A Needs-Based Analysis and Evaluation of the ESP Course Presented to Students of Second Year Pharmacy, University of Algiers 1

Abstract

English for Specific Purposes (ESP) is a branch of English Language Teaching (ELT) that is concerned with teaching English to a specific group of learners with special occupational or academic needs. Those needs are identified by a process called Needs Analysis (NA). The current study aims to investigate the needs of second year pharmacy students at the faculty of medicine, University of Algiers 1, and evaluate their course of English based on that analysis. In light of the recent decisions made by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in Algeria, which promoted the use of English in universities, this research comes as an attempt to identify the shortcomings of the ESP course presented to students of second year pharmacy and offer corrective feedback based on ESP criteria. In order to conduct this descriptive research, an online questionnaire was administered to 500 students in order to examine certain course aspects and identify students’ desires and expectations. Based on the data that was obtained from 125 students, it was revealed that the course does not conform neither to ESP standards nor to modern ELT principles. It is therefore recommended to reform the English syllabus of second year pharmacy and create more comprehensive programme that prioritises group work, productivity, and active engagement in the course. It is also recommended to introduce content of higher difficulty and present learners with articles and scientific papers relevant to their speciality to utilise them as educational material.