An Analysis of Ethiopian Federal TVET Institute Trainees’ Academic and Professional Needs of the English Language
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17507/tpls.1301.02Keywords:
English language, needs analysis, Federal TVET Institute trainees, relevanceAbstract
The present study was intended to analyze the Ethiopian Federal TVET Institute trainees’ academic and professional needs of the English language and its relevance to their needs. In the study, descriptive design was employed and data collection tools, namely close-ended questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and content analysis were used. Eighty trainees and 30 former graduates were included using simple random sampling technique to fill in questionnaires and for interviews two major course trainers and two former graduates among those who filled in the questionnaires were selected using the same sampling technique, and all the available (4) Communicative English Skills course instructors were included. Moreover, Communicative English Skills I and II course materials/modules were also analyzed to examine the relevance of the courses to meet the trainees’ academic and professional needs. The questionnaires data were analyzed quantitatively and qualitative data were analyzed using thematic data analysis methods. The study showed that reading technical course books, lecture handouts and examination papers, taking lecture notes, writing organized paragraphs concisely, exam answers, term papers and researches, presenting project reports and seminars orally in the classroom, and listening to lectures and technical conversations are the most frequently needed English sub-skills by the trainees. The findings also showed that most of the language contents are not compatible with the trainees’ English language needs. Thus, the teaching material currently in use lacks topical/thematic relevance to the trainees’ fields of study in almost all the units. The findings might have implications for ESP material developers and course designers.
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