WORKPLACE ENGLISH LEARNING FOR ACADEMIC OPERATION STAFF IN AN INDONESIAN UNIVERSITY Esti Rahayu, Chandra Wiharja, Christine Pauline
Universitas Bina Nusantara
Abstract
The increasing number of global challenges tertiary education require the university employees to have English competency, including the administration staff or academic operation staff (AOS). The aim of the paper is twofold. Firstly, to gain a better understanding of their perspectives of academic operation staff (AOS) in upskilling themselves in the workplace, specifically in their English competence. Secondly, to determine the suitable materials for their English learning in their workplace. Both purposes are related to English for Occupational Purposes (EOP). EOP has been under researched compared to English for Academic Purpose (EAP) although they are in the same umbrella of English for Specific Purposes (ESP). The lack of EOP for AOS remains unsolved, a situation which justifies this study. This case study data collection was conducted in the private university in Indonesia between March and July 2020 through four online meetings through open-ended interview. Thematic data analysis followed the procedures of Braun and Clarke. Some common themes emerged from the interview to answer the first and second questions. For the first questions, there are two themes emerged. The first one is practical motivation and the second one is the positive attitudes towards improving English competency. Their motivation and attitudes serve as their engine for learners as they have desire to do so. Two themes emerged for the second research question. The first one is mode of learning, and the second is topics to learn.
Keywords: ESP, English for Occupational Purposes, workplace learning, Academic operation staff.
