The role of the English language in the tourism industry

The Malaysian government has designated 2007 as visit Malaysia year. The country is expected to attract more than 20 million visitors and earn about RM50 billion from tourism related activities. An important component in the tourism industry is the human resource. The human resource factor plays an eminent role in promoting the image of the country as a top tourism spot. Tourists do not just come for the facilities and attractions. They want to be treated right and well. A good command of the English language is always regarded as an asset for personnel in the tourism industry since most visitors do not speak Bahasa Melayu, the national language. However, the preference for those with good English proficiency will burden the recruitment of hotel personnel. This paper will present the findings of a study conducted employing the questionnaire survey and interview methods to investigate the relative role of English language proficiency in the choice of holiday destination. It was found that the role of English language proficiency in the tourism industry is prominent. It is a factor that could affect choice of hotel and satisfaction of stay. However, the results obtained indicate that the role and importance of the English language in the tourism industry is relative to job function

The effects of learning style preferences on performance in learning which utilises print-based open learning materials

This study examined the effects of learning style preferences on the performance in learning utilising print-based distance learning materials.The experimental design was conducted in which 123 randomly selected UUM students were involved.The subjects were involved .The subjects were asked to study a chapter,which has been converted into distance learning format, taken from the textbook for their business report writing course.The subjects were tested on their mastery of the content of the chapter after one week.The learning style preferences of the subjects were determined using an instrument developed by Reid (1987).The study has found that the learning experience is speculated to be the cause.Contrary to the hypothesis.Which hypothesises a positive relationship between preferences for individual and visual learning outcome, the analytical results obtained indicate that only the performance of the three levels of auditory learning style preference are significantly different.To the extent of its reliability, the finding has significant implication for educators in view of the needs to teach more with limited resources.The study, however, is rather limited in scope and a more extensive study is suggested to produce more reliable observations

The impact of course evaluation on instructors' teaching performance

An investigation of the university course evaluation scores over four semesters was conducted to determine the impact of the University Teaching Evaluation practice on faculty teaching performance in general and (1) to measure how instructors perceive the effectiveness of the University Teaching Evaluation Programme, (2) to compare the course evaluation results based on gender, academic rank, and faculty, and (3) to determine additional measurement methods for evaluating teaching in particular.The results obtained lead us to conclude that most faculty members did not believe that course evaluation is valid and reliable. However, most of them indicated that the course evaluation practised in Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) has positive impact on them with regard to their awareness about their own teaching.Extraneous variables such as gender, academic rank, and faculty were significantly related to course evaluation mean scores.However, participation in the teaching certification programme was not a significant factor.Course evaluation, though believed to be lacking validity and reliability, was considered as good as some other more objective measures by the faculty members. There was also no evidence to suggest that improvement in course evaluation scores reflect better students’ learning. However, the questionnaire used may have captured not only some aspects of teaching effectiveness but also certain factors that are not related to teaching effectiveness.In conclusion, the course evaluation practice at UUM may not have produced better learning outcome as measured by students’ GPA, nevertheless, it has impacted positively on faculty members’ awareness about their own teaching performance

The effects of learning style preferences on performance in learning which utilities print-based open learning materials

This study examines the effects of learning style preferences on the performance in learning utilizing print-based distance learning materials. The experimental design was conducted in which 123 randomly selected UUM students were involved. The subjects were asked to study a chapter, which has been converted into distance learning format, taken from the textbook for their business report writing course. The subjects were tested on their mastery of the content of the chapter after one week. The learning style preferences of the subjects were determined using an instrument developed by Reid (1987). The study has found that the learning style preferences of the subjects are different from that found by an earlier study.The influence of the learning experience is speculated to be the cause. Contrary to the hypothesis, which hypothesis a positive relationship between learning style preferences and learning outcome, the analytical results obtained indicate that only the performance of the three levels of auditory learning style preference are significantly different. To the extent of its reliability, the finding has significant implication for educators in view of the needs to teach more with limited resources. The study, however, is rather limited in scope and a more extensive study is suggested to produce more reliable observations

The relative importance of the language factor in writing the human resource requirement of the tourism industry in Langkawi

A good command of the English language is regarded as an asset for a personnel in the tourism industry. However, the preference for those with good English language proficiency has also burdened the recruitment of hotel personnel. The present study employing the questionnaire survey method and interview, which involved 42 English speaking guests staying in four top resorts in Langkawi was conducted to investigate (1) the relative importance of the language factor in the choice of holiday accommodation and (2) the suitable level of English language proficiency for the different groups of hotel staff. The results indicated that English language proficiency was not perceived as the most important personal quality that make up 'quality of service' and that different levels of English language proficiency were required of the various groups of hotel staff. The study concluded that a rigid emphasis on English language proficiency would only unduly hinder the recruitment of hotel personnel and indirectly, the effort to make Langkawi a top choice holiday destination

Evaluating the effectiveness of multimedia courseware in imparting factual knowledge

Integrating computers into the teaching and learning process as a means of simulating interest and generating creativity has become prevalent. However, there is still insufficient empirical evidence to suggest that computer assisted learning programs can motivate and facilitate learning. This paper attempts to investigate the effectiveness and the feasibility of employing an experimental multimedia course ware to supplement lectures at tertiary level. The course ware was designed to actively involve students in the learning process as well as to reduce the time allocated to impart factual knowledge in the classroom. Eight-one subjects who had registered for the Public Speaking course in the July 1996/1997 semester were randomly selected and divided into an experimental and two control groups. The experimental group went through the course ware without any classroom instruction of the content. One control group only went through classroom instruction and the subjects in the other control group read the material on their own. The performance of the experimental and control groups was compared using the pre and post test results. A questionnaire and a checklist were employed to elicit the experimental group's perception of and reaction to the course ware. The results of the study seem to suggest that the multimedia program is capable of helping subjects learn the material as well as allowing the learners better control of their learning. The restricted scope of the study, however does not permit a definitive conclusion. Whether this multimedia course ware could supplement or replace classroom teaching altogether will require future investigation

Towards establishing a training programme for increasing teachers' awareness of higher order thinking skills: A preliminary survey of the state of affairs

Teachers play a pivotal role in transforming the classroom into an active, inquisitive environment that may foster the development of more effective thinking in students. Teachers classroom behaviour has great influence on students as teacher modelling is believed to be a powerful means for encouraging the development of appropriate behaviour as well as attitudes towards thinking. The present study was conducted to verify the practicality and needs of conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the teaching of thinking in secondary schools. It tried to ascertain teachers' disposition towards the teaching of thinking, the extent of direct and indirect teaching of thinking, and the underlying influence of public examination on instruction. The questionnaire survey method and observation were employed to gather data. Ten randomly selected schools and 70 English language teachers were used. The data gathered seem to suggest the existence of discrepancy between respondents' responses to the questionnaire and actual classroom teaching - the positive disposition was not reflected in classroom practice. The data gathered also indicate that teachers believed that content knowledge bears on performance in public examination. Though the evidence was compelling, the study was limited in scope. A comprehensive study is, therefore, recommended in order to gather more conclusive evidence about the current state of affairs