Open AccessGEAR UP: DESIGNING AN ESP COURSE FOR MECHANICAL ENGINEERING STUDENTS
Author(s) -
José Fabián Elizondo González,
Yannick Pilgrim,
Andrea Sánchez Víquez
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
intersedes
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2215-2458
DOI - 10.15517/isucr.v21i43.41979
Subject(s) - course (navigation) , task (project management) , needs analysis , test (biology) , macro , process (computing) , computer science , english for specific purposes , mathematics education , engineering , engineering management , psychology , systems engineering , paleontology , biology , programming language , aerospace engineering , operating system
This article presents the design of the course Gear Up, an ESP course addressed to Mechanical Engineering students at the University of Costa Rica. To gather the necessary data, a needs analysis and a diagnostic test were conducted to determine the contents, macro-skills, and evaluated activities to be included in the course. This article presents the findings of these two major initial activities and the subsequent course design proposal to satisfy the needs, wants, and lacks of both the students and stakeholders that participated in the process. Consequently, Gear Up was created as a 16-week course in which the Task-Based Language Teaching approach would guide both the content and performance-based, assessed activities throughout the course.