating factors in the relationship between FLA and speaking performance in Chinese undergraduates who do not major in English. A questionnaire survey was conducted with 200 participants, and data were analyzed using descriptive, correlation, and mediation analysis via SPSS 29 and Hayes’ PROCESS macro. The findings indicated that, on the one hand, self-efficacy did not play a mediating role, but on the other hand, speaking motivation significantly partially mediated the negative impact of FLA on English speaking performance. This result indicates that motivation is an important factor in the association between anxiety and speaking ability, and that enhancing motivation and reducing anxiety can enhance students’ speaking performance. This study highlights the importance of addressing the emotional and motivational components of a foreign language. Pedagogical interventions aimed at reducing fear and increasing motivation may lead to better speaking outcomes for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) learners.
Chinese Non-English Major Undergraduates
Student Experiences and Teaching Optimisation in Academic Writing Courses for English Majors in Macau: An Empirical Analysis from the Student Perspective
In the era of academic globalisation, academic writing has become a cornerstone for evaluating higher education quality, especially for English majors who rely on it to engage in international scholarly exchanges. However, non-native English speakers often struggle with bridging the gap between linguistic norms and disciplinary requirements in such courses. This study employs a qualitative interview approach to analyse the learning process and experiences of three third-year English majors in an academic writing course at the City University of Macau. The research data show that there is a significant gap between the students’ initial “experimental” expectations and the core content of the course. During the course, participants faced the pressure of transforming language into academic expression, building a logical argumentative framework, and balancing a multidimensional grading system. In response to the feedback from teachers, participants actively improved their writing skills through the use of tools, studying model essays, participating in peer review, and enhancing communication with teachers. Based on the findings, this study proposes optimisation recommendations, including layered assessment, enhanced methodology instruction, and a longer writing cycle, to provide insights for teaching practice in academic writing courses.
A Review of the Theoretical Development and Practical Application of Listening Teaching Models
Enhancing the listening comprehension skills of second language learners represents one of the most pressing and persistent educational challenges within the field of second language acquisition today. As a fundamental core component of successful linguistic communication, the effectiveness with which listening skills are acquired directly impacts learners' overall language proficiency and communicative competence. To systematically address this significant challenge, researchers have actively developed and implemented diverse listening instructional models over time. This comprehensive paper critically reviews three particularly representative mainstream pedagogical approaches: traditional listening instruction, task-based listening instruction, and contemporary multimodal listening instruction. Through an in-depth analysis and comparison of each model's theoretical underpinnings, distinct operational characteristics, inherent strengths, and notable limitations, this study specifically seeks to identify their relative applicability across varied learner profiles (e.g., age, proficiency levels), diverse instructional objectives (e.g., phoneme discrimination, detail extraction, gist comprehension), and contrasting teaching environments (e.g., classroom time constraints, technological resource availability). The ultimate research goal is to provide educators with clearer theoretical frameworks and actionable, practical guidance for pedagogical implementation, thereby enabling more effective improvement of students' L2 listening comprehension performance and overall proficiency development.
A Normative Study of English Translation of Chinese Urban Rail Transit Station Names from the Perspective of Functional Translation Theory --Taking the English Translation of Chongqing Rail Transit Station Names as an Example
Taking the English translation of Chongqing Rail Transit station names as an example, this paper discusses the three basic methods and common problems in the translation of station names, i.e., the forced adoption of purely pinyin translation and the problem of non-uniformity of translations under the same system, on the basis of which this paper puts forward countermeasures based on the guidance of the theory of functional translation, that is, to strengthen the paraphrase work of translating the names of stations with distinctive geographic identifiers, and to unify the problem of mixing purely pinyin translation and paraphrase under the same system. On the basis of this, this paper proposes countermeasures under the guidance of functional translation theory, i.e., strengthening the paraphrase translation of common names with distinctive geographic identifiers, unifying the problem of mixing pure pinyin and paraphrase translation under the same system, and at the same time translating the names of Rail Transit stations with distinctive characteristics of Chongqing in pure pinyin.
The Impact of Semantic Inference Ability on Discourse Comprehension Among Japanese Language Learners
Semantic inference ability plays a pivotal role in discourse comprehension for Japanese language learners, serving as a bridge between linguistic input and meaningful interpretation. Although this topic has garnered significant attention in second language acquisition research, the specific cognitive and linguistic mechanisms of its influence on discourse comprehension, as well as the differences among learners with diverse native languages, remain underexplored. This study examines the relationship between semantic inference ability and other influencing factors, while also addressing how cultural differences arising from varying native language backgrounds manifest in the research. The findings reveal a multidirectional interaction among semantic inference ability, lexical knowledge, and grammatical knowledge, collectively shaping discourse comprehension outcomes. For learners with different native languages, effective pedagogical interventions and strategy training can help leverage individual strengths to enhance semantic inference efficacy. In conclusion, this study highlights the significance of semantic inference in Japanese learners' discourse comprehension, offering new perspectives and pathways for future teaching and research.
The Influence of Cultural Context on Second Language Acquisition
This review focuses on how cultural context affects second language acquisition (SLA), aiming to sort out relevant theoretical models and empirical research results. Firstly, this paper reviewed the theoretical perspectives of Kramsch (1993), Norton (2010, 2013) and other scholars on the relationship between language, culture and identity, emphasizing that language acquisition is not only a cognitive process, but also the embodiment of social and cultural practice. Subsequently, empirical studies from the family context and the school education field were analyzed, revealing the specific manifestations of cultural ideology, social power structure and identity in second language learning. By comparing theoretical and empirical literature, this paper finds that there are differences between the two in terms of goals, methods and concerns, but they also complement each other. Finally, the article points out that the current research has deficiencies such as ambiguous cultural definitions and neglect of individual experiences, and suggests that in the future, micro experiences and macro structures should be integrated and the operability of cultural variables should be strengthened. This article has certain reference value for deepening the research on language teaching in the cultural context.
"Snow White" and "The Paper Bag Princess": A Comparative Study on the Portrayal of Female Characters in Children's Picture Books from a Feminist Perspective
This study aims to compare and analyze the differences in female character portrayal between the classic children's picture book "Snow White" and the modern one "The Paper Bag Princess" from a feminist perspective, providing references for more contemporary and diverse female role modeling. Utilizing comparative research, textual analysis, and survey methods, the study explores the differences in female characters between the two books, analyzes the socio-cultural factors influencing these portrayals, examines the impact of these images on children's gender concepts, and offers suggestions for the re-creation of female characters in contemporary children's picture books from a feminist standpoint. The findings reveal that Snow White in "Snow White" is characterized by passivity and dependency, whereas Princess Elizabeth in "The Paper Bag Princess" embodies independence and bravery. Surveys conducted among children aged 3-6 and early childhood educators show that modern, independent, and brave female images in picture books are more conducive to fostering gender equality concepts in children. Children's picture books can serve as an important medium for gender equality education, offering references for educators and creators in gender equality education and creation.