Abstract

Based on research concerning teachers' behavior, this study attempts to find out about the discrepancies between the students' perceived and expected behavior of College English teachers and the origins of those discrepancies. A total of 855 non-English majors from four colleges and universities in Zhejiang Province participated in the study. The research methodology consists of a survey and semi-structured interviews with 20 teachers and 40 students. Results showed that there exist significant discrepancies in the mind of college students between their perceived and expected behavior of College English teachers at all eight subscales, and these discrepancies could be attributed to three main reasons: different goals and understanding between teachers and students, lack of students' feedback, and teachers' prior learning experiences as students.