Towards diversity in language education through “Teaching and researching English for Specific Purposes” – a book review

Abstract

This is a review of Teaching and researching English for Specific Purposes by Elżbieta Lesiak-Bielawska published in 2018 by Księgarnia Akademicka in Kraków. Elżbieta Lesiak-Bielawska holds a PhD degree in linguistics and works in Fryderyk Chopin University of Music in Warsaw and Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw, where she conducts English for Specific Purposes (ESP) courses for music students and future doctors. Her research interests focus on foreign language learning and teaching, in particular investigating individual differences, blended instruction and the specificity of teaching ESP, the issue that she pursues in the book reviewed here. The publication is directed to foreign language teachers. Its main goal is to present an overview of theoretical perspectives and empirical studies that have influenced the development of ESP teaching practices. It is crucial to emphasize that teaching languages for specific purposes, with priority given to English, seems particularly important nowadays; a dominant position of English in a globalized world of academia and business makes this kind of language instruction extremely useful. In relation to the ERL framework, the book addresses the research issues discussed in the Language and Schooling strand as well as the Language and Culture strand. When studying English for Specific Purposes, e.g. English for Medical Purposes or English for Business Purposes, be it in a formal setting or in a more natural context, a learner prepares him/herself to enter new social communities, which will involve experiencing new cultures. In this way, learning ESP becomes a socio-cognitive phenomenon. I believe that any new contribution to theoretical and empirical debates on the complex nature of ESP teaching will be of interest to those involved in this foreign language instruction.