The use of discourse analysis to enhance ESP teacher knowledge: an example using aviation English by Sullivan and Girginer (2002)

lack of specific content knowledge of many ESP teachers (Hutchinson and Waters', 1987)

Data collection and research design

Communicative Syllabus Design - Munby (1978)

Standard discourse transactions between pilots and air traffic controllers at Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul

research tools

interviews

questionnaires

tape recordings

a collection of unrehearsed and unplanned discourse

178 pages and 3968 lines

9 hours of recordings at the Ataturk International Airport Air Traffic Control center

observations

at Ataturk International Airport

25 Turkish Pilots and 25 air traffic controllers

10 Turkish pilots and 10 air traffic controllers

long process in getting permission to study the selected learners

The use of authentic data

Results

Airspeak - Robertson (1988)

278 pilots - 160 pilots for airlines in Turkey; 14 pilots work in a German factory, 146 of them are still undecided

Turkish air control setting

Approach control

center control

Area control

Tower Control

mostly brief requests, greetings, numbers, repetition (readback)

difference in the way of pronouncing numbers

Turkish was used for long statements