Needs analysis as the basis of ESP curriculum design in tourism studies

Dragana  Pešić

Authors

Dragana Pešić University of Kragujevac, Faculty of Hotel Management and Tourism in Vrnjačka Banja

Keywords:

needs analysis, tourism studies, teaching material

Abstract

Needs analysis plays a key role in defining both the syllabus and curriculum of foreign language instruction at non-philology universitites. It is of utmost necessity as a means of determining clear objectives prior to lecturing, as well as a means of teaching process (self-)evaluation during the course of teaching. The paper presents the results of the research representing the continuous monitoring of students' needs at the Faculty of Hotel Management and Tourism in Vrnjacka Banja in order to observe changes in the needs and evaluate English language curriculum. The obtained results will point to whether the changes in the needs have occurred and what direction they are taking, and point out the problems that the students face in communication, which can influence the change of the existing curriculum. Furthermore, the research results can greatly contribute to the creation of teaching materials that would be tailored according to the needs of the observed group of students, which can eventually lead to their increased motivation and a desire to learn a foreign language.

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