English Journal Antartika Volume 2 No.
2 December 2024
ISSN: 3031-7614
Teaching Common English Language Expressions for Hotel Staff: Best Practices Nurdiana Universitas Al-Azhar Indonesia usman@gmail.
Abstrak Ae Industri perhotelan sangat erat kaitannya dengan bahasa Inggris, karena kemahiran berbahasa Inggris sangat penting untuk berkomunikasi yang efektif dalam bidang ini.
Namun, banyak staf hotel di Indonesia kesulitan berkomunikasi dalam bahasa Inggris dengan baik sehingga diperlukan peningkatan.
Untuk mengatasi hal ini, program pelatihan rutin harus dilaksanakan untuk meningkatkan keterampilan bahasa Inggris dengan fokus pada bahasa Inggris praktis yang digunakan dalam lingkungan perhotelan.
Studi ini bertujuan untuk mengeksplorasi pengajaran ungkapan-ungkapan umum bahasa Inggris untuk karyawan hotel.
Dengan menggunakan pendekatan deskriptif-kualitatif dan meninjau pustaka yang relevan, hasil studi menunjukkan bahwa fungsi dan ungkapan bahasa tertentu sering digunakan di bidang perhotelan dan karenanya harus dimasukkan ke dalam program pelatihan untuk staf hotel.
Kata kunci: mengajar ungkapan lazim, bahasa Inggris, perhotelan Abstract Ae The hospitality industry is closely linked to the English language, as proficiency in English is essential for effective communication within this field.
However, many hotel staff members in Indonesia struggle to communicate in English appropriately, highlighting the need for improvement.
To address this, regular training programs should be implemented to enhance language skills, focusing on practical English used in hospitality This study aims to explore teaching common English expressions to hotel employees.
Using a descriptive-qualitative approach and reviewing relevant studies, the findings suggest that certain language functions and expressions are frequently used in hospitality and should therefore be incorporated into the training programs for hotel staff.
Keywords: teaching common expressions.
English, hospitality.
Received 01-11-2024
Revised 01-12-2024
Accepted 30-12-2024
INTRODUCTION
In recent years.
Indonesia's hospitality industry has experienced rapid growth.
Data on hotel occupancy shows a significant rise in the number of foreign guests between 2021 and 2023.
The total number of foreign hotel guests was 649,130 in 2021, which increased substantially to 3,027,640 in 2022.
By 2023, the figure doubled again to 6,824,950 (Badan Pusat Statistik, 2.
This growth underscores the importance of hotel staff being able to communicate effectively in English.
However, many Indonesian hotel employees still struggle with English communication skills.
Research by Safitri et al.
revealed that staff at a five-star hotel in Malang.
East Java, had a low level of English skills.
Similarly, studies by Nurdiana .
found that the hotel staff at a fivestar hotel had poor English communication skills.
Therefore.
English language training is essential, with a focus on key expressions used in the hospitality industry.
Incorporating role-playing and simulations in the training is recommended, as they provide practical, real-world scenarios and greater opportunities for language practice.
When teaching English to hotel staff, several factors must be considered.
One important aspect is the sequence of services, which is commonly used in areas such as the hotel front office and food and beverage services.
From a linguistic perspective, the sequence of services involves various language functions.
Consequently, hotel staff should learn specific language functions, such as greeting guests, making reservations, taking orders, and processing payments.
Ekasani & Lestari .
identify the following language functions within the food and beverage service context.
Handling reservations by phone Receiving and seating guests Beverages A A A Taking orders Room service TodayAos specialty This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.
0 International License.
English Journal Antartika Volume 2 No.
2 December 2024 Serving food Handling complaints Clearing the tables A A A Dessert Making tea/serving beverages after meals Paying bills Each language function is linked to specific expressions frequently used in the hospitality industry.
For instance, a common phrase used when dealing with reservations is "Do you have a reservation?" But how do we know that "Do you have a reservation?" is a widely used expression? The COCA (Corpus of Contemporary American Englis.
is a valuable resource that can assist English learners, including non-native English-speaking hotel staff, in identifying common English expressions .
ttps://w.
english-corpora.
org/coca/).
COCA contains an extensive collection of American English and is considered one of the most widely used English corpora .
ttps://w.
english-corpora.
org/coca/).
Therefore, this paper aims to explore several common English expressions that can be taught to Indonesian hotel staff using COCA, along with best practices for teaching these RESEARCH METHODOLOGY This study used a descriptive-qualitative method.
As stated by Braun & Clarke .
, qualitative research involves the use of words as data, which are collected and analyzed in various ways.
The data gathered consisted of common English expressions used in hotel environments.
These expressions were analyzed using COCA to determine how often they appear in hotel-related contexts.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
There are many useful English expressions in hospitality.
However, the results and discussion focus on only a few of the most used ones.
The findings and discussion primarily concentrate on English used at the front desk and in food and beverage services.
Making a reservation Both hotel staff and hotel guests need to use proper English language when making a reservation.
One key expression is AoDo you have a reservation?Ao which in Bahasa Indonesia means AoSudah reservasi?Ao Having been searched on COCA, here is the frequency of AoDo you have a reservation?Ao Figure 1.
Application Appearance The red arrow shows the frequency of AoDo you have a reservation.
Ao The bigger the figure is, the more common the expression is.
Now, let us compare AoDo you have a reservationAo with another expression AoHave you made a reservation?Ao Here is how it appeared on COCA.
Figure 2.
Asking menu This implies that AoHave you made a reservationAo is not a common expression for making a reservation.
Thus, it should not be introduced to the hotel staff.
Another useful expression when making a reservation is AoHow long https://ejournal.
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php/eja/index English Journal Antartika Volume 2 No.
2 December 2024 are you stayingAo? and AoHow long will you be staying?Ao The frequency of these two expressions on COCA is as Figure 3.
Check Frequency on Form Although AoHow long are you staying?Ao appeared more frequently in COCA.
AoHow long will you be staying?Ao is more commonly used in hotel settings.
The use of AowillAo sounds more natural and polite in this context, as it refers to a future action or plan, which is more appropriate when discussing guests' upcoming stays.
Therefore, it is recommended to teach AoHow long will you be staying?Ao instead.
Welcoming guests When welcoming guests, hotel staff would say AoHow can I help youAo or AoHow may I assist youAo? Which one is more frequently used according to COCA? Figure 4.
Welcoming Guest The figure indicates that AoHow can I help you?Ao is used more frequently than AoHow may I assist you?Ao However.
AoHow may I assist you? carries a more formal tone because of the use of AomayAo and Aoassist.
Ao The modal verb AomayAo and the verb AoassistAo are generally associated with more formal and professional settings.
As a result, it is recommended that AoHow may I assist you? be taught to hotel staff.
Taking an order One key expression in taking an order is AoAre you ready to order?Ao or AoMay I take your order?Ao Below is how frequently AoAre you ready to order?Ao and AoMay I take your order?Ao appeared on COCA.
Figure 5.
Taking Order https://ejournal.
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php/eja/index English Journal Antartika Volume 2 No.
2 December 2024 COCA shows that AoMay I take your orderAo is more commonly used than AoAre you ready to order?Ao.
AoMay I take your order?Ao is a polite and formal expression.
This is due to its function that focuses more on the staffAos offer to Compared to AoMay I take your order?Ao.
AoAre you ready to order?Ao sounds slightly more casual or less polite because it focuses more on the guestAos readiness.
Hence.
AoMay I take your order?Ao should be introduced first.
Paying bills One of the useful expressions of paying bills is AoHow would you like to pay?Ao or AoHow will you be paying?Ao Having been searched on COCA, here are the results.
Figure 6.
Paying Bills The figure indicates that AoHow will you be payingAo is more common than AoHow would you like to pay?Ao AoHow will you be paying?Ao is a more direct and commonly used question in hotel check-out and hotel restaurant It sounds more natural and is more typical in this context, as it asks about the method of payment On the other hand.
AoHow would you like to pay?Ao is also polite but can sound more like an option being offered, and it might be used in some contexts, particularly when there is a choice of payment method.
However.
AoHow will you be paying?Ao is generally more common for transactional purposes in hotels.
Thus.
AoHow would you like to pay?Ao is not recommended to be taught.
All useful expressions in the hotel context are best taught through role-play and simulation.
Earlier studies reported that role-play and simulation are the most effective speaking activities.
Research by Mayasyarah .
and Pinatih .
revealed that role-play enhanced learners' speaking abilities.
According to Harmer .
, roleplaying allows students to experience real-life scenarios, such as business meetings, encounters on an airplane, or interviews, as if they were participating in those situations.
Additionally, students can take on roles of characters who may not resemble themselves or share the same thoughts and emotions, which positively contributes to the development of their speaking skills.
To benefit from role-play and simulation, here is the step-by-step activity (EFL Cafe, 2.
Preparation and planning Successful role-play activities start with careful preparation and planning.
Instructors should consider their students' language skills, interests, and learning goals when designing role-plays that are both engaging and A Selecting appropriate scenarios Selecting appropriate scenarios is essential for the effectiveness of role-play activities.
The scenarios should be connected to the students' interests and real-life experiences, while also reflecting the language skills and vocabulary they need to develop.
For instance, beginners could practice basic situations like ordering food at a restaurant, whereas advanced learners might engage in role-plays involving a business meeting or a job interview.
Scenarios should be diverse to keep students engaged and cover various aspects of language use.
Teachers can base scenarios on real-life situations, current events, or cultural contexts that students are familiar with.
Using authentic materials like menus, schedules, or brochures can also make the scenarios more realistic and relevant.
https://ejournal.
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php/eja/index English Journal Antartika Volume 2 No.
2 December 2024
CONCLUSION
To conclude, a few of the common English expressions for hospitality that should be primarily learned by hotel employees are those dealing with making a reservation (AoDo you have a reservation?A.
, welcoming guests (AoHow may I assist you?A.
, taking an order (AoMay I take your order?A.
, and paying bills (AoHow will you be paying?A.
Teaching those expressions would be best by role-play and simulation as they provide real-life situations and REFERENCES