Oral English Communication Problems and Solutions of Long-Tail Boat Crews in Phang Nga Province

Abstract

        Pang Nga province has many famous sea tourist attractions in Southern Thailand, so a lot of foreign tourists visit there. Consequently, longtail-boat crew, namely key local personnels of tourism, need to verbally communicate in English for guiding and facilitating the tourists. However, they seem to face certain problems. This study aimed to investigate the problems of oral communication in English that long-tail boat crews faced and to identify the strategies used by long-tail boat crews to solve such problems. This qualitative study employed semi-structured interview. The sample consisted of 10 longtail boat serving tourists from the Koh Klang and Khlong Khian communities, Takua Thung district, Phang Nga province. The researchers used a content analysis method to analyze the recorded oral interview data. The results showed that the long-tail boat crews faced specific main problems related to oral English communication, including pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, accents, feelings of difficulty in speaking English, challenges with foreign tourists who speak English as second and native languages, cultural differences, speaking rapidly, long sentences, and slang. Additionally, the crews employed particular strategies to address these problems, which included adjusting their speech, managing misunderstandings caused by misuse of terminology, understanding long and complex sentences, communicating with non-proficient English speakers, learning about cultural differences, using translation applications, employing body language, and developing their English communication skills. This research reflects grassroots-level English communication among local tourism workers in southern Thailand. It also indicates a readiness of English communication of tourism personnels for increasing the income to their communities.