ИСТИНА

The IT field has always been English-dependent for several reasons, including its origins, the economic dominance of English-speaking countries in the industry and its international spread, necessitating the use of a global language. An IT English classroom is a highly specific educational environment, even when compared to related academic tracks such as fundamental mathematics or physics. Since most students intend to pursue a career in the industry, it requires primarily practice-oriented instruction with an emphasis on efficient communication in the workplace. In ESP terms, teaching English in such a setting demands more EOP (in its various shapes) than EAP. In most cases, a strong focus on sub-technical vocabulary and functional communication would be justified. However, due to prior educational experience, the students starting the course frequently lack language fundamentals. Moreover, the instruction takes place in a formal academic context with an audience whose exact professional needs have not been fully defined yet and whose internal motivation is fueled mostly by personal interest. As a result, both sub-technical and general lexis have to be taught alongside basic grammar. With AI instruments growing ubiquitous, the focus shifts from receptive to productive skills, especially speaking, as most students easily translate written texts on the go. The question remains: what learning materials are suitable for working with an audience of future IT specialists in a university setting? The rapid evolution of the field means that any given coursebook is bound to turn obsolete. Even though sub-technical vocabulary remains mostly stable, outdated content may result in negative rapport and subsequent loss of motivation. Coursebooks for IT professionals, on the other hand, highlight specific workplace interactions that are not yet relevant for 17-year-old students. The optimal solution appears to be a range of authentic materials selected on a case-by-case basis: i.e. according to the students’ core subjects they are currently studying (such as calculus or programming), their personal preferences and technical experience up to date. In terms of discourse, a genre-based approach could give audience their first taste of professional communication in English, with varying registers and diverse linguistic means. Given the importance of general English in this particular setting, materials should be used merely as initial prompts for emergent language - which will inevitably reveal the students’ actual needs, strengths and weaknesses. Deliberate absence of a coursebook requires the teacher’s proactive stance and prompt reaction to the students’ demands: in particular, the ability to design activities and provide feedback on emergent language. The focus on practice-oriented, thematically relevant and learner-centred teaching is inherent to a range of approaches (including TBL and even CLIL); yet its most obvious relative is Dogme ELT. Ironically, it is considered more suitable for settings that seem the opposite of the IT faculty at Moscow State University: namely, General English classes in developing countries with little or no access to coursebooks and teaching aids. Another suspicious point is, indeed, the use of materials per se, since Dogme ELT is often associated with utmost flexibility and the rejection of any materials whatsoever. However, the ‘materials-light’ approach, does not necessarily imply ‘no materials’ even in the original Dogme ELT framework, as recognized by educational researchers. Rather, materials should serve as a starting point for conversation and provoke output. Additionally, a ‘materials-light’ approach gives more confidence to the ESP teacher, as the students maneuver technical vocabulary by themselves, depending on their background, while semi-technical and general layers stand out as essential for discussion. This method - in the post-method era - could be termed ‘Dogme ESP’. This presentation is based on the author's practical experience of using authentic IT materials as a starting point for an unplugged, ‘Dogme ESP’ approach.