Search results for: research skills

Authors: Dr. Rebecca Kimelman

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Teaching students to self-advocate has become a central topic in special education literature and practice. However, many special education programs do not address this important skill area. To this end, I created and implemented the Self Advocacy Made Easy (S.A.M.E.) program of instruction, intended to enhance the self-advocacy skills of young adults with mild to moderate disabilities. The effectiveness of S.A.M.E., the degree to which self-advocacy skills were acquired and demonstrated by the students, the level of parental support, and the impact of culture on the process, and teachers’ beliefs and attitudes about the role of self-advocacy skills for their students were measured using action research that employed mixed methodology. Conducted at an overseas American International School, this action research study sought answers to these questions by providing an in-depth portrayal of the S.A.M.E. program, as well as the attitudes and perceptions of the stakeholders involved in the study (thirteen students, their parents, teachers and counsellors). The findings of this study were very positive. The S.A.M.E. program was found to be a valid and valuable instructional tool for teaching self-advocacy skills to students with learning disabilities and ADHD. The study showed participation in the S.A.M.E. program led to an increased understanding of the important elements of self-advocacy, an increase in students’ skills and abilities to self-advocate, and a positive increase in students’ feelings about themselves. Inclusion in the Student-Led IEP meetings, an authentic student assessment within the S.A.M.E. program, also yielded encouraging results, including a higher level of ownership of one’s profile and learning needs, a higher level of student engagement and participation in the IEP meeting, and a growing student awareness of the relevance of the document and the IEP process to their lives. Without exception, every parent believed that participating in the Student-Led IEP led to a growth in confidence in their children, including that it taught them how to ‘own’ their disability and an improvement in their communication skills. Teachers and counsellors that participated in the study felt the program was worthwhile, and led to an increase in the students’ ability to acknowledge their learning profile and to identify and request the accommodations (such as extended time or use of a calculator) they need to overcome or work around their disability. The implications for further research are many, and include an examination of the degree to which participation in S.A.M.E. fosters student achievement, the long-term effects of participation in the program, and the degree to which student participation in the Student-Led IEP meeting increases parents’ level of understanding and involvement.

Keywords: self-advocacy, learning disabilities, ADHD, student-led IEP process

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Authors: Nina Dziatzko, Christopher Stehr, Franziska Struve

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Intercultural competence as an explicit required skill nearly never appears in job advertisements in international or even global contexts. But especially those who have to deal with different nationalities and cultures in their everyday business need to have several intercultural competencies and further a global mind-set. This way the question arises how potential future global managers can be trained to learn these competencies. In this regard, it might be helpful to see if different types of intercultural trainings have different effects on those skills. This paper outlines lessons learned based on the evaluation of two different intercultural trainings for management students. The main differences between the observed intercultural trainings are the amount of theoretical input in relation to hands-on experiences, the number of trainers as well as the used methods to teach implicit cultural rules. Both groups contain management students with the willingness and perspective to work abroad or to work in international context. The research is carried out with a pre-training-survey and a post-training-survey which consists of questions referring the international context of the students and a self-estimation of 19 identified intercultural and global mind-set skills, such as: cosmopolitanism, empathy, differentiation and adaptability. Whereas there is no clear result which training gets overall a significant higher increase of skills, there is a clear difference between the focus of competencies trained by each of the intercultural trainings. This way this research provides a guideline for both academicals institutions as well as companies for the decision between different types of intercultural trainings, if the to be trained required skills are defined. Therefore the efficiency and the accuracy of fit of the education of future global managers get optimized.

Keywords: global mind-set, intercultural competencies, intercultural training, learning experiences

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Authors: Wasiu Oyeleke Oyediran

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Maize is a common staple food for human consumption and livestock feeds. It provides employment and means of livelihood for women in both rural areas and urban centres in Nigeria. However, the entrepreneurial skills of women engaged in its processing and value addition has not been fully enhanced. This study was therefore carried out to investigate rural women entrepreneurial skills in maize processing and value addition in Ogun State, Nigeria. Snow ball sampling technique was used in the selection of 70 respondents for this study. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and chi-square. Results revealed that majority (50.0%) of the respondents were 31 - 40 years of age and 60% of the respondents had spent 6 – 10 years in maize processing. The respondents have great entrepreneurial skills in popcorn (85.7%), corn cake (80.0%), corn balls (64.3%) and kokoro (52.9%) making. The majority of the respondents accessed information and entrepreneurial skills through fellow processors (88.6%) and friends and neighbours (62.9%). Major constraints to maize processing and value addition were scarcity of raw materials during off season periods (95.7%), ineffective preservation methods (88.6%), lack of modern processing equipment (82.9%), and high cost of processing machines (72.9%). Result of chi-square showed that there is significant association between personal characteristics of the respondents and entrepreneurial skills of the women at p < 0.05. It is hereby recommended that subsidized processing equipment should be made available to the maize processors in the study area by the government and NGOs.

Keywords: women, entreprenuerial skills, maize prcessing, value addition

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Authors: Zulaiha Maluma Ahmad

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This paper attempted to examine adult and non formal education for the attainment of entrepreneurial skills in empowering the citizens with entrepreneurial skills, for Nigeria’s socioeconomic development. This paper highlighted the meaning of education in the context of skill acquisition, entrepreneurial education, adult and non formal education. It also examined the objectives, issues and challenges as well as prospects of this type of education. It further discussed the role of adult and non formal education for the attainment of socioeconomic development of a growing nation like Nigeria. The paper equally proffered some recommendations and eventually concluded that adult and non formal education can indeed make self reliance, personal satisfaction and the attainment of entrepreneurial education for the socioeconomic development of any nation, possible.

Keywords: entrepreneurial education, adult education, non formal education skills, Nigeria

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Authors: Bavornluck Kuosuwan

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The purpose of this research was to study the level of readiness of English communication skills for travel agents in the Silom road area of Bangkok in order to enter the ASEAN economic community in the year 2015. The multi-stage sampling method was utilized with 474 respondents from 79 travel agencies. An English Questionnaire was used to collect the data. Descriptive statistics included percentage, average, standard deviation and Pearson’s r coefficient. The findings revealed that the majority of respondents were not well prepared in terms of ASEAN knowledge including laws and regulations. The majority of respondents had not been well informed about the changes that will come with the coming of ASEAN economic community. Moreover, the level of English communication for most travel agents was between the poor and intermediate level and therefore improvement is needed, especially the speaking and listening skill. In other words, the majority of respondents needed more training in terms of communications skills. The correlation between the working environment and attitude of the staff was very positive. Moreover, the correlation between the background of staff and attitude of staff was also very positive and most of demographic factors had a positive correlation with attitude of staff, except gender.

Keywords: ASEAN, communication skills, travel agents, media engineering

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Authors: Faihan Alotaibi

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This study explores Saudi teachers’ perceptions of the efficacy of social stories in the development of social skills in students with autism in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in two phases. Data were collected in sequential quantitative and qualitative phases. Participants in this study were 100 teachers in the quantitative phase and 15 teachers were interviewed. In this poster, the researcher will present the data result in the qualitative second phase in which an understanding of teachers’ experiences was deepened by conducting semi-structured interviews with a purposeful sample of fifteen teachers of diverse experience, covering six initial themes: the social story concept, sources of social stories, the effectiveness of social stories in improving social skills in students with autism, barriers to using social stories for students with autism, cultural consideration and context of social stories, and factors which contribute to the best use of social stories to developing of social skills for students with autism.

Keywords: autism, social storyteachers’ perceptions, intervention, social skills

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Authors: Michelle Bulawan, Mei-Hua Chen

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Reading comprehension is crucial for acquiring information, analyzing critically, and achieving academic proficiency. However, there is a lack of growth in reading comprehension skills beyond fourth grade. The developmental shift from "learning to read" to "reading to learn" occurs around this stage. Factual knowledge and diverse views in articles enhance reading comprehension abilities. Nevertheless, some face difficulties due to evolving textual requirements, such as expanding vocabulary and using longer, more complex terminology. Most research on reading strategies has been conducted at the tertiary and secondary levels, while few have focused on the elementary levels. Furthermore, the use of character, ask, problem, solution (CAPS) charts in teaching reading has also been hardly explored. Thus, the researcher decided to explore the facilitation of active reading strategies through the CAPS chart and address the following research questions: a) What differences existed in elementary EFL learners' reading competency among those who engaged in active reading strategies and those who did not? b) What are the learners’ metacognitive skills of those who engage in active reading strategies and those who do not, and what are their effects on their reading competency? c) For those participants who engage in active reading activities, what are their perceptions about incorporating active reading activities into their English classroom learning? Two groups of elementary EFL learners, each with 18 students of the same level of English proficiency, participated in this study. Group A served as the control group, while Group B served as the experimental group. Two teachers also participated in this research; one of them was the researcher who handled the experimental group. The treatment lasts for one whole semester or seventeen weeks. In addition to the CAPS chart, the researcher also used the metacognitive awareness of reading strategy inventory (MARSI) and a ten-item, five-point Likert scale survey.

Keywords: active reading, EFL learners, metacognitive skills, reading competency, student’s perception

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Authors: Makhim Artikova, Shavkat Duschanov

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So far, there have been a plethora of attempts to improve learners’ academic writing skills. However, this issue remains to be a real concern among the majority of students, especially those who are standing on their academic life threshold. The purpose of this research is improving students’ academic writing skills through 'Questions and Answer Reading' activities. Using well-prepared and well-chosen reading materials (from textbooks, scientific journals, or magazines) and applying questions and answer activities in the classroom facilitate learners to become great critical readers. Furthermore, it boosts their writing skills, which are the most crucial part of students’ personal and academic developments. In this activity, the class is divided into small groups of four. Then, the instructor will give students whether one section of the text or full text asking them to read and to find unfamiliar words within the group. After discovering the meaning of unknown words, each group has to share their findings with the class. In the next stage of the activity, students should be asked to create questions in a group based on the given reading material. Follow by each group should ask the other groups their questions which are an excellent opportunity to challenge leads to improve critical thinking skills. In the last part, the students are asked to write the text or article summary, which is the activity core that pilots to the writing skills perfection. This engaging activity highlights the effectiveness of incorporating reading materials into the classroom when it comes to improving students’ composition writings. Structural writing after every reading activity resulted in improving students’ coherence and cohesion in writing well-organized essays. Having experimented with high school 9th and 11th-grade students, implementing reading activities into the classroom is proved to be a productive tool to enhance one’s academic writing skills. In the future, this method planning to be implemented among university students.

Keywords: academic writing, coherence and cohesion, questions and answer activities, scientific reading

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Authors: Shazi Shah Jabeen, Ajay Jesse Thomas

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The study is aimed at understanding the learning trends of students who opt for online language courses and to assess the effectiveness of the same. Multiple factors including use of the latest available technology and the skills that are trained by these online methods have been assessed. An attempt has been made to answer how each of the various language skills is trained online and how effective the online methods are compared to the classroom methods when students interact with peers and instructor. A mixed method research design was followed for collecting information for the study where a survey by means of a questionnaire and in-depth interviews with a number of respondents were undertaken across the various institutes and study centers located in the United Arab Emirates. The questionnaire contained 19 questions which included 7 sub-questions. The study revealed that the students find learning with an instructor to be a lot more effective than learning alone in an online environment. They prefer classroom environment more than the online setting for language learning.

Keywords: effectiveness, language, online learning, skills

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Authors: Mohd Yusri Ibrahim

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Youth participation in social work is essential in social and community development. Although many studies have been conducted to identify the determinant of youth involvement, few studies were discussed interaction between communication skills and youth participation in volunteerism. This article will discuss a cross-sectional study that was conducted to identify the relationship between communication skills and youth participation in social work. The results were successfully developed an interaction model of communication skills as predictor to participation criteria among youth. Finally, the article was suggested several ways to encourage youth participation in community by developing their communication skill in various stages.

Keywords: youth, participation, communication skill, social work

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Authors: Nadezda Pizika

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The paper discusses possible approaches of embedding the development of employability skills in the program curriculum. This paper contains analysis of the problem areas raised by employers regarding new graduates’ readiness to join workforce, the ways of possible improvements, and the actions required from different stakeholders. The case discussed in the paper is related to Computer and Information Science (CIS) Program offered at Higher Colleges of Technology (UAE).

Keywords: curriculum design, employability skills, employers, graduates, education, entrepreneurship

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Authors: Wang Di, Luo Shengqiang, Chen Yanjie

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Vocational skill competition is an effective means to test and improve the quality of engineering education personnel training and provides a high-level practice platform for practical teaching in engineering education. Since China participated in the WorldSkills Competition in 2011, it has achieved very good results in the past 14 years. This study provides a group portrait of China's participation in the WorldSkills Competition, including competitors, competition managers and, Chinese laborers, etc. Meanwhile, through in-depth research on the basic process of launching the WorldSkills Competition in China, the experience and main problems of China's participation in skills competition are summarized. Including China's remarkable practices in institutional mechanisms, team management, promoting world skills development, and boosting social equity and gender equality, it puts forward specific ideas for developing countries to strengthen engineering education and participate in skills competitions. Centering on the value concept of a community with a shared future for mankind proposed by China, we envision how to reinforce skills development in China and take concrete actions to support the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Keywords: WorldSkills competition, engineering education, TVET, Chinese experience

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Authors: Bahia Braktia, Ana Marcela Montenegro Sanchez

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Social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, has been used for teaching and learning for quite some time. These platforms have been proven to be a good tool to improve various language skills, students’ performance of the English language, motivation as well as trigger the authentic language interaction. However, little is known about the potential effects of social media usage on the learning performance of Arabic language learners. The present study explores the potential role that the social media technologies play in learning Arabic as a foreign language at a university in Southeast of United States. In order to investigate this issue, an online survey was administered to examine the perceptions and attitudes of American students learning Arabic. The research questions were: How does social media, specifically Facebook and Twitter, impact the students' Arabic language skills, and what is their attitude toward it? The preliminary findings of the study showed that students had a positive attitude toward the use of social media to enhance their Arabic language skills, and that they used a range of social media features to expose themselves to the Arabic language and communicate in Arabic with native Arabic speaking friends. More detailed findings will be shared in the light data analysis with the audience during the presentation.

Keywords: foreign language learning, social media, students’ perceptions, survey

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Authors: Muhamad Hafiz Ismail, Ahmad H., Nelfianty M. R.

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The longitudinal study is conducted to identify predictive factors of soccer talent among male players aged 14 to 17 years. Convenience sampling involving elite respondents (n=20) and sub-elite respondents (n=20) male soccer players. Descriptive statistics were reported as frequencies and percentages. The inferential statistical analysis is used to report the status of reliability, independent samples t-test, paired samples t-test, and multiple regression analysis. Generally, there are differences in mean of height, muscular strength, muscular endurance, cardiovascular endurance, task orientation, cognitive anxiety, self-confidence, juggling skills, short pass skills, long pass skills, dribbling skills, and shooting skills for 20 elite players and sub-elite players. Accordingly, there was a significant difference between pre and post-test for thirteen variables of height, weight, fat percentage, muscle strength, muscle endurance, cardiovascular endurance, flexibility, BMI, task orientation, juggling skills, short pass skills, a long pass skills, and dribbling skills. Based on the first predictive factors (physical), second predictive factors (fitness), third predictive factors (psychological), and fourth predictive factors (skills in playing football) pledged to the soccer talent; four multiple regression models were produced. The first predictive factor (physical) contributed 53.5 percent, supported by height and percentage of fat in soccer talents. The second predictive factor (fitness) contributed 63.2 percent and the third predictive factors (psychology) contributed 66.4 percent of soccer talent. The fourth predictive factors (skills) contributed 59.0 percent of soccer talent. The four multiple regression models could be used as a guide for talent scouting for soccer players of the future.

Keywords: soccer talent identification, fitness and physical test, soccer skills test, psychological test

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Authors: Bolormaa Dalanbayar, Batsaikhan Ulaankhuu, Bayarmaa Tsogtbaatar

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In this study, we surveyed employers and students to identify compliance between employers' needs and student self-assessment of skills. Employers' survey consisted of fifteen questions to determine employers' assessment of the knowledge and skills of graduates in heavy equipment repairer's programs from four TVET schools. We also compared a survey questionnaire with Liebherr brands' job duty requirements, which determines the training needs and qualification level of their new workers. The study shows more than 76% of employers assessed professional knowledge as sufficient, more than 47% of employers assessed vocational skills as sufficient and more than 43% of employers rated attitudes as sufficient. Therefore, we can state there is a skill mismatch between the employer's assessment and students' self-assessment.

Keywords: skill mismatch, employers needs, competence-based curriculum

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Authors: Veronica Diaz Quezada

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The society of the 21st century requires training of engineers capable of solving routine and non-routine problems in applications of the limit of real functions, as part of the course Calculus I. For this purpose, research was conducted with a methodological design that combines quantitative and qualitative procedures and that aims, to identify and to characterize the types of problems according to their nature and context, through the application of a mathematics test; to know— through a questionnaire— the opinion of difficulties in their solution, previous and missing knowledge of some students of three engineering careers of a state university in Chile. This research is completed with three case studies. The results favor the performance of students in solving problems of a fantasist and realistic context, but these do not guarantee mathematical skills which are necessary to solve non-routine problems of limit applications. In conclusion, through this research, it became clear that the students of the three engineerings do not have all the necessary skills to solve problems of application of the limit of a function of the real variable.

Keywords: case studies, engineering program, limits, problem solving

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Authors: Behdokht Mall-Amiri, Sara Farzaminejad

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The purpose of the present study was to discover which of the two writing activities, a self-assessment questioner or a critical thinking skills handout, is more effective on Iranian EFL learners’ writing ability. To fulfill the purpose of the study, a sample of 120 undergraduate students of English SAT for a standardized sample of PET. Eighty-two students whose scores fell one standard deviation above and below the sample mean were selected and randomly divided into two equal groups. One group practiced self-assessment and the other group practiced critical thinking skills while they were learning process writing. A writing posttest was finally administered to the students in both groups and the mean rank scores were compared by t-test. The result led to the rejection of the null hypothesis, indicating that practicing critical thinking skills had a significantly higher effect on the writing ability. The implications of the study for students and teachers as well as course book designers are discussed.

Keywords: writing ability, process writing, critical thinking skills, self-assessment

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Authors: Nalin Simasathiansophon

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This research aims to study English communication of Thai travel agencies and the impact of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) on Thai travel industry. A questionnaire was used in this research. The multi-stage sampling method was also utilized with 474 respondents from 79 Thai travel agencies. Descriptive statistics included percentage, average, and standard deviation. The findings revealed that English communication for most travel agencies was between the poor and intermediate level and therefore improvement is needed, especially the listening and speaking skills. In other words, the majority of respondents needed more training in terms of communicating in English. Since the age average of travel agencies was around 30-39 years, the training technique should integrate communicating skills together, such as stimulating technique or cooperating technique that could encourage travel agencies to use English in communicating with foreigners.

Keywords: travel agencies, English communication, AEC, Thai

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Authors: Noha Desouky Aly, Maged Makram Habib

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Given the imperative role educational institutions have in the creation of a motivational learning community that develops and engages their students, the influence of evoking the same environment for their teachers needs to be examined. Teachers and their role lie at the core of the efficiency of the learning experience. One exigent aspect in the process of providing professional development to teachers is to involve them in this process, and the best manner would be through creating a learning community in which they are directly engaged and responsible for their own learning. An educational institution that thinks first of its teachers learning and growth would achieve its goals in providing an effective education for its students. The purpose of this research paper is to examine the effect of engaging teachers in a learning community in which they are responsible for their own learning through conducting and providing the material required for the training on their self efficacy, engagement, and perceived autonomy. The sample includes twenty instructors at the German University in Cairo teaching Academic skills at the Department of English and Scientific Methods. The courses taught at the department include Academic skills, writing argumentative essays, critical thinking, communication and presentation skills, and research paper writing. Procedures for the duration of eight weeks will entail pre-post measures to include The Teachers Self Efficacy Scale and an interview. During the weekly departmental meeting, teachers are to share resources and experiences or research and present a topic of their choice that contributes to their professional development. Results are yet to be found.

Keywords: learning community, self- efficacy, teachers, learning experience

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Authors: Arenkala Kichu

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This paper consolidates and tries to bring out the findings that investigated in Kohima and Mokokchung districts in Nagaland, which is in the northeastern part of India. The aim of this paper is to test the speaking and writing skills of the undergraduate learners who opt functional English as one of their papers. functional English is taught in just two colleges; Fazl Ali College and Kohima Colleges, out of 15 government and 36 private colleges in the state. This research (based on several observations made by Naga researchers) hypothesizes that functional English enhances competencies at the undergraduate level, which would open doors to work, learn more and better prospects. It is expected that learners in Functional English class, which follows the communicative language teaching method, might be the answers to those problems, as to why proficiency level still leaves much to be desired, in spite of the advent of the education over a hundred years ago. This type of teaching follows only in functional English class in these two colleges.

Keywords: enhancing competencies, speaking skills, undergraduate level, writing skills

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Authors: Maryam Razmjoee

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Physical aggression is one of the most common behavioural problems among children with intellectual disabilities. Behaviours such as hitting, kicking, and threatening with the intent to harm others are examples of physical aggression. Identified language delays are related to physically aggressive behaviours, as children with poor language skills are often frustrated by socially interactions with their peers, leaving them at risk engaging in acts of physical aggression. As a result of this concern, physical aggression and language skills of children with mild intellectual disabilities was investigated. In the current study, 102 students, from years 1-3, with mild intellectual disabilities (51 girls and 51 boys) have been recruited from five educational centres which cater for children with mild intellectual disabilities in the city of Shiraz (a major city in Iran). The Test of Language Development-Primary: 3rd Edition (TOLD-3) and Overt and Relational Aggression Questionnaire were used to assess these children. Results showed that physical aggression had a significant negative association with expressive (p = 0.008), and receptive (p = 0.019) language skills. In addition, boys demonstrated more physically aggressive behaviours than girls (p = 0.014). No difference was found in expressive and receptive language skills between girls and boys with mild intellectual disabilities. The overall findings suggest that improving the language skills of children with intellectual disabilities experiencing language delays will help them to avoid exhibiting antisocial behaviours in social interactions.

Keywords: behaviour, language skills, mild intellectual disabilities, physical aggression, primary school students

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Authors: Kamille Beye

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Critical thinking is a topic that has been disputed in the field of education for decades, but many resulting debates have centered around strengthening critical thinking capabilities in the societies, workforces, and educational centers of the global north. In contrast, this paper provides an analysis of the teaching of critical thinking in Liberia, which has been ravaged by years of war and a recent Ebola outbreak. These crises have decimated the Liberian education sector, leading to a loss of teaching capacities that are essential to providing critical thinking education. Until recently, critical thinking had no seat at the table when the future needs of the country were discussed by the government and non-governmental agencies. Now, the University of Liberia has a bold goal to become one of the top twenty universities in West Africa in the next seven years, which has led to a focus on teaching critical thinking skills to improve learning. This paper argues that critical thinking is essential to strengthening not only the Liberian education system, but for promoting peace amongst community members, and yet it suggests that commitments to the teaching of critical thinking in Liberia have hitherto been overly superficial. Based on an initial scoping study, this paper will examine the potential impacts of teaching critical thinking skills to undergraduate students in the William V. S. Tubman School of Education at the University of Liberia on continued peacebuilding and reconstruction efforts of the country. The research contends that if critical thinking skills are taught, practiced and continually utilized, teachers and students will have the ability to engage with information and negotiate challenges to solutions in ways that are beneficial to the communities in which they live. The research will use a variety of methods, that include the California Critical Thinking Disposition Inventory. This research will demonstrate that critical thinking skills are not only needed for entering the workforce, but necessary for negotiating and expressing the needs and desires of local communities in a peaceful way.

Keywords: critical thinking, higher education, Liberia, peacebuilding, post-conflict

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Authors: Ya-Ting Carolyn Yang, Ping-Han Cheng, Shi-Hui Gilbert Chang, Terry Yuan-Fang Chen, Chih-Chieh Li

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Nanotechnology is widely applied in various areas so professionals in the related fields have to know more than nano knowledge. In the study, we focus on adopting ICT-assisted PBL in college general education to foster professionals who possess multiple abilities. The research adopted a pretest and posttest quasi-experimental design. The control group received traditional instruction, and the experimental group received ICT-assisted PBL instruction. Descriptive statistics will be used to describe the means, standard deviations, and adjusted means for the tests between the two groups. Next, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) will be used to compare the final results of the two research groups after 6 weeks of instruction. Statistics gathered in the end of the research can be used to make contrasts. Therefore, we will see how different teaching strategies can improve students’ understanding about nanotechnology and learning skills.

Keywords: nanotechnology, science education, project-based learning, information and communication technology

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Authors: Saeed Ullah Jan, Waheed Ullah Kha

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Purpose of the study: This study aims to assess faculty members' information literacy skills in public sector medical colleges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Design/Methodology/approach: The descriptive research design was used to conduct and accomplish the study's objectives. The research population consisted of faculty members at public sector medical colleges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa southern region. Professors, Associate Professors, Assistant Professors, Lecturers, and demonstrators comprise the faculty. The adapted questionnaires were modified and used as data collection instruments. Key findings: The majority of the public sector medical college faculty recognizes the various sources of information, and they use both printed and online materials to identify needed information. The majority of faculty at these medical colleges consults monographs/textbooks regularly, preceded by online journals/medical databases. A good number of medical faculty members opted to use the HEC digital library to locate and access their contents. Delimitations of the study: This study is delimited to three public sector medical colleges operate in southern districts: Khyber Medical University Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS) in Kohat, the Gomal Medical College (GMC) in Dera Ismail Khan, and the Bannu Medical College (BMC) in Bannu. Practical implication(s): The findings of the study will motivate the policymakers and authorities of these three medical colleges in the southern region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to enhance the information literacy skills of medical faculty. This practice will result in an effective medical education in the province. Contribution to the knowledge: No significant work has been done on the Faculty's Information literacy skills at public sector medical colleges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This study will add valuable literature to the literary world.

Keywords: information literacy skills-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, information literacy skills-medical faculty-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, medical sciences, information literacy, information-literacy-Pakistan

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Authors: Belyihun Muchie

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This study investigates the low English oral communication skills of 5 second-year English major students at Debark University. It aims to identify the key factors contributing to their weaknesses and propose effective interventions to improve their spoken English proficiency. Mixed-methods research will be employed, utilizing observations, questionnaires, and semi-structured interviews to gather data from the participants. To clearly identify these factors, structured and informal observations will be employed; the former will be used to identify their fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary use, and grammar accuracy, and the later will be suited to observe the natural interactions and communication patterns of learners in the classroom setting. The questionnaires will assess their self-perceptions of their skills, perceived barriers to fluency, and preferred learning styles. Interviews will also delve deeper into their experiences and explore specific obstacles faced in oral communication. Data analysis will involve both quantitative and qualitative responses. The structured observation and questionnaire will be analyzed quantitatively, whereas the informal observation and interview transcripts will be analyzed thematically. Findings will be used to identify the major causes of low oral communication skills, such as limited vocabulary, grammatical errors, pronunciation difficulties, or lack of confidence. They are also helpful to develop targeted solutions addressing these causes, such as intensive pronunciation practice, conversation simulations, personalized feedback, or anxiety-reduction techniques. Finally, the findings will guide designing an intervention plan for implementation during the action research phase. The study's outcomes are expected to provide valuable insights into the challenges faced by English major students in developing oral communication skills, contribute to the development of evidence-based interventions for improving spoken English proficiency in similar contexts, and offer practical recommendations for English language instructors and curriculum developers to enhance student learning outcomes. By addressing the specific needs of these students and implementing tailored interventions, this research aims to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical speaking ability, equipping them with the confidence and skills to flourish in English communication settings.

Keywords: oral communication skills, mixed-methods, evidence-based interventions, spoken English proficiency

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Authors: Marina Paula Carreira Rolim

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In order to have ELLs take responsibility for their own learning, it is important that they develop skills to work their studies strategically. The less they rely on the instructor as the content provider, the more they become active learners and have a higher sense of self-regulation and confidence in the learning process. This e-poster proposes a new teacher-student relationship that encourages learners to reflect, think critically, and act upon their realities. It also suggests the implementation of different autonomy-supportive teaching tools, such as portfolios, written journals, problem-solving activities, and strategy-based discussions in class. These teaching tools enable ELLs to develop awareness of learning strategies, learning styles, study plans, and available learning resources as means to foster their creative power of learning outside of classroom. In the role of a learning advisor, the teacher is no longer the content provider but a facilitator that introduces skills such as ‘elaborating’, ‘planning’, ‘monitoring’, and ‘evaluating’. The teacher acts as an educator and promotes the use of lifelong metacognitive skills to develop learner autonomy in the ESL/EFL context.

Keywords: autonomy, metacognitive skills, self-regulation, learning strategies, reflection

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Authors: Sylwia Sumińska, Łukasz Kapica, Grzegorz Szczepański

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Introduction: Cognitive skills are a crucial part of everyday functioning. Cognitive skills include perception, attention, language, memory, executive functions, and higher cognitive skills. With the aging of societies, there is an increasing percentage of people whose cognitive skills decline. Cognitive skills affect work performance. The appropriate diagnosis of a worker’s cognitive skills reduces the risk of errors and accidents at work which is also important for senior workers. The study aimed to prepare new cognitive tests for adults aged 20-60 and assess the psychometric properties of the tests. The project responds to the need for reliable and accurate methods of assessing cognitive performance. Computer tests were developed to assess psychomotor performance, attention, and working memory. Method: Two hundred eighty people aged 20-60 will participate in the study in 4 age groups. Inclusion criteria for the study were: no subjective cognitive impairment, no history of severe head injuries, chronic diseases, psychiatric and neurological diseases. The research will be conducted from February - to June 2022. Cognitive tests: 1) Measurement of psychomotor performance: Reaction time, Reaction time with selective attention component; 2) Measurement of sustained attention: Visual search (dots), Visual search (numbers); 3) Measurement of working memory: Remembering words, Remembering letters. To assess the validity and the reliability subjects will perform the Vienna Test System, i.e., “Reaction Test” (reaction time), “Signal Detection” (sustained attention), “Corsi Block-Tapping Test” (working memory), and Perception and Attention Test (TUS), Colour Trails Test (CTT), Digit Span – subtest from The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. Eighty people will be invited to a session after three months aimed to assess the consistency over time. Results: Due to ongoing research, the detailed results from 280 people will be shown at the conference separately in each age group. The results of correlation analysis with the Vienna Test System will be demonstrated as well.

Keywords: aging, attention, cognitive skills, cognitive tests, psychomotor performance, working memory

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Authors: Theresa Marie Miller, Ma. Nympha Joaquin

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to check the predictive power of social-oriented and individual-oriented achievement motivation on student engagement and collaborative problem-solving skills in mathematics. A sample of 277 fourth year high school students from the Philippines were selected. Surveys and videos of collaborative problem solving activity were used to collect data from respondents. The mathematics teachers of the participants were interviewed to provide qualitative support on the data. Systemaitc correlation and regression analysis were employed. Results of the study showed that achievement motivations−SOAM and IOAM− linearly predicted student engagement but was not significantly associated to the collaborative problem-solving skills in mathematics. Student engagement correlated positively with collaborative problem-solving skills in mathematics. The results contribute to theorizing about the predictive power of achievement motivations, SOAM and IOAM on the realm of academic behaviors and outcomes as well as extend the understanding of collaborative problem-solving skills of 21st century learners.

Keywords: achievement motivation, collaborative problem-solving skills, individual-oriented achievement motivation, social-oriented achievement motivation, student engagement

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Authors: Melaku Takele Abate, Abbi Lemma Wodajo, Adula Bekele Hunde

Abstract:

This study aimed at exploring mathematics teachers' reactions, learning, school leaders’ support, and use of the Lesson Study for Transformative Assessment (LSforTA) program ideas in practice. The LSforTA program was new, and therefore, a local and grounded approach was needed to examine teachers’ knowledge and skills acquired using LSforTA. So, a design-based research approach was selected to evaluate and refine the LSforTA approach. The results showed that LSforTA increased teachers' knowledge and use of different levels of mathematics assessment tasks. The program positively affected teachers' practices of transformative assessment and enhanced their knowledge and skills in assessing students in a transformative way. The paper concludes how the LSforTA procedures were adapted in response to this evaluation and provides suggestions for future development and research.

Keywords: classroom assessment, feedback practices, lesson study, mathematics, design-based research

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Authors: Leticia Souza Guirra, Márcia Eduarda Vieira Ramos, Edlaine Souza Pereira, Leticia Correa Celeste

Abstract:

Introduction: Studies indicate that equine-assisted therapy enables improvements in several areas of functioning that are impaired in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), such as social interaction and communication. Objective: The study proposes to analyze the development of dialogic skills of a verbal child with ASD after participating in the equine-assisted therapy Step By Step in Communication. Method: This is quantitative and qualitative research through a case study. It refers to a 6 years old child diagnosed with ASD belonging to a group of practitioners of the Brazilian National Equine-Assited-Therapy Association. The Behavioral Observation Protocol (PROC) was used to evaluate communicative skills before and after the intervention, which consisted of 24 sessions once a week. Results: All conversational skills increased their frequency, with participation in dialogue and initiation of interaction. The child also increases the habit of waiting for his turn and answering the interlocutor. The emission of topics not related to conversation and echolalia showed a significant decrease after the intervention. Conclusion: The studied child showed improvement in communicative skills after participating in the equine-assisted therapy Step By Step in Communication. Contributions: This study contributes to a greater understanding of the impact of equine-assisted therapy on the communicative abilities of children with ASD.

Keywords: equine-assisted-therapy, autism spectrum disorder, language, communication, language and hearing sciences

Procedia PDF Downloads 81