Sample of good assignment

FACULTY OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT

OUMH1103
LEARNING SKILLS FOR OPEN DISTANCE LEARNERS

Sample of good assignment

Improving the Mastery of Soft Skills among University Students in Malaysia

Introduction
Recently Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Minister of Education Tan Sri Muhyiddin
Yassin voiced his dissatisfaction towards the current Malaysian education system, and had
since conducting a review towards it. This action is taken after the discovery that many
students in tertiary educational institutions lack in competency and having difficulties finding
a job. Many people, especially employers have known an important element which is missing
from most of the university graduates; namely the soft skills. However this particular reason
is never revealed to applicants that failed for the jobs they aimed for, and therefore they are
left in the dark and never realized what went wrong despite their excellent grades.
In many countries including Malaysia, basic education or primary education is mandatory
and it focuses on reading, writing and ciphering. Malaysia for example has its own National
Philosophy of Education, in which the education serves as the holistic development of
individuals who are intellectually, spiritually, emotionally and physically balanced and
harmonious. The Philosophy also dictates that education should be designed to produce
Malaysian citizens who are knowledgeable and competent, possess high moral standards,
responsible and capable of achieving a high level of personal well-being, and will
contribute to the betterment of the family, the society and the nation at large.
Unfortunately the education system itself does very little in demonstrating the Philosophy
that some teachers described it as a philosophy containing big words that exist merely in
theory. While indeed students learned the basic skills (reading, writing and ciphering), it
didnt help students with developing basic soft skills. Interaction between students, assigning
the role of a leader alternatively between students are not done properly that the same
students ended up getting the advantage of learning soft skills at an early stage.
It is important that university students need to know what exactly soft skills are. Unlike the
hard skills which are taught directly and are present in curriculum syllabus, soft skills are
more related to an individuals personality and attitude. This report will discuss the main
types of soft skills, and how to improve soft skills among university students.
2

Sample of good assignment

Definition of soft skills

Before we go further into soft skills, we will discuss the meaning of its counterpart hard
skills. This is because soft skills complement hard skills, and therefore neither term should
be neglected.
HiringSolutions.net (2011) defined hard skills as specific, teachable abilities that may be
required in a given context, such as a job or university application. Hard skills tend to be
specific to a certain type or task or activity, and are usually taught whether in universities or
institutions. Examples of hard skills include typing, mathematical ability, and proficiency
with software applications.
Meanwhile we get various meanings of soft skills. According to Schulz (2008), soft skill has
a varied definition, since the perception of what is a soft skill differs from context to context.
He explained that a subject may be considered a soft skill in one particular area, and may be
considered a hard skill in another. Wikipedia (2011), however states that soft skills are:
a sociological term relating to a persons EQ (Emotional Intelligence Quotient),
the cluster of personality traits, social graces, communication, language, personal
habits, friendliness, and optimism that characterize relationships with other people.
On another note, Collins English Dictionary (2009) gave a different definition on the term:
Desirable qualities for certain form of employment that do not depend on acquired
knowledge: they include common sense, the ability to deal with people, and a positive
flexible attitude.
It should also be noted that the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia also has its
definition for soft skills. The Ministry of Higher Education (2006) defined the term as critical
elements in the globalised working world, particularly in light of rapid technology
advancement. Therefore, soft skills need to be embedded and assessed in teaching and
learning in line with the student-centered learning approach.

Sample of good assignment

Important Soft Skills for Malaysian Students

The Ministry of Higher Education (2006) stated that there are seven main elements of soft
skills. These skills are important for each university students as they will be demonstrated
during job interviews. They are:
1. Communication skills;
2. Critical thinking and problem solving;
3. Teamwork skills;
4. Lifelong learning and information management;
5. Entrepreneurship skills;
6. Ethics, moral and professional skills; and
7. Leadership skills.
Each of the above soft skills comprised of several sub-skills, and these sub-skills are divided
into two categories of implementation must-have soft skills and good-to-have soft skills.
Although it is emphasized that must-have soft skills are necessary, it is also noted that goodto-have soft skills are encouraged to have so they can add extra value to the must-have soft
skills. Furthermore, all elements of soft skills must be acquired by each individual student
and evaluated effectively and comprehensively. Here, we will discuss five elements of soft
skills that are needed by university students, and why students are not well-equipped with the
soft skills.

Communication Skills
This soft skill is, by far, one of the most important aspects sought by employers during a job
interview. Communication skills involve effective communication in both the national
language and English language in different contexts and with different people. There are
eight sub-skills under this category; three of them are must-have skills while the remaining
five are good-to-have skills.

Sample of good assignment

Skills listed in the must-have skills are as follows:

1. The ability to deliver idea clearly, effectively and with confidence either orally or in
writing;
2. Ability to practice active listening skill and respond; and
3. Ability to present clearly and confidently to the audience.
While skills listed in the good-to-have skills are as follows:
1. The ability to use technology during presentation;
2. Ability to discuss and arrive at a consensus;
3. Ability to communicate with individual from a different cultural background;
4. Ability to expand ones own communicative skill; and
5. Ability to use non-oral skills.
There are many examples where students can apply this skill, especially in presentation-based
assignments, work groups, speech and even conversation-based tasks. The main problem for
many students in Malaysia is that they can be quite introverted and shy, despite their talkative
self outside class. They have the similar impression that they will be laughed at or blamed if
they made mistakes, as it sadly becomes part of the reality in Malaysia nowadays.

Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Skills

Critical thinking and problem-solving skills refers to the ability to identify, analyze and solve
problems in any kind of situation. This skill includes the ability to think critically, creatively,
innovatively and analytically. It also includes the ability to apply knowledge and
understanding to new and different problems. Students in science and engineering field must
have this element. There are three must-have skills and four good-to-have skills in this
category:

Sample of good assignment

Must-have skills
1. Ability to identify and analyze problems in difficult situation and make justifiable
evaluation;
2. Ability to expand and improve thinking skills such as explanation, analysis and
evaluate discussion; and
3. Ability to find ideas and look for alternative solutions.
Good-to-have skills
1. Ability to think beyond;
2. Ability to make conclusion based on valid proof;
3. Ability to withstand and give full responsibility; and
4. Ability to understand and accommodate oneself to the varied working environment.
All the above skills are important and students will require them as adults. As university
students that approach adulthood, they should have unconsciously gained this skill as they
master their hard skills. However the main problem is that it is common to see students who
still need to be taught despite already having the skills. Failure to apply the acquired skills in
a problem which only needed to be solved using a different view is what employers deem as
uncreative. As far as it goes, this is one critical point sought by employers during a job
interview.

Teamwork skills
Teamwork is one word frequently spoken, but what exactly is it? It is the ability to work with
people from different social and cultural background to achieve a common goal. This element
is divided into three must-have skills and two good-to-have skills:
Must-have skills
1. The ability to build a good rapport, interact and work effectively with others;
2. Ability to understand and play the role of a leader and follower alternatively; and
3. Ability to recognize and respect others attitude, behavior and beliefs.

Sample of good assignment

Good-to-have skills
1. Ability to give contribution to the planning and coordinate group work; and
2. Responsible towards group decision.
Students are encouraged to play their role in the group and respect the opinions and attitudes
of other members of the group. In universities, it is often displayed through group works and
assignments where each student will contribute something for a task or project. One simple
way to train teamwork skills is through presentation-based assignments; in which students are
divided into groups and perform the task as given by lecturers.
The main problem behind the lack of this skill is that many students try to avoid taking part in
a team task. Therefore, important roles such as leader will always end up to the same person
or people while the rest prefer to be followers until the end of the studies. It is a shame that
students do not want to take turns being a leader, as these will benefit them in the long run.

Life-long learning and information management

This element has three sub-skills:
1. The ability to search and manage relevant information from a variety of sources;
2. Ability to open to new ideas and to have the capacity for self-directed or autonomous
learning; and
3. Ability to develop a curiosity and passion for knowledge.
Among these three sub-skills, there are clashed opinions regarding which are the must-have
skills and the good-to-have skills. While Jain (2009) stated that the first two sub-skills are the
must-have skills, the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia listed all of them under goodto-have skills.
The life-long learning and information management skills are actually related to how students
gather information for their theses and assignments; which is why Jain (2009) listed the first
two sub-skills as the must-haves. Although they do not seem as important, this element must
be possessed by everyone, even university students. The abilities that developed under this
7

Sample of good assignment

element will eventually lead to learning new skills, discovering new talents, hence adding the
value of skills possessed in the future.
Lack of this soft skill is shown by students not showing interest on any new skills, or their
fear of using new apparatus or tools as they are used to what they were currently using. Some
students also think that after university, they do not have to go back to square one to learn
something different from the previous courses. There are also students that failed to absorb
fully whatever is taught by teachers due to the lack of information gathering skills.

Leadership skills
During group assignments and projects, it is common for at least one student to take the role
of a leader. A leader does not only give orders to other members, they must also be able to
assist and supervise others throughout the project, and is able to take action and responsibility
if needed. Its no wonder that many Malaysian students try very hard to avoid this, which is
ultimately an essential soft skill to possess. As the importance of this soft skill is brought to
light, they will feel that they lose an invaluable gem because one of the many aspects that
employers seek is leadership skills.
Leadership skills are divided into two must-have skills and two good-to-have skills. The
must-have skills are as follows:
1. Knowledge of the basic theories of leadership; and
2. The ability to lead a project.
While the good-to-have skills are:
1. The ability to understand and take turns as a leader and follower alternatively; and
2. Ability to supervise members of a group.

Sample of good assignment

Suggestions to Improve Soft Skills among Malaysian Students

Jain (2009) has suggested a model for implementing soft skills in higher education. This
model is a holistic approach that is based on the combination of several programs and main
activities; formal teaching and learning activities; support programs and the students campus
life. This approach hopefully will be applied by the Government, universities and students
themselves.
First and foremost, universities should devise proper syllabuses that include the development
of soft skills. Jain (2009) said that these could be gained by using two teaching and learning
models:
a) Stand Alone Subject Model
b) Embedded Model
Stand alone subject model uses the approach of training and providing opportunities to
students to develop soft skills through specific courses that are carefully planned for this
purpose. These specific courses are usually offered as university courses, such as language
courses, entrepreneurship, business, etc. and also elective courses, such as public speaking,
critical thinking, computer, etc. Students are encouraged to sign up for several additional
courses to be part of a minor course. This approach will however increase the number of
credits and time spent for the particular program.
Embedded model uses the approach of embedding soft skill training in the teaching and
learning activities in the curriculum. Unlike stand alone subject model, embedded model does
not require students to take special courses; instead students are trained to master the soft
skills through various activities conducted by the lecturers. Such an example would be
presentation-based assignments, group tasks, role play and simulation, field work, and also
site visits.
Universities can also combine both stand alone subject model and embedded model, as each
model has its strengths and weaknesses. This is because stand alone subject model lacked the
opportunity to help students integrate their soft skills with other knowledge and skills they
have learned, added with the time restraint many students have that they ended up not taking
9

Sample of good assignment

special courses designed for developing soft skills. On another hand, integrating soft skills in
existing courses for embedded model proved to be a hard task as lecturers are required to
master specific teaching and learning skills. However when carefully planned and appropriate
teaching and learning strategies are used, embedded model is more effective in developing
and acquiring the soft skills as theres no requirement for additional courses in the existing
program.
The Ministry of Educations decision to revise and improvise Malaysian education system is
also seen as on time with the current situation. For some people, it may have been too late but
it is never too late to correct the mistakes that have been done many times before.
Considering that the current, examination-based education system is only able to produce
students with lots of As and yet severely lack in terms of even basic soft skills, it is hoped
that by the end of the review, Malaysian government could realize that what is actually
needed by students are not a lot of As, but the ability to cope with global changes. School
students also need to know basic computer skills, which many still lacked despite the
1Malaysia Computer project that is supposed to benefit a million students.
Finally, the students themselves must train and master the basic soft skills as mentioned
earlier. In order to do this, several of them can be learned through trial and error while the
rest can be further developed by teachers and lecturers. Examples of developing soft skills
through trial and error are to at least make a conversation daily, or to take a role of the leader
for the first time; while examples that can be done by teachers is to design an activity in
which students communication skills and leadership is tested, and to change the roles for
different tasks.

Conclusion
In this era of information economy, each individual need to be highly intellectual and skillful
as every nation is strongly dependent on the ability of its citizen. Therefore, it is important to
develop the human capital by having people who possess both hard skills and soft skills. A
quality human capital comes from a quality education process, and therefore an improvement
on the education system in Malaysia is necessary to produce capable human capital that will
fulfill the demand and expectations of many people.
10

Sample of good assignment

Bibliography
Schulz, B. (2008). The Importance of Soft Skills: Education Beyond Academic Knowledge.
Journal of Language and Communication, pg. 146 154. Polytechnic of Namibia.
Extracted from http://ir.polytechnic.edu.na/
Jain, V (2009). Importance of Soft Skills Development in Education. Extracted from School
of Educators Website, http://schoolofeducators.com
Ng., L.Y & Kulasagaran, P (2012). A need to review the system. Extracted from The Star
website,
http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp=?file=/2012/4/1/education/11016868&sec=
education
Review of education system soon. Article extracted from The Star website,
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/2/26/nation/10809271&sec=nation
Lee, R. (2012). Super charge your studies, think critically. Extracted from The Star website,
http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp?file=/2012/4/1/education/11024114&sec=e
ducation
Soft Skills Development Module for Institution of Higher Learning Malaysia, Ministry of
Higher Education of Malaysia (2006). Extracted from Universiti Teknologi Melaka
website,
http://www.utem.edu.my/pbpi/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=161&
Itemid=173
Soft Skills, Wikipedia (2011). Extracted from Wikipedia website,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soft_skills

11

Sample of good assignment

Table 1: The Must-Have and the Good-to-Have Elements of Soft Skills

No.

Soft Skills

Must-Have Elements

Good-to-Have Elements
Ability to use technology

Ability to deliver idea clearly, during presentation.

1.

Communication skills

effectively and with

Ability to discuss and arrive

confidence either orally or in

at a consensus.

writing.

Ability to communicate with

Ability to practice active

individual from a different

listening skill and respond.

cultural background.

Ability to present clearly and

Ability to expand ones own

confidently to the audience.

communicative skill.
Ability to use non-oral skills.

Ability to identify and

2.

analyze problems in difficult

Ability to think beyond.

situation and make justifiable

Ability to make conclusion

evaluation.

based on valid proof.

Critical thinking and

Ability to expand and

Ability to withstand and give

problem solving

improve thinking skills such

full responsibility.

as explanation, analysis and

Ability to understand and

evaluate discussion.

accommodate oneself to the

Ability to find ideas and look

varied working environment.

for alternative solutions.

No.

Soft Skills

Must-Have Elements

Good-to-Have Elements

Ability to build a good

rapport, interact and work

3.

Teamwork skills

effectively with others.

Ability to give contribution

Ability to understand and

to the planning and

play the role of a leader and

coordinate group work.

follower alternatively.

Responsible towards group

Ability to recognize and

decision.

respect others attitude,

behavior and beliefs.
12

Sample of good assignment

Ability to find and manage

4.

Lifelong learning and

relevant information from

information

various sources.

management

Ability to receive new ideas

Ability to develop an inquiry

mind and seek knowledge.

performs autonomy learning.

Ability to propose business
opportunity.
5.

Entrepreneurship skill

Ability to identify job

Ability to build, explore and

opportunities.

seek business opportunities

and job.
Ability to be self-employed.

Ability to understand the

economy crisis, environment
6.

Ethics, moral and

professional skills

and social cultural aspects

professionally.
Ability to analyze, make
problem-solving decisions

Ability to practice ethical

attitudes besides having the
responsibility towards
society.

related to ethics.
Ability to understand and
7.

Leadership skills

Knowledge of the basic

take turns as a leader and

theories of leadership.

follower alternatively.

Ability to lead a project.

Ability to supervise
members of a group.

13