A practical application of wikis for learning Business English as a Second Language

Abstract

Business English teachers nowadays have a wide range of resources available to them in their classes such as DVDs, videos, blogs, virtual platforms, applets, multimedia or wikis. This study presents a proposal for innovation, attending to the needs of students, aiming to improve the processes for mastering their English in the business sphere. One hundred first year Economics students took part in two information collection methods: a test with specific Business English questions and a personal interview. Both had the aim of obtaining data from the students in relation to their level of English. The priority of the research was to minimise the disconcerting results of the low levels of second language that the students showed. ICTs in the form of the Moodle platform and the use of wikis where students can work together with their classmates whilst being monitored by their teacher, were used.