Speaker
Description
In vocational hospitality education, English instruction is often organized around controlled speaking exercises, scripted dialogues, and classroom assignments. However, during internships, students are expected to use English in fast, spontaneous, and unpredictable workplace interactions with international guests. This study examines the communication readiness of hospitality interns as they move from classroom English to real workplace communication. Using a qualitative approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with hospitality students who had completed internships in an international tourism area. The analysis focuses on students’ perceptions of the gap between the English they learned in class and the English they needed during service encounters. The findings show that students often felt underprepared for real guest interaction because workplace communication required immediate responses, flexible language use, listening to varied accents, telephone handling, and complaint management. Three main concerns emerged: the difference between textbook-based English and workplace English, the pressure to respond appropriately in real service situations, and the need for more practical pre-internship communication preparation. These findings suggest that English instruction for hospitality students should move beyond memorized expressions and provide greater exposure to authentic service scenarios, guided workplace simulations, and reflective speaking practice. As English is increasingly repositioned from a classroom subject to a practical language for professional hospitality work, strengthening students’ communication readiness becomes essential.
Biography
Yoffie Kharisma Dewi is an English lecturer and training professional with more than a decade of experience in English language teaching, English for Hospitality, workplace communication, and adult learning. She currently teaches at Politeknik Bintan Cakrawala, where she handles courses such as General English, English for Culinary Arts, English for Travel and Tourism Industry, English for Hotel Management, and English for Hospitality. Her professional experience also includes serving as Head of Cooperation and Public Relations, where she managed institutional partnerships with hospitality, tourism, education, and government stakeholders. She has delivered various professional training programs, including Technical English, Business English, Workplace Communication, TOEIC, TOEFL, English for Security Officials, and BIPA. Her academic interests focus on English for Specific Purposes, hospitality communication, speaking anxiety, learner motivation, and workplace-based English learning. She has presented internationally at academic forums in Japan, South Korea, Macau, the Philippines, China, Malaysia, and the ASEAN TeachingEnglish Online Conference hosted by the British Council. Her recent publications include studies on speaking anxiety, motivation, teacher competency, and English teaching development. She holds a Master of Arts in Cultural Linguistics with a focus on Neurolinguistics from Universitas Andalas.
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