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| Abstract : Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris |
| The purpose of this paper was to investigate (a) the English language proficiency concerning sentence structure in fresh graduates, and (b) hiring managers’ perceptions of the importance of English proficiency in the 21st century workplace. There were forty-five candidates and twenty- five hiring managers from local and foreign instituitions who participated in the study. The data were analysed qualitatively using a sentence structure framework: simple, compound, complex, and compound-complex. The findings revealed that most candidates used simple sentences and were unable to express their complete thoughts due to their lack in English language proficiency. The findings further revealed that hiring managers were willing to consider employing candidates who had good proficiency by expressing their complete thoughts in job interviews. This study has confirmed the need for fresh graduates and undergraduates to know the importance of sentence structures as an important benchmark to show one’s proficiency in job interviews.
Keywords: Sentence Structures, Job Interviews, Fresh Graduates, Workplace, Malaysia. |
| References |
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Communicative competence and communicative language teaching. http://cicero.u-bunkyo.ac.jp/lib/kiyo/fsell2002/25-32 Pandey, M., & Pandey, P. (2014). Better English for better employment opportunities. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Approach and Studies, 1 (4), 93-100. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264788119 Peck, B. S. (2018). Industry 4.0 success depends on key factors. https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2018/01/24/industry-40-success-depends-on- key-factors/ https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264788119 Radford, A. (1988). Transformational grammar. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press Radford, A. (1990). Transformational Grammar. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Radford, A. (1997). Syntactic theory and the structure of English: A Minimalist approach (Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press Radford, A. (2009). An introduction to English sentence structure. (Grammar and Syntax, Language and Linguistics) Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. 1-445.https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511800924 Raja, S. G. (2016). English syntax: the analysis of sentence structure, An International Multidisciplinary Research Journal, 6 (9), 163-176. http://dx.doi.org/10.5958/2249-7137.2016.00062.8 Roothooft, H., & Breeze, R. (2019). Investigating the development of ‘grammatical range and accuracy’ at different proficiency levels in the IELTS Speaking test. IELTS Research Reports Online Series 1, ISSN 2201-2982. https://www.semanticscholar.org/ Sy, S. E. N., & Reztia, A. D (2019). A syntactical analysis of simple sentences in Kembhang Babur, Journal of English Education and Applied Linguistics, 8 (2), 163-175.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/336907322 Sarangi, S. (2010). Motivational relevancies: some methodological reflections on sociolinguistic practice. In Sociolinguistics and Social Theory 350-388. London: Pearson. (pp.17 & 30). London, England: Spiringer-Verlag. Scott, C., & Windsor, J. (2000). General language performance measures in spoken and written narrative and expository discourse of school-age children with language learning disabilities. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 4 (3), 324-339.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10757687/ Singh, M. K. S.. & Shamsudin, S. (2009). Arriving at the interface of pragmatic and grammatical competence. Conference Paper.http://www.researchgate.net/publication/257173188 Singh, R. (2018). Language main barrier to grads getting jobs. The Sun Daily.http://www.thesundaily.my/news/2018/01/22/language-main-barrier-grads-getting jobsupdated
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