The use of English in Hotels in Sorocaba and Surrounding Cities: a study on the target situation needs

Abstract

The aim of the present paper is to present data collected about the needs of English as used in hotels in Sorocaba and surrounding cities. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews (Nunan, 1992) carried out by Hotel Management students from Universidade de Sorocaba with professionals of hotels in the region who have direct contact with English speakers. Taking into account that gathering information on the needs of the language used in the target situation is a preliminary procedure for the design of an ESP course (Nunan, 1988, Hutchinson & Waters, 1987), the final objective of this research is to design an English course for Hotel Staff to be used in training and university courses.