Performance Plus for the HKDSE — All-in-one Exam Practice (Vol.

2) (2nd Edition) Set 6 Paper 2

Part B Question 3
Learning English through Workplace Communication
Last week, you attended a talk given by Miss Cooper, a professional career counsellor. You were very
impressed by Miss Cooper, who talked about the skills needed in today’s workforce. Your English teacher
has asked you to write an article for the school magazine. She wants you to summarise the points made by
Miss Cooper and give suggestions to students on how to develop those essential skills.

Topic Analysis
Your Role A student
• You attended a talk given by Miss Cooper, a professional
Situation / Task Requirements career counsellor
• Miss Cooper talked about the skills for today’s workforce
• Summarise the points made by Miss Cooper
Sub-topics • Give suggestions on how to develop the skills needed for
today’s workforce
Text Type Magazine article
Target Audience Teachers and students
• Formal/Semi-formal
Language and Tone
• Use the simple present tense to express opinions
• To report a past event
Purpose of Writing
• To give suggestions

Topic-related Vocabulary
adaptable apparent basic knowledge building blocks
career communication skill cultural sensitivity dividend
generation management multitasking negotiation skill
research skill shortcut teamwork to access
to cater to to stay on top of the game

Writing Plan
Write an appropriate title to grab readers’ attention
Title
• New skills for today’s workforce
Mention the talk given by Miss Cooper
Introductory paragraph • Miss Cooper, a professional career counsellor, gave a talk in Hong Kong
recently. The topic was ‘Skills for today’s workforce’.
Summarise the views of Miss Cooper
• Future workers will have to be adaptable to change.
Body paragraphs
• They will have to know how to access information.
• Computer skills and understanding new technology are important.

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Performance Plus for the HKDSE — All-in-one Exam Practice (Vol. 2) (2nd Edition) Set 6 Paper 2
• They must possess soft skills like communication skills and people skills.
Give suggestions on how to develop the skills for today’s workforce
• Keep abreast of the latest developments
• Continue one’s studies
• Stay on top of the game
• Adapt to change
Closing paragraph • No shortcut to success / Success is something we have to work on

Sample Essay
New skills for today’s workforce

These days, simply turning up for work, collecting a salary and going home is not good enough.
Getting a job is hard enough but keeping that job is even more difficult. In fact, keeping a job is something
that everybody needs to remain focused on for their entire working life. A job for life is something that will
not be part of future careers as most people will have several different positions before they retire. These are
the trends in employment according to Miss Cooper, a professional career counsellor who gave a
presentation in Hong Kong recently. In her talk entitled ‘Skills for today’s workforce’, she gave several tips
for workforce success.

The main concept Miss Copper presented was the need to be adaptable to change as this is going to be
the most apparent feature of the future workforce. The next generation of workers will belong to the
information age, Miss Copper claims. Future generations of workers will not necessarily need to have facts
and figures at their fingertips but rather know how to access this information. In other words, they are
expected to have Internet research skills, computer skills and basic IT skills.

Computer skills and understanding new technology are very important for those who want to succeed
and progress through the workforce. Successful employees will be ones who keep abreast of the latest
developments and continue their studies.

Of course, technical skills are not the only skills required. To be successful in any field of work,
according to Miss Cooper, future generation of workers must possess soft skills such as communication skills
and people skills. In today’s workplace, teamwork is important too, thanks to the Internet and the
globalisation of businesses. Employers are looking for people who get along with others easily, who can
speak several languages and who are culturally sensitive.

Miss Cooper said that what we learn at school now is so important for us as today’s school lessons
provide the building blocks, which we fall back on as we progress through our working life. If these building
blocks are solid, our rate of success increases.

She concluded her talk by saying that there has never been nor never will be a shortcut to success and
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Performance Plus for the HKDSE — All-in-one Exam Practice (Vol. 2) (2nd Edition) Set 6 Paper 2
that success is something we all have to work on. Extra work done at school will always pay dividends in
later life. Staying on top of the game and being willing to change is the key to success.

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