Browsing by Author "Ainul Azmin Md Zamin"

This is a multimodal genre analysis study of Malaysia Regional E-Travel Guidebooks (MRTGs) by adapting the frameworks of Bhatia (2004) and Kress and van Leeuwen (1996, 2006). The analysis focused on examining the rhetorical structure, communicative purposes, linguistic features, professional practices, and visual components present in MRTGs. The analysis is done to understand how this genre-which successfully helped Tourism Malaysia to improve its tourism industry- is built up and written. To accomplish the study's objectives, a combination of textual analysis and semi-structured interviews was employed, utilizing specialized software tools such as Atlas.ti and Sketchengine. The study revealed that MRTGs exhibit a distinct structure comprising ten core moves (Headline, Introducing the Country, Urging Action, Targeting the Market, Trivia, Justifying the Destination, Endorsement, Related Info, Service Info, and Closing Info). Notably, the findings highlight the strategic deployment of linguistic features to capture the readers' attention, promote the featured destinations, motivate action, and furnish pertinent information about Malaysia. MRTGs adeptly employ a synergy of informational value, salience, and framing to offer travellers a comprehensive and captivating informational resource. Additionally, the visual elements employed in MRTGs effectively convey meaning and engage readers with the featured destinations. Crucially, the findings show that professionals within Tourism Malaysia believe that MRTGs are essential for attracting and assisting travellers, and ensuring visitor satisfaction, with a focus on transitioning to online platforms and continuous improvement. This study provides multifaceted insights that extend beyond the specific context of MRTGs, contributing significantly to the domains of genre analysis, professional communication, digital marketing, visual communication, and destination marketing. Additionally, it elucidates practical implications for professionals in the tourism industry, enhancing their comprehension of the art of crafting compelling and effective promotional materials with regards to English for Tourism.

Academic writing is one of the most challenging skills for tertiary level students. Providing feedback has been found to be an effective way to improve the process of academic writing, but there is often skepticism as to how the feedback is delivered. This qualitative study investigated the use of a developmental rubric in English for Academic Writing (EAW) as a means of providing feedback to help students improve their drafts. This qualitative study involved 8 classes where 13 informants were interviewed. A total of 4 classes used the developmental rubric in class for self-editing while another 4 used the peer feedback technique to provide comments on their classmates’ drafts. Using the rubric, their instructors also provided feedback and guidance to improve their writing. The results that emerge from this study showed that in general, students admitted to having difficulties in writing. They also have a positive attitude towards the course and regarded academic writing as important for their future, despite having negative impressions of it prior to enrolment. The findings suggest that the developmental rubric can be used as a potential tool to provide feedback for the students and to create a learning environment that is conducive for achieving learning. Students who used the rubric for self-editing reported a lack of confidence when reflecting on their work while those in the peer feedback classrooms acknowledged that they are learning from their friends’ errors. Suggestion to improve the content of the rubrics, especially in the language section, were made by the teachers. A framework for academic writing at tertiary level is proposed and recommendations were also made for future research to investigate the effectiveness of the rubric in the students’ overall performance.