The Enlightenment of the Foreign Language Competency Cultivation at West Point to the Reform of Foreign Language Curriculum in China’s Military Academies

Abstract

Foreign language capabilities facilitate combat effectiveness. United States Military Academy at West Point is relatively experienced in cultivating the foreign language capabilities of the cadets since they believe US army is globally committed. The paper first makes a general introduction of the mission, the Overarching Academic Goal and the academic program, then details on the curriculum system of foreign languages and the student learning outcomes and summarizes the salient features of its cultivating of foreign language capabilities in five sections. In order to enlighten the foreign language course reform in China's military academies, five suggestions are drawn in the aspects of the scope of foreign languages, the class size, cultural education, military and political attainment and interdisciplinary integration.