Thiết kế chương trình nói tiếng anh theo đường hướng lấy người học làm trung tâm cho các kỹ thuật viên tại các doanh nghiệp may istics

Vietnam national university, HANOI
UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES
FACULTY OF POST-GRADUATE STUDIES

LÊ NGUYÊN HƯƠNG

Designing A LEARNER-CENTERED SPEAKING SYLLABUS
FOR TECHNICIANS IN GARMENT COMPANIES
THIẾT KẾ CHƯƠNG TRÌNH NĨI TIẾNG ANH THEO ĐƯỜNG HƯỚNG LẤY
NGƯỜI HỌC LÀM TRUNG TÂM CHO CÁC KỸ THUẬT VIÊN
TẠI CÁC DOANH NGHIỆP MAY

M.A. MINOR THESIS

Field: English Teaching Methodology

Code: 60.14.10
Supervisor: Dr. Hoàng Thị Xuân Hoa

HANOI, 10/2011


Table of contents
PART I- INTRODUCTIONS
1. Rationale ....................................................................................................................... 1
2. The aims of the study .................................................................................................... 2
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 ................................................................................................. 3

Part II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. An overview on syllabus design ............................................................................... 4
1.1.1. Definition of syllabus ............................................................................................. 5
1.1.2. Types of syllabus .................................................................................................... 5
1.1.2.1. Structural syllabus........................................................................................... 5
1.1.2.2. The functional-notional syllabus .................................................................... 6
1.1.2.3. Situational syllabus ......................................................................................... 6
1.1.2.4. Topical syllabus ............................................................................................. 6
1.1.2.5. Task- based syllabus ....................................................................................... 7
1.1.2.6. Skill-based syllabus ........................................................................................ 7
1.1.3. Learner- centered approach in foreign language teaching ...................................... 8
1.1.3.1.General considerations ..................................................................................... 8
1.1.3.2. Learner- centered approach in foreign language teaching .............................. 9
1.1.3.3. How the learner- centered approach differs from the teacher- centered approach
.......................................................................................................................................... 11
1.1.4. The steps in designing a learner- centered syllabus ................................................ 12
1.1.4.1 Needs analysis.................................................................................................. 13
1.1.4.1.1. Target needs ........................................................................................... 13
1.1.4.1.2. Learning needs ....................................................................................... 14
1.1.4.2. Goal and objective determining ..................................................................... 15
1.1.4.3. Content selecting and grading........................................................................ 15
1.1.4.4. Teaching method suggesting ......................................................................... 16
1.2. An overview of ESP ................................................................................................. 17


1.2.1. Definition of ESP ............................................................................................. 17
1.2.2. Classification of ESP ........................................................................................ 17
1.3. Speaking..................................................................................................................... 18
1.3.1. What is speaking .............................................................................................. 18

1.3.2. Speaking skills ................................................................................................. 18
1.3.3. Characteristics of a successful speaking activities .......................................... 19

CHAPTER II: METHODOLOGY
2.1. The setting of the study .............................................................................................. 21
2.1.1. The teaching and learning conditions ............................................................... 21
2.1.2. The current syllabus .......................................................................................... 21
2.1.3. The target learners ............................................................................................ 21
2.1.4. The teacher staff................................................................................................ 21
2.2. Methodology ............................................................................................................. 26
2.2.1. The subjects. ..................................................................................................... 22
2.2.2 Document analysis ............................................................................................. 22
2.2.3. Instruments for collecting data ......................................................................... 22
2.2.4 Data collecting procedure .................................................................................. 23

CHAPTER III: DATA ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
3.1.. The findings ........................................................................................................... 24
3.1.1. Data gathered by means of English teachers’ questionnaire ......................... 24
3.1.1.1. Teachers’ opinions on objectives needed meeting at the end of ESP
speaking course ................................................................................................................. 24
3.1.1.2. Teachers’ selection of topics needed in the speaking syllabus…25
3.1.1.3. Teachers’ selection of grammar and structures needed in the syllabus . 26
3.1.2. Data gathered by means of learners’ questionnaire ....................................... 26
3.1.2.1. Learners’ opinions on objectives needed meeting at the end of ESP
speaking course ................................................................................................................. 27
3.1.2.2. Learners’ selection of topics needed in the ESP speaking syllabus ......... .28
3.1.2.3. Learners’ selection of grammar and structures needed in the syllabus .... 28
3.1.3.Data gathered by means of employers’ interviews ........................................... 29
3.2. The summary ............................................................................................................. 31

CHAPTER IV. A PROPOSED SPEAKING SYLLABUS FOR
TECHNICIANS IN GARMENT COMPANIES


4.1. Selecting a type of syllabus for ESP learners ............................................................ 32
4.2. Aims and objectives of the syllabus .......................................................................... 32
4.3. Detailed syllabus ........................................................................................................ 33
4.3.1. Content selecting.............................................................................................. 33
4.3.1.1. Some topics included in the syllabus ........................................................ 33
4.3.1.2. Grammatical structures in the syllabus ..................................................... 33
4.3.2. The organization of the syllabus ..................................................................... 34
4.3.3. Time allocation ................................................................................................ 38
4.4. Suggestions for learning and teaching ....................................................................... 38
4.4.1. Suggestions for learning .................................................................................. 38
4.4.2. Suggestions for teaching .................................................................................. 38
4.5. Suggestions for assessment and test .......................................................................... 40

PART III: CONCLUSION
1. Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 41
2. Limitations and recommendation for further studies .................................................... 41

REFERENCES


1

PART I: THE INTRODUCTION
1. Rationale
Hanoi Industrial College for textile, garment and fashion was founded over 40
years ago. Initially, it had only one level: the vocational training. After many efforts, it was

upgraded into Junior College in 2005. Students are trained of different branches: Garment,
Fashion designing, Mechanics, Accounting, Finance and banking. English is one of the
main subjects in our college. Besides that, English is taught to technicians in Garment
Companies for their needs. Technicians in Garment Companies are those people who have
good abilities, who graduated from different universities, secondary schools and even from
vocational training centers. Their levels in English are different. They use English in their
work frequently, for example, read documents, communicate and discuss with foreign
customers about their contracts, their products….They can read and translate the
documents, but communicating is very difficult for them. So they need a speaking course,
especially a speaking course in their branch. To meet their needs, learner- centered English
speaking syllabus was added for technicians in Garment companies. So our learners need
one syllabus that is suitable to their specialization.
Being English teachers, we know that designing an appropriate speaking syllabus is
really difficult. The syllabus does not only fulfill the objectives of the course but also the
learners‟ needs to help them improve their English and specialization. Moreover, learners
can deal with the enormous bulk of knowledge in English reference books to support their
jobs. Learners cannot use their English to communicate well. So speaking syllabus has to
meet the requirements that help learners to consolidate their GE and improve their
vocabulary and speaking skill in ESP English. In the bookshops, there are many English
textbooks but I think that they are not suitable to our learners because of the content of
those books. The content of those books are just about social communication. That is why
it is difficult for our learners to use them in their jobs.
Because of the above – mentioned reasons, the topic “Designing a learner center
English speaking syllabus for the technicians in Garment companies” was chosen.


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2. The aims of the study
This study is aimed at designing a learner- centered speaking syllabus for the

technicians in Garment companies. To obtain the aim, following objectives are to be
achieved:
-

To investigate the needs of the learners and the condition of learning.

-

To propose an appropriate speaking syllabus for learners based on their needs
and special requirements.

3. The research questions.
To achieve the above aims and objectives, the following questions are raised:
1. What are the learners‟ learning in term of English speaking skill?
2. What components should the proposal syllabus have in order to meet the
students‟ needs?
4. The scope of the study.
This study focuses on designing an English speaking syllabus under the light of
learner- centered approach with 45 periods for the technicians in garment companies.
5. The method of the study
Quantitative method is employed in this study. The quantitative is used to collect
the data by questionnaires. The results of questionnaire 1 are the findings about the needs
of students, their opinions and expectations about the English speaking course. The English
teachers‟ suggestions and ideas are collected from questionnaire 2 to find out the topics of
the lessons in the syllabus. Apart from survey questionnaires, personal interviews with
employers of some garment companies also deployed to contribute to the validity and
consistency of the data collected.
6. The design of the study.
This study consists of three main parts:
Part I: Introduction presents the rationale, aims and objectives, research questions, scope of

the study, research methods and the design of the study.
Part II: Development comprises of:
Chapter I: Literature review provides the overview of syllabus design, ESP, learner
centered English speaking syllabus.
Chapter II: The setting and methodology of the research


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Chapter III: The study presents the findings of students‟ needs, teachers‟ suggestions
for the speaking syllabus.
Chapter IV: The proposal speaking syllabus based on the students‟ needs, teachers‟ and
employers‟ suggestions and the course objectives.
Part III: The conclusion aims at summarizing the main ideas of the study,
The last one is the Appendix that includes the questionnaires, tables.


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PART II: DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER I: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. An overview on syllabus design
1.1.1. Definition of syllabus
Syllabus is a popular notion in teaching language, it plays an important role in the
success of the teaching and learning. There are several ways of defining the syllabus on the
views of different writers: the narrow and the broad approach to syllabus design. Yalden
(1984:14), a broad view scholar, defines that “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 the aims of the
learners (as social being and as individual), and the activities which will take place in the

classroom”. He considers the teachers as an assistant of the syllabus designer, teachers can
adjust the syllabus and the learners‟ needs and aims in the classroom.
On the other hand, with a clear distinction between the syllabus design and
methodology, Nunan (1988:5) points out that “Syllabus design is seem as being concern
with the selection and grading of the content, while methodology is concerned with the
selection of learning tasks and activities”. He also affirmed: “Syllabus is a statement of
content which is used as the basic for planning courses of various kinds, and that the task
of the syllabus designer is to select and grade this content”.
According to Hutchinson and Waters (1993:90), 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. And Allen (1984:61)
supposes:
“Syllabus is concerned with a specification of what units will be taught (as
distinction from how they will be taught, which is the matter for methodology)
The following detailed guideline for syllabus designer was given by Dudin and
Olshtain (1980:28):“what it is called, it is a document which ideally describes:


What the learner are expected to know at the end of the course, or
the course objectives in operational terms.



What is to be taught or learned during the course, in the form of an
inventory of items?


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

When it is to be taught, and at what rate of progress, relating the
inventory of items to the different levels and stages as well as the
time constrains of the course.



How it is to be taught, suggesting procedures, techniques, and
materials.



How it is to be evaluated, suggesting testing and evaluating
mechanism.

In short, there are many different views in syllabus design. Each one has its own
strong and weak points. So syllabus designers have to take account the objectives and the
learners‟ needs to design an appropriate syllabus that meet the demand. I will not follow
anyone‟s and I will mix the above view to find out the best points.
1.1.2. Types of syllabus
1.1.2.1. The Structural syllabus
Traditionally, structural syllabus is also called grammatical one. This is one of the
most popular ways of designing syllabus for long because grammatical forms are the key
to master a language. Structure syllabus focuses on teaching students the forms, structures
and grammatical of language such as how to use and form nouns, verbs, adjectives or
tenses, voice….Discussing the structural syllabus, Yalden (1983: 36) wrote “ structural
syllabus are based on the assumption that it is enough to grade the material from a
linguistic point of view, i.e to look at the grading from a point of view of the structures and
words to be taught”. The activity in a class where the structural syllabus is used is,
therefore, confined to the appraisal of utterances or structural criteria in isolation from each

other. Students learn question form, negation, imperative, passive……….etc. They also
learn phrasal verbs, complex sentences……etc. But they are not taught how to answer and
express appropriately to a given function in a given situation.
The teachers may use different methods in the class, which follow the structural
syllabus, but the constraints are the same: the content of the syllabus has been determined
by giving the priority to teaching the grammatical structures of the language.
Besides, the structural syllabus seems to bias the teacher-centered rather than the
learned-centered approach so it is not highly appropriate in teaching language nowadays.


6

1.1.2.2. The functional-notional syllabus
In contrast with the structural syllabus, functional-notional one emphasizes the real
communicative function of language. The content of the language teaching is a collection
of the functions that usually occur in daily life, for example: informing, agreeing,
apologizing, requesting, and so on. And the notions of the language relating to size, age,
color, time, comparison….The advantage of this type of syllabus is that learners are easy to
use their language in the communicative situations with the useful functions or notions.
However, functions and notions are quite abstract and some learners may have difficulties
thinking of communicative functions outside a specific context. And the different kinds of
structures are often used to express the same communicative function, so that it is difficult
to follow a progression from simpler to more complex structures.
1.1.2.3. Situational syllabus
Situational syllabus focuses on the content of the language teaching that collects the
real or imaginary situations in which language is used. The language interactions are
closely related to social context and the participants can understand them in the certain
context or setting. So it usually concerns with the question “when and where will the
learner need the target language” and attempts to specify the situations such as seeing the
dentist, buying books at the bookstore, asking the directions, checking in the airport and so

on.
The advantage of this type of syllabus is that the content is quite relevant to the
interests and needs of the learners. It is easy for the learners to master and communicate
the language that they are going to use in the real situation. But the limit of this syllabus is
the unpredictable situation and the problem of grading of the items. It is clear that the
primary purpose of a situational language syllabus is to teach the language that occurs in
the situations. Examples of situations include: going shopping, buying books, asking
directions, making complaints……
1.1.2.4. Topical syllabus
Topical syllabus uses topics or themes as its starting points. The syllabus designers
select the topics that are relevant and necessary for the learners. Resulting of this is the
learners will be interested in the lessons because of their purposes relating to the topics. As
Robinson(1931:37) stated about this kind of syllabus: “ It motivates the students and as a


7

basic for the „real syllabus‟ of the language forms, tasks or whatever the course designers
wish to focus on”.
Supporting Robinson‟ view, Brown(1994:222) claimed that “ this syllabus can
serve the multiple interests of students in a classroom and can offer a focus on content
while still adhering to institutional needs for offering a language course”.
On the other hand, this syllabus presents the danger of grading the content and
defining the semantic construct such as Nunan pointed out that “ The logic of the subject
may provide a non-linguistic rationale for the selecting and grading content” and “ topic is
also broad, difficult to define and semantic construct”( Brown and Yule ,1983:73).
1.1.2.5. Task- based syllabus
In task-based syllabus, the activities or tasks are considered the main organizing
principle. The tasks are focused rather than the language or topics. They are a series of
complex and purposeful tasks that the students want to practice with the language they are

learning, for instant, applying for a job, talking to a social worker, getting housing
information over the telephone so on. Concerning about this syllabus, Robinson stated:
“The procedural or task syllabus, consisting a set of tasks or activities ordered
according to cognitive difficulty. Class time is devoted to performance of the task and
attention is only directed to language if this is necessary for completion of the task. A
major concern throughout is that students understand the task and what they are doing, and
do not act in mechanical way”. (Robinson 1991: 39)
Additionally, task-based syllabus shares a concern with the classroom processes
which stimulate learning. The focus is on the linguistic items that students will learn or the
communicative skills that they will be able to display as a result of instruction. The
syllabus consists of the specification of the tasks and activities that learners will engage in
in class. However, the problem for the task-based syllabus designer is that a variety of
factors will interact to determine task difficulty: the degree of contextual support and the
amount of assistance provided to the learner, the cognitive difficulty of the task, the
complexity of the language, the amount and type of background knowledge required.
1.1.2.6. Skill-based syllabus
Skill-based syllabus focuses on language skills. The main purpose of this type of
syllabus is to provide opportunities for learners to develop skills and strategies in learning


8

specific kills: listening such as talking orders in a restaurant, listening to foreign radio or
television for news; speaking: giving instructions, personal information; writing wellformed paragraphs, presenting oral talk and reading as skimming and scanning or reading
texts for main ideas. The ability to use language in specific ways is partially dependent
on general language ability, but partly based on experience and the need for specific skills.
Efficiency and relevance of instruction are major strengths of the skill-based syllabus.
In short, six different types of syllabus are presented above. Each one has its own
strong and weak points depending on the syllabus objective and syllabus designer‟s view
and it is impossible to distinguish which one is better than the others. In fact, these types

rarely occur independently of each other. Normally, syllabus designers combine two or
more of the types presented so that they have the best syllabus for the learners. In my
proposal syllabus, the syllabus will be the combinations of the topical syllabus and skillbased and task-based syllabus as well.
1.1.3 Learner- centered approach
1.1.3.1 General considerations
In fact, the “learner- centered approach” is not a new term, it has its seeds as early
as the ancient times with progressive mined Educationists but not until the early 20th
Century did it start to develop. “Learner- centered view point” values the demands, desires,
and psychological features of the learners, but it is not domineering as in the traditional
teaching.
The idea of “ learner- centeredness” in education, in general, with attention to
develop to the full students‟ creativity, which rooted in the Ancient times, has found
expression in the opinion an viewpoints by progressive-mined Educationists so far from
Occident to the Renaissance such as: Socrat (469-390 BC- Greece), Comenski (15921670), John Locke (1632)..etc.
In the late 20th century, international meetings also laid emphasis on the “learnercentered” idea. It is agreed that the learner lies in the center, he is both the subject and the
goal of the study course. The learner- centered viewpoint enhances the human value of
education and makes learner realize his own potential ability, helping him really find joy
and happiness. The thing of prime important in the “learner- centered teaching” is to help


9

the learner know how to think, how to study and develop his desire for study making him
nurture a strong will and capability of self- study all his life.
1.1.3.2. Learner- centered approach in foreign language teaching
In general, learner- centered doesn‟t mean that the activity is performed by the
learner and the teacher is freed from teaching. In foreign language teaching, according to
H.V.Van (1999), the notion of learner-centeredness reflects at least in three aspects:
a) Organization of in- class and out- of- class activities
b) Syllabus design.

c) Material development.
The prime aspect of the learner- centered orientation generates from the view that the
learner will have more active participation, and their motivation to study will become
stronger if their in- class and out- class activities are suitably organized. That is, both the
teacher and the syllabus designer should take into account this aspect of class organization:
how to divide the class members into small groups or pairs in an effort to help the learners
feel the safest while communicating in a foreign language. Moreover, a very important
aspect in the learner- centered orientation lies in the angle of designing a syllabus,
compiling the material and textbooks. The fundamental view as the foundation for
designing a syllabus, compiling the material and textbooks in the learner- centered
orientation is that learners should be viewed as the point of reference for making decision
relating to both the teaching content and teaching form. To be more specific, learners will
study more effectively if they are allowed to negotiate with teachers about suitable
decisions relating to the teaching content ( what to teach) and teaching methods ( how to
teach)
In terms of syllabus design, the learner- centered concept is represented at two levels:
Macro level and micro level. At the macro level (designing the overall curriculum), the
learner- centered advocacy is manifest in quite a few respects, the most important of which
is the system of subjects within a field is to be diversified and flexible so that the learners
doing compulsory subjects may have a wide choice not only of the subjects of their interest
but also of the durations of their performance in the subject and the schedule they intend to
conclude their course at their convenience.


10

At the macro level (designing a syllabus for each subject), the learner- centered
concept finds its full expression in two respects. Firsts, the subjects designed should be
associated with practical experiences in reality, that is, they should be designed for the
learners to study what the society is demanding and will demand for rather than what the

teachers have. Second, according to some world famous designers of language syllabus
( e.g: Nunan: 1988,1989,1992), syllabus design should be viewed as a negotiation process
between the teachers and the learners. In this viewpoint, the decision relating to the
teaching content and method may be made at the micro level through the fact that the
teachers confer with the learners and then decide what and how to teach. This viewpoint on
the learner- centered orientation is totally different from the traditional viewpoint of
syllabus design in which what and how to teach is determined by teachers only.
Nunan ( 1989) affirms that while the learner- centered orientation includes the
components and processes similar to those of the traditional one, the main difference
between these two types of syllabus design lies in the information for and from the learners
to be introduced into the stages of the syllabus design. Therefore, the subject syllabus
becomes an effort of cooperation between the teachers and the learners because the
learners should participate in the decisions of choosing the content, method and
assessment.
Tudor (1996) suggests four major advantages if the learner- centered orientation is
applied to the teaching – learning of foreign language:
a) The teaching aims may be suitably set if the learners can participate in
building the subject syllabus based on their own experiences.
b) The study will be more effective if the teaching method is suitable to
learning method of the learners‟ interest content.
c) The learners will obtain quite a few results from their study activities if they
have chance to raise their voice in deciding the teaching and organization.
d) The study will be more effective if the learners feel involved in building
their own syllabus.


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1.1.3.3. How the learner- centered approach differs from the teacher- centered
approach

DIMENSION UPON WHICH LEARNER- CENTERED & TEACHER- CENTERED
APPROACH MAY DIFFER
Learner-centered approach
Determined by group

Teacher- centered approach
GOAL

Determined by teacher

Emphasis upon affective and

Emphasis

attitudinal

Changes

Attempts

to

develop

group

upon

Intellectual

No attempts to develop group

cohesiveness

cohesiveness

Seeking

METHODS

Memorizing

Discovering & solving problems

Concentrating on their lesson

The learner is active to participate

The learner is the passive

The teacher is the operator &

The teacher is dominant.

pusher
The classroom atmosphere is

The atmosphere is formal, rigid

friendly and self – control

Seating is flexible
Applying

teaching

Seating arrangement is fixed
techniques

Applying teaching techniques is to

frequently.

a minimum

Learners & learners interaction

Teacher and learners interaction
CLASSROOM

Much learner participation

ACTIVITIES

Much teacher participation


12

Group decided activities

Teacher determines

Discussion of learner‟s personal

Discussion

experiences encouraged

materials
OUTCOME

kept

on

course

Available knowledge

Self- discovered knowledge
Higher

level

of

developing

Level of cognition development is

cognition, emotion, behavior

low

Self- confident

Depends on materials

The dimension above has shown the advantages as well as the good points of
learner- centered approach. The learner- centered approach or turning to the learner as a
center is the tendency stressing on learner‟s autonomy. The whole teaching process directs
to the learner‟s demands, ability, and interest. The aim is to develop in learner‟s skills, and
capability of independent study and problem solving. The class atmosphere is flexible and
open in psychological aspects. The learners and the teachers make a survey of various
aspects of problems. The teacher not only simply presents learners with solutions to the
problem but also creates situations to develop problems, collect materials. Learners may
help solve problems, put up a hypothesis to clear the problem up from which to draw out
conclusions. In general term, the essence of the learner centered teaching is that the teacher
should see to his students‟ requirements and desire to each individual‟s psychology
features. Education‟s role is to help learner build his own life by providing him with means
of action, observation, and experiments.
1.1.5. The steps in designing a learner- centered syllabus
Designing a language syllabus is a complex process. It asks designers to follow
some obligatory steps such as investigating needs analysis, selecting and grading content…
Each designer has their own view on this issue. According to Munby (1978), Richard
(1984), Nunan (1988) needs analysis should be the initial step with other different steps.
Here are the typical steps in designing a syllabus that I will carry out in my thesis.
1. Needs analysis
2. Goals and objectives determining of the speaking syllabus

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3. Content selecting and grading
4. Teaching methods suggesting
1.1.4.1. Needs analysis
Needs analysis (NA) is a process of gathering information of learners in order to
understand as much as possible about them at the beginning of the program so that the
designer can establish appropriate and realistic objectives for the syllabus. This process is
especially necessary for ESP learners because different types of participants have different
motivations and language needs and what they want to learn is only restricted area. The
main aim of the NA is identification of elements which will are extremely important for
the learners. Discussing on the NA, Nunan (1988:75) points out: “Needs analysis refers to
a family of procedures for gathering information about learners and about communication
tasks for the use in syllabus design”. Unlike Nunan, Hutchinson & Waters divide NA into
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
“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 term of
necessities, lacks and wants” (Hutchinson &Waters 1987:55)
a. Necessities
Necessities is 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.
For example, an aquaculture worker or engineer might need to understand a technical text
about guiding to grow a kind of fish or shrimp, to communication effectively with foreign
specialists or to get information from materials such as books, internet and so on. It is
necessary for the learner to know the linguistic features: discoursal, functional, structural,
lexical used in the situation identified. And the learner will need to explore and function in
the real situations and then analyzing the constituent parts of them.

b. Lacks
It is not enough to identify necessities only because the concern in speaking course
is with the needs of particular learners. So the syllabus designer need to know what the
learner knows already in order to find out which of the necessities the learner lacks. For


14

instant, the target situation necessity may be to read texts in a particular subject area. The
learner will not need instruction in doing this if he or she can do it already. In other words,
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 learners‟ lacks (Hutchinson, Waters and
Breen 1979).
c. Wants
The target needs have been considered as an objective sense with the actual
learners playing no active role. But the learners have to present what their needs are. As
Richterich (1984:29) comments:
“…a need does not exist independent of a person. It is people who build their
images of their needs on the basic of data relating to themselves and their environment.”
Awareness is a matter of perception, and perception may vary according to one‟s
standpoint. Learners may well have a clear idea of the „necessities‟ of the target situation:
they will certainly have a view as to their „lacks‟. But it is possible that the learners‟ views
will conflict with the perceptions of other interested parties: course designers, sponsors,
and teachers. There is no necessary relationship between necessities as perceived by
sponsors or teachers and what the learners want. Because of the important of the learner
motivation in the learning process, learner perceived wants cannot be ignored.
1.1.4.1.2. Learning needs
As mentioned above, learning needs is what the learner needs to do in order to
learner. Additionally, Hutchison &Waters compare the course as a journey, what we have
done so far to consider the starting point as lacks and the destination as necessities and

wants as certain dispute in the process to the destination. And how to get from the starting
point to the destination is called learning needs.
Learning needs and target situation have a close relation to each other. To look at
the target situation, the designer should ask what the expert communicators need to know
to function effectively in the situation. This information may be recorded in terms of
language items, skills, strategies, subject knowledge. In fact, the analysis cannot show how
the expert communicators learnt the skills, strategies…that they use. Analyzing what
people do tells us little about how they learnt to do it, so the whole process is concerned
not with knowing or doing, but with learning. The needs, potential and constraints of the


15

route (the learning situation) must also be taken into account, if we are going to have any
useful analysis of learner needs.
To analyze learning Needs, Hutchinson & Waters (1993:63) use a similar
framework which is used for target situation analysis:
-

Why are the learners taking the course?

-

How do the learners learn?

-

What resources are available?

-

Who are the learners?

-

Where the learner- centered speaking course take place?

-

When will the learner- centered speaking course take place?

So the syllabus designers have to answer the above questions to find out the
learners‟ learning needs to plan a best syllabus for them.
1.1.4.2. Goal and objective determining
Determining learning goals and objectives is a vital step in syllabus design, which
helps the designer choose a suitable content for the learner. According to Graves K.
(1996), goals are general statements or the final destination, the level students will need to
achieve. Objectives express certain ways of achieving the goals, in other words, objectives
are teachable chunks, which in their accumulation form the essence of the course.
Sharing the same idea with Graves, Nunan(1988:61) states that objectives can be
useful, not only to guide the selection of the structures, functions, notions, tasks and so on,
but also provide a sharper focus for teachers.
Goal is also defined by Brown, J. D. (1995:37) as general statements concerning
desirable and attainable program purposes and aims based on perceived language and
situation needs.
The process of defining goals asks the syllabus designer and the participants
consider carefully the program‟s purposes with the specific reference to what the students
should be able to do when they finish the course. Thus, goals and objectives of the syllabus
determine the selections of the learning contents and teaching procedures.
1.1.4.3. Content selecting and grading

After determining the goals and objectives of the course, content selecting and
grading are examined. That is the process of choosing linguistic content such as topics,


16

vocabulary, grammar, tasks for each lesson. Shaw (1976) considers the selection of content
to be concerned with two questions:
1. How much can we teach or how much can be learnt by the learners?
2. Which items should be included?
Nunan (1988:85) claims: “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 has argued that any syllabus which consists
of inventories of discrete points items, be grammatical, functional or notional, is basically
synthetic. So the content selection depends on the type of the syllabus and its objectives,
the target situation as well.
On selecting an appropriate content, the syllabus planners have to organize and
grade it effectively so that it is easy for learning and teaching. And grading content is
defined 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 based on
the complexity of an item, its frequency in written or spoken English, or its importance for
the learner.” (Richard, Platt and Webber 1985:125) For example, standard texts on
language teaching have tended to categorize classroom activities according to the demands
they make on the learner. It is generally assumed that receptive skills of listening and
reading make fewer demands than the productive skills of speaking and writing.
1.1.4.4. Teaching method suggesting
Applying an effective teaching method play a key role in the success or failure of
the teacher in teaching language. As we know that teaching methods have been developed
and innovated in recent years. Each of the methods has its own strong and weak points.

The choice of the methods depends on the type of the syllabus, the current teaching and
learning conditions, the learner‟s level and needs. For example, David Wilkins in his
Notional Syllabuses (1976) has said: “ In drawing up a notional syllabus, instead of asking
how speakers of the language express themselves or when and where they use the
language, we ask what is it they communicate through language” In fact, most language
teaching programs have been applied integrated methods rather than one single method.


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1.2. An overview of ESP
1.2.1. Definition of ESP
ESP has become an essential and innovative activity with the Teaching of English
as a Foreign today. In ESP setting, there is a wide range of different definitions depending
on researchers‟ standpoints and approaches to the target issue or their different emphases
on the variety of elements that characterize ESP. Robinson (1991:2) states: “ESP is
normally goal direct and an ESP course is based on a need analysis, which specify as
closely as possible what exactly is that students have to do through the medium of
English”.
Strevens (1980:1) defines ESP as “a particular case of the general category of
special purpose language teaching”
When mentioning approaches to ESP, Hutchinson &Waters (1987:2) point out:
“ESP should properly be seen not as any particular language product but as an approach to
language teaching which is directed by specific and apparent reason for learning”.
And Richards and Platt (1985) indicate that the content of an ESP course are fixed
by the specific needs for a particular group of learners.
In conclusion, most of definitions have one common point is that any ESP course
must be based on the learner‟s needs. In fact, the learner‟s needs and interests are different
so designing ESP has to meet the demands of learner and motivate their learning
effectively.

1.2.2. Classification of ESP
We usually hear many familiar terms such as EAP, EOP, EST and ESS in ESP.
Hutchinson & Waters (1987) divides ESP into three branches: English for Science and
Technology (EST); English for Business and Economics (EBE) and English for Social
Studies (ESS). But two main areas are EAP and EOP, which are English for Academic
Purposes and English for Occupational Purposes. Robinson (1991:3) divides ESP into EOP
and EAP through the tree diagram that is described as follow:
-

EOP : pre-experience, simultaneous, post-experience

-

EAP(EEP): for study in a specific discipline (pre-study, in-study, posy-study) ,
as a school subject (independence, integrated)


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According to this diagram, it is useful to divide the courses into the periods and
purposes in detail in order to choose an appropriate course for suitable specificity.
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.
There are many different ways of classifying ESP depending on each researcher‟s

view. In my own opinion, my syllabus will be classified as EOP, which is the most suitable
for our learners‟ jobs.
1.3. Speaking
1.3.1. What is speaking?
According to Ur (1996), of the four skills ( listening, speaking, reading and
writing), speaking seems intuitively the most important: people who know a language are
referred to as “speakers” of that language as if speaking included all other kinds of
knowing: and many if not most foreign language learners are primarily interested in
learning to speak. Taking similar view to Ur, Bailey and Savage (1994:vii) say “ for many
people, speaking is seen as the central skill because of the desire to communicate with
others, often face-to-face and in real time”. Therefore, classroom activities that develop
learners‟ ability to express themselves through speech would therefore seem an important
component of a language course. Yet, it is difficult to design and administer such activities;
more so, in many ways, than to do so for listening, reading or writing.
1.3.2. Speaking skills
Speaking is one of man‟s most complex skills. It is a skill which is unique to our
species. Each normal child starts acquiring it in infancy, clearly driven by a genetically
given propensity for language. The mature skill takes all of childhood to develop. It
requires extensive interaction between the child and its parents, peers, teachers and other


19

members of the language community. There is, in fact, never a steady state. The mature
language user keeps expanding his lexicon as new words are needed or arise in the
language. There is also often a continuing growth of rhetorical and narrative abilities in the
adult speaker.
One of the basic problems in foreign-language teaching is to prepare learners to be
able to use the language. How this preparation is done, and how successful it is, depends
very much on how we as teachers understand our aims. For instance, to test whether

learners can speak, it is necessary to get them to actually say something.
1.3.3 Implication for teaching speaking
Davies and Pearse (200: 82) suggest some clear implication for teaching speaking:
-

Try to create a relax atmosphere in your classes so that most learners are not
frightened of speaking in front of the rest of the class. And do as many
speaking activities as possible in pairs and groups, so that the learners can
speak English without the rest of the class listening.

-

Expose the learners as much as possible to naturally pronounced speech. They
will not learn to develop speaking skills in general, if they do not hear enough
natural speech.

-

Accustom the learners to combining listening and speaking in real time, in
natural interaction. Perhaps the most important opportunity for this is in the
general use of English in the classroom.

Similarly, Penny Ur (1996) claims that to make a speaking course, in general,
speaking activities, in particular, successful it is necessary for the teacher to
-

Use group work: which increases the amount of learners talk going on in a
limited period of time and lowers the inhibitions of learners who are unwilling
to speak in front of the full class.

-

Base the activities on easy language. The level of language should be easily
recalled and produced by the participants, so that they can speak fluently with
the minimum of hesitation. It is a good idea to teach or review essential
vocabulary before the activities start.


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-

Making a careful choice of topic and tasks is also needed to stimulate interest.
In fact, the clearer the purpose of the discussion is the more motivated
participants will be.

-

Give some instruction or training in discussion skills. If the is based on group
discussion then include instruction about participation when introducing it. For
example, tell learners to make sure that everyone in the group contributes to
the discussion; a point a chair person to each group who will regulate
participation.

-

Keep learners speaking the target language. It is advisable to appoint one of
the group as monitor, whose job it is to remind participants to use the target
language, and report later to the teacher how well the group managed to keep
to it.

The speaking course is designed for the technicians in Garment companies.
Therefore, it offers the teacher opportunities to fulfill students; immediate
needs for English. The content of the course is quite specific and will always
be determined by the students‟ needs and objectives. The language in class is
also governed by learners‟ needs. This often means a high technical content,
with frequent use of common business terms. It also means a focus on styles of
speaking, which are appropriate to the learners‟ working environment and the
tasks they have to perform in their jobs.


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CHAPTER II. METHODOLOGY
2.1. Situation Analysis
2.1.1. The teaching and learning conditions
English courses are held in Garment companies, so they equipped their classroom with
modern facilities, for example: PC, radio, projector…The number of learners is between
20- 30 . It is really challenging for teachers to implement activities and students have good
chances to practice English skills in the classroom.
2.1.2. The current syllabus
At our college, our syllabus of the textbook New headway elementary and preintermediate. We have not had the syllabus about ESP speaking course, especially about
Garment Branch.
2.1.3. The target learners
Most of our learners learned English at colleges or universities…. They are at
different ages, ranking from 22 to 40. This is really an advantage because they are young
and active. These characteristics may help them to absorb and digest new information
better or to be able to face challenges. In addition, adult learners prefer learning by
problem-solving instead of repetition which children learners enjoy. However, it is a fact
that students‟ levels of English are not similar. Many learners learned English a lot at their
colleges or foreign language centers. Some learners are very active in learning while some

others find it difficult to catch up with their classmates. In addition, all learners are fully
aware that English is a compulsory subject and very necessary for their jobs. Thus their
motivation in studying English is gain further improvement in speaking English to support
for their jobs. The number of learners in each course is about 30, and is a very good
condition for teachers and learners to do different activities in class.
2.1.4. The teacher staff
Teacher population is generally seen to play a fundamental role in the success of a
new syllabus for their attitude abilities to adjust to new thinking are crucial. Therefore, it‟s
essential to consider the teacher‟s command of the target language, their training,
background, teaching experience, as well as their attitude towards changes in the program.
There are twelve teachers in our English group, aged between 24- 37. Three of
them graduated from Hanoi Open University, the rests graduated from The College of