English for Specific Purposes (ESP) teaching requires specialized pedagogical expertise; however, many educators enter the field without targeted training. This study conducts a narrative literature review of research on ESP teacher education to determine the major trends in its development, challenges, and future directions. By analysing theoretical frameworks, empirical studies, and reflective practitioner reports in Scopus, ERIC, Web of Science, and SpringerLink databases, the review addresses three research questions: Why is ESP teacher training needed? What competencies define effective ESP educators? And how are programs worldwide addressing these needs? The findings suggest a demand for interdisciplinary collaboration as ESP teachers increasingly work alongside subject-matter experts, pointing to training in teamwork and in domain-specific discourse analysis. The review also indicates that a pedagogical shift from generic and traditional materials to contextualized, needs-based design that involves corpora and digital tools is widely recommended in the literature. Key findings also indicate that ESP instructors face professional identity tensions. As for the trends in the field, fragmented training models are observed. While some universities try to integrate ESP into ELT / TESOL programs, others rely on ad hoc workshops, signalling a gap in standardized curricula. This present study concludes that it is urgent to systematize ESP teacher education through policy alignment, competency frameworks, and blended learning models.

Despite the growing integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into English as a foreign language (EFL) teaching, research lacks psychometrically sound instruments to measure EFL teachers’ AI use. Moreover, existing scales predominantly focus on general attitudes, knowledge, or competencies related to AI in a general educational context. This study aimed to provide preliminary evidence for the factor structure and reliability of the EFL Teachers’ AI Usage Scale (TAS). The scale was administered to 426 EFL teachers, and the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was conducted to examine its internal structure and consistency. The results indicated a clear, interpretable single-factor structure representing teachers’ pedagogical and professional use of AI in EFL teaching and provided initial psychometric evidence supporting the TAS as a reliable instrument. It was recommended that future studies examine the internal structure of the TAS across diverse cultural and educational settings, test its structure using confirmatory approaches, and investigate its relationships with related constructs.

Given the growing internationalization of the fitness industry and the limited availability of profession-specific English training for personal trainers, there is a clear need for accessible ESP instruction tailored to this field. This study aims to develop and evaluate an English for Specific Purposes (ESP) Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) tailored for personal trainers. The research was conducted in two phases. In the first phase, a needs analysis was conducted by examining coaching education curricula offered by state universities in Türkiye and online personal trainer certification programs on Udemy, as well as semi-structured interviews with 38 personal trainers. These analyses were conducted in Microsoft Excel and aimed to identify the professional English-language needs in the field. The findings from this phase informed the design and development of a 14-week ESP MOOC. In the second phase, the developed course was evaluated through qualitative data collected from five participants who completed the program. The evaluation was conducted through online interviews to explore participants’ experiences and perceptions of the course. The findings revealed that the course was preferred due to its flexible online format, its focus on profession-specific English content, and its contribution to participants’ professional competence. This study provides important implications for educators, fitness professionals, and policymakers by emphasizing the value of needs-based ESP course design and the potential of MOOCs to enhance and standardize personal trainer education on a global scale.

This study examined ELT professionals’ and pre-service teachers’ views on making Intercultural Communication (IC) a compulsory course in the English Language Teacher Education Programs (ELTEP). Using a mixed-method design, data were collected from 104 pre-service teachers and five ELT professionals through scales, checklists, and interviews. Results showed no significant overall difference in ICC between first-year and senior students, though a significant difference emerged in the action dimension. Most participants supported the inclusion of a compulsory IC course, emphasizing its role in systematic and standardized IC education. The study concludes with implications for integrating IC into foreign language teacher education.

EFL Öğretim Üyelerinin ve Öğretmen Adaylarının Kültürlerarası İletişim Derslerine İlişkin Görüşleri

Özet: Bu çalışma, Kültürlerarası İletişim derslerinin İngilizce öğretmenliği programlarında zorunlu bir ders haline getirilmesine ilişkin İngiliz Dili Eğitimi (ELT) öğretim üyelerinin ve öğretmen adaylarının görüşlerini incelemektedir. Karma yöntem tasarımı kullanılarak 104 öğretmen adayı ve beş öğretim üyesinden ölçekler, kontrol listeleri ve görüşmeler yoluyla veri toplanmıştır. Sonuçlar, birinci sınıf ve son sınıf öğretmen adaylarının ICC düzeyleri arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir genel fark olmadığını göstermiş olsa da eylem boyutunda anlamlı bir fark ortaya çıkmıştır. Katılımcıların çoğu, kültürlerarası iletişim dersinin sistematik ve standartlaştırılmış kültürlerarası iletişim eğitimindeki rolünü vurgulayarak bu dersin zorunlu dersler kapsamında İngilizce öğretmenliği programlarına dahil edilmesini desteklemiştir. Çalışma, kültürlerarası iletişimin yabancı dil öğretmenliği eğitimine entegre edilmesine yönelik önerilerle sona ermektedir.