Materials Development for an Archival Science Course in Iran: An ESP Mixed Methods Study

This study addressed the demand for an ESP course for Archival Science, a profession often overlooked in Iran. The existing literature offers little research on specific materials for Archival Science students; hence there is a paucity of relevant materials in this field. The present study explored the development of printed materials for an ESP course conducted in the National Library and Archives of Iran to compensate for the absence. It examined the effectiveness of using such materials on the language learning of a group of archivists taking part in a 16-sessions mid-career course in Archival Science. The needs analysis processes, course design, materials development, teaching and learning, and evaluation were followed to achieve the objectives. The results demonstrated that the newly developed materials compared to materials prepared for other ESP courses could considerably promote the participants’ proficiency. The developed materials were archival, work-related, and professional-based resources and had significant effects on participants’ language learning. The study revealed that focusing on the learners’ specific educational needs in their workplace and incorporating authentic, practical materials in ESP courses would improve language learning and skill development in archivists.