Use of extended conversation to enhance vocabulary knowledge in English for employment classes

Use of extended conversation to enhance vocabulary knowledge in English for employment classes

Many English for Specific Purposes (ESP) programs focus on students’ oral proficiency and lack the content needed to assist students to develop lexical compilation for use in real workplace contexts. The current study will build upon the existing literature by developing pedagogy to assist students in their workplace readiness, focusing on a strong practical command of relevant English vocabulary. The research focuses on the pedagogy two professors incorporated in their English for employment courses, when teaching employment-related concept vocabulary. A qualitative case study of two foreign professors in the department of English in two Korean universities guided the current study. Pre-made recorded video lectures, live online class sessions with students, lesson plans and class materials were collected for data analysis. The study then focused on determining representative patterns in the professors’ teaching methods. Pedagogy that extended career specific concept vocabulary into authentic English conversation with three main steps was found. Firstly, students were taught concept vocabulary. Secondly, the vocabulary was then combined in speaking activities where students not only had to solve scenarios but also were required to expand on the given forms of words and language expressions. Lastly, the students had extended authentic conversations in English, using the target concept vocabulary learnt. Educational implications have been discussed. (211 words)