What do Medical Students Need to Learn in Their English Classes?

Abstract

Abstract-Our long term goal as teachers is to match the content of the courses to the students' needs. The students of medicine are not so positive about the content of their course. Due to the different levels of the students' backgrounds in English classes or ESP classes and regarding the obstacles the instructors are encountered with in what to teach so as to meet the expectations of ESP students a needs analysis can be so helpful, so as to channel the instruction toward the learners' enthusiasm and interest and to make the output worthy A needs analysis assessment is a very beneficial step to reach this goal. The overall aim of the NA is the identification of elements which will lend themselves to training (Gillet 1973).This research is an endeavor to find out about the needs of the students of medicine in mastering different skills of language in the process of academic context.To do this research students were asked to ill out a questionnaire of needs analysis . The findings revealed that most of the students attached priority to mastering basic skills. The results of this research can be helpful in making decisions on what to teach to such students. By means of carrying out such a research instructors can be aware of the particular needs and perceptions of their subjects in the classroom which otherwise may remain hidden from the sight of those involved in curriculum planning on one hand and assumed instructors on the other hand. Index Terms-needs analysis, English for specific purposes ( ESP), medical students I. BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTIONEMS (English for Medical Students) programs have been developed without conducting a systematic needs analysis from both the students' and instructors' point of view. On the importance of needs analysis there are myriad of viewpoints. Widdowson (1981) states that "if a group of learners' needs for a language can be accurately specified, then this specification can be used to determine the content of a language program that will meet these needs."Hutchinson &Waters (1992) argue that if learners, sponsors, and teachers know why learners need English, that awareness will have an influence on what will be accepted as reasonable content in the language course and what potential can be exploited. The ESP approach uses the needs analysis framework as the main tool to define learners' needs in a specific field because the awareness is more recognizable in a specific target situation representing a "real-life-situation". Witkin and Altschuld (1995) define needs analysis as a systematic set of procedures undertaken for the purpose of setting priorities and making decisions about programs or organizational improvement and allocation of resources. These statements are a means to channel our thought toward the importance of needs analysis and how it can help b teachers, curriculum designers and students to reach the goal of language learning in academic contexts as well as in any other settings.English teachers in academic levels (EAP) are responsible to help students develop the kind ...

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