Various approaches to teaching English for specific purposes (ESP) are examined in this volume, with a view toward encouraging readers to take a critical stance. The work aims to fill a gap in the existing ESP literature, which Basturkmen argues has “tended to focus on practical issues” rather than on “ideas of learning languages for specific purposes” (p. 5). Another goal is to investigate whether “ESP has been a force for accommodation” (p. 6), serving the interests of discourse communities rather than ESP learners themselves.
The volume has three parts. Part 1 explains the motivation for the volume (chapter 1) and provides a framework to examine ESP (chapter 2). This framework proposes that ESP be viewed in terms of instructors' ideas regarding language, learning, and teaching. In chapter 3, ESP course design is explored. Part 2 introduces language systems in ESP teaching and research, functional descriptions of language, language learning theories, and ESP teaching methodologies and objectives. Part 3 analyzes two ESP projects using the framework from Part 1.
Chapters 4–10 are the core of the text. Chapter 4 discusses language systems, grammatical structures, vocabulary, and organizational patterns. In chapter 5, ways of describing language are introduced. Here, the emphasis is on speech acts, genres, social interaction, and concordances. Chapter 6 explains how language descriptions can inform ESP teaching and research. The focus of chapter 7 is on successful learning, including such issues as social and psychological distance and task-based instruction. In chapter 8, the processes of language acquisition are described, followed by a discussion of knowledge, information processing, and content-based instruction. The emphasis shifts to teaching methodologies in chapter 9, which highlights input and output in instructional strategies. Finally, chapter 10 considers ESP teaching objectives.
There is a discussion of key concepts, relevant research, and applications for each topic covered in the core chapters, followed by questions and projects for further reflection and recommended readings. This aspect of the volume is a strength because readers are prompted to consider their beliefs regarding ESP language teaching and learning. Furthermore, the projects promote individual investigation of issues, such as in chapter 3, in which readers are instructed to interview a practitioner with needs analysis experience.
The effort to present ESP teaching as a global activity is evident from the many examples of ESP materials and courses from different countries (e.g., Bulgaria, China, Indonesia, Turkey, and Spain). These examples, which range from English for vocational purposes to English for academic purposes, nicely demonstrate ESP teaching in different contexts. Chapter 11 analyzes two ESP courses: one on the language of finance in Kuwait and the other an academic writing course.
Given the target audience—graduate students in a TESOL education course—one might have expected the text to begin with an overview of ESP rather than a discussion of aims, impetus, and influence, topics more appropriate for the preface than the opening chapters. If target readers are novices, it seems a misstep to begin to raise questions such as whether ESP teaching supports the interests of linguistically privileged groups. Although this and other similarly challenging questions would have been better placed in the conclusion, the final chapter simply concludes with questions and suggestions for reading.
In covering a wide range of topics, the text sometimes seems a bit rushed, particularly in some discussions of previous research. For example, chapter 5 introduces the concept of genre along with Swales' well-known create a research space (CARS) model, which is presented in a table without further explanation. The discussion then turns to sales letters (Zhu, 1997), Hafner's (1999) study of law examinations, and, finally, Samraj's (2002) analysis of article introductions in natural resources. What is lost by this rapid movement from study to study is the sense of historical development of ESP, a sense that could help newcomers understand the evolution and future directions of the field.
The text is largely descriptive with little critical evaluation and surprisingly little in-depth discussion of controversies. Barely more than one page is devoted to questions of language and power raised by Benesch (1996, 1999) and others. Given the debate surrounding this issue, one might have expected the author to offer her views. Unfortunately, the discussion remains essentially a summary of previous work.
Despite these concerns, this volume can help students in TESOL education gain an understanding of key ESP research and approaches to putting theory into practice. Certainly, the text provides insights into the rich and varied world of ESP and can serve as a practical resource for ESP teacher training programs.
