The English Language needs of business students at Adama Science and Technology University, Ethiopia
Loading...
Date
2015-06
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Nawa: journal of language and communication
Abstract
English plays an irreplaceable role in international businesses. According
to the statistics, over 80% of international corporations use English as their
working language (Zhang, 2007). It is now widely recognised that “…English
has become the primary language for doing international business” (Estaban
& Cañado, 2004, p.137). The purpose of this study was to investigate the English
language needs of business students at Adama Science and Technology
University. A survey method was employed for this study. To this end, questionnaires,
interviews, teaching materials, evaluation checklists and model
proficiency tests were designed based on the related literature reviewed. Then,
the data gathered were analysed using mean scores and percentiles. Based on
the results, findings were summarised in terms of the research questions. As
the findings of this study pointed out, the target groups were not satisfied with
the English courses being offered. There was a big gap between the English
courses offered and the students’ needs. There were also gaps between what
the target groups could do and the language necessities in the target situations.
Similarly, it was noticed that the target groups had limitations in performing
specific tasks in English. On the other hand, the results of the target
situations language needs analyses indicated that business graduates were
expected to acquire special English language skills for different purposes. In
fact, it was confirmed that employers want their workers to be proficient in
specific English language skills.
Description
*Lecturer and public relations director at Adama Science and Technology
University, Adama Ethiopia
**Associate Professor, Namibia Science and Technology University, Windhoek,
Namibia
Keywords
Needs analysis, Business graduate, Business English, ESP, World of work
Citation
Mognhode, T., & Zeleke Woldemariam, H. (2015). The English Language Needs of Business Students at Adama Science and Technology University, Ethiopia. NAWA Journal of Language & Communication, 9(1), 150–193.