ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES: ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT ESP CURRICULUM AT THE FACULTY OF LAW AND BUSINESS STUDIES DR LAZAR VRKATIĆ
ENGLISH FOR SPECIFIC PURPOSES: ASSESSMENT OF THE CURRENT ESP CURRICULUM AT THE FACULTY OF LAW AND BUSINESS STUDIES DR LAZAR VRKATIĆ

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this paper is to determine the effectiveness of the ESP courses within the English language studies at the Faculty of Law and Business Studies Dr Lazar Vrkatić (FLV) from the students’ perspective. These courses constitute a major part of the curriculum, and it is therefore important to assess their effectiveness. Another aim is to provide a description of these courses which includes goals and outcomes and course contents. The English studies curricula traditionally include courses that develop theoretical and communicative competencies comprising language skills but also linguistic, literature-related and cultural knowledge. However, another aspect that has become increasingly important in the past twenty years is the ESP competence. Within the English language program at the FLV the students are offered courses in Business and Legal English, as these areas have proven especially important for their future careers. Assessment of the courses on the part of students was conducted during the spring semester in 2021 with 37 students (including 29 recent graduates). They were offered an online questionnaire with the aim of assessing the impact of the courses on the students’ education, academic and professional skills and competencies and their applicability for the students’ professions. The results show that the students’ overall perception of the ESP courses is that they are useful and that learning outcomes are adequate skills and competencies. The respondents also provided constructive criticism by pointing out not only strengths (quality instructors, adequacy of topics, usefulness of the courses etc.) but also weaknesses (need for modernization of some topics, increase of the practical work and class load, etc.). It can be stated that the ESP courses at FLV are generally of adequate quality, however, some ideas and implications for the future curriculum and syllabi improvements are offered in the concluding remarks.

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