A cliché states that “In everything, there is a reason.” A significant aspect of language instruction for you as college student is to learn English
... [Show More] for a given purpose or reason. You may want to acquaint yourself to specialized vocabulary or to simply enhance your knowledge on the use of the English language in your prospective profession. This module introduces you to the Property of and for the exclusive use of SLU. Reproduction, storing in a retrieval system, distributing, uploading or posting online, or transmitting in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise of any part of this document, without the prior written permission of SLU, is strictly prohibited. 5 nature of English for Specific Purposes, its classification, advantages, and roles of the ESP practitioner.
UNIT I: Nature and Definition of ESP EXPLORE
What is English for Specific Purposes?
English for specific purposes (ESP) refers to the teaching and learning of English as a second or foreign language where the goal of the learners is to use English in a particular domain.
In your case, it is to use English in your teaching profession. Hutchinson and Waters (1987) described ESP in this context: ESP must be seen as an approach, not as a product.
❖ ESP is an approach to language learning that is based on the need of the learner.
o The foundation of all ESP is the simple question: Why does the learner need to learn a foreign language?
❖ ESP is an approach to language teaching in which all decisions as to content and method are based on the learner’s reason for learning.
❖ ESP is not fundamentally different in terms of linguistic usage but differs rather in terms of particular modes of language that are common in specific settings such as in science, in business, in the academe, in economics, in the legal world, etc.
❖ ESP is an approach that involves a well-designed and researched curriculum and pedagogy that should prepare students, in the most efficient way possible, for the content and tasks which they will be exposed to.
❖ ESP is an approach not a product. It is not a particular kind of language or methodology, nor does it consist of a particular type of teaching material.
According to Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998),
❖ the emphasis of ESP is on practical outcomes; that is, the use of the language in the learner’s domain.
❖ the main concerns of ESP are needs analysis, text analysis, and preparing learners to communicate effectively in the tasks prescribed by their study or work situation.
According to Dudley-Evans (2001), ESP has the following characteristics:
ABSOLUTE CHARACTERISTICS: (specific to ESP)
❖ ESP is designed to meet specific needs of the learner.
❖ ESP makes use of the underlying methodology and activities of the discipline it serves.
❖ ESP is centered on the language (grammar, lexis, register), skills, discourse and genres appropriate to these activities.
VARIABLE CHARACTERISTICS: (can be designed for a specific group)
❖ ESP may be related to or designed for specific disciplines.
❖ ESP may use, in specific teaching situations, a different methodology from that of general English.
❖ ESP is likely to be designed for adult learners, either at a tertiary level institution or in a professional work situation. It could, however, be used for learners at secondary school level.
❖ ESP is generally designed for intermediate or advanced students. Most ESP courses assume basic knowledge of the language system, but it can be used with beginners.
According to Basturkmen (2006),
❖ ESP courses are narrower in focus than general ELT courses because they centre on analysis of learners’ needs.
❖ ESP views learners in terms of their work or study roles and that ESP courses focus on work-or study-related needs, not personal needs or general interests. In other words, in ESP, authentic language use may be contextual, not generic (true to all).
Through the explications above, what then does the term “specific” in ESP refer to?
The term “specific” in ESP refers to your specific purpose for learning English. You are to approach the study of English through a field relevant to you. This means you will be able to use what you have learned in the ESP classroom right away in your studies and in your work. Furthermore, the ESP approach will enable you to use the English you know to learn even more English because your interest in your field will motivate you to interact with other speakers.
ESP course has become increasingly important as there has been an increase in vocational training and learning throughout the world. With the spread of globalization has come the increasing use of English as the language of international communication. More and more people are using English in a growing number of occupational contexts. Students nowadays are starting to learn and therefore master general English at a younger age, and so move on to ESP at an earlier age. ESP course is advantageous.
Being focused on the learner’s need, it wastes no time.
Therefore, it is more cost-efficient than “General English”. It is successful in imparting learning since it is relevant to the learner, and in ESP, any teaching activity is presented in context. For example, the process of investigating (the carrier content) can be an authentic topic which can be used to teach the language of process, which is the real content.
EXPLAIN
ESP is classified into three, but to appreciate better the types of ESP, let us establish first the differences between English for Specific Purposes (ESP) and English for General Purposes.
According to Hutchinson and Waters (1987), these two have no difference in theory, but have a great deal of difference in practice. You find three columns where the points of difference are found in the first column. Other linguists have contributed to the ideas of the differences between ESP and EGP.
Point of Difference ESP EGP
Teaching approach (Hutchinson & Waters, 1987) Learner-centered where learners’ needs and goals are of supreme value Language-centered and focuses on learning language from a broad perception covering all the language skills and the cultural aspects of the English
speaking community
General education (Robinson, 1980) After the identification and analysis of specific learning needs, students learn English through the acquisition of some different body of
knowledge and set of skills Language itself is the subject matter and the purpose of the course
Type of learners (Hutchinson & Waters, 1987) Mainly adult with a certain degree of awareness concerning their learning
needs Pupils take English courses as compulsory module at schools; their unique purpose is to
succeed in the exams
Direction of teaching- learning the language (Basturkmen, 2006) Aims to speed learners and direct them through to a known destination in order to reach specific
objectives Language teaching tends to set out from a definite point to an indeterminate one.
Different views concerning the classifications of ESP have been presented but this paper uses the classifications proposed by Hutchinson and Waters (1987). These authors divided ESP
into three types; namely:
a) English for Science and Technology (EST)
b) English for Business and Economics (EBE)
c) English for Social Sciences (ESS)
Each type is related with specific field of scientific knowledge as technology, business, economy, or the social fields in general with its various human sciences. Each is further branched out into:
a) English for Academic Purposes (EAP)
b) English for Occupational Purposes (EOP)
In other words, the three main types of ESP have two sub-classifications – the EAP and EOP. Based on the Tree of ELT which you will find in the next page, EOP is also known as English for Vocational Purposes.
However, other authors simply divide ESP into English for Academic Purposes (EAP) and English for Occupational Purposes (EOP). Also, they sometimes subdivide EOP into business English, professional English (e.g. English for doctors, lawyers) and vocational English (e.g. English for tourism, aviation, chef).
ELABORATE
Here is the Tree of English Language Teaching (ELT) to illustrate Hutchinson and Water’s classifications of ESP. On the branch where you find ESP, observe the examples and copy them to complete the outline provided under the “elaborate” part of the lesson.
Hutchinson and Waters admitted that there is no precise distinction
between EAP and EOP, for people can work and study simultaneously, or in many cases, the language learned for immediate use in a study environment will be used later when the student gets a job.
The distinction can be made in the sphere of convenience. Courses in
EOP train individuals to perform on the job, using English to communicate. This type of course would be useful for the training of lawyers for instance and administrative chiefs aiming at reaching a proficiency level.
On the other hand, English for Academic Purposes (EAP) is applied for common core elements also known as “study skills‟. They basically consist of writing academic texts, taking notes and observations, listening to formal academic discourses and making presentations.
From the outline, an example of EAP for EST is “English for Medical Studies”; its EOP is “English for Technicians”. An example of EAP for EBE is “English for Economics”; its EOP is “English for Secretaries”. An example of EAP for the ESS branch is “English for Psychology”, whereas its EOP is “English for Teaching”.
UNIT 2: ROLES of the ESP PRACTITIONER EXPLORE
The ESP practitioner or the ESP teacher has the following roles to play.
5 KEY ROLES OF THE ESP PRACTITIONER
1. AS TEACHER
✓ not in the position of being the ‘primary knower’ of the carrier content of the material
✓ may draw on students’ knowledge of the content to generate genuine communication in the classroom, but remains as the classroom organizer who has clear objectives for the class and a good understanding of the carrier content of the teaching material
✓ In more specific ESP courses, the teacher adopts the stance of a consultant who has knowledge of communication practices, but needs to negotiate with students on how best to exploit these practices to meet the objectives they have.
✓ gives one-to-one advice to students (tutorials or series of tutorials)
✓ needs to have a great deal of flexibility, be willing to listen to learners, and to take an interest in the disciplines or professional activities the students are involved in
✓ must take risks in teaching
2. AS COURSE DESIGNER AND MATERIALS PROVIDER
➢ plans the course and provides materials for it
➢ As providers of material, teacher’s role involves
❖ choosing suitable material,
❖ adapting material when published material is not suitable,
❖ or even writing material where nothing suitable exists.
➢ needs to assess the effectiveness of the teaching material used on the course, whether the material is published or self-produced
3. AS RESEARCHER
✓ needs to be aware of and in touch with research works on ESP
✓ needs to be able to incorporate the findings of such research in conducting needs analysis, designing a course, or writing teaching materials
✓ must be able to carry out research to understand the discourse of the texts that students use [Show Less]