ANALYSIS OF PRACTICE OF TEACHING ESP AT VOCATIONAL COLLEGES

Аннотация

This article explores the current practice of teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP) at vocational colleges. It emphasizes the use of authentic materials, teacher autonomy, and workplace simulation for effective instruction. The piece highlights challenges such as low student motivation and language proficiency, and stresses the importance of aligning ESP content with industry demands. Overall, the article underscores the need for modernized, purpose-driven ESP teaching invocational education. Key words: CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference), vocational college, authentic materials, communicative competence, English for SpecificPurposes, academic lyceum. В статье рассматривается практика преподавания английского языка для специальных целей (ESP) в профессиональных колледжах. Подчеркивается важность использования аутентичных материалов, автономии преподавателя и имитации рабочей среды для эффективного обучения. Отмечаются проблемы, такие как низкая мотивация студентов и слабое владение языком, и необходимость адаптации содержания ESP к требованиям отрасли. В целом, статья подчеркивает необходимость модернизации и целенаправленного подходавпреподаванииESP. Ключевые слова:CEFR (Общеевропейские компетенции владения иностранным языком), профессиональный колледж, аутентичные материалы, коммуникативная компетенция, английскийдля специальных целей,академическийлицей. Ushbu maqolada kasb-hunar kollejlari uchun aniq maqsadlarga yo’naltirilgan ingliz tilini (ESP) o‘qitish amaliyoti tahlil qilinadi. Unda autentik materiallardan foydalanish, o‘qituvchi mustaqilligi va ish muhitini simulyatsiya qilish samarali ta’lim uchun muhimligi ta’kidlanadi. Talabalarning ESP darslarida nisbatan sust ishtiyoqi va ayrim o’rinlarda til darajasi muammo sifatida ko‘rsatiladi, shuningdek, ESP mazmunini sanoat ehtiyojlariga moslashtirish zarurligi aytiladi.Maqolada ESPo‘qitishni zamonaviy vamaqsadli tashkil etish ta’kidlanadi. Kalit so‘zlar: CEFR (Tillar bo’yicha Umumyevropa tillar tizimi), kasb-hunar kolleji, autentik materiallar, kommunikativ kompetensiya, aniq maqsadlarga yo’naltirilgan ingliz tili, akademik litsey. One of the essential components in teaching English for Specific Purposes (ESP) is the use of authentic materials.As Zorica Antić,a lecturerat theUniversity ofNiš,emphasizes, "In ESP, the authentic world must be brought to the students, and they must learn to interact with the language as it is spoken and written in the target context." Despite the availability of many textbooks deemed suitable for ESP instruction, Johns (2011) argues that no single textbook can fully address the specific needs of every situation. Therefore, instructors must rely on their own expertise when selecting materials that will best support the development of students’ language skills. https://ijmri.de/index.php/jmsi volume 4,issue4,2025 1105 ESP materials typically consist of authentic texts, elements of General English, and teacher- created content including task-based activities. Several scholars advocate for delivering ESP instruction in environments that closely resemble the actual workplace. For instance, Crandall (2004) proposed transforming the classroom into a simulated work setting, thereby aligning language learning more directly with specific professional purposes. This approach helps maintain focus onoccupational relevance rather than onlanguagealone. It is increasingly clear that ESP instructors at colleges must focus on more narrowly defined professional fields. Without this targeted approach, students may fail to gain sufficient command of English relevant to their specific disciplines. Addressing this concern, Lui Mei Yang, an ESP practitioner at the Department of English at Northwest Polytechnical University in Xi’an, China, stresses the need for vocational colleges to prioritize job-oriented training in their curricula. She argues that vocational education must shift from a supply-driven to a demand-driven model in order to align more effectively with industry needs, which are becoming increasingly focused on theESPcompetencies of future specialists. However, ESP instructors worldwide face persistent challenges, including students’ limited English proficiency, low motivation, and passive classroom engagement. A particularly pressing issue is the students’ lack of autonomy—they tend to rely heavily on teachers, who end up doing most of the talking and explaining. As a result, teachers often find it difficult to implement their lesson plans and express a desire for more effective teaching conditions. Ideally, ESP should be taught by subject matter experts who also possess strong English proficiency. Such dual expertise ensures that students receive both content-specific instruction and language support. Additionally, effective ESP educators must demonstrate a genuine interest in staying informed about thelatest developments inscience and technology tomaintain relevance in theirteaching. Thus, a key challenge lies in h