Investigation into Common Errors in English Writing among Non-Academic Staff at a Malaysian Public University

Autor/inn/en	Abdullah, Ahmad Taufik Hidayah; Azmi, Mohd Nazri Latiff; Hassan, Isyaku; Atek, Engku Suhaimi Engku; Jusoh, Zailani
Titel	Investigation into Common Errors in English Writing among Non-Academic Staff at a Malaysian Public University
Quelle	In: Arab World English Journal, 12 (2021) 4, S.446-461 (16 Seiten) PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	ORCID (Abdullah, Ahmad Taufik Hidayah) ORCID (Azmi, Mohd Nazri Latiff) ORCID (Hassan, Isyaku) ORCID (Atek, Engku Suhaimi Engku) ORCID (Jusoh, Zailani)
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	2229-9327
Schlagwörter	Writing (Composition); English (Second Language); Second Language Learning; Second Language Instruction; Error Analysis (Language); State Universities; Foreign Countries; Professional Personnel; Writing Skills; Grammar; Language Usage; Form Classes (Languages); Program Development; Writing Instruction; Office Occupations; Task Analysis; Writing Evaluation; Malaysia + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Schreibübung; English as second language; English; Second Language; Englisch als Zweitsprache; Zweitsprachenerwerb; Fremdsprachenunterricht; Error analysis; Language; Fehleranalyse; Staatliche Universität; Ausland; Personalbestand; Writing skill; Schreibfertigkeit; Grammatik; Sprachgebrauch; Analytischer Sprachbau; Programmplanung; Schreibunterricht; Clerical occupations; Büroberuf; Aufgabenanalyse
Abstract	The Malaysian government has long recognized the significance of mastering the English language among its citizenry. The government has planned, and subsequently, implemented many policies to ensure Malaysians master the English language. Although civil servants have a strong desire to master the English language to perform their duties more efficiently, poor English communication skills have become a major concern in this regard. Therefore, this research aims to investigate common errors in writing the English language among non-academic staff at "Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin" (UniSZA), a public university in Malaysia. The study employed an Error Analysis approach by conducting document analysis where every respondent was required to write a paragraph in the English language in about 150-200 words on the topic "My greatest challenge as a UniSZA officer". The findings revealed that a sizeable number of non-academic staff committed different types of errors in writing the English language, including errors related to subject-verb agreement, passive voice, plurality, choice of word, omission of word, use of article, tense sequence, word ordering, gerund, addition of word/redundancy, and comparison of adjective. It was observed that lack of linguistic skills, lack of exposure, and inadequate practices in written English were the main factors contributing to the English writing errors among the non-academic staff. These findings could help the university management to develop appropriate programs that can assist the non-academic staff to develop English writing competence. However, this study is limited to English writing errors. Further research may focus on other language skills such as speaking and listening. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	Arab World English Journal. 10602 Davlee Lane, Richmond, Texas, 77407. e-mail: editor@awej.org; e-mail: info@ASELS.org; Web site: https://awej.org/
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2024/1/01