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NEEDS ANALYSIS FOR THE REAL WORLD:Practical tips for Business English trainers

Presenter: Philip Saxon (Corvinus University & IATEFL BESIG)

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Your presenter’s background

• Business English trainer and HE teacher since 2009.• Used to work in IT: understands how it supports the business.• MA in ELT (ICT/Multimedia) with distinction from University of

Warwick (2014).• Now speak regularly at IATEFL-Hungary and other events.

Growing following as a blogger, too:– English for Authentic Purposes:

http://englishforauthenticpurposes.blogspot.hu– Teaching English with Technology:

http://techieenglishteacher.blogspot.hu

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Who this is for – and how they’ll benefit

This talk is aimed at:1) Teachers of Business English2) Teachers wishing to train students to present3) Teacher Trainers4) Language School Managers

By the end of this talk, participants should hopefully:• Understand how and when to to use the “English for Specific

Purposes” (ESP) approach to Needs Analysis.

Needs analysis for the real world

Are your corporate customers a handful?Why not try the ESP approach?

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Needs Analysis Icebreaker

Do any of these problems look familiar?

1) The learners have very different aims;2) The textbook isn’t really what the learners are looking for;3) You want to help learners with their actual jobs – but how?4) Learners aren’t motivated to do homework;5) Learners aren’t motivated by textbook activities – or by

speaking in front of their boss.

In groups of four (or so), discuss which look likely to occur with Business English learners. After 5 minutes, report back.

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My aims today are to show you how to:

1) Design and deliver Business English courses based around learner needs, and not simply textbook content.

2) Respond to new or changing needs as courses progress.

In other words: You’ll see how to implement the ESP approach!

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Contents

1) The commercial reality2) Limitations of textbooks3) The problem with diagnosing needs4) The ESP Approach5) Be flexible!6) Continuous Improvement7) Conclusion: when to “go ESP”

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1) The Commercial Reality:You’re hired! But what has the customer paid for?

OR

We can only ever give students what their company paid for!Extra tailoring is a value-added service: so check first.

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2) Limitations of textbooks

Textbooks are certainly improving! Yet they may at times:• Be inauthentic• Avoid controversy• Not reflect your students’ needs sufficiently• Serve to de-skill the teacher

In a Business English context, the third of these points ought to concern us particularly. What if learners want or need to improve their performance on specific workplace tasks?

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3) The problem of diagnosing needs

First of all, whose needs are we REALLY talking about?

The business (as it perceives needs)?

Or the student’s (felt/actual needs)?

Discuss in pairs for a minute. What do you think?

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Analysis: let’s start with the business. Are they looking for a return on investment?

BENEFIT > COST ($$$ > $$)

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Or are they simply spending a benefits allocation?

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A “frictionless” experience – the idealIn an ideal world the task would be easy:

• You’d learn what the students need just by asking!• There would be plenty of time to plan.• Balancing requests would be no problem.• Customization would be easy to implement.

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However, we don’t live in utopia!

• There may be no time to plan – you must start immediately.• Students may think you’re wasting their time. • Students in the same class may have very different needs

from each other – there are too many demands!• There may be pressure to stick to an agreed syllabus.

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Other problems might also arise:

• Students may be unaware of their real needs. Surprises await.• Students may not want to make personal disclosures.• If the boss is present, students may “clam up”.

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Or indeed:

• The course may just be a “perk” to the students. So much for intrinsic motivation.

• Or their expectations may be way too high – expect trouble!

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4) The ESP Approach

The English for Special Purposes approach can work well.

In its standard form, it is relatively flexible:1) Perform needs analysis when you meet your students;2) Design the course, taking student needs into account;3) Adapt the course as it progresses, in response to

observations, student feedback and changing needs.

So let’s try and put this idea into practice…

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“High Level” Needs Analysis

A basic Business English needs analysis might ask the learner(s) what skills or communicative functions they wish to improve, in rather general, “high level” terms.

If you’ve done Needs Analysis for Katedra clients before, what questionnaire was used? How did you implement it?

Discuss for 1 minute with a partner and report back.

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Evan Frendo’s suggestion: not bad!

I need to improve my English in order to better:

Urgent Not urgentTake part in meetings

Give presentations

Write reports

Deal with e-mails

Speak on the telephone

Socialize

Deal with suppliers

Deal with customers

Source: Frendo, 2005 (adapted).

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“Communicative events” (1)

True customization means getting closer to the actual business that your students do in English every day.

This is where “communicative events” (Rei, 2012) come in:• “I can write an e-mail” is a general, “can-do” statement.• “I can give my boss a project status update by e-mail” is a

specific use of communication skills.

This kind of specificity is what we’re now talking about.

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“Communicative events” (2)

So why not ask students what specific “communicative events” matter most to them?

You can use the information gained this way to:• Develop job-specific skills work;• Work with authentic texts from the learners’ jobs;• Introduce task-based role plays;• Create realistic simulations.

So let’s examine what needs analysis can do for us here…

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Task: Eliciting “communicative events”

Scenario: Imagine yourself in the students’ shoes. At what points in their working life is Business English of critical importance?

With a partner, suggest how students from a foreign-owned bank might fill in the questionnaire featured on your handout.

Report back after 5 minutes. What do you think the students’ priorities would be?

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A possible event description:Name: Philip

Type of communication:☐ E-mail☐ Telephone call Face-to-face meeting☐ Virtual meeting☐ Resources (documents, web…)☐ Conference, seminar, workshop☐ Visits/travel☐ Other ____________________

Frequency:Once a week

Contacts:Line manager and team leaders.9 people.

Country or culture:Hungary, but Italian parent company.

Purpose of communication:To give project status updates, discuss problems and plan ahead.

Description of situation:Regular agenda. Written reports submitted in advance. Main points must now be summarized. Meeting aims to deal with issues and plan ahead.

Successes:Actions are being monitored effectively.

Challenges:But updates need to be more succinct. Leader speaks quite fast, too.

How a trainer can help:Simulate update situations.Practise listening to connected speech.

Source: http://businessenglishideas.blogspot.hu (Charles Rei, 2012: adapted)

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5) Be flexible!

• Always take into account what you learn about genuine student needs as the course progresses.

• Revise/expand upon areas of difficulty, or things that prove to be especially useful.

• Manage impressions of change: no-one is being criticized!• Customize your testing (within reason)!

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As well as:

• Be open: indicate where the course plan might change, and perhaps reasons why, too.

• Include general headings in the course description: everyone will like that.

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So what goes into a course description?

A textbook-based syllabus will likely feature the following:1) A topic strand;2) A lexico-grammar strand;3) A skills development strand – in rather general terms.

Tailoring implies we add to this a fourth strand:4) A communicative event strand.

Learners ought to appreciate a course plan. They’ll see at a glance what customization to expect.

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6) Continuous Improvement: the Deming cycle

Source:https://www.deming.org/theman/theories/pdsacycle

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Reviewing your initial needs analysis

In the spirit of Deming’s cycle, you can review your needs analysis at regular intervals!

You’ll get useful interim feedback regarding client satisfaction this way. If something’s not perfect, you can address it!

So: discuss these questions with a partner.1) How often should you elicit such feedback on a 32-lesson course?2) How much class time should be spent on the feedback process?3) Should teachers fear customer feedback? Or embrace it?

Report back after three minutes.

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Course evaluation – make it cyclical!

According to Viola (2009), course evaluation should be an on-going and cyclical process.

A learner-centred teacher ought constantly to be thinking about the needs of their students, the course objectives and how both materials and teaching can be made more supportive.

Viewed this way, continuous course evaluation is all about continuous improvement.

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360-degree evaluations

360-degree evaluations are a great way to achieve this:• Students evaluate their own progress, the course and the

learning environment;• The teacher evaluates the development of the course and of

the students;• The school may also evaluate the effectiveness of the course;• Evaluation can take place mid-course, or at the end.

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So how can you do it? (1)

1) After 16 lessons or so, prepare a self-assessment quiz based on the needs, objectives and syllabus.2) In class go over the syllabus, see what has been done so far and what has been accomplished.3) In class evaluate the effectiveness of the objectives and discuss if anyone’s needs have changed at all.

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So how can you do it? (2)

4) You may suggest that the language school evaluates the effectiveness of the course. If they agree, you may evaluate the course together with the school.5) Based on the outcome of these evaluations you re-design the syllabus. Course design is a cyclical process – it continuously evolves.

Source: Mercedes Deambrosis Viola (2009).

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7) Conclusion: when to “go ESP”

The ESP approach is best when any of these are true:• The client has expressly paid for tailoring;• You have space to accommodate individual needs;• Those needs are expressed in terms of “communicative

events” where there is a clear performance target;• You’re in a one-to-one teaching situation, where

personalization is easy.

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Caveats: ESP’s limitations

However, the ESP approach has its limitations:• It’s probably only appropriate to the extent it has been paid

for. It’s added value!• Personalization is harder to achieve in a group setting. There

may be too many demands! You’ll have to compromise.• The worst motivational or attendance problems won’t be

solved by it. The students have other priorities – period.• An over-rigid implementation may damage rapport. Free

conversation still has an important role to play.

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Recap: how ESP can work as a strategy (1)

1) The learners have very different aimsIt depends on the class size as well as the product purchased by the company. But ESP still offers teachers a chance to negotiate (and/or re-negotiate) training priorities with students.

2) The textbook isn’t really what the learners are looking forESP helps you take a step back. Ask learners what they need English for in real life. Then supply materials/training accordingly. The Internet and other books can certainly help here.

3) You want to help learners with their actual jobs – but how?The solution is to pursue situational authenticity in the tasks/activities you set students. If the training is relevant and helpful, it should engage them. ESP helps you elicit what matters to them.

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Recap: how ESP can work as a strategy (2)

4) Learners aren’t motivated to do homeworkIf homework is job-related, they may just do it!

5) Learners aren’t motivated by textbook activities – or by speaking in front of their boss.More relevant activities may help. If learners are anxious, that’s more problematic: you want to promote a “safe learning environment” for all students. If power distance is the issue, consider escalating the matter to your manager and seek help.

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Possible next steps:

• Gain familiarity with a range of course books, so that you aren't ever reliant on a single source for lesson content.

• Specify course aims in general terms, focusing primarily on learner needs, rather than textbook contents.

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So be prepared – and be flexible!

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And enjoy teaching businesspeople!

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Acknowledgements

Case, A. (2013). The ESP approach - theory and reality of needs analysis and course design. http://www.usingenglish.com/articles/esp-approach-theory-reality-needs-analysis-course-design.html.

Frendo, E. (2005). How To Teach Business English. (Pearson Education Ltd).

Rei, C. (2014). Business English Ideas: selected posts from http://businessenglishideas.blogspot.hu.

Viola, M. D. (2009). Designing Business English Programmes. http://www.teachingenglish.org.uk/article/designing-business-english-programmes-3