Ronel D. Cornella Prof. Rowena C.

Nuera
MEAL – I AL 115 Professor

Bringing the Business World into the Classroom

Margaret Gomes & Timothy Oswald, University of Aveiro, Portugal

I. Objective/Rationale

Traditional classroom has certain limitations that create the gap between

the classroom and the workplace, and this gap is difficult to reverse. Overcoming

the limitation and bridging the gap becomes an even greater challenge in the case

of foreign language teaching since traditional teaching methods have focused

mainly on grammar and vocabulary practice.

It has been seen that methodologies which are geared towards the

workplace and in particular the business world, have become ever more necessary.

Researches made by Forey have shown that there is an inconsistency, a

disparity so to speak between the extent and range of differences in the way

teachers and business people interpret messages.

Forey (2004) posits that teachers and others outside the workplace, such as

researchers, tend to be overly sensitive to linguistic choices whereas the business

informants, who are directly involved in producing and receiving such texts,

appeared to take a far more practical view of the way in which language construes

meaning.

Studies made by McPherson and Forey show that there is a content,

teaching and learning gap between the school and workplace and teachers must

re-examine what they ask learners to do in the classroom in order to better prepare

future business people for the workplace.

 Traditionally, in school, the focus is on the four language skills with an

emphasis on accuracy. Course books are the source of material and evaluation is

based on what the students have learned rather than what they are expected to do

in the future. In the workplace however, the focus is on the functionality,

effectiveness and efficiency with task tailored specifically fit for purpose and are

interculturally appropriate.

Therefore, it is the job higher education to bridge the gap between the

classroom and the workplace. There is a need to take the competencies, learning

and skills of the students which they have acquired from school and turned them

into competencies they need when they face the challenges of the business world.

II. Methods

The study uses a six-module English language component degree – which

aims to bridge the gap between theory and practice and uses a more forward-

looking approach to their methodologies which aim to bring the needs of the

business world into the classroom – developed by the Languages and Business

Management degree of the English teachers at University of Aveiro in Portugal.

Conceptually, learners move from different approaches from the first

semester to the seventh semester. Individual and more traditional approach is

used on the first semester which then moves to an area specific model in the

second semester, with a focus on contextualized and functional task. These

approaches leads to the use of authentic documentation and market research with

models adopted from local context on the third and fourth semesters. A case study

approach is used on the fifth semester in which negotiation, diplomatic and

intercultural skills are necessary. Total communication is developed on the sixth

and seventh semester, it involves web page construction for an existing local

company and aims to create holistic interdisciplinarity and integration.

 According to this study, result of the last course unit was a semester long

process. Students experienced making project designs, researched and interviewed

companies and other parallel companies, collated sufficient data and created a

website that would satisfy the company’s need and customers’ expectation. The

above activities included self and peer critical reflection as well as extension work

to complete the communicative task.

III. Findings

The experience of the students in performing the communicative tasks

allowed them to develop both interpersonal skills needed to deal with people in the

business world. The students also gained competencies required to create products

which are functional and purpose fit. Interdisciplinarity also brought together a variety

of different skills acquired and/or developed by the learners in addition to developing

their organizational, time management and teamwork skills. The fact that the students

were freed from the confinements of a typical classroom setup and made contact with

the people of the business world (out of the academe) made the task more meaningful

and they gained learning and insights from the real world wherein they will use it in

the future as business people.

In conclusion, it is clear that there is a gap between school and the

workplace with a mismatch between learners’ expectations / teacher’s methodology and

what graduates will have to do in professional environments.

IV. Recommendation

Increasing the teachers’ knowledge of what graduates will be expected to

do in the workplace is important if the University are to equip them with the necessary

skills to succeed there. Therefore, creating a range of authentic tasks which emulate real
business and develop the holistic competencies of the learner is fundamental if they are

to prepare university graduates to succeed in the workplace.

V. What is the Pedagogical Implication of this Study in the Philippine Setting

Amidst cultural diversity, it is undeniable that the problem in the

Portuguese academic setting is similar in the Philippines. It has been observed that most

of the lessons learned in the academe are somewhat irrelevant in the real business

world. There is a kind of disparity in the lessons from the book from the actual situation

in the business world setup.

The study’s primary pedagogical implications based on the preceding

discussion in the Philippine setting would mean a complete revolution of the Philippine

pedagogical setup. It entails planning on the specific needs of the student based on the

real business world requirements. Academic institutions must offer courses, programs

and degrees tailored fit for the needs of the students. Students must be equipped with

the necessary and practical learning, skills and competencies that can be useful in an

actual business world setting. For this to be possible, educators must be fully aware of

the real world setup, they must be immersed with the business world in order for them

to impart practical knowledge to the students, the future graduates, the soon

professionals. Classes should not only be done to in a classroom confined environment

but students should also be immersed with a real-life business experience. Education

should emulate a real world business set-up in an educational environment.

In conclusion, academic institutions and educators should transcend from

a competency – based education to an outcomes – based education in order to equip the

students with the skills needed by a business professional, where a business major

student can produce outcomes of a business professional. This can only be realized if

academic institutions would adapt an authentic pedagogy (outcomes – based)

evaluated by authentic assessment.