Language Needs Analysis and Teaching Polish as Foreign Language for Specific and Vocational Purposes from Medical Language Perspective. Preliminary Study

Abstract

The contemporary labor market requires the use foreign languages in various contexts, which are often very specific and typical for particular projects or positions. Analysis of language needs has grown to become more significant as a tool which enables educators to learn more about these contexts and determine the language needs of specific groups of learners. This instrument allows tailoring the syllabus and course content to the challenges which learners will have to face in the future. Students of Polish medical universities attending courses conducted in English are one of the groups whose language needs have not yet been studied. The uniqueness of this group lies in the fact that these students have the tool needed to study – they speak English, which is the language of instruction in theoretical classes; however, during the clinical training they work with Polish patients, with whom they cannot communicate directly, and require help from a translator’s. The aim of this paper is to present the findings of a qualitative pilot study which reveal the needs of this group of learners and their language deficiencies when communicating with Polish patients during clinical training and internship. Two interviews with graduates of a Polish medical university provide knowledge on whether Polish skills are necessary, whether they affect the quality of education as well as when and for what purposes students needed to use Polish. This study was inspired by and is an introduction to the project planned as part of the doctoral dissertation aimed at identifying and describing the language needs of this group of learners in relation to their contacts with patients during their medical education in Poland. The pilot study allowed verifying research tools and assumptions of the research project.