WhatsApp Emoji in Business Interactions: The Case of Malaysian and Iranian Interactions

WhatsApp emoji has been widely used by users all over the world especially entrepreneurs during their business interactions. In these interactions, WhatsApp emoji has been discovered to be intriguing. Emoji, among other things, were used to replace non-verbal expressions in face-to-face interactions especially during business communications. However, studies related to the usage of WhatsApp emoji in business interactions were found to be limited, particularly in the Malaysian setting. Thus, the purpose of this research was to examine the use of WhatsApp emoji in business communications between a Malaysian entrepreneur and three Iranian counterparts. Content Analysis was used to interpret the messages in the business conversations, and the data was analysed using De Vito's Five-Stage Model of Conversation. The findings revealed that WhatsApp emoji performed a range of functions in business interactions in a BELF setting. In short, WhatsApp has clearly added some useful and valuable features for a variety of uses, including business communications.

Language and Disciplinary Concepts in Corpus Linguistics: Investigating Corpus Data

This paper is intended for researchers involved in or contemplating research in corpus linguistics, and is concerned in particular with the language of corpus linguistics. It introduces and explains technical terms in the context in which they are normally used. Technical terms lead on to the concepts to which they refer, and the concepts are related to the procedures, including tagging and parsing, by which they are implemented. English and Malay are used as the languages of illustration, and for the benefit of readers who do not know Malay, Malay examples are translated into English. The paper has a historical dimension, and the language of corpus linguistics is traced to traditional usage in the language classroom, and in particular to the study of Latin in Europe. The inheritance from the past is evident in the design of MaLex, which is a working device that does empirical Malay corpus linguistics, and is presented here as a contribution to the digital humanities.

Review of the Discussion Section of Research Articles: Rhetorical Structure and Move

The discussion section forms an integral part in the writing process of a research article (RA). Research authors find it difficult to write and produce a well-structured discussion for their findings. The reason could be due to the unawareness of the main components (rhetorical moves) that shape this section. Therefore, this paper aims to provide a review of the studies that have been done to analyze the discussion section of RAs over the last 36 years. Also, this review seeks to examine the discussion section of RAs across various scientific disciplines and different types of journals. The review showed that the rhetorical structure of RAs discussion section witnessed some changes over the course of time. New moves such as Research Implications and Research Limitations started to be parts of the discussion section of RAs. In addition, it was revealed that differences in writing the discussion section can be varied broadly across disciplines such as soft sciences (e.g., applied linguistics, sociology, psychology) and hard sciences (e.g., engineering, chemistry, biology) and slightly across types of journals such as ISI and local journals. In conclusion, this paper offered several suggestions for further research to be conducted in the area.

Error Analysis on the Malaysian Students’ Writing for ESL Classroom

English has been regarded as one of the core subjects in the Malaysian Certificate of Education or known as the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM). There has been a concern over the writing components in English language papers at the SPM level. Writing requires students’ competence in syntax, coherence, developing and arranging ideas, mechanics in writing and appropriate use of vocabulary. A concern over students who produce very limited number of words in their essays has resulted in the lack of content to be assessed which then led to low scores. This paper presents an error analysis focusing on the types of errors found in students’ written test scripts to identify the weaknesses of students' writing abilities. The study adopts a qualitative approach where the students’ written assessment texts were collected. A total of 18 upper secondary Year Four students (aged 16 years old) were selected as the research participants. The selection of participants was carried out in a secondary school in one of the states in Malaysia. The students’ written tests were analysed to identify the emerging categories of language use, focusing on language and grammar inaccuracies. It is found that students have the idea on how to write the answers to the task but seem to have difficulties putting the ideas in the correct structure.

Language Learning Strategies (LLS) Implementation of Students and Teachers at a Malaysian Pre-Tertiary Educational Institution

The study which took place at a Malaysian pre-tertiary educational institution aimed at investigating the implementation of language learning strategies (LLS) of its two major stakeholders, namely the students and the teachers. As the study employed mixed-method design, both quantitative and qualitative data were collected as to report the findings. The Strategy Inventory for Language Learning Strategies (SILL) and classroom observation protocol were the two important instruments for this study. A total of 300 students were involved in the study in which the number was determined using Krejcie and Morgan table. The students were divided into two groups consisting of 150 students who passed the institution’s English Proficiency Test, being referred to as ‘EPT-pass’ and 150 students who failed the test, hence known as ‘EPT-fail’ in the study. Four teachers voluntarily involved in the study after invitation to be part of the study was extended to all teachers at the educational institution. Analysis of data was done using descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation scores) and thematic analysis. The findings showed that students employed indirect language learning strategies more than direct strategies with EPT-pass group recording (M=4.084, SD=0.625) and EPT-fail group with (M=2.722, SD=0.466). It was apparent that metacognitive strategies (M=4.361, SD=0.954) were EPT-pass group’s most employed strategies while EPT-fail students implemented affective strategies (M=3.077, SD=0.399) the most. Additionally, LLS were undoubtedly embedded into the lesson implementations of the four teachers whose lesson implementations were observed. The study implies that LLS play fundamental part in the teaching and learning of English and should be directly nurtured and embedded into English language classrooms to ensure more effective implementations.

Challenges in Implementing the CEFR in English Language Classrooms

The adoption of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) in the English Language Education Roadmap 2015-2025 is a reform effort to enhance the standard of our students’ English language proficiency level. While it is a commendable initiative, its implementation in schools has received mixed reactions especially from teachers who are confronted with a number of challenges. Hence, this study was carried out to investigate the nature of challenges encountered by English language teachers in implementing the CEFR in their classrooms. Data for this study were collected from questionnaires gathered from 117 English language teachers in primary schools in Johor Bahru district. The findings revealed the challenges were related to teachers’ English language proficiency level, designing class activities, students’ participation in class, the textbooks used, teachers’ workload, and students’ proficiency level. The challenges were found to be inter-related and could be traced to lack of CEFR-related training, insufficient teaching and learning materials, constraint of time, and the policy which does not allow for students to be streamed based on their proficiency level. All this seemed to make it more difficult for the teachers to implement the CEFR successfully.

A Systematic Literature Review on Key Elements of Branding Through Facebook

Branding is defined as the process of which a company, an organisation a product or a service becomes identical with a set of values, aspirations or states. It promotes ubiquity, visibility, functions and emotional bond with customers. Branding can be communicated using a variety of media. Through Facebook, branding can be communicated across its visual and textual components. This study examines how Facebook components are used to communicate branding among selected universities. Prior to analysing the components, the key elements of branding that were apt needed to be identified. To identify these, a systematic review on academic articles was conducted. This review was adapted from the Reporting Standards for Systematic Evidence Synthesis (ROSES) protocol. To conduct this review, 256 articles were collected from two databases. Two strategies which were selection and analysis were employed in choosing the most suitable articles and extracting the key elements. Selection was conducted to identify, screen and review all academic articles that were selected from Scopus and Google databases. Once selection was done, analysis was then conducted. This was done to extract key elements of branding that became the unit of analysis in examining the ways of selected universities’ Facebook postings were employed in communicating branding.

A Case Study on the ESL Upper Secondary Level Students Views in Engaging with Online Writing Lessons Conducted Via Google Classroom

Most of the researchers and experts are prompted to investigate why English as second language students (ESL) are running out of radar during their online classes especially for writing lesson conducted via Google Classroom. In order rectify the issues, the researchers of this study, wanted to find out how English as second language learners (ESL) secondary school students experienced about participating in online writing classes delivered via Google Classroom. This research focuses on the three upper level secondary students at SMK Batu Gajah in Perak. The students were introduced to the advantages of engaging with online writing class via Google Classroom, especially during this pandemic, to improve their writing ability, which can be measured, as it is the most difficult skill for students to master. This study is important for upper secondary students to enhance their writing skills before sitting for their Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) exam. As it is a case study, the interview sessions were accomplished via Google Meet with the learners at various times to maintain the validity and reliability of the instrument. The recorded interview sessions were then transcribed after the interview session. The researcher judiciously categorised and analysed the relevant key notes that strongly support the research questions in order to jot down the findings. The findings clearly show that all of the students are enthusiastic about their participation in a writing class facilitated via Google Meet during the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, the students believed that Google Classroom has improved their writing abilities to some extent, despite some difficulties in familiarising with the new learning platform. However, the students mentioned that Google Classroom, the new teaching and learning platform, had boosted their motivation to improve their writing skills.

Motivasi dan Halangan Bagi Pelajar Asing Menguasai Bahasa Melayu Melalui Pembelajaran Secara dalam Talian di Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

Kajian ini dijalankan untuk mengenal pasti tahap motivasi pelajar asing dalam menguasai bahasa Melayu secara pembelajaran dalam talian. Selain itu, kajian ini juga menghuraikan halangan yang mempengaruhi mereka dalam menguasai bahasa Melayu melalui pembelajaran dalam talian. Kaedah kuantitatif dan instument soal selidik telah digunakan bagi memperoleh data kajian ini. Sebanyak 227 orang responden dipilih merupakan pelajar asing yang mengambil Kursus Bahasa Melayu Komunikasi dari pelbagai negara. Data dianalisis dan dipaparkan dalam bentuk min, sisihan piawai dan tahap interprestasi. Dapatan kajian ini mendapati bahawa min keseluruhan bagi tahap motivasi pelajar asing dalam menguasai bahasa Melayu secara dalam talian ialah tinggi. Hal ini membuktikan bahawa pelajar asing ini masih bersemangat untuk menguasai bahasa Melayu walaupun pembelajaran dijalankan secara dalam talian. Min keseluruhan bagi halangan pelajar asing menguasai bahasa Melayu ialah sederhana dan membuktikan bahawa halangan ini hanya dihadapi oleh segelintir pelajar sahaja. Sikap pelajar yang bermotivasi tinggi mampu mengatasi setiap halangan. Pelajar perlu menyesuaikan diri pada musim pandemik ini dan menggunakan peluang ini untuk meningkatkan pengetahuan dalam pembelajaran dan pengajaran secara dalam talian.

Challenges of Teaching ESP: A Review

English for Specific Purposes (ESP) has Noor Mala Ibrahim gained prominence and abundant research has been conducted on issues associated with it. However, research addressing the challenges of ESP teaching and learning continues to receive extensive attention focusing on issues ranging from the most appropriate methodology to use in ESP classrooms and contents to cover for effective learning outcomes for the learners. The aim of this review paper is to give a brief overview of what ESP is all about, it also covers some issues faced by ESP practitioners while in the process of teaching. During the course of this review, the key words “ESP Challenges”, “ESP teaching methodology”, “ESP teacher” were used on Google scholar to search for relevant materials to the topic covering the range of years from 2012 - 2021. Twenty relevant materials were finally selected which are used for this review. This review finally concludes by offering solutions as to how these challenges can be overcome by practitioners to make ESP teaching more effective.