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UNIT 2:LEARNER NEEDS ANALYSIS
• Unit Objectives• At the end of the unit, students are able to:• describe the concept of ‘need’ in ESP;• identify the different types of need;• classify the various types of need with respect to
ESP learners’ target, present and learning situations;
• outline the various techniques of needs analysis; and
• conduct small-scale needs analyses to meet the initial requirements of proposed ESP courses.
Unit 2 Sub-Topics
1. Introduction
2. Defining needs analysis
3. Approaches to needs analysis(a) Target Situation Analysis (TSA)
(b) Present Situation Analysis (PSA)
(c) Learning Situation Analysis (LSA)
Unit 2 Sub-Topics (cont’d…)
4. Language audits
5. Methods of needs analysis
6. The timing of a needs analysis
7. Who carries out the needs analysis / Who decides what the language needs are?
8. Translating needs analysis outcomes
Definition of ‘need’
• in education: “the gap between what is and what ought to be”
• in ESP: “what the learner has to be and do in the target situation using English”
• in ESP practice, definition of ‘need’ depends on the context and who is doing the analysis
Hutchinson and Waters (1987) on needs analysis in ESP :
• “…if we had to state in practical terms the irreducible minimum of an ESP approach to course design, it would be needs analysis, since it is the awareness of a target situation – a definable need to communicate in English – that distinguishes the ESP learner from the learner of General English.” (p.54)
Needs analysis in ESP
For practical purposes, it involves:• collecting and collating relevant
information about a single learner’s or a set of learners’ common purpose(s) for learning English, and
• interpreting the data so that choices and/or decisions can be made about defining objectives and principles for course design and materials
Concept of ‘needs’• In general, ‘need’ = gap between what is and
what ought to be• objective vs. subjective needs (Brindley, 1989)• perceived vs. felt needs (Berwick, 1989)• target needs vs. learning needs• product-oriented needs vs. process-oriented
needs (Brindley, 1989)• necessities, lacks and wants (Hutchinson &
Waters, 1986)
General Categories of Needs
A. Goal-oriented Needs (‘objective’ needs)
B. Process-oriented Need (‘subjective needs)
• Goal-oriented needs (narrow interpretation): elements of language, and related knowledge, skills and strategies s/he will have to use for study and/or occupational purposes
• Process-oriented needs (broad view): needs of the student qua (as) language learner i.e. skills, strategies, styles of learning, language proficiency, desires, etc.
• Hutchinson 7 waters (1987): necessities, lacks and wants
NA framework in ESP
Based on approaches to needs analysis:(a) Target Situation Analysis (TSA)
(b) Present Situation Analysis (PSA)
(c) Learning Situation Analysis (LSA
Types of Input into ESP Course design
ESP Course DesignTSA –
“Necessities” PSA – “Lacks”
LSA – “Wants”
TSA
• Traditional approach for the purpose of compiling information to identify language needs and to determine objectives
• “…identifying language needs consists primarily in compiling information both on the individuals or group of individuals who are to learn a language and on the use which they are expected to make of it when they have learnt it.” (Richterich, 1983: 2)
TSA (cont’d…)
• key genres (text-types) used in the target situation/context
• special language elements (‘register’)
• communicative purposes and functions of language
• other conventions of language use in particular fields of study and work
A Working Model…
1. Target Situation Analysis• Learners, genres, tasks, activities using English,
genre knowledge & skills** (necessities)
2. Present Situation Analysis• Previous learning experiences, language
proficiency, cultural information; Means analysis – resources, time, physical environment, etc. (lacks)
3. Learning Situation Analysisreasons for attending course and expectations, attitude
to English, preferred ways of learning, styles, strategies (wants)
**Professional communication information:
knowledge of genres, language and skills used in target situation/context analysed via:Linguistic analysis (inc. lexical analysis)Discourse analysisGenre analysis
A Target Situation Analysis framework (Hutchinson & Waters 1987)
• Why is the language needed?
• How will the language be used?
• What will the content areas be?
• Who will the learners use the language with?
• Where will the language be used?
• When will the language be used?
A Framework for Analysing Learning Needs
• Why are the learners taking this course?
• How do the learners learn?
• What resources are available?
• Who are the learners?
• Where will the ESP course take place?
• When will the ESP course take place?
Example of a genre and its moves
Research Article Abstract (adapted from Bhatia, 1993) • 1. WRITER INTRODUCES PURPOSE OF STUDY:
The purpose of the study was to examine …• 2. WRITER DESCRIBES METHODOLOGY: 50 high
school students in Kelantan participated in the study. They were selected from …
• 3. WRITER SUMMARISES RESULTS OF STUDY: It was discovered that …
• 4. WRITER PRESENTS CONCLUSIONS: High school students in Kelantan, and probably in other similar settings …
PSA
• “A PSA seeks to establish what the students are like at the beginning of their language course, investigating their strengths and weakness.” (Robinson 1991, p 9)
• Assessment of learners’ strengths and weaknesses
• Hutchinson & Waters (1987): ‘lacks’• language-based gaps feed into syllabus design
LSA
• pedagogical, methodological and logistical factors which will affect decisions about the design of a course
• may subsequently impede or positively influence the success of a language learning programme
• sub-categorised as strategy analysis and means analysis.
Materials to collect - Authentic Texts
• What are authentic texts for classroom use?– narrow and defined audience– “owned” by discourse community– used by people in the learner’s target context in the
course of their work
• Examples: – written text types: emails, memos, reports, calls for
tender, contracts, project documentation, mission statements, minutes of meetings, etc
– spoken text types: interviews, meetings, phone calls, etc
Text Analysis
• Real Content vs. Carrier Content– Carrier content: the subject of a text, what it
is about – Real content: language items which the
teacher determines to be present in a text and which he/she regards to be worthy of teaching
Text analysis...
Dudley-Evans and St. John (1997):
technical vocabulary: specialized and restricted meanings in certain disciplines and which may vary in meaning across disciplines
semi-technical vocabulary: used in general language but has a higher frequency of occurrence/use in the specialist discourse of professional life
Task Analysis
• What is the main communicative purpose of the task?
• Which of the four skills does the task require?• Are there preliminary and follow-up tasks
involved?• What language functions can be expected to
play a role in the task? • What text types does the task involve? • Where can these texts be found?
Methods of Analysing Needs
• Tests• Questionnaires• Interviews /structured interviews• Observation• Case studies• Learner diaries• Previous research• Participatory needs analysis (including
‘Shadowing’)
Remaining issues
• The timing of a needs analysisPre-course (GNP specs)In-course (formative assessment of LOs) Post-course (course evaluation)
• Who carries out the needs analysis / Who decides what the language needs are?– JIJOE? (Alderson, 1996)– Home-grown expert?– Often the practitioner/instructor
Remaining issues...
• Translating needs analysis outcomes – the GNP (Generalised Needs Profile)
• Construct TSA, PSA & LSA specifications for target group of learners– Problem with heterogeneous groups – Resolve within available means/resources
(Swales, 1989: ‘opportunity cost’)
Remaining issues...• Resolve mismatches in expectations to
establish “happy mean” (Richterich, 1983)– e.g. How much ‘grammar’? How much focus on
speaking skills?
• Immediate needs and projected needs• A key issue: how much data to collect and
analyse?– Adopt pragmatic approach/stance
• Question of power: English specialist vs. Content specialist