Scientific English: a program for addressing linguistic barriers of international research trainees in the United States

Abstract

Within the international research environment, English is indisputably the lingua franca, and thus, the majority of the world's scientists must adapt to a second language. Linguistic barriers in science affect not only researchers' career paths but institutional productivity and efficiency as well. To address these barriers, we designed and piloted a specialized course, Scientific English. The pedagogical approach is based on English for specific purposes methodology in which curriculum and content are driven by the types of daily language used and interactions which occur in the participants' occupation, in this case, cancer research. The 11-week program was organized into three sections: presentation skill, meeting and discussion skills, and writing skills. Effectiveness of the course was measured by the number of participants able to produce the presentations and written products with a score of at least 75 of 100 possible points. From January to December 2008, participant scores averaged 90.4 for presentation and 86.8 for written products. The authors provide insights and recommendations on the development and delivery of the program.