ABSTRACT
This chapter considers two discipline-informed methodological approaches to teaching English for specific purposes: problem-based learning (PBL) widely used in medical studies, and case-study methodology, widely used in business studies. PBL is a methodological approach that emerged in the 1970s as an alternative to traditional methods of teaching medicine at the McMaster Medical School in Canada. PBL shifted the focus from the subject being taught to the learners themselves. While PBL is a common approach in medical studies, the case-study approach is commonly used in business. The two approaches are similar because the teaching and learning is student-led rather than teacher-led or course-led. Both approaches focus on groups finding a solution to a problem. A case study is usually a description of a situation or problem in a company. While the case-study method may be widely used in business studies, it needs some consideration to make it work in the language classroom.
