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Time
The expression “time is money” comes from the Business world, and it is not coincidence.
The same Business learner may be either very happy to have a break from their desk job and to take part in the lesson or they can be annoyed, as they were in the middle of something and had to quit because of the lesson. I think that the trainer should plan to make students feel they have spent time productively. To do this, the trainer can ask learners to share what they can about their job, including possible challenges and goals.Socializing and networking
This is part of every job and this is usually the part most learners are worried about.
A students can be very talkative and sociable in their native language but they can be the opposite when it comes to speak in English. Working on vocabulary and common structures, together with repetition and production can help. Role plays are usually well appreciated as they are a good way to rehearse real situations, in a protected environment.Specific needs
The business learners’ need can be manifold.
Some business students may want to improve just one skill, which is usually speaking: public speaking, telephone conversations and presentations, or they may have to deal with customers or colleagues from specific geographical are and in this case they probably need some cultural background, to support their Business English. The range can be so wide, that only a detailed need analysis can lead the learners to reach their goals.
Specific needs may have a second meaning: specific needs of the learner.
Some students, Business or General English students, may have impairments deriving from a condition, age, illness.
In this case, each need should be studied in detailed and the trainer should give all the possible support to learners.The business lerner often has less time.
But he is highly motivated to learn the language, because he probably wants to do networking.
Also he has a specific need for formalized language with special vocabulary.
His/Her aim is professionalism. Therefore he needs to speak correct and precise.
The business learner is a client with specific needs and well-established goals. He is a professionally educated learner with high expectations and a lot of responsibilities, little free time, and great urgency to master the language skills needed at work. It is important to take in consideration the following when teaching business learners.
Time is a crucial, because they have busy schedules and business meetings to attend to. Organization, clarity of content and well-structured lesson plans are vital to ensure learning goals.
The business learners come to the language class with specific and identified needs. Their needs will vary depending on the companies they are employed with and also the regions and countries. Therefore it is important to take in consideration the cultural changes as well.
So the methodology for teaching business learners should be designed to meet the specific needs of the learner or group. The popular principle of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) is “Tell me what you need English for and I will tell you the English that you need”. This principle applies to all language teaching. Business language teaching, in general, should be oriented to fulfill the learners’ needs.
When talking about business learners we can conclude that the objectives, the content, the materials, the teaching, and the assessment practices are based on an identified set of specialized needs.
– Their interest in the language depends on their interest in their work
– They usually are on a timeline to learn the language
– They need to learn more formal language than other learners
– They might be more motivated to learn due to career growth and financial gain
– Every profession requires a specific skill set and vocabulary knowledge that others might not need
– Important for the learners to be able to apply their knowledge in class examples with their field of work to make sure they know the meaning and usage of the language learnedThe business language learner is characterised by several aspects that differentiate them from learners of general English. These characteristics are related to time management, social interaction, cultural awareness, professionalism, and specific learning objectives.
As far as time management is concerned, business language learners often have limited time available for language learning due to their professional commitments. Thus, they prioritise efficiency and practicality, looking for specific learning materials and strategies that fit into their busy schedules.
Another important aspect of business English learners is their interest in socialising. They recognise the importance of socializing and networking in professional contexts. Therefore, they value opportunities to practice language skills through interactions with colleagues and clients.
Finally, another crucial aspect to take into consideration is their objectives. Business language learners have clear, specific objectives related to their professional roles and career goals. They need to acquire language skills that directly contribute to their success in the workplace, such as effective communication in meetings, negotiations, presentations, or written correspondence.Time:
Business English learners may be pressured to learn as much of a new language in the shortest amount of time. This could motivate them the work as hard as possible. However, when they do not progress as quickly as what they expected to, it might cause frustration.Specific needs:
Business English learners often have specific needs. This could for example be what they need to master in a specific timeframe. It could also be a specific skill that they need to learn. Different businesses will have different needs as well. Therefore it is important to establish the specific need of the business English learner in advance.Professionalism:
I would imagine that the Business English learner would have a certain degree of professionalism. Furthermore, the reason for learning English (business English) would be to use those language skills in their professional setting by either working with customers or even employers. The language being taught should also lean a bit more to the professional side because this is wat Business English learners need to use in their work.In my opinion, these are the most important:
Professionalism: Business language learners exhibit professionalism through formal communication, attention to detail and effective time management.
Objectives: Learners have clear objectives such as career advancement, skill enhancement, networking, cross-cultural communication, and personal growth guiding their language learning efforts.
Cultural Considerations: Business language learners understand and respect cultural norms, adapt their communication styles, navigate cultural sensitivities, and actively build cross-cultural competence to succeed in diverse business environments.the business learner is distinguished by many qualities, the most important of which is the art of dealing with others ; During his professional career, this learner have acquired many skills and competencies that enable him to act with great tact, diplomacy, and intelligence with his clients. Because language is the ideal and direct means of communication, it must be used in a way that is compatible with the needs of this learner. Because these learners are essentially professionals, their practice of this language must be on this basis. For example, the way they speak the target language must sound understandable, concise and polite.
Business learners have goals that they seek to achieve, and these goals differ from one person to another ; But it is certain, of course, that they are all related to professional purposes in an effort to develop their careers . They are self-directed and have sufficient ability to achieve their objectives but in return, the trainer must take all factors into consideration to help them . Language learning in the business field is often linked to a deadline, which makes the learner more interactive or sometimes anxious about the matter. Therefore, the content of the material as well as the method of the trainer must serve this goal.
It is quite obvious that these learners have certain needs. These needs are closely related to the goal as well as to the learner himself . This learner has studied the language before , but he is not proficient in it in the field of business. Therefore, he certainly has some weaknesses as well as some strengths that must be taken into account during training. As for the goal, these needs certainly differ from one learner to another. If, for example, this learner wants to develop his abilities in the field of business because he often has business meetings or business dinners with his clients, then the need is different from another learner who needs to write emails and so on.Business learners may have limited time available for language study due to their demanding work schedules. They often need efficient and effective learning strategies that fit into their busy lives. As a result, they may prefer intensive or accelerated learning programs that offer flexibility and convenience, such as online courses or one-to-one lessons. Business learners have particular goals when they decide to learn a language as mentioned above. This may be out of curiosity and love of a language or culture. But very often this has a link with their professional objectives. Thanks to this, their careers can evolve, they can communicate with international clients or even move to another country for a new challenge.
Business language learners face a unique challenge: balancing the demands of family, work, and study. Time management becomes an essential skill for them to navigate these competing priorities.
Unlike learners seeking general English proficiency, perhaps for immigration purposes, business English learners view their language acquisition as “a means to an end”. Their primary goal isn’t fluency for everyday life, but rather professional development. Mastering business language equips them to excel in international environments and opens doors to new career opportunities.What characterizes business English students is:
Motivation: Students are highly motivated to improve their language skills for professional reasons.
Professional background: since business language students come from different professional backgrounds such as finance, marketing, technology, etc. Their professional experiences and skills influence their learning goals and preferences.
Goal-oriented: students have clear goals (for example, mastering specific business communication) and objectives for their language learning.
Time management: For Business English students, time management could represent a major challenge as they must be able to balance the time to dedicate to work and the time to study so as to be present in class and achieve their linguistic objectives as well as their work objectives.
Learning preferences: students may have specific learning preferences based on their individual learning styles, preferences, and past learning experiences. Some may prefer structured classroom instruction, while others may prefer self-directed learning approaches.
Continuous learning attitude: Students recognize that language learning is an ever-evolving process, and for this reason, they are committed to continually improving to remain competitive and always prepared in their professional fields.SPECIFIC NEEDS
When the teacher meets students for the first time, it’s crucial that he or she understands what their needs are. This is really important for all English lessons, whether it’s a general English class or a business English one. Simply asking students what their needs are is not sufficient to have all the information the teacher needs to plan a good lesson. When we need to plan lessons, we have to be more scientific, and for that purpose, it’s possible to conduct a needs analysis. This can be done in a number of ways: the teacher could give students a form to fill before their first lesson or interview students during the first lesson. The teacher can even make it part of the lesson if he or she is teaching a group, with the students interviewing each other and discussing learning options, subjects they want to learn, and language areas they need to work on. The aim of this activity isn’t to figure out the level of ability the students have or what they know or do not know about a certain topic, but to find out where students want to be once they’ve progressed through lessons. That means it’s important to conduct a needs analysis for all the students, whether your class is a group of students or just a single student being tutored one-to-one. A needs analysis will allow the teacher to find out a range of specific needs about the students. This activity can take the form of a questionnaire, interview, or class discussion. Some of the points the teacher can include are:
The students’ nationality, age, job, and qualifications. This will have cultural implications, and it could lead students to develop a good connection with each other and build a positive relationship within the classroom.
Reasons for learning English. It will help the teacher understand them better, find a way to inspire them, and make them want to learn for themselves, feeling more comfortable using the language rather than just for their job.
Educational background and English learning experience.
Length of time they have been learning English. They might have spent many years studying on and off and not progressed much for various reasons. This will have a huge impact on their motivation and confidence level.
Strong and weaker skills. In this way, the trainer will know which skills to focus on more.
For what functions do the students need English for?
-to give presentations in English?
-Do they need to take part in meetings?
-Or maybe they have to negotiate with clients?
Extracurricular activities. Another very important aspect to introduce within the needs analysis is to understand which students have the need to work even at home by doing homework. For many students, it is very important to have activities related to what they learned during the lesson to fix the concepts and not forget what they have learned. For many other students, however, this could represent a problem, especially due to a lack of time.CULTURAL CONSIDERATIONS
Students who study business English certainly have an excellent level of English, but this does not mean that they will be able to understand some cultural aspects of the language. This is an area that the teacher will need to teach their students so that they can use the language naturally. The teacher may decide to teach the cultural aspects that she believes are essential to the students with a series of lessons based on culture or simply as he or she progresses through the lessons. A good way might be to compare different cultures and how certain customs work, for example, by showing what is acceptable in a business meeting and what is not. One of the most difficult sociolinguistic skills students must acquire and use is an appropriate level of formality. Business English students often think that the correct way to speak English is to be very formal, for example, using “may” instead of “can” or “i will” instead of “i’ll.” The problem is that in spoken In English, native speakers naturally use contractions and idioms even in a business setting, so students will need to be aware of that in order to communicate effectively. Other areas of intercultural understanding the teacher might want to teach include shaking hands, how to greet someone, how to queue, how to congratulate, how to apologize, and how to address someone! Some cultural aspects are learned better by living abroad, but this is not possible for everyone, which is why during lessons students must be aware of every cultural aspect of the language they are learning. Another cultural aspect that can be taught concerns the attitude to have during meetings and presentations. It is very important to give a good impression of ourselves and the rest of the company to other people. In fact, for many, it might seem like an unimportant aspect to consider, but instead, it is essential to guaranteeing a successful meeting. Some examples of this are: how to politely interrupt someone who is speaking; raising your hand to ask to speak; having a positive attitude and showing interest rather than appearing disinterested and unprepared, etc.Other important cultural aspects to consider are
-Business etiquette and protocol vary widely across cultures, including norms related to greetings, business card exchange, meeting conduct, and gift-giving practices. Cultural lessons will help students understand cultural norms and expectations in international business environments.
-Body language and gestures can convey different meanings across cultures. For instance, gestures that are considered positive or neutral in one culture may be offensive or inappropriate in another.
-Cultural differences in the use of courtesy language and formality can have an important impact on communication dynamics in a business environment. For example, cultures may vary in their use of honorifics to express kindness and respect. This will guide students to build respectful relationships with colleagues and clients from different cultural backgrounds.
These are topics that students will find extremely useful for better understanding English-speaking business culture, which will give them a noticeable boost in their ability and confidence.
TIME
Good timing is crucial for business English students to achieve their professional goals. One of the most important things they should do is set priorities, determine the time to dedicate to lessons, and then study what they have learned. This will help them not to lose motivation and not dedicate too much time to one aspect and less to another. Another important aspect when we consider time is that creating a structured schedule is essential to optimising time and maintaining consistency in language learning efforts. It happens very often that very motivated students, especially those who are very ambitious in terms of work, set goals that are too big and require more time than they have available. A very important thing to consider when we talk about objectives is to try to be as realistic as possible by temporarily excluding things that would actually be difficult to achieve or that require more time than we can dedicate to them. The role of the teacher in this case could be fundamental, as he or she is able to see everything more “clearly” and objectively than the students. By doing so, students will be able to obtain very good results, which, although achieved in small steps, will lead them to feel increasingly motivated and satisfied as they progress towards others. Working without the stress of time and deadlines is essential to opening up to learning in a healthy and relaxed way. Once students have established the amount of time they want to dedicate to lessons each week, a very important thing to do is to make the best use of lesson time and have just a few things (or nothing) to do at home. Many students think that going to class is just about listening to the teacher talk throughout the class, taking notes, and being silent. This is incorrect; in fact, in order for the student to get the most out of this time spent in class, he or she must have the opportunity to interact as much as possible during the lesson, both with other colleagues and the teacher, and have the opportunity to practice the language actively through interactive and interesting activities related to their professional goals by increasing LTT. This will help students who don’t have time to study obtain excellent results, even just through lesson time. To get the most out of class time, in addition to interactive activities and increasing LTT, another important aspect to consider is distractions. In the digital age, distractions related to email notifications, social media, etc. can have a significant impact on productivity. To be able to optimize lesson time and avoid interruptions, it would be better for notifications to be silenced so as to create a relaxed and learning-friendly environment for the whole class. Fewer interruptions will lead students to work more concentratedly without losing the thread and having to start from scratch every time. Excessive interruptions would lead the students to follow the lesson less actively, creating problems among them.Time, specific needs, and professionalism:
Time is of the essence. It is without a doubt a very important factor when dealing with business learners. In most respects, there is a goal/purpose of learning the language for the business client. Perhaps their company requires it, or they are looking to learn in order to apply for a position at work. Whatever the reason may be, there will always be an emphasis on learning the language as quickly as possible. This type of learner is not looking to do it passively, on the side, they are looking for specific results in a specific timeframe. Lesson efficiency and progress will be judged by learners, as they will want to get the most out of their allotted lesson times.
I have discussed specific needs a bit in previous discussions, and how this factor could look for business learners. Business learners will have a goal of the language they would like to achieve, based on how it relates to their job. Many will have specific requests/needs from the language. For instance, one learner might put more emphasis on email writing, while another wants to practice holding presentations or pitches. The trainer will have to adapt and should thoroughly understand the learners wishes and needs. If not, this can lead to dissatisfaction with the course.
I think professionalism is important with any language course being taught, however, with business learners, it is especially so. I believe business learners will hold their instructor to a certain standard and expect that professionality goes hand in hand with a business English course. Dressing professionally, speaking professionally, behaving professionally, punctuality: will all be defining factors for business learners. If trainers maintain professionality with learners, they will be taken more seriously and seen as capable teachers.
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