Professional Experience and Application of English Language in

the Specific Area of Shipping

Nives Vidak and

Sandra Didović Baranac

University of Dubrovnik, Croatia

Introduction

globalisation

internationalisation

English – international language

Maritime English

Research at the University of Dubrovnik, Maritime Department:

Test – 10 tasks

differences in application of English (vocabulary and grammar) relevant for the occupation

students professionals

EXPERIENCE

Teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP) – DEFINITIONS:

1. Hutchinson and Waters (1987) content and method of teaching ESP is

based on the learner’s reason for learning

1. ESP teaching designed to meet specified needs of the learner

2. related in content to particular disciplines or occupations

3. centred on language appropriate to those activities (syntax, lexis, discourse, semantics)

4. in contrast with general English

1. ESP may be restricted as to the learning skills to be learned

2. it is not taught according to any pre-ordained method

2. Strevens (1988)

absolute and variable characteristics

3. Dudley-Evans and St John (1998) ESP is designed to meet the specific

needs of the learners – it makes use of the underlying methodology and activities of the specialisation

Croatia – Gačić (1988) a) linguistic factors b) extra-linguistic factors (sources of

information, situations, strategies of application and utilisation of information, profile and needs of students, status of profession)

Teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP) – CLASSIFICATION:

Dudley-Evans and St John (1998)

ESP

English for Occupational

Purposes (EOP)

English for Academic Purposes (EAP)

English for Professional

Purposes

English for Vocational Purposes

English for Medical Purposes

English for Business Purposes

Pre-Vocational English

Vocational English

English for (Academic) Science and Technology

English for (Academic)

Medical Purposes

English for (Academic)

Legal Purposes

English for Management, Finance and Economics

ESP Teacher – Student

TEACHER STUDENT

SUBJECT

SPECIALISTS

constant upgrading

employment oriented

pre-experience

post-experience

collaboration

Areas of language issues in ESP

GRAMMAR syntax, long nominal

groups, passive

VOCABULARY specific

DISCOURSE

taught in relation with the real job situation situational principle

Maritime English

a variety of terms and abbreviations (instruments, procedures, regulations)

long nominal groups, subordinate clauses and passive constructions (reports, instructions, procedures, correspondence)

RESEARCH - Aim

to determine whether there are differences between the two groups of participants: students and seamen in application of professional English

Sample

62 full-time students

41 seamen (special training programme for seafarers at the University)

WORK EXPERIENCE Table 2 – Work experience

Frequency Percent Valid Percent

Cumulative

Percent

Valid Yes 41 39,8 39,8 39,8

No 62 60,2 60,2 100,0

Total 103 100,0 100,0

Instrument

a test containing 10 tasks

specific terminology

grammatical forms in the specific

context

Data collection and analysis

students: during regular classes

seamen: at the start of the training programme

Two types of analysis employed:

1. descriptive statistics

2. Mann-Whitney U-test (to compare

two independent groups of sampled data)

RESULTS

Table 5 – Test Statisticsa

Task 1 Task 2 Task 3 Task 4 Task 5 Task 6 Task 7 Task 8 Task 9 Task 10

Mann-Whitney U 1234,500 722,000 1197,000 1144,000 1108,500 1097,000 701,000 895,000 1077,000 872,500

Wilcoxon W 2095,500 1583,000 3150,000 2005,000 1969,500 1958,000 2654,000 2848,000 3030,000 2825,500

Z -,285 -4,656 -,742 -1,050 -1,518 -2,191 -4,681 -2,925 -2,033 -3,349

Asymp. Sig. (2-tailed) ,776 ,000 ,458 ,294 ,129 ,028 ,000 ,003 ,042 ,001

a. Grouping Variable: Status-composite

Statistically significant difference in tasks 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

DISCUSSION

STUDENTS tasks 2, 6

Task 2 (blank): basic vocabulary from text books - definition

Task 6 (multiple choice): passive

SEAMEN tasks 7, 8, 9, 10 (assessing grammar) Task 7 (blank): correct verb form

Task 8: form a question to offered reply

Task 9 (blank): modal verb

Task 10 (translation): time clause

CONCLUSION

The STUDENTS scored better in two tasks

similar to their textbook definition of a vocabulary item

accustomed to multiple choice tasks

The SEAMEN scored better in four tasks

situational use of grammar – mimicking language application in authentic job oriented environment

verb and sentence structures occuring repeatedly in the working environment

acquiring language unconsciously

Work experience and authentic language exposure help in the complex process

of language learning

Future research larger samples involving other research paradigms

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION