Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Identifier

1359

Amina Gaye

Date

2015

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Major

English

Concentration

Applied Linguistics

Committee Chair

Charles Hall

Committee Member

Teresa Dalle

Committee Member

Emily Thrush

Committee Member

Verner Mitchell

Abstract

The role of English as an international language has made its teaching a growing field, especially in French-speaking Africa where the need for English is significant. Despite its unofficial status in countries like Senegal, English is used in all fields of activity and plays an important role in professional areas such as tourism, business, science and technology.Specialization of content in English-teaching curricula is currently increasing, and authors agree that English is not to be studied simply for its own sake, but rather for its communicative uses. EFL teachers are expected to help students develop fluency in English and become familiar with the English specific to their content area, which is the main reason why the field of ESP (English for Specific Purposes) developed in contrast with General English.Specialists have been exploring learners' needs in ESP in many parts of the world, because, as Munby (1978), Hutchinson & Waters (1987), and Dudley-Evans & St. John (1998) point out, needs analysis is of primary importance in teaching ESP. However, less research has focused on the training needs of EFL ESP instructors, especially in African French-speaking countries where the teaching/learning of ESP is not well developed.In Senegal, the shift towards specialized training has not been supported by adequate teacher preparation. Senegalese students in content-areas notice when they become job seekers that their level of english is lower than the labor market's requirements, which explains why they are more and more willing to take private English classes after they graduate.Using a qualitative approach, this study addresses that issue. It explores the instructors' familiarity with ESP by looking at what is currently done in content classes in an attempt to answer the question: What is the attitude of Senegalese EFL instructors working in content-specific areas towards ESP?The purpose of this study is to determine whether current English instruction falls under the guidelines of current practices in ESP, and if not, to come up with recommendations that can help better train Senegalese EFL instructors working in content-specific areas to produce graduates that meet the labor market's requirements and expectations.

Comments

Data is provided by the student.

Library Comment

Dissertation or thesis originally submitted to the local University of Memphis Electronic Theses & dissertation (ETD) Repository.

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