Case Study of Multi-literacy Ability of English Teachers—An Example of Tianjin Open University

Numerous attention has been shifted to multiliteracies approaches which prepare students for better achievements and fulfilling employment in their future life characterized by the increasing cultural and linguistic diversity as well as the variety in communication channels supported by high technologies. The traditional literacy pedagogy which focuses on the ability to read and write in formal language is generally discarded since it is unsuitable for the "digital natives" who are born in the digital age and is virtually impossible to equip students with critical awareness to handle social practices in societies. Teaching approaches in classrooms are largely dependent on teachers who are the organizers and conductors of instruction practices. The author of this paper conducts a case study in one of the open universities in Tianjin, China, to investigate whether EFL teachers are competent enough to adopt multiliteracies approaches and how well EFL teachers in China are informed of the multiliteracies approaches. Teachers' teaching materials including PPT and other resources are analyzed and interviews are conducted to elicit feedback from EFL teachers towards multiliteracies approaches. Results show that sufficient teacher training is necessary to better prepare EFL teachers to implement multiliteracies approaches.