A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF TEACHING METHODS IN ESP COURSES

The aim of this study was to compare the efficiency of two different methods of teaching in ESP courses. To achieve this objective, two groups of students of Economics were selected for the study. Each group consisted of 20 participants. Their level of proficiency in English and subject matter was tested by a sample of Michigan TOEFL test and a pre-test. The two groups were at the same level of proficiency in both general English and English for Students of Economics before receiving treatment. The first group attended a two-month ESP course whose medium of instruction was a combination of English and Persian. The second group attended a two-month ESP course whose medium of instruction was solely English. After this period of treatment, the two groups were tested by a post-test. The results showed that the second group was more successful in the post-test. These results suggest that those learners who are proficient in English and subject matter benefit more from courses that are taught solely in English. Finally, it was concluded that level of knowledge in English and subject matter, nature of the subject (theoretical or applied), and the skills that are the focus of the course are the main characteristics that must be taken into account in the process of planning for ESP courses