Abstract. Due to the development of global economy and increased geographical and occupational mobility, communication with people from multicultural backgrounds has become commonplace in many healthcare institutions. As the demographic profiles of both patients and medical personnel are increasingly varied, intercultural competence (IC) has become an integral component of English for Medical Purposes (EMP) training. However, are medical students generally familiar with the notion of intercultural competence? What intercultural aspects should they be aware of in order to practise effectively when they graduate? The aim of this article is to present medical students' understanding of IC based on a survey conducted among undergraduate learners at the Medical University of Bialystok, Poland. The article begins with a discussion on intercultural competence in the context of health care. Following this, a discussion on why intercultural competence needs to be incorporated and used in Medical English programmes is presented.
According to the regulations of the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, university graduates should have to know a foreign language at B2 level, as described in The Common European Framework of Reference, and they should know its specialized variety. These are the only recommendations concerning general language courses and their specialized varieties. It is up to schools of foreign languages or other institutions providing language courses for institutions of higher education to determine requirements concerning language for specific purposes. However, students are rarely asked to contribute to the development of curricula and syllabi. This article presents the results of a survey conducted among students of Economics and Management at the University of Białystok. The survey was devoted to students’ perceptions of Business English in English courses conducted by the School of Foreign Languages at the University of Białystok. The aim of the survey was to answer the following questions: - what do students of Economics and Management at the University of Białystok believe to be the appropriate proportion of general English to Business English? - when would they like to start learning Business English? - what Business English topics do students find interesting? - how do Economics and Management students use the knowledge and skills gained in Business English classes? The article also presents possible implications of the survey for ESP course designers, and stresses the importance of needs analysis for developing ESP syllabi in the context of Polish tertiary education
In view of the fact that teacher discussions in professional online communities are not frequently researched, the author decided to conduct a small scale study with the aim to analyse discussions held by members of two Facebook groups for English language teachers. The findings show that members of both groups want to know how they could help their students, and discuss their own professional and personal needs. Moreover, members of both groups show their appreciation not only towards practical solutions, but also towards the theoretical content suggested by others. Furthermore, the analysis has revealed that language teachers need to be constantly motivated, inspired and reassured that they are doing their job well. Finally, the findings show that, apart from creating their own personal learning networks in Facebook groups, their members treat them as arenas for promoting their products, services, or events.
Nowadays, when face-to-face human interactions are restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, students have fewer opportunities to put their oral communicative abilities to the test. Under these circumstances, technology becomes an ally of both teachers and learners. While synchronous tools enable students to communicate with one another in real time, asynchronous tools allow them, among others, to record their utterances for review and self-evaluation. This paper aims to indicate which technological solutions could help teachers increase learners’ oral production in the ESP classroom (with particular emphasis on Medical and Business English) and which ones could help students improve their speaking skills independently.
The field of ESP language testing seems to represent significant challenges for trainers. The challenges frequently lie in developing reliable assessment tools, balancing background knowledge and language proficiency in ESP tests, or choosing specific language skills and competencies which ought to be tested in particular fields of academic or professional activity. The aim of this article is to report on a study conducted among ESP teachers practising in a number of educational institutions in Poland. The research sought to investigate what challenges ESP teachers face in designing tests in the context of the subject specific approach in foreign language instruction.
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