1. A needs analysis of Erasmus outgoing students at a state university in Turkey for a prospective EAP course: A case study
Zeynep DURAN KARAOZ
PhD Researcher In Applied Linguistics
University of Reading

2. Erasmus Exchange Program
Plays an important role in the internationalization policy of the universities (Jacobone & Moro, 2015)
English is the only medium for students
Bilateral agreements (number of students, language proficiency..)
Coordinated by National Agencies and International Relations Offices
Language-related problems/ communication-problems (Camiciottoli, 2010)
* decrease in the number of Exchange students
* problems with partner universities

3. English for Specific Purposes
To address the specific communication problems
English for Specific Purposes (ESP) course (Basturkmen, 2010; Dudley-Evans & John, 1998; Hutchinson & Waters, 1987)
* a distinct branch in the ELT
* Emerged from language needs of specific groups
* does not have a particular kind of language, methodology or teaching material
* may be directed to particular fields, particular situations

4. A prospective EAP course…
English for Academic Purposes (EAP) course
* teaching the language to perform tasks in an academic context / study or research skills (Charles, 2013; Hyland & Lamp-Lyons, 2002; Hyland, 2006)
* not only study skills but features of general English as well
* learners from distinct disciplines

5. Aims of the study
To identify Erasmus candidates' specific language needs in oral communication
To come up with recommendations for the content of an EAP course

6. A Needs Analysis…
a crucial stage of an ESP course design (Basturkmen, 2010; Nation & Macalister, 2010)
leads to a focused course (Dudley-Evans & John, 1998)
to determine or refine the course content
identification of « what learners will be required to do with foreign language in the target situation and how learners might best master the target language during the period of training» (West, 1994, p.1)
the process of collecting information on why learners want to learn the language and what skills they will need in their target language use (Basturkmen, 2010)

7. In a Needs Analysis… (Hutchinson & Waters, 1987; West, 1994; Hyland, 2006)
* Necessities or demands of the target situation
* Lacks/ present level of competence
* What learners feel they need
* Learning strategies preferred by learners
* Available resources (e.g. staff, time or funding)
Target Situation Analysis (TSA)
Present Situation Analysis (PSA
Wants
Learning Situation Analysis (LSA)
Means Analysis (MA)
What
How
Using multiple tools
Questionnaire (Ferris &Tagg, 1996) and interviews
4 groups of informants
Who
From multiple sources, informants
* before a course,
* at the start
* during a course
* at the end
Before the course, for the syllabus design
When

8. The research questions
RQ1. What are the language needs of ESs in their target situation for oral communication ability as perceived by different stakeholders (PESs and PCs)?
RQ2. What are the oral communication skills that Erasmus students lack in their present situation as perceived by different stakeholders (ESs and ECs)?
RQ3. What are ESs’ views (wants) on the relative importance of oral communication skills for their study abroad?

9. The study a case study/ a state university in Turkey
mixed methods approach (both qualitative and quantitative tools)
four groups of informants:
* Current Erasmus students (learners of the course)(ESs)
* Previous Erasmus students (PEs)
* Erasmus Coordinators at home university
* Erasmus Coordinators at partner universities

10. Research methodology and participants
ESs (80 in total) and PESs from various departments
Limited to three faculties (28 out of 46)
* Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences (5)
* Faculty of Engineering (12)
* Faculty of Arts and Literature (11)

11. The study RQ1 RQ2 RQ3 Purpose TSA PSA wants Informant PESs (6) PCs(2)
ECs (4)
Research tool
Structured Interview
Online Questionnaire
Analysis
Qualitative
Quantitative

12. Results Target Situation Analysis (as perceived by PESs and PCs)
Three themes emerged:
* Academic settings
- pronunciation
- lecture understanding
- note-taking
- asking and answering questions in class
* Official settings
- oral presentations in lectures or seminars/conferences
* Social settings
- communicating actively out of class (in social settings)
- understanding the media tools for social integration

13. Results
Present Situation Analysis/ lacks (as perceived by ESs and ECs)
* speaking-related skills
- giving formal speeches
- participating effectively in class discussions
- communicating effectively with peers in small-group discussions
- lecture note-taking
* listening-related skills
- understanding lectures

14. Results Wants/ ESs’ views as to what they need * lecture understanding
* general comprehension
* no need to learn formal language
* communication with lecturers is less important for their studies.

15. To note Mismatches between the perceptions of informants
- e.g. general conversational abilities were not perceived a difficulty by ESs while ECs argued that students had real problems with this skill.
- or understanding lectures and taking notes are important skills but learners do not perceive themselves efficient in these skills.
A number of situations for formal language use (e.g. oral presentations, lectures, seminars, meetings, visa application centres, police offices, registrar’s offices or international relations offices of the universities).
Problems with speaking-related skills

16. Recommendations for the EAP course syllabus
Functional-situational syllabus (Richards, 2001)
Designing a course:
- based on communicative activities and offering opportunities to transfer their knowledge
- with the use of authentic materials (e.g. Timetables at an airport, visa application documents)
- with main focus being on language functions and skills in their academic environment
- incorporating some basic communication skills needed to fulfil daily life issues

17. Pedagogical Implications
- Learners need assistance in general listening comprehension as well as in their lectures for their success (e.g. use of recordings with speakers from a variety of language backgrounds)
Lack of confidence in oral communication abilities/ repeatedly expressed by the participants
The contribution of native-speakers or incoming Erasmus students could be sought for in/out of class activities or tasks
Need for more practice in course designs and refinement in curriculum in Turkey

18. Further research Larger number of participants
Broader contexts (e.g. İnvolvement of more Erasmus students from different universities in Turkey or Europe)
Use of more research tools (e.g. Narrative frames)

19. References
Basturkmen, H. (2010). Developing courses in English for specific purposes. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. Camiciottoli, B. C. (2010). Meeting the challenges of European student mobility: preparing Italian Erasmus students for business lectures in English. English for Specific Purposes , 29 (4), Dudley-Evans, T., & St.John, M. J. (1998). Developments in ESP: a multi-disciplinary approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Ferris, D., & Tagg, T. (1996a). Academic listening/speaking tasks for ESL students: problems, suggestions and implications. TESOL Quarterly , 30 (2), Hutchinson, T., & Waters, A. (1987). English for specific purposes. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press. Hyland, K. (2006). English for academic purposes: an advanced resource book. Oxon: Routledge. Hyland, K., & Hamp-Lyons, L. (2002). EAP: issues and directions. Journal of English for Academic Purposes , 1 (1), Jacobone, V., & Moro, G. (2015). Evaluating the impact of the Erasmus programme: skills and European identity. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education , 40 (2), Nation, I., & Macalister, J. (2010). Language curriculum design . London: Routledge. Richards, J. J. (2001). Curriculum Development in Language Teaching. New York: Cambridge University Press. West, R. (1994). Needs analysis in language teaching. Language Teaching , 27 (1), 1-19.

20. THANK YOU!