Der sichere Umgang mit fremden Sprachen und Kulturen stellt heute ...

HEIDEMARIE HAIDER
Evaluating and Revising an ESP Course
for Sales Assistants in Austria
The aim of this paper 1 is to evaluate an ESP (English for Specific Purposes) course for sales
assistants at the part-time vocational school in St. Poelten, Lower Austria. This is done by taking
into consideration the learners' needs, the syllabus, and the materials in use. Based on the evaluation,
adaptations and revisions concerning material design are suggested. This paper will discuss
the vocational education and language tuition in part-time vocational schools in Austria and
give a short overview on relevant literature in the field of General English and particularly English
for Specific Purposes.
Based on a case study of a needs analysis survey for apprentices in the field of retailing, an evaluation
of the materials in use was carried out. The current textbook was revised and a new unit that
more specifically meets the needs and wants of learners will be presented. For this paper only the
most important details and results of the study (Haider, 2004) will be discussed.
1) This paper is based on a dissertation submitted in part fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of M.Ed. (ELT) of
the Faculty of Education, University of Manchester, 2004.
91