Workplace Writing in L2 Experiences Among Millennial Workforce: Learning to Write in English

Nurul Kamalia Yusuf,Melor Md Yunus,Mohamed Amin Embi

doi:10.17576/3l-2018-2401-11

Nurul Kamalia Yusuf, Melor Md Yunus + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.17576/3l-2018-2401-11

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Abstract

The challenges confronted by the Millennial workforce across the transition from higher education to workplaces are well acknowledged globally. Institutions of higher learning (IHLs) have a responsibility to prepare graduates to become a functional workforce. Among the real-world skills to be taught is workplace writing, which is fundamental in work organizations. This paper aims to explore learning to write in English for the workplace as experienced by millennial workforces. A descriptive phenomenological research design was employed in order to gain an in-depth understanding of the Millennial workforce’s lived experiences in workplace writing. Seven of them were selected based on a set of criteria. A two-tiered method of interviews was employed to establish the context, relay specific details of the participants’ experience and contemplate the meaning of their experiences. In addition, self-portrait descriptions were used to triangulate the data. The findings revealed that the millennials experienced both learning for and about workplace writing in both settings: IHLs and workplaces. They further revealed the practicality of English writing and business writing courses they had taken at IHLs. They have also experienced learning at their workplace through participating in trainings, social interaction, first-hand experiences and intrinsic motivation. These findings can be used as an instructional guideline for ESL workplace writing courses in IHLs. The appropriate instructions and contents could be convenient not only to improve teaching and learning but also promote a more meaningful learning to the graduating students which in turn, creates a powerful workforce who is able to command by today’s workplace standards. Keywords: workplace writing English; millennials; phenomenology; learning about work; learning at work

Highlights

Workplace writing refers to writing tasks associated with on-the-job environment and normally produced by members of the same work site for in-house use
A formative feedback as a type of assessment practice is recommended as it allows the grade-obsessed millennial students to impartially hold complex tasks in both educational and workplace sets (McAllum 2016). Participants were those who were born between the years of 1982 and 2004. They were characterised as the Millennial workforces by a set of criteria namely; who perform on-thejob writing in English, and they are the graduates of institutions of higher learning (IHL)
Their responses on the practicality of writing in English lessons IHLs have prepared them and learning at work were derived from the semi-structured interview questions: “please describe your university lessons of writing in English”, “what have the university courses related to writing in English prepared you for the reality of workplace writing?” and, “did you recall any trainings you attended/learning on writing in English at your workplace?” Figure 2 depicts the output of the data analysis

Summary

Introduction

Workplace writing refers to writing tasks associated with on-the-job environment and normally produced by members of the same work site for in-house use. Studies increasingly show that workforces whose English is their second language (L2) around the world are still facing challenges when they are required to carry out English written tasks as part of their everyday job

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