19 and 20 September 2013 Celje, Slovenia
Culture in ESP Courses
Biljana RADIĆ-BOJANIĆ
Faculty of Philosophy, University of Novi Sad, Department of English Studies, Novi Sad, Serbia
Abstract— Cultural elements in ESP courses first met a lot of disapproval because ESP specialists thought that
the international status of the English language did not allow it to be culture specific, but subsequent changes
in language policies (e.g. Council of Europe and Common European Framework of Reference) changed this
view. This has led to a series of research findings which essentially indicate that the way culture should be
taught in ESP courses and what kind of content (obvious or hidden elements of culture) belongs in ESP
classrooms depends on teachers’ choices as well as future occupational or professional needs of students. This
paper focuses on attitudes and teaching practices of ESP teachers in Serbia with respect to cultural content
with the intention to what factors determine this. The research included 37 ESP teachers from universities and
institutions of higher education all over Serbia who filled out a 22-item questionnaire. The answers were coded
and analyzed in SPSS 13.0. for t-test and ANOVA for independent variables. Research results indicate that the
choice and extent of cultural elements depend on the number of teaching hours and obligatoriness/
electiveness of the course.
Index Terms— culture, ESP, questionnaire, teachers.
I NTRODUCTION
The mutual connection of language and culture implies that when students learn a foreign
language, they necessarily acquire cultural elements of that language. Ref. [1] claims that teachers
teach culture alongside the foreign language. Similarly, Ref. [2] asserts that language cannot be
taught in isolation from culture and without any influence from the teachers’ attitudes about the
target culture. However, the field of LSP did not recognize the role of cultural elements for a very
long time [3], which was especially true for ESP because of the international role of English in the
world today. Namely, as a world lingua franca, the English language is not connected with any
particular culture; instead, it is assigned a universal functional value of world communication,
science, business, trade, etc. Ref. [3] claims that English is not taught to spread British or American
social or cultural values, but to function as a means of international communication in multicultural,
multilingual societies, especially in the fields of industry, entertainment and administration.
Over time, however, these attitudes changed, which was reflected in the language policy
promoted by the Council of Europe and the Common European Framework for Languages, which
insist on intercultural mediation and cultural awareness in every domain and at every level of
language learning, including English language teaching and ESP. The only question is what cultural
elements are to be included in the teaching process. Since ESP relies on different linguistic and
pedagogical considerations and aims from ELT, the principles that regulate the use of cultural
elements are also different. Some factors that dictate this are the students’ needs, their age, level of
cognitive development, and life experience.
It can, therefore, be said that the decision how to teach culture, what to teach exactly, and how
lies in the hand of the ESP teacher as well as in the needs that are dictated by the future profession
of students. For those reasons, this paper focuses on the teaching practice of ESP teachers in Serbia
regarding cultural content and it aims at investigating the extent to which culture is present in their
teaching practice and in what ways and what elements influence the degree and nature of
cultural content. The research included 37 ESP teachers who filled out a questionnaire that
comprised 8 general questions (independent variables), 12 multiple choice questions that cover the
teachers’ attitudes and teaching practice, and 2 open questions (dependent variables). The
hypothesis is that ESP courses do include cultural elements and that their nature and quantity
depend on the number of teaching hours per week.
CULTURE AND ESP
There are many models of culture that have attempted to depict and represent the complexity of
this concept, two of which will be briefly described in this paper. The first one is the Iceberg Model
[4], where culture is visually represented as an iceberg whose tip is visible above the surface of the
278
The International Language Conference on The Importance of Learning Professional Foreign Languages
for Communication between Cultures 2013
19 and 20 September 2013 Celje, Slovenia
water and whose largest part is under the water and not easily seen. This metaphorically represents
obvious and hidden cultural elements, respectively. According to this model, the obvious elements
of culture are: architecture, food, music, language, literature, art, etc. On the other hand, the
hidden elements of culture, concealed under the surface of the water, include such things as norms
and values, speed of work, decision-making patterns, nature of friendship, body language, facial
expressions, perception and value of emotions, etc.
A similar classification is found in Ref. [5], where cultural content is divided into two groups: the
capital ‘C’ culture – Culture, and the small ‘c’ culture – culture. The first category greatly overlaps
with the tip of the iceberg from the previous model and includes music, art, literature of a certain
country. The second category coincides with the hidden part of the iceberg and refers to social
customs, free time activities, differences between men and women, etc. In other words, the small ‘c’
culture covers cultural elements that are encountered daily, behavioural patterns and deeply set
social and moral values.
ESP classes are guided by a different set of principles from general EFL classes because ESP
students are adults with some life experience behind them, who have very specific needs
concerning the foreign language they are learning. Ref. [6] claims that a needs analysis allows the
teacher to choose the content of an ESP course, which may include elements of culture. However, it
can be concluded that these elements belong to the small ‘c’ culture. When it comes to English for
Science and Technology, Ref. [7] stresses the importance of values embedded in the discourse of
science and technology in English, which allows ESP teachers to teach their students how to gain
access to such communities by choosing appropriate and culturally acceptable linguistic
expressions. The analysis of Business English courses has led to a conclusion that these ESP courses
need to include segments such as talking to clients, direct and indirect expression of opinions and
attitudes, body language, etc. [8]. Ref. [9] has investigated ESP courses for students of economics
and concluded that they should be educated regarding the monetary and banking systems of
Anglophone countries, means of transport, manner of trading. Furthermore, they should be taught
how to express their opinions through debates, which would allow them to become aware of
differences between countries, languages and cultures.
It is obvious that the place and role of culture in ESP classes is not always the same, but depends
on the students’ future profession. Furthermore, the particularities of educational policies of some
universities and faculties have an additional influence on the type and quantity of the elements of
both Anglophone and international culture in ESP classes. The research in this paper aims at
discovering the factors that play a role in ESP classes in Serbia and starts with the hypothesis ESP
classes do include cultural elements and that their nature and quantity depend on the number of
teaching hours per week. The questionnaire was filled out by 37 ESP teachers who work at the
universities, faculties and other institutions of higher education in Serbia. Since there are not many
ESP teachers in Serbia, this sample is fairly representative of the entire group and therefore large
enough for a statistical analysis. The average age of informants is 42 and they have worked in higher
education for 10.65 years on average.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The data was coded and analyzed in SPSS 13.0 and ANOVA and t-test were calculated for
independent variables. The ANOVA test for the age of informants did not yield any statistically
significant differences, which implies that this factor does not influence the degree and nature of
cultural elements in an ESP course at Serbian universities. Simultaneously, this implies that the sample
is homogeneous in this respect.
The ANOVA for the number of years that the informants have worked in higher education has
given some interesting results (see Table 1. below).
Table 1: ANOVA for number of years in higher education.
F
p
Do you bring additional material to your students?
To what extent are the elements of culture represented in the coursebook
you are using?
Are you satisfied with the extent of the elements of culture in the coursebook
you are using?
4.613
0.005
6.397
0.001
3.244
0.024
Would you change anything in your teaching practice regarding the
3.086
0.030
The International Language Conference on The Importance of Learning Professional Foreign Languages
for Communication between Cultures 2013
279
19 and 20 September 2013 Celje, Slovenia
elements of Anglophone culture?
According to the data above, the teachers who have worked in the field of ESP for a longer time
bring less additional material to their students, which is explained by the fact that they are more
satisfied with the extent of cultural elements in the coursebooks they are using. Furthermore, they
think that their teaching material has enough cultural content and for that reason they would
introduce less changes in their teaching practice. One possible explanation, confirmed in private
interviews with some of the informants, lies in the fact that ESP teachers who have been teaching for
a longer time usually write their own coursebooks that are custom-made after the needs of their
students and their future profession, which allows them to avoid the pitfalls of using commercial
coursebooks.
The t-test for the obligatoriness/ electiveness of the ESP course has several statistically significant
differences (see Table 2. below).
Table 2: T-test for the obligatoriness/ electiveness of the ESP course.
Are you satisfied with your course material?
Are you satisfied with the extent of the elements of culture in the coursebook
you are using?
Would you change anything in your teaching practice regarding the
elements of Anglophone culture?
t
p
3.839
0.001
2.369
0.037
-2.284
0.036
The fact that an ESP course is obligatory statistically significantly influences the following teachers’
attitudes: (1) the teachers who teach an obligatory course are not satisfied with the course material;
(2) these teachers are also not satisfied with the extent of the elements of culture in the coursebook;
(3) they would change segments of their teaching practice regarding the elements of Anglophone
culture. It is apparent that these three factors mutually influence one another because the
dissatisfaction with the degree of cultural elements leads to the dissatisfaction with the coursebook,
which in turn results in teachers wanting to change their teaching practice. The implication here is
that these teachers are using the commercial coursebook which oftentimes does not cover all their
needs.
The t-test for the weekly number of classes has indicated an important finding (see Table 3.
below).
Table 3: T-test for the weekly number of classes
Would you change anything in your teaching practice regarding the
elements of Anglophone culture?
t
p
2.349
0.026
The results of this t-test imply that the teachers who have more ESP classes per week are less
inclined to change their teaching practice regarding the elements of Anglophone culture. This is
logical because more teaching hours means more time for all the material that an ESP course should
include, i.e. the teachers do not focus just on vocabulary and grammar, but have time to go
beyond the basic linguistic structures.
CONCLUSION
The results of the statistical analysis of the answers from the questionnaires show that the decisions
regarding the cultural content in ESP courses are conditioned by many different factors, some of
which may be well out of the teacher’s control. The results have confirmed the hypothesis that ESP
courses in higher education in Serbia do include elements of culture and that their degree depends
on the number of teaching hours per week. The analysis has also indicated that several other
significant factors influence elements of culture. One of them is the obligatoriness/ electiveness of
the ESP course, whereas the other is the degree of freedom an ESP teacher has. The latter is usually
acquired through the years of practice and an established reputation, which eventually allows the
teacher to write their own coursebook relying on the results of a needs analysis and experience they
The International Language Conference on The Importance of Learning Professional Foreign Languages
for Communication between Cultures 2013
280
19 and 20 September 2013 Celje, Slovenia
have acquired over the years. As this is not usually the case, most teachers have to resort to
commercial coursebooks and supplement their teaching practice with adequate additional
material to meet the needs of their students.
REFERENCES
[1] M. Lessard-Clouston, “Towards an Understanding of Culture in L2/FL Education,” The Internet TESL Journal, Vol. III, No. 5.
1997. http://iteslj.org/Articles/Lessard-Clouston-Culture.html
[2] D. Buttjes, “Teaching Foreign Language and Culture: Social Impact and Political Significance,” Language Learning
Journal, 2, 1990, pp. 53–57.
[3] P. Strevens, New Orientations in the Teaching of English. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1977.
[4] A. Gilbert et al., Intercultural Learning T-Kit No.4. Strasbourg: Council of Europe and European Commission, 2000.
[5] S. Gill & M. Cankova, Oxford Basics: Intercultural Activities. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002.
[6] H. Basturkmen, Developing Courses in English for Specific Purposes. Houndmills: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010.
[7] J. Parkinson, “English for Science and Technology,” in English for Specific Purposes, B. Paltridge & S. Starfield, Eds. Malden,
Oxford, Chichester: John Wiley & Sons Inc, 2013, pp. 155–173.
[8] J. D. Cowling, “Needs Analysis: Planning a Syllabus for a Series of Intensive Workplace Courses at a Leading Japanese
Company,” English for Specific Purposes, 26, 2007, pp. 426–442.
[9] D. Marcu Molcuţ, “Teaching Culture in ESP Classes,” Annales Universitatis Apulensis, Series Philologica, Tom 2, 2007.
AUTHOR
B. Radić-Bojanić is with the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia (e-mail:
radic.bojanic@ gmail.com).
Published as submitted by the author.
The International Language Conference on The Importance of Learning Professional Foreign Languages
for Communication between Cultures 2013
281