Metadiscourse in the academic writing of local and international students at a university in Malaysia

This study examines the use of metadiscourse markers among 50 Malaysian and 50 Arab Pre-University students. The findings of this study indicated that there was a significant difference in the use of metadiscourse markers between Malaysian and Arab Pre-University students {χ2 (1, n = 100) = 7.17, p-value is .007} where the use of metadiscourse markers among Malaysian Pre-University students was substantially higher than that of the Arab Pre-University students. In the use of interactive markers, the results showed significant differences between Malaysian and Arab Pre-University students in the use of transitions, evidential and code glosses. Additionally, in the use of interactional markers, Malaysian and Arab students differed in their use of hedges, engagement markers and self-mentions. These variances in the frequency and forms of metadiscourse markers utilized by the students could be attributed to the diverse cultural backgrounds of the two groups of students. It is therefore suggested that English language teachers integrate and incorporate cultural elements in their lessons with regard to metadiscourse markers

The Study of Barrier Factors in Knowledge Sharing: A Case Study in Public University

This study explores the factors that inhibit the behavior of knowledge sharing among members of an organization; a public university in particular. Three factors were tested; lack of self-efficacy to represent individual factors, lack of information and communication technology (ICT) to represent technological factors and lack of organizational rewards to represent organizational factors. Correlation analysis was used to determine the relationships between these factors and knowledge sharing behaviors. Regression analysis was applied to determine the most dominant factor of all. Findings indicate negative relationships between knowledge sharing and barrier factors with organizational rewards being the most dominant. Key words: Knowledge; Knowledge management; Knowledge sharing; Barrier factors; Public universit

Listening to the accents of male native English speakers: ESL learners’ perceptions

This paper investigates ESL learners’ perceptions and awareness of four different native English accents through an accent perception and survey task conducted on 66 Malaysian students who were enrolled in an English programme at a university in Trengganu. The participants responded to a questionnaire that was designed to examine their perceptions of British, American, Australian and New Zealand English accents and their abilities to identify them while or after listening to a recorded passage read by four male speakers, each speaking in one of the four accents. The participants were also asked to rate the speakers in terms of being an ideal English language teacher. In general, it was found that the participants rated the speakers whose accents were perceived to be more familiar more favourably than those whose accents were perceived to be less familiar to them. Compared to the rest of the speakers, the British English speaker was rated significantly higher as an ideal English language teacher. The participants also often misidentified the accents of the speakers and this finding supports that of previous studies (Scales, Wennerstorm, Richard & Wu, 2006; McGee, 2009) that accent identification is a complex task involving many factors such as past experiences

Native English: ESL learners’ perceptions of female speakers’ accents

This paper presents some preliminary findings of a study which investigates undergraduate ESL learners’ perceptions of British, American, Australian and New Zealand English accents. The participants were 66 Malaysian undergraduates from a public university in Malaysia. They were presented with speech samples of four female native speakers reading a short passage. The students were asked to rate the speakers for a number of items including the ease of understanding, sounding comfortable to the ears, being an ideal English teacher and being a speaker they would want to sound like. The learners were also asked to state the nationalities of the speakers. In general, the study found that the speakers whose accents were familiar to the learners were rated higher in terms of the items examined. The study also found that the speakers whose accents were familiar to the learners were better identified for their nationalities than those whose accents were less familiar to them. Pedagogical implications of these findings on English language teaching and learning in Malaysia are discussed

Stretching the boundaries: Malaysian ESL learners’ evaluative reactions to inner circle English accents

Nowadays, international communication using English as the medium is a common occurrence. To communicate effectively, English as a second language (ESL) speakers need to possess relevant communicative skills including understanding and being familiar with inner circle accents. This paper seeks to find out ESL learners’ evaluative reactions to four inner circle accents, representing British, American, Australian and New Zealand English varieties, through an accent perception and a survey task conducted on Malaysian undergraduates at a public university in Malaysia. The participants responded to descriptors on speaker attributes categorized into three dimensions: competence, social appeal and accent preference while or after listening to a recorded passage read in one of the four accents by male and female speakers. The learners showed a tendency to prefer certain accents more than others. In general, the best rated accent was the British accent for the male speakers and the American accent for the female speakers. The New Zealand accent was rated the lowest among the male speakers and one of the lowest among the female speakers. The study also found that speaker’s competence, speaker’s social appeal and accent preference were positively correlated. These findings highlight the importance of listening practices and exposure to various English accents in ESL classrooms to prepare students for international and intercultural communication