3. English for Specific Purposes ESP a The Nature of ESP
Teaching English in vocational high schools is categorized into English for Specific Purposes ESP because the materials are specific to a certain area and
based on the students’ needs. What is ESP actually? Hutchinson and Waters
1987 stated indirectly in their book ‘English for Specific Purposes’ that ESP is an approach of language teaching in which the designing of the content and
deciding the method is based on the l earners’ needs. From the definition above, it
is clear that the root of ESP is the learners’ needs because their needs are specific in a certain area, not only general English that is taught in other formal school
levels. There are three reasons of why ESP is emerged as mentioned by
Hutchinson and Waters 1987: 6-8: 1.
The demands of a brave new world The end of Second World War in 1945 created a new world which was
dominated by two forces: technology and commerce. Those forces caused there were many people who want to learn English, not for pleasure or
prestige of knowing the language, but because English was the key to International technology and commerce.
2. A revolution in linguistics
Traditionally, the aim of linguistics had been to describe the rules of language usage or grammar. However, the new studies shifted attention
away from defining the formal features of language usage to discovering the ways in which language is actually used for communication in real life.
3. Focus on the learners
A new development in educational psychology is emphasizing the central importance on learners and their attitudes. That means that the language
learning should be based on learners’ needs and interests.
b Theory of ESP
There are some theories related to the English for specific purposes. Richards 1988 states that in circumstances where English is taught for specific
and narrowly defined purposes rather than for a more general communicative goal, the content of language cannot longer be identified with the same grammar,
vocabulary, notions, topics and functions that serve the needs of English for general purposes. It means that the content of ESP is different from the content of
general English. Hutchinson and Waters 1987 suggest that the foundation of ESP is the
simple question which asks why a learner needs to learn English. The answer to this question relates to the learners, the language required, and the learning
context. This theory supports the previous theory which says that the content of ESP is different from the one of general English. Hutchinson and Waters 1987
state that the content and foundation of ESP should be based on the learners and their needs.
Further theory about ESP course is proposed by Robinson 1991. He says that ESP is a goal-directed course and it is developed from needs analysis which
aims to specify as closely as possible what exactly it is that students have to do through the medium of English.
c The Categories of ESP
According to Hutchinson and Waters 1987, ESP can be classified based on the general nature of learners’ purpose and specific needs or specialties.
Based on the lear ners’ purpose, there are:
1. English for Academic Purposes EAP
As the name suggests, this type of ESP helps the learners require English for academic study.
2. English for Occupational Purposes EOP
In contrast with EAP, EOP focuses on work purposes. It is also usually called EVP English for Vocational Purposes or VESL Vocational
English as a Second Language. Based on the learners’ specific needs there are:
1. English for Science and Technology EST;
2. English for Business and Economics EBE;
3. English for Social Science ESS.
Based on the categorization, it is clear that English for Visual
Communication Design Program belongs to EOP under the EST.
4. Needs Analysis
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