Dr Farhana Abu Bakar
BA (English Language) (Universiti Putra Malaysia), Master of Applied Linguistics (English) (Universiti Putra Malaysia), PhD (Higher Education) (University of Otago, New Zealand)
Senior Lecturer
Language Academy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, UTM Malaysia
Email: farhanaabubakar@utm.my
About Farhana
I am a recipient of the Recognised Associate Supervisor Award from the United Kingdom Council for Graduate Education and a Senior Lecturer at the Language Academy, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities (FSSH), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). I currently serve as the Applied Linguistics and Language Teaching Research Group Leader at the Language Academy, FSSH after completing a one-year postdoctoral fellowship and serving as a Visiting Scholar at the University of Otago, New Zealand.
Previously, I served as the Postgraduate (Master’s and PhD – full research/generic) Programme Coordinator for Language Academy. At the faculty level, I also provided academic development support to postgraduate students under the Postgraduate Student Society (PGSS) as the Head Advisor.
Teaching
I teach English Linguistics and Discourse Analysis to undergraduate Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) students, English Proficiency subjects to undergraduate students and Qualitative Research Method to postgraduate Master and PhD students.
Research
My research interests and expertise lie at the intersection of language studies and higher education. Specifically, my work focuses on sociolinguistic and linguistic anthropology, discourse analysis, language education, and higher education research. I am particularly interested in investigating language socialisation, especially second language socialisation and academic discourse socialisation, within postgraduate education. More recently, I have expanded my research to include heritage language studies, with a particular focus on Creole, endangered, and Indigenous languages.
Publication
Journal articles
Bakar, F. & Kumar, V. (2019). The use of humour in teaching and learning in higher education classrooms: Lecturers’ perspectives. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 40, 15-25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeap.2019.04.006 (WOS SSCI IF: Q1)
Bakar, F. (2019). Appropriate and relevant humour in the university classroom. The European Journal of Humour Research, 7(4), 137-152. http://dx.doi.org/10.7592/EJHR2019.7.4.bakar (Scopus)
Bakar, F. & Kumar, V. (2022). How students perceive the teacher’s use of humour and how it enhances learning in the classroom. The European Journal of Humour Research, 10 (4). 187-199. //doi.org/10.7592/EJHR.2022.10.4.656 (Scopus)
Zabiddin, N.S. & Bakar, F. (2022). English primary school teachers’ perceptions of green screens in teaching English. LSP International Journal, 9 (2), 97-107. https://doi.org/10.11113/lspi.v9.19266 (MyCite)
Palani, H. & Bakar, F. (2023). A case study on the use of humorous code-switching in Harith Iskander’s stand-up comedy shows. LSP International Journal, 10 (2), 13-26. https://doi.org/10.11113/lspi.v10.20121 (MyCite)
Touahmia, S., & Bakar, F. (2024). Attitudes of Algerian EMI and non-EMI lecturers and students toward English. Higher Learning Research Communications, 14(0), 53–70. https://doi.org/10.18870/hlrc.v14i0.1427 (Scopus)
Ramba, M., & Bakar, F. (2024). A case study of Malaysian radio announcers’ code-switching. LSP International Journal, 11(2), 69-82. https://doi.org/10.11113/lspi.v11.22632 (MyCite)
Bakar, F., & Kumar, V. (2025). Supervisors’ Roles in Facilitating L2 Doctoral Students to Write a Thesis and for Publication During Candidature: A Language Socialisation Perspective. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2025.2518320 (WOS SSCI IF: Q1)
Yazid, Z. A., Haladin, N. A. B., & Bakar, F. A. (2025). Social Support-Seeking among People with Mental Illness on Social Media: A Systematic Review. LSP International Journal, 12(2), 109-120. https://doi.org/10.11113/lspi.v12.26001 (MyCite)
Bakar, F., & Kumar, V. (2026). From struggles to strategies: L2 doctoral students’ academic discourse socialisation into academic publishing during candidature. LLT Journal: A Journal on Language and Language Teaching, 29(1), 335-354. https://doi.org/10.24071/llt.v29i1.214 (WOS ESCI)
Jiang, Y., & Bakar, F. (2026). Between policy and practice: English teachers’ challenges and functions of code-switching in tertiary EFL classrooms. Malaysian Journal of ELT Research, 23(1), 82–102. https://doi.org/10.52696/TNZC8871 (WOS ESCI)
Book chapters
Singh, M.K.S., Bakar, F. (2024). Malaysia. In Kumar, V., Wald, N. (Eds.), Global Perspectives on Enhancing Doctoral Co-Supervision (pp. 41-50). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-0460-6_5 (Scopus)
Bakar, F., Haladin, N. B., & Kumar, V. (2025). TikTok as a pedagogical tool. In Ibrahim, N. A., & Don, Z. M. (Eds.). Voices in Language Research (pp. 161-184). UTMPress. https://penerbit.utm.my/booksonline/voices-in-language-research/
Bakar, F., Mazzocco, P. (2026). Navigating Academic Discourse Socialisation Challenges: Leveraging AI Tools for Academic Writing Among L2 Doctoral Students. In Daniel, B.K., Sheridan, L., Wierdak, N. (Eds) Artificial Intelligence and Academic Integrity (pp. 229–245). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-95-1875-3_13 (Scopus)
Warren, V. V., Murray, P. F., Kumar, V., Bakar, F., & Riches-Suman, K. (2026). Encouraging doctoral students to write. In M. Polkinghorne, J. Taylor, & F. Knight (Eds.), Innovative approaches to doctoral supervision (pp. 123–140). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035340286.00014
Riches-Suman, K., Graham, A. M., Paluch, K. J., Roushan, G., O’Sullivan, H., Polkinghorne, M., Kumar, V., Kaur, A., & Bakar, F. (2026). Supporting doctoral students through completion. In M. Polkinghorne, J. Taylor, & F. Knight (Eds.), Innovative approaches to doctoral supervision (pp. 190–213). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035340286.00017
Further information on other publications, grants and students
Check out this page: https://utmscholar.utm.my/Scholar/ScholarInfoDetails/1AOg