Would you jump at the chance to teach a class of 12 million English language students? When Dr. Lin Lougheed, author of 35 ESL/EFL textbooks, was asked to create an English business course for broadcast to China, he could hardly contain his enthusiasm. "I could picture all those listeners straining to hear the latest lesson as it crackled across the short wave," he said adding, "I was in the mood to make an impact."

That mood was encouraged by the source of the request, Voice of America radio. A year before, when Lougheed had made his first trip to China, he was surprised to meet Chinese people who spoke virtually accent-free, colloquial English. They had never traveled outside their country, yet he found them as easy to talk to as his neighbors in the Midwestern U.S. They could follow a wide range of topics; they could easily understand different English accents. How was it possible? Where did they practice? The answer he got is a tribute to the power of the airwaves: "We listen to Voice of America."

Today, there is satellite television and the Internet, but Voice of America is still one of the most accessible and reliable sources of English language material for people around the globe. It provides English news, music, interviews, features and more, giving listeners the opportunity to hear language on many subjects in context.

While English is taught extensively in Chinese schools, generally from middle school on, students focus heavily on grammar. "Their reading and writing are okay," explained Michael Yan, a senior editor at VOA, "but their weakness is lack of exposure to spoken English."

For learners who are grammar-rich but communication-poor, radio fills an important niche.

For the new Business English series VOA wanted, Yan pictured the audience as learners who already had some basic English knowledge. Some would know a lot about business but speak limited English; some would speak good English but know little about business. In 52 thirty-minute segments about Business English, the program would have to appeal to both types of learners.

Chinese focus groups felt that the biggest need was for material that dealt with current business concepts and terminology. They felt enough was available in Chinese bookstores on basics such as applying for a job or conducting a meeting in English. Jannie Qin, an international radio broadcaster with VOA, agreed: "There are hundreds of English language business books out there. What we needed was something unique and practical, close to learners' real lives."

Lougheed decided that the program would have a loose story line revolving around the activities of a consulting firm. "That way we could create a number of case studies with specific business situations in a variety of settings," said Lougheed, reeling off a list of diverse examples that included clothing factories, software companies, and department stores. "It's like 'ER' for language learning. Each week a business person comes in with a different problem to be healed."

The half-hour program is divided into two parts. The first part covers business terms and concepts, while the second part, "Small Talk", covers the everyday, informal language tasks that business people need to know. Dialogs are presented in English, then broken down and explained in Chinese as well.

The program engages the listener with its realistic situations and up-to-date content. For example, in the Customer Service case study, retailers solicit feedback on the Web; in Opening a Branch Office, job applicants email in their resumes; in Intellectual Property, a Chinese video game developer worries about protecting her software code from intellectual property theft.

One concern was making the program as interactive as possible, given the limits of the medium. "Listeners always ask, 'How do I develop my listening/speaking skills?'" said Qin. "In the program, they are invited to participate in situations." Active listening is encouraged with questions and listen/repeat exercises. The program is ideal for self-study, since each show is repeated every day for a week, and the entire series will be repeated yearly. Listeners who miss a segment can easily tune in again.

Lougheed had other ideas in mind to make the program effective. From his previous work and study with distance education, he knew that two media would be more effective than one. "I wanted the students to have a book in their hands while they listened to the broadcast." When Lougheed contacted him, Yiu Hei Kan of Macmillan Publishing not only became excited about the project, but got the Beijing University Foreign Language and Research Press, the largest ELT publisher in China, interested in it. Together they wove a marketing plan that included a television spin off, national exams based on the content, and a web site.

Meanwhile, at VOA, the program was being fine-tuned. "Michael (Yan) wouldn't let me get away with anything," said Lougheed. Since Yan, trained as a translator, had a rule-based knowledge of English sharpened at Beijing University and broadened by years of working and living in the U.S., he knew that the highly educated listeners would want to have any deviation from "the rules" fully explained. "I think it made the program richer," said Lougheed, "because the nuances of English and the drift of words' meanings could be discussed." In addition, Jannie Qin's long career in broadcasting, plus a background in teaching and teacher training, helped focus the presentation. "She understands the audience," Lougheed noted.

"Dr. Lougheed's Business English: Time For Your Meeting" made its on-air debut on March 17, 1999, with the listening guide coming out shortly after.

It soon became clear that the dual media idea was popular with listeners. "We've been doing promos of the book on the air," said Qin. "Every day we have a listeners' hotline, and everyone wants it." Listeners also have something new to look forward to: reading and writing books with a complementary format.

VOA's newest English language program is especially welcome to a market that is still listening to shows that are 20 to 30 years old. "We at VOA really like the program," said Yan. "Dr. Lougheed did a splendid job of putting it together."

The Case Study approach allows the program to have a variety of business settings. For continuity, the leaders of these various corporations turn to the same consulting company to solve their problems. The 52-week program is divided into segments that easily fit an academic calendar.

Lesson 1: Role of a Consultant 1
Lessons 2-7: Case Study 1: Information Systems
Lessons 8-13: Case Study 2: Human Resource Development
Lessons 14-19 Case Study 3: Electronic Commerce
Lessons 20-25 Case Study 4: Distribution
Lesson 26 Role of a Consultant 2
Lesson 27 Role of Consultant 3
Lesson 28-33 Case Study 5: Customer Service
Lesson 34-39 Case Study 6: Opening a Branch Office
Lesson 40-45 Case Study 7: Investment Banking
Lesson 46-51 Case Study 8: Intellectual Property
Lesson 52 Role of a Consultant 4