ROLE OF ENGLISH TEACHERS IN ENHANCING EMPLOYABLE SKILLS

S.HORIZAN PRASANNA KUMAR

Assistant Professor (Senior) in English
SRM University
Kattankulathur Campus

ABSTRACT

Employability refers to a person’s capability of gaining initial employment, maintaining employment, and obtaining new

employment if required (Hillage and Pollare, 1998).It depends on knowledge, skills and attitude the employer seeks. In

order to be employable, it is important to understand the needs of the marketplace and identify what skills you already

have and what skills you need to include in your career plan. In a list of the skills and attributes identified by companies

that belong to the National Association of Career Educators and Employers (NACE), communication skill holds the first

position. Today in the world of globalization if ones communication is not effective then survival become a problem.

Every employer wants their employee to be an effective speaker only to soften their client and get business done. It is not

only IT industry that needs effective English as people always are fancy about. It’s mandatory to have effective English

invariable of the sector and industry. This paper brings out different sectors found in Indian Market, their expectation

related to effective English, the current position of effective English among job seekers and some viable solutions to

improve the standard of their English. The information shared here is not an outdated one before December 2008 but

updated after January 2009 the so called black year in Worlds economy.

Prologue

Communication has enabled mankind to progress and become advanced societies. Highly specialized skills, advances in

technology, amazing inventions, spectacular breakthroughs in arts and sciences have limited value unless it is

communicated effectively to its intended audience and communicated precisely for specific purposes. Communication is

very important not only for smooth running of a business enterprise but it is also equally, if not more, important for the

success and growth of individual executives and professionals.

Employability refers to a person’s capability of gaining initial employment, maintaining employment, and obtaining new

employment if required (Hillage and Pollare,1998).It depends on knowledge, skills and attitude the employer seeks. In

order to be employable, it is important to understand the needs of the marketplace and identify what skills you already

have and what skills you need to include in your career plan. In a list of the skills and attributes identified by companies

that belong to the National Association of Career Educators and Employers (NACE), communication skill holds the first
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position. Today in the world of globalization if one’s communication is not effective then survival becomes a problem.

Every employer wants their employee to be an effective communicator only to soften their client and get business done. It

is not only IT industry that needs effective English but also common people have fancy about. It’s mandatory to have

effective English invariable of the sector and industry. This paper brings out the selection procedures adopted by

companies in Indian job market, their expectation related to effective English, the current position of job seekers and some

viable solutions to improve the standard of their English.

Interview process today

Once you have sent your resume to a company and survived the weeding out process, your resume typically gets passed

along to the hiring manager.

Phone Interview

So why do companies conduct phone interviews? Phone interviews give the company a chance to get a feel for your skill-

set, interests, desired compensation etc., and see if there is a match between their needs and your strengths. If there is

enough common ground, then the phone interviews are almost always followed-up by an in-person interview. Phone

interviews are generally conducted in two steps. The first step is with a recruiter in Human Resources. The second step is

a technical interview, usually with one of the people you would be working with. Technical phone interviews are usually

only conducted for people living outside the geographical region. This is done because the company wants to have some

level of confidence in your technical abilities before they decided to spend the money to fly you in for an in-person

interview.

In-Person Interview

If you survived the initial phone interview, the next step is probably an in-person interview. Every company has their own

way of conducting these interviews. Some prefer to have "panel-like" interviews, while others prefer one-to-one

interviews. Expect to interview with three to four technical people (most likely the people you will end up working with)

and maybe a group manager. The entire interviewing process can take anywhere between 2 to 6 hours. If the interview

overlaps with lunch hours, the company will usually arrange for lunch. Expect a wide variety of questions that range from

common personal questions to very challenging technical questions relevant to the job you are applying for. Remember

that the whole point of this exercise is for the interviewers to determine if you have the skills to do the job you are

interviewing for, and if you are someone they would like to work with.

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The Global Requisite

In the age of globalization, the use of English as the primary language for business communication has become the

worldwide standard. As companies expand internationally, the ability to communicate in English has become a strategic

factor for successful business planning. Multinational corporations in particular have a vital need for tools that accurately

evaluate the workplace English communication skills of current and potential employees.

Proficiency in English is a mandatory requirement for any professional working in a global business environment. While

professions may vary, the need to be proficient in English is a basic skill for any global worker. For example, the

professional jargon used by a Computer programmer differs greatly from that of a physician but both professionals need

to have a good command of the English language in their own fields. A deficiency in this area may result in barrier for the

employee's professional and personal development.

In the corporate world, English is used for international communication, top management meetings and high level

negotiations. English is the preferred language for internal and external communication inter and intra companies

worldwide. Employers expect the workforce to possess excellent communication skills apart from knowledge and

expertise in their respective technical field.

In the present day workplace, individuals require a range of occupationally specific knowledge and skills, personal

attributes and attitudes, the ability to transfer knowledge and skills to different situations, etc. Most industry is quite

concerned about the noticeable gap in Spoken and Written English. Another core competency of their employees which is

the analytical skills or critical thinking is arising as a major concern among employers. Large scale surveys of language

and literacy skills reveal that the work force needs have to be constantly upgraded in terms of appropriate skills required.

“The Left Out”

In the process of interview for the final year students 40% of them get spot placement because of their powerful academic

records. A moderate communication skill is sufficient for these students to get placement as they have sound technical

knowledge reflected in their mark statements and technical interviews. 20% of the students with average marks, technical

knowledge and communication skills somehow get placements later, not in the campus interviews but after they complete

their course or the degree. Our concern is about the remaining 40% “The Left Out”. These students with all the right

information on their CV but an inability to communicate effectively, or someone with one or two gaps who is willing to

learn and can express themselves easily and fluently. The main problems with them are Unfamiliar with resume, Poor

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academic record, Insufficient knowledge of industry, Lack of leadership, Lack of career focus, Insufficient interest in

employer, Ineffective communication style or skills, Low level of enthusiasm, Negative attitude and Failure to sell self.

These students after a big struggle complete their degree by taking another year or two. After they pursue their degree

they were branded as completed with arrears or low level graduates. The job market shows them NO VACANCY board

and kicks them out of their territory. As English teachers what can we do for this result is the matter that needs to be

discussed?

Inappropriate Curriculum Design

English communication skills have become a must at workplace in India. Ask any average professional working with any

sector of the economy, they will for sure comply with this fact. The demand for personnel with good English skills

[speaking-listening-reading-writing] is evidently seen in IT industry and service Industry. Emerging to this challenge and

requirement for personnel with strong English skills, institutions and firms have launched special English language

programs. They primarily aim at equipping students with the right technical and English skills set, and thereby assuring

their work with technology firms and in adequately meeting the language needs of the workplace.

An issue of concern is that, the course content or curriculum that goes into preparing the students for workplace English is

diverse, and many a time mis-oriented, with the end-result being not serving the purpose for what it was meant. A major

blunder often committed is the setting of all personnel on equal footing, without least concern for assessment of their

general and technical background, work expectations, work groups and work culture. Recruiters are turned-off of

applicants with poor vocabulary and an inarticulate way of expressing themselves. What training institutions also fail to

understand is the need to work backwards, by focusing on the actual workplace language experiences and usage of

personnel, and thereby structure a need-based and need-catering workplace English curriculum. Even the

corporate/companies that started in-house English training courses for their personnel are not free of this mistake.

Restructuring Framework

Though the Central, State and Private Universities have added papers related to Communication skill Enhancement for the

pre final and final year students, still it needs to be restructured. The syllabi should incorporate

 Effective communication skills in real world environment

 Improving self-confidence, self-belief and overcoming nerves.

 Understanding the employer, yourself, your CV and unique selling points.

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  Handling difficult interview questions.

 Understanding psychometric testing & competency interviews.

 Improving body language and key impact strategies.

 Chasing feedback, negotiating salary & managing counter offers.

Apart from all these changes the technical English paper needs reconsideration with more activity based topics. Only then

we can pull up the student or the students will come forward to talk. This will indirectly help them improve their fluency

in English and get a job at least for survival.

Conclusion

Communication Skills gives the ability to sell oneself to an employer and sets up to display many of the other qualities on

this list. Straightforward, intelligent communication makes us look confident, prepared, and trustworthy. 

Reference

Martin Yate, C.P.C., Knock 'em Dead, 2008: The Ultimate Job Search Guide , ISBN-10: 1598691651

by Richard Nelson Bolles (Author) What Color Is Your Parachute? 2008: A Practical Manual for Job-hunters and Career-

Changers. ISBN-10: 1580088678.

Paul D. Tieger , Do What You Are: Discover the Perfect Career for You Through the Secrets of Personality Type. ISBN-

10: 0316167266.