English for Specific Purposes in Theory and Practice

Diane Belcher, (ed.) English for Specific Purposes in Theory and Practice, Ann Arbor, M.I.; University of Michigan Press, 2009, 308 pp.

(ISBN-13: 978-0-472-03384-3)

English for Specific Purposes in Theory and Practice is a three-part collection of articles reviewing the literature and illustrating common themes in the areas of English for Academic Purposes (EAP), English for Occupational Purposes (EOP), and English for Sociocultural Purposes (ESCP). The editor, Diane Belcher, opens the book with an extended introduction explaining some of the key features of ESP methodology, including its diverse range of sub-disciplines, the importance of needs analysis, the recent use of corpus tools, and the importance of needs-knowledgeable instructors. This is followed by four articles covering EAP, seven chapters covering EOP, and two chapters covering ESCP. Then, Brian Paltridge closes the book with an afterword on the past and current state of ESP, in which he comments on the increasingly complex picture of language that ESP researchers have discovered.

Many of the book's chapters are written by very well-known and active researchers in ESP, and so, it provides an excellent insight into some of their latest work. However, the authors approach the chapters in quite different ways giving very different weightings to the two themes of 'theory' and 'practice.' Some authors focus almost exclusively on defining and reviewing previous research in the target area. This is most noticeable in the second part of the book covering EOP. Other authors provide a more balanced presentation that discusses current trends in the target area and then illustrates these using case studies or examples from their own research. Even in these chapters, however, readers should not expect to find detailed task designs or lesson plans. The overall emphasis of the book is clearly on reviewing the work being carried out by ESP researchers rather than providing step-by-step guides to help novice teachers manage a new class. In this respect, the book title may be slightly misleading to some readers. It is interesting to note that the presentation of the chapters also varies widely, with each author choosing very different sub-headings, and one author even avoiding sub-headings altogether. Most likely, the editor's intention is that each chapter is read in isolation. But, for those readers who read the book from beginning to end their is a slightly disjointed feel to its design.

Part One of the book is comprised of four chapters looking at EAP. In Chapter One, Ken Cruickshank discusses TESOL education to international students as an example of EAP. He opens the chapter with a rather controversial argument that "all TESOL in school contexts falls under the umbrella of EAP" (p. 23), and then proceeds to discuss TESOL programs in the US, Canada, UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Although the content of the chapter is interesting, many of the described teaching practices closely resemble those of English for General Purpose (EGP) teachers around the world. As a result, readers may be confused about the use of the term ESP in this context, particular when compared with the definition given by Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998). In Chapter Two, Ann M. Johns considers what the purpose of EAP education should be at the university undergraduate level. Again, controversially, she argues that the primary aim should NOT be to identify the specific needs of learners based on expected target situations and analyses of target discourses, but instead to help learners become rhetorically flexible. To defend this view, she reviews the work on genre and describes exemplars practices before offering a set of goals for EAP classes based on Carter's (2007) taxonomy of writing processes in different disciplines. In Chapter Three, Christine Feak gives a detailed account of why and how graduate students should be taught critical writing skills. She proposes asking students to write research commentaries as an effective alternative to writing book reviews. Finally, in Chapter Four, Ken Hyland looks at writing for scholarly publication. First, he reviews work plotting the growth of English as the language of academic journal publication, and then reviews the literature on successful instructional practices that address journal targeting, paper-writing strategies, sentence and discourse structure, and revising and negotiating.

Part Two of the book is comprised of seven chapters looking at EOP. In Chapter Five, Brigitte Planken and Catherine Nickerson look at business English and review work that shows that traditional ESP teaching materials are perhaps too narrowly defined and do not match real-world practices in the business world. Next, they review work defining and describing practices of real-world Business English specialists, suggesting that this work can provide a framework for developing effective ESP materials. Unusually, Chapter Six is also written by Planken and Nickerson (in reversed order). Here, they review work defining written business English and then discuss effective teaching practices for written business English. The focus and mood of Chapter Seven, by Jane Lockwood, Gail Forey, and Neil Elias is rather different. Here, the authors look at the problems of using scorecards to assess call-center operators working for US companies in the Philippines. Next, they perform a discourse analysis of a call-center interaction to show how current scorecards are ineffective. Chapters Eight and Nine look at legal English. In Chapter Eight, Jill Northcott reviews work describing the characteristics of legal English and then discusses some effective teaching practices. Like most of the reviews in the book, the author here only very briefly introduces the work, expecting the reader to refer to the source text for details as the example below illustrates,

"Northcott gives an account of an unusual legal teaching context – a training program for interpreters in the courts of Zimbabwe, concluding that demands of a new teaching assignment can act as a catalyst for teacher education."

In Chapter Nine, Vijah K. Bhatia discusses intertextuality in legal texts. Intertextuality refers to the appropriation of words, phrases, and sections from one text into another. Bhatia discusses four different functions where intertextuality plays an important role, i.e., signaling textual authority, providing terminological explanation, facilitating textual mapping, and defining legal scope. Chapters Ten and Eleven look at medical English. In Chapter Ten, Ling Shi first defines English for Medical Purposes (EMP). Next, she reviews research on the characteristic features of written and spoken medical texts before looking at various approaches to needs analysis in an EMP setting. Finally, in Chapter Eleven, Diane Belcher introduces problem-based learning (PBL) as a new model for nursing education in which real-world problems are discussed and solved.

Part Three of the book is a short two-chapter section discussing ESCP. In Chapter Twelve, Helen De Silva Joyce and Susan Hood look at English courses for adult immigrants in Australia aimed at facilitating their early entry into community life. Although the authors explain that the theoretical framework for the courses is based on genre and register principles, they regrettably do not discuss any needs analysis. As a result, the distinction between ESP and EGP again becomes blurred, as it did in the first chapter of the book. Providing an interesting contrast to Joyce and Hood's work, in Chapter Thirteen Brian Morgan and Douglas Fleming look in detail at the concept of citizenship and argue that a critical aspect of a successful program is the definition of learner needs.

In summary, this collection of articles presents an unusually broad picture of ESP theory and practices that on occasion may cause readers to start questioning the distinction between ESP and EGP. The book leans heavily towards work in EOP and EAP, with only two chapters dealing with ESCP. Clearly, the book is aimed at an audience of applied linguistics, and it gives them a useful list of references that can initiate or support new research projects. However, the book provides little for ESP practitioners that are looking for in-class teaching materials and methodologies. Each chapter should be read in isolation and readers should be aware that the authors' weightings of theory and practice vary considerably. The editor has clearly given each author a large degree of freedom in writing each chapter, which allows them reveal their individual characters and writing styles. However, perhaps it would have been useful if the editor had guided the authors a little more to ensure consistency in content and presentation across chapters.

References

Dudley-Evans, T. and M. J. St John. (1998). Developments in English for Specific Purposes: A

multi-disciplinary approach. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Carter, T. (2007). Ways of knowing, doing, and writing. College Composition and Communication, 58,

        385-418.

Laurence Anthony

Professor, Director of CELESE

Center for English Language Education in Science and Engineering (CELESE)

Faculty of Science and Engineering

Waseda University, Japan

anthony0122@gmail.com

How is English for Specific Purposes (ESP) different from English as a Second Language (ESL), also known as general English?

The most important difference lies in the learners and their purposes for learning English. ESP students are usually adults who already have some acquaintance with English and are learning the language in order to communicate a set of professional skills and to perform particular job-related functions. An ESP program is therefore built on an assessment of purposes and needs and the functions for which English is required .

ESP concentrates more on language in context than on teaching grammar and language structures. It covers subjects varying from accounting or computer science to tourism and business management. The ESP focal point is that English is not taught as a subject separated from the students' real world (or wishes); instead, it is integrated into a subject matter area important to the learners.

However, ESL and ESP diverge not only in the nature of the learner, but also in the aim of instruction. In fact, as a general rule, while in ESL all four language skills; listening, reading, speaking, and writing, are stressed equally, in ESP it is a needs analysis that determines which language skills are most needed by the students, and the syllabus is designed accordingly. An ESP program, might, for example, emphasize the development of reading skills in students who are preparing for graduate work in business administration; or it might promote the development of spoken skills in students who are studying English in order to become tourist guides.

As a matter of fact, ESP combines subject matter and English language teaching. Such a combination is highly motivating because students are able to apply what they learn in their English classes to their main field of study, whether it be accounting, business management, economics, computer science or tourism. Being able to use the vocabulary and structures that they learn in a meaningful context reinforces what is taught and increases their motivation.

The students' abilities in their subject-matter fields, in turn, improve their ability to acquire English. Subject-matter knowledge gives them the context they need to understand the English of the classroom. In the ESP class, students are shown how the subject-matter content is expressed in English. The teacher can make the most of the students' knowledge of the subject matter, thus helping them learn English faster.

The term "specific" in ESP refers to the specific purpose for learning English. Students approach the study of English through a field that is already known and relevant to them. This means that they are able to use what they learn in the ESP classroom right away in their work and studies. The ESP approach enhances the relevance of what the students are learning and enables them to use the English they know to learn even more English, since their interest in their field will motivate them to interact with speakers and texts.

ESP assesses needs and integrates motivation, subject matter and content for the teaching of relevant skills.

The responsibility of the teacher

A teacher that already has experience in teaching English as a Second Language (ESL), can exploit her background in language teaching. She should recognize the ways in which her teaching skills can be adapted for the teaching of English for Specific Purposes. Moreover, she will need to look for content specialists for help in designing appropriate lessons in the subject matter field she is teaching.

As an ESP teacher, you must play many roles. You may be asked to organize courses, to set learning objectives, to establish a positive learning environment in the classroom, and to evaluate student s progress.

Organizing Courses

You have to set learning goals and then transform them into an instructional program with the timing of activities. One of your main tasks will be selecting, designing and organizing course materials, supporting the students in their efforts, and providing them with feedback on their progress.

Setting Goals and Objectives

You arrange the conditions for learning in the classroom and set long-term goals and short-term objectives for students achievement. Your knowledge of students' potential is central in designing a syllabus with realistic goals that takes into account the students' concern in the learning situation.

Creating a Learning Environment

Your skills for communication and mediation create the classroom atmosphere. Students acquire language when they have opportunities to use the language in interaction with other speakers. Being their teacher, you may be the only English speaking person available to students, and although your time with any of them is limited, you can structure effective communication skills in the classroom. In order to do so, in your interactions with students try to listen carefully to what they are saying and give your understanding or misunderstanding back at them through your replies. Good language learners are also great risk-takers , since they must make many errors in order to succeed: however, in ESP classes, they are handicapped because they are unable to use their native language competence to present themselves as well-informed adults. That s why the teacher should create an atmosphere in the language classroom which supports the students. Learners must be self-confident in order to communicate, and you have the responsibility to help build the learner's confidence.

Evaluating Students

The teacher is a resource that helps students identify their language learning problems and find solutions to them, find out the skills they need to focus on, and take responsibility for making choices which determine what and how to learn. You will serve as a source of information to the students about how they are progressing in their language learning.

The responsibility of the student

What is the role of the learner and what is the task he/she faces? The learners come to the ESP class with a specific interest for learning, subject matter knowledge, and well-built adult learning strategies. They are in charge of developing English language skills to reflect their native-language knowledge and skills.

Interest for Learning

People learn languages when they have opportunities to understand and work with language in a context that they comprehend and find interesting. In this view, ESP is a powerful means for such opportunities. Students will acquire English as they work with materials which they find interesting and relevant and which they can use in their professional work or further studies. The more learners pay attention to the meaning of the language they hear or read, the more they are successful; the more they have to focus on the linguistic input or isolated language structures, the less they are motivated to attend their classes.

The ESP student is particularly well disposed to focus on meaning in the subject-matter field. In ESP, English should be presented not as a subject to be learned in isolation from real use, nor as a mechanical skill or habit to be developed. On the contrary, English should be presented in authentic contexts to make the learners acquainted with the particular ways in which the language is used in functions that they will need to perform in their fields of specialty or jobs.

Subject-Content Knowledge

Learners in the ESP classes are generally aware of the purposes for which they will need to use English. Having already oriented their education toward a specific field, they see their English training as complementing this orientation. Knowledge of the subject area enables the students to identify a real context for the vocabulary and structures of the ESP classroom. In such way, the learners can take advantage of what they already know about the subject matter to learn English.

Learning Strategies

Adults must work harder than children in order to learn a new language, but the learning skills they bring to the task permit them to learn faster and more efficiently. The skills they have already developed in using their native languages will make learning English easier. Although you will be working with students whose English will probably be quite limited, the language learning abilities of the adult in the ESP classroom are potentially immense. Educated adults are continually learning new language behaviour in their native languages, since language learning continues naturally throughout our lives. They are constantly expanding vocabulary, becoming more fluent in their fields, and adjusting their linguistic behaviour to new situations or new roles. ESP students can exploit these innate competencies in learning English.

Materials for References. (Yang Farha 175576)

Esp theories of learning from larka

The ESP approach - Theory and reality of needs analysis and course design

 

I did a two-week course in teaching Business English a couple of years into my teaching career, and the very un-CELTA approach it was based around probably changed my teaching more than the nine-month Cambridge DELTA that I did later on. However, I’ve also constantly come across limits to the applicability of what they taught me on that LCCI Teaching English for Business course, so this article is an attempt both to spread the good word about what my tutors taught me and to leaven that with some reality about the kinds of real teaching situations teachers are likely to come across. I am calling this the ESP (English for Specific Purposes) approach, Business English being just one (often quite general) specific purpose.
Although there is no nice catchy acronym, the basics of the ESP approach can be stated in the same number of steps as PPP and TTT, simply:

1. Needs analysis
2. Course design (taking those needs into account)
3. Changing the course as you go along (depending on what the teacher learns about the students, student feedback, and changing needs such as a sudden change of job)

The first thing that might strike you about that description is how much more flexible and realistic it already seems than the typical approach of a General English course, which might be rather cruelly stereotyped as:

1. Level check
2. The class work their way through a textbook
3. Most or all students go up to the next level

There are plenty of occasions, however, when the ESP approach as described above is just as unrelated to the realities of classroom learning of a language as this typical General English approach. I will mention these real life situations as I look at each of the three stages in turn.
Needs analysis – Theory and reality
In a perfect world, needs analysis would:
-    Tell you exactly what language, skills and knowledge (e.g. cultural knowledge) the students need now and in the future (by looking at both the things they need to do and what they find most difficult)
-    Help you prioritise those things, e.g. by telling you student strengths and weaknesses (by asking students and revealing those things during the needs analysis speaking tasks)
-    Be a useful language task in itself (e.g. a useful pairwork speaking task)
-    Tie in naturally with the (rest of the) first lesson and the rest of the course
-    Lead directly to the next stage in the process (course design)
-    Be done in plenty of time to adequately design the course
-    Take into account both needs and wants, including where those things clash (e.g. students who don’t want to talk about work too much)
-    Also work as some kind of diagnostic test (e.g. by allowing students to use a range of future tenses in their answers)
-    Include discussion of language learning (e.g. experience of and attitudes to self-study and previous classroom study)
-    Lead directly onto some student learning (e.g. advice on how to work on their weaknesses, or error correction)
-    Help find out general interests (useful for choosing interesting texts, writing conversation questions, etc)
-    Show what students’ expectations for the course are (e.g. what they expect to be able to do by the end of it and how much homework they expect)
-    Be manageable in English (or supplemented by L1)
-    Help them understand the other participants (e.g. their needs and wants)
-    Be tailored to the students
-    Give a positive impression to the student(s)/ Appear professional
Possible problems with the last of those include:
-    Students getting a negative impression, maybe due simply to being asked what should be taught rather than the teacher already having their own ideas
-    Students considering needs analysis during class to be a waste of class time
-    Students not trusting the needs analysis process, e.g. because they already know what the textbook is or even already have a syllabus
Other limits to the possibility of all the things above being achieved by a needs analysis include:
-    It being impossible to (fully) guess the language needs of the student(s) in the future, e.g. because the students aren’t aware of what their future job will involve yet
-    Needs which don’t come to mind during the needs analysis
-    Students being reluctant to share (some of) their real needs or wants, e.g. giving the expected answers about needs for work but really seeing the class as a “benefit class” (a free English class as a perk of their job that saves them from paying for one and studying in their free time), or having no real need but coming up with one to satisfy the teacher and/ or to save an uncomfortable conversation
-    The needs analysis task having to be a compromise between finding out the right information and being a useful language task
-    The language level of the students preventing finding out all the necessary information in English
-    Needs analysis being designed by and/ or undertaken by someone else and so probably not providing the right amount of and/ or kind of information
-    Time demands making needs analysis during class impossible
-    Students being absent during needs analysis
-    Students not filling in needs analysis forms or doing so without much thought
-    Expectations that they will be able to get (and achieve) exactly what they want raised too much by the needs analysis process
-    Students becoming demotivated by realising they have no particular reason to take the course
-    Students not asking each other the right questions during pairwork needs analysis
-    The teacher not knowing enough about the students and/ or the course to be able to include the right questions in the needs analysis
Solutions to the problems above include:
-    Have both a classroom-based needs analysis task and a questionnaire to complete outside class after more thought
-    Give students sufficient notice of what kinds of things you will ask them so that they can think about their needs or even ask other people (e.g. ask their boss what their trip abroad will involve)
-    Research everything you know about the students and their job, using that to help design the needs analysis and combining that information with the needs analysis results during course design
-    Share the results of the needs analysis with the students (so that they can correct anything that they think is wrong, understand the needs of the other students, etc)
-    Prompt more details in needs analysis, e.g. with a suggested number of words, bigger boxes to write things in, suggested answers, or monitoring during pairwork
-    Have some needs analysis in L1, e.g. a German questionnaire before the class plus interviewing each other in pairs in English during the class
-    Have an actual diagnostic test
-    Ask students to provide real examples of things they come across or have produced in English in their work
-    Spend enough time on needs analysis for students to be able to really think about their choices (making that time worthwhile with study tips, language input, useful skills practice etc)
-    Bring further needs analysis into later classroom tasks, e.g. in a class on giving advice get them to ask each other about how they can prepare for their real English needs at work, or brainstorming of phrases that they already use at work before presenting new ones
-    Do some needs analysis again later, e.g. as part of a mid-course feedback questionnaire (maybe done before mid-course)
Theory and reality of course design
Many of those points are already moving onto the next stage, which is actually designing the course that those students will study. Ideally, the course syllabus should:
-    Have a combination of the most important things first, a logical progression, and taking into account needs that will come up while the course is ongoing
-    Have the right mix of skills
-    Have interesting content for the student(s)
-    Meet the needs and wants of all people concerned (students, the people paying for the course, etc)
-    Fit what the students and people paying for the course have been told
-    Include enough details to satisfy the student(s) and people who are paying and for another teacher to be able to take over the class, e.g. if the teacher who designed the course is sick
-    Help the students prepare for future lessons, catch up on ones they miss and revise previous lessons
-    Take into account (likely) student attitudes to different kinds of learning
-    Take into account student interests (including ones not related to their ESP needs, e.g. their hobbies)
-    Take into account teachability
-    Be based on both SLA theory and practical experience
-    Include learner training and cultural training
-    Include regular recycling and ways of checking progress
-    Prioritise – by most important, most difficult, things students are ready to learn, when things are needed outside the classroom, teachability, being building blocks for later things, boosting confidence, etc.
-    Provide variety, e.g. a range of topics, graded and authentic texts, a good mix of skills, both new language and activation/ practice of language they have come across before
-    Be clearly linked to the needs analysis results
-    Be understandable and welcomed by the students and people paying
-    Be realistic (in terms of time available, concentration levels, motivation, limits to learning)
-    Be both structured and flexible
Obviously one big restriction that usually makes doing all the above impossible is time. This means time in class and time that students are willing or able to spend studying outside class, but also time that teachers are willing or able to spend designing a course and putting together materials that match that course outline. Other less than ideal real situations include:
-    Needs analysis results contradicting what has already been decided about the course (and perhaps even the title of the course!)
-    Impossible demands (e.g. everything being a priority)
-    Needs as stated by different people (e.g. the person who commissioned the course and the students themselves) clashing
-    Demands for a textbook from the school, teacher, student(s) or people paying for the course – something that obviously interrupts the process above however specialist the textbook is and can make the whole process seem pointless, especially when it is a general Business English or even General English textbook
-    The course materials, e.g. textbook or course booklet, have already been decided before the needs analysis stage, and there is pressure to stick to it or even to cover all of it in order
-    Copyright, technological restrictions, photocopying budget and/ or lack of access to ELT materials severely limit the range of texts etc that the teacher can choose from
-    The teacher doesn’t know what materials have already been used on earlier courses, or all the obvious materials have already been used
-    The need is so specialist that the teacher doesn’t really understand what it entails and/ or can’t develop or find any suitable materials
-    Putting things in a logical order clashes with putting priorities first, e.g. they need Present Perfect right away but that would mean doing it before Past Simple
-    No information before the first class
-    Little time for course design between the needs analysis and the first class (or even before the whole course if it is intensive)
-    Students in a group class having very different needs from each other
There can also of course be problems with sticking to the course however realistically you have planned it:
-    Things taking more or less time than planned
-    Students missing classes, arriving late, leaving early, having questions that take a long time to answer (e.g. bringing in something to proofread together), and not doing homework
-    The mix of the class changing, e.g. a student leaving
-    The students being too tired, bored or unmotivated to cover or take in the work-related materials that have been prepared
In addition to the solutions mentioned in relation to needs analysis above, possible ways to solve problems with course design include:
-    Plan a first lesson (or first few lessons) that will probably be suitable for all students (e.g. a numbers review or talking about trends) and do the course design as soon as you can or even as you go along
-    Indicate on the course where things might change (and maybe why)
-    Use general headings in the course design that you share with students and/ or people who are paying, e.g. “Read a recent relevant business news story”
-    Have two streams to the course, one following a logical order like a textbook and one decided by the importance or the timing of particular needs
-    Explain any differences between the results of the needs analysis and the actual course, e.g. by a need to build up their general level as well as look at things they need right now
Solutions specific to being stuck with a textbook include:
-    Tell students how much time (e.g. 20%) or how many classes (e.g. alternate ones) will be spent doing things not in the textbook
-    Use the textbook in a way that subtly shows students how much it needs adapting, e.g. asking them how similar the things described are to their own experience
-    Explain or agree parts of the book that can be skipped or adapted (in advance or as you go along)
-    Cover everything but spend less time on some parts of the book to make room for other things
-    Stick to the syllabus of the textbook but adapt as much as possible to match student needs, e.g. doing a text on marketing but in their own industry
-    Use the textbook in an order that is decided by the needs analysis rather than working through it in order
-    Make the last task in each class one that is more closely related to their work, e.g. asking them to do the same dialogue but more closely matched to a realistic situation for themselves
-    Ask students to adapt the materials, e.g. rewriting a dialogue for homework to be realistic for them
Solutions to the copyright problems include:
-    Get students to read, listen to or watch things online during the class, e.g. on their smartphones
-    Ask students to bring in suitable texts or publications, or to send such things to the teacher before the next class (e.g. things they read in a trade magazine or emails they have received)
-    Use texts belonging to the company the students belong to
Theory and reality of adapting the course
Perhaps the most important solution to the problems with course design above is adapting the course as you go along – something which I mentioned at the beginning of this article as fundamental to the ESP approach. This should:
-    Take into account what the teacher has since learnt about the students and their needs (from homework, things they have mentioned about work, feedback questionnaires, the teacher reading about their industry, etc)
-    Take into account what the teacher has learnt about student interests, e.g. things they found most interesting in the course so far or hobbies that they have mentioned
-    Revise and/ or expand on things that students have found particularly difficult and useful in the course so far
-    Be welcomed by the students and the people paying (e.g. not be seen as a failing of the original needs analysis and course design process)
-    Be announced in general terms at the beginning of the course (so students aren’t caught by surprise by changes)
-    Not be seen as a criticism of anyone (e.g. not obviously showing up any lack of student progress) and appear something positive (e.g. include new things rather than just consisting of negative things like cutting out things and adjusting down the level due to lack of student progress)
Perhaps the only major problem with adapting the course as you go along is that there may be pressure to not do so, for example because the students and/ or the people who paid for the course take changes to mean that the teacher doesn’t know what they are doing.
Problems with the whole ESP approach
There also more fundamental problems with the whole ESP approach as described at the beginning of this article. One potential issue with the whole approach that this article has been outlining is that it may contain the assumption that what we teach is what students learn that approaches like PPP are accused of. However, if this is a concern the problem is easily solved by doing the things that students need to do in class rather than (or as well as) teaching them the language they need, e.g. doing realistic role play negotiations.
A larger problem with concentrating on student needs and satisfying them is that this may almost force us into giving such things too much importance. For example, for many students the long term development of their language and skills is just as important as the specific language for their needs, making the many similarities between most Business English textbooks and General English ones less silly than they might seem. Also, finding out that our students need to “reject requests” or “apologies for delays” may make us focus too much on the sentence stems needed for those functions and not enough on the general grammar and vocabulary that they will need to complete those sentences. The solutions are again having realistic tasks as well as realistic language and also having an emphasis on a step by step approach to general language and skills development as well as a “needs first” approach.
The two problems above are examples of a more general issue, which is that having a list of things that our students need may make us neglect other things that we know about teaching from our other classes, such as teachability, grading, “emerging language”, L1 interference and other common student mistakes, extrinsic motivation, the importance of revision and showing progress, and just generally making classes interesting or even fun.

APPROACHES TO ESP TRAINING (Nur Iylia Rusli, 172229)

  ESP (English Specific Purposes) is a basic knowledge that language can be thought of as a tool for communication rather than the language that contained grammatical, lexical and phonological items to be memorized.

  ESP is also a subordinate to the English language since it is defined to meet specific purposes of the learners. The learning content, themes, topics and tasks is basically related to a specific discipline or profession. For example, English for business just focuses on the English learning for business purposes only. Meanwhile, another theory for ESP is Discourse-oriented Theory which is related to culture, society and also the world.

  ESP is an important subcomponent of language teaching with its own approaches such as materials design, pedagogy and methods. The main aim of ESP is to prepare the learners to communicate effectively in the tasks prescribed by their study or work situation. Thus, ESP is usually more focused in their aims and makes use of a narrower range topics.

TYPES OF APPROACHES TO ESP TRAINING

1) Skill-based Approach

      The basic theoretical hypothesis of this view is that underlying any language behaviour are certain skills and strategies which the learner uses in order to produce or comprehend discourse.

2) Language-Centred Approach

    This approach uses learners as a means for identifying the target situation, the type of register and discourse for creating the objectives, materials and evaluations for the course. Student plays no further part in the process of syllabus design.

3) Learner-Centred Approach

   This model places the student in the centre of the learning process. Students are to be active participants who learn at their own pace and use their own strategies.

4) Task-Based Approach

    This way of teaching makes learners use language in tasks that reflect real life. Problem saving is      an element in tasks, for which students need to use the target language. Students accomplish this       by  using whatever language resources they possess.

5) Content-Based Instruction

    This kind of instruction focuses on using real life subject matters as vehicles for teaching. Students use the language to fulfil a real purpose (e.g. research, entertainment) which gets students more motivated to learning.

6) Learning-Centred Approach

   This approach states that learning should be seen in the context in which it takes place. Besides being a mental process learning also implies a negotiation between individuals and society. Society sets the target and individuals must do their best to get as close to that target as possible.

 References/ Read Up

Links:

1)      https://prezi.com/7xbzvpkpcf_g/approaches-to-esp-teaching/

Books:

2)      Developing Courses in English for Specific Purposes by Helen Basturkmen

Approaches to ESP (Yang Farha Farhani bt. Fadzarahman 175576)

Approaches to esp from Sanogurlz Sagara

Approaches to ESP Training (Group 1) Chia Yen Pui 176233

APPROACHES TO ESP TRAINING from Jessica Chia

Sources from : http://www.academia.edu/1607533/Teacher_Training_in_ESP_A_Historical_Review & http://www.academia.edu/8414183/The_Ins_and_Outs_of_English_for_Specific_Purposes_ESP_

Approaches to ESP- Theoretical Orientation & Context of Practice (SITI NURUL AIN 175993)

Approaches to ESP- Theoretical Orientation & Context of Practice

SITI NURUL AIN T MOHD ARIF 175993

Approaches to esp-Theoretical orentation to esp and context practice from Siti Ain