English for Specific

Purposes (ESP)
English for Specific Purposes
(ESP)
 It is a separate activity within English
Language Teaching (ELT).
 British teachers are the pioneers of ESP.
 Difficult to implement ESP in the
contemporary world.
 Advanced situations in different fields
helped to improve ESP.
 English for Specific Purposes
(ESP)

 ESP movement developed due to general

development in the world economy in 1950s and
1960s.
 Growth of science and technology also contributed
for ESP.
 English as an international language, increased
economy power in oil rich countries and studies in
foreign countries helped for ESP movement.
 One should be equipped with a “present, practise
and produce” approach for content and language
integrated learning.
Difference between General English (GE)
and English for Specific Purposes (ESP)

 GE: “Vanaja teaches English”

 ESP: “Vanaja teaches British poetry”
 ESP is an approach, not a product
 ESP is meant for career oppurtunity
 GE is for “no obvious purpose”
 ESP is for specific purpose
ESP - Definition
 “ESP is the language for getting the
things done throughout the world”
-Dudley – Evans and St John
Specialists in ESP

 ESP is coal face of international

language. i.e, “applied ELT”
- Jennifer Jenkins
The well known Linguist
 ESP as a multi-disciplinary
activities
 The need and willingness to engage with other
disciplinary through teaching.
 The need and willingness to draw the insights of
researchers in their disciplines.
 The need to work how the spoken and written
texts are useful to students in terms of their
validity.
 To understand how the business is organized
through the text books from management training
and HRD management.
 In ESP work, we have to be sensitive to cultural
differences both in academic and professional
world.
Characteristics of ESP:
 Designed to meet specified needs of the learner.
 Related to content to particular disciplines,
occupations and activities etc.
 Centered on language activities in syntax, lexis,
discourse, semantics, and analysis of the discourse.
 In contrast with ‘General English’.
 May be restricted to the learning skills to be
learned.
 May not be taught according to pre-ordained
methodology.
Seven key Roles of the ESP
practitioner:
 Clearly explain the objectives.
 Teacher or language consultant should
understand the nature of students’ subject
or vocation.
 Course designer and material provider.
 Researcher – Think the needs of students.
 Collaborator by using texts, contexts, and
situations.
 Evaluator.
Characteristics of the ESP
learner:
 Learner is learning English in order to achieve
something specific beyond language itself.
 Learner will involve skills that are very different
from learning a language skills.
 ESP learner may learn English slowly because his
aim is to pursue a vocation and a purpose which is
not based on language.
 ESP learner may study English at the same time as
studying his/her subject or doing a full-time job to
the ESP class.
 ESP learner may not have similar level of English.
So, teacher must expect mixed levels and allow to
improve differentiation.
Classification of ESP:
Now a days, many learners are hungry for
material and advise that will help them with
their specific course or with particular skills
related to their course

3. English for Academic Purposes (EAP)

4. English for Business Purposes (EBP)
1. English for Academic
Purposes (EAP)
 EAP refers to any English teaching that
relates to a study purpose.
 Students whose first language is not
English may need help with both the
languages of academic disciplines and
specific study skills required for the
course.
 EAP is one movement with in ESP.
EAP: English for Academic
Purposes
 EST (English for Science and Technology)
 1) Project reports preparation.

 EMP (English for medical Purposes)

 1) Written medical communication

 2) Paper and slide preparation.

 ELP (English for legal purposes)

 1) Academic legal writing

 2) Judicial writing

 3) Legislative writing
EAP: English for Academic
Purposes:
 EAP is badly in need in the situations where
the students are from rural areas who may
have had rather less exposure to English and
may have been less well taught at school or
college level and now are studying may be
encountering in a large scale for the first time
at the beginning of an academic course.
 They are unlikely to have studied specific
tasks or purposes for the study of university
level.
Teachers’ trends in English
for Academic Purpose (EAP):
 Register Analysis
 Discourse Analysis
 Study Skills Analysis
 Learning Needs Analysis
2. English for Business
Purposes (EBP)
a) EOP (English for Occupational
Purposes)
b) EVP (English for vocational
Purposes)
Characteristics of Business
English:
 Users of Business English:
 Most of English – medium communications in
business are non-native speaker (NNS).
 It is said that non-English managers can
understand English better than a native
speakers’ English.
 EBP is an umbrella term.
 Definition of Business English:
 “Communication with the public and
communication with in (intra) company or
between (inter) companies” – Pickett Linguist
 General English

Communication with public

Business English

Communication among businesses

Specialised language of particular businesses

(such as insurance pharmaceuticals)
Trends of Teachers’ of
Business English:
 For Business English Teachers, personality,
knowledge, and experience are important.
 Mostly English teachers have not worked in
business and they can not speak such
language but acquiring is not a problem as
from reading and talking to people, attending
courses and seminars one can acquire.
English for Academic Purposes (EAP)
Versus
English for Business Purposes (EBP)
 EAP operates within a world were the fundamental
concern is individual where as in EBP the purpose
is with the world.
 EAP interaction will be limited but in EBP, it will be
in the world.
 In EAP situations NNS has to adapt to both
language and culture but in EBP situations, NNS
may use the language but does not adapt the
culture.
 EAP teachers studied in academic environment but
EBP teachers does not have direct experience with
their learners.
References
 Developments in English for ESP:
A multi-disciplinary approach. Tony
Dudley Evans, Maggie Jo St. John,
Cambridge language, Teaching library,
CUP, Cambridge, 1998.
 English for Specific Purpose –
Keith Harding Oxford, 2010 (resource
Alan Mally).
 Dr. M.A. Waheed
 Associate Professor of English.
 Academic Counsellor, DrBRAOU and
IGNOU, Hyderabad.
 Visiting faculty, School of Management
Studies, JNTU, Hyderabad.
 External research examiner, MANUU,
Hyderabad and BAMU, Aurangabad.
Thank you

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