Prof. Dr. Peter John

This chapter presents the findings of the European “LSP Teacher Training Summer School” project (TRAILs) which aims to develop an innovative LSP teacher training curriculum based on identified gaps between existing and required LSP teacher training. The paper introduces a methodological approach to collect relevant information on such programmes and provides an overview of existing training programmes in the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). By synthesising the research activities carried out, the data presented relate to entry requirements, teaching and learning methods, use of information and communications technology (ICT), and credit points granted in the framework of the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS). The results of the survey have shown that in some countries higher education institutions do not offer any LSP teacher training programmes and, where such programmes are provided, their number varies considerably. The programmes differ in terms of teaching format as well as the teaching and learning methods used. On the other hand, it seems that ICT tools are commonly used by both LSP teacher trainers and students.

This book is the result of research carried out in partnership with seven European universities as part of an Erasmus+ project on training teachers of Language for Specifi c Purpose (LSP) in higher education. All university partners, i.e. Bordeaux (France), Zagreb (Croatia), Jade (Germany), Cádiz (Spain), Adam Mickiewicz (Poland), Ljubljana (Slovenia), Arcola Research (UK), and Bergamo (Italy) carried out surveys and developed a detailed report showing that in Europe there is very little training for this type of teaching, and that teachers generally need to be trained in the specifi cities of the language fi eld they are going to teach. Medical or maritime English, legal Spanish, French for tourism, etc. require both an expert domain
knowledge and a grounding in language teaching. Several testimonies highlight this situation and show the lack of career development prospects for LSP teachers at European universities.
The members of the Erasmus+ TRAILs project have therefore been interested in the specifi c needs of LSP teachers and have been able to update the information through several types of surveys. The competences
of LSP teachers were thus identifi ed. Based on this precise inventory, they are proposing to draw up a complete training programme.
A pedagogical approach has been developed: resources, lesson preparation, course design, innovative pedagogical approaches are presented. The research presented in this book goes well beyond the TRAILs project and questions the training of specialised language teachers. More generally, it highlights the need to provide effective training and professional development for LSP teachers and offers a contribution to overcoming the shortcomings of LSP teacher education.