The year 1920 is the first emergence of needs analysis.

Its concept has been

developed and introduced into English language teaching (ELT) while the growth of

science and technology and the interest for developing ESP programs have taken place

in the world. Nowadays, it is prerequisite to the specification of any language program

objectives. And it was applied in the field of English for Special Purpose (ESP) study.

Horowitz (1986) explicated needs analysis as step in designing a target

course/program. It includes all the activities used to collect information about the

students’ learning needs, wants, interest etc. This includes classifying specific

assignments; observing the students in classroom settings; description of discourse and

classroom behavior; and conducting surveys regarding students’ backgrounds and

goals.

Ibrahim (2020) conducted a study entitled “Needs Analysis as a Prerequisite for

Designing an ESP Course for Medical Students”, findings confirmed several problems

that students faced such as the lack of basic skills, most apparently in speaking and

listening skills. It is recommended to review or revisit the current syllabus to undergo

some changes to meet most students’ needs towards their medical study. And use

different methods for collecting data such interviews and classroom observation to get

more productive data as well as to use more technical aids such as computer, videos,

and TV.

Moreover, in accordance with the study of Gborsong et., al (2015) results

revealed that students have a positive attitude towards Communicative Skills because

they agree that the program provides self-esteem, analytical and communicative skills

such as good speaking and writing skills. Contrary to the view that Communicative Skills
students in universities in Ghana lack and abhor basic grammar as CS students claim

that such grammar components as concord, ambiguity and misrelated constructions are

very useful in writing.

Additionally, as discussed in the study of Zhang & Wang (2020) results showed

the following aspects, i.e., most of the students are basically instrumentally motivated,

therefore they prefer the career-development focused courses. They have high

evaluation of the current English curriculum and believe it can basically satisfy students’

learning needs.

In conclusion, needs analysis is widely used in foreign language study to

determine the learners’ need and the results will serve as a basis for curriculum

designing. It is vital to instructor who wants to know the purpose of the students for

language learning and allows the instructor to collect and analyze information to identify

and validate the language. Essentially, this concept will guide to build up an English

language course to accomplish the specific needs of the learners.

References:

Ibrahim, H. H. (2020). Needs Analysis as a Prerequisite for Designing an ESP Course

for Medical Students. Open Journal of Modern Linguistics, 10, 83-103.
https://doi.org/10.4236/ojml.2020.102006
Zhang, L. M., Han, J., & Wang, H. F. (2020). A Research of the Need Analysis of the
English Majors of Baoding University. Creative Education, 11, 2375-2383.
https://doi.org/10.4236/ce.2020.1111174
Gborsong, P. A., Afful, J. A., Coker, C., Akoto, O. Y., Twumasi, R., Baiden, A. (2015). A
Needs Analysis of Undergraduate Students of Communicative Skills: The Case of
Tertiary Institutions in Ghana. Open Journal of Modern Linguistics, 5, 413-424.
http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ojml.2015.55037