Needs of English as a Foreign Language in Bangladesh: Learners Perception

In a linguistic context, different authors define the termthe aim of investigating learners’ needs and wants
“needs” diversely, and thus different meaningsand respondents were interviewed through
are implied. If needs are ‘understood as specificquestionnaire. The basic results of this investigation
requirements for the foreign language, then the vastwere gathered from the students’ self-reported
majority of learners do not have any. They aredata. We believe that collected information can be
deemed to require what the syllabus offers them, andviewed as impartial because learners answer the
the syllabus is likely to be closely related to thequestion spontaneously.
examination, which is a highly realistic “need” forThe responses of the subjects need to be
the majority of learners’ (Dickinson 1991:88).generalisable to the entire population of Alim students
Needs analysis has figured notably in the literature ofwho are studying English and it was necessary to
language teaching for long years, and focused onidentify attributes of a population from a small group of
learners’ communicative needs. On the whole,individuals .The detailed analysis of the data , findings,
needs analysis is a complex process which is usuallyand interpretation are presented in the following pages.
followed by syllabus design, selection of courseQuestion: Why do you need English?
materials, teaching / learning a course, and evaluation.Student’s attitude towards English and their
Learners often find it difficult to define what languagerealisation of why they need English, in many respects,
needs they have and cannot distinguish betweendetermines how they will learn English. In response to
needs, wants and lacks. Although these threethe question “Why do you need English?”
concepts are interrelated, it is important for teachers tostudents responses are as follow:
be aware of their impetus for successful learning.As the study reveals, most of the students (80.5%)
Another stimulus for successful learning is adjusting thethink that they need English to pass the examinations.
course to changing learners’ needs. This implies theLarge numbers of the students (73.6%) need English to
significance of ongoing needs analysis.communicate with others. A good number of students
For justifying the findings of the present study on the(54.3%) think of their practical needs to get good jobs.
needs analysis some investigations of the same line45% students need English for writing letters ; 43.5 %
are studied. Dudley-Evans & Jo St John (1998 point outstudents say that they need English to read books and
that needs are driven by the motivation and motivationEnglish newspapers ; 22.1 % students say that they
is the cause of achieving something .Learners needsneed English to understand teacher’s lecture. This
are guided by the external and internal motivations.implies that teachers at least sometimes use English in
The main data collection methods for needs analysisthe class. 37% students need English for watching
are questionnaires, discussions, interviews,television programmes. The above statistics shows
observations, assessment (Dudley-Evans & Jo Stthat most of the students study English because it is a
John, 1998:132). In other words, the main sources forcurricular subject, and they have to read it to pass the
needs analysis are the learners themselves. However,examinations. However, the number of students who
in the ESP research fields relevant documentation andrealise the actual needs of English in practical life is not
information received from colleagues are alsosmall.
important.This study strongly supports the investigation of Galina
Questionnaires are thought to be the least consumingKavaliauskiene (2005) she carried out a study on the
ways of collecting information, and this is whyundergraduate students of Law University of Lithuania.
learners’ needs are usually specified throughHer study reveals that students study English for the
questionnaires which enable researchers to determinevarious needs. Her question ( What do you need
long-term aims and short-term objectives.English for?)is followed by the results and their
Questionnaire can generally be used for quantitativediscussion for each aspect of research
presentation of collected data. Small amount of dataHer question consisted of the above options which are
may be easily analyzed by a simple tally system, whilesignificantly similar with the present study.
large scale needs analysis requires statistical approachStudents study English to meet their practical ends.
and use of computer software.They correctly feel that English as a foreign language
An important aspect of needs analysis is concernedis highly necessary for their practical life. The thorough
with learning styles and strategies. A learner-centeredanalysis of learners’ needs and wants allows
approach is considered to be a cornerstone forteachers to adjust English course syllabus to
successful learning. A current trend in teaching is tostudents’ changing demands by providing
take into account learners wants: they might want ormeaningful experience with language and placing
need to carry out a variety of communicative tasks inemphasis on tasks and activities that will benefit
the target language. For this reason, information on thelearning. Needs analysis is influenced by the institutional
ways in which learners prefer to learn must beconstraints and the students’ perceptions of what
obtained through the needs analysis.is being expected from them. The recognition that
Initially obtained data on needs analysis allowlearners have their own, internal needs (e.g. to use a
researcher to set course objectives and determinelanguage in a specific situation) in addition to external
scientific approach to teaching. Ongoing needs analysisdemands imposed by teaching institutions (e.g. students
allows revising objectives and modifies teachingmust study language for a limited period and pass
techniques and materials. In ongoing needs analysis theexams) complicates the issue of interrelated needs,
conclusions drawn in the initial analysis have to bewants and lacks. Teachers are not authorized to
constantly checked and re-assessed (Dudley-Evans &prolong or shorten the scheduled courses, but they can
Jo St John 1998).Finally, a final evaluation allows placingfoster students’ language skills by employing more
future activities. At this stage, learners must be giveneffective (for an individual student) techniques and
feedback. ‘Feedback is good PR (Public Relations),encouraging learners to plan their learning by setting
good for quantity and quality of future cooperationrealistic aims.
(Dudley-Evans & Jo St John 1998).•Dickinson, L. Self-Instruction in Language Learning.
The study aims at investigating the students’Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991
perception of needs of English as a foreign. A total of•Dudley-Evans, T. & Jo St John, Developments in
125 Higher Secondary are interviewed throughEnglish for Specific Purposes. . Cambridge : Cambridge
questionnaire. The 8 choices are tested through aUniversity Press ,1998
questionnaire. The study is to investigate the Alim•Floyd, P. & P.L. Carroll. Effects on ESL Reading of
students’ views on the importance of English inTeaching Cultural Content Schemata. London: London
their practical life. It will present an approximate pictureUniversity Press, 1987.
about the perception of needs of English as a foreign•Galina ,K. Ongoing Needs Analysis as a Factor to
language.Successful Language Learning . Vilnius: Law University
The data for the study is collected throughof Lithuania,2005.
questionnaire. The questionnaire is constructed•Hutchinson, T. & Waters. English for Specific
following the model of kenning (2001). The models ofPurposes. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press,
Gardner (1985), Tang (2002), Brindely (1984), Nunan and1996.
Lamb (1996) are also studied for framing the•Kramsch, C. Context and Culture in Language
questionnaire. Needs analysis was administered withTeaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993.