SCIENTIFIC/TECHNICAL ENGLISH SKILLS FOR POLYTECHNIC SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY STUDENTS

A NEEDS SURVEY

Abstract

As the global community of Science and Technology continues to advance, the requirements for communication in this area becomes increasingly demanding. Science and Technology students of Nigerian polytechnics have special needs in Scientific/Technical Communication. In this work, a Needs Survey of polytechnic Science and Technology English studying students was conducted, to identify their communicative language needs, in order to ascertain how far the prescribed English course fulfils the academic and professional needs of the students. The method of Content Analysis and Survey Technique following an eclectic method of analysis was used for
the investigation. The study revealed a number of lacunas/gaps in the English/Communication needs of the students. The paper suggests the incorporation of Scientific/Technical courses in the Science and Technology students' General English courses.