The Department of Language and Literature is organising a lecture on “Facilitating the Acquisition of English for Specific Purposes” to be delivered by the guest Lecturer Dr Albena Stefanova (Senior Lecturer in English, Department of Foreign Languages and Applied Linguistics University of National and World Economy, Bulgaria)
Effective language acquisition has always been the focus of professionals in the fields of foreign language teaching and English for specific purposes (ESP) in particular. However, applying various approaches seems insufficient, especially given the peculiarities of the new generations and the ever-changing world. Therefore, introducing novelties such as developing interactive tasks and small projects based on social media and the interest in virtual reality could be used to encourage student involvement and motivation. Examples from the lecturer’s practice will demonstrate how students improve their performance and acquire ESP knowledge and skills in a way that also stimulates self-direction and provides greater learner confidence. Experimenting with a camp high in the mountain in an environment quite different from the academic one will also be discussed in terms of ESP acquisition facilitation through team building. Special attention will be paid to inter-university projects with international partners. The experience shared with the audience is based on the work with students of economics and political studies, but it could be successfully applied to any ESP course.
About Albena Stefanova
Albena Stefanova holds a PhD degree in Methodology of teaching foreign languages. She has been teaching English to students of philosophy, policing, law, economics and political studies for over twenty-five years. Her main interests are English for specific purposes and translation. She focuses on communication skills and cross-cultural communication considering curriculum and syllabus optimisation in language teaching a substantial contribution to the accomplishment of language competence objectives and encouragement of students’ involvement and autonomy. Lately, she has been working on developing interactive tasks and small projects taking advantage of the modern generation’s genuine interest in virtual reality and social media
