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English for Specific Purposes in engineering education at the Tomsk

Polytechnic University

Conference Paper · September 2001

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5th Baltic Region Seminar on Engineering Education  2001 UICEE
Gdynia, Poland, 17-19 September 2001

English for Specific Purposes in engineering education at the Tomsk Polytechnic

University
I.A. Cheremissina† & M.J. Riemer‡
Tomsk Polytechnic University, Tomsk, Russia†
Monash University, Melbourne, Australia‡

ABSTRACT: The English language has become a major medium for communication across borders globally; a deficiency in this
area may result in barriers for graduates’ personal and professional development. The Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU), in
Tomsk, Russia, has designed a course for engineers preliminarily titled English for Specific Purposes (ESP) in Engineering
Education. ESP focuses the learner’s attention on the language and communication requirements in a particular professional field.
The TPU’s ESP course is part of an extended Multilevel Intensive Foreign Language-Training (MILFT) programme. The TPU’s
language training initiatives includes its new foreign language policy and the establishment of a satellite centre of the UNESCO
International Centre for Engineering Education (UICEE), called the Central Asia Centre for Engineering Education, which will
facilitate the global transfer of information, including augmenting English language proficiency. The paper outlines the basic ESP
module at the TPU, including the design and structure. It is envisaged that the ESP test design will be revised and updated to
augment English language skills in the globalised environment.

INTRODUCTION preliminarily titled as English for Specific Purposes (ESP) in

At the turn of a new millennium, the English language has
become a major world language, a medium of international
communication utilised by people across the globe and living as
far apart as Russia and Brazil. English has proven to be the
main language for a variety of political, social, economic,
educational and cultural activities in all sorts of settings. A lack
of essential English language competencies may result in
certain barriers to success in people’s personal and professional
development.
Indeed, the English language’s linguistic domination as a prime
communication tool between different cultures and across
continents is expected to continue for some generations to
come [1]. English is a global language, possibly even the global
language currently. Courses that train the global engineer must
be ready now and be responsive to industry demand,
particularly in university courses where the next generation of
engineers are being educated. Secondary language skills need
to be acquired by engineering students in a world where
language can form high borders.
As the world develops into regional networks, multilingualism
is still vitally important. Based on its spread and current
circumstances, English currently offers the best option to
overcome borders generated by language, and provides a
comfortable fit with many local cultures as part of a
multilingual framework [2]. English is also used as a
communication bridge between different cultures, including
engineering work.
English for Specific Purposes (ESP)
The paper presents an overview and establishes perspectives
for the concepts of designing a course, which may be
Engineering Education. The course is part of an extended
Multilevel Intensive Foreign Languages-Training (MIFLT)
programme, which has been designed for the students and
faculty of the Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU), in Tomsk,
Russia [3].
The concept of English for specific purposes achieves more
in the education of engineering students by focusing the
learner’s attention on the particular terminology and
communication skills required in the professional field. Various
examples in the engineering field can be found, including
computer science (elaborated on below), maritime
engineering’s seaspeak, aviation’s airspeak and the railway’s
railspeak [4].
MIFLT PROGRAMME
The MIFLT programme, in operation since 1998 and designed
to cover the period until 2005, has been developed as a
constituent component of the educational policy for the TPU
with the aim to improve the professional characteristics of
engineering graduates. The programme will also help students
adapt to the ever-changing life and work circumstances of an
international labour community [5].
The launch of the MIFLT programme serves the purpose
of internationalising education and is envisaged to enhance
the academic mobility of the students and staff members of
an engineering institution. To successfully operate on a
global academic scene and to develop human resources for
industry and academia on a worldwide basis, an engineer,
researcher or engineering educator needs to be bilingual at
minimum and effectively use a language of international
communication; currently, the most widespread is English
[6].

57
TPU Language Training Initiatives
A new foreign language policy entails revision, changes and the
updating of goals, context, structure, technologies, equipment
and materials to match the worldwide-recognised international
standards in English as a Second Language (ESL). The goals
set by the University have logically led to the establishing of
the Department of Languages and Communication in 1998,
which upgraded its status and became the Institute of
Languages and Communication in 2000.
Within the framework of the mainstream activities being
developed by the faculty, one should highlight an innovative
module for the staff members of the university involved in the
process of the organisation and management of international
educational programmes. The module is intended to assist
academics in improving English language skills in a variety
of simulated real-life social, academic and job-related settings
[7].
In December 2000, a Memorandum of Understanding was
signed between the UNESCO International Centre for
Engineering Education (UICEE), based at Monash University,
Melbourne, Australia, and the TPU to establish the Central
Asia Centre for Engineering Education (CACEE) as a satellite
centre of the UICEE, with its aim to facilitate the transfer of
information in engineering education on a global scale. One of
the objectives adopted within the general regulations outlining
the activities of the Centre is to develop the communication
abilities and skills of engineers, including mastering proficiency
in English as a language of international professional
communication [8].
THE TPU’S ESP MODULE
A well-designed ESP course for engineering education is in
great demand at the TPU, as well as any other technical
university that claims to become part of a global academic
community and seeks further innovations and advances in the
area of engineering.
In Russia for quite a number of years, English has been taught
on the basis of grammar translation method and graduates from
technical and engineering institutions of higher learning could
only read and translate (supported by a dictionary) subject-
related texts, articles and specifications. Standard English
language syllabus has concentrated on the teaching and learning
of structural items. This structuralist approach has meant that
learners could only acquire linguistic competence but still
lacked essential communication skills. Shifting to a learner-
centred approach will also require a change in the content of
the course [9].
Little attention has been paid to developing speaking and
listening skills; students were taught to learn and recite a
variety of topics covering common everyday matters and global
issues. It should be noted that most of them were domestically
generated and internally biased ones, with a strong emphasis on
life in Russia and some of the English-speaking ones. They did
not include a variety of lifestyles and a wealth of culturally
different communities that speak English as foreign/second
language. Even less attention has been paid to developing
effective writing skills, resulting in an obvious shortage
nowadays.
58
The ESP module is an issue of great consequence for the
University. The three TPU faculties now actively participating
in the programme are namely:
• The Faculty of Computer Science
• The Faculty of Electrical Engineering
• The Faculty of Economics and Management.
Much has been done at the preliminary stage of the programme.
The initial baseline study involved a critical revision
of methods and aids developed by Russian and foreign
authors, including those elaborated by the English language
teachers from the TPU in the previous years, as well as an
analytical review of the existing sets of learning materials
and reference books that have been used lately at the university
[10].
ESP COURSE DESIGN
Teaching English to engineers is a delicate and demanding
matter in terms of content, methods and techniques, and
deciding which are appropriate for this particular area of
engineering and English. That is, the aim in such an
interdisciplinary course is to develop and master
relevant communication and professional skills, using
English as a means and a kind of mediator in shaping
future engineers.
To achieve this goal, ESP teachers have to plan the course they
teach and provide the materials for it. Rarely is it possible to
use a particular textbook without the need for supplementary
material, and sometimes no really suitable published materials
exist for certain learners’ needs. The role of ESP teachers thus
involves choosing suitable published materials from a variety of
reliable and valid sources, adapting materials when published
ones are not suitable, and even writing new materials if nothing
suitable exists.
The point is that ESP teachers cannot do this task alone,
without any help from specialists in a particular area of
engineering. Analytical revision and careful selection of the
sources of information (including the above) for ESP materials
development can proceed with the cooperation of subject
teachers. It will help ESP teachers to find out about the subject
syllabus in an academic context and the tasks the students have
to carry out in a work situation.
To get an ESP course even more integrated with subject
studies, cooperation may develop into collaboration, when texts
in English being exploited present additional relevant materials,
which are part of the actual content of a subject course.
Learners may be also be better prepared for the language of
subject lectures through a series of specifically designed
English classes.
Eventually, team-teaching as a mode of collaboration between a
subject expert and an English language teacher might be
employed for the benefit of learners who will make the most of
this integration [11]. Overseas experience already indicates that
the synergy from team-teaching can significantly improve the
written and communication skills of most students, particularly
oral presentations and report writing, and that it generated a
positive experience for all with a focus on students’ needs and
interests [12].
Course Structure
An ESP course for the students of the Faculty of Computer
Science has been designed at the Department of English and
Educational Technologies and will be piloted from September
2001. In the syllabus devised it is recognised that there is room
for improvement and suggested variations and corrections are
welcome for consideration. Topical areas incorporated are as
follows:
… a source of material, an instrument for real
communication, a supply of internationalism and
even a tool for edutainment [13].
The suggested model for an ESP course, combined with certain
professional skills required of future engineers who are able to
operate a computer and implement new information
technologies, is intended to develop essential communicative
skills. Such skills incorporate:

• English for (Academic) Science and Technology Purposes • Reading (verbal and nonverbal texts):

- Artificial intelligence - Skimming for the gist of a piece of writing.

- Computers and information technologies - Scanning for specific information.
- Advances in science and technology - Understanding text structure (its organisation and
- Environmental monitoring and protection cohesion).
- Human safety - Inferring meaning and the intention of the author(s).
- Energy supply
- Global warming • Writing:
- Transport and communications.
- Describing a device and making a guide for its usage.
• Introduction to English for Computing - Preparing a report about an operating system.
- Writing a memo, business letter, fax, etc.
- Computer structure - Designing an advertisement for a computer software
- Portable computers product.
- The structure of software, systems and applications
software • Speaking and listening:
- Operating systems
- Programming and languages. - Asking for, giving and receiving specific information.
- Presenting a designed product.
• English for Computing - Preparing a poster and interpreting visual material.
- Taking part in discussions and negotiations.
- Data structure - Participating in an interview.
- Files
- Databases ESP TEST DESIGN
- Data storage and management
- Data transmission In order to assess and forecast the requisite language,
- Online services. communication and professional skills needed for future
engineers, ESP teachers need to be aware of the research in
• Writing for Professional Purposes and the Fundamentals language and skills relevant for a particular area of professional
of Technical Translation communication. This includes general academic settings and
being able to incorporate the findings of the research into
- Computer network and network configurations designing courses and developing materials. To evaluate the
- The Internet skills developed ESP teachers might take as a basis
- Computer viruses and computer security internationally recognised and validated tests, such as the
- Computers in the office British and Australian International English Testing Service
- Computers in education (IELTS) examinations, which have a strong focus on academic
- Computers in medicine. matters [14].

• Presenting in English for Computer Science Thorough investigation has been made into the area of a test
design that is applicable for an ESP course with respect to
- Robotics and robot characteristics important aspects of specific test development, including
- Virtual reality operation, piloting, revision and validation, with the relevant
- Artificial intelligence and expert systems findings having been presented by Douglas [15]. The ESP tests
- Machine translation being developed are exposed to prove the validity, reliability,
- Multimedia authenticity, impact and practicality with respect to a particular
- Computer graphics and design. field of engineering or technology.

It is strongly believed that, with regard to an ESP course for
computer science students, the Internet will positively support
and enhance the effectiveness of the activities outlined. Teeler
and Gray define the function of the Internet as a constituent
component in language teaching; one which is
Further developments will be looked into including more
specific activities involving a more constructivist approach in
an effort to enhance learning and student motivation and
participation. This will also involve investigation into the
tensions of target needs versus pedagogic needs [4].

59
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
There is a clear necessity for effective English communication
skills for engineers in the current globalised environment. A
course in English for Specific Purposes will enhance English
language training and an engineering student’s communication
skills. It will also aid in the globalisation of education and the
internationalisation of practicing engineers.
The suggested model for an ESP course at the TPU intended
for computer science students is underway in its pilot stage.
Should any relevant improvement to the model be needed, they
will be fostered and analysed from the viewpoint of validity and
reliability in particular.
REFERENCES
1. Graddol, D., The Future of English? A Guide to
Forecasting the Popularity of the English Language in the
21st Century. London: The British Council (1997).
2. Riemer, M.J., The impact of global English on engineering
education. Proc. 4th Baltic Region Seminar on Engng.
Educ., Lyngby, Denmark, 66-69 (2000).
3. The Development Programme on the Improving Language
Training at the Tomsk Polytechnic University for the
period of 1998-2005 (in Russian). Tomsk, Russia (1998).
4. West, R., ESP – state of the art. Paper at Symp. English
Teachers’ Assoc. of Switzerland, Winterthur, Switzerland
(1995), http://www.man.ac.uk/langlit/esp/west.htm
5. Pokholkov, Y.P. and Chuchalin, A.I., Tomsk Polytechnic
University: ten-year progress before the centenary and the
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Engng. Educ., Bangkok, Thailand, 33-37 (2001).
6. Agafonova, L.I., Kachalov, N.A. and Chuchalin, A.I.,
Multi-level programme for foreign language training at a
Russian technical university. Proc. 4th UICEE Annual
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(2001).
7. Cheremissina, I.A., English for engineers: a refresher
course at the Tomsk Polytechnic University. Proc. 3rd
Asia-Pacific Forum on Engng. and Technology Educ.,
Changhua, Taiwan, 203-206 (2001).
8. http://cacee.tpu.ru
9. Sysoyev, P.V., Developing an English for Specific
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Russian experience. The Internet TESL J., 16, 3, 1-5 (2000),
http://iteslj.org/Techniques/Sysoyev-ESP.html
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