Describes problems resulting from the use of immigrant industrial workers with poor language understanding and the method used to assess functional oral English for occupational purposes. While the form of assessment provides authentic data for company training and communication needs, further research is needed to resolve some problems. (MF)

PROCESS INDUSTRIES REQUIRE SYSTEMS ENGINEERS WHO CAN DESIGN, BUILD, AND IMPLEMENT A TOTAL SYSTEM OF INTERACTING COMPONENTS, WITH OR WITHOUT A DIGITAL COMPUTER. SINCE FEW COURSES ARE PROVIDED IN THIS DISCIPLINE, COMPANIES MUST DESIGN INPLANT PROGRAMS. TRAINEES MAY BE PH.D.S IN CONTROL ENGINEERING, PHYSICS, OR CHEMICAL ENGINEERING, RECENT GRADUATES…

A discussion of the content of workplace English programs for limited-English-speaking immigrants to Australia focuses on the proportions of general and work-specific course content in those programs. It draws, in part, on results of a 1989 study of one workplace English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program. It is proposed that reasons for…