II. Literature Review

During the literature review, the author discovered that the vast majority of papers only focus on generic discussions of the localisation of original textbooks and curriculum theories (with some study of internationalisation), instead of penetrating into the literature review research about the localisation strategies for imported resources. Most are aimed at academic education in high schools and vocational schools. The literature review shows that only one paper has studied the three courses co-developed by CCRTVU and OUUK [7] However, this paper is basically an introductory study, which lacks sufficient qualitative research data. According to feedback from the trainees, the paper mentioned the difficulty in reading original English materials and the difference in academic ability. According to the tutors’ feedback, it mentioned that “the evaluation method originally designed in the materials provided by OUUK has been adjusted according to Chinese students’ learning habits…”. However, it lacks proof of effect of the adjustment. The study failed to rise to the level of the study of localisation strategies for introduced resources. Fang Chunsheng also mentioned the problem of students’ low English language ability, which is closely related to the introduced resources, in his discussion on The Teaching Problems Present in the Localisation of the TAFE Education System in high vocational colleges. In Thoughts and Solutions for These Problems he also proposed that we should “strengthen the training of basic knowledge and the English application ability of the students”, and “construct a ‘dual tutors’ and ‘bilingual tutors’ team to enhance the cultivation of tutors” [8]. As a tutor for one of the three courses, the author also realizes that in the training of the three courses, the problem of students’ poor English application ability does exist, while the localisation of introduced resources requires the localisation and improvement of the abilities of the tutors, who not only need to understand advanced overseas teaching concepts, but also understand local students’ needs, and to have stronger industry experiences, for example online teaching experience. In addition, although Luo Xiaorong’s A Practical Exploration of Teaching Localisation for the BTEC(Business & Technology Education Council)Curriculum in Higher Vocational Colleges is aimed at the BTEC teaching model rather than introduced resources, it is still of significance to the research. When talking about “the difficulties present during the process of BTEC curriculum teaching”, she points out that “primary is the impact of concepts and interests; second is the deviation in understanding the learning value; third is the gap between Chinese traditional education and foreign education, which can be seen in the three aspects of educational concept, evaluation, and students”. When talking about “measures to promote the localisation of BTEC curriculum teaching methods”, she proposes a “fundamental change to the educational concepts” and “a reform of the evaluation standards for tutors and students” [9] This can be seen as a preliminary inquiry for localisation strategies about introduced foreign teaching modes. In addition, Weng Xiuping points out that “in the process of introducing textbooks” for primary and secondary schools, they “should adapt the original textbooks accordingly basing on the curriculum standards, learning conditions, and teaching abilities in our country so as to make them applicable and operable in teaching guidance and so that they are equipped with more localized features” [10] However, Weng does not mention specific localisation strategies for introduced resources. 

The literature review shows that the relevant studies mentioned above all lack research on localisation strategies for pure-online curriculum resources introduced from foreign countries. What localisation strategies should be used for training-based, pure-online curriculum resources, such as the three courses co-developed by the OUC and OUUK? Has the localisation of the three courses before training been successful? What are the shortcomings? If the adaption is unsuccessful, what are the reasons?

III. Research Methods

This research is based on semi-structured in-depth interviews (the interviews do not rigidly adhere to the prepared outline and themes, but make adjustment according to the interview subjects and process for in-depth inquiry) with 18 trainees, tutors, and course managers. First-hand research data was collected and an in-depth contrastive analysis on these data was conducted. The characteristics of the interviewees are shown in Table 1.

Firstly, the author prepared an ethical notice and an interview outline. He then sent out the interview invitations to potential respondents through e-mail and QQ Instant Messenger. In terms of sampling strategies, starting from the diversity and comprehensiveness of the study, the author identified three categories of respondents: tutor trainees (trainees), course tutors, and course managers. The data collected from the three interview groups would be verified by each other and “conflict” with each other so as to reach the required validity and reliability for an exploration of localisation strategies (as shown in Figure 1). In selecting the interview subjects, the study not only chose trainees who have recently finished learning the courses, but also trainees who finished the courses relatively quickly. In terms of choosing tutors, the study paid attention to the balance of the three courses. In addition to tutor teams composed of two or three tutors, there were also individual tutors. In terms of choosing course managers, this study not only selected managers directly responsible for the introduction and management of the three courses, but also specialists and scholars who participated in the introduction, negotiation, and provision of advisory services for course management and teaching. The author sent out a total of 23 invitation letters, and received positive responses from 18 interviewees. The author and the respondents then fixed a time and place for the interviews. Due to geographical limitations, almost half of the interviews were conducted remotely via mobile phone, while the rest were conducted face-to-face. All the interviews were recorded in full. Before starting the interview, the author read out the ethical notice to the interviewees and informed them of the interview and research process. Each interview lasted 10 to 15 minutes. The interview recordings were transcribed, amounting to 60,000 words of interview data. 

Note: Among the interview subjects, two people participated in the courses as a trainee and then as course tutor. Although double counting appears in the statistics, the actual number of interviewees is 18.