FROM HIROSHIMA TO PAHANG: A GLOBAL LEARNING INITIATIVE WITH HIROSHIMA UNIVERSITY FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION SKILLS
Gambang, 23 April 2024- More than 130 students enrolled in UHL2432 English for Professional Communication participated in a Global Classroom session via Microsoft Teams, organised by four instructors, under the guidance of Ms. Marziah Ramli as the course coordinator. The session was also facilitated by Ms Wan Noor Farah Wan Shamsuddin, Ms. Siti Asma’ Yaacob, and Ms. Nur Anisnabila Dianah. It was a privilege to welcome Assistant Professor Dr. Wang Tingjia from Hiroshima University’s Writing Centre as the invited speaker.
Over the course of the beneficial session, Dr Wang offered invaluable insights into effective communication skills applicable for students, academic staff, as well as job applicants. For students, she emphasised the importance of mastering email writing skills by highlighting the key principles such as conciseness, directness, politeness, and clarity. Furthermore, she illustrated these principles with concrete examples of concise, direct, and clear emails.
Ms. Marziah stated that Dr. Wang provided essential suggestions for enhancing communication between academic staff and students, particularly focusing on the use of feedback. Among the concepts discussed were Concept Checking Questions (CCQ) and Instruction Checking Questions (ICQ). She also acknowledged that Dr. Wang provided guidance into questions that job applicants could pose during interviews, which resonated well with the students as they are currently honing their job interview skills.
“It is also interesting to note that the participants, mainly the engineering students from various courses, were engaged in an interactive discussion with Dr Wang as she shared important content related to effective communication skills in the workplace. Encouraged by her thought-provoking inquiries, students were prompted to reflect on their future work-life environment, thereby, enhancing their understanding of effective communication with future colleagues,” she added.
All in all, this initiative has successfully achieved its objectives, which are to foster academic discussions between two institutions and provide UMPSA students an opportunity to learn from an international expert. Reflecting on the success of the Global Classroom session with Dr. Wang, the instructors expressed the importance of communication as the cornerstone of professional success for an individual in the workplace. Thus, from now on, one can anticipate that there will be more collaboration to organise similar events in the future, given that this event served as an invaluable platform for exchanging knowledge on a global scale.
Prepared by: Wan Noor Farah Wan Shamsuddin, Siti Asma’ Yaacob & Nur Anisnabila Dianah
