As testified by several critics English has gained the role of lingua franca throughout the second part of the XIX century, so that it is now considered the preferred language of communication both among speakers from different countries and between individuals living in the same country. English, in fact, has become the most used linguistic means for communicative exchanges both in a global and on the local sense. The gradual growth of worldwide socio-economic relationships and the technological progress in multifarious fields such as transport, telecommunication and computer science, indeed, have fostered the removal of national barriers, promoting people’s exigency to learn English. In the light of this change, the pedagogical activity has evolved rapidly with the aim of meeting learners’ specific needs. As a matter of fact, although it maintains its status of “language for identification” English has become the language for communication par excellence. For this reason, Italian schools, from primary to upper secondary institutions, offer innovative methodological approaches, whose aim is to teach non-linguistic contents via English. This presentation illustrates an upper secondary school project addressed to future pilots and air traffic controllers: English language training courses for them focuses almost exclusively on improving listening and speaking skills, in that they are both essential to ensuring safety in civil aviation. In reference to these skills, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) language proficiency scale, the communicative aspects to develop for professional purposes are comprehension, fluency, interaction, vocabulary, grammar structures and pronunciation. To this extent, texts and manuals used for aviation courses have essentially a dual function: on the one hand, to provide background information and explanation notes on aviation contexts and, on the other hand, give some suggestions on how to teach topics most effectively.
English Language Training Courses for Pilots and Air Traffic Controllers: a Project based on Innovative Approaches
GORACCI, Giada;CORRIZZATO, Sara
2013-01-01
Abstract
As testified by several critics English has gained the role of lingua franca throughout the second part of the XIX century, so that it is now considered the preferred language of communication both among speakers from different countries and between individuals living in the same country. English, in fact, has become the most used linguistic means for communicative exchanges both in a global and on the local sense. The gradual growth of worldwide socio-economic relationships and the technological progress in multifarious fields such as transport, telecommunication and computer science, indeed, have fostered the removal of national barriers, promoting people’s exigency to learn English. In the light of this change, the pedagogical activity has evolved rapidly with the aim of meeting learners’ specific needs. As a matter of fact, although it maintains its status of “language for identification” English has become the language for communication par excellence. For this reason, Italian schools, from primary to upper secondary institutions, offer innovative methodological approaches, whose aim is to teach non-linguistic contents via English. This presentation illustrates an upper secondary school project addressed to future pilots and air traffic controllers: English language training courses for them focuses almost exclusively on improving listening and speaking skills, in that they are both essential to ensuring safety in civil aviation. In reference to these skills, according to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) language proficiency scale, the communicative aspects to develop for professional purposes are comprehension, fluency, interaction, vocabulary, grammar structures and pronunciation. To this extent, texts and manuals used for aviation courses have essentially a dual function: on the one hand, to provide background information and explanation notes on aviation contexts and, on the other hand, give some suggestions on how to teach topics most effectively.
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