Needs Analysis: English for Future Psychology Students

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

Situation Analysis

The growth of English as the leading language for the dissemination of academic knowledge has transformed the educational experiences of countless students, who must now gain fluency in the conventions of English language academic discourses to understand their disciplines and to successfully navigate their learning.

According to Hyland and Hamp-Lyons (2002), for college and university students in many countries, mastering enough English, and the right English, to succeed in learning their subjects through the medium of English in textbooks, lectures, study groups, and so on, is a matter of great urgency. The use of the English language is indeed very important in many aspects human beings are related to.

In the field of psychology, for example, to understand psychology as a subject, you need to possess a reasonably good command of the English Language, so as to be able to grasp key concepts and salient points from your reading with ease and expediency. Another reason the English language is important is that most psychology students speak English and do their work from English, often ascribing English concepts to be psychological universals; this is actually a methodological problem. It is a very serious problem too(Say Keng Lee, 2015).

In relation to the above-mentioned information, the researchers were persuaded to conduct study that determined the needs of future psychology students in the use of English.

Framework of the Study

The ESP Learning-Centered Approach. The ESP Learning of English centered approach by Hutchinson and Waters emphasizes language teaching that centers on learning. The concern has always been on ‘how people learn’ looking at the process of how learners use the knowledge and skills they acquired. It is an approach that depends on learners’ purposes of learning English in other fields. This approach is applicable for the study because the purpose directs to the creation of a module in English for future psychology students.

The Critical EAP Theory. According to Benesch (2001), critical pedagogy is concerned with institutional power relations'. She believes that 'critical pedagogy acknowledges students' and teachers' subject positions', for example, their class, race, gender, and ethnicity. She also believes that students should be encouraged and allowed to shape their academic goals and the way they reach them. She believes that the teaching and design of EAP have been pragmatic and in general, has been a response to the needs of content courses offered in academic institutions. Her general concern appears to be for the position of ESL students rather than EFL where students learn in their own cultural environment. She sees the role of the ESL teacher as being that of 'instructor' rather than 'educator'. As a result, the important roles of a facilitator of learning and negotiator of the developmental process and course outcomes are not explicitly addressed. This theory is much concerned with the development of a syllabus and an instructional material relevant to the specialized subjects of the students specifically in Psychology in the case of this study.

These theories are helpful in establishing facts in the study which serve as basis in the formulation a syllabus leading to the development of instructional material.

Conceptual Framework

The study made use of the IPO (Input- Process- Output) model shown in figure 1, the research paradigm. The input variable shows the needs of future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of the context in the use of English and the present level of ability in English. The process contains the analysis and interpretation of the needs of future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of the context in the use of English and present level of ability in English; and the development of instructional material, a module. And lastly, the output is the completion of a module based on a syllabus that considers the specialization of the respondents.

Statement of the Problem

This study aimed to determine the needs of future psychology students in the use of English. This study was conducted at Saint Louis College High School Department for the first semester of the school year 2017-2018.

Specifically, it sought to answer the following questions:

1. What are the needs of the future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of:

a. context in the use of English; and

b. the present level of ability in English?

2. What instructional material can be developed to address the needs of future psychology students in the use of English?

Definition of Terms

For better understanding, the following terms are defined according to their use in the study:

Future psychology students are students of the Humanities and Social Sciences strand who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology.

Instructional material refers to the module developed to address the needs of the said students.

Needs analysis is the process of obtaining data relevant to the language ability of future psychology students.

Ability refers to the language ability of the respondents specifically macro skills.

Context refers to the linguistic background and situations in which the respondents use English.

Chapter 2

METHODOLOGY

Research Design

The descriptive method of design was used in the study. This design aims at describing characteristics, opinions, perceptions, attitudes, behaviors as they currently exist in a population; and is utilized for the purpose of accurately portraying a population that has been chosen because of some specific characteristics.

Moreover, a mixed-method approach, a combination of the quantitative and qualitative approaches, was utilized. A quantitative approach deals with data that are numeric uses questionnaires, tests, surveys; while a qualitative approach deals with data expressed as descriptions or observations.

These designs and approaches were apt for this research because they describe the existing condition. They involve describing, analyzing, and interpreting conditions that are prevailing. Thus, they are appropriately used to determine the needs of the future psychology students in the use of the English language.

Sources of Data

Locale, Population, and Duration of the Study

This study was conducted at Saint Louis College- Senior High School department, City of San Fernando, La Union during the first semester of the school year 2017-2018. The respondents of this research were the 18 senior high school students from the Grade 12 Humanities and Social Sciences Strand (HUMSS) who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology.

Instrumentation and Data Collection

The data gathering tool was a research made questionnaire that was based on other related studies revolving around English for academic purposes specifically along with psychology. The questionnaire consists of two parts: for part one with 19 questions which identified the needs of the future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of the context in the use of English, and for part two which asked for the perception of the respondents regarding their linguistic ability. The questionnaire was administered to the 18 senior high school students from the Grade 12 Humanities and Social Sciences Strand (HUMSS) who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology.

On the other hand, an interview was conducted to an instructor of Bachelor of Science in Psychology, College Department. The interview was conducted to suffice the data gathered with regard to the needs of the respondents in the use of English.

Analysis of Data

For data analysis, the following statistical tools were used:

To determine the needs of future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of the context in the use of English, mean was utilized; and to identify the needs of future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of their present level of ability in English, the frequency was used and mean was utilized to get their overall ability.

To facilitate computations, Microsoft Excel was used.

To interpret the needs of future psychology students in the use of the English language in terms of the context in the use of English, a 3- point Likert scale was used following this data categorization:

Range of Mean Values Descriptive Equivalent

2.34-3.00 Very Useful

1.67-2.33 Useful

1.00-1.66 Not Useful

Meanwhile, to interpret the needs of future psychology students in the use of English in terms of their present level of ability in English, this table of data served as a basis:

Range of Mean Values Descriptive Equivalent

4.21-5.00 Advanced

3.41-4.20 Intermediate (upper)

2.61-3.40 Intermediate (lower)

1.81-2.60 Basic (upper)

1.00-1.80 Basic (lower)

Chapter 3

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

I. Needs of Future psychology students in the Use of English in terms of Context in the Use of English

Table 1 presents the needs of future psychology students in the use of English in terms of the context in the use of the said language. It can be gleaned from the table that thirteen (13) among the identified nineteen(19) situations consider English as a very useful language. These include the following arranged from the context with the highest mean to the lowest mean among those that were identified as very useful: ‘conducting a research/case study’ with a mean of 2.67; ‘reading academic books and conducting interview’ with the mean of 2.56; ‘reading directions, attending seminars/symposiums, and searching something in google’ with the mean of 2.50; ‘communicating with friends, listening to music, writing a reflection journal, presenting situations to others, and providing possible solutions in front of the class’ with the mean of 2.44; and ‘watching documentary videos and singing a song’ with the mean of 2.39. Moreover, the remaining six (6) situations consider English as a useful language. These include the following arranged from the context with the highest mean to the lowest mean among those that were identified as useful: ‘operating computer’ with the mean of 2.41; ‘giving advice to someone, sharing problems to others, and speaking to the teacher’ with the mean of 2.28; explaining theories/ concepts’ with the mean of 2.27; and ‘dealing with academic anxiety’ with the mean of 2.06. Overall, students who will take up Psychology view English as a very useful language in their field of specialization with an overall mean of 2.41.

The findings above mean that reading is the most important skill which demands students to read academic books relevant to studies specifically about human behavior. Their readings are important for them to write their own research work. The results also suggest that reading should not only be the focus of teaching in English among future psychology students but should include other macro skills such as speaking, listening, and viewing. Therefore, these can be addressed by using the same situations above as strategies in teaching.

Meanwhile, the results above can be supported by the interview conducted to a psychology instructor from the school’s college department. “Research is so important in this field and students should imbibe to themselves the habit of reading so that they can write.” Added to this, “Communication must be the focus of the English teachers today especially for our students. However, some students have the fear to speak because some teachers notice their grammar more than the content of what they say or in other circumstances, they can not express themselves because of lack of vocabulary.” These lines also support the data on the next table regarding the needs of the future psychology students.

II. Needs of Future psychology students in the Use of English in terms of Present Level of Ability in the Use of English

Table 2 shows the perception of students who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology regarding their level of ability in the use of English. It can be seen that the highest number of respondents is within the intermediate level (lower) with seven (7) or 39% of the respondents; this means that these students are fluent but discuss different topics, and have some difficulty with vocabulary, idiom, grammar, and pronunciation. Six (6) or 33% of the respondents believe that they are at the intermediate level (upper) which implies that they can manage comfortably in familiar situations and with familiar topics, though have some difficulty with vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and pronunciation. Meanwhile, three (3) or 17% say that they are advanced (able to converse fluently and naturally on most topics; little difficulty with vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and pronunciation); two (2) or 11% think that they are in the upper basic level (wrong pronunciation, short conversation on a few predictable topics; survival level knowledge of vocabulary, grammar, and idiom); and none is considered in the lower basic level.

In general, the weighted mean along the level of ability of the future psychologist in the use of English is 3.56 which is described as upper-intermediate. This implies that the said students still need improvement in the said area specifically along with vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and pronunciation

Chapter 4

SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary

The research endeavored to study the needs of future psychology students in the use of English in terms of the context in the use of the said language and their present level of linguistic ability. The researchers gathered the data through a questionnaire to the 18 students of Humanities and Social Sciences strand who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology, and through an interview with an instructor in Psychology at Saint Louis College during the first semester of the school year 2017-2018.

Findings

The study came up with the following significant findings:

1. The needs of future psychology students in the use of English in terms of:

a. context in the use of English, the students of Humanities and Social Sciences strand who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology view English as a very useful language in their field of specialization with an overall mean of 2.41; the instructor of Psychology believes that macro skills are important and should be given focus.

b. the present level of linguistic ability, the students of Humanities and Social Sciences strand who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology perceive that they are in the upper intermediate with a general mean of 3.56; the instructor of psychology thinks that communication is an essential factor in learning.

Conclusions

Based on the findings above, the following conclusions are drawn:

1. The needs of future psychology students in the use of English in terms of:

a. context in the use of English, the five macro skills are needed in the field of psychology. Research is an important work for students to developed such skills.

b. the present level of linguistic ability, the students of Humanities and Social Sciences strand who shall take up Bachelor of Science in Psychology can manage comfortably in familiar situations and with familiar topics, though have some difficulty with vocabulary, idioms, grammar, and pronunciation.

Recommendations

Aside from the module, the following are also helpful recommendations based on the findings and conclusions of the study:

1. For the school, seminar workshops among English and Psychology teachers should be sponsored to address the needs of the students in English;

2. For the psychology department, there should be coordination with the English department so as for the students to practice English not only in their English classes;

3. For the English teachers, the following activities should be adopted or inputted in their lessons:

a. Documentary Film

b. Simulation (Interview, Giving advice, etc.)

c. Research Work

d. Journal Writing

e. Debate

f. Library Hunt;

4. For the English teachers, they should align their lessons to the lessons in the specialized subjects of the students;

5. For the future psychology students, they should follow instructions given by the teachers for them to easily develop their ability in the use of the English language; and

6. For future researchers, they can use this study as a reference to prove and have an in-depth analysis of the findings.

Literature Cited

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