Based on the questionnaires and interviews, this paper, in terms of target needs and learning needs, analyses the needs of professional development of the middle school English teachers in rural areas of western China. The analysis shows that all the subjects need to improve the Basic English language skills and knowledge. In-service training and retraining are the effective ways to help develop their professionalism, but due to the limitations of all kinds of obstacles, their learning needs cannot be met. Only by the concerted efforts by the society and the teachers themselves, the problems arising in their professional development can be solved.
