E.S.P

William E. YugsánApril 17, 2015

English for Specific Purposes (ESP) is a subdivision of a wider field

Language for Specific Purposes (LSP)

“…the area of inquiry and practice in thedevelopment of language programs forpeople who need a language to meet apredictable range of communicative needs.”

Swales, 1992

What is ESP?

“English for specific purposes is a term that refers to teaching or studying English for a particular career (like law, medicine, business)”.

(InternationalTeacher Training Organization, 2005)

ESP is a type of ELT (English Language Teaching) which is defined as a “Goal-oriented language learning”

(Robinson, Pauline C., ed. Hywel Coleman, 1989, p 398)

ESP is an approach

“It is an approach to language learning , which is based on learner need”Hutchinson & Waters (1987)

The answer: About the learners themselves

The type of language

The learning context

“It is an approach to language teaching in which all decision as to content and method are based on the learner’s reason for learning”

Hutchinson & Waters (1987)

Why does this learner need to learn a foreign language?

Language Learning

ESP emphasizes Language Use

Characteristics of ESP

1. ABSOLUTE 2. VARIABLE

1. ESP is defined to meet specific needs of the learner

2. ESP makes use of the underlying methodology and activities of the discipline it serves

1. Absolute

3. ESP is centred on the language (grammar, lexis, register), skills, discourse and categories appropriate to these activities

4. Learner-centered, second/foreign language training

5. Characterized by the use of appropriate, authentic tasks & materials (specificity and relevance)

2. VARIABLE

1. ESP may use, in specific teaching situations, a different methodology

2. ESP is likely to be designed for adult learners, either at a tertiary level institutionor in a professional work situation

3. ESP is generally designed for intermediate or advanced students

4. Most ESP courses assume some basic knowledge of the language, but itcan be used with beginners (Dudley-Evans, 1998).

English language training:

General English

Target Foreign / Second language students

Listening, pronunciation, reading, composition, grammar, study skills common to all disciplines; that is, English for general academic purposes

Coping Skills

ESP

English for Academic Purposes (EAP)*

Target Studying to enter professions, focusing on the language ofacademic performance (and sometimes preparing for near-future identified workplace needs)

Fields Business, Engineering, Medicine, Information Technology, Law, among others.

English for Occupational Purposes (EOP)

Target Employed in industry sectors, focusing on the language of job performance (or preparing for identified employment opportunities)

Fields: Industry sectors, government, United Nations, NGOs

What kinds of ESP are taught? EAP English for Academic Purposes

EOP English for Occupational Purposes

EBP English for Business Purposes

ELP English for Legal Purposes

EMP English for Medical Purposes

EAMP English for Academic Medical Purposes

EABP English for Academic Business Purposes

EALP English for Academic Legal Purposes

ESP learners

1. Language learners who are in the process of developing expertise in their fields need English communication skills as tools in their training.

2. Language learners who are already experts in their fields need English communication skills as tools in their work.

Vocabulary / Technical Vocabulary

Collocations

have suffer from

catch contract get

die from/ of

cause

carry pass on spread transmit

diagnose treat combat fight control manage cure prevent eradicate

common obscure rare

dangerous serious mild chronic acute

degenerative deadly fatal (in)curable killer terminal

• preventable

(non-)communicable contagious infectious

congenital hereditary inherited

childhood tropical insect-borne water-borne occupational sexually transmitted social venereal