Using Adequate Materials in Teaching English for Specific Purposes for the Practice of Language Skills

Abstract

The use of authentic materials in the ESP class is a necessity dictated by students’ needs and supported by current trends regarding the purpose of ESP in higher education. Authentic materials are a valuable source of factual information and also constitute the pretext which can be used by the ESP teacher in order to practice all language skills in a meaningful professional context. The paper explains the role and benefits of using authentic materials in the ESP class, tackles with the concept of authenticity and its various interpretations and identifies features of authentic materials.