A case study of the professional development needs of the English for specific purposes instructors

The aim of this case study was to explore the professional development needs of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) instructors teaching military English at a state university in Türkiye. The study investigated the professional support systems that were available to the ESP instructors in their workplace as well as the challenges they had while teaching ESP. Participants of the study were 29 instructors offering ESP courses to undergraduate students. Data came from a 30-item questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. Descriptive statistics were calculated using SPSS and thematic analysis was done to analyze the interview data. Findings from the questionnaire revealed ESP instructors thought they were professionally competent in terms of academic practice, ESP students, ESP curriculum development, program implementation, and assessment. However, analysis of interviews suggested they faced substantial challenges in performing their duties as ESP instructors, in terms of preparing for lessons, adding to the knowledge of ESP students, and developing ESP materials. Lastly, in addition to the ESP students and their colleagues with whom they were collaborating, their own efforts were ESP instructors' primary professional support resource.