UNIT 2:LEARNER NEEDS ANALYSIS

• Unit Objectives• At the end of the unit, students are able to:• describe the concept of ‘need’ in ESP;• identify the different types of need;• classify the various types of need with respect to

ESP learners’ target, present and learning situations;

• outline the various techniques of needs analysis; and

• conduct small-scale needs analyses to meet the initial requirements of proposed ESP courses.

Unit 2 Sub-Topics

1. Introduction

2. Defining needs analysis

3. Approaches to needs analysis(a) Target Situation Analysis (TSA)

(b) Present Situation Analysis (PSA)

(c) Learning Situation Analysis (LSA)

Unit 2 Sub-Topics (cont’d…)

4. Language audits

5. Methods of needs analysis

6. The timing of a needs analysis

7. Who carries out the needs analysis / Who decides what the language needs are?

8. Translating needs analysis outcomes

Definition of ‘need’

• in education: “the gap between what is and what ought to be”

• in ESP: “what the learner has to be and do in the target situation using English”

• in ESP practice, definition of ‘need’ depends on the context and who is doing the analysis

Hutchinson and Waters (1987) on needs analysis in ESP :

• “…if we had to state in practical terms the irreducible minimum of an ESP approach to course design, it would be needs analysis, since it is the awareness of a target situation – a definable need to communicate in English – that distinguishes the ESP learner from the learner of General English.” (p.54)

Needs analysis in ESP

For practical purposes, it involves:• collecting and collating relevant

information about a single learner’s or a set of learners’ common purpose(s) for learning English, and

• interpreting the data so that choices and/or decisions can be made about defining objectives and principles for course design and materials

Concept of ‘needs’• In general, ‘need’ = gap between what is and

what ought to be• objective vs. subjective needs (Brindley, 1989)• perceived vs. felt needs (Berwick, 1989)• target needs vs. learning needs• product-oriented needs vs. process-oriented

needs (Brindley, 1989)• necessities, lacks and wants (Hutchinson &

Waters, 1986)

General Categories of Needs

A. Goal-oriented Needs (‘objective’ needs)

B. Process-oriented Need (‘subjective needs)

• Goal-oriented needs (narrow interpretation): elements of language, and related knowledge, skills and strategies s/he will have to use for study and/or occupational purposes

• Process-oriented needs (broad view): needs of the student qua (as) language learner i.e. skills, strategies, styles of learning, language proficiency, desires, etc.

• Hutchinson 7 waters (1987): necessities, lacks and wants

NA framework in ESP

Based on approaches to needs analysis:(a) Target Situation Analysis (TSA)

(b) Present Situation Analysis (PSA)

(c) Learning Situation Analysis (LSA

Types of Input into ESP Course design

ESP Course DesignTSA –

“Necessities” PSA – “Lacks”

LSA – “Wants”

TSA

• Traditional approach for the purpose of compiling information to identify language needs and to determine objectives

• “…identifying language needs consists primarily in compiling information both on the individuals or group of individuals who are to learn a language and on the use which they are expected to make of it when they have learnt it.” (Richterich, 1983: 2)

TSA (cont’d…)

• key genres (text-types) used in the target situation/context

• special language elements (‘register’)

• communicative purposes and functions of language

• other conventions of language use in particular fields of study and work

A Working Model…

1. Target Situation Analysis• Learners, genres, tasks, activities using English,

genre knowledge & skills** (necessities)

2. Present Situation Analysis• Previous learning experiences, language

proficiency, cultural information; Means analysis – resources, time, physical environment, etc. (lacks)

3. Learning Situation Analysisreasons for attending course and expectations, attitude

to English, preferred ways of learning, styles, strategies (wants)

**Professional communication information:

knowledge of genres, language and skills used in target situation/context analysed via:Linguistic analysis (inc. lexical analysis)Discourse analysisGenre analysis

A Target Situation Analysis framework (Hutchinson & Waters 1987)

• Why is the language needed?

• How will the language be used?

• What will the content areas be?

• Who will the learners use the language with?

• Where will the language be used?

• When will the language be used?

A Framework for Analysing Learning Needs

• Why are the learners taking this course?

• How do the learners learn?

• What resources are available?

• Who are the learners?

• Where will the ESP course take place?

• When will the ESP course take place?

Example of a genre and its moves

Research Article Abstract (adapted from Bhatia, 1993) • 1. WRITER INTRODUCES PURPOSE OF STUDY:

The purpose of the study was to examine …• 2. WRITER DESCRIBES METHODOLOGY: 50 high

school students in Kelantan participated in the study. They were selected from …

• 3. WRITER SUMMARISES RESULTS OF STUDY: It was discovered that …

• 4. WRITER PRESENTS CONCLUSIONS: High school students in Kelantan, and probably in other similar settings …

PSA

• “A PSA seeks to establish what the students are like at the beginning of their language course, investigating their strengths and weakness.” (Robinson 1991, p 9)

• Assessment of learners’ strengths and weaknesses

• Hutchinson & Waters (1987): ‘lacks’• language-based gaps feed into syllabus design

LSA

• pedagogical, methodological and logistical factors which will affect decisions about the design of a course

• may subsequently impede or positively influence the success of a language learning programme

• sub-categorised as strategy analysis and means analysis.

Materials to collect - Authentic Texts

• What are authentic texts for classroom use?– narrow and defined audience– “owned” by discourse community– used by people in the learner’s target context in the

course of their work

• Examples: – written text types: emails, memos, reports, calls for

tender, contracts, project documentation, mission statements, minutes of meetings, etc

– spoken text types: interviews, meetings, phone calls, etc

Sample text

Text Analysis

• Real Content vs. Carrier Content– Carrier content: the subject of a text, what it

is about – Real content: language items which the

teacher determines to be present in a text and which he/she regards to be worthy of teaching

Text analysis...

Dudley-Evans and St. John (1997):

technical vocabulary: specialized and restricted meanings in certain disciplines and which may vary in meaning across disciplines

semi-technical vocabulary: used in general language but has a higher frequency of occurrence/use in the specialist discourse of professional life

Task Analysis

• What is the main communicative purpose of the task?

• Which of the four skills does the task require?• Are there preliminary and follow-up tasks

involved?• What language functions can be expected to

play a role in the task? • What text types does the task involve? • Where can these texts be found?

Methods of Analysing Needs

• Tests• Questionnaires• Interviews /structured interviews• Observation• Case studies• Learner diaries• Previous research• Participatory needs analysis (including

‘Shadowing’)

Remaining issues

• The timing of a needs analysisPre-course (GNP specs)In-course (formative assessment of LOs) Post-course (course evaluation)

• Who carries out the needs analysis / Who decides what the language needs are?– JIJOE? (Alderson, 1996)– Home-grown expert?– Often the practitioner/instructor

Remaining issues...

• Translating needs analysis outcomes – the GNP (Generalised Needs Profile)

• Construct TSA, PSA & LSA specifications for target group of learners– Problem with heterogeneous groups – Resolve within available means/resources

(Swales, 1989: ‘opportunity cost’)

Remaining issues...• Resolve mismatches in expectations to

establish “happy mean” (Richterich, 1983)– e.g. How much ‘grammar’? How much focus on

speaking skills?

• Immediate needs and projected needs• A key issue: how much data to collect and

analyse?– Adopt pragmatic approach/stance

• Question of power: English specialist vs. Content specialist

Question of power...