Designing an ESP Course

Designing an

Designing an ESP Cour

ESP Course

se

April 2007 Volume 3 Issue 1 April 2007 Volume 3 Issue 1

Article 6. Article 6. PDF File April 2007 home Article Title Article Title

Designing an ESP course for Chinese University Students of usiness Autor

Autor !ao "ia#ing

!io !io

!ao "ia#ing $or%s at the Faculty of Foreign &anguages' ei#ing (ormal University )*huhai campus+ $here she teaches college English to non English ma#ors, She is interested in ESP'

E&- methodology' and genre./ased instruction, She can /e contacted atgracehaiyanhotmail,com

A"stract A"stract

Despite the gro$ing demand for English for Specific Purposes )ESP+ instruction in China' ESP courses are still limited to learning specific le1icon and translating te1ts, ith the continued e1pansion and participation in the international /usiness arena' much attention should /e dra$n to the design of ESP courses $hich can help to prepare learners for future professional communication, 3n response to these needs' this article is an attempt to provide a

guided approach to ESP course design for Chinese senior /usiness students at tertiary level, 3t first revie$s current literature and case studies related to ESP course design, hen designing an ESP course' the primary issue is the analysis of learners4 specific needs, 5ther issues addressed include6 determination of realistic goals and o/#ectives integration of grammatical functions and ac8uisition s%ills and assessment and evaluation, Although ESP conte1ts vie$ these issues from their o$n perspectives' the proposed frame$or% for ESP course development is argued as /eing of /enefit to teachers $ho may encounter pro/lems in ESP course design,

#e$ %or&s'

#e$ %or&s' ESP' course design' needs analysis, Intro&uction

ith the glo/ali9ation of trade and economy and the continuing increase of international communication in various fields' the demand for English for Specific Purposes is e1panding' especially in countries $here English is taught as a Foreign &anguage, Even though ESP courses have /ecome popular recently in China and many institutions and universities offer ESP courses for senior students' for years the instruction has /een limited to speciali9ed le1icon and sentence structures' an approach $hich fundamentally ignores the learners4 personal interests, -his often leads to lo$ motivation in their English studies and' in turn' poor performance later $hen they use English in their future profession,

3n response to these pro/lems' it is important to help students adapt to today4s competitive society' meaning that university English faculties need to design ESP courses that can /est prepare learners for future professional communication, Designing a ne$ ESP course

involves issues such as $hat to teach' ho$ to teach or $here to start, ased on an integrated approach' this paper puts for$ard a sample ESP course frame$or% and critically analy9es the core elements of ESP course design6 needs analysis course goals and o/#ectives course details materials design and finally' assessment and evaluation,

(iterature re)ie% (iterature re)ie%

-he gro$th of the ESP movement is a result of the fast development of the $orld economy and has /een greatly influenced /y E&- methodology and the development of Applied &inguistics, -he first dominating approach to ESP course design focused on the grammatical and le1ical items of a particular field of English, ith the popularity of Communicative &anguage -eaching' language use /ecame the %ey emphasis in the ESP $orld' %no$n as the functional.notional approach, 3n the early :0s' it $as found that there $as a certain need underlying a particular language use and in addition' the process of learning and learning s%ills needed to /e ta%en into account )Dudley.Evans ; St "ohn' <==:+,

Analy9ing the specific needs of a particular learner group serves as the prelude to an ESP course design' /ecause it determines the >$hat4 and >ho$4 of an ESP course, Chen )200?+ also reached the conclusion that ESP course designers should e1plore and identify the learners4 potential needs in the first place, -he current concept of needs analysis in ESP' according to

Dudley.Evans and St "ohn )<==:' p,<2@+' includes consideration of the follo$ing aspects6 A, Professional information a/out the learners6 the tas%s and activities learners are$ill /e using English for.target situation analysis and objective needs.

, Personal information a/out the learners6 factors $hich may affect the $ay they learn such as previous learning e1periences' cultural informati on' reasons for attending the course and e1pectations of it' attitude to English. wants, means, subjective needs.

C, English language information a/out the learners6 $hat their current s%ills and language use are. present situation analysis. $hich allo$s us to assess )D+,

D, -he learners4 lac%s6 the gap /et$een )C+ and )A+. lac%s,

E, &anguage learning information6 effective $ays of learning the s%ills and language in )D+. learning needs,

F, Professional communication information a/out )A+6 %no$ledge of ho$ language and s%ills are used in the target situation. linguistic analysis' discourse analysis' genre analysis,

!, hat is $anted from the course,

B, 3nformation a/out the environment in $hich the course $ill /e run  means analysis, 3n the ESP curriculum design for !ree% EF& students of computing' enodohidis )2002+ states that' in addition to needs assessment' the course development process should also include determination of goals and o/#ectives, 3n order to avoid de.motivation' the goals should /e realistic and the o/#ectives should /e appropriate to the goals )(unan' <=::' as cited in enodohidis 2002+,

hen designing an ESP course' another issue to ta%e into consideration is that grammatical functions' ac8uisition s%ills' terminology' specific functions of discipline content are crucial parts of the ESP course, 3n the meantime' general English language content should also /e

integrated into the course since content.related language cannot function $ithout general English language content )Chen' 200?+, ased on the professional e1perience developing the curriculum for &anguage Preparation for Employment in the Bealth Science' !atehou se )200<+ pointed out that $hen developing an ESP curriculum' three a/ilities need to /e integrated into it for the purpose of successful communic ation in occupational settings, -he three a/ilities encompass the a/ility to use particular #argon in specific conte1t to use generali9ed set of academic s%ills and finally the a/ility to use everyday inform al language to communicate effectively, -herefore' ESP course designers should ta%e into account ho$ to integrate the three a/ilities into the components of an ESP course,

Assessment and evaluation are also t$o important issues that should /e included in the course design process, Assessment is a process of measuring $hat learners %no$ and $hat they can do' $hereas evaluation reveals ho$ $ell the ESP course $or%s $ith emphasis not only on successful factors /ut also on modifying less successful aspects )Dudley.Evans ; St "ohn' <==:+,

!ac*groun& to te !usiness Englis course !ac*groun& to te !usiness Englis course

Chinese is the national language in China and English is taught as a foreign language, All su/#ects are taught in Chinese at the ma#ority of colleges and universities' $hile English is included in the school curriculum as a compulsory su/#ect, ith the adoption of English as the international language for communication and its $ide use all over the $orld' more and more colleges and universities place an emphasis on running different %inds of English courses for their students to ena/le them to /ecome competitive and competent enough in their future career,

At the !uilin 3nstitute of -echnology in China' there is a compulsory undergraduate course in usiness English for senior students at the Department of 3nternational usiness, -he purpose is to raise their English proficiency in /usiness settings as $ell as to prepare them for

successful communication in their future profession, After three years4 study in 3nternational usiness and general English' students have a professional understanding of 3nternational usiness and their English level is sufficient to start the usiness English course, Follo$ing this path$ay of study' it is an appropriate time in their university studies for them to em/ar% upon English studies $hich meet their future /usiness needs,

+)er)ie% o, an

+)er)ie% o, an uni)ersit$ Englis ,or !usiness Purposes courseuni)ersit$ Englis ,or !usiness Purposes course

-he usiness English course is conducted e1tensively and is oriented to$ards pre.e1perience learners /ecause they usually have no e1perience in international /usiness upon course entry, Since the usiness English course runs parallel to those su/#ect courses' students can relate their su/#ect %no$ledge to the usiness English conte1t, -he target learners4 performance is assessed at the end of the semester /ecause the course is compulsory along $ith other su/#ects, 3t focuses /roadly on the four /asic language s%ills of listening' reading' $riting and spea%ing /ecause it is unrealistic for the students to predict $hich specific s%ill their future #o/s $ill re8uire,

3t is the school regulation to use te1t/oo%s in class' ho$ever' there does e1ist the freedom to choose a suita/le one for the target group, -he resources that are used in class mainly focus on one te1t/oo% $ith some e1tra in.house materials selected as supplements, For e1ample' the latest /usiness ne$spaper articles and some visuals are often used for listening practice, ost of the materials are authentic /ecause students4 language proficiency is sufficiently advanced )all students passed College English and  and most of them even passed and ?+, All the dialogues in the te1t/oo% are recorded from real /usiness conte1ts, ean$hile' the reading te1ts are samples from international company /rochures and ne$spapers' not $ritten for language teaching purposes' yet nevertheless very interesting for the learners due to their relevance to the content./ased instruction they study at university, 3t is possi/le to conduct a pre.course needs analysis directly $ith the participants through 8uestionnaires and informal discussions and intervie$s, Course evaluation can /e done /y means of tests' student feed/ac%' teacher self.reports and documents,

efore the course starts' students have ac8uired specific content./ased %no$ledge, From the first year to the third year they ta%e a compulsory general English course and most of them have passed the College English -est )and ?+, -his usiness English course serves as the /ridge /et$een their professional %no$ledge and their English proficiency to further develop

their English competency in the real /usiness conte1t, -oals an&

-oals an& o"ecti)eso"ecti)es

-he overall aim of the course is to fully prepare the senior students for their future career /ecause after the graduation they are li%ely to see% employment in international companies,

efore recruitment' resumes are sent out to companies and intervie$s are conducted' therefore' #o/ application constitutes a vital part of the course, 3n their future /usiness career' they may find themselves $or%ing in a company $here English is $idely spo%en' or using English as a medium of communication $ith other /usiness people from all over the $orld, -oals

-oals

y the end of the course' learners should /e a/le to familiari9e themselves $ith /usiness terminology and $rite competently in English, For e1ample' they should /e capa/le of $riting appropriate /usiness letters' e.mails as $ell as a good resume, -hey must have the a/ility of understanding intermediate /usiness articles and ne$spapers' understanding and conducting general /usiness conversation as $ell as maintaining relationships $ith the target community,

+"ecti)es +"ecti)es

-he o/#ectives for each s%ill are as follo$s6 (istening'

(istening'

-o understand telephone messages and conversations in /usiness settings -o understand relevant /usiness ne$s reports,

Spea*ing' Spea*ing'

-o communicate effectively $ith native spea%ers in #o/ intervie$s as $ell as /usiness settings,

-o respond effectively to telephone messages and #o/ intervie$s /ea&ing'

/ea&ing'

-o understand a variety of te1ts' such as /usiness reports' documents and ne$spaper articles,

riting' riting'

-o $rite resumes and /usiness.related letters or e.mails, Course &etails

Course &etails

-he course ta%es place over t$o academic semesters' a duration of G0 $ee%s and the total length is <20 hours )2 hoursday 2 days$ee%+, !roup si9es are usually /et$een thirty and forty students, -he >target learners4 are senior undergraduates at the Department of

3nternational usiness and the content of the course is made up of te1t/oo% and in.house materials and visuals,

+utline ,or te %ole course +utline ,or te %ole course

-he course covers four language areas . listening' $riting' spea%ing and reading in $hich the

follo$ing are taught6

Spea%ing6 3ntroductions #o/ intervie$ using the telephone conversations, riting6 Hesume #o/ application letters /usiness letters e.mails notes memos, &istening6 -elephone messages conversations $ith /usiness contacts /usiness ne$s,

Heading6 usiness documents ne$spaper articles,

Considering the target learners4 overall language proficiency' the authentic materials are considered to /e appropriate although they may find the voca/ulary unfamiliar, -he career content is not a pro/lem /ecause they possess sufficient /ac%ground %no$ledge of international /usiness taught in Chinese,

ee&s Anal$sis ee&s Anal$sis

3n order to conduct a thorough needs analysis' a triangulation of 8uestionnaires' informal discussions $ith learners and other lecturers' intervie$s $ith e1.students and lecturers' and o/servation of former students4 actual $or%place e1periences is conducted /efore the course, During the course' learner performance and assignments are assessed' $hilst tests results are

analy9ed after the course, -his com/ination of pre.course' mid.course and post.course analyses is conducted in order to see $hat students need to learn and improv e upon through this course, -he amalgamated feed/ac% is then used as a /asis for consideration of ho$ the follo$ing year4s course should /e designed,

/ationale /ationale

-he use of 8uestionnaires is one of the most common research methods /ecause it can produce a large amount of information a/out many different issues such as communication

difficulties' preferred learning styles' preferred classroom activities' attitudes and /eliefs )Hichards' 200<+, 3n this particular research conte1t' 8uestionnaires are initially used to elicit information a/out learners4 attitudes to$ards this course' and $hat they $ant to learn in this usiness English course /efore the semester commences, -he content of the 8uestionnaire is crucial for the course designer /ecause it has direct influence on $hether the real needs can /e identified,

3ntervie$ing the teachers $ho taught the general English course in the previous year' the course designer can gain insights into the learners4 current English proficiency' their specific $ea%nesses and strengths in the four s%ills, oreover' informal discussions and intervie$ing can /e adopted as follo$.up sources of information to /e conducted individually or in groups, 3nformal discussion allo$s students to convey their ideas and thoughts spontaneously and does not ta%e much time to plan or prepare, ore in.depth e1ploration of information can then /e o/tained /y intervie$s /efore the design of the 8uestionnaire' $hich may help designers to get a sense of $hat the focus and topics should /e in the 8uestionnaire )Hichards' 200<+, -herefore' intervie$s can /e conducted throughout the semester $hen the learners encounter ne$ pro/lems, &ast' /ut not the least' $ith carefully prepared 8uestions' intervie$ing the e1.students is another effective $ay of gathering data and it could /e very valua/le to o/serve those e1.students in operation /ecause they have a profound understanding of the effectiveness of the course, Assessing learners4 perfor mances and assignments during the course can /e very effective to %no$ their real pro/lems during this course, After analysing the feed/ac%' read#ustment to the follo$ing course could /e valua/le for /oth teachers and learners, Furthermore' a mid.term test and end of semester e1amination are also important to chec% their progress' to ascertain $hat they already %no$ as $ell as $hat they do not %no$,

ee&s Anal$sis ee&s Anal$sis

A com/ination of pre.course' mid.course and post.course analysis is conducted in order to see $hat students need to learn and improve upon through this course, -he follo$ing )-a/le <+ sho$s the structure of the needs analysis6

Pre.course (eeds Analysis

Iuestionnaires 3ntervie$s

3nformal Discussions id.course (eeds Analysis

Feed/ac% from learners4 performance and assignments id.term -est Hesults

Post.course (eeds Analysis Final -est Hesults

Ta"le 1. Te Structure o, te ee&s Anal$sis Ta"le 1. Te Structure o, te ee&s Anal$sis

Precourse ee&s Anal$sis Precourse ee&s Anal$sis

-he use of 8uestionnaires can produce a large amount of information a/out many different issues such as communication difficulties' preferred learning styles' preferred classroom activities' attitudes and /eliefs )Hichards' 200<+, 3n this particular research conte1t' 8uestionnaires are initially used to elicit information a/out learners4 attitudes to$ards this course' and $hat they $ant to learn in this usiness English course /efore the semester commences, oreover' informal discussion allo$s students to convey their ideas and thoughts spontaneously and does not ta%e much time to plan or prepare,

3ntervie$ing the teachers $ho taught the general English course in the previous year ena/les the course designer to gain insights into the learners4 curre nt English proficiency' their specific $ea%nesses and strengths in the four s%ills, Finally' $ith carefully prepared 8uestions' intervie$ing former students is another effective $ay of gathering data, 3t is very $orth$hile o/serving their actual performance in the $or%place /ecause they have a profound understanding of the effectiveness of the course,

i&course ee&s Anal$sis 4 Postcourse ee&s Anal$sis i&course ee&s Anal$sis 4 Postcourse ee&s Anal$sis

Assessing learners4 performances and assignments during the course can /e an effective means in ascertaining their real pro/lems during this course, After analysing the feed/ac%' read#ustment in the su/se8uent course is useful for /oth teachers and learners, Furthermore' a mid.term test and end of semester e1amination are also important to chec% their progress' since this sho$s $hat they already %no$ as $ell as $hat they do not %no$,

Course ,rame%or* Course ,rame%or*

Ta"le 2. Course gri& ,or -IT !usiness Englis course Ta"le 2. Course gri& ,or -IT !usiness Englis course

-he starting point for this usiness English course frame$or% are the target events in the four language s%ills in $hich the senior usiness students need to perform in their future professions, -hese target events are /ro%en do$n into rhetorical a$areness and related s%ill_{areas' along $ith associated functions, -he frame$or% also considers linguistic aspects.}

grammar and voca/ulary involved in each target event, Bo$ever' the course does not simply concern linguistic items and micro s%ills' /ut also materials and career content topics for each individual class,

Assessment Assessment

Self.assessment and peer assessment result in increased motivation' autonomy' direct involvement through the implementation of the follo$ing6 oral production )student self. chec%list peer chec%list listening to tape.recorded oral production to detect pronunciation or grammar mista%es+ self.revision or peer editing and listening comprehension )ro$n' 200<+, Dudley.Evans and St "ohn )<==:+ also state that peer assessment is greatly effective as a learning aid $hich is /eneficial in large classes /ecause teachers are fre8uently /urdened $ith grading assignments, A range of class activities focusing on achievement' involvement and progress can /e provided for assessment such as as%ing them to grade their efforts made in class and attitude to learning, Students can also /e re8uested to reflect upon ho$ $ell they use the target language to fulfill tas%s' and identify $hat they are not a/le to do )!raves'

200<+, Achievement assessment can /e used to e1amine the e1tent to $hich learners have learned $hat has /een taught, Furthermore' the result of the assessment can inform teachers a/out individual learner4s achievement of the learning o/#ectives as $ell as provide the feed/ac% on the effectiveness and 8uality of this course )ro$n' <==?+,

Course e)aluation Course e)aluation +"ser)ation +"ser)ation

Ho/inson )<==<+ points out that o/serving past students $ho are $or%ing may /e an effective means in seeing to $hat e1tent the ESP course has fully prepared them for $or%place needs, After such o/servation' the course designer is then a/le to reorgani9e the course materials for the follo$ing year students,

i&course an&

i&course an& en&o,couren&o,course e)aluationse e)aluation

Since this course lasts t$o academic semesters' a mid.course evaluation 8uestionnaire can /e given to learners in order to fine.tune the course /efore it finishes)Fee9' <==:+, End.of course evaluation can /e achieved through analy9ing learners4 outcomes' particularly' their final e1amination results and performance, -hey can also /e as%ed to revie$ their $or% and %eep diaries of $hat they thin% easyhard ' interestinguninteresting, -he findings from such diary input can /e analy9ed periodically )Bedge' 2000+,

Stu&ent ,ee&"ac* an& teacer sel,e)aluation Stu&ent ,ee&"ac* an& teacer sel,e)aluation

After each class' it is helpful to as% the learners to evaluate the class to provide feed/ac% to the teacher )Bedge' 2000+, Bo$ever' informal discussion $ith individual students could /e a more appropriate and spontaneous means for students to e1press $hat they really thin% a/out the course /ecause in a more formal situation such as intervie$ing a group of students may feel inhi/ited, 3t could also /e valua/le for teachers to evaluate themselves /y filling in a self. assessment sheet or %eeping a log /oo% )Bedge' 2000+,

Conclusions Conclusions

-his paper has investigated the srcins of ESP development and then discussed some %ey issues relevant to ESP course design on the /asis of the empirical studies /y ESP professionals, ESP course design should start from analy9ing learners4 particular needs and

$ants, ased on learners4 needs and their future language use' goals and o/#ectives of the course can /e determined' a process $hich involves consideration of specific grammatical functions' terminology comprehension' and the a/ilities re8uired for future $or%place communication, &ast /ut not least' assessment and evaluation should also /e integrated into the design process to ensure that these goals and o/#ectives are achieved, -his article finally puts for$ard a proposal for an ESP course frame$or% targeted to senior students of

3nternational usiness in !uilin 3nstitute of -echnology, 3t is hoped that this study may /ring /enefits to other ESP course designers involved in developing similar courses in Chinese

universities or similar conte1ts, /e,erences

/e,erences

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