English for Specific Purposes
Wrld

ESP/EAP classes for Sociology students: establishing learning priorities

Vida Zorko

Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia

Introduction

Students and teachers at the Faculty of Social Sciences (FSS) of the University of Ljubljana are well aware that proficiency in English is crucial for the successful completion of their studies and future careers. Most study courses require students to read academic texts in English. Later, when finding employment, English language skills rank high among professional needs. This paper considers the language priorities of Sociology students at the mentioned faculty. The first part describes the teaching/learning situation and the needs analysis that was carried out in order to identify target situation needs. In the second part of the paper, the results obtained are used to evaluate the current teaching materials. The final part deals with gaps in the existing materials and suggests how they could be filled.

Part 1

1 Description of the current teaching/learning situation

This paper focuses on English language teaching delivered to full-time and part-time Sociology students at the Faculty of Social Sciences (FSS) of the University of Ljubljana. They take English for Special Purposes/English for Academic Purposes (ESP/EAP) courses in their first and second years of study. Below is a brief description of the learning/teaching situation:

-         course length: in two years full-time students complete 120 hours of classes while part-time students complete only 40 hours;

-         class size: the size of an average class is between 40 and 60 students;

-         number of students per teacher: I have approximately 270 full-timers and 140 part-timers per year;

-         proficiency level and age: at the start of the course students, if aged 19, have had 8 years of English and achieved the B2 level. However, their proficiency level is relatively uneven especially in part-time classes where the students ages range between 19 and 50;

-         class type: Sociology students are divided into 3 groups according to their programme of study: Sociology - Theory and Analysis (TA), Sociology - Human Resources Management (HRM) and Sociology - Social Informatics (SI);

-         course objectives: students develop the skills they will need for academic purposes as well as in the target situation;

-         target situation language: during their study Sociology students are required to read and analyse English academic books and articles in most major courses. When they finish the Sociology programme, they take up positions in, for example, research teams, education, development teams in firms, market research agencies, governmental and non-governmental services. There they need English to understand professional texts, write letters and reports, and deliver presentations to foreigners etc.;

-         teaching facilities: language classes are given in large lecture rooms that are not ideal for communicative language learning. Apart from whiteboards and cassette players, all lecture rooms have overhead projectors and PowerPoint facilities. Some also have TVs and VCRs. Students have good access to computers and the Internet from their homes and the faculty facilities. In the faculty library they can find a large collection of academic books and journals in English;

-         course syllabus: I devise a syllabus for each study year. The year one syllabus is topic-based: the units are arranged around 10 common sociological topics and contain vocabulary, grammar, translation and listening tasks. Students acquire presentation, speaking, translating and listening skills. The syllabus for the second year is skills-based: students learn to write essays, read and analyse academic texts in terms of discourse and genre, participate in debates, and improve their listening and translating skills. Students also focus on some problematic language areas such as passives and word-formation;

-         materials: on the basis of the syllabus, every year I design a new set of tailor-made materials that students obtain in book form (see Zorko, 2004/2005, Book 1 and Book 2). They contain adapted texts and articles and authored language exercises. During the year, I also prepare numerous additional materials such as exercises containing specific language problems that have arisen in a particular group, and audio/video materials to supplement the book;

-         teaching/learning approach: communicative and integrative teaching methods are used. The lessons for full-time students include activities such as discussions, group presentations and problem-based learning, as well as reading and analysing texts containing target situation vocabulary and discourse, practising useful language functions, translating and doing grammar exercises. With part-time students, the communicative/integrative component of learning is reduced to a minimum due to the high number of students and low number of hours.

The teaching approach, course syllabus and materials are the result of my communication with language and subject teachers as well as their register and discourse analysis of an extensive corpus of sociological texts. The teachers I contact inform me of the students language problems and the conversation with students revealed some of their needs. The analysis of sociological texts helped me identify the genre and most frequent topics, and to select texts from various sources that contained high-frequency words. I included the less demanding texts and activities in Book 1 and the more challenging ones in Book 2, trying to cover a wide range of genres (popular and serious press, monographs, research reports etc.). I added exercises for developing word attack strategies (structural clues, morphological information etc.), and text analysis and translation tasks for raising the awareness of discourse markers (conjunctions, lexical cohesion etc.).

However, my needs analysis most often included only a small number of students or subject teachers and was relatively informal in nature. Nor had I included any users of the target situation language beyond the faculty. Therefore, I decided to carry out a needs analysis of students, ex-students and academic staff in order to establish the learning priorities of Sociology students with a more formal and possibly more reliable method. The results obtained were used to evaluate and improve the existing materials.

2 Deficiency analysis

2.1 The aim of the deficiency analysis

The aim of the deficiency analysis carried out at the end of the academic year 2004/2005 was to provide answers to the following questions:

a) What are the skills that Sociology students have to develop in order to operate effectively in the target situation?

b) Do the present materials ensure the practicing of these skills?

b) What level of difficulty do these skills present to the students?

c) Is the students perception of needs similar to that of the academic staff and the target situation users?

d) Do the materials address the real needs of the students?

e) Do I have to change the materials in order to make them more

relevant to the students target needs?

2.2 Methods

2.2.1 Type of needs analysis

In order to obtain answers to the above questions I decided to carry out a deficiency analysis. Such analysis is listed among the most common and useful approaches to analysing needs by many ESP experts (e.g. Jordan, 1997, p. 26; West, 1994, p.10). It enables a teacher to determine the target skills and also the extent to which students have already developed these skills. The results allow teachers to determine the gap between the target and present needs of their students.

2.2.2 Respondents

The deficiency analysis was carried out off-line on three groups of respondents:

-         first- and second-year Sociology students;

-         ex-Sociology students; and

-         lecturers in Sociology programmes.

The three groups were invited to complete an on-line questionnaire seeking to reveal the language priorities of Sociology students by comparing and contrasting the students and the academic staffs perceptions of the target needs and present difficulties with ex-students real needs and difficulties.

One disadvantage of a survey being carried out over the Internet, as opposed to in the classroom, is a lower student response rate. The students had to visit the survey web page and only the most motivated did so. However, the response rate of the ex-students and academic staff is most probably higher due to the practicality of the Internet because they received the invitation along with the survey URL in their mailbox (see Appendix I).

2.2.3 Questionnaire

In the questionnaires (see Appendix III) the respondents identified the existence of a need for a specific sub-skill in the target situation, and their present degree of difficulty with it. I then calculated the overall need by taking into regard the existence of a need (will perform the task or will not perform the task) and the present situation need (from lowest difficulty to highest difficulty). The overall need was calculated by adding up the difficulty rates of the activities the respondents identified as a target situation need. The rationale for designing individual questions is given in Appendix II.

2.2.5 Overall need check

The overall need was first calculated by adding up the rate of difficulty of the identified needs and presented by both skill and activity for each of the six groups of respondents. These were TA students, ex-TA students, HRM students, ex-HRM students, SI students and academic staff (see Appendix IV).

Next, the groups were compared according to the study programme. TA students were compared to ex-TA students and academic staff. HRM students were compared to ex-HRM students and academic staff. SI students were compared to academic staff (see Appendix V/1).

Then, eight activities (the top third of all 24 activities) with the highest frequency of need from each of the three programme groups were chosen and compared (see Appendix V/2).

2.3 Findings

The tables in Appendix V/1 and 2 reveal the following learning priorities:

2.3.1 Learning priorities of individual groups of respondents

-         TA study programme: reading professional books and journals, and writing reports are the activities with the highest frequency of need for the TA study programme. The academic staff and students also find giving presentations and speaking at formal meetings to be very important, as opposed to the ex-TA students who prioritise conversations with a single person, listening to speeches, CV and letter writing. The academic staff find essay writing an important skill as well as listening and writing minutes and reports. Ex-students regard the listening skill as a high need;

-         HRM study programme: reading professional journals, writing reports and speaking at meetings is the highest need. Unlike the ex-students, students and lecturers also find presentations important. Listening to speeches and lectures, following a training course, using the telephone, conversations with a single person are a priority for the ex-students, whereas writing essays, listening and writing minutes and reports are a priority for the lecturers;

-         SI study programme: the students and the academic staff find reading professional books, writing reposts, speaking at formal meetings, giving presentations, chairing meetings/conferences and writing minutes and reports a stronger need. Here, the students again do not identify the need for writing essays.

-         all programmes: reading professional journals and books, writing reports, and speaking at formal meetings are top learning priorities in all programmes. Writing essays, minutes and reports is mostly identified as a need by the academic staff. Giving presentations and chairing meetings and conferences are not a priority for the ex-students.

2.3.2 Learning priorities according to language skills

-         reading: reading professional journals and books is an important target need;

-         writing: writing reports is a top priority; writing essays is a need perceived by the academic staff; writing job application letters, CVs and letters is a need perceived only by individual groups of respondents;

-         listening/ speaking: the highest priority is chairing meetings/conferences and also meetings with 2-5 people, followed by a conversation with a single person, receiving foreign visitors and use of the telephone. Using English when travelling abroad is not perceived as a need;

-         listening: listening at formal meetings is a high frequency need; listening to speeches, lectures, following a training course are ranked much lower;

-         speaking: speaking at formal meetings and giving presentations are the highest needs; giving instructions and training is not perceived as a need at all;

-         listening/ writing: writing minutes and reports ranks very high while taking notes at meetings is not a need; and

-         translating: translating professional articles ranks high among the needs in contrast to translating reports and correspondence.

2.3.3 The highest frequency of need

Appendix V/1 shows that in the TA group the reading of professional books and journals as well as writing of reports is ranked highest. The HRM group also found the reading of professional journals and writing of reports a high priority together with speaking at formal meetings. The SI group prioritised the reading of professional books, writing of reports, speaking at formal meetings, giving presentations, chairing meetings or conferences and listening to/writing minutes and reports. On the whole, the activities viewed as having the highest learning priority (see Appendix V/2) are writing reports, reading professional books and journals, speaking at formal meetings, giving presentations, chairing meetings or conferences and listening to/writing minutes and reports.

2.3.4 Difficulty with writing and speaking

Vocabulary, grammar and style present the most obvious areas of writing difficulty. As regards speaking, the biggest difficulty is fluency and grammar (see Appendix V/3).

2.3.5 Other activities performed in English

The activities respondents mentioned as relevant are numerous (see Appendix VI, 1a). The most frequent (see Appendix VI, 1b) are informal conversations with foreigners. However, this sub-skill is not considered as a need. Some listed using computer programmes which is not a need for most students since they are used to using English with computers. Others mentioned giving presentations that was already identified as a need (see Appendix V/2), bid writing for an HRM programme, using the Internet, reading professional texts, and translating which is a relatively high priority (see Appendix V/2). The TA students and the academic staff added text analysis. Some other activities mentioned include interpreting, carrying out surveys and CMC.

2.3.6 Topics ex-students deal with

The responses regarding the topics ex-students deal with show that frequent topics for the ex-HRM students include organisational management, or organisational culture. Other topics mentioned more than once are employment, gender issues and social policy etc. (see Appendix VI/3).

Before applying the results of the deficiency analysis and evaluating the existing materials, I wanted to receive some student feedback on the course and materials. The following section deals with the rationale of the course feedback and summarises its results.

3 Retrospective course analysis

The regular evaluation of a course is important for ascertaining whether the course meets its aims (Hutchinson and Waters, 1987, p.152). The rationale for this evaluation was to check whether students benefited from the activities they did in the classroom and to identify any aspects of the course that may not fit in with their preferences and needs.

3.1 Methods

At the end of the 2004/2005 academic year I gave out a short questionnaire to those second-year students who had completed both of the courses (English 1 and 2). The questions were deliberately left completely open in order to obtain spontaneous answers with the exception of one question that would show the students preference for a specific book organisation (see Appendix VII/1).

The survey was done in the classroom at the end of the year. The number of respondents was low, 58 (out of 130 second-year students) because the examination period had already started and many students, who had completed the attendance requirements, chose to stay at home to study.

3.2 Findings

The results (see Appendix VII/2) show a marked preference for translating tasks which the students also find the most useful. This was followed by vocabulary exercises, up-to-date topics, and grammar exercises. Many found learning grammar and debating useful. The least preferred activities were essay writing and listening although many viewed essay writing as useful. Some disliked translating and found reading texts and speaking activities the least useful. As regards the preference for the organisation of the books (by topic or by skill), both are equally appealing, with a slight preference for organisation by skill. The students most frequent comments included the need for more translation and for a glossary of sociological terms.

Summary of Part 1

The deficiency analysis and course evaluation provided useful answers to the questions posed before the research. The deficiency analysis revealed that there are eight target situation needs common to all three Sociology programmes. These are reading professional journals and books, writing essays and reports, giving presentations, speaking at formal meetings, chairing meetings and conferences, listening and writing minutes and reports. There are also needs that are specific to a certain programme, e.g. writing CVs for the TA programme and that there are some differences in the perception of language priorities between the students, ex-students and lecturers. For example, the lecturers find essay writing a high priority whereas the students and ex-students do not. The course evaluation results suggest that students appreciate translation and vocabulary tasks the most, find the topics in both books interesting and like how both books are organised. The most apparent problem area seems essay writing which is disliked by many. The suggestions for more translation and a glossary of sociology terms are worth considering.

Part 2

Evaluation of the existing materials

In this part, the findings presented in Part 1 will be used to evaluate the relevance of the materials I prepared in the 2004/2005 academic year. These are English for Sociology Students 1 (Book 1) and English for Sociology Students 2 (Book 2). In Book 1, the topic-based approach is used: each unit deals with one important sociological theme and is accompanied by vocabulary, reading, listening, speaking or translating tasks. Book 2 is skills-based: it consists of five units each designed to develop a certain skill. This part of the paper first evaluates the two books in terms of: 1) skills priorities; 2) writing and speaking difficulties; and 3) the relevance of topics.

1 Skills priorities

Reading

The survey found that reading professional journals and books is an important target need. Both the books provide some materials that deal with this. However, Book 2 could include an analysis of more demanding texts on more diverse topics.

Writing

Neither of the books provides materials for report writing although this sub-skill ranks the highest. Writing essays is included in Book 2. Samples of job applications, CVs and other types of letters could be included as optional materials for those students who may need to write them.

Listening/ Speaking

The highest priority is chairing meetings and conferences. Although both books provide some materials on general speaking language functions, they do not specifically teach the skills of chairing meetings and conferences. Therefore, examples of meeting moves and practice have to be added.

Listening

The books are lacking in terms of adequate listening practice. No listening at formal meetings is provided for, there is only one example of speech and no examples of lectures.

Speaking

Speaking at formal meetings is a very high frequency need and the books do not address it. Guidelines and practice on presentation skills is sufficiently covered in Book 1.

Listening/Writing

Writing minutes and reports is an important skill but is not covered in the materials at all.

Translating

Translating professional articles ranks high among the needs and practice is included in both books. Apart from the translation tasks in the books, I prepare additional tasks involving the students typical problems that appear during the course.

2 Writing difficulties

I am aware that the use of vocabulary is a writing difficulty and both books contain texts with the target situation texts and tasks for vocabulary practice. There are hardly any grammar exercises included due to the lack of time. Occasionally, I prepare grammar practice based on the mistakes the students have made in their homework. They are encouraged to revise grammar as part of autonomous learning. As for style, Book 2 contains sample essays that are analysed in terms of style, which is insufficient and more practice should be provided.

3 Speaking difficulties

There are speaking activities in seven units of Book 1, there is a speaking section in Book 2 and both books emphasise the use of appropriate speaking functions. Discussion is encouraged whenever possible although the time does not always permit this.

4 Activities that the respondents added

Activities such as bid writing, carrying out surveys, use of the Internet and computer mediated communication are not practiced or encouraged.

5 Topics

The topics that were frequently mentioned and are not included in the materials are related to HRM, e.g. organisational management, organisational culture or social policy. Most of the topics mentioned by two respondents are included, e.g. employment, gender issues, ethnicity or the family.

6 Course feedback and materials

Considering the results of the course feedback, more translation and vocabulary exercises could be included in the materials although both books contain a considerable number of practice tasks. The topics do not have to be changed and additional grammar exercises and debates would be welcome. Essay writing is slightly problematic because for some students it is too demanding and purposeless and for others it is very useful. One solution could be to offer to do the task as an option. The present organisation of the books will remain as it is for another year because the students like them. What is worth considering is the present lack of any type of glossary of sociological terms.

Summary of Part 2

The evaluation has shown that, of the eight highest frequency needs, only four (reading professional books and journals, writing essays and giving presentations) are catered for in the materials. Ways of providing relevant materials for the remaining four will have to be considered (writing reports, speaking at formal meetings, chairing meetings or conferences and listening to/writing minutes and reports). More vocabulary, translation, grammar and style practice is desirable and speaking activities have to be assigned greater importance. Ways should be found to provide help with bid writing, carrying out surveys in English, encouraging the use of the Internet and computer mediated communication. HRM students should have more of their target topics included (e.g. organisational management, organisational culture and social policy). Essay writing should become an optional task and the need for a glossary of terms should be considered.

Part 3

Filling in the gaps in the existing materials

This part provides some suggestions for filling in the gaps in the materials evaluated in Part 2. In considering the possibilities for adapting or adding language activities, I primarily had student autonomy in mind. Producing autonomous persons is one of the important goals of education (Littlewood, 1996, p.429). Benson (1997, p.33) lists some ways that can help the teacher achieve this goal:

1. authentic interaction with the target language and its users

2. collaborative group work and collective decision making

3. participation in open-ended learning tasks

4. learning about the target language and its social contexts of use

5. exploration of societal and personal learning goals

6. criticism of learning tasks and materials

7. self-production of tasks and materials

8. control over the management of learning

9. control over the content of learning

10. control over resources

11. discussion and criticism of target language norms.

These suggestions were taken into account when examining the ways in which the existing materials could be complemented and improved.

It was decided that improvements would be made in the syllabus and materials for second-year students because the students in the second year of study become more aware of their specific target needs. The following paragraphs present suggestions for each of the learning gaps identified above.

Gap 1: Reading professional journals and books

In including more relevant professional texts to be read and analysed, the choice of texts will be given over to students who will negotiate their suggestions with the subject teachers and me. In this way, the chosen texts will fully meet the diverse needs of the students in each of the three Sociology programmes and will also reflect the subject and language teachers criteria.

Texts will be chosen from the faculty library books and journals or on-line resources (e.g. Electronic Journal of Sociology). Copies of the selected texts will be provided to students or links to the web pages added to my home page for students (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/). In class, groups of students will present summaries of the texts, explain difficult terms, give their views and create exercises or questions for debate. Thus, students will have more control over the resources and content of learning, will be exposed to authentic target language and become familiar with its social contexts of use. Moreover, students self-production of tasks and materials will be encouraged.

Gap 2: Writing reports, CVs and letters

The most motivating way of dealing with the problem of report writing is the introduction of problem-based learning (PBL). PBL is where students solve a real-life problem and it enhances the development of creative thinking, co-operation and teamwork (Duch, 1999). It promotes student autonomy with collaborative group work, collective decision-making and participation in open-ended learning tasks. Moreover, it encourages students to explore their learning objectives as well as the aims of society. The PBL process includes writing reports which are a result of real research and therefore more motivating to write.

However, if for any reason a student prefers not to participate in a PBL project they would be offered the alternative of essay writing which is also one of the target needs. Students will find instructions and practice on report and essay writing on my web site under Academic writing (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#Academic%20writing).

Writing CVs and letters will not be specifically addressed in the materials since the skill does not present a very strong target need in all study programmes. However, relevant resources are found on my web page under CV writing, including

instructions, templates and examples of CVs in English and Slovenian as well as sample business letters. (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#useful%20resources). This will give students greater opportunity to manage their learning.

Gap 3: Chairing meetings and conferences, meetings with 2-5 people and conversation with a single person

All three speaking/listening gaps are related to meetings that the 2004/2005 materials do not address specifically. To fill this gap in, PBL again seems the best solution because it includes chairing and participating in meetings as well as conversation in English. I will provide the necessary input regarding the genre of meetings and help with problems in class.

Gap 4: Listening at formal meetings, to speeches and lectures

PBL meetings can also help in closing this gap. As for listening to speeches and lectures, online resources have been selected (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#Listening) that include general listening exercises suitable for academic purposes, famous lectures with the text and news items with sound. Students will do listening activities autonomously, for example, at home. General exercises will be chosen according to their needs and preferences. The selection of lectures and news will be negotiated with me and will form the basis for the discussions as well as vocabulary work. The selected listening items will be linked under 'English 2' (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/) for easier access.

Gap 5: Speaking at formal meetings

This gap will be filled within the PBL framework (also see Gap 3).

Gap 6: Listening to and writing minutes and reports

This gap will be filled within the PBL framework (also see Gap 2). Instructions on the writing of minutes and the link to additional guidelines will be provided (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#ENGLISH%202).

Gap 7: Translating professional articles

The students prefer to practice with the translation of sentences or parts of sentences containing their most typical problems. Similar exercises will be included in Book 2.

Gap 8: Writing difficulties vocabulary, grammar and style

As for target vocabulary, the students will be invited to participate in the project of creating their own vocabulary wiki that will be available on-line on my web page. They will co-operate with subject teachers who will help them prepare a body of relevant sociological texts and find translations of useful vocabulary. The translated terms will be checked by both, the subject teachers and me, and then published on the web where they will be permanently available. In addition, I have included a selection of reference sites, e.g. the Dictionary of Social Sciences (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#useful%20resources).

Regarding grammar and style practice, students will be offered the chance to improve their skills autonomously using the selected web resources on my home page (http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#Interactive%20grammar%20exercises grammar activities and http://www2.arnes.si/~vzorko/#Academic%20writing examples of texts and exercises). Accordingly, students will not have to depend so much on the lessons and the time in the classroom will be spared for tasks that are more communicative. They will be able to solve vocabulary, grammar or style problems autonomously.

Gap 9: Speaking difficulties

(see Gaps 1, 3 and 5)

Gap 10: Activities suggested by the respondents

The students use of the web pages will help them acquire better Internet skills. Computer-mediated communication will be increased in the PBL process where the students, for example, contact organisations, associations and individuals abroad (see Gap 2 for writing bids and carrying out research).

Gap 11: Topics

The students will be autonomous in choosing the topics they will study. In this way, programme-specific topics will be addressed (see Gap 1).

Conclusion

The needs analysis of FSS Sociology students has helped reveal some language priorities and gaps in the materials. The results of the analysis were used to provide some ways in which the identified gaps could be filled in by applying the principle of autonomous learning. There will be more negotiation on the choice of texts and topics to be studied and more student involvement in the creation of classroom activities. The introduction of problem-based learning and the creation of the web page with Sociology students resources address the majority of high frequency needs and promote student autonomy to a large extent.

References

Benson P (1997) The philosophy and politics of learner autonomy in Benson, P. and Voller, P. (eds) Autonomy and Independence in Language Learning, Harlow, Addison Wesley and Longman.

Duch, B. (1999) Problem based learning, University of Delaware, http://www.udel.edu/pbl/ (accessed 15 August 2005).

Hutchinson, T. and Waters, A. (1987) English for Specific Purposes, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.

Jordan, R.R. (1997) English for Academic Purposes, Cambridge, Cambridge

University Press.

Littlewood, W. (1996) "Autonomy": An Anatomy and Framework

System, vol. 24, no. 4, pp. 427435, 1996, Elsevier Science Ltd.

West, R. (1994) Needs analysis in language teaching [state-of the-art survey], Language Teaching, vol.27, no.1, pp.1-19.

West, R. (2002) Needs-based approaches to ESP, Teaching English for Specific purposes: Unit 2, Manchester, The University of Manchester.

Zorko, V. (2004/2005) English for Sociology students 1 [in-house student materials], Ljubljana, Fakuleta za druzbene vede.

Zorko, V. (2004/2005) English for Sociology students 2 [in-house student materials], Ljubljana, Fakuleta za druzbene vede.

Appendix I

The number of respondents

-         TA students = 48 (out of approx. 60)

-         ex-TA students = 12 (out of approx. 30 who provided their email address to the faculty)

-         HRM students = 27 (out of approx. 60)

-         ex-HRM students = 20 (out of approx. 30 who provided their email address to the faculty)

-         SI students = 65 (out of approx. 100)

-         ex-SI students = 0 (out of approx. 20 who provided their email address to the faculty)

-         academic staff = 17 (out of approx. 30)

Appendix II

The questions

The questionnaires were short to elicit higher response rate. They included only four to six questions (see Appendix III):

-         the question on study program was given to observe differences in the target needs according to study programme. With the academic staff, this question turned out to be irrelevant because most of the staff lecture in all three programs;

-         the question on activities was based on an adapted Stuart and Lees model (West, 2002, p.10). It required the respondents to identify (or not) the need for the listed activities and rate their difficulty. The original idea was to rate the frequency of the need (from 1 to 5) but it had to be abandoned due to software constraints;

-         the question that asked the respondents to list any other tasks they found important was originally meant to follow each group of sub-skills but again the software did not allow such arrangement.;

-         the question on writing and speaking difficulties was based on Jordans model (1997, p.46). It was not included in the lecturers questionnaire since they could not assess these difficulties better than students and the language teacher;

-         the questionnaire for ex-students included a question on topics. This would tell me whether she included relevant topics in her materials. The question on occupation was added to show the professional field. However, the faculty started to record email addresses only recently and obtained mostly those of recent graduates. Therefore, many of the respondents are sill in the phase of job-seeking (see Appendix VI/2).

Appendix III

The deficiency analysis questionnaires

1) Student questionnaire (Vida Zorko's survey on target situation needs

in English courses for Sociology students)

Question 1) Which program do you study?

a)      Sociology Theoretical Analysis

b)      Sociology Human Resources Management

c)      Sociology Social Informatics

Question 2) Which English language tasks will you most probably perform in your future employment? Select the tasks and rate their degree of difficulty.

0% 100%

1 lowest difficulty, 5 highest difficulty, N/A I will not perform this task

Reading reports, correspondence 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

professional journals 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

professional books 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Writing reports 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

job application letters 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

CVs 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

letters 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

essays 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

receiving foreign visitors 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

use of telephone 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

travelling abroad 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

conversation with one person 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening at formal meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

to speeches, lectures, etc. 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

following a training course 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking at formal meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

giving presentations 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

giving instructions and training 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening/ writing minutes and reports 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Writing taking notes at meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Translating professional articles 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

reports, correspondence 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Question 3) What other tasks, besides the ones listed above, will you most probably perform in English? .

Question 4) Rate the problems with writing and speaking according to their difficulty.

1 2 3 4 5 N/A

1 lowest difficulty, 5 highest difficulty, N/A not applicable

Writing difficulties

grammar 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

vocabulary 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

spelling 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

style 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

punctuation 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking difficulties

fluency 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

vocaubalry 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

style 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

grammar 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

pronunciation 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.

2) Ex-student questionnaire (Vida Zorko's survey on target situation

needs in English courses for Sociology

students)

Question 1) Which study program did you complete?

d)      Sociology Theoretical Analysis

e)      Sociology Human Resources Management

f)        Sociology Social Informatics

Question 2) What is your occupation?

.

Question 3) Which English language tasks do you perform in your employment? Select the tasks and rate their degree of difficulty.

0% 100%

1 lowest difficulty, 5 highest difficulty, N/A I do not perform this task

Reading reports, correspondence 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

professional journals 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

professional books 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Writing reports 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

job application letters 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

CVs 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

letters 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

essays 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

receiving foreign visitors 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

use of telephone 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

travelling abroad 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

conversation with one person 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening at formal meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

to speeches, lectures, etc. 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

following a training course 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking at formal meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

giving presentations 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

giving instructions and training 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening/ writing minutes and reports 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Writing taking notes at meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Translating professional articles 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

reports, correspondence 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Question 4) What other tasks, besides the ones listed above, do you most perform in English? .

Question 5) Rate the problems with writing and speaking according to their difficulty.

1 2 3 4 5 N/A

1 lowest difficulty, 5 highest difficulty, N/A not applicable

Writing difficulties

grammar 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

vocabulary 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

spelling 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

style 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

punctuation 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking difficulties

fluency 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

vocaubalry 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

style 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

grammar 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

pronunciation 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Question 6) List some topics that you deal with in English.

.

Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.

3) Academic staff questionnaire (Vida Zorko's survey on target

situation needs in English courses

for Sociology students)

Question 1) Which programs do you lecture?

g)      Sociology Theoretical Analysis

h)      Sociology Human Resources Management

i)        Sociology Social Informatics

Question 2) Which English language tasks will your students most probably perform in their future employment? Select the tasks and rate their degree of difficulty.

0% 100%

1 lowest difficulty, 5 highest difficulty, N/A they will not perform this task

Reading reports, correspondence 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

professional journals 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

professional books 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Writing reports 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

job application letters 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

CVs 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

letters 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

essays 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

receiving foreign visitors 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

use of telephone 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

travelling abroad 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

conversation with one person 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening at formal meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

to speeches, lectures, etc. 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

following a training course 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Speaking at formal meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

giving presentations 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

giving instructions and training 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Listening/ writing minutes and reports 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Writing taking notes at meetings 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Translating professional articles 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

reports, correspondence 1 2 3 4 5 N/A

Question 3) What other tasks, besides the ones listed above, will your students most probably perform in English? .

Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.

Appendix IV

The overall needs by different groups of respondents and by study programs

1) TA students perceptions of overall needs

a) by skill Reading professional books 163 professional journals 161 reports, correspondence 149 Writing reports 152 CVs 154 job application letters 142 essays 140 letters 134 Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 161 Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 148 receiving foreign visitors 147 use of telephone 129 travelling abroad 129 conversation with one person 125 Listening following a training course 136 to speeches, lectures, etc. 133 at formal meetings 133 Speaking at formal meetings 161 giving presentations 151 giving instructions and training132 Listening/ writing minutes and reports 132 Writing taking notes at meetings 122 Translating professional articles 151 reports, correspondence 130 Writing spelling 142 difficulties vocabulary 139 grammar 137 style 123 punctuation 94 Speaking fluency 139 difficulties grammar 133 vocabulary 122 pronunciation 120 style 118

b) by activity Reading... [professional books] 163 Reading... [professional journals] 161 Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences] 161 Speaking... [at formal meetings] 161 Writing... [reports] 152 Speaking... [giving presentations] 151 Translating... [professional articles] 151 Reading... [reports, correspondence] 149 Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people] 148 Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors] 147 Writing... [CVs] 145 Writing... [job application letters] 142 Writing... [essays] 140 Listening... [following a training course] 136 Writing... [letters] 134 Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.] 133 Listening... [at formal meetings] 133 Speaking... [giving instructions and training] 132 Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports] 132 Translating... [reports, correspondence] 130 Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone] 129 Listening/Speaking... [travelling abroad] 129 Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person] 125 Listening/Writing... [taking notes at meetings] 122

2) HRM students perceptions of overall needs

a) by skill Reading reports, correspondence 81 professional journals 81 professional books 81 Writing reports 86 job application letters 76 CVs 75 letters 72 essays 60 Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 103 Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 85 receiving foreign visitors 82 use of telephone 74 travelling abroad 72 conversation with one person 68 Listening at formal meetings 75 to speeches, lectures, etc. 70 following a training course 68 Speaking at formal meetings 90 giving presentations 86 giving instructions and training132 Listening/ writing minutes and reports 64 Writing taking notes at meetings 58 Translating professional articles 67 reports, correspondence 64 Writing grammar 79 difficulties vocabulary 78 spelling 75 style 74 punctuation 66 Speaking fluency 82 difficulties vocabulary 76 style 72 grammar 71 pronunciation 60

b) by activity Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences]103 Speaking... [at formal meetings] 90 Writing... [reports] 86 Speaking... [giving presentations] 86 Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people] 85 Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors] 82 Reading... [reports, correspondence] 81 Reading... [professional journals] 81 Reading... [professional books] 81 Writing... [job application letters] 76 Writing... [CVs] 75 Listening... [at formal meetings] 75 Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone] 74 Writing... [letters] 72 Listening/Speaking... [travelling abroad] 72 Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.] 70 Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person]68 Listening... [following a training course] 68 Translating... [professional articles] 67 Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports] 64 Translating... [reports, correspondence] 64 Speaking... [giving instructions and training] 63 Writing... [essays] 60 Listening/Writing... [taking notes at meetings] 58

3) SI students perceptions of overall needs

a) by skill Reading professional books 226 professional journals 201 reports, correspondence 182 Writing reports 223 essays 179 job application letters 178 CVs 174 letters 155 Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 213 Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 210 use of telephone 187 receiving foreign visitors 178 conversation with one person 175 travelling abroad 174 Listening at formal meetings 196 following a training course 191 to speeches, lectures, etc. 186 Speaking at formal meetings 209 giving presentations 204 giving instructions and training156 Listening/ writing minutes and reports 205 Writing taking notes at meetings 177 Translating professional articles 215 reports, correspondence 187 Writing grammar 211 difficulties vocabulary 200 spelling 197 style 194 punctuation 155 Speaking fluency 204 difficulties grammar 191 style 185 vocabulary 182 pronunciation 160

b) by activity Reading... [professional books] 226 Writing... [reports] 223 Translating... [professional articles] 215 Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences]213 Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people] 210 Speaking... [at formal meetings] 209 Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports] 205 Speaking... [giving presentations] 204 Reading... [professional journals] 201 Listening... [at formal meetings] 196 Listening... [following a training course] 191 Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone] 187 Translating... [reports, correspondence] 187 Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.] 186 Reading... [reports, correspondence] 182 Writing... [essays] 179 Writing... [job application letters] 178 Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors] 178 Listening/Writing... [taking notes at meetings] 177 Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person]175 Writing... [CVs] 174 Listening/Speaking... [travelling abroad] 174 Speaking... [giving instructions and training] 156 Writing... [letters] 155

4) Ex-TA students perceptions of overall needs

a) by skill Reading reports, correspondence 24 professional journals 23 professional books 14 Writing reports 23 job application letters 22 CVs 22 letters 21 essays 20 Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 27 Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 15 receiving foreign visitors 15 use of telephone 15 travelling abroad 14 conversation with one person 10 Listening at formal meetings 26 to speeches, lectures, etc. 19 following a training course 11 Speaking at formal meetings 22 giving presentations 17 giving instructions and training 13 Listening/ writing minutes and reports 9 Writing taking notes at meetings 9 Translating professional articles 34 reports, correspondence 21 Writing grammar 35 difficulties vocabulary 34 spelling 30 style 30 punctuation 26 Speaking fluency 36 difficulties vocaubalry 35 style 30 grammar 30 pronunciation 27

b) by activity Translating... [professional articles] 34 Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person] 27 Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.] 26 Reading... [professional books] 24 Reading... [professional journals] 23 Writing... [reports] 23 Writing... [letters] 22 Writing... [CVs] 22 Speaking... [giving presentations] 22 Writing... [essays] 21 Translating... [reports, correspondence] 21 Writing... [job application letters] 20 Listening... [following a training course] 19 Speaking... [at formal meetings] 17 Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors] 16 Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone] 15 Listening/Speaking... [travelling abroad] 15 Reading... [reports, correspondence] 14 Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people] 14 Speaking... [giving instructions and training] 13 Listening... [at formal meetings] 11 Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences] 10 Listening/Writing... [taking notes at meetings] 9 Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports] 9

5) Ex-HRM students perceptions of overall needs

a) by skill Reading professional journals 38 reports, correspondence 36 professional books 36 Writing reports 41 letters 37 CVs 26 job application letters 24 essays 20 Listening/ use of telephone 50 Speaking conversation with one person 49 meetings with 2-5 people 40 receiving foreign visitors 33 travelling abroad 30 chairing meetings/conferences 27 Listening to speeches, lectures, etc. 51 following a training course 47 at formal meetings 37 Speaking at formal meetings 38 giving instructions and training 37 giving presentations 36 Listening/ writing minutes and reports 26 Writing taking notes at meetings 18 Translating reports, correspondence 19 professional articles 18 Writing punctuation 57 difficulties style 54 vocabulary 52 spelling 40 grammar 41 Speaking fluency 57 difficulties vocaubalry 54 pronunciation 54 grammar 53 style 51

b) by activity Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.] 51 Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone] 50 Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person] 49 Listening... [following a training course] 47 Writing... [reports] 41 Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people] 40 Reading... [professional journals] 38 Speaking... [at formal meetings] 38 Writing... [letters] 37 Listening... [at formal meetings] 37 Speaking... [giving instructions and training] 37 Reading... [reports, correspondence] 36 Reading... [professional books] 36 Speaking... [giving presentations] 36 Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors] 33 Listening/Speaking... [travelling abroad] 30 Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences] 27 Writing... [CVs] 26 Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports] 26 Writing... [job application letters] 24 Writing... [essays] 20 Translating... [reports, correspondence] 19 Listening/Writing... [taking notes at meetings] 18 Translating... [professional articles] 18

6) Academic staffs perceptions of overall needs

a) by skill Reading professional journals 68 professional books 65 reports, correspondence 61 Writing reports 72 essays 68 CVs 63 job application letters 60 letters 57 Listening/ chairing meetings/conferences 71 Speaking meetings with 2-5 people 65 use of telephone 61 travelling abroad 58 receiving foreign visitors 57 conversation with one person 55 Listening to speeches, lectures, etc. 59 following a training course 59 at formal meetings 58 Speaking giving presentations 71 at formal meetings 67 giving instructions and training 64 Listening/ writing minutes and reports 68 Writing taking notes at meetings 61 Translating reports, correspondence 63 professional articles 57

b) by activity Writing... [reports] 72 Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences]71 Speaking... [giving presentations] 71 Reading... [professional journals] 68 Writing... [essays] 68 Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports] 68 Speaking... [at formal meetings] 67 Reading... [professional books] 65 Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people] 65 Speaking... [giving instructions and training] 64 Writing... [CVs] 63 Translating... [reports, correspondence] 63 Reading... [reports, correspondence] 61 Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone] 61 Listening/Writing... [taking notes at meetings] 61 Writing... [job application letters] 60 Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.] 59 Listening... [following a training course] 59 Listening/Speaking... [travelling abroad] 58 Listening... [at formal meetings] 58 Writing... [letters] 57 Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors] 57 Translating... [professional articles] 57 Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person]55

Appendix V

Highest frequency of need

1) Activities with the highest frequency of need by study program

Note: The dark grey shading is used to highlight the activities that received the highest rating in all the groups compared, while the light grey shading shows the activities that received the highest ratings in two of the groups compared.

a) TA group (TA students, TA ex students and academic staff)

activity - highest frequency of need	TA students	ex TA students	academic staff
Reading... [professional books]	*	*	*
Reading... [professional journals]	*	*	*
Writing... [reports]	*	*	*
Speaking... [at formal meetings]	*		*
Speaking... [giving presentations]	*		*
Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences]	*		*
Translating... [professional articles]	*	*
Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person]		*
Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.]		*
Writing... [letters]		*
Writing... [CVs]		*
Writing... [essays]			*
Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports]			*
Reading... [reports, correspondence]	*

b) HRM group (HRM students, HRM ex students and academic staff)

activity - highest frequency of need	HRM students	ex HRM students	academic staff
Reading... [professional journals]	*	*	*
Writing... [reports]	*	*	*
Speaking... [at formal meetings]	*	*	*
Speaking... [giving presentations]	*		*
Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences]	*		*
Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people]	*	*
Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors]	*
Reading... [reports, correspondence]	*
Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.]		*
Listening... [following a training course]		*
Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone]		*
Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person]		*
Writing... [essays]			*
Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports]			*

c) SI group (SI students and academic staff)

activity - highest frequency of need	SI students	academic staff
Reading... [professional books]	*	*
Writing... [reports]	*	*
Speaking... [at formal meetings]	*	*
Speaking... [giving presentations]	*	*
Listening/Speaking... [chairing meeting/conferences]	*	*
Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports]	*	*
Translating... [professional articles]	*
Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people]	*
Reading... [professional journals]		*
Writing... [essays]		*

2) The activities with highest frequency of need all programs

Here the activities from the above three tables are combined to show the activities with highest frequency of need per study program.

activity - highest frequency of need	TA	HRM	SI
Reading... [professional journals]	*	*	*
Reading... [professional books]	*	*	*
Writing... [essays]	*	*	*
Writing... [reports]	*	*	*
Speaking... [giving presentations]	*	*	*
Speaking... [at formal meetings]	*	*	*
Listening/Speaking... [chairing meetings/conferences]	*	*	*
Listening/Writing... [writing minutes and reports]	*	*	*
Reading... [reports, correspondence]	*	*
Listening/Speaking... [conversation with one person]	*	*
Listening... [to speeches, lectures, etc.]	*	*
Listening/Speaking... [meetings with 2-5 people]		*	*
Translating... [professional articles]	*		*
Writing... [letters]	*
Writing... [CVs]	*
Listening... [following a training course]		*
Listening/Speaking... [use of telephone]		*
Listening/Speaking... [receiving foreign visitors]		*

3) Highest speaking and writing difficulty

highest writing difficulty	TA	HRM	SI
vocabulary	*	*	*
grammar		*	*
style	*	*

highest speaking difficulty	TA	HRM	SI
fluency	*	*	*
grammar	*		*

Appendix VI

Answers to open questions

Note: Answers such as I cannot think of anything else are not included in the tables.

1) Answers to the question: What other activities will you probably do / are you doing / will they probably do in English?

a) Answers by groups of respondents

TA students answers - interpretation into English - presentations, translation and understanding of difficult professional texts into English, letter writing - essays and presentations - small chat - presentations, formal communication, English social etiquette HRM students answers - informal conversation - informal conversation with foreigners - presenting job applicants, bid writing, putting on estimates, advertising - questionnaires, data processing (computer programs), web surfing - using the Internet SI students answers - CMC, program applications - computer programming - cooperation via email - finding professional texts - informal conversation - maybe writing literature and poetry - mostly translation, conversation - presenting the company to foreigners - reading literature - reading professional texts - reading professional texts - teaching English - translation of easier texts into Slovene and into English - using computer programs - using computer programs - using the computer, carrying out surveys, things related to social informatics - writing public relations press release and materials

Ex TA students answers - informal conversation with foreigners - small chat Ex HRM students answers - bid writing - preparing contracts, bid writing, interpretation of Slovene laws - presentations, writing summaries, letters of gratitude, letters of request - watching movies Academic staffs answers - communication with foreign students - running computer programs - searching knowledge bases on the Internet - small chat - text analysis

b) Most frequent activities

answer	TA students	HRM students	SI students	Ex TA students	Ex HRM students	Academic staff
- informal conversation with foreigners	1	2	2	2		1
- using computer programs		1	5			1
- giving presentations	3	1	1		1
- bid writing		1			1
- using the Internet		2				1
- reading professional texts	1		2
- text analysis	1					1
- letter writing	1				1
- translation	1		2
- interpreting	1				1
- carrying out surveys		1	1
- CMC			2

2) Answers to the question: What is your occupation?

Ex TA students answers administrator human resources management consultant job-seeker job-seeker job-seeker job-seeker postgraduate student project manager researcher social worker sociologist - researcher youth project coordinator

Ex HRM students answers accountant administrator assistant general manager human resources assistant human resources assistant human resources assistant human resources trainer job-seeker job-seeker job-seeker junior assistant key account manager librarianship marketing no permanent employment yet product manager program manager sales executive sales executive

3) Answers to the question: List some topics that you deal with in English.

a) Answers by groups of respondents

Ex TA students answers - small chat, organizational culture, organizational management - employment, globalization, research reports (family, violence) - Romani people, immigration policy (asylum, refugees)... - human resources - marketing, project management, informatics, sales - social policy - non-profitable organizations, social policy, human rights, social inequality - religion, women's studies - gender studies, pluralization of life styles, homosexuality Ex HRM students answers - human resources - employment conditions, employment contracts - librarianship, development of information communications equipment, trends in library development, permanent education, human resources

b) Most frequent topics

3X: human resources 2X: employment gender issues social policy 1X: education ethnic minorities family, violence globalization human rights immigration informatics information and communications technology librarianship life styles marketing non-profitable organizations organizational culture, organizational management religion sales social inequality

Appendix VII

1) The course evaluation questionnaire

Answer the questions about the English course.

Question 1) What did you like the most?

..

Question 2) What did you find the most useful?

..

Question 3) What did you like the least?

..

Question 4) What did you find the least useful?

..

Question 5) Which book had a better organization: Book 1 (by topic) or

Book 2 (by skill)?

..

Question 6) Any other comments?

..

2) Most frequent answers

The tables show the five most frequent answers to questions 1,2,3,4 and 6, and the answers to question 5. The number next to the individual answer indicates the number of students.

1) Like the most: Translating 12 Vocabulary tasks 8 Up-to-date topics 7 Fair and friendly teacher 7 Grammar exercises 6

2) The most useful: Translating 32 Vocabulary tasks 15 Essay writing 8 Grammar exercises 5 Debates 4

3) Like the least: Essay writing 11 Listening tasks 8 No 5-minute break 6 Translating 5 Having classes early in the morning 4

4) The least useful: Listening tasks 16 Lesson on essay writing 5 Essay writing 3 Speaking in large classes 3 Reading tasks 2

5) Preferred organization of the book: By skill 31 By topic 27

6) Other comments: Motivating teacher 5 Interesting guest lecturers 3 Want more translation tasks 3 Want glossary of terms 2 Interesting classes 2