Introduction

I have chosen the specialism of English for Academic Purposes as I feel that my skills as a
teacher, and career in general, will benefit greatly from the research and designing of
courses for EAP students. I have taught in two universities, and on several university
preparation courses, and have seen how many foundation year and EAP courses have been
heavily focused on IELTS. While the IELTS test is a great measure of a students
competence, it is felt that a year focussing on this particular test does not prepare students
adequately for their specific bachelor or master course. My goal in undertaking this study
and assignment is to create a course which can run in parallel with an IELTS course in my
university, the British Higher School of Art and Design, and provide students with the
vocabulary and reading and writing skills needed for their art courses. It is felt that this ESAP
course will succeed in preparing students for life without their IELTS course, and ultimately
help them become better autonomous learners.
The group of learners have been chosen because they study on an IELTS preparation
course within the British Higher School of Art and Design. As a teacher working on this
preparation course, it has been noted that these students fail to understand their art project
briefs, have problems with their personal reflections and other reading and writing tasks. I
have worked with 8 groups, consisting of 15 students each, over the past two years, so have
an extensive level of knowledge of their current ability and where they need to be.

What is EAP
English for Academic Purposes is the route teachers and students take in order to
make competent Academic English users from non-native speakers. It differs
from General English in that the focus shifts from being perfect in the surface
level use of the language, to being able to use what one has to achieve
academic goals within the Higher Education sphere. While most GE courses will
spend time enhancing a students grammatical skills, reading comprehension,
bottom up writing skills and speaking fluency, EAP is more directed at a more
global level of understanding ideas and having ones thoughts understood. It is a
mode of teaching which is driven by the needs of the students and is goal driven,
essentially focussing on what the students will or currently need to do, and
making them better at this than they are currently (Gillet, 1996, 2000).
EAP is the medium for helping students from outside the tribe of a particular
Academic Discourse community, enter such communities (Becher, 1989;
Alexander, 2008, p. 15). These discourse communities have their own particular
voice in writing, and principles which are considered appropriate. These students
cannot simply follow their own paths when engaging in academic studies, and
like any other student in a university, they must follow both international and
subject specific norms regardless of their being a non-native user of English
(Hyland, 2002). Essentially, EAP courses should in theory lead to the facilitation
of student autonomy in studying and research (Hyland, 2002).

Student Autonomy
Student autonomy is when a learner is able to study successfully in their chosen
field without the total control of their Language tutor (Alexander, 2008, p. 273)

both inside and outside the classroom, and far beyond the lifespan of the EAP
course (Borg, 2012). Both Holec and Little state that students must take the
initiative when it comes to being autonomous successful students in university
(Little, 2015). They further state that learners must have a positive attitude, set
clear goals, take responsibility for their learning both in and out of class,
understand the purpose of what they are doing and where they are going, and be
pro-active about self-management during their studies. Moreover and more
importantly, students must take time to reflect on what they have learned and
how successful the strategies for learning have been (Borg, 2012). They will
continually make use of learned academic techniques, allowing them to be a
communicative part of their discourse community. Borg provides Sinclairs table
of what being an autonomous student entails, See table 1
Autonomy is a construct of capacity
Autonomy involves a willingness on the part of the
learner to take responsibility for their own learning
The capacity and willingness of learners to take such
3
responsibility is not necessarily innate
Complete autonomy is an idealistic goal
4
There are degrees of autonomy
5
The degrees of autonomy are unstable and variable
6
Autonomy is not simply a matter of placing learners
7
in situations where they have to be independent
Developing autonomy requires conscious awareness
8
of the learning process i.e. conscious reflection and
decision-making
Promoting autonomy is not simply a matter of
9
teaching strategies
Autonomy can take place both inside and outside
10
the classroom
Autonomy has a social as well as an individual
11
dimension
The promotion of autonomy has a political as well as
12
psychological dimension
Autonomy is interpreted differently by different
13
cultures
Table 1: Defining learning autonomy (Sinclair, 2000, (Borg, 2012))

1
2

Critical thinking
Coinciding with the need to take responsibility and be autonomous learners, EAP
learners must make use of critical thinking during their studies. CT is the
questioning of new information, the formation and presentation of own ideas
based upon evidence and other sources, and the bonding of accepted ideas with
new knowledge. For this to be done in reading, the learner must be dominant
while reading, and not absorb without reflection, and as Alexander puts it, they
must question the text for relevancy, accuracy and for placement in their
repertoire of knowledge (2008, p. 259). A critical thinker will have in mind other
sources connected to the sphere which they are reading about, they will be able
to form relationships and find faults, which in turn allows them to fully evaluate
what has been read (Alexander, 2008, p. 254). When a critical thinker writes,
they take a stance on what they are writing about, but they use all of their
knowledge and academic experience to support their views (Alexander, 2008, p.
256) Moreover, they must seek originality in their writing, which may be
completely new ideas, but more than likely showing new relationships between

known ideas (Alexander, 2008, p. 255). This essential thinking process is a

prerequisite in the U.K. education system (Alexander, 2008, p. 251), and
students must be successful at it in this course as it is a British accredited
university situated in Moscow.
Reading in EAP
Reading in EAP classes is more focuses with global understanding, critical
thinking and asking questions than the typical reading engaged with in GE and
IELTS type classes. It is often less important to read the whole text, and more
important to read the right text, and due to the fact that reading forms the basis
for academic study, speed and selectiveness is vital. This type of reading is a
skill which can often be out of the limits of many native speakers, who typically
read at speeds of 300 words per minute. The main reason for such difficulty is
the sheer volume of reading that must be done on higher education courses like
bachelors and masters degrees. This difficulty is further exacerbated if one is
not in fact a native, but a non-native speaker of the target language. Typically,
these individuals read at far slower speeds, Alexander puts the rate at 60 WPM
(Alexander, 2008). There is a tendency to focus on reading quickly under
pressure in many IELTS preparation courses, but reading comprehension must
not be lost at the expense of speed, as a reader needs to understand 70% of a
text for it to be deemed adequately comprehended. Moreover, readers can find
themselves acting as submissive readers (Alexander, 2008, p. 128), allowing the
text to dictate proceedings. This is not the ideal situation to create strong
academic and critical readers, and Alexander suggests a more dominant reading
approach where the reader continuously asks questions of the text and finds the
answers while reading (Alexander, 2008, p. 130). As previously mentioned, the
EAP class is likely to be the last time that students have English classes, and it is
paramount that they leave as strong dominant readers able to process and
reflect on what they read, and this will in turn enable them to have better control
over their academic writing skills.
Writing in EAP
Along with reading at academic level is the key element of writing, which, with
reading, form the foundation of their studies throughout their academic life. It
must be treated as a never ending process of development, unlike what students
are used to in other forms of study. This type of writing will often include sources,
be drafted numerous times, and vary in length to what students are accustomed
to. It is quite common for students to fail to grasp the fact that they are writing
for an actual reader, and as was mentioned above, students must come to
realise that they form part of a wider discourse community, and their voice will
and must be heard. But, like reading, writing academically takes time, and it is
the responsibility of the teacher to provide support and guidance on this journey
to academic proficiency (Alexander, 2008, p. 191). It is quite common for
students arriving into an EAP course from either a General English or IELTS
background to focus on the more surface level aspects of the task, after forming
generalisations from these courses (Alexander, 2008, p. 188). Although writing is
indeed a crucial skill needed to succeed in all academic spheres, an EAP course
alone cannot make completely capable academic writers (Alexander, 2008, p.
191), but it can set them on the path to becoming so.

Writing for most native speakers takes the form of plan, write and then revise,
and so writing development classes are needed in EAP (Silva, 1993). These are
typically carried out in either a product or process approach. The former method
is more focussed with a final draft, and looks at the genre a text fits into, and the
learners try to find commonalities in organisations, functions and structure of the
text, and the norms regarding the language used (Harmer, 2004, p. 92). From
these that form a template and try to develop their text from this.The latter
methodology to teaching writing scaffolds up to a piece of text being written, like
for example brainstorming, group work which means it is more time consuming
(Harmer, 2004, p. 12), and is more of a creative process than product writing.
There is more focus on the theme of the text, the ideas and the global aspects of
the text than with product writing. The two types of writing, however, are not
exclusive (Alexander, 2008, p. 199) (Harmer, 2004, pp. 92-93), and for best
results a combination of the two can be used. It is important in EAP writing to
focus on the purpose for which the learners are writing (Harmer, 2004)
(Alexander, 2008), the audience the text is for so that it can be fine-tuned
(Alexander, 2008), and the structure it much follow. In addition to these
elements, genre specific rhetoric and vocabulary, or what Harmer calls register
of a genre, should be used (2004, p. 17).
In EAP, this hybrid of process-genre writing should be redrafted after the faults
have been noted. This, however, must be done in a disciplined and a controlled
way which focusses not so much on the local level spelling and grammatical
errors, and more so on the global aspects of the text like organisation of ideas
and argument. However, it is well-known that learners like to have their spelling
and grammar marked (Silva, 1993) (Myles, 2002), and Alexander suggests that
the low level marking is better done by the students and their peers, with the
teacher able to focus in on the deeper aspects of the composition (Alexander,
2008, pp. 207-210).

Part two: Needs Analysis

The Learners
There are four groups consisting of a total of 49 Russian speakers, and this is
divided into the following; one group of 13 females, one group of 13 females and
one male, one group of 11 females and one group of ten females and one male.
These four groups represent the lower scoring students on the university
placement test, which is based upon the skills needed for IELTS, averaging
between 5.0 and 5.5 on an IELTS banding. They are currently working towards
raising this IELTS score to 6.0 in order to progress from the foundation year to the
first year in the art school, and failure to do so will result in their rejection from
the university. The current format sees them studying 7 hours per week with a
non-native speaker of English, and 7 hours per week with a native speaker,
myself. The remaining time that they are in the university, they are attending art
lectures, researching for projects, conducting written work and producing pieces
of art. Being in the lower level groups, and with a target set for them, they are all
highly motivated and recognise the limited time available to prepare for and pass
IELTS. While they have support from their team teachers for IELTS related work,

they do not have any support regarding reading and writing for their art projects
and research.
Data collection methods
The ultimate aim of this course is to take students from their present situation
(PS) regarding their EAP proficiencies, towards that which is expected of them in
the target situation (TS). For such an action to be possible, and a course to be
designed, it is essential to look closely at the PS and TS and through Needs
Analysis REF MEHDI P11. Needs Analysis is at the very heart of what EAP is
concerned with as these courses are designed to satisfy learner needs in order to
be successful in a target situation REF Sarah Benesch P723, Mehdi P2,
Hutchinson & Waters P53, Graves p98, and is perhaps where EAP differs to EAP in
that the awareness of the learner needs exists prior to the course REF Graves
P53.
I have chosen to conduct both objective and subjective NA gathering, and will
conduct some of this with the students and with other stakeholders. The more
subjective insights will reveal the felt needs of the students through
questionnaires and discussions, and the perceived needs REF Graves P99 stated
by the lecturers and the director of the university programme in interviews. This
is a similar approach taken by Benesch when she conducted NA in her
Psychology department in order to build an EAP course P.730. It is highly likely
that the views of these two stockholders in the EAP programme are likely to
differ REF Hutchinson and Waters P56 and this NA may prove to be a reconciling
tool for them both REF Graves P99, REF Hutchinson and Waters P56. The
objective parts of my NA will be conducted via reading and writing tasks which
have been designed to replicate what students must do in their art projects.
These tasks will be monitored class activities carried out during a total of 2.5
hours with students assessing their own success at the tasks. I will also be able
to diagnose the strengths and weaknesses of their written work and reading
skills, but will, for this one particular class, pay little attention to their oral
strengths and weaknesses because this will not be the focus of the course REF
Graves P105.
The decision to combine questionnaires, interviews and class activities is based
on the assumption that a single method of data collection is insufficient to reveal
the wants, lacks and necessities of students on the EAP programme, and this is
supported by Richards triangular approach REF Richards 2001 , Hutchinson and
Waters P57, Graves. However, it is also understood that these tools will need to
be applied perhaps multiple times throughout the course REF Graves P98, P107,
and at least once during and at the end. There will be some questions which
students may be able to answer better once they have had experience of
engaging in the EAP course REF Graves P111,
Diagnostic testing strengths and weakness (lacks)
Formative and less formal than summative

Findings

Part three: Course Proposal

Constraints
The course will take place alongside an IELTS course and a foundation art course
in the British Higher School of Art and Design in Moscow. It has been designed to
be taught by myself, which means there will be added pressure as I do not
possess specific knowledge of the art sphere, and it is likely that some texts and
vocabulary will prove testing. The course will mean an increase in the study
hours for students and they will need to be convinced of the merits as they may
not immediately see the benefit of sacrificing their time for more English
(Alexander, 2008, P98).
There are plenty of available rooms within the university, so space will not prove
an issue. There is, however, only a handful of native English teachers who could
work as an EAP tutor due to them being part-time employees with additional
work commitments outside.

Study skills
Students in BHSAD are aware that they cannot rely too much on teacher support
during their art and IELTS classes, they generally lack knowledge of how to study
alone, and this is supported by Burgess and Heads findings where they write
that students do not know how to work for themselves (2005, P8) Students carry

their experience of having to read thoroughly in Russian at high school level into
university life. This type of reading, for example, is quite time consuming in their
L1, and in their L2 at this level, nearly impossible as they tend to read 240 less
words per minute than they would in their mother tongue (Alexander, 2008,
P120) The results of a lack of reading skills is that students tend to plagiarise
more as they try to keep pace with their projects, or they fail to provide analysis
of what they have read in what Alexander quotes as being giving back the
lemons to the tutor when in fact they want the juice (2008, P123). One of the
biggest reasons for this lack of understanding of a text is that students fail to
grasp the global level comprehension of the texts, briefs and other papers they
must read. Such a problem is evident in their IELTS preparation course, so the
development of this skill would benefit them in the immediate instance, and later
in their academic lives.

Bibliography
Alexander, O. A. (2008). EAP Essentials. Reading: Garnet Publishing Ltd.
Becher, T. (1989). Academic Tribes and Territories: Intellectual Inquiry and the
Cultures of Disciplines. Milton Keynes: Society for Research in Higher
Education and Open University Press.
Borg, S. (2012). Learner Autonomy: English Language Teachers Beliefs and
Practices. London, U.K.: British Council.
Gillet, A. (1996, 2000). What is EAP? . IATEFL ESP SIG Newsletter, 6,, 17-23.
Hylanda, K. H.-L. (2002). EAP: issues and directions. Journal of English for
Academic Purposes, 1-12.
Little, D. (2015, 10 25). Learner autonomy and second/foreign language learning.
Retrieved from Centre for languages, linguistics and area studies:
https://www.llas.ac.uk/resources/gpg/1409