Essay Sample on Differences Between English for Specific Purposes and English for General Purposes

Introduction

Over the years, the concepts of English for general purpose (EGP) and English for the specific purpose (ESP), have been subject to increased confusion among individuals. ESP refers to the form of instructions that strive to meet the learner's particular requirements. ESP applies in various activities and the underlying strategies, which makes it an ideal language for activities such as study skills, grammar, register, and discourse & genre. Therefore, English for Specific Purposes has a learner-centered approach to instructing English as an additional language. Equally, ESP is focused on the development of communicative competencies in specific areas, such as businesses, information technology, accounting, and engineering, among others. Through these instructions, individuals are exposed to the real world and effective workplace communication practices.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Save 25%

On the other hand, English for General Purposes (EGP) refers to an approach of instructing that is applied in schools and different wide-range contexts where the specific purposes cannot be quantified. Precisely, English for the general purpose provides a broad foundation for learning, as opposed to the particular and detailed scope and objectives covered by ESP. The knowledge of the language is essential in the modern day because it serves as a reliable foundation for improved communication. In contemporary societies, proficiency in language acts as a source of technological advancement since it allows for the transfer of research and information regarding global problems. Additionally, regardless of the approach, the development of language skills strives to expand the proficiency of students in English, making use of texts of specific and general learning areas. These texts focus on the communicative needs of the students and combine the acquisition of general and specific information with the development of linguistic skills. However, some of the differences between EGP and ESP can be attributed to various factors.

Definition

One of the critical differences between ESP and EGP is their definitions. By definition, ESP refers to a broad term that is used in English language teaching. According to Huchinson and Waters (1987), ESP is more of an approach rather than a product, which means that the approach does not cover a specific type of language, methodology, or teaching materials. The definition of ESP can also be derived by providing with a distinction between its variable and absolute characteristics. According to Stevens (1988), the absolute characteristics include the fact that the instruction is designed to meet the particular needs of the learners. Another absolute characteristic is the fact that the instruction is related to content. In other words, it covers specific occupations, activities, disciplines, and themes. Additionally, the language instruction of ESP focuses on the appropriate language for the activities in semantics, discourse, and lexis. According to Stevens (1988), the variable characteristics of ESP, include the use of not teaching as well as the resection of the acquired language skills.

Additionally, ESP can also be defied based on two underlying criteria. The first criterion seeks to establish this approach of teaching as being goal-directed, while the second criterion focuses on the approach of instruction as deriving from a needs analysis that aims at specifying what is required of learners. Therefore, it can derive from the various characteristics that attempt to demonstrate that ESP courses are often disadvantaged by time limitations, where their goals and objectives are taught to adults in standardized classrooms. On the contrary, English for General Purposes refers to various settings which include schools, where the needs of the learners cannot be identified immediately. However, when considering EGP, individuals often take it an approach that aims to provide a broad basis, as opposed to providing selective and detailed goals and objectives like the ESP instruction approach.

Learners and Their Purposes

English learners and the purposes of learning the language constitutes of an immediate difference between EGP and ESP. Essentially, ESP learners tend to be adults who are familiar with the language. In other words, the learners are highly motivated because the approach of instruction caters for their needs. Learners of ESP also learn the language with the primary aim of relaying professional information and seek the ability to perform job-related and specific functions. In an ESP course, the most important language skills for the learner are determined by a needs analysis, allowing them to perform particular professional tasks. Such courses are centered in the context. This means that the language is taught as a subject related to the real needs and wishes of the learner, focusing on a given area of human activity. Moreover, the skills acquired from ESP are applicable immediately in an employment setting. Equally, the learners remain motivated because they are clear on their purposes for learning the English language. Contrary to ESP, the learners of EGP include both young and adult learners. Notably, the underlying subject of the courses is learning the English language (Kitkauskiene, 2011). As such, the EGP courses typically focus on the general vocabulary, grammar, and language structure. Also, the approach mainly focuses on the acquisition of the broad language, which plays a crucial role for the learners. EGP allows learners to cope with all courses having subject matter, providing them with an opportunity to generate more language.

The Focus of the Approaches

The focus of each approach of instruction is yet another factor that brings about an additional difference between ESP and EGP. The primary focus of ESP is training. However, given the fact that the knowledge in English acquired from this form of instruction is intended for application in specific vocational settings, selecting the most appropriate content is more comfortable. As such, it is crucial for the content included in the syllabus to have higher surrender value, as well as the most relevant vocational framework. Often, the aim of learning is and developing a restricted English competency (Kitkauskiene, 2011). On the other hand, the EGP's approach focuses more on education rather than training. In this form of instruction, the future needs of the learner are hard to identify and predict. Thus, the process of selecting the content is also complicated. As such, it is crucial for the content contained in the syllabus has a high surrender value. For both ESP and EGP, surrender value reflects the overall utility of the English that is taught by a particular course, or the overall value of the course (Kitkauskiene, 2011). When the surrender value is high, the utility of the English language that is taught will be higher.

Characteristics of the Approaches

The characteristics of the two types of English instruction present with yet another difference between ESP and EGP. The attributes of ESP include the particular application of vocabulary and the fact that it is taught with negotiation and presentation. This type of instruction also relates to the requirements of the learner, and it derives its inspiration from the learner's job. ESP also tends to apply a myriad of tactics that help the approach succeed in achieving its objectives and accomplishing various targets. Therefore, the fact that this type of instruction focuses on the needs of the learner implies that it is often goal-oriented. Moreover, ESP applies in business and e-commerce communication purposes. However, EGP is comprised of various characteristics, which include free time task, and its freedom is extensive compared to the ESP approach. Additionally, such a form of instruction happens in a soothing environment, and the application of literary texts is universal. The aim of these literary texts is producing effective skills among the learners. EGP also allows learners to develop and improve their general writing skills.

Approach to Culture

Another key aspect that distinguishes between EGP and ESP is their approaches to culture. EGP literature tends to emphasize the culture of a given society. In other words, the focus of this literature is the way of life of a particular country such as the British or American cultures (Viana, 2014). Evidently, the British and American English, and books and their publishers are expected to conform to one of the two alternatives. Contrarily, the ESP approach is different from the EGP because it focuses on the culture of the organization over the culture of the country (Viana, 2014). Therefore, the approach is more inclined towards the corporate culture and not the country's culture. As such, the activities and texts available in this approach focus more on the aspects of the organization, including the policies of the company, its daily situations, as well as the strategies associated related to the business world.

Instructor Personality

According to Viana (2014), the critical difference between EGP and ESP arises from the personality of each instructor. Contrary to an EGP instructor, an ESP teacher is required to have experience, knowledge, and a personality that illustrates a courteous, outgoing, and genuinely interested individual in matters concerning business. However, the ESP instructors are involved in training the company language and are required to have a clear comprehension of some areas. Also, the instructors are expected to have an understanding of the communicative functions of the English language in the business context, as well as an understanding of the learning strategies and expectations of different business people. It is also required that these instructors have a clear comprehension of the constituents of personal and interpersonal interactions in different cultural contexts. Moreover, the instructors are expected to have a deeper understanding of the various theories of management, as well as the practices in skills training (Viana, 2014). While the contemporary learning environment provides a variety of materials to select from, an apparent fact is that once in a while, ESP instructors are required to provide with the content. The internet acts as a rich source. Thus, the internet offers a rich source for business article and video that can be adapted and applied in a classroom setting (Viana, 2014).

Time Taken

The time is taken to learn ESP and EGP, as well as the teaching activities involved in the two approaches present with another critical difference. Compared to EGP, ESP has some advantages about the time taken to finish the courses. According to Viana (2014), the time taken for learners to complete ESP courses is significantly shorter, compared to the time taken to finish EGP courses. This can be attributed to the fact that ESP courses tend to focus on the needs of the learners, and the classes are not only relevant for the students, but also successfully contribute to the learning process. Additionally, ESP courses tend to be more cost-effective, compared to EGP ones. As such, it can be concluded that ESP-based teaching is more motivating than EGP-based education. The relevance, cost-effectiveness, and focused nature of ESP courses contribute to the broad acceptance of the aims and targets of ESP by learners. Similarly, the notion of specificity and motivation draws from the idea that the more specific a course is, the more motivating it will be for the learner. In other words, all teaching activities involved in the ESP learning end to be provided in a context. This is not the case with EGP learning.

Roles of the Instructor

The role played by the teacher in both ESP and EGP illustrates the differences between the two la...