An assessment of the academic and social integration as perceived by the students in the University of Papua New Guinea

This study assesses the current and ideal levelsof academic and social integration within the University of PapuaNew Guinea as perceived by the students. In order to reducestudent attrition through developing an appropriate attritionpolicy and improving services, a comprehensive picture of thecurrent and ideal academic and social integration climate in theUniversity of Papua New Guinea was necessary. Previousattrition/retention research has not adequately described thevarying degrees of group differences in students' integrationprocess. Using the Tinto model and research instruments thatoperationalised the model, an institutional academic and socialintegration assessment instrument was developed for measuring theperceived current and ideal integration climate. Respondent'sperceived ideal ratings for 24 items representing five dimensionsof academic and social integration were higher than for thecurrent ratings. Significant differences were found between thecurrent and ideal perceptions of student groups in respect of a)students' informal contact with faculty; b) faculty concern forstudents' development and teaching and c) extra curricularactivities. Differences were found between the perceived ratingsof student groups on the basis of year of studies. Implicationsfor policy directives and discriminatory service delivery arealso discussed.     

Evaluating the evidence base for evidence-based instructional practices in chemistry through meta-analysis

Investigating the effectiveness of instructional practices provides an evidence base to inform instructional decisions. Synthesizing research studies on instructional effectiveness provides an estimate of the generalizability of effectiveness across settings, along with an exploration of factors that may moderate the impact, which cannot be achieved within individual studies. This study sought to provide a synthesis of evidence-based instructional practices (EBIPs) particular to chemistry through meta-analysis. Ninety-nine studies were analyzed comprising a broader view of chemistry specific studies than past meta-analyses. The results showed that EBIPs feature a demonstrably positive impact on students' academic performance in chemistry, although assessment topic coverage and setting size emerged as relevant moderators of impact and prevented making definitive conclusions of the relative impact of each EBIP. In examining publication bias, an asymmetric distribution of studies based on standard error (SE) and effect size was found, indicative of potential publication bias. To explore the potential impact of bias, the trim and fill method was employed resulting in a range for the overall weighted effect size from 0.29 to 0.62. The study concludes that evidence-based instructional practices have demonstrated effectiveness even in consideration of potential publication bias, as the range of effect sizes remains positive, but highlights the continued need to publish null findings in the research literature.     

Usability design strategies for children： Developing children＇s learning and knowledge in decreasing their dental anxiety

This paper presents an example of how usability design strategies for children can be designed into educational material using CD-ROM based multimedia application for assisting parents and teachers to develop children＇s learning and knowledge in decreasing as well as motivate children aged 7-9 years old to reduce their anxious feelings towards dental treatment. In this paper, the authors provide usability design strategies for children in designing the information interfaces and presentation of a PMLE （persuasive multimedia learning environment）. PMLE is designed based on the six design categories of guidelines for children which have been applied to this study： general interaction, text, multimedia, navigation and search, graphical user interface and content. The results authors were able to on presenting this PMLE to 240 primary school children selected at random show how the decrease children＇s dental anxiety and motivate the children to get ready for dental visit.     

Consumerisation in UK higher education business schools: higher fees,greater stress and debatable outcomes

For many UK higher education business schools, the continued recruitment of UK, EU and international students is crucial for financial stability, viability and independence. Due to increasingly competitive funding models across the sector, many institutional leaders and administrators are making decisions typical of highly marketised consumer environments. Thus, this paper explores academics’ perceptions of the impact of consumerisation in UK higher education business schools. To achieve this, 22 business school academics were interviewed within three UK higher education institutions (HEIs) in the North of England. Participants had a minimum of three years teaching experience. Data was analysed using template analysis taking an interpretive approach. The findings indicate that academics perceived the introduction of tuition fees to have been the catalyst for students increasing demonstration of customer-like behaviour: viewing the education process as transactional, with the HEI providing a ‘paid for’ service. It is argued that these changes in UK higher education have created tensions between university leaders and academics, creating genuine dilemmas for those with decision-making responsibilities who must balance academic integrity and long-term institutional financial viability.     

Effect of ensemble classifier composition on offline cursive character recognition

In this paper we present novel ensemble classifier architectures and investigate their influence for offline cursive character recognition. Cursive characters are represented by feature sets that portray different aspects of character images for recognition purposes. The recognition accuracy can be improved by training ensemble of classifiers on the feature sets. Given the feature sets and the base classifiers, we have developed multiple ensemble classifier compositions under four architectures. The first three architectures are based on the use of multiple feature sets whereas the fourth architecture is based on the use of a unique feature set. Type-1 architecture is composed of homogeneous base classifiers and Type-2 architecture is constructed using heterogeneous base classifiers. Type-3 architecture is based on hierarchical fusion of decisions. In Type-4 architecture a unique feature set is learned by a set of homogeneous base classifiers with different learning parameters. The experimental results demonstrate that the recognition accuracy achieved using the proposed ensemble classifier (with best composition of base classifiers and feature sets) is better than the existing recognition accuracies for offline cursive character recognition.     

Jordanian and Malaysian science teachers' prominent perceived professional needs: A comparison

The prominent perceived professional needs of 365 Jordanian and 1,162 Malaysian secondary-level science teachers were examined using the Science Teacher Inventory of Need. These were compared across subgroups of the respective samples and across the two samples. The Jordanian science teachers' needs were in the areas of delivering science instruction, managing science instruction, administering science instructional facilities and equipment, and improving one's competence as a science teacher. The Malaysian science teachers' needs came from those four areas plus the area specifying objectives for science instruction. Needs from the first four areas were shared across the two samples. These needs were similar to ones observed in U.S. samples. The reason for the similarities is questioned.     

Pengajaran Mengarang

Penguasaan bahasa seakan-akan tidak memerlukan usaha sama sekali. Pendapat ini kuranglah benar. Hal yang sebenarnya ialah, bahawa setelah bertahun-tahun dengan latihan yang tidak jemujemu dan kesalahan yang dibetulkan berulang-ulang secara eksplisit dan implisit barulah akhimya kanakkanak itu dapat menyesuaikan bahasa orang dewasa. Kepada manusia pula pada umumnya penguasaan bahasa itu merupakan suatu prestasi yang luarbiasa selama hidupnya.     

A “research” into international student-related research: (Re)Visualising our stand?

This paper uses Tight (High Educ Res Dev 23(4):395–411, 2004; High Educ Res Dev 31(5):723–740, 2012; High Educ Res Dev 32(1):136–151, 2013)’s journal analysis and review framework to review a sample of 497 journal articles on researches concerning international students over the past 30 years. It was found that a majority of the articles focus on the students’ in-campus, academic and social experience. Even with different conceptualisation of the terms “international student” and “international student mobility”, international students undergo similar challenges throughout their sojourn duration, and much of the responsibilities in managing international students fall on universities and respective faculty members within the institutions. It might seem as if we are going in circles in terms of the issues and concerns in managing international students, but the silver lining out of this observation is the increased ethnical awareness among countries and higher education institutions in hosting and safeguarding the students throughout their international higher education experience, albeit rather slowly. The analysis brings to attention how much have we achieved in internationalisation of higher education in general and international student-related research in particular, and the potential for greater expansion and focus on managing the student population within a comprehensive “life cycle” approach.     

Policy versus ground reality: secondary English language assessment system in Bangladesh

Any policy reform in education is highly effective when it is planned and implemented ‘holistically’ and yet, it is the most challenging way forward. Many countries in Asia have reformed their English language policies and syllabi in the last two decades due to the increasing value of the language worldwide. Motivated by a ‘communicative approach’ to English language teaching, Bangladesh was one of the countries that launched such a reform in the 1990s. However, this reform has been criticised for imposing the changes on teachers without preparing them sufficiently. More importantly, there is limited evidence as to how much the secondary English language assessment system is aligned with the changes introduced in the curriculum. In order to explore this gap, a medium-scale study was conducted in 38 secondary schools in Bangladesh, following a mixed methods approach. The findings highlighted a ‘mismatch’ between the intended English language learning outcomes and current assessment practices, including the resulting challenges faced by the teachers. This paper argues that language education reform is likely to fail if the assessment system is not aligned with the curriculum.