This research which is about the Issues Involved in Designing ESP Courses for Kuwait Business Institute Students with Special Reference to Computer Science Students consists of seven chapters. The first chapter introduces Kuwait Business Institute. The second offers the historical background of ESP and a survey of its theoretical bases. The third gives an account of the three stages of KBI's life span along with a critical appreciation of the English language teaching materials used. The fourth presents questionnaires and constructed interviews used in identifying needs of employers, teachers and graduates and expounds their results. The fifth presents approaches to text analysis and a functional analysis of two chapters selected from two textbooks used by KBI computer science students. The sixth goes into the classroom with computer science teachers and students and presents an analysis of three lectures by three computer science teachers. The last chapter presents conclusions from a synthesis of findings. The findings call for the rejection and replacement of current English Language teaching materials. They also support a broader needs analysis. This should include views, concerning demands made by the language of the computer science academic courses content, of teachers, students and employers. It should also include the results of text analysis component of the relevant academic courses content. Recommendations and suggestions for further research when designing ESP courses for KBI computer science students in particular and students of different specialisations in general are made.

The stimulus for this study was problems I encountered in my teaching of academic writing to first year undergraduates majoring in English at a Moroccan university. Their problems ranged from sentence, to paragraph to essay levels. Added to that was my realization that the teaching of writing is mainly product-oriented and that practice is far from theory. Students are expected to produce good writing, but the means for helping them attain the required writing standards are not clearly identified or provided. A focus on narrative writing seems not to serve the purpose of training students to make their voices heard in argumentative writing. Reliance on lecturing as a means of teaching writing robs the writing class of an appealing social environment. These problems combined with a personal desire to improve my teaching by researching my professional practice against the insights of theory; all these factors gathered to stimulate me to undertake the present research. This project is based on the teaching of a writing programme I developed based on my previous experience as a writing teacher and on student need. In its progressive teaching of writing the programme follows a process approach; however, the product perspective is also important. Students are exposed to three types of feedback on multiple-draft writing: self-monitored feedback using annotations; peer feedback; and teacher written feedback and taped commentary. The aim is to encourage them to experience writing as an interactive process, from the pre-writing activities through the actual writing and revising to the writing of a final draft, rather than as a monotonous solitary activity performed under exam pressure. Using a case study approach this qualitative inquiry looks into the extent to which students make use of the different types of feedback in their revisions, their attitudes to the feedback procedures, and whether text quality improves over the drafts during the course period. For this purpose various data collection tools have been used. These include questionnaires, in-depth interviews, students' writings, audio-taped recordings of student peer feedback sessions, teacher written and taped comments, and student diaries. In line with previous research, the present study has shown that self-monitored feedback using annotations can help identify problematic areas in writing, but it has also added that annotations can unveil students' perceptions of what constitutes good writing. Moreover, the study has demonstrated that peer feedback activities are not only helpful in terms of encouraging revision but that they have other cognitive, linguistic and affective benefits. Finally, there is strong evidence that teacher written feedback is still considered by students to be a major source of help and that they do take it into consideration in their revisions. In addition, teacher taped commentary, a type of feedback which has received little attention in the literature, is an effective means of commenting on content and organisation and focusing student revision on these areas. Students have also appreciated it and acknowledged its cognitive, linguistic, affective, and practical benefits. Furthermore, the study has shown that although students' writings have not systematically, and regularly, improved from first to second drafts, i. e. after revision following peer feedback, there is a tendency for improvement from second to third drafts. i. e. after revision following teacher feedback. On the whole, improvement in text quality varied from one student to another and also from one draft to another for the same student. The main implications are that the one-draft writing tendency in the context of the study should give way to multiple-draft writing. The motivating force of revision can be promoted and enhanced through the use of different types of feedback on separate drafts. More importantly; however, the writing class should cater for student need by making use of motivational instructional and feedback activities.

The issue of teaching and learning communication strategies has been controversial over the past few decades. Whereas some theoretical arguments reject the benefits of teaching of communication strategies, many practical and empirical studies make pedagogical recommendations and support the idea. Nevertheless, there appears to be no information on teaching communication strategies to Thai learners of English in Thailand. To address these issues, this thesis investigates the effects of teaching communication strategies to Thai learners of English in Thailand. It was designed as an interventionist study conducted with a group of students. Both qualitative and quantitative data were collected in the current study. Sixty-two fourth year students majoring in Engineering at King Mongkut’s University of Technology North Bangkok participated in this study. All the students received a 12-week communication strategy-based instruction and 12 students were asked to complete four speaking tasks and retrospective protocols. Data were collected via (1) self-report strategy questionnaire, (2) attitudinal questionnaire (3) transcription data of four different speaking tasks, and (4) retrospective protocols. The results from the self-report strategy questionnaire and the speaking tasks showed that the explicit teaching of communication strategies raised students’ awareness of strategy use and promoted the greater use of taught communication strategies of the students. The students considered the taught strategies in communication strategy instruction useful, especially pause fillers and hesitation devices, approximation, self repair and circumlocution. With respect to the retrospective verbal reports, the findings showed that the students tended to be more aware of the taught communication strategies. They revealed their intention and reasons behind their use of some taught communication strategies in more detail while completing the postspeaking tasks. Finally, the positive outcomes of the teaching of some specific communication strategies were supported by the findings of an attitudinal questionnaire on the strategy instruction. The findings suggest that the students found the communication strategy instruction useful for them. They also showed positive feelings and attitudes towards the communication strategy instruction.

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The objectives of this study are to assist Thai university students to develop their writing by using a teaching approach that focuses on the introduction of discourse within a genre approach based on the teaching and learning cycle of Feez (1998). This approach is considered suitable for an approach to teaching writing focused on discourse, because its design requires English language teachers to consider the importance of the whole text. It allows students to view texts as a whole, not in separated sentences, especially when they organise and connect ideas during writing. The study draws on both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The quantitative approach concentrates on the development of the students‟ writing by comparing the mean scores from the initial and final writings of students. Forty students were requested to complete four writing assignment during the course. The data were analysed by employing a pair sample t-test to compare initial and final scores. The iii qualitative approach deals with how peer feedback helps promote reader awareness and the attitudes of students and teachers. The qualitative data were gathered by various instruments, such as questionnaires, interviews, students‟ reflective writing, peer feedback, and so on. The results of the study revealed that: 1) students can perform better in writing ability, demonstrated from the overall scores. There is significant difference (p<.05) between the overall mean score in the final assignment and the initial assignment; 2) students are concerned about how to provide sufficient information for the readers. They understand the role of the writer, which is to provide more information for the readers, and are aware of the role of the reader; 3) the use of peer feedback is beneficial for students, and it also promotes student awareness of the sense of audience; 4) The attitudes of the students and teachers were positive towards teaching that focused on discourse structure. The students found that it was useful for them, because they realised how to connect and organise cohesive text; 5) most of the teachers noted that it was beneficial to be introduced to the way of teaching writing through approach focusing on discourse structure. 6. The modified version of Feez‟ cycle of teaching and learning is beneficial and support students to improve their writing through the course. 7. Portfolio assessment is an effective measure that helps students gauge their progress and allows them to see their writing improves in later drafts. 8. Students‟ reflective writing helps them promote their awareness of readers during the course.

Higher education in the UK has changed from a system catering for an elite, to one which aims to improve the potential of over 40% of young people (Clark, 2003). Whilst not rejecting the idea of education for its own sake, this thesis suggests that one of the purposes of this mass higher education is to fit students for employment. It maintains that for students studying English and Media, this purpose includes the ability to produce Standard Written English. It examines the complexities involved in producing English and Media graduates who have this competence and explores the power relationships involved in teaching and assessing writing. The theories of Bourdieu are used to give a perspective on the use of Standard Written English as an important aspect of cultural capital which distinguishes members of the educated discourse community. Using written work and interview data from fifteen English and Media undergraduates at one university, plus written tutor feedback and comments, it considers the reasons why students might not meet the criteria set. It challenges the notion that because spelling, punctuation and grammar are ‘surface features’, achieving competence in using them is easy or relatively unimportant. In firmly rejecting the ‘student deficit’ approach, this thesis maintains that there is a need to openly acknowledge different literacies, their social consequences and the complexities involved in changing writing habits. This acknowledgement then necessitates a curriculum which includes genuine opportunities and encouragement to acquire a valuable asset. It is suggested that in doing so, the UK higher education system can move a step further away from its elitist, gatekeeping function and closer to delivering meaningful qualifications and relevant expertise to those students whose employment prospects are linked to written communication.

This is an exploratory mixed methods case study which investigates a number of critical issues regarding the teaching and learning of an English Language and Literature Department (henceforth the ELLD) in a Chinese university, including curriculum development, content-based instruction, and teachers’ cultural, professional and disciplinary identities etc. It originally aimed to examine three university teachers’ codeswitching behaviours. Classroom observation, interview and stimulated recall were employed to collect data for the Phase I of the study. However, analysis of codeswitching categories identified a predominance of extended expositions of Western and Chinese literature, culture and philosophy etc., which prompted the follow-up interviews (Phase II) further exploring the relevant issues concerning the disciplinary construction of ELLD in China. Findings from follow-up interviews suggested that teachers’ classroom practice was influenced by their cultural, professional and disciplinary identities. It also became clear that in the ELLD context, approaching literature, culture and philosophy from both the Chinese and Western perspectives reflected a cross-cultural view of the content-based teaching for the teachers. Moreover it highlighted the current lack of courses on liberal arts and excessive emphasis on English language skills in the national curriculum for the English majors. This study reveals a fundamental problem of the development of the ELLD in Chinese universities. It is suggested that awareness should be raised of target language use in both skills-based and content-based courses in the EFL context in China. In addition, it recommends further research to explore ways in which the national curriculum might be reformed to reflect the humanities characteristics of ELLD and universities should be given more space and freedom to address their specific requirements within the national curriculum.

The study tracked development along university levels in writing in English as a foreign language of students of two disciplines: English Language and Literature, and Computer Science. Informed by the cognitive process theory of writing, other theoretical accounts of development in writing and findings of relevant literature, the study set out to test hypothesized development in fluency, revision behaviour, writers‟ awareness and concerns and text quality in the writing of university students. Moreover, the study aimed to find out if students from the two majors demonstrate different developmental patterns in terms of these variables; and if variation in text quality can be related to writing process and awareness. The study utilized a computer logging program (ScriptLog) as the main recording, observing and playback research tool; elicited responses to immediate recall questions; and obtained independent text assessment. It also employed stimulated recall procedure to get a closer look at a small proportion of individual writing sessions. Quantitative data analysis revealed that along the university levels English majors demonstrated systematic development in their writing process and product, with progressively increased fluency, higher-level and more global revision orientation, and better awareness of the demands of task and audience. They also exhibited considerable and consistent improvement in text quality. Computer Science students, on the other hand, displayed a different pattern. In their fourth level there was a notable increase in the rate of production and the proportion of conceptual revisions, but a significant decrease in text quality compared with their three-semester juniors. In their eighth semester, they demonstrated improvement but remained in a lesser position than their English-major peers in fluency measures and text quality. These findings assert the significance of formal L2 knowledge in assisting automatic access to the mental linguistic repertoire and reducing concerns over local and surface-level linguistic details; and they stress the importance of continued formal facilitation of L2. In addition, a number of participants attended individual writing sessions wherein their writing activity was followed by stimulated recall interviews. A close investigation of participants‟ reports of their writing strategies and concerns asserts the trends found in the quantitative analysis. However the qualitative inquiry offers more insight into the development of university students. It appears that the tertiary academic experience has in the long run benefited both groups of writers. Senior participants of both majors were able to take authority of their texts. They acted less at surface and local levels and more at conceptual and global levels, moving information around and changing larger chunks of text in order to minimize ambiguity and respond to the demands of audience. They showed consideration and utilization of content knowledge they had acquired in their subject area.

Over the last two decades, research has exposed the need for new responses to English in various regions of the world, raising many critical issues. Recent English as a Lingua Franca (ELF)-oriented research deals with English in Asian contexts; however there seems to be insufficient research related to South Korea and, especially, Korean postgraduate-level students’ orientations to English. To help address this gap, this PhD thesis reports research into changes to South Korean postgraduate students’ use of and feelings about English during their study abroad in the UK. Explorations and discussions of the findings of this study shed light on the students’ orientations and attitudes to English before coming to the UK, how their attitudes and beliefs adjusted over the course of an academic year, and the factors that played a part in these changes. This research produces a comprehensive study of Korean postgraduate students using English in a multilingual but also native English language setting and reveals how the students oriented themselves to English in Korea, how useful their English preparation was before arrival in the UK, how they feel about their English, and what influenced the evolution of their perspectives over time. Importantly, the findings of the study suggest that the experience of living and studying in the UK had an impact on the participants’ attitudes and orientations towards English and their language use; among numerous other effects, a move away from norm-dependence in general, and in particular increasing awareness of the existence of different English varieties, were widely evidenced. The results give rise to new potential avenues for research into language attitudes and provide a deeper understanding of language(s) and language users in the field of English as a lingua franca in this previously unexplored context.

It is well understood by international students who are studying in an English speaking country that proficiency in English is crucial to success. English for Academic Purposes has conventionally aimed to focus on a blend of language skills and study strategies to support students before and during their postgraduate studies. It is apparent from anecdotal information that the needs of Saudi Arabian students are not being met, as they continue to encounter problems with the academic culture of the British higher education system. This study investigates the needs of Saudi students. It draws principally on present situation analysis and target situation analysis to explore the extent of students‟ needs. It exceptionally introduces a new element, referred to as cultural aspects of learning analysis, to assess new areas that preparation courses can usefully focus on. A mixed methods approach is used in this study (Questionnaire, Interview, and Observation), and three groups of participants were approached for the purpose of data collection to determine precisely what elements of academic study in the UK uniquely pose problems for Saudi students. The questionnaire was distributed to 62 Saudi students (male and female) studying at postgraduate level at Southampton University; from this, deductions could be drawn that should apply across the whole Saudi community of graduate learners in the UK. Interviews were composed of three sets: with postgraduate students; with students studying on the English for academic studies programme; teachers teaching on the English for academic studies programme. The observations centred on different English for academic studies classes. Therefore, the data have been analysed qualitatively and quantitatively. The research examines traditional methods of English teaching in the KSA within the context of the Saudi education system, and surveys attitudes towards the difficulties of studying in the English language, in terms of language differences and the academic cultural demands of British postgraduate study programmes. It also examines the area of English for Academic Purposes to ascertain why Saudi students report that these courses do not meet their target situation needs. The results of this study reveal that there are indeed specific needs that relate only to Saudi students studying in the UK, and that a number of these do relate to cultural difference. The recommendations assist in three major areas: (a) to outline suggestions for the provision of preparation courses in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; (b) to improve the provision of programmes of English for Academic Purposes; and (c) to provide advice to Saudi students in their studies in the United Kingdom.