Following the success of the 1st Asian ESP Conference held at Chongqing University in October 2009, the 2nd ESP in Asia Conference at University of Nottingham Ningbo China in October 2010, and the 3rd International Conference on ESP in Asia Xi’an Jiaotong University in October 2011, we are very pleased to announce that the 4th International Conference on ESP in Asia, in conjunction with the 1st International Conference of the Chinese Association for ESP, will be held at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, on 13-16 December 2012. The theme of the conference is ‘Mapping ESP Frontiers: Bridging Teaching, Research and Practice’.

Aims of conference
1)To bring together scholars, researchers and practitioners in English for Specific Purposes in China and other parts of the world to contribute to a stimulating and dynamic exchange of ideas in ESP research, practice, training and assessment; and 2)To promote interaction among conference participants so as to expand research networks and communication in different ESP settings.

Themes
We invite papers in all aspects of ESP, from teachers, research students, researchers, training consultants and practitioners from the industry. Conference themes include, but are not limited to:
1.ESP theories: Development and applications
2.ESP teaching: e.g., course or curriculum design, materials design and writing, pedagogical innovations
3.English in specialized domains in ESL/EFL contexts
4.ESP research: Approaches, methods and findings
5.ESP testing and assessment
6.ESP practice: Challenges and rewards, English in the professions in multilingual and multicultural contexts
7.EAP/ESP within a World Englishes paradigm

Invited plenary speakers
Prof. Vijay Bhatia, President, Asia-Pacific LSP & Professional Communication Association, Hong Kong SAR
Prof. Cai Jigang, Fudan University, China; Vice Chair, National Advisory Committee on College Language Teaching; Deputy Director, ESP committee of China Foreign Languages Education Association, China
Dr. John Read, The University of Auckland, New Zealand; President, International Language Testing Association
Prof. Elena Tognini-Bonelli, The Tuscan Word Centre, The University of Siena, Italy Prof. Wang Lifei, University of International Business and Economics, China

Important dates
Deadline for Call for Papers 15 June 2012 (Fri)
Notice of Acceptance 16 July 2012 (Mon)
Early Bird Registration 17 August 2012 (Fri)
Cancellation 15 October 2012 (Mon) (no refund of registration fee after this date)

Abstract submission
All presentations will be 30 minutes, including a 10-minute Q&A. Your abstract (in MS Word Version) should not exceed 300 words, including references.
On a separate page, please include the title of the paper, theme area (state one of the above, or a theme that best describes your paper), your name and academic title, your affiliation, and your email address and postal address.
The abstract template can be retrieved from:
http://www.engl.polyu.edu.hk/events/esp/ESP_conference_Abstract_Template.doc

Each participant can submit only one abstract as the lead author and one abstract as a co-author. Lead authors must register by 17 August 2012 (Fri) in order for the paper to be included in the conference programme.

Please submit abstracts to: egesp@polyu.edu.hk