Listening to More Voices: Why Being Heard Matters

This article examines various voices in a triangulated needs analysis project aimed at reevaluating the curriculum of a graduate level EAP program. Previous work (Elisha-Primo, et al., 2010) presented students’ voices; this article focuses on department chairpersons and graduate advisors, and graduate EFL instructors with respect to the perceived needs of their students. Results show that listening to all stakeholders enabled us to negotiate and implement requisite changes by resolving the discrepancies among their needs. Moreover, findings demonstrated why being heard matters: the dialogue that ensued from the needs analysis process generated a network for communication, enabling stakeholders to become cognizant of and subsequently more involved with the graduate EAP program. This article demonstrates the complexity and significance of including multiple voices in needs analysis as well as the significance of establishing a forum in which stakeholders may have their voices heard. The implications of this process transcend this study and could be germane to other graduate EAP programs.