Updating Vocational English Textbooks to Meet Industrial Demands in Indonesia

Authors

  • Albert Efendi Pohan Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia, Indonesia
  • Dahrul Aman Harahap Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia, Indonesia
  • Juli Rachmadani Hasibuan Universitas Negeri Medan, Medan City, Indonesia
  • Muhammad Faizal A. Ghani Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Malaysia
  • Yasir Ayed Alsamiri Islamic University of Madinah, Madinah City, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia
  • Hartika Sari Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia, Indonesia
  • Ramdhan Beni Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia
  • Erwin Ashari Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33394/jollt.v13i1.13194

Keywords:

English Competence, English language learning, English textbook, Industrial contexts, Vocational school,

Abstract

The pressing demand for work-relevant vocational English textbooks is essential for delivering effective learning materials that align with students' requirements. Appropriate textbooks can boost English language competence by enhancing students' abilities in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Listening skills form the cornerstone for developing proficiency in other language areas. However, survey revealed that 92.3% of the 52 vocational schools in Batam City had not updated their English textbooks, and 96.2% lacked listening materials tailored to industrial demands. As a result, only 11.87% of the 4,035 Batam City vocational school students who passed the test showed competence in the listening component of the English assessment. This research aims to create a valid and effective vocational English textbook that improves students' English communication abilities based on workplace requirements. To accomplish this goal, the study employed a developmental research approach (Borg and Gall). The research was conducted in Batam City, encompassing 52 vocational schools, 95 English teachers, and 4,070 vocational school students in Batam City, Indonesia. The study's outcomes indicate that: 1) the vocational English listening textbook developed was empirically validated with an average score of 3.6, placing it in the highly valid category. 2) This textbook has also been empirically shown to be effective in enhancing students' listening competence, with a sig. value of 0.000, which was below 0.05. Consequently, this textbook benefits the government and stakeholders, particularly vocational English instructors in Batam City, by improving their English communication competence through the provision of textbooks relevant to industrial contexts.

Author Biographies

Albert Efendi Pohan, Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia

Educational Management Study Program, Postgraduate Program

Dahrul Aman Harahap, Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia

Educational Management Study Program, Postgraduate Program

Juli Rachmadani Hasibuan, Universitas Negeri Medan, Medan City, Indonesia

English Literature Study Program, Language and Arts Faculty

Muhammad Faizal A. Ghani, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Department of Educational Management, Planning and Policy, Faculty of Education

Yasir Ayed Alsamiri, Islamic University of Madinah, Madinah City, Saudi Arabia

Special Education, Departement of Education

Hartika Sari, Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia

Educational Management Study Program, Postgraduate Program

Ramdhan Beni, Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia

Educational Management Study Program, Postgraduate Program

Erwin Ashari, Universitas Riau Kepulauan, Batam City, Indonesia

English Education Study Program, Faculty of Education

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Published

2025-01-16

How to Cite

Pohan, A. E., Harahap, D. A., Hasibuan, J. R., Ghani, M. F. A., Alsamiri, Y. A., Sari, H., … Ashari, E. (2025). Updating Vocational English Textbooks to Meet Industrial Demands in Indonesia. Journal of Languages and Language Teaching, 13(1), 32–45. https://doi.org/10.33394/jollt.v13i1.13194

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Vol. 13 No. 1 (2025)

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