Analysis of Study SkillsWhy is there a need to study these skills?

Teaching the language itself isn’t sufficient to develop the ability to perform the required tasks of ESP students, in addition of language work – thought process should also come along.

Developed from functional-notional in line with communicative language teaching, the growth of needs analysis

Priorities one particular skill in a given situation. Example:1. A class when the medium of instruction is not English2. International students embarking a study in UK3. Business people conducting international negotiations4. International students conducting postgraduate thesis

Excerpt from “Skills for Learning”(University of Malaya ESP

Project)

Skills are taught using

general carrier content

Problem solving

activities where thought processes are implemented

The aim of the lesson is stated clearly in

the beginning – here the focus of study is

on getting the meaning from the

context

Each activity makes use of

group work / pair work, which is in

line with the ideas of communicative

teaching.

Analysis of learning needsEarly 1980s saw the period of consolidation of ESP, some

thought that ESP was dead and needed something that set it apart from General English.

Hutchinson and Waters gave some thought to the consolidation of ESP work, particularly in their definition of what ESP should not be:1. ESP is not just a matter of teaching ‘specialized varieties’ of English2. ESP is not just a matter of science words and grammar for scientist or hotel receptionists3. ESP is not different from any other language teaching where effective and efficient learning process are sought after.

They also argued that ESP had concentrated too much on the end product rather than the process itself, with this in mind came the concept of learning-centered approach.

Learning centered approach:Is an approach with avowed aim of

maximizing potentials of the learning process. (Hutchison and Waters, 1987)

Considered the process of learning and student motivation very fully and working out what is needed to reach the end target.

Exploited learning skills students may have gained outside the class.

Emphasis on groupwork or pairwork

Relationships

involved in

the learning

centered-approach

(Hutchinson and Waters,

1984)

Identify Target

Situation

Analyze Target

Situation

Analyze Learning Situation

Write Syllabus

Write Materials

Teach Materials

Evaluate learners’

achievement

Language-centered approach

A skilled-centered approach

A Learning-centered approach

Excerpt from ‘Interface’(Hutchinson and Waters, 1984)

The starter activity provides the context /

background knowledge and stimulates interest so that students are engaged

into the topicThe next activity focuses on language use in a

particular context, in this case it’s language related

to English for technical communication

The rest of the activity typically ask students to draw their own personal experience based on the

topic given.

AuthenticityDuring its course of development, there

was a great deal of controversy for using authentic text.

Its unclear meaning – what is meant by authentic text?

Authenticity in terms of the materialAuthenticity in terms of the tasksAuthenticity in terms of the level