English for Specific Purposes – ESP Language Teaching to Professionals and Vocational School Students 3rd – 5th November, 2017 – Athens, Greece English for Specific Purposes – ESP Ş.Çetin İlin, Çukurova University, Adana, Turkey

ÇUKUROVA UNIVERSITY

ÇUKUROVA UNIVERSITY Çukurova University, founded in 1973, is situated on 20000 decars of beautiful land on the eastern coast of Seyhan Dam Lake. The University, 10 km away from the city centre, is a major one in Turkey with its modern infrastructure and facilities. It is in the top 5 Universities in Turkey and 500 in the World. Çukurova University occupies a foremost place among other Turkish universities with its;

ÇUKUROVA UNIVERSITY 15 Faculties 1 State Conservatory 5 Schools of Higher Education 13 Vocational Schools of Higher Education 4 Institutes 25 Research and Application Centers a fully equipped hospital named Balcalı, the largest one among the Middle East countries

ÇUKUROVA UNIVERSITY Nearly 1900 teaching Staff offers education to about 50000 students. The university considers providing highly qualified graduates to Turkey as a top priority.

Adana Vocational School of Higher Education Being the biggest Vocational School of Higher Education of Çukurova University, Adana Vocational School of Higher Education, in Beyazevler Campus, serves about 6000 students in 15 departments of both formal and distance education.

Adana Vocational School of Higher Education It aims to educate well-trained and talented staff in that country needed branches; the interface between engineers and technicians to meet the need for manpower and professional staff, modern and high quality.

Adana Vocational School of Higher Education In the organisation, whose education and training periods lasts for two years, students graduate with the title of technician and professional staff. It promotes training as formal education in the departments of;

Adana Vocational School of Higher Education Computer Technologies Electronics and Automation Electrics and Energy Audio-Visual Techniques and Media Production Nursing and Care Services Construction Machine and Metal Technologies Material Processing and Material Motor Vehicles and Automotive Accounting and Tax Applications Technologies of Heating, Cooling and Climatisation Systems Textile-Clothing - Shoes and Leather Food Processing Departments Wholesale and Retail Selling Travel, Tourism and Entertainment

Adana Vocational School of Higher Education and also in the departments of Computer Technologies, Accounting and Tax Applications, Child Development, and Electronical Communication as distance education.

Language Teaching to Professionals and Vocational School Students Today, knowing how to use a language in specific circumstances and purposes gives people a very strong bargaining and competitive power, especially in the labour world. A few decades ago, knowing a foreign language was a very important prerequisite for just a few, like managers or diplomats, today, it has become of fundamental importance in all professional circles. In fact, in today’s European society, languages and interculture play a fundamental role in getting to know different people and in obtaining professional and economic development (Bojović, M, (2006) .

In the global market place that we now live in, languages have become crucial across all sectors. From law to finance, from tourism to technology, and from marketing to administration, most businesses today need linguists not only to permit communication across the globe but also to understand different cultural realities and needs.

English Language Teaching (ELT) English For General Academic Purposes (EGAP) English For Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) English For Academic Purposes (EAP) English For Occupational Purposes (EOP) General English (GE) English For Specific Purposes (ESP) English as a Mother Tongue (EMT) English as a Foreign Language (EFL) English as a Second Language (ESL) English Language Teaching (ELT) Assoc.Prof.Dr.Douglas Bell CELE, University of Nottingham Ningbo, China

Although the teaching of foreign languages in general and the teaching of foreign languages for specific purposes have a lot in common, teaching foreign languages for specific purposes implies addressing the very specific needs of the learners involved. This means that the driving force, both in the preparation stage as well as in the development stage of such courses, should be the needs analysis of the learners, who very often need that language for their job.

For this reason the starting point should always be a study of the learners’ needs, objectives and expectations for the course. This may include forming a list of preferences of what the learners would like to learn, as far as language and content is concerned, and of how they would like to learn it.

For example, the needs of a learner studying a foreign language for scientific or technological purposes are totally different from those of another learner studying for medical purposes or legal purposes, or financial purposes. The same goes for individuals studying a foreign language for specific trades or occupations and others still concerned with finding a job.

People studying for commercial purposes need specific reading and writing skills – reading and understanding the contents of an email and replying to it; writing various letters of a different nature; a letter of complaint, of protest, of acceptance; taking minutes of an important meeting, etc. On the other hand, people studying a foreign language to work in a call centre are more interested in listening and speaking skills - answering the phone; leaving a message; giving information over the phone, etc.

What is ESP? Some people described ESP as simply being the teaching of English for any purpose that could be specified. Others, however, were more precise, describing it as the teaching of English used in academic studies or the teaching of English for vocational or professional purposes.(Bell, 2007)

Definitions of ESP in the literature began in the 1960s Definitions of ESP in the literature began in the 1960s. Hutchinson and Waters (1987) define ESP as an approach rather than a product – meaning that ESP does not involve a particular kind of language, teaching material or methodology. The basic question of ESP is: Why does this learner need to learn a foreign language? The purpose of learning English became the core.

To determine the similarities and differences between ESP and General English, Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998) put forward the list of absolute and variable characteristics that reflect specific characteristics of ESP courses.

Absolute Characteristics : ESP is defined to meet specific needs of the learners  ESP makes use of underlying methodology and activities of the discipline it serves   ESP is centered on the language appropriate to these activities in terms of grammar, register, study skills, discourse and genre to these activities

Variable Characteristics : 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.   ESP is generally designed for intermediate or advanced students.  Most ESP courses assume some basic knowledge of the language systems

Is ESP different from General English? One may ask 'What is the difference between the ESP and General English approach?' Hutchinson et al. (1987:53) answer this quite simply, "in theory nothing, in practice a great deal". At the time, teachers of General English courses, while acknowledging that students had a specific purpose for studying English, would rarely conduct a needs analysis to find out what was necessary to actually achieve it.

Teachers nowadays are much more aware of the importance of needs analysis, and certainly materials writers think very carefully about the goals of learners at all stages of materials production. Perhaps this demonstrates the influence that the ESP approach has had on English teaching in general. Clearly the line between where General English courses stop and ESP courses start has become very vague indeed.

English Language Teaching (ELT) English For General Academic Purposes (EGAP) English For Specific Academic Purposes (ESAP) English For Academic Purposes (EAP) English For Occupational Purposes (EOP) General English (GE) English For Specific Purposes (ESP) English as a Mother Tongue (EMT) English as a Foreign Language (EFL) English as a Second Language (ESL) English Language Teaching (ELT) Assoc.Prof.Dr.Douglas Bell CELE, University of Nottingham Ningbo, China

Types of ESP? divided into two main areas according to when they take place: English For Occupational Purposes (EOP) English For Academic Purposes (EAP)

English For Academic Purposes (EAP) can be further subdivided into; English (Academic) for Science and Technology English (Academic) for Management, Finance and Economics English (Academic) for Legal Purposes English (Academic) for Medical Purposes English for Academic Purposes focuses on the development of general study abilities of analyzing and synthesizing information using a foreign language. Among specific competencies taught in such courses are: listening comprehension, note-taking, and writing in appropriate academic context (Jordan, 1997). English (Academic) for Science and Technology is an example of English for Specific Academic Purposes (in terms of Johns, 1990) and emphasizes vocabulary, discourse, and register specific to the subject of study. In such courses students develop language competencies relevant for the instruction and research in their future area of specialization (Johns, 1990).

English For Occupational Purposes (EOP) English for Professional Purposes English for Vocational Purposes English for Medical Purposes English for Business Purposes Pre-vocational English Vocational English EOP is for study in a specific discipline or as a school subject. It refers to English for professional purposes in administration, medicine, law and business, and vocational purposes for non-professionals in work (language of training for specific trades or occupations) or pre-work situations (concerned with finding a job and interview skills).

FEATURES of ESP COURSES purpose-related orientation Considering the characteristics of ESP courses, Carver (1983) states that there are three characteristics common to ESP courses: authentic materials purpose-related orientation self-direction

Authentic materials Authentic materials – the use of authentic learning materials, materials modified by teachers or unmodified, is common in ESP, especially in self-directed studies or research tasks. The students are usually encouraged to conduct research using a variety of different resources including the Internet;

Purpose-related orientation Purpose-related orientation – refers to the simulation of communicative tasks required by the target situation. The teacher can give students different tasks - to simulate the conference preparation, involving the preparation of papers, reading, note-taking and writing. English course for Management involves students in the tasks of presenting a particular product, logo creation, communicating with the clients (suppliers and buyers), telephone conversation. They also practice listening skills, though the application is restricted because they employ newly acquired skills during their ESP classes with their colleagues and teacher.

Self-direction Self-direction – means that ESP is concerned with turning learners into users. For self-direction, it is necessary that teacher encourage students to have a certain degree of autonomy – freedom to decide when, what, and how they will study. For high-ability learners it is essential to learn how to access information in a new culture.

Since ESP courses are of various types, depending on specific scientific field or profession, and have specific features, teachers teaching such courses need to play different roles and acquire certain knowledge (Bojović, M, (2006) .

To conclude; Using skills as a framework of ESP, ESP teachers are provided with the necessary knowledge and tools to deal with their own students’ specializations. It should be remembered - ESP teachers are not specialists in the field, but in teaching English, their subject is English for the profession but not the profession in English. They help students, who know their subject better than the teachers do, develop the essential skills in understanding, using, and/or presenting authentic information in their profession.

A professional ESP teacher must be able to switch from one professional field to another without being obliged to spend months on getting started. S/he simply brings the necessary tools, frameworks, and principles of course design to apply them to new material. The material (the content) should be provided by the professors or experts in the subject. It should always be authentic (the main purpose of teaching skills is to enable students to deal with authentic information despite their level of English), up-to-date (the informational exchange is growing more intense), and relevant for the students’ specializations (they ought to be given the information representative for their target language use situation).

REFERENCES Bell, D.E. (2007). Moving Teachers from the General to the Academic: Challenges and Issues in Teacher Training for EAP. In T. Lynch & J. Northcott (Eds). Symposia for Language Teacher Educators: Educating Legal English Specialists & Teacher Education in Teaching English for Academic Purposes. Proceedings of IALS Teacher Education Symposia, 2004 and 2006. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University. Bojović, M, (2006) Teaching Foreign Language for Specific Purposes: Teacher Development, 31st Annual ATEE Conference Carver, D. (1983). Some propositions about ESP. The ESP Journal, 2, 131-137. Dudley-Evans, T., and St John, M. (1998). Developments in ESP: A multi-disciplinary approach. Cambridge: CUP. Hutchinson, T., and Waters, A. (1987) English for Specific Purposes: a Learning –centered Approach, Cambridge: CUP. Jordan, R. R. (1997). English for academic purposes: A guide and resource book for teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Thank you for your participation! Ş.Çetin ilin, Cukurova University