Structural Curriculum Enhancement and Institutional Modernisation of ESP
Institution: International University for the Humanities and Development (IUHD)
Pathway 3: Curriculum & Institutional Development
Lead team: Maya Orazova, Hurma Sultanova, Jahan Saparova, Soltangul Arazmedova
Target group: ESP students in Law, International Relations and International Economics
Focus: Modernising ESP provision through structural curriculum development and institutional enhancement.
Reflect on the progress you have made in implementing your mini-project so far. Consider your original aims, the activities you have carried out, the outcomes achieved, and the challenges you have encountered. Support your reflections with specific examples or evidence wherever possible. If some activities are still in progress, explain what you have achieved to date, what you have learned, and what your next steps will be. Focus on progress, impact, lessons learned, and priorities for further development, rather than simply describing the activities you have completed.
- What progress have you made in identifying gaps in the existing ESP curricula for Law, International Relations and International Economics?
- What changes have you developed or introduced to the curricula, learning outcomes, course content or teaching approaches?
- To what extent do the developments so far address the professional language needs of students in these three disciplines?
- What evidence or feedback have you gathered to evaluate the relevance and effectiveness of your work?
- What challenges have you encountered in developing or implementing curriculum changes, and what have you learned from them?
- What are your priorities for the next stage of curriculum development and institutional implementation?
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1. Gaps Identified in Existing ESP Curricula
We have identified that existing syllabi and curricula for Law, International Relations, and International Economics rely too heavily on textbooks. They lack task-based practical skills, authentic materials, and training in modern tools like AI-driven legal analysis and prompt scaffolding.
2. Changes Developed and Introduced
We have introduced experiential task-based modules like Model UN role-plays, press conferences, and diplomatic negotiations. Additionally, we use AI tools for text analysis, task and activity development.
3. Addressing Student Professional Needs
The updated materials prepare Law students to analyze legal syntax and handle treaty ambiguities, equip International Relations majors with diplomatic negotiation skills, and give International Economics students practical fluency in global finance and trade discourse.
4. Evidence and Feedback Gathered
We gathered feedback through student performance in UN Day simulations and competitions, peer evaluations during lesson observations, and students’ feedback.
5. Challenges Encountered and Lessons Learned
The main challenge was balancing varying levels of student language proficiency and digital literacy, which made it difficult to apply advanced simulations uniformly across all cohorts. We learned that integrating TBLT, PBLs, and other innovative approaches require structured, step-by-step scaffolding. This ensures that technology enhances professional language acquisition.
6. Priorities for the Next Stage
Our main priority is expanding research on innovative approaches and AI-driven prompt scaffolding tailored for Law, International Relations, and International Economics. Moving forward, we plan to scale these task-based learning models across additional departmental courses and organize faculty workshops to update our curriculum and alın it with national digital education standards.
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