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Learning about an Occupation: Communication, Practices and Personal Qualities Emerging in Conversations with Appliance Service Technicians
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Mills, Brooke |
| Copyright Year | 2003 |
| Abstract | My project, Learning about an occupation: Communication, practices and personal qualities emerging in conversations with appliance service technicians, developed from my work at Kwantlen University College in Appliance Servicing with English as an Additional Language. This combined-skills, entry-level, trades program included remedial English support for non-native speakers who were training to service and repair large domestic appliances. A key challenge for language instructors in this program was to provide instructional materials which engaged these trades students to willingly invest time and effort on improving their English. Over a six-month period, students heard recordings of seven interviews with appliance service technicians in the field. After listening to an interview, students recorded themselves talking about the important ideas. These student responses provide evidence that from the interviews, students identified qualities valued in the field and gained insights into workplace attitudes. Their discussions not only gave students practice in negotiating the value of different perspectives, but offered them a means of sharing their concerns about making a successful transition to employment. The interviews were primarily designed to appeal to Appliance Servicing students and prompt them to improve their fluency with a discussion task, while learning more about the occupation. Literature and research in occupational identities, communities of practice, the transition from college to the workplace, and discursive psychology influenced my interpretation of the student responses. In conclusion, I propose some ways of increasing the value of these recorded interviews for language training. |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | http://summit.sfu.ca/system/files/iritems1/7674/b36597223.pdf |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
