Needs analysis of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses in vocational higher education

Abstract

: Due to the ratification of Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for fishing vessel personnel 1995 (STCW-F 1995), Standard Marine Communication Phrases (SMCP) should be incorporated in the curriculum of the Maritime Education Training (MET) institutions for fishing vessel industries. This study examined the curriculum of a Maritime English course in vocational higher education in Indonesia. Data were extracted from the SMCP document, past Maritime English examination papers of Certificate of Competency, and the current syllabus of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses. Interviews with three seafarers who had work experience in fishing vessels were also conducted. The SMCP document was analyzed using NVivo 12 Plus software. The results showed that the examination lacked spoken language skills mainly required in the SMCP. According to the interview, there was a need for a review of the ESP curriculum to sufficiently equip graduates with English language skills in occupational and social settings within the workplace. Furthermore, there is a need to adopt a genre-based approach and include the digital-era-related skills for the review of the current ESP courses curriculum.