The English Curriculum Development Project was set in motion in late 2004, to make the English language programmes more relevant to the daily work life of QP’s employees. Line managers and English learners in all departments were interviewed, and workplace documents analysed, in order to determine the kinds of reading and writing skills that employees needed at the workplace, and the nature of the speaking and listening interactions that they were regularly involved in.
Based on this needs analysis the English Language Competency Framework was developed to address the needs of employees working in all departments and in all types of jobs in the energy and industry sector. The draft competency statements were circulated widely within the company and revised according to feedback received. As a result, a coursebook series entitled “Power English: Communication for the Energy and was created using these competencies or outcomes as the starting point.
Dominant features of the core course materials are its strong workplace and local relevance, its methodology of competency based learning, and its emphasis on empowering learners, all of which are significant factors in underpinning quality Qatarisation in our industrial sector.
The four core courses (Elementary, Pre-intermediate, Intermediate-A and Intermediate-B) each include:
- a print Coursebook for group work
- an electronic coursebook with integrated multimedia
- a print Workbook for individual practice
- an interactive electronic workbook
- an Instructor's Guide,
The courses have been extensively piloted over the last three years, receiving extremely positive feedback from learners, instructors and line managers. This feedback was also used to further develop the materials, and the final result is a product which:
- meets the language training needs of the Gulf energy and industry sector
- features oil and gas industry texts, situations and scenarios
- is relevant and culturally appropriate for Gulf Arab learners
- is brimming with a wide range of stimulating topics
- is enhanced with cutting-edge multimedia
We have also developed a number of short courses which can be used independently or as complementary material to the courses. These include:
- Writing memos
- Generating Routine Memos
- Using Reference Materials
- Writing Skills courses (Elementary, Pre-Intermediate, Intermediate-A and Intermediate-B)
- Reading Skills courses (Elementary, Pre-Intermediate, Intermediate-A and Intermediate-B)
A large selection of other courses is also currently under development.
All Strategic Qatarization Plan companies are invited to review the draft Power English materials. We value your feedback. Please email us through the Contact Us function.
