Workplace English writing needs : a case study of perceptions and experiences of police constables at selected police clusters in the Gauteng Province, South Africa

Abstract

Writing proficiency in the English language is one of the critical workplace competencies required in the police workplace. The aim of this study was to investigate and determine the perceptions and experiences of South African police constables’ workplace English writing needs in selected police clusters in the Gauteng province, South Africa and recommend suitable strategies to address those needs. Therefore this thesis reports on workplace English writing needs from a professional perspective to determine how they impact on the workplace English writing competencies of police constables and also as a basis for the development of a language-integrated learning curriculum in SAPS police training academies. Data was collected through a questionnaire and interviews with selected sample of the respondents. This data was collected on: their perceptions of their workplace English writing competencies, the areas within English writing which they consider to be a challenge, their perceptions about the extent to which the SAPS training programme addresses police officers’ workplace English writing needs and their suggestions regarding the type of SAPS training programme which can enhance their workplace English writing competencies. This study was prompted by concerns from various research studies and media which reported that police officers have inadequate English writing competencies. Among other things, the study found that the absence of an English writing course in the Basic Police Development Learning Programme contributes significantly to the inadequate workplace English writing competency of police constables in South Africa. The lack of awareness of the importance of other writing sub-skills such as punctuation, word classification and correct capitalisation, contributes to police constables incompetence. This research underscores the importance of police constables’ workplace English writing research on a large scale. Such research can be used for improved pedagogy in police training academies in South Africa. Finally, the findings from this study can also be used as a basis for the development of language-integrated learning curricula in the South African police training academies and also to foster awareness about different factors impacting on the workplace English writing competencies of police constables in South Africa.