How are ESP courses characterized?

Characteristics of ESP

ESP is a recognizable activity of English Language Teaching (ELT) with some specific characteristics. Dudley-Evans and St. John (1998) tried to apply a series of characteristics, some absolute and some variable, to outline the major features of ESP.

Absolute Characteristics:

1. ESP is defined to meet specific needs of the learners;

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

3. ESP is centred on the language (grammar, lexis, register), skills, discourse and

genre appropriate to these activities.

Variable Characteristics:

1. ESP may be related to or designed for specific disciplines;

2. ESP may use, in specific teaching situations, a different methodology from that of

General English; CONTENT BASED AND PROJECT BASED LEARNING

THERE IS NO PERFECT/BEST TEACHING METHOD – IT DEPENDS ON THE LEARNER THE NEEDS AND THE TARGET SITUATION

3. 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 the secondary school level;

4. ESP is generally designed for intermediate or advanced students. Most ESP courses

assume some basic knowledge of the language systems, but they can be used with beginners. (Dudley-Evans and St. John, 1998, p. 4)

Hutchinson and waters (1987, p. 19) state "ESP should properly be seen not as any particular language product but as an approach to language teaching in which all decisions as to content and method are based on the learner's reason for learning".