Designing an ESP nursing syllabus for the first year students at Haiphong Medical Collge = Thiết kế chương trình tiếng Anh chuyên ngành điều dưỡng cho sinh viên

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VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES




ĐỖ THỊ HẢI ANH


DESIGNING AN ESP NURSING SYLLABUS FOR
THE FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS
AT HAIPHONG MEDICAL COLLEGE

Thiết kế chương trình tiếng Anh chuyên ngành điều dưỡng cho sinh viên
năm thứ nhất trường Cao đẳng Y tế Hải Phòng


M.A MINOR THESIS




HANOI – 2012
Field: English Language Teaching Methodology
Code: 60.14.10

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VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES



ĐỖ THỊ HẢI ANH


DESIGNING AN ESP NURSING SYLLABUS FOR
THE FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS
AT HAIPHONG MEDICAL COLLEGE

Thiết kế chương trình tiếng Anh chuyên ngành điều dưỡng cho sinh viên
năm thứ nhất trường Cao đẳng Y tế Hải Phòng

M.A MINOR THESIS







HANOI – 201
Major: English Language Teaching
Methodology
Code: 60.14.10
Supervisor: Dr. DƯƠNG THỊ NỤ

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
DECLARATION i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ii
ABSTRACT iii
LIST OF ABBRAVIATIONS AND TABLES ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS v
PART I: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale 1
2. The aims of the study 1
3. The research questions 2
4. The scope of the study 2
5. The method of the study 2
6. The design of the study 2
PART II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. An overview on syllabus design 4
1.1.1. Definitions of syllabus and syllabus design 4
1.1.2. Types of syllabus 5
1.1.2.1. Grammatical syllabus 6
1.1.2.2. Functional-notinal syllabus 6
1.1.2.3. Situational syllabus 7
1.1.2.4. Task-based syllabus 7
1.1.2.5. Skill-based syllabus 8
1.1.2.6. Content-based syllabus 8
1.1.3. The approaches to syllabus design 9
1.1.3.1. Language-centred approach 9

1.1.3.2. Skills-centred approach 10
1.1.3.3 Learning-centred approach 10
1.1.4. The steps in syllabus design 11
1.1.4.1. Needs anlysis 12
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1.1.4.1.1. Target needs 12
1.1.4.1.2. Learning needs 13
1.1.4.2. Goals and objectives identifying 14
1.1.4.3. Content selecting and grading 15
1.1.4.4. Teaching methods suggesting 15
1. 2. An overview on ESP? 16
1.2.1. Definitions of ESP 16
1.2.2. Classification of ESP 17
CHAPTER II: THE STUDY
2.1. The setting 19
2.1.1. The teaching and learning conditions 19
2.1.2. The current syllabus 19
2.1.3. The teaching staff 20
2.1.4. The target students 20
2.2. The study 21
2.2.1. The subjects 21
2.2.2. Instruments for collecting data 21
2.2.3. The findings 22
2.2.3.1. Analysis from English teachers‟ questionnaire 22
2.2.3.1.1. Teachers‟ opinions on objectives needed meeting at the end of
ESP course 22
2.2.3.1.2. Teachers‟ selection of topics needed in the ESP syllabus 23
2.2.3.1.3. Teachers‟ selection of grammar and structures needed in the
ESP syllabus 24

2.2.3.1.4. Teachers‟ selection of skills and language exercises needed in the
ESP syllabus 25
2.2.3.2. Analysis from students‟ questionnaire 27
2.2.3.2.1. Students‟ opinions on objectives needed meeting at the end of
ESP course 27
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2.2.3.2.2. Students‟ selection of topics needed in the ESP syllabus 27
2.2.3.2.3. Students‟ selection of grammar and structures needed in the
ESP syllabus 28
2.2.3.2.4. Students‟ selection of grammar and structures needed in the syllabus 29
2.2.3.3. Analysis from special subject teachers‟ questionnaire 30
CHAPTER III: DESIGNING AN ESP NURSING SYLLABUS FOR THE
FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS AT HAIPHONG MEDICAL COLLEGE
3.1. Selecting a type of syllabus 32
3.2. Aims and objectives of the syllabus 32
3.3. Detailed syllabus 32
3.3.1. Content selecting 32
3.3.1.1. Topics in the syllabus 33
3.3.1.2. Skills and exercises in the syllabus 33
3.3.1.3. Grammatical structures in the syllabus 34
3.3.2. Time allocation 34
3.3.3. Assessment and test 35
3.3.4. The organization of the syllabus 35
PART III: CONCLUSION
1. Recapitulation 39
2. Conclusions 39
3. Limitations of the study 40
4. Suggestions for further research 40
REFERENCES 41

APPENDICES I
SAMPLE UNIT X





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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS, TABLES AND CHARTS

EAP English for Academic Purposes
ELP English for Legal Purposes
EMFE English for Management, Finance, and Economics
EMP English for Medical Purposes
EOP English for occupational Purposes
ESP English for Special Purposes
EST English for Science and Technology
GE General English
MBA Master of Business Administration

Table 1. Teachers‟ ranking of the objectives in the ESP course
Table 2.Teachers‟ selection of grammar and structures needed in the syllabus
Table 3. Teachers‟ selection of skills and language exercises
Table 4.Students‟ opinions on objectives needed meeting at the end of ESP course
Table 5. Students‟ selection of grammar and structures needed in the syllabus

Chart 1. Teachers‟ selection of topics needed in the ESP syllabus
Chart 2. Students‟ needs on learning ESP course
Chart 3. Students‟ selection of topics needed in the ESP syllabus

Chart 4. Specialized subject teachers‟ selection of topics needed in the ESP
syllabus





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PART I: INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
Haiphong Medical College was founded over 50 years ago. In 2007 it was
formally upgraded Junior College. Since 2011, the training curriculum has
changed, and English for Specific Purposes was added for first year students of
Nursing Department. After completing 60 periods of General English course, the
students have to learn 30 ESP periods. Even though ESP courses have become
popular recently in Vietnam and many institutions and universities, the current
ESP syllabus does not meet the needs of the first year college students, so our
students need one suitable ESP nursing syllabus.
As teachers, we all know that it is difficult to design an ESP syllabus that
can best prepare learners for future professional communication. Firstly, there is
no ESP textbook for college students of Nursing Department, so we have to refer
many different ESP documents for tertiary level. Secondly, we were not trained in
the field of nursing, which makes our syllabus designing more challenging.
Moreover, when completing GE, with basic English, students cannot read ESP
documents nor communicate well.
For all the above-mentioned reasons, I wish to conduct a study entitled:
“Designing an ESP nursing syllabus for the 1
st

year students at Hai Phong
Medical College.”
2. The aims of the study
In this study, I would like to design an ESP nursing syllabus for the 1
st
year
students at Hai Phong Medical College. To achieve the aim, we have to achieve
the following objectives:
- To develop the main theoretical basis related to syllabus design as well as to
ESP.
- To investigate the needs of the students, the ideas and suggestions of English
teachers, specialized subject teachers.
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- To propose an appropriate ESP syllabus for students base on their needs and
special requirements.
3. The research questions
To obtain the above aims and objectives, we have to answer the two
following questions:
1. Why is it necessary to design an ESP syllabus?
2. What components should the proposed syllabus have ?
4. The scope of the study
In this study, I direct my attention to design an ESP syllabus- English for
Nursing- with 30 periods for the first-year students at the Nursing Department,
who have completed 60 periods of General English.
5. The method of the study
I use Quantitative method in this study. The quantitative is used to collect
the data by questionnaires. The results of questionnaire 1 are suggestions of
English teachers about the objectives, topics, skills and activities in the ESP
course.

The results of questionnaire 2 are the findings about the needs of the students.
The results of questionnaire 3 are the suggestions and ideas of the specialized
subject teachers to find out the topics of the lessons in the syllabus.
6. The design of the study
My study consists of three main parts:
The first part of my study is Introduction. In this part, the reasons why I chose this
subject are explained as the rationale. After that, aims and objectives, research
questions, scope, method and design of the study are also mentioned.
The second part is the body or the Development of the study which is divided into
three chapters.
Chapter I: Literature review presents the overview of syllabus design in ESP.
Chapter II: The Study provides the findings of students‟ needs, teachers‟
suggestions for the ESP syllabus.
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Chapter III: The proposal ESP syllabus based on the students‟ needs, teachers‟
suggestions and the course objectives.
Conclusion is the last part of the study. Here, I would give the summary of all the
main points in the study, conclusions and some limitations as well as the
suggestions for further studies.
The last one is the Appendices that comprises of the questionnaires.and a
sample unit.

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PART II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. An overview on syllabus design
1.1.1. Definitions of syllabus and syllabus design
There are several views on the syllabus design basing on the narrow and
the broad approach to syllabus design , therefore, it also leads to some
disagreement about the nature of “the syllabus”.
Widdowson (1984:26) defined that “The syllabus is simply a framework
within which activities can be carried out: a teaching device to facilitate learning.
It only becomes a threat to pedagogy when it is regarded as absolute rules for
determining what is to be learned rather than points of reference from which
bearings can be taken.”

According to Yalden (1984: 14), “The syllabus replaces the concept of
„method‟, and the syllabus is now seen as an instrument by which the teacher, with
the help of the syllabus designer, can achieve a degree of „fit‟ between the needs
and aims of the learner (as social being and as individual) and the activities which
will take place in the classroom.” For her the syllabus is primarily a teacher‟s
statement about objectives and content, arrived at after consideration of students‟
needs.
Meanwhile, Allen (1984: 61) drew a clear distinction between curriculum
and syllabus “Curriculum is a very general concept which involves consideration
of the whole complex of philosophical, social and administrative factors which
contribute to the planning of an educational program. Syllabus, on the other hand,
refers to that subpart of curriculum which is concerned with a specification of
what units will be taught (as distinct from how they will be taught, which is a
matter for methodology).”
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Like Allen, Hutchinson and Waters (1993: 90) defined that “a syllabus is a
document which says what will (or at least what should) be learnt, it should state
out the goals, content, and activities to be carried out in a particular, and well-
defined context.”
Nunan (1988:5) stated that “syllabus is a statement of content which is used
as the basis for planning courses of various kinds, and that the task of the syllabus
designer is to select and grade this content.” And he also supposed that “Syllabus
design is seen as being concerned essentially with the selection and grading of
content.”
In document „Threshold Level English‟ (van Ek 1975), van Ek gave a list
of necessary components of a language syllabus:
- the situations in which the foreign language will be used, including the
topics which will be dealt with,
- the language activities in which the learner will engage,

- the language functions which the learner will fulfill,
- what the learner will be able to do with respect to each topic,
- the general notions which the learner will be able to handle,
- the specific (topic-related) notions which the learner will be able to
handle,
- the language forms which the learner will be able to use,
- the degree of skill with which the learner will be able to perform,
In brief, every view on syllabus design has its own strong and weak points.
Therefore, I, as well as syllabus designers, should consider and select the best
points to design an appropriate syllabus for our students.
1. 1. 2. Types of syllabus
There are two major types of syllabuses, product-oriented syllabus and
process-oriented syllabus. Nunan pointed that “product syllabuses are those in
which the focus is on the knowledge and skills which learner should gain as a
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result of instruction, while process syllabuses are those which focus on the
learning experiences themselves.”
The grammatical, functional-notional and situational syllabuses are the
examples of the product-oriented syllabus.
The task-based, skill-based and content-based types of syllabus are
included in the process-oriented syllabus.
1. 1. 2. 1. Grammatical syllabus
Grammatical syllabus, or structural syllabus, is one of the most common
types in designing a syllabus in which syllabus input is selected and graded
according to grammatical notions of simplicity and complexity.
This syllabus focuses on teaching the students the forms, structures and
grammatical of language as Wilkin (1983: 83) said that the aim of Grammatical
syllabus is “teaching the students how to form correctly, how, that is, to
manipulate the structures of the language easily and without error.”

McDonough (1981: 21) found the strong point of this syllabus “The
transition from lesson to lesson is intended to enable material in one lesson to
prepare the ground for the next, and conversely for material in the next to appear
to grow out of the previous one.” The principal purpose of Grammatical syllabus
is to help learners get the unfamiliar from the familiar.
However, it reveals some weak points. Firstly, learners can learn and get
formal language with this syllabus, but they may not be able to communicate in
everyday conversations. Lastly, this syllabus is not applied widely in teaching
language classrooms because the learners passively achieve the language designed
in the syllabus.
1. 1. 2. 2. Functional-notional syllabus
Contrary to Grammatical syllabus, Functional-notional syllabus motivates
real communicative functions. According to Nunan (1988), “functions may be
described as the communicative purposes for which we use language, while
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notions are the conceptual meanings (objects, entities, states of affairs ) expressed
through language.”
So, there are many benefits when adopting this kind of syllabus because a
collection of useful functions and notions used in daily life helps learners
communicate easily.
An important point regarding notional-functional syllabus is that the needs
of the students have to be analyzed and explored by different types of interaction
and communication; a learner may be involved in, hence, needs analysis is central
to design such syllabuses. But, when the learners encounter unfamiliar situations,
they find it difficult to use their language. Besides, they also get difficulty in
following from simpler structures to much more complex ones to present a
communicative function.
1. 1. 2. 3. Situational syllabus
The content of language teaching is a collection of real or imaginary

situations in which language occurs or is used. The primary purpose of this
syllabus is to teach the language that occurs in real-life situations. A situation
usually involves several participants who are engaged in some activity in a
specific setting. The language occurring in the situation involves a number of
functions, combined into a plausible segment of discourse. Here, the emphasis is
on the learner, who it is expected will actively participate in different situations
where L2 is being spoken. Examples of situations include, seeing the doctor,
making an appointment, meeting people at the party, buying clothes and so on.
One advantage of the situational approach is that motivation will be heightened,
since it is learner - centered rather than subject-centered.
1. 1. 2. 4. Task-based syllabus
Task-based syllabus, which consists of a series of complex and useful tasks,
is described by Richards, Platt, and Weber (1985: 289): “a syllabus which is
organized around tasks, rather than in terms of grammar or vocabulary.” The
learners have to complete a variety of different kinds of tasks when they want to
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use their language in the different fields of everyday life such as applying for a
job, filling out a form, making an airline reservation, etc. And Robinson‟s major
concern about this syllabus is that “students understand the task and what they
are doing, and do not act in mechanical way.” (Robinson 1991: 39)
Learners perform various tasks together in a co-operative environment.
Task-
based syllabus promotes and encourages collaborative learning. Since language
learning is considered subordinate to task performance, therefore, language
teaching also occurs as the need arises during the performance of the particular
task. Although the development of task-based syllabuses presents a change of
focus rather than a revolution in syllabus design, it leaves some difficulties for
syllabus designers, for example the degree of contextual support provided to the
learner, the cognitive difficulty of the task, the amount of assistance provided to

the learner, the complexity of the language which the learner is required to process
and produce and so on.
1. 1. 2. 5. Skill-based syllabus
This syllabus focuses on teaching some specific skills such as listening,
speaking, writing, reading… that are considered necessary or useful in using a
language. And the gradual development of skills gives learners the confidence.
While situational syllabi group functions together into specific settings of
language use, skill-based syllabi group linguistic competencies (pronunciation,
vocabulary, grammar, and discourse) together into generalized types of behavior.
The primary purpose of skill-based instruction is to learn the specific language
skill. A possible secondary purpose is to develop more general competence in the
language, learning only incidentally any information that may be available while
applying the language skills. This syllabus must be designed and implemented
keeping in mind the learners‟ cognitive levels. After all, in order to infer meaning
from context, or to understand discourse signals and clause relations, there are
linguistic operations to be made, and words to be learnt, not just skills to be
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performed. More or less any text could potentially be used for any skill, and when
reading or speaking we don't normally use only one skill at a time.
1. 1. 2. 6. Content-based syllabus
This syllabus is designed when the purpose is to teach some content or
information in a language that students are also learning. In this type of syllabus,
the language is enhanced through different contents and/or in the context of
various types of information. With content-based instruction learners are helped to
acquire language through the study of a series of relevant topics, each topic
exploited in systematic ways and from different angles, as outlined in Mohan's
"knowledge framework", (Nunan, 1988:49-50.) Content syllabuses certainly give
learners a lot of exposure to the language, which is good.
Content-based language teaching is concerned with information, while

task-based language teaching is concerned with communicative and cognitive
processes. Examples of content-based language teaching might be other subjects
in a school curriculum such as science or social studies, or specialist subject matter
relating to academic or technical field such as mechanical enginnering, medicine,
or computing.
In general, a language teaching syllabus involves a combination of subject
matter (what to teach) and linguistic matter (how to teach). So, these types of
syllabuses cannot work independently even though each one is of great
significance. Actually, syllabus designers combine some of the types presented
above to make the best one for their learners. My proposal ESP syllabus will be a
combination of the Situational and Task-based syllabus.
1. 1. 3. The approaches to syllabus design
Among many different approaches to syllabus design of different syllabus
designers, I would like to present the approaches which were classified by
Hutchinson & Waters.
1.1.3.1. The language-centered approach
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According to Hutchinson & Waters, the language-centered approach is the
simplest kind of course design process and the most familiar to English teachers.
“The language-centered course design process aims to draw as direct a
connection as possible between the analysis of target situation and the content of
the ESP course.” ( Hutchinson & Waters. 1987: 65)
Although it may seem as logical and straightforward, this approach has
some weak points. Firstly, it is considered a learner-centered approach, but in fact,
it is not learner-centered in any meaningful sense of the term. Because the learner
plays no further part in the process, their learning needs are not accounted for at
all, it is a simply learner-restricted, not learner-centered. Secondly, this process
can also be critisized for being a static and inflexible procedure. Thirdly, this
approach seems to be systematic, it engenders the false belief that learning itself is

systematic. Fourthly, data which is produced by a needs analysis is not important
in this kind of approach. Finally, the language- centered analysis of target situation
data is only at the surface level. It reveals very little about the competence
underlying the performance.
1.1.3.2. The skills-centered approach
This kind of approach to ESP has been applied in many countries. It is
founded on two fundamental principles, one theoretical and the other pragmatic.
The basic theoretical hypothesis states that certain skills and strategies,
which the learner uses in order to produce or comprehend discourse, underlie
language. Hutchinson & Waters supposed that “A skills-centered approach aims
to get away from the surface performance data and look at the competence that
underlies the performance.” (Hutchinson & Waters. 1987: 69)
The pragmatic basis for the skill-centered approach derives from a
distinction made by Widdowson (1981) between goal-oriented courses and
process-oriented courses.
The skills-centered model is a reaction to the idea of specific registers of
English as a basis for ESP as well as to the practical constrains on learning
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imposed by limited time and resources. Its aim is to make the learners into better
processors of information. And in this approach, the role of needs analysis is
twofold, so it takes the learner more into account than the language-centered
approach.
Additionally, the skills-centered approach approaches the learner as a user
of language rather than as a learner of language. The process it is concerned with
are
the processes of language use not of language learning.
1.1.3.3. Learning -centered approach
Hutchinson & Waters explained why they have chosen the term „Learning -
centered‟ instead of „learner- centered‟ as follows: Firstly, “learning is seen as a

process in which the learners use what knowledge or skills they have in order to
make sense of the flow of new information. Learning, therefore, is an internal
process, which is crucially dependent upon the knowledge the learners already
have and their ability and motivation to use it.” (Hutchinson & Waters. 1987: 72)
And then, “Learning is not just a mental process, it is a process of negotiation
between individuals and society.” They considered a learning-approach “an
approach with the avowed aim of maximising the potential of the learning
situation. Such an approach is inevitably more complex: it is based, after all, on a
regconition of the complexity of the learning process.”
For the emphasis on the learner, Hutchinson & Waters made a distinction
between the three approaches: The skills-centered approach does not fully take the
learner into account, because it still makes the ESP learning situation too
dependent on the target situation. Then, as with the language-centered one, the
learner is discarded and the target situation analysis is allowed to determine the
content of the course with little further reference to the learner. Meanwhile, a
learning-centered approach takes account of the learner at every stage of the
design process.
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All in all, it is not easy for any designers to determine an appropriate
approach to the syllabus. I would like to apply the learning-centered approach in
designing the ESP Nursing syllabus for the first year students at Haiphong
Medical College because of its significant strong points.
1. 1. 4. The steps in syllabus design
To design a syllabus, designers have to follow some obligatory steps. This
depends upon each designer‟s view. Hughes (1983: 7) supposed that the first
important step must be the choice of aims and objectives. But Brown (1996),
Richard (1984), Munby (1978) and Nunan (1988) agreed that needs analysis
should be the first step with other different ones. In my paper, I would like to
apply the following steps:

1. Needs analysis
2. Goals and objectives identifying
3. Content selecting and grading
4. Teaching methods suggesting
1. 1. 4. 1. Needs analysis
The key stage in ESP is needs analysis (NA). Needs analysis is the corner
stone of ESP and leads to a vary focused course (Brown, 1995; Chambers, 1980;
DudleyEvans & St. John, 1998; Ellis & Johnson, 1994; Jordan, 1997; West, 1994).
Nunan said that “needs analysis refers to a family of procedures for gathering
information about learners and about communication tasks for use in syllabus
design” (1988: 75). According to Robinson (1991: 7), “needs analysis is generally
regarded as critical to ESP, although ESP is by no means the only educational
enterprise which makes use of it”. Strevens (1977) suggests that needs analysis is
a necessary first step for specific purposes language teaching; it is more concerned
with the nature of scientific discourse. Dudley-Evans and St John (1998: 121) state
that “needs analysis is the process of establishing the what and how of a course”.
One of the purposes of needs analysis is to involve learners and teachers in
exchanging information so that the agendas of the teacher and the learner may be
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more closely aligned. Information provided by learners can be used to guide the
selection of content and learning activities. Moreover, by providing learners with
detailed information about goals, objectives, and learning activities, learners may
come to have a greater appreciation and acceptance of the learning experience they
are undertaking or about to undertake. And Hutchinson and Waters (1987:53)
argue that any language course should be based on needs analysis. They also make
a basic distinction between target needs (what the learner needs to do in the target
situation) and learning needs (what the learner needs to do in order to learn).
1. 1. 4. 1. 1. Target needs
According to Hutchinson & Waters “target needs is something of an

umbrella term, which in practice hides a number of important distinctions. It is
more useful to look at the target situation in terms of necessities, lacks and
wants.” (1987: 55)
a. Necessities
Necessities can be called the type of need determined by the demands of the
target situation, that is, what the learner has to know in order to function
effectively in the target situation. The learner will also need to know the
linguisctic features- discoursal, functional, structural, lexical- which are
commonly used in the situation identified.
b. Lacks
Because the concern in ESP is with the needs of particular learners, we not
only identify necessities but need to know what the learner knows already, so that
we can decide which of the necessities the learner lacks. The target proficiency
needs to be matched against the existing proficiency of the learners. The gap
between the two can be referred to as the learner‟s lacks. (Hutchinson, Waters &
Breen)
c. Wants
The learners have a view as to what their needs are. As Richterich (1984:
29) comments “…a need does not exist independent of a person. It is people who
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build their images of their needs on the basis of data relating to themselves and
their environment.”
There is no necessary relationship between necessities as perceived by
sponsor or ESP teacher and what the learners want or feel they need. Since the
learner motivation in the learning process is important, learner perceived wants
cannot be ignored.
1. 1. 4. 1. 2. Learning needs
Hutchinson & Waters see analogy of the ESP course a journey, what we
have done so far is to consider the starting point (lacks) and the destination

(necessities), although we have also seen that there might be some dispute as to
what that destination should be (wants). What we have not considered yet is the
route. And how we are going to get from our starting point to the destination
indicates learning needs.
1. 1. 4. 2. Goals and objectives identifying
Identifying learning goals and objectives is one of the most important steps
in designing a syllabus, because it helps the designers select an appropriate content
and activities for the learners.
According to Nunan (1986:61) “objectives can be useful, not only to guide
the selection of structures, functions, notions, tasks, and so on, but also to provide
a shaper focus for teachers, to give learners a clear idea of what they can expect
from a language programme, to help in developing means of assessment and
evaluation, and so on”. And he also states that “the term „goal‟ refers to the
general purposes for which a language programme is being taught or learnt.”
Actually, goals are long-term aims that you want to accomplish and
objectives are concrete attainments that can be achieved by following a certain
number of steps.
Jenkins & Unwin (1996) and Arreola (1998) agree that: “A learning
objective is one of several specific statements that when achieved contributes to
16

achieving a general goal of the course.” They suppose that a learning objective
has three major components:
a. A description of what the student will be able to do – behavior.
b. The conditions under which the student will perform the task - condition
c. The criteria for performance evaluation – measurable criterion.
A learning goal is defined by Arreola (1998) “a broad statement of the
intended general outcome of an instructional unit or program.”
But Nunan (1988: 24) considers learning goals “may be derived from a
number of sources, including task analysis, learner data, ministry of education

specifications.”
In short, goals and objectives play an important role in development of a
language programme as they provide a specification of what learners should be
able to do as a result of instruction and they determine the selections of content
and activities.
1. 1. 4. 3. Content selecting and grading
Like goals and objectives identifying, content selecting and grading is a
vital step in course designing.
In the field of content selecting, Nunan (1988: 85) argues: “synthetic
syllabuses were described as those in which content is selected and graded
according to discrete point principles.” Wilkins assumes that these would be
grammatical, but Widdowson claims that any syllabus which consists of
inventories of discrete point items, be grammatical, functional, or notional, is
basically synthetic. Thus, selecting content means selecting grammatical
components and functional and notional components.
And Richard, Plat and Webber (1985: 125) define grading content as “the
arrangement of the content of a language course or textbook so that it is presented
in a helpful way. Gradation would affect the order in which words, word
meanings, tenses, structures, topics, tasks, skills are presented. Gradation may be
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based on the complexity of an item, its frequency in written or spoken English, or
its importance for the learner.”
Traditionally, items in a grammatical syllabus are graded largely according
to whether they are easy or difficult, and that difficulty is defined in grammatical
terms. On selecting an appropriate content, syllabus designers have to grade it
effectively so that learners find it easy to achieve learning goals and objectives.
1. 1. 4. 4. Teaching methods (suggesting)
A teaching method comprises the principles and methods used for
instruction. Each method has its own strong and weak points. Commonly used

teaching methods may include class participation, demonstration, recitation,
memorization, or combinations of these. The choice of teaching method or
methods to be used depends largely on the information or skill that is being taught,
and it may also be influenced by the attitude and enthusiasm of the students. A
good unit plan will have a variety of different methods in it.
1. 2. An overview on ESP
1. 2. 1. Definitions of ESP
English for Specific Purposes (ESP) has grown to become one of the most
prominent areas of English as Foreign Language teaching today. In the field of
ESP, there is a series of definitions depending on researchers‟ standpoints and
approaches to the target issue or their different emphases on the variety of
elements that characterize ESP.
Hutchinson & Waters (1987:19) state: "ESP is an approach to language
teaching in which all decisions as to content and method are based on the
learner's reason for learning."
In their definition, Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998:4) use absolute and variable
characteristics:
1. Absolute characteristics:
- ESP is defined to meet specific needs of the learners,
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- 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, lexis, register, study skills, discourse and genre.
2. 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. It could, however, be for learners at secondary
school level,
- ESP is generally designed for intermediate or advanced students,
- Most ESP courses assume some basic knowledge of the language systems.
The definition Dudley-Evans offers is clearly influenced by that of Strevens
(1988) although he has improved it substantially by removing the absolute
characteristic that ESP is "in contrast with 'General English'" (Johns et al., 1991:
298), and has included more variable characteristics.
And Robinson‟s definition is based on two key defining criteria and a
number of characteristics that are generally found to be true of ESP: “ESP is
normally goal-directed and an ESP course is based on a needs analysis, which
specify as closely as possible what exactly it is that students have to do through
the medium of English.”(Robinson, 1993: 3). Sharing the same idea, Richards &
Platt (1983) propose that the content of an ESP course are fixed by the specific
needs for a particular group of learners.
In short, the common point of most of the definitions is that an ESP course
must be based on the learners‟ needs, or an ESP syllabus has to be designed to
meet the learners‟ demand so that it can stimulate their learning.
1. 2. 2. Classification of ESP
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ESP has traditionally been divided into two classified main branches such
as English for Academic Purposes or EAP and English for Occupational Purposes
or EOP (Dudley-Evans & St John, 1998; Hutchinson and Waters, 1987; Munby,
1978; Robinson, 1991). Dudley-Evans & St John (1998: 6) divides EAP and EOP
according to discipline or professional area.
EAP (English for Academic Purposes) refers to any English teaching that
relates to academic study needs (Dudley-Evans & St John, 1998; Robinson, 1991;
Hutchinson & Waters, 1987: 2). Dudley-Evans & St John (1998: 7) argue that in
EAP, English for Science and Technology (EST) has been the main area, but

English for Medical Purposes (EMP) and English for Legal Purposes (ELP) have
always had their place. More recently, English for Management, Finance, and
Economics (EMFE) has increasingly been important to Master of Business
Administration (MBA) courses.
According to Robinson (1991: 21), EOP (English for Occupational
Purposes) involves work-related needs and training. EOP includes professional
purposes in administration, medicine, law and business, and vocational purposes
for non-professionals in work or pre-work situations (Dudley-Evans & St. John,
1998: 7).
Kennedy & Bolitho divide ESP into EOP and EAP as they explain:
“EOP is taught in a situation in which learners need to use English as part of
their work or profession. Instances of EOP students would be doctors in casualty
or technicians servicing equipment. They need English, in the first case, to talk
and respond to patients and other staff, and, in the second, to read technical
manuals.”
“EAP is taught generally within educational institutions to students needing
English in their studies. The language taught may be based in particular
disciplines at higher levels of education when the student is specializing (in-study)
or intends to specialize (pre-study) in a particular subject.”

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CHAPTER II: THE STUDY
2. 1. The setting
2. 1. 1. The teaching and learning conditions
Although English is a difficult and compulsory subject, the English
teaching and learning conditions in our college have not got much attention from
the administrators. The facilities for teaching and learning are old and damaged. In
the lab room, there is a television and 30 cabins, some of which do not work any
more. Besides, there are only three classrooms which are equipped with projectors,
so it is not easy for the teachers to apply new methods and technologies in
teaching and learning. In the library, there is one or two reference English books,
not any ESP books. And our timetable is arranged weekly, so that the students find
it difficult to follow the learning process. Additionally, the average class-size in
our college is between 50- 70 students, which causes many problems in English