Maritime language lecturers’ perceptions of curricular framework

Abstract The study investigates how seven language lecturers in Norwegian maritime officer education interpret and enact the curricular framework governing Maritime English and Norwegian Communication. Using Fairclough’s three-dimensional Critical Discourse Analysis, the STCW Code and IMO Model Course 3.17 Maritime English, alongside national course plans and semi-structured interviews with language lecturers, are examined. Findings reveal a persistent tension between an international, technical-rational safety discourse and broader pedagogical aims. Lecturers translate extensive and sometimes vague requirements into workable plans; time and standardisation pressures encourage procedural, test-oriented teaching, even as lecturers seek deeper literacy learning and higher status for the language courses. The study argues for closer alignment of safety-critical LSP outcomes with expansive literacy goals, and programme-level guidance to support coherent implementation.