What is ESP?

Definition

 English for Specific Purposes (ESP) has been, since the 1960s, part of English Language Teaching (ELT). The following are some definitions made by some well known scholars:

1.  Paltridge and Starfield (2013, 2): “English for specific purposes (ESP) refers to the teaching and learning of English as a second or foreign language where the goal of the learners is to use English in a particular domain.”
2.  McDonough’s (1998, 105): “ESP describes language programmes designed for groups or individuals who are learning with an identifiable purpose and clearly specifiable needs.” 
3. Johns and Price-Machado (2001, p. 43): “English for Specific Purposes (ESP) is a movement based on the proposition that all language teaching should be tailored to the specific learning and language use needs of identified groups of students—and also sensitive to the sociocultural contexts in which these students will be using English. (italics in the original)
4. ” Mackay and Mountford (1978: 2): “ESP is generally used to refer to the teaching of English for a clearly utilitarian purpose.” That is to say that English should be taught to achieve specific language skills using real situations, in a manner that allows them to use English in their future profession, or to comprehend English discourse related to their area of specialty.

Branches of ESP

ESP can be divided into two main branches; English for Academic Purposes (EAP) and English for Professional Purposes (EPP). Whereas EAP courses are designed to meet students’ needs, EPP courses are designed to meet those of professionals (Fig. 1 shows this in detail).

 

Characteristics of ESP 

ESP has absolute characteristics and variable ones. Dudley-Evans thinks that ESP’s absolute characteristics are as follows:

1.  ESP is designed to meet the specific needs of the learners; 
2.  ESP makes use of the methodology and activities of the specialism it serves ; 
3.  ESP is centred not only on the language (grammar, lexis, register), but also on the skills, discourses and genres appropriate to those activities.

He thinks that ESP’s variable characteristics are:

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; 
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 secondary school level; 
4.  ESP is generally designed for intermediate or advanced students; 
5.  Most ESP courses assume some basic knowledge of the language systems.

ESP Vs EGP

A look at what we was mentioned above, it can be argued that ESP is different from English for General Purposes (EGP); the following are some differences: 

1.  ESP is based on needs analysis, (No needs analysis is required to design an EGP course) 
2.  ESP is adults-centered (Secondary and/or university students), (EGP courses can start from primary school)
3. ESP involves homogenous learners (based on level requirements), (EGP students are heterogeneous learners) 

Need for ESP

Tom Hutchinson and Alan waters2 gave three reasons for the emergence of ESP :

1.   The demands of a brave new world: it can be understood that economic developments in the English speaking countries in the 1950s and 1960s and the growth of science and technology in those countries contributed to increase the demand for ESP course design. In this regard, Hutchinson and Waters, (1987, p.6), argue that the end of the Second World War (SWW) initiated an “age of enormous and unprecedented expansion in scientific, technical and economic activity on an international scale for various reasons, most notably the economic power of the United States in the post-war world, the role fell to English”
2.   A revolution in linguistics: This period witnessed a transformation of traditional linguistics of merely describing the features of language into the study of Register Analysis (RA) which focused on the ways language was used in real communication. 
3.  A new focus on the learner: Bob Jordan and Alan Matthews discussed the case of the 49 students who attended an ESP course at the department of Education (Univ. of Manchester, UK).