Arab World English Journal (AWEJ) Volume 12. Number4   December 2021                                           Pp. 446-461
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol12no4.29

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Investigation into Common Errors in English Writing among Non-Academic
Staff at a Malaysian Public University
 

Ahmad Taufik Hidayah Abdullah
Faculty of Languages and Communication
Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia

Mohd Nazri Latiff Azmi
Faculty of Languages and Communication
Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia

Isyaku Hassan
 Faculty of Languages and Communication
Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia

Engku Suhaimi Engku Atek
Faculty of Languages and Communication
Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia
Correspondence Author: esuhaimi@unisza.edu.my

 Zailani Jusoh
Faculty of Languages and Communication
Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Malaysia

 

Received:  10/3/2021                     Accepted: 12/5/2021                    Published:12/15/2021

 

Abstract:
The Malaysian government has long recognized the significance of mastering the English language among its citizenry. The government has planned, and subsequently, implemented many policies to ensure Malaysians master the English language. Although civil servants have a strong desire to master the English language to perform their duties more efficiently, poor English communication skills have become a major concern in this regard. Therefore, this research aims to investigate common errors in writing the English language among non-academic staff at Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), a public university in Malaysia. The study employed an Error Analysis approach by conducting document analysis where every respondent was required to write a paragraph in the English language in about 150-200 words on the topicMy greatest challenge as a UniSZA officer. The findings revealed that a sizeable number of non-academic staff committed different types of errors in writing the English language, including errors related to subject-verb agreement, passive voice, plurality, choice of word, omission of word, use of article, tense sequence, word ordering, gerund, addition of word/redundancy, and comparison of adjective.  It was observed that lack of linguistic skills, lack of exposure, and inadequate practices in written English were the main factors contributing to the English writing errors among the non-academic staff. These findings could help the university management to develop appropriate programs that can assist the non-academic staff to develop English writing competence. However, this study is limited to English writing errors. Further research may focus on other language skills such as speaking and listening.
Keywords: English language, common error, Malaysian public university, non-academic staff, writing, UniSZA

Cite as:  Abdullah, A. T. H.,  Azmi, M. N. L. , Hassan, I., Atek, E. S.E., & Jusoh, Z.(2021). Investigation into Common Errors in English Writing among Non-Academic Staff at a Malaysian Public University.
Arab World English Journal, 12 (4) 446-461.
DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol12no4.29

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Received: 10/3/2021  
Accepted: 12/5/2021 
Published: 12/15/2021
https://dx.doi.org/10.24093/awej/vol12no4.29

Dr. Ahmad Taufik Hidayah Abdullah is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Malaysia. His areas of research interest include public speaking, English linguistics, error analysis, and language learning. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9898-0980

Dr. Mohd Nazri Latiff Azmi is an Associate Professor of English at the Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Malaysia. His areas of research interest include comaprative literature, applied linguistics, and language studies.https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4712-5332

Dr. Isyaku Hassan is a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Malaysia. His areas of research interest include media linguistics, interactive media, and lanaguage studies.https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8260-2894

Engku Suhaimi Engku Atek is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Malaysia. His areas of research interest include Education and Instruction, and English Language Teaching. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4889-2904

Dr. Zailani Jusoh is a Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Languages and Communication, Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin (UniSZA), Malaysia. She has been teaching ESL for more than two decades.  Among her research interests include teacher professional development, and reading assessment. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5923-7641