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The Executive Council of the International Advisory Board

Mr Mitsumasa Aoyama
Director, The Yufuku Gallery, Tokyo, Japan

Professor June Henton
Dean, College of Human Sciences, Auburn University,
USA

Lord Charles Bruce
Lord Lieutenant of Fife
Chairman of the Patrons of the National Galleries of
Scotland
Trustee of the Historic Scotland Foundation, UK

Professor Michael Hudson
President of The Institute for the Study of Long-Term
Economic Trends (ISLET)Distinguished Research Professor of Economics, The
University of Missouri, Kansas City

Professor Donald E. Hall
Herbert J. and Ann L. Siegel Dean
Lehigh University, USA
Former Jackson Distinguished Professor of English
and Chair of the Department of English

Professor Koichi Iwabuchi
Professor of Media and Cultural Studies & Director of
the Monash Asia Institute, Monash University, Australia

Professor Arthur Stockwin
Founding Director of the Nissan Institute forJapanese Studies & Emeritus Professor
The University of Oxford UK
Professor Chung-Ying Cheng
Professor of Philosophy, University of Hawai’i atManoa, USA
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of Chinese Philosophy
Professor Steve Cornwell
Professor of English and Interdisciplinary Studies,
Osaka Jogakuin University, Osaka, Japan
Osaka Local Conference Chair
Professor A. Robert Lee
Former Professor of English at Nihon University,
Tokyo from 1997 to 2011, previously long taught
at the University of Kent at Canterbury, UK
Professor Dexter Da Silva
Professor of Educational Psychology, Keisen University,
Tokyo, Japan
Professor Georges Depeyrot
Professor and Director of Research & Member of theBoard of Trustees
French National Center for Scientific Research(CNRS) & L’Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris, France
Professor Johannes Moenius
William R. and S. Sue Johnson Endowed Chair of
Spatial Economic Analysis and Regional Planning
The University of Redlands School of Business, USA

Professor Sue Jackson
Professor of Lifelong Learning and Gender & Pro-Vice
Master of Teaching and Learning, Birkbeck, Universityof London, UK
Professor Sir Geoffrey Lloyd
Senior Scholar in Residence, The Needham ResearchInstitute, Cambridge, UK
Fellow and Former Master, Darwin College, Universityof Cambridge
Fellow of the British Academy
Professor Keith Miller
Orthwein Endowed Professor for Lifelong Learning in
the Science, University of Missouri-St.Louis, USA
Professor Kuniko Miyanaga
Director, Human Potential Institute, Japan
Fellow, Reischauer Institute, Harvard University, USA
Professor Dennis McInerney
Chair Professor of Educational Psychology and CoDirector of the Assessment Research Centre
The Hong Kong Institute of Education, Hong Kong
SAR
Professor Brian Daizen Victoria
Professor of English
Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies
Professor Michiko Nakano
Professor of English & Director of the Distance
Learning Center, Waseda University, Tokyo, Japan
Professor Thomas Brian MooneyProfessor of Philosophy
Head of School of Creative Arts and Humanities
Professor of Philosophy and Head of School of
Creative Arts and Humanities, Charles Darwin
University, Australia

Professor Baden Offord
Professor of Cultural Studies and Human Rights & CoDirector of the Centre for Peace and Social JusticeSouthern Cross University, Australia
Professor Frank S. Ravitch
Professor of Law & Walter H. Stowers Chair in Law
and Religion, Michigan State University College of Law
Professor Richard RothSenior Associate Dean, Medill School of Journalism,
Northwestern University, Qatar
Professor Monty P. Satiadarma
Clinical Psychologist and Lecturer in Psychology &Former Dean of the Department of Psychology and
Rector of the University, Tarumanugara University,
Indonesia
Mr Mohamed Salaheen
Director, The United Nations World Food Programme,Japan & Korea
Mr Lowell Sheppard
Asia Pacific Director, HOPE International
Development Agency, Canada/Japan
His Excellency Dr Drago Stambuk
Croatian Ambassador to Brazil, Brazil
Professor Mary Stuart
Vice-Chancellor, The University of Lincoln, UK
Professor Gary Swanson
Distinguished Journalist-in-Residence & Mildred S.
Hansen Endowed Chair, The University of Northern
Colorado, USA
Professor Jiro Takai
Secretary General of the Asian Association for Social
Psychology & Professor of Social Psychology
Graduate School of Education and Human
Development, Nagoya University, Japan
Professor Svetlana Ter Minasova
President of the Faculty of Foreign Languages andArea Studies, Lomonosov Moscow State University
Professor Yozo Yokota
Director of the Center for Human Rights Affairs, Japan
Former UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar
Professor Kensaku Yoshida
Professor of English & Director of the Center for the
Teaching of Foreign Languages in General Education,
Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan

The 13th Asian Conference on Education 2021

Official Conference Proceedings

ISSN: 2186-5892© The International Academic Forum 2021
The International Academic Forum (IAFOR)
Sakae 1-16-26-201
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Japan 460-0008
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Table of Contents
Where We Are: Current Level of Burnout and Self-Compassion of SchoolCounselors in a Private School in Quezon City for School Year 2018-2019
Giselle Antoinette O. Tejada

pp. 1 - 21

Self-harm & Non-suicidal Self-Injury (Nssi) Tendencies Among Children:
Effect of an Intervention Program
Ma. Dominique D. Sta. Cruz

pp. 23 - 37

Standardized Tests as Predictors of Academic Performance: Implications
on the MCLS Testing Program
Zarah May C. Buyan
Marilet C. Delgado-Anastacio

pp. 39 - 50

Usage Application of Multimedia for Learning Values of Thai Literature to
Develop Learning Achievement for High School Students
Kittipong Phumpuang
Patcharin Buranakorn

pp. 51 - 58

Technical Vocation Education and Training (TVET) in Changing Times, aCritical View of Prior Learning as a Link to Entrepreneurship and
Employment
Christopher Momanyi
Andrew Riechi
Ibrahim Khatete

pp. 59 - 72

Secondary ESL Teachers’ Beliefs, Strategies, and Experiences in Teaching
Vocabulary
Ryan Dave Delos Reyes

pp. 73 - 86

Perceived Tasks of Quality Assurance and Its Impact on the TeachingLearning Process among Deans and Faculty
Belinda Ramos
Lorna Fulong
Madeilyn Estacio
Gemlee Baptista

pp. 87 - 99

Letting Students Explore What It Takes to Become a Good Communicator– A Metacognitive Approach to Promote Language Learning
Yumi Chikamori Gomez

pp. 101 - 111

Nursing, Health Technician and Midwifery Students’ Perceptions of TheirFirst Fully Online Learning Experience During the Covid-19 Pandemic:
A Cross-Sectional Study
Kamal Takhdat
Mohamed Eddabbah
Mustapha Ouzouhou
Ahmed Ghassane El Adib
Saloua Lamtali

pp. 113 - 124

Factors Pulling International Students to Japan: A Situation Analysis
Tran Hoang Nam
Jin Cheng-Hai

pp. 125 - 136

Transformational Leadership in Changing Education Systems: Evolving
Management Roles and Responsibilities in Educational Institutions
Nathaniel Edwards

pp. 137 - 143

The Accessibility of Web-based Lessons During the Time of the COVID-19
Pandemic
Han Lepp. 145 - 163

The Use of Different Strategies by Writers in Integrated Writing
Assessment
Han Lepp. 165 - 171

Learning Effectiveness of Primary School Children in the Covid-19
Pandemic in Indonesia
Indra Kertati

pp. 173 - 183

Applying a Book Read Aloud and Leveraging It with Storyline Online: A
Case Study of Indonesian Preservice Teachers
Tati Lathipatud Durriyah

pp. 185 - 196

Exploring the Effects of a YouTube-Style Video Making Task in Online
English Communication Courses
Mariko Takahashi

pp. 197 - 212

The Prevalence and Impact of the Maltreatment of Child Laborers in
Developing Countries: A Scoping Review Protocol
Md Abdul Ahad
Yvonne Parry
Eileen Willis

pp. 213 - 224

Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Taiwan’s Art Education
Yu-Chen Chang

pp. 225 - 235

A Tool to Assess the Quality of Self-learning Modules (SLMS) for the ‘New
Normal’ in Education Using the Best-worst Method
Jammel Abraham S. Rico
Leonel C. Mendoza
pp. 237 - 255
Strides in Mathematics and Science: An Introspective Look on the FirstSHS Graduates’ Perceived Self-efficacy
Ma. Theresa Reyes
Eleonor Basilio

pp. 257 - 272

Designing A Multiple Submission Policy Supporting Mastery Learning for
a Design Thinking Class in a Purely Online Learning Environment
Marianne Kayle Amurao
Joseph Benjamin Ilagan

pp. 273 - 284

Charitable Giving and Educational Possibilities: An Examination ofStudent Presentations on Charitable Giving Experiences in Japan
Tomomi Naka

pp. 285 - 294

Knowledge, Perceptions and Attitudes Towards Using Digital Games for
Teaching and Learning
Joana DG. Quinto

pp. 295 - 306

An Investigation to Examine Factors Influencing University Students’Behavioral Intention Towards the Acceptance of Brightspace LMS:
Using SEM Approach
Lilian Yap
Geok Ling Khoopp. 307 - 323

The Development and Preliminary Evaluation of Learners’ Flow State ofan Online Decision-making Detective Game
Chih-Chen Kuo
Tzu- Hsuan Wang
Huei-Tse Hou

pp. 325 - 333

Why Don’t You Play the Game? Evaluating the Use of Gamification in an
Undergraduate Finance Course
Alfonso Miguel N. Sevidal

pp. 335 - 349

When It Absolutely, Positively Has to Be Learning Online: Emic
Reflections of Teacher - Student Resilience within an Australian Tertiary
Pathways Landscape
Robert Hamilton
Aye Chan Oo

pp. 351 - 361

Course Design for Tunnel Engineering with Complexity underConsideration
Jianqin Ma

pp. 363 - 373

Technology Adoption in Graduate Education: Basis for Faculty
Development Plan
Antoniette Lacerna
Helen Rigor
Meeting Generation Z Learning Expectations in Quest International
University
Paulin Poh Lin Wong
Gogilavaani Jothi Veeramani
Magaret Sivapragasam
Tina Swee Kim Lim

pp. 375 - 385

pp. 387 - 405

A Collaborative Online International Learning Case Study Between the
University of Hawai’i Hilo and Hong Kong Baptist University
Angel Lai
Helen Tien

pp. 407 - 418

Theory of Lesson Creation for Lower-grade Life Environment Studies inJapan: Focusing on the Narratives and Practices of Social Studies
Teacher Kazumasa Arita
Katsuhisa Shiraipp. 419 - 429

The Development of an Inquiry-based Field Trip Activity to Promote
Students’ Positive Perceptions of the Educational Curriculum Course
Prempree Duangpummet

pp. 431 - 439

Metacognitive Awareness, Motivational Beliefs and Mathematics
Performance of Junior High School Students: An Investigation ofMediating Effects
Janina C. Sercenia

pp. 441 - 451

Speaking Anxiety: Japanese Students in the EFL Environment
Lidija Eliott
Miriam Guadalupe Vasquez

pp. 453 - 464

Supporting Students in a Changing Educational Climate: A Systems
Engineering Case Study
Stephen G. Barker

pp. 465 - 477

Analysis of French Grammatical Errors Using Surface Strategy
Taxonomy: A Case Study of Thai University Students
Kanjanaporn Piyathum
Siriwut Chamtakong

pp. 479 - 489

Paragraph Writing Instruction for University Students
Minako Inoue

pp. 491 - 500

The Use of a ClassPoint Tool for Student Engagement During Online
LessonEng Ying Bong
Chandrima Chatterjee

pp. 501 - 509

Relationships between Japanese University Students’ Interest in Computer
Programming, Their Logical Thinking, and IT Literacy
Harumi Kashiwagi
Min Kang
Kazuhiro Ohtsuki

pp. 511 - 521

Breaking Boundaries of Prison Design for Architectural Design StudioSunaree Lawanyawatna
Martin Schochpp. 523 - 529

Improving EFL Students’ Argumentative Essay Writing Self-efficacy
through Knowledge Building Based Instruction
Li-Jen Wang

pp. 531 - 546

Public Service Announcement In Indonesia and Malaysia: A Semiotic
Analysis
Fahrur Rozi
Lulu April Farida
Stephani Diah Pamelasari
Intan Permata Hapsari
Hadziq Najmuddin Purwanto

pp. 547 - 559

Education Resilience in Facing Pandemic Covid-19 (Study Case: Batam
City, Indonesia)
Noviyanti Soleman
Said Muammar Bayukarizki
Afifah Faradila
Khalil Gibran

pp. 561 - 574

Disability-Specific Measures and Roles of Disabled People’s
Organizations in Supporting Persons with Disabilities and Families
during COVID-19 Pandemic
Arunee Limmanee

pp. 575 - 584

Insights into Students’ Online Learning Experiences During COVID-19
Pandemic: Shaping How We Do Education Moving Forward
Narangerel Tsedendamba
Otgonsuren Gungaarentsen

pp. 585 - 593

The Practice of Teaching Java Programming Language to Undergraduate
Students
Weijun Chen

pp. 595 - 602

Designing an Online Simulation Board Game with Realistic Patients andDynamic Electrocardiogram Situations for Learning First Aid Abilities
Pai-Ching Lee
Zi-Xuan Wang
Huei-Tse Hou

pp. 603 - 609

An Exploratory Study on Racial Experiences and Resiliency of Foreign
Medical Students
Gina Lynn S. Salazar

pp. 611 – 619

Design Innovation Practice School: The Experiential Learning Platform
Nimit Mengveha

pp. 621 - 625

Strategies of Selected HEIs in Addressing Challenges and Issues Inherent
to Student Mobility
Renelee M. Subsuban

pp. 627 - 633

The Present and Future of Online Distance Learning: Trends andChallenges of Virtual Teachers
Yongzhi Huang
Maria Lenore B. Barcenas

pp. 635 - 643

The Development and Evaluation of an Online Educational Game
Integrated with Gather Town for Nursing Staff Learning
Wen-Lin Chen
Pei-Ching Ngu
Huei-Tse Hou

pp. 645 - 650

Challenges of Lesson Plan on Data and Chance with an Intervention ofVideo Analysis: Preservice Secondary Mathematics Teachers
Yun-Zu Chen
Kai-Lin Yang

pp. 651 - 654

Curriculum Development in Industrial Design Education in transition:
Challenges and issues in a Thai university
Bettizza Escueta
Pronyos Chattarakul

pp. 655 - 660

The Asian Conference on Education 2021

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Where We Are: Current Level of Burnout and Self-Compassion of School Counselors in a
Private School in Quezon City for School Year 2018-2019
Giselle Antoinette O. Tejada, Miriam College, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
Official Conference Proceedings
Abstract
Counselors are expected to be physically and emotionally ready to assist their counselees.
Because of these expectations, counselors are affected by the emotional demands of theprofession. The current study focused on the current state of school counselors in a private
institution. The participants are fourteen female counselors from the elementary to the tertiarylevel. To have an understanding of their experiences, the researcher made use of the Counselor
Burnout Inventory and Self-Compassion Scale. Follow-up interviews were also conducted.
Overall, the results showed that the school counselors have low levels of burnout and highlevels of self-compassion. However, there are select participants who may be experiencing
burnout and are not practicing self-compassion. Correlations show no significant relationshipbetween burnout and self-compassion. Based on the findings, implications andrecommendations were discussed.
Keywords: Counselor Burnout, Self-Compassion, Counselor Well-being

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Introduction
The counseling profession requires counselors to be involved with different kinds of people,
and counselors are oftentimes expected to meet their counselee’s needs and expectations. In
the study of Barlow and Phelan (2007), they mentioned that the counseling profession isconsidered as emotional labor. They are expected to engage with their counselee’s emotions,while balancing their personal emotions and experiences (Cummins, Massey, & Jones, 2007).
With the exposure to the counselee’s concerns coupled with the counselor’s own
circumstances, this helping profession can make an individual feel exhausted physically,
mentally, and emotionally. Due to the overwhelming demands of the profession, burnout isoften associated with the field of counseling.
According to Schaufeli, Leiter, and Maslach (2009), burnout is another term for energy being
drained. They describe burnout as fire being unable to continue burning, unless proper andappropriate resources are provided. In the helping profession, burnout is considered as theexhaustion an individual feels, which disables them from feeling empathy towards their clients(Burke, 1981).
Counseling is considered as a helping profession and it can be emotionally demanding anddraining. Counselors are advocates of self-care and self-awareness. Therefore, striking abalance between their professional and personal lives is important. They should be able tounderstand their own physical, mental, and emotional states. That awareness should translate
in finding ways to take care of themselves better. This self-awareness can be done through selfcompassion.
Developing an attitude on self-compassion is said to be critical for counselors to avoid burnout(Coaston, 2017). Self-compassion is being mindful towards one’s own suffering (Neff, 2004).
Counselors are often compassionate towards their counselees. They are able to notice theircounselee’s discomfort and suffering, providing the counselees the assistance they need.
According to Neff (2004), self-compassionate people are those who are aware of their own
difficulties and sufferings. This awareness leads individuals to act on their struggles and findways to make their situations better.
In field of counseling, professionals devote their time and energy in promoting the well-beingof their counselees. The counselors become the emotional support of their counselees. In thecounseling profession, counselors have to deal with emotionally-charged concerns fromcounselees (Coaston, 2017). They are exposed to different issues and concerns, whilst having
their own. Because of the risk of being affected, the counseling profession pushes counselors
to become more proactive in dealing with their own health and wellness.
Counselor wellness involves two domains: physical and emotional health (Bruck, Bruneau,
Baker, & Ellison, 2014). Physical health involves exercise, nutrition, and recreational activities.
On the other hand, emotional health involves the spirituality, mental well-being, social support,
and relaxation. Physical health and emotional health go together to achieve wellness. The study
done by Bruck and colleagues (2014) suggested that counselor wellness is not a singular model
applicable to everyone.
Taking care of oneself is one of the professional and personal responsibilities of a counselor(Neswald-Potter, Blackburn, & Noel, 2013). Counselors will have difficulty to perform theirfunctions and responsibilities if they are not physically and emotionally healthy. Therefore,

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counselor wellness has been a subject of discussion in different researches (Coaston, 2017;
Cummins et al., 2007; Hartwig Moorhead, Gill, Bario Minton, & Meyers, 2012; NeswaldPotter et al., 2013). Counselors who are able to balance their personal and professional lives
are able to work efficiently and satisfactorily. Despite challenges, counselors who have balance
are able to manage their emotions, without it affecting the way they interact with theircounselees.
Empathy has always been the main aspect of counseling (Clark, 2010; Stebnicki, 2008; SadlerGerhardt & Stevenson, 2012). Not only are counselors expected to listen, they are also thereceptors of their counselee’s emotions, both positive and negative. Each counseling session is
personal and after facilitating numerous sessions for different counselees, counselors willundeniably feel exhaustion (Cummins et al., 2007). Counselor self-care is important to be able
to continue in providing quality counselee care. Once counselees start projecting theiremotions, counselors are there to absorb.
Cummins et al. (2007) quoted Carl Rogers, stating “I have always been better at caring for andlooking after others than I have in caring for myself.” This underscores the importance ofcounselor wellness. Counselors end up getting emotionally drained at the expense of theircounselee’s peace of mind. According to Wilkerson (2009), counselors are able to feelsatisfaction by being engaged with their counselees, despite the emotional exhaustion.
However, being constantly exposed to their counselee’s concerns put counselors at the risk ofexperiencing burnout.
Counselors who prioritize their wellbeing does not only improve personal life but help inincreasing professional effectiveness as well (O’Donovan & O’Donovan, 2007). Being attuned
to their current physical and emotional states promotes better work perception and reduce
emotional exhaustion. This level of self-awareness is critical to counselors’ wellbeing andattitude towards work.
In the present study, the researcher aims to look into the burnout and self-compassion level ofschool counselors. By doing so, the researcher wants to be able to promote wellness forcounselors. Wellness involves conscious decisions in balancing different aspects of anindividual’s life, with the goal of prioritizing overall health (Myers & Sweeney, 2005).
Promoting wellness and preventing impairment starts with an honest appraisal of anindividual’s health, balance, and self-care.
Methodology
Participants and Setting
The participants of the study are guidance counselors and guidance associates from an
exclusive school for girls in Quezon City. The participants are counselors for the school year2018 to 2019. There are a total of fourteen participants, all females. The participants of thisstudy comprises of guidance counselors in the institution. They are from the different
departments: lower school, middle school, high school, and college. Each counselor is assigned
to handle 250 to 300 students in their batch.

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Table 1: Demographics of the Participants
Instruments
A demographic profile sheet was included in the set of questionnaires to gather necessary
demographic information about the participants. The researcher utilized the Counselor Burnout
Inventory (CBI) to measure the participants’ level of burnout. The Self-Compassion Scale(SCS) was used to have an understanding of the counselors’ level of self-compassion. For thecurrent study, selected individuals were asked to participate in an interview with the researcher.
A set of interview questions was used as a guide to have a deeper understanding of theparticipants’ situation.
The demographic profile sheet includes items regarding the participants’ age, years ofexperience as counselor, highest educational attainment, and licensure. The participants arealso asked about the year level they are handling.
The Counselor Burnout Inventory is a 20-item self-rating scale that looks at burnout
specifically for professional counselors by Lee and colleagues in 2007. The instrument isdesigned to asses 5 dimensions of burnout: Exhaustion (“Due to my job as a counselor, I feel

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tired most of the time”), Incompetence (“I am not confident in my counseling skills”), Negative
Work Environment (“I feel frustrated with the system in my workplace”), Devaluing Client (“Ihave become callous toward clients”), and Deterioration in Personal Life (“I feel like I do nothave enough time to engage in personal interests”). The CBI asks the participants to describe
how they feel by using a 5-point Likert scale from 1 (Never True) to 5 (Always True). The
score is computed by averaging the all items. The CBI was cross-examined for the Philippines
in the study of Puig, Yoon, Callueng, An, and Lee (2014). Below is the scale range of the CBI.

Table 2: Scale Range of CBIThe CBI scale was validated through factor analysis (Lee et al, 2007). The instrument’s internalconsistency ranged from .73 to .85 and test-retest reliability from .72 to .85. Criterion validity
was done by correlating the dimensions to the Maslach Burnout Inventory – Human Services
Survey (MBI-HSS). The strongest positive correlation to Emotional Exhaustion of MBI-HSS
is the Exhaustion dimension of CBI at .73. The dimension of Devaluing Client is positively
correlated to Depersonalization of MBI-HSS at .56. The Personal Accomplishment measure of
MBI-HSS was negatively correlated with Incompetence dimension of CBI.
The Self-Compassion Scale is a 26-item self-rating scale that looks at an individual’s ability to
become aware and respond to one’s own suffering by Kristine Neff. They are to score from 1(“Almost Never”) to 5 (“Almost Always”) in each item. The subscales of self-compassion are
Self-Kindness (“I try to be loving towards myself when I’m feeling emotional pain”) vs SelfJudgment (“I’m disapproving and judgmental about my own flaws and inadequacies”),
Common Humanity (“When I'm down and out, I remind myself that there are lots of otherpeople in the world feeling like I am”) vs Isolation (“When I’m really struggling, I tend to feellike other people must be having an easier time of it”), and Mindfulness (“When something
upsets me I try to keep my emotions in balance”) vs Over-Identification (“When I’m feelingdown I tend to obsess and fixate on everything that’s wrong”).
These subscales are divided into two: positive and negative subscales. The positive subscales
are self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness. The negative subscales are selfjudgment, isolation, and over-identification. The SCS scores are computed by averaging all
items. For the total self-compassion score, the negative subscale items (Self-Judgment,
Isolation, and Over-identification) are scored reversely before getting the average. The internalconsistency of the scale is reported to be at .94 (Neff ,2004). Below is the scale range of the
SCS.

Table 3: Scale Range of SCS

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The SCS was distributed to counselors of a co-ed senior high school in Quezon City, priordistribution of the questionnaire to the participants. This was done to have the scale validated
for the Philippine set-up. The counselors were asked to answer the scale and to provide
comments on items that are confusing or may need to be revised. No changes were made basedon the vetting, as there were no comments or clarifications on the instrument.
The researcher used a self-made interview guide containing six questions. All participants who
were interviewed were asked the exact same questions. No deviation from the interview guide
was made. The purpose of having a follow-up interview with some of the participants is toprovide an in-depth viewpoint of how the counselors are faring in their profession. This will
give the researcher a concrete idea as to why the counselors are feeling the way they do.
Data Gathering Procedure
In the current study, mixed methods was used to be able to examine the current level of burnout
and self-compassion among the participants. Quantitative data was collected through the useof the Counselor Burnout Inventory and Self-Compassion Scale. Follow-up interviews werealso done to be able to gather qualitative data and provide support to the data derived from the
CBI and SCS.
The participants of the study were selected through purposive sampling. The questionnaires
containing the demographic profile, Counselor Burnout Inventory, and Self-Compassion Scale
were given to the guidance supervisors of each department, to be distributed to the guidancecounselors and guidance associates. A period of one week was given to the participants before
all questionnaires were collected for data analysis. The responses from the questionnaires wereanalyzed with the use of descriptive statistics. The mean scores and standard deviation werecomputed for each CBI dimension and SCS subscale through the use of Microsoft Excel.
Correlation of the CBI and SCS was also done by using the program SPSS Statistics.
A participant from each department was randomly selected for interviews and were scheduledindividually. The researcher held the individual interviews at a date and time most convenientto the participants. Prior the start of each interview, the participants were informed that thesession will be recorded through a voice recorder. The interview responses served as
supplementary data to the results from the CBI and SCS. Meaningful responses from theinterviews were lifted to make sense of the results.
Results and Discussion

Table 4: Overall Results of the CBI and SCS
As can be seen in Table 4, it can be said that the counselors in this study are reported to have
low levels of burnout and high levels of self-compassion. This result is backed by the study ofThurlow (2010), where the participants who were reported to have high levels of selfcompassion have lower levels of burnout. Counselors who are able to practice self-compassion
may be able to avoid burnout (Coaston, 2017). However, it is still noted the correlations of thisstudy showed no significant relationship between burnout and self-compassion.

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This result is favorable towards the institution because it shows how the counselors are satisfied
with their current states. The participants have not viewed their profession as detrimental totheir personal lives. Reports of satisfaction in their field have been reported despite being
exhausted because of work. They also view their work environment and their colleagues as apositive contributor to their work lives. The results show that the counselors are also aware ofwhat self-care routines work best for them (i.e. journaling, breathing exercises, eating out).
It is evident that the participants of this study is satisfied overall in their work and are selfcompassionate towards their struggles. Albeit majority had promising results, there are still
individuals who scored higher in terms of burnout and lower in terms of self-compassion.
Negative experiences were reported and some participants have expressed how their profession
has been affecting them. These information shows us that it is still important to take note of theoutliers in the study.

Table 5: Results of the CBI
As can be seen in Table 5, the mean scores of the participants in all five dimensions of the CBIare quite low. Having low mean scores in these dimensions mean that the participants are able
to avoid being affected by these dimensions. However, it can be noted that the dimension on
exhaustion had the highest mean score of 2.48. The standard deviation of all dimensions also
show minimal dispersion of the participants’ responses.

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In the field of counseling, low levels of burnout imply counselor productivity (Cummins et al.,2007; Neswald-Potter et al., 2013). Because counselors are able to balance their emotions, they
are able to work effectively, without personal circumstances and work exhaustion affecting
their output. This is a positive result considering the high-touch nature of counseling work.
Counselors are able to work effectively despite the challenges they face and exhaustion theyexperience because of their profession. Despite the low level of burnout reported among theparticipants, it does not guarantee that burnout will not manifest at all, as it may still manifest
within the duration of a counselor’s profession (Lee et al., 2007).
The overall result of the CBI showed positive results for the counselors. Although that is thecase, there are participants who scored high in some of the dimensions after looking at theindividual mean scores. In Table 6, a specific participant has a mean score of 4.25 forexhaustion, which is relatively high. Counselors’ may experience exhaustion due to the natureof their profession being emotionally-charged (Barlow & Phelan, 2007; Copley, 2013). Theinterviews support this as participants have reported to feeling drained at the end of a work
day.

Table 6: Extreme Scorer for CBI Dimension Exhaustion
Counselors have to deal with different kinds of concerns from counselees and the profession
requires direct counselee services. This high-touch profession makes counselors become more
vulnerable to exhaustion (Cummins, et al., 2007). This makes physical, mental, and emotional
exhaustion in the counseling profession inevitable. According to Wilkerson (2009), counselors
are aware of the physical and emotional exhaustion attributed to their work. However, thisawareness does not stop them in performing what is expected of them. Counselors are awareof their responsibilities and know the importance of their work in helping their counselees.
For the incompetence subscale, participants who underwent interviews shared how they felt
whenever they handle difficult cases. These participants would often question their abilities ascounselors. They started doubting and questioning themselves if counseling is the right fit for
them.

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Table 7: Extreme Scorer for CBI Dimension IncompetenceCounselors are expected to offer emotional assistance and help to those who need it (SadlerGerhardt & Stevenson, 2012). Counselors can get affected negatively because of the
expectations of being helpful towards their counselees. Self-imposed expectations would often
be about being able to help and make the counselees feel better. Once these expectations are
not met, counselors would feel inadequate in helping their counselees (Copley, 2013).
Counselors shoulder the burden of being helpful towards their counselees and would often feellike they have failed if counselees are unable to show improvement.
Negative Work Environment received a low mean score, 2.5 being the highest among theparticipants. This shows that the participants do not perceive their working environment as
detrimental to their experience as counselors. The participants mentioned how thankful they
are for the work environment, which fosters camaraderie within the counselors. They haveshared that their colleagues are their source of strength in doing better as counselors. Theircolleagues become a support system whenever they start feeling exhausted. This result shows
how important the work environment is for a counselor (Lee et al., 2007).

Table 8: Extreme Scorer for CBI Dimension Negative Work Environment
As part of the work environment, supervision plays an equally important part in helping
counselors avoid burnout. In the study of Merriman (2015), counselor supervision is said tocontribute to counselors feeling safe in their work environment. A participant shared in her
interview that her supervisor plays an important role whenever she encounters difficult cases.
Having an effective supervisor helps counselors feel at ease in handling cases without the fearof being judged. Supervision allows counselors to be able to consult their cases and get
opinions about them, without making them feel incompetent by doing so (Merriman, 2015).
Instead, supervisors enable counselors to feel empowered in evaluating and handling theirdifficult situations.

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Counselors are often exposed to cases ranging in difficulty. Despite difficulties, counselors
may still be able to maintain their professional relationship with their counselees, without theperceptions of their counselees getting affected (Mullen & Gutierrez, 2016). However, theiraccumulative negative experiences as counselors may contribute to the change of counselee
perception (Lee et al., 2007). In the current study, the participants’ perception towards theirclients have not been affected even with the exhaustion brought by work.

Table 9: Extreme Scorer for CBI Dimension Devaluing Client
During the interviews, participants would often mention that they enjoy being present for theircounselees. They shared that helping their counselees is one of the things they like best about
being a counselor. As counselors, they find satisfaction and fulfillment in being exposed todifferent individuals. Even with the stress and exhaustion because of work, counselors are still
able to perform their responsibilities to their counselees. This shows how these counselors
embrace their roles and how highly the think of their counselees.
In the last dimension, the highest mean score of a participant is 3.25. Deterioration in personal
life pertains to how a counselors’ work affect their personal lives (Lee et al., 2007). Becauseof their work as counselors, they have the tendency to forget about their own needs.

Table 10: Extreme Scorer for CBI Dimension Deterioration in Personal Life
Without personal self-care, counselors will not be able to maintain their motivation to work. In
the study of Skovholt et al. (2001), it was emphasized that counselors need to focus on the needto have personal self-care. It is central for counselors to address their physical, mental,
emotional, and spiritual needs. Counselors are used to always providing help towards theircounselees. However, counselors must acknowledge the need to provide personal self-care(Cummins et al., 2007). These self-care routines will help counselors maintain better work-lifebalance.

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In the SCS, the participants were able to get a mean score of 3.49, which is a moderate level.
The mean score indicates a moderate level of self-compassion among the school counselors.
According to Neff (2004), having self-compassion enables individuals to become more
empathic towards themselves despite their struggles. In the field of counseling, having selfcompassion will help counselors in accepting their negative experiences and challenges theface at work without being self-critical (Germer & Neff, 2015). There is acceptance andknowledge of what needs to be addressed without putting the blame to oneself.

Table 11: Results of SCS
The subscales of the SCS are divided into two: positive and negative subscales. The positive
subscales are self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness. On the other hand, thenegative subscales are self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification. The results are leaning
more towards positive subscales. Higher mean scores in the positive subscales imply higher
levels of self-compassion (Neff, 2004).
The participants have a mean score of 4.06 in self-kindness, a higher mean score compared toself-judgment, which is 2.46. This result suggests that whenever the counselors are faced withchallenges, they are able to handle it without being self-critical. These counselors have theability to be more understanding of their flaws instead of berating themselves because of their
mistakes. However, despite scoring high in self-kindness, there are select participants who stillscored high in self-judgment. This result shows that there are participants who are self-critical
towards themselves. These participants are more prone to stress and frustration, which may
eventually lead to burnout.
The same trend can be seen in subscales common humanity (4.04) and isolation (2.14). This
result indicates that the participants feel that their concerns are also experienced by people
outside of themselves. The counselors are able to acknowledge that other counselors may be
experiencing the same challenges they are going through (Neff, 2004). Having a higher meanscore in common humanity will help counselors in avoiding feeling self-pity. Despite having ahigher mean score for common humanity, there are still outliers who scored high in isolation.

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These outliers indicate that there are counselors who may still have the tendency to feel thatthey are shouldering the burden by themselves.
For mindfulness vs over-identification, the results show that mindfulness (4.02) is higher
compared to over-identification (2.54). Overall, the participants are able to practice
mindfulness. According to Neff (2004), mindfulness involves an individual assessing their
negative experiences by acting appropriately, instead of perceiving it in an exaggerated
manner. The participants in this study are able to objectively look at their problems and act onthem rationally. However, there are some outlying participants who may be having a hard timein managing their negative experiences and emotions. Instead of being aware of what they aregoing through, they tend to see things as bigger as what it is supposed to be.

Table 12: Extreme Scorer for SCS Subscales Self-Kindness vs Self-Judgment
For the SCS, the extreme scorers for the subscales the were also noted. For self-kindness vsself-judgment, the highest mean scores of participants are 5 and 3.6, respectively. A participant
shared that she feels reassured about herself with the help of her colleagues. The assurance
from her colleagues helped her put things into perspective and not berate herself with her
mistakes. However, a participant also shared her situation when she was just starting as acounselor. She mentioned the difficulty in adjusting and handling cases. Counselors who
undergo stressful situations in their field have the tendency to doubt their abilities and question
if the field is a right fit for them (Copley, 2013).

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Table 13: Extreme Scorer for SCS Subscales Common Humanity vs Isolation
For the subscales common humanity vs isolation, the highest mean scores are both 5 and 3.5,
respectively. According to one participant, she finds comfort in having her colleagues around.
This response shows that having fellow counselors around helps other counselors inunderstanding that they are not alone in their plight. They are able to find an outlet to release
all the tension and stress they received because of work. This realization helps counselors in
coping with the stress and exhaustion cause by their profession (Patsiopoulos & Buchanan,2011). However, there are still counselors who may feel isolated in their experiences ascounselors.

Table 14: Extreme Scorer for SCS Subscales Mindfulness vs Over-Identification

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The subscales mindfulness vs over-identification has 4 and 4.5, respectively, as the highest
mean scores. Mindfulness enables counselors to become aware of their own emotional states(Germer & Neff, 2015). In one interview, a participant used batteries as a way to describe
counselors’ awareness of their welfare. The response shows proper practice of mindfulness andawareness of what needs to be done when counselors reach emotional exhaustion.
However, counselors may still over-identify to their negative experiences. Because of issues atwork, counselors tend to have certain expectations of themselves (Copely, 2013). This becomesa burden, pressuring them to do better with work. Their perceptions of what is happening
becomes clouded and they begin to think irrationally. These irrational thoughts end up
becoming bigger than what is actually happening.

Table 15: Correlation Between CBI and SCS
The correlation between counselor burnout and self-compassion was taken into consideration.
Based on the results, there is no significant relationship between burnout and self-compassion.
This means that the level of burnout may not necessarily be attributed to the level of selfcompassion. Although there is no significant relationship, it cannot be concluded that selfcompassion and burnout have no statistical relationship. Studies have shown the relationshipof self-compassion and burnout. Self-compassion enables individuals to have healthiermindsets towards their struggles (Germer & Neff, 2015). Counselors who practice selfcompassion become mindful of their emotions, which makes them less likely to develop
burnout (Yip et al., 2016). In this study, the result of the weak relationship of self-compassion
and burnout may be due to the small sample size. There are only 14 participants in this study
and small sample size may have contributed to this result (Pallant, 2005).

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Table 16: Results Based on Age
Aside from the interviews, the age group and years of experience of the counselors were also
taken into consideration. Burnout may affect counselors from different age groups (Copley,
2013; Mullen et al., 2018). In the current study, it can be seen that all of the mean scores are
low for the CBI. However, it can be noted that certain age groups (26 to 30 years old and 40 to
49 years old) have higher mean scores compared to the others. The results suggest that theparticipants in this study have no difference between what new counselors and seasoned
counselors may be experiencing in terms of burnout.

Table 17: Results Based on Years of Experience
Looking at the years of experience, it can be seen that there is minimal difference between theless experienced counselors and the more experience counselors when it comes to burnout.
This finding is supported by the study of Wilkerson (2009), which states that years ofexperience is negatively correlated to burnout. In the SCS, all groups show high levels of selfcompassion.
For SCS, all age groups have high mean scores, which indicates high levels of self-compassion.
This finding shows that the counselors are able to practice self-compassion across age groups.
There is no specific age group that shows a noteworthy difference with the other age groups.

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Table 18: Correlation Between CBI and Years of Experience, and CBI and Age

Table 19: Correlation Between SCS and Years of Experience, and SCS and Age
The participants’ years of experience and age were also correlated to the CBI and the SCS.
Based on the results, there is no significant relationship between these factors, except for age
and the SCS subscale self-judgment. This indicates that years of experience and age may notnecessarily explain the participants’ level of burnout and self-compassion. The study of Copley(2013) indicates that both new and seasoned counselors may experience burnout because they
have different experiences as counselors. New counselors may experience burnout because of
their idealism about the profession and lack of professional experience (Mullen et al., 2018).
Season counselors are also vulnerable to burnout because of their many experiences in dealing
with counselees throughout the years (Butler & Constantine, 2005).

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Table 20: Results of CBI Based on Each Department

Table 21: Results of SCS Based on Each Department
Frequencies of the range of scores were analyzed for each department. This was done to show
if certain department received higher or lower scores for the CBI and SCS. Overall, it can beseen that no department had a glaring difference in terms of scoring high or low for both the
CBI and the SCS.

Table 22: Reported Self-care Routines from Interview Responses
Based on the interviews, the participants of the current study show awareness of self-careroutines that contribute to their wellbeing. They shared different activities which help them inde-stressing whenever they feel overwhelmed. The participants acknowledge the importanceof these self-care activities as part of being counselors. According to Skovholt et al. (2001),
that personal nourishment is needed for counselors to be able to last long in the profession.
Self-care routines can be these personal nourishments.
the study of Bruck et al. (2014), wellness strategies differ from one person to another. These
strategies depend on the counselor’s preferences and interests. A counselor may prefer more
physical activities, while other counselors may prefer a more social activity. With these selfcare routines, counselors are able to relieve their stress and exhaustion from work.
Conclusion
The current study examined the current level of burnout and self-compassion of school
counselors. Burnout has always been linked to the helping profession, counseling being one.
With the increasing attention on mental health, it is only appropriate for counselors to also

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understand and become more aware of their own well-being, instead of only focusing on theircounselees.
It is evident in this study that counselors are able to capable of avoiding burnout. Counselors
may feel physical and emotional exhaustion from the nature of their work. Even with theexhaustion, this does not prevent them from performing their tasks and finding motivation in
helping their counselees. Undergoing stress and frustrations is normal in the field of counseling.
However, counselors who are unable to realize their own plight and fatigue are more likely toexperience burnout. By becoming aware of their level of burnout, counselors may be able topractice self-care and seek help if needed (Sadler-Gerhardt & Stevenson, 2012).
According to Germer and Neff (2015), one way to attain this awareness is by becoming more
self-compassionate towards their experiences as counselors. Self-compassion does not only
entail awareness of an individual’s suffering. It involves being proactive in resolving thechallenges that they face in an appropriate way. Self-compassion will enable counselors to be
more attuned with their conditions and react in the best possible way.
The current study was able to profile the school counselors of a specific institution in terms ofburnout and self-compassion. However, the results cannot be generalized for all school
counselors because of the study’s limitations. These limitations include having a small sample
size, having only one gender (females), and gathering data for one specific institution. Theselimitations can be addressed and explored in further studies.

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Neff, K. (2003a). Self-compassion: An alternative conceptualization of a healthy attitude
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Wilkerson, K. (2009). An Examination of Burnout Among School Counselors Guided by
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Self-harm & Non-suicidal Self-Injury (Nssi) Tendencies Among Children: Effect of anIntervention Program
Ma. Dominique D. Sta. Cruz, De La Salle Santiago Zobel School, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
Self-harm according to research is an increasing global concern, which is not just of today. It
has begun to be alarming that in the recent generation self-harm and Non-Suicidal SelfInjurious (NSSI) behavior have been rampant especially in the younger ages. This study aims
to determine the prevalence of self-harm and non-suicidal self- injury tendencies and thecommon form of self-harm among those who are in late childhood up to the earlier years ofadolescence. Moreover, this action research also gauges the overall psychological distress of
the respondents in the dimensions such as subjective well-being, problems and symptoms,
life functioning and, risk and harm. It was participated by 301 school-going adolescents
under ages 9 to 11 years old and employing a standardized self-report questionnaire (Clinical
Outcomes Result Evaluation). The findings indicate that the most common form of self-harm
is cutting (71.43%). Results also show that the dimension risk and harm determines anindividual being at risk to themselves or others by having thoughts of hurting oneself.
Findings suggest that prevention program such as wellness intervention can be developed andimplemented to promote skills to minimize risk-taking behavior such self-harm and selfinjury.
Keywords: Self-harm, Non Suicidal Self-injury (NSSI), Psychological Distress, Socialemotional Learning, Psychological Well Being

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Stress is not just a problem of adults but rather it is already a concern of the younger
generation. According to Goodman et al. (2005), stress refers to a stimulus generating
psychosocial and physiological demands requiring action on the part of the individual. As it
is normal having some stress in life, young people are already experiencing both physical andemotional manifestation of such experience. Teenagers experience feeling of stress,
confusion, pressure to succeed, self-doubt, and other fears while navigating their way toadulthood (Miller, 2010). For some of them, it has become part of their system and life yetthere is also repercussion when the stress level reaches an overwhelming state.
Adolescence is a period characterized by substantial emotional and behavioral challenges that
correspond with important brain developmental changes. When they experience strong
negative emotions, they tend to experiment with a range of coping behaviors, some of which
may be maladaptive, such as substance use, disordered eating patterns, and non-suicidal selfinjury. Eight ways of coping according to Lazarus are the following: confrontive, distancing,self-controlling, social support seeking, accepting responsibility, escape-avoidance, planfulproblem solving, and positive reappraisal. One could attempt to discover how self-harming
early adolescents categorize self-harm as a way of coping. Some early adolescent may
constantly categorize self-harm in one or more categories of coping, whereas others may be
more inconsistent, fluid, and flexible with their perceptions of functions that self-harm
performs. Although Lazarus' categories of coping could assist one in defining the functionthat self-harm, it cautions that coping is complex process that changes across time and acrossstressors. Beyond the ways of coping, one could further examine the outcomes of earlyadolescent self-harm (Lazarus, 1993).
The act of harming one’s own body tissue without the intent to die is known as non-suicidal
self-injury (NSSI). Self-injury has been identified as a coping mechanism to deal withemotional distress. Non-suicidal self-injurious behavior is mostly manifested through cutting,burning or hitting oneself, scratching oneself to the point of bleeding and interfering withhealing (Grandclerc, De Labrouhe, Spodenkiewicz, Lachal & Moro, 2016). It is a relatively
frequent behavior in adolescents and young adults. Its principal risks will evolve toward
other forms of self-injurious behavior such as suicide attempts and may eventually become
chronic.
Framework
This study is based on the concept ‘Social and Emotional Learning’ also known as SEL by
Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (2007) and the Model of
Psychological Well-Being by Carol Ryff (1995).
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
Social and Emotional Learning involves the processes of developing social and emotional
competencies in children. SEL programming is based on the understanding that the bestlearning emerges in the context of supportive relationships that make learning challenging,engaging, and meaningful. Social and emotional skills are critical to being a good student,
citizen, and worker.

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SEL uses positive youth-development and the promotion of social and emotional
competencies to prevent the development of emotional and behavioral problems (Benson,
2006; Guerra & Bradshaw, 2008). This concept has developed from the research related toprevention and resilience (Zins, Bloodworth, Weissberg, & Walberg, 2004). Different risky
behaviors like drug use, violence, bullying, and dropout, can be prevented or reduced when
multi-year, integrated efforts develop students’ social and emotional skills. This is best done
through effective classroom instruction, student engagement in positive activities in and outof the classroom, and broad parent and community involvement in program planning,
implementation, and evaluation (Bond & Hauf, 2004; Hawkins, Smith, & Catalano, 2004;
Weare & Nind, 2011).

Figure 1. The Five Social and Emotional Learning Core Competencies
Model of Psychological Well-being: The Six Criteria of Well-Being (Ryff, 1995)
Model of Psychological Well-being differs from past models in one important way: wellbeing is multidimensional and is beyond a simple positive-negative dichotomy. Well-being isbest characterized as a profile of indicators across multiple domains, rather than a single
factor. It is not merely about happiness or positive emotions.

Figure 2. Model of Psychological Well-being: The Six Criteria of Well-Being

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Forms of Self-Harm
In a 2010 study in the Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Franklin and colleagues investigatedone of the central questions of why people report feeling better after hurting themselves.
They used a task that measured people's defensive eye-blink responses before and after they
dipped their hands into ice-cold water. The results indicated that self-injurers do in fact feelbetter afterward. Healthy controls showed exactly the same degree of physiologicaldefensiveness and subsequent physiological relief as those who engaged in self-injury. In a2013 paper in Clinical Psychological Science, Franklin's team replicated the finding and also
showed that most people had equivalent changes in positive emotions in response to shocking
stimuli. He discovered something described by psychologists 70 years ago: a phenomenon
called pain offset relief. According to this concept, virtually everyone experiences anunpleasant physical reaction to a painful stimulus. Removing the stimulus does not return theindividual to their pre-stimulus state, however. Rather, it leads them into a short but intense
state of euphoria.
Scratching or pinching is a behavior that includes severely scratching or pinching with
fingernails or objects to the point that bleeding occurred, or marks remained on the skin
(Whitlock et al., 2006). This method of self-injury was seen in more than half of all students
who reported participating in self-harm. Impact with objects is a self-harm behavior included
banging or punching objects to the point of bruising or bleeding. This way of self-harm wasseen in just over 37 percent of the self-harming students. While cutting is often consideredsynonymous with self-harm, this way of self-mutilation only occurred in just over 1-in-3
students who reported demonstrating self-harm. The impact with oneself is a self-injury
method includes banging or punching oneself to the point of bruising or bleeding. This way
to self-injure was seen in almost 25 percent of the students who reported self-harming
behaviors. Ripped skin as a way of self-mutilation includes ripping or tearing skin. This typeof self-injury was seen in just under 16 percent of those who admitted to self-harming
behaviors. Carving as a way of self-harm is when a person carves words or symbols into theskin. This is different from cutting. This method of self-mutilation was identified by justunder 15 percent of those who self-harm. Interfering with healing as way of self-mutilationand is often in combination with other types of self-harm. In this case, a person purposefully
hampers the healing of wounds. This method of self-harm was used by 13.5 percent ofrespondents. Burning skin is a way of self-mutilation. Burning as a way of self-injury wasseen in 12.9 percent of students who harmed themselves. Rubbing objects into the skin is
type of self-harm that involves the rubbing of sharp objects, such as glass, into the skin.
Twelve percent of responding students used this way to self-harm. Hair-pulling, another way
to self-harm is medically known as trichotillomania. In trichotillomania, a person feels
compelled to pull out their own hair and, in some cases, even ingest that hair. This type toself-injury was seen in 11 percent of students who self-harmed (Whitlock et al., 2006).

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Subjects
Table 1: Gender Distribution of Study Sample
GenderNumber of Respondents (N)Percentage (%)

Male

158

52.67

Female

143

47.33

Total

301

100

Instrument
CORE (Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation) Outcome Measure developed by the
CORE System Trust (CST), a not-for-profit company that holds and protects the copyright on
the CORE instruments. It is a self-report questionnaire, where respondents were asked toanswer 34 questions about how they have been feeling over the last week, using a 5-point
scale ranging from 'not at all' to 'most or all of the time'. It addresses global distress and istherefore suitable for use as an initial screening tool and outcome measure; like most selfreport measures, it cannot be used to gain a diagnosis of a specific disorder. The mean of all
34 items can be used as a global index of distress, the main design intention.
Four Dimensions of the CORE Outcome Measure:• Subjective well-being (4 items)• Problems/symptoms (12 items)• Life functioning (12 items)
Discussion of Results
This action research aims to answer the following queries:
1.
What is the occurrence of self-harm among the respondents?
Table 2: Self-harm Occurrence
Grade 6
AY 2017-2018

Self-Harm
Related Cases
Total Number ofRespondents

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MaleFemale

Total

F

P (%)

F

P (%)

F

P (%)

8

5.06%

6

4.19%

14

4.65%

158

143

27

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This table shows that out of a population size of 301, 14 were identified and referred to thecounseling office due to self-harm related cases. Of these, 8 or 5.06 percent are female while
6 or 4.19 percent are male. 4.65 percent of the population was reported to engage in selfharm or possible NSSI behavior.
2.

What is the most common form of self-harm among the respondents?
Table 3: Forms of Self-harmForms ofSelf-Harm

Frequency

Male

FemaleP (%)

Cutting

103

771.43%

Scratching

2

1

1

14.29%Poking

1

1

0

7.14%

Choking

1

1

0

7.14%

Total

14

6

8

100%

Table 3 above shows that out of the 14 identified self-harm cases, majority of respondents
attempted to mutilate by cutting, 10 respondents or 71.43 percent of the population, 3 aremales and 7 are females. Cutting is a form of self-injury – the person is literally making small
cuts on his or her body, usually the arms and legs. The usual tool or object used in this formof self-harm are cutters, blades, knives, scissors and any other available pointed objects likerulers. It is usually done at home especially during times when their parent is not around anddone in private places such as restroom and bedroom. There are also reports that thissometimes occur in the school’s bathroom and is being inflicted on arms, legs or ankle.
According to the result, the next common form of self-injury and self-harm is scratching of
oneself. This form of self-harm is being practiced by 2 of the respondents or 14.29 percent,wherein 1 of them is male and 1 is female. Scratching is known to be deliberately inducing
scratches in a person’s own body to inflict tissue damage and simply leave a mark with theuse of sharp objects like pen, scissors, knife or any other sharp object. This act is done inside
the classroom whenever they feel the need to express internal feelings in an external way.
The injury is commonly inflicted on arms, legs or ankles.

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3.
What is the Psychological Distress distribution of the respondents in terms Subjective
well-being, Problems and Symptoms, Life functioning, and Risk and harm?
Table 4: Psychological Distress Distribution

ScoresHealthy/
Mild Risk<1.25, or<1.0ModerateRisk
1.25/1.0 –2.49
Severe/Very
SevereRisk>=2.50

Total

Subj
ectiv
e
Well
Bein
g

Pro
ble
Perc ms
enta and
ge
Sym
pto
ms

Life
Perc
Fun
enta
ctio
ge
ning

140

46.5
%

209

69.4
%

171

105

34.8
9%

83

27.6
%

119

56

18.6
%

9

2.9
%

301

100
%

301

100
%

Risk
Perc
and
enta
Har
ge
m

Overall
Perc Psycho
Percent
enta logicalagegeDistres
s

193

64.1
%

223

74.1%

39.5
%

100

32.2
%

72

23.9%

11

3.6
%

8

2.7
%

6

1.9%

301

100
%

301

100
%

301

56.8
%

100%

The table shows the distribution of the respondents in terms of the four dimensions(Subjective well-being, Problems and Symptom, Life Functioning and Risk and Harm).
Based on the results of Table 4, almost half of the population or 140 respondents have highSubjective well-being, 105 respondents of the study have moderate risk and 56 are severe or
severe risk. Subjective well-being seeks to measure an individual’s feelings about oneself,
feeling of crying, feeling of optimism in one’s future and feeling of being overwhelmed by
one’s problems.
The Problem and Symptoms Dimension measures indicators of anxiety, depression, physicalsymptoms and trauma. Anxiety symptoms include tension, panic or terror, and nervousness.
This dimension covers feelings of tension, anxiousness and nervousness that may also
prevent a person in doing important things. This can be feelings of panic and terror; andinability to put to one side one’s problems. This dimension also measures trauma by being
disturbed having unwanted thoughts and feelings, and being distressed by unwanted images
or memories. Results show that a seemingly high number of the respondents are on the

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healthy to mild risk, 83 of which are at the moderate level and 9 are severe and very severe
risk. This may mean that the participants have a healthy and appropriate response to life
situations.
Life Functioning Dimension covers a general measure of close relationship and social
relationship. It also measures the social support that an individual has and the extent ofalleviation because other people. It gauges one’s feelings of being able to cope when things
go wrong; being happy with the things one has done and if one feels that he/she has achieved
the things he/she wanted to. The results showed that more than half of the population, 171
have healthy to mild risk life functioning, 119 are in the moderate risk and 11 of them aresevere to very severe risk. From these, it can be assumed that participants have good social
support from other people, friends and family.
On the other hand, Risk and Harm Dimension measures an individual’s being at risk tothemselves or others by having thoughts of hurting oneself; have attempted hurting oneself
physically or taken dangerous risks with a person’s health; having thoughts and plans ofending one’s life; being physically violent to others and threatened or intimidated anotherperson. From the given table, the results of this study show that majority are in thehealthy/mild group with 193 respondents, 100 are in the moderate risk and 8 are in the severe
and very severe risk. This may mean that majority of the respondents may possess a healthy
coping skill that enables them to regulate their own emotions and behaviors. Emotion
regulation is the process by which behaviours, skills, and strategies, whether automatic or
effortful, modulate, inhibit, and enhance emotional experiences and expressions (Gross &Thompson, 2007).
4.

What activity could be proposed based on the results of the study?

The current study suggests development of preventative interventions, programs that could
aid the students in dealing with difficult emotions and situations. This may include wellness
program and social-emotional skills program to scaffold the development of effective andcontextually appropriate strategies for the said population. It can be proposed that there may
be activities and programs not limited to the students, but also require the collaboration withother stakeholders such as parents, teachers and the community in fostering mental wellness
and well-being.
Mental wellness is vital in the promotion of an individual's holistic development in the aspectof self-care. This study intends to eventually create a program that will enhance the wellnessof the individual to create awareness on the different factors that contribute to holistic wellbeing and learn different coping strategies in dealing with life’s challenges.

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Figure 3. The Pillars of Well-Being
5.

What is the outcome of the program?

Majority of them highly rated the program as organized, interesting, helpful and highly
relevant to their present concern. The participants suggested having more interaction andsocialization, and present additional relevant videos.
Conclusion
The findings suggest that prevention program such as wellness intervention program to be
implemented that promote skills to minimize risk-taking behavior such self-harm and selfinjury. Schools must offer an accessible and convenient avenue for the delivery of self-harmprevention programs that could potentially be widely provided. Our results propose that
schools should proactively focus upon reducing incidents of bullying and encouraging a
positive and friendly environment particularly for those children and young adolescents who
feel marginalized. Moreover, mental health awareness needs to be raised so that issues suchas low mood, depression, anxiety and self-harm can be openly discussed.

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Standardized Tests as Predictors of Academic Performance:
Implications on the MCLS Testing Program
Zarah May C. Buyan, Miriam College Lower School, Philippines
Marilet C. Delgado-Anastacio, Miriam College Lower School, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
As part of its periodic testing program evaluation and to support the institutional viability of a
private school in Quezon City, Philippines, the school’s Guidance Center examined thepredictive value of the School Readiness Test (SRT) as its admissions tool in terms of its
relationship with the Grade 1 academic performance. Likewise, the study looked into thepredictive value of the English and Mathematics pre-test for Grade 1 which is administeredthrough an outsourced partner of the school. Adopting a longitudinal predictive research
design, this study examined changes on the quantitative data taken from the population overtime. The data was analyzed using multiple linear regression at .05 significance level. Results
indicate that there is a correlation between the standardized test scores and the participants’general academic average. Furthermore, SRT and achievement tests are predictive of academic
performance. Implications on the school testing program were discussed and exploring locallydeveloped assessment tools was recommended.
Keywords: Predictive Study, Standardized Tests, Academic Performance, Testing Program,
Admissions, School Assessment

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Admissions is the first interaction between the school and potential students and their parents
or guardians. During admissions period, parents or guardians find out more about the school’s
curriculum, programs and other offerings. In turn, the school assesses the child’s readiness for
its academic structure. This step helps align the expectation of stakeholders in maximizing theabilities of the student. Admissions is especially momentous for first graders as it marks facing
bigger learning opportunities and challenges from their preschool experience. For the part ofthe school, especially private institutions, admissions is the lifeblood that sustains its programs
and facilities. It is therefore crucial that entry-point evaluation balances the school’s criterion
for excellence and its openness to accommodating children’s areas for development.
In Miriam College Lower School (MCLS), the written test is one of the integral instruments
utilized during admissions. As such, the test material is subjected to periodic evaluation toensure that it still corresponds to the evolving profile of the learners. Considering these, MCLS
adopted the School Readiness Test (SRT) as its admissions test for school year 2014-2015
Grade 1 student applicants. SRT was chosen for its more updated and concise coverage ofsubjects and topics. Moreover, it is the same yearend assessment tool used by the Miriam
College Child Study Center (MC-CSC) to evaluate their kindergarten students. It was thendeemed to be potentially useful in efforts to compare and align data between the units.
Also, part of MCLS’ testing program are the locally-developed standardized achievement tests
outsourced through the Center for Educational Measurement (CEM), Inc.. These areadministered to students from Grades 1 to 5. For Grades 1 and 2, students take the English andMathematics tests. Grades 3 to 5 students take English, Mathematics, and Science tests.
Results are presented to the community, especially to the Academic Committee, for their use
in the continuous advancement of the unit’s academic programs.
This study was undertaken in response to Miriam College Board of Trustees’ directive toreview the admissions processes to encourage more student applications. It was also a timely
opportunity to utilize testing data to further support the unit’s academic initiatives as well as
the school’s economic viability.
This research aims to examine the ability of both admissions and achievement tests in English
and Mathematics to predict the students’ academic performance in Grade 1. In particular, theresearch aims to answer the following questions:1.
Is the School Readiness Test (SRT) predictive of the MCLS Grade 1 academic
performance?
2.
Are the achievement tests in English and Mathematics predictive of the MCLS Grade1 academic performance?
3.
Which between the SRT and achievement tests is/are the better predictor/s of Grade 1
academic performance?
The outcome of this study will help evaluate the testing program and yield possible
recommendations that could aid student admissions especially in Grade 1. Data could also be
useful in helping students transition from Kindergarten to first grade and continuously support
their development in MCLS.
The primary focus of this study is to assess the predictive value of the school’s admissions tool
in relation to the academic performance of the first graders. Generalizations provided in this

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study are limited to the new students only. Other factors which may affect the participants’general averages could include age, personality, and preschool experiences. These will be partof the discussion of the study.
Many recent related literatures seem to point towards the opposite direction when it comes toadministering standardized tests to early graders. In the USA, the contention seems to stemfrom the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Law which resulted to ‘high stakes
testing’ wherein standardized tests results are used as determinants for grade retention,
graduation, college admission, teacher employability and school performance, among others(Solley, 2007). Tying such consequence to an assessment tool led many to question thecredibility of the test instrument as the only objective indicator of teacher effectiveness andstudent learning especially among young children (Marisco Intitute for Early Learning andLiteracy, 2010).
Christopher Tienken (2015) flagged the flawed process of school administrators to makemultiple interpretations and critical decisions based on the results of one test. Instead,outcomes should be confirmed for group and individual validity by cross-referencing withother data sources, much like a three-legged stool that stands to prop up a balanced learning
profile.
Concerns have also been raised on the effect of such stringent testing on young children. Fleege
and colleagues (2003) observed Kindergarten students’ behavior while taking a standardized
test. They reported a significant increase in behaviors related to stress. These stress-related
actions were notably decreased after taking the test. Assessment has also impacted
Kindergarten teachers over the years. Bassok, et al (2016) found that compared to
Kindergarten teachers in 1998, Kindergarten teachers in 2010 put more value on theirindividual students’ achievement test performance in based on local, state and professional
standards. They also give more importance on each student’s performance compared to theirpeers.
There is also the issue of futility of testing young children to determine those who might be atrisk for academic difficulties. Frans and colleagues (2017) found that majority of students who
were identified as “at-risk” in preschool became capable learners as they moved up to the early
grades. This is similar to the results of the study of Anastacio (2017) where the later academic
performance of low-scorers in the School Readiness Test for by third grade have improved.
However, these findings do not diminish the value of tests in the school setting. William (2010)
started his research report by saying that assessment is a key process in education. International
Literacy Association (2017) recognizes the usefulness of standardized tests in assessing student
achievement, comparing performance, evaluating programs and its interconnectedness todeveloping school policies and determining accountability. Assessment in early grades canalso prove useful in identifying anchors in predicting reading abilities in later grades especially
if done with the appropriate instruments. They also recommend testing at the end ofkindergarten to ensure a more strongly related data to reading achievement than assessments
at the beginning of kindergarten (Schatschneider et. al, 2004).
The recurring theme of these literatures points out that assessment has an important function
in education. However, authorities should be very careful to consider the instrument’s intended
design, limitations and impact on the stakeholders. The tenet is that test scores should be
helpful to the teachers, parents, and students in education (Cooley, 1991 in Haladyna, 2002). It
was emphasized that with its increasing use and influence over time, the challenge is in

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ensuring its logical use and valid interpretation. Moreover, one standardized test cannot
determine all facets of a learning experience. Validating or alternative teacher-developed
evaluation strategies are strongly recommended (ILA, 2017; Tienken, 2015; MIELL, 2010;
Solley, 2007, Haladyna, 2002).

Figure 1: Conceptual Framework
Figure 1 illustrates the structure of this study with its aim to look at the ability of the school
Readiness Test (SRT) and English and Math Achievement Tests in predicting the academic
performance of students.
The following terms will be operationally defined as:
1.
Academic performance – refers to the general average of the students at the end of aschool year2.
Standardized tests – refers to the admissions (SRT) and achievement pre-tests from an
outsource provider
3.
Admissions test scores – refers to the overall SRT ratings obtained by the new student
applicants4.
Achievement test scores – refers to the students’ percentage of correct answers in
English and Mathematics
5.
Indicators – refers to the standardized test scores as predictors of academic performance
DesignThis study adopted a longitudinal predictive research design (Johnson, 2001). It aims todetermine how well the standardized tests’ scores are able to predict the academic performanceof first graders for three consecutive school years. Trend study was used to examine change on
the quantitative data taken from the population over time.
Participants
A total of 319 first graders were the participants in this study. New students who have taken
the School Readiness Test (SRT) as the admissions examination, and the achievement pre-tests

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Official Conference Proceedingsin Mathematics and English from SY 2015 to 2018 were the basis of the selection ofparticipants. The formula given by Tabachnick and Fidell (2001) was taken into consideration:
N > 50 + 8m (where m = number of independent variables).
Measures
General averages represent the academic performance of the participants. These are computedby averaging the quarterly final grade of the Grade 1 students in all core subjects. Data was
extracted through the Student Database Management System (SDMS) of the school.
Admissions examination for incoming first graders is administered by the school’s
psychometrician in one sitting. It assesses seven (7) individual readiness skills namely
Vocabulary, Identifying Letters, Visual Discrimination, Phonemic Awareness, Comprehension& Interpretation, Mathematical Knowledge, and Developmental Spelling Ability. The SRT
result is comprised of assessment classifications which serve as the basis for the overall
readiness assessment of the students. The SRT obtained a .94 reliability score using the KuderRichardson Formula 21 which indicates a very high degree of internal consistency. Whereas,
the standard error found for its total score is 4.9 raw score points (Scholastic Testing Service,
Inc., 2004).
Standardized achievement tests, appropriate for the grade level, measure the acquired levels ofknowledge and skills of the students in English and Mathematics. Pre-tests developed by the
CEM, Inc. are administered within the first quarter of every school year. The students are
required to accomplish these multiple-choice format group-test within the time limit specified
by the examiner. The reliability indices of the K to 12 Achievement tests for English andMathematics (Grade 1) range from .85 to .91. To validate, the final grades on the academic
subject of the test takers are used as the external measure. Coefficients ranging from .31 to .83
indicate that the tests have concurrent validity (CEM, 2016). The achievement pre-test results
are reported in Percent Correct (PC). This refers to the percentage of questions that theexaminee answered correctly in each content area and cognitive skill in accordance to thelearning competencies for a specific grade level prescribed by the national curriculum. The
score ranges from 0 to 100 (CEM, 2016).
ProcedurePrimary data were accessed from and kept in the school’s Guidance, Testing, and ResearchCenter. In compliance to the Data Privacy Act of 2012, permission on the collection andutilization of data was acquired through letter to parents distributed before the administrationof various guidance tests.
The selection of data corresponds to the criteria for selection of participants. Records ofadmissions and achievement tests results were retrieved from the student annual reports. New
students in each section were identified and grouped according to school year. Statistical data
analysis was employed to determine how well admissions and achievement test scores predict
the academic performance of MCLS new students from SY 2015 to 2018. Relative contributionof each independent variable was identified for every school year as well. To examine whether
the SRT ratings and achievement tests scores in English and Mathematics consistently predict
the academic performance of the first graders, the trend for three consecutive school years wasanalyzed.

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Data Analysis
The ability of admissions and achievement tests scores to predict the academic performance of
new students was analyzed using multiple linear regression at .05 significance level. This
analysis was conducted on each set of scores per school year. Predictors were correlated witheach other to eliminate multicollinearity. Tests for normality, linearity, and homoscedasticity
were performed to verify the assumptions of the regression analysis. To test the hypotheses,
the predictive power of the independent variables was identified, as well as its relative
contribution to the academic performance. From the results, interpretations were drawn in viewof the research questions posited in this study.
The results of the data analyses carried throughout the duration of the study are presented inthrough the following tables and figures.
Descriptive Statistics

General
Average
SRT
EnglishMathematics

N

SY 2015-2016
M
SD

N

SY 2016-2017
M
SD

N

SY 2017-2018
M
SD

112

90.55

109

89.59

98

91.10

4.69

107
100.72 12.55 108
93.68 11.67 98
96.02
112
54.70 18.97 109
56.68 19.04 95
57.73
112
40.35 13.39 109
41.93 14.00 95
43.46
Table 1: Summary of Descriptive Statistics of the Variables

12.29
18.80
13.45

3.91

4.40

Table 1 shows the descriptive statistics of the predictors covering the participants’ mean scoresin the admissions and achievement tests for three consecutive school years as well as theirgeneral averages (GA). Although the number of new students decreases yearly, a trend ofincrease is noticeable in the mean percent-correct scores for English and Mathematics
achievement pre-tests.
Correlations

General
Average
SRT
English*p < .05

SY 2015-2016
SRT
English MathSY 2016-2017
SRT English MathSY 2017-2018
SRT English Math

.660*

.680*

.612*

.724*

.695*

.709*

.631*
.724*

.754*

.717*

.674*

.684*
.697*

.640*

.542*

.613*

.509*
.540*

Table 2: Summary Correlation TableThe summary of the correlation coefficients is shown on Table 2. Significant relationships were
found between results of admissions tests and achievement pre-tests scores in English andMathematics across three consecutive school years. Note the very high correlations between
English pre-test scores and the other independent variables in SY 2015-2016.

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(a) SY 2015-2016

Official Conference Proceedings(b) SY 2016-2017(c) SY 2017-2018

Figure 2: Normal Probability Plot of Regression Standardized Residualof General Average Which Show Normality
All data passed the tests of normality, linearity, homoscedasticity, and multicollinearity. Figure
2 shows the Normal Probability Plot of the academic performance in each school year. The
reasonably straight distribution of the independent variables suggests that there are no major
deviations from normality.
(a) SY 2015-2016(b) SY 2016-2017(c) SY 2017-2018

Figure 3: Scatterplot of Standardized Residuals Which Show Linearity and Homoscedasticity
Figure 3 presents the Scatterplot of the standardized residuals against predicted values per
school year. Most of the scores are concentrated in the center which depicts a linear relationshipbetween the variables. No clear pattern was evident in the distribution which implies that thedata is homoscedastic as well.
To test the assumption of multicollinearity among independent variables which display too
high correlations, the collinearity diagnostics were examined. The first value, Tolerance,
indicates how much of the variability of the specified independent is not explained by the otherindependent variables in the model. The second value is the Variance inflation factor (VIF)
which is the inverse of the Tolerance value. The Tolerance value of less than .10 and a VIF
value of above 10 suggests the possibility of multicollinearity (Pallant, 2005). Looking into thecollinearity statistics of the independent variables in SY 2015-2016, the Tolerance values of.468, .370, and .448, as well as the VIF values of 2.14, 2.7, and 2.23, respectively, indicate that
there is no multicollinearity.

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Multiple Regression

Variable

SY 2015-2016
βt

SY 2016-2017
βt

SY 2017-2018
β
t

SRT

.223*

2.471

.203*

2.391

.294*

3.066

English

.345*

3.405

.416*

4.827

.350*

3.564

Math

.305*

3.315

.288*

3.297

.203*

2.250

F
2

Adjusted R

53.40666.79732.083

.597

.648

.498

*p < .05
Table 3: Relationship of Admissions and Achievement Pre-test Scores to General Average
Results revealed consistent positive correlations between general average and SRT scores from
SY 2015 to 2018 (r = .66, r = .68, r = .61). Likewise, English (r = .72, r = .75, r = .64) andMathematics (r = .70, r = .72, r = .54) pre-test scores are strongly correlated with the newstudents’ general average for three school years.
Table 3 presents the results of the multiple regression with standardized regression coefficients(β), t value, and adjusted R2. The model for academic performance in SY 2015-2016 displays
a significant result, F (3,103) = 53.406, adjusted R2 = .60. Data analysis showed that SRT
ratings and achievement pre-test scores in English and Mathematics can explain 60% of thevariance in the general averages of MCLS new students in SY 2015-2016. Persistently, themodels for academic performance in SY 2016-2017 [F (3,104) = 66.797, adjusted R2 = .65],
and SY 2017-2018 [F (3,91) = 32.083, adjusted R2 = .50], are also significant. The test scoresaccount for 65% and 50% of the variance found in the academic performance of the participants
for the following two school years.
Though significant, admissions test scores seem to contribute the least in the prediction of the
new students’ academic performance among all indicators. Beta coefficients of SRT ratings
range from .20 to .29 for three academic years. Whereas English and Mathematics betacoefficients range from .20 to .41. In SY 2015-2016, a unit increase in the SRT score will
predict a .223 increase in the general average of new students. The next couple of years, every
unit increase in the admissions test score suggested a .203 and .294 increase in the students’
academic performance.
Looking into the relative contribution of the achievement pre-tests scores, English appears tobe the most effective indicator of academic performance of MCLS new students. Its betacoefficients are .345, .416, and .350 from SY 2015-2016 to SY 2017-2018, respectively. On
the other hand, a decreasing trend of beta values emerged from the annual Mathematics pretest scores (.305, .288, .203).
Conclusions
Standardized testing among young students in the United States is recently under fire for its
observed negative impact on the test-takers well-being. ‘High-stakes testing’ is also criticizedfor its tendency to depend on a single test result to determine major administrative decisions.

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Results of US government-mandated assessments likewise impacts academic systems such as
student retention and teacher employability (Tienken, 2015; MIELL, 2010; Solley, 2007).
It seems clear, however, that the disapproval is not on the testing itself but rather, on the use ofgathered data. There is also substantial scholastic recognition for the role of standardized
testing in the educational setting. The emphasis is put on the responsible use of the instrument
and the data it yields. While there is no perfect assessment tool, an appropriately matched test
content and curriculum or instruction could yield relevant data for policy holders, educatorsand the public (Haladyna, 2002). Each assessment tool has to be considered for its intended
purpose and population. While standardized tests are assumed to be valid and reliable, othersources of student data should not be discounted such as teacher observation and student
portfolio because this additional information outside of the usual pen-and-paper measurement
provide a view of various and complex aspects of learning.
In the Philippine setting, many established private educational institutions continue to rely on
standardized tests as an assessment approach for student admissions. As a premiere school for
Filipino girls, MCLS is taking this research as a step to evaluate the appropriateness of thepractice given the evolving profile of learners and emerging indicators that could call for
innovative and alternative methods.
In response to the research questions, data analyses indicate all tests are predictive of Grade 1
students’ academic performance. However, while it is being utilized as the primary admissions
tool, the School Readiness Test (SRT) is the least predictive of MCLS Grade 1 students’
academic performance. Statistically, CEM English and Mathematics pre-test are more strongly
correlated to the Grade 1 students’ grades than SRT. This could be because first, a CEM test
is developed in the Philippines—based on the prescribed curriculum of the Department of
Education and validated with the local population. Secondly, CEM tests are more exhaustive,
covering fifty (55) items each for English and Mathematics. Each subject allots at least 60
minutes of test time. On the other hand, the SRT has 126 items covering seven learning areasof school readiness. A student typically finishes this test in one sitting within an hour and ahalf.
Considering the standardized testing issues mentioned in researches, it must be noted that SRT
is only one of several aspects considered during the MCLS admissions process. In short, a‘failing’ mark in this test does not automatically bar a student from being accepted into theschool. This implies that the unit recognizes that there are many facets of each child’s being
beyond the ones reflected on their test scores.
In conclusion, the use of standardized testing as part of the admissions process of MCLS
remains a sensible procedure that yields practical data for its administrators. In review of thefindings and related studies, this research proposes the following for the continued
development its admissions procedures and the Guidance Center’s testing program:
1.
Development of admissions interview rubrics – Set questions that aim to draw out
specific information from the student applicant such as speech and language abilities, reading,and comprehension skills, and ability to follow simple instructions.
2.
Consider the possibility of developing and administering teacher-made tests to
supplement the admissions test. Locally-developed tests would help assure that the items
would be closely-aligned to the existing standards and curriculum of MCLS and include subject
areas that are not typically covered by standardized testing (i.e. Araling Panlipunan andFilipino).

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3.
Continue the periodic evaluation of admissions test procedures to balance the academic
benchmarks while keeping up with the evolving profile of the learners and supporting
institutional viability.
The research findings will be submitted to the MCLS administration and may be presented tothe community to provide information regarding the strengths and challenges of school’s
admission process. The authors recommend the conduct of further studies with a larger sample
size, possibly including all Grade 1 students as a bigger population could show a more distinct
profile of the learners.
Observing the new students’ performance as they progress to higher grade levels is also helpful
in possibly identifying consistent obstacles and effective interventions to their learning.
Lastly, with baseline data from first grade, a longitudinal study tracking the students’ growthduring their stay in the lower school unit can give varied perspectives especially when analyzed
in relation to programs and interventions implemented within the same period.

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References
Anastacio, Marilet. (2017). School Readiness Test and Later Academic Performance of
MCLS Grade 3 Students for SY 2017-2018. Unpublished Research.
Bassok, D., Latham, S., & Rorem, A. (2016). Is kindergarten the new first grade?. AERA
open, 2(1), 2332858415616358.
Center for Educational Measurement, Inc. (2016). CEM K to 12 Achievement Tests Score
Interpretation Guide.
Center for Educational Measurement, Inc. (2016). CEM K to 12 Addendum.
Fleege, Pamela O., Charlesworth, Rosalind, Burts, Diane C. & Hart, Craig H. (1992). Stress
Begins in Kindergarten: A Look at Behavior During Standardized Testing, Journal of
Research in Childhood Education, 7:1, 20-26, DOI: 10.1080/02568549209594836
Frans, Craig H., Post, Wendy J., Huisman, Mark, Oenema-Mostert, Ineke C. E., Keegstra,
Anne L., & Minnaert, Alexander E. M. G. (2017). Early identification of children at
risk for academic difficulties using standardized assessment: stability and predictive
validity of preschool math and language scores, European Early Childhood Education
Research Journal, 25:5, 698-716, DOI: 10.1080/1350293X.2017.1356524.
Haladyna, T. M. (2002). Essentials of standardized achievement testing: validity andaccountability. Allyn & Bacon.
International Literacy Association. (2017). The roles of standardized reading tests in schools[Literacy leadership brief]. Newark, DE: Author.
Johnson, B. (2001). Toward a new classification of nonexperimental quantitative
research. Educational Researcher, 30(2), 3-13.
Marisco Institute for Early Learning and Literacy, (2010). The case against testing young
children to evaluate teacher effectiveness: a position statement from Marisco Institutefor Early Learning and Literacy. University of Denver, Morgridge College of
Education.
Pallant, J. (2005). SPSS survival manual: A step guide to data analysis using SPSS.
Schatschneider, C., Fletcher, J. M., Francis, D. J., Carlson, C. D., & Foorman, B. R. (2004).
Kindergarten prediction of reading skills: A longitudinal comparative analysis.
Journal of Educational Psychology, 96(2), 265.
Scholastic Testing Service, Inc. (2004). School Readiness Test User Manual. Illinois 601061617
Solley, Bobbie A. (2007). On Standardized Testing: An ACEI Position Paper, Childhood
Education, 84:1, 31-37, DOI: 10.1080/00094056.2007.10522967

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Tabachnick, B. G., & Fidell, L. S. (2001). Using multivariate statistics (4th edn.). New York:
HarperCollins.
Tienken, Christopher H. (2015). Test Use and Abuse, Kappa Delta Pi Record, 51:4, 155-158,
DOI: 10.1080/00228958.2015.1089617
Wiliam, Dylan. (2010). Standardized Testing and School Accountability, Educational
Psychologist, 45:2, 107-122, DOI: 10.1080/00461521003703060

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Usage Application of Multimedia for Learning Values of Thai Literature to Develop
Learning Achievement for High School Students
Kittipong Phumpuang, Naresuan University, Thailand
Patcharin Buranakorn, Huachiew Chalermprakiet University, Thailand
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
Official Conference Proceedings
Abstract
This qualitative research had designed multimedia materials for efficient learning of Thai
Literature in high school students. The created multimedia materials were based on fourclassical Thai Literature, including Niras-phukhao-thong; Phra-aphai-manee; Lilit-taleng-phai;and Ma-tha-na-pha-tha. 540 Thai high school students, from three schools, were experimented
in using the designed materials. Scores of learning achievement of students after using themultimedia were significantly high, 0.05 statistic level, compared to the pre-test. Eightprocesses of producing the multimedia materials were: 1) producing the storyboard; 2)storyboard reviewing by scholars; 3) storyboard revising; 4) discussion on contents and media;
5) multimedia materials designing; 6) production of the materials; 7) materials assessment byscholars; and 8) adjustment and completion of the materials. Evaluation of the completedmaterials, by scholars, was excellent and efficient for using in class.
Keywords: Multimedia, Learning Achievement, Thai Literature

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
The current information technology society, compiling of modern knowledge and broad
communications technology, assists people to access knowledge and self-development throughvarious learning materials and knowledge resources. The 2020 - 2022 strategic plan of the Fundfor Educational Technology Development, the second strategy, stated three measures inapplying information and communications technology (ICT) for teaching and learning in orderto achieve the strategy as the following: 1) to promote and enhance opportunity to and equalityof efficient education for all-age learners and the public by digital technology (or DigitalSociety). 2) To create media and compile media banks; digital resources; and media
convergence for lifelong learning accessible by the public through telecommunication andbroadcasting systems. 3) To develop potentiality of the public to apply digital technology
usefully and creatively and to be able to analyze and digest information of the broad and free
digital society. (Secretarial Office, Fund for Educational Technology Development, Ministryof Education. 2020: 46-47)
To conform teaching of Thai language to the strategic plan above, information andcommunications technology (ICT) and educational technology are required, for example
Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI); Web Based Instruction (WBI); Electronic Learning (elearning); Mobile Learning (m-learning), and so on. The popular and most used technology
applied for teaching and learning is multimedia, which refers to the use of computers andsoftware to convey meanings through various media, such as colorful text; graphic pictures;motion pictures; sound effects; and videos. This multimedia technology could be interactive
by users controlling or reacting to the media through keyboards; mouses or pointers. (Pallop
Piriyasurawong. 1999: 12) Multimedia seems to make lessons lively and interesting.
Three merits of multimedia materials include: 1) they allow learners to respond promptly tolessons, and reactions could be assessed right away. 2) Multimedia materials effectively occupy
attention of learners and assist them to consequently achieve learning objectives. 3) They are
handy for both teachers and learners; also some multimedia materials could differentiate
learners since they emphasize on individual learning or teaching oneself. Creating multimedia
materials is significant; they are required to correspond to the lessons and learning objectives.
For learning Thai literature, various contents and objectives are studied, including aesthetic
and social values and importantly the moral of stories. Producing multimedia materials forlearning Thai literature would be greatly beneficial for appreciation of Thai literature andeffectively motivate awareness of its three aspects of values, aesthetic; social; and moral, forhuman lives.
Based on stated statements, the researchers desired to create multimedia materials for learning
Thai literature in order to gain high learning achievement for high school students. The
research question aimed to find out how multimedia materials for learning Thai literature affectthe learning achievement of high school students.
Research Objectives
1.
To create standardized multimedia materials for learning Thai literature of high school
students
2.
To develop learning achievement of high school students in Thai literature by efficient
multimedia materials

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Research Hypothesis
1.
The created multimedia materials for learning Thai literature is standardized, achieving
the benchmark of 80/80
2.
The post-test learning achievement of the sample group in Thai literature after
application of the created multimedia materials is higher than the pre-test
Scope of Research
1.

Population and Sample Group

1.1
Population – 540 high school students, 270 from M1 – M3 levels and 270 from M4 –M6 levels.
1.2
Sample group – the population was purposively selected from three schools including
Rachawinit Bangkane School, Bangkok; Ratanathibate School, Nontaburi; and Rachawinit
Suvarnabhumi, Samutprakarn.
2.

Scope of Content

Four classical Thai literature were selected for designing multimedia materials, including
Niras-phukhao-thong; Phra-aphai-manee; Lilit-taleng-phai; and Ma-tha-na-pha-tha.
3.

Related Variables

3.1
Primary variable – the created multimedia materials of Thai literature
3.2
Dependent variable – the higher learning achievement of Thai literature of the highschool students after using the created multimedia materials
Terms and Definitions
1.
Development of learning referred to changes of forms; methods; techniques; steps; andprocesses of learning and teaching to be more efficient.
2.
Values of Thai literature referred to three aspects of value, including aesthetic; social;
and moral, students gained after learning literary works
3.
Multimedia materials referred to composing of various media, text; images; animatedpictures; sound; and videos, through computing processes aiming to interactively convey
meanings to learners and assist them to achieve learning objectives.
Research Methodology and Processes
1.

Research tools

1.1
1.2
1.3

an evaluation form of multimedia materials for learning Thai literature
exercises in the form of multimedia materials for learning Thai literature
pre-test and post-test forms on multimedia materials for learning Thai literature

2.

Research processes

2.1
Storyboards on learning classical Thai literature, four titles, were designed and createdas multimedia materials.

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2.2
The multimedia materials were assessed and commented by scholars.
2.3
Completed multimedia materials were produced and ready for being applied on thesample groups.
2.4
The multimedia materials on four classical Thai literature were used after the sample
groups completed the pre-test, and then the post-test was evaluated.
Expected Benefits
Efficient multimedia materials on four classical Thai literature, increasing learningachievement, were expected to be obtained.
Research Results
1.

Multimedia materials production and assessment

1.1

Production of the multimedia materials

Firstly, the storyboard presenting contents of the four classical Thai literature, in the scopeguided by research consultants, was made by experienced teachers of Thai language andeducational technology experts. Then, resources were gathered for the production. Typicalforms and techniques used in producing the multimedia materials were captions, graphic
pictures, cartoons, animations, photos, motion pictures, and videos; and sound recording ofpoems reading and voices of narration. Many computer programs were applied in creating thecompleted materials, for example the Photoshop; video making; sound mixing; animation
creating; interactive making; and flash animation, etc.
1.2

The designed multimedia materials

Each of four classical Thai literature was distinctively studied and designed in multimedia
forms; details were as the following.
1.2.1

Niras-phukhao-thong

The route and its narration according to the poems in Niras-phukhao-thong were made in a
multimedia map form showing the journey from Bangkok to Ayudhaya along Chaopraya River.
Also, a matching game was designed as exercises.
1.2.2

Phra-aphai-manee

A video presenting a visit to the Thai Human Imagery Museum in Nakornprathom guided by
Sinsamut, a character in Phra-aphai-manee, focusing on characters and stories of the literature
was made. A designed matching game in multimedia form was added as exercises.
1.2.3

Lilit-taleng-phaiParts of Khan Kluay, a 3D computer-animated film, relating to King Naresuan the Great weremade as video clips to present stories and contents of Lilit-taleng-phai. Multiple choice andsubjective exercises were added, as well.

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Ma-tha-na-pha-tha

Video clips from the play Ma-tha-na-pha-tha were made to present stories and contents of theliterature; and exercises, multiple choice and subjective, were also added.
1.3

Assessment of the multimedia materials

When all created multimedia materials were produced, three scholars, research consultants,
provided evaluations and comments, details as the table number 1.
Table 1: The Results of the Assessment of the Quality of Mixed Media for Learning theValue of Thai Literature
Title
1

Title
2

Title
3

Title
4

Average score1.1 Academic faithfulness

4.67

4.33

4.33

4.67

4.50

1.2 Objectives-oriented

4.00

4.33

4.67

4.67

4.42

1.3 Content adequacy for learners

4.67

4.67

5.00

4.33

4.67

Title
1

Title
2

Title
3

Title
4

Average score2.1 Grammatical correctness

4.00

4.67

4.33

4.33

4.33

2.2 Language appropriateness

4.67

4.33

4.00

4.67

4.42

3.1 Righteous and understandable

4.33

4.33

4.00

4.33

4.25

3.2 Attractive and approachable

4.67

5.00

5.00

4.33

4.75

3.3 Efficient sound effects

4.67

5.00

4.33

4.33

4.58

4.1 Creative, unique and inspiring

4.67

4.67

4.33

4.67

4.59

4.2 Presentable and beneficial

4.67

5.00

4.33

4.33

4.58

4.50

4.63

4.43

4.47

4.51

Aspects of Assessment
1. Contents

Aspects of Assessment
2. Language usage

3. Presentation techniques

4. Creativity

Average score

After the assessment, all comments were taken to improve the created multimedia materials
and to make them completed for the application with learners. According to the evaluation, it
was noticeable that all created multimedia materials for the four classical Thai literature gained
high scores in all aspects. Two causes noted were 1) the created multimedia materials weretrendy, matched interests of learners and made the classical literature lively on computer media.
2) The research consultants particularly concerned on the storyboard presenting contents of thefour literature. Comments, corrections and suggestions were provided in detail and thoroughly,

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so the created multimedia materials profoundly presented three major values, aesthetic; social;
and moral, of the four classical literature.
2.

Application of the Created Multimedia Materials

The created multimedia materials were applied with the sample group, purposively selected, of
540 students from three high schools, including Rachawinit Bangkane School, Bangkok;
Ratanathibate School, Nontaburi; and Rachawinit Suvarnabhumi, Samutprakarn. The sample
group was divided into two levels: 270 students (90 from each school) were M1 to M3 level;
another 270 students (90 from each school) were M4 to M6 level.
2.1

Efficiency of the Multimedia Materials

Assessments of the created multimedia materials were evaluated twice, once after some lessons
and another after all lessons completed. The result was shown as the table 2.
Table 2: The Effectiveness of Multimedia Materials for Learning the Value of Thai Literature
M1 – M3 Level
M4 – M6 Level
Average
Benchmark
School School School School School School
(𝐱)
1
2
3
1
2
3
Early
lessons
Lessons
completed

84.90

90.79

86.02

89.47

88.98

86.09

87.71

80

88.42

89.10

90.00

86.04

89.80

90.83

89.03

80

The average score of the first evaluation, on process learning, was 87.71% while the second
evaluation, learning completed, was 89.03%. This meant that efficiency of the createdmultimedia materials was 87.71/89.03, compared to the benchmark of 80/80. So, the first
hypothesis was proved true, the efficiency of the created multimedia materials was higher thanthe benchmark.
2.2

Learning Achievement by the Multimedia Materials

To show the learning achievement resulted from the created multimedia materials, students
took the pre-test before the application and the post-test after the learning completed.
Table 3: Comparison of Learners' Learning Achievement of Thai Literature Value Before andAfter Learning with Multimedia Materials Learning Thai Literature Value
M1 – M3 Level
M4 – M6 Level
AveragSchool Schoo Schoo School School Schoo
e (𝐱)
1
l2
l3
1
2
l3
Pre-test

11.58

8.35

17.09

16.67

12.67

17.22

13.93

Post-test

26.53

28.71

28.71

26.84

26.94

27.25

27.50

The result, as the table number 3 shown, proved the second hypothesis true that the post-testscore was significantly higher than the pre-test score, at 0.05 statistic level.

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Conclusion
The created multimedia materials for efficient learning Thai literature passed the evaluation
criteria. After application of the materials, the post-test scores showed significantly different,
0.05 points, from the pre-test scores. Both factors reflected efficacy of the created multimedia
materials, which were well designed by related scholars, including lecturers of classical Thai
literature; educational technology experts; and research consultants. Also, since the planningstage the researchers had studied and surveyed problems and requirements of learners, and thenheld a discussion with experienced teachers of Thai literature in order to gain importantteaching techniques according to the curriculum. From the meeting with educational
technology experts and scholars of Thai literature, the created multimedia materials were
designed to emphasize on three important values, aesthetic; social; and moral. These made thecreated multimedia materials unique and efficient.
Discussion
In conclusion, the created multimedia materials were made by various techniques, including
drawing of characters; video making; game designing; making of cartoons, animation, motion
pictures, graphic pictures; applying clips from movies, plays, television dramas; soundrecording of talks, conversations, poems; and so on. The research results were agreeable with
Sucharit P. and Saijai I. (1995: 230 – 238) who stated the idea that since Thai literature is akind of cultural heritage, so learning of Thai literature should be emphasized on inspiring
appreciation on its values, and appropriate media should be applied for the efficient learning.
Also, the research results corresponded with some relevant researches on application oftechnological media for learning Thai literature. For example, Learning Achievement of the Six
Hats Teaching Method Compared to the Normal Teaching Method with Computer Assisted
Instruction (CAI) on Guan Yu Allying Cao Cao, an Episode in Romance of Three Kingdoms,of High School Students (M6) by Songrith C. (2010); Lessons on Ma-nus-bhum, a Part in Tribhum-pra-ruang by Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) for High School Students (M6) byPimnicha P. (2010); and Multimedia Lessons on Ramayana by Computer Assisted Instruction(CAI) for High School Students (M3) by Piyoros M. (2007). Results of the three mentioned
researches stated that after learning Thai literature through technological media, learners
gained positive attitude toward Thai literature and high learning achievement since the media
attracted good attention from learners. In conclusion, along with other relevant researches, theresults of this research reinforced the notion that technological media well assisted inconveying meanings, contents, and values of Thai literature. This suggested that by the supportof technological media, the values of Thai literature would be granted to endless generations.
Suggestions
1.
A research on Enhancing Knowledge of Producing Multimedia Materials for Learning
Thai Literature for Primary School and High School Teachers should be conducted.
2.
A research on Enhancing Knowledge of Producing Multimedia Materials for Learning
Thai Literature for Teachers Teaching Thai Language to Foreigners should be conducted.

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References
Pallop P. (1999). Multimedia Designing and Developing by Different Learning Controls.
Ph.D. Thesis (Educational Technology), Bangkok: Graduate School, Srinakharinwirot
University.
Pimnicha P. (2010). Lessons on Ma-nus-bhum, a Part in Tri-bhum-pra-ruang by Computer
Assisted Instruction (CAI) for High School Students (M6). Master of Education Thesis(Teaching of Thai Language), Nakornprathom: Graduate School, Silpakorn
University.
Piyoros M. (2007). Multimedia Lessons on Ramayana by Computer Assisted Instruction(CAI) for High School Students (M3). Master of Education Thesis (Educational
Technology), Bangkok: Graduate School, Srinakharinwirot University.
Secretarial Office, Fund for Educational Technology Development, Ministry of Education.
(2020). 2020 – 2022 Strategic Plan, Fund for Educational Technology Development,
Bangkok: Ministry of Education.
Songrith C. (2010). Learning Achievement of the Six Hats Teaching Method Compared to theNormal Teaching Method with Computer Assisted Instruction (CAI) on Guan Yu
Allying Cao Cao, an Episode in Romance of Three Kingdoms, of High SchoolStudents (M6). Master of Education Thesis (Teaching of Thai Language),
Nakornprathom: Graduate School, Silpakorn University.
Sucharit P. and Saijai I. (1995). How to Teach Thai Language to High School Students. 2nd
ed. Bangkok: Chulalongkorn University Press.

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Technical Vocation Education and Training (TVET) in Changing Times, a Critical View
of Prior Learning as a Link to Entrepreneurship and Employment
Christopher Momanyi, Strathmore University, Kenya
Andrew Rasugu Riechi, University of Nairobi, Kenya
Ibrahim Wafula Khatete, University of Nairobi, Kenya
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Abstract
For many countries, lifelong learning is a key component to building the human capital that is
innovative and competitive in the fast-changing global economy. Most people’s learning takeplace through non-formal and informal means, whether at work, home, or elsewhere. In many
developing countries with their high school dropout rates, majority of people acquire workplaceskills through informal means. Education and training play a fundamental role in Kenya’s
development, it is not possible for any country to achieve sustainable economic advancement
without a substantial investment in education and training. People improve the quality of theirlives if their productivity improves by adopting entrepreneurship and uptake of technology.
Artisans need to be trained to have an entrepreneurial attitude, measured by their opportunity
recognition, risk cognition, start-up skills and networking. Entrepreneurial abilities arereflected by technology absorption, opportunity start-up and human capital. An entrepreneurial
attitude is a distinctive strategy and implies process innovation, product innovation, highgrowth, risk capital and internationalisation. This research paper critically views prior learning
as a link to entrepreneurship and employment by presenting analysed data collected over athree-month period from Jua Kali artisans operating in the Eastlands of Nairobi, Kenya. The
analysed data presents Jua Kali artisans’ business management skills and how it affects their
Performance. This research paper is a critical view of prior learning as the missing link toentrepreneurship and employment creation in a changing world.
Keywords: Prior Learning, Informal Sector, Technical Vocation Education and Training,
Entrepreneurship, Employment

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
With more jobs being created in the informal sector due to its expansion coupled with the fastgrowing technological landscape. There is need to provide artisans with reskilling andupskilling pathways towards new employment. Identification of skills gaps, development andhoning of these skills by government and other skills providers by embracing Recognition ofPrior Learning (RPL) will improve artisan’s skills since most of them have acquired their skills
through apprenticeship in the informal sector. Entrepreneurship and IT skills are often ignoredby skills providers and yet they are crucial and necessary in the growth of the informal sectorbusinesses. This research is a critique of prior learning as a link to entrepreneurship andemployment.
1.

Background to the Study

People are learning constantly wherever they find themselves thus they accumulate knowledge
skills and competencies throughout their lives beyond the formal learning settings such as
vocational learning institutions, schools, and universities. There is need to establish assessment
systems of what people have learnt outside educational systems, the modern working
environment requires lifelong learning in different contexts and diverse situations (Boahin,
2018: 26-33). Internationally, there is a concern about youth unemployment and the need toenhance skills training among the youth to enhance their employability (Niall, 1997). The ILO(2020;1-12) has raised this concern and asked the international community to come up with
policies aiming at generating decent work opportunities for all with an emphasis in facilitating
the transition from education and training to work for young people. In most cases learning isdeemed to take place in formal settings and environments, but there is also a lot of learning
taking place in informal setups (Magidi and Mahiya, 2021:5-12). There are people who cannot
put their acquired learning into full use because they are unable to prove their capabilities easily
to others especially those who work in the informal sector. Workers in the informal sector
neither have income nor the time to afford training, their potential in productive capacity is
reduced (Bardak and Rosso, 2019). Recognition of informal and non-formal learning does notcreate human capital, but recognition helps the stock of human capital to be more visible andvaluable to the wider society. Recognition provides validation of competencies which in turnfacilitate entry to formal learning, it provides greater visibility and value of the outcomes andcompetencies of people in the labour market. It makes it easier for workers and employers tomatch skills to jobs (Braňka,2016;18-26). Recognition involves identification anddocumentation, ascertaining/establishing what someone knows or can do, validation and finallycertification. There is evidence that there is a skill-mismatch and skills gap in many countries(Jayaram, et al, 2017:55-75). However very little has been done in the case of Kenya to identify
the skill mismatches and the skill gaps regarding the requirements of industries.
1.1.

The SDGs and Technical Vocational Education

One path to gain skills is through Vocational Education and training (TVET). Vocational
education through TVET is understood as training for skills development relating to a variety
of fields, for instance, for services and production. TVET can take place at secondary, postsecondary and tertiary as part of lifelong learning as asserted by UNESCO-UNEVOC(2020:12-41). Under the millennium development goals (MDGs), the world achieved
tremendous progress. However, some MDGs have not been achieved and hence the emergenceof Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The informal sector encompasses a diverse andhuge phenomenon in a variety of forms across many economies, it constitutes 90% of SMEs

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worldwide. It is a major characteristic of labour markets worldwide employing millions ofpeople in conditions of informality (ILO, 2021). Many of the SDGs can be achieved throughSDG number 4 (quality education) and SDG number 8 (decent work and economic growth)through quality education (Srinivas, 2021). The technical and vocational education can address
the issue of skills shortage to achieve the SDGs. With right polices and skill strategies, TVET
can be a means of transmitting the right mind-set and attitude among TVET trainees (ILO,
2021).
1.2.

Technical and Vocational Education and Training in the Times of COVID-19

Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) was affected during the COVID-19
pandemic,1.2 billion students were affected by school closures, they had to take classes
remotely (Hoftijzer et al, 2020). However, the learning alternatives which were explored, could
not replace the face-to-face classes. Given that TVET emphasizes on work-based learning andacquisition of practical skills. Learning outside the classroom was affected by lack of access toelectricity, internet connectivity, devices, or media, learning platforms and the ill preparationof instructors and student for remote learning (ILO and World Bank, 2021). The TVET students
remote learning got complicated since TVET learning focuses on practical skills and workreadiness which made remote learning particularly challenging. Practical learning requires
learning-by-doing, in school-based workshops and laboratories or through hands-on experienceat the workplace (Hoftijzer et al, 2020). During the pandemic, the digital divide between ruraland urban areas was noticed, learners living in remote arears did not benefit from remotelearning due to connectivity issues and lack of devices. Effective distance learning platforms
and quality of pedagogical resources to support remote learning and instruction were lacking
in TVET institutions especially deploying them in a national scale. TVET instructors were notprepared for remote instruction due to lack of preparedness besides low digital skills (ILO andWorld Bank, 2021). The sudden swift from face-to-face learning to online learning and thenoticed inconsistencies in access to distance learning modules have the likely hood ofdeepening inequalities among learners in terms of access and quality of training.
1.3.

Impact of Covid 19 on the Informal Sector

Due to the containment measures put in place by various governments to reduce the spread of
COVID 19, about 2 billion workers and business owners in the informal economy stopped
working as working remotely was not an option. At the same time, they were faced with thedilemma of dying from hunger or from the virus (ILO, 2020a). It is estimated that by April
2020 close to 1.1 billion workers in the informal sector lived in countries that had a full
lockdown and an additional 304 million in countries that had a partial lockdown. These workers
represent 67% of informal sector employment. With full, partial, and weak measures to control
the spread of covid 19, estimates show that 76% of employment in the informal sector
worldwide was significantly affected by the lockdown measures (ILO, 2020a).
The covid 19 pandemic affected small craftsmen such as mechanic, carpenters, fabricators etc
who constitute 40% of total informal employment worldwide, but more than two thirds indeveloping countries (ILO, 2020b). Measures by some governments to support income andsustain economic fabric were out of reach for business owners and worker in the informal
sector. Without social protection, legal recognition, provision of stimulus packages or businesssubsidies, tax breaks and other income protection measures, the informal sector was severely
affected by the pandemic. The informal economy plays a great role in skills training for many
young people, whom it is the only way to acquire relevant skills for the world of work (ILO,

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2020b). The covid 19 pandemic slowed the informal sector economy growth and theacquisition of skills.
2.

The Informal Sector and Skills Training

The informal sector is directly and indirectly addressed in the Structural Development Goal
number eight which addresses “sustained inclusive and sustainable economic growth full andproductive employment and decent work for all". It is estimated that half of the world’s
population lives in poverty (US$2 a day). In many places having a job does not guarantee one
the ability to escape poverty, many people work in substandard working conditions which often
are related to poverty, inequality, and discrimination (ILO, 2020c). Growth of employment in
the informal sector is dependent on rates in territorial, cross-industry and intersectoral
employee mobility between formal and informal sectors which affect the sustainable
development of the economy and the labour market. The study of territorial and dynamic
features of employment in the informal sector of regional labour markets is very important,because the growth of the informal sector has an impact on the productivity, living standards,
income and tax revenues and leads to the growth of the informal sector employment(Karpushkina et al, 2021). The informal sector constitutes about 80% of the total workforce in
Kenya (Okungu and McIntyre, 2019), the Mercy corps estimate the informal sector toconstitute 83.6 % (14.9 million workers) of the working population (Mercy corps, 2019). Oneof the main activities taking place in the informal sector in Kenya is skills training.
2.1

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)

Many people are disadvantaged in the absence of recognised qualifications in getting decent
jobs, accessing further education, even though they may have necessary skills and knowledge.
Recognition of prior learning (RPL) can help skilled people who don’t have any recognition
for their skills acquire formal qualifications that match their skills and knowledge. Once skilled
people are certified for their skills and knowledge, they can improve their employability, social
inclusion, and self-esteem. Increasing the prospect for inclusion in the labour market helps
employers access skilled personnel and the government have better assurances ofcompetitiveness, economic growth, social inclusion, and equity, many countries have
implemented RPL systems (Ashwani, 2015). Without recognized qualifications, many young
people face serious disadvantages regarding finding decent jobs, migrating to other regions,and accessing further education. Most formal education systems do not recognize nonformal
and informal learning. Lack of recognition of skills acquired through nonformal and informalmeans hinders human capital development and leads to its under-utilization.
Prior Learning (RPL), also known as Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) is aprocess used to identify, assess, and certify RPL candidate’s knowledge, skills andcompetencies acquired in non-formal or informal learning, such as work or life experiences,against prescribed standards or learning outcomes (Republic of Kenya, 2020). Most countries
are recognizing that learning is continuous, it does not take place in the classroom alone but insector wide and sector deep both in formal, informal, and non-formal settings. The concept of
RPL is defined differently in different countries due to the differences in usage and strategies
of implementation (ILO,2018). From the beginning of the current millennium, both indeveloping and developed countries Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) has been receiving
renewed attention. Due to globalization and migration, there is increased need for mechanisms
for recognition of qualifications across borders. There is an increased emphasis on lifelong
learning, as more and more people desire to upgrade their skills set for relevance. Attention to

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the informal economy has given rise to renewed interest in RPL and its potential to help in themove towards formalization (ILO, 2018).
Recognition of prior learning (RPL) is the process used in identifying, assessing, and certifying
a candidate’s knowledge, skills and competencies acquired in a non-formal or informal
learning, such as from work or life experiences against prescribed standards or learning
outcomes (Republic of Kenya, 2020). Recognition of prior learning is multi-contextual,mobility, entry into a learning institution for further learning, personal development,
advancement in the workplace credit award to a qualification and self-esteem. People who fit
in the RPL are; retirees, people in the informal sector, youth out of school, educated people,
asylum seekers, and people who have never been to school. Recognition of Prior Learning
process considers one’s existing work experience, existing qualifications, and life skills
experience. Underpinning the RPL is the concept of lifelong learning which is active,
voluntary, ongoing, and self-motivated pursuit of knowledge to develop oneself to be able tosolve problems in life and employment (ILO, 2015).
2.2

Unemployment in Kenya

Kenya has made some notable progress in poverty reduction in the last two decades, moreneeds to be done. The reduction of poverty levels from 52.3 % in 1997/98 to 36.1 % in 2015/16
is commendable, these poverty levels are still too high, more efforts are needed to reduce it
further. The poverty rate among Kenyan youth is estimated at 29.1% (Kippra, 2020;1-3). The
United Nations defines youth as the age-group between fifteen and twenty-four inclusive,
which is the mostly used definition in employment statistics. Youth is also understood as thetransition from dependence of childhood to adulthood independence. Youth in relation toeducation and employment is a person leaving compulsory education and finding his first job.
An unemployed person is one who has not worked for one hour during the short reference
period and is available for and actively seeking work (UN,2020; ILO, 2020:18-78).
Kenya’s population below the age of 35 years is estimated at 75%, which is an asset if trainedin skills (KNBS, 2019). Kenya’s unemployment rate is estimated at 22.2% for those in the agegroup between 15 and 24 years (UN, 2017). From the MoEST- National Education Sector Plan
(2015), 89% of all those entering the labour market have no formal training and hence lackskills, this constitutes 1.2 million youth who enter the labour market without any formal
training or skills.
2.3

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) in Kenya

In Kenya there are concerns about skills mismatch between the skills youth acquire and labour
requirements which make it difficult for the young people to succeed in the world of work. The
National Industrial Training Authority (NITA) has been conducting RPL assessment since
1959, under certain local and overseas training schemes for artisan trade tests, craft, andtechnician certificate courses, identified leadership courses and various apprenticeships forworkers already engaged in Industry. This policy is expected to enable the national
coordination and harmonization of RPL activities focusing on research, support, awareness andpublicity, advocacy, and the mainstreaming of RPL in the Kenyan Education and Training
Legal Framework.
The Kenya National Qualifications Authority (KNQA) as an institution is established under
the Kenya National Qualifications Framework Act No. 22 of 2014. Section 5 (1) and Section

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8 (1) of the KNQF Act. This authority is tasked with the co-ordination, supervision,development of policies on national qualifications at the same time develop a system forassessment of national qualifications. The authority is also tasked with the recognition of
attainment of competencies including skills, knowledge, attitudes, and values, promote therecognition of national qualifications internationally. Prior learning is a response to equitableeducation and training system that facilitates access, mobility, progression, and fair chances tothe disadvantaged, discouraged and traditionally marginalized groups.
Many young people in Kenya end their formal education prematurely and end up lacking
foundational skills necessary to succeed on the job. Only 17.97% of Kenya Certificate ofSecondary Education (KCSE) graduates proceed to universities and 82.03% join TechnicalVocation and Training (TVET) institutions and the informal sector as apprentices. In 2019 a
total of 689,007 candidates sat the KCSE and out of this number only 18% (125,463) attained
a grade C+ and above and thus secured placement in universities as government-sponsored
students. The remaining 563,544 (82%) were eligible for placement in TVET institutions topursue diploma, craft certificates and Artisan Certificate levels. In 2020, a total of 737,527
candidates sat the KCSE examination, 142,540 (19.3%) attained the minimum university entry
grade of C+ of which 128,073(17.4%) were placed to join public universities and 6,617(0.9%)
TVETA institutions. The remaining 602,837 (81.7%) were not placed (Oduor, 2021), it isnormally assumed that they will join artisan and craft courses. However, TVET courses do not
attract many students, the majority join the informal sector directly and acquire skills throughapprenticeship. Historically, most Kenyans desire to join universities so that they attainqualifications that will enable them secure white-collar jobs rather than join TVET institutions(Momanyi and Riechi, 2017).
The government of Kenya allocated kshs 300 million in the year 2018/2019 for loans to TVET
applicants to apply and get allocated for courses of their choices in TVET institutions in Kenya.
In the year 2019 only 6,199 applicants expressed interest in getting a TVET loan from theHigher Education Loans Board (HELB). The uptake of this allocation is very low, only 10% is
allocated each year meaning that a whooping kshs 270 million remains unused (Ainea, 2019).
Graduates from high school prefer to join the informal sector to gain skills throughapprenticeship, it is estimated that 90% do not proceed to university nor join TVET institutions
but join the informal sector directly.
2.4

Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA)

Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA) has developed Prior
Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) standards and guidelines. These guidelines will
now allow individuals, especially the uncertified artisans in the Jua Kali sector to gain
recognition of their prior learning skills and experience. Most of the artisans in the informal
sector have acquired and perfected various skills through apprenticeship and ‘learning on thejob’ without pursuing any formal training in a learning institution. This means that they do nothave certificates that can enable them to seek employment in the formal sector or even registercompanies. However, now with the development of PLAR standards and guidelines, the skilled
labour in the informal sector will be brought into the mainstream labour market (Republic of
Kenya, 2020).

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Adaptation of TVET in Changing Times

UNESCO (2002) refers to TVET as those aspects of the training in addition to general
education that involve the study of technologies and related sciences to acquire practical skills,
attitudes understating, and knowledge related to various occupations in the economic and social
life. Way back in 2013, the ILO, UNESCO, the European Union, and the African Union
policymakers recommended that all countries should establish RPL (ILO, 2015). Studies frommany developing countries with a high school dropout rate, have shown that majority of young
people, acquire workplace skills by informal means rather than through formal means. It isreported that, the gross enrolment ratio for upper secondary education in low-income countries
is 29 per cent, of which only five per cent represent technical and vocational education (ILO,
2015).
The sweeping social changes taking place across the world caused by unprecedent economic
and social changes and the glowing influence of the effects of globalization is creating a new
picture of the current and future world. There is a demand for a shift from quantifying economic
returns as a criterion for success to emphasis on securing productive decent work for all (OED,2016). Since the last decade of the 20th Century, there has been numerous and diversified
initiatives to develop education in almost all countries. Most countries have come up withrigorous reforms and major developments at all levels of education (ILO, 2013). The United
Nations has adopted several global education initiatives to help develop societies andeconomies, among the initiatives is the Education For All (EFA), sustainable development
goals (SGDs) and the Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). The UN has contributed
to the development of Private-Public Partnerships (PPP) and the Life-Long Career Guidance
for all (LLCG). There are two main forms of education that have a particular role to play inthis context: Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and Entrepreneurship
Education (EPE) (UN, 2020).
2.6

Skills in the Informal Sector

Skills can be acquired through different pathways depending on the level of education,
vocational training or apprenticeship. The global human capital landscape is becoming more
complex and evolving more rapidly, partly because of the new wave of technologicalinnovations and the uncertainty surrounding the transition from education to employment(World Economic Forum, 2016). Skills training is a necessary requirement for globalizationand for the technological change needed to enhance technical training to keep step with thecourse of demands for highly skilled people (European Commission, 2017). Skills aremalleable; they can be developed through practice and reinforced through daily experiences, it
is possible to change to other skills or acquire others over the course of a lifetime (OECD,2016).
The fourth industrial revolution is sweeping the world and we are on the verge of the 5th
industrial revolution. Reports show a mismatch between skills sought by employers and thosethe youth have even though there is an increased access to education (World Bank, 2016).
Young people are disadvantaged for they are not being equipped with skills relevant to theprivate sector nor entrepreneurial skills. The modern age jobs require complex problem solving
as core skill by global trends. It is estimated that beyond the year 2020 about 40% of the world
economy will be supported by digital platforms (AfB, 2018).

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To unlock the potential of the informal apprenticeships, there is need to update the mastertrainer’s skills to be able to improve their training. Master trainers lack information, capacity
and incentives that are necessary to adapt to new workplace practices. This leads to apprentices
learning obsolete workplace practices. There is need to recognise informal apprenticeships by
the formal training systems. Due to lack of recognition, informal apprenticeships offer limited
labour market mobility. This challenge can be solved by integrating informal apprenticeships
into formal training system by allowing for the re-engagement of skills with further educationand training (World Bank, 2020).
The informal sector in Kenya employs approximately 80% of the total workforce, 60% areyouth between the age of 18 and 35 years. Of this, 50% are women (Republic of Kenya, 2017;
Murunga et al, 2021). The formal sector cannot absorb the increasing number of job seekers.
Therefore, it has emerged as an alternative source of employment to the increasing number ofyoung people moving from educational institutions. The total workforce is estimated to be 14.9
million workers of the working population (Mercy Corps, 2019). One of the main activities
taking place in the informal sector in Kenya is skills training. The informal sector expanded by
6% creating 14.5 million jobs in 2020 down from 13.3 million jobs in 2013. Almost two thirdsof these jobs were created in the rural areas (KNBS, 2018). Many basic education graduatesand dropouts enter jobs that have very little prospects. If training is offered, at an affordable
and effective rate it can offer away out (World Bank, 2020).
3.

Data Analysis

Besides technical skills, artisans need a variety of interpersonal skills among them people,
communication, and conceptual skills. There is need to unlock the potential of the informal
apprenticeships which is more urgent now than ever before. One of the main objectives of theresearch was to establish the business management skills of carpenters, plumbers, mechanics,
welders, painters, and electricians by interviewing to establish their business management
skills. The aim was to establish whether the artisans had business plans, kept business records,
had KRA pins, gave branded receipts to their customers, branded their businesses, and hadbank accounts for their businesses. A total of 481 artisans were interviewed for the researchusing an interview schedule.
From the Kenya Labour Market Information System (klmis) survey of 2019, it was noted that
53% of those engaged in the informal sector are men while 47% are women. The men work in
trade, repairs, and manufacturing while women are mainly in the provision of food services
and salons. The most preferred skills by employers in order of preference were financial skills,
record keeping, marketing skills, managerial skills, Technical (job specific skills, customer
care, ICT skills, Communication skills and life skills. The data captured covers all the ten
ranked skills.
Table 1. Skills Most Preferred by Employers in the Informal Sector
Rank
Skill
1
Financial skills
2
Record keeping
3
Marketing skills
4
Managerial skills
5
Technical (job specific)
skills6
Customer care

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7
ICT skills
8
Communication skills
9Life skills
Adapted from the Labour Demand/Informal Sector Skills and Occupations Survey (2019) by
the Kenya labour information system survey (klmis).
Table 1. Skills preferred by employers in the informal sector in order of preference.
Data from the research was analysed based on the means through which the artisans gained
their skills and is summarised in table 3.2 below.
Table 2. How the Jua Kali Artisans Gained Their Skills
Means through which
Not certified
Certified for
artisans gained their skills
for their skills
their skills
Through apprenticeship415
0
By attending TVET Institution
61
61
Trained by former employer
50
Source: data obtained from administration of research instrument (Nov 2020-April 2021).
Table 2. Means through which the artisans gained their skills and certification for the skills.
The artisans who acquired their skills by attending TVET institutions are certified for theirskills whereas those who gained their skills informally are not certified for the skills they have.
Attending a technical institution is synonymous with gaining skills and getting certified for theskills. Gaining skills in the informal sector thorough apprenticeship is synonymous withgaining skills with no certification.
Table 3. Summary of Business Management Skills by Artisans
Manifestation of Business
Gained their skills Gained skills in the
management skills byin a TVET
informal sector
artisans
institution
throughapprenticeship
Frequency%
Frequency%
Have business plans
2
4.2
0
0.0
Keep business records
1
2.1
1
2.1
Have KRA pin for business
3
6
1
2.1
Give branded receipts
3
6
2
4.2
Have bank a/c for business
3
6
1
2.1
Business is branded
3
6
3
6
Source: data obtained from administration of research instrument (Nov 2020-April 2021).
Table 3. Data in frequencies and percentages on the Jua Kali artisan’s business management
skills.
4.
Comparison Between Artisans Who Gained Skills Formally and Those Who
Gained Them Informally
A Comparison was made between Jua Kali artisans who gained their skills by attending a
TVET institution and those who acquired their skills through apprenticeship to establish whichgroup is better than the other in business management skills. Data obtained is summarised intable 3.4 below.

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Table 4. Summary of Artisans Who Own Businesses, Work as Casuals and Those Who Are
Trainers.
No. of artisans
Artisans under training
112
Artisans working as casuals
77
Artisans who own businesses
251
Artisans who were trainers
128
Source: data obtained from administration of research instrument (Nov 2020 to April 2021)
Table 4. Artisan’s engagement in the informal sector as business owners, trainers, and casuals.
Out of 251 artisans who owned businesses, only 48 had gained their skills by attending a TVET
institution. Through random sampling, 48 other artisans were selected from those who gained
their skills through apprenticeship. Using a hypothesis testing using a Z- statistic, a test was
carried out to determine who between the two sets of artisans was better in business
management practices.
Ho, there is no significant difference in percentages in business management practices between
artisans who gained their skills through apprenticeship and those who gained their skills byattending a TVET institution., i.e.
𝑝" = 𝑝$H1, there is a significant difference in percentages business management practices between
artisans who gained their skills through apprenticeship and those artisans who gained theirskills by attending a TVET institution., i.e.
𝑝" ≠ 𝑝$
4.2 + 2.1 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 6𝑝" == 5.05%
6
0.0 + 2.1 + 2.1 + 4.2 + 2.1 + 6= 2.75%
6
Using the Z statistic for difference in proportions,𝑝" − 𝑝$𝑍=112𝑝3 (1 − 𝑝3 )( + )
𝑛
𝑛
𝑝$ =

"

$

Where.
𝑝3 =𝑝" − 𝑝$𝑛$ + 𝑛$In this case.
5.05 − 2.75
𝑝3 == 0.196+6
𝑍3 =5.05 − 2.75

2.3

= 10
√0.19 × 0.81 × 0.33
1
1
20.19(1 − 0.19)( + )6 6
At 1% level of significance the tabulated Z value ZT is 2.58

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There is no significant difference between the null hypothesis and the alternative hypothesis.
There is no significant difference between the Jua Kali artisans who gained their skills byattending a TVET institution and those who gained their skills through apprenticeship. The
means through which the artisans gained their skills does not influence their business
management practices.
4.1

Summary of the Findings

The research found out that those artisans who spent more time in the informal sector were
well established than those who had spent a short time. There is a vibrant skills training scheme
in the informal sector through the apprenticeship programme. The entry path for most artisans
is through apprenticeship to gain skills, working as casual to gain some income to buy business
implements for the business and starting one’s own business. This process takes an average offive years.
There are more artisans (86.28%) who gained their skills through apprenticeship. Only 12.68%
of the artisans gained their skills by attending a TVET institution and 1.04% were trained bytheir former employers in the formal sector. Most artisans preferred training by apprenticeshipthan by attending a TVET institution because it was more practical as compared to thetheoretical approach used by TVET institutions. The mode of payment is friendly as the ownersof business enterprises allow the new apprentices to pay in instalments or do work equivalent
to a certain amount of money.
Conclusion
In response to skill training concerns, education policy makers and individual TVET
institutions should acknowledge the growing trend where most of those who join the informal
sector prefer to gain their skills through apprenticeship than attend a TVET institution. The oldmethod of relying on TVET institutions as a measure of imparting relevant skills andcertification of those who gain these skills is no longer sufficient. A competency framework isnecessary, whereby there is emphasis on certification of the large number of artisans who are
not certified for their skills in the informal sector. The important thing should not be where or
how an artisan gained his skills but rather his competence to perform certain specific tasks.
Sensitisation and mounting reskill trainings should draw artisans to upgrade their skills andlearn entrepreneurial and IT skills which most lack because they are neither emphasized in
TVET institutions nor in the informal sector apprenticeships. If prior knowledge is inaccurate,
instructors should be retrained especially those already training through apprenticeship toimprove both their technical and pedagogical skills. Recognition of prior knowledge is noble,
but its implementation is the problem.

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References
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AfDB (2018). At the center of Africa’s transformation; Strategy for 2013–2022, (pp. 2-19).
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Bardak Ummuhan and Rosso Francesca (2019). Skills Development in the Informal Sector.
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Jayaram, Munge, Adamson, Sorrell, & Jain, (2017). Bridging the Skills Gap Innovations in
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Karpushkina, A.V.;Danilova, I.V.; Voronina, S.V.;Savelieva, I.P.(2021). Assessing the
Impact of Employment in the Informal Sector of the Economy on Labor Market
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Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (KIPPRA) (2020). Kenya Economic
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Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (2018). Economic Survey 2018. Government printer,
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Magidi Martin & Innocent T. Mahiya (2021). Rethinking training: the role of the informal
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Oduor Augustine (2021, August 18th). Top students pick TVET courses as 465,765 can't beaccounted for. The East African Standard.
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Contact email: cmomanyi@strathmore.edu
a.riechi@uonbi.ac.ke
ibrahim_khatete@uonbi.ac.ke

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Secondary ESL Teachers’ Beliefs, Strategies, and Experiences in Teaching Vocabulary
Ryan Dave Delos Reyes, Stella Maris College, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
Official Conference Proceedings
Abstract
The importance of vocabulary in language learning cannot be ignored, due to the significancethat it brings into the core foundation of second or foreign language learning. Due to thedeclining and poor performance of learners in language subjects in recent international andnational standardized examinations, this study explored the beliefs, strategies, andexperiences of secondary ESL teachers in the Philippines in teaching vocabulary. This
descriptive single case study included 17 secondary ESL teachers as participants and wereasked to answer an open-ended online questionnaire seeking to describe their beliefs,
strategies, and experiences in teaching vocabulary. For the purposes of confirmation andverification of participants’ responses, semi-structured interviews through online
conferencing platforms were also conducted. Anchored on the framework of Borg (2003), theparticipants’ beliefs mirror the strategies and experiences they were accustomed to inteaching and learning vocabulary while incorporating 21st century approaches such as
collaboration and autonomy-supportive language learning strategies.
Keywords: Vocabulary, Teaching and Learning Vocabulary, Teacher Cognition, ESL

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Vocabulary is an important feature of language learning. It is considered as eternallyfundamental in the acquisition of any language because it serves as a significant factor indeveloping language skills such as speaking and reading (Ying, Komachali & Khodareza, ascited in Choo, 2017; Laufer, as cited in Min, 2008; Yudintseva, 2015). In practice, learners
undergo various levels of vocabulary development from the simplest to the most complex. As
they mature, they encounter resources that aim to further enhance comprehension skills; on
one hand, others rely on the use of vocabulary-decoding resources.
To achieve this aim, English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers are expected to beknowledgeable in content, instruction, and theory. With a wide set of vocabulary, it would beremarkable to use reading materials to introduce vocabulary and strategize its delivery for
retention; however, activities or processes aiming to do so beyond the reading selections arequite non-evident. In some cases, students are perceived to lack vocabulary despite theexpectations set existing policies, especially in the higher levels. Likewise, despite having
ample resources and being taught of strategies to learn vocabulary, students tend to become
discouraged, hence, citing a potential problem in the processes that mediate the developmentof vocabulary (Iqbal & Komal, 2017), and tolerating in this capacity puts them at risk ofexperiencing difficulties in performing essential language skills.
Developing vocabulary is undoubtedly one of the very essential competencies language
learners must have. Recently, there is small success in exams assessing vocabulary
proficiency; for instance, the Philippines’ National Achievement Test (NAT) and the poor
performance in the reading comprehension of the 2018 Programme for International Student
Assessment (PISA) show that students are yet to be equipped in undertaking more complex
language learning tasks in higher levels. Also, there may be rising problems in mediators inneed for review. As an initial aid to a complex problem, this study described the beliefs,
strategies, and experiences of secondary ESL teachers in teaching vocabulary.
Research Questions
Specifically, this study aimed to answer the following questions:
1.
What are the beliefs evident among ESL teachers towards teaching vocabulary?
2.
What are the issues that ESL teachers experience in teaching vocabulary?
3.
What challenges do ESL teachers encounter in terms of:a.
the students’ interest in literary selections?
b.
the students’ attitudes towards literature-based language learning tasks?
4.
What methods in teaching vocabulary do ESL teachers find effective in the language
classroom?
The Importance of Vocabulary
Vocabulary is a chief element in language learning due to the fascination of how syntax isconstructed (Choo, 2017; Oxford, 2013), which shows how students can develop their earlycommunication skills, aside from grammar and pronunciation. Fahrurrozi (2017) and Hidayat(2016) each elaborated the vocabulary advantage of L1 speakers of English compared tothose whose L2 or L3 is English. Further, vocabulary is attributed to academic achievement
due to the dependency of essential language macro skills to the vocabulary foundation of a
student – for example, understanding the complexities of science-related fields (İlter, 2019;

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Lund & Johnson, 2013; Oxford, 2013; Pittman et al., 2018). Additionally, it is parallel to highliteracy rates. Perhaps, one of the most notable and ironic was the Philippines’ 2018 PISA
results, ranking the country last in reading comprehension despite being recognized as a“highly literate” country by UNESCO (Manlapig, 2020; Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, 2018; San Juan, 2019). Hence, vocabulary is fundamental acrossdisciplines, citing the need to comprehend the complexities of each.
Teachers’ Beliefs in Teaching Vocabulary
Defined as a state of mind people hold as true despite of many truths exposed, beliefs are
subjective to evaluation and judgment of an individual (Borg, 2001; Pajares, 1992). Figure 1
further explains that teachers’ beliefs are shaped through their previous experience ininstruction as students (Amiryousefi, 2015; Boston University School of Public Health,2019), therefore, mirrors their practice in the language classroom. To illustrate, if a teacher
learned vocabulary through extensive reading, then s/he may implement the same strategy tostudents because its effectivity is accepted through the teacher’s belief. Moreover, teachers’
practice and cognition continue to be mutually beneficial through factors like schooling,
actual classroom experience, and various contextual factors.

Figure 1: Schematic Conceptualization of Teaching (Borg, 2003)
Although vocabulary is considered by teachers as essential in attaining linguistic competence,
it is still overshadowed by grammar as the need for students to express certain words andexpressions appropriately is highlighted (Fan, et al, as cited in Gao & Ma, 2011). Moreover,
Chung (2018) and Mardali & Siyyari (2019) claim that little regard is given to vocabulary in
the language curriculum despite its essence and the same as their beliefs in vocabulary as notparallel with their practices. This neglect is argued by Riley, as cited in Amiryousefi (2015)
explaining when teachers and students possess the same beliefs in teaching and learning
vocabulary, it would eliminate misunderstanding and dissatisfaction, even, promoting a

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learner-centered experience. Since most learning environments nowadays are learnercentered, teachers facilitating vocabulary learning is much expected than providing a list ofwhat to learn. Eventually, students who are accountable to this experience are most likely to
become self-regulated learners who learn vocabulary on their own.
Literature as a Gauge in Learning Vocabulary
The role of literature both as an authentic material (Hişmanoğlu, 2005; Mart, 2016;
Puspitasari, 2016; Violetta-Irene, 2015) and its connection to cultural (Wales, as cited inMart, 2016) and linguistic competence have been long-established. Dole, et al. (1995),
supported by Horst (2005), Iqbal & Komal (2017), and Puspitasari (2016), claims that a
student who has extensive vocabulary can better understand new vocabularies in different
contexts while comprehending the text simultaneously. Also, it reduces students’ dependency
in other references to decode meanings and increases interest with literature as a gauge (Kooy& Chiu, 1998; Min, 2008; Violetta-Irene, 2015). With interest as a dependent variable inlearning vocabulary through literatures, teachers should also consider the difficulty level ofmaterials being given to students as anxiety and fear due to difficulty may arise and theconcept of modelling to students in boosting reading interest (Baker & Scher, as cited in
Estacio, 2012). Making use of these opportunities are in the hands of both the teacher andstudent. Although motivation may decline at some point, a collaborative effort is pointed asimportant as the role of vocabulary in language learning.
Methods
Name
T-1
T-2
T-3
T-4
T-5
T-6
T-7
T-8
T-9
T-10
T-11
T-12
T-13
T-14
T-15
T-16
T-17

Age
23
26
25
25
21
32
23
33
25
31
27
26
30
52
25
40
24

Highest degree attained
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Master’s degree
Bachelor’s degree
Doctorate degree
Bachelor’s degree
Table 1: Respondents’ Profile

Teaching experience
1-5 years
1-5 years
1-5 years
1-5 years
1-5 years
11-15 years
1-5 years
11-15 years
1-5 years
6-10 years
1-5 years
1-5 years
6-10 years
More than 25 years
1-5 years
11-15 years
1-5 years

A descriptive single-case study design was used to describe natural phenomenon, i.e. beliefs,
strategies, and experiences of ESL teachers in teaching vocabulary within the context ofPhilippine secondary ESL classrooms (Zainal, 2007). 17 respondents, teaching in secondary
ESL settings in public and private high schools, were selected using convenience sampling

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Official Conference Proceedings(Creswell, 2012) to take part in the study. Table 1 shows the profile of each respondent, while
Tables 2 and 3 show a diversity of degrees obtained and experiences in teaching ESL.
DegreeBachelor’s degree
Master’s degree
Doctorate degree

%
76.5%
17.6%
5.9%

Table 2: Percentage distribution of obtained degrees
Level
N
%
Grade 711
64.7%
Grade 814
82.4%
Grade 9847.1%
Grade 10
10
58.8%
Table 2: Levels Handled in Teaching ESL
An instrument consisting of four parts, inquiring namely: general information, beliefs (Gao &Ma, 2011), issues and challenges incorporating literature, and methods in teaching
vocabulary were given to the participants. Prior to the collection of data, a letter thatguaranteed protection of information and responses in the questionnaire, through Republic
Act 10173 otherwise known as the Data Privacy Act of 2012, was shown to the participants.
Moreover, the instrument was validated by experts in English Language Education andApplied Linguistics.
The participants were given a link to the questionnaire via Google Forms and were asked toread the initial letter first. In case they have decided to withdraw, they were free to do so.
Once they fully answered, each individual was given a code to anonymize responses toensure confidentiality. In case a clarification on responses was needed, a semi-structured
interview was scheduled via online conferencing platform of the participant’s preference.
Results
Both data from the questionnaire and semi-structured interviews were coded using Microsoft
Excel 365 into different categories and later recoded to see emerging themes. Patterns wereanalyzed and categorized using thematic analysis.
The Importance of Vocabulary
The participants agree unanimously that vocabulary learning is fundamental, as seen on the
responses of T-10 and T-16. Besides comprehension and communication skills, it provides
students the access to critical and logical thinking through their thoughts due to their
vocabulary knowledge, whether oral or written.
•
I would definitely say that it is fundamental to have strong vocabulary. It's the basic
requirement for learning and understanding the content of other subjects. (T-10)•
Vocabulary is the foundation for comprehension. Without enough understanding ofwords/terms, learners cannot comprehend other or totally cannot express their own ideas. It
also helps the learners’ ability to think logically. (T-16)

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Moreover, according to participants T-3 and T-10, factors such as students’ initiative,
motivation, vocabulary proficiency, and purpose on where to use it are also considered inteaching and learning vocabulary in the ESL classroom.
•
we should allow our students to look for some words on the given text that they are
unfamiliar with aside from the words given to them prior to the discussion. (T-3)•
I also find it best when vocabulary is learned through reading. Students should
develop a routine to find the meaning of a difficult word whenever it is encountered inreading. (T-10)
As previously mentioned in the studies of İlter (2019), Lund & Johnson (2013), Oxford,(2013), and Pittman, et al. (2018), it can be supported that vocabulary is indeed important tolearn, most especially in other contexts. This is attested by the response of T-10.
•
It’s the basic requirement for learning and understanding the content of othersubjects. (T-10)
Learning Vocabulary Through Reading
Participants’ foundation proved to be a crucial point of how they teach and learn in theclassroom. Their exposure to reading materials were quite significant, as expressed in priorstudies (Horst, 2005; Iqbal & Komal, 2017; Kooy & Chiu, 1998; Mart, 2016). Most of themhad experiences in reading books, newspapers, journal articles, and the interest in reading
literary pieces presented in the class. For example, the implementation of a summer reading
activity for T-1 paved way for understanding vocabularies and further polishing of linguistic
skills. T-7 and T-15 on one hand cited watching films, television shows, listening toconversations in the target language were main contributors in honing their language skills.
Hence, citing extensive reading, or at least reading in general to be an important element inlearning vocabulary.
Vocabulary Teaching and Learning Strategies
Vocabulary teaching and learning strategies may be passed or taught from one generation oflearners to another (Borg, 2003; Oxford, 2013). Table 3 shows that majority of theparticipants continue to use the same methods they were exposed with during theirfoundation years (e.g. context clues), while a few have declared they no longer use such or
have their own effective approach.
Response
N
%
Yes
15
88.2%
No
2
11.8%
Table 3: Utilization of Strategies/Approaches During Foundation Years
The responses of T-3 and T-11 validate the area of schooling in the framework of Borg
(2003). Although two of the 17 participants mentioned that they no longer use the strategies
they were accustomed to as students, it still validates the other three areas of the framework,
respectively. Hence, it may be theorized that some strategies may not be applicable to thepresent context or perhaps utilizing a better strategy upon reflection during classroom
immersion.

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The common technique my former teachers used was through the use of context clues.
They allow us to get the meaning first before giving the correct definition. (T-3)•…or the common ones wherein there is this sample sentence using the difficult word
and we would tell what that word means by its use. (T-11)
Students’ Vocabulary Proficiency and Motivation
Responses revealed an observation of diversity in the vocabulary proficiency of students anda present gap between the students’ proficiency and content level. Further, struggles of school
systems in implementing policies to address these gaps may have contributed to the declineof performance in the PISA 2018 and in national standardized examinations. Overall, theparticipants claim that their learners have a weak vocabulary proficiency.
•
Gap in content level and learners’ vocabulary proficiency (T-13)•
It could have contributed to the PISA results. Also, the policies are vague or unclear
and not implemented properly. (T-4; based on interview response)
Claims of Iqbal & Komal (2017) on lack of motivation in learning vocabulary are supportedby T-9 and T-10. Although negative perception caused by the difficulties and challenges
among students in learning vocabulary may arise, manifestations of positive attitudes andexecuting innovative strategies in learning vocabulary, as remedy (İlter, 2019), can help tocounter amotivation and short-term retention. These remedies may be done throughcollaboration of learners, provision of scaffolding or remediation activities, and immersion inreading activities.
•
Whenever I provide reading materials, I see to it that I observe students while they
read…sometimes, I bring my own reading materials, like a newspaper…; at some point, I
think it’s better for them to see their teacher read with them and it enables them to read. (T10; based on interview response)
Lack of Teaching Resources
In the Philippines, lack of teaching resources is a common problem across various setups.
Any lack thereof may be attributed to factors like class ratio, funding, and maintenance.
Others may have other purposes for teaching vocabulary; for instance, improving speaking
and reading through speech laboratories or using reading kits, respectively. Overall, resourcesthat are readily available are maximized without compromise on student motivation.
•
When it comes to teaching resources, I use whatever materials that is available andwhen it comes to vocabulary proficiency, I ask them to do drills and activities that will
increase the level of their proficiency. (T-7)
Additionally, there is improvement in developing the affective domain. Expressing oneself
better in the target language and possessing the confidence in asking peers when experiencing
difficulty in vocabulary learning are evident, which is attributed to collaboration by T-3.
•
Some students who are experiencing difficulty in terms of understanding the idea of
the words do not hesitate to ask from their partners the meaning of it. Also, they show
eagerness to finish the reading task together with explaining the words that are new to them.
(T-3)

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The Appeal of Reading Materials To Learners
Reading is not highly appealing to learners. Responses include students tendencies to view
reading or literary materials as boring, a tiring task, and a requirement as mentioned by T-1
and T-5. These reasons are unacceptable especially if the target is to provide long-lastinglearning; even so, this is an alarming challenge experienced by ESL teachers.
••

It’s only interesting if you make it interesting. (T-1)
Some students see it as a requirement (T-5)

On one hand, motivation may still be present if an understandable background and acceptablecharacteristic, i.e. contemporary features or genres, are present, most especially if the readingmaterials are of classical origin.
•
Most of the times, they enjoy topics related to Greek myth. But they don’t enjoy topics
like Shakespearean poetry and the like. (T-9)•
Students are not usually interested in literature; however, when you start giving thebackground, giving an idea of what the literature might be, they will start to get curious andinterested. (T-13)
Using Reading Materials in Teaching Vocabulary
Extent of interest
N%
Very interested
424%
Somewhat interested
13
76%
Not very interested
Not at all interested
Table 4: Extent of Students’ Interest in Reading/Literature-Based Tasks
By analyzing the mentioned practices, students might be eyeing on an approach that makes
the tasks easier than they are normally; with these strategies, it is a possibility that they canfoster more interaction, collaboration, and by carefully selecting contemporary and relatable
literary pieces that share the same intended concept to be taught. Hence, they become moreparticipative.
•
I let them work in pairs so as to alleviate the tediousness in reading long passages.
(T-12)•
Present 21st century literary pieces which are relatable to the learners, making sureit share the same concept and value with the classic ones; classic literary pieces shall also be
discussed upon intensifying the learners’ interest. (T-17)
Methods in Teaching Vocabulary
According to most teachers, they still utilize methods of their former teachers. This isbecause they see it effective. Methods such as context clues, gamification, dictionary use,
visuals, and vocabulary notebooks remain effective, but tailor-fit them to the current context
into a more hybrid version, particularly including collaboration and independent learning.
Combining these classical and contemporary methods have made their approach unique towhat teachers are accustomed to during their years as students. Further, it is accepted thatvocabulary must be learned in order to develop communicative skills.

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Excellent test scores, deep understanding of the text, and they became talkative
during English time using the language. (T-11)•
The healthy noise that they create whenever they participate in the activities and theirhigh and passing scores after short quizzes. (T-7)
Learner autonomy is observed in the process through the use of autonomy-monitoringmaterials (e.g. individual progress chart), however, some teachers miss out the opportunity toobserve it.
•
By having their individual progress chart. The students will write how they progressand how whose words allow them to communicate with other people. They also note what are
the words that are not useful for them in communicating with other people. (T-3)•
Journals… They can easily share what they have learned and things that they may
find difficult and how they can improve their skills. (T-13)•
I honestly do not get to observe them in that aspect. But since we have SRA [readingtool], I’m able to see how they monitor themselves through the progress charts in theiranswer booklets. (T-10)•
I am not sure to be honest maybe their scores in the short vocabulary quiz. (T-7)
One of the features of autonomous learning is the constant self-monitoring of learners, andteachers should keep themselves aware of how this happens in the classroom, so as topractice them in their own ways. Moreover, it has since become a significant skill thatstudents need to learn for themselves in the 21st century (Delos Reyes & Torio, 2020). If
teachers are not kept aware of this, then the general process of vocabulary learning itself will
become risky.
Discussion
The research questions posed in beforehand are to be answered on this section.
First, supported by the framework of Borg (2003), ESL teachers rely heavily on theirexperiences as learners. They adopted the same strategies they were accustomed to during
their foundation years, but they adapt to contemporary approaches such as the incorporationof collaborative learning and autonomous learning, where challenges are eased, and students
get the opportunities to be taught of how these strategies used. Thus, validating Oxford's(2013) claim that vocabulary learning strategies are teachable.
Second, the issues of ESL teachers in teaching vocabulary refer to learners’ proficiency,
motivation, and the lack of teaching resources. According to the participants’ observations,learners tend to have weak vocabulary proficiency perhaps due to difficulties and challenges
they experienced, which greatly affects motivation, and could lead to poor performance inexaminations. As a solution to these issues, ESL teachers maximize collaboration in theirpractice to ease the difficulties and provide remediation to struggling learners; whilesometimes, when incorporating the use of reading materials, immersion in the activity withthe learners.
Third, students treat reading or literary selections as mere requirements and a tiring task.
These students prefer to have backgrounds of reading materials be known and/or possess 21st
century literary characteristics, rather than the complexities of Shakespeare and his
contemporaries. Thus, it is essential to select reading materials that can pass on at least either

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both or one of these criteria. On one hand, learners prefer to be engaged and collaborative. If
the tasks are done easily as a collaborative unit, the more they work and become motivated in
the task, without compromising the learning targets. Sharing open knowledge is favorable tothem; they learn on their own and the teacher facilitates in maintaining the academic noise of
the learners throughout the process. Therefore, aside from the knowledge given by theteacher, the learners are given an opportunity to express themselves in the learning process.
Finally, ESL teachers find their strategies effective when touched with 21st century
approaches. For instance, T-3 has provided a sense of collaborative learning in his classes
more often than others. He knows the needs and the likes of the learners, so he sees favorable
results in the students’ learning, such as the increase in vocabulary proficiency and selfconfidence in communicating with peers during the learning process. Similarly, most of theparticipants have initiated the use of portfolios, journals, progress charts, and notebooks
among their learners to monitor their own progress in vocabulary learning, for which thestudents are becoming accustomed to. Hence, certifying their students as autonomous, basedon the definition by Little (1995, 2007).
Conclusion
Borg (2003), as indicated in the existing framework, explains that teacher cognition is in
direct effect with teacher practice. Clearly, it is affirmative and evident in the strategies andexperiences of secondary ESL teachers, most especially the element of collaborative learningwhich further leads to the development of autonomy among the participants’ learners.
Although the teachers were confident in the strategies and approaches they use in theclassroom as effective, the integration of the development of 21st century learner skills was
still evident, which is an excellent way of showing how a traditional approach or strategy,
based on their beliefs, can be brought up or upgraded in the course of time. With thesefindings, ESL teachers’ beliefs, strategies, and experiences are already influenced by all areasof the adopted framework, as these beliefs are shown through their foundation while
schooling, while it may have been challenged during the time they allot in professionalcoursework and modified and reflected due to potential misfitting of practice in theirrespective contexts, whether pre-service or in-service.
It is recommended, however, that teachers be more aware of how their learners are able tomanage their learning and how effective the strategies they come up with are. Further, despite
the years of experience of teachers in ESL practice, there has been no significant change inthe practice among those who have spent 1-5 years in teaching than those who have alreadytaught for 11-15 years; nevertheless, those who have been able to earn a higher degree, i.e.
master’s degree, doctorate degree, have made more observations and applied more strategies
in their classes than the rest. It may be due to the vast experience both as ESL teacher andteacher-learner. Therefore, increase in professional advancement or growth should be taken
into consideration in order to keep pace with what the students need. Likewise, the possibilityof tailor-fitting ESL teacher-training curricula in higher education institutions is
recommended, in order to fit in 21st century learners’ needs and expectations.
In terms of pedagogical implications, ESL teachers should utilize and maximize autonomysupportive approaches in teaching vocabulary. Through this, students will be given theopportunities in learning vocabulary on their own, as well as setting and tracking their own
progress. Furthermore, this will also potentially address the lack of teaching materials since
the students themselves are allowed to find their own methodologies in learning vocabulary

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at their own preferences. Additionally, teachers should present reading materials, especiallycanonical ones, in the most modern way possible.
It is essential that the evolution of ESL teachers’ teaching methodologies is acknowledged
through further refinement. Replacing former strategies should not be confused with refining
or updating such approaches, since these methods are time-tested and are universal. As
Oxford (2013) claimed that vocabulary learning strategies are teachable, then it should also
be learnable – once learnable, it can be manipulated according to the learners’ will.

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Pajares, M. F. (1992). Teachers’ Beliefs and Educational Research: Cleaning Up a Messy
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Contact email: delosreyes.rdg@pnu.edu.ph

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Perceived Tasks of Quality Assurance and Its Impact on the Teaching-Learning Process
among Deans and Faculty
Belinda Ramos, University of La Salette, Inc, Philippines
Lorna Fulong, University of La Salette, Inc., Philippines
Madeilyn Estacio, University of La Salette, Inc., Philippines
Gemlee Baptista, University of La Salette, Inc., Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
Quality assurance systems of schools are put in place to ensure that optimum education areprovided by institutions responsible for such endeavors. The study looked into the perceptionsof deans and faculty on the task of the quality assurance system and its impact on the teachinglearning process of a University in Northern Philippines. The researchers made used of thedescriptive design with the use of an adopted questionnaire modified for the purpose of thestudy. There were 62 faculty and 7 deans who participated in the study. Pearson R andindependent sample t-test showed that the tasks of the quality assurance system is significantly
related to the perceived impact on the teaching and learning process. There is no significant
difference in the perception of the deans and faculty on the tasks of the quality assurance systemof the University and its impact on the teaching and learning process. Quality of teachinglearning process is greatly influenced by the strategies/tasks performed by the quality assurance
system of the school. It is thus recommended that strengthening and empowering the teachersand deans to perform quality assurance activities to ensure provision of quality education –manifested in globally competitive graduates.
Keywords: Quality Assurance, Teaching-Learning Process, Quality Education

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Education is necessary for survival in the modern world, and it is not only education but also
high-quality education that ensures the citizens of the world's maximum survival (Sharma,2015). Quality education is not only the acquisition of knowledge, but also the training in how
to apply that knowledge in any given situation, so that an individual can perform their best andharness their potential for their own benefit and the benefit of the society to which they
belong (Eze, 2009; Slade, 2017; Tawil, Akkari & Macedo, 2012; UNESCO, 2003). To achieve
high-quality education, a system of measuring the teaching-learning process must be holistic
and affordable (Almadani, Reid, & Rodrigues, 2011). (Barrett, Chawla-Duggan, Lowe, Nikel& Ukpo, 2006). As the educational process's focal point, the teaching-learning process must be
examined to develop quality assurance strategies that effectively enhance/improve the qualityof education provided (European Commission, 2018).
The concept of quality education promoted by developed countries cannot be applied todeveloping and underdeveloped countries due to their socioeconomic status (Barret, Chawla,
Lowe, NIkel & Ukpo, 2006). UNESCO recognized the importance of achieving a common
standard of quality education among third world countries by establishing quality assurance
systems to monitor all educational institutions worldwide (Slade, 2017; European Commission,2018). Quality assurance is critical for enhancing and maintaining effective teaching andlearning environments, particularly in higher education (Biggs, 2002; Council on Higher
Education, 2012). Typically, quality assurance is measured in terms of the effectiveness of theteaching-learning process and, more concretely, the quality of graduates produced by theschool (Basheka, Nkataand & Barifaijo, 2013; Blasko & Raschman, 2015). Teaching andlearning processes are frequently the primary focus of most quality assurance systems, as
indicated by higher education institutions' mission-vision statements.
Higher education institutions' quality assurance systems utilized internal and externalmechanisms to promote the quality of teaching-learning processes that work in tandem toensure sustained development and competitiveness. External quality assurance mechanisms
include evaluations by international, national, or regional agencies to determine whether higher
education institutions adhere to quality education standards/frameworks. Internal quality
assurance mechanisms include self-assessments and staff/faculty appraisals (Elken &Stensaker, 2018; UNSW, 2017). These mechanisms are being implemented to deliver the besteducation possible – which is contingent on the quality of teaching and learning processes –which entails examining the relationships between administration and the people who operate
within a set of established practices to accomplish the intended goal (Hwang & Colyvas, 2011;
Lawrence, Suddaby & Leca, 2009).
In achieving quality, the teaching-learning process must be constantly reviewed to ensure thatthe techniques and strategies used are consistent with the institution's mission and vision(Netshifhefhe, Nobongoza & Maphosa, 2016). Teachers must be given the opportunity to selfassess, peer-assess, and evaluate administrators' strategies during the review and evaluation of
the teaching-learning process to create a feedback loop that will enhance and improve theinstitution's instructional areas (Barrett, Chawla-Duggan, Lowe, Nikel & Ukpo, 2006; Chong& Ho, 2006; Saeed, 2018).
In the Philippines, the Higher Education Act of 1994 (Republic Act No. 7722) demonstrates
the country's desire to improve the country's educational quality by establishing theCommission on Higher Education to oversee and set up minimum standards for degree

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programs and educational institutions (CHED, 2012). The commission is responsible formonitoring and evaluating the quality assurance systems in place at all higher educational
institutions in the Philippines (CHED Memo no. 15, 2005). The Commission of Higher
Education's role in promoting and maintaining quality education through quality assurance,
particularly in the teaching and learning process, is very evident (Ruiz & Junio-Sabio, 2012),
as evidenced by more stringent regulations for university autonomy, particularly in four (4)key areas: governance and management, quality teaching and research, and student support andcommunication (CHED Annual Report, 2009). According to Segismundo (2017), an essential
tool for achieving quality education, particularly in the teaching-learning area, is accreditation.
The University of La Salette, Inc.'s quality assurance system is housed in the Office of the
Quality Enhancement Cell, which reports to the Vice-President for Academics. It is a newly
established office as mandated by University typology. It is not older than five (5) years. Its
duties and responsibilities are geared toward promoting, maintaining, and enhancing theinstitution's quality assurance mechanisms. The roles and functions of the University's quality
assurance system are not well understood by the average faculty member. This situation may
be caused by policies governing the quality assurance system that are communicated to theuniversity's middle supervisors – deans and office heads. In this regard, the study seeks toascertain how deans and faculty perceive the quality assurance system at the University of La
Salette, Inc. and its effect on the teaching-learning process.
Conceptual Framework
According to the Danielson Model of quality teaching, the teaching-learning system involves
four dimensions: 1.) Planning and preparation (method of instruction); 2.) Classroom
environment (environment in which learning occurs); 3.) Instruction (student participation andengagement); and 4.) Professional responsibilities (intention to improve or enhancecapabilities) (Almadani, Reid & Rodrigues, 2011). Along these dimensions, the quality
assurance manager, deans/administrators, and teachers must collaborate and gain insight into
how each can contribute to achieving quality and identifying areas of the teaching-learning
process that require attention (Danielson, 2007; Higueras, 2009).
The primary responsibility of an educational institution's quality assurance system is to ensurethat the academic services provided by the school adhere to established standards, such as theASEAN educational standards in Asia. Additionally, it is necessary to consider the difficulties
and the impact of quality assurance strategies on the goals and objectives for them to be realistic
and effective (Leiber, Stensaker & Harvey, 2015; Seyfried & Pohlenz, 2018). The quality
assurance manager's role should be more consultative with teachers, deans, and administrators(Almadani, Reid & Rodrigues, 2011; Seyfried & Pohlenz, 2018).

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A quality assurance system is a collaborative mechanism comprised of a quality assurance
manager, administrators/deans, and teachers/staff. They all collaborate to develop strategies
for meeting quality education standards (Almadani, Reid, & Rodrigues, 2011). The same team,led by the quality assurance manager, assesses and evaluates the strategies' implementation
concerning the desired outcome (Basheka, Nkataand & Barifaijo, 2010). Regular and random
assessment and evaluation must ensure objective results and a high-quality feedback cycle(Harvey & Williams, 2010; Williams, 2016). This process requires mutual trust in monitoring
activities to maintain a high level of engagement and sufficient flexibility to achieve the desired
results. Feedback loops from students, teachers, deans, and administrators must be consideredwhen developing future strategies and actions to address identified areas of concern (Okogbaa,
2015; Blasko & Raschman, 2016). Students' evaluations of the teaching-learning process arealso an integral part of the loop regarding content and instructional strategies. Moreover, thequality assurance manager's primary responsibility is to collate and reconcile all of these
feedbacks to formulate solutions and strategies that adhere to the standards (Neshifthefhe,
Nobongoza & Maphosa, 2016).
Research Questions
The study aims to specifically answer the following:
1.
What are the perceived tasks of the Quality Assurance System of the University
among the faculty and deans?
2.
What are the perceived impacts of the tasks of the Quality Assurance System on theteaching-learning process of the University among the faculty and deans?
3.
Is there a relationship between the perceived tasks of the Quality Assurance Systemand the perceived impacts of the functions on the teaching-learning process4.
Is there a difference in the perceived tasks of the Quality Assurance System and theperceived impacts of the functions on the teaching-learning process when grouped according
to the profile of the deans and faculty?
The study is significant for the following reasons. First, no study has been conducted toevaluate the functions and responsibilities of the quality assurance system of the university.
Moreover, academic employees perceive overlap in the roles and responsibilities of the quality
assurance manager and the Vice-President for Academics. Thirdly, the quality assurance
system was created as a requirement for accreditation and typology status of the institution.
The study's findings will provide perspectives into faculty and dean perceptions of the quality

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assurance system that was established to assist them in performing their teaching andfacilitating learning.
Methodology
Research Design. The study used the descriptive correlational method to determine therespondents' perceptions on the tasks of the university's quality assurance system and theperceived effects of these tasks on their teaching-learning process. It aims to describe theperceived functions of the quality assurance system and the impact of these tacks in theteaching-learning
Participants. The faculty and deans were the study respondents because they are the ones
responsible for the teaching-learning process. There were 77 faculty members and seven deans.
Purposive sampling was done. Meanwhile, 15 faculty members were not able to participate due
to various reasons that they could not attend the webinar.
Table 1. Profile of the Participants
GenderAge

Department

Educational
Attainment
Position

Male
Female59-68 years old
49-58 years old
39-48 years old
29-38 years old
19-28 years old
College of Teacher Education, Arts & sciences
College of Business Education
College of Engineering & Architecture
College of Information Technology
College of Medicine & Allied Medical Programs
College of Accountancy
College of Criminology
College of Nursing, Public Health & Midwifery
Department of Student Services
Graduate School
Library
Bachelor’s Degree
Master’s Degree
Doctoral
Deans
Faculty

f
28
39
7
21
14
10
22
19
10
5
5
13
3
2
6
1
1
2
26
31
8
7
62

%
40.6
56.5
10.4
31.3
20.9
14.9
32.8
28.4
14.9
7.5
7.5
19.4
4.5
3.0
9.0
1.5
1.5
3.0
37.7
44.9
11.6
10.1
89.9

Data Collection and Procedure. The survey questionnaire used by the researchers was amodification from the study of Saeed (2018). The instrument comprises ten (10) items, 4 fortasks and 6 for the impacts. The task variables were: provisions of trainings, support services,
the conduct of academic audits, and encouragement of research. Furthermore, the impact
variables were professional development and academic performance, evaluation andassessments, motivation of participation of institutional activities, curriculum implementation,
and academic workload.

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After securing approval from the School Administration, the questionnaire was administeredduring the webinar on research capabilities to ensure one hundred percent participation andretrieval. All faculty and deans were requested to participate in the study.
Data Analysis. The responses of the participants were analyzed using a four-point scale, withnumerical and qualitative description:
Scale
4
3
2
1

Table 2 Four-Point Scale.
Numerical Range
3.25 – 4.00
2.50 – 3.24
1.75 – 2.49
1.00 – 1.74

Qualitative Description
Strongly agree
Agree
DisagreeStrongly

The answers were subjected to computations of mean and standard deviation. The Pearson’s r
was used for correlation and independent t-test and ANOVA was used to find the differencesin the responses of the participants’ perceptions.
Results and Discussions
In view of the research questions, the following are the salient findings of the study:
Table 3. Frequency, Percentage, Mean and Standard Deviation of Responses of theParticipants on the Perceived Tasks of the Quality Assurance System
Items
4
3
2
1
M
SD
1.
The training provided has aided me
25
29
8
3
3.22 0.84
in making my course syllabus and learning (38.5) (30.8) (12.3) (4.6)
plans
2.
QA/QES has supported the learning
19
31
10
3
3.05 0.81
process through various support systems(29.2) (47.7) (15.4) (4.6)
3.
QA/QES conducts regular academic
21
27
14
3
3.02 0.86
audits to give recommendations and (32.3) (41.5) (21.2) (4.6)
solutions to challenges I face in teaching
4.
QA/QES has encouraged research
21
28
12
4
3.02 0.88
and scientific productions(32.3) (43.1) (18.5) (6.2)
Overall Mean
3.08
Agree
Note: percentages do not add up to 100% due to missing responses
The respondents agreed that the provisions of training to aid in the making of the course
syllabus, provides a support system for the learning process, conducts regular academic audits
and solutions and encourage research and scientific productions are tasks of the Quality
Assurance System of the University. These tasks were part of the internal mechanisms of ahigher education institution to determine the relationships between the administration and thepeople are mandated to function within a set of established practices to reach the intended goal
(Hwang & Colyvas, 2011 Lawrence et al., 2009). These tasks of quality assurance system are
required as part of the school’s compliance to international, national, and regional
standards/framework of quality education in congruence to the school’s typology (Elken &Stensaker, 2018; UNSW, 2017)

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Table 4. Frequency, Percentage, Mean and Standard Deviation of Responses of theParticipants on the Perceived Impacts on the Teaching-Learning Process of the tasks of the
Quality Assurance System
Items
4
3
2
1
M
SD
1.
QA/QES helps me develop my
29
24
10
1
3.27 0.78
professional and academic performance(44.6) (36.9) (15.4) (1.5)
2.
QA/QES enables me to continuously
29
24
10
2
3.23 0.83
develop my teaching skills through (44.6) (36.9) (15.4) (3.1)
evaluation and periodic assessments
3.
QA/QES has motivated me to
28
23
11
2
3.20 0.84
actively participate in the University (43.1) (35.4) (16.9) (3.1)
activities especially those that could
improve my teaching abilities
4.
QA/QES has been very helpful in my
31
20
10
3
3.23 0.89
execution and implementation of the (47.7) (30.8) (15.4) (4.6)
curriculum of my program/subjects
5.
QA/QES has motivated me to make
32
23
7
3
3.29 0.84
improvements of my learning assessment (49.2) (35.4) (10.8) (4.6)
methods
6.
QA/QES increases my academic
23
29
11
1
3.16 0.76
workload(35.4) (44.6) (16.9) (1.5)
Overall Mean
3.23
Agree
Note: percentages do not add up to 100% due to missing responses
The respondents agree that the Quality Assurance System's tasks affect professional andacademic performance, the development of teaching skills through evaluation and periodic
assessments, motivation to participate in activities aimed at improving teaching abilities, andassessing student learning and the execution and implementation of the program's curriculum.
The significance of quality assurance tasks can be quantified only when the effectiveness andefficiency of the teaching-learning process are tangibly demonstrated through the quality ofgraduates produced by the school (Basheka, Nkataand & Barifaijo, 2013; Blasko &Rashchman, 2015). Internal quality assurance frameworks are based on the premise that an
institution's teaching-learning process is only as good as its teachers (Biggs. 2002; Schindler,
Puls-Elvidge, Welzant & Crawford, 2015). How teachers and administrators perceive theirroles and the quality assurance system's functions in achieving quality education can indicate
the degree to which strategies and techniques align with the institution's mission and vision(Netshifthefhe, Nobongoza & Maphosa, 2016; Williams, 2016).
Table 5. Relationship between Perceived Tasks of Quality Assurance Systems and Perceived
Impact on the Teaching-Learning Process
Variables
Perceived Impactsrp-value
Perceived Tasks0.89
p<0.001
As shown in table 5, there is a strong to perfect positive relationship between the perceived
tasks of the Quality Assurance System and the perceived impact of these tasks on the teachinglearning process.

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Quality assurance is a strategy of all higher education institutions to gain recognition in theinternational arena, especially among the developing and poor countries (Ryan, 2015). It is
focused on improving the teaching-learning process to provide quality education (Javier, 2015;
Jung, Wong, & Belawati, 2013). The way the people whose responsibility is focused onproviding quality education understand the importance of quality assuring teaching andlearning will there be a quality culture and be able to meet expectations and standards(Netshifthefhe, Nobongoza & Maphosa, 2016). The quality assurance framework is always
intertwined with the organization's goals and quality of teaching and learning (Chong & Ho,2009).
Table 6. Difference of Responses of the Participants in terms of Age, Gender, Educational
Attainment and Position
Educational
Variables
Age
GenderPosition
Attainment
F(4)=1.74
t(65)=0.77
F(2)=2.33
t(67)=0.39
Perceived Tasks
p=0.153
p=0.447p=0.106
p=0.697
F(4)=1.59
t(65)=0.12
F(2)=2.12t(67)=0.26
Perceived Impacts
p=0.188p=0.905
p=0.129p=0.793
The table above shows no significant difference in the perceived tasks of the Quality Assurance
System and its impact on the teaching-learning process of the respondents in terms of age,gender, educational attainment, and position.
The demographic characteristics of participants did not influence the perceived tasks of thequality assurance and the perceived impact of the tasks on the teaching-learning process.
According to Newton (2000) and Williams (2016), the teaching-learning process is based on
mutual trust in performing quality assurance activities to achieve the desired results and not thephysical characteristics of people concerned in achieving and maintaining quality. Establishingquality culture that involves everyone in the institution creates an environment that embraces
and assumes that implemented strategies are effective, significant, and equitable to theinstitution's goals (Technological Higher Education Association, 2017).
Table 7. Difference of the Responses of the Participants on the Perceived Tasks of the
Quality Assurance in terms of the Department they belong
Department
M
SD
N
df
F
p-value
CAS
3.11
0.65
19
7
8.38
<0.001
CBE
1.98
0.65
10
CMAMP
3.42
0.51
13
CON
3.64
0.40
6
CEA
3.87
0.30
5
CIT
2.95
0.62
5
COA
3.13
0.52
4
OFFICES
3.4
0.55
5
Results showed that there is statistical difference in the responses of the participants on theperceived tasks of the Quality Assurance System. Among the Departments, CBE (College ofBusiness Education perceived that the given items are not the tasks of the Quality Assurance
System because the ten (10 ) respondents, 1 dean and 9 faculty disagree that the given tasks are
not the job of the Quality Assurance System.

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Table 8. Difference of the Responses of the Participants on the Perceived Impact of the Tasksof the Quality Assurance System on the Teaching-Learning Process in terms of the
Department they belong
Department
M
SD
N
df
F
p-value
CAS
3.30
0.55
19
7
10.12
<0.001
CBE
2.15
0.58
10
CMAMP
3.62
0.39
13
CON
3.64
0.50
6
CEA
3.80
0.18
5
CIT
3.43
0.47
5
COA
3.25
0.29
4
OFFICES
3.37
0.51
5Base on the result of One-way ANOVA, there is a significant difference in participants'
responses according to their Department. CBE (College of Business Education) believed that
the Quality Assurance System's tasks did not affect the teaching-learning process because
respondents disagreed with the Quality Assurance System's assigned tasks.
When participants are grouped according to their Department, the difference in their responses
regarding their perception of quality assurance tasks and the impact of these tasks on theteaching-learning process can be explained by Quality Assurance Principle 5. Such a principle
states that for quality assurance policies/strategies to be significant, they must be proportionate
to the needs a. (Technological Higher Education Association, 2017). Different teachers anddepartments have various effective initiatives, necessitating a variety of operational quality
assessments and commitments (Matei & Iwinska, 2016).
Conclusions and Recommendations
The perceived tasks of the quality assurance system are perceived to have a strong impact on
the teaching-learning process. Indirectly, the respondents understand the roles and functionsof the quality assurance system of the University in improving the quality of education offeredby the institution. This means that the people who have been given the responsibility to
implement quality assurance in teaching and learning embrace the requirements and standards
set by accrediting bodies for the best outcome – globally competitive graduates.
The study was based mainly on the perceptions of quality education and the roles andresponsibilities of a newly created quality assurance system. No pre-survey information wasgiven to the respondents. The study was limited by its objective of just finding out what they
think would be the tasks of the quality assurance system and how it has influenced the teachinglearning process to which the faculty and deans are the main players. In this regard, thefollowing recommendations were given:
1.
Institutions must provide information on the possible creation of programs anddepartments that are recommended by accrediting bodies to enhance the delivery of quality
education;
2.
A culture of quality must be practiced through policies and regulations to give insightsthat quality is everybody’s concern and responsibility;3.
All teaching and learning activities emanate from the curriculum so that people
entrusted to implement them must embrace their roles through accountability; the institution,
therefore, must emphasize responsibility among its academic employees even at the beginningof their term;

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4.
Lastly, the quality assurance system is not an independent part of the school and theinstitution must ensure that the quality assurance system is the school, the individuals that makeup the school and the students that rely on the institution to be part of the hired classes ofgraduates through the feedback system, making all feedback, big and small, relevant and trivial
be given a chance to be considered in the pursuit of excellence and quality.

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T Saeed, S. (2018). Impact of Quality Assurance on Academic Performance. International
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Contact email: belindaalmueteramos@gmail.com

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Letting Students Explore What It Takes to Become a Good Communicator –A Metacognitive Approach to Promote Language Learning
Yumi Chikamori Gomez, Seitoku University, Japan
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Abstract
When it comes to teaching speaking skills in a foreign language classroom, instructing
grammatical knowledge, building up vocabulary and formulated expressions, and practicing
model conversations can be some of the useful teaching methods. However, we need to ask
ourselves if our classroom instructions are designed to help students synthesize thatfragmentary knowledge into practical knowledge for real-life conversational occasions. The
conversation is a spontaneous activity affected by many elements contributed by theparticipants, such as their language proficiency, their relationships with each other, existingknowledge on the topic discussed, and so on. Thus, students must be trained to acquire skills
that allow them to flexibly adapt to casual conversational situations in collaboration withother participants. Taking this into account, this research focuses on the metacognitive effects
of an instructional method that incorporates an experiential learning framework. This method
intends to foster students’ practical conversational skills in English through phased
collaborative reflections on their free talks with their peers. Through metacognitivereflections on their performances, students came to see for themselves what it takes tobecome a good communicator.
Keywords: Foreign Language Education, Metacognition, Reflective Thinking, Experiential
Learning, Adaptive Expertiseiafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Under the Japanese public English education system, people study English at least for 6 years
in schools, however, many Japanese adults publicly say, “I can’t speak English.” This isbecause students learn about the language and are hardly ever encouraged to think critically
about what such knowledge means to them. We need to provide our students with
opportunities to transform their conceptual knowledge into practical knowledge through selfdirected learning.
Learning a foreign language is a complicated process. If you want to master it, you need to
devote thousands of hours of hard work to studying it and using it in meaningful contexts.
However, when it comes to teaching a foreign language in a school setting, there are manythings to consider. Students do not have an unlimited amount of time or willingness to spend
studying the language. Instructing students of various backgrounds in the classroom
environment requires careful planning, too. In many foreign language classrooms, lessons areoften organized around subdivided grammatical items or communication skills and often
taught separately in different sessions on different days. The limited number of hours
available for English courses in the school curriculum can be one reason why this is done.
One of the benefits of subdividing instructional items and teaching them in phases is that it
can help students cognitively process learning contents. It is also easier for teachers to keep
track of students’ current proficiency levels and know what knowledge and skills they needextra support on. Most of all, that is considered to be the most efficient and transparent way
to organize and monitor teaching in the school setting.
The biggest problem of this type of instructional style is that while teachers may believe that
this fragmentary knowledge and skills will eventually come together and students will
become proficient language users, students may not always share the same belief. I have
overheard many students saying learning English is a pain and it means nothing to them.
Some students even tell me in the fact that there is no point in studying English because they
will never use it in the future. The students who say that learning English is meaningless may
have many different personal reasons to feel that way. Nonetheless, too much focus on
micro-level skills and knowledge and less time for synthesis of such knowledge and skills
may demotivate them in English learning. Students study complex grammatical usage such aspresent perfect and past progressive and may study hard to get good grades on tests. But ifthey cannot feel how and when exactly such knowledge can be useful in the actual day-to-day
situations, they will not find meaning in learning them. What happens in the textbook
exercises and model conversations are applicable only in the situation they appear in the
textbook. The real-life situations are more complicated and are easy to be influenced byconditions happening at that moment. How can we expect our students to see the value oflearning grammar and language skills if they do not know how and when to apply them in thereal world?
As English education professionals, we should think about ways for students to synthesize
knowledge through self-discovery. The subdivided skills or grammatical knowledge taught inclass are only useful on the conceptual level until they get to use it in a meaningful context.
We need to set up times and occasions for students to experiment the language use and reflect
on their mistakes and fix them at several points in their learning process in class.
Considering the above, I have designed a classroom pedagogy to help foster students’practical conversational abilities through experiential learning. In this method, students are

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given multiple opportunities to synthesize the knowledge acquired in previous lessons
through off-the-cuff conversations with their peers. Collaborative reflections with peers andthe teacher are systematically incorporated to stimulate students’ metacognitive awareness.
Experiential learning using this instructional method in English language classrooms can help
students think for themselves about what it takes to become a good communicator.
Literature Review
To develop foreign language proficiency, one must have plenty of opportunities to use thetarget language in meaningful contexts. Nation (2013) says a well-designed course must
consist of 4 strands: meaning-focused input, meaning-focused output, language-focusedlearning, and fluency development. This is to say, teaching students conceptual knowledge
about the language is indeed an important part of teaching, however, students will not
become a well-balanced language user if they are not given chances to experience thelanguage use in situations that are relevant to them. This becomes especially significant when
we teach students to use English as a means of communication because in real life, “people
use language to talk about what they know and what they want to know more about, not totalk about language itself” (Snow, Met, & Genesee, 1989). Experiencing language use inmeaning-focused contexts also serves as an “incentive for language learning insofar as it isinteresting and of some value to the learner and therefore worth learning” (Snow, Met, &Genesee, 1989).
Experiential learning is an instructional method suited for incorporating language-focusedteaching and meaning-focused language use. Experiential learning is also explained as"learning through reflection on doing" (Felicia, 2011). It encourages the learners to put theircurrent knowledge and skills into practice in a meaning-focused context, and later come totheir realization of the gap between their actual self and their ideal self through multiple
occasions of reflective thinking. When the learners reflect on their performance as apractitioner in a quasi-real-world situation, they will, like it or not, find out what they thought
they had understood but had not, or they did not know at all. This encounter with the gap intheir conceptual knowledge and the knowledge needed to solve the problem at hand would
force them to think critically about what they now need to do to fill the gap. When learners
are engaged in this process, they are acting as an ‘agent’ in their learning, not as passive
recipients of the information provided by someone else. ‘Agent’ is “an individual who
perceives, analyses, rejects or accepts solutions offered, makes decisions” (Swain, 2006). It is
this process of learners acting as the ‘agent’ in their learning process that makes the synthesisof conceptual and practical knowledge possible, simply because “Knowledge is constructed,
not received” (Bain, 2004).
One of the most important elements in experiential learning is the fact that learners not only
try out their existing knowledge at a task, but they contemplate on their learning throughmultiple occasions of self-reflective thinking. Kolb's experiential learning theory (2014) setsout four stages of learning. It starts with a concrete experience, immediately followed byreflective observation, then abstract conceptualization occurs, after which active
experimentation takes place. In other words, experiential learning involves a “learning cycleor spiral where the learner ‘touches all the bases’– experiencing, reﬂecting, thinking, andacting–in a recursive process that is responsive to the learning situation and what is being
learned.” (Kolb, Boyatzis, & Mainemelis, 2001). When learners are given opportunities toengage in cognitive simulations like this, they visualize themselves executing activities
skillfully to enhance subsequent performance (Bandura, 1989). Through the continuous

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practice of this kind, learners are expected to develop adaptive expertise (Hatano & Inagaki,1986), which enables them to flexibly generate new procedures to execute in different reallife situations. According to Dewey (1938), education is the means of social continuity oflife. He suggests that the knowledge and skills acquired in one situation become “aninstrument of understanding and dealing effectively with the situations which follow. The
process goes on as long as life and learning continue” (p. 44). This means that learning is acontinuous act of doing and thinking reflectively. We can see this in our simple everyday
experiences such as cooking, for example. When making miso soup for the first time, anindividual might put too much miso in the soup, and it becomes too salty. In the next trial,
she puts less miso, but it is still a bit salty. Learning from these experiences, she would put
just a little bit less miso this time. The soup turns out a lot more delicious than the one fromthe first trial. As such, what happened in the previous experiences are carried on to the next,
and knowledge and skill are gradually refined for practical use. This is exactly why reflective
thinking needs to be incorporated in the experiential learning process several times instead ofjust once as a concluding task. Most importantly, in experiential learning, the act ofexperiencing and reflective thinking are both done by the learners themselves. Learning
through such self-discovery favorably affects learners’ retention (Shaffer, 1989) as well.
While reflective thinking enables self-discovery, it “needs to happen in the community, ininteraction with others” (Rogers, 2002), if we want our students to get the most of it. It isparticularly important in an English language classroom as the main objective of learning thelanguage is to become a proficient communicator using English. There are several reasons
why reflective thinking in interaction with peers serves the best purpose. When students workin collaboration with their peers, they feel emotionally more secure than working with theteacher. As a consequence, conversational interactions occur frequently (Sato & Lyster,2007), so there are more opportunities for fluency development (Ellis, 2005). Furthermore,when students are faced with linguistic problems in their conversation, they can put theirheads together to think about the problems in collaboration and exchange their reflective
thoughts to learn the language using the language (Swain & Suzuki, 2008). When support isgiven to the students to work interdependently with each other (Johnson, Johnson, &Holubec, 1994), more capable peers will try to help others (Vygotsky, 1980) to fill the gaps
in their knowledge or language proficiency. Thus, collaborative reflective thinking with peers
allows for students to co-construct knowledge about the language using the language (Swain,
2000).
Method1.

Target Population

This activity was introduced to students in a general English class at a 4-year university in the
Kanto area in Japan. The class met once a week for 90 minutes for 15 weeks. There were 16
students all majoring in social welfare. Their English proficiency was more or lesselementary level. The homogenous nature of the classroom population in this class worked
positively for this method because students shared the same first language. Hence, students
were more likely to be able to exchange their deep thoughts using the common language with
their peers.

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Description of the Method

The 15-week course is comprised mainly of sessions for language-focused instructions andfor experiential learning sessions called Free Talk, alternating each week. A topic-based
textbook is used since it is easier for students to relate to topics rather than a grammar-based
approach. Each unit is focused on a topic and taught in two sessions, with language-focused
instructions on the first week and Free Talk on the second. During the language-focusedsession, students learn and practice grammar, vocabulary, and useful set phrases for the topic
of the unit. The teacher gives students a list of useful set phrases for them to memorize by thefollowing week. Students test each other’s memory in pairs in the following session byreciting them. After that, they engage in Free Talk and synthesize the conceptual knowledge
learned in the previous week by experimenting with its use in free conversation with thepartner. Free Talk is divided into six steps.
Step 1: Talk Round 1 (4 minutes)
The first Talk Round is for students to experience if they can carry out a natural conversation
for four minutes, using the knowledge learned in the previous language-focused session.
Students are put into pairs and told to talk about the topic given, which is closely related tothe topic focused on the previous week. The teacher tells the students to continue talking until
the time is up. She tells them not to use the dictionary nor stop talking to write things down.
She also tells them that they can use their first language, Japanese if they cannot continue
talking due to the difficulties in expressing what they want to say in English. There are threereasons for these restrictions. Firstly, if they stop talking to check for words in the dictionaryor take notes, their train of thoughts would be cut off and they would forget what they weretalking about when they resume their talk. Secondly, this round is meant for the students to
get many ideas out for a rich and natural conversation so that they can have many contents towork with during the following reflective stage. Thirdly, frustrations and mistakes areencouraged during the experiencing stage. The more they experience them, there will be
more learning opportunities for them later.
Step 2: Collaborative Reflection 1 (20 minutes)
After four minutes of free talk in pairs, students are asked to recall their talk and write downin their log the things they said in Japanese, they wanted to say in English but could not, andthey said in English but are not sure about their accuracy. Students are encouraged to use any
tools available, such as the dictionary, notes from the language-focused session, and theinternet. They are also told that they could ask the teacher for help if they cannot solve theirproblems by themselves. During this stage, students try their best in collaboration with theirpartners to find out how they can use the knowledge already learned and apply it to themeaningful situation happening at this moment. Through this intensive thinking, students
create an abstract conceptualization of their knowledge.
Step 3: Talk Round 2 (3 minutes)
This stage is for the students to experiment with the abstract concept they have just formed
through reflective thinking. During this second round of speaking, the same pairs talk about
the same topic for three minutes. Again, students are instructed not to pause or take notes.
This time, they are encouraged to keep the Japanese use to the minimum. Students should be
able to keep the conversation going mostly in English this time.

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Step 4: Collaborative Reflection 2 (20 minutes)
This stage looks very similar to Step 2. Students look back on Talk Round 2 and write down
their reflective thoughts. They share their thoughts with their partners and solve the problems
that came up this time together. At this stage, the teacher encourages students to pushthemselves a bit more by incorporating some of the useful expressions they memorized andrecited earlier on into their next round of talk if they already have not done so.
Step 5: Talk Round 3 (2 minutes)
Students again talk with the same partner for two minutes. In this round of talk, theconversation is recorded to give them a little bit of pressure so that they push themselves fortheir best performance. Also, in this stage, two pairs are put together to form a group of four.
They take turns and observe the other pair while they are talking.
Step 6: Collaborative Reflection 3 (30 minutes)
Step 6 is done concurrently with Step 5. In this step, students would take turns and observe
other pairs doing Step 5. Then would then exchange feedback and reflect on their overall
performances. While observing the other pair, students fill out an observation sheet to lookcritically at the other pair’s conversations in terms of the way they communicate and the way
they use English. By doing this, students are inevitably forced to look reflectively at their
way of communication and the use of the English language. They then look critically at theirown experience and write down reflective notes to summarize the learning they had during
this experiential learning activity. This is when they are expected to experience abstract
conceptualization.
Results & Discussion
1.

Metacognitive Experiences in Collaborative Reflection

Collaborative reflections force learners to use their metacognition. Metacognition can beclassified into two types of categories: metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive
experiences (See Figure 1). Flavell (1987) defined metacognitive knowledge as one's
knowledge or beliefs about the factors that affect cognitive activities. Nelson and Narens(1994) described that metacognitive experiences involve monitoring and control. They
explained that monitoring takes place when the meta-level obtains information from theobject-level. Some example actions involving monitoring are awareness, feeling, prediction,
checking, and evaluation. Control, on the other hand, takes place when the meta-level
modifies the object-level. This occurs when one is engaged in goal setting, planning, andrevision.

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Figure 1: Metacognitive Framework
When Nelson & Naren’s metacognitive experiences are applied to this speaking activity (SeeTable 1), we can assume that students exercise both monitoring and control in Steps 2, 4, and
6. In Step 2, students reflect on their 4-minute conversation with their partner and write downthings they couldn’t say in English or things they spoke but were unsure whether if they wereexpressed correctly. When they are doing that, we can expect that they become aware of what
they need to work on the next time. This awareness is an action categorized as monitoring in
the metacognitive experiences. When they check unknown words in the dictionary, theyagain exercise monitoring as they do the checking. Furthermore, when they recompose theirEnglish sentences to prepare for the next 4-minute talk, they exercise control as they do theplanning. In Step 4, students would evaluate what went right and wrong and revise theirsentences. They would also plan on how to make the conversation more natural in the next
attempt. In this stage, students exercise both monitoring and control as they evaluate, revise
and plan. In Step 6, students would observe another pair and exchange feedback afterward.
The act of observation involves evaluation and checking. Getting feedback from peers would
most likely lead them to get the awareness of their strengths and weaknesses. These learning
activities involve monitoring. When they write a reflection after receiving feedback, theywould objectively think about what needs to be improved in their future attempts. This goal
setting is an action characterized as control.
Learning Activity
Collaborative Write down things they couldn’t say in English
Reflection
Check unknown words in the dictionary(Step 2)
Recompose their English sentences
Collaborative Reflect on what went right and what went wrong
Reflection
Revise their English sentences(Step 4)
Plan on how to make their conversation morenaturalCollaborative Observe performance by other pair
Reflection
Fill out the feedback sheet for the other pair

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Metacognitive
Experiences
Awareness (Monitor)
Checking (Monitor)
Planning (Control)
Evaluation (Monitor)
Revision (Control)
Planning (Control)
Evaluation (Monitor)
Checking (Monitor)

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Reflect on their performance as they listen to
Awareness (Monitor)
peer's feedback
Write a reflection and set goals for the future
Goal setting (Control)
after receiving peer's feedback
Table 1. Metacognitive Experiences in Collaborative Reflection

Learning Results from Collaborative Reflection

At the end of the semester, students wrote a reflection sheet about their experiences on thefree talk activity. Table 2. shows what students wrote about a question of “What did you
learn from observing other pairs and exchanging feedback?”. Some comments werementioned by several students. The frequency of extracted comments is indicated in the rightcolumn.
Five students wrote, “good communicators use non-verbal communication such as eye
contact and body language effectively. What this indicates is that many students recognizedthat communication is not just a matter of language but body language also plays animportant part. Some factors that facilitate communication are universal regardless of thelanguage being spoken, and it is significant that students themselves came to this realization.
If they realized that communication was not just about the language, they would feel lessreluctant to communicate in English. One student wrote “by observing other pairs, I foundout that a conversation can develop differently in other pairs. It was interesting because wewere all talking on the same topic.” This comment sums up what students should know aboutcommunication in real-life situations. That is, how a conversation develops is determined byso many different factors such as the participants’ interests and existing knowledge. So when
the participants change, the content of the conversation would naturally change, too. Just like
a comment “I learned that conversation is a collaborative act. It takes two to make it work,”
indicates, every utterance each speaker makes is a contributing factor that directs the way theconversation develops. This is exactly why students need to develop adaptive expertise rather
than routine expertise to become good communicators.

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Official Conference Proceedings"What did you learn from observing other pairs and exchanging Extracted
feedback?"
comments
Good communicators use non-verbal communication effectively (eye contact, 5body language, etc.).
Exchanging feedback allowed me to recognize my strengths and weaknesses 4
objectively.
Conversation can develop differently in other pairs although we were all talking 1
about the same topic.
Willingness to communicate feelings is more important than grammatical 1
correctness
1
A conversation is a collaborative act and it takes two to make it work.
By observing other pairs, I realized what kind of responses can appear natural in 1
a conversation.
A conversation can develop more naturally and smoothly if you start off with 1
small talk before getting into the main topic.
I learned some ways to keep the conversation going without having unnatural 1
pauses.
1
I learned different ways of communicating by observing other pairs.
Table 2. Students' Reflective Comments About Learning Results from Collaborative
Reflection
Conclusion
In conclusion, while teaching grammatical knowledge, building up vocabulary andformulated expressions, and practicing model conversations can benefit students to become
good English speakers, students also need to be given opportunities and instructions on how
to synthesize all that knowledge. For foreign language learners, who rarely get the chance to
use English outside the classroom, this free talk speaking activity can help them realize how
to respond to real-life speaking situations. We saw that collaborative peer interaction canenhance students’ learning as they experience metacognitive monitoring and control in theirlearning process. Through such metacognitive experiences, language learners would learn tothink about what it takes to become good communicators. As we saw in students’ reflective
comments, good communication is not just about how to use grammar and vocabulary, butrather how you try to relate to others. This is something foreign language educators also needto keep in mind when planning their classroom pedagogy.

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References
Bain, K. (2011). What the best college teachers do. Harvard University Press.
Bandura, A. (1989). Human agency in social cognitive theory. American Psychologist, 44(9),1175–1184.
Dewey, J. (1938). Experience and education. New York: Macmillan Company.
Ellis, N. C. (2005). At the interface: Dynamic interactions of explicit and implicit language
knowledge. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 27, 305-352.
Felicia, P. (Ed.). (2011). Handbook of research on improving learning and motivation
through educational games: Multidisciplinary approaches: Multidisciplinary
approaches. iGi Global.
Flavell, J. H. (1987). Speculations about the nature and development of metacognition. In F.
Weinert & R. Kluwe (Eds.), Metacognition, motivation and understanding (pp. 2129). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Hatano, G., & Inagaki, K. (1986). Two courses of expertise. In H. W. Stevenson, H. Azuma,& K. Hakuta (Eds.), Child development and education in Japan (pp. 262–272). W H
Freeman/Times Books/ Henry Holt & Co.
Johnson, D. W., Johnson, R. T., & Holubec., E. J. (1994). The new circles of learning.
Cooperation in the classroom. Association for supervision and curriculum
development.
Kolb, D. A., Boyatzis, R. E., & Mainemelis, C. (2001). Experiential learning theory: Previous
research and new directions. Perspectives on thinking, learning, and cognitive styles,
1(8), 227-247.
Kolb, D. A. (2014). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning anddevelopment. FT press.
Nation, I. S. P. (2013). What should every EFL teacher know?. Tokyo, Japan: Compass
Publishing.
Nelson, T. O., & Narens, L. (1994). Why investigate metacognition. Metacognition: Knowing
about knowing, 13, 1-25.
Rodgers, C. (2002). Defining reflection: Another look at John Dewey and reflective thinking.
Teachers college record, 104(4), 842-866.
Sato, M., & Lyster, R. (2007). Modified output of Japanese EFL learners: Variable effects ofinterlocutor vs. feedback types. In A. Mackey (Ed.), Conversational interaction insecond language acquisition: A series of empirical studies (pp.123-143). Oxford:
Oxford University Press.

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Shaffer, C. (1989). A comparison of inductive and deductive approaches to teaching foreign
languages. The Modern Language Journal, 73(4), 395-403.
Snow, M. A., Met, M., & Genesee, F. (1989). A conceptual framework for the integration of
language and content in second/foreign language instruction. TESOL quarterly, 23(2),201-217.
Swain, M. (2000). The output hypothesis and beyond: Mediating acquisition throughcollaborative dialogue. In J. P. Lantolf (Ed.), Sociocultural Theory and Second
Language Learning (pp.97-114). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Swain, M. (2006). Languaging, agency and collaboration in advanced second language
proficiency. In H. Byrnes (Ed.), Advanced language learning: The contribution ofHalliday and Vygotsky (pp. 95–108). London: Continuum.
Swain, M., & Suzuki, W. (2008). Interaction, output, and communicative language learning.
In B. Spolsky & F. M. Hult (Eds), The handbook of educational linguistics (pp. 557570). Malden, MA: Blackwell.
Vygotsky, L. S. (1980). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes.
Harvard university press.
Contact email: gomez.yumi@wa.seitoku.ac.jp

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Nursing, Health Technician and Midwifery Students’ Perceptions of Their First Fully
Online Learning Experience During the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study
Kamal Takhdat, High Institute of Nursing and Health Techniques Marrakesh, Morocco
Mohamed Eddabbah, Hight Institute of Nursing and Health Techniques, Morocco
Mustapha Ouzouhou, Hight Institute of Nursing and Health Techniques, Morocco
Ahmed Ghassane El Adib, University Cadi Ayyad, Morocco
Saloua Lamtali, High Institute of Nursing and Health Techniques, Morocco
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Abstract
This paper examines undergraduate nursing, health technician and midwifery students’
perceptions of their first fully online learning experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic
period. Online learning was a solution for several countries during the COVID-19 pandemic topursue studies and protect students. Understanding nursing students perceptions of theirexperiences related to the online learning is crucial to achieve effectively online learning
objectives. Hence, we conducted a mono-centric cross-sectional descriptive study to examine
learner’s perceptions of their online learning experiences during this difficult time. This
research was conducted among 648 students between 16 March and 16 May 2020 at a public
nursing institute in Morocco. STROBE reporting guidelines were used to report findings.
The results are encouraging. Students perceived positively their first fully online learning
experience. Surprisingly 58% of participants were satisfied from this learning modality. In
contrast, heterogeneous opinions surrounded the credibility/pertinence of online learningassessment. This pandemic period was an opportunity to explore the educational potential of
online learning in our context. Hence, our institute is called to reinforce integration of online
learning-teaching strategy to meet learner’s styles preferences and improve nursing education
quality.
Keywords: Online Learning, Students’ Perceptions, Nursing Students, COVID-19

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
The current Corona-virus disease (COVID-19) appears for the first time in Wuhan (China) inlate December 2019. Since the world health organization (WHO) had declared the COVID-19
outbreak to be a pandemic on March 12, 2020 (WHO, 2020), by March 18, 2020, 107 countries
had adopted national school closures (Viner et al., 2020). There is a consensus that the current
pandemic (SARSCoV-2) has severally altered lives around the world. The novel SARS-CoV2 pandemic context has shifted in how students are educated. During this difficult time, online
learning has become the norm. In Morocco, the pre-licensure nursing, health technician, andmidwifery program is administered entirely face-to-face.
In order to ensure continuing nursing education, The High Institute of Nursing Professions and
Health Techniques (ISPITS) has been mobilized to allow students to pursue their theoreticalcourses online. Since March 16, 2020, once the decision to suspend face-to-face courses was
made, an ad-hoc vigilance committee was formed to consider potential solutions. Note that the
majority of our instructors and students were not educated on a particular learning management
system (LMS) in our setting. Furthermore, the urgency of this change encourages teachers to
use whatever technical and pedagogical resources they choose to achieve the goals of their
online learning programs. Effectively, one of the most challenge aspect of online learning isthat learners and teachers lack the knowledge and skills needed to use an online LMS for the
first time (Georgouli et al., 2008). Instructors were assisted by a computer science doctorengineer during this transition to help them solve the challenges they encountered using thetechnical methods they selected. After two weeks of guidance, online learning has taken theright path. The main goal was to ensure that pedagogical support was provided in the best
possible ways to achieve curriculum learning outcomes.
Online learning saves time and money, provides a variety of multimedia supports toaccommodate different learning styles. It also allows students to learn from anywhere, andrespects their learning rhythms. By moving the instructional model from teacher-centered tolearner-centered pedagogy, e-learning innovations are reshaping the educational paradigm(Oye et al., 2014). According to Parsazadeh et al. (2013), the performance determinants inonline education are the accessibility of students and instructors, student satisfaction, andonline pedagogical resources. The success or failure of graduate students who use emerging
technology in their studies is unclear (Park et al., 2010). A systematic analysis by Childs et al.
(2005) identifies a number of barriers to online learning, including institutional and financial
issues, software and hardware use and attainability, support usability, pedagogical methods,
and instructors' digital skills. Learners must feel that these technological learning systems areserving them to reproduce face-to-face learning experiences and meet their pedagogicaldemands (Sharma et al., 2016). In other terms, optimize their effort and performance
expectancies (Venkatesh et al., 2003). Then, their digital skills, knowledge and familiarization
with online learning platforms predict the effectiveness of learning management systems
implementation (Lee et al., 2013). Indeed, in online learning, a user-friendly and intuitive
platforms design is more important that is well maintain and enhance student motivation, as
well as the integration of self-evaluation functionalities to ensure that learners are properly,
intentionally engaged in the learning process (Xu and Mahenthiran, 2016).
Students' perceptions of their online learning are critical indicators of any online learning
strategy's success (Pahinis et al., 2007; Redmond et al., 2018). The objective of this study is to
examine nursing, health technician and midwifery students’ perceptions of their first fully
online learning experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Methods
DesignAcross-sectional quantitative mono-centric survey design was undertaken using an online
questionnaire survey to describe students’ perceptions of their first fully online learning
experiences.
Setting
This study was conducted in a large Moroccan public institute of nursing, health techniquesand midwifery that offers 12 pre-licensure degree programs: general nursing, intensive andcritical care, anesthesia, mental health, neonatal, radiology, laboratory, social assistance,
physiotherapy, community health, orthoprosthetist and midwifery. The whole theoreticalmodules are delivered in solely face-to-face teaching-learning modality.
ParticipantsThis research was open to all institute students (N=643) enrolled in the second, fourth, andsixth semesters. Students were assured that their grades would not be impacted by theirinvolvement or non-participation in the survey to enable them to participate and that their
participation is voluntary. With an 89 % response rate, 573 students agreed to participate in thequestionnaire survey.
Measurement: Questionnaire Survey
A quantitative descriptive analysis was used in this original study. Data was collected via aquestionnaire survey exploring the students' perceptions of their first fully online course, using
Kirkpatrick's four-level assessment model (first level: reactions) (Kirkpatrick, 1998), using an
online survey. This instrument consists of 7 multiple-choice close-ended questions. The firsttwo questions interest the technical aspects of their online learning experiences and concern
digital devices and platforms used during online learning. Each query included six to ninestatements. Students' online learning background, interactivity, assimilation of learning goals
and satisfaction are all addressed in the last five questions. These questions were answered on
a 5-point Likert scale, with responses ranging from "Very dissatisfied" to "dissatisfied," "verysatisfied," "satisfied," and "Very satisfied." The characteristics of the participants (gender, age,
specialty, and pre-licensure semester) were also recorded. Data was collected over four days in
May 2020.
Data Analysis
Quantitative data analyses were carried out using Microsoft Excel software. Descriptive
statistics were used to report demographic characteristics of the participants. Mean (M),standard deviation (SD) and range were used to describe participant age. Proportions (%) aimed
to describe gender and number of participants per specialties, semester and to present students’
perceptions of the different aspects of online learning surveyed.

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Ethical Improvement
Eligible students were contacted by email and informed that answering the survey implied theirconsent to participate in the study. They were told about the study's goals and that theirinformation would be kept private. A password was used to restrict access to the online survey's
registered data. We have also obtained the nursing institute approval to recruit students to thisstudy.
Results
Participants’ Characteristics
The research included 573 of the 648 eligible students, and their data was analyzed. The
demographic profile of the participants is presented in Table 1. The responders are mainly
young (mean age: 21) Moroccan female students (88%). 36% of participants are undertaking
the pre-licensure degree in general nursing and 48% of them were in the second semester.
Characteristic

Value

Age
M (SD)
20.64 (2.42)
Range
18-44
GenderFemale n (%)
505 (88%)
Male n (%)
141 (12%)Semester
Second278 (48%)
Fourth190 (33%)
Sixth
105 (18%)
Specialties
General nursing
246 (43%)
Anesthesia
30 (5%)
Intensive care
40 (7%)
Neonatal
22 (4%)
Mental health41 (7%)
Midwifery
22 (4%)
Radiology
42 (7%)
Laboratory
31 (5%)
Social assistant
9 (2%)
Community health80 (14%)orthoprosthetist
10 (2%)
N
573 (100%)
Table 1: Participant’s Characteristics
M: mean; SD: Standard deviation.
Students’ Online Learning Experience
The online learning background experience has shown that 58% of participants (n= 332) did
not experienced a fully online learning modality before this period of COVID-19 (Fig. 1).

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Figure 1: Students’ E-Learning Background
Digital Devices Used to Attempt Online Learning Courses
75% of participants used Smartphone to achieve their online course. The laptop was employed
by 19% of them.

Figure 2: Digital Devices Used by Students During Inline Learning
Online Learning Courses Interactivity
High levels of agreement 71% (n=405) were associated students’ online learning modality
interactivity. Otherwise, 29% (n=168) of students found the distance learning deserved byinstitute pedagogical staff non interactive (Fig. 2).

Figure 3: Online Courses Interactivity Students’ Satisfaction

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Online Learning Platforms
The most platforms used by students during their online learning activities were WhatsAppsocial network with a rate of 43%, Google Classroom come in the second position with 32%
of participants (Table 2). The combination “WhatsApp + Google Classroom” was used by 47%
of participants. These same platforms (especially WhatsApp with 77%) were commonly usedby students to communicate and share didactic content between them (Table 2 and 3). Zoom
with 63% was the most videoconference platform used to attempt synchronous audio-visual
didactic content (Table 4).
Learning Platform%
WhatsApp
43
Google Classroom
32
WhatsApp + Google
47
Classroom
ZOOM
18
SimClasse3
Others5
Table 2: Platforms Used for Online Learning
Communication Platform%
WhatsApp
77
Googleclassroom
16
Facebook
3
Gmail
1
Others3
Table 3: Platforms Used by Students to Communicate and Exchange Didactic Content
Videoconference Platform
%
Zoom
63
SimClasse
14
Whatsapp
6
GoogleMeet
7
Facebooklive
3
WebEx
2
Others5
Table 4 : Videoconference’ Paltforms Used During Students’ Online Learning
Online Learning Objectives Assimilation
69% (N= 395) of our participants assimilated the didactic material and were satisfied from thiseducation modality in terms of comprehensibility and assimilation of learning objectives. On
the other hand, 31% of them didn’t assimilate the content via this teachnig modality (Figure
3)

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Figure 4: Students’assimilation of Didactic Content in Online Learning
Online Learning Students’ Satisfaction
58% (332) of participants were satisfied from online distance learning modality (Figure 4).

Figure 5: Online Learning Students’ Satisfaction
Online Learning Evaluation Credibility and Pertinence
33% (190) of participants were partially agreed about pertinence and credibility of online
learning assessment; while 18% (133) of participants thought that online learning evaluation
exams are credible and pertinent. In contrast, 44% (250) had stated their disagreement with thisassessment modality (see Fig. 6).

Figure 6: Students’ Online Learning Evaluation Credibility and Pertinence

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Discussion
Nursing curricula are approving centered-learner active strategies including online courses andblended learning, to achieve and match different learners’ styles and programs objectives(Gaston and Lynch, 2019). This study provides an insight into the nursing, health technician
and midwifery undergraduate students’ perceptions of their first fully online learning during
the COVID-19 pandemic. The foremost surprisingly result of this original study has shown thatstudents have been overall satisfied from the online learning, despite it was their first fully
online learning experience. Effectively, 58% of participants were satisfied despite of a lack intheirinstitutional online learning policy in addition to the socioeconomic conditions in adeveloping country especially in the COVID-19 time witch can impair online learning quality
experience (Horzum, 2015). The reported level of satisfaction may be linked to theconstructivist approach learner-centered based of online learning education (Dorrian and
Wache, 2009). The accessibility and ease use of online tools are foremost crucial for the
successful online learning experience (Alhomod and Shafi, 2013). This resultcan also be
explained especially thatstudents of this generation used commonly some online platforms(particularly social networks) to learn and communicate outside the institutional framework.
Generally, the most popular learning management systems (LMS) are Moodle andBlackboard(Timms, 2017). Both of them were not used by teachers to attempt online learning.
A large part of participants (77%) relied on social network like “WhatsApp”to which they arefamiliar and GoogleClassroom (16%) to attempt their online courses. 47% of them employed
a combination of these platforms.Effectively, Combination of different didactic supports(videos, pictures and voice) and offering amobile learning method (anytime, anywhere) has
made WhatsApp a convenient, effective and student-friendly tool for online learning (Gon and
Rawekar, 2017; Maske et al., 2018). This result is supported by Asiry(2017)study within
students preferred social network to attempt their online learning activities.
This study also highlighted that online learning interactivity was positively perceived. 71% of
students stated that the online courses were interactive using this social network platform.
Indeed, instructors acknowledge the necessity to enhance socialinteraction for thegoal ofknowledge construction as it stated by constructivist pedagogical approach (Abrami et al.,2011).Development of teaching techniques that enhance learner’s engagement and instructor
immediacy is a fundamental in online learning interactivity(DellAntonio, 2017; Gaston &Lynch, 2019). In fact, when there is poor interactivity, learning styles preferences of students
and the teaching techniques are mismatched, teaching become tiresome and non-interactive(Park et al., 2010). Learner engagement is a fundamental facet and trend of online learning
education (Bonk, 2016; Centner, 2014).Thus, this research has demonstrated the effectivenessof social networks in the achievement of online learning courses interactivity.LMS constitutethe heart technology platforms for the online learning(Xu and Mahenthiran, 2016). In addition,some studies stated that LMS offering structured interactive tools including wiki or discussion
forum are necessary to improve student-centered active learning (Berkstresser, 2016; Park etal., 2010; Zou et al., 2015). In our context, no LMS was used in the online learning students’experiences.
Concerning online learning content assimilation, 69% of participants arrived tounderstand/assimilate the didactic content via this teaching/learning modality. This level ofassimilation can be linked to interactivity and social constructivism elicited by this learningmodality improving students’ engagement and meeting their rhythm and preferences styles oflearning.Effectively, studentsinteract with didactic content, for example by having discussions
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assimilation of didactic content and enhanced interactivity improve students’ self-efficacy.
Thus, 58% of participants were overallsatisfied from this learning method.
Assessment of students’ learning outcomes is critical and must integrate course design andinstruction (Muller et al., 2019; Oh et al., 2020).In relation to participants’ online learningassessment perceptions, 55% of students surveyed revealed that online learning evaluation isoverall credible and pertinent.
Limitation
Although the aim of qualitative research is not to generalize (Morse, 2016).This was a study ina single site which limits generalizability. The study relied on students' self-reporting(perceptions) their online learning experiences which can influenced by students’ previous
digital skills and personality. Objective measures of online learning were not collected andcompared with student’s perceptions. Furthermore, including focus groups in order to learn
more about students’ online learning perceptions would strength study results.
Bias
All students have not the same digital skills, internet flow (3G/4G/ Wifi). Thus, it may influence
the quality of online learning, consequently the quality of online learning experience.
Furthermore, instructor’s availability and digital competencies, instructional design (howdidactic material is sequenced and presented) may influence learners’ interactivity andassimilation.
Conclusion
Participants had a positive perception of their first online learning experiences overall. This
study present a general picture of the learners’ perceptions of the online learning experienced
during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through preliminary results, it seems encouraging to review
our institute education curriculum and start to integrate online learning strategies in nursing
education curriculum. A large multi-centric research is merited to investigate instructors’
perceptions of online learning strategy. The goal is to inform curriculum instructional designers
and instructors on futures online learning strategies to meet learners’ styles preferences andcurriculum objectives. Thus, further large studies will enable to construct an overarching
picture on this teaching-learning strategy and ensure that next institutional policies andresources reinforce more the online learning in the nursing and midwifery curriculum.
Acknowledgments
Authors thank all survey participants.

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Contact email: Kamal.takhdat@ced.uca.ma

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Factors Pulling International Students to Japan: A Situation Analysis
Tran Hoang Nam, Tokushima University, Japan
Jin Cheng-Hai, Tokushima University, Japan
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
Japan has 312,214 international students in May 2019, successfully achieving the 300,000
international students target. This study investigates the factors pulling international students
into Japan for higher education. Data for literature review was collected from mainly
Japanese sources including research reports, review papers, statistics, and online materials,
which addressing the issues of international students’ mobility into Japan from 2008 until
present. Data was reviewed qualitatively by comparative analysis, comparing the literature
with the elements of 300,000 international students plan and the pull factors from thepush-pull model. The results showed specific measures in strengthening campus
internationalization, expanding international cooperation and alumni network, improving
supporting services, diversifying scholarship schemes, job hunting support etc. could beconsidered as effective pulling factors. Moreover, while these factors could be applied
effectively by some universities, it is hard for other universities to follow the same approach.
The results imply obstacles to the mid-ranking public universities to attract moreinternational students and the need to improve this situation.
Keywords: Study in Japan, International Student, Pull Factors

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Global international student mobility has been expanding consistently in the past two decades.
In 2018, 5.6 million students worldwide went abroad to study, more than twice the number in2005 (OECD, 2020a). The question of why students are pulled to their education destination
overseas has been a long-time topic for studies conducted in various settings andcircumstances. The most common theory for investigating the study abroad destination
outcome is the “push-pull” model, which sees decision about destination of study abroad as
the result of push factors, which exist within the source country and push students to go
abroad, and pull factors, which come from the host country, or host institution and attract
students to the host (Mazzarol & Soutar, 2002). In the past, the host country is often
representing a technology advanced country, often a western and English-speaking country
which seems attractive to students from developing countries (Figure 1). However, by the endof 20th century, emerging countries in Asia are making success to increase the international
students’ share (Kuroda et al., 2018).
Since the end of 19th century, Japan become an Asian model of modernization and therefore
received attention of surrounding countries. The first Korean students came to Japan in 1881,
while the first Chinese students came to Japan in 1896 (Maruyama, 2011). Students fromthese countries had been attracted to Japan because of geographical proximity and culturalsimilarity. After the second world war, Japan had been emerging as a world economic power.
Technological advance and unique culture provide Japan with more ability to attract
international students, especially remarkable during the last two decades. Recently, numberof international students studying in Japan, especially from Asia, has increased drastically,making it one of the top host countries in the world. As students from various countries arepulled to Japan for higher education, in this paper, we take a particular setting of Japan as ahost country for international students, and investigate the pull factors at national level, which
tent to be related to historical context and its transformation through out the whole process toreach the current magnitude and pull factors at lower levels which may vary by region,
prefecture, or institution.

Figure 1: Pull Factors Attracting International Students
It could be observed from the past that the studying abroad outcome has been strongly
influenced by push and pull factors. In our previous review, we proposed five push macro
factors model that pushes students abroad (Tran & Jin, 2021). However, push factors alone
could not explain why international students choose Japan as a destination. The attractivenessof study in Japan is become visible to the world, however, there is still little understanding
about what are the pull factors that attract international students to Japan, and what are
sub-national pull factors that make international students to decide to go to a particular region
or institution in Japan. This paper is aiming to: (1) identify pull factors of study in Japan; (2)find evidence of pull factors from literature and implications for further study.

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MethodIn this work we investigate pull factors from available literature. The literature search was
conducted mainly by Google Scholar and other search engines such as Google, ERIC, Cinii.
The search ranged mainly from 2000 to present. We did a literature review from documents,
publications and reports published in Japanese language by Japan’s public institutions,research institutions as well as public media, new articles, study abroad forums and otherinternet sources. We found a huge number of papers by the keywords selected (Table 1). Then
we selected the papers that have full text and content that satisfied our information needs.
Table 1. Google Scholars Search Results (Japanese, Title, Phrase)
KeywordJapaneseAllsince 2017
since 2021
Study abroad
kaigairyugaku
7,100
2,040
277
Study in Japan
nihonryugaku
4,100
961
124
Int’l students
ryugakusei
83,80012,8001,700
Int’l students (in Japan)
gaikokujin ryugakusei
7,430
903
Japan gov. scholarshipnihonseifuushougakukin
1,990
218
Int’l st. w J gov. schol.
kokuhiryugakusei
473
52
Private int’l student.
shihiryugakusei
504
60
The pull factors exist in Japan are of particular interest in this paper. Pull factors are the items
specific to a host country, such as economic power, level of influence, diaspora of immigrants
etc. In this paper, we searched for pull factors according to several sources including generalpull factors, socioeconomic factors, which are available at national level, factors specified by
Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) and policy-related pull factors as specified by"300,000 International Students Plan". Besides the factors above, we also look atsocio-economic factors such as low fertility, regional revitalization, foreigner communities,
etc.
Results
Transition of International Students in Japan
After the World War 2, Japan had become a study destination for students from many nations,such as Malaysia, Brazil, Thailand, and Singapore (Maruyama, 2011). Japan had made aproactive move to internationalize higher education following OECD’s suggestions in 1971.
There had been two major government initiatives which contributed to drastically increase ofinternational student enrollments (Kuwamura, 2009). The Nakasone’s plan in 1983, which
aimed to attract 100,000 international students by 2020, had reached its goals in 2003. This
plan was focusing on nurturing Japanese identity of Japanese students, and it targeted theinternational students as temporary visitors who would leave Japan after their graduation.
From 1996 to 2000, the "10,000 Postdocs Plan" had been implemented to provide funds toresearch institutes to create 10,000 doctoral degree holders placed in a competitiveenvironment in the research world (MEXT, 2002).
In 2008, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT)
formulated the "300,000 International Students Plan". This is positioned as a part of a global
strategy that aims to increase the number of foreign students studying in Japan to 300,000 by
2020, opening Japan to the world and expanding the flow of human, goods, capital, andinformation. This plan had been focusing on the global competitiveness of Japan and aimed

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to cultivate global human resources of its domestic students. From 2009 to 2014, the Global
30 (G30) Project aims to internationalize higher education in Japan through collective
programs and policies of its 13 member universities. Since 2014, the government introduced
the Top Global University Project for prioritized support for university reforms until 2023.
Top Global Universities are categorized into 13 Type A (Top Type) universities that conduct
world-leading education and research; and 24 Type B (Global Traction Type) universities thatlead the internationalization of Japanese society (MEXT, 2021).
The 300,000 international students plan had reached its goals in 2019. However, this number
includes long-term and short-term students (less than a year education in Japan), andcompromises degree and non-degree programs: Japanese language students (29.5%),
undergraduate students (29%), professional college students (22%), graduate students(17.4%), and others (2.1%) (JASSO, 2017b). Although this plan regarded international
students as contributors to the Japanese workforce, the extent to which the Japanesecommunity and universities are ready to accept these international students has beenquestioned (Rakhshandehroo, 2018; Rivers, 2010).

Figure 2: International Students in Japan (Source: adapted from MEXT, 2021)
Despite the efforts, the share of international students in Japan, at 3.4%, is also lower than theOECD average of 5.6% (OECD, 2020b). In May 2020, total number of international students
in Japan is 279,597, decreased by 10.4% from 312,214 of the previous year (JASSO, 2020).
The largest sending countries were China with 121,845 (down 2,591 from the previous year),
Vietnam with 62,233 (down 11,156), and Nepal with 24,002 (down 2,306). This decreased
number of inbound students was heavily influence by Covid-19 outbreak. The number ofinternational students includes students who were unable to travel to Japan at the scheduled
time because of the Covid-19 pandemic and were forced to take online classes overseas.
While the number of non-regular courses such as universities, preparatory courses, andJapanese language education institutions has decreased, the number of regular courses andvocational schools of universities and junior colleges is increasing. Travel restrictions had
been taken by the Japanese government since January 2020, resulted in canceling or
postponing acceptance, mostly had impacted non-regular courses. Since March 2021, it was
decided to continue this measure for the time being, except for "special circumstances", evenafter the state of emergency was lifted. For students such as government-sponsored students,
as "special circumstances", entry will be resumed on condition that necessary measures aretaken (MEXT, 2020). Among the total international students in 2020, 219,000 students
entered higher education institutions (approximately 136,000 at university/college, 400 atcollege of technology (senko), 80,000 at vocational school, 3,000 at preparatory course), and

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about 61,000 students entered Japanese language schools (JASSO, 2020). Figure 2 shows the
rapid increase in number of international students during the last several years until theoutbreak of Covid-19.
Looking at general pull factors, at first, we will describe the evidence of pull factors as worldclass education, rich nature and culture, affordable costs, socioeconomic (population decline),
supportive environment, employment opportunities.
Factor 1. World Class Education
Japan is known for its cutting-edge science, technology, and medicine. Japan was able togrow economically and become a leading country in manufacturing precisely because of theadvanced knowledge and technology fostered by its excellent education system. Japanese
schools focus not only on academic achievements but also on the development of humanquality (JASSO, n.d.). Japan is known to have excellent universities, especially in the STEM
fields, able to produce 29 Nobel laureates and 3 Fields medalists, more than any other Asian
nations. However, there seems a global decline of Japan’s university ranking.
Table 2. Ranking of Japan’s Universities by Times Higher Education
University 2011
2016
2020
2022
Int’l Stud (%)
Int’l Stud (%)
Int’l Stud (%)
G30

Tokyo

26

43

10%

36

12%

35

14%

Kyoto

57

88

7%

65

9%

61

11%

Osaka

130

251+

9%

301+

11%

301+

11%

Kyushu

401+

8%

401+

13%

501+

14%

Non Tokushima
G30
Tottori

601+

3%

1001+

3%

1201+

3%

601+

2%

1001+

2%

1201+

2%

1001+

2%

1201+

2%

Ryukyus

Looking at the figures of national universities, in Table 2, Japan’s university ranking in 2022
according to THE was generally downranked compared to 2011 (THE, 2021). Comparing theG30 and top global group and the non G30 group, the former seems to keep their ranks stableor even up during the past years, the latter seems much downranked. Regarding the
proportion of international students, the G30 group has achieved significant growth during
the last years, while the non-G30 group shows no improvement. Decrease in number ofinternational students is typical for any non-G30 and non-top-global universities (Figure 3).

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Figure 3. Number of International Students (Source: Kochi University)
However, a study reported that Chinese studying STEM in Japan rapidly increased until 2011,
then this trend did slowdown due to the students have becoming more western-oriented(Futagami, 2016). In Japan, a phenomenon called east asianization (Figure 4) rapidly gained
momentum in the latter half of the 1990s. Accepting more international students fromdeveloping countries to compensate for the decreasing Japanese students may serve toincrease academic performance in the short term, but it is surely unsustainable in the long run(Arai, 2018).

Figure 4. East Asianization of International Students (Source: JASSO 2021)
Factor 2. Fascinating Culture, Language, and Nature
Japan, as a country itself is very popular abroad. attractive to foreigners. There are almost
four million learners of Japanese language worldwide, but only a quarter of them are fromoutside Asia. According to a survey data, people are learning Japanese because they areinterested in manga, anime, J-Pop, etc. (54.0%), in history, literature, (49.7%), in future
employment (42.3%), in study in Japan (34.0%), in culture (32.4%), in sightseeing (28.6%),
in taking examinations (26.6%) (Japan Foundation, 2012). Among international students
enrolled in Japan, it has positive images of easy life, anime, Sakura, beautiful streets,
politeness, cute stuff, Akihabara (Yang & Yasuhisa, 2019). Japanese people became more
active in perceiving multicultural issues, cross-cultural understanding. E.g., in Tokushima
prefecture, residents are active in leaning diversified foreign languages and cultures, whileproviding community support to foreigners in Japanese language, culture exchange, disaster,
employment, etc. (Tran, 2020; Tran & Matsuura, 2020).

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Figure 5. Urbanization of International Students (Source: JASSO 2021)
Figure 5 shows location of international students as a clear urban trend could be observed.
Rural areas in Japan are rich of uniqueness of nature and tradition but face declining
population. International students could be seen as resources to revitalize the locality. Studies
have shown that foreign residents enjoy more human relations and Japanese learning in rural
areas, however there are also inconveniences such as transportation (Fukada, 2019).
Factor 3. Affordable Cost, Part-Time Job, and Employment
A boom of Japan investment and Japan-owned companies has led to higher chance for
employing student-returnees with higher salaries (Hirasawa, 2019). The open economic
market in foreign countries brings better economic conditions for returnees. In short, from
economic perspective, study abroad in Japan becomes more affordable while domestic
education becomes more expensive may drive more students to choose study in Japan. About
more than a decade ago, high living cost is the biggest challenge of privately funded students
in Japan (Fujii & Masami, 2003). However, recently, a smaller number of international
students perceived a high living cost, and economic situation of international students seems
improved, as number of international students need counseling on financial problems is
declining (Oka, 2018). It was reported that part-time job is a factor that attracts international
students (Shizuka, 2015). Part-time job is the first experience of being worker a good
opportunity for socialization to start thinking about the value and career of money,
obligations, and responsibilities in society (Wakabayashi 2006). Students active in a part-time
for more than two years have higher scores for social skills (Iseri, 2013) and higher careerdevelopment (Sekiguchi, 2012). Part-time job activities are expected to promote thesocialization of foreign students living in Japan, and at the same time, deepen theirunderstanding of Japanese culture and enhance their Japanese-style interpersonal relationshipabilities (Lin & Horiuchi, 2021). International students are 80% active, not only for income,but also for work experience & practicing Japanese, career development (Itoh & Hiruma,2019) cultural understanding (Huang, 2018). Recently, problems related to part-time jobs
decline and some privately students afford not work part-time. However, still some rely on
part-time jobs for most living expenses (Oka, 2018).

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Figure 6. Employment Rate (Source: METI 2017 Foreign Student Career Survey)
Regarding job hunting, various measures are being implemented to ensure that international
students can find employment in Japan. Since 2012, Immigration Bureau has implemented apoints-based system to facilitate the immigration of highly skilled foreign professionals(Immigration Services Agency of Japan, 2012) which makes staying in Japan easier. Since
2016, the program for enhancing employment of international students has been approved by
MEXT to be implemented in 12 universities, aiming at raising the employment rate in Japan
from the current 30% to 50% (MEXT, 2017). Recently, the need for finding employment inJapan is very high among international students. In 2017, 63.6% of international students
want to work in Japan, but only 30.1% found job (JASSO 2017). For job hunting, social
support from local communities to international students has become an important factor for
promoting job-seeking intention of international students. Studies have shown that who
succeeded in employment had won the social support and they could do their job hunting
similarly as Japanese students (Fujimoto et al., 2014). There is an increasing trend of job
hunting in Japan as Figure 6 shows 35% of the respondents have found job in Japan in 2017
compared to 25.2% in 2010. However, most of the graduated students have found job inurban hubs such as Tokyo, Osaka, Kanagawa. Very few students successfully settled in rural
areas. This fact shows is a clear disparity in destination of employment for international
students.
Factor 4. Population Decline
Due to population decline, especially decline of the university-age population, since 1990s,
Japanese higher education system has facing pressure to internationalize their operations(Yonezawa, 2019). Until now, even though the 18-year-old population has decreased, thecollege advancement rate has increased, and universities have been able to secure the numberof students (Nakane, 2019). However, MEXT estimates that after 2018, the number enrollees
will decline, regardless of increase in college advancement rate. In this situation, filling the
gap of enrolment by recruiting more international students seems to become a challenge forJapan’s HEIs soon.
Conclusion
Japan is a major host to the world’s international student. This paper reviewed the pull factorsthat affect the inbound trends of international students. By examining related studies andliterature, we demonstrated that international student inbound in Japan is strongly influenced
by many pull factors. In this paper, we used evidence found in the literature to confirm thegeneral pull factors, such as (i) world class education, (ii) fascinating culture, language, andnature; (iii) affordable cost, part-time job, and employment; (iv) population decline.

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Regarding the world class education of Japan, literature has shown that this is a very strong
pull factor that acts as a major national brand of Japan to attract international students into
Japan. However, we also found some evidence of declining ranking and regional gap among
top HEIs and non-top HEIs, as well as a trend of east asianization of Japan’s science.
Regarding Japanese culture, language, and nature as a pull factor, we found true evidence ofthe popularity of Japanese culture worldwide and among international students in Japan, andthe sign of Japan to transform into multicultural society for regional revitalization, but again,
here we found regional gap in the rural areas to make internationalization. Regarding
affordable cost life in Japan, availability of part-time job, and employment possibilities,
literature has shown that during the last decade, life in Japan has becoming more affordable,with plenty of part-time job and employment possibilities for international students. However,regional gap still exists, as most of the graduates have found job at big urban areas.
Regarding population decline as a pull factor, the is no literature found to support thisassumption so far, but this could become an indirect pull factor in the near future.
Our findings also include a literature review of policy-related pull factors and HEIs-related
pull factors as specified by "300,000 International Students Plan", which could be seen as
sub-national and institutional level pull factors and explain why students come to a specificinstitution or prefecture. For the length of the content, we will publish these findings in a
separated publication.
In summary, in this study we could find the literature that supports the pull factors that are
assumed to contribute to attracting international students to Japan. The trends and intensity ofthe pulling effect vary by time. There is a clear regional disparity between big urban areas
and the other regions of Japan in terms of attractiveness to international students. These
results show that there is an increasing trend for study in Japan pushed and pulled by multiple
factors. These factors could influence the transition of mobility over time, including numberof students, study destinations, career after graduation, which make impact to promote
diversity and regional development of Japan.
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP20K02610.

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Transformational Leadership in Changing Education Systems: Evolving Management
Roles and Responsibilities in Educational Institutions
Nathaniel Edwards, Yamaguchi University, Japan
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Abstract
This paper examines the effectiveness of transformational leadership in changing education
systems and the rapidly evolving and expanding roles of educational leaders. Innovation,rather than the mere improvement of existing processes and structures, is one of the mostimportant elements of an organization that a leader can help to promote. Whether it is afactory that produces tangible products or a learning organization involved in training
individuals in a wide range of disciplines, leadership and management approaches thatenhance innovation are of vital importance. Effective and enlightened leaders helporganizations to improve and to evolve in innovative new ways (Mufeed, 2018). The
traditional concept of leadership provides a rigid framework that may no longer be effective
in an increasingly complex and interconnected international society. Effective educational
leadership requires shared responsibility, advanced critical thinking skills, flexibility indecision-making processes, open channels of communication throughout an organization, andclose collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders (Eliophotou-Menon & Ioannou, 2016).
Transformational leadership, which was first developed in the private sector, is now being
employed successfully in the management and rapid transformation of educational
institutions.
Keywords: Transformational Leadership, Education Systems, Innovation, Management

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Introduction
Transformational leadership, which first evolved in private companies, is now being usedeffectively by some educational leaders to improve and transform educational institutions andeducation systems to meet the complex, changing needs of students. In the current period of
rapid social, economic, and technological change, organizations and education systems
require flexible, innovative leadership that is capable of transforming current organizational
cultures, structures, and practices (Mufeed, 2018). The roles and responsibilities of
educational leaders are expanding and changing as a result of multiple, complex, andevolving factors in global society, the economy, technology, the environment, and other key
areas. Economic and political pressures are forcing some schools to operate in a manner
similar to private companies to reduce costs and to produce more measurable results (Onorato,2013). School management practices are being influenced by the private sector. Many schoolleaders increasingly need more financial knowledge, business skills, and negotiating skills asa result of funding cuts (Miller, Lu, & Gearhart, 2020). Transformational school leaders mayneed to carefully evaluate and adopt some of the best practices of private companies toreduce costs.
Resilient organizations and educational institutions are capable of responding quickly andeffectively to new needs and challenges in a complex, interconnected, and changing
international environment. Transformational leaders need to foster and promote diversity andcross-cultural communication in increasingly multicultural and international organizations
and educational institutions (Bonsu & Twum-Danso, 2018). Increased diversity can improve
the resiliency of an organization by providing a greater range of opinions and experiencesthat can be applied to decision-making processes. The concept of continual innovation andthe processes that support innovation need to be fostered and developed at all levels of a truly
resilient organization (Horibe, 2003). Leaders need to be willing to change and be able to leadand inspire other stakeholders to accept a culture of change and to make substantial
contributions to necessary changes in existing policies, structures, and practices.
In the traditional view of transactional leadership, the leader may often play a dominantcentral role in an organization and may even dictate instructions or commands in a seemingly
logical and rational manner. The term leadership may create the image of a lone figure at the
top of a rigid, inflexible hierarchy or out in front of a group of obedient subordinates andmaking many of the most important decisions for other stakeholders in an organization. In atransactional style of leadership concentrated at the top of a hierarchical organizational
structure, there may be virtually no role for interactive debates or individual decisions or
initiatives within an organization (Eliophotou-Menon & Ioannou, 2016). The higher one’s
official ranking in an organization, the more influence one may have. The traditional conceptof leadership centered around one main leader or a relatively small group of key, seniordecision-makers at the top of a rigid hierarchical structure provides a framework for
management that may no longer be effective in an increasingly complex global society.
In sharp contrast to traditional leaders, skillful transformational leaders do not isolatethemselves or rely mainly on advice from a small number of senior members of anorganization. Transformational leaders are capable of being good followers when necessary
and communicate frequently with all members of an organization and with stakeholders inthe surrounding community (Katz & Hamam, 2018). Effective transformational leadership
requires shared responsibility throughout an organization. A good leader must recognize theneed for critical thinking and for completely open, ongoing dialogue on all issues in the

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workplace. In addition, competent transformational leaders are sufficiently aware of the roleof emotions in thinking and in decision-making processes. Effective leaders are sincere,
respect other members, and are committed to the success of an organization (Bennett, 2019).
Transformational leadership practices can help educational institutions and education systems
employ necessary reforms and changes to adapt to a rapidly changing global society andeconomy. Organizations, companies, and educational institutions that are too hierarchical, too
rigid, and too slow to change risk becoming irrelevant in the current era of unprecedented,
accelerating change in technology, in society, and in the evolving, interconnected global
economy.
Transformational Leadership Roles and Shared Responsibilities
Effective and enlightened leaders help organizations to continually improve and to evolve ina variety of innovative new ways (Mufeed, 2018). In the past, some leaders of schools andcompanies may have chosen the direction of an organization with little or no substantial input
from subordinates. Without giving it careful consideration or applying truly critical thinking
to the concept of leadership, some teachers in various educational settings may still believethat leadership implies supreme authority and a superior position with unequal subordinates
who are not fully qualified to lead an organization in any substantial way. However, one
should not underestimate the importance of delegating authority and of promoting sharedleadership throughout an organization or educational institution. In the case of educational
institutions, community leaders may also be able to make valuable contributions to new
projects, goals and objectives (Katz & Hamam, 2018). Effective educational leadership
requires a high level of shared responsibility, advanced critical thinking skills, flexibility indecision-making processes, open channels of communication throughout an organization, andclose collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders (Eliophotou-Menon & Ioannou, 2016).
The ideal role of a skilled leader is to create the conditions in an organization that allow all its
members and stakeholders to fully use their creative energies, to actively participate inchanges, and to eagerly take a stake in management decisions and in the future success of anorganization or school.
Resilient and successful organizations are capable of creating work environments which
encourage the development of intrinsic motivation and self-motivation among the members
and stakeholders. Effective transformational leaders give working teams or groups enoughautonomy and freedom to make some mistakes within a reasonable limit. Leaders canpromote strategic, mutually beneficial partnerships with a wide range of external stakeholders
in the community (Kladifko, 2013). Learning teams can quickly and effectively manage andshare resources, experience, and knowledge. Large contemporary organizations are far too
complex for one single leader to do all the thinking and decision-making alone, and good
leaders recognize the limitations of their own personal knowledge, experience, connections,and influence.
In companies and organizations today, innovation rather than the mere improvement ofexisting processes and structures is one of the most important things that a leader in an
organization can help to promote. Whether it is a factory that produces various goods or alearning organization engaged in training individuals in many different disciplines,
innovation and change are of vital importance to the success of an organization. The ability totransform an organization, helping it to grow and evolve quickly in completely new
directions, should be a high priority for enlightened leaders and skillful, competent managers(Horibe, 2003). Effective transformational leaders encourage innovation and help to guide

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necessary changes.
The members of an organization should be given opportunities to experiment with new ideas
in order to encourage team leaders and other members to take some risks (Kozlov, 1989). The
existing status quo and strict hierarchy in some large organizational cultures may discourage
clear communication, trust, and openness between groups even within the same sections or
departments. The rewards for taking a risk that proves successful may be extremely small inorganizations with traditional management, while the potential punishments and negative
consequences for any type of failure may be quite severe. Organizations should avoid having
one single leader or manager judge a new idea and should encourage detailed feedback andparticipation in decision-making by all members (Vu, 2004). An organizational culture anddecision-making processes benefit from diversity, multiple viewpoints and perspectives.
The Importance of Critical Thinking in Transformational Leadership
Learning can be an interactive process between teachers and learners. Teachers and students
can help each other to evaluate new ideas and concepts and to relate them to personal
experience in order to construct new meanings. Teachers can use the classroom environment
not only to transmit knowledge but also to reflect deeply on and to modify assumptions andbeliefs (Stengel, 2001). A company or learning organization is also a place for leaders toexperiment and to test new ideas and assumptions with the active cooperation of othermembers of an organization. An effective leader knows how to motivate people for acommon purpose and for the benefit of all stakeholders. Good leaders are self-reflective andclearly understand the roles of cognitive processes and logic in their own thinking and daily
decision-making processes.
Leaders should be sophisticated enough to avoid making faulty generalizations (Schwarze &Lape, 2001). Transformational leadership creates the conditions which allow members of anorganization to make valuable contributions and to perform and to learn to the best of theirabilities. Ongoing training in critical thinking skills is advisable for all members of anorganization. The use of open-ended problems in group discussions can be an important partof ongoing employee training (McGraw, 2004). Members of an organization need supportand encouragement from managers and leaders in order to continue to grow professionally.
The Role of Emotions and Intuition in Transformational Leadership
Emotions may sometimes appear to be the opposite of reason and logic, but knowledgeable
leaders need a deep understanding of the role that emotions and intuition can play in complex
decision-making processes. Effective leaders must be willing to calmly and frequently
question existing assumptions and practices, be open to new ideas, and be capable ofreimagining and redesigning organizations (Ruggiero, 2004). Leadership requires a certain
degree of emotional self-monitoring and self-control. A skillful leader is capable ofunderstanding the emotional needs of other members of an organization, and knows that good
listening skills are an essential part of successful interpersonal communication (Kirby &Goodpaster, 2002). Transformational leaders need to be able to listen carefully and frequently
to members at all levels of an organization. Genuine sincerity is also vital when trying topersuade others to fundamentally change a point of view (Ruggiero, 2004). However, leadersand managers need to be cautious when transferring management and leadership techniques
between different cultures. A gradual process of trial and error may be necessary when firstattempting to transform the entrenched culture, management structures, and practices of a

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large organization.
Conclusion
In conclusion, in a transactional view of leadership, leaders may be privileged individuals at
the top of a rigid hierarchy who make most of the key decisions for an organization bythemselves or with a relatively small group of senior members of an organization. In contrast,
effective transformational leadership is a highly interactive, dynamic, evolving process withshared responsibilities throughout an organization. In order to manage members effectively
and to motivate them, a leader must be sincere and listen carefully, calmly and frequently toothers (Bennett, 2019). Good leaders recognize that open, ongoing, constructive dialogue isextremely useful and that emotions and intuition may sometimes have an important role toplay in the leadership and decision-making process. Transformational leadership in an
educational institution is a continual, ongoing process which requires effective
communication skills, a willingness to change, the delegation of responsibilities, and theactive participation of all members of an organization and of multiple external stakeholders in
the community (Eliophotou-Menon & Ioannou, 2016). Using transformational leadership,
resilient organizations and educational institutions can foster a flexible and dynamic
organizational culture which embraces and effectively manages continual organizational
improvements and change in an increasingly complex global society.

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References
Bennett, D. (2019). The relationship between leadership behaviors and commitment toorganizational team in an academic institution. International Journal of Educationand Management Studies, 9(2), 69-74. Retrieved April 3, 2021 from ProQuest
database.
Bonsu, S., & Twum-Danso, E. (2018). Leadership style in the global economy: A focus oncross-cultural and transformational leadership. Journal of Marketing andManagement, 9(2), 37-52. Retrieved February 4, 2021 from ProQuest database.
Eliophotou-Menon, M., & Ioannou, A. (2016). The link between transformational leadershipand teachers’ job satisfaction, commitment, motivation to learn, and trust in the leader.
Academy of Educational Leadership Journal, 20(3), 12-22. Retrieved January 12,2021 from ProQuest database.
Horibe, F. (2003). Innovation, creativity, and improvement: Working the right lever toprosperity. The Canadian Manager, 28(1), 20-22. Retrieved August 19, 2021 from
ProQuest database.
Katz, L., & Hamam, R. (2018). Creating and sustaining community schools: A review ofcreating engagement between schools and their communities: Lessons fromeducational leaders. School Community Journal, 28(1), 349-352. Retrieved April 8,2021 from ProQuest database.
Kirby, G. R., & Goodpaster, J. R. (2002). Thinking (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.:
Prentice Hall.
Kladifko, R. E. (2013). Practical school community partnerships leading to successful
educational leaders. Educational Leadership and Administration, 24(1), 54-61.
Retrieved April 11, 2021 from ProQuest database.
Kozlov, A. (1989). Breaking the cycle that stifles innovation. Psychology Today, 23(10), 18.
Retrieved August 5, 2021 from ProQuest database.
McGraw, D. (2004). Expanding the mind. ASEE Prism, 13(9), 30-36. Retrieved August 3,
2021 from ProQuest database.
Miller, M. T., Lu, M., & Gearhart, G. D. (2020). From the chalkboard to the bank: Teachingeducational leaders to be effective fundraisers. Educational Leadership andAdministration, 32(7) 15-23. Retrieved April 8, 2021 from ProQuest database.
Mufeed, U. (2018). Effect of transformational leadership on employee engagement: An
empirical study in select higher educational institutions. Journal of Organization and
Human Behavior, 7(2), 8-13. Retrieved January 14, 2021 from ProQuest database.
Onorato, M. (2013). Transformational leadership style in the educational sector: An empirical
study of corporate managers and educational leaders. Academy of Educational
Leadership Journal, 17(1), 33-47. Retrieved April 25, 2021 from ProQuest database.

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Ruggiero, V. R. (2004). Beyond feelings: A guide to critical thinking (7th ed). Boston:
McGraw Hill.
Schwarze, S. & Lape, H. (2001). Thinking Socratically: Critical thinking about everyday
issues. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall.
Stengel, B. S. (2001). Making use of the method of intelligence. Educational Theory, 51(1),109. Retrieved August 3, 2021 from ProQuest database.
Vu, U. (2004). Innovation can be encouraged, but follow-through is often blocked. Canadian
HR Reporter, 17(18), 13. Retrieved August 6, 2021 from ProQuest database.

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The Accessibility of Web-based Lessons During the Time of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Han Le, Macquarie University, Australia
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Abstract
In this age of content digitalization, equal access to web-based learning resources is importantas it contributes to providing all students with same opportunities to pursue their learning andcareer goals. With the current circumstance, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic has forced
most governments in the world to temporarily close educational institutions of different levels,
which is now influencing roughly 70% of the global learner population. Therefore, there has
been an unprecedented worldwide shift from face-to-face to online modes of teaching andlearning. At this stage, it is looking increasingly likely that the issue of web accessibility inonline education is more crucial than ever. This paper reports on an analysis of a real online
lesson for students who are doing their Master’s degree at an Australian university. The
analysis aims to describe the lesson that relies on a blend of text, audio-visual resources, links,
and hyperlinks that usually poses certain obstacles related to perceiving and understanding thecontent to the students, especially those with vision and hearing disabilities. Then, it continues
to analyze and evaluate the accessibility of the lesson using Web Content Accessibility
Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, which have been proposed by the World Wide Web Consortium(W3C). Some recommendations for improving the accessibility of the lesson have also been
made to benefit and reach the widest audience.
Keywords: Accessibility, Disabilities, Web-based Lessons, Web Content Accessibility
Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, COVID-19

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Introduction
Web accessibility aims at creating a barrier-free online environment in which all users can be
fully engaged regardless of their different backgrounds and levels of disabilities (Rao et al.,2015). When it comes to educational concerns, Kurt (2019, p. 207) takes the view that equalityof access to the web and learning resources is of great significance in that it is considered to bea “non-negotiable requirement” that contributes to providing all students with same
opportunities for pursuing their learning and career goals. As regards the current circumstance,
the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic across 188 countries (the British Broadcasting
Corporation News, 2020) has forced most governments in the world to temporarily close
educational institutions of different levels, which is now influencing roughly 70% of the global
learner population (UNESCO, 2020). As a result, there has been an unprecedented worldwide
shift from face-to-face to online modes of teaching and learning. At this stage, it is looking
increasingly likely that the issue of web accessibility in online education is more crucial thanever. Therefore, this paper aims to describe an online lesson that relies on a blend of text, audiovisual resources, links, and hyperlinks that usually poses certain obstacles related to perceiving
and understanding the content to the students, especially those with vision and hearing
disabilities (Pearson & Koppi, 2002). Then, it continues to analyze and evaluate theaccessibility of the lesson using WCAG 2.1, which have been proposed by W3C. The paper
ends with some recommendations for improving the accessibility of the lesson so that it canbenefit and reach the widest audience.
Brief Description of the Lesson
The lesson covered in this analysis is Topic 10: Text-based Syllabus Design (see Figure 1),
which was selected randomly for analysis. Firstly, it belongs to the unit of APPL6010 –Planning and Programming in TESOL (see Figure 2), which covers fundamental aspects oflanguage teaching: various English language teaching (ELT) contexts where TESOL isconducted, different methods and approaches to ELT, and TESOL lesson planning and testing
and assessment practices. Next, the lesson is particularly aimed at Macquarie University
students, including the author, who are doing their Master’s degree in Applied Linguistics and
TESOL and have some relevant prior qualifications or working experience in areas of
linguistics, language teaching, education, and whose English should be at advanced levels(academic IELTS of 6.5 or equivalent) (Macquarie University, n.d.). Finally, this lesson offers
the students a chance to learn what “approach” and “design” are, explore genre-based approachthat provides a specific way of organizing teaching content, and adopt the teaching-learning
cycle to analyze a given lesson plan, and practise developing lesson plans that are appropriate
for certain groups of English learners.

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Figure 1. Interface of the Lesson of Topic 10: Text-based Syllabus Design.

Figure 2. Interface of the Unit of APPL6010 – Planning and Programming in TESOL.
Short Overview of WCAG 2.1
In “intra-period digital pedagogy” (Crawford et al., 2020, p. 1) response to the COVID-19
pandemic, the lesson of Topic 10: Text-based Syllabus Design has been delivered fully online

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via iLearn, the online learning environment of Macquarie University, since March 30th 2020
(Macquarie University, 2020). Therefore, it is practical to utilize WCAG 2.1, which is a set ofdesign principles, guidelines, success criteria (SC) for checking web accessibility, andtechniques for creating and making web-based content more accessible and usable to all users(W3C, 2018), to analyze and evaluate the lesson. According to White (2019), the W3C, which
is an organization responsible for web technology regulation and evolution, has developed andpublished three versions of their guidelines that have proven invaluable and attained wide
recognition among specialists. In 1999, the W3C launched the first version that was WCAG
1.0, which dealt with simplest websites containing text (Murley, 2008). However, due to theadvent of multimedia and diverse access platforms, in 2008, WCAG 2.0 was released to create
accessible web content for people with disabilities related to sight, hearing, cognition ormobility (Ochoa & Crovi, 2019). Eventually, WCAG 2.1, the latest version at the time of
conducting the analysis, was published in 2018 with a view to satisfying further requirementsof people who suffer from low vision and rely heavily on mobile and touch-based devices(White, 2019). In general, these guidelines are categorized into four central principles ofaccessibility as shown in Table 1.

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Table 1. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1.

Accessibility of the Lesson
As mentioned in the previous part, WCAG 2.1 is developed and utilized widely among
practitioners, hence it consists of many technical terms related to computer science,
information technology and code writing. Although the current analysis of the lesson isconducted in accordance with WCAG 2.1, particularly the four key principles, it is largely
based on some success criteria that sound more familiar to the general public and do not require

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much specialist knowledge instead of covering all of the success criteria included in WCAG
2.1. Due to the limited space, only significant results are presented in the subsequent parts.
However, the complete analysis and results can be found in the Appendix. There will not be
grades of ‘Pass’ and ‘Fail’ that are suggested by W3C (2018). Instead, the analysis aims toshow the positive aspects of the lesson and indicate room for any improvement.
1. Perceivable
In general, the lesson is adaptable and distinguishable in that it ensures the students can see,recognize, or hear the lesson content. The adaptability of the lesson is realized by a meaningful
sequence that offers the students a sense of smooth and effective organization. In fact, thelesson is structured into four main parts that are introduction, reading lists, lecture materials
and learning tasks. Besides, this sequence is consistent with the lecturer’s instruction in the
introduction part and can be observed in the other topics in the unit, which aids both the lesson
and unit in making logical sense (see Figure 3). Next, the lesson is distinguishable with regard
to proper use of color and contrast, effective visual presentations, and text resizing. Firstly, red
is consistently employed to signal all the links to lecture materials. In addition, text is written
in black against a white background, which is proven to be adequate contrast that helps people
with moderately low vision and color deficiencies (W3C, 2018). Secondly, the lesson ispresented in such a visual way that makes the lesson legible. More precisely, texts are arranged
in chunks according to their role and content, which enables the students to scan the lesson
without difficulty. White space is utilized successfully to create clear grouping and indicate
where each chunk of text begins and ends (see Figure 1). Moreover, salient information ispresented in italic and bold type and larger sizes (headings). Also, the choice of font contributes
greatly to the perceivability of the lesson. The observation is that text is written in the San Serif
font like Arial, Calibri and Helvetica, which greatly contributes to more efficient reading andless consumption of readers’ limited attention span, rather than the Serif font, which contains“extraneous decorative elements” (Tetlan & Marschalek, 2016, p. 77). Finally, when the lesson
is resized up to 200%, there is no information loss or truncated, hidden content, which meansthat the students are not required to scroll horizontally to read a text line on a full screen window(see Figure 4).

Figure 3. The Structure of the Lesson.

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Figure 4. The Interface of the Lesson When Resized up to 200%.
2. Operable
The online lesson is operable in that the students can use a keyboard to operate the lesson, reauthenticate, easily navigate within the lesson, and avoid seizures. To begin with, keyboard
control is believed to be one of the most important success criteria and come into major focus
of web developers (W3C, 2018). In fact, the students can employ ‘Tab’ and ‘Enter’ or the
spacebar to move between and interact with the interactive elements of the lesson like the dropdown list or play-video buttons, respectively. Furthermore, there is no keyboard trap in that thestudents can escape an interactive element like the introduction video without resorting to amouse via pressing ‘Shift’ and ‘Tab’ simultaneously. Secondly, the lesson sometimes expires
due to student inactivity. However, the students can continue the learning without any loss ofdata after re-authenticating. A good example is Leganto, an online reading resource. When thestudents are deeply engaged in reading the materials and remain inactive in the platform forroughly one hour, their session expires. In this case, there is a message box appearing on thescreen and requiring them to re-authenticate to continue (see Figure 5). Next, the lesson isnavigable in that it has a meaningful title, and descriptive headings and labels that reflect theircontent. Hence, the students can find the content easily without visual reference and better
locate themselves within the lesson. Additionally, inside the part of learning tasks that containseveral true/false questions and a forum is the table of contents that assists the students in easily
navigating between smaller sections (see Figure 6). Lastly, owing to the absence of flashes,
animations, advertisements, and auto-playing audios or videos in the lesson, the students are
not exposed to any seizures and physical reactions, which results in better learning experience.

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Figure 5. A Message Informing the Students of Session Expiring.

Figure 6. The Table of Contents in Topic 10 Tasks.
3. Understandable
The understandability of the lesson is realized through the use of plain English, consistentidentification, and input assistance. Firstly, it is clear that the default language used in the lessonis plain English that features short sentences and paragraphs, clear chunks of text and adequate
white space, which helps every user read and understand content quickly and easily (Centre for
Inclusive Design, 2020) (see Figure 7). In addition, there is almost an absence of unusual andrestricted ways of using words, except for some jargon such as ‘behaviorism’ and‘constructivism’ (in the lecture slides), abbreviations like ‘TESOL’ and ‘ELT’ (in the lecturenotes). Nevertheless, the jargon and abbreviations do not cause much obscurity because theaudience of the lesson is graduate students who have specialist knowledge. Secondly, there isconsistent identification with the same lesson structure and design of headings (a symbol of abook indicating the reading lists) throughout the whole unit. Therefore, this practice makes it
easy for the students to follow the lesson and predict the content of each part. Finally, the lesson
aids the students in providing input via error identification. For instance, when the students
enter an incorrect password, there will be a message appearing and informing them of the error(see Figure 8).

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Figure 7. An Example of Using Plain English in the Lesson.

Figure 8. A Message Informing the Student of the Error.

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4. Robust
The robustness of the lesson is demonstrated by both interface components that havecompatible name, role, and value and access stability across various devices. First, an object
needs to have a name or label. The role and value provide users with information about how
the object functions and what its state is, respectively (W3C, 2018). In the case of this lesson,
the success criterion of name, role, value can be applicable to the button and links. For example,
the name is ‘Topic 10: Text-based Syllabus Design’; the role is a button and the value is‘collapsed’ but ‘not clicked’ (see Figure 9). These interpretations tend to remain compatible
among a wide range of students. Second, the lesson can be reliably operated across various
devices like laptops, tablets, and mobile phones. Despite some minor changes in the interface,
the button and links are still in good size and function well when clicked on.

Figure 9. The Name, Role, Value Of The Button Topic 10: Text-Based Syllabus Design.
Recommendations
As far as accessibility is concerned, despite the above-mentioned success in helping thestudents participate actively in the online space, there are three aspects that need to beconsidered to make the lesson more usable and accessible to the students in terms of alternative
formats of content and organizational issues. A brief summary of the recommendations can befound in Table 2.
Table 2. Recommendations for Improving the Accessibility of the Lesson.
Principle
Guideline
Recommendation
Text alternatives- Provide short descriptions reflecting what is seen for
pictures, diagrams, and tables in the lecture slides.
Time-based media - Provide a downloadable or accessible transcript withthe pre-recorded lecture and the video.
Perceivable- Use tools like YouTube, Apple Clips and Amara to
generate captions.
Adaptable- Organize the reading materials into different folders
based on the topics in Leganto.
Operable
Navigable- Provide links next to the reading materials.
RobustCompatible- Create materials in both Word and PDF formats.
Firstly, Kurt (2019) believes that educational content that is presented visually, orally, andtextually can enhance accessibility in that the students have the opportunity to select the format
that is the most accessible to them. However, apart from the introduction video accompanied
by a script (see Figure 10), the pre-recorded lecture and the teaching-learning cycle video do
not have any captions or scripts. Moreover, no description accompanies pictures and diagrams
used in the lecture slides. These practices pose barriers to students with sensory and cognitive
disabilities (Kurt, 2019). In other words, they may not see or hear what is presented. To address

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transcript with the pre-recorded lecture and the video (Sokolik, 2018). Additionally, there areuseful tools that generate captions for uploaded videos, three of which are YouTube, Apple
Clips and Amara (Centre for Inclusive Design, 2020). As for pictures, diagrams and tables,
short descriptions reflecting what is seen should be included.

Figure 10. A Script Accompanies the Introduction Video.
Secondly, the observation is that most lecture materials are in form of PDFs that cannot always
be compatible with screen reading software, which is a disadvantage for students with vision
impairments (Pearson & Koppi, 2002). Therefore, it is advisable to create downloadable
materials in both Word and PDF formats. Finally, regarding the reading list, there should be alink to the suggested reading under each item so that the students can gain direct access to thesources (see Figure 11). Moreover, reading materials in Leganto should be organized into
different sections or folders so that the students can easily find what they have to read for each
topic (see Figure 12). For example, all the reading needed for topic 10 can be found in thesection titled Topic 10: Text-based Syllabus Design.

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Link

Link

Figure 11. Example of How to Add Links to the Reading Materials.

Figure 12. The Interface of Leganto.
Conclusion
The goal of this paper is to critically analyze the accessibility of the lesson Topic 10: Textbased Syllabus Design in the unit of APPL6010 – Planning and Programming in TESOL inaccordance with WCAG 2.1. The results indicate that the lesson in general is perceivable,
operable, understandable, and robust. The greatest strengths of the lesson include using ameaningful sequence to organize the teaching content, employing colors and white space
properly to create sufficient contrast, and featuring plain English to aid the students’comprehension. Nevertheless, there are some aspects to which the lecturer needs to pay
attention with the aim of improving the accessibility of the lesson. Practices like providing brief
descriptions for pictures and tables, creating captions for prerecorded lectures, organizing thereading materials into folders are believed to be advantageous to students with hearing or visual
impairments. This analysis may be relatively subjective due to reliance on the author’s
perception and interpretation of WCAG 2.1. However, it can be useful for the lecturer or lesson
designers to refer to the analysis as a reference with a view to examining and enhancing theaccessibility of the lesson for later use.

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References
Centre for Inclusive Design. (2020). Contacts for captioning. Retrieved fromhttp://centreforinclusivedesign.org.au/index.php/tools/2020/03/31/contacts-forcaptioning/
Centre for Inclusive Design. (2020). Easy English versus plain English guide. Retrieved fromhttp://centreforinclusivedesign.org.au/index.php/services/guides/2020/04/27/easyenglish-versus-plain-english-guide/
Crawford, J., Butler-Henderson, K., Rudolph, J., Malkawi, B., Glowatz, M., Burton, R.,
Magni, P., & Lam, S. (2020). COVID-19: 20 countries’ higher education intra-period
digital pedagogy responses. Journal of Applied Learning and Teaching, 3(1), 1-20.
Kurt, S. (2019). Moving toward a universally accessible web: Web accessibility andeducation. Assistive Technology, 31(4), 199-208.
Macquarie University. (2020). Online learning in 2020. Retrieved fromhttps://www.mq.edu.au/about/coronavirus-faqs/information-for-students/teachingpause-covid-19
Macquarie University. (n.d.). Master of Applied Linguistics and TESOL. Retrieved fromhttps://courses.mq.edu.au/2020/domestic/postgraduate/master-of-applied-linguisticsand-tesol/entry-requirements#content
Murley, D. (2008). Web site accessibility. Law Library Journal, 100(2), 400-406.
Ochoa, R., & Crovi, L. (2019). Evaluation of accessibility in Mexican cybermedia. Universal
Access in the Information Society, 18(2), 413-422.
Pearson, E. J., & Koppi, T. (2002). Inclusion and online learning opportunities: Designing foraccessibility. Association for Learning Technology Journal, 10(2), 17-28.
Rao, K., Edelen-Smith, P., & Wailehua, C. (2015). Universal design for online courses:
Applying principles to pedagogy. Open Learning: The Journal of Open, Distance and
e- Learning, 30(1), 35-52.
Sokolik, M. (2018). The nexus of accessibility and pedagogy: What every online instructional
designer should know. TESL-EJ, 21(4), 1-12.
Tetlan, L., & Marschalek, D. (2016). How humans process visual information: A focusedprimer for designing information. Visible Language, 50(3), 65-88.
The British Broadcasting Corporation News. (2020). Coronavirus pandemic: Tracking the
global outbreak. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/world-51235105
UNESCO. (2020). COVID-19 Educational disruption and response. Retrieved fromhttps://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse

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W3C. (2018). Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. Retrieved fromhttps://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG21/
White, J. (2019). WCAG 2.1 meets STEM: Application, interpretation, and opportunities forfurther standard development. Journal of Science Education for Students with
Disabilities, 22(1), 1-7.
Contact email: hoanghan772@gmail.com

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Appendice
Complete WCAG 2.1 Analysis and Results
Topic 10: Text-based Syllabus Design
Principle
Criteria
Not
Good Not
goodapplicable
1.1. Text alternatives
1.1.1. Non-text content√

Explanation

No descriptions forimages and diagrams
used in the lectureslides

1.2. Time-based media

PERCEIVABLE

1.2.1. Audio-only and √video-only(Prerecorded)
1.2.2. Captions (Prerecorded)

No audio-only andvideo-only resources√

No captions available
for the pre-recorded
lecture and the video,
except the script for the
introduction video

1.2.3. Audio description
or Media Alternative(Pre-recorded)
1.2.4. Captions (Live)1.2.5.
Audio
Description(Prerecorded)
1.2.6. Sign language√(Pre-recorded)

No resources of thesekinds found

1.2.7. Extended audio
description(Prerecorded)
1.2.8. Media alternative(Pre-recorded)
1.2.9. Audio-only (Live)1.3. Adaptable
1.3.1.
Infoand √relationships
1.3.2.
Meaningful
sequence

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The lesson structure
consistent with thelecturer’s instruction

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1.3.3.
Sensory √Characteristics
1.3.4. Orientation

No resources of thiskind found

1.3.5. Identify Input√
Purpose
1.3.6. Identify Purpose
1.4. Distinguishable

Technically related

1.4.1. Use of color

Not
Good Not
Explanation
good
applicable√
Red indicates links

1.4.2. Audio control√

1.4.3.
Contrast(Minimum)1.4.4. Resize text

OPERABLE√

1.4.5. Images of text√

1.4.6. Contrast(Enhanced)
1.4.7. Low or nobackground audio
1.4.8. Visual
Presentation√

1.4.9. Images of text
(No exception)
1.4.10. Reflow√

1.4.11. Non-text
contrast
1.4.12. Text spacing

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1.4.13. Content on
Hover or Focus
2.1. Keyboard
accessible
2.1.1. Keyboard√√

No resources of thiskind found
Clear chunks of text,
italic and bold type forimportant information,
white space
No resources of thiskind foundNo resources of thesekinds found√√

Small web page notcontaining many longtexts
Technically related√√

2.1.2. No keyboard trap
2.1.3. Keyboard (Noexception)

No automaticallyplaying audio
Black words presented
on a white backgroundNo information loss
when resized up to200%
No resources of thiskind foundTechnically related√

Use keyboard tocontrol interactive
elements
Technically related

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2.1.4. Character key
shortcuts
2.2. Enough time
2.2.1. Timing
Adjustable
2.2.2. Pause, stop, hide√

2.2.3. No timing√

2.2.4. Interruptions√

No resources of thiskind foundNo moving, blinking,scrolling information
No tests or games witha time limit
No updates and alerts√

2.2.5. Re-authenticating√

2.2.6. Timeouts

No information loss
after re-authenticating

2.3. Seizures and
Not
Good Not
Explanation
physical reactions
applicable
good
2.3.1. Three flashes or
below threshold
2.3.2. Three Flashes
No flashes, animation,√
advertisements
2.3.3. Animation frominteractions
2.4. Navigable
2.4.1. Bypass blocks

Small web page2.4.2. Page titled√2.4.3. Focus order√

2.4.4. Link purpose (Incontext)√

2.4.5. Multiple ways

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2.4.6. Headings andlabels

√2.4.7. Focus visible√

161

Clear page title
reflecting the content
Focus moves from left
to right, top to downwhen pressing ‘Tab’
Make contextual sense,
describe its purpose
Small web page, mostcontent included in one
web page
Descriptive, easy tofind content withoutvisual reference
Clear borders aroundfocus when it moves
from left to right, top
to down

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2.4.8. Location

Official Conference Proceedings√

2.4.9. Link purpose(Link only)
2.4.10. Section
headings√

Small web page, mostcontent included in one
web page
Make sense without
context√

Small web page, mostcontent included in one
web page√Technically related

2.5. Input modalities
2.5.1. Pointer gestures
2.5.2. Pointercancellation
2.5.3. Label in name
2.5.4. Motion actuation
2.5.5. Target size
2.5.6. Concurrent input
mechanisms
Not
Good Not
Explanation
good
applicable
3.1.1. Language of page√
Plain English is thedefault language
3.1.2. Language of parts √No words borrowed
from other languages
3.1.3. Unusual words√
No idioms and jargon
UNDERSTANDABLE

3.1. Readable

3.1.4. Abbreviations√

3.1.5. Reading Level√

3.1.6. Pronunciation√

Almost no
abbreviations, except
some common ones
like TESOL, ELT
Content targets only
TESOL and Applied
Linguistics students
No resources of thiskind

3.2. Predictable
3.2.1. On focus
3.2.2. On input
3.2.3. Consistentnavigation

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Technically related√

Small web page,
content in one page

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3.2.4. Consistentidentification
3.2.5. Change onrequest3.3. Input assistance3.3.1. Error
Identification√

Consistent design
throughout the unit andthe lesson
Technically related√

Message appears on
the screen when error
occursInstruct the students toenter the password towatch the video
No suggestion found√

3.3.2. Labels or
instructions√

3.3.3. Error suggestion√

3.3.4. Error prevention√

3.3.5. Help√

Applicable to legal,financial data
No links to hints or
instructions
Students are notrequired to complete
any form
Explanation

3.3.6. Error prevention √(All)
4.1. Compatible

ROBUST

4.1.1. Parsing
4.1.2. Name, role, value

4.1.3. Status messages

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Not
Good Not
applicable
good√Technically related
√

√

163

Compatible name,role, value amongusers; stability acrossplatforms
Technically related

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The Use of Different Strategies by Writers in Integrated Writing Assessment
Han Le, Macquarie University, Australia
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
Official Conference Proceedings
Abstract
In recent years, there has been an accelerating trend towards using integrated writing tasks(IWT) in second language (L2) writing assessment settings, which can be attributed to theirability to “mirror” (Payant et al., 2019, p. 87) actual academic practices that require students’comprehension and integration of source-based ideas into the production of written
compositions. Nevertheless, Uludag et al. (2019) are of the opinion that these tasks present
writers, especially those who are inexperienced, with certain problems associated withplagiarism and poor use of source ideas that result in disappointing test scores. In this sense, it
is of practical significance to gain deeper insights into the nature of IWT and various strategies
employed by proficient writers to assist not only novice writers in improving their writing
performance and academic achievement but also inexperienced teachers in coming up withmore effective instructional methods. This literature review is conducted to provide a shortoverview on IWT regarding definitions, test construct, benefits and challenges. Then, it
continues to throw light on strategy use reported in previous research. The literature review
ends with some conclusions and recommendations.
Keywords: Integrated Writing Tasks (IWT), Strategy Use, Second Language (L2), Source Text
Use, Multiple-text Comprehension, Challenges

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Over the last decades, the integration of academic writing with other language skills such as
reading and listening has continually attracted great attention of both test developers andteachers due to providing a more comprehensive picture of test takers’ writing competence
involving authenticity arguments (Plakans & Gebril, 2017). Nonetheless, IWT poses certain
linguistic and cognitive challenges to writers, especially novice ones. More specifically, they
have been experiencing difficulties related to inappropriate use of source ideas, simple
paraphrases, verbatim copying, anxiety, or time management, which leads to unfavorable test
results (Uludag et al., 2019). Therefore, this literature review is conducted to explore the natureof IWT, strategies and factors contributing to better writing performance with a view to helping
inexperienced writers increase their band scores or become more successful in their academic
lives. Relevant articles have been found in the databases of Linguistics and Language
Behaviour Abstracts and Educational Resources Information Centre. The search key words
include ‘integrated writing tasks or assessment’ and ‘strategy use in IWT’. Furthermore, thecriteria for selecting the articles are the recentness (from 2000 onwards) and the context(standardized tests or academic purposes).
Definitions of IWT
The use of IWT has gained in popularity and been the focus of attention among researchers,
test developers, and teachers (Kyle, 2020). Therefore, there have been many viewpoints on
examining the notion of IWT. Ascencion Delaney (2008, p. 140) who takes an interest in
integrated reading-writing tasks suggests that they are “instructional tasks” that arecharacteristic of the combination of reading and writing for different pedagogical reasons. In asimilar vein, Plakans (2009) offers a broader definition by describing IWT as tasks that require
other skills such as reading and listening to produce language in written forms. Unlike theaforementioned researchers, Cumming et al. (2005) discuss the concept in more detail and state
they are tasks in which test takers have to use source ideas properly and meaningfully togenerate coherent pieces of writing. More recently, Knoch and Sitajalabhorn (2013, p. 306)
provided a more comprehensive explanation that depicts IWT as those that request writers tocomprehend, select, synthesize, organize, integrate ideas from one or more “language-richsource texts” into writing performance. In brief, irrespective of how vague or precise thedefinitions may be, these researchers reveal much similarity in their attempt to account for theact of source-based writing with the inclusion of ideas that are appropriately used andsuccessfully integrated.
Test Construct
A better understanding of the initial construct underlying IWT is essential in that it helps tointerpret test scores more accurately and provide a clearer account of test takers’ behavior whencompleting the tasks (Knoch & Sitajalabhorn, 2013). Hence, scholars who aim at investigating
the demands of IWT have devoted themselves to the cognitive processes that L2 writers,
particularly those who are in tertiary contexts, undergo. For instance, Grabe (2003) shows thatin order to accomplish source-based writing tasks, test takers have to decide what ideas to selectfrom the texts, how to fit the ideas to the task requirements, how to represent and transform theinformation accurately and effectively. Furthermore, reflecting on the results of a study
conducted to compare the performance of higher-level and lower-level writers, Plakans (2009)indicates that the abilities to select, organize, and connect ideas should be considered asacademic writing constructs that enable valid interpretations of test scores. In general, previous

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studies have proposed that the construct of IWT should feature major components such as
selecting and synthesizing ideas from the source texts, making linguistic modifications,deciding on the writing structure, and connecting ideas from the sources with test takers’ ideas.
Benefits of IWT
Research has suggested that there are two major advantages of employing IWT with respect toauthenticity and test fairness. Firstly, integrated assessment is believed to exert a positive
washback effect on teaching and learning processes in various academic contexts in that it iscapable of tackling the problems of authenticity and validity (Knoch & Sitajalabhorn, 2013). It
can be argued that students at levels of higher education are supposed to think critically,
discuss, and reflect on the materials to which they have listened or read to write theirassignments. Therefore, integrated writing assessment is completely different fromindependent writing assessment in which students can generate their written products byrelying on their background knowledge or personal experiences rather than ideas from thesource texts (Payant et al., 2019). Secondly, in Plakans and Gebril’s (2012) view, source-based
writing enhances the fairness of tests in that it aids writers in dealing with unfamiliar topics byproviding content and linguistic support. As a result, more test developers and teachers are infavor of IWT.
Challenges of IWT
In spite of the abovementioned benefits of IWT, there are two considerable challenges
concerning the use of source ideas and test construct identified in the current literature. To
begin with, writers, particularly those who are novice, are reported to have trouble synthesizing
and integrating source ideas effectively into their writing while attempting to avoid plagiarism(Uludag et al., 2019). More precisely, Keck (2006) shows that despite their awareness that
textual borrowing without citing the sources is inappropriate, inexperienced writers tend toresort to word-for-word copying and simple paraphrasing and linguistic modifications at wordlevels that include the use of synonyms. What is more, Uludag et al. observe that novice writers
appear to prevent themselves from incorporating source-based ideas in that they are afraid of
misinterpreting or misrepresenting the authors’ viewpoints, which leads to their ignorance of
the use of source texts. Secondly, due to the test construct, integrated tasks require L2 writers
to read and listen to the sources, select important information, and present their own stance,
which is heavily reliant on their reading and listening comprehension abilities (Plakans, 2009).
As a result, Payant et al. (2019) claim that they do not succeed in identifying salient informationor concepts presented in the sources if their proficiency in listening and reading comprehension
is at low levels.
Strategy use in IWT
1. Source Text Use
A related line of research has examined the correlation between the use of source-based ideas
and the quality of writing and reported that the inclusion of source text information plays avital role in predicting the test scores. In a study carried out at a university in the USA, Yangand Plakans (2012) investigated the strategies employed by 161 L2 writers in a TOEFL iBTintegrated reading-listening-writing task through questionnaires. The findings revealed thatthree key categories of strategies performed different functions throughout the process ofcompleting the task. Discourse synthesis that was the selection, organization, and connection

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stated that “test-wiseness” strategies such as verbatim copying, patchwriting, and memorybased or template-based writing impaired the writing quality in every aspect. Likewise, after
conducting a study involving 415 secondary school students from Hong Kong who
accomplished an integrated reading-listening-writing task, Cheong et al. (2019) emphasized
the great significance of discourse synthesis strategies over the whole process and cautioned
L2 writers to be careful about how they organized, selected, and synthesized ideas effectively
owing to the complex nature of multiple-text documents. Interestingly, they reported thatmultiple-text comprehension supported and mediated the use of discourse synthesis in that it
helped test takers identify and select key ideas and concepts. Approaching the issue from adifferent angle, Plakans and Gebril (2013) examined the use of source ideas in written
compositions with respect to areas of importance, origin, and textual borrowing. They utilized
480 real TOEFL iBT writing performances that had been scored and regression analysis toanswer the research questions. The results showed that the integration of important informationand the use of the listening source text differentiated the test scores. Specifically, higher-level
writers included more key ideas from the listening source while their peers relied largely on
the reading source for content and verbatim copying. Similarly, expressing the same interest insource text use, Uludag et al. (2019) undertook an investigation into the relationship between
the number of source ideas incorporated, the level of content accuracy and linguistic
modifications, and the band scores of 111 Canadian undergraduate students. These researchers
found that students who used ideas from the sources more frequently and represented orinterpreted them accurately were more successful in eliciting their writing performances thanthose who did not. This echoed the results of the study of Gebril and Plakans (2016) who
indicated that source-related and diverse vocabulary increased lexical diversity that bettered
the writing scores. In addition, a higher degree of linguistic modifications was found to be astrong predictor of the writing quality, which was in line with Plakans and Gebril’s (2013)
study. Examining the issue of linguistic modifications in detail, Kyle (2020) analyzed 480
TOEFL iBT essays and revealed that paraphrasing that involved semantic overlap or implicit
reference to the source texts helped test takers perform better than word-level paraphrasing thatused synonyms. Moreover, the explicit use of key content words that were unique to thelistening source contributed to the test takers’ success.
2. Multiple-text Comprehension
L2 writers’ comprehension of information across different source texts is considered to be an
important skill in academic contexts in general and a first precondition for IWT in particular(Karimi, 2015). There has been a growing body of research that supports the contributing roleof strategy use in multiple-text comprehension. The results reported by Plakans (2009) who
conducted a study involving 12 L2 writers from the USA and an integrated reading-listening
task showed that the participants employed various reading strategies over the whole processof completing the task. Five categories of strategies that were setting goals, cognitive
processing, “global” strategies, metacognitive strategies, and “mining” strategies wereidentified and found to function in different stages (Plakans, 2009, pp. 257-258). For example,
goal-setting and global strategies were primarily used in the early stages where writers readand comprehended the texts while the strategies of mining were dominant in the while-writing
phase where writers integrated source information into their writing. Furthermore, high-scoring
writers employed global strategies (skimming, asking questions, and summarizing) and mining
strategies (scanning, paraphrasing, and rereading) more frequently and effectively than lowscoring writers. In a similar vein, Cheong et al. (2019) stated that taking summary notes and

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inferential reasoning much contributed to the test takers’ multiple-text comprehension.
Noticeably, by comparing the performances of 415 secondary school students on a Chinese(L1) IWT and English (L2) IWT, they concluded that those who succeeded in the L1 task weremore likely to produce better L2 written compositions. Besides, L1-L2 transfer took place inthat skills to understand and incorporate source-based ideas into L1 writing were beneficial toperformance in L2 writing.
3. Pre-writing Activities
In the current literature, there have also been studies whose aim is to demonstrate the close
relationship between pre-writing activities and test takers’ writing performances. To begin
with, in a study that involved 513 American university students, Joaquin, Kim, and Shin (2016)
found that more than 50% of the participants made notes in the pre-writing stage. They werereported to employ a combination of strategies such as outlining, listing, and clustering, which
helped them to outperform those who did not take notes. The second study that was carried out
by Plakans and Gebril (2017) was also in favor of the significant role of pre-writing activities
in assisting L2 writers to visualize their writing structure that balanced ideas from the reading
and listening sources. Besides, features of better coherence and cohesion were included, which
improved the quality of writing. More recently, Payant et al. (2019, p. 89) showed that prewriting planning supported the whole process of writing in that it created “cognitive space” forselecting, developing, connecting, and reflecting on the source ideas, which resulted in anxiety
minimization and higher band scores.
Conclusion
All things considered, it can be seen that integrated writing assessment has enjoyed widespread
popularity among test developers and teachers due to its ability to enhance authenticity andvalidity. On the other hand, challenges associated with source-based idea incorporation andmultiple-text comprehension are facing L2 writers, especially those who are novice. Therefore,
to be successful in IWT, writers are expected to pay attention to the active interaction with thesource texts by employing various strategies such as discourse synthesis that includes selecting,organizing, and connecting ideas; comprehension strategies like scanning, skimming, andasking questions; and pre-writing planning. More importantly, it can be of practicalsignificance to teachers who need to teach explicitly referencing skills to students to address
the issues of plagiarism and avoid test-wiseness strategies, and instruct them to include more
information from the listening source to produce more favorable test results.

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References
Ascencion Delaney, Y. (2008). Investigating the reading-to-write construct. Journal of
English for Academic Purposes, 7, 140-150.
Cheong, C. M., Zhu, X., Li, G. Y., & Wen, H. (2019). Effects of intertextual processing on
L2 integrated writing. Journal of Second Language Writing, 44, 63-75.
Cumming, A., Kantor, R., Baba, K., Erdosy, U., Eouanzoui, K., & James, M. (2005).
Differences in written discourse in independent and integrated prototype tasks fornext generation TOEFL. Assessing Writing, 10, 5-43.
Gebril, A., & Plakans, L. (2016). Source-based tasks in academic writing assessment: Lexical
diversity, textual borrowing and proficiency. Journal of English for Academic
Purposes, 24, 78-88.
Grabe, W. (2003). Reading and writing relations: Second language perspectives on researchand practice. In B. Kroll (Ed.), Exploring the dynamics of second language writing(pp. 242-262). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Joaquin, A., Kim, H., & Shin, S. Y. (2016). Examining prewriting strategies in L2 Writing:
Do they really work? Asian EFL Journal, 18(2), 156-189.
Karimi, M. N. (2015). L2 multiple-documents comprehension: Exploring the contributions of
L1 reading ability and strategic processing. System, 52, 14-25.
Keck, C. (2006). The use of paraphrase in summary writing: A comparison of L1 and L2
writers. Journal of Second Language Writing, 15(4), 261-278.
Knoch, U., & Sitajalabhorn, W. (2013). A closer look at integrated writing tasks: Towards amore focused definition for assessment purposes. Assessing Writing, 18(4), 300-308.
Kyle, K. (2020). The relationship between features of source text use and integrated writing
quality. Assessing Writing, 45, 1-12.
Payant, C., McDonough, K., Uludag, P., & Lindberg, R. (2019). Predicting integrated writingtask performance: Source comprehension, prewriting planning, and individual
differences. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 40, 87-97.
Plakans, L. (2009). The role of reading strategies in integrated L2 writing tasks. Journal of
English for Academic Purposes, 8(4), 252-266.
Plakans, L., & Gebril, A. (2012). A close investigation of source use in integrated writing
tasks. Assessing Writing, 17(1), 18-34.
Plakans, L., & Gebril, A. (2013). Using multiple texts in an integrated writing assessment:
Source text use as a predictor of score. Journal of Second Language Writing, 22(3),217-230.

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Plakans, L., & Gebril, A. (2017). Exploring the relationship of organization and connection
with scores in integrated writing assessment. Assessing Writing, 31, 98-112.
Uludag, P., Lindberg, R., McDonough, K., & Payant, C. (2019). Exploring L2 writers’ source
text use in an integrated writing assessment. Journal of Second Language Writing, 46,
1-7.
Yang, H., & Plakans, L. (2012). Second language writers’ strategy use and performance on
an integrated reading-listening-writing task. TESOL Quarterly, 46(1), 80-103.
Contact email: hoanghan772@gmail.com

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Learning Effectiveness of Primary School Children in the Covid-19 Pandemic in
Indonesia
Indra Kertati, University of 17 August 1945 Semarang, Indonesia
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
COVID-19 has an impact on the unpreparedness of the community and the government,
especially in improving the quality of children’s education. The increasing number of caseswith rapid escalation has forced the government to take steps to reduce problems, especiallythe education of elementary school children. The Ministry of Indonesian Education issued
Guidelines for Organizing Learning from Home in an Emergency Period for the Spread of
COVID-19. This guide was unable to be implemented by both teachers, parents, and students,
thus online learning is not effective. People faced social shock and stammer in this situation.
This study aims to analyze the effectiveness of primary school children’s learning during the
COVID-19 pandemic. We used a mixed-method by collecting data in 24 provinces inIndonesia, with 1289 samples from primary school teachers, 2131 primary school children, 469
parents, and 45 local governments from the district and regional education officer. Data wereanalyzed using the Embedded Design model. The results showed that the online teaching andlearning process was not optimal in improving children’s learning achievement. Teachers are
slow to respond to changes in learning, and parents have a considerable additional burden bothmaterially and learning intensity for children. Another finding showed the number of children
who were stressed due to being kept at home without meeting and hanging out with teachers
and their friends. This finding has contributed to the Ministry of Education and Culture todevelop various guidelines, especially for teachers, to improve online learning effectiveness.
Keywords: Education, Teachers, Children, Pandemic, COVID-19, Effectiveness

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Introduction
Covid-19 has influenced on the children’s education around the world. In 2020 when Indonesia
experienced the first case of Covid-19, all were shocked and helpless. This is a result of theunpreparedness of the community and the government to face undesirable conditions. In March
2020, there were 25 recorded patients of Covid-19 with no children infected. Children have astrong innate immune response due to trained immunity and early control of infection. UNICEF
reported that from the first cases of Covid-19 was detected in Indonesia to May 8, 2020, there
were 12,776 cases and 930 deaths spreading in 34 provinces. This number and its case
distribution are increasing over time all over Indonesia. A research conducted by Buonsenso
et al. (2021) show that children with Covid-19 have a more chance of experiencing long Covid19. They experience at least one symptom that persists after 120 days of being diagnosed with
COVID-19. Symptoms such as fatigue, muscle and joint pain, headache, insomnia, breathingproblems, and palpitations, have also been reported in adult survivors. This condition worries
many parties because long Covid-19 will have a successive impact, namely the decline in thequality of life of children.
Covid-19 does not only affect health, but also affect all aspects of life, both socio- economic
conditions and children's education. The government initially did not react, but after learning
about the magnitude of the risk that would occur to children, the government made a policy tostop face-to-face meetings in schools. More than 1 billion children in the world are at risk ofbeing left behind due to school closures aimed at containing the spread of Covid-19. The
children were saved from being infected, but the problem was not simple because the learning
process in the classroom had to be stopped.
The low number of Covid-19 cases that infected children has an impact on the government's
slow response to children's learning policies. In March 2020, the policy of study at home wasconducted by region based on the Covid-19 distribution zone where red and yellow coloredzones are a priority for distance learning. The President of the Republic of Indonesia instructedto carry out social distancing, namely to study and work at home. and to make physicaldistancing according to the WHO’s (World Health Organization) advice. Furthermore, thestipulation of Government Regulation Number 21 of 2020 concerning Large-Scale Social
Restrictions (PSBB) in the context of accelerating the handling of COVID-19 and Presidential
Decree Number 11 of 2020 concerning Determination of Public Health Emergency ofCoronavirus Disease 2019 and Presidential Decree Number 12 of 2020 concerning
Determination of Non-Natural Disasters Spreading Coronavirus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) as anational disaster has not been enthusiastically welcomed by the public.
On March 24, 2020, the Minister of Education issued a Circular Letter of the Minister of
Education and Culture Number 4 of 2020 concerning the Implementation of Educational
Policies in the Emergency Period for the Spread of Coronavirus Disease (Covid-19). Anotherpolicy issued was about school operational assistance with the Regulation of the Minister of
Education and Culture Number 8 of 2020 amended by Regulation of the Minister of Education
and Culture number 19 of 2020 concerning Amendments to the Regulation of the Minister of
Education and Culture Number 8 of 2020 concerning Technical Guidelines for Regular School
Operational Assistance.
Initially, online learnings have not been fully responded in which teachers, parents and children
are not ready to abruptly change the learning method. Many reasons are such as the

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preparedness of information technology, adoption of new learning methods, teachers’
readiness, and the state readiness to provide online education infrastructure.
A research conducted in Jakarta and Banten areas showed that only 14.78 percent of teachers
were ready to conduct online learning, while 70.42 percent were less prepared, and theremaining 14.39 percent were ill-prepared. Readiness in conducting online learning is
influenced by various factors such as the ineffectiveness of the training carried out in schools,
teachers’ confidence in expressing various emotions in virtual media and the limited
infrastructure. This condition will likely to have a detrimental effect on the quality of online
learning, particularly for children.
UNICEF notes that more than 90 percent of countries adopt digital strategies for distancelearning with only 60 percent adoption for pre-primary education. In fact, 31 percent students
worldwide (463 million) are unreachable by broadcast and internet-based distance learning
either because of a lack of necessary technology devices at home, or because they are nottargeted by the policies adopted. While schools remain closed, online platforms are the mostwidely used way by governments to provide distance education. Although 83 percent ofcountries use this method, unfortunately only about a quarter of school children worldwide
reach out..
Some of the above-mentioned issues have prompted this study to explore the effectiveness of
implementation of education for elementary school children during COVID-19 pandemic in
Indonesia. This research was conducted from April to September 2020 in 24 provinces inIndonesia. The purpose of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of education forelementary school children during the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia.
Research Methods
This study uses a mixed method, which combines quantitative inquiries and qualitative
approach. Mixed method research is a research design that departs from the philosophicalassumptions of the scientific inquiry. This approach is carried out in combination with the aimof providing a better understanding of the research problems and questions. Mixed method
combines quantitative with qualitative methods alike in a study, so that the data obtained ismore comprehensive, valid, reliable, and objective.
The convergent parallel designs are a way of collecting quantitative and qualitative data. This
study utilized both data simultaneously to understand research problems. The advantage of thismodel lies on its advantage combinatory of the two combined data, namely quantitative datafor generalization and qualitative data for contextualization. The research model allows
researchers to obtain information through the best methods offered by data collection
techniques both quantitatively and qualitatively.
This research was quantitatively carried out by distributing questionnaires by using Google
form which was circulated throughout the provinces in Indonesia through Whatsapp groups
either through local governments or through stakeholder groups. The questionnaire wasdistributed in all regions in Indonesia, but the collected samples were spread across 24
provinces, with 1289 samples from primary school teachers, 2131 primary school children, 469
parents, and 45 local governments from the district and regional education officers. In-depth
interviews were conducted with 40 informants from parents and local government.

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Data collection techniques were carried out by surveys, in-depth interviews, observations andfocus group discussions, especially for parents and elementary school children. The results ofdata collection were processed using a triangulation approach. Triangulation is an effort tocheck the truth of data or information obtained by researchers from various perspectives byreducing as much as possible the bias during data collection and analysis. In this study,
triangulation of methods is used by comparing information in different ways. In addition,
triangulation of data sources is conducted by exploring the truth through various methods andsources of data acquisition. Lastly, theoretical triangulation is utilized to increase thetheoretical depth of the results of data analysis. Data analysis uses a combination of quantitativeand qualitative approaches.
Results and Discussion
E-Learning and Its Problems
E-learning has become an educational choice for children almost all over the world. The choiceof this learning method is mainly to prevent the transmission of Covid-19. In addition, it is analternative to avoid school dropout. During approximately one year of the implementation of
online learning in Indonesia, there have been a number of studies examining the impact of theCovid-19 pandemic on students in Indonesia. A study shows that the reduced interaction ofchildren with the social environment directly causes children to become bored, and if leftunchecked, it will increase depression. Another challenge that must be faced is related to theeffectiveness of using gadgets or devices. The tendency of children to play gadgets during the
pandemic will pose a great risk for children to be exposed to inappropriate material content,
for example regarding the consumption of unhealthy snacks, gender stereotypes, and evenbullying. Consequently, it will cause new problems that will actually have a detrimental effectfor children.
The online learning model developed by Garrison, Anderson & Archer is based on three
concepts, namely cognitive, social, and teaching. This model is designed with an active
learning environment, where a community is dependent on instructors and students to shareideas, information, and opinions. The presence of the parties involved in e-learning is a social
phenomenon that manifests itself through interactions between students and instructors. Online
learning can be carried out effectively with the availability of following materials : (1)information technology to enable interaction between students and teachers; (2) teachers
understanding online learning, to increase creativity as an absolute requirement for successful
learning; and (3) the ability of students to provide and use technology as an unavoidable
requirement.
The number of elementary school children in Indonesia is 25,203,371 from 149,435 schools,
with 556,969 principals and teachers, 91,123 non-teaching staff, 1,121,739 classes and1,112,993 classrooms. During one-year pandemic, there were 278,304 elementary school
children who stayed in class and 59,443 children dropped out of school. This condition can beseen especially in remote areas such as in Papua and West Papua Provinces. Children's learningis less likely to be done with e-learning model. This is due to the limited availability of facilities
and infrastructure, the limited ability of teachers to use e-learning media, the limited ability ofstudents to use information technology, and the inability of parents to provide cell phones orcomputers. However, physical learning is now carried out, in which once a week, the children
come to school to take worksheets to do at home. The problem was not solved because when

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doing the assignment, there was no place to ask questions for the children. The inability ofparents to understand the task becomes an obstacle.
Mothers in Papua and West Papua do not yet have the ability to understand the subjects taught
in schools. According to the Head of the Office for Women's Empowerment and Child
Protection, Boven Digoel Regency, Papua, Mrs. Emundo, the learning conditions of children
during the Covid-19 pandemic are alarming. Many children do not have the ability to learn
well. It is feared that this condition will have an impact on the quality of children's educationin Papua. Similar conditions were also found in other provinces such as North Kalimantan,
East Kalimantan, Southeast Sulawesi, and North Maluku. The conditions in Javanese towns
are better, but in remote rural areas, the situation is the same. This situation affects the interest
and willingness to learn in elementary school children.
Other studies also show the same situation. Some times in the learning process, children getbored, and the adults begin to spread memes in the form of complaints against online learning.
They update the status with various claims, ranging from many tasks, exhausted quota, andinternet network conditions. A study of nursing students showed anxiety among participants
related to the effects of the Covid-19 on the learning process. This anxiety causes boredom in
online learning. Children's irritability is directed to people around them for environment
disturbances and internet network.
Online learning has a significant impact on the level of learning motivation among students.
During a year of teaching and learning process using online system, the level of children's
learning motivation decreased. This is marked by reduced discipline when attending lessons
and decreased student attendance. Moreover, student responses to the material provided by theteacher are low. Students are slow to work on and complete assignments given by the teacher
on the grounds of being constrained by the internal network.
Causes of Children's Low Interest in Online
Learning

Difficult tolearn with HP
10%

Lazy andtired
12%

Teacherdelivery isboring17%

Do not havecommunicati
on tools(HP/Compute
r)
36%

Don't
understandhow to learn
online25%

Figure 1. Causes of Children's Low Interest in Online Learning
The interesting thing is that the children are bored, tired and lazy to study, coupled with thepressure of parents who are nervous and afraid about the progress of their children (Figure 1).
The follow-up impact is the emergence of domestic violence both verbally and physically.

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Parents do not understand much about the psychological dynamics behind the occurrence ofboredom, fatigue, and laziness in children. The increasing number of patients and suspectedcases, as well as the increasing number of countries affected by the Covid-19 outbreak, hasraised public fear about the rapid transmission of this epidemic. This has led to increased
anxiety. Boredom is triggered by the distance of children from the surrounding environment,
friends, teachers and school. The results of focus group discussions with children in one of theresearch locations in Semarang City, Central Java, showed that children could not stand athome because they were unable to express themselves in daily activities. Children missfootball, playing and studying together, practicing singing and dancing and the activities theyused to do. Anxiety arose in the discussion because of the economic pressure of parents.
Children with vulnerable, poor conditions have greater pressure.
E-Learning Effectiveness
Effectiveness is a measure that states how far the target in terms of quantity, quality and time
has been achieved by the service provider. Effectiveness is a measure of the achievement ofpredetermined goals or objectives. Thus, effectiveness is the relationship between output andgoals. Effectiveness can be seen from the achievement of goals, namely the process,integration, socialization, consensus development, communication and adaptation. In term of
the effectiveness of e-learning, the measure used is the success of learning with the e-learningmodel. Learning outcomes is considered success when participants gain new understanding asa result of e-learning. Effectiveness is also measured by the ability to implement e-learning
content or processes for users and implementers. In this study, the effectiveness of e-learning
is measured by the results and the ability to apply the content or learning process.
The results of the study also show that e-learning from learning outcomes is quite successful
in terms of student learning outcomes. Associated with content or process indicators, the results
are not effective, evidenced by the recognition of both teachers and parents. Teachers claimthat not only does e-learning encourage teachers to be creative and innovate, but also has an
impact on the less optimal learning quality. Besides being acknowledged that teachers havedifficulty preparing learning materials, teachers are also not accustomed to using gadgets orcomputers connected to the internet. Even though they have been trained by the local
government, due to the fast and sudden process, teachers also experience obstacles in
replicating e-learning model. Several teachers interviewed expressed a desire to be able to do
face-to-face soon. Although worried about transmission, the desire to be able to transfer
knowledge physically to children is also a longing in itself. Figure 2 showed teacher's
perception of e-learning.
Anxious and afraidof being infected10%
Not masteringcomputers/Gadgets
15%

Inability to adapt toconditions
13%

Unable to follow thelearning process
9%
Do not havelearning
facilities
15%

Limited ability toinnovate
25%

Unable to apply thelearning model
15%

Figure 2: Teacher's Perception of E-Learning

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The findings as presented in Figure 2 showed that both students and teachers feel anxiety. Oneof the anxieties felt is when they have relatives or acquaintances who are infected with Covid19. They have to be faced with two things they are afraid of, namely health and the continuityof life that is isolated from the environment. Another anxiety is about economy as it has a direct
effect on everyday life. In families who are deprived or poor, this condition is getting worse.
They must earn an income to survive, while keeping them from getting infected with the virus.
A study in China revealed the anxiety due to various pressures in dealing with Covid-19. Social
support is negatively correlated with public anxiety in China. Mental health is severely affected
when facing a public health emergency. So that they need attention and assistance from thecommunity, family, and school.
The results also show that most parents are worried about their children's education with thise-learning model. They stated that e-learning was not effective. The government and local
governments are considered not ready to face the pandemic and develop an effective learningmodel. This critical attitude of parents is part of the parents' inability to deal with e-learningmodel. In addition to having to provide learning infrastructure, parents also have to prepare
many things, starting from providing a safe and comfortable situation, good nutrition, as wellas accompanying the children during the learning process. This is not difficult for middle classparents, but it is burdensome for poor families.
The assessment of the unpreparedness of the government and local governments to makehumanistic and quality learning is shown from the learning process that has been accepted by
students. According to them, only 20 percent of teachers are able to carry out e-learning welland innovatively. Most teachers are considered to be placing a burden on children in the formof homework or assignments. Usually, parents were slightly involved in the learning process,however, since the implementation of e-learning, parents must make sure their children learn
well. Dissatisfaction with learning is manifested by seeking additional tutoring, namely in
online courses. Additional expenses to increase knowledge of teaching courses are also aburden for parents.
The results of in-depth interviews with parents showed that e-learning was not effective. Manylearning formalities are obtained by children, including the values obtained by children which
are considered less relevant to the quality of learning. Public services both from schools andthe government are considered not optimal. According to the Public Service Act, it is the rightof the community to get good, cheap, fast and quality services. Public services should describe
the close relationship between customers and service providers with the orientation on results
being the basis in delivering public services. Nonetheless, outcome-oriented public service
approach is not an easy thing. The difficulty of the outcome-focused service approach isdefining and measuring service improvement. The difficulties include that some policies andservices may not explicitly articulate formal goals. Figure 3 shows the differences in theassessment of learning effectiveness with e-learning model during the Covid-19 pandemic
between teachers, students and parents.
Figure 3 showed that the perception of the effectiveness of e-learning between teachers,
students and parents is different. Teachers consider that e-learning is quite effective in
improving the quality of learning, while parents and students are more likely to consider it lesseffective. Parents and students feel directly the impact of the implementation of e-learning,ranging from the quality of learning to the anxiety.

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Teacher

Student

Parents
39

37
28
21

34
27

27

25

18
11

10

7

4

2
Very effective

Effective

10

Effective enoughLess effective

Ineffective

Figure 3: Percentage of E-Learning Effectiveness by Parents Teachers and Students
In e-learning process, children only get limited services, mainly contributed by public services
delivered by the teachers. They carry out limited innovation because they are only trained fora limited time. Although this is an emergency, the government's response to improve the public
service quality of teachers should be more mature by preparing an understandable model to
implement and facilitate the needs of teachers.
The findings also showed that in remote areas, public services for teachers and students are
more limited. The reasons for accessibility, network and poor infrastructure re somejustification behind this limitation. Parents complained, teachers did too. To increase public
services, teachers in remote locations need to improve their capacity in delivering online
learning, and to obtain economic assistance to meet online learning qualifications.
Conclusion
The results of the study conclude that in terms of learning outcomes seen from the results of
the learning evaluation report cards, e-learning is quite effective. However, good scores are nota reflection of a good process, indicated by the occurrence in which teachers lowered theassessment quality to encourage and motivate students to be enthusiastic in e-learning. Thismethod is considered quite good because children who feel bored and anxious are entertainedwith good learning outcomes.
From the perspective of e-learning process, it is considered unsuccessful. Many findings
empirically prove that e-learning process is not as smooth as it was formulated. The quality oflearning is considered to be still lacking so that some parents need additional learning outsideof school. Some children also do not get services because of various limitations, bothaccessibility to information sources, poor facilities and infrastructure, and the anxiety caused
by workload.
Distressing conditions are found in remote and isolated locations and village areas where elearning is almost impossible to fully implement. For poor families, e-learning adds to theburden due to the inability to access the learning process properly, and becomes an additional
economic burden for their parents.

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As recommendation, some of the findings have been submitted to the Minister of Education
and Culture of Indonesia to immediately evaluate e-learning and differentiate e-learningmodels from one region to another. This is important considering the level of diversity inIndonesia's territory, customs, culture, and geographical conditions. The government canreplicate the face-to-face learning model by dividing smaller study groups, limiting meetingtimes, and training teachers for participatory and interactive learning processes.

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Reference
UNICEF 2020 COVID-19 dan Anak-Anak di Indonesia
Buonsenso D, Munblit D, de Rose C, Sinatti D, Ricchiuto A, Carfi A and Valentini P 2021
Preliminary evidence on long COVID in children medRxiv
UNICEF 2021 Education Disrupted The second year of the COVID-19 pandemic and school
closuresMenteri Pendidikan P and Kebudayaan D Salinan Menteri Pendidikan Dan Kebudayaan
Republik Indonesia
Satrio Prabowo A, Dian Dia Conia P, Afiati E, Warih Handoyo A, Muhibah S, Yunika
Khairun D, Zaimah Dalimunthe R, Yoga Wibowo B and Dwi Nurmala M Kesiapan
Guru Dalam Melaksanakan Pembelajaran Daring Ditengah Wabah Covid-19 vol 5
UNICEF 2020 Covid-19 and school closures one year of education disruption
Doyle L, Brady A M and Byrne G 2009 An overview of mixed methods research Journal of
Research in Nursing 14 175–85
Tashakkori A and Creswell J W 2007 Editorial: The New Era of Mixed Methods Journal of
Mixed Methods Research 1 3–7
Fusch P, Fusch G E and Ness L R 2018 Denzin’s Paradigm Shift: Revisiting Triangulation in
Qualitative Research Journal of Social Change 10
Cipta Pramana 2020 Pembelajaran Usia Dini Mas Covid Indonesian Journal of Early
Chilhood 2
Picciano A G 2017 Theories and frameworks for online education: Seeking an integrated
model Online Learning Journal 21 166–90
Salwa Diva A, Chairunnisa A A and Mufidah T H 2021 Pembelajaran Daring di Masa
Pandemi Covid-19 vol 01
Kementrian Pendidikan RI 2020 Statistik Pendidikan SD 2029-2020
Huang L, Xu F and Liu H 2020 Emotional responses and coping strategies of nurses andnursing college students during COVID-19 outbreak medRxiv
Syamsuddin 2021 Dampak Pembelajaran Daring Di Masa Pandemic Covid 19 Terhadap
Motivasi Belajar Siswa Sd Inpres 1 Tatura Kota Palu 4 45–50
Bao Y, Sun Y, Meng S, Shi J and Lu L 2020 2019-nCoV epidemic: address mental healthcare to empower society The Lancet 395 e37–8
Wijiastuti T N and Nurhayati S 2020 The Effectiveness of Discovery Blended Learning on
Concept Understanding and Student Motivation, Research Horizon 1 150–156

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Schack Noesgaard S and Ørngreen R 2015 The Effectiveness of E-Learning: An Explorativeand Integrative Review of the Definitions, Methodologies and Factors that Promote eLearning Effectiveness Electroning Journal of E-Learning 13
Cao W, Fang Z, Hou G, Han M, Xu X, Dong J and Zheng J 2020 The psychological impactof the Covid-19 epidemic on college students in China Psychiatry Research 287
Downe J, Grace C, Martin S and Nutley S 2010 Theories of public service improvement: A
comparative analysis of local performance assessment frameworks Public
Management Review 12 663–78
Pülzl H and Treib O 2017 Implementing public policy Handbook of Public Policy Analysis:
Theory, Politics, and Methods 89–108
Contact email: kertatihadiwijoto@gmail.com
indra-kertati@untagsmg.ac.id

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Applying a Book Read Aloud and Leveraging It with Storyline Online: A Case Study ofIndonesian Preservice Teachers
Tati Lathipatud Durriyah, Indonesian International Islamic University, Indonesia
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
This study departed from an understanding that one aspect in literacy teacher preparation is tomake explicit personal beliefs of preservice teachers in receiving knowledge and instructionin the program. Enrolling in an introductory course of children’s literature, a group ofIndonesian preservice teacher participated in a read aloud project where they applied
knowledge related to reading aloud to students. As the project evolved, the Preservice
teachers attempted to use the Storyline Online digital literacy resource in addition to bookread alouds. This qualitative study reported Indonesian preservice teachers’ reflections after
implementing the two activities. The findings indicated that they gravitated toward having aphysical book read aloud for a range of reasons, revealing a positive attitude toward bookread alouds. What is more, Storyline Online was considered a useful digital literacy resource
to complement the activity of book read alouds and a tool to improve English.
Keywords: Read Alouds, Preservice Teachers, Digital Literacy Resources, Storyline Online,
Indonesia

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Introduction
Interests in literacy education that promote book engagement are currently on the rise inIndonesian public education, especially after the introduction of a literacy initiative called
Gerakan Literasi Sekolah (or GLS literacy initiative). One main reason to implement the GLS
literacy initiative was an effort to address the issue of Indonesian students’ low literacy levels
and poor reading habits (Indonesian Ministry of Education, 2016). Efforts to improveIndonesian students’ literacy and reading habits focus on engaging students with books
promoted through literacy activities such as read alouds, guided reading, and shared reading.
Indonesian teachers’ role is to facilitate these literacy activities as well as a role model who
serves as a living embodiment of how books are enjoyed and that reading is an activity to becherished (Indonesian Ministry of Education, 2016). Indonesian teachers typically learn toconduct literacy activities specified in the GLS literacy initiative through professional
development programs. For example, Indonesian teachers learn steps to conduct a book read
aloud through workshops and seminars. Unfortunately, efforts that specifically prepareIndonesian preservice teachers to learn about literacy instruction that facilitate bookengagement are not yet an integral part of Indonesian teacher education curriculum. Thispersists despite a strong body of research available that urges the importance of preparing
quality literacy teachers within the confines of a sustainable teacher education curriculum(Risko, et al, 2008; see Standards for the Preparation of Literacy Professionals—International
Literacy Association, 2018). With this absence, it is no coincidence that there is a dearth of
study in a context of teacher education that investigates how future Indonesian teachers areprepared to gain the knowledge and skills in a response to GLS literacy initiative. (Myresearch on preparing Indonesian preservice teachers with knowledge about children’s
literature offers some insights about the attention to the reader aspect of a literacy teacher, aliteracy teacher who is also a reader (Durriyah, 2019). The present study aims to contribute to
the research gap.
Other concerns relate to the inadequacy of book access. According to the Indonesian Ministryof Education Office of Research, there is strong evidence suggesting a lack of book accesshas exacerbated poor reading habit in Indonesia (Indonesian Ministry of Education, 2019).
The poor condition of public and school libraries is to blame. The office insisted that interest
to read among students in Indonesia is high, yet the book access is minimal. One suggestionthat the report brought forward is to accelerate access to digital literacy resources. These weresome of the contexts regarding Indonesia’s literacy education that motivated this study. This
research framework borrowed one of main foci in teacher preparation that emphasizes
highlighting the perceptions of literacy preservice teachers in receiving knowledge andinstructions in teacher preparation program (Scott et al. 2018).
Preservice Teachers’ Read Aloud Project
The read aloud project was part of an introductory course for children’s literature, a required
course for undergraduate English teaching students. An initial focus of the course was tointroduce a basic understanding about literature and children’s books. I designed the coursethat included activities demonstrating classroom literacy instruction. I focused on introducing
read alouds—partly because a read aloud was one of literacy instruction being highlighted in
GLS literacy initiative. Second, a book read aloud activity would require only one book for awhole group, which offers advantages over other literacy instruction that requires teachers toprovide copies of books to students (e.g., shared reading). This consideration is important incontext where, to my observation, public access to quality English books is low—thisISSN: 2186-5892

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situation echoing earlier official reports about poor access to books in most Indonesianschools (Indonesian Ministry of Education, 2019). The urgent issue was to promote literacy
amid book access scarcity. This understanding was then being reflected in how the read aloud
project with preservice teachers evolved over the semester. Initially, the course focused on
having the Preservice teachers practice conducting a book read aloud to students. As the field
experience progressed, these future EFL teachers saw the need for an additional support tool
to help them conduct English book read alouds with expressive reading. This was relevant
considering as future EFL teachers they felt it was important to be resourceful teachers. Inclass I showed them a YouTube video of Barack Obama delivering an expressive read aloudof Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are, which impressed them. This led me tosearch for literacy studies concerned with expressive reading during read alouds. Especially
useful in my search was a teaching tip published by The Reading Teacher, a leading literacy
practitioner journal, which promoted digital text resources for fostering reading fluency(Thoermer & Williams, 2012), particularly a recommendation about Storyline Online.
Storyline Online (https://www.storylineonline.net/) is a digital platform literacy resource thatprovides read aloud videos delivered by professional actors whom one may argue have thecapability to deliver an expressive and accurate read aloud performance. It is somewhat an
upgraded version of the digital book read aloud program because it offers more than simply avoice over book talk like many digital storybook programs (see, for example, Ciampa, 2012).
Storyline Online is touted as one excellent free online resource to help preservice teachers
improve expressive reading skills (Kerry-Moran, 2016; Thoermer & Williams, 2012). Such avideo format of professional actor read alouds is helpful because it enables students to hear aprofessional actor’s reading expression—aiding students’ story comprehension. After
receiving some demonstrations for using Storyline Online, the Preservice teachers returned to
the field and this time used Storyline Online in place of a book read aloud. The Preservice
teachers reflected on the two experiences in writing following a set of guided prompts. In theteacher preparation program, a guided process of student teachers’ learning reflection isarguably critical in shaping future teaching practices (Foong, Nor, & Nolan, 2018). The
written reflections serve as data source for this research.
My goal with this research was to identify some of the Preservice teachers’ perceptions about
the book read aloud and Storyline Online activities after having conducted both with students.
Perceptions here are defined as “personal beliefs” with regard to literacy instruction (Scott etal., 2018, p. 6), which in this case are the Preservice teachers’ beliefs on read alouds. I
wanted to know how Indonesian preservice teachers, who for the majority just learned about
reading aloud as part of literacy teaching, would reflect on their experiences in conducting aread aloud activity with young readers. I was interested in knowing, from the perspective ofpromoting literacy through reading aloud, what they perceived about the activities of bookread alouds and Storyline Online in terms of distinctive characteristics and possibly
similarities. In addition, I was especially interested in gleaning from the data theopportunities for utilizing digital literacy resources into literacy instruction. This was partly
motivated by research recommendations by the Indonesian Ministry of Education (2019)cited earlier that encouraged the use of digital resources to promote literacy culture,especially amid the poor conditions of public and school library collections. So, I wasinterested in learning to what extent this effort of digital resource utilization in literacy
instruction would be relevant in the context of Indonesia. The point is to support the idea thatliteracy teachers must consider this digital technology trend and so must experience a teacher
preparation program curriculum that considers digital literacy resources. Following thisintroduction, I will review the literature relevant to the topics under the discussion. A

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methods section will describe the research approach, context, and data collection. The
research findings will be presented and discussed next, followed by the conclusion section.
Literature Review
International Literacy Association (ILA) released a literacy leadership brief emphasizing thepower of read alouds to foster a lifelong reader: “Reading aloud is undoubtedly one of themost important instructional activities to help children develop the fundamental skills andknowledge needed to become readers” (International Literacy Association, 2018, p. 2). The
ILA highlighted what literacy research has documented about read alouds, including thefrequency of read alouds in daily literacy activities and the use of different genres (beyond
narrative texts) and subject areas (math included). One related issue discussed in the brief isconcerned with read aloud preparations because “what matters more than merely reading
aloud is the quality of the teacher– student book interaction” (International Literacy
Association, 2018, p. 4). Those highlights from the ILA literacy brief emphasized teachers’
knowledge and skills in performing read alouds with students.
Fisher and colleagues (2004) summarize the benefits for students of a read aloud, noting that
“read alouds are an effective way to introduce students to the joy of reading and the art oflistening while developing their vocabularies, experiential backgrounds, and concepts of print
and story” (pp. 8-9). They add that “through a read aloud, teachers can model reading
strategies and demonstrate the ways in which the language of the book is different fromspoken language. Children’s understanding of the patterns and structures of written language
can be developed through read alouds” (p. 9). Fisher et al. also found that read alouds provide
an opportunity for teachers to model oral reading fluency (“The teacher read the bookflawlessly. Her prosody engaged the students and they were captured as she presented the
chunks of text”) (p. 12). Teachers were also animated and effectively used expression to
engage the students who “laughed at jokes in the books as she read them, clearly following
along with the text” (p. 12).
These effective read aloud characteristics are important to highlight because reading
expression is a critical component to building reading comprehension. Unfortunately,
research suggests that many preservice teachers “have developed habits of reading aloudwithout infusing meaning into the way words are spoken” and therefore need help
“developing expressive reading skills” (Kerry-Moran, 2016, p. 661). Digital technology
development offers an expanded avenue for literacy growth specifically for building reading
comprehension (Lacina & Matthews, 2012). Literacy researchers and practitioners havesuggested several reading comprehension areas that digital texts could potentially help todevelop with readers including vocabulary enrichment (Lacina & Matthews, 2012), reading
fluency, and reading motivation—i.e., widening students’ opportunities to read (Thoermer &Williams, 2012).
From research on literacy teacher preparation, Scott et al.’s (2018) research review gave us
three major conceptional categories in the field: perceptions, resistance, and experience. The
category of perceptions involves preservice teachers’ beliefs towards literacy curriculum
within the program. The resistance category describes preservice teachers’ tendency to favor
or avoid certain literacy approaches rather than exercising all that are offered by the program.
The category of experience describes preservice teachers’ prolonged direct experiences of
exercising multiple approaches of literacy pedagogies. These three conceptual categories areuseful to understand some of the identifiable phases that typically occur during a student

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teacher’s program. I argue that the purpose and scope of the current study fit into the categoryof perceptions as the goal is to uncover Preservice teachers’ beliefs about read aloud andStoryline Online instructional activities.
MethodThis report followed a qualitative research paradigm situated in a teacher education programin a public university in Indonesia. The participants were 87 preservice teachers (of female
predominated) who enrolled in an introductory course of children’s literature that the author
taught. Data was gathered from written reflections reporting a practical assignment oftutoring children. In the assignment, all the Preservice teachers were required to conduct read
alouds with K-12 students in an afterschool program. Initially, the read aloud activity focusedsolely on reading aloud from a book that the Preservice teachers borrowed from a library orbought from a bookstore. As the read aloud assignment progressed, the Preservice teachers
utilized read aloud content from Storyline Online with students. They reflected on theexperiences though written response to a set question prompts: What do you think about abook read aloud? What do you think about Storyline Online? What are the similarities anddifferences between a book read aloud and Storyline Online? When is the best time(recommended time) to do a read aloud? And When is the best time (recommended time) to
do Storyline Online? I submit that these questions would enable the study to elicit explicit
information about the Preservice teachers’ personal beliefs after having learned and applied
read aloud literacy instruction. Answers to these questions were grouped according to thesimilarities of answers to each category. The original words of the Preservice teachers are
italicized and narrated. For instance, in a question about a book read aloud (a category),
elements that the Preservice teachers noted related to literacy development were ‘intimacy’ or‘bonding’ during a read aloud. So, any similar data from the Preservice teachers’ written
reports were grouped into this categorical theme of intimacy of a book read aloud. These
reflection questions guided the report as presented in the findings below.
Findings
In presenting the findings, I will group them according to the topics culled from the
Preservice teachers’ answers to the guided questions. The findings presentation begins withthe students’ perceptions about a book read aloud activity—having had experienced it withstudents. Next is a presentation of their perceptions about Storyline Online—also having had
the experience with students. The focus is to highlight what was considered distinctive about
the activities in terms of fostering literacy culture. Following that presentation is a descriptionof some of characteristics that according to the Preservice teachers were similar between abook read aloud and Storyline Online. The findings presentation will be concluded with the
Preservice teachers’ suggestions about the recommended time to conduct the two activities.
Book Read Alouds
Indonesian preservice teachers noticed that a book read aloud activity builds intimacy as there
is an extended moment of having a direct interaction and physical closeness between thereader and audience, and this may create a bonding between reader (teacher/ older siblings)
with children. The interactive nature of read alouds is naturally able to interrupt forclarifications and questions, among others. In read alouds, students are able to touch and flip
back and forth book pages. On some occasions, teachers may allow students to take turn inreading aloud a book. One prominent feature that sets read alouds apart from other literacy

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instruction is pointing. Having experienced a read aloud activity, preservice teachers foundthat pointing in read aloud matters. As simple as it sounds, they noticed that pointing makes
reading aloud easier to manage, just pointing.
Literacy development is noticeably facilitated in reading aloud. For one, a book read aloud
ignites reading habit. Students’ literacy is fostered as a result of teachers being more creativewith activity. Teachers may begin with read aloud that builds critical thinking, in hopes thatit sets the class for the rest of the day. The appearance of a physical book is almost anecessity in a read aloud. The Preservice teachers argued that having a physical book inreading aloud is superior. It matters because it invites student’s direct responses. They may
ask about vocabularies. Having a physical book would allow students to read to themselves(read independently) after a read aloud. One example of the benefit of having a physical bookand a teacher who reads aloud is that teachers would point out to images/pictures in order tohelp students’ making sense of a storybook. What is more, there a sense of teachers having
control over the pace of a read aloud. Read alouds seem to be more manageable. Teachers
can control reading pace. Some even argued that in terms of equipment, read alouds requireless stuff where they only need a book for read aloud. Perhaps the Preservice teachers
compared that experience with Storyline Online which requires technology to view (e.g.,
computers or smartphones) and an internet connection.
When Is the Best Time to Do a Book Read Aloud?
Most preservice teachers felt a read aloud was a suitable everyday activity, which means to
do daily read aloud or read aloud daily. Some specified their daily read aloud routine. For
example, preservice teachers would begin class with read aloud as an opportunity to explore
genres. They also felt a read aloud could be conducted regularly in English subject class.
Some reasoned that to have a read aloud in the beginning of class is for the purpose ofbuilding teacher-student chemistry. On the opposite end of this, some felt a read aloud at theconclusion of the class would relax the students: Read aloud at the end of class to relax
students. A read aloud is a relaxing activity that they considered also before bedtime. Other
than that (and other than having read alouds as an integral part of daily classroom activity),
many preservice teachers considered read alouds appropriate for an outdoor activity such as
during a picnic.
A Book Read Aloud Challenges
In terms of challenges with book read alouds, some argued that read aloud is difficult to
conduct. Students referenced the preparation. A book read aloud demands teachers prepare.
For example, they have to practice with a right expression and English intonation. Anotherchallenge dealt with an issue about scarcity of good printed English book. This is true inregard to a good storybook in English because many of those English storybooks are printed
overseas which results in a high price in Indonesia.
Storyline Online
The quest to find out the Indonesian students’ perceptions about their experiences with using
Storyline Online with students was, among others, to understand what makes this activity
different from that of a book read aloud. Speaking of Storyline Online, the Preservice
teachers highlighted that Storyline has many advantages. One is concerned with English
language learning. Storyline Online is superior for listening and intonation and perhaps

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animation. Read by popular figures in Hollywood whose English is mostly their first
language, the program is an excellent source for learning English. They imagined, forinstance, using Storyline before teaching grammar.
This fact about reading delivered in English also affects the audience. In terms of an
audience, Storyline is for older students—this is in a context of an Indonesian school where
English is considered foreign language. Besides English, older students will benefit from
Storyline Online. Their critical thinking will be facilitated from viewing the video; plus, theactivities are deemed suitable for older students in Indonesia. One thing for sure is that in the
scarcity of good and accessible English books, Storyline offers many excellent English bookcollection. Formatted in video, Storyline makes it possible to repeat; therefore, it is efficient,
they said. Another aspect that they found superior from Storyline Online is that the video
comes with many activities related to the story. They insist that with storyline, to makechildren love reading is easier with social media. Included in their favorable views about
Storyline Online is their claim that Storyline demands less preparation on the teacher part.
Storyline Online may serve as a time filler in class, especially because it requires lesspreparation by the teacher. Indeed, it perhaps requires less work by teachers, but they also
insisted that teacher need to understand the story in case student want to repeat the video andask explanation. In other words, teachers need to at least do some preparations prior to
Storyline Online.
When Is the Best Time to Do Storyline Online?
As far as Storyline Online is concerned, the Preservice teachers imagined using it once in awhile, storyline occasionally. Because Storyline Online contains several activities, they
thought it would work to occasionally do storyline along with the activities provided.
Another idea is to pair Storyline Online with a read aloud; that is, start the class with read
aloud and end it with storyline. Another consideration within a school environment is to have
Storyline in English extracurricular activity. In a context outside of the school environment,
they thought about using Storyline any free time, especially as it can be used with asmartphone as some of the Preserviceteachers did. Storyline is considered a suitable activity
when one gets stuck in the traffic. All in all, they said, Storyline is a good option when there’s
no book, for example on a trip, and we forget to bring books.
What Are the Similarities Between a Book Read Aloud and Storyline Online?
In terms of the similarities between read alouds and Storyline Online, the Preservice teachers
insisted that they both have the same goal and procedure. A book read aloud and Storyline
Online are about getting students to focus (both help students pay attention and be focus) andto have fun (both facilitate student to focus, joy, and responses). In both activities, students’
literacy development is fostered.
Specifically, they insisted that a book read aloud and Storyline Online are helpful indeveloping student language and nurture imagination. For example, both activities invite
students to imagine and talk about a story (both enables student to imagine the story and torespond). The Preservice teachers argued that the invitation to talk provides the opportunity
for students to be able telling anything in their mind about a story, and in that sense it allows
to improve students’ response to story. Read aloud and Storyline Online enhance students’vocabularies. From a teacher perspective, both activities make a teacher to be active. Theyboth require interaction with students, and both activities help teacher to introduce to new

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stories. In using read alouds and Storyline Online, teachers learn to select books according toage and interests.
Storyline Online Challenges
When it comes to Storyline Online, the Preservice teachers were mostly concerned withtechnical matters. Unlike in a book read aloud, in Storyline it is not practical to rewind thevideo/locate words that students find difficult to grasp. Specifically, viewing someone
reading a book in a video makes pointing to specific text, words, or images more difficult.
Storyline is hard to point, they said. In term of delivering, Storyline is hard to manage
student to shift focus between video viewing and teacher interaction. Finally, regarding
technology and internet access, they said storyline requires internet data and laptop or
smartphones which some of them viewed as a burden.
Discussion
This research was framed with an understanding that in literacy teacher preparation it was
critical to investigate preservice teachers’ “emotional predispositions toward literacy” (Scottet al. 2018, p. 6)—in this context their predispositions towards read aloud instruction. The
quest of the research was to know about the personal beliefs (perceptions) of Indonesianpreservice teachers after having conducted two literacy activities with students; one was abook read aloud and the other one was Storyline Online. The findings show what the
Preservice teachers perceived about the two experiences. In general, the Preservice teachers
held a positive perception about a book read aloud especially in terms of offering a directinteractive experience between an older reader and a child audience. There is an intimacy ofhuman physical interaction and the direct ability to interact with books (i.e., touch, point, etc.)
within the context of daily literacy learning sessions. This confirmed our current
understanding that the superiority of a book read aloud rests in interaction between teachers
and young readers that is the crucial moment of “teacher-students book interaction”(International Literacy Association, 2018, p. 4).
The findings also show that the Preservice teachers noticed the benefits of a book read aloudand could envision its strategic role for activities inside a classroom (from literacy teachinge.g., genre exploration, to class time management, e.g., opening and ending a class with abook read aloud). This finding echoed earlier research on the many ways teachers could
utilize book read alouds (Fisher et al., 2004) such as for the purposes of demonstrating
reading fluency, facilitating access to texts, to managing the classroom (Albright & Ariail).
The findings suggesting read alouds’ strategic role in classroom literacy instruction affirm along praxis of read alouds in teacher education (see Moore, 2018; Mitchell, Homza, & Ngo,2012).
Finally, another interesting finding about a book read aloud is that the Preservice teachers
found it to be beneficial for activities outside classroom (e.g., an activity of book read aloud
during picnic). However, it is relevant to bring up Fisher et al. (2004) who reminded teacher
education programs to avoid giving the impression that a book read aloud is simply a filler
activity, “an optional activity or a break from the routine of the classroom.” They cautionedthat it is pertinent to remind preservice teachers that “one of the purposes of reading or being
read to is enjoyment” (p. 15)

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In terms of the challenges, the Preservice teachers noticed two issues regarding a read aloudactivity using book written in English. First, quality English books for a read aloud are noteasily accessible due to high cost or a lack of availability in libraries and bookstores inIndonesia. Second, as they are presently being prepared to become teachers of EFL, thePreservice teachers in this study were aware of challenges for non-native speakers to produce
correct English sounds (Wen Chien, 2014) and meaningful gestures. In the case of a bookread aloud, the Preservice teachers felt it was challenging to read out loud an English
storybook using appropriate expressions and accurate English intonation. Yet, to some extent,
this challenge of delivering an expressive read aloud is not exclusive for non-native English
speakers. In fact, as other research also noted, it is a challenge that is faced by many whose
English is the first language (Kerry-Moran, 2016).
In Storyline Online, the Preservice teachers saw a potential for English teaching, one that in abook read aloud they noticed was least facilitated. Benefits of Storyline Online focused
mostly on its potential support for literacy development in English (EFL) class. For example,
Storyline Online contains videos of book read alouds from good quality English books thatare not accessible for many Indonesian students. Storyline Online is also one kind of digitaltext considered to be helpful in supporting students’ English intonation and listening skills ingeneral. This potential of digital texts for improving students’ English sound accuracy is likea finding in another study. Nayak and Sylva (2013) found that for English learners, thebenefit of digital text programs is recognized mostly in gaining accuracy of English words. In
their words, “opportunities to hear a text read out loud…as part of an e-book, seem toenhance accurate reading aloud skills” (p.97).
Another English learning benefit in viewing Storyline Online was to serve an excellent
activity in an English grammar class or any extracurricular activities (afterschool programs)that focused on English. As a digital literacy resource, Storyline Online contains moving
animations which the Preservice teachers argued also help to facilitate the story
comprehension. The efficiency of Storyline Online is noticeable especially in terms of its
ability to play repeatedly and its usefulness to deliver educational activity outside of aclassroom when there is no book around such as an outing or when stuck in street traffic (likein Jakarta where this research was conducted). In short, using Storyline Online would make itpossible to expand children’s love of reading.
Finally, the Preservice teachers’ direct observations indicated that students of higher grades(secondary level students) learned English from viewing Storyline Online videos; however, it
indicated less for lower grade students (elementary level). One explanation perhaps is the factthat in Indonesian curriculum, English subject (EFL) was not officially offered until after anelementary level so the content had little educational relevance nor immediate need for thisgroup. What’s more, the most noticeable interruptions that the Preservice teachers
experienced when viewing Storyline Online with students were to manage the students’ focus
and to prompt students occasionally to pay attention to the instructions from the Preservice
teachers. They also noted that Storyline Online made it impractical to locate interesting words
or words considered difficult to grasp. Another downside of the utilization of digital literacy
resources like Storyline Online is concerned with the cost of internet access when the
Preservice teachers were providing instruction outside of university or school contexts wheremost access to an open internet connection is usually available.

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Conclusion
Indonesian preservice teachers noted similarities between book read aloud and Storyline
Online activities ranging from comparable goals and procedure and aspects of literacy
development (getting focused, nurturing imagination, enabling active response, andenhancing vocabularies) to the required teachers’ abilities in doing the two activities(encouraging active interactions, picking books relevant to student’s age and interests, andhaving an ability to expose students with stories). A book read aloud is especially favored byPreservice teachers for it facilitates access to student-teacher book interaction.
The Preservice teachers considered that Storyline Online’s role could be to complement abook read aloud’s literacy instructional activity. They recommended starting a class with abook read aloud and ending class with Storyline Online. This way Storyline Online will
perhaps give leverage the benefits of book read alouds. They suggested digital text literacy
resources such as Storyline Online are not replacements for teachers reading aloudinteractively to students. Instead, Storyline Online can complement an existing practice ofbook read alouds by its incorporation into literacy routines (Thoermer & Williams, 2012;
Kerry-Moran, 2016).
The focus of making visible Indonesian preservice teachers’ personal beliefs about read
alouds revealed mostly positive attitudes toward a book read aloud. They noticed somebenefits and showed motivation to conduct them. The same goes with Storyline Online
where, in addition to complementing a book read aloud activity, they noted some potential
benefits to utilizing that digital literacy resource for learning English, despite the internet
access downside.
Acknowledgements
I thanked Asep Ropiuddin whose assistance in the teaching and data collection process was
instrumental in the study completion.

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References
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Foong, L. Y. Y., Nor, M. B. M., & Nolan, A. (2018). The influence of practicum supervisors’
facilitation styles on student teachers’ reflective thinking during collective reflection.
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Contact email: tati.wardi@uiii.ac.id

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Exploring the Effects of a YouTube-Style Video Making Task in Online English
Communication Courses
Mariko Takahashi, Setsunan University, Japan
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Abstract
This study investigated the effects of a YouTube-style video making task in English
communication courses with a soft CLIL approach. The primary purpose was to explore its
effects for content learning and language learning, and the subsidiary purpose was to examine
its feasibility in an online format. Participants were 53 students from four English
communication courses at two universities in Japan. As the final project, the students planned
and made a video of any genre they could find on YouTube and edited it with an application to
produce a video with a detailed English narration. In total, 47 videos including two pair projects
and two group projects were produced. The content of the videos and the comments on theaccompanying worksheets were analyzed to assess the effectiveness of this task for content
learning. In addition, the narration was analyzed linguistically to explore the extent the task
enabled the students to demonstrate their productive skills of English and to identify areas
which would require further linguistic instruction. The results indicate that making YouTubestyle videos is an engaging and beneficial task and can produce a highly positive learning
experience even when the course is held online.
Keywords: Video Making Task, English Communication, Online Learning, CLIL, EFL

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Introduction
In recent years, video sharing websites have gained popularity across the world. Video sharing
websites enable users to upload their own videos as well as enjoy the videos uploaded by others.
YouTube (https://www.youtube.com), a leading video sharing platform, has nearly 2.3 billion
monthly active users worldwide (Statista, 2021b). Japan, where the current study took place,has the sixth largest estimated number of YouTube users in the world, with over 72.5 million
users in 2020 (Statista, 2021a). According to a report by the Ministry of Internal Affairs andCommunications of Japan (2021), 96.5% of teenagers and 97.2% of people in twenties
accessed YouTube on a regular basis in the fiscal year 2020. This indicates that Japanese
university students tend to use YouTube regularly and that they are familiar with the types ofvideos uploaded on YouTube. The usage of YouTube in Japan increased in 2020 partly because
people were encouraged to stay home as much as possible due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Indeed, the monthly average time spent on viewing videos on video sharing platforms increasedby 2 hours and 44 minutes among people between the ages of 18 and 34 in Japan between
March and April of 2020 (Nielsen, 2020).
Universities in Japan were also affected by the pandemic. The academic year (AY) in Japan
starts in April, and classes usually start in the first week of April. However, the start of thespring semester was delayed at most universities in AY2020, and classes were required to be
moved online. The situation had not improved by the end of the summer vacation, and as aresult, online teaching continued in the fall semester although on-campus teaching partiallyresumed depending on the university. The current study was conducted in four English
communication courses at two universities in Japan in the fall semester of AY2020. These
courses had been scheduled to be held on campus, and the activities and tasks including thevideo producing task for this study had been planned accordingly. However, the courses had tobe moved online instead, and as such, modifications and adjustments were necessary in orderto make the materials more suitable to an online format.
The syllabi and lesson plans of the English communication courses had been developed basedon the following three approaches to English language teaching: communicative language
teaching (CLT) (e.g., Richards & Rodgers, 2001; Savignon, 2005; Spada, 2007), task-based
language teaching (TBLT) (e.g., Ellis, 2003; Long, 2014; Nunan, 2006), and content andlanguage integrated learning (CLIL) (e.g., Ball, Kelly, & Clegg, 2015; Coyle, 1999; Coyle,
Holmes, King, 2009; Mehisto, Marsh, Frigols; 2008). As Savignon (2005) observed, the corefeature of CLT is to have students engage in communication in order to have them “develop
their communicative competence” (p. 635). It has also been an approach encouraged andemphasized in English classes in Japan including junior high schools and senior high schools(Abe, 2013, p. 46). Therefore, CLT was an underlying principle in planning the English
communication courses. Tasks were important components of the courses as well. Tasks,
according to Nunan (2006), “involve communicative language use in which the user’s attention
is focused on meaning rather than grammatical form” (p. 17). Accordingly, TBLT was anotherapproach taken into consideration in developing the lesson plans.
However, the structure and the content of the English communication courses were mostinfluenced by the CLIL approach. Mehisto et al. (2008) defined CLIL as “a dual-focused
educational approach in which an additional language is used for the learning and teaching ofboth content and language” (p. 9). One of the main objectives of the courses was to havestudents learn about the topics of the contemporary society by using English, and as such, thecourses were compatible with the CLIL approach. More specifically, the approach adopted in

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the courses was soft CLIL, which had been defined by Ikeda (2013) as the type of CLIL “taught
by trained CLIL language teachers to help learners develop their target language competency
as a primary aim and their subject/theme/topic knowledge as a secondary aim” (p. 32). It was
this language-led CLIL which was behind the video-producing task of the current study as well.
Video-producing tasks have been integrated into English language classrooms (e.g., Aksel &Gürman-Kahraman, 2014; Gromik, 2006; Miller, 2007; Nikitina, 2010; Shrosbree, 2008).
Hamilton (2010), for instance, investigated the effects of an instructional video producing taskby having Japanese university students produce structured instructional videos in groups after
watching similar videos online. He observed that the task proved to be “effective in terms of
motivation, and both productive and receptive use of English” (p. 29). Similarly, H. C. Huang(2015) implemented a video producing project in an English course in Taiwan with 43 students.
The study investigated its effects on language learning and learning motivation through preand post-tests, questionnaires, reflection sheets, peer evaluation, and interviews. The students
chose their own topic and had opportunities to read and watch relevant materials online andproduce voice blogs before engaging in the video producing task. The study showed that the
project enabled students to learn and use English in an authentic context and helped to improvetheir learning motivation as well as English language skills.
Yeh, Heng, and Tseng (2020) analyzed whether multimodal video producing tasks helped to
improve English writing skills of English learners. They had 57 university students in Taiwan
develop videos about Taiwan in groups based on the information and resources collected online.
The comparison of pre- and post- writing test results indicated that the students’ writing skills
improved significantly, especially in “word usage, text structure, and content” (p. 8). The
learning gain of the project was also expressed in the reflective essays written by the students.
H. W. Huang (2021) was another recent study on video producing tasks, aiming to investigate
their effects on students’ speaking skills in English. Based on the topics in the textbook, 65
university students from China produced vlogs (video blogs) collaboratively with theirclassmates in groups by using their smartphones, incorporating their experience in daily life.
By analyzing the effects of the tasks through speaking tests, questionnaires, reflection papers,
and interviews, her study revealed that collaborative video development tasks had positiveeffects on the improvement of speaking proficiency, digital skills, and communication skills
because the students had actively engaged in the tasks with their peers.
These studies have overall illustrated a positive impact of video producing tasks on thedevelopment of students’ English language skills and on the enhancement of their learning
motivation. However, most studies have investigated the effects of the tasks through tests,
questionnaires, reflection papers, or interviews and not many studies conducted from theperspective of English education have analyzed the content and language of the produced
videos themselves in detail. The analysis of the videos is likely to be important especially forevaluating the effects of the task in courses with a soft CLIL approach. In addition, the topicsof the videos tended to be limited to academic or cultural topics and the potential of YouTubestyle videos, that is, videos with a wide range of topics and presentation styles, has not been
fully explored. Video producing tasks in the literature were mostly conducted in the classroom
setting. As published studies exploring the possibilities and challenges of English classes
during the pandemic (e.g., Hijazi & AlNatour, 2021; Sepulveda-Escobar & Morrison, 2020)
were still limited, it also remained to be seen whether this type of task was feasible in a fully
online format under the present situation.

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The current study investigates the effectiveness of a YouTube-style video making task in
English communication courses based on a soft CLIL approach. The main purpose of the study
was to explore the effects of a YouTube-style video making task for language learning andcontent learning. The subsidiary purpose was to examine its feasibility in an online format.
Methodology
Participants
Fifty-three students from two universities in Japan (University A and University B) took partin this study. Participants from University A were 23 students from two English communication
courses: 16 first year students (English level: upper intermediate) and seven second year
students (advanced). Participants from University B were 30 students from two English courses
related to speaking and communication: 18 second year students (intermediate and upperintermediate) and 12 third year students (upper intermediate and advanced). All the fourcourses were taught by the researcher herself as the instructor. The medium of instruction was
English. The courses were held entirely online throughout the semester (90 minutes per week,
15 weeks), half synchronously and half asynchronously. In other words, the classes met realtime online on a video conferencing platform and the students worked on the materials
provided by the instructor in an “on-demand” style on the respective university’s learning
management system every other week. This format had been selected based on the preferenceby the students.
Materials
The video making task for the present study was conducted as the final project of the courses.
As pre-tasks, the participants spent at least two weeks on topics on media studies or online
communities partly based on the textbook used in each course which included reading, listening,short writing, and discussion. They also had opportunities to watch YouTube videos of different
genres as materials for listening and discussion and were encouraged to watch YouTube videos
in English outside of the class as well. For the final project, two handouts were prepared: an
instruction sheet and a worksheet. On the instruction sheet, a detailed instruction of the final
project was given along with the grading criteria. The worksheet contained questions which
asked students to reflect on the project. It had the following five questions: What is your video
about? What is special about your video? What did you like about this project? What was themost difficult thing about this project? Any other comments?
Procedure
The details of the final project were announced to the classes on the tenth week of the semester
so that the participants would have approximately one and a half months to work on the project.
The task was announced this early in order to have them start working on it before they became
busy with the final assignments for other courses. They were asked to follow these steps tocomplete the task:
Step 1: Choose your category and topic
Step 2: Plan your video
Step 3: Shoot the video
Step 4: Edit the video
Step 5: Upload the video and the worksheet to OneDrive

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The category and topic of the video could be anything that the participants thought they could
find on YouTube. They could produce the video individually, in pairs, or in groups of threealthough working in pairs or in groups was not encouraged because of the pandemic. The lengthof the video had to be at least three minutes for solo projects, four minutes for pair projects,
and five minutes for group projects. On the final day of the course, the participants viewed thevideos produced by their classmates in their respective classes. They then commented on eachother’s video and voted on the best video at the end. The instructor provided further feedback
after the class on the learning management system. Note that Japan was not under the state of
emergency when this project was conducted. All the participants consented to have their videos
analyzed and reported for academic purposes.
Results and Analysis
In total, 47 videos were produced: 43 solo projects, two pair projects, and two group projects.
The total length of the videos was 178 minutes 32 seconds and the average length was 3 minutes
48 seconds. The worksheet contained comments from the participants based on their reflectionof the project (see above for the questions). As the courses were based on a soft-CLIL approach,the data were analyzed from the two perspectives of content and language.
Content
The content of the videos was analyzed from the following perspectives: genres, frequently
observed features, additional features, and recurring themes in the comments on the worksheet.
Genres and Examples
First of all, the videos were categorized by the researcher based on their content. Categorization
was loosely based on the video categories of YouTube. However, categories such asrecommendations were added to better reflect the content of the videos produced by theparticipants. As summarized in Table 1, the videos could be classified into six main categories:
travel vlogs, lifestyle vlogs, recommendations, education videos, instructional videos, andproduct reviews.
The most popular genre was travel vlogs. There were 14 travel vlogs (29.8%), recording andreporting the footage of the trips to cities across Japan including Kobe, Kyoto, Fukuoka, Naha,and Tokyo. Lifestyle vlogs were the second most popular genre, and this included videos on
the daily routine, hobbies, and daily activities. GRWM (get ready with me) videos, which had
been popular on YouTube, were also classified as lifestyle vlogs. There were 11 lifestyle vlogs(23.4%) in total. The third most popular genre was recommendations, that is, videos describing
and recommending the student’s favorite places, cafés, books, or musicians. There were 10
videos (21.3%) classified under this category. Education videos included topics such as SDGs,
learning strategies, and popular culture. There were 7 education videos (14.9%) in the data.
There were two videos on cooking, one video on special effects make-up, and one video on
drawing (4 in total, 8.5%). These videos were instructional, or how to videos, describing theprocess step by step. There was one product review (2.1%), reviewing a new wireless speaker.

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Figure 1 to Figure 6 are screenshots of the videos produced by the students. Excerpts of thecomments provided by the students who made the videos are also described below. Figure 1
shows screenshots of a travel vlog. The title of the video was “Fukuoka Trip,” and the student
described the highlights of her two-day trip to Fukuoka. She wrote on the worksheet, “I wantto make my own vlog[s] someday […]. I can enjoy shooting and editing. Not only for the class,but also it becomes personal memories.” She also wrote, “The most difficult thing was to add
narration. Pronunciation, timing, grammar, everything was hard for me.”Figure 2 illustrates screenshots of a lifestyle vlog. This video was titled “Christmas: Decorate
with Me” and the student showed how she decorated her house for Christmas with the themeof the movie “Home Alone” released in 1990. She wrote, “I did my best to match music, movie,
and recording,” and that the challenging points were to think about the structure of the video
and to write a script for it. She also wrote, “This assignment was an amazing experience forme!”

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The next figure shows screenshots of a recommendation video titled “My Favorite Rock Band”(Figure 3). In the video, the student introduced his favorite band ONE OK ROCK andrecommended three songs performed by the band. He wrote, “I wasn’t able to say the lines
smoothly, so it [was] difficult to re-record the post recording many times,” but “I’m glad I wasable to create a cohesive video.”

Figure 4 provides screenshots of an education video whose title was “Coffee.” The student
talked about the production of coffee, types of coffee beans, and different ways to drink coffee.
He wrote, “I edited the video with subtitles and video editing music to make the video easier
to watch,” and “I was able to learn things I didn’t even know by making this video.”

The next figure illustrates screenshots of an instructional video (Figure 5). The title of the video
was “How to Make Bûche de Noël,” and the student demonstrated how to make this chocolate
cake for Christmas step by step. She mentioned that she made the sponge three times to “get agood shot” and took the video “from two different perspectives.” She also wrote that she wasable to provide “concise instructions on how to make the product.”

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Finally, Figure 6 shows screenshots of a product review whose title was “New WirelessSpeaker.” The name of the product in Figure 6 is hidden due to copyright reasons. In the video,
the student introduced the wireless speaker he had bought and reviewed it while demonstrating
how it worked. He wrote, “More than I thought, I didn’t have things to talk” but that he enjoyed
the project.

Frequently Observed Features
There were two features that were frequently observed in the videos regardless of the genre.
The first feature was the use of captions (Figure 7) or textual information on the screen (Figure8). Thirty videos (63.8%) had this feature, and 10 of them had word by word captions. YouTube
videos and variety shows on TV often contain on-screen textual information in Japan, and thestudents who incorporated textual information in their videos are likely to have followed thisstyle. Those who added captions were concentrated in one of the classes. This indicated thatthe students were communicating with each other while working on the project even thoughmost of them produced videos individually.

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The second feature was the use of background music. This feature was observed in 33 videos(70.2%), and four of them contained sound effects on top of background music. The students
were able to choose background music suitable for the theme of the video and even changed
the music to match each scene. For example, in a travel vlog to Tokyo Disneyland, the student
talked about what she enjoyed there with her friends and used different background music fordifferent scenes. Similarly, two students who made a joint lifestyle vlog with the theme of“rainbow” changed the background music when they moved from one place to another. The
creative use of background music and sound effects helped to set the tone of the video andmade the viewing experience even more enjoyable for the audience. It should be noted thatneither the textual information nor the background music had been required in the project.
Additional Features
Another noteworthy feature was that the students edited the videos thoroughly by using various
applications. Applications used by the participants included iMovie, Vllo, InShot, Perfect
Video, VivaVideo, CapCut, Filmora, PowerDirector, Zoom, and PowerPoint. Only the names
are listed here because these applications were not directly used in this paper for analysis. Someof the participants used their computer to edit their video, but the majority of them used theirsmartphone instead. The instructor had emphasized that the students were not required to edit
their video substantially because it was for a language class. However, it was obvious from thefinal products that the participants had put a lot of effort in editing as well.
One more notable feature was that more than half of the participants decided against showing
their face in the video although they knew their classmates very well. There were 17 videos inwhich the student(s) showed their face. Eight of them were lifestyle vlogs, four were travel
vlogs, four were recommendations, and one was an instructional video. There were 11 lifestyle
vlogs in total, so this means that those who made a lifestyle vlog tended to show their face in

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the video compared to those who chose other genres. One of the reasons for not showing theirface could be that more than 90% of the videos were solo projects. In fact, the students showed
their face in all the videos produced in a pair or in a group. At the same time, there were four
videos in which the student(s) made an appearance but hid their face with a stamp, indicatingthat some students preferred to stay behind the camera.
Recurring Themes in the Comments
All the participants submitted the worksheet along their video. Their comments werecategorized by the researcher into good points and challenging points about the project, andrecurring themes were identified as follows. As good points, the participants who madeeducation videos mentioned that they gained knowledge about the topic. Those who madetravel vlogs often wrote that they were able to recall the event by making the video. The
students who put together recommendations mentioned that the project became a good
opportunity to share what they liked with their classmates. Overall, the participants agreed thatthey enjoyed the process of making a YouTube-style video.
As challenging points, two recurring themes appeared: editing and language. Regarding editing,some participants wrote that it was difficult to match the timing of the narration and backgroundmusic with their video. Difficult points regarding linguistic aspects included the challenges ofpreparing scripts in English and speaking English fluently and naturally. Their comments
indicated that the participants were able to focus on the content of the video, while also being
aware of how they used English in the video.
Language
The linguistic aspect of the videos was analyzed from the following perspectives: highfrequency words and vocabulary, expressions, sentence types, grammar, pronunciation, andparalinguistic features.
High Frequency Words and VocabularyFirst of all, all the audio data were transcribed by the researcher, and by using AntConc(Anthony, 2020) with Someya Lemma List (no hypens), tokens, types, and word frequency
were calculated. In total, there were 15689 tokens and 2631 types in the data. The videos variedin length from 2 minutes 18 seconds to 9 minutes 2 seconds, but the average number of tokens
per video was 333.8 and the average number of types was 158.4. The average TTR was 0.475(Max: 0.643, min: 0.383). As over 85% of the participants had scripted their narration, the data
can be mostly considered as scripted spoken language.
Table 2 illustrates the high frequency words in the data, color coded by their word class. This
table only shows the 50 most high frequent words for reference, but descriptive adverbs andadjectives did not appear in the list. In addition, words higher in level were not frequently
observed except for technical terminology.

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Looking at the high frequency words and vocabulary by genre, the data showed that theparticipants were able to choose appropriate words for each genre. For example, in case of
travel vlogs, they used various nouns to indicate places (e.g., area, street, garden, shop, café,museum, market), and in case of education videos, they used various verbs to describe their
topic (e.g., evolve, emerge, emit, combine, submerge, increase). However, even when analyzed
by genre, the variety of adjectives and adverbs (e.g., favorite, scary, beautiful, delicious,
various) was still limited.
Expressions and Sentence Types
In terms of expressions, the participants were able to use expressions that described the scene
concisely, properly, and effectively. For example, in instructional videos, they were able todescribe the process clearly step by step (e.g., “Then, continue to fry for one minute.”). In
lifestyle vlogs, the students made use of expressions to describe each scene without relying too
much on visual information (e.g., “My eyebrow pencil is broken. I am shocked.”),The students did not rely overtly on simple sentences and used compound and complex
sentences sufficienty. For example, in a lifestyle vlog, the student said, “It was born from Niji
project, and the group name derives from ‘rainbow’” (compound sentence). In a travel vlog,
the student said, “After we enjoyed eating canelé, we walked along Kamogawa river to go tonext café” (complex sentence).
GrammarAnalyzing the data from the perspective of grammar, a wide range of constructions wereobserved including participles (e.g., “In autumn, leaves of mountains turn red and yellow,
making colorful patterns.”), passive sentences (e.g., “[The] costume and goods used in thedrama were displayed in this house.”), interrogatives (e.g., “When you go to a movie theater,
what do you take?”), past perfect constructions (e.g., “[The] view from the tower was [more]
beautiful than I had expected.”), and second conditionals (e.g., “An enormous rock appears as

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if it blocked Takimichi near the waterfall.”).
Salient mistakes included missing articles (e.g., “I went to fashionable café.”), misuse ofcountable and uncountable nouns (e.g., “Breads are sold here.”), and mistakes in subject-verb
agreement (e.g., “She always help me to […].”). However, there were not many conspicuous
grammatical mistakes regardless of the students’ English levels, and small grammaticalmistakes did not interfere with understanding. The instructor had strongly discouraged the useof translation engines. Based on the performance of the students throughout the course, it wasmost likely that they did write the scripts without the aid of translation engines. As such, thefact that there were not many grammatical mistakes indicated that the students had madethorough preparation before recording the audio.
Pronunciation and Paralinguistic Features
A detailed phonetic analysis was not conducted because it was not the focus of this study.
Instead, the researcher observed to what extent the audience found the speaker’s English
comprehensible based on their comments to each other. There was visual aid, but the audience
were able to provide relevant questions and comments, indicating that they understood the
speakers fairly well. From the perspective of the researcher, the students were able to speak
clearly and intelligibly in a moderately energetic manner. Some features of Japanese English
such as replacing the voiced interdental fricative with the voiced dental stop were heard but did
not affect comprehensibility. There were individual differences, but overall, the participants
successfully spoke English naturally and fluently. Post-recording seems to have been helpfulin achieving this because they could record the audio as many times as necessary until they
were satisfied with the outcome.
As mentioned above, less than half of the participants showed their face in the videos. However,those who decided to make an appearance were able to look at the camera straight and talk to
the audience with confident facial expressions. They also used gestures adequately. It is likelythat those who felt comfortable enough to appear in the video knew or were willing to practice
how to present themselves to the audience effectively.
Discussion
This study has shown that the YouTube-style video making task can first promote content
learning. In this task, combined with the pre-tasks, the participants gained knowledge about the
topics not only from their own videos but also from viewing and commenting on the videos
produced by their classmates. Second, the task can promote autonomous learning. The students
had to choose their own topic, and partly because of the online format, they had to prepare thevideos mostly by themselves. Third, this task can promote language learning. The students
were required to “speak as much as possible” during the video, and they had to plan what they
were going to say thoroughly especially in case of post-recording. By watching their own video
repeatedly, they were able to become aware of their language use.
Fourth, students can gain editing skills through the task. The students voluntarily added music,
sound effects, and captions, and by doing so, they were able to learn skills which are necessary
in this digital age. Fifth, they can learn to become more aware of the audience. In the task, theparticipants had to think about the audience when they made the video because they had been
informed that they would view the videos together in the class. Finally, they can become awareof their general skills of producing videos in English. Overall, it is a motivational task that can

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cover the 4Cs of CLIL: content, communication, cognition, and community (Mehisto et al.,2008) or culture (Coyle, 2009).
On the other hand, there are areas of improvement. Although there were not many grammaticalmistakes, it may be necessary to provide more language instruction, especially regarding the
integration of “difficult” words as well as descriptive adjective and adverbs. Due to thepandemic, pair and group projects were not encouraged; however, the task is likely to become
more effective if students can cooperate with each other more. There are also potential demerits.
For example, the task can be time-consuming, and it can be difficult for students with low
motivation. The environment of the class also has to be taken into consideration.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this study reported and analyzed a YouTube-style video making task. The study
has shown that it is an enjoyable, motivational, and meaningful task for English communication
courses with a soft CLIL approach. The task proved to be feasible in an online format,
especially in case of classes with students with high motivation.
There are several limitations of this study. First, it was not possible to assess the improvementof English skills quantitatively. There were not enough data on the preparation process, and it
was also difficult to compare the learning gain of making videos of different genres. In the near
future, a similar study should be conducted in a face-to-face format as pair or group projects
with additional language instruction.

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Richards, J., & Rodgers, T. (2001). Communicative language teaching. In J. Richards & T.
Rodgers (Eds.), Approaches and methods in language teaching (2nd ed., pp. 153177). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667305.018
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London: Routledge.
Sepulveda-Escobar, P., & Morrison, A. (2020). Online teaching placement during the
COVID-19 pandemic in Chile: challenges and opportunities. European Journal of
Teacher Education, 43(4), 587-607. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2020.1820981
Shrosbree, M. (2008). Digital video in the language classroom. The JALT Call Journal, 4(1),75-84. https://doi.org/10.29140/jaltcall.v4n1.56
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Statista. (2021b, November 16). Most popular social networks worldwide as of October 2021,
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Contact email: mariko.takahashi@ilc.setsunan.ac.jp

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The Prevalence and Impact of the Maltreatment of Child Laborers in Developing
Countries: A Scoping Review Protocol
Md Abdul Ahad, Flinders University, Australia
Yvonne Parry, Flinders University, Australia
Eileen Willis, Flinders University, Australia
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Abstract
Background: Children working in the rural agricultural and domestic occupations are more
prone to maltreatment than children in other settings. However, very little is known about themaltreatment of child laborers. Objectives: This protocol outlines the key components of a
scoping review that explores the nature and consequences of maltreatment of child laborers indomestic and agricultural work in the South Asian rural context. Inclusion criteria: Studies thatreport on the prevalence, risk factors, or impact of maltreatment of child laborers aged 5 to 17
years engaged in the agricultural or domestic work, their employers or the parents of childlaborers. Studies will be limited to India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal and include both
qualitative and quantitate studies. Grey literature will also be included. Methods: This review
will seek pertinent studies from databases such as Scopus, PubMed, Medline, PsycINFO and
ProQuest. The search strategy will include appropriate terms (and synonyms). A two-partselection process e.g., the titles and abstracts and full texts will be used for the assessment of
retrieved records based on the inclusion criteria. Data from the retrieved records will be
extracted using the standardised data extraction tool. The outcomes from the extraction process
will be pooled in a narrative or statistical analysis depending on the quality of articles retrieved.
Conclusion: The findings of this review will guide researchers on policy measures to address
the issue of maltreatment of child laborers in the four countries identified.
Keywords: Child Laborer, Maltreatment, Agriculture, Domestic, South Asia and Scoping
Reviewiafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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1.

Introduction

1.1

Backdrop of the Study

Official Conference ProceedingsChild maltreatment is a global social and public health concern. The World HealthOrganization’s (WHO) definition of child maltreatment includes all forms of ‘physical or
psychological harm, sexual abuse, neglect or other types of exploitation that results in potential
harm to children’s health, their survival or dignity in the context of a relationship of
responsibility, trust or power’ (WHO, 2006, p. 7). A WHO report confirms that nearly one inevery four adults have experienced physical maltreatment as a child, while 5% to 10% of men
and 20% of women report being sexually abused as a child (WHO, 2014). The experience ofbeing maltreated affects children’s physical, psychological, social, educational, andinterpersonal functioning (Daigneault, Hebert, & McDuff, 2009; MacMillan, Fleming,
Streiner, Lin, & Boyle, 2001; Al Odhayani, Watson, & Watson, 2013; WHO, 2006; Norman
et al., 2012; Koizumi & Takagishi, 2014).
The WHO (2014) report states that child maltreatment can occur in any social settings either
in a child’s home, school or community, or in their workplace. The United Nations study on
violence against children noted that ‘of all the settings where children are exposed to violence,
the workplace is the most challenging and difficult to address’ (UNICEF, 2014, p. 13). These
children are more vulnerable to maltreatment than other workers, because they are easy tomanipulate, intimidate or exploit due in part to their physical immaturity and inexperience.
Child labor is hard to define, however, The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) statedthat a child laborer is a person who is aged between 5 to11 years and works at least 1 hour in
any occupation or 28 hours in domestic work per week, or aged between 12 to14 years, whoworks at least 14 hours in any occupation or 28 hours in domestic work per week or aged
between 15 to 17 years and works at least 43 hours domestic/other work per week (Gibbons,
Hebert, & McDuff, 2003). Studies report that children engaged in labor are more susceptible
to physical maltreatment (Kandel, Kunwar, & Karki, 2017; Terre des Hommes, 2017) andverbal or sexual abuse either at their home or at the workplace (Terre des Hommes, 2017).
Research in this area has been neglected, although, there are around 152 million child labourers
globally. Of these, around 70.9% of child laborers are engaged in agricultural activities (ILO,
2017). Rural child laborers are mostly forced to work in the agriculture sector or as in domestic
laborers. They are often subject to hazardous conditions and unsafe workplace practices(Siddiqi & Patrinos, 1995; Marlenga, Berg, Linneman, Brinson, & Pickett, 2007). The Asia
Pacific region accounts for a large share of the 77.7 million working children (5-17 years) (ILO,
2013). Of these, 16.7 million are in South Asian countries; India (5.8 million), Bangladesh (5million), Pakistan (3.4 million) and Nepal (2 million) (Khan & Lyon, 2015).
It is assumed that poverty and poor socio-economic conditions expose these children to
maltreatment (Celik & Baybuga, 2009; Hadi, 2000; Basu and Pham, 1998). There is ample
evidence that shows risk of negative consequences of child abuse including psychiatricdisorders, and social disfunction (Currie and Cathy, 2010), but little is known about the longterm consequences of the maltreatment of child laborers. This research field is underdeveloped,with little integrated, or organized or systematized knowledge that can guide development
programs and policies regarding this field (National Research Council, 1993; Institute ofMedicine, 2014; Jud, Fegert, & Finkelhor, 2016). The key benchmarks for measuring themaltreatment of child laborers are still unclear because of the complexity of the subject.

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1.2

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Why Scoping Review

This scoping review uses the standard approaches to map the underpinning issues ofmaltreatment of child laborers. Triccco et al. (2016) stated that a scoping review is helpful forinvestigate emerging evidence in topics that are still unclear. They also suggest that a scoping
review provides the foundation for future systematic reviews. A priori protocol must be
developed before undertaking a systematic review (Aromataris and Riitano, 2014). The
development of a protocol for a scoping review is important in order to increase transparency,
validity or reliability of the research. An initial search of PROSPERO, MEDLINE, theCochrane Database of Systematic Reviews and the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI) Database of
Systematic Reviews and Implementation Reports was conducted and no scoping or systematic
reviews were currently underway on the subject matter were identified. Therefore, we aimed
to conduct this review of literature to determine the extent and nature of existing literature, tosummarize the available evidence and to identify any gaps concerning the presentcharacteristics of maltreatment against child labourers engaged in rural agriculture anddomestic domain.
2.

Methods

The proposed scoping review will be conducted in accordance with the Joanna Briggs Institutemethodology for scoping reviews for effective evidence. The review will follow the Arkseyand O’Malley (2005) suggested methodological framework that has been further refined by the
JBI. The methodological framework has five sequential steps: 1) Identifying the review
question, 2) Searching for relevant studies, 3) Selecting pertinent literature, 4) Extracting or
charting the data, and 5) Collating, summarizing and reporting results.
Step1: Identifying Review Questions
The overall question of this review is: To what extent and why do agricultural and domestic
child laborers working in rural areas experience maltreatment resulting in adverse healthimpacts?
To map the evidence, the following sub-questions will be explored:
1.
What does the existing evidence tell us about the nature and prevalence of maltreatmentof agricultural and domestic child laborers in the four countries identified?
2.
What are the crucial indicators responsible for the maltreatment of child laborers thathave been evaluated across agriculture and domestic settings?
3.
What are the documented adverse health and social outcomes that occur as aconsequence of the maltreatment of child laborers?
Step2: Searching For Relevant Studies
Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria
The 'inclusion criteria' are eligibility indicators that guide the reviewer. Based on thesestandards the pertinent sources or evidence will be selected for this scoping review. The present
study’s inclusion criteria incorporate the PCC (P: Population, C: Concept and C: Context)
structure, which is recommended by the JBI for scoping reviews [Joanna Briggs Institute,2019].

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Population
The review will consider studies that include children aged 5 to 17 years, parents or employers
who are involved in agricultural, or domestic labor during the reference period, the years 1992
to 2020. These dates have been selected because, the International Program on the Eliminationof Child Labour (IPEC) began its operation in 1992 with a mandate to end child labor. This
program resulted in an increase in in-depth statistical and qualitative research (IPEC, 2010).
The agriculture sector will comprise crop production, livestock farming, fish harvesting andprocessing and forestry-related occupations. The domestic labor sector will involve householdchores. The review will exclude papers that include child laborers aged below 5 years andabove 17 years.
Concept
This review will consider studies that include any form of maltreatment of child laborers either
at the workplace or at home that may impact on their physical or psycho-social health. The
perpetrators would be their employers, co-workers or family members.
Context
This review will consider studies that are conducted in the context of four South-East Asian
countries (Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Nepal). These nations have similar profiles(medium human development) on the human development indexes (United Nations
Development Programme, 2019).
Type of OutcomesThis review will seek the following outcomes:•
Prevalence outcomes of child labor’ maltreatment such as types, frequency distributionof these categories, and association between various forms of maltreatment.
•
Cause-oriented outcomes, which may include both pull and push factors ofmaltreatment of child laborers (e.g., poverty, school dropout, cultural acceptance etc).
•
Effect-oriented adverse outcomes of maltreatment of child laborers, for instance; burn,bruises or fracture related physical injuries, psychological or trauma related disorders,mortality, social isolation, suicide.
•
Correlational outcomes including inter-cause association, cause-effect relationships.
Type of Studies
This scoping review will consider both experimental and quasi-experimental research designs
including randomized controlled trials, non-randomized controlled trials, before and afterstudies and interrupted time-series studies. Analytical observational studies including
prospective and retrospective cohort studies, case-control studies and analytical cross-sectional
studies will be considered for inclusion. This review will also consider descriptive
observational study designs such as case series, individual case reports and descriptive crosssectional studies. The systematic reviews which meet eligibility criteria, will also be consideredin this scoping review.
Qualitative data will also be considered, such as ethnographic, narrative, phenomenology,
grounded theory, case study or action research studies. The review will also consider grey

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literature including conference proceedings, technical reports, government documents,
newsletters, thesis or dissertations, research reports, media articles and working papers.
Search Strategy
The search strategy will aim to locate both published and unpublished studies. An initial limited
search of PubMed and PsycINFO was undertaken to identify articles on the topic. The text
words contained in the titles and abstracts of relevant articles, and the index terms used todescribe the articles will be used to develop a full search strategy for reporting the name of therelevant database (see Appendix 1). The search strategy, including all identified keywords andindex terms, will be adapted for each included information source. The reference list of allstudies selected for critical appraisal will be screened for additional studies.
Information Sources
List of sources for all published peer-reviewed articles, books, dissertations and theses:
Scopus, PubMed, Medline (via Ovid), PsycINFO (via Ovid), and ProQuest.
Sources of unpublished studies and grey literature will be the Web of science, CochraneLibrary, Google Scholar, Websites of International Labor Organization (www.ilo.org),
UNICEF (www.unicef.org), World Bank (www.worldbank.org), World Vision(www.worldvision.org), Save the Children (https://www.savethechildren.org.au/), Bachpan
Bachao Andolan (https://www.bba.org.in/), Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum(www.bsafchild.net), Ain o Salish Kendra (www.askbd.org), and Bangladesh Bureau of
Statistics (www.bbs.gov.bd). Additionally, the research team will search websites of childwelfare related organizations in India, Pakistan and Nepal. An advanced hand search on Google
will also be performed to reach newspaper websites. The Google search will be limited to thefirst five screen shots or pages.
Step3: Selecting Pertinent Literature
Following the search, all identified citations will be collated and uploaded into EndNote andduplicates removed. Titles and abstracts will then be screened by two independent reviewers
for assessment of retrieved records against the inclusion criteria for the review. The rationaleof exclusion of titles and abstracts through screening will be recorded in the review.
The full text of selected citations will be assessed in detail against the inclusion criteria by two
independent reviewers. Reasons for exclusion of full text studies that do not meet the inclusion
criteria will be recorded and reported in the scoping review. Any discrepancies that arise
between the reviewers at each stage of the study selection process will be resolved and adecision reached through discussion, or with a third-party reviewer. The results of the search
will be reported in full in the final review and presented in a Preferred Reporting Items for
Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) flow diagram (Aromataris & Riitano,2014).

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Figure 1: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA)
Flow Diagram
Step4: Extracting or Charting the Data
Data will be extracted from studies included in the review by two independent reviewers using
the standardized data extraction tools developed by the research team (reviewers).
The data extracted will include specific details concerning the study type, population, concept,
context, methodology, and outcomes of study pertinent to the review objective. Any
disagreements that arise between the reviewers will be resolved through discussion, or with athird reviewer. Authors of papers will be contacted to request missing or additional data, whererequired. A draft data extraction table with domains is provided (see Appendix II). The
modification or refinement of the draft charting or extraction table will be completed by tworeviewers based on the discussion and feedback for consistently. The refinement or the revision
process of the extraction table will be detailed in the scoping review report.
Step5: Data Collating, Summarizing, and Reporting Results
If extracted data are found in quantitative studies, they will be combined in a meta-analysis
using JBI SUMARI. Effect sizes will be expressed as odds ratios and the 95% confidence
intervals will be calculated for analysis. Heterogeneity will be assessed statistically using thestandard chi squared and I squared tests. Statistical analyses will be performed using multiple

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regression. Where statistical pooling is not possible the findings will be presented in narrative
form including tables and figures to aid in data presentation where appropriate. A funnel plot
will be generated to detect publication bias if there are 10 or more studies included in a metaanalysis. Statistical tests for funnel plot asymmetry (Egger test, Begg test, Harbord test) will
be performed where appropriate. SPSS (version 26) will be used for statistical analysis.
Where extracted data retrieved is qualitative in nature, studies will, where possible be pooled
into a narrative account and advanced qualitative analysis provided. The quality indicators
identified and extracted data will be analysed and synthesized using the reflexive thematic
analysis of child labor maltreatment. The Braun & Clarke, (2006) suggested six thematic steps
will be adopted in synthesising data including familiarization with the data, generating initial
themes, searching for themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming themes and producing
the report. The identified themes or patterns will be presented through a concept map. NVivo(version 12) software will be used to generate quality patterns or themes.
Of note, following the methodological framework of this scoping review protocol, a review
paper has been published recently in the Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect (Ahad, Parry, &Willis, 2021). This paper investigated the prevalence, risk factors and impact of themaltreatment of child laborers. The prevalence measure resulted that psychologicalmaltreatment is highly prevalent followed by sexual abuse, physical maltreatment, and neglect.
The thematic synthesis of the extracted data from these limited retrieved studies further
depicted that social and demographic characteristics, economic challenges, socio-cultural andpower structure, dysfunctional immediate environment are the principal indicators of childlabor maltreatment both at home and workplace environment. This proportional analysis of theDSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) symptoms criteria revealed thatthe maltreated child laborers have been suffering mostly from specific phobias, social phobias,
conduct disorders, and obsessions (Ahad, Parry, & Willis, 2021). It is understood that theidentified gaps suggest further research on the intentional violence of child laborers.
3.

Conclusion

This protocol is a guideline to accomplish a systematic scoping review of literature on themaltreatment of child laborers. The findings of this scoping review will assist in understanding
the problem and identifying the research gaps and guide prospective research in focusing onprospective policies.
Acknowledgements
Md Abdul Ahad (Flinders University), Dr. Yvonne Parry (Flinders University) and Emeritus
Professor Dr. Eileen Willis (Flinders University) prepared and conceived the concept, review
questions and methods and also contributed to the drafting and editing of the manuscript. Thisscoping is part of a larger three-year study that examines the maltreatment of child laborers inagricultural and domestic work in rural Bangladesh. The preparation of this protocol followed
the JBISRIR manuscript style and preparation guidelines.

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Contact email: ahad0005@flinders.edu.au

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Appendices
Appendix I: Search strategy
The combined key words are ((‘child labour’ OR ‘working children’ OR ‘children in hazardousjob’ or ‘agricultural child labourer’ OR ‘domestic child labourer’) AND (‘child’ OR ‘underage’ OR ‘adolescent’) AND (‘work’ OR ‘labour’ OR ‘labor’) AND (‘adverse childhood
experiences’ OR ‘child abuse’ OR ‘physical abuse’ OR ‘psychological abuse’ OR ‘sexual
abuse’ OR ‘workplace violence’) AND (‘abuse’ OR ‘violence’ OR ‘maltreat’ OR ‘ill-treat’ OR‘ill-used’) AND (‘Bangladesh’ OR India OR Pakistan OR Nepal)).
Name of the databases: Scopus, PubMed, Medline, PsycINFO, ProQuest, Web of science,
Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar.
Appendix II: Data extraction instrument
Structure/
Key Extracted information which should be listed in the data
domaincollection sheet
General information•
Author, Title, Year of publication, Journal (if required),Country, Language
Study features•
Aim/purpose•
Theoretical / conceptual framework
Context of research•
Research study area/geographical setting of the data taken•
Subject/discipline-oriented context
Study design•
Randomized Controlled Trials•
Non-randomized controlled trials, cohort, observational,
cross-sectional, longitudinal studies•
Single or multi-centre study•
Qualitative studies•
Grey literature
Setting and Population •Socio-demographic characteristics (sex, age, ethnic
background, occupation etc)•
Sample size in numbers
Qualitativeor •Grounded theory, phenomenology, content analysis,
quantitative analytical thematic analysis
technique•Linear regression model, logistic regression modelType of maltreatment•

Physical, Psychological, Sexual, Neglect or others

Quality appraisal (If oRandomized controlled trial
required)•
Appropriateness of randomization•
Comparability of groups at baseline•
Completeness of the outcome data•
Blinding of the outcome assessors•
Adherence of the participants to the assigned interventionoNon-randomized controlled trials, cohort studies,observational

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Key findings

Remarks

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Representativeness of the participants of the target
population•
Appropriateness of the measurements regarding both theoutcome and intervention (or exposure)•Completeness of the outcome data•
Consideration of the confounders in the design andanalysis•
Administration of the intervention (or exposure occurred)as intended during the study periodoCross-sectional, longitudinal studies•
Relevance of the sampling strategy to address the researchquestion•
Representativeness of the sample of the target population•
Appropriateness of the measurements•
extent of risk of nonresponse biasoQualitative studies•
Qualitative methods used•
Phenomena of interest•
Data analysis technique and procedure•
Key themes•
Type and prevalence of maltreatment-oriented outcomes•
Cause-oriented outcomes•
Effect-oriented adverse outcomes•
Correlation/association-oriented outcomes•
Strength, weakness•
Other information

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Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Taiwan’s Art Education
Yu-Chen Chang, National Taiwan Normal University Program of Art Education, Taiwan
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Abstract
COVID-19 has caused a global pandemic crisis. The pandemic presented society withnumerous changes and issues due to the shift in lifestyles, among which is the greatly
impacted school education. To receive a complete range of educational resources without
contacting other groups in the population, many curriculums were transformed to online
learning using technological applications and incorporation. Given the impact of thepandemic on Taiwan being relatively controlled than other countries, on-campus classes
remain the primary approach in school education. However, an outbreak of cluster infectionin Taiwan this May worsened the epidemic crisis. The Ministry of Education urgently
announced the halt of all on-campus classes, therefore forcefully changed Taiwan’s model of
education. With students’ practice with actual materials being emphasized in teaching art
curriculum and the provision of software and hardware being relied upon, art curriculums
face greater challenges to adopting distance learning. Other than considering ways to use
online learning resources to reach integrity in educational content, teachers also need toenhance abilities in applying technologies and designing curriculums, when different
approaches and concepts are required to make adjustments and trials, especially regardingclass and curriculum management. This qualitative research was used to study a interview
with public junior high school and high school art teachers in Taiwan. Intends to grasp a
picture of the forms and model of art curriculum in Taiwan at secondary education levels
during this pandemic to explore and reflect the possibilities for art education in the
post-pandemic era.
Keywords: Post-pandemic era, Art Education, Taiwan

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Introduction
1-1 Research Background
Covid-19 broke out at the end of 2019. Many countries have begun to order the closure ofcities to avoid crowd contact with large numbers of people. These policies have not only
caused changes in society, families, and lifestyles, but also school education: students cannot
go to school for physical teaching.
Distance teaching became the main teaching strategy in the epidemic, and it has also
prompted the education community to pay more attention to the importance of distanceteaching, which became one of the most important issues in today's educational thoughts.
Since the epidemic has spread, Taiwan was originally affected by the epidemic less thanother countries. Schools could still maintain physical classes. Until May 2021, serious cluster
infections occurred in Taiwan, causing the number of confirmed cases gradually expand.
To prevent campuses from becoming a place for the spread of the epidemic, the Ministry of
Education urgently announced that students at all levels would stop attending schools. As aresult, Taiwan's education pattern is also facing a mandatory change. In this regard: schools,
teachers, students, and parents all needed to adjust and adapt to the measures of distanceteaching in a short time, and move towards a digital learning path of "Learning Never Stops"
together.
Although distance teaching solved the limitations of time and space, it has also encounteredmany difficulties. For example: first, some students are easy to lose their learning direction.
Second, the construction of the knowledge structure is incomplete. Third, the interaction
between students and peers and teachers is limited, and they need to explore how to the use oftechnological tools, etc. (Lin, 2005)
With students’ practice with actual materials being emphasized in teaching art class and theprovision of software and hardware being relied upon, art curriculums face greater challenges
to adopting distance learning.
1-2 Research Motives
Under the influence of the epidemic, Taiwan urgently announced the suspension of classes,
causing many teachers to change to the remote teaching mode at such short notice. The Art
classes always relied on physical teaching, also face many challenges. Researchers observed
the strategies and methods of an art teacher facing online teaching, as well as the mentality offacing difficulties, which helped art teacher in Taiwan to apply distance teaching.
1-3 Research Objectives
This research uses interviews with two art teachers as individual cases to understand how
they faced the transformation of online teaching methods and situations during the epidemic.
The research objectives of this study are divided into the following:
1. Understand Taiwan’s policy on distance education
2. How art teachers arrange and implement distance teaching
3. Implementation status and advantages and disadvantages of distance courses

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Evaluation method and implementation effectiveness1-4 Scope and limitations
1.

The case study cannot represent the teaching situation of all schools in Taiwan

It’s for reference only.
2. The situation of the epidemic has changed greatly during this research period, and thepolicies and content mentioned in this research may not be fully applicable to future
curriculum development.
Literature Review
2-1 Characteristics of Distance Education
Distance Education refers to a model that is different from the general traditional physicalteaching, breaking through the limitations of time and space, allowing learning to exist atdifferent times and places, and is divided into two types: synchronous and asynchronous.
According to Tang (2011), the definition of integrated distance teaching is a teaching processthat uses media to deliver systematic teaching materials to learners. Teachers, teachingmaterials and students, can communicate and interact to achieve the expected educational
goals. And remote teaching is divided into one-to-one teaching, one-to-many teaching, andclassroom-to-classroom teaching.
Keegan (1990) believes that interaction is the main key in distance education, and proposesthat distance education has the following five characteristics:
1. Distance teaching in the learning process, teachers and learners are separated for a longtime, which is different from traditional face-to-face teaching.
2. The design and preparation of learning materials, as well as the two aspects of providing
student services, are different from personal learning and teaching oneself.
3. Use scientific and technological media such as printed textbooks, audio-visual media , orcomputers to transmit teaching content to connect teachers and learners.
4. Provide two-way communication so that students can benefit from it or even drive
dialogue.
5. There is a lack of similar long-term learning groups throughout the learning process, so
learners are often treated as individuals rather than groups.
Based on these five characteristics, in distance teaching courses, the communication andexchange between teachers and students is the key to the important influence. The
characteristics of distance teaching should be considered in the course design, not just thearrangement of traditional courses.
2-2 Taiwan's Education Policy under the Epidemic
In January 2020, the Ministry of Education of Taiwan issued the precautions for the epidemic
to schools at all levels for the first time. At that time, it used the "unknown cause ofpneumonia epidemic" as a reminder, and at the end of the month reminded schools at alllevels to set up an "epidemic prevention team" as soon as possible. Each school is required tosubmit relevant plans to the Ministry of Education. At the beginning of the epidemic in

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Taiwan, due to the rapid establishment of cautious and strict entry restrictions and isolation
policies, most of the confirmed cases were imported from abroad, and Taiwan's international
control of the epidemic was relatively stable.
In August 2020, conditions gradually allowed for foreigners and overseas students to come to
Taiwan. Until the beginning of 2021, schools at all levels in Taiwan have adopted physicalteaching as the main teaching mode, but the Ministry of Education still reminds schools totake protective measures at any time. It also supervised schools to conduct remote teaching
drills for successively drafts and followed the epidemic policies. Adjustments include theformulation of detailed items such as relief projects, student internships, and large-scaleexaminations.
In May 2021, Taiwan suddenly broke out of multiple local cases. The Epidemic CommandCenter announced on May 19 that Taiwan has officially entered the level 3epidemic alert.
The Ministry of Education has explicitly ordered all schools at all levels to change to "homeonline learning", and emphasized that courses can be mixed in a synchronized or
non-synchronized manner. It also authorizes schools to handle courses, teaching, andassessment methods in a flexible and diverse manner. In addition, the Ministry of Education
also provides online learning resources, including films, TV programs, learning platforms,
websites for teaching materials, etc.
The level 3 epidemic alert lasted for two months. Due to the increase in vaccine coverage andthe decline in the number of confirmed cases, it was downgraded to level 2 alert on July 27.
The Ministry of Education announced the physical opening of school in September wasallowed. At present, Some colleges and universities still use online teaching for several
weeks, and then switch to physical teaching gradually.
Results and Discussion
This research uses a middle school art teacher and a high school art teacher as the interview
subjects. The following will be based on the content of the interviews with the two art
teachers to understand the situation of the remote teaching of art classes in their respective
schools.
3-1 Case of Ke: Preparation and Confrontation
Last year, at the onset of the epidemic, schools arranged for teachers to learn how to use
Google Classroom on a regular basis. However, teachers tend to forget how to use it when
they can still conduct in-person teaching. Although these online platforms keep updating andschools still provide regular training, over time, it becomes clear that many teachers rejecttechnology applications, giving special prominence to the learning gap among teachers.
After the switch to distance learning, teachers have more flexibility in conducting distancelearning in response to the government's flexible measures for allowing the use ofnon-simultaneous teaching. Ke said some art teachers would adopt the digital teachingmaterials provided by textbook suppliers to help teachers who are less skilled in the use oftechnology to successfully engage in distance learning.
The classes that Ke teaches fall into two types: art classes and regular classes. The following
is an explanation of how Ke conducts his teaching in these two types of classes.

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3-2 Distance learning in Art Classes
The art class mainly emphasizes the practice of drawing and copying skills. In the absence ofin-person instruction, Ke employed the electric drawing function of the tablet computer andused an electronic brush that can express various textures and color ramps to help students
modify their drawings and demonstrate how to do so during the online class.
Ke said that by using this kind of remote teaching, she solved the problem of one-on-one
instruction in the physical classroom. While she was modifying students' works, otherstudents could also learn and observe what she was doing, which solved the problem ofdifferential teaching for students.
After her students have finished copying the photos provided by her, Ke would ask them togo online to find similar pictures to drill their skills so that they could observe the similarities
and differences in details in the pictures.

Figure1: Example of Ke’s Use of Table Computer to Modify Student’s Sketch Works

Figure 2: Example of Ke’s Use of Table Computer to Modify Student’s Sketch Works
3-3 Distance Learning in General Classes
For the Art Appreciation course, Ke moved the original classroom Q&A to an online course.
Since the classroom sessions emphasize interaction with the students, there is no great
difficulty in using the materials as long as the teacher is familiar with the operation andswitch of the video conferencing software.
It is a big problem to keep track of the students' attendance status in real time. At first, Ke
used the Jam board function in Google Meeting, but due to the limitation of data capacity and

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inconvenience of physical writing, it could only be used in classroom games. Ke thought that
it was not enough, so she used the Google Slides, which can be edited online, and arranged apresentation file according to each student's seat number. In online class, students were asked
to put the information they found or their assignments in the presentation, so that the teacher
could read each student's work right away. For example, in the unit "Forest Magic House",
the main objective is to understand the integration of ecology and public art. Ke would ask
students to discover the public art in their hometown and copy the pictures on thepresentation to be used as the assessment mark for the class activity, so as to enhance
students' concentration in the class.
In the physical creation activities, students were assigned to use materials such as PET bottles,
clay, and pigments to create their work. During the class, students were asked to turn on thecamera for the teacher to monitor their work and to respond to their questions in a timely
manner. "Even if a student fails to provide an immediate image, he or she can catch up withthe progress during the week, so we only need to keep him or her on track," said Ke.

Figure 3: Example of Ke’s Student Use Google Slides to Accordworks.
3-4 Advantages and Challenges of Distance Learning
Ke believes that distance learning offers students and teachers the opportunity to learn to trust
each other, but the trusting relationship still needs to be built through physical classes. "A
compliment from me in an online class may not be as powerful as a pat on the shoulder in aphysical class," she said. Despite the initial difficulties in implementing distance learning, it
has instead helped teachers to develop the ability to adapt and respond at any time. It also
puts teachers' professionalism to the test. Moreover, it enables students to build up the abilityof independent learning, integration of learning files, and resource utilization in the field ofart. It is more important to open students' interest in learning than to provide rich teachingmaterials and content. However, distance learning also has its difficulties. Some students
coming from poor economic conditions and incomplete family functions, the equipment andmaterials required for online teaching may be a burden to them. Ke says schools need toshow more concern and understanding when dealing with such students, and provide support
when feasible. These problems are not only encountered in art classes, but also in othercourses where distance learning is implemented.

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4-1 Case of Gao: Preparation and Confrontation
The following will explain the distance teaching of high school.
At the beginning of the epidemic last year, the school had a fixed arrangement for teachers tolearn how to use google classroom. In response to the government's subsequentannouncement of distance teaching, the school opened google classrooms for various subjects
and hoped that teachers could follow the original schedule. For courses, the school also
provides a live broadcast space, so that teachers have the most direct teaching space to use.
Gao said that before the formal remote teaching, all students were invited to disperse in otherspaces to practice remote teaching. Therefore, they already have a basic understanding of theequipment and displays needed, but they have a basic understanding of the need for remoteteaching. Teaching inevitably feels nervous, and because the change is too immediate, it is
impossible to adjust the original course content in the early stage, but after adapting, it can
gradually teach based on the characteristics of distance teaching.
4-2 Teaching Equipment
Gao has three equipments to prepare for remote teaching, one for monitoring screen, one forplaying slides, and one camera. It may be two computers and one mobile phone, dependingon what equipment was configured at home or school.
In terms of software, the high society uses google jamboard, Mirror, Russian roulette andother functions to help the teaching activities.
4-3 Teaching Situation
Gao said that he divided the remote teaching of art classes into four steps (W-O-R-K), which
are Warm up, Oral Presentation, Reaction, and Keep. Warm-up is the pre-class preparation
stage, which handles roll call and leads activities to improve students' concentration in class.
Development to formally enter the course teaching, as well as question-and-answer activities
and group discussions.
At the end of the course, it enters the stage of creative practice or oral presentation tofacilitate the integration of the course. Gao takes the "Text Artist" in the first year course ofhigh school as an example. The following will explain the details of the course: In the
preparation stage, Gao uses the relevant content of the famous Taiwanese picture book-loveletter as a pre-class guide to understand the visual image and connotation given by the text .
Gao invites students to collect various types of advertising text, discuss them in class, andclassify them together, such as: what type of font is visible, readable, or what situation the
text is suitable for. After the students have a basic understanding of text design, the course
enters the practical stage. The high-level practical photography demonstrates the process offont design. After that, the students start the design exercises. The high-level conference asks
the students to turn on the camera to check the progress, and encourages the students to ask
questions at any time. After students complete their work, they will take photos and store
them in the cloud, and record the time of submission. Gao can directly view the student's
work through the cloud to give a score. Gao said that the most important thing in remoteteaching for art classes is to consider the ease of obtaining media, so all this class needs is

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paper and markers. If more materials are needed, teachers can consider making a package ofmaterials and sending it to students.
In addition, Gao also has a part-time university printmaking course, which requires practice.
Gao will demonstrate with a physical camera, and use online resources and media to discusswith classmates how to create and exhibit. Gao encourages students to break through thethinking of creating prints in the past. If the equipment is insufficient, how to use the uniquecharacteristics of prints to create?
4-4 Advantages and Challenges of Distance Learning
Gao believes that the experience of this distance teaching is good. He believes that this wayof teaching is very convenient. There are more adequate preparations and strategies, or theeffectiveness of the course will not be compromised. The students said that the online art
class is very interesting, because they had enough time for discussion and games, there was
no worry about additional preparation for the actual media. But as we know, students’classroom conditions need to be inspected and tracked more carefully, “This is the mostdifficult thing to master in distance teaching, so a lot of interaction is really important.”
Because distance teaching is really important. Overcoming the limitations of time and space,and reducing the cost of learning, you can invite experts from different time zones andregions to attend classes or seminars, which was difficult to happen in the past. Gao believes
that he has a new way of thinking in teaching materials and curriculum design, and that art
teachers have more room for change in the choice of practical equipment. Classrooms also nolonger rely on traditional narration methods. Because of the change of teaching rhythm,
teachers need to provide students with more space for activities and publications in order tomake online teaching more active. Therefore, students have many opportunities forindependent learning. Such diverse teaching methods can conform to the "literacy-oriented"
education. The cutting and structure of the course period also need to be planned before theclass, so that students know in advance what they should do at what time, it can reduce theextra time that many classes need to adapt and adjust.
Gao also mentioned that "ICT" is gradually being implemented in such distance teaching. In
the past, students were often asked to use sticky notes in the courses discussed, but it wasmore environmentally friendly and efficient after switching to online. Including study sheets
and teaching feedback, all of them can be replaced with online questionnaires. Comparedwith paper, teachers can get information in real time. "Appropriate use of technologicalresources can help teachers maintain interaction with students, and can also transform many
physical teaching strategies." Gao said.
Conclusion and Suggestions
Even if there is no epidemic, the trend of using information in education is inevitable. It may
not be a negative thing to have this opportunity to promote it. The researcher believes thatmost teachers in Taiwan have a very positive attitude toward distance learning and are very
willing to share resources. In the case of Ke and Gao, they are remarkable to point out theadvantages of distance learning to counter the misconception that art teaching may not beeffective in distance learning.
In the art class of distance teaching, teachers need to pay more attention to the convenience ofstudents to obtain materials and the arrangement of learning activities.

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Teachers should also adopt a more flexible and open mind in distance teaching to makestudents more interested in class. In addition to the suggestions and problems put forward by
the researchers above, there are many possibilities and discoveries hidden, which can becompletely overcome through the accumulation of experience in teaching practice.
The researcher organizes several important items in the distance teaching of art class.
1.

Arrangement of Learning Activities

Different from traditional physical teaching, distance teaching breaks the limitations of timeand space, and is more flexible in the number of sessions and teaching methods. In the past
general teaching of interdisciplinary courses, due to the division of subjects and sections,
there are often many limitations in the implementation. Through distance teaching, teachersof different subjects in the school have the opportunity to cooperate with each other, and they
can also be more supportive and assisted in class management and management of distanceteaching, and it is easier to achieve the goal of collaborative teaching. By strengthening
cross-subject links and appropriate activity arrangements, it can also solve the physical andmental burden caused by long-term use of computer screens in distance teaching, andstrengthen students' willingness and motivation to learn.
2.

Course Materials and Resource Utilization

In art courses, a large number of practical activities are usually emphasized. When
implementing distance teaching, making good use of resources is a very important part ofdistance teaching. Regardless of physical textbooks, digital textbooks, web-based textbooks,
etc., students need to consider the conditions of their equipment and resources to avoid
unequal learning opportunities. During the epidemic, many textbook publishers in Taiwan
have opened remote teaching aid websites for teachers, students, and parents to use suchwebsites to obtain learning resources. The content includes textbooks, course videos,animations, quizzes, interactive games, etc. The combination of resources makes the learning
content more perfect. In addition, many art galleries and museums at home and abroad havedeveloped multiple online learning resources. Teachers can use these online resources tofacilitate topic-based discussions. In addition to allowing students to have more specialized
research on art-related issues, they can also help students develop the ability to learn
independently, communicate with peers, and integrate information. For the media creation
part, when resources are limited, students are encouraged to make good use of materials
available in the environment and to strengthen creative concepts and narrative skills throughexamples. For example: use the dinner time at home to practice visual aesthetics, use mobile
phones to practice photography and synthesis, and strengthen the understanding andapplication of conceptual art.
3. Equipment for Teaching
According to the distance teaching curriculum and online teaching guidelines of universities
and colleges (Ministry of Education, 2020). Computer, camera lens, headset, microphone andinternet are the basic software and hardware required for online teaching. In the case of
remote teaching, it is recommended that teachers establish additional connection andcommunication channels to communicate with students, so they can communicate withstudents immediately to avoid unexpected situations that may lead to failure to contact. The
school administration should provide support to teachers and students in remote teaching. It is

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recommended to record and archive with the consent of the participants during thesynchronization course, so that students who cannot participate in the course immediately andhave limited equipment conditions can have other forms of learning. In the teaching of art
courses, in addition to using presentations and picture playback for narration, pre-recording
or using the second camera lens to directly perform equipment operation demonstrations or
physical projections can be used in the practical course demonstration. It is recommended toproceed before the course Provide students with a preview of the operating procedures of the
documents, so that students have to watch the teacher's operation after they have apreparatory concept, and strengthen the practical concept and course focus. At present, mostvideo software that meets the functions required for teaching, most have functions such asgrouping, whiteboard annotation, text recording, screen sharing, and raising hands to speak.
There are also many remote software that add interactive interfaces such as game elements
and social activities. For example, many arts and cultural events are held through Gather
Town during the epidemic. Teachers can use similar websites to allow students to browse, or
encourage students to hold online exhibitions together, understanding that online exhibitions
are not just about putting their works on the Internet. It also requires different thinking andcreativity.
4.

No Longer Based on Skills Training

The demonstration of media training and techniques in the distance teaching of art courses
can be supplemented by pre-recorded teaching videos in addition to online synchronizationteaching, with text explanations to strengthen reminders and precautions. However, thispresentation method is still different from the effectiveness of the physical curriculum. In
addition to the color, angle, and implementation process, the details are not accurately
presented. Students are likely to have difficulty concentrating because they are not in thephysical teaching situation. Teachers may also Due to the inability to provide immediate
guidance, the teaching and learning effectiveness cannot be perfected. Since theimplementation of distance education in Taiwan is a top priority under the epidemic, teachers
may not be able to complete the preparation of teaching software and hardware facilities andcourse materials. A more flexible and open design should be adopted in the main body of thecurriculum, which also allows students to be more engaged in the study of the art field.
5.

The Establishment of a Learning Network

Distance teaching is a new attempt for art teachers in many schools. Many resources areneeded to support the implementation of the course. It is necessary to find professionals in
different fields to build a network together, such as the use of professional software andhardware, distance teaching techniques, and distance teaching. The way of evaluation, thestatus of distance teaching in each school, and the exchange of knowledge, technology, andexperience will help teaching innovation and guidance. In addition, the construction of aninteractive platform with students and parents will also help the curriculum to have a more
complete development. It can also help students to learn in the field of art through distanceteaching .The art courses under the epidemic situation, encourage self-growth, and achieve
the goal of “Learning Never Stop“.

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References
Anonymous. (2020). Ministry of Education Republic of China (Taiwan). Severe Special
Infectious Pneumonia Education Zone. Retrieved fromhttps://cpd.moe.gov.tw/index_new.php?guid=BD28807E-9D44-A1D4-D795-3408DA
587793
Jia-Wan, Lin. (2005).A Study on the Effectiveness of Manufacturing E-Learning System(master’s thesis, National Taiwan Normal University, Taiwan Taipei) Retrieved fromhttps://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/cgi-bin/gs32/gsweb.cgi?o=dnclcdr&s=id=%22094NTNU5037
002%22.&searchmode=basic
Keegan. (1990). The foundations of distance education. Newyork.
Yin-Di, Tang. (2011). Remedial Instruction through Long-distance tutoring in Remot
Areas─the Case Study of Nantou County (master’s thesis, National Chi Nan University,
Taiwan Nantou) Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/11296/6fy8k5
Contact email: 60860005t@gapps.ntnu.edu.tw

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A Tool to Assess the Quality of Self-learning Modules (SLMS) for the ‘New Normal’ in
Education Using the Best-worst Method
Jammel Abraham S. Rico, Mindoro State University, Philippines
Leonel C. Mendoza, Mindoro State University, Philippines
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Abstract
In this paper, a tool to assess the quality of self-learning modules (SLMs) was developed
using the Best Worst Method (BWM) by Rezaei (2015). Four major quality criteria namely
Content (weight = 0.603), Instruction (weight = 160), Technicality (weight = 0.097), andEthical and Cultural Considerations (weight = 0.140) were established through theperspective of expert respondents and suggestions from literatures. Among these, Content is
the most important. Nine sub-criteria for Content, Instruction, Technicality, and three for
Ethical and Cultural Considerations were instituted, all of which were also analyzed for a best
or most important sub-criterion. Complete coverage of the competencies (weight = 0.200) is
the most important for Content; contextualization (weight = 0.258) is the best for Instruction;systematic and logical arrangement (weight = 0.189) is the most vital for Technicality; andindirect introduction of values and etiquette (weight = 0.465) is the most crucial for Ethicaland Cultural Considerations. Real-life application of the tool proved that it can be used incomparing SLM quality. However, if the goal is not to compare, then the identified weightsof each sub-criterion can assist educators in identifying which aspect can change or improve
the quality of SLMs from each major criterion. This being said, results of this paper can beused to improve the over-all quality of SLMs being used in the implementation of themodular or blended learning approach. The assessment tool can also be applied to other
instructional and learning materials such as textbooks, handouts, and presentations, among
others.
Keywords: Assessment Tool, Self-learning Modules (SLM), New Normal, Education, Bestworst Method (BWM)

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Introduction
With the COVID-19 pandemic affecting almost all essential sectors of society, education isdevastated. The health crisis left educational institutions no choice but to close to prevent thefurther spread of the virus. As estimated, more than 1.5 billion students globally wereaffected by the closures of schools and universities (Obana, 2020). Despite this, the teaching
and learning process continued for some, albeit virtually, a move favorable only to nations
with adequate telecommunication infrastructures and easy access to computers and mobile
technology. For nations that cannot support and sustain virtual distance learning, blended
distance learning was implemented, as in the case for Philippine public schools. Thisapproach utilizes available technologies such as mobile phones, computers, radio, television,and self-learning modules (SLMs).
Since Academic Year 2020-2021 opened, the shift to blended distance learning has been ofmuch debate in the country, particularly regarding the quality of learning modules distributed
to the students. Reports have emerged complaining about the numerous errors anddiscrepancies in the contents of SLMs and the educational videos curated by the Departmentof Education (DepEd) and aired through their partner TV network. Most of these errors arefactual and computational or equation-related, as one article (Magsambol, 2020) cited. Other
people had even reached out through social media, stating that classes should be halted. The
system itself is not ready for the ‘new normal’ challenges in the educational landscape. In
response, the Department of Education said that they would issue errata for SLMs, according
to a report (Ronda, 2020).
Developing student learning modules and other instructional and learning materials isdifficult (Campbell, 1999). Their relevance can influence instruction quality (Fuller, 1986),
which directly affects students’ learning and academic performance (Tety, 2016). Moreover,
instructional resources are teachers’ strategic elements in planning and delivering education
because they explain concepts that teachers could not (Oni, 1992). This being said, better
learning materials and services are needed to improve education quality, efficacy, andproductivity (Likoko et al., 2013).
Their quality is challenged even further considering the vitality of instructional and learning
resources like self-learning modules in the teaching-learning process. Education sits on an
unfamiliar landscape due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the blended learning approach
implemented in the Philippines, SLMs are delivered to students, parents, or guardians
personally by the teacher or through the assistance of the Local Government Units (LGUs)(Dangle & Sumaoang, 2020). Unlike in face-to-face classes where resources like textbooks
are just supporting elements in teaching because most of the instruction process lies solely on
the teacher, a large part of education in the COVID-19 era is given to the parents, the students
themselves, and the self-learning modules (SLMs).
This means that independent study dominates today’s educational context since students
should learn on their own because face-to-face classes with a teacher is not possible yet. With
little or no help from others, the learners progress on their own. Disadvantages of SLMs, as
one paper (Dangle & Sumaoang, 2020) cited, is its implication of requiring students to exert
greater self-discipline and motivation, increased preparation time and lack of rewards forteachers, and more significant resources needed for the production and distribution of SLMs.

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Given the considerable importance of SLMs and considering the issues surrounding their
quality during the implementation of the blended distance learning approach in thePhilippines, this paper aims to propose a tool to assess SLM quality by objectively
identifying quality metrics and their relative importance through the Best-Worst Method(BWM). The Best-Worst Method (BWM) is a multi-criteria decision analysis method
developed by Rezaei (2015). The set of criteria that will be identified can be used as astandard model in assessing SLMs and other instructional and learning materials. The resultsof this paper can help educators identify the critical criteria or characteristics needed to
produce a good quality self-learning module. By doing this, effective and productive
instruction can be achieved even in the absence of face-to-face or in-person classes.
Objectives of the Study
This study aimed to develop a tool that can be used in assessing the quality of self-learning
modules (SLMs) being distributed during the implementation of blended distance learning in
the Philippines. Specifically, this paper sought to identify criteria that defines the quality of
SLMs and determine their weights or degree of importance using the Best-Worst Method(BWM). Besides, this study also aimed to apply the tool that will be developed in assessing
SLMs through a pilot assessment to prove that it can be used for the said cause.
Methodology
Research Design
The quality of self-learning modules’ assessment can be framed as multi-criteria decisionmaking (MCDM) problem, which requires a multi-criteria decision analysis method. MCDM
methods allow for criteria to be defined and be given weights. While there are multiple
MCDM methods available, this paper used the Best-Worst Method (BWM) developed by
Rezaei (2015). Compared to other existing methods, the Best-Worst Method requires lesscomparison data because it does not need a full pairwise comparison matrix (Salimi &Rezaei, 2018). Due to its structured pairwise comparison system, it produces more reliable
results than the other methods. The BWM has been successfully used in various studies suchas evaluation of scientific outputs (Salimi, 2017), assessment of risk (Torabi et al., 2016),
measuring the efficiency of Ph.D. papers (Salimi & Rezaei, 2016), and management of water
scarcity (Chitsaz and Azarnivand, 2016), to name a few. Its application in assessing
instructional and learning materials specifically SLMs, on the other hand, is new.
Research Respondents
The first step in the Best-Worst Method (BWM) is determining a set of quality metrics
through collecting perspectives from expert respondents and suggestions from literatures. To
gather professional opinions regarding what criteria or characteristics define the quality of asound self-learning module (SLM), 15 education experts from various institutions in theProvince of Oriental Mindoro were purposively selected and given questionnaires. Similarly,
expert respondents are also needed in conducting the second, third, and fourth steps of BWM.
Given this, another set of 15 education experts were selected and as well given
questionnaires. Details of the steps mentioned are discussed comprehensively in Data
Analysis.

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Data Collection
Two sets of questionnaires needed in BWM were formulated in this study. The first set of
respondents was given the first questionnaire, including a personal data form and a single
question inquiring on their perception of what sub-criteria or characteristics define an
excellent learning module. Following Lemmer et. al. (2008), three significant criteria namely,
content, instruction, and technicality, were pre-determined for the respondents to base theirperceptions on. An ‘others’ category was also included; this is for the respondents to write thesub-criteria they think do not fall under the three pre-determined major criteria. On the other
hand, the second questionnaire was given to the other set of expert respondents mentioned.
Similar to the preceding questionnaire, it also includes a personal data form. However, thisone contains highly-structured questions, which are needed to establish a Best-to-Others andOthers-to-Worst vectors following the steps in BWM. Details on this step are highlighted in
Data Analysis. Both questionnaires were distributed online through Google Forms.
Data Analysis
The steps of BWM are as follows:
Step 1. Determine a set of quality criteria. In this step, m {I1, I2, …, Im} quality metrics ordecision criteria are identified. These can be presented at different levels.
Step 2. Determine the best B (e.g. most important, most desirable) and the worst W (e.g. least
essential, least desirable) quality criteria or sub-criteria based on the opinion of decisionmakers (in this study, the decision-makers are selected education experts) and suggestions
from existing literature.
Step 3. Determine the preference of the best criterion or sub-criterion over all the othercriteria or sub-criteria through a 9-point scale (1: B is equally essential to j; 9: B is extremely
more important than j). This results in a best-to-others vector:
𝐴" = (𝑎"& , 𝑎"( , … , 𝑎"* )where aBj indicates the preference of the criterion/sub-criterion B to over criteria/sub-criteria j
and aBB = 1.
Step 4. Determine the preference of all the criteria/sub-criteria over the worst criterion/subcriterion through a 9-point scale. This results in an others-to-worst vector:
𝐴, = 𝑎&, , 𝑎(, , … , 𝑎-* .
where ajW indicates the preference of criterion/sub-criterion j over the worst criterion/subcriterion W.

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Step 5. Find the optimal weights by minimizing the maximum absolute differences𝑎"1 𝑤1 , 𝑤1 − 𝑎1, 𝑊3 for all j. Following Rezaei (2015), this can be formulated as:
min max 𝑤" − 𝑎"1 𝑤1 , 𝑤1 − 𝑎1, 𝑊3

𝑤" −

j

s.t.
j

wj =1

(1)

𝑤1 ≥ 0, for all j
To solve, it can be transferred to the following linear problem:min ξ Ls.t.

wB − aBj w j ≤ ξ L , for all j(2)

wj − a jW wW ≤ ξ L , for all j1

𝑤1 ≥ 0, for all j

𝑤1 = 1The optimal weights (𝑤&∗ , 𝑤(∗ , … , 𝑤-∗ ) and ξ L can be obtained by solving problem 2. ξ L is theconsistency index; the closer it is to 0, the more reliable the results are. In applying thedeveloped tool to assess the quality of SLMs, an expert respondent rated a set of sample
SLMs using a 9-point scale according to the different criteria and sub-criteria determined.
Each score was normalized by multiplying them to the maximum score value. Results arethen multiplied to the optimal weights obtained. The assessment scores are aggregated foranalysis and interpretation.
Results and Discussion
As mentioned, the first step in BWM is the determination of criteria that would be given
weights. There can be two sources in doing this step: (1) existing literature and (2)perspective of experts. In this study, both sources are used in identifying the set of criteria
and sub-criteria that characterize the quality of self-learning modules. Through a literature
review, the following decision criteria were identified:
References
Lemmer et(2008)

Table 1. Criteria Suggestions from the Literature
Criteria Identified
al. Content•
All learning outcomes are included.
•
Contextualized to the learners’ level.
•
Is rendered scientifically correct.
•
Different themes are presented separately.
•Contents included are relevant.
Instruction•
Considers the background and environment of the learners in
the activities.
•
Includes a variety of activities.
•
Assessment tasks are contextualized to the learners’ level.

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Tasks are accessible.

Technical•
Sufficient sketches are included.
•
Sketches are clear.
Devetak & Vogrinc General(2013).
•The structure is clear and transparent•
Technical guidance is considered.
•The
contentisconsistentwiththelearning
objectives/aims/goals.
•
The content is a learning- goals based.
•
Extents a coherent learning material in the framework of thespecific educational program.
•
The inductive approach is used.
•
The content is correct.
•
The content is didactically adequate.
•
Suggestions for cross-curricular integration.
Textual•Text is linguistically correct and appropriate.
•
Text contains motivational elements.
•
Text encourages active learning.
•
Text contains activities at different cognitive levels.
Pictorial•
Visuals are of high quality.
•
Visuals contain motivational elements.
•
Visuals stimulate recall.
•Integration of visuals and text.
•
Different types of visuals.
•
Multi-presentational aspect of the visual.
•
Visuals in activities.
As reflected from Table 1, both the literature suggested almost the same set of characteristics
defining an ideal instructional material, although both presented a different categorization.
Devetak & Vogrinc (2013) used the term ‘General’ for characteristics comparable to what
Lemmer et al. (2008) gave under the ‘Content’ category. For instance, both works
emphasized the importance of correctness and accuracy of instructional and learningmaterials’ contents. Moreover, both also believed that visuals are an essential characteristic oflearning materials. As observed, Lemmer et al. (2008) underscored that sufficient precise
sketches should be included, while Devetak & Vogrinc (2013) reiterated the integration ofhigh quality visuals and texts.

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Table 2. Profile of Expert Respondents
Questionnaire 1
Questionnaire 2(Defining quality criteria for self-learning (Determining the Best-to-Others andmodules)
Others-to-Worst vectors)
Respondent No.
AcademicRespondent No.
Academic
Rank/Position
Rank/Position
1,3,5,11,12
Instructor I
8,10
Teacher I
4
Master Teacher I
15
Teacher II
2
Education Program 6,8
SST I
Supervisor
9
Assistant Professor I 9
Principal II
10
Assistant Professor 1
Master Teacher I
III
6,13
Assistant Professor 14
Master Teacher II
IV
14
Associate Professor I 4
Education Program
Supervisor
15
Associate Professor 3,5,13
Instructor I
II
7,8
Associate Professor 2
Assistant Professor
III
III
11,12
Associate Professor I
Since the criteria identified through the listed literatures shown in Table 1 are divided into
categories, the same approach was used in gathering the perceptions of the selected expert
respondents. The categories given by Lemmer et al. (2008) were adopted and considered as
the primary criteria in this paper. The expert respondents were asked to suggest sub-criteria
or characteristics of a sound self-learning module based on content, instruction, andtechnicality criteria. Also, they were allowed to suggest other sub-criteria that they think do
not fall under the given main categories. These additional suggestions are then aggregatedinto a new primary criterion as shown in Table 4. The profile of expert respondents is shownin Table 2. The answers of the expert respondents are as follows:
Criteria
Content

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Table 3. Perceptions of Expert Respondents
Sub-criteria•
Comprehensive•
Relevant•
Thorough•
Concise•Compelling•
Accurate•
Well-organized and cohesive•
Appropriate to the needs•
Contents and outcomes are matched•
Aligned with the course description•
Topics and assessment is aligned with the intended learning outcomes•
Adheres to the standards and requirements of thecontent/competencies•
Covers the learning objectives of the course/subject

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Instruction

Technicality

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Clearly defines intended learning outcomes•Contains examples•
Contains applications of theories and principles in real-life setting•
Contains figures or pictures•
Present simplified concepts•
Explanations are brief•
Facilitates self-paced learning•
Discusses basic applications prior to complex situations•
Contextualizes the course content as to the institution, sector, and thelike•Fosters research by providing furthermore readings and references•
Based on facts and credible sources•
Not plagiarized•
Self-paced•
Caters to the demands of diversified learners•
Differentiated and varied according to the level of learners•
Easy to follow•
Includes variety of interactive activities/exercises/hands-on•
Includes relevant tasks•
Includes different activities that will enhance cognitive learning•
Includes activities that are eco-friendly and not costly•
Includes activities and projects that are problem-based•
Applies HOTS in questions•
Integrates activities which encompass all multiple intelligence•
Creative in facilitating the learning process•
Contains clear, attainable, and output-oriented outcomes•Competency-focused•Engaging•
Considers the multiple intelligences of students•
Outcome-based•
Contains helpful references•
Enhances dynamic and systematic learning through exploration andrelated researches•
Incorporates the use of communication and information technologies•
Clear instructions•
Encourages reflective practice and self-evaluation•
Grammatically-correct•
Logically-arranged•
Not plagiarized•
Has good lay-out•
Shall be IPR-passed•
Systematized introduction of topics•
Has uniform formatting•
Has readable font style•
Scholarly-constructed•
Reviewed by IMEC•Free from a number of jargons

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Others

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

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Uses consistent terminologies or concepts
Uses simple sentences
Uses clear pictures
No spelling errors
Cites sources properly
Introduces good values and good etiquette indirectly
Observes cultural and ethical considerations

As presented in Table 3, some responses resonated with the suggestions from the literature.
For example, both agreed that content should be consistent or aligned with the learning
objectives/aims/goals. Also, the expert respondents recognized the importance of having
correct grammar and spelling, an inductive approach to presenting the contents, and theintegration of varied and high-quality visual elements, to name a few. These responses fromexperts were compared and fused with the suggestions from the literature. Some answers
were combined, while others were omitted because they were redundant. Other items werealso transferred to other main criteria. By doing this, the final set of criteria and sub-criteriathat defines the qualities of a sound learning module were able to be identified. These metrics
can now serve as an initial basis for educators in formulating SLMs and other instructional
and learning materials. Another significant criterion, which is the Ethical and Cultural
Considerations, as seen in Table 4, was set. This happens because expert respondents’specific characteristics as not fitted to the other three major criteria (in Others, Table 3) imply
the importance of giving considerations for ethics and cultural diversity. The summarized andfinal set of criteria and sub-criteria are as follows:
Criteria
Content

Instruction

Technicality

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Table 4. Final Set of Criteria and Sub-criteria
Sub-criteria(C1) Learning competencies are covered(C2) Texts and visuals are accurate and error-free(C3) Contents and outcomes are matched(C4) Aligned with the course description(C5) Topics and assessment are aligned with the intended learning outcomes(C6) Covers the learning objective of the course/subject(C7) Defines intended learning outcomes(C8) Contains theories and principles in real life setting(C9) Comprehensive and based on facts and credible sources(I1) Appropriate and contextualized according to the needs (i.e. learning
styles, multiple intelligences, etc.) of the learners/students(I2) Includes variety of relevant and interactive written and performancetasks(I3) Encourages the use of ICT(I4) Provides development of cognitive, affective, and psychomotor
domains of students(I5) Discusses basic applications prior to complex situations(I6) Includes research outputs as supplementary materials in instruction(I7) Uses problem-based activities/projects and frames questions thatencourage higher order thinking skills(I8) Encourages reflective practice and self-evaluation(I9) Self-paced(T1) Has correct grammar and spelling

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Official Conference Proceedings(T2) Logically and systematically-arranged(T3) Not plagiarized and sources are cited properly(T4) Has good lay-out(T5) Has uniform formatting(T6) Has readable font style(T7) Uses clear pictures(T8) Uses simple but scholarly-constructed sentences(T9) Uses consistent terminologies or concepts
Ethicaland (EC1) Introduces good values and good etiquette indirectly
Cultural(EC2) Observes ethical considerations
Considerations (EC3) Observes cultural considerations
Now that the final decision criteria are identified, the optimal weights were able to be solved.
This is done in order to find the relative importance of each criterion so educators can know
which characteristic or area of SLMs they should prioritize and give attention to. However, it
does not imply that the least important one would be neglected and given the least attention;these weights can be a point of comparison for educators in identifying which criteria affectan SLM’s quality the most. In doing this, another 15 selected expert respondents were asked
to choose their preferred best and worst criterion. The profile of these respondents is shownin Table 2. The expert respondents were also instructed to compare their selected best
criterion to the other criteria in a scale of 1 to 9. One signifies that the best criterion is equallycrucial to the other criteria. At the same time, 9 implies that it is extremely more important
than the others. This comparison resulted in a Best-to-Others vector.
Similarly, the other criteria are compared to the selected worst criterion using the same scale,
resulting in an Others-to-Worst vector. The resulting weights are shown below in Table 5.
Note that these weights are the average of all the weights identified from each respondent.

Criteria
Content

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Table 5. Relative Weights of Criteria And Sub-criteria
Local
Criteria Criteria
weights
Sub-criteria
weights rankof subcriteria
0.603
1
(C1)
Learning 0.200
competencies are covered(C2) Texts and visuals are 0.066
accurate and error-free(C3)Contents
and 0.140
outcomes are matched(C4) Aligned with the 0.084
course description(C5)
Topicsand 0.111
assessment are alignedwith the intended learning
outcomes(C6) Covers the learning 0.080
objectiveofthecourse/subject(C7) Defines intended 0.071
learning outcomes246

Globalweightsofsubcriteriaa
0.121
0.040
0.084
0.051
0.067

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Instruction

Technicality

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0.160

0.097

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24(C8) Contains theories
and principles in real life
setting(C9) Comprehensive andbased on facts andcredible sources(I1) Appropriate andcontextualized according
to the needs (i.e. learning
styles,multiple
intelligences, etc.) of thelearners/students(I2) Includes variety of
relevant and interactive
written and performancetasks(I3) Encourages the useof ICT(I4)
Providesdevelopment of cognitive,
affective,andpsychomotor domains ofstudents(I5)
Discusses
basic
applications prior tocomplex situations(I6) Includes research
outputs as supplementarymaterials in instruction(I7) Uses problem-based
activities/projects
andframes questions thatencourage higher order
thinking skills(I8) Encourages reflective
practiceandselfevaluation(I9) Self-paced(T1) Has correct grammar
and spelling(T2)
Logically
andsystematically-arranged(T3) Not plagiarized andsources are cited properly(T4) Has good lay-out(T5)
Has
uniform
formatting(T6) Has readable font
style

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0.155

0.093

0.092

0.055

0.258

0.041

0.084

0.013

0.061

0.010

0.099

0.016

0.089

0.014

0.075

0.012

0.096

0.015

0.125

0.020

0.112
0.171

0.018
0.017

0.189

0.018

0.132

0.013

0.070
0.076

0.007
0.007

0.086

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Official Conference Proceedings(T7) Uses clear pictures
0.083
0.008
(T8) Uses simple but 0.116
0.011
scholarly-constructed
sentences(T9) Uses consistent 0.076
0.007
terminologies or concepts
Ethicaland 0.140
3(EC1) Introduces good 0.465
0.065
Culturalvalues and good etiquetteindirectly
Considerations(EC2) Observes ethical 0.392
0.055
considerations(EC3) Observes cultural 0.143
0.020
considerationsa
The global weights indicated are obtained by multiplying the local weights of the subcriteria to the weights of the main criteria where they belong.
As reflected from Table 5, Column 2, Content (weight = 0.603) is the best or most importantcriterion out of the four major criteria. This is followed by Instruction (weight = 0.160),
Ethical and Cultural Considerations (weight = 0.140), and Technicality (weight = 0.097). The
consistency ratios ( ξ L ) range from 0.153 to 0.279, which implies high reliability ofcomparison among the major criteria. Interestingly, the placement of Content and Instruction
as the first and second most important criteria respectively resonated with proposed
framework in Tarr et al (2006). The said paper posits that content emphasis and instructional
focus should be one of the three important dimensions that should be considered in reviewing
instructional resources.

Figure 1. Relative Weights of the Sub-Criteria of Content
In Content, C1 (weight = 0.121) is selected as the best or most crucial sub-criterion, as shownin Figure 1. This sub-criterion pertains to the coverage of learning competencies. Its
placement as the essential sub-criterion of Content implies that the education expert
respondents perceived that the complete inclusion of learning competencies prescribed in the

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curriculum should always be ensured. Also, C8, which emphasizes the addition to SLMs oftheories and principles in a real-life setting, ranked second. This mirrored the assumption ofseveral papers that an essential aspect of instructional and learning materials is the suitabilityof its contents to be used in everyday applications (Dreckmeyr et al., 1994; Leite, 1999;
Hubisz, 2003).

Figure 2. Relative Weights of the Sub-criteria of Instruction
As mentioned, Instruction (weight = 0.160) is ranked as the second-best major criteria. I1(weight = 0.041), which focuses on the contextualization according to learners’ varied needs
is the most important sub-criterion of Instruction, as reflected from Figure 1. Several papers
have agreed on the vitality of instruction in the production of learning resources, specificallyin contextualizing its contents and instructional strategies to learner’s varied needs.
Contextualization constructs and transforms a more extensive environment for students(Haris & Putri, 2011; Weinberg, Besile, & Albright, 2011). When content and instruction arecontextualized, materials, experiences, and situations that are relevant and meaningful tostudents are considered (Madrazo & Dio, 2020). However, contextualization requires time
given the unavailability of local materials and pedagogical difficulty. Also, the fact that thelearners’ needs are various means that not all topics may be applicable (Madrazo & Dio,2020). These disadvantages, given that BWM showed that it is a crucial sub-criterion, imply
that educators shall give sufficient attention to the contextualization of Content and thestrategies they will incorporate in their SLMs.

Figure 3. Relative Weights of the Sub-criteria of Ethical and Cultural Considerations

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Ethical and Cultural Considerations (weight = 0.140) ranked as the third most importantmajor criteria. EC1 (weight = 0.065), which emphasizes the introduction of good etiquetteand values is the most important sub-criterion of Ethical and Cultural Considerations, as
shown in Figure 3. Education, in general, is the best way to teach people about values (Sari,
2013). A paper (Veugelers & Vedder, 2003) posits on the importance of integrating Ethics inclassrooms, emphasizing that the set of values embedded in the curriculum must be included
in teachers’ pedagogical paractice. As argued by several papers (Goodman et al., 1992;
Edwards et al., 1994), this exercise is a way to prepare students to function in a democraticsociety. To satisfy this sub-criteria, instructional and learning materials, including SLMs,
should be based on living values and grounded on knowing, desiring, loving, and acting thegood (Komalasari & Sapudin, 2017). Moreover, the materials must be contextual, bridging
the values with their real-life application.

Figure 4. Relative Weights of the Sub-criteria of Technicality
Ranked last is Technicality (weight = 0.097). T2 (weight = 0.018), which deals with thelogical and systematic arrangement of contents in SLMs is the most important sub-criterionof Instruction, as reflected in Figure 4. A paper (Dreckmeyr et al., 1994) emphasized thattechnical aspects such as quality of illustration, sketches, and graphs should be considered inlearning materials like textbooks; the same applies for SLMs. Given this, teachers should
ensure that there are no blurry visual elements when they produce SLMs. Defective
illustrations sometimes result from poor photocopying quality; thus, they should be given
attention during production.
Real-life Application
After the quality criteria are identified and given weights, the developed tool can now beapplied to assess student learning modules. In this paper, the first four learning modules inScience given to the Grade 6 students of Mangangan II Elementary School in Mangangan 2,
Baco, Oriental Mindoro were used in the pilot assessment. The resident Master Teacher II of
the said school was the expert respondent asked to rate the SLMs. The SLMs were rated on ascale of 1-9 according to the 30 quality criteria identified. The scores are normalized andfinally multiplied to the respective global weights of each criterion. Results are shown below
in Table 6. The score of the best performing SLMs for every criterion is highlighted.

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Quality
criteria
C1
C2
C3
C4
C5
C6
C7
C8
C9
I1
I2
I3
I4
I5
I6
I7
I8
I9
T1
T2
T3
T4
T5
T6
T7
T8
T9
EC1
EC2
EC3
Aggregated
Score

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Table 6. Comparison of the Quality of SLMs
SLM 1 (Science SLM 2 (Science SLM 3 (Science
6, Week 1 – 6, Week 2 – 6, Week 3 –Quarter 1)
Quarter 1)
Quarter 1)
0.121
0.121
0.121
0.040
0.036
0.036
0.075
0.084
0.075
0.051
0.051
0.040
0.060
0.067
0.052
0.048
0.043
0.052
0.043
0.043
0.038
0.083
0.083
0.072
0.055
0.055
0.049
0.032
0.041
0.041
0.012
0.013
0.012
0.010
0.008
0.008
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.012
0.015
0.013
0.015
0.020
0.018
0.018
0.018
0.018
0.014
0.017
0.017
0.015
0.016
0.016
0.014
0.012
0.013
0.013
0.006
0.007
0.007
0.005
0.005
0.006
0.007
0.007
0.006
0.008
0.007
0.006
0.010
0.010
0.009
0.007
0.005
0.007
0.065
0.058
0.065
0.049
0.055
0.055
0.020
0.018
0.020

SLM 4 (Science
6, Week 4 –Quarter 1)
0.121
0.040
0.065
0.045
0.052
0.067
0.043
0.093
0.055
0.041
0.012
0.010
0.016
0.012
0.012
0.015
0.018
0.018
0.017
0.016
0.012
0.005
0.007
0.007
0.007
0.010
0.006
0.065
0.055
0.018

0.031

0.032

0.032

0.030

As reflected from Table 6, SLMs 2, and 4 both obtained equal aggregated scores of 0.032,
while SLM 1 obtained 0.031. In contrast, SLM 3 obtained 0.030, which is the lowest. These
results imply that there is almost no difference in the quality of all self-learning modules usedin the pilot assessment as perceived by the expert respondent. Since this is the case, thecomparison of individual scores can give perspective on the standing of each SLM usedaccording to every criterion identified. Individual scores can give insights on which quality
criterion an SLM needs improvement when compared to other SLMs.
However, if the objective is not to compare SLMs, knowing each quality criterion’s vitality
can help educators formulate and produce quality and practical self-learning modules basedon their objective. For instance, if teachers want to improve their SLMs in terms of
instruction, they have to focus on contextualizing the Content according to learners’ varied

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needs, since the results in Table 5 showed that the criterion focusing on contextualization(T1) is the most important for instruction. The same applies if educators want to shift thefocus of their objectives during the formulation and production of SLMs. This suggests thatthe weights identified in the earlier part of this paper should be taken into account when
formulating an SLM. Each value would affect the over-all quality; the bigger the weight, thehigher it affects the quality. In general, regardless of knowing the advantage of SLMs to other
SLMs, based on each quality sub-criterion’s weights, teachers can identify which aspect canchange or improve the quality of SLMs from each significant criterion. This being said, theresults of this paper can help improve the over-all quality of self-learning modules.
Conclusion
This paper established a tool to assess self-learning modules’ quality through the Best Worst
Method (BWM). Using expert respondents’ perspectives and the suggestions from existingstudies and literature, four primary quality criteria, namely Content, Instruction, Technicality,
and Ethical and Cultural Considerations were identified and given weights; among these,
Content is the most important. Each primary criterion has its sub-criteria with individual
weights, establishing a total of 30 quality sub-criteria. Application of the tool proved that it
can be used in comparing the quality of SLMs. Moreover, suppose comparison is not theobjective. In that case, each quality metric’s identified weights can be used in recognizing
which aspect can improve the quality of SLMs since the weights signify the degree ofimportance of each metric. This paves the way for the formulation and production ofeffective and productive self-learning modules. The developed framework is also holistic;
thus, it can also be applied to other instructional and learning materials like textbooks.
Recommendations
To increase the reliability ( ξ L ) of the comparison of the criteria (that is, during theestablishment of Best-to-Others and Others-to-Worst vectors) by the expert respondents,
answering the questionnaire should be done in-person to ensure that the objective of themethod and the nature of each quality metric are clearly explained.
Acknowledgements
The author is grateful for the time and effort put in by the Bachelor of Secondary Education(Science) students at Mindoro State University-Calapan City Campus who participated in thisstudy. Sincere gratitude is also extended to Mr. Leonel Mendoza, the University's
Coordinator for Research and Development, for contributing his expertise to the completionof this study. Finally, thanks are extended to the author's family and friends for theirinvaluable support and motivation.

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Contact email: leonelmendoza49@gmail.com
mcc.research02@gmail.com

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Strides in Mathematics and Science: An Introspective Look on the First SHS Graduates’
Perceived Self-efficacy
Ma. Theresa Reyes, Bulacan State University, Philippines
Eleonor Basilio, Bulacan State University, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
The K to 12 Curriculum has changed the landscape of the Philippine Education System.
Several speculations and challenges emerged before and after its initial implementation. This
prompted the interest of the researchers to identify the readiness of the first senior highschool (SHS) graduates of the K to 12 curricula who were then admitted in the different
program offerings of the College of Science of the Bulacan State University. An initialcollection of data was obtained from students of differing senior high school backgrounds.
Results indicated that students have average perceived self-efficacy in mathematics andscience. A second part study was conducted to identify the challenges and difficulties they
have encountered and the adjustments they have made while being in the Program. This was
carried out using a qualitative method of data collection. Thematic analysis revealed thesources of challenges and difficulties and sources of adjustments. Using the same analysis
method, students were asked to describe their perceived self-efficacy before and while
completing their Program. Resulting from this are themes that generally relate to their selfefficacy as (1) Positive description, (2) Negative description, and (3) Neutral description.
Moreover, recommendations from student-respondents regarding the improvement inlearning mathematics and science were taken into consideration, serving as bases for the
proposal and development of a program for mentoring aimed at building capacity andenhancing proficiency among students of the S&M programs for the College of Science.
Keywords: Self-efficacy, STEM, SHS

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
The K to12 curriculum, initiated in 2012 under the administration of the then President
Benigno C. Aquino III, initially received many criticisms and speculations. But along these
are the rationalization for its implementation and allocation of funds to augment theadditional costs of schooling and finance capacity-building for teachers. Since the K to 12
aims to create primary education that will produce citizens equipped with all the needed skills
and competencies, it is expected that with these additional years in basic education, thestudents will be well prepared for higher education (DepEd, 2021) and better equipped withlife skills. Also, since one of the K to 12 Education Program features is the decongestion of
the curriculum by removing repeated competencies, mastery could be developed. It will
ensure continuity in knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes (EFA, 2015).
The implementation of the new curriculum was deemed vital since there is always thedemand for a nation to have its citizens keep up with the local demands and international
standards, for which having high-quality education is an esteemed major key in theirfulfillment. In support of this, former DepEd Secretary Brother Armin A. Luistro, FSC, statedin an interview, “As students go up the ladder, we want them to learn skills that are being
demanded by employers while at the same time giving them the chance to appreciate andenjoy the lessons,” (DepEd, 2012). However, prior and present challenges in learning,particularly science and mathematics, have gained more concern based on the following
reports.
As revealed in the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) reportfor the Filipino students’ performance, there were distressing results of assessments to meetthe international standards, especially in science and mathematics. In the Philippines, PISA
(2018) results revealed that the average performance in the science of 15-year old students islower by about 132 points compared to the average points in OECD countries (357 points for
the Philippines against 489 points average in OECD countries). Meanwhile, for mathematics,
the average performance of 15-year old students is 136 points lower than the average
performance in OECD countries (353 average points for the Philippines compared to 489
average points in OECD countries). These assessment results in science and mathematics are
not novel since, before these results, the Philippines has not been faring well in the TIMSS(Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study). In 2019, the scores of Filipino
students had even leveled down compared to the 2003 results, that is, 297 in math and 249 inscience in 2019 as compared to the results 358 in math and 332 in science in 2003. It was also
cited that for mathematics, only one percent of students have reached a high standard(Bernardo, 2020). The performance of Filipino students in science and mathematics has long
been a concern, especially with the realization of how these two disciplines serve as tools fornation-building and sustainable development.
The K to 12 has caused major transitions and changes in the Philippine system of theeducation landscape. This means that the transition impact is not isolated to the Departmentof Education (DepEd) but also to higher education. The Commission on Higher Education(CHED, 2020) agrees that there was never a doubt on the implementation of K to 12 as basedon historical antecedents in the Philippine system of education. Its adoption is inevitable, andthe only question that remained was when it would be implemented, especially with thevision of empowering students and achieving complete human development more adjusted to
global change. Hence, the commission itself made changes to be aligned with the new
curriculum using the outcomes-based approach. Also, to avoid duplication of science and

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mathematics courses already offered in the STEM track of the senior high school (SHS),
some have either been removed or replaced. Consequently, general courses were trimmed
down to a lesser number of units. However, one that became a foreseeable challenge is thedegree of competency of the STEM track along with the competency of non-STEM SHS K to
12 graduates who decided to embark on taking STEM programs.
It is grounded on these aforementioned that the researchers conducted a study to identify thestudents’ self-knowledge of their capacity to take and finish their chosen Science andMathematics (S&M) program being offered by the College of Science of the Bulacan State
University. This study aims to describe the perceived self-efficacy in mathematics andscience of the first SHS graduates of the K to 12 curriculum before entry and while in theirrespective S&M programs. It is noted that the students’ perceived self-efficacy is based on
how they look at their capabilities. Having a high level of efficacy improves humanachievement and personal well-being differently, while those who doubt their abilities tend to
avoid challenging tasks (Bandura, 1994). Remarkably this has an impact on learning since itis regarded that those who believed themselves as having a high level of efficacy, like inmathematics, have more advantage in solving mathematical problems as compared to those
who have self-doubts and are also regarded as having higher resiliency (Bandura, 1997)
mainly when their abilities to perform well are challenged. Moreover, since self-efficacy isalso associated with positive emotions, it has a beneficial influence on learning, especiallymathematics (Villavicencio & Bernardo, 2015).
This study was expected to achieve an illumination on the perceived self-efficacy of students
before and while completing their program. This also served as a reference line study on theeffectiveness and point for reflection on the K to 12 curriculum and the S&M programs of theCollege of Science of the Bulacan State University.
Generally, this study aimed to describe the perceived mathematics and science self-efficacyof the first batch graduates of the K to 12 curriculum upon entry and while completing their
S&M program in the College of Science.
Specifically, the study sought answers to the following:1.
what is the profile of the first SHS graduates of the Grade K to 12 curriculum enrolled
in the S&M programs of the College of Science;2.
how can the perceived mathematics and science self-efficacy of the first SHS
graduates of the K to 12 curriculums be described;3.
what major difficulties and challenges concerning mathematics and sciencecapabilities have the students encountered in the program they are in, and what significant
adjustments have they made; and4.
how do students described their perceived self-efficacy in mathematics and science
before taking the program they are in up to their present perceived self-efficacy?”
B. Apart from the abovementioned, it was also the aim of this study to come up with aproposal for intervention or program based on recommendations of the student-respondents
to help out the students of the College of Science in keeping up with the demands of the
S&M programs and cope with the challenges in learning mathematics and science courses.

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Methods
This study used the mixed-method research design (Creswell, 2009). Firstly, for thequantitative part, this study employed a survey research method using direct administration as
the mode of data collection (Frankael & Wallen, 2007). Initially, a self-made questionnaire
was subjected for validation and underwent a try-out or pretest. Randomly selected first SHS
graduates of the K to 12 curriculum newly enrolled (School Year: 2018-2019) in different
S&M programs of the College of Science were asked to answer the constructedquestionnaire. This questionnaire consisted of two parts. The first part is related to the profileof the student-respondents and the second part is about their perceived self-efficacy inmathematics and science. Each item in the questionnaire pertained to competency in aparticular specialization subject in S&M. The level of perceived self-efficacy was rated using
a Likert Scale by the student-respondent ranging from “Very Poorly” to “Very Well.” Meanand standard deviation for each item were given verbal description and general interpretation.
Overall, the data gathered and analyzed were presented in tables.
Secondly, for the qualitative part, an open-ended questionnaire was answered via an online
google form. Purposive sampling involving students from the mathematics and science
programs was utilized in this study section. A block section of students from each department
was chosen. One section comprises 40 third-year students of the Bachelor of Science inMathematics with specialization in the Business Applications program. The other section iscomposed of 31 third-year students from the program Bachelor of Science in Environmental
Science. Students from both departments were student-respondents in the first part of thisstudy. Their responses to questions 3 and 4 in this study were thematized, analyzed, andpresented. They were also asked to provide recommendations for improving learning inmathematics/science, which responses were also thematized, analyzed, and presented.
In all of the foregoing, permission from the student-respondents was also secured with thedean of the College of Science. The participants of this study were considered young people(ages 15-24), and possible ethical issues such as harms and benefits, consent, andconfidentiality were given close attention (Truscott et al., 2019).
Results and Discussion
The following presents the profile of the first SHS graduates of the Grade K to 12 curriculum
enrolled in the S&M programs of the College of Science. A total of 280 freshmen students of
the College of Science enrolled during the School Year 2018-2019 responded to the survey
questionnaire. The processed responses revealed the following.

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Academic Track
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, andMathematics
GAS (General Academic Strand)
HumSS (Humanities and Social Science)
ABM (Accountancy and Business
Management)
Tech-Voc (Technical -Vocational)
No Response
Total

No. of Students

%

105

37.50

34
4

12.14
1.43

13

4.64

26
98
280

9.29
35.00
100

Table 1. Distribution of Academic Track
As indicated in Table 1, the highest number of responses is on the academic track of STEM
with 105 responses for about 37.50%. Next is the GAS with 34 responses. The least numberof responses is the HumSS with 4 responses for about 1.43%. There are also 98 missing
responses with 35%,
SchoolNo. of Students
%
104
37.14
Public168
60.00
Private8
2.86
No Response
280
100.00
Total
Table 2. The Type of School Students During SHS
Considering the additional 2 years in basic education with a consequential economic impact
on families, still more students studied in private schools with 168 responses at about 60%
response rate. This could be explained by the financial assistance being provided to Grade 10completers thru the Senior High School Voucher Program (SHS-VP) (DepEd, 2020). On theother hand, 104 students studied in public schools with its response rate of about 37.14%.

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First Choice
No. of Students
BS Math51
BS Civil Engineering
66
BS Architecture
19
BS Computer Engineering
11
BS Mechanical Engineering
15
BS Accountancy
7
BS Electrical Engineering
4
BS Nursing
2
BS Information Technology
1
BS Biology
63
BS Food Science
1
Bachelor of Industrial Technology
7
BS Psychology
1
BS Environmental Science
10
BS Criminology
1
Total
259
Table 3. Distribution of Program for Students’ First Choice
It can be construed in Table 3 that most of the students preferred the BS Civil Engineeringcourse with 66 responses, followed by the BS Biology with 63 responses. The least were the
BS Criminology, BS Psychology, BS Food Science, and BS Information Technology with
only one response. However, for the second choice, it was revealed that the BS Math program
topped the list.
The perceived mathematics and science self-efficacy of the first SHS graduates of the K to 12
curriculum was determined and described using the questionnaire below. A list of 20 skills
statements for mathematics and science efficacy was used in the questionnaire.
Item

Weighted
Mean

VerbalDescription

Standard
Deviation

3.26

Average

2.80

3.19

Average

2.76

3.06

Average

2.62

3.33

Average

2.89

3.20

Average

2.78

3.30

Average

2.87

1. To what extent can you explain the
results of measurements and conversionof units?
2. How well can you choose anappropriate formula in answering achemistry or physics problem?
3. How well can you explainmathematical and conceptual
relationships?
4. To what extent can you interpret
data/computational results presented incharts/graphs?
5. How well can you describe therelationship between biotic and abiotic
factors in the environment?
6. How well can you work withlaboratory equipment/apparatus andchemicals?

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7. How well can you propose solutions toreal-life problems requiring mathematical
3.28
Average
2.83
or science concepts?
8. How well can you write a laboratory
report, with complete data and a
3.12
Average
2.69
summary of findings?
9. How well can you describe heat and3.06
Average
2.64
electricity flow?
10. How well can you handle andinterpret gathered data using a statistical
3.11
Average
2.69
tool?
11. How well can you describe achemical reaction through a chemical
3.08
Average
2.64
equation?
12. Are you capable of handling different
3.20
Average
2.78
live and preserved species/organisms?
13. How well can you read chemical
3.12
Average2.71
symbols and formulas?
14. How well can you analyze a word
3.10
Average
2.67
problem in chemistry and physics?
15. Are you capable of handling different
3.04
Average
2.65
live and preserved species/organisms?
16. Are you capable of utilizing different
3.14
Average
2.72
indigenous materials for a science
project?
17. Can you integrate mathematicalprinciples/theorems in coming up with a
3.11
Average2.68
solution to a science problem?
18. How well can you carry out
experimental procedures with
3.24
Average
2.82
confidence?
19. How well can you use calculators,
3.43
Average
3.03
charts, and tables?
20. How well can you use measuring
3.43
Average
3.00
devices in the laboratory?
Table 4. Description of the Students’ Perceived Mathematics and Science Self-Efficacy
Based on Table 4, students, in general, have identified themselves as having average
perceived mathematics and science self-efficacy. Students have rated themselves numericallyusing the following: (1) Very Poorly, (2) Poorly, (3) Average (4) Well, and (5) Very Well.
The ensuing results of the thematic analysis were obtained as guided by the question: “Whatmajor difficulties and challenges concerning mathematics and science capabilities have you
encountered in the program you are in? What major adjustments have you made?” Upon
analysis, sources of challenges and difficulties were identified. These could originate fromstudents’ classmates or colleagues, the program they are in, the nature ofmathematics/science, and their selves.

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Sources of Challenges
and Difficulties
Colleagues/Classmates

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Frequency

Program

Excerpt Examples

1“The one who gives me major difficulties is mycolleagues.”

3“I thought the program was just about science since it’s
only there where I know a bit, I was surprised that what I
entered is with mostly mathematics.”“The major difficulties and challenges that I encounteredwith math and science are those new topics that wereintroduced to us, and also the expectations of teachers
regarding our capabilities in the given topics”

Nature ofMathematics/Science

8“Both subjects are hard”“I find it difficult to understand the different lessons
especially in mathematics”

Self

21

“ Since I’m not that good in math since high school”“ I think, one of my major difficulties in both science andmathematics is having short-term memory about thecertain topic”“As long as there are computation-related, I am finding it
hard”

Table 5. Summary of Thematic Analysis on the Sources of Challenges and Difficulties ofStudent-Respondents in A Science Program
Sources of
Challenges andDifficulties
ProgramFrequency

Excerpt Examples

12“But when I began college days, it gave me a shock because I
didn't expect it to be that hard”“Since I did not take STEM, it was very difficult for me
because I was not familiar with most of the lessons and topics
in this program”

Nature ofMathematics
Self

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17“In mathematics, I find it difficult to calculate numbers to beconverted into a fraction.”“Math subjects that were much different during high school”“Difficulties… is sometimes I’m not focused on the lesson or
I’m busy on other things. That’s why I didn’t learn.”

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Official Conference Proceedings“There are times when I can't analyze problem sets that aredescribed in so many words”“I am not ready yet, ready in terms of mastering theMathematics specialization”
Table 6. Summary of Thematic Analysis on The Sources of Challenges and Difficulties ofStudent-Respondents from a Mathematics Program
Based on the above results, there was only one response for the challenge with Colleagues/
classmates. The theme Program that stands for all that pertains to expectations, nature, andrequisites of the program, the Nature of mathematics and the Self have varying frequencies.
For the nature of mathematics/science, the students have preconceived ideas how they will
fare in these areas. Their perceived self-efficacy can be associated with how their perceived
performance will be in mathematics/science. Specifically, when it comes to mathematics andscience courses like chemistry and physics, students who have lower perceived self-efficacy
in doing computations will have less perceived performance in these areas. Last among these
themes is the Self. Students who came from different backgrounds (e.g. senior high school
track and school) are understood to have different levels of preparations and expectations
upon entry to their chosen program in the college (Cuy & Salinas, 2019).Though the students
from the STEM track have understood the advantages in taking an S&M program, this turned
out to be not a major hurdle for some students. One respondent from the B.S. Environmental
Science program and was a graduate of the Tech-Voc track stated:“I was into Science since then but there are topics that I don't know much about so I
need to study it harder than other subjects that I have.”
Another non-STEM respondent from the same program stated:“Math is my weakness but I do exert extra efforts so that I can pass the subject.”
However, some are convinced that they will not fare well especially in mathematics asindicated in a statement by one respondent:“I’ve always struggled with math.”
The challenges and difficulties encountered and how the students looked at their selfefficacy, encouraged them to decide and made adjustments for the program they are in. In thesame manner, using thematic analysis, sources for adjustments of the students wereidentified. The ensuing results revealed the sources as the Self, Classmates and otherindividuals, and Learning tools.
Sources of
Adjustments
Self

Frequency

Excerpt Examples

35“But there are topics that I don't know much about so I need to
study it”
“I don't waste time and take the subject seriously.”

Classmates and otherindividuals

14“I also seek help from my other classmates”“Then sometimes I ask some of my classmates or friends to
explain or clarify “

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Learning tools

15

Official Conference Proceedings“To study if cannot understand, I ask for a tutorial from myfriend”“For the adjustment that I have made, first I watch tutorial
computation videos”“I find solutions or examples from social platforms ““Adjusted by reading books and watching tutorial videos
online”“There are also available online resources, there are free video
tutorials”
Table 7. Summary of Thematic Analysis on the Sources of Adjustments of StudentRespondents from the Mathematics and Science Programs
The presented results revealed the adjustments made by students. Frequency revealed that
Self is the major source of adjustment. The Self as a source of adjustment can be described as
making a change in behavior, habits, or mindset to adjust. An example is deciding on
studying harder and putting more effort into learning. As stated by one respondent:“As of now, I have made so much adjustment to learn and to be knowledgeable aboutmath. I am poor in math but I study more and more to be efficient and good in math.”
Another adjustment made by the student-respondents is their tendency to seek out help whenin need. The mastery or learning of a particular lesson like in mathematics can be associatedwith the students’ use of their help-seeking behavior (Federici et al., 2015). An example
where the Classmates and other individuals as a source of adjustment can be gleaned is in thefollowing declarations of two different student-respondents:“I always reach help from my classmates, so that I can control my challenges.”“That is why with the help of my classmates, it is only then that it becomes clear to me
the embarrassing question to my Prof, eh I just forward it to my classmate”
Lastly, for the source of adjustment, the students have resorted to the available means bywhich they could be helped in learning challenging mathematics or science lessons.
Admittedly, the use of online resources has helped them make adjustments. As revealed by
one respondent:“For the adjustment that I have made, first I watch tutorial computation videos”
In another statement:“What I did is that, I tried to find alternative learning materials related to them like
videos on Youtube and examples in Google.”
Also, it was revealed from the responses that among the online resources, commonly thestudent-respondents resort to watching video tutorials having Youtube as the main platform.
For the research question: How would you describe your perceived self-efficacy inmathematics or science before taking the program you are in up to your present perceived
self-efficacy?” combined general answers were presented in Table 8. For both programs in
the College of Science, the results of the thematic analysis were summarized as follows.

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Description
Positive
Description

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Frequency
Excerpt Examples
77“I can do it like if its chemistry I can do it and I canunderstand”“Nowadays I think I put more effort and dedication inunderstanding the lesson and given materials since Scienceand Mathematics subjects get harder along the way”
“Because of many subjects that related to mathematics
subjects I learned many techniques and methods on how I
can solve the problem well”

Negative
Description

NeutralDescription

25

10“A bit poor in math, I even had a grade of 76 (a lower
grade) in pre-calculus”“I know to myself that before I entered the college ofscience under the BS Mathematics program, that I’m notthat good in mathematics”“Just like in the past (perceived self-efficacy)”“I'm in the average level. I can understand some ideas but
there are still some learnings that give me confusion”

Table 8. Summary of Thematic Analysis on the Description of the Perceived Self-Efficacy ofStudent-Respondents Before and While Taking their Mathematics and Science Program
To describe the perceived self-efficacy before and while taking the program the student is in
is to identify if there has been a change in several aspects of his or her learning ofmathematics/science. A positive description is interpreted as having improvements like inperformance, study habits, and or perspectives. A negative description is interpreted by adeclaration of negative feelings and attitudes toward mathematics/science, doubts incapabilities, and acceptance of poor performance. Lastly, the neutral description is interpreted
as being on the average or accepting to be not good or bad in performance and are open for
more things to learn. The students based the measure if they are performing well or fairly inmathematics or science as based on other factors like exam or class participation and notbased on self-perception.
Lastly, the results of the thematic analysis of the responses for the question: “Whatrecommendations can you give to improve the learning of mathematics/ science?” ispresented in Table 9. It was revealed that areas for improvement based on the studentrespondents views and experiences are as follows: Self Adjustment, Pedagogical support andlearning tools, and Program and faculty.

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Areas
for
Improvement
Self-Adjustment

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Frequency
43

Excerpt Examples“Let yourself enjoy while studying the math”” Be determined to do your best to achieve your goal,so at the end, you won't regret”“Make yourself excited about science”“You’ve got to love the process”“Going further into mathematics, it'll start to becomecomplex, but the concepts of the basics are still there.
Memory is good, but improve your analytic thinking
skills more.”

Pedagogical support
and learning tools

24“To have a tutorial class for those students that arehaving difficulties in learning science.”“Group tutorials are really of a big help”“Use the power of the internet. Learn something
through the internet. There is a wide knowledge withregards to math that you can see in the net.”“It helps me a lot. I am one of the Youtube users who
is looking for some explanations to understand ourlesson.”Program and faculty

35“Give more examples”“Explain it broadly and through the easiest way eventhough it is hard for it to process.”“Maybe if the Prof elaborates the topics well and notassumed that we already know those things, I think it
might help those students that are facing difficulties”“Conduct study on techniques students can use toeasily learn math lessons”
Table 9. Recommendations of student-respondents from the Mathematics Department andScience Department for Improvement in the Learning of Mathematics/ Science
The theme Self-adjustment was identified based on the recommendations made by thestudent-respondents relating to how one can make improvements in the learning ofmathematics/science. Self-motivation techniques, the development of positive attitudes, andthe achievement of traits for self-enhancement can be gleaned from the responses. As one
respondent related:“I can also recommend my adjustment to improve my learning for this semester which I
start doing Journaling again wherein for every day I set a task or goals that I need to

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do and at the end, I write what I achieved for the day or if I fulfilled my set goals forthat day and personally, it helped me to boost myself especially in my learning because
I keep on track my learning progress”
For the pedagogical support and learning tools, the student-respondents' recommendations
based on their experiences revealed their behavior of seeking help for tutorial either fromother individuals or by watching videos from the internet. They also cited the importance of
the available resources like books and learning materials that could also be from the internet.
As related by one respondent:“If you don't understand something, you can read trusted sources from the internet”
The last area in the recommendation is the Program and faculty. The student-respondents
identified points for improvement for the program and methods or approach of the program
faculty. One respondent in the science program recommended:“I think more detailed lecture-discussion together also with a more detailed applicationon laboratory.”
As for the faculty, one recommended:“Approachable instructors that are open with their class will always suffice because it
opens an opportunity for us to ask more questions and learn more”
Based on the foregoing, the researchers identified a key area that can be focused on as for theintended intervention program. This program is targeted at building capacity and enhancing
proficiency among students of the S&M programs of the College of Science by setting up an
official tutorial or mentoring activity specific to address difficulties in certain areas ofmathematics and science. Thus, an output for this study is a proposed plan and guidelines forthe implementation of the said program.
Conclusion
Based on the quantitative data gathered, it can be identified that the students who enrolled in
the College of Science S&M programs have varied backgrounds in terms of the track taken insenior high school, the type of school they graduated from, and the program they firstintended to apply and enroll. However, results also show that their perceived self-efficacy inmathematics and science can generally be described as average.
For the qualitative part, the data presented resulted from the thematic analysis of the
responses to an open-ended questionnaire given by selected third-year students frommathematics and science programs of the college who were also part of the pool of
respondents in the first part of this study. Results showed the general increase in the students’
perceived self-efficacy in mathematics/science as revealed by responses themed as Positive
Description. It was also identified their sources of challenges and difficulties as themed as (1)Program, (2) Nature of mathematics/science, and (3) Self. Consequently, students were able
to adjust based on different sources. Sources of adjustments were identified as (1) Selfadjustment, (2) Classmates and other individuals, and (3) Learning tools. Furthermore,
recommendations for improvement in learning mathematics and science from the studentrespondents were thematized and analyzed.
In cognizance of the students’ determination to learn mathematics and science, theresearchers came up with the proposal and development of a mentoring program that will be

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a formal program of the College of Science intended to promote capacity-building andenhancement of proficiency in mathematics and science of students in its different S&M
program offerings.
Also, it is recommended that further study be conducted as a follow-up to determine
perceived self-efficacy of succeeding SHS batches of the K to 12 curriculum. This is toenlighten and make necessary actions by the different stakeholders in improving thecurriculum, especially in mathematics and science.
Acknowledgement
College of Science, Bulacan State University
Research and Innovation Office, Bulacan State University

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References
Bandura, A. (1994). Self-Efficacy. In V. S. Ramachaudran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of Human
Behavior. Academic Press.
https://www.uky.edu/~eushe2/Bandura/Bandura1994EHB.pdf
Bandura, A. (1997). Self -Efficacy : The Exercise of Control. W.H. Freeman and Company.
Bernardo, J. (2020). PH ranks last among 58 countries in Grade 4 math, science study. ABSCBN News. https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/12/09/20/
CHED. (2020). CHED K to 12 Transition Program. https://ched.gov.ph/k-12-projectmanagement-unit/
Cuy, N. A., & Salinas, E. M. (2019). Aspiration and Readiness of Filipino Senior. Open
Journal of Social Sciences, 7, 143–152. http://www.scirp.org/journal/jss
DepEd. (2012). DepEd introduces enjoyable, less burdensome curriculum under K to 12.
Official Gazette. https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph
DepEd. (2020). Official Statement on the Senior High School Voucher Program.
https://www.deped.gov.ph/2020/06/26/official-statement-on-the-senior-high-schoolvoucher-program/
DepEd. (2021). K to 12 Basic Education Curriculum. https://www.deped.gov.ph/k-to12/about/k-to-12-basic-education-curriculum/
EFA. (2015). Education for All National Review Report: Philippines.
http://planipolis.iiep.unesco.org/sites/planipolis/files/ressources/philippines_efa_mda.
pdf
Federici, R. A., Skaalvik, E. M., & Tangen, T. N. (2015). Students’ Perceptions of the Goal
Structure in Mathematics Classrooms: Relations with Goal Orientations, Mathematics
Anxiety, and Help-Seeking Behavior. International Education Studies, 8(3), 146–158.
https://doi.org/http//www.10.5539/ies.v8n3p146
Frankael, J. R., & Wallen, N. E. (2007). How to Design and Evaluate Research in Education,
6th Ed. Mc-Graw Hill.
PISA. (2018). Philippines : Student performance. Organization for Economic Co-Operation
and Development (OECD). https://gpseducation.oecd.org
Truscott, J., Graham, A., & Powell, M. A. (2019). Ethical Considerations in Participatory
Research with Young Children. In Educating the Young Child.
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19365-2_2
Villavicencio, F. T.; Bernardo, A. I. (2015). Beyond Math Anxiety: Positive Emotions
Predict Mathematics Achievement, Self-Regulation, and Self-Efficacy. The AsiaPacific Education Researcher, 25(3), 415–422.
https://doi.org/https://www.10.1007/s40299-015-0251-4

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Contact email: matheresa.reyes@bulsu.edu.ph

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Designing A Multiple Submission Policy Supporting Mastery Learning for a Design
Thinking Class in a Purely Online Learning Environment
Marianne Kayle Amurao, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines
Joseph Benjamin Ilagan, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines
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Abstract
Mastery learning is defined as an approach where students are equipped with complex skills
required in the VUCA world instead of simple skills that only apply to traditional classrooms.
One way to encourage mastery learning in the classroom is through repeated assessments,
specifically formative ones. In this paper, we describe our experience in designing a multiple
submission policy to support mastery learning for a design thinking class taught purely online
amidst lockdowns due to COVID. The transition to online learning and today’s context
presented an opportunity to target mastery learning instead of traditional learning outcomes,
which we achieved in two ways. First, we elevated the assessments’ level on Bloom’s
taxonomy and encouraged iteration by providing feedback to guide metacognition. Second, webuilt creative confidence providing a safety net for graded assessments, which helped address
fears of judgment and lack of control. In the process, we also overcame transactional distanceto help promote self-efficacy, especially those with initially low grades. The policy was
implemented with the aid of technology, which served as the medium for learning and dialogue.
The use of technology in this study allowed for practices that were otherwise not implemented
or even considered in previous trials of the class. The study resulted in positive feedback andimproved quality of submissions from participants.
Keywords: Mastery Learning, Online Learning, COVID-19, Design Thinking, Bloom’s
Taxonomy, Metacognition, Self-Knowledge, Creative Confidence, Transactional Distance,
Multiple Submissions

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Mastery learning is defined as an approach where students are equipped with complex skills
required in the VUCA world instead of simple skills that only apply to traditional classrooms.
The approach is founded on the philosophy that all students can learn well given the appropriate
instructional conditions, which instructors can customize depending on their needs. In this way,
students acquire basic intellectual competencies for learning at any stage in life. To apply the
Learning for Mastery Strategy (LFM), instructors must define, plan, teach, and grade formastery. In this paper, we focus on the planning stage where we developed feedback
procedures alongside formative assessments and alternative instructional materials andprocedures for students whose performance falls below the mastery standard (Block & Burns,
1976).
Mastery learning and design thinking have shared principles that prompted the implementationof the multiple submission policy:
1.
The mindset developed goes beyond the classroom and extends to all aspects of life,
which called for a reevaluation of assessments and policies in the class.
2.
Both give focus to customizing or adjusting based on needs, which is not the norm in
traditional classrooms where typically one size fits all.
3.
Both emphasize the need for feedback and iteration when the desired standard is notmet.
Through the multiple submission policy, which embodies the similarities of mastery learningand design thinking, formative assessments became more aligned with the principles of theclass itself.
This paper describes the researchers’ steps in designing and implementing a multiple
submission policy in an online design thinking class with mastery learning as the primarytheoretical framework to improve the learning of students as measured by their submissions.
The positive outcome is attributed to higher-level thinking and metacognition based on
Bloom’s taxonomy and creative confidence enabled by the perception of having a safety net
for substandard grades. As a by-product of the increased dialogue between instructors andstudents, transactional distance was overcome to also promote positive learning outcomes
especially from students with initially substandard grades.
Methods, Design, and Monitoring of the ClassThis paper focuses on a class titled Creative Thinking and Innovation Management. All
students of the John Gokongwei School of Management of the Ateneo de Manila University
need to take this class in their curriculum regardless of the degree program they are pursuing.
1.

Online Setup

The course was hosted on the university’s online learning management system, Canvas. The
platform served as the main avenue for delivering course content and gathering submissions
from students. Synchronous sessions were conducted on Zoom calls. Apart from Canvas andZoom, other digital tools were used to enhance communication and engagement:●
Students had the option to choose the messaging platform that would be mostconvenient and visible for them. For this class, students chose Facebook Messenger or Discord.

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This is where instructors sent announcements, individually communicated with students, andconducted polls to have a better feel of the class.
●Padlet was used as an alternative to discussion boards at times to change the interface
that the students engaged with. It was used to collect responses to both formal and informal
discussions (e.g. getting to know activities). Padlet retains the commenting and reacting
features of Canvas discussion boards but does not have the Speed Grader feature, where
instructors can enter scores and comments on the students’ assessments.
●
Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) was used to record video feedback.
●PDF annotation tools were used as an alternative to the built-in Speed Grader functionof Canvas.
2.

Challenges of Online Learning

With the onset of the global pandemic, the university transitioned from face-to-face classes toa purely online learning setup. Online, students and instructors alike encountered several
challenges on top of existing ones. Specifically, challenges related to the quality of students’submissions are outlined below:●
Unstable or unreliable internet connection is a potential source of delay for students
going through the course. Cramming module content prior to an assessment provides noguarantee that students will still properly absorb the material.
●
The workload of other courses affects how much time and effort students dedicate tothis course. Students tend to distribute their time and effort to their courses depending on theworkload given by instructors. Therefore, when other courses are more difficult or ask for more
requirements compared to the course in the study, the quality of the students’ learning within
the course is affected.
●
The students’ living arrangements and conditions impact the students’ performance inassessments. For example, a student tasked with responsibilities at home (e.g. ensuring their
younger siblings attend classes or do school work offline, helping the family business) is likely
to have less time to spend on their studies.
●
After taking exams, students tend to question their scores more so compared to what
their mistakes were. There is little motivation for them to correct their understanding of theconcepts applied in the assessment since the focus or coverage of the next exams is not thesame.
●
Despite having several minor assessments (i.e. discussion boards and assignments)
leading up to a major assessment (i.e. course project drafts and exams), there are students who
find it challenging to apply their learnings or think more critically in major assessments.
Typically, major assessments require a higher level of thinking that instructors do not test inminor assessments in the interest of guiding students through the levels of thinking.
●
There are instances where students would parrot concepts from the course rather thanshare their own insights in fear of their insights being incorrect and getting deductions.
3.

Course Design

The transition posed several challenges; however, it also served as an opportunity to reevaluate
the courses being taught and make them even better than they were in the original face-to-facesetting.
The course learning outcomes of the class are as follows:1.
Justify the importance of creativity and innovation with a solid understanding of why
they are necessary to survive in today's highly disruptive environment

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2.
Appropriate the use of creativity and innovation tools, frameworks, models, andprocesses to various contexts including barriers, opportunities, and challenges
3.
Design ethical solutions that address real-world needs by mastering creativity andinnovation principles
4.
Develop viable solutions by integrating creativity and innovation in a holistic way toachieve strategic organizational success or competitive advantage
The competency we aim to develop in the class is to design creative and innovative solutions
and recommend strategies to solve organizational problems.
In the face-to-face learning setup, gauging the students’ learning and providing feedback tothem as often as possible was not emphasized. In a purely online learning set-up, however,more effort was required to interact with students and understand what they needed to mastercourse concepts. Because online learning relies on the students’ self-efficacy more comparedto face-to-face learning, the instructors required more basis for guiding the students throughout
the course. Following this, the instructors shifted to giving more formative assessments leading
up to summative assessments as a feedback mechanism. The assessments of this class include
the following:●
Discussion boards, where students were prompted to deepen their critical thinking andargue based on their learnings from the class. This also served as an avenue for peer learningwhere they were encouraged to build on each other’s outputs. Discussion boards were spreadout across modules and served as quick checkpoints for both students and instructors.
Compared to the other assessments in the class, these took the least effort while still giving
instructors insight into how the students were progressing through the class.
●Course project, where groups of students incubated startup ideas throughout the course.
As their final output or culmination, students were asked to present their target market, problem
statement, prototype, and business model canvas.
●
Progressive course project passes, where the project groups submitted components of
their course project after completing each module. The components required in eachprogressive course project pass focused on the concepts covered in the module most recently
covered by the students. These served as the most immediate avenue for students to create
original output based on their learnings. This also helped instructors correct learning
difficulties prior to the course project submission, which composed a significant percentage of
their grades.
●
Weekly check-ins for the course project, where one week prior to submitting
progressive course project passes, students presented their progress to the instructor andfeedback would be given synchronously or asynchronously. These were conducted to ensure
they were on the right track. They also served as an opportunity for the instructors and students
to interact more and build rapport.
Through this combination of assessments, we aimed to better help students master creative
thinking and innovation principles and understand and apply their learnings to the real-world
setting, which both contribute to developing the competency set for the class. By becoming
design thinking practitioners, the students will be able to successfully tackle challenges
presented by the VUCA world by framing relevant problems, designing creative solutions,
adapting quickly, and learning from the process (Krawchuk, 2019). The mindset developed bydesign thinking is not only applicable to school and career but to life in general as well(Razzouk & Shute, 2012).

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Mastery Learning
According to Bloom, formative assessments are the instructors’ key to reducing variations instudents’ achievements and ensuring they all learn well. Formative assessments give instructors
insight into the students’ learning, which helps them develop action points regarding classhandling and individual student handling. On top of providing formative assessments to theclass, Bloom argues that formative assessments should come hand in hand with feedback andcorrective procedures to encourage mastery learning. In this way, instructors are able todiagnose individual learning difficulties and prescribe correctives when necessary. In a oneon-one setting, typically with tutors, the instructor points out the error in the student’s work
then explains and clarifies the error. In a classroom setting where there are many students
assigned to one instructor, it is increasingly difficult to provide detailed feedback andindividualized correctives per student (e.g. directing them to pages in the module or resourcesthat elaborate on the concept, providing additional exercises). However, it is crucial toindividualize correctives so students will be directed only to the concepts or skills that require
more of their effort to master. Correctives, if timed well, prevent minor learning difficulties
from accumulating and eventually becoming a major learning problem. Once correctives are
given, Bloom recommends that students take a second formative assessment that covers thesame concepts as the first. This allows instructors to (1) verify if the correctives were successful
in helping students overcome their individual learning difficulties, and (2) offer students asecond chance, which empowers them. In the interest of time and workload, students were nolonger provided a second assessment and were instead allowed to redo the first assessment
multiple times in the study. While this strategy focuses on low achievers, it may also be applied
to high achievers. Students who performed well on the first assessment and do not require
correctives may be given special enrichment or extension activities to broaden their learning
experiences. This is self-directed and no longer requires a second formative assessment. This
strategy, as visualized in Figure 1, results in students who are better set up for mastery of thelearning outcomes of the course (Guskey, 2005). In this case, the learning outcomes refer toknowledge, skills, attitudes, and competences that remain relevant in the real world.

Figure 1. The Mastery Learning Instructional Process (Guskey, 2005)
Mastery learning results in two types of outcomes: cognitive and affective. Cognitive outcomes
refer to the students’ performance in the subject, which is typically measured by grades (Bloom& Carroll, 1971). Affective outcomes refer to the students’ self-efficacy and confidence, which
can positively impact the students’ view of themselves and the world. When they believe they
are equipped to cope with difficulties, they become less frustrated and more empowered to
become an expert in the course concepts. This helps students to take on a lifelong learning
mindset (Bloom, 1976).

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Bloom’s Taxonomy
Bloom’s taxonomy proposes a hierarchy for designing learning such that students are guided
towards higher-level thinking. The cumulative hierarchy is arranged from simple to complex
and concrete to abstract, where the simpler categories are prerequisites to mastering the more
complex or higher categories (Krathwohl, 2002). The categories are as follows:
Table 1. Structure of the Cognitive Process Dimension of the Revised Taxonomy(Krathwohl, 2002)
Category
RememberDefinition

Associated Verbs

Retrieving relevant knowledge from long-term
memoryRecognizing, recalling

Understand Determining the meaning of instructional
messages, including oral, written, and graphic
communication

Interpreting,exemplifying,classifying,summarizing, inferring,comparing, explaining

Apply

Carrying out or using a procedure in a given
situation

Executing,
implementing

Analyze

Breaking material down into its constituent partsand detecting how the parts relate to one anotherand to an overall structure or purpose

Differentiating,organizing, attributing

Evaluate

Making judgments based on criteria and standards Checking, critiquing

CreatePutting elements together to form a novel,
coherent whole, or make an original product

Generating, planning,producingIn the revised taxonomy, metacognitive knowledge is put forth as a crucial part of students’learning. Metacognitive knowledge pertains to knowledge of the cognition process and selfawareness of one’s own cognition. This type of knowledge includes:
1.
Strategic knowledge, which refers to the student’s general knowledge of strategies forlearning and thinking
2.
Knowledge about cognitive tasks, which refer to their knowledge of the effectivenessof the strategy and when and why to use them3.
Self-knowledge, which refers to knowledge of the self in relation to their own cognitiveand motivational components of performance
According to Carver (2017), a well-planned formative assessment includes a plan to provide
feedback so that students can understand the demands of the assessment, evaluate their current
performance, and identify action points to bridge the gap. The role of feedback in this policy
involves self-knowledge, which was one of the goals of the multiple submission policy. When
students are not self-aware of what they know and do not know, it is unlikely that they will
exert effort to become more knowledgeable and master the concepts being taught. Therefore,
it is imperative for instructors to help students make accurate assessments of their selfknowledge (Pintrich, 2002). One way of doing so is by providing timely feedback. Explaining

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students’ mistakes helps them construct a new understanding of the concepts based on their
mistakes, guided by the instructors’ explanations (Ahmad, 2020). In the course, most of thelearning outcomes already pertain to the more complex categories of the taxonomy. For
example, in their course project, they are asked to create a business concept that embodies what
they have learned. Though this is already the highest level in the taxonomy, the multiple
submission policy provides the metacognition aspect where students are made aware of theconcepts they have yet to master, which enables them to reassess what they’ve learned andrecreate their submission. This is parallel to the iterative nature of design thinking, where thecorrection of misunderstandings, acquisition of deeper knowledge, and improvement of output
are guiding principles for solving problems.
Creative Confidence
Creative confidence is the ultimate competence developed by design thinking education andpractice (Rauth et al., 2010, as cited by Bornilla & Amurao, 2020). It is defined as the naturalability to come up with new ideas and the course to try them out. This is less prominent in
adults than children because as we grow older, socialize, and undergo formal education, we
become more wary, cautious, and analytical. To reclaim our creative confidence, we mustovercome our fears of the unknown, judgment, first steps, and lack of control. These four fears
hold us back from practicing and strengthening our creative confidence. (Kelley & Kelley,2012). The multiple submission policy specifically helps students overcome the fear of
judgment and lack of control.
Fear of judgment is observed when students censor their own ideas and stick to “safe” ideas
because they do not want to be judged by their peers or instructors (Kelley & Kelley, 2012).
Academically, scores and grades are perceived as a form of judgment especially since it is themetric by which all students are evaluated. When grades are emphasized over feedback andlearning, fear of judgment is exacerbated. Students end up avoiding difficult tasks, expendingtime and effort on getting to the correct answer, and even being scared of asking questions.
When students are unable to overcome difficulties, they may conclude that it is because theylack ability, which they cannot do much about since it is an internal effect. This, in turn,damages their self-esteem. Formative assessments prove useful in addressing this when they
become tools to communicate the mistakes and how to correct them, especially for low
achievers (Black & William, 2010). The multiple submission policy takes advantage ofassessments in the same manner and offers additional benefits:●
Apart from communicating the mistakes to the student, they are allowed anotheropportunity to apply what they’ve learned from those mistakes, which the instructor may
provide further feedback on. This may continue for as long as the student is willing to keep
improving their outputs, which measure their learnings. The multiple submission policy
enables feedback loops between instructor and student instead of one-way feedback provided
by the typical single submission policy.
●
Because students know they can correct their mistakes, they can take more risks whenanswering assessments. This means they do not need to stick to “safe” ideas or censor
themselves anymore.
●
The multiple submission policy helps cultivate a culture of success where students canfeel the belief that they can achieve, whether the belief comes from the instructor or themselves.
Fear of lack of control is observed when students are unable to accept feedback constructively
and let go of the gaps in their current knowledge (Kelley & Kelley, 2012). While students may
not actively be resistant to feedback, more often than not, they do not dwell on the feedback on

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an assessment. The assessments in a course may not always be comprehensive and could evencover mutually exclusive concepts. When the latter is the case, students have no motivation to
pay attention to the feedback and correct their understanding of the concepts. In fact, they could
negotiate for higher scores without doing so, which entails asserting why their submissions arecorrect. With a multiple submission policy in place, the following are made possible:●
Students are incentivized to pay attention to and act on the feedback if they wish to
improve their grades (Caver, 2017). In effect, because they are given a second chance, they are
given full control over their performance in the assessment even after having completed it thefirst time.
●
The policy encourages a culture of feedback and normalizes mistakes. In a study doneby Bohney et. al (2018), feedback was consistently given by peers and instructors throughout
a writing process. This resulted in students writing more fearlessly, making mistakes freely,
and learning from feedback as the mistakes were corrected.
By creating a safety net that helps students overcome their fears of judgment and lack ofcontrol, we bring them closer to developing the competence that design thinking and this course
are meant to impart to the students, which is aligned with the outcomes of mastery learning.
Transactional DistanceTransactional distance (Moore & Kearsley, 2011) refers to physical (especially in distancelearning), pedagogical and psychological gaps, particularly between instructor and student andamong students. The larger the gap, the more negative the impact on learning. Even in face-toface class settings, there are pedagogical and psychological gaps between instructors andstudents, especially when instructors are perceived as disengaged (Clifford, 2018, as cited by
Ilagan, 2020). Transactional distance involves three dimensions: structure, dialogue, andautonomy (Moore & Kearsley, 2011). Structure refers to the course elements such as learning
objectives, content, and assessments. More structure tends to increase transactional distancesince it reduces the amount of flexibility for learners to determine their learning paths. Less
structure, however, does not automatically mean reduced transactional distance. Dialoguerefers to communication between instructors and students and students to students. Moredialogue decreases transactional distance, which is good. Autonomy refers to the students'
ability to do self-management and decide what to learn, how to learn, and how much to learn.
When transactional distance increases, the required level of learner autonomy also increases.
Since not all students will have the same level of capacity for self-management, the overalldesign of the course needs the right amount of structure and dialogue. One other thing to noteis that low structure, low dialogue, and low autonomy lead to an increased transactional
distance.
From the perspective of this paper, allowing multiple submissions and the rich feedback
associated with each submission increases dialogue and therefore decreases transactional
distance. This increases the students’ self-efficacy, which promotes the affective outcomes ofmastery learning
Multiple Submission Policy
For assessment to function formatively, the results have to be used to adjust teaching andlearning; thus a significant aspect of any program will be the ways in which instructors makethese adjustments (Black & William, 2010). Thus, allowing multiple submissions is a way forboth instructors and students to benefit from feedback loops. Allowing multiple submissions

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also enables students to accept and work with feedback that is not clouded by overtones about
ability, competition, and comparison with others (Black & William, 2010). The instructors
made a judgment on the amount of detail needed to nudge the student into resubmitting
improved work.
In the face-to-face set-up, feedback was usually handwritten or typewritten. Students were also
free to set appointments with the instructors to discuss the feedback on their outputs, but thiswas rarely utilized. When the university shifted to online learning, instructors and students
became dependent on digital tools to facilitate and even improve the learning experience.
Digital tools became indispensable to the implementation of the multiple submission policy.
Submissions were coursed through Canvas, which stored all submissions, organized files, andsimplified the grading process for instructors. After going through the submissions, instructors
provided feedback in several ways:●
Synchronously, where the instructor hosted Zoom or Discord video calls with thestudents to discuss feedback and go through clarifications if necessary. This allowed for
immediate feedback and quick communication if students had questions.
●
Asynchronously, where the instructor either wrote down the comments or recorded
themselves thinking aloud while evaluating the assessment. For the former strategy, the official
learning management system of the university was used to upload comments. For the latterstrategy, comments were recorded as mp4 files. The instructors recorded themselves as theyused OBS to share the screen while annotating the assessment. The asynchronous mode ofproviding feedback allowed students to go through the feedback whenever it was convenient
for them while also having the option to replay the recording if needed.
Apart from the end of the semester, students were not given deadlines for following up on theirfirst submission. They were free to submit again as their time and workload would allow themto.
Results
The instances where students took the opportunity to resubmit can be classified into three types:
1.
The student got a low score and intends on getting a higher score.
2.
The student got a high score but wants to get an even higher score or the highest
possible.
3.
The student misunderstood the instructions and delivered an output that was not alignedwith what was being asked for, resulting in a low score.
The first case composed most of the resubmissions and helped students bring their grades up
to average or above-average scores. The second case was not as common but there were a few
cases where students expressed their willingness to increase their mastery of the course
concepts, thus resulting in higher grades. Because of the feedback loop, the instructors wereable to challenge these students further with deeper discussions on the lessons. Without thepolicy, there may have been little incentive for them to challenge themselves more. The thirdcase was also rarely observed but allowed instructors to pinpoint misleading or unclear
instructions given to the class and correct them so that our mistakes do not impact the outcomesof the student. With traditional policies, the instructors’ mistakes in communication would haveproduced outcomes that classified these students as mediocre or inferior. It is also worth notingthat not all students took advantage of the policy, likely due to workload, time, or even personal
constraints. Those who did submit multiple times usually submitted earlier than the deadline
in anticipation of revisions, or garnered grades below their target or expected.

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From informal feedback from students of the class, several students have stated that while theyfind the lessons difficult, allowing them to submit as many times as possible made themunderstand the topics a lot better. It was observed that students became more comfortableasking questions as they got used to receiving feedback on their work and having theopportunity to resubmit.
Specifically, for the asynchronous video recording feedback, there were students who
explicitly stated that they appreciated it. For low achievers, it was observed that theirunderstanding of the concept improved and it manifested in the difference between their initialand final grades for the resubmitted assessments.
The instructors encountered some challenges when implementing the practice:●
The instructors were not always able to provide feedback immediately after the students
submitted their work. The delays limited the opportunities of students to submit work as often
as they wanted.
●
Deadlines for submission also limited the ability to submit as often as needed. For
classes without deadlines, some students decided to start submissions towards the latter part of
the term. In this scenario, however, students were fully aware they were in control over thegrades they would receive.
●
Lastly, assignments with less clear rubrics resulted in more feedback cycles thannecessary. In some situations, the instructors felt exhausted after handling multiple submission
cycles.
Multiple submission and feedback cycles helped not only the students but also the instructors.
The characteristics of the submissions and feedback give a glimpse of what needed to be refinedin the instructions. The rich feedback dialogue also helped instructors analyze the effectivenessof the learning content and method of delivery.
Conclusion
Opportunities to compare the performance of students on summative assessments such as group
final projects between classes allowing multiple submissions and those that do not will help inquantifying the impact of the practice in learning outcomes. We foresee that this practice maylead to the fear of grade inflation, which may elicit objections from administrators, other
instructors, and even classes under the same course where the policy was not implemented. It
is also likely that instructors will struggle to customize this policy based on the needs of theirown classes – timings between submissions, allowed number of submissions, changes inmaterials provided for submissions, and other technical details. Despite this, it remains ourrecommendation to explore the policy further because it will aid in continuous improvementof course content, method of delivery, and assessment policies. While other classes do notnecessarily aim to build creative confidence, the multiple submission policy is still expected tohave the same effect.
Acknowledgments
The course and the paper were made possible by the Ateneo de Manila University, theDepartment of Quantitative Methods and Information Technology and its Chair, Joselito C.
Olpoc, the John Gokongwei School of Management of the university, the course team,students, and research staff. We thank them all for their cooperation and support.

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References
Ahmad, T. S. A. S. (2020). Application of Learning Theories and The Revised Bloom’s
Taxonomy in Designing Google Classroom Activities. Proceedings: International
Invention, Innovative, & Creative Conference. eISBN: 978-967-17324-8-9Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (2010). Inside the Black Box: Raising Standards through Classroom
Assessment. Phi Delta Kappan Magazine, 92(1), 81–90. doi:
10.1177/003172171009200119
Block, J. & Burns, R. (1976). Mastery Learning. Review of Research in Education, 4, 3-49.
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Bloom, B. S. (1976). Human characteristics and school learning. McGraw-Hill. ISBN
9780070061170
Bloom, B. S., & Carroll, J. B. (1971). Mastery learning: Theory and Practice. J. H. Block(Ed.). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Bloom, B. S., Engelhart, M. D., Furst, E. J., Hill, W. H., and Krathwohl, D. R. (1956).
Taxonomy of Educational Objectives: The Classification of Educational Goals.
Handbook 1: Cognitive Domain.
Bohney, B., Springsteen-Haupt, M., Stosich, S., & Rivera, N. (2018). Fail Forward! Journalof Teaching Writing, 33(2), 65-78.
Bornilla, L., & Amurao, M. (2020). Building creative confidence during COVID-19:
adapting design thinking for online learning. Proceedings of the 28th International
Conference on Computers in Education. Asia-Pacific Society for Computers in
Education
Carver, M. (2017). Limitations of Corrective Feedforward: A Call for Resubmission
Practices to become Learning-oriented. Journal of Academic Writing, 7(1), 1-15.
Clifford, B. (2018). Understanding Disinterest: How Online Undergraduate Students Perceive
And Respond To Disengaged Faculty Members. 99. https://dune.une.edu/theses.
Do, C., Chen, Z., Brandman, R., & Koller, D. (2013). Self-Driven Mastery in Massive Open
Online Courses. MOOCs Forum, 1(P), 14-16. doi:10.1089/mooc.2013.0003
Guskey, T. R. (2005). Formative Classroom Assessment and Benjamin S. Bloom: Theory,
Research, and Implications. Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research
Association: Montreal, Canada.
Ilagan, J. B. (2020). Overcoming transactional distance when conducting online classes on
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Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A Revision of Bloom’s Taxonomy: An Overview. Theory Into
Practice, 41(4), 212-218.

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Krawchuk, F. (2018), "Design Thinking: How to Thrive in a VUCA World", Elkington, R.,
van der Steege, M., Glick-Smith, J.L. and Breen, J.M. (Ed.) Exceptional Leadershipby Design: How Design in Great Organizations Produces Great Leadership, Emerald
Publishing Limited, Bingley, pp. 119-142. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78743-900920181009
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Contact email: mamurao@ateneo.edu
jbilagan@ateneo.edu

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Charitable Giving and Educational Possibilities: An Examination of Student Presentations
on Charitable Giving Experiences in Japan
Tomomi Naka, Tottori University, Japan
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Abstract
This paper examines Japanese student participation in educational event about charitable
contribution. While Japanese schools have long been involved in charitable activities, many
schools and organizations have begun exploring the educational potential of charitablemonetary giving. This is partly engendered by a renewed emphasis on financial education since
the late 2000s. With rapid global economic changes, many educational materials became
available not only to develop students’ financial skills but also to expand their awareness ofsocial implication in their financial decisions. Meanwhile, social withdrawal and decreased
sense of self-usefulness in society among the youth have become grave concerns. In responseto these situations, some schools and organizations have begun offering educational
opportunities about charitable giving to raise students’ interest in social engagement. Throughan examination of charitable giving workshops and educational events held between 2020 and
2021, this paper explores the ways in which students consider the relationships between theircharitable giving and social engagement. My analysis suggests that participation in these
activities has helped students gain awareness of social challenges in their communities andwhat financial contribution can bring to charitable activities. However, it also indicates thatfurther instructional support is necessary in some topics, such as how to make appropriate
giving decisions as a group and how to sustain and evaluate one’s own charitable commitments.
Keywords: Charitable Contribution, Philanthropic Education, Japan

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
This article examines the charitable financial contributions and relevant educational events inJapan. While Japanese educational institutions often provide occasions to donate for school
and other social projects, there has been renewed interest in incorporating charitable
contributions into education. This article examines the social factors that contribute to thisrecent emphasis on charitable giving and social contribution education and how students reflect
their engagement with charitable contributions. The students’ comments suggest that they
believed that charitable financial contributions could provide important support in solvingsocial challenges. However, their participation in charitable giving was somewhat limited
because they often failed to include topics such as how to allocate and sustain their charitable
contributions.
Charitable Giving Education and Social Contribution Education
While supporting students to become contributing members of society has long been an
important goal for schools and educators, it has only been about ten years since the term social
contribution education (shakai koken kyoiku in Japanese) emerged. Shunsuke Oishi, a strong
advocate for this education, mentioned that around 2009, the Japan Fundraising Association(JFRA) and Oishi began to promote social contribution education actively (Oishi, 2020).
Soon after, other organizations began to express similar interests in promoting societal
recognition of the importance of charitable activities. Books and brochures were gradually
published, and workshop events began to be offered (Naka, 2020). With this trend, in 2020, a
booklet proposal for promoting social contribution education (Shakai Koken Kyouiku Suisin
Foramu Iinkai, n.d.) was published. The proposal claims that social contribution education is
an important area of education, and through such an education, students are encouraged toconnect their education at school with their surrounding society. It also says that students candevelop a sense of self-esteem through social contribution education and find meaningful roles
in society. The proposal includes examples of relevant activities that promote this type of
education, such as kifu no kyoshitsu (charitable giving classrooms) supported by JFRA.
The proposal’s emphasis on connecting school education with societal contexts correspondswith the current guidelines of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, andTechnology in Japan (MEXT). The MEXT periodically publishes new curriculum guidelines,
and its most recent guidelines are scheduled to take effect in 2020 for elementary schools, 2021
for junior high schools, and 2022 for high schools. These new guidelines emphasize theimportance of forging strong connections between school education and society. The
guidelines encourage schools to incorporate activities to help students connect their classes
with the community and world situations surrounding them. The guidelines recommend
developing collaborations with local and other organizations and activities that raise awarenessof local and global situations surrounding children. The guidelines claim that the new
curriculum aims to promote students’ understanding of the ever-changing societal situations
and equip students with the knowledge and skills to challenge local and global problems(Monbu Kagaku Sho, n.d.).
The advocates for charitable giving education claim that providing education fits these new
guidelines well. For example, the JFRA webpage states that charitable giving is an important
way to learn about social contributions (Japan Fundraising Association, n.d.). It explains thatthrough charitable giving, students can participate in activities that they are particularly

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interested in supporting and gain a sense of social contribution. Yutataro Yonehara, a frequent
workshop organizer, said similar comments in an online workshop event held at Fundraising
Japan 2020 (FRA 2020), September 2020. He said that by providing activities, students could
become aware of their own sense of values, develop their own decision-making skills, and learn
to collaborate with others.
While volunteering is also identified as an equally important activity, charitable giving hasreceived recent attention in programs and activities in social contribution education. This ispartly because charitable donations are not often discussed in educational settings (Shakai
Koken Kyouiku Suisin Foramu Iinkai, n.d.). This is also because of the increased presence of
non-profit organizations in Japan and the growing interest in supporting these organizations
through private charitable contributions.
Since the 1990s, Japan has encountered several large-scale disasters, and they have created avariety of changes in how people think about society. The Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake in 1995
is argued to be the starting moment for current volunteer activities in Japan (Suzuki et al., 2003).
Having experienced large-scale disasters, many people in Japan have realized the importantrole of volunteering in society. Many non-profit organizations have been established toorganize volunteer activities, and legal status and other relevant laws and systems graduallybegan to be established. While some organizations seek governmental financial support,
support from diverse citizens, including charitable contributions by individuals and groups, has
become essential for running their activities.
Rapid and profound global changes in financial situations also occurred simultaneously. This
led many Japanese institutions, such as the Financial Service Agency in Japan, to reexamine
previous financial education (Fukuhara, 2012). The collapse of the bubble economy andfinancial recession since the 1990s brought social and financial challenges to many people inJapan. Meanwhile, a transformation of consumer practices occurred. For example, the use ofcredit cards has increased, and fair-trade products and other socially and ethically concerned
consumption practices have become more widely recognized. These changing contexts brought
renewed recognition of the importance of cultivating financial decision-making skills from a
broader perspective. In addition to managing day-to-day expenses by individuals, new topics
such as investment and charitable giving are included in the focus of financial educationmaterials. Subsequently, lesson materials, such as guidebooks published by JFRA and theJapan Philanthropic Association (JPA), and other supportive educational events and workshops
became available in the 2000s (Naka, 2020).
Youth in JapanThe context surrounding current Japanese youth is another contributing factor to thebackgrounds of current charitable giving and social contribution education. There has been aconcern that young people may not have meaningful connections with their surrounding
communities. The White Paper on Children and Young People 2021 (Kodomo Wakamono
Hakusho, hereafter the White Paper), for example, provides several characteristics of young
Japanese people. While 70.8% of young people answered that they wanted to contribute tosociety, about half of the young people (49.9%) answered that they felt useless (Naikakufu,
2021). Although it is important to examine how to interpret these data, this indicates some gaps
between young people’s desire for social engagement and the situations surrounding them.

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This may be related to several other characteristics of current youth in Japan. The White Papersuggests a relatively low sense of self-affirmation among Japanese youth. According to theWhite Paper, 46.5 % of young Japanese people answered that they like themselves. This figure
is lower than in other countries such as the USA, France, Germany (all of them are over 80%),and South Korea (over 70%; Naikakufu, n.d.). The White Paper also suggests that the numberof students who cannot or refuse to attend schools (futoko) has increased from approximately
126,000 in 2015 to 180,000 in 2019. This suggests that an increased number of young people
are hesitant to participate in school education. Additional data from the White Paper suggestthat young people’s lack of social integration is not limited to schools. Despite the shrinking
young population, the percentage of young people (between the ages of 15 and 39) who do notwork increased from 2.1 % to 2.9 % from 2015 to 2019. These indicators suggest that a
considerable number of young people have difficulties participating in society, particularly
through education and work (Naikakufu, 2021).
This context on Japanese youth is an important background for NEXT’s new curriculum
emphasis and the proposal. As previously noted, both emphasize the importance ofstrengthening the connections between school education and society. How, then, do students
perceive their participation in the lessons and relevant educational events about charitable
contributions? In the following, I examine three cases to explore this question.
Cases Examined
This article is based on three types of educational events held between 2020 and 2021. While
not all schools incorporate financial contribution education into their activities, an increasing
number of schools are offering educational workshops and other related activities on this topic(Oishi, 2020). However, the diversity of charitable contribution classes and lack ofcomprehensive data makes it difficult to analyze these educational efforts. Furthermore, thespread of COVID-19 has many limitations in classroom and research activities. Within theselimitations, this article analyzes three types of online presentations organized with the supportof facilitators and organizations such as JFRA and JPA.
Each case examined in this study took a different approach to charitable contribution lessons.
However, all of them participated by students and offered reflections about their experiences.
Because it is often difficult to make observations at schools and other educational events, thesepresentations provide a good opportunity to explore how students and teachers view their
participation in workshops and classroom activities related to charitable contribution education.
Case 1
The first case was an online presentation by two schools. The presentation was held in March
2021 as a part of a seminar about charitable contribution education organized by JFRA. Bothschools incorporated charitable giving and social contribution components into theirclassrooms in collaboration with JFRA facilitators.
One of the schools was a public junior high school. Charitable contribution lessons wereincorporated into a series of social studies classes for third-year students. The workshops lasted
for six class periods, and approximately 130 students participated. The other school was apublic high school with a business major. The charitable contribution lessons were held fornine class periods over two months, and about ten students participated.

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Although their levels of education are different, these schools organized their charitable
contribution lessons in a similar format. As often suggested by JFRA, the first part of thelessons focused on considering how charitable contributions could bring significant social
influences. With the help of facilitators and teachers, the students received a general
introduction on how monetary giving could help support a variety of community challenges.
The facilitators then introduced several (usually three to four) non-profit organizations andtheir activities to students. These organizations deal with various social challenges, such asproviding mental health support for the homeless, caring for abandoned animals, andafterschool activities for young children. The junior high school students were provided
information about four organizations already chosen by the facilitators and teachers. In contrast,
the high school students researched and chose the organizations themselves. From theexplanations provided by the organization staff members and their own research, the students
learned about how organizations work to alleviate social challenges and how monetarycontributions could help support their efforts. The students were then provided with money touse as a donation. After the discussions, they chose one organization for their donations.
After a brief explanation of how these two schools offered lessons about charitable contribution,
the presentation moved to the participants’ reflections on their experiences. In written notes
and in their own comments at the event, students in both schools expressed that the lessons on
charitable contribution provided opportunities to learn about social challenges more deeply.
The students’ comments suggested that while they knew the challenges existed in society prior
to the lessons about charitable giving, they did not “feel” or consider how these challenges
affected people’s lives. For instance, a student from the junior high school commented that heknew it was a problem, but he previously thought that it would affect other people, not people
near him. Through learning about specific non-profit organizations’ activities, many students
deepened their understanding of the community and social challenges.
The fact that the students were given money to donate also helped them feel closer connections
between social challenges and themselves. Because they learned about how monetarycontributions could help fund the organizations’ specific activities and they could support themfinancially, some felt that their opinions mattered. The students’ comments suggested thatcharitable contribution lessons helped the students to see how giving could be a way to be
involved in their surrounding society. For example, one student answered that monetary
donations were a tool to create an ideal society. Another student answered that contributions
could provide opportunities to learn about situations in the world that are otherwise unknown
to them.
The reflections on these activities also suggested two areas that the student participants felt
somewhat difficult. One is how to make a collective decision on where to donate. Lessons
about charitable giving made the students realize that diverse concerns and priorities existed
even among their fellow students. For example, the teacher at the junior high school mentionedthat there was a student group that could not decide on an organization for their donation, andthis group took extra time to reach a collective decision. Some high school students had similardifficulties. Because they felt that all the organizations provided worthwhile services to thecommunity, they felt that they should not choose just one organization. They eventually
decided on one organization, but they also set up a fundraising campaign at their school for theother organizations.
As often mentioned in the guidebooks about charitable contribution education, the realizationof such diverse opinions among students is encouraged in the class. However, the students’

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with diverse opinions among them. As making a group decision is necessary for this type oflesson, providing ideas and suggestions to form a decision can be helpful.
Another topic mentioned was how to extend the lessons to the next step. These lessons ended
through donations, and some students and teachers wondered how they could use the lessons
to develop their engagement in society. In the presentation, the students and teachers had
opportunities to discuss the potential next steps. Some suggestions included sending SNS
information about giving, making a children’s book for giving and social contributions, andparticipating in fundraising and other volunteer activities to support NPOs and other civicorganizations. They were all in the brainstorming stage, but these discussions suggest thepotential for developing further social engagement. They also indicate existing challenges
regarding how lessons on charitable contribution can be extended as a sustainable form ofengagement.
Case 2The second case is based on a web-based event called the Charity Movie Project organized by
the JPA. In this event, junior high and high school students voluntarily participated andproduced short movies to raise financial contributions for non-profit organizations. Unlike thefirst case, the participation of this event was not by schools but by individual students. The callfor participation was announced in July 2020, and the final online event was held in January
2021. About 70 students from all over Japan and Malaysia participated in groups or as
individuals. The participants learned about the social significance of financial contributions,and they also studied the non-profit organizations they chose (from a list of five different typesof non-profit organizations) with the help of the chosen organization. With the help of the event
staff, the participants moved on to making short videos to introduce the organizations’ activities.
With the video and written explanation of their support for the organization on the event
website, the participants asked viewers for donations. Each group presented the amount ofmoney they aimed to collect (e.g., 200,000 yen). While no groups collected the targeted
donation amount, over 2,000,000 yen was donated through the event.
Although this event did not provide specific occasions for students’ reflection, the students’considerations on their participation in the events were extrapolated in several ways. They often
commented on how they created their short movies, through which they indicated theirunderstanding of giving. The comments posted alongside the movies, YouTube, and othermessages posted on the event site also provided opportunities to examine how students felt
about their experiences through this event.
The students’ comments suggested that they were impressed by the organizations’ activities
and became aware of how financial contributions could provide the necessary support for these
activities. For example, in a blog made by one group, two students reflected on their
participation in the event. With a screenshot of their detailed notes before and after theirinterviews with the organization staff members, they said they learned a lot about theorganization and the importance of their work. They also mentioned that they were so moved
that they felt that they would like others to learn about this organization and provide financial
support through their short movie. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, each group only contacted
the chosen organization online, but the student comments suggested that their participation
provided valuable learning opportunities for the organization and social challenges.

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At the same time, the students tended to focus more on making a strong appeal for donations
through their short videos. For example, in the blog mentioned earlier, the students spent therest of the blog explaining their trial-and-error experiences of creating a move to encourageothers to give for their chosen organization. They explained some of their strategies, such as
taking their mask-off so that viewers could see their facial expressions, carefully selecting
information to include, and adding hand-drawings to the whiteboard. They also said that to
make a stronger appeal for the viewers, they decided to make a movie that only they could
make. This led them to wear school uniforms and select their school classroom as the venue
for the movie.
The other participating students made similar decisions in creating short videos. Most of themwore uniforms and shot the film in the classrooms, although the event or organizations had
little to do with the schools. The videos often included handwritten pictures and charts, andsome included dramatized or animated stories to illustrate the social issues in which theorganizations were working. While these arrangements were well prepared, they were used toemphasize implicitly that they were students who made the video. From the students’perspective, these arrangements were a strategy to deliver their messages to the viewer
effectively. However, because many videos similarly stressed that they were students, theextent to which these arrangements created the students’ intended results was questionable.
How the students’ final short videos were presented on the web also tended to draw viewers’
attention away from the intended main goal to support the activities of the organizations. While
the webpage contained information about the organizations and each participant group, thedonated money was placed on the top right area of the page, which made it easy for the viewers
to see. Underneath the donated amount figure was the percentage that the donated money would
be divided by each group’s donation goal. This emphasis on the donation amounts andpercentage of targeted donation goals were also clearly displayed in the final reporting web
pages that appeared when this event was over. Although this information was important, it
could give the impression that raising the targeted amount of money was as important as ormore important than why the students made the presentations. Furthermore, the amount ofmoney that each group raised was displayed in an easily comparable manner among the othergroups, giving the impression that raising more money mattered.
As in the first case, this case also provided learning opportunities for students about charitablegiving and how financial support helps organizations work for social challenges. However,short-movie production and the event arrangement tended to focus the students’ and viewers’
attention on collecting donations. As the donations were raised from others in this event, there
were no discussions about how the participating students could also contribute money. How tomake sustainable financial support was also not discussed.
Case 3
The third case was a year-long class activity held by a private high school in Tokyo. The teacher
who organized this class and two former students who took this class presented theirexperiences at FRJ 2020, an online conference about fundraising and charitable givingorganized by JFRA, in September of 2020.
Prior to this event, this school participated in educational workshops on charitable contribution,such as kifu no kyoshitsu, as a part of its extra-curricular activities. Expanding on theseexperiences, this school incorporated charitable contribution education elements into a regular

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class, titled “Kokusai Kyoryoku to Shakai Koken” [International Cooperation and Social
Contribution]. The class was for third-year high school students, and about ten students who
took this class met twice a week.
The students explained that the main goal of this class was to learn about social contributions
and how they can play a role in dealing with contemporary social challenges. First, the students
examined Japanese Official Development Aid (ODA) in the past 60 years. The students
summarized that they learned about the complex relationships between business andinternational aid/development. One student mentioned that she learned that while they mightseem at opposite ends, they could form meaningful relationships.
The rest of the class was devoted to learning about charitable contributions. The students first
explored non-profit organizations and their activities. They discussed how financial
contributions could help these organizations’ activities and pondered where they could provide
financial support by the money that was given to them to use as a donation. Unlike case 1, thestudents decided to spend enough time developing their own criteria to decide whichorganization should receive their donation. In addition, the students decided to raise money
through crowdfunding. The students set up a crowdfunding site, where they requested financial
support to cover expenses to invite guest speakers, conduct research on non-profit
organizations, develop their own criteria about where to give, give money to the chosenorganization, and make and distribute final reports about their findings. In the end, they raised
more than their targeted 300,000 yen.
The two students reflected on their learning experiences with the teacher’s facilitation. Bothsaid that they had been interested in social contributions before this class, but they did not knowwhat exactly it was and how they could do it. The class provided opportunities for them torealize that social contribution was something they could do to realize a better society. One
student said that she had volunteered before, but she did not consider why she volunteered or
the significance of her action. She knew that there were social challenges, but she felt that there
had been little to do with her. She mentioned that through this class, she felt that thesechallenges were something much closer to her. She realized that she could make a differenceby giving. As in case 1, the class provided first-hand experiences of learning social challenges
and how giving could support the organizations that were confronting these challenges.
The students also found it difficult to decide where to donate. Learning about a variety of nonprofit organizations with their staff members, the students noticed the strong commitment of
all these organizations. This left them with a question about how to choose which one to support.
One student said that after learning about the Japan Center for NPO Evaluation, she thought it
was important to evaluate whether the organizations were trustworthy (shinrai). To ensure thatthe organizations could be trusted, they created their own criteria. However, as the other student
added, even with such criteria, they found it difficult to rate each organization.
The students in this case were able to spend much more time deciding where they gave, andthey also had more flexibility in deciding their class activities than the other two cases.
However, these students’ comments suggest that even in such a situation, the students felt theneed for further elaborate discussions and support for deciding where to give.
Like the other two cases, two topics—how to allocate funding if possible and how to makefinancial support sustainable—were not included in this case. As in the second case, it was
assumed that there was only one organization to support. However, as people learn and find

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important diverse activities of organizations, dividing donations into several organizations may
occur. The lack of consideration of this topic can matter more when students try to givethemselves. As in case 1, this case also did not extend the discussion of making the giving
sustainable. It was assumed that the donation only occurred once. Although the students felt
the importance of charitable giving, developing charitable contribution as individual orcollective practice was not included in their discussions.
As in case 2, the students included fundraising efforts. Unlike case 2, however, the students
also raised money for their activities. This allowed them to consider how to be accountable for
their giving. A student mentioned that she was surprised to receive support from other people,
but this experience gave her another look at what they were doing. She felt that it was important
to explain what they did, such as why they consider giving as an important way to face social
challenges. The students also made a report and held a meeting with the contributors to sharewhat they did in the class and tentative ideas about how they could deliver similar learning
experiences to other students, within and outside their own school. As in case 2, the commentsin their presentation slides emphasized their perspectives as students. The image of thecrowdfunding site clearly stated that they, as high students, created their own criteria forevaluating non-profit organizations. The site and presentation did not specify how useful suchan evaluation created by the students would be for others. Rather, the main appeal was that thestudents were the main actors in such evaluations. The students seemed to consider that theirown initiative could draw attention from potential donors.
Conclusion
The three cases discussed have similarities and differences. The comments and reflections of
the students suggest that learning about charitable giving provided them with opportunities tolearn about social challenges and organizations working to deal with them. They also learned
that financial contributions are an important way to support these organizations’ activities.
However, the three cases also suggest divergent approaches to providing lessons on charitable
contribution. Reviewing these three cases indicates two emphases of charitable contribution
lessons: decision-making and fundraising. Case 1 focuses on choosing where to give. Providing
students with the opportunity to choose an organization to donate led the students to investigate
the organization’s activities. Case 2 suggests an alternative approach. It provides students with
opportunities to advocate for organizations and gather financial contributions. In the third case,these two approaches are incorporated. By provided some money to give, the students
researched the organizations’ activities and explored how they could make the best decision to
give. Crowdfunding efforts provided first-hand experiences of raising money to support theorganizations. They explored how to gain support from others by explaining the importance oflearning about giving.
Although all the cases raised the students’ awareness of social challenges and the importanceof charitable contributions to face them, they did not address how to make them sustainable.
The students’ activities did not extend to the topic of how the students could allocate their own
money for donations. As these lessons centered on one-time donations, there were few
discussions about reviewing their charitable commitment and what could help develop
charitable financial support as repeated practices. These topics, however, become important as
students make their own charitable contributions.

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References
Fukuhara, T. (2012). Kinyu inobeshon no shinten to beikoku ni okeru kinyukyoiku nodoko[Development of financial innovation and US trend in financial education]. Retrieved
November 30, 2021, fromhttps://www.shiruporuto.jp/public/data/research/report2/pdf/ron081017.pdf
Japan Fund Raising Associations (JFRA) (n.d.,). Shakai koken kyoiku towa [What is social
contribution education?]. Retrieved November 30, 2021, from https://jfra.jp/ltgportal/about.html
Mombu Kagaku Sho (n.d.). Shin gakushu shido yoryo nitsuite [About new curriculum
guidelines]. Retrieved November 30, 2021, fromhttps://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/shingi/chousa/shisetu/044/shiryo/__icsFiles/afieldfile/2018/07/09/1405957_003.pdf
Naka, T. (2020). Teaching how to give: Charitable giving education in Japan. The Asian
Conference on Education & International Development 2020 Official Conference
Proceedings. https://papers.iafor.org/proceedings/conference-proceedingsACEID2020/
Naikakufu (2021). Kodomo Wakamono Hakusho [The White paper on children and young
people]. Retrieved November 30, 2021, fromhttps://www8.cao.go.jp/youth/whitepaper/r03honpen/pdf_index.html
Naikakufu (n.d.). Tokushu: Ima wo ikiru wakamono no ishiki [Special article on young
people’s mind now]. Retrieved November 30, 2021, fromhttps://www8.cao.go.jp/youth/whitepaper/h26gaiyou/tokushu.html
Oishi, S. (2020, January 30). Jyunenme no shakai koken kyoiku [Tenth years of social
contribution education]. Retrieved November 30, 2021, fromhttps://readyfor.jp/projects/ltg2019
Shakai Koken Kyouiku Suisin Foramu Iinkai, (n.d.). Shakai koken kyoiku suisin notameno
teigensho [Proposal for promoting social contribution education]. Retrieved
November 30, 2021, fromhttps://jfra.jp/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/teigen.pdf
Suzuki, I., Suga, M., & Atsumi, T. (2003). Nihon niokeru saigai borantia no doko: Hanshin
awaji daishinsai wo keikitoshite [Situations about disaster volunteer activities inJapan]. Japanese Journal of Experimental Social Psychological Social Psychology, 42(2):166-186.

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Knowledge, Perceptions and Attitudes Towards Using Digital Games for Teaching and
Learning
Joana DG. Quinto, De La Salle University, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
Official Conference Proceedings
Abstract
Digital game-based learning has evolved into a novel mode of instruction that increases bothstudents' and teachers' motivation to acquire competencies. It aims to engage students andteachers in the classroom context and to pique their interest. The purpose of this study was toconstruct and verify a Survey Instrument on the Game-Based Learning Approach in order tocharacterize teachers' and students' knowledge, views, and attitudes toward game-basedlearning. The Content Validity Index, the Content Validity Ratio, and the Kappa Statistic
Coefficient were used to validate the SIGBLA. Principal component analysis with orthogonalvarimax rotation was utilized to further assess the instrument's reliability. Bartlett's sphericity
test found that correlations between items were adequate for PCA when X2 (174) = 17301.04,
p.001, and X2 (285) = 2145.64, p.001. Due to the huge sample size and convergence of thequestionnaire's scree plot and Kaiser's criterion, the final analysis kept three components:
knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes. The Survey Instrument on Game-Based Learning
Approach (SIGBLA) utilized in this study was valid, trustworthy, and adequately exhaustivefor diagnosing game-based learning approach-related aspects. Over 90% of the 274 studentsof which age ranges from 12 to 16 years old and 185 mathematics teachers who consented toparticipate in this study were knowledgeable about game-based learning and had extremely
positive views and perceptions about it. Respondents perceived that incorporating gamebased learning into both teaching and learning will help them develop a stronger grasp ofmathematics.
Keywords: Game-Based Learning, Improving Knowledge, Attitudes, Students’ and Teachers’
Perception

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
In educational contexts, digital game-based learning has gotten a lot of attention. The
beneficial association between Digital Game Based Learning (DGBL) and motivation haschanged instructors' focus to acquiring these approaches as a substitute for more traditional
methods (Alsawaier, 2018). Iten and Petko (2016), for example, conducted empirical study
on the links between game enjoyment, learner motivation, and test scores. The study
discovered a positive association between gaming enjoyment and motivation in an
educational setting. Similarly, a study established the impact of digital games on students'
mathematics achievement. The children had increased their level of engagement in theclassroom as a result of the activities (Smith, 2018).
By providing students with opportunities to learn while having fun, digital game-basedlearning helps students maintain their concentration on their studies. Math classes
incorporated digital game-based learning. It demonstrated students' good attitudes toward
digital games, as they aid in attention while also providing enjoyment (Wang & Lieberoth,2016). As a result, it is a powerful predictor of students actively participating in lectures.
Additionally, digital game-based learning can assist teachers in properly planning courses andassessing students' learning progress. According to Wang and Lieberoth (2016), DGBL
benefits teachers by motivating students to participate in class activities and enhancing theirlearning performance. As a result, teachers can utilize digital games as a reflecting tool toassess students' learning and help them improve their performance. Additionally, it was said
that digital games assist students in being active and energetic during lectures (Licorish et al.,2018), resulting in the formation of a successful learning environment.
Despite the growing number of teachers that include digital games into the classroom, manyeducators remain unaware of the educational potential of digital games. The explanation forthis could be that they are unaware of or unfamiliar with games that promote contextual
learning and 21st-century abilities. Schrader et al. (2006) discovered that the majority ofteachers in their survey were unfamiliar with or had limited experience with massively
multiplayer online games and were unaware of their educational usefulness.
Similarly, Gaudelli and Talyor (2011) revealed that teachers were typically skeptical of the
instructional benefits of video games, mainly due to their lack of knowledge with the genre,
and they remained cautious even after playing a variety of titles. Takeuchi and Vaala (2014)
discovered that the majority of teachers who employ games do so through shorter-form
genres such as drill-and-practice games. While drill-and-practice games can assist kids inmemorizing facts and developing necessary skills, they are incapable of teaching complex
content or higher-level skills. While current game researchers have created and developed
breakthrough digital games or game-based learning environments with the potential toenhance 21st-century abilities, teachers continue to struggle with selecting appropriate games.
One strategy for overcoming this obstacle is to include teachers in the game design process.
Collaboration between teachers, researchers, instructional designers, and game developers
would result in the development of effective digital learning games for use by classroom
teachers. It is critical to understand the views of teachers and students when developing suchgames. Thus, this study examined teachers' and students' knowledge, views, and attitudes
about game-based learning in order to close this gap.

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Methods
A mixed-methods approach was used, combining a qualitative investigation with aquantitative procedure. Participants in both the qualitative and quantitative studies were
informed in writing about the study's purpose and procedures, as well as their ability towithdraw at any time. The researchers told participants that their names would not be utilized
and that their information would be kept confidential. Each participant provided informed
consent prior to data collection. The participation was entirely optional.
Participants
98 (56.3 percent) of the 174 instructors who completed questionnaires were male, while 76(43.7 percent) were female. The average age of participant teachers is 26. (33.3 percent). In
terms of time spent playing, 98 (56.3 percent) spent less than an hour per day and 76 (43.7
percent) spent 1-3 hours per day. Additionally, more than half of respondents routinely
incorporate games into their classrooms 96. (56.3 percent). Additionally, the majority of
respondents were engaged in digital educational games 156. (96.6 percent).
Additionally, 60 (21.1 percent) of the 284 students who completed surveys were male, while
224 (78.9 percent) were female. The average age of student participants is sixteen years andtwelve months (43.7 percent). In terms of time spent playing, 80 (31.1%) spent 1-3 hours
every day on digital games. Additionally, the majority of respondents preferred games inclass 31 (10.9 percent) frequently, 55 (19.4 percent) frequently, 134 (47.2 percent)occasionally, 32 (11.3%) seldom, and 32 (11.3%) for those who did not favor GBL in class.
Additionally, the majority of respondents were engaged in digital educational games 267.
(94.01 percent).
Data Collection and Analysis
Questionnaire
Two parallel instruments have been developed to satisfy the research objectives for teachersand students. Both instruments are made up of two pieces. The first component contains
demographic information about respondents, such as their gender, age, years of teachingexperience, the frequency with which they employ digital games in mathematics class, andtheir acquaintance with certain mobile educational games. The second section of the Survey
Instrument on Game-Based Learning Approach utilized a four-point Likert scale (1-Strongly
Disagree 2-Disagree 3-Agree 4-Strongly Agree), which was used to assess respondents'
knowledge, attitude, and perceptions of game-based learning. The SIGBLA consists oftwenty components classified into three categories. Items 1-10 elicit responses addressing
respondents' perceptions of game-based learning; items 11-14 elicit responses regarding
respondents' attitudes toward the game-based learning method; and items 15-20 elicit
responses regarding respondents' understanding of the game-based learning approach.
A thorough assessment of the literature was undertaken to identify the content domain formeasuring students' and teachers' knowledge, views, and attitudes toward game-basedlearning. The literature review assisted the researchers in identifying numerous research gaps
in the construct's base.

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The researchers chose six domain experts—from the fields of science education and gamebased learning—to examine the created items' content validity. The experts made suggestions
and opinions on whether certain items should be added, removed, or adjusted. According tosix experts' comments and reactions, no further items were added to the face and content
validity validation processes, no items were deleted, and the SIGBLA was not modified
further.
The Content Validity Index (CVI), the Kappa statistic, and the Content Validity Ratio wereused to quantify the domain experts' perspectives (CVR).
Content Validity Index (CVI)
The researchers solicited expert feedback on the items developed for the construct of gamebased learning. CVI values were determined for each individual item. (I-CVI) and on abroader scale (S-CVI). For CVI, an expert panel was asked to score each scale item's
relevance to the underlying construct. To prevent a neutral point, a four-point scale wasutilized. On the item rating continuum, the four points were as follows: 1 = not relevant, 2 =slightly relevant, 3 = fairly relevant, and 4 = extremely relevant. I-CVI was calculated foreach item by dividing the number of experts who gave a rating of 3 or 4 by the total numberof experts. For instance, an item that receives a rating of 3 or 4 from four out of five experts
has an I-CVI of 0.80. It is recommended that I-CVI be 1.00 in the event of five or fewer
judges and 0.78 in the case of six or more judges. The S-CVI was calculated to ensure thetotal scale's content validity. It can be conceptualized in two ways: as S-CVI (universal
Agreement) or as S-CVI (universal Agreement) (Average). The S-CVI (Universal
Agreement) metric indicates the percentage of items on an instrument that received a ratingof 3 or 4 from all of the panel's experts. S-CVI (Average) is a liberal interpretation of the
Scale Validity Index that is calculated by averaging the I-CVI values. S-CVI (Average)
places a premium on average item quality rather than expert performance. A minimum S-CVI
of 0.8 is recommended for content validity (Lynn, 1986; Polit & Beck, 2006; Rubio, Berg
Weger, Tebb, Lee, & Rauch, 2003).
I-CVI values ranged from 0.83 to 1 for all three dimensions' items. The S-CVI (Average)
value for all SIGBLA elements was 0.983 (Table 1) and 0.975 (Table 2). The S-CVI values
for the two 20-item scales were 0.90 and 0.85, respectively, indicating that the items had ahigh level of content validity for the construct of game-based learning.
Kappa Statistic Coefficient
CVI is frequently used by researchers to determine the content validity of their findings. It
does not, however, take into account the exaggerated values that may emerge as a result of
the likelihood of accidental agreement. Thus, computing the Kappa coefficient facilitatescomprehension of content validity by removing any chance agreement. The Kappa statistic is
a consensus indicator of inter-expert agreement that is used in conjunction with the CVI toconfirm that expert agreement is not due to chance. Kappa scores more than 0.74 areconsidered exceptional, those between 0.6 and 0.74 are considered good, and those between
0.4 and 0.59 are considered decent (Polit & Beck, 2006; Zamanzadeh et al., 2014). Kappascores varied between 1 and 1.032 for the majority of the questions, indicating strong
agreement across raters.

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Content Validity Ratio (CVR)
CVR is computed according to the Lawshe test to determine if an item is required to operate
a construct in a set of items or not. The expert panel was asked to assign a score of 1 to 3 toeach item, ranging from necessary to useful but not necessary.
CVRs were calculated for each item based on the percentage of panelists who rated it as"essential." The CVRs for both measures varied from 0.67 to 1, indicating that at least half ofthe panelists regarded these elements as vital to the concept of game-based learning.
Exploratory Factor Analysis
The SIGBLA's validity and reliability were examined as follows: Exploratory factor analysis
was used to establish construct validity (EFA). Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) values wereused to determine sample adequacy, and Bartlett's test of sphericity (ideally significant) was
performed to determine the data's appropriateness for factorization. Using SPSS 20.0, EFA
was performed to discover common components in the latent variable. PCA was chosen forthis study since it wanted to investigate the theory of training transfer systems rather thandata reduction. The number of variables to extract was determined using parallel analysis,
and relevant components were discovered using the varimax rotation method. The loading
and cross-loading threshold was set to 0.4, and items with loading less than 0.4 and crossloading greater than 0.4 were eliminated. This procedure was continued until a simple
structure was obtained in which loadings on putative factors were maximized and loadings onothers were minimized. Cronbach's alpha coefficients were used to determine internalconsistency. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20.0 and Monte
Carlo PCA were used for statistical analysis.
Factorability
Two instruments with a total of twenty items were exposed to EFA in order to determine thescale's factorial validity. Along with the sample size, the correlation matrix between items
was examined to evaluate whether factor analysis was appropriate. The bulk of items exhibit
intercorrelations greater than 0.30, indicating that they are acceptable for factor analysis(Field, 2009; Tabachnick & Fidell, 2007).
Factor analysis was additionally supported by the KMO and Bartletts Sphericity tests. The
KMO value was more than the minimum value of 0.60. The values.817 and.932 were deemed"meritorious" and "marvelous," respectively, indicating their suitability for factor analysis(Kaiser, 1974). Additionally, Bartlett's Test of Sphericity found a highly significant value (P=.000), indicating that the correlation matrix differs significantly from the identity matrix.
Finally, we analyzed communalities and factor loadings to determine scale factorability.
Additionally, the communality value is used to determine whether to include or omit avariable from the factor analysis. Items with a value of less than 0. 5 were eliminated. Initial
data examination revealed that one item on each survey had a communality of less than 0.50
and was thus eliminated.
Factor Extraction
Principal Component Analysis (PCA) was chosen as the primary extraction method due tothe non-normal distribution of the data. Regarding the rotation strategy, an early EFA

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revealed that several inter-factor correlations were more than 0.32. This information gave
sufficient justification for using varimax rotation.
Additionally, an approach for factor retention was utilized to estimate the amount of factors
to retain, such as Monte Carlo PCA for parallel analysis. Visual examination of the scree plot
revealed a five-factor solution for teachers and a six-factor solution for students. However,the parallel study conducted using Monte Carlo identified three underlying causes for each
instrument. Additionally, only three components were maintained. Components 4 and 5 were
not maintained as factors because their estimated eigenvalue was not exceeded in parallel
analysis.
Additionally, demonstrated that three components were preserved. Components 4,5 and 6
were not maintained as factors because they did not exceed the eigenvalue suggested byparallel analysis.
3 Factor Solution
After removing the problematic item(s) from the study, the most condensed and theoreticallyapplicable answer was a three-factor approach. The three-factor solution was consistent withthe results of parallel analysis and explained roughly 66.92 percent (for a student instrument)
and 72.81 percent (for a teacher instrument) of the total variation. Knowledge, Perceptions,and Attitudes were the three variations.
Cronbach's Alpha values for the remaining 19 items and each subscale of the Survey
Instrument in game-based learning above the acceptable level of 0.70 for both teachers andstudents (see Table 13 and 14). The three subscales all have an alpha value within the"acceptable" range of internal consistency (George & Mallery, 2003).
Results and Discussion
Teacher and student participants revealed interesting results regarding the use of GBLA.

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Table 1. Percentage of Item Frequencies in the SIGBLA for Teachers (N= 174)

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Table 2. Percentage of Item Frequencies in the SIGBLA for Students (N= 274)

Knowledge on Game-Based Learning Approach
Four-point Likert-scale items were used to assess participants' knowledge of the Game-Based
Learning Approach (responses to this set of items were determined to be reliable, Cronbach's= 0.83). 98 percent of participants expressed an interest in teaching courses via online
competitive games. Additionally, 97 percent of participants believe that they may utilize theirunderstanding of a game to deduce what children are learning during the game and that
digital games can be used in a variety of learning scenarios. 96% of participants answeredthat they are capable of determining the disciplinary material embedded in games andrepurposing current games for instructional purposes. Additionally, 95% are capable ofdeveloping curricular activities that encourage students to inquire about concepts connectedto the game-based classroom's learning objectives. In a game-based learning classroom, 94%
of teachers said that they can integrate content games and teaching approaches and adapt theirteaching style to various learners. demonstrating that teachers were conversant with gamebased learning. These findings countered Gaudelli and Talyor's (2011) findings that teachers
were generally suspicious of video games' pedagogical utility, mainly due to their lack ofknowledge with games, and remained skeptical of utilizing games in teaching even after
playing a variety of games.

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In terms of students' understanding of the Game-Based Learning Approach, 97 percent ofparticipants' ability to play the game is well-matched to the game's obstacles. 96% ofparticipants reported feeling knowledgeable and effective while participating in educational
games. Additionally, 95% stated that educational games help students think critically and thatthey find completing provided problems/tasks in games extremely engaging. Additionally,
94% of respondents agreed that instructional games test their knowledge of the subject. 93
percent expressed an interest in studying the subjects via competitive online games. Finally,
78 percent of student players require only a brief explanation of how the game works. It isreasonable to assume that students who participate in this study have a high level of expertiseand interest in game-based learning.
Consistent with other recent studies and reports (Sáez-López et al. 2015), this study
contributes to the body of knowledge regarding game-based learning in school settings,
noting that educational applications enable a variety of benefits and advantages centered on
pedagogies that promote student activity, motivation, and involvement.
Perceptions on Game-Based Learning Approach
A four-point Likert scale was used to assess teacher participants' impressions of the gamebased learning strategy. Additionally, responses to this collection of items were determined tobe reliable for the sample mentioned in this study (i.e., Cronbach's alpha = 0.93). The
majority of participants (96%) agreed that GBL may increase students' enthusiasm to study,
can assist students in developing problem-solving skills, and is an effective method ofteaching basic skills. Around 94 percent of respondents agreed that GBL may assist students
in developing higher-order thinking skills and was an effective method of imparting lowerlevel factual and procedural knowledge. Around 4% of participants stated that learning
should not be required to be enjoyable.
In terms of student perspectives of game-based learning, 96 percent of participants agreed
that educational games provide numerous benefits. Ninety-four percent of respondents
believed that GBL could help them expand their knowledge of mathematics, whereas 92
percent believed that GBL could help them expand their understanding of mathematics.
Additionally, the majority of participants (87 percent) believe that game-based learning canhelp them apply what they've learned and desire additional opportunities to learn using agame-based method. Additionally, 82% of participants agree that games' point-based
incentive system contributes to continual learning. Additionally, more than half ofparticipants (58%) believe that online competitive games facilitate continual learning. On theother hand, just 5% of respondents agreed that learning should be devoid of fun as an
essential condition.
Attitudes on Game-Based Learning Approach
Four Likert-scale items were used to assess teachers' attitudes toward the usage of
instructional computer games in the classroom (responses to this set of items were
determined to be reliable, Cronbach's alpha = 0.76). Ninety-eight percent of participants
expressed an interest in and comfort with the use of digital games in the classroom. 97
percent of faculty in higher education feel that game-based learning will be a critical teachingtool in the coming years. Additionally, 96% of participants’ report being more adaptable inmeasuring their students' learning when they use educational digital games in the classroom,and 95% report feeling competent when they use computer games in the classroom.

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In terms of student attitudes toward game-based learning, 96 percent of participants
expressed a desire to learn all subjects through the use of an educational game. Ninety-three
percent prefer to study through games rather than through traditional classroom techniques,and 92 percent of participants anticipate that these educational games will be made available
online for convenient access. Additionally, the majority of participants (87 percent) statedthat they could learn at their own pace and in their own sequence.
Thus, both quantitative and qualitative findings indicate that "GBL positively impacts"
teaching/learning processes, which is consistent with the findings of Biffi et al. (2016), Chen,
Kuo, Lou, & Shih (2012), Kalloo & Mohan (2012 a & b), Kirikkaya, Iseri, & Vurkaya(2010), and Pinder (2013 & 2008).
Conclusions
The SIGBLA is a valid and reliable tool for evaluating these variables. Although additional
research is necessary to bolster the SIGBLA's future growth, preliminary data indicate that
this instrument is a well-validated and reasonably complete tool for identifying the elementsthat affect knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes. The stability of factors was tested in thisstudy, and all factors demonstrated a high level of internal consistency and reliability. As canbe observed from the study, useful insights can be gleaned that can serve as a foundation for
the researcher's development of an Interactive Mobile-Based Digital Game for Mathematics
Learning. The study's findings can be used to improve understanding of student and teacher
preferences and attitudes toward educational games.
The participants in this study possessed an exceptional understanding of game-basedlearning. Additionally, they had favorable attitudes regarding GBL and believed that byincorporating it into teaching and learning, they could broaden their knowledge ofmathematics. The findings were consistent with the teacher and student participants'
knowledge, views, and attitudes regarding game-based learning. The study's findings will
help policymakers make informed decisions about how to invest in such instructional gameapplications. As a result, more in-depth research is required for this type of decision-making
process.

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References
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Gee, J. P. (2005). Good video games and good learning. Phi Kappa Phi Forum, 85(2), 33–37.
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validity: Conducting a content validity
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application, attitudes and integration of video games: MinecraftEdu in middle school.
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MMOGs and the future of pre-service teacher education. Innovate: Journal of Online
Education, 2(3), 1–10.
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content/uploads/2014/10/jgcc_leveluplearning_final.pdf.

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Patterson R. R. (2011). Using the theory of planned behavior as a framework for theevaluation of a professional development workshop. Microbiology education, 2, 34–
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Contact email: joana_quinto@dlsu.edu.ph

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An Investigation to Examine Factors Influencing University Students’ Behavioral
Intention Towards the Acceptance of Brightspace LMS: Using SEM Approach
Lilian Yap, Wawasan Open University, Malaysia
Geok Ling Khoo, Wawasan Open University, Malaysia
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
Official Conference Proceedings
Abstract
Students' perceived usefulness (PU) and ease of use (PEOU) of Brightspace by D2L Learning
Management System were evaluated (LMS). Brightspace, a new cloud-based LMS weresubscribed at University W in January 2021, is a virtual learning environment with no space ortime constraints between instructors and students. It has interactive material, assessment,
curated resources, video upload, and student progress tracking. The Google Survey
Questionnaire was created online and sent to around 300 pupils through email. Online classes
were conducted in July 2021 in the small private education institution, University W. Tutors
were asked to assist to encourage students to complete the survey. Approximately 200 student
responses were solicited. The structural model analysis revealed that students' extrinsic values
influenced perceived usefulness positively. Also, intrinsic values had a beneficial impact onperceived usability. Similarly, perceived usefulness and ease of use positively influenced
behavioral intention.
Keywords: Technology Acceptance Model, Intrinsic Motivation, Extrinsic Motivation, System
Acceptanceiafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction

Technology is prompting colleges and universities to accelerate their use in higher education(Hernández et al., 2017). Because of this, instructors are challenged to utilize new technologies
to increase students' experiences and academic learning outcomes (Parkman et al., 2018).
A learning management system (LMS) is a web-based tool that allows students to learn online(Wichadee, 2015). By allowing the students to access the LMS 24/7, it is considered as aneffective means to deliver course content and instructions to the students, while enabling
instructors to create, plan implement, assess and manage course content (Bousbahi & Alrazgan,2015).
1.2

Research Problem

Education institutions globally spends millions to build and maintain their e-learning system
platform. Moodle and Blackboard are the more popular e-learning platforms, while otherinstitutions developed their own (Puteh, 2008). In Malaysia, the senior management of a small
private education institution, University W, decided to move away from Moodle and to partnerwith D2L Brightspace to integrate all aspects of online learning. University W was the firsteducation institution in Malaysia to partner the cloud based D2L Brightspace LMS in January
2021. D2L Brightspace is able to provide access anytime (24/7), anywhere, create a variety ofassessment; quizzes, assignments, online grade book, personalized feedback (Miller et al.,2020) and has an analytic component which will generate reports to help the institution to better
engage the students (Peters, 2021).
While an e-learning system may benefit students, its effectiveness is determined by theiracceptance.
1.3

Research Objectivesi.
ii.

To review the literature on the use of TAM to measure e-learning system acceptability.
To create a technology enhanced approach to assess student acceptability of
Brightspace LMS e-learning platform.
iii.
To study students' adoption of Brightspace LMS e-learning platform. (Four motivation
factors connected to system focus and user attributes were found. The variables areincorporated into the TAM to examine hypotheses.)2.

Literature Review

2.1

Theory of Reasonable Action (TRA) and Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB)

The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) is based on the psychology-based theory ofreasonable action (TRA) and theory of planned behavior (TPB) (Marangunić & Granić, 2015).
Fishbein & Ajzen (1980) assumed humans are logical and process information methodically.
An understanding of individual conduct and attitude was therefore created. The TRA uses
behavioural intents rather than attitudes to predict behavior. In their theoretical model, Ajzen
and Fishbein argued that an individual's actual action could be predicted based on their priorpurpose and desire for the given activity (Davis, 1986). Behavioral intention is the fundamental

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predictor of conduct, and the influence of attitude on behavior is mediated by intention. It was
acknowledged that the theory was competent but had some drawbacks. One of the flaws wasthat people couldn't regulate their own conduct and attitudes. Ajzen (1985) explained behavior
and attitude as being on a continuum of control. Illogical, complicated, or socially supported
behavior is unaccountable (Wright, 1998).
To address the individual's non-volatile control, Azjen added a third element, perceived
behavioural control, to the original theory, resulting in a new theory known as the Theory ofPlanned Behavior (TPB). TPB is TRA's extension. TPB is used to alleviate TRA inadequacies.
For example, a person's willingness to exert effort in knowledge, information, and skills
impacts whether or not they will engage in a certain action (Gist & Mitchell, 1992; Carr 2005).
In other words, the intention to do an action determines the individual's performance.
TPB has been severely criticized due to a significant flaw: it only works when some parts of
behavior are not within voluntary control. The theory assumes humans are rational and will
evaluate and systematize based on available facts, thereby ignoring hidden and undiscoveredneeds. Other issues include the assumption that perceived behavioural control predicts actual
behavioural control, which may not be the case (Mathieson, 1991). Despite their flaws, bothmodels can explain and predict human behavior. However, it failed to explain system(technology) acceptance or rejection in most research (Marangunić & Granić, 2015).
2.2

Technology Acceptance Model (TAM)

The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) was developed by Davis (1989) to predict
individual’s acceptance of information technology by measuring their behavioral intention.
The theory proposes that perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU) of
information technology are two important determinants in predicting individuals’ acceptanceand use of information technology; (1) perceived usefulness (PU) which is defined as “thedegree to which a person believes that using a particular system would enhance his or her job
performance”, and (2) perceived ease of use (PEOU) which is defined as “the degree to which
a person believes that using a particular system would be free of effort” (Davis, 1989). User’s
behavioral intention is defined as “a measure of the strength of one’s intention to perform a
specified behavior” (Davis et al., 1989).
TAM has been extensively investigated, extended, and demonstrated to be effective inmanagement information systems, information systems, and information technology adoption(Abbad et al., 2009; Mao & Palvia, 2006; Munguatosha et al., 2011). Studies by Asianzu(2012) found a substantial link between perceived usefulness and behavioural intention to use
the system. The findings were statistically significant. Koutromanos et al. (2015) found strong
support for TAM as a model for predicting students' adoption behavior.
TAM has both strengths and weaknesses. One major flaw was its inability to reveal
independent variable determinants (perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use). TAM'sother flaw is that it focuses on voluntary information systems, with no regard for mandatory
use. (Chuttur, 2009).

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The key concern in TAM study is to get a better understanding of potential variables that can
influence information system acceptance, such as variables that can be used to extend the TAM
and solve the research's unique element.
The current Covid-19 pandemic situation has changed education forever, giving a distinct riseto e-learning where learning is conducted remotely and on digital platforms (Li, C. & Lalani,F., 2020). Higher education institutions, continue to struggle with the use of e-learning
systems, such as the obstacles students’ face in their learning process; s decreased motivationin the students arising from delayed feedback or assistance as instructors may not be available
during the time when the students need help; the feeling of isolation due to lack of physicalpresence (Yusuf & Al-Banawi, 2013). However, according to Park (2009), little study has been
done on why students accept e-learning. To improve e-learning efficacy, teachers must firstunderstand student motivations.
2.3

Motivation

Motivation is thought to influence people's actions. To perform a given behavior, people must
be motivated (Lin, 2007). Extrinsic and intrinsic motivations exist. Extrinsic motivation refers
to “the performance of an activity because it leads to instrumental rewards” (R. Saadé & Bahli,2005), while Intrinsic motivation refers to the “engagement motivated by pleasure or
enjoyment” (Henderson & Lepper, 2002).
This study looked into the extrinsic and intrinsic factors that influence learners' acceptance of
LMS. Students' characteristics and system factors were divided into two groups in the study.
Beyond the TAM three constructs, the study found four external variables (i.e. perceived easeof use, perceived usefulness and behavioural intention).
Dimension
Extrinsic

Variable
Information Quality
Functionality
Enjoyment

Intrinsic

TAM

Group
SystemCharacteristic
SystemCharacteristic
SystemCharacteristic
User Characteristic

Learning Goals
Orientation
Perceived usefulness TAM
Perceived ease ofTAM
use
Behavioral intention TAM
Table 1: The Developed Model Variables

Type
Independent
Independent
Independent
Independent
Independent
Independent
Dependent

TAM research required hypotheses to guide model variable interactions (Al-Harbi, 2011; Choet al., 2009; M. K. Lee et al., 2005; Y.-H. Lee et al., 2013; Liu et al., 2010; Padilla-Meléndez
et al., 2013; Park, 2009; Sánchez & Hueros, 2010; Udo et al., 2012; Venkatesh & Davis, 2000).
The combined hypotheses governed the direction of each relationship between variables in thecreated model.

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Information Quality

Information quality is defined as quality of outputs the information system produces (DeLone& McLean, 1992). Huh et al. (1990) defined information quality as correctness, completeness,consistency, and currency. The importance of information quality in determining user pleasurehas been proven (Katerattanakul & Siau, 1999; Y.-C. Lee, 2006; McKinney et al., 2002).
Hughes et al. (2004) found that students appreciated online content and functionality up to 58
percent, whereas website usability and look were regarded at 20% and 10%, respectively.
An excellent e-learning content allows students to see its value (Tseng & Hsia, 2008).
Unreliable or inaccurate data may jeopardize student acceptance (Liao et al., 2006). However,students' acceptance may be influenced by the information quality provided by Brightspace
LMS. Students' adoption of Brightspace LMS is hypothesized in this study.
Hypothesis (H1): Information quality has a positive effect on the students’ perceived
usefulness of Brightspace LMS.
2.3.2

Functionality

Functionality is defined as the functions provided by an information system, i.e., an e-learning
system in this study, that enable the user/ e-learner to effectively achieve their goals (Cho etal., 2009). The system's usability affects student acceptability (Hong et al., 2005). Perceptionof usefulness precedes functionality, according to Davis (1989). The strongest predictor ofperceived usefulness, according to Hong et al. (2005). concluded that functioning was the mostimportant criterion of perceived usefulness.
An LMS can customize a learning environment. The LMS functional parts may provide online
course content, assignments, quizzes, and exams. This study sought to determine whether thefunctioning of Brightspace LMS affects students' acceptance or perceived usefulness. So thestudy hypothesizes a hypothesis to examine functioning.
Hypothesis (H2): Functionality has a positive effect on the students’ perceived usefulness of
the Brightspace LMS.
2.3.3

Enjoyment

Enjoyment is defined as “the activity of using a specific system is perceived to be enjoyable inits own right, aside from any performance consequences resulting from system use”
(Venkatesh, 2000). The intrinsic characteristics do alter students' perceptions, which is why
researchers in technology acceptance study use enjoyment (Venkatesh & Bala, 2008).
Enjoyment was reported to diminish the perception of activities performed by users on novel
systems (R. G. Saadé et al., 2008). To better understand student technology acceptance, adesire for a thorough understanding of the intrinsic and extrinsic factors was suggested.
Therefore, the research hypothesizes a hypothesis to investigate the effect of enjoyment.
Hypothesis (H3): Enjoyment has a positive effect on the students’ perceived ease of use of theBrightspace LMS.

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Learning Goals Orientation

Learning goal orientation is an intrinsic motivation that refers to the “motivation to constantly
improve one's competencies”(Runhaar et al., 2010). Learning goal orientation refers to thedifficult task of improving knowledge and skills. Learning difficulties were to be consideredas part of their learning (Mun & Hwang, 2003). Student acceptance of web-based information
systems is determined by perceived ease of use (Mun & Hwang, 2003). In order to study the
influence of learning goal orientation, the research hypothesizes.
Hypothesis (H4): Learning goal orientation has a positive effect on the students’ perceived
ease of use of the Brightspace LMS.
2.3.5

Perceived Ease of Use & Perceived Usefulness

The TAM model's two primary parts are perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use.
(Davis, 1989; Venkatesh, 2000; Venkatesh & Bala, 2008). Perceived usefulness is defined as"the degree to which a person believes that using a particular system would enhance his or her
job performance" (Davis, 1989). Perceived ease of use is defined as "the degree to which aperson believes that using a particular system would be free of effort" (Davis, 1989).
Perceived usefulness has been used to anticipate word processor and spreadsheet system
acceptability, user intentions, telecommuting technologies, online and wireless site usability,
and system usage (Alrafi, 2007). The validity of perceived usefulness as a predictor of
propensity to use IT was validated by (Davis et al., 1989).
Researchers have commonly utilized perceived usefulness to assess the success of e-learning
systems (Hsieh & Cho, 2011; Hussein et al., 2007; Johnson et al., 2008; Joo et al., 2011; J.-K.
Lee & Lee, 2008; Limayem & Cheung, 2008).
A few studies have identified a link between perceived ease of use and e-learning behavior
intention. It was either direct or indirect. (Alharbi & Drew, 2014; Boateng et al., 2016; Farahat,
2012; Haryanto & Kultsum, 2016; Kanwal & Rehman, 2017; Mahmodi, 2017; Martínez-Torres
et al., 2008; Park, 2009; Vidanagama, 2016).
Thus, the study proposes two hypotheses to examine the effect of perceived usefulness andperceived ease of use.
Hypothesis (H5): Perceived ease of use has a positive effect on the students’ behavioral
intentions to use the Brightspace LMS.
Hypothesis (H6): Perceived usefulness has a positive effect on the students’ behavioral
intentions to use the Brightspace LMS.

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Figure 1: Theoretical Framework
3.

Research Methodology

An online survey was conducted across University W during the May 2021 semester, to explore
students’ e-learning usage motivation and Brightspace LMS system acceptance. The online
survey questionnaire was developed and created on Google Form and was distributed toapproximately 300 students via email. Brightspace LMS was introduced to the University W’s
students since January 2021 semester, thus we deduced that students have little or someexperience with D2L Brightspace LMS.
This study proposed an enhanced Technology Acceptance Model utilizing SEM with Smart
PLS. The survey results were cleaned and four incomplete questionnaires were eliminated. Hairet al. (2013) said the suggested sample size for PLS-SEM depended on i) confidence intervalof 5%, ii) statistical power of 80% iii) minimum coefficient of determination 𝑅" values of atleast 0.25 and iv) the maximum number of arrows pointing to a latent variable. While
Marcoulides & Saunders (2006) state that for maximum 2 arrows pointing a latent variable, asample size of 52 is necessary. Prior studies indicated a sample size of 100-200. (Hoyle, 1995).
SMARTPLS was used to evaluate roughly 200 questionnaire replies.
4.

Findings

4.1

Common Method Variance (CMV)

Podsakoff et al. (2012) highlighted those estimated relationships could be biased if measured
using a single survey instrument. Therefore, this study used the Harmon single-factor analysis
and confirmatory factor analysis to assess the impact of CMV (Podsakoff et al., 2003). The
principal axis factoring on all measurement items showed that the total variance explained was
49.75%. Also, the second test results using confirmatory factor analysis by modelling all items
as the indicators of a single factor indicated a poor fit (CMIN/DF=5.846, p=0.000). In
conclusion, this study does not suffer from the CMV problem.
4.2

Assessment of Measurement Model

Three assessments were used to assess the goodness of the measurement model: internalconsistency reliability, convergent validity, and discriminant validity. Hair et al. (2011)

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proposed that composite reliability (CR) should be above 0.7 to indicate internal consistency
reliability. On the other hand, outer loading and average variance extracted (AVE) has been
computed to assess the convergent validity. Loading values equal or greater than 0.7 and AVE
value greater than 0.5 demonstrate convergent validity has been achieved (Hair et al., 2011).
Lastly, Heterotrait-Monotrait Ratio of Correlations (HTMT) approach proposed by Henseler
et al. (2015) was adopted in this study to analyze the discriminant validity issues. Gold et al.
(2001) mentioned that HTMT.90 value should be lower than 0.90 to indicate no discriminant
validity issues. On top of that, Henseler et al. (2015) further emphasized that the confidence
interval of HTMT values should not include a zero value to indicate any potential discriminant
validity issues. Table 2 and Table 3 present the measurement model and HTMT analysis
results. The results showed that the measurement model in this study is valid and reliable.
Constructs
Loadings
AVE
CR(Threshold value)
≥0.7
>0.5
>0.7
Information Quality
0.898
INFOQTY1
0.812
0.928
INFOQTY2
0.913
INFOQTY3
0.893
Functionality
0.781
FUNCTION1
0.683
0.896
FUNCTION2
0.873
FUNCTION3
0.835
FUNCTION4
0.814
Enjoyment
0.942
ENJOY1
0.861
0.949
ENJOY2
0.919
ENJOY3
0.922
Learning Goals Orientation
0.842
LEARNGOALS1
0.698
0.902
LEARNGOALS2
0.842
LEARNGOALS3
0.853
LEARNGOALS4
0.803
Perceived Usefulness
PUSEFUL2
0.934
0.916
0.956
PUSEFUL3
0.913
Perceived Ease of Use
0.916
PEOU2
0.768
0.908
0.890
PEOU3
Behavioral Intention
0.848
BINTENTION4
0.805
0.943
0.920
BINTENTION2
0.923
BINTENTION3
0.897
BINTENTION4
Notes: AVE, average variance extracted; CR, composite reliability. PUSEFUL1 was dropped
due to low loading value and PEOU1 was dropped to improve the discriminant validity.
Table 2. Measurement Model Analysis Results

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Table 3: HTMT Analysis
4.3

Assessment of Structural Model

4.3.1

Assessment of Coefficient of Determination, R2

The model’s predictive accuracy in this study was evaluated using the coefficient ofdetermination, R2. The R2 indicated that information quality and functionality demonstrated amoderate level of predictive accuracy on perceived usefulness (R2 = 0.501). Meanwhile,
enjoyment and learning goals orientation showed a weak level of predictive accuracy onperceived ease of use (R2 = 0.431). Despite that, both perceived usefulness and perceived easeof use illustrated a moderate level of predictive accuracy on behavioral intention (R2 = 0.650).
4.3.2

Level of Path Coefficients Analysis

Bootstrapping procedure with 5000 subsamples was conducted to estimate the level of pathcoefficients. Similarly, Cohen’s f2 was computed as well to examine the effect size. f2 valuesof 0.35, 0.15, and 0.02 are considered large, medium, and small effect sizes (Cohen, 1988).
Results from the bootstrapping procedure showed that information quality (β=0.332, p<0.01;
f2=0.099) and functionality (β=0.429, p<0.01; f2=0.165) both showed a positive influence on
perceived usefulness. Also, enjoyment (β=0.578, p<0.01; f2=0.506) and learning goals
orientation (β=0.169, p<0.01; f2=0.043) exerted a positive influence on perceived ease of use.
Likewise, perceived ease of use (β=0.422, p<0.01; f2=0.329) and perceived usefulness(β=0.481, p<0.01; f2=0.425) is found to influence behavioral intention positively. As a result,
all the hypothesis proposed in this study was supported. Table 3 showed the structural model
analysis results. Figure 2 showed the main effects.
Hypothesis
H1
H2
H3

RelationshipInformation Quality →Perceived Usefulness
Functionality →Perceived Usefulness
Enjoyment →Perceived Ease of Use

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Beta

Std
Error

t-value

Decision

0.332

0.085

3.914**

0.429

0.085

0.578

0.056

315

f2

Supported 0.099

5%
CI
LL
0.030

95%
CI
UL
0.213

5.052**

Supported 0.165

0.072

0.330

10.399**Supported 0.506

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H40.169 0.066 2.571** Supported 0.043
Learning Goals Orientation→ Perceived Ease of Use
H50.481 0.063 7.618** Supported 0.425
Perceived Usefulness →Behavioral Intention
H6
0.422 0.067 6.275** Supported 0.329
Perceived Ease of Use →Behavioral Intention
Notes: **p < 0.01 (one-tailed)
Table 4. Structural Model Analysis Results

0.006

0.128

0.237

0.730

0.164

0.599

Notes: **p < 0.01 (one-tailed)Figure 2. Results of the Main Effect5.

Conclusion

This research aims to address the gap in the technology acceptance research by extending thetechnology acceptance model to explain students’ acceptance of Brightspace LMS in
University W. The developed model consisted of four motivation variables and three TAM
constructs. The research also focused on examining the effect of extrinsic and intrinsic
motivation variables on the students’ acceptance of Brightspace LMS.
Research Objective 1:i.
To review the literature on the use of TAM to measure e-learning system acceptability.
Literature review was conducted to discuss the evolvement from TRA to TPB and finally theTAM was developed.
ii.

Research Objective 2:
To create a technology enhanced approach to assess student acceptability of
Brightspace LMS e-learning platform.
Four motivation variables were added to enhanced the Technology Acceptance Model; two
extrinsic motivation variables – information quality and functionality, and two intrinsic

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motivation variables – enjoyment and learning goal orientation, to study University W’s
students’ acceptance of Brightspace LMS.
Research Objective 3:
iii.
To study students' adoption of Brightspace LMS e-learning platform. (Four motivation
factors connected to system focus and user attributes were found. The variables areincorporated into the TAM to examine hypotheses.)
The coefficient of determination, R2 demonstrated that information quality and functionality
was able to predict the accuracy of perceived usefulness at 50.1% while enjoyment and learning
goal orientation was able to predicated perceived ease of use at 43.1%. However, both
perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use were able to predict the accuracy on behavioral
intention at 65%.
The results showed significance of the intrinsic variables towards students’ acceptance ofBrightspace LMS. Enjoyment was perceived as the stronger important determinant of thesystem ease of use. Enjoyment (H3) was the strongest determinant of behavioral intention (β= 0.578, P-value ≤ 0.01). This was further confirmed by Davis et al. (1992) that enjoyment as
an intrinsic motivation is critical towards user intention to use information systems. The html
interface design and its functions may have contributed to students' enjoyment of theBrightspace LMS. According to Cyr et al. (2006), the system interface design determines thesatisfaction level. Enjoying the LMS increases student acceptability (R. G. Saadé et al., 2008).
Perceived ease of use influenced both enjoyment and learning goal orientation.
Extrinsic characteristics were also found to be significant in determining students' approval of
Brightspace LMS, with functionality being the strongest determinant of system usefulness.
Functionality (H2) effect perceived usefulness (β = 0.429, P-value ≤ 0.01). Students achieved
their learning outcomes with the support of an online quiz, online assignment evaluation,
learning forums, and html online course content with url connections to audios, videos, andinternet content. Students will learn more effectively and appreciate the system's usefulness if
it is fully working (Cho et al., 2009). Functionality and information quality had an indirect
effect on behavioral intention via perceived usefulness.
From the TAM model constructs, perceived usefulness had the stronger determinant towards
students’ behavioral intention to use Brightspace LMS. Perceived ease of use (β=0.422,
p<0.01; f2=0.329) and perceived usefulness (β=0.481, p<0.01; f2=0.425). Perceived usefulness
is the more important determinant of students’ behavioral intention because students would be
able to achieved the course learning outcomes by performing fundamental tasks such as reading
online course content, participating in the course quiz and assignment assessment, discussion
forums and online chats forums (Van Raaij & Schepers, 2008). By achieving these course
learning outcomes, the students will perceive the Brightspace LMS as useful and thus leadingthem towards system acceptance.

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Contact Email: llyap@wou.edu.myglkhoo@wou.edu.my

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The Development and Preliminary Evaluation of Learners’ Flow State of an Online
Decision-making Detective Game
Chih-Chen Kuo, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Tzu- Hsuan Wang, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Huei-Tse Hou, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
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Abstract
Information integration and decisions-making competence have gained much attention in many
fields. Assisting learners to have efficient logical reasoning and to make accurate decisions,and further form their decision-making patterns is a great issue. Therefore, exploring learners’
status and process in the decision-making game is the foundation for future learning andteaching. The study developed an online detective game to explore learners' flow state as a pilot
study. The scenario of this game is to provide the exact position of the missing girl with limited
time. The learning goal of this game is to analyze the clues in the game, applying any online
tools and information to locate the missing girl’s position precisely. There are 48 participants
above 20 years old from E-recruitment and participate in the study online. Preliminary results
suggested that participants’ flow state revealed their high engagement in the game. According
to one sample t-test, all nine dimensions of flow are higher than median 3. The learners revealed
that they perceived well flow antecedents, especially challenge–skill balance, goals of anactivity, control are high above 3.5. Even action–awareness merging which is relatively
difficult to achieve high in similar game-based learning was high as well. As for flow
experience, concentration, the transformation of time, and autotelic experience were highabove 4. The designs and mechanism of this game based on cognitive theory are clear to guidelearner joining and engage learners in the game. Future study can explore the effects ofprovided scaffoldings and learning behavior patterns.
Keywords: Educational Online Game, Game-Based Learning, Decision Making, Flowiafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Decision-making is an important topic in many fields for decades. Decision-making training
has gained more attention. Game-based learning (GBL) describes an environment where gamecontent and game play enhance knowledge and skills acquisition, and where game activities
involve problem solving spaces and challenges that provide players/learners with a sense ofachievement (e.g., Kirriemuir & McFarlane, 2004; McFarlane, Sparrowhawk, & Heald, 2002;
Prensky, 2001). During the pandemic period, DGBL became an important alternative and trend
in education. DGBL is an approach, where digital games and instructional materials were
integrated together. This is due to the fact that DGBL provides students with opportunities totake the initiative in their learning by analyzing, synthesizing, evaluating, and performing
higher-order thinking skills, such as critical thinking and problem-solving (Dindar, 2018;
Yang, 2015). Moreover, DGBL can potentially improve learning motivation (Huizenga,
Admiraal, Akkerman, & ten Dam, 2009), provide immediate feedback (Yang, Lin, & Liu,
2017), develop complex problem-solving skills (Eseryel, Law, Ifenthaler, Ge, & Miller, 2014),
reduce anxiety (Pham Q, Khatib Y, Stansfeld S, et al, 2016) and enhance learning performance(Chen & Lin, 2016; Wang & Chen, 2010).
State of flow, referring to high levels of engagement, is important to enhance performance andother learning outcomes. Students with high flow are fully involved in the activity referred tohigh levels of interactivity, challenge, and feedback (Engeser, 2012). Several researchers havefound a positive correlation between students’ flow experiences and learning outcomes ingame-based learning environments (Hsu & Lu, 2004; Kiili, 2005). Correspondingly, theseimportant factors in students’ game flow experiences should be considered when applying
game-based learning.
According to Young et al. (2012), successful GBL is not simply providing students with a gameand expecting increased motivation and knowledge acquisition; therefore, educational games
need to be designed and researched with careful attention to contemporary learning theories.
Game designs without appropriate learning/cognitive theories as base would cause negative
effect (Charsky & Ressler, 2011; Hong, Cheng, Hwang, Lee, & Chang, 2009; Hwang, Sung,
Hung, & Huang, 2012; Provenzo, 1992).
Developing educational game to optimize engagement is necessary. Therefore, gamemechanisms of educational games need to be designed and researched with careful attention to
integrate instructional strategies and contemporary learning theories (Young et al., 2012;
Kebritchi, 2008).
Situated learning (Brown et al., 1989) refers that learner can explore the knowledge andcultivate competence in the real-world context. Game-based learning are gradually applied indifferent fields of education and provide vivid learning experience (Prensky, 2003). Simulation
games scenarios and roles-play may enhance performance (Bayir, 2014; Hou & Lin, 2015; Hou& Liu, 2015; Hou et al., 2016), promote learners’ motivation and engagement in learning (Bos
& Shami, 2006; Pata, Lehtinen, & Sarapuu, 2006; Wishart, Oades, & Morris, 2007). This study
developed an educational digital game based on cognitive theories and flow theories (Lin &Hou ,2016; Hou & Lin, 2015; Hou & Liu, 2015; Hou et al., 2016) – Finding the little girl Yu
to promote students’ engagement and achievement in decision making training.

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Methods
Game Design- Finding the little girl Yu
The game employed in this study was Finding the little girl Yu, a detective and reasoning
educational game to train decision-making ability developed by National Taiwan Universityof Science and Technology Mini Educational Game (NTUST-MEG) research group. Due tocovid-19, this is a virtual version; this game designed on Google earth and google document
and learners communicate through google meet. Also, they can use all the information andresource from internet. Finding the little girl Yu integrates situated learning with a lost girlYu case, learners have to use their observation, clue analysis, strategy planning and mostimportant decision-making ability. The main game mechanism is clue analysis to promotelearners to observe the detail of the clues from the police. Then, learners through decisionmaking and strategy planning provide the final position of little girl Yu to the police. The
whole game is shown as Figure 1 and Figure 2 is the capture shoot of Finding the little girlYu game experiment.
The participants of this study were 48 participants from e-recruitment from Taiwan and weregrouped into 3 people group(n=12) for the learning activity. To evaluate learners’ state offlow, this study referred to Kiili’s flow scale (2006), which was translated and revised by Houand Chou (2012). The flow scale includes two dimensions, namely the flow antecedent andflow experience. All scales were scored on a five-point Likert scale. The reliability of the flowquestionnaire of group team (Cronbach’s alpha=0.87) and personal team (Cronbach’s
alpha=0.88) showed high internal consistency.

Figure 1. Content of Finding the little girl Yu

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Figure 2. Capture Shoot of Finding the little girl Yu Game Experiment
ProcedureGame instruction
Playing game
Posttest
Interview

Table 1. Research Procedure
Session time
Description
10 minutes
Game instruction and familiar with the game
60 minutes
Each group starts play the game.
10 minutes
After playing the game, students were asked
to complete Flow scale and game acceptancewere administered in this session.
10 minutes
Interview each players their experience andfeedback about the gameTo evaluate the game Finding the little girl Yu, a 90 minutes learning activity was employed.
The procedure was shown in Table 1. Participants joined in the google meet for game
instruction. They collaborate to finish the task through communicate with google meet andgoogle document. After they all were familiar with the game and interface, they started thegame on google earth. After learners completed playing the game, they then took flow scale
survey.
Results and Discussions
Finding the little girl Yu, was developed based on cognitive theories, flow theories andsituated learning. The game was to assist students to train their decision-making ability. This
preliminary research was to evaluate the game with the learners’ state of flow.
Table2 revealed the descriptive analysis and one sample t test of the learners’ flow state. As
shown in Table 2, students in general positively evaluated the game – Finding the little girlYu and the overall flow score (M=3.98, SD=0.44) significantly higher than median 3 (t=15.24,
p<0.00). Regarding flow antecedents, Finding the little girl Yu provided clear goals andfeedback, sense of control and playable. These positive perceptions of flow antecedents
revealed that this game had features to assist student positively engaging in the game.
Especially challenge–skill balance, goals of an activity, control are high above 3.5. However,
one thing to note is that action–awareness merging was significant difference from median 3.
This result was different from previous researches (Chen & Hou,2020; Kuo et al., 2018). Thisfinding might be attributed to the nature of this game was designed for training ability andprevious studies mainly focus on specific domain knowledge. In this game, learners knew
what they were doing and what they were doing for. In knowledge based educational game,

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the learning goal were wrapped in the game mechanism and rule, learners would not easily
perceive they were learning. Therefore, both game design and the type of educational gamemight be the reason. Regarding the flow experience, concentration, the transformation of time,and autotelic experience were high above 4. The result showed that learners had engaged in
the game.
Table 2 Descriptive Analysis and One Sample T Test of Learners’ Flow
Dimension
Cronbach’s
M
SD
t
p
Alpha
Flow antecedents
3.86
0.44
0.73
13.33***
0.00
Challenge-skill
3.71
0.62
0.33
7.94***
0.00
balance
Goals of an activity
4.28
0.51
0.33
17.24***
0.00
Unambiguous
3.62
0.64
0.52
6.68***
0.00
Feedback
Control
3.93
0.78
0.64
8.22***
0.00
Action–awareness
***
3.73
0.66
0.24
7.66
0.00
merging
Flow experience
4.08
0.55
0.85
13.56***
0.00
Concentration
4.38
0.70
0.89
13.56***
0.00***
Time distortion
4.15
0.90
0.82
8.90
0.00
Autotelic experience
4.33
0.68
0.90
13.48***
0.00
Loss
of
self3.10
0.93
0.68
0.77
0.44
consciousness
Overall Flow
3.98
0.44
0.87
15.24***
0.00*
p<.05 ** p<.01 *** p<.001
Conclusions and Limitations
To sum up, Finding the little girl Yu integrating situated learning and clue analysis withcognitive design was a well-designed educational game to engage learners. Both group teamand personal team learners involved in the game.
The context of finding a lost girl was embedded in the game to enhance the degree of situation
and authenticity, which further enabled student being more immersed in game to engage
learners and promote decision-making training. This preliminary study showed students’positive evaluation in terms of engagement Especially, action–awareness merging was
significant difference from median 3. Which is different from previous researches (Chen &Hou,2020; Kuo et al., 2018). The reason might be that the nature of this game was designed
for training ability and previous studies mainly focus on specific domain knowledge.
For the further study, deep analysis of ARCS, anxiety, motivation, gender, high/low learners’
difference, and decision-making process behavior will be conducted. Also, how scaffoldingin the game might help student to learn better will be investigated. Lastly, interview is needed
for further understanding learning gain and triangulation as well.

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Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the projects from the US Air Force Office of Scientific
Research (AFOSR) project (20IOA038) and Ministry of Science and Technology, Republic ofChina, under contract number MOST- 107-2511-H-011 -003 -MY3, MOST-108-2511-H-011-003 -MY3.

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Why Don’t You Play the Game? Evaluating the Use of Gamification in an Undergraduate
Finance Course
Alfonso Miguel N. Sevidal, Ateneo de Manila University, Philippines
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Abstract
The board game Monopoly is used as a gamification tool in an undergraduate finance course
in a private business school in the Philippines. The use of Monopoly as a gamification tool isevaluated using Han’s (2015) adaptation of the spiral curriculum and Landers's (2015) theoryof gamified learning. According to Han, the spiral curriculum “is the circular model best
suited to gamification as pedagogy because it allows students to learn and practice basic
skills in order to master advanced tasks.” Meanwhile, Landers’s theory of gamified learning
posits that “gamification affects learning via moderation when an instructional designer
intends to encourage a behavior or attitude that will increase learning outcomes.” In theundergraduate finance course, the Monopoly board game is used as (i) a means to teach basic
principles of financial statement analysis and financial forecasting, consistent with the spiralcurriculum and (ii) a moderating tool to help influence key attitudes brought about by priorexperiences and preconceived notions on the subject, consistent with Landers’s theory ofgamified learning. Findings obtained via a qualitative explanatory approach from 101
undergraduate business students suggest that the use of the Monopoly board game is effective
as a gamification tool, as seen in students’ ability to proceed to more advanced topics in thefinance course and new opinions on finance as expressed at the end of the course.
Recommendations for future study include using a control group, conducting studies at the
beginning and end of the course, applying quantitative methods, and addressing exogenous
factors that may affect the results.
Keywords: Finance Education, Gamification, Gamified Learning, Moderation, Spiral
Curriculum

iafor
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Introduction and Review of Related Literature
The study revolves around evaluating the use of gamification in a finance course forundergraduate business students. The gamification tool used is the board game Monopoly,
which is used as a learning medium for financial statement analysis and financial forecasting.
The research evaluates the use of gamification in an undergraduate finance course using two
major frameworks: (i) Han’s (2015) adaptation of the spiral curriculum and (ii) Landers’s(2015) theory of gamified learning. The use of gamified learning is evaluated via a qualitative
explanatory approach. The research concludes with suggestions on future research on thesubject matter.
Gamification is defined as “using game design elements in non-game contexts to motivate
and increase user activity and retention” (Deterding et al., 2011).
In the context of learning, Landers (2015) defines gamification as “the use of game elements,
including action language, assessment, conflict/challenge, control, environment, gamefiction, human interaction, immersion, and rules/goals, to facilitate learning and related
outcomes.” For Dichey and Dicheva (2017), gamification in education refers to “theintroduction of game design elements and ‘gameful’ experiences in the design of learning
processes.” In the context of this study, gamification of learning is used interchangeably with
gamified learning, game-based learning, gamified pedagogy, and other variants of the term.
Substantial research has emerged on the evident benefits of gamification for learning andeducation. Tasnim (2012) states that “the use of non-traditional interventions, such as games”
are “valuable teaching methods.” Shubik (2002) argues that games “help to raise questions
relating to the relationship between a game and the reality the game represents.” Similarly,
Cruz et al. (2018) identify the ability “to relate theoretical content to practical reality” as a
key benefit of gamification.
A key benefit cited in previous research was influencing learners’ attitudes, activities, andbehaviors, such as increasing motivation or improving engagement among learners.
Caponetto et al. (2014) posit that gamification “has been adopted to support learning” and“[has been adopted] to address related attitudes, activities, and behaviors.” Dichey andDicheva (2017) believe that gamification is “a developing approach for increasing learnings’
motivation and engagement by incorporating game design elements in educational
environments.” Buckley, E. Doyle, and S. Doyle (2015) refer to gamification as a“pedagogical innovation that may increase student engagement and enhance learning.”
Similarly, Meesuk and Srisawasdi (2014) posit that “developing game-based learning could
enhance students’ motivation, perception, and learning outcome.” For Tasnim (2012), games
that include a prior or post-game analysis “promote greater involvement of classes, therefore
causing a lasting effect on learning.”
Findings on the efficacy of gamification in learning are mixed. Buckley, E. Doyle, and S.
Doyle (2015) suggest that gamified learning may “suit some students and their learning styles
better than others.” Dichey and Dicheva (2017) state that there is “still insufficient evidence”
that gamification “produces reliable, valid, and long-lasting educational outcomes, or does so
better than traditional educational models.” Bauer, Callan, and Landers (2015) admit that“many potential pitfalls of gamification implementations are not yet well explored.”

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Gamification has been identified as a “valuable teaching method” for business andentrepreneurship classes, where the three most applied teaching methods are lectures, casestudies, and group discussions (Tasnim, 2012).
Board games have been identified as an effective device for gamification. Educational board
games are said to encourage students’ learning motivation (LeBlanc & Bearison, 2014); to
increase learning achievement (Hou & Lin, 2015); and to enhance students’ motivation,
perceptions, and participation of learning in the classroom (Chen et al., 2020). In a study
conducted by Chen et al. at a junior high school in Northern Taiwan, students thatparticipated in gamified learning via board games were found to show “marginally reduced
math anxiety.” Chen et al. suggest that “students’ engagement in the gamification
instructional activity leads to their better learning performance.”
Tasnim (2012) highlights that a board game “is inexpensive, easy to adapt both indoors andoutdoors, and with proper debriefing, becomes a valuable tool for fun and experiential
learning.” Cruz et al. (2018) similarly highlight the affordability of board games as learning
devices. Chen et al. (2020) cite the wide implementation of card games and board games—
collectively known as “unplugged games”—for subjects like chemistry, creative thinking,environmental chemistry, and mathematics.
There is a dearth of literature that tackles the use of gamification in business education at theundergraduate level. Almirall, Romero, and Usart (2011) cite how game-based learning “hasbeen of great efficacy to practice the concepts and procedures learnt” in an undergraduate
finance course. deCos (2015) offers a tangential remark, though not in the university setting,suggesting that “banks could use gamification as an effective way to promote their brand andgrow their customer base by delivering financial education to children.” A previous study
worth noting is that of Cruz et al. (2018), who used the Monopoly board game in three classes
on “Investment Analysis.” Monopoly is a classic board game that involves the buying,selling, development, and leasing of properties. According to Cruz et al., results obtained in
the classroom were “very positive” after the use of Monopoly as a teaching tool.
Methodology
This section begins with a discussion of the two major theoretical frameworks used, followed
by a discussion on how gamified learning was implemented for undergraduate financecourses in a private business school in the Philippines. The two major frameworks used are(i) Han’s (2015) adaptation of the spiral curriculum and (ii) Landers’s (2015) theory ofgamified learning.
Theoretical Framework: Spiral Curriculum
The first major theoretical framework used is the spiral curriculum as adapted by Han (2015).
Initially conceptualized by Jerome Bruner (Gibbs, 2014), the spiral curriculum involves
students revisiting a topic several times and achieving mastery learning. With the spiralcurriculum, “the complexity of the topic is increased with each visit so the new learning isconnected to the old learning.” As such, “curriculum and content build upon one another,
supposedly in skill growth as well as content complexity and depth.”

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Figure 1: Key Features of Spiral Curriculum
Han argues that the spiral curriculum “is the circular model best suited to gamification as
pedagogy because it allows students to learn and practice basic skills in order to masteradvanced tasks.” According to Han, “students may become more self-motivated learners
interested in learning more from the course content and from each other” with a gamified
pedagogy.
Theoretical Framework: Landers’s Theory of Gamified Learning
According to Landers’ theory of gamified learning (2015), gamification “affects learning via
moderation when an instructional designer intends to encourage a behavior or attitude thatwill increase learning outcomes by making pre-existing instruction better in some way.”Through what Landers refers to as a “moderating process,” the relationship between
instructional design quality and outcomes is strengthened.

Figure 2: Illustration of Landers’ Theory of Gamified Learning (2015)
Landers’s theory has four propositions: that (i) instructional content influences learning
outcomes and behaviors; (ii) behaviors/attitudes influence learning; (iii) game characteristics
influence changes in behavior/attitudes; (iv) game elements affect behaviors attitudes thatmoderate instructional effectiveness; and (v) the relationship between game elements andlearning outcomes is mediated by behaviors/attitudes.

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Proposition

1

Instructional content influences
learning outcomes andbehaviors.

2

Behaviors/attitudes influencelearning.

3

Game characteristics influencechanges in behavior/attitudes.

4

Game elements affectbehaviors/attitudes thatmoderate instructional
effectiveness.

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Landers’s Explanation
The goal of gamification cannot be to replace
instruction, but instead to improve it. If the
instructional content does not already help students
learn, gamification of that content cannot itself
cause learning.
Gamification that provides rewards for high-quality
notes or allows learners to control the frequency ofmeta-cognitive reminders is likely to improvelearning.
In the context of gamification, any behavior or
attitude can be targeted because this behaviour or
attitude is the outcome of the gamification effort.
The degree to which gamification efforts caneffectively create or increase such behaviors andattitudes remains an unanswered empirical question.
The goal may be to increase student effort(behaviors) or simply to convey to students thatassignments are fun (an attitude). By gamifying thiscourse, the instructor likely hopes students willcomplete more assignments and with greater
enthusiasm.

The inclusion of a game element would have noeffect on learning if the instructional design was notalready sound.
In the theory of gamified learning, for gameelements to be effective via the mediating process,The relationship between game game elements must cause the target behavior andelements and learning outcomes the target behaviour must increase learning. For
5
is mediated byexample, if gamification successfully created an
behaviors/attitudes.
impression of fun in students, but that fun did notaffect learning, the game elements would ultimately
have no effect on learning.
Figure 3: Propositions of Landers’ Theory of Gamified Learning (2015); Explanations
Directly Quoted from Landers
Gamified Learning in an Undergraduate Course
The board game Monopoly is used as a gamification tool in an undergraduate finance course
in a private business school at a Philippine-based university. In this business school, students
typically take two courses (six units) of accounting prior to taking the finance course (threeunits) in discussion. The two accounting courses are (i) financial accounting, which covers
introductory accounting concepts, financial statements, and financial ratio analysis; and (ii)managerial accounting, which covers cost-volume-profit analysis, variances, budgeting, andcapital budgeting. The finance course tackles financial statement analysis, financial
forecasting, time value of money, capital budgeting, fixed-income, and equities.

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Financial Accounting
Introduction to Accounting

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Managerial Accounting

FinanceFinancial Statement Analysis

Journaling, Ledger, TAccount, Trial Balance,
Adjusting Entries

Cost-Volume-Profit Analysis

Financial Forecasting

Variances

Time Value of Money

Budgeting

Capital Budgeting

Capital Budgeting

Fixed-Income

Balance Sheet
Income Statement
Cash Flow Statement
Equities
Ratio Analysis
Figure 4: Topic Coverage of Accounting and Finance Courses
The syllabus of the finance course where gamified learning was applied is structured asfollows: It begins with financial statement analysis, transitions to financial forecasting,proceeds to time value of money, then concludes with applications of time of value of money
such as capital budgeting, fixed-income, and equities. Instruction for the course is delivered
both synchronously through live lectures and asynchronously via online modules and prerecorded lectures. The course assessments include long exams, essays, presentations, and acapstone project; there are assessments done individually and assessments done with learning
teams. The capstone project involves the analysis and valuation of a publicly-listed company;
the capstone project is divided into smaller tasks, including the recording of historicalfinancial statements, analyzing macroeconomic and industry trends, analyzing company
strategy, generating financial forecasts, and valuating the publicly-listed company.

Figure 5: Finance Course Structure
In this finance course, the Monopoly board game is used to moderate learning in (i) financial
statement analysis and (ii) financial forecasting. Students are instructed to play three onehour rounds of Monopoly and record their transactions while doing so. They are tasked todevelop the financial statements (income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement)
in a Microsoft Excel file and construct a short write-up explaining key trends seen in theirfinancial statements. The relevant financial accounts in this assessment include cash;
property, plant, and equipment; equity; rental revenue; rental expense; non-recurring items

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Official Conference Proceedings(e.g. Chance, Community Chest); and tax. The students are then tasked with extending theirfinancial statements into financial forecasts.
Description in Monopoly Gameplay
1.
Each Monopoly round is like one calendar year. Meaning, you continue where youleft off in the previous round. That means the starting balances of your balance sheet for
the new round are the ending balances of the previous round.
2.
For the Microsoft Excel file with your financial statements, use formulas to generate
net/total amounts (e.g. total assets, net income). Do not hardcode computational items!
3.
Place the item breakdown for your revenue, costs, and properties in the input tabs
(Revenue, Costs, PPE). Then link the resulting totals or net values to the balance sheet,income statement, and cash flow statement.
4.
Be careful when classifying accounts. It is tempting to lump all payments andnegative cash flows as operating expenses--double-check the nature of transactions arisingfrom Chance and Community Chest cards! Some are loans, capital stock, etc. and should becorrespondingly classified in the right accounts.
5.
Suppose a player landed on a property and did not buy, Monopoly rules call for abidding process to see who gets ownership of the property. If you bought a property for an
amount above or below its market value (the price on the board), make sure to note theseas capital gains/losses.
6.
Assume straight-line depreciation. Assume the following useful lives and zerosalvage value.
•
Property - 30 years•
Railroads - 20 years•
Utilities - 40 years
7.
If a player runs out of cash, he/she has the following options to avail of cash:•
Mortgage - subject to normal Monopoly rules•
Short-term loan - maximum of 80% of fair value of most expensive property, to be
charged interest rate of 2.5% per round•Long-term loan - maximum of 200% of fair value of most expensive property, to be
charged interest rate of 6.0% per round8.
Make sure to place the photographic proof of your end-fiscal year balances in the
Pictures tab. Label them accordingly.
Figure 6: Rules of the Monopoly Assessment

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Figure 7: Students’ Monopoly Gameplay (in-person format)

Figure 8: Students’ Monopoly Gameplay (online format via Google Sheets)
Landers (2015) identifies nine elements that define game-based learning, namely action
language, assessment, conflict/challenge, control, environment, game fiction, humaninteraction, immersion, and rules/goals. The table below identifies the various elements, as
defined by Landers, in the Monopoly gameplay in the finance course.
Element
Action language
Assessment

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Definition

Description in Monopoly Gameplay
Students play either the Monopoly board
The method and interface bygame either in-person or virtually via
which communication occurs
video conferencing facility. The action
between a player and thelanguage is defined by the Monopoly
game itself
board and its corresponding elements.
The method by which
Students are tasked to record their342

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accomplishment and gameprogress are tracked

transactions then generate financial
statements based on their Monopoly
gameplay, with an accompanying shortwrite-up explaining the key trends intheir generated financials. Students thenextend their financial statements into
financial forecasts.
The problems faced byStudents encounter challenges that put
players, including both thepressure on their financials throughout
Conflict/challenge
nature and difficulty of those the gameplay, such as lacking cash to
problems
pay rent or being thrown in jail.
The rules are fixed; however, students
The degree to which players
Control
are able to make certain decisions on
are able to alter the gameacquisitions, capital structure, taxes, etc.
The representation of theReal life businesses are business owners
Environment
physical surroundings of the are represented in the Monopoly
player
gameplay. Students assume the role of alandlord overseeing investment
The fictional game worldGame fiction
properties. Each Monopoly round isand story
equivalent to one fiscal year.
The degree to which players While the assessments are individual,
Human interaction interact with other players in the gameplay is done within learning
both space and timeteams, resulting in human interaction.
Students interact with their peers within
The affective and perceptual
Immersion
the learning team, as well as with theexperience of a gamefictional world created by the gameplay.
On top of the standard Monopoly
Clearly defined rules, goals, gameplay rules, the instructor provides
Rules/goals
and information on progress rules on the assessments with clearly
defined criteria.
Figure 8: Elements of Gamified Learning in the Monopoly Assessments
Worth noting is that the gamified assessments that use Monopoly are both done after the
relevant instruction has been delivered for financial statement analysis and financial
forecasting. The finance course was structured in such a way that students learn financial
statement analysis and financial forecast first, before proceeding to do the Monopoly
gameplay and assessments.

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Figure 9: Excerpts from Online Canvas Course Showing Monopoly Assessment Instructions
The topics of financial statement analysis and financial forecasting are revisited in future
topics and assessments, the most notable of which is the capstone project involving theanalysis and valuation of a publicly-listed company. The ideal trajectory for students taking
the course would be to master the basic principles of financial statement analysis andfinancial forecasting first before extending the topic applications to their capstone project.
Results
The results are based on a qualitative explanatory approach, with the sample covering threefinance classes: one class of 23 students from School Year 2019-2020 (August to December2019), one class of 39 students from School Year 2020-2021 (August to October 2020), andone class of 39 students from School Year 2021-2022 (August to December 2021). All 101
students covered are management engineering students or business students majoring inoperations research and with a quantitative focus. Students’ feedback were collected via
consultation sessions and feedback forms at the end of the course.
Han’s adaptation of the spiral curriculum can be seen in how Monopoly was used as a means
for students to learn the basic principles of financial statement analysis and financial
forecasting before proceeding to higher-order applications (in the case of this course, thecapstone project). On the other hand, Landers’s propositions on gamified learning can beseen in how Monopoly gameplay and Monopoly-related assessments serve a moderation rolein improving motivation toward learning finance and encouraging engagement in moreadvanced finance topics.
Applying the Spiral Curriculum
Han’s adaptation of the spiral curriculum can be seen in how the students were able toproceed to higher-order applications in the course following the Monopoly assessments.
These higher-order applications include (i) capital budgeting; (ii) financial forecasting for a
publicly-listed company; and (iii) valuation of a publicly-listed company—all of which
require a fundamental understanding of financial statements and financial forecasts.

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The application of the spiral curriculum is straightforward: the Monopoly assessments
provide a means for the students to learn basic principles before proceeding to moreadvanced topics. As mentioned, the topics of capital budgeting, fixed-income, and equities all
require a prior understanding of financial statement analysis and financial forecasting.
FinancialStatement
Analysis
Financialstatements
Ratio
analysis

Financial
Forecasts

Time Valueof Money

Capital
Budgeting

FixedIncome

Equities

Financialstatements

Financialstatements

Financialstatements

Financialstatements

Financialstatements

Ratio
Ratio
Ratio
Ratio
Ratio
analysisanalysisanalysisanalysisanalysis
Modelling /Modelling /Modelling /Modelling /Modelling /forecasting
forecasting
forecasting
forecasting
forecasting
Macroeconom Macroeconom Macroeconom Macroeconom Macroeconom
ics
ics
ics
ics
ics
Industry
Industry
Industry
Industry
Industry
analysisanalysisanalysisanalysisanalysis
Company
Company
Company
Company
Company
strategy
strategy
strategy
strategy
strategy
Discounted
Discounted
Discounted
Discounted
cash flows
cash flows
cash flows
cash flows
CapitalbudgetingMarkets
Markets
metrics
Relative
Interest rates
valuation
Figure 10: Illustrating the Spiral Curriculum Throughout Course Topics

Qualitative feedback from students point to the Monopoly assessments as a significant toolthat helped ground lessons on financial statement analysis and financial forecasting andallowed them to proceed to higher-order topics in the course. Noteworthy feedback on the
Monopoly assessments that enforce its role in the spiral curriculum include the following:•“Helpful”•“Course requirement allowed [us] to get a better sense [of the lesson].”•“With the Monopoly activity, [I was able to] really grasp why [financial] ratios arelower or higher.”•“Learning by doing”•“With the Monopoly activity, I was able to do financial modelling.”•“It was a good way to understand how the business works.”•“Good practice”•“Monopoly was a great way to tackle the very complex topic of financial modelling.”

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Applying Landers’s Theory of Gamified Learning
As for the application of Landers’s theory of gamified learning, two key observations must be
made first to contextualize how students’ attitudes when entering the finance course indiscussion. First, students enter the course following the two prerequisite accounting subjects,
with most students recounting unfavorable experiences while learning the accounting subject
matter and therefore “scared” to engage finance topics. In an article from Schoolbag: The
Education News Site (2019), Republic Polytechnic School of Management andCommunication Senior Lecturer Ella Siu acknowledges that “people find accounting
difficult” and that “even adults are intimidated by the subject.” Second, most students enter
the course with an impression that finance centers heavily on numbers and budgeting,
implying that the subject matter is mechanical and not interesting. The researcher believes
that these two considerations are roadblocks to achieving learning in the finance course.
With the use of Monopoly, students are intentionally placed in an environment thatchallenges their preconceived notions of finance. Such an environment involves gameplay
with peers within students’ respective learning teams, which the researcher views as a foil tothe otherwise intimidating and mechanical initial impressions. The gameplay environment isintended to be enjoyable—this is consistent with the views of Bisson & Luckner (1996), whoargue that board games “seem fun to play with, thus making an impact to the environment of
the player to aid in learning” and Tasnim (2012), who believes that a board game can“become a valuable tool for fun and experiential learning.”
The aforementioned are consistent with students’ inputs on the Monopoly assessments:•“Fun doing the game with the group”•“Therapeutic”•“Stress reliever”•“Felt like a break, playing and having fun”•
“Fun assessment”•“Childhood game applied to real life”
In majority of students’ end-course feedback forms, students remark that they exit the financecourse with a view on finance highly different from their initial impressions, most of whichassociated finance mainly with numbers and budgeting and conceived the subject as boring.
Among the common realizations cited by students when they exit the course are (i) how
narrative is important in the discipline of finance and (ii) how finance goes beyond numbers
and budgeting. The researcher believes that the course instruction, with the aid of theMonopoly activities as moderating tools, helped drive these realizations. For example, thepart of the gamified assessment was making a short write-up about key trends observed in thegenerated financial statements—this may have helped induce an attitude that placed
importance on narratives in finance.
In summary, the Monopoly assessments in the finance course serve as a moderating tool
meant to influence two attitudes: (i) students’ apprehensions to learning finance due tounfavorable experiences learning accounting and (ii) students’ preconceived notions offinance (i.e. mainly about numbers and budgeting). In influencing the two attitudes, students
were observed to engage with other topics in the finance course with improved motivationand engagement. This is consistent with Landers’ propositions in his theory of gamified
learning, wherein he posits that gamification influences behaviors and attitudes, which inturn, moderate instructional effectiveness.

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The Long View
On a more personal note, the researcher would like to note that several students who are partof the sample proceeded to engage in higher-order applications of finance via student
competitions, internships, and job opportunities in the fields of investment banking, equity
research, corporate finance, asset management, and management consulting among others.
Qualitative feedback from students indicate that the finance course in discussion shifted
several students’ views on finance and made them consider future careers and opportunities
in the field after previous apprehensions.
Bearing in mind the role the Monopoly activities played in the finance course, the researcher
believes that the students’ proceeding to these higher-order applications, beyond the extent of
the course, are illustrative and supportive of both the spiral curriculum and Landers’s theoryof gamified learning.
Conclusion
Gamification as applied in undergraduate business education is relatively new, with limited
existing literature. Existing literature on broader gamification in learning and educationsuggest multiple benefits, including improved motivation and engagement among learners.
Gamification is used in an undergraduate finance course for business students in a private
business school via the Monopoly board game. Students are tasked to generate financial
statements, explain key trends in the financials, and develop financial forecasts based on
Monopoly gameplay. This application of gamification is evaluated using Han’s (2015)
adaptation of the spiral curriculum and Landers’s (2015) theory of gamified learning. Basedon a qualitative explanatory methodology, the researcher concludes that (i) the Monopoly
activities fit the spiral curriculum as a means to master basic principles before proceeding tohigher-order applications and (ii) the Monopoly simulation influences key attitudes, namely
fear due to accounting and preconceived notions on finance, which in turn drive better
learning. Student feedback collected via consultation sessions and end-course feedback forms
are supportive of the conclusions.
For future studies revolving around this topic, the researcher has four major
recommendations. First, future studies may arrive at stronger conclusions with the use of
feedback forms at the beginning and at the end of the course to formally test Landers’s
proposition of a change in attitude or behavior. The current research relied heavily on
qualitative feedback from end-course feedback forms and consultation sessions to arrive at its
conclusions. Second, the researcher recommends the use of a control group; one batch of
students with the gamified Monopoly activities and another batch of students without the
gamified activities. Landers (2015) had a similar recommendation and believes that “rigorous
experimental and correlational tests of these paths and processes in differing gamification
efforts and across contexts are needed next to establish a practical, comprehensive, andscientific understanding of gamification.” Third, the researcher also recommends the use ofquantitative methods for future studies, such as descriptive statistics and predictive statistics(e.g. ANOVA, regression), as opposed to the current study’s purely qualitative approach. The
last recommendation is to check for various exogenous factors that may affect the study, suchas ensuring that the students in the sample had homogeneous accounting instruction or
expanding the study to include students from other universities and degree programs.

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https://doi.org/10.1177/1046878114563660
LeBlanc, G. & Bearison, D. J. (2014). Teaching and learning as a bi-directional activity:
investigating dyadic interactions between child teachers and child learners. Cognitive
Development, 19, 499-515.
Meesuk, K., & Srisawasdi, N. (2014). Implementation of student-associated game-based
open inquiry in chemistry education: results on students' perception and motivation.
Proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Computers in Education, 219226.
Tasnim, R. (2012). Playing entrepreneurship: can games make a difference? Entrepreneurial
Practice Review, 4(6), 4-14
Shubik, M. (2002). The uses of teaching games in Game Theory classes and someexperimental games. Review of Educational Research, 56(4), 411-436.
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Contact email: alfonso.sevidal@obf.ateneo.edu
asevidal@ateneo.edu

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When It Absolutely, Positively Has to Be Learning Online: Emic Reflections of Teacher Student Resilience within an Australian Tertiary Pathways Landscape
Robert Hamilton, University of Technology Sydney, Australia
Aye Chan Oo, University of Technology Sydney, Australia
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Abstract
COVID-19 signalled an end to the free movement of international students to Australian
tertiary institutions necessitating a paradigm shift away from conventional face to faceteaching and the benefits of cultural and linguistic immersion for online learning. This paperdraws on auto-ethnography to explore and evaluate the impact of this transformation upon
the affective and teaching and learning domains of a teaching staff member and student at anAustralian university college. By virtue of the global and multi-sited field, the discussantshave assumed an emic perspective and positioned the research orientation across a hybrid ofconfessional and impressionist writing to enable an authentic personal style inclusive of
emotive responses, the contingent, and unforeseen in concert with making visible the cultural
locus, the researcher's insights, and ways of knowing their cultures. The purpose of the study
is to inform audiences what happened in the field, share their respective teacher-student
experiences and to identify events and discoveries that were interesting and worthy of further
research in areas of new forms of resilience encountered and expected within the field ofinternational student online environments.
Keywords: Online Education, International Students, Resilience

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
This paper could be considered somewhat idiosyncratic as autoethnography in the sense thatthe paper has two authors. This implies an overt contradiction to the approach of research andwriting that grounds research upon a combination of self-focussed autobiography andethnography that is context specific and situated in the analysis of existential personal
experience in order to understand cultural experience. However, it is not a journey without
maps. The approach of melding narrative ethnography and personal narratives in multiple
authorships has been aptly demonstrated; one of the more erudite examples is Averett & Soper(2011) which inter alia, purged the researchers’ burdens, questioned canonical stories,
encouraged agency and promulgated cultural change in negotiating the culture of fear andspecificity of its meaning for women.
The paper emanates from specific social science assessment events undertaken for a subject by
a student, mediated by her lecturer, during a thirteen-week university trimester for a tertiary
pathways program at a Sydney university. Although the project was conceived, experienced,
and documented retroactively as individuals, the animation of interest and ongoing dialogue
inherent to the faculty-student relationship led to the co-creation and development of thefollowing collaborative paper based on the logic of discovery and curiositas. The intent was toenable an audience and ourselves to discover, learn about and understand within our affective
domains the shared experience of how we responded to the technical-rational cultural
challenges of moving from face-to-face teaching to online teaching within the context ofunderstanding the nature of resilience. The collaborative co-constructed account incorporated
the narrative stories of a lecturer and a student and the encounters between them. We would
like to position the paper within the post-experimental inquiry paradigm of autoethnography
with its inherent focus on autobiographical, confessional, and co-constructed representations.
The aim for using autoethnography as methodology was to enable an understanding - forcultural members and strangers alike - of the lived experiences of the effects of online teaching
upon teaching staff and their students. The intent is to explore the teacher-student relationshipand to draw the writers and audience into the inner workings of the social context of theirintersecting layered journeys as products of their culture of resilience as international students
and their lecturers negotiated the collaborative and individual challenges associated with online
teaching.
The 21st century has seen an academic revolution take place in higher education marked bytransformations unprecedented in scope and diversity. An identified issue within contemporary
global higher education is the high rates of international student mobility. More students move
to more universities around the world today than ever before in human history. In the Australian
context, previous Australian involvement with international students based on the Columbo
Plan had been on an aid basis. Launched in 1951 it is regularly invoked in Australia as apioneering project through which closer understanding and engagement with Asia wasachieved and remembered mostly for the Asian students sponsored in Australian degree
programs. (Lowe, 2011) By 1985, for example, 20,000 international students had beensponsored by the Australian government. However, from 1986, influenced by new righteconomic rationalist thinking in which market forces prevailed, a rethinking of Australia’s
overseas aid programs, and the economic reforms leading to Australia’s closer integration withthe world economy led to the introduction of full fees for overseas students in Australian
tertiary institutions. In the 1990s, cuts and lack of indexation impacted further on tertiary
budgets, so the story of international students changed from humanitarian engagement to one
seen through financial lenses, from aid to trade.

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Robert: I remember the moment when COVID-19 changed our face-to-face model of teaching.
On my first teaching day in the first trimester of 2020 there were staffroom rumours that wewould be moving to online teaching. By 3 pm these rumours were confirmed. I felt a mixtureof relief and apprehension. Relief at not having to endure the daily 4-hour commute which hadworn me down physically for a decade. And apprehension about online teaching and feelingsof disquiet as we cleared our workspaces and lockers, packed our bags and decamped into an
uncertain future. My apprehension was based on the awareness that the main source ofdifficulties for international students is often understood to be language difficulties anddeficiencies in ‘academic skills’. Language difficulties are problematic for many international
students initially, and ‘mismatches’ in academic expectations and experiences are likely to be
the source of on-going problems for students, as well as certain aspects of teaching and learning
practices. Difficulties with language are also likely to arise as a result of the types of language
used by lecturers including the use of unfamiliar concepts, acronyms and anecdotes, especiallyin some discipline areas where certain types of prior knowledge are assumed. The AustralianCommonwealth government acted swiftly to close national borders so that international
students could not enter Australia. Australians endured arguably the harshest lockdown
restrictions on freedom of movement and assembly of any nation in their daily lives. There
were also international students in Australia who were in an interstitial position as they wereunable to return to their home nation and subject to isolating draconian lockdown restrictions.
Although we easily crossed the technical Rubicon of modifying and incorporating our teachingsubject materials into a CANVAS CMS, and teaching staff adapted quickly to this new domain,
it quickly became obvious that the university teaching and learning model based on a blended
learning approach and method and practice of andragogy was severely tested. I often felt
inadequate as a teacher. I felt enormous guilt that the experience of students during theirformative years would be dominated by an online learning environment. The students were
missing out on the immersive and social experiences of being on campus and enduring a greater
burden placed on their cognitive load because of time-zone differences especially for morningclasses.
I also felt ill-equipped and unprepared to deal with some students many of whom wereexperiencing the stigmatization of a global media fixated on determining the origins of
COVID-19. A large population of our international cohort were Chinese. This use of global
media networks as an institutionalised agent of fear and its effect on my inner self talk andinteraction with students was not made easier by the highly visible role taken by the AustralianPrime Minister Morrison and his cabinet who continued to call for an investigation into theorigins of coronavirus adding Australia’s voice to a global chorus critical of how the Chinese
government and the World Health Organisation had handled the outbreak openly referred toby the former American President Trump as the “Wuhan Virus”. For Chinese students, being
assailed with this unremitting strident campaign and focus on China was the daily elephant in
the room. It opened a Pandora’s Box and fuelled a further discourse in legacy and social media
outlets on multiple issues that had been simmering in the Australian Press for years about
perceptions of the negative influence of international students upon academic standards andfreedoms, (Hamilton, 2018) access of Australian domestic student places to degrees and how
universities should negotiate the grey zone warfare of dealing with matters of nomenclature inteaching materials; the geo-political imbroglio of Taiwan is a case in point. Over a period ofmonths, the international political fallout escalated, and bi-lateral sensitivities were heightened
resulting in what appeared to be punitive tit for tat trade sanctions added to the elephant in theroom as the diplomatic and trade relationship between Australia and China reached its nadir. It
was annus horribilis as the horror of the growing mortality and morbidity reported in the daily

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news-cycle compounded the burden of our Chinese students affected by other existential events
within their lifeworlds.
I felt guilt for my colleagues. In Australia, which shared 12% of the global cohort ofinternational students at that time, international students represented a significant percent of
the university student population. International education was the 3rd largest export earnervalued at AUD $33 billion dollars per annum. Prior to COVID, there were a total of 956,773
international students in Australia enrolled across five education sectors of which 442,219 werehigher education students. (Jackson, 2019) Literally tens of thousands of teaching positions
and ancillary jobs were underwritten by this influx. When the borders closed, a vital artery tofunding was severed. In late March, the Federal government announced JobKeeper, an AUD$89 billion dollar-wage program of wage subsidies for 3.8 million Australian employees tolimit the economic damage. Employers were eligible for the fortnightly payment to staff if thebusiness’ revenue had fallen over a specified period by 30-50% depending on size. However,the conditions imposed by Federal government made it impossible for universities to avail
themselves of this aid. JobKeeper was excluded to all but four Australian private universities
and one Sydney based campus of NYU. Help was provided to public universities inguaranteeing funding for domestic students already budgeted for, but it did not include the gap
in revenue lost due to international student losses. The effect was predictable and swift. I
watched as all-faculty emails diminished and each teaching session allocation became a “Don’t
ask, don’t tell” exercise as I was re-employed and others not. Communication became awkward
and sometimes non-existent with colleagues who did not survive the cull. As a 60-year-old
nearing the end of his teaching career, my greatest angst was for my colleagues with young
families and mortgages to service due to my relatively established financial position incontradistinction to younger colleagues whose working and family lives suffered financial
detriment and psychological distress.
At an organisational and personal level, the university provided first-rate support to teaching
staff via a combination of technical rational support with IT augmented by ongoing formal andinformal teaching staff meetings to monitor our cerebral hygiene and mental health. There wasalso an Employee Assistance Program for teachers and others struggling with their new
situation and diminished circumstances. What was noticeable however, was that while teaching
and ancillary staff were well-supported, the same could not be said for their students. Students
also had institutionally provided recourse to counselling, other support services, and deferredfees on a case-by-case basis. However, in contradistinction to the media-fuelled stereotypes ofinternational students coming from wealthy backgrounds or belonging to the uber rich club of
the 1%ers, many international students do not come from wealthy families. Many students
worked part-time jobs especially in the service sector industries hardest hit by lockdowns. As
arts, entertainment and hospitality businesses closed, students found themselves joining
unemployed Australians. However, unemployed Australian nationals received welfare support.
Our students did not. They experienced financial duress as parental funding was inconsistentand their casual jobs disappeared. Although the Council of International Students Australia
sought financial relief for international students’ universities were simply unable to provide it.
The lack of government support for international students was taken up by mainstream media
outlets as Australian and global audiences witnessed the pathos of students relying on the
goodwill of restaurants, individual benefactors, and charity groups as they lined up for freemeals and other essentials of life. I found myself scanning student faces on Zoom and theevening news and current affairs programs wondering if any of our students were among theirranks aghast at my government abandoning universities and being prepared to accept the fateof international students as collateral damage.

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Despite the exceptional ongoing professional organisational and personal support colleagues
provided, I also experienced the shared loneliness and guilt of my colleagues that we were
dealing with a “wicked problem” as described by Ramaley (2014). These problems permeate
our lives at local community and global level in response to unprecedented challenges withsocial complexities harder to manage than the technical obstacles. Problems cannot always be
defined, continue to change and there was never any clear-cut response. I felt that I was not
performing well as an instructor and unable to draw upon my full range and repertoire ofteaching approaches and techniques to enable the blended learning experience inimical to theprogram subject. Most online teaching sessions were preceded by the dread of having to lookat scores of black rectangles in Zoom and the ordeal of attempting to establish a rapport withempty spaces with names on them. As the months went by and with lockdown restrictions
maintained, despite the unstinting institutional support of the university to keep us personallyconnected the distance between colleagues became more pronounced and with only several
exceptions, personal relationships foundered. I also regressed back to the loneliness and anxiety
of my early years as an academic at this university. The transformation in public sector
provision from a Keynesian Welfare State to Schumpeterian Workfare State extends further
than the technical-rational and instrumentalities of new mechanisms of resource allocation. For
the last two decades, as federal funding has stagnated, universities have relied on international
student fees on the revenue side, and casual workers on the expense side. University
administrations have invested heavily into the international student market as the sole sourceof revenue growth while simultaneously increasing precarious employment as risk mitigationand cost minimisation strategies.
The tenure held in previous positions at other universities during the 1980s and 1990s had all
but disappeared by the early 2000s. Universities had casualized work, introduced and shiftedlabor-intensive and time-consuming administrivia to academic workloads, and the compositionof faculties changed so that they were clotted with an increasing number of administrative
workers with permanent full-time or part-time employment status while the academic side
languished. The uneasy dynamic of insecure work and power imbalance between teaching staff
and their managers opened the path to exploitation. In some universities continuity of
employment in sessional or contract positions became contingent on the expectation thatteaching staff would do underpaid or unpaid work as was recently confirmed recently insuccessful class action proceedings in the Federal Court by the National Tertiary Education
Union. At least 10 Australian higher education providers were found inter alia to have engaged
in widespread systematic wage theft by engaging its lecturers as independent contractors inorder to avoid their obligations under the Fair Work Act 2009, and re-classifying tutorials as'practicals', or 'laboratories' in order to avoid paying casual academics at the tutorial rate andhave been ordered to pay back tens of millions. Others are under investigation. It’s against thisbackdrop that my loneliness of a decade of teaching in sessional positions was brought into
sharp relief now that we really were challenged by forces completely outside of our control.
Aye: I am a 21-year-old who has faced two military conflicts in Myanmar: the 2007 Saffron
Revolution and 2021 coup. My parents, who are in their forties have experienced three military
conflicts in their lifetime if I add the 1988 uprising. My grandparents in their seventies have
lived through four military conflicts, if I include the 1962 Ne Win era. The repeated pattern ofprotests, conflicts, civil wars, and loss of life in Myanmar has been an omnipresent feature oflife across two centuries for my people. However, the 2021 coup came as a shock to many
civilians, as we believed in the power of human rights and democracy in the 21st century.

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On 1st February 2021, our basic human rights were robbed from us. I could no longer contact
my family members as the internet was cut off, and Myanmar passed into darkness. People
took to the streets to protest, with the hope to win our democratic nation back, but many ofthem were shot and the rule of law disappeared. My parents had to go into a hiding as our homelocation was no longer safe. They could hear the gunshots, explosion of bombs, and the cries
of innocent civilians. Armed soldiers patrolled the streets and killed any civilians that
disobeyed their orders. They checked civilians’ phones, they tracked the IP addresses of thepeople who posted about them on social media, and innocent children were murdered daily on
the streets.
I was in my second semester of Life Sciences in Australia. Every day, I witnessed video footageof people getting shot, pictures of bodies and the misery of families who were mourning forthe deaths of family members and friends. Perversely, I was safe in a peaceful country and had
the chance to continue my education. I detested myself for being in a safe place, while people
in my country feared for their lives. I detested myself for having a chance to continue myeducation, while students, as young as seven years old were killed in their homes; collateral asbullets passed through house windows.
According to Tilghman-Osborne (2010), guilt is an emotion that is hard to define, but it ismostly associated with clinical depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety,somatization, and psychosis. During this period, I noticed a deliberating sense of guilt that I
was experiencing for not doing enough to help people in Myanmar and for being safe, while
the others were undergoing psychological and physical pain fleeing their homes, andwitnessing their loved ones being killed mercilessly. I was privileged to be studying abroad
and being away, but this did not make me feel better. The paradox of privilege left me with aninsuperable guilt burden for being away from Myanmar, while the others were suffering, andbeing aware of this, adversely affected my mental health. I would sleep for days without having
any desire to eat, sleep or interact with people. If my family members did not pick up my phone
calls, I would descend into dark thoughts about their fate. I was paranoid. I was guilty. I was
helpless.
As an international student during the pandemic, I received very little support emotionally, andfinancially in a foreign nation. During this crisis, Myanmar’s economy was predicted tocontract by 10 per cent, and an estimated (and under-represented number) 600,000 people losttheir jobs (Kurian, 2021). My father received half of his salary, while the living costs including
medicine and food rose exponentially. The bank systems were destabilized, and cash flow was
stopped abruptly. It took days to queue up at an ATM to withdraw cash. While my parents were
struggling to meet the necessities, I struggled in Australia with very little cash in hand, andnowhere to ask for support.
Two weeks after the coup, I remember calling my college to request the deferral of my tuition
fees as my parents could not transfer any money to me since the bank system had ceased to
fucntion. I was greeted with a cold voice that said “I’m sorry, there’s nothing we can do to
help. If you do not pay on time, your visa will be affected, and you will not be able to enrol
into the classes”. Unempathetic conversation was the last thing I needed to hear.
Being helplessly stranded in a foreign land, I had no close relatives to ask for help. My mental
health deteriorated further as I was on the verge of being deported back to Myanmar, while myparents on the other hand, were constantly telling me not to come back. I did not know what todo, so I contacted the head of administration to explain the situation and was fortunate to

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receive a fee exemption. I was able to breathe a little. However, at the time of writing, myparents are still struggling to transfer money to me due to the inflation of money and volatilebanking system.
During this period, Myanmar students received very limited mental health support. One phone
call was made by the college as a welfare check on my mental health. There was no second
call. We were not made aware of counselling sessions or consultations. Since I was in a safe
place, I worked as a Peer Mentor for Myanmar students studying in Australian Universities, toventilate their concerns and help with the difficulties they faced like access to internet andutilities such as electricity. I was an advocate to express their concerns to professors, lecturers,
and tutors. Since I was also experiencing psychological distress and material shortages, I doubtthat I was able to give full support to my peers. I believed that the college support system could
have assisted further both financially and mentally but only later realised that the universities
themselves were in no position to provide for us as they’d been abandoned by the AustralianFederal government.
Even though I was advised to socialise with friends, I found it much harder to make friends
with online learning. We were forced to interreact with each other in breakout rooms but all I
could see mostly was blank rectangular screens. It was hard to make a conversation. No one
responded to me whenever I started the conversation. After two hours of class, I found myself
curled up in bed disillusioned and dispirited because I was tired of being alone in a tiny room
for the entire day. I wanted to talk to people or socialise, but I did not have a chance. There
was no one to hear my voice, and I had nothing to look forward to each day.
This left me with one choice, to study and work hard so that I could distract myself from thetrauma of Myanmar and my own feelings of helplessness. I studied for up to 12-14 hours eachday and it eventually burnt me out. I also took extra shifts at work, where work was possible atall, to surround myself with people, but I was still lonely. It was a different kind of loneliness.
I felt that no one could relate to me even though I was in a sea of people. They talked about
their stress with school assignments, while no one understood me when I talked about mycountry in terms of flying bullets.
After looking through the testimony of my co-author, I realised that extent to which online
teaching had adverse impacts upon instructors. The lack of interaction with students would
have been extremely stressful, as many are not willing to switch on cameras and participate inclass when it is 4 am in the morning in their country, or when they are unable to communicate
in English fluently. Among the common themes of guilt, lack of support, and loneliness that
we shared, I found that my educators also encountered alienation and anomie, just like thestudents and the uncertainty associated with the unanswerable question of when we would begoing back to the campus. This opened my eyes to another realm and the existential difficulties
unknown to me that my co-author and lecturer faced as an educator, during this shared critical
period.
Within seven months of the coup, I decided to start a forum - when a connection could be made- and set up consultations with people in my country to hear their voices and about theirexperiences so that I might play a small part in making a difference. I wanted to hear what they
had to say. After conversations with twenty-two people, I heard various anecdotes; fromparents worrying for their children’s future to students being scammed for wanting to comeabroad to study. It was interesting to find that my depression came from being separated withmy family during this difficult time, while their depression came from being enmeshed too

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closely with their family members. Since early 2020, people in Myanmar have been in
lockdown and it has been almost two years since they last went to school or regular work.
Being in proximity with their family members every day for two years with little respite for
personal space exacerbated their distress as there was simply no privacy.
I also encountered many young, lost souls entering the formative years of their adulthood, who
had to leave school to enter the workforce often for unskilled work. Government schools wereclosed, and they could not afford to attend international schools. This was when I realised thevicissitudes associated with the emergence of a new structural inequality and education gap
between the privileged and under-privileged. Poor people were likely to move from relative toabsolute poverty as they simply had no access to quality education, while the upper middleclass and elite were inured to the situation and increased their wealth with the effect that theirchildren had unfettered access to a quality international education while others languished inan education vacuum. They witnessed education scams. Some ‘educators’ took advantage ofthis period and turned the situation into a business opportunity. Many education centres werecreated seemingly overnight. They guaranteed entry into the medical stream in prestigious
Universities, without preliminary exams. They mislead parents by claiming their tertiary
enabling programs would receive equivalence to the IGCSE O Levels (UK 10th Grade). This
played on the parents’ desperate desire to remove their children from the chaos and educational
stasis around them and enable their children to live in a foreign country with Human Rights
and the rule of law. These businesses bloomed overnight and prospered by giving false hopes
and information to the students and parents.
Conclusion
My reading of our combined vignettes, strategies for coping and concluding comments
revealed that although our relationship changed over time, I really knew little about student
lives and their feelings. I was aware of the student’s working experiences and conditions ofcourse. However, much of that information was mediated via the filters of Chomsky’s Mohawk
Valley directed towards controlling thoughts, opinions and attitudes. Establishing trust helped
to lead to knowledge production and the realisation that I needed to become more aware of
student needs and of my own lack of knowledge. I also developed a critical awareness of how
our shared existential crises shifted my thinking on regaining confidence with my approaches
and teaching repertoire and compensate with changing my assumptions and expectations onwhat worked and what did not in an online environment. I was also enabled to make thetransformation away from a long-held fear and anxiety of never knowing if I would be reemployed and of feeling like flotsam jetsam in precarious work to acceptance of that situation.
Further, despite having contributed to the university’s corporate culture over the years withpublication and service to the community, although frequently approached to contribute toprofessional development I had always harboured reservations about being actively involvedin these activities. During the period mentioned in the presentation, the awareness of teacher
feelings of growing marginalisation and isolation presented an opportunity to counter what wasarguably an aversion to this aspect of my teaching practice. I worked with the Head of Teachingand Learning and was a panel discussant on the theme of “How to encourage an engaging
learning environment” for an all-day Professional Development session. The all-staff
discussion was very well received and generated continued valuable dialogues for longafterwards about the impact of our own histories and challenges, their understanding and effectupon our students, and include and recognise the utility of an honest examination of our own
anxieties and perceptions of inadequacy as an essential strategy of develop strategies to

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transform future practices and interactions into more comfortable and productive experiences
for instructor and student alike.
Our paper documents an initiative that began at the University of Technology College Sydney
within a social science subject taught as part of a Tertiary Pathways course. We have sharedand promoted research which documented experiences and liminal moments of learning fromthe affective domain of teachers and students as processes of resilience which locate our
anecdotes within a broader framework in response to the context of the wicked problems
encountered during this time. The contextual shared experiences cannot possibly sit within theambit of all academics and their students. We make no claims to universalise knowledge andexperience. However, we believe that we have moved beyond introspective indulgence andalthough our epiphanies are self-claimed phenomena which one person may consider anexperience transformative or restorative while others may not, our moments lay bare how wenegotiated our intense existential situations and their sequalae after the incident has passed. We
submit that reliability and validity turn on the credibility and verisimilitude of the stories
recognising that when applied to autoethnography, the context, meaning and utility of terms
such as reliability, validity and generalisation are altered. What we intended was to universalise
at least individual experience being recognised as distinct to the individual as we are alldifferent and acknowledge the notion that we share outsider status in different ways of what it
feels like to operate outside the norm. For all of us, the power of nostalgia for face-to-faceteaching was futile. That stage was empty with the actors gone. All around us the intellectual
lightships of academy had broken free of their moorings. The future generation will never knowwhat it was to find the lights drifting, the compasses awry, and very little to steer by.
Acknowledgments
The late Cathy Leone Hamilton
John Grey Hamilton Final Cut Pro Editing

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Course Design for Tunnel Engineering with Complexity under Consideration
Jianqin Ma, Chang’an University, China
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Abstract
In the recent years, Chinese infrastructure and civil buildings are of increasing features intype, quantity and dimension. The high education of Civil Engineering and related subjects
has been prosperous for more than two decades in China. However, similar challenging
situation, with which the education of Civil Engineering in industrialized countries was faced
at the beginning of this century, appears in China nowadays. To adapt to the changing andchallenging situation, such as with course time decreased, content and requirement increased,
the teachers of professional courses in the field of Civil Engineering have to redesign course
plan. This contribution presents the course design for Tunnel Engineering with complexity
under consideration at Chang’an University in China. The complex features of the course
Tunnel Engineering are first analyzed, with special reference to the course content and mainprinciples related to the major teaching points. The complex features of the course mean therequirement of systems thinking in course learning and teaching process, which should bebased on an effective course design. The application of systems thinking rules and complex
adaptive systems principles in the course design is presented, with three-step systems
mapping method as example, including (1) mapping the course content, (2) activating thelearning content, and (3) checking (assessing) both the content and the underlying thinking
skills articulated in the lesson frame. The practice and results of the course design for Tunnel
Engineering indicate an active effect to foster student optimal learning and to promotestudent metacognition developing.
Keywords: Complexity, Systems Thinking, Mapping Method, Course Design, Tunnel
Engineering

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Introduction
Teaching at college is not only to present information to students involved, but to transfer
specified information into student’s knowledge. We are in an age of information andinnovation knowledge driven society, which is with features of changing and challenging.
The ability to cope with this situation requires developing the skill of learning how to learn(Watson, 2019).Thanks to the digitalization and internet technology, the acquisition of
information is generally not difficult in learning and teaching process at a university and how
to use information available reasonably and efficiently is the crux of the process. An arbitrary
accumulation of information will not automatically become knowledge, which is structured
information with systems thinking (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2015). Students need develop not
only cognition but also metacognition in a systematic thinking way (Gell-Mann, 1995;
Fleming, 2014). Therefore, a student learning-centered course design and its execution planshould be beneficial to the development of student’s self-consciousness in the learning andteaching procedure.
In the recent years, infrastructure and civil buildings are of increasing features in type,
quantity and dimension, such as the tunnel and underground structures in China. The
information related to a subject or specialty is increasingly cumulating with time. Thissituation is challengeable to the teaching of a professional course at a university, as theteaching time for a tradition professional course is limited or even decreasing (Ma, 2021). To
adapt to the situation, the efficiency of a course teaching and learning process should be
increasingly improved to meet the requirement of a changing situation.
In modern education, complexity is considered a central theoretical concept and theapplication of complexity is relevant in education (Mason, 2008a, b; Cabrera & Cabrera,2019). Considering a student’s learning is a performance in a complex organizational
processes, we educators need systems thinking models rooted in complexity theory (Kuhn,
2008), and as suggested by Cabrera & Cabrera (2019) that “those of us involved in educationmust understand complexity and in particular complex adaptive systems”, to help students todevelop adapting ability.
Following the three-step teaching method that involves framing, activating, and checking theknowledge a teacher wishes to impart to students (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019), the course
design for Tunnel Engineering at Chang’an University is presented, with complexity underconsideration, to reinforce applying systems thinking in course practice.
Features of the course Tunnel Engineering
Tunnel Engineering is relatively new in comparison to the other subjects, such as industrial
and civil architecture, geotechnical engineering, in the field of civil engineering. However,
Tunnel Engineering is increasingly assigned as an independent course at a university since
1970s, from which tunnel and underground structure are increasingly built for various usages.
In the Tunnel Engineering course design, the following complex features are considered.
1. Complex features of the subject content
As a course, the information related to the following features of tunnel or undergroundstructures should be presented in a proper way: (1) underground structures with various types
and functions; (2) structures in various building conditions and environments; (3) structures

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with limited and specified operational environments. In a tunnel project, these features are
considered, such as in terms of requirement, building and operational conditions, cost andtime schedule, and the risks related to the project. All of these parameters are presented in thecontent of planning, design, construction, operation and management stages, which are also
corresponding to the execution stages of a new project (Ma, 2020). In practice, the upgrade
and rehabilitation of an existing tunnel are always necessary with operational time increasing
and the technical standards for tunnel operational environments are developing with time.
The related information, theory, principles and engineering skills are learning and teachingcontent, such as in terms, definitions, concepts, analysis, calculation, and case histories so on.
The above-mentioned course content is not only rich in formation and meanings, but also
complex. For example, in a general view, a tunnel project is executed in stages, which
conditionally and non-linearly influence or relate to each other, in terms of project
considerations, such as usages, building and operational conditions, cost and time schedule,
and related risks. The project influence factors, such as related to the above-mentioned
features, will interact in a dynamic mode in the project stages. In a specific view, a term isusually presented in much simple and limited way, such as in definition, while systemic andcomplex features is under consideration when it is used in the main parts the course. For
example, the ground in a tunnel definition is considered building environment. The
surrounding rocks which is the ground parts that have direct influence on the behavior (e.g.,
stability) of a mined tunnel, are the structure components of the tunnel in a general sense. The
behavior of the surrounding rocks of a tunnel could be a complex system and should bepresented with the interaction between the tunnel supporting system (i.e., structure in anarrow sense) and the surrounding rocks under consideration.
As the course time is limited, we could only present some the information related to thecourse subject. Considering the complex features of the subject contents, the course
information sampling and teaching plan design need the help of systems thinking, withcomplexity under consideration.
2. Complex features of the subject major principles
As the above-mentioned, the functions and types of tunnel and underground structures are
increasingly diverse and meaningful. So are the major tunneling principles in terms of tunnelplanning, design, construction, and operation and management. To present a tunnelingprinciple, there need enough space for its complex features. For example, a mined tunnel isbuilt in ground and the features of the tunnel are strongly related to the ground conditions.
The following principles often come into play in project different stages, respectively.
(1) Planning stage: Ground conditions have strong influence on the project feasibility andrisk level, tunnel type and construction proposals, and their corresponding cost and timeschedule plan.
(2) Design stage: The grounds around a tunnel, i.e., surrounding rocks, are considered partsof the planned tunnel structures. The assessment of the properties of the surrounding rocks,
such as stability or self-supporting capacity, is the foundation for the structure (or supporting
system) design, construction plan proposing, risk evaluating and controlling planning, theevaluation of cost and time schedule.

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Official Conference Proceedings(3) Construction stage: The ground conditions ahead of excavating face need identification inan advanced way, and the predicted behaviors of the surrounding rocks in design, especiallyfor these with poor self-supporting capacity, need in time checking according to the specified
tunneling procedure, such as with the help of instrumentation and monitoring.
It is noted that the behavior of the surrounding rocks is of dynamic features, which are related
to various factors, including the geometrical features of the tunnel, ground conditions withoutand due to tunneling disturbance, control and protection measures (e.g., supporting system) to
the disturbance and their applying time. For the tunnels, which are built in grounds being
sensitive to tunneling disturbance and the applying effects of the supporting system, thebehaviors of both the surrounding rocks and the supporting system are strongly related totheir interactions, which are of non-linear and time-effect features. It is clear that the abovementioned principles work in a complex system way. This is also the reason that a tunnel
project is often of unique features.
Considering the above systemic and complex features of the Tunnel Engineering as a subject,
we design the course learning and teaching with complexity under consideration. For
example, the system relationships of the above-discussed course content and related major
principles are presented in Figure 1.

Figure 1: System relationships of Tunnel Engineering content and related major principles.
Design for the course Tunnel Engineering
As Murray Gell-Mann (1995) stated that complexity “illuminates the chain of connections
between the simple underlying laws that govern the behavior of … the complex fabric that
we see around us, exhibiting diversity, individuality and evolution”, and complex things are
considered the product of simple rules (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019) or complexity depends on
simplicity (Gell-Mann, 1995). On the other hand, a learning and teaching at a university
involves human systems and is of complex, nonlinear, multidimensional and interconnectedfeatures (Kuhn, 2008). And therefore, we should seek for complexity theory to provide us

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insight into the nature of human collective behavior (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019) in learningand teaching plan design and implementation, in favor to metacognition development.
1. Complex systems thinking and metacognition development
Education is a complex system process and requires applying complexity system thinking tomeet the challenges in learning and teaching activities (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019). It isbeneficial being conscious of the interrelation of all aspects of the educational system toimprove learning and teaching results. In the following, we explore how systems thinking canbe used to help students and teachers build metacognitive learning strategies.
It is beneficial applying Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS) in education to develop student
abstract thinking and to make the teaching easier and clearer (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019).
Good course design and implementation plan help students develop metacognition, which isconsidered one of the twenty-first century learning skills, such as creativity, emotional
intelligence and critical thinking (NRC, 2012). It is on a right track to develop metacognition(Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019) with the application of CAS, following the four cognitive skills orrules (DSRP): (1) making distinctions, (2) recognizing systems, (3) relationships, and (4)perspectives (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2015).
(1) Distinctions: Determination of learning and teaching content and a way of active study.
Individuals make distinctions when they identify any thing or idea (Cabrera & Cabrera,2019). In a course design, teachers first determine learning and teaching content through thecreation of a boundary that identifies specified content from what it is not. Be sure that acourse plan proposer is in awareness of the perspectives implicit in boundary-making orcontent choosing. What should be underlined is how to guide student to make distinctions
consciously in a well-designed learning and teaching procedure. As one’s cognition is
improved through objective content identification and the awareness of the perspectives
implicit in boundary-making (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019), it is important to make clear the
specified perspectives for each point of the learning and teaching content as early as possible.
Therefore, students would have a chance to actively and effectively make distinctions in theirlearning activities.
(2) Systems: How to present the planned content in terms of the relationship of details (parts)
and whole content. An idea or learning point can be considered as parts of a whole in termsof the concept of reductionism and holism simultaneously, as systems is made up of the coimplying elements part and whole (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019). This means we can present a
specified content in details while considering the related parts in a whole, which is made upof even smaller parts, such as in forms of the concepts of a subject, the types and elements ofstructures. How to present the planned content is also perspective-oriented, since one’s
perspectives affects not only her (his) understanding of the system, but also how to demarcate
a specified learning or teaching point in terms of systems.
(3) Relationships: Developing systems thinking and problem-solving skills through making
relationships and connections between and among all information. Knowledge is structured
information. Our minds need constantly making relationships and connections between andamong all information we encounter and process (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019), although theprocess could be performed subconsciously. For example, determining causality is well-usedin problem-solving and unconsciously creating relationships usually in an oversimplified
way. In a learning or problem-solving process, we need making relationships yet somewhat

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obscured within a system. The guideline based on the above-mentioned learning content
presentation design is helpful in making the relationships, in terms of systems thinking andproblem-solving skills development. A good practice is that students are aware of thelearning information relationships they develop, such as through underlining the causality,
which reflects the complexity of a practical problem or knowledge point, in an active learning
process.
(4) Perspectives: Skills of identifying perspectives and considering alternatives inunderstanding information and solving complex problems. Perspectives consists of twoelements: point and view (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2015), i.e., “A point is the idea/thing that islooking or focusing, while a view is the idea/thing that is being looked at or focused upon”.
As we perceive a point or view of the reality in systems thinking, we frame the related
information. In other words, the issues we look at change as we change the way we look at
the issues (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019). So, students should be encouraged to see another way
to do/read/interpret what the others have presented in learning and teaching procedure. The
skills of being able to identify perspectives and then consider alternative ones are a great
advantage for understanding and solving complex problems. Therefore, seeing from multiple
perspectives is one of the practical ways of applying the perspective rule. When we identify
distinction, system and relationship in systems thinking, the related perspectives areembedded in the identifying process (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019).
In practice, the four simple cognitive rules of systems thinking (DSRP) are considered as thefoundational cognition building blocks, which could come to play simultaneously or invarying order (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019), as shown in Figure 2. For example, students canapply the rules to build knowledge by structuring the related information to explore newchannels of thought not yet presented in course information. This is of great benefit forstructuring information, problem-solving skill development and innovation (Cabrera &Cabrera, 2019).

Figure 2: Application of the four cognitive rules in varying order in a course programme.
2. Application in Course Design
As information is available, it is critical to build meaning or develop thinking from theinformation. In other words, educators are not only teaching ideas (information), but also
thinking skills to help learners to build knowledge through exploring deep meaning from that
information. Course design and plan implementation should be learner-centered, such as toimprove student learning outcomes. The tools and resources we integrate into educational

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settings are to help student learning and structuring information or knowledge building. The
DSRP cognitive architecture can enhance students’ awareness of their metacognition,
intelligence and effectiveness (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019). As individuals are made aware of
the way they think, they improve learning achievements (Fleming, 2014). To make learningand teaching effective, we follow the three-step systems mapping technique (Cabrera &Cabrera, 2019): (1) mapping knowledge (the content), (2) activating the knowledge (learning
content), and (3) checking (assessing) both the content and the underlying thinking skills
articulated in the lesson frame by learners, in the course Tunnel Engineering practice, such as
to present idea, topic, principles and case histories, as shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3: Application of the three-step mapping technique in the course programme
2.1 Mapping the course content
As teaching activity is student-centered, mapping knowledge means presenting the content tobe learned and taught, in a transparent manner, such as in verbal, visual, physical, form, etc.
Since knowledge is structured information, such as following cognitive rules, we consider
that a learning and teaching procedure starts from knowledge framing to plan the course. The
knowledge mapping should be functional to help a teacher and learner in organizing
information according to cognitive rules, e.g., the DSRP rules. In other words, well-framed
course design and implementation plan present related information, execution procedure andlearning task with good objective clarity, to encourage students to actively learn throughthinking rather than just memorizing information. An ideal way is to frame the related
knowledge by a teacher and student co-creating mode (Ma, 2021).
In brief, the criteria for a good or effective knowledge mapping include: (a) making clear thecourse learning contents and objectives or rubrics; (b) presenting the execution procedure of
the course activities, with specified key points for each of the phases or steps and the explicit
clue of learning skills; (c) the content presentation of contemporary, concise, attractive, easily
understanding features for each learning and teaching point, but of system features in awhole. For example, the course content related to the features of tunnel structures should bepresented in terms of planning, design, construction, and operation and management, which
will focus specified points a stage, respectively, but with the requirements from the others
under consideration as a whole project.
2.2 Activating the knowledge
To increase student engagement and deepen understanding, the purpose of this step is toactivate the content and thinking skills the teacher has framed, such as through a reflection on

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the student learning experience. The planned activities, such as a scenario of problemsolving, storytelling, case history analyzing, or experiential activities, could connect thelesson content and the systems thinking skills as emphasized in the content mapping.
The effective activating knowledge is ground on students’ prior information and experience(Ferlazzo, 2015). Therefore, the first step is to know the previous knowledge of the related
subject, such as through a quiz or content-specified problem-solving activity at beginning.
The learning and teaching plan is tuned according to the activity results. This means a welldesigned course syllabus and its implementation plan should be a modest rigidity with astructured flexibility, which improve and perfect itself via interactions within the learning andteaching system (Doll, 2008). The activating knowledge is an effective way to articulateconnection and concretization of subject abstract concepts and to enable students tounderstand related learning content in systems thinking or build knowledge.
A well-designed activating is also a process of increasing student engagement and systems
thinking application. For example, of the features of tunnel structures, activating points forthe multi-stages learning and teaching content vary, but focus on the above-mentioned
features of tunnel engineering, as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 4: Example of the three-step systems mapping technique application.
For example, starting from a course introduction, the concept and types of tunnel arepresented, with the question: what are the general features of a tunnel in the field oftransportation? The response could be underground structure, engineering production,function (building purpose) and structure features (shape, size, ratio between length andspan). At the end of this activation, students should be able to distinguish a tunnel in the fieldof transportation by identifying its three features from a tunnel in common sense, with
explicit boundary distinctions from the concepts of ground structures, natural tunnels, andtunnel and underground structures with other usages, which are also corresponding to thetypes. Ultimately, students would also gain a clear understanding of both the distinguishingtunnel and ground structure, and the value of making clear distinctions in other course
concepts.

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Of the knowledge of tunnel planning, almost all of the related influence factors in Tunnel
Engineering are under consideration, such as the requirements of a tunnel, features of theplanned tunnel (e.g., type, geometry) building conditions (e.g., geotechnical, constructability,
techniques availability, environment and neighbor structure sensitivity), social factors (e.g.,cost affordability and time schedule acceptability, social and political influence), and relatedrisks. The related activation focuses on the considerations in a system way, how to identify
and analysis the controlling factors in a practical project, and the general features of theplanned tunnel. The related learning point activation helps student to understand theimportance of a good project planning and to develop skills of analyzing information
available with the application of systems thinking.
The contents presenting the knowledge of tunnel design and construction are major parts ofthe course. Of the related knowledge, there are various points deserve activating. For
example, the related activating knowledge practice will enable students to understand theimportance of ground conditions to the stability of a tunnel, such as in terms ofapproximating the features of the tunnel surrounding rocks, the behaviors of the surroundingrocks and supporting system, as well as the interaction between the ground and supports. In
this process, we underline the complex features of the related principles, including thestructural functions of the surrounding rocks, how to protect or to mobilize the selfsupporting capacity of the surrounding rocks with the features of stand-up time short or
relatively long, respectively. The relationship between the design and construction are
activated under a system consideration, such as in terms of dynamic design or “design as yougo” during the construction of a complex tunnel project.
The knowledge activation of the operation and management content stresses both in thespecified points of the types and their requirements of facilities, such as ventilation andlighting, and in the interrelationship of the planning, design, construction and operation issues
in systems thinking. For example, the types and their requirements of operational andmanagement facilities of a tunnel are mainly related to the features of the tunnel, such as typeand function, geometry (e.g., length and span, shape and area of cross section), traffic volume
and its composition. The requirements of the facilities should be increasingly consideredfrom planning to design stages. The required facilities come into practice throughconstruction, whose method optimization is often confined by the installation space features.
The running of the operational and management facilities is issue related to project cost,serving and risk levels, and environment effect. All of these results could trace back to theproject planning and design.
2.3 Checking the knowledge
As the teaching is learning-centred, the learning outcomes need evaluating to ensure thedesired course objective. The checking is to assess student understanding of information andthinking, with specified checking points (Fig. 4). The typical measure should have theparameters of determining whether learners are building the knowledge the teacher initiallyframed and then activated (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019). The checking measures should matchwith the student experience, such as in terms of pre-lesson, within classroom activity andpost-lesson. Therefore, it is important that students performing self-assessment and reflection
to check their own understanding out of classroom and to increase their metacognitiveawareness (Cabrera & Cabrera, 2019).

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In a student-centred process, the evaluation of student learning outcomes is performed withthe designed points and related rubrics (Fig. 4), which are of pre-lesson explicit form to thestudents. The evaluation practice shows that incentive is better than punishment (Ma, 2021),
such as for the achievements of quiz, assignment, presentation and test both in classroom andafter class. The checking results of the learning outcomes is active. This implies that theapplication of complex systems thinking in the course design, together with the three-step
mapping method in learning and teaching process, is beneficial to foster student optimallearning and to promote metacognition, implying an improved learning outcomes.
On the other hand, the checking activity in time is also an effective approach to apply covalue method in course plan implementation (Ma, 2021) and to timely response to theappropriateness of teacher course framing (Fig. 3).
Conclusion
With the application of Complex Adaptive Systems (CAS) and three-step mapping method(Cabrera & Cabrera 2019) in the course design for Tunnel Engineering, with complexity
under consideration, the following conclusions can be drawn.
(1) Considering the complex features of both student knowledge building and the course
Tunnel Engineering, the application of the three-step systems thinking mapping method isnecessary and beneficial for the course design and plan implementation in favor to students’knowledge building.
(2) The practice and the results of the application of CAS and three-step mapping method
indicate a positive effect to foster student optimal learning and to promote student
metacognition developing.

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References
Cabrera, D., & Cabrera, L. (2015). Systems thinking made simple: New hope for solving
wicked problems in a complex world. Ithaca, NY: Odyssean Press.
Cabrera D., & Cabrera L. (2019). Complexity and systems thinking models in education:
Applications for leaders. In: M. Spector, B. Lockee, & M. Childress (Eds.), Learning,
Design, and Technology. Springer, Cham.
Doll W. E. (2008). Complexity and the culture of curriculum. In M. Mason (Eds.),
Complexity theory and the philosophy of education (pp.181-203). Chichester: WileyBlackwell.
Fleming, S. M. (2014). Metacognition is the forgotten secret to success. Scientific American
Mind, 25(5), 31-37.
Ferlazzo, L. (2015). Response: Ways to build ‘authentic engagement’ & not ‘strategic
compliance’. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/opinionresponse-ways-to-build-authentic-engagement-not-strategic-compliance/2015/04
Gell-Mann, M. (1995). What is complexity? Remarks on simplicity and complexity by theNobel prize-winning author of the quark and the jaguar. Complexity, 1(1), 16-19.
Kuhn L. (2008). Complexity and educational research: A critical reflection. In M. Mason(Eds.), Complexity theory and the philosophy of education (pp.169-180). Chichester:
Wiley-Blackwell.
Ma, J.-Q. (2020). Introduction to Tunnel Engineering. Beijing: China Communications Press
Co., Ltd.
Ma, J.-Q. (2021). Value co-creation in the tunnel engineering course design andimplementation. Proceedings of the 3rd International Seminar on Education
Research and Social Science. Atlantis Press.
Mason M. (2008a). Complexity theory and the philosophy of education. In M. Mason (Eds.),
Complexity theory and the philosophy of education (pp.1-15). Chichester: WileyBlackwell.
Mason M. (2008b). What is complexity theory and what are its implications for educationalchange? In M. Mason (Eds.), Complexity theory and the philosophy of education(pp.32-45). Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
National Research Council (NRC). (2012). Education for Life and Work: Developing
Transferable Knowledge and Skills in the 21st Century. Washington, DC: The
National Academies Press.
Watson, J. (2019). The Secret of Success. IEEE Potentials, 38(6), 8-12.
Contact email: majq@gl.chd.edu.cn

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Technology Adoption in Graduate Education: Basis for Faculty Development Plan
Antoniette Lacerna, St. Paul University Quezon City, Philippines
Helen Rigor, St. Paul University Quezon City, Philippines
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Abstract
With the rapid growth of the technological environment and the current COVID-19 epidemic,
the way we interact and conduct business has undergone significant changes. Graduate
education institutions are not exempted from these changes, as administrators and faculty are
under pressure to research and implement new learning approaches in order to ensure thecontinuation of service delivery. With this in mind, there is a need to build and strengthen
faculty capacities in technology use. Given this, the study was undertaken to determine thetechnology adoption of the graduate school faculty of St. Paul University Quezon City
utilizing its Learning Management Systems. By using the Technology Acceptance Model as
its framework, the findings reveal that the perceived ease of use and usefulness of the
University's online learning management systems are impacted by the series of training
organized and conducted by the Graduate School department, as well as the necessity toadapt due to the current circumstance. Furthermore, findings suggest that professors’ positive
views about the utilization of learning management systems are important if the University's
graduate education is to successfully transition from the traditional approach to online
learning. This emphasizes that teachers are critical stakeholders in education, and their views
about adopting online learning have a big effect on students' perspectives and motivation
about online learning. Results of the study served as bases for the faculty development planof the Graduate School Department.
Keywords: Technology Adoption, Learning Management Systems, Perceived Usefulness,
Perceived Ease of Use, Intention to Continue, Attitude Toward Using

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Introduction
With the rapid growth of the technological environment and the current COVID-19 epidemic,
the way we interact and conduct business has undergone significant changes. Graduate
education institutions are not exempted to these changes, as administrators and faculty are
under pressure to research and implement new learning approaches in order to ensure thecontinuation of service delivery. With this in mind, there is a need to build and strengthen
faculty capacities in technology use.
In order to address the gaps in faculty knowledge, skills, and competencies, faculty
development plan in graduate education is regarded important in light of the rising demandfor online learning, which is expected to be a part of the "new normal." This effort is being
made to equip the faculty, assuring that they will be able to fulfill the future needs andrequirements of the post COVID-19 teaching-learning environment. Graduate education
administration, on the other hand, must strengthen their hardware and software infrastructuresin order to rebuild their present learning environments. Graduate Education Institutions thatare fast and adaptable to these changes have a better chance of survival and are more likely toprosper in the future education environment.
Related Literature
The global impact of COVID-19 pandemic will unquestionably bring huge shifts in the
education sector. Accompanying these anticipated shifts will be the changing role of thefaculty. This role will undoubtedly evolve from being the sole source of knowledge in theconfines of the four walls of classroom into a facilitator, a collaborator, and an enabler oflearning utilizing plethora of online technologies. In view of this, universities need to makean investment in training their faculty.
The need for faculty capacity building and training cannot be underestimated due to thedisruptive innovations brought by technology and due to the skills demanded by the businessindustry from the graduates.
Given these considerations, graduate faculty must learn new methods of teaching that are
digital, technology-based, and utilize virtual space, unlearn processes that they have grownaccustomed to and have become less effective, and relearn their roles (Zmuda, et.al, 2020)as
teachers in educating Generation Alpha, the newest generation of students who are perfectly
comfortable with virtual connections but do not necessarily perform well with physicalhuman interactions.
Training Needs and Capacity Building
The conduct of training needs analysis is undeniably a requisite in carrying out an effective
and relevant training program. According to Guevara and Nuqui (2016), training and growth
are essential in every organization that aspires to advance. They play crucial roles in theperformance of a company and its personnel. These two are critical in faculty professional
development, with the former focusing on teaching instructors particular skills to improvetheir performance and the latter encompasses a more expansive scope and focuses on
faculty's future performance.

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Literature indicates that training needs analysis in education has been neglected during theprevious decade. According to Moeini (2008), for many years, teachers were supposed tofigure out how to improve their teaching on their own, via trial and error, and by pursuing theappropriate professional development on their own. He further stated that given the changing
environment of higher education, this form of trial and error training of professors is nolonger acceptable.
Technology Acceptance and Adoption
The COVID-19 health crisis has exposed vulnerabilities in the economic, social,technological aspects of the Philippine education system. With the dramatic surge in demandfor online learning, most graduate education institutions were caught off guard and had toturn to online learning with faculty members struggling to learn the new technology. This
current situation has depicted a glaring technology skills gap among faculty. The current
situation which nobody imagined has forever changed the landscape of education
characterized by new ways of learning, demanding new ways of teaching.
Information and technology literacy are among the skills demanded in the 21st century. For
teachers, these constitute technology acceptance, integration and adoption. For the longest
time, educational institutions have been staunchly resistant to altering their long-establishedand time-honored structure, methods, and practices. For decades, instructors have insisted on
the traditional style of teaching, claiming that it is the only way to teach and learn, until the
global crisis forced educational institutions to reconsider their approaches. Educational
institutions are now realizing that they must make budget modifications that prioritize
infrastructural and instructional issues/concerns. According to Ensign et al. (2007), as
referenced by O'reilly (2016), the dilemma of giving instructors with access to technology but
then having a poor adoption is well-known. This is supported by the findings of Arinto(2016) citing that "there is a persistence of traditional modes of teaching and, in some cases,
outright resistance to educational innovation". Such resistance can be brought by faculty
preparedness. Markauskaite and Goodyear (2009) discovered evidence that "there is arequirement for and difficulty in combining pedagogical frames and ICT tools with the otherknowledge frames required to develop productive learning activities for teaching specificdiscipline knowledge. The research also identifies a shift from a teacher-focused technique toa learner-centered one as a barrier to successful technology integration. Teachers are finding
it challenging to convert their traditional classroom environment to online learning in one
way or another. Arinto (2016) expands on Daly and Pachler (2007), emphasizing that the useof online distant education/learning necessitates a shift in teachers' pedagogical attitude andtechniques.
Given the foregoing discussions, this research was conducted to (1) determine the perceived
usefulness and ease of use of the learning management of the University; (2) determine theattitude of graduate school faculty toward the utilization of the University’s LMS; (3)determine the respondents’ continuance intention; (4) find out the major obstacles that faculty
consider in making effective use of technology in and outside the classroom; and (5) design afaculty development plan.

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Theoretical Framework
Perceived
Usefulness
Attitude
Towards
Using

External
Variables

Behavioral

Intention
to UseActualSystemUse

Perceived
Ease of Use

Figure 1. Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) by Davies, et.al (1989)
The Technology Acceptance Model was initially developed by Davis, et.al (1989) to provide
an explanation of the determinants human computer usage behavior. This is practically an
extension of the theory of reasoned behavior of Fishbein and Ajzen (1975). TAM considers
that the person's individual intention to use the technology depends on how useful thetechnology is to the user and how easily it can be used in terms of functionality. Further,
Davis (1989) as cited by Alenezi,et.al (2011) believed that the usefulness of the technology isdirectly proportional to the ease of use. Perceived usefulness is also seen as being directly
impacted by perceived ease of use (Alenezi, et.al,2011).
MethodThe quantitative technique was used in the study, adapting certain sections of O'reily (2016)
survey instrument. It is a self-evaluation survey with numerical skill ratings. The following
areas were evaluated for the purpose of this research: (1) perceived usefulness of the
University's LMS; (2) perceived ease of use of the University's LMS; (3) respondents’behavior toward using; (4) respondents’ continuance intention and (5) perceived
obstacles/barriers to effectively adopting technology. The responders are the graduate school
professors from St. Paul University City, school year 2020-2021.
Findings
The purpose of this research was to gauge graduate school faculty opinions on the perceived
usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude toward utilizing, and intention to continue using
the University's learning management systems. The study's conclusions will be one of thefoundations for developing a faculty development plan.
Perceived Usefulness
Using the OPEN LMS in my class helps me to control the pedagogy
Using MSTEAMS in my class helps me to control the pedagogy
Using the OPEN LMS in my class enhances my teaching
performance
Using MSTEAMS in my class enhances my teaching performance
I find the use of OPEN LMS in my class usefulI find the use of MSTEAMS in my class useful

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x
3.67
3.44

sd
0.50
0.53

3.56
3.56
3.56
3.56

0.53
0.73
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Using the OPEN LMS makes it easier to monitor the student's needs
3.22
Using the MSTEAMS makes it easier to monitor the student's needs
3.22
Average weighted mean 3.47
Table 1: Perceived Usefulness of Learning Management Systems

0.83
0.67

The Technology Adoption Model of Davis (1989) is one of the most important models oftechnology acceptance, with two major variables influencing an individual's behavior toaccept new technology: perceived usefulness and perceived ease of usage. In The usage of
the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) among the respondents in this study demonstrated
a significant agreement on the perceived usefulness of the OPEN LMS utilized by the
University, as shown by the data in table 1 with an average weighted mean of 3.47. When thestandard deviation of each item is closely examined, which ranges from 0.50 to 0.83, it isclear that respondents' responses are comparable, suggesting that respondents have a similar
perception of the utility of the University's learning management systems, which can be
attributed to the same reference point, which is the COVID-19 pandemic.
COVID-19 has caused school closures all around the world. As a result, education has altered
drastically, with the notable emergence of online learning, in which instruction is done
remotely and on digital platforms. Given this, graduate school institutions together with theirfaculty are duty-bound to enhance their online learning management systems and skills toenable continuation of service delivery in the absence of actual face-to-face sessions.
Respondents’ high agreement on the perceived usefulness of the LMS given the present
circumstance connotes that the use of information technology in education will increase
further, and online education is now an important and essential component of classroom
instruction.
Perceived Ease of Usex
sd
It is easy to become skillful at using OPEN LMS
3.22
0.83
It is easy to become skillful at using MSTEAMS
3.33
0.71
The features of OPEN LMS are easy to use
3.22
0.67
The features of MSTEAMS are easy to use
3.44
0.53
Using OPEN LMS is more flexible than traditional face to face teaching
3.44
0.53
Using MSTEAMS is more flexible than traditional face to face teaching
3.33
0.50
OPEN LMS is understandable and easy to navigate
3.33
0.71
MS TEAMS is understandable and easy to navigate
3.44
0.53
Average weighted mean
3.34
Table 2: Perceived Ease of Use of Learning Management Systems
In terms of the second TAM variable, perceived ease of use, the respondents perceived theease of use of the learning management systems to be very high. This suggests that the
respondents rate the use of OPEN LMS as friendly and easy to navigate. Such finding can be
attributed to the recent efforts of the department to intensifying the use of its OPEN LMS
prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, which included intensive training for all staff on online
courses, as well as preparing and developing instructional materials before their formal
deployment to students. This further illustrates the importance of training and capacity
building of faculty. Several studies have revealed that ICT-related training programs, whether
beginner or experienced, develop teachers' competences in computer use (Bauer & Kenton,
2005; Franklin, 2007; Wozney et al., 2006), influence teachers' attitudes toward computers(Hew and Brush, 2007; Keengwe and Onchwari, 2008), and assist teachers in reorganizing
the task of technology and how new technology tools are used. In a study conducted by

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Lawless and Pellegrino (2007), findings reveal that if a training program is of high quality,
educators are eagerly involved in important context activities, teamwork among colleagues is
improved, and there is a clear vision for student achievement. But the perceived ease of use
for technology is not limited to its physical interface though. In cognitive psychology, forexample, the Information Processing Model of Cognition serves as a foundation for interface
design. According to Gary (nd) this model demonstrates that: (1) humans have a working
memory restricted to five to seven "chunks" of knowledge; (2) people need to refresh theirattention often; and (3) recalling information needs more cognitive effort than recognizing
information. Menus, query-by-example, and direct manipulation are examples of computerinterface styles that adhere to this concept. Menus are preferred over command languages by
novices and casual users since identifying a suitable selection is easier than memorizing acommand. Because they share the "burden" between physical and cognitive effort, direct
manipulation interfaces (such as touch panels in information kiosks or input devices andvisual displays in most video games) circumvent numerous psychological constraints.
Furthermore, their rapid feedback and reversibility encourage user discovery.
Attitude Toward Using Technology
Using OPEN LMS in class is a good alternative to traditional face toface teaching
Using MSTEAMS in class is a good alternative to traditional
face to face teaching
Using MSTEAMS in class is favorable
Using OPEN LMS in class is favorable
I think it is valuable to use OPEN LMS in class
I think it is valuable to use MSTEAMS in class
I think asynchronous online learning is needed for the future of
education
I think synchronous online learning is needed for the future of
education
Average weighted mean
Table 3: Attitude toward Using Technology

x

sd

3.67

0.50

3.78
3.56
3.22
3.44
3.56

0.44
0.53
0.83
0.73
0.73

3.89

0.33

3.67
3.60

0.50

Generally, the respondents hold a very positive view in using technology in their teachingwith an average weighted mean of 3.60. With more than 1 year of delivering online learning,
the very high agreement and the consistency (sd) in the answers of the respondents show thatthey have already adjusted to the new modality. Given the current circumstance where healthand safety are at risk, respondents believe that while contemporary modalities may not becompletely equivalent to conventional settings, they do give an alternate method of
maintaining educational continuity.
Numerous literatures confirm that teachers’ attitudes toward using technology are crucial in
the effective implementation of any learning program. According to Teo (2009) and
Venkatesh, et.al (2003) as cited by Kisanga (2016), there are two types of variables that
influence teachers' attitudes toward technology namely internal and external variables.
Internal variables include instructors' internal beliefs about technology, which are formed by
the degree to which instructors evaluate the technology favorably or unfavorably, while
external variables include subjective norms (Ajzen & Fishbein, 1980), organizational
structure (Rogers, 2003), technical factors such as technology complexity (Rogers, 2003;
Weller, 2007), and environmental factors such as ICT infrastructure, ICT features andsupport and many more (Chien, Wu, & Hsu, 2014; Teo, 2009).

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Continuance Intention
I intend to learn the other features of OPEN LMS
I intend to learn the other features of MSTEAMS
I intend to provide variety of assessments using the different learning
activities in OPEN LMS
I intend to provide variety of activities using the different learning
activities in MSTEAMS
I intend to continue using OPEN LMS to supplement my synchronous
teaching
I intend to continue using MSTEAMS to supplement the asynchronous
online learning of my students
I intend to attend trainings and workshops in OPEN LMSI Intend to attend trainings and workshops in MSTEAMS
Average weighted mean
Table 4: Continuance Intention

x
3.78
3.78

sd
0.44
0.44

3.75

0.46

3.67

0.5

3.67

0.5

3.67
3.67
3.67
3.71

0.5
0.5
0.5
0.5

The results in table 4 demonstrate that respondents are very likely to continue using the
University's learning management systems, with an average weighted mean of 3.71. This isfurther confirmed by the consistency in their responses, with standard deviations ranging
from 0.44-0.50. The respondents' intention to stay is linked to their attitude toward adopting
learning management systems, which also indicated a very high level of agreement among
respondents. This finding is backed by a large body of literature. For instance, according toDavis (1989), as quoted by Teo (2019), a behavior's intention to use is determined by one's
attitude toward computer/technology usage. He goes on to argue that if users have a favorable
attitude about computer use, they will create the intention to act consistently (Teo, 2019).
This was verified in a study done by Yi and Hwang (2003), who discovered that when users
have a strong desire to utilize university resources for teaching and learning, they visit
university websites more frequently and stay longer than those with weak intentions.
Furthermore, perceived usefulness was discovered to predict behavioral intention. Davis ascited again by Teo (2019) also proposed that when consumers considered technology to bebeneficial, it would have a direct impact on intention to use technology.
Barriers to Technology Integration
Among the major obstacles/barriers that graduate school faculty consider in making
effective use of technology inside and outside the classroom are the unpredictability ofcomputers (can easily crash and lose data), an unstable wifi connection inside the classrooms
and an Internet connection that is slow or drops connection.
Conclusions
There has been a greater reliance on digital-online technologies during the Covid-19
epidemic. People all across the globe rely significantly on internet platforms to connect,transact, and learn. Similarly, the educational system relies on internet technologies to
conduct teaching.
In this study, the perceived ease of use and usefulness of the University's online learning
system are impacted by trainings organized and conducted by the Graduate School
department, as well as the necessity to adapt due to the current circumstances.

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The study's findings suggest that professors’ positive views about the utilization of learning
management systems are important if the University's graduate education is to successfullytransition from the traditional approach to online learning. This emphasizes that teachers are
critical stakeholders in education, and their views about adopting online learning have a big
effect on students' perspective and motivation about online learning.
Lastly, the study's conclusions on the impediments to technology integration differ
dramatically from those mentioned in the literature. Unlike those in the literature, which
included both internal and extrinsic barriers, as analyzed by Maguire et.al (2007), the dataobtained from the results of this study focused on infrastructural barriers, namely thereliability of internet connections for both faculty and students. This can be ascribed to thelocation of the research. Unlike previous studies that were conducted in first-world countries
where connectivity was not an issue, the current one was being conducted in a third-world
country that is said to be the second slowest in internet speed among the 10-member
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and 110th among 139 countries (Porcalla,2020). However, despite the reservations about the country's sluggish internet connection in
general, respondents were fast to adopt and adapt.
Recommendations
In the light of the findings obtained from the study, the following recommendations are
given.
•
Comprehensive technology integration and faculty development plans to improve
graduate school faculty capacities are highly suggested. These include but not limited to thefollowing:a.
Structured opportunities for in-service retraining, upgrading, and acquiring
new information and skills, such as school-based workshops and trainings;b.
Needs-based just-in-time learning and peer coaching to ensure further
development of teachers’ ICT and pedagogical skills (ILO-UNESCO-World
Bank,2020).
•
A comprehensive ICT development which include procurement of needed
infrastructure is necessary to sustain the technology initiatives of the institution;•
Up skilling of current technical support personnel is vital in providing effective onsite
or remote assistance to faculty and students;•
An establishment of an educational technology office/unit is necessary to cater to theevolving needs of faculty and students as well.
•A follow up research is needed to determine improvement in the technology integration
skills, usage and application of faculty.

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References
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Acceptance: An Extension of the Technology Acceptance Model. Retrieved,
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Bauer, J., & Kenton, J. (2005). Toward technology integration in the schools: Why it isn’t
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Daly,C., & Pachler,N.(2007).Learning with others in mind. In J. Pickering,C. Daly, & N.
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Ensign, J., McAloon, P. Walker, G. & Wright, M. 2007. "2007 U.S. language summits:
Ohio language roadmap for the 21st century", The Language Flagship.Retrieved,
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Fishbein, M., & Ajzen, I. (1975). Belief, attitude, intention, and behavior: An
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Franklin, C. (2007). Factors that influence elementary teachers use of computers. Journalof Technology and Teacher Education, vol. 15, no. 2, pp. 267–293.
Guevara,I., & Nuqui,A. (2016). LCUP Administrators and Teachers Training Needs
Assessment:Basis for Developing a Faculty Development Program. Retrieved,
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Gary,M.(nd). Psychological Dimensions of User Computer Interface. ERIC Clearinghouseon Information Resources Syracuse NY.

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Hew, K. F., & Brush, T. (2007). Integrating technology into K-12 teaching and learning:
current knowledge gaps and recommendations for future research. Educational
Technology Research and Development, vol. 55, pp. 223-253.
ILO-UNESCO-World Bank (2020). Skills development in the time of COVID-19: Taking
stock of the initial responses in technical and vocational education and training.
Retrieved, https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_emp/--ifp_skills/documents/publication/wcms_766557.pdf on July 15, 2021.
Keengwe, J., & Onchwari, G. (2008). Computer technology integration and student learning:
Barriers and promise, Journal of Science Education and Technology, vol. 17, pp. 560–
565.
Kisanga, D. H., & Ireson, G. (2016). Test of e-Learning Related Attitudes (TeLRA) scale:
Development, reliability and validity study. International Journal of Education andDevelopment using Information and Communication Technology (IJEDICT)12(1),20-36.
Lawless, K., & Pellegrino, J. (2007). Professional development in integrating technology into
teaching and learning: Knowns, unknowns and ways to pursue better questions andanswers. Review of Educational Research, vol. 77, no. 4, pp. 575-614.
Maguire, S., Koh,S.C.L., and Magrys,A. (2007). The adoption of e-business and knowledge
management in SMEs. An International Journal., 14: 37-58.
Markauskaie,L & Goodyear,P.(2009). Designing for complex ICT-basedlearning:Understanding teacher thinking to help improve educational design.
Paper presented at the 26th Annual Conference of the Australasian Society for
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Moeini, H. (2008). Identifying Needs: A Missing Part in Teacher Training
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O’Reilly,E. (2016). Developing technology needs assessments for educational. International
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Porcalla,D. (2020, December 28).Philippines internet ‘second slowest’ in ASEAN, ranks
110th worldwide.Philippine Star Global.
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15,2020.

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Teo,T. (2019). Students and Teachers’ Intention to Use Technology: Assessing Their
Measurement Equivalence and Structural Invariance. Journal of Educational
Computing Research, Vol. 57(1) 201–225. DOI: 10.1177/0735633117749430.
Vatanartiran,S. & Karadeniz,S. (2015). A Needs Analysis for Technology Integration Plan:
Challenges and Needs of Teachers. Contemporary Educational Technology, 6(3),206-220.
Venkatesh, V., Morris, M. G., Davis, G. B., & Davis, F. D. (2003). User acceptance of
information technology: Toward a unified view. MIS Quarterly, 27(3), 425–478.
Weller, M. (2007). Virtual learning environments: Using, choosing and developing your
VLE. London: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group.
Wozney, L., Venkatesh, V., & Abrami, P.C. (2006). Implementing computer technologies:
Teachers' perceptions and practices. Journal of Technology and teacher education,
vol. 14, no.1, pp. 173-207.
Yi, M. Y., & Hwang, Y. (2003). Predicting the use of web-based information systems: Selfefficacy, enjoyment, learning goal orientation, and the technology acceptance model.
International Journal of Human-Computer Studies, 59(4), 431–449.
Zmuda,A., Alcock,M.,& Fisher,M.(2020). Meet Generation Alpha: Teaching the Newest
Generation of Students.,Retrieved, https://www.learningpersonalized.com/meetgeneration-alpha-teaching-the-newest-generation-of-students/
Contact email: azlacerna@spuqc.edu.ph

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Meeting Generation Z Learning Expectations in Quest International University
Paulin Poh Lin Wong, Quest International University, Malaysia
Gogilavaani Jothi Veeramani, Quest International University, Malaysia
Magaret Sivapragasam, Quest International University, Malaysia
Tina Swee Kim Lim, Quest International University, Malaysia
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Abstract
Students currently studying in higher learning institutions are part of Generation Z known as
the Gen Zers. Available literature on Gen Zers mostly focus on understanding anddistinguishing them from previous generations by highlighting their personality traits,characteristics and learning preferences but lack information on the extent to which Gen Zers
rate the different teach-learning methods as important and the extent to which they aresatisfied with the approaches used by their lecturers. As such, the aim of this study is toverify the methods that literature presents as important for Gen Zers’ learning and to checkagainst the students’ satisfaction level for those methods. Data were collected from final
semester students in a private higher education institution in Malaysia. A survey
questionnaire instrument with thirty items on importance and the same thirty items on
satisfaction, as well as two open-ended questions were administered online. The ImportanceSatisfaction Analysis and gap analysis for each of the items on teaching-learning methods
were conducted on the quantitative data while thematic analysis was conducted on thequalitative data. Results from this study showed that all the teaching-learning methods
identified received a high rating for both importance and satisfaction, hence meeting thestudents’ expectations. This indicates that the lecturers have done a good job tailoring theirapproaches to engage with their students. Additionally, based on the findings from the gap
analysis, recommendations are made on the teaching-learning methods that can be further
improved to increase the Gen Z students’ satisfaction levels.
Keywords: Generation-Z, Importance, Satisfaction, Teaching-Learning, Gap Analysis

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction

The current generation of students entering universities is known as the Gen Zers, iGen, or
centennials. According to the Pew Research Center as cited by Dimock (2019), people in Gen
Z are born after the year 1997. They are said to possess a unique set of characteristics andbehaviour, that set them apart of the previous generations such as the Millennials (Gen Y),
the Gen X, the Baby Boomers and the Silent Generation (Breman & Rao, 2017; Iberdrola,2021; Nicholas, 2020; Parker & Igielnik, 2020). Tagged as “digital natives,” Gen Z aretagged as consummate multitaskers, achievement oriented, and sheltered. They do not know aworld without personal digital devices like smartphones and tablets. Because of that, most or
all have had access to nearly any information or service around the clock (Seemiller, 2017).
First, it is important to clarify the differences between Generation Z and their preceding
generation – the Millennials (Maloni et al., 2019). Compared to the Gen Zers, the Millennials
are behind Generation Z in the use of technology. In fact, a substantial number of researches
has been conducted on Gen Zers (Wondergem, 2017; Francis & Hoefel, 2018; Dell
Technologies, 2019; Maloni, et al., 2019; Ng, et al., 2019; PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2020;
Brandman University, 2020). It is foreseen that this generation can control technology betterand they will make up a substantial percentage of the workforce (Knapp et al., 2017). For thisgeneration, their mobile phone turned into their portable computer.
1.1

Problem Statement

Teaching-learning methods have evolved with time. Adapting to learner characteristics andpreferences are now considered a very important element in achieving the desired learning
outcomes. Where teachers were once considered the sage on the stage, they are now morethan ever, increasingly moving on to the role of the guide by the side. Where role learningand didactic methods were once deemed THE methods to be used for quite a while many
years back, the emergence of new tools and technologies has necessitated a change in thetype of learning resources provided to students and the way teachers engage students inlearning. In fact, online teaching and learning in higher education accelerated the discussion
with issues related to online learners, instructors, and content development (Kebritchi, et al.,2017). While the teachers who teach Gen Zers are of a different generation and may notnecessarily have the same inclination or the same characteristics as their students, they would
still be expected to approach teaching-learning in a manner that is engaging and effective(Miranda, 2020).
1.2

Research Questions

Modern teaching and learning require constant adaptation with new generations. Higher
education institutions need to stay keenly and promptly attuned to shifts in student
expectations. Hence, the questions that arise are:
1. What teaching-learning methods do the Quest International University (QIU) Generation
Z students consider as important for them to learn effectively?
2. What are the teaching-learning methods utilised by QIU lecturers that the students are
satisfied with;
3. In the eyes of the students, to what extent do the university lecturers in QIU utilize theteaching-learning methods that satisfy the students preference to learn effectively.

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Research Objectives

The research questions of this study therefore led to the following objectives:
1.
Identify the teaching-learning methods deemed important to QIU Generation Z
students to learn effectively;
2.
Identify the teaching-learning methods utilised by QIU lecturers that the students are
satisfied with; and3.
Examine the extent to which the teaching-learning methods utilised by QIU lecturers
satisfy the preferences of their students.
2.

Literature Review

The importance of teaching-learning methods used by educators to help them achieve thedesired learning outcomes has been expounded by numerous researchers and educationists(Cruickshank, Jenkins & Metcalfe, 2011; Lile & Kelemen, 2014). Bourner (2008), studied
different approaches to teaching-learning methods based on learning aims. The author agreed
that enhanced access to the ever-growing technology in education is said to open up new
possibilities to teach and learn. The next section provides a brief review of current teachinglearning tools and assessments; and learning resources available. Then, Gen Zers study
preferences are discussed leading to the need of understanding the QIU Generation Z
students’ importance in teaching-learning methods and their satisfaction.
2.1

Learning Resources

According to Shengji et al. (2009), college and university lecturers need to establish newteaching philosophy and change their teaching methods as the education scenario changes. In
fact, it is important for teachers to design learning that matches students’ learning styles andtheir preferred learning resources, rather than those that reflect their preferences (Franzoni
and Assar, 2009; Scott-Weber, 2012). In order to attract and gauge Gen Z attention as well as
to address their academic, personal and career needs, educational institutions must be able todevelop digital strategies both inside and outside the classroom (Fyfe, 2018).
2.2

Technology-mediated Learning

The rapid development of technology breathes new life into various teaching and learning
tools (Hashim, 2018). With technology, the process of teaching and learning is not limited tothe classroom. As part of the learning repertoire, visualizations, simulations, case analyses,
and other methods of participatory learning such as fieldwork can be included to meet theneeds of diverse learners.
Problem-based or active learning approach is learner-centred and marks a significant change
in curriculum design and delivery. This kind of active learning experience is a powerfulmeans of embedding new learning into the brain. The rationale is that when there is anassociated emotional component, such as when multiple senses are engaged, the brain
actually forms more neural connections, furthering retention (Rickes, 2016).
In fact, ‘Game-Based Learning’ can be effective tools for scaffolding concepts andsimulating real world experience which enables learners to acquire knowledge and enhancelearning through multiple intelligences (Iaremenko, 2017; Hashim, 2018). Kahoot, Quizlet,

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Quizziz, and Socrative, among others are examples of the online applications or games that
could be utilized.
Moreover, cloud computing, an Internet-based computing in which shared resources,
software and information are delivered as a service that computers or mobile devices canaccess on-demand is used by learners and educators to support learning, social interaction,
content creation, publishing and collaboration. Some examples of these would include;
Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC), Open Educational Resources (OER), Google Apps,
YouTube, Twitter and Dropbox (Hashim, 2018).
2.3

Learning for Generation Z

A review of the literature pertaining to Gen Zers’ preferred learning resources indicate that
this generation are in an age of instant gratification, prefer receiving information throughvisual imagery, for example in the form of videos like YouTube (Cameron & Pagnattaro,
2017; EHL Insights, 2020; Miranda, 2020). Proving this, Claveria (2017) indicated that Gen
Zers are found to visit Youtube more often at 72% compared to Millennials at 52%.
Similarly, the Gen Zers are known to love social media, especially those that are rich inmultimedia such as Instagram (World Economic Forum, 2019). They use social media
frequently to connect with people, for information sharing and information usage (Yadav &Rai, 2017). They also communicate with each other in an arcane texting language laden withan ever-growing “vocabulary” of emojis and acronyms.
Lectures and printed books did not rate highly with Generation Z. They are more inclined touse e-books (Nicholas, 2020) as they can easily search for keywords that will help them readmore effectively. Aptly concluded by Vinh (2020), the reading habits of generation Z areunique whereby they do not read less than previous generations, but they read different thingsand in different ways.
Gen Zers also prefer active learning activities and require quick feedback or response fromtheir lecturers (Seemiller & Grace, 2016; Martin, 2017; Nicholas, 2020; Isaacs et al., 2020).
Gen Zers want to be able to reach out to their lecturers quickly for extra help outside classtime via online chat.
Both Seemiller and Grace (2016) and Nicholas (2020) found that Gen Zers preferred to learn
practical knowledge for future work application and strongly favoured working with someone
from the industry as part of their coursework. Seemiller and Grace (2016) in their in-depth
study of over a thousand Generation Z college students found that 79% of Generation Z
prefers to learn through examples of practical experiences such as projects and internships.
The authors also noted that they prefer their teachers to be facilitators rather than lecturers.
This way of learning benefits Gen Z where it allows them to apply their academic, teamwork
and analytical skills (Gardner, et al., 2018).
Martin (2017) posited that Gen Zers have a competitive nature and therefore will enjoy
gamification elements in the courses they enrol in. This view is supported by Schwartz(2019) who presented cases whereby gamification has been used to encourage student
success. The next section discusses the suggestions and effort within the literature in meeting
Gen Zers learning needs.

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Meeting Generation Z Preferences

It is important to understand that this generation is wired to sophisticated, complex visual
imagery which means that their visual abilities are far more developed than leading tolearning more effectively in visual form (Rothman, 2016; 2018). They can in fact, watch alearning video and successfully complete an assigned task – highlighting the need fortechnology-mediated teaching resources.
Besides that, active learning activities, quick feedback and response time is the kind of
support that resonates with the Gen Zers students’ lifestyle (EHL Insights, 2020). Solving
problems in class is a key strategy to get Gen Zers to learn course material (Nicholas, 2020).
These kinaesthetic, experiential, hands-on learners like to see an example before attempting
to do it by themselves. Thus, interactive games such as the ‘Kahoot’ game-based learning
platform, collaborative projects, advance organizing and activities that require meeting
challenges in Generation Z classroom experience are recommended to increase interactivity(Vinh, 2020).
Having shorter attention span which is at 8 seconds (Sparks & Honey, 2017), is a challenge
in making sure Generation Z are captivated by long course materials. According to Cameronand Pagnattaro (2017), Generation Z are supplemented with emojis and fast thumb work thatallows this generation to be fast in note taking. Hence, microlearning is proposed (Jermyn,
2018; Kelly, 2019) Microlearning is defined as learning in little bits. This approach
anticipated Generation Z’s everyday habit of immersing in short videos such as Youtube and‘Tik Tok’ videos and thus long lectures are deemed to be less effective on these students.
The following section highlights the significance of this study in understanding the learning
expectations and meeting the needs of Gen Zers in a private higher education institution.
3.

Methodology

3.1

Instrument

Items for the research instrument are gleaned from the literature review of teaching-learning
methods that have been identified as those aligned to Gen Zers’ characteristics and learning
styles. The students were required to rate the level of importance of the teaching-learning
methods identified based on a five-point Likert-type scale, namely, (1) for Not at allimportant; (2) for Not very important; (3) for Somewhat important; (4) for Important; and (5)for Very important. For the same items, the respondents rated their satisfaction towards
lecturers’ use of the identified teaching-learning methods, on a five-point Likert-type scale,that is, (1) for Not Satisfied at all; (2) for Not Satisfied; (3) for Moderately Satisfied; (4) for
Satisfied; and (5) for Very Satisfied. Two open-ended questions were also asked at the end of
the questionnaire, namely, 1) Please share with us what you like BEST about learning in QIU
and 2) If there is ONE thing that you can change about how teaching-learning is conducted in
QIU, what would that be and why? These questions aim to triangulate the results obtained
from the likert scale questionnaire component and further probe into revealing a glimpse ofreasonings behind what respondents thought about the teaching and learning methods thatneeded to be improved by their lecturers.

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Population and Sample

Respondents in this study are QIU’s students in the Foundation programmes, namely theFoundation in Arts, Foundation in Business and Foundation in Science. The cohort who are
the targeted respondents (sample) are all students from the July 2020 cohort who were final
semester students in the April 2021 study intake. The choice of collecting data from
Foundation programme students is due to them having not fully immersed in the university
curriculum compared to students from undergraduate studies and thus, their learning
expectations would still be considerably unrestrained towards a higher education institution.
Additionally, final semester students were chosen because they would provide a moreaccurate response if their original expectations were met as they would have a longer
experience as a university student in QIU compared to the later cohorts.
3.3

Data Collection

A pilot study was conducted among the final semester Foundation students at the beginningof the April 2021 study intake. Data from this pilot study were then used to determine thereliability of the instrument and enable the researchers to check if the instrument needs to befurther improved. The actual study was conducted towards the end of the April 2021 study
intake. Since some of the researchers of this study are also Heads of the Foundation
Programmes, data collection was conducted in a way where assigned researchers collect datafrom students that are not from the Foundation programme that they are in-charge of; on topof respondents filling up the survey questionnaire anonymously.
3.4

Data Analysis

Data were analysed using the Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) software for thesurvey instruments as well as ATLAS.ti version 9 for the additional 2 open-ended questions.
For the survey instruments, the mean and standard deviation for items relating to both
Importance and Satisfaction were obtained for each teaching-learning method identified. The
data were then be ranked from the highest value to the lowest.
Next, to examine the extent to which the teaching-learning methods utilised by QIU lecturers
meet the preferences of their students, the Importance-Satisfaction Quadrant Analysis wereused. “Importance” is defined as the perceived value attributed by the student for a teachinglearning method while “Satisfaction” is the judgment made by the student about thefulfilment of their expectations or needs relating to that teaching-learning method.
Originally, Martilla and James (1977) proposed the Importance-Performance Analysis tomeasure ‘consumer acceptance’ of certain features in a marketing programme (p. 77). Such atechnique enabled researchers to examine both aspects of the consumer acceptance question,
when prior to that, only one side (either importance or performance) was examined at any
one time. In the Importance-Satisfaction Analysis, Performance is replaced by Satisfaction.
According to Silva and Fernandes (2011), the ‘Satisfaction’ is widely used to replace‘Performance’ as “satisfaction provides information to analyse the performance of a resultsbased institution” (p. 270). Additionally, citing several other authors, they were of theopinion that “satisfaction has become the main measure of service quality, particularly forhigher education institutions” (p. 270).

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For this study, a matrix was generated to visualise the relationship between Importance andSatisfaction ratings. The overall mean for Satisfaction was plotted against the overall meanfor Importance, for each teaching-learning method. Based on the quadrant analysis that is
obtained, the results were interpreted as follows (refer to Figure 1):
1.
The plotted values that fell in the upper right quadrant (Quadrant I – high Importanceand high Satisfaction) means that the teaching-learning methods used by the lecturers are
considered strengths;
2.
The plotted values that fell in the upper left quadrant (Quadrant II – high Importancebut low Satisfaction) means that there are opportunities for improvement in the teachinglearning methods identified;3.
The plotted values that fell in the lower left quadrant (Quadrant III – low Importanceand low Satisfaction) means that the teaching-learning methods may be considered of low
priority to be emphasised on; and4.
The plotted values that fell in the lower right quadrant (Quadrant IV – low Importanceand high Satisfaction) means that the teaching-learning methods are considered to haveexceeded the expectations of the students.

Figure 1: Importance-Satisfaction Ratings Matrix
3.4.1

Importance-Satisfaction Analysis

In addition, a gap analysis was also conducted to identify the gaps that exist between
Importance and Satisfaction for each of the teaching-learning methods identified. The gaps
between Importance and Satisfaction were measured by subtracting the mean score for
Satisfaction from the mean score for Importance. For the values from this analysis are
positive, it implies that the students’ Satisfaction is lower than the Importance that was
attributed by students to the teaching-learning method, and vice versa. Items with large
positive gaps are indicative of teaching-learning methods that need improvement while small
positive values may be considered as strengths of the lecturers. The gaps were rank orderedfrom the most negative to the most positive

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Results and Discussion

Based on the data collected from 107 respondents in the pilot survey who are students fromdifferent semesters of the Foundation Studies programme, the Cronbach alpha coefficient
was established to be 0.96 and 0.97 for the 30-item Importance section and the 30-item
Satisfaction section respectively. This indicates that the instrument is of high internalconsistency reliability in measuring both attributes.
A total of 67 students from the Foundation Studies level programmes participated in thisstudy. As shown in Table 1, out of the 67 students, three respondents or 4.48% were eighteen
years old, 50 respondents or 74.63% were nineteen years old, eleven respondents or 16.42%
were twenty years old and one respondent or 1.49% was from each of the 21, 22 and 23 years
old age groups.
Age (years)
18

Number3

Percent
4.48

19
20
21
22
25

50
11
1
1
1

74.63
16.42
1.49
1.49
1.49

Total

67
100
Table 1: Respondents Breakdown by Age

Of the 67 respondents, 18 students or 29.36% are from Foundation in Arts, 26 students or
38.81% are from Foundation in Business and 22 or 32.83% are from Foundation in Science(refer to Table 2).
Study ProgrammeFoundation in Arts
Foundation in
Business
Foundation in
Science
Total

No
19
26

Percentage
28.36
38.81

22

32.83

67

100%

Table 2: Respondents Breakdown by Programme
4.1

Importance Satisfaction Analysis

The results obtained from the Importance-Satisfaction Analysis (Figure 3) show that all theteaching-learning methods identified fall into Quadrant I (high Importance and highSatisfaction) with none of the teaching-learning methods located in Quadrants II, III and IV.
As such, we may conclude that those teaching methods are the strengths of the university
lecturers who teach the foundation level students.

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Figure 2: Importance-Satisfaction Analysis (ISA)
Taking a closer look at Quadrant I of the ISA matrix (Figure 3), respondents are mostsatisfied with item 1, that is, communicating with students using WhatsApp. This is followedby item 22 (working through examples to help students understand concepts) and item 4(engaging students in whole class discussions). Of these three items, the respondents ranked‘working through examples to help students understand concepts’ most important, followedby ‘communicating with students using WhatsApp’ and then ‘engaging students in wholeclass discussions. This is in accordance with the claims of Jermyn (2018) and Nicholas(2020) where experiential learning and problem-solving are preferred over pure lectures.
Meanwhile, previous studies that established Gen Zers as digital natives preferring online
communication over face-to-face interaction (Bourner, 2008; Yadav & Rai, 2017; Miranda,
2020) proved to be true for QIU Gen Zers. Fortunately, these expectations were also met withsatisfactions at QIU albeit, more efforts could be included to provide practical experiences inclass such as inviting industrial experts for class discussion, real-world case studies andgamification since this is what students placed the most importance.

Figure 3: Quadrant I of the ISA

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Gap Analysis

For the gap analysis, positive values imply that the respondents’ satisfaction level is lower
than that of the level of importance attributed to the teaching-learning methods identified. On
the other hand, negative values imply that the respondents’ satisfaction level is higher than
the importance attributed to the teaching-learning methods. Out of the 30 teaching-learning
methods identified and presented in the questionnaire, responses obtained show that there
were eleven items with positive gaps, 18 items with negative gaps and one item (providing
digital learning materials) with zero gap value, i.e., the satisfaction level matched the level ofimportance attributed to the item).
Figure 4 depicts the gap between Importance and Satisfaction for all items with positive
values. The teaching-learning method with the largest positive gap (0.19) where lecturers willneed to improve on is item 22 ‘working through examples to help students understandconcepts’. This is followed by item 13 (inviting industry people as guest lecturers for some
topics) with a gap of 0.17 and item 12 (include practical knowledge related to future
employment in the course) with a gap of 0.13.
The remaining teaching-learning methods with small positive gaps ranging from 0.01 to 0.06
(in decreasing value) which may be considered the strengths of the lecturers are as follows:•
Using positive behaviour management techniques like rewards as compared to using
sarcasm and punishment (item 26);•
Giving immediate feedback on questions about assignment/ lectures/ tutorials (item6);•
Using printed reference books as reading material (item 14);•
Responding to students’ questions on course related matters outside class time (item5);•
Using interactive multimedia for lessons (item 25);•
Providing experiential learning, i.e. learning through experience and reflection (item30);•
Breaking up assignments into smaller tasks (item 27); and•Emphasising on problem-solving activities/ Action Learning (item 17)
While most of the items listed are a reflection of the literature, item 14 proved to be a
surprising factor. Results showed that students actually want to have physical printed
reference books as opposed to the preference of using e-book/ materials as claimed by
Nicholas (2020). This may be due to Foundation students being mostly from the traditional
primary and then high school where they are used to using physical text books.

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Figure 4: Importance-Satisfaction Gap Analysis with Positive Values
On the other hand, the teaching-learning methods with negative gap values (Figure 5), fromthe highest negative value to the lowest are:•Asking students to do reflections as part of class activity (item 19);•
Having Active Learning activities (item 24);•
Learning in small groups for tutorials (item 15);•
Communicate using images, icons and emojis (item 21);•
Using Flipped Learning approach (item 23);•
Using advance organisers (item 28);•
Having up small group discussions among students during class (item 7);•
Using videos as resources for learning (item 2);•
Include games during lessons (item 11);•
Focusing on problem-solving activities during class time (item 8);•
Allowing peer assessment in class (item 16);•
Providing in-class demonstrations, where relevant (item 20);•
Using graphics to highlight important points (item 10);•
Providing lectures notes in the form of text (item 9);•
Communicating with students using Whatsapp (item 1);•
Engaging students in whole-class discussions item 4);•
Helping student to remember important points by using visual images (item 18);•
Letting students engage in debate-style discussions (item 29).

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Figure 5: Importance-Satisfaction Gap Analysis with Negative Values
This showed that students, while did not highly expect it, they are highly satisfied withinteractive methods like reflections, diversified and active learning; and learning in smallergroups. All these are similar to previous studies concluded in the literature (eg. Seemiller &Grace, 2016, 2017; Hashim, 2018; Miranda, 2020). This is possibly due to foundation
students being mostly direct coming from the high school environment, such interactive andinclusive teaching and learning methods were unfamiliar.
To further validate the results, a paired samples t-test was conducted to compare theImportance level and the Satisfaction level of the respondents. Results show that that there isa significant difference between the mean obtained for Satisfaction (mean = 4.00, S.D. =0.21) and the mean obtained for Importance (mean = 3.96, S.D. = 0.25); t (29) = 2.14, p <.05. The results of this paired t-test for the two attributes Importance and Satisfaction haveestablished that the responses to the two attributes are not due to random chance (Martilla &James, 1977; Chaudary & Warner, 2016).
4.3

Thematic Analysis

For the two open-ended questions asked, the study recorded a total of 66 and 54 responses for
Question 1 (Q1) and Question 2 (Q2) respectively. There were 127 groundedness of codesand 58 codes were created from all the responses of both the open-ended questions. 3 themes
emerged with the following order – Lecturer Commitment, Fun Pedagogy and Attention
Enabled.
4.3.1

Lecturer Commitment

This theme was the most important because it encompasses 3 highest codes for Q1 and is one
of Q2 top 5 codes in terms of groundedness. Since these 3 codes – helpful (Gr=12), friendly

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Official Conference Proceedings(Gr=8) and kind (Gr=6) were referring to the lecturer’s personality, a further co-occurrence
analysis was done where we found that these codes are also related to ‘dedicated’ and‘patience’ (Figure 6). Hence, this theme emerged.

Figure 6: Co-occurrence Analysis
4.3.2

Fun Pedagogy and Attention Enabled

Fun Pedagogy is the next main theme mainly because ‘Interactive class’ (Gr=5) is higher inQ1 than ‘Small classroom’ (Gr=4) that represents the latter theme. This theme is morementioned in Q2 (ie. ‘More activities preferred’ and ‘Gamification preferred’) than again,‘small classes preferred’. The reason why ‘small classes/classroom’ can both be a satisfaction
and a need were due to them being exposed to different courses throughout their study wheresome classes are smaller or larger than the other. Since these responses comes from studentsof 3 different Foundation programmes, the classes that they are take varies at different time.
The study did not specify in asking which semester or course they were referring to because
it may incur bias for the study. Nevertheless, the results do reveal the importance of allowing
individual attention in classroom as this was both mentioned highly in Q1 and Q2.
Overall, number of responses as well as the groundedness of codes (Q1> Q2) correlates withthe results obtained from the survey instruments where students are more satisfied with theteaching and learning methods conducted at QIU compared to the teaching and learning
methods that they think should be improved on. The 3 main themes are also in accordance tothe literature where students prefer lecturer’s commitment (Seemiller & Grace, 2016;
Martin, 2017; Nicholas, 2020; Isaacs et al., 2020), a fun and active learning environment(Vinh, 2020) and for attention to be given to them in small groups (Rothman, 2016, Seemiller& Grace, 2017).
Limitations and Conclusion
Student voice is increasingly deemed as an important element in student learning. While thetasks of education include many different goals, the biggest goal in teaching and learning isthat the students improve their ability to effectively receive different information and achieve
better learning results. This study continues to verify the teaching-learning preferences
highlighted in previous literature, contributing to the ever-growing understanding ofGeneration Z.
The findings from this study also help shed light on the teaching-learning methods thatstudents prefer as well as those that need to be improved among QIU lecturers. The findings
can be used to encourage lecturers to pay more attention to the methods that have been
identified. Additionally, based on the findings from this study, suggestions can be made forthe university to conduct workshops aimed at improving lecturers’ competencies indelivering the identified teaching-learning methods that students rated highly important to

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them but were not rated high enough in regards to lecturers’ performance such as using morepractical examples in their teaching and learning.
Although this study shed light on the teaching-learning methods that students prefer as wellas those that need to be improved among QIU lecturers; the scope of respondents did notinclude diploma level students as the number of semesters for foundation level and diploma
level programmes are not identical. The final semester diploma students are generally at theend of their two and a half years study. The inclusion of diploma students will beat the
purpose of sample selection for this study that is to gauge the original learning expectationsof Generation Z students when they are not fully immersed in the university curriculum.
Meanwhile, inclusion of only semester three diploma students (to achieve the same period ofstudy with the final semester Foundation students) will incur the issue of bias for the diploma
programme students.
Besides that, the amalgamation of all 3 foundation programme students in the study proved tobe confusing on the qualitative end when it is hard to determine which programme courses
were the respondents referring to in their replies or if they were referring to a summary of allclasses. Perhaps this study can be done by Programme in the future to obtain more specificresults and comparisons by programme can be made.

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future.
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the International Integration Age.
Wondergem, K. (2017, September 9). Here comes Z: Strategies to engage a new generationof college students. eLearning Industry. https://elearningindustry.com/engage-a-newgeneration-of-college-students-strategies
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Zlatkov, B. (2019, February 14). 7 Surprising Insight About How Gen Z Wants to Learn.
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A Collaborative Online International Learning Case Study Between the University of Hawai’i
Hilo and Hong Kong Baptist University
Angel Lai, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong
Helen Tien, University of Hawaii Hilo, United States
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Abstract
With continuous globalization and technological improvements, today’s marketers need toeffectively design marketing strategies for global markets that companies of various sizes canpursue. An effective way for students to gain this experience without spending money on travel
is to conduct COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning) classroom experiences. COIL
was first established in 2006 and has grown in popularity for faculty worldwide, especiallyduring COVID-19. The course intended learning outcomes for the "Services Marketing" course
in College of International Education- Hong Kong Baptist University (CIE-HKBU) is forstudents to understand and to recognize the customers' needs and behavior, to integrate
marketing strategies with operations and human resources, and design marketing framework forbusiness. The course intended learning outcomes for "Marketing Management" in the College ofBusiness and Economics- UH Hilo is for students to incorporate project management principles
with their knowledge of marketing foundations. Students do multiple projects throughout thesemester in various parts of the marketing process. To help students achieve these objectives
from a global perspective, CIE-HKBU and the University of Hawaii created a unique learning
experience for our students using the Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL)
framework. Participants included university students from the University of Hawaii Hilo
Bachelor of Business Administration Program and Associate Degree students in CIE-HKBU.
Quantitative and qualitative analyses is in the follow-up assessment. Students from bothcountries benefited from this learning experience. Findings from students' reflections after theexperience indicated deeper intercultural sensitivity in their marketing strategies and ability toview an issue from different perspectives. Students' responses that the activity enhanced theirunderstanding of the subject objectives/ contents. Overall, the COIL activity strengthened theintegration of multicultural learning experiences in both countries.
Keywords: Collaborative Learning, Intercultural Competence, Cross-Cultural Learning, Online
Collaboration

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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1.

Introduction

1.1

Introduction to the Problem

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With the improvement in technology and application of the web, marketers need to understandmore about the global environment. Businesses increasingly need to expand the business tooverseas countries and/or work with overseas partners. Moreover, due to the outbreak of COVID
19 and some other financial constraints, not all students can have the chance to go to overseas
countries for academic exchange programmers. COIL is an option that provides opportunities forstudents to contact overseas students, communicate and work together for a project or an activity.
1.2

The Importance of the Problem

The main goal of the COIL activity is to develop students' cross-cultural competence in themarketing field. The activity featured two presentations, one conducted at the beginning of thesemester and one conducted at the middle-end of the semester. The first presentation featured
each group of students introducing a product/service that is popular and only available in theircountry. UH Hilo students introduced products from Hawai'i and the US, HKBU students
introduced products/services from Hong Kong and China. Students also introduced various
holidays in each location, marketing campaigns popular with the Gen Z population, andconsumption methods in their home country. For the second presentation, UH Hilo and HKBU
then selected a product/service from the other student groups to design a marketing campaign toexpand their country. For example, UH Hilo students creating a marketing plan and campaigns tobring Halidao Hotpot Restaurant to Hawai'i.
1.3

Describe Relevant Scholarship

COIL, established in 2006, stands for Collaborative Online International Learning (Rubin &Guth, 2015). "COIL projects allow for collaborative partnerships that span borders. For
example, students from a university in Russia could be paired with students in the USA for
partnership on a similar curriculum." (Minei, Razuvaeya,Dyshko, 2021)"Students would have the opportunity to work through dissonant experiences. The opportunity todeal with dissonant experiences is essential in that dissonant experiences put students inchallenging or uncomfortable situations… it forces students to examine their previously helpful
assumptions" (Motley & Sturgill, 2013, p 184)
Moreover, "online collaborative learning theory provides a model of learning in which students
are encouraged and supported to work together to create knowledge: to invent, to explore ways
to innovate, and, by so doing, to seek the conceptual knowledge needed to solve problems rather
than recite what they think is the right answer" (Harasim, 2012 as cited by Bates, 2015, para 1).
Although this project was not a semester-long, models were taken from semester-long COIL
projects so extensive implementation plans can be studied. For example, the proposed
implementation process includes "identify the depth of COIL roles, identify cultural differences,
identify learning outcomes, design assessment, design learning materials, assess student cultural

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sensitivity, offer ice-breaking activities, run the COIL assignment with reflections, and assess."(Alvarez, 2019, pg. 18-29.)
1.4

Hypothesis and their Correspondence to Research Design

Here is how the HKBU-UH Hilo COIL collaboration accomplished each step:
1. Identify the depth of COIL roles: HKBU instructor contacted UH Hilo instructor for
COIL collaboration. There were some role definitions and collaboration between thesyllabus.
2. Identify cultural differences: The project's purpose is to identify cultural differences andunderstand how marketing can alter products, pricing, distribution, and promotions tobetter suit potential customers from other countries.
3. Identify learning outcomes:
1. Below are the defined learning outcomes for UH Hilo students.
Understand the management of marketing efforts beyond the foundationsof marketing by focusing on execution.
2. Practice important concepts like customer profiling, segmenting, targeting,positioning with regards to new brands and innovations, and existingproducts/services.
3. Incorporate the 4 P's of marketing (price. promotion, product, and place)to ensure advertising messaging and communications are effective,
considering social media and customer service strategies.
4. Utilize various market research tools to create a marketing strategy and acomprehensive plan.
5. Understand how to manage marketing plans and execute strategy
effectively, collaboratively, and on time.
4. Design assessment: Assessments were designed separately by the instructor, withdifferent weights for assignments with the two groups of students. For UH Hilo students,
the project was worth 30% of their total grade.
5. Design learning materials: Each instructor designed lecture materials to explain basic
marketing principles (The 4 P's of marketing, SWOT analysis, Gantt chart, and more)along with project guidelines. Instructors then shared their project guidelines.
6. Assess student cultural sensitivity: In this case, the instructors completed cultural
sensitivity assesment at the project's conclusion. The paper will reflect on what assessing
cultural sensitivity before conducting COIL collaborations would be effective.
7. Offer ice-breaking activities: Due to class schedule limitations, the courses could notmeet via Zoom to conduct ice breakers. This paper will discuss what the lack of ice
breakers brought as limitations.
8. Run the COIL assignment with reflections: Part 1 and 2 of the COIL projects
accompanied by feedback from both student groups. UH Hilo students received feedback
from HKBU students regarding what projects were most effective in expanding a Hong
Kong product into Hawaii/the US.
9. Assess: Post-project assessments completed by both HKBU and UH Hilo students.
Results discussed below.

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For starting a COIL project during the academic year 2020-2021, the Hong Kong lecturer underHong Kong Baptist University (College of International Education) tried to send emails touniversities with COIL experience. A few universities responded, and the lecturer tried tounderstand the concerns and ways to implement the COIL activity for each university.
Communication between CIE lecturer and University of Hawaii lecturer was mostly via email.
Though there were some misunderstandings in between, the overall process was progressing
quite smoothly, and lecturers could respond to each other promptly.
2.

MethodThe objective of the study is to understand students’ perceptions on the impact of theInternationalization activity have on their cultural competency, digital competency and whether
students believe the Internationalization activity can help to improve their career prospects. The
research will also provide key strategies to conducting a COIL classroom in vastly different timezones.
2.1

Participants Description

For HKBU (CIE), the objectives of the internationalization activity were to fulfill the "course
intended learning outcomes," namely to "select strategies for competing effectively in themarketplace by recognizing the customer needs and behavior," "integrate marketing strategies
with those in operations and human resources" and "design the 8Ps framework for managing thebusiness".
For UH Hilo (CoBE), the objectives of the internationalization activity were to fulfill the “course
intended learning outcomes,” namely to incorporate project management principles with theirknowledge of marketing foundations. Students were able to do research on products from Hong
Kong, conduct a SWOT analysis based on expansion into the US market, and executing Gantt
chart schedules to complete marketing campaign materials.
According to the Internationalization Advisory Committee of Hong Kong Baptist University, theuniversity tries to enhance the Internationalization experience of students. “The world we areliving in is intrinsically digitalized, globalized and multicultural in nature.”
Virtual exchange is an excellent opportunity for (students) to study in a cross-culturalenvironment, prepare for global challenges, develop digital competency, and improve (their)
career prospects.”
Students could understand more about how to apply the marketing theories to a real-life scenario
through the activity.
Participants included university students (Marketing major) from the University of Hawaii
Bachelor of Business Administration and Associate Degree students from College ofInternational Education, Hong Kong Baptist University (Division of Business: Marketing
concentration).

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The students from the University of Hawaii chose Hawaii/US-based products or services, such as
theme parks (Polynesian Cultural Center), camper vans, and fried chicken (Chik Fil-A), for the
Hong Kong and Chinese markets. Marketing students in CIE need to design marketing strategies
suitable for expanding the proposed businesses into Hong Kong and/or the Chinese market for
those products or services.
On the other hand, CIE students also selected products or services originating from China or
Hong Kong, such as traditional Chinese cakes, China-produced electric cars, and Sichuan spicy
hot pot, and US students need to design promotional plans suitable for the US market.
This activity adopted the peer-review method. "This strategy allows students to review one
another's work and provide positive and constructive feedback to facilitate improvement."(Active and Collaborative Learning | University of Maryland-Teaching and Learning
Transformation Center, n.d.)Students exchange ideas by uploading videos for their proposals.
They gave each other verbal and written feedback. The groups would then base on the feedback
they received to improve and modify their marketing strategies.
The two parties voted to select the best marketing plan for the other party. CIE students voted forthe best idea suggested by Hawaii students. Hawaii students also selected the best idea from the
CIE students.
The HK lecturer gave students the activity requirements and guidelines for evaluation during thefirst two lessons. The whole activity carried out during week 3 to week 9 with video recorded forstudents' marketing proposals' presentations.
The UH Hilo gave students the activity requirements and guidelines for evaluation during thefirst week of class. The students received three guidelines for Part A, Part B, and Part C.
Students selected their Hawaii-based/US product in Part A, created an introduction presentation
for their product in Part B, and selected/created a marketing presentation for the Hong
Kong/Chinese product they've selected.
CIE and Hawaii students provided verbal and written feedback to each other. Students modified
their ideas based on the feedback and then did the final presentation (being recorded).
2.2

Measurement Approaches

Guiding questions provided by HKBU (CIE) for the students included:
Select a Hawaii originated product/service for the HK/China market (product/service
suggested by Hawaii students)
Identify the target customers for the product/services.
Suggest marketing strategies to attract the target customer/s (students may need to adopt
different strategies for different groups of customers)

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There are two roles for the students. The first role is the marketer. Being trained to bemarketing professionals in the future, they need to understand the characteristics of the productor service suggested by students at partner universities. They are required to design marketingstrategies of products or services to fit the needs of the target market/s.
The second role for the students is the "critic."
Students also need to take up the "critic" role to comment on the ideas generated by students atpartner universities and give them some constructive feedback for improvements.
As crits, students also gave some feedback about the presentation skills to the partner students.
Presentation is one of the key skills for a successful marketer.
Besides feasible and creative ideas, the student must have good presentation skills to equip
oneself to take up a professional marketing career in the future.
3.

Results

Instructors distributed a simple survey for two classes after the COIL activity, and the following
are the results. Students’ subject competency levels were also measured pre and post-activity.
3.1

Student survey results(1)

The Internationalization activity assisted my understanding of the subject objectives.
Feedback from students
Strongly agree

CIE
students
45%

Hawaiistudents
35%

Agree

36%

48%

Neutral18%

13%

Disagree

NIL

4%Strongly disagree

NIL

NIL

Table 1.

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(2)

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I gained insightful knowledge on my partner university, their students and culture.
Feedback from students
Strongly agree

CIE students
45%

Hawaii students
18%

Agree

45%

48%

Neutral9%17%DisagreeStrongly disagree

NIL
NIL

17%
NIL

Table 2.
(3)
I am more comfortable now working with foreign firms or on foreign job assignment
because of this activity.
Feedback from students
Strongly agree

CIE students
55%

Hawaii students
9%

Agree

27%

44%

Neutral18%

43%

Disagree

NIL

4%Strongly disagree

NIL

NIL

Table 3.
The feedback of the students was quite positive. 81% of HK students and 83% of Hawaii
students believe that the activity assisted in their understanding of the subject objectives. 90% of
HK students and 66% of Hawaii students believe that the activity helps them to gain insightful
knowledge of the partner university and overseas culture. Furthermore, 82% of HK students and
43% of Hawaii students believe that they are more comfortable working with foreign firms andpartners after the activity.
For the positive feedback (especially question one and two), studies by Minei, Razuvaeva,
Dyshko shared similar results. Students “felt excited and a bit nervous at the same time but wasso happy to have an opportunity to communicate with native speakers and learn more about theirways of life, value, hopes and expectations.” “Students indicated development of cultural
sensitivity. They showed personal growth in respect and recognition that cultural differences
exist, as well as an ability to adapt their designs to Nigerian values.” (Minei, Razuvaeva,
Dyshko, 2021)

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Moreover, “non-monetary return of investments in COIL assessed by the teachers and students at
DUT is very high (above 4, i.e., 4.1 for teachers, and 4.7 for students on the Likert’s scale 1-5),
while its correlation with the independent variables in the model is also high (between 53% and62%). This shows that teachers’ and students’ satisfaction with COIL are high, as well as thelevel of their positive experience, when it comes to sharing ideas and knowledge in cross-culturalenvironment. Both teachers and students are satisfied with the project’s outcomes (i.e., the ideaof joint presentations and recordings) and they believe in continuing collaboration with partner
universities within COIL or similar projects. (Bauk 2019)
For CIE students, over 80% of them believe that the activity helps them to understand more of
the subject objectives/ subject contents as well as the culture in another country. They also havemore confidence when working with overseas partners. It appeared that the percentage for CIE
students is higher compared to Hawaii students. One of the reasons may be for CIE students,
this kind of Internationalization activity is the first activity they experience (similar nature)
whereas, for Hawaii students, they got similar experience beforehand so the impact for CIE
students is greater.
For the third question about working with foreign firms in the future, 44% of the Hawaii students
agree and 43% of Hawaii students are neutral with the statement. Other studies also sharesimilar responses as the Hawaii survey. For example, for the studies by Vahed, Anisa,
Rodriguez, Krista (2020), stated that “students were unsure or disagreed about the overall impact
a COIL VEP had on their personal behavior, such as skills and knowledge they will use in the
future (p=0.21); and an experience that affected their future career (p=0.17). “(Vahed &Rodriguez 2020)
In HK, two quizzes have been arranged for the CIE students. The first quiz was arranged inweek 5 (beginning of the COIL activity). Another quiz was held during week 9 (by the end of
the COIL activity). Quiz contents are coverage is different, the two quizzes need to test students’ability to understand and grasp the keep marketing concepts.
3.2

Ancillary Analyses

It was noticed that the overall marks for students improve. Though there may be various
reasons, it appeared that the Internationalization activity to a certain extent, helps to enhance
students marketing knowledge and how to apply the theories to a real-life scenario.
QUIZ result of CIE
students
Quiz ONE (before theCOIL project)
Quiz TWO (after the COIL
project)

Quiz resultMean
8.07 (out of 10 marks)

Standard deviation

8.6 (out of 10 marks)

1.66

Table 4.

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In Hawai’i, individual assignments were conducted with students before and after the COIL
project to assess individual student’s understanding of marketing campaign execution andprocess.
INDIVIDUALASSIGNMENT result of
UH Hilo students
Individual Assignment
ONE (before the COIL
project)

Quiz result
MeanStandard deviation

78 (out of 100 marks)

17.007

Table 5.
4.

Discussion

The activity helps to enhance the knowledge of students regarding the subject contents andapplication. It was an eye-opening experience and gave students some chance to interact andcommunicate with overseas students.
One drawback was that the students are difficult to communicate in a real-time manner (the timedifference between HK/China and Hawaii is 18 hours). In the future, it will be better to arrange
schedules so that students can have a live presentation in front of overseas students and have areal-time Q&A / dialogue/ communication with each there. That will further help improvestudents' presentation skills and enhance the communication and interaction between bothparties.
Secondly, the lecturer can also revise the question so both Hawaii students and HK/China
students could work together on the same project in the future. Time difference and class
regulations play a huge factor in the inability of students to communicate. UH Hilo students were
only able to meet during their class time, close to midnight at HKBU. Students, especially fromthe UH Hilo/US counterpart university, students were able to give qualitative feedback andattributed their lower ratings to expectations of communicating with HKBU students.
The third suggestion includes retrofitting the internationalization activity to an elective (insteadof a compulsory course) in HKBU. It was only an elective at UH Hilo. This could lead to
students choosing whether they want to enroll in the course or not. This is because not all
students are comfortable with the COIL requirements and technological knowledge they need toequip before the courses. However, this could have led to lower ratings with UH Hilo students asstudents may have higher expectations than in the course.
Some studies also reflected similar situations.
For the studies by King (2020), the report states that "Mexican students did not choose to takethe binational online course (it was mandatory). Student feedback made it very clear that the
Mexico-based students were very upset about how the course was implemented into their plan of
study."

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Marcillo-Gómez & Desilus (2016) suggested that "the course should be a voluntary course for
credit, similar to a study-abroad program so that both groups of students have a tangible gain toshow on their transcript."
For the role of facilitator, Naicker, Singh & Genutgen (2021) suggested "as facilitators, the roles
as the guide by the side during the collaboration became more pronounced to assist students withbarriers by providing ongoing digital literacy skills support, contact with students' partners withlow participation rates and weekly facilitators briefings to circumvent challenges. To ensure
students with a lesson on intercultural awareness and digital literacy guidance."
The role of lecturer/facilitators can also be improved to provide students with more support toenhance the overall effectiveness of the COIL activity. Here are the final strategies for lecturers
to become better facilitators:
Learn and create a presentation about the other university's culture. This could be a twoway communication process with the other university student discussing various cultural topics
from the presentation.
Have students come up with a list of questions for the partner university's students toanswer. This can be done asynchronously and create a "Pen Pal" connection that could be
beneficial later on in the project.
Have students create audio/video presentations for both parts of the project. It was
helpful that UH Hilo students introduce US products extensively and bring in marketing
campaigns through video/audio presentations.
Have students also create short biographies or video introductions including their name,major, interests, and future career interests.
5.

Conclusion

In terms of culture, the activity widens students' horizons. For example, camper vans are quite
popular in the United States and are not popular in HK. It is a common way of dining in
HK/China for hot pot, but students from Hawaii University may not hear of "hot pot" before theactivity. Some other cultural practices are also quite new to the foreign party. HK/China and
Hawaii students reflect that the activity opens their eyes and helps them view an issue fromdifferent perspectives. On the other hand, some HK students also reflected that it is difficult tomodify the strategies based on partners' feedback due to different regions.
In terms of technology, students in HK/China and Hawaii University are familiar withtechnology usage. The web connection is also fine for the three regions, and they did notencounter major difficulties in the technology and web connection aspects. Students used various
technologies like Zoom, Google Meet, and PowerPoint in order to communicate their campaigns.
In terms of course objectives and course contents, students illustrate their creativity and suggest
some feasible and interesting ideas during the activity. The author felt that it is a pleasantexperience to listen to students sharing, and it also widens the horizon of lecturers, besides
students.

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References
Active and Collaborative Learning/University of Maryland-Teaching and Learning
Transformation Center. (n.d.). Retrieved April 4, 2020, from https://tltc.umd.edu/activeand-collaborative-learning
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Online Collaborative Learning in Higher Education, A review of the literature Trietiak (2020)
Source: https://edspace.american.edu/amytrietiak/2020/05/07/online-collaborativelearning-in-higher-education/
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Contact email: laiangel@hkbu.edu.hk

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Theory of Lesson Creation for Lower-grade Life Environment Studies in Japan:
Focusing on the Narratives and Practices of Social Studies Teacher Kazumasa Arita
Katsuhisa Shirai, Aichi Toho University, Japan
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Abstract
This study aims to clarify the theory of creating lessons for the lower grades on "lifeenvironment studies" in Japan, with a focus on the narrative and practice of social studies
teacher, Kazumasa Arita (1935–2014). In this research, the following three points are
explained. First, Arita's theory of creating “life environment studies” lessons during his
tenure at the Aichi University of Education was different from his social studies lesson theory
while he was associated with the elementary school affiliated to Tsukuba University, and hehad changed to "zest for life" as a "new view of academic ability." Second, it became clearthat during his tenure at the Aichi University of Education, Arita had his idea for an annual
plan of the “life environment studies” and he was working on the practice of imparting
lessons on “life environment studies” with an emphasis on "questioning." Thirdly, thedevelopment of teaching materials was emphasized in the theory and practice of making life
science lessons in Arita during the time of Aichi University of Education. Based on the above
theoretical characteristics of lesson-making for lower-grade “life environment studies” inJapan, I think that it will give suggestions for the theory and practice of lesson-making inlower-grade education in Asia.
Keywords: Life Environment Studies, The Theory Of Creating Lessons, Kazumasa Arita

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1.

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Introduction

The purpose of this study was to clarify the theory of lesson creation for lower-grade life
environment studies in Japan, focusing on the narratives and practices of the social studies
teacher Kazumasa Arita (1935-2014).
In Japan, social studies is implemented as life environment studies in the lower grades of
elementary schools. Following a revision to the Courses of Study, it was decided that life
environment studies would be fully implemented in 1992. The trajectory of the birth of life
environment studies as a new subject shows that there was a period of conception anddevelopment while the idea of social studies was applied to the lower grades of elementary
schools (Yoshitomi, Tamura, 2014).
Kazumasa Arita, a representative social studies teacher in Japan, contributed to the concept
and development of life environment studies. Arita's activities relating to the promotion oflife environment studies are wide-ranging.
Arita’s activities related to the promotion of life environment studies are detailed in a numberof studies. For example Umai (2014) states that Arita "proposed the right direction based on
his practice as a teacher" when life environment studies was born. Watanabe (2017) writes
that Arita "created a university textbook as a single book and built the essence of life
environment studies in line with the practice records at the elementary school site" in theearly period of life environment studies. It has also been said, however, that the theory behindlesson creation for Arita's life environment studies has not been fully constructed. Therefore,
this paper seeks to clarify the theory of lesson creation in life environment studies, focusing
on Arita’s narratives and practices.
2.

Research Methods

The research methods involve organizing the narratives and practical materials related to thetheory of lesson creation in life environment studies from the writings and treatises of Arita'stime at Aichi University of Education.
There are three reasons for focusing on the narratives and practices of Arita's time at Aichi
University of Education. The first is that, at the time, life environment studies was in its earlystages and Arita had many opportunities to discuss life environment studies lessons by
writing about it in relation to lower-grade social studies. The second is that, at the time, Arita
was working energetically on the practice of training life environment studies teachers at
Aichi University of Education. The third is that, at the time, Arita was involved in thepractice of in-service training for life environment studies teachers at Aichi University of
Education and had great influence on local life environment studies teachers. For the above
reasons, Arita's Aichi University of Education era can be regarded as the time when heworked most vigorously on the conception and development of life environment studies as asocial studies teacher.

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Table 1: Major Works by Kazumasa Arita During His Time at Aichi University of Education
Life environment studiesyear
Main bookrelated chronology
1992 "Arita-style teaching plan and lesson material"
First year of the full-scale
eight volumes, three separate volumes, Meiji Tosho implementation of life
environment studies.
1993 "Learning skills that you want to develop in thesecond grade" Meiji Tosho"Learning skills you want to develop in the first
grade" Meiji Tosho

Second year of the fullscale implementation oflife environment studies.

1994 "Textbook for creating life environment studies
lessons seen in photos" Meiji Tosho

Third year of the full-scale
implementation of life
environment studies.
Fourth year of the fullscale implementation oflife environment studies.

1995 "Creating a lesson to raise ‘Research Demons’" Meiji
Tosho"Q & A tips for teachers who raise children" Meiji
Tosho
1996 "New academic abilities through life environment
studies " Meiji Tosho
1997 "Ability and responsibility of first grade’s
homeroom teacher" Meiji Tosho"Ideas for life environment studies and teachingmaterial development" Meiji Tosho"Basics of Life Environment Studies Lesson
Creation" Meiji Tosho"Basics of creating lessons for children to live in"
Meiji Tosho"Techniques for creating lessons for children to livein" Kyoiku Shuppan"Techniques for creating life environment studies
lessons" Educational publication
1998 "Methods to catch children with ‘head chart’" Meiji
Tosho

Fifth year of the full-scale
implementation of life
environment studies.
Sixth year of the full-scale
implementation of life
environment studies.

Seventh year of the fullscale implementation oflife environment studies.
Notification to the Coursesof Study.
Eighth year of the fullscale implementation oflife environment studies.
Comprehensive study
begins in stages from
2000.

1999 "Achievement and learning skills in the 21st century"
Meiji Tosho"From life environment studies to comprehensive
learning" Meiji Tosho"Technology for creating new lessons" Meiji Tosho"Teacher's purpose of life and how to learn" Meiji
Tosho(Bold text relates to life environment studies; created by the author)

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3.
Theory Lesson Creation for Life Environment Studies During Arita’s Time at
Aichi University of Education
Arita wrote about excellent lower-grade social studies lesson practices, such as "creating a
poster" and "driving a bus," when he was a teacher at Tsukuba University Elementary School(1976-1992), before he worked at Aichi University of Education. However, when Arita wasat Aichi University of Education, he rarely talked about these practices as lesson practices forlife environment studies. This is because Arita regarded life environment studies as different
from lower-grade social studies. At that time, Arita talked about the practice of “creating a
poster” as follows:
In second grade social studies, the unit of "creating a poster" is quite interesting and many
good practices are undertaken.It seems that the practice of creating a poster with a piece of
paper and making children aware that "there are many things that the poster does notunderstand" has been retested by many people and is still being practiced. By creating a
poster, many "Hatena?" were drawn out, and we were forced to notice the "unknown" andinvestigate. No, the child will do it that way.Children will deepen the content and method of
pursuing the secrets of the poster while learning.I have experienced that there is nothing moreinteresting than teaching.However, with the advent of life environment studies, there isconcern that it will not be possible to raise children to pursue this.
（ Kazumasa Arita (1994) "Textbook for creating life environment studies lessons inphotographs" Meiji Tosho, p.190）
In this way, Arita seems to have regarded the practice of "creating a poster" in lower-gradesocial studies as different from the practice of life environment studies.
This also appears in Arita's views of the subjects. Arita’s views of life environment studies
and social studies are shown in Figure 1.

Upper
Grade

SocialStudiesArithmetic

ScienceLife
Environment
Studies

Physical
Education

Upper
Grade

National
LanguageComprehensive
Study Time

Upper
Grade

Figure 1. Relationship Between Social Studies and Life Environment Studies（Arita, 1997,
p.132)

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As shown in Figure 1, Arita positioned the lower grades of elementary school life
environment studies as something different from social studies and seemed to regard it as
being close to the "time for comprehensive study" in the upper grades of elementary school.
In addition, Arita thought about the ability to raise children in life environment studies asfollows:(1) Polish sensitivity(2) Improve cognitive ability and judgment(3) Polish life skills(4) Foster toughness

Taste as a real feeling

To learn

Figure 2. "New Academic Ability" Nurtured in Life Environment Studies (Arita, 1996, P.15)
As shown in Figure 2, abilities such as "Polish sensitivity,” "Improve cognitive ability andjudgment,” "Polish life skills,” and "Foster toughness" are "producing knowledge" from apractical standpoint. "Power" and "Social recognition, nature recognition, and selfrecognition, which are the purposes of life environment studies," do not serve as the basis of
the ability to produce new knowledge by oneself in response to changes in society. In otherwords, the power to produce knowledge is the power to learn, the power to keep asking
questions, and the power to live. In “life environment studies, giving knowledge, we should
abandon it and devote ourselves to developing academic ability” (Arita, 1996, pp.26-27).
As shown in Figure 3, Arita grasped the abilities that should be nurtured in life environment
studies in line with the "skill for living" as the "new academic ability."
Self-educational ability
How to learn
Learning skills

Skill for living

Ability to continue to create
new learning skills in responseto changes in the times

Figure 3. New Academic Ability (Arita, 1997, P.51)
From Figure 3, it can be seen that Arita focused on problem-based learning as the "skill for
living" as a "new academic ability."
Based on this view of "new academic ability" centered on problem-based learning, Arita
considered the lesson concept of life environment studies as follows.

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Hatena？
Look
Hear
ExamineLessonI want you to hear
I want you to see

Experience activity

Expression
Hatena？

Hatena？
Oh？

I want to try again

Hatena？

Real Feeling① Polish sensibility② Improve recognition
Aimand judgment③ Polish life skills
Figure 4 Life environment studiesAcquired
lesson concept (Arita,
1994,
p.11)
④ Fostertoughness

Figure 4: Life Environment Studies Lesson Concept (Arita, 1994, P.11)
Figure 4 shows children's awareness of the problem of "Hatena?" Accompanying hands-on
activities were valued and they engaged in learning activities and expression activities, suchas seeing, listening, and investigating. Therefore, Arita planned life environment studies
lessons from the standpoint of emphasizing children's awareness of problems.
4.
Practice of Lesson Creation for Life Environment Studies During Arita’s Time at
Aichi University of Educationa.

Arita's Annual Life Environment Studies Plan

Arita had worked on the practice of life environment studies lessons by independently
planning an annual guidance plan for life environment studies since his time as a teacher at
Tsukuba University Elementary School before he was assigned to Aichi University of
Education.
Table 2: Arita's Annual Plan for First Grade Elementary School and Life Environment
Studies (1988 Version)
1 Let's do Akushu
6 Let's look for "autumn"* The children naturally expanded lessons* Let's go to the autumn park to look forwith senior students in the neighborhood
autumnand developed into grass, trees, insects, etc. * Let's create using leaves and nuts
2 Let's provoke Asagao
7 My Kazoku* The content aimed to pursue the theme* I have been observing since 5/17,
narrowing down and creating interesting"What is a family?"* Developed from "Kazoku no Tokucho
works.
3 School's return(including play)", "My work" to "Kazoku* Pursuing the fun and danger of Michikusa. no work"
I came to enjoy going to and from school.
8 Let's play with "winter"
4 Summer play
* Deepen contact by learning how to playwith parents, grandfathers, and* Added Tanabata Festival.
5 Let's play with autumn insects
grandmothers as children.
* We bred snails, crickets, grasshoppers, etc. 9 My year
* "What I can do"
and created a playground for them to play

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* Summarize "my growth" in a story-likemanner in essays, picture-story shows,cards, picture books, etc.

(Created by the author from Arita, 1994, p.244)
In this way, it becomes clear that Arita's annual guidance plan for life environment studies
had characteristics, such as a pursuit-type annual guidance plan that values children's
awareness of problems.
b.

Arita's Annual Life Environment Studies Lesson Practice

In addition, the "Snail and Play" lesson is a typical example of one of Arita’s life
environment studies lessons during his time at Aichi University of Education. In particular,
the proposal lesson given to first-year students at Okazaki Elementary School, attached to
Aichi University of Education, at the Sixth National Convention of the Japan Society for Life
Environment Studies Education (Aichi Convention) on June 21, 1997, attracted national
attention. The outline of the learning activities is presented below.
Table 3. Lesson Practice of "Snail and Play" in the First-Grade Life Environment Studies
Learning activities
１.

What do you know about snails?

２.

I have drawn a picture of a snail. Are
you good at it? Is something wrong?

Points to keep in mind for guidance○ Be confident that you know about snails!
○ It may also be said that you can be a snail.
At that time, let me do it.

・ No tail (short legs)
・ No vortex ... Right-handed or left-handed・ Lack of tactile sensation ... how many?
・ No eyes ... How good is your eyesight?
・ No mouth ... How many teeth do you
have?
・ It's not colored ... Sometimes it's red
・ There is no pattern ... Sometimes there isno pattern<↑ Yusaburi>
３. Please tell me what snails can do.

○ While looking at the real snail, you
should point out something strange. There
should be new discoveries in this review.
○ Ask questions about deficiencies in yourperspective and let them discover "Hatena?"
If you cannot answer or have a conflict of
opinions, leave it as "Hatena?"○ This is a question for asking how muchyou play with snails. In other words, it asks
about the experience so far. When you don't
understand, proceed while asking questions
and leave it as "Hatena?"

・ Can be connected
・ You can walk on bamboo sticks
・ You can walk on the blade of a knife
・ You can climb trees○ "Let's find out" - and so on.

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・Climb the glass plate？？
・Can you swim？？
・Can you jump or foot race？？
(Created by the author from Arita, 1997, p.108)
Here, the "question” is emphasized in the lesson. Specifically, it is a question that puts
"Yusaburi" into children's thoughts, such as "Which way does a whirlpool spin?", "Do snails
have eyes?", and "Can you walk on gum tape?" Arita, at that time, said about "questions”
that: "The questions that have been raised recently are for children to come up with thecontents of the teaching materials on their own and to pursue them and make them their own.
I was thinking, it can be said that such a view of ‘questioning’ is rooted in the way of life
environment studies lessons,” as shown in Figure 5.
B（New lessons）
A（Lessons so far）
Unknown（Do not know）

Known（Understand）

C（Personal pursuit）

YusaburiUnknown（Do not know）

What！
Teach
InformUnderstand（Passive lessons）

Pursuit
Motivation

PursuitThat！
Questions Hatena？
Problems
Motivate motivation to pursue（Active lessons）“Hatena？” Book
What I saw
My thoughts
Research text
Story sentence

Figure 5. Life Environment Studies Lesson Practice (Arita, 1994, p.12)
From Figure 5, it can be seen that Arita focused on finding "Hatena?" In addition, he worked
on life environment studies lessons. In other words, Arita aimed to change his perspectivefrom "known" (understood) to "unknown" (unknown) through "questioning" in the life
environment studies lessons.
5.
Relationship between Arita's Life Environment Studies Lesson Planning andTeaching Material Development
Before Aichi University of Education, Arita had been working on the development of social
studies teaching materials with an emphasis on "material teaching materials." Regarding thedevelopment of teaching materials for social studies, Arita stated that it is important for eachchild to create and organize teaching materials that are enthusiastically pursued with urgent
problems. In the same way, the development of teaching materials for life environment
studies was conceived to center on "material teaching materials." In addition, Arita showed

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the ideal way of studying teaching materials in life environment studies, as shown in Figure
6.
Educational technology (effective utilization)
1. Questioning instructions
2. Utilization of materials〔Sun〕(collection / creation / presentation)
3. Board writing
4. Speaking, facial expressions, gestures, etc.
5. Human nature

Teaching material = Neta
Interesting Neta conditions
1. Interesting
2. Contains basic and basic
contents
3. Understand how to learn
Research of teachingmaterials for teachers
・ Changing the northwind into the sun〔North wind〕〔Child〕

Uninteresting
lessons
Lessons according
to the textbook
Teach, inform,
understandCloakability
attitudemotivation etc.

Figure 6: Research of Teaching Materials for Life Environment Studies (Arita, 1989, p.15)
Shown here is the importance of teaching material development in the research of teachingmaterials in life environment studies. Arita talked about the importance of developing
teaching materials. In lessons that are not as interesting, as the north wind, children do nottake cloaks, but by developing teaching materials with interesting material conditions, such as
the sun, children take cloaks. This is said to develop abilities, attitudes, and motivation. Arita
said, "Even in the life environment studies lesson, it is important to develop teachingmaterials (materials), in order for children to say 'It looks interesting. I want to do more.' It
depends on the development of this teaching material whether or not it can be done."
Ikeno (2009) regards Arita's approach to developing teaching materials as "creating teachingmaterials from below," from the perspective of children's awareness of teaching materials. In
addition, Seki (2009) positions it as "lesson composition theory by utilizing cognitively
promoted teaching materials." In other words, it becomes clear that the development ofteaching materials was emphasized in the theory of lesson creation in Arita's life environment
studies during his time at Aichi University of Education.
Conclusion
The purpose of this study was to clarify the theory of lesson creation in the lower grades oflife environment studies in Japan, focusing on the narratives and practices of the social
studies teacher Kazumasa Arita. In this study, the following three points were clarified:First, Arita's theory of creating life environment studies lessons during his time at Aichi
University of Education was different from his social studies lesson theory when he taught at
an elementary school attached to Tsukuba University, and he turned "zest for life" into a

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Official Conference Proceedings"new view of academic ability." Based on this, it had the characteristic of envisioning a life
environment studies lesson. Specifically, Arita was able to clarify that he had envisioned a
problem-solving life environment studies lesson that emphasized the child's awareness of the
problem, "Hatena?"
Second, it became clear that during his time at Aichi University of Education, Arita had his
own idea of an annual plan for life environment studies and was working on the practice oflife environment studies lessons with an emphasis on "questioning." Specifically, Arita
created an annual plan based on a pursuit by children and, in the first-grade lesson practices,
the life course "Snail and Play” and from "known" (understood) to "unknown." It became
clear that he was asking "questions" aimed at changing his perspective to something (I don'tknow).
Third, the development of teaching materials was emphasized in the theory and practice ofmaking life science lessons during Arita’s time at Aichi University of Education.
Specifically, Arita once envisioned the development of teaching materials for life
environment studies, focusing on "material teaching materials" that would make children"looks interesting. I want to do more."
Based on the above theoretical characteristics of lesson creation for lower-grade life
environment studies in Japan, we believe that it provides suggestions for the theory andpractice of lesson creation in lower-grade education across Asia. Specifically, the importanceof envisioning a lesson that emphasizes the child's awareness of the problem of "Hatena?",
the need to practice the lesson with an emphasis on "questioning,” and "looks interesting" tothe children when creating the lesson. The importance of "development of teachingmaterials" that make people want to do more is raised.

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References
Hirokazu Seki (2009) "Social Studies Lesson Composition Theory Related to Information
Reading Ability Formation," Kazama Shobo, pp.97-120
Kazumasa Arita (1994). "Textbook for creating life environment studies lessons seen in
photos" Meiji Tosho, Tokyo
Kazumasa Arita (1996). "New academic abilities through life environment studies " Meiji
Tosho" Meiji Tosho, Tokyo
Masayuki Umai (2014) "Future of Life Environment Studies Re-questioning from the Origin(1) – What was Discussed in the Birth Period?", p.24
Norio Ikeno (2009) "Teaching Material Development Approach," edited by the Japan Society
for Educational Methods, Japanese Lesson Study <Volume 2> - Method and Form of
Lesson Study” Gakubunsha, pp.35-49
Takaharu Moriwake (1987) "The Ability of Teaching Composition," Modern Education
Science, No.367, p.42
Takumi Watanabe (2017) "Development and Characteristics of Teacher Education Theory in
Early Life Environment Studies – Efforts to Share the Essence of Subjects," Primary
Education Curriculum Research, No. 5, p.26-27
Yoshimasa Yoshitomi and Manabu Tamura (2014). "The Trajectory of the Birth of a New
Subject – A Study on the Formation Process of Life Environment Studies" Toyokan
Shuppansha, Tokyo
Contact email: shirai.katsuhisa@aichi-toho.ac.jp

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The Development of an Inquiry-based Field Trip Activity to Promote Students’ Positive
Perceptions of the Educational Curriculum Course
Prempree Duangpummet, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand
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Abstract
An inquiry-based field trip activity was designed for graduate students in the scienceeducation program to enhance their understanding of the school curriculum as well as topromote positive perceptions of the Educational Curriculum course. The course focuses onbasic knowledge about the school curriculum and how to develop it. Four secondary schools
with distinguished curricula were chosen as models for school visits. The learning activity
consisted of three phases. In the preparation phase, students were asked to develop questions
about the curriculum based on the schools that were visited. In the exploration phase, students
were guided by the questions to gather information from each school visit. Finally, eachgroup of students conducted two presentations in the presentation phase, consisting of acomparative study of each school curriculum and the development of a school curriculum
based on desired goals and visions. After completing the course, a Likert-scale typequestionnaire was applied to investigate students’ perceptions of their understanding and thelearning activities. In terms of understanding, students perceived that they understood theschool curriculum at a high level, especially applying knowledge from the field trips todevelop a new curriculum. In terms of learning activities, not only did students show amoderately positive perception towards each phase of the learning activities, but they also
showed a highly positive perception towards the course. Thus, the developed activity could
be utilized as a model for developing an effective school field trip for a teacher-training
program.
Keywords: Inquiry-Based Learning, Field Trip, Educational Curriculum, Teacher Education

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Introduction
The Master of Science Education program at King Mongkut’s University of Technology
Thonburi, Thailand aims to produce a new generation of science and mathematics teachers
equipped with a fruitful and in-depth understanding of content knowledge as well as goodteacher spirit. Students with a bachelor's degree in science or engineering have been the target
group for applying to the program. The program structure is divided into two years of fulltime study. In the first year, students with no background in the educational field are provided
with basic knowledge of education, including educational philosophy, school curriculum,measurement and evaluation, educational psychology, innovation in education, research inscience education, etc. In the second year, students will practice and gain teaching experience
as pre-service teachers in schools, followed by conducting a thesis. The time of graduation
can be extended based on students’ progression of the thesis.
Educational Philosophy and Curriculum is taught in the first semester for first-year students.
The course aims to provide students with understanding of educational philosophy, as well as
how the school curriculum can be developed and implemented. The course content is divided
into two main areas: educational philosophy and educational curriculum. There are threelearning outcomes, particularly the educational curriculum aspect that includes 1) students
will be able to explain curriculum theories and principles for effective curriculum design, 2)
students will be able to analyze and evaluate a school curriculum, and 3) students will be able
to create or develop science and mathematics curricula for high school.
In the previous course, lecture-based learning was the main pedagogy for teaching thecurriculum content. Based on the nature of the content, however, the pedagogy can be
developed by enriching students' experience of how a curriculum can be created anddeveloped in real school settings. The pedagogy that can be applied is experiential learning,which is a method that instructors use to provide students’ experiences from different
situations and allows students to discover and reflect on those experiences based on thelearning outcomes (Association for Experiential Education, 2020, https://www.aee.org/whatis-ee). Teaching that focuses on the learning experience of learners with the learning styleand learning space of the learner is used in higher education in a variety of fields to increase
the effectiveness of teaching and encourage students to learn (Kolb & Kolb, 2017).
Field trips or out-of-school visits is one of the teaching methods that focus on providing
students with off-site learning experience. Some research has shown that the field trips canengage students’ learning, improve their social skills, promote 21st-century skills, and provide
more understanding in addition to the in-class content (Behrendt & Franklin, 2014; Coll &Coll, 2018; DeWitt & Storksdieck, 2008; Larsen, Walsh, Almond, & Myers, 2017; Lavie
Alon & Tal, 2015). To manage an effective field trip learning activity, teachers play a keyrole in a well-organized connection between out-of-school visit experience with the desired
course-learning outcome that requires different techniques and methods compared to regularclassroom learning, which can be a very challenging task for teachers (Behrendt & Franklin,
2014; Rebar & Enochs, 2010).
Inquiry-based learning is a pedagogy that focuses on students’ understanding of how
knowledge can be acquired through the acquisition process. According to the National
Research Council (2000), inquiry-based learning consists of five key steps: 1) students areengaged by questions, 2) students acquire evidence, 3) students formulate explanations fromthe evidence, 4) students evaluate their explanations, and 5) students communicate their

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proposed explanations. In higher education, inquiry-based learning can be used in different
forms such as problem-based learning, project-based learning, case-based teaching, etc.
(Aditomo, Goodyear, Bliuc, & Ellis, 2013). However, research has indicated that if
instructors can design learning activities as an open inquiry by compelling students toformulate their questions and seek answers by themselves, it would promote better researchskills than structured inquiry, in which teachers prepare the questions and methods of finding
answers for students to follow (Spronken‐Smith & Walker, 2010).
According to the importance of experiential and inquiry-based learning, the Philosophy and
Educational Curriculum course, particularly the educational curriculum content, wasredesigned to be an inquiry-based field trip learning activity, as shown in the researchframework (see Figure 1). The activity aims to enhance students’ understanding of the school
curriculum and to promote positive perceptions or satisfaction with the course. The details of
inquiry-based field trip activity and the effectiveness of the activity on students’ perceptions
are presented in this paper.

Educational Curriculum Course

Satisfaction

Inquiry-based Field Trip

Curriculum

Science Education Students

Perceptions

Understanding
Figure 1: Research Framework
Description and Implementation of the Inquiry-Based Field Trip Activity
In this study, the inquiry-based field trip activity was developed in the Philosophy and
Educational Curriculum course. The learning activity was implemented for 12 graduate
students in the Science Education program. Four secondary schools in Thailand having
distinguished curricula, such as an English program, advanced science and mathematics
program, and competency-based program were chosen as models for school visits.
The learning activity was organized into three phases including the preparation phase,
exploration phase, and presentation phase (see Table 1). In the preparation phase, students
were asked to develop questions about the curriculum based on the schools that were visited.
In the exploration phase, students were guided by the questions to gather information from

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each school visit. Finally, in the presentation phase, each group of students conducted two
presentations consisting of a comparative study of each school curriculum and thedevelopment of a school curriculum based on desired goals and visions.
Table 1: Three Phases of the Inquiry-Based Field Trip Activity
Phase
Inquiry-based Field-Trip Activity
Preparation 1.
Students were asked to form a group of six persons.
2.
The teacher engaged students in searching for preliminary
information about the curriculum of the school field trip on the internet.
3.
The teacher encouraged students to formulate up to 10 questions
about the school curriculum and submit them to the teacher before each school
visit.
Exploration 1.
A group of teachers and students visited the schools to observe
the school environment and join a presentation about the curriculum organizedby the school team.
2.
While visiting, each group of students collected information toanswer the questions. If there were questions that arose while participating,students were encouraged to ask extended questions.
3.
After a field trip, if there were questions that had not beenanswered yet or were unclear, students were allowed to search for more
information from other sources.
Presentation 1.
In the first presentation, each group of students presented theresults according to the prepared questions.
2.
The teacher encouraged students to discuss the principles andconcepts of the school curriculum, as well as to assess the strengths andweaknesses of each school curriculum.
3.
Then, the teacher allowed students to utilize the information fromthe field trip to create or develop a science and mathematics curriculum fortheir dream school in the second presentation.
Research Method
This study aims to answer the research questions below:
1.
Can the designed inquiry-based field trip activity promote positive perceptions among
students concerning the educational curriculum course?
2.
What are students’ perceptions of the designed inquiry-based field trip activity?
After completing the learning activity, the students’ perceptions of the designed inquirybased field trips activity were evaluated using a questionnaire. The purpose of thequestionnaire was to evaluate students’ perceptions through three main constructs: 1)
Perceptions of the course learning outcomes achievement (items 1-4), 2) perceptions of thedeveloped inquiry-based field trip activity (items 5-16), and 3) perceptions of the learning
activity in general (items 17-21) (see Table 2). Students were asked how they perceived eachstatement on the questionnaire using a five-point Likert scale, with 1 being strongly disagree
and 5 being strongly agree. The results from this section were analyzed and interpreted using
the following criteria: Highly negative (1.00-1.50); moderately negative (1.51-2.50); neutral(2.51-3.50); moderately positive (3.51-4.50); and highly positive (4.51-5.00) (Duangpummet,
Chaiyen, & Chenprakhon, 2019), as shown in Table 2.

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Findings
The findings are reported in three parts according to the three constructs of the questionnaire.
The first and the third constructs of the questionnaire aim to answer the first researchquestions, and the second construct aims to answer the second research question. Data werecollected from 10 out of 12 students because there were two students who did not complete
the questionnaire.
In the first construct of the questionnaire (see Table 2), the students' perceptions toward thecourse learning outcomes achievement were moderately positive, with a mean score of 4.23 ±0.62. The most positive student perceptions regarded students can establish or developscience and mathematics curricula for high schools, with a mean score of 4.50 ± 0.53.
Meanwhile, the students least positively perceived on making a comparative study ofstrengthens and weaknesses of each school curriculum, with a mean score of 3.90 ± 0.88.
In the third construct of the questionnaire (see Table 2), the mean score of students’satisfaction towards the course learning activity was highly positive at 4.60 ± 0.52.
Particularly, students highly perceived that the inquiry-based field trips activity not only
provided their understanding about school curriculum, but they also learned otherprofessional teaching aspects from the activity, with a mean score of 4.60 ± 0.52. The reason
may arise from students’ participation in the field trip; they not only were provided
curriculum content from a school team, but also had a chance to observe the classroom
atmosphere and interact with an in-service teacher, which could provide better understanding
about a teacher’s role. The students agreed that they enjoyed the school field trip and theactivity boosted their desire to become a teacher at a moderately positive level, with a meanscore of 4.50 ± 0.53 and 4.00 ± 0.82, respectively. Finally, students agreed that the inquirybased field trip was an effective pedagogy to teach the educational curriculum content at amoderately positive level, with a mean score of 4.50 ± 0.71.
For answering the second research question, the second construct of the questionnaire wasanalyzed for the in-depth understanding of students’ perceptions toward the learning activity
in each phase (see Table 2). The learning activity consisted of three phases including
preparation, exploration, and presentation. In the preparation phase, the mean score of
students’ responses to the learning activity was moderately positive at 3.96 ± 0.75. Students
agreed that they were encouraged to do preliminary study from the internet for preparing
questions before the field trips with the highest mean score at 4.20 ± 0.63. However, planningto find the answers systematically was responded at the lowest mean score at 3.70 ± 0.95. In
the exploration phase, the mean score of students’ responses to the learning activity wasmoderately positive, at 3.95 ± 0.81. Students agreed that they were encouraged to find more
information if they had not been provided with a clear answer from the field trips yet with thehighest mean score at 4.20 ± 0.79. Nonetheless, questioning helped them learn better aboutschool curriculum and they responded with the lowest mean score at 3.70 ± 0.67. Finally, inthe presentation phase, the mean score of students’ responses to the learning activity
compared with the other two aspects was the highest at 4.23 ± 0.57, but still at a moderately
positive level. Students agreed that the presentation activity provided them the opportunity towork as a team to develop a new curriculum and prepare for a presentation, which helped
them gain more understanding about curriculum content.

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Table 2: Results from the Questionnaire
Items
1)
Perceptions of achievement of the course learning outcomes (Items 1-4)
1.
I can utilize the knowledge gained on a field trip to explain the meaning of thecurriculum.
2.
I can utilize the knowledge gained on a field trip to explain how a curriculum canbe ideated and constructed.
3.
I can evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of each school's curriculum on field
trips.
4.
I can apply the knowledge gained from field trips to create and develop science ormathematics curricula for secondary schools.
Overall2)
Perceptions of the developed inquiry-based field trips activity (Items 5-16)
2.1
Preparation phase5.
I prepared questions with a group of friends for the field trip.
6.
My group searched for preliminary information for preparing questions for a fieldtrip.
7.
My group planned to find the answers to the prepared questions systematically.
8.
My group assigned an individual the duty to collect information from field trips.
9.
At the end of a school trip, my group revised questions for subsequent schools to
be more effective.
Overall
2.2
Exploration phase10.
Preparing questions before going on a field trip helped me to learn purposefully
about each school’s curriculum.
11.
Formulating questions before a field trip helped me learn more about eachschool’s curriculum.
12.
I was enthusiastic to find the answers to the prepared questions.
13.
If there were still questions that had not been answered yet or were unclear at theend of a school trip, my group sought answers from other sources.
Overall
2.3
Presentation phase
14.
The presentation activity helped me gain more understanding of the curriculum.
15.
Using information from the field trips to create or develop a curriculum forpresentation helped boost my understanding about the curriculum.
16.
Working in a team to create and present a curriculum helped me learn more about
the curriculum.
Overall3)
Perceptions of the learning activity in general (Items 17-21)
17.
The inquiry-based field trip activity is an effective pedagogy for teaching
curriculum content.
18.
I enjoyed the school field trip.
19.
The inquiry-based field trip activity helped me understand other professional
aspects of teaching in addition to the curriculum content.
20.
The inquiry-based field trip activity increased my desire to become a teacher.
21.
I have an enhanced level of satisfaction with learning educational curriculum
content through the inquiry-based field trip activity.

Mean ± SD
4.10 ± 0.32
4.40

± 0.523.90 ± 0.88
4.50 ± 0.53
4.23 ± 0.62
4.10 ± 0.57
4.20
± 0.633.70 ± 0.95
3.90
± 0.743.90 ± 0.88
3.96 ± 0.75
4.00 ± 1.05
3.70 ± 0.67
3.90 ± 0.74
4.20 ± 0.79
3.95 ± 0.81
4.30
4.30

± 0.48± 0.634.20 ± 0.63
4.23 ± 0.57
4.50 ± 0.71
4.50 ± 0.53
4.60 ± 0.52
4.00 ± 0.82
4.60 ± 0.52

According to the first and third constructs of the questionnaire, not only did students show ahighly positive perception towards the course, but they also showed moderately positive
perception towards the achievement of learning outcomes. Therefore, the designed inquirybased field trip activity can promote positive perceptions among students concerning the
educational curriculum course. However, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of eachschool's curriculum on field trips is a learning outcome that needs to be emphasized more in
the next implementation. According to the second construct of the questionnaire, the students
showed a moderately positive perception towards each phase of the learning activities. Thiscan indicate that the implemented learning activity is effective. However, some aspects need

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to be improved further, such as preparing students to collect data from field trips
systematically and training them to formulate good questions for school visits. In summary,
not only do students gain better understanding of the curriculum content through the learning
activity, but the activity also visualizes how an inquiry can be managed in practice throughthe learning experience that could allow them to apply the method for designing science andmathematics teaching in the future (Cianciolo, Flory, & Atwell, 2006).
Conclusion and Implications
In this study, the inquiry-based field trip activity was designed for twelve graduate students inthe science education program to enhance their understanding of the school curriculum, as
well as to promote positive perceptions of the Educational Curriculum course. The field trip
learning activity comprised three phases including preparation, exploration, and presentation
based on the inquiry-based framework. After completing the learning activity, a questionnaire
was used to investigate students’ perceptions of the learning activity in three aspects: 1)
perceptions of achievement of the course learning outcomes, 2) perceptions of the developed
inquiry-based field trip activity, and 3) perceptions of the learning activity in general. In
terms of understanding, the results showed that the students' perceptions toward theachievement of the course learning outcomes were moderately positive, especially applying
knowledge from the field trip to develop a new curriculum. In terms of the learning activity,
not only did students show a moderately positive perception towards each phase of thelearning activity, but also showed a highly positive perception towards the course. The results
indicated the designed inquiry-based field trip activity could promote positive perceptions
among students concerning the Educational Curriculum course. Thus, the developed activity
could be utilized as a model for developing effective school field trips in teacher training
programs.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank the students who enthusiastically attended the learning activity. I would
also like to acknowledge the research grant provided by the Scholarship of Teaching and
Learning (SOTL), Fiscal Year 2020, Faculty of Science, King Mongkut’s University ofTechnology Thonburi, Thailand.

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References
Aditomo, A., Goodyear, P., Bliuc, A.-M., & Ellis, R. A. (2013). Inquiry-based learning inhigher education: principal forms, educational objectives, and disciplinary variations.
Studies in Higher Education, 38(9), 1239-1258. doi:10.1080/03075079.2011.616584
Association for Experiential Education (AEE). (2020). What is experiential education?
Retrieved July 9, 2020, from https://www.aee.org/what-is-ee
Behrendt, M., & Franklin, T. (2014). A review of research on school field trips and theirvalue in education. International Journal of Environmental and Science Education,
9(3), 235-245.
Cianciolo, J., Flory, L., & Atwell, J. (2006). Evaluating the use of inquiry-based activities:
Do student and teacher behaviors really change. Journal of College Science Teaching,36(3), 50-55.
Coll, S. D., & Coll, R. K. (2018). Using blended learning and out-of-school visits: pedagogies
for effective science teaching in the twenty-first century. Research in Science &Technological Education, 36(2), 185-204. doi:10.1080/02635143.2017.1393658
DeWitt, J., & Storksdieck, M. (2008). A short review of school field trips: Key findings fromthe past and implications for the future. Visitor studies, 11(2), 181-197.
Duangpummet, P., Chaiyen, P., & Chenprakhon, P. (2019). Lipase-Catalyzed Esterification:
An Inquiry-Based Laboratory Activity To Promote High School Students’
Understanding and Positive Perceptions of Green Chemistry. Journal of Chemical
Education, 96(6), 1205-1211. doi:10.1021/acs.jchemed.8b00855
Kolb, A. Y., & Kolb, D. A. (2017). Experiential learning theory as a guide for experiential
educators in higher education. Experiential Learning & Teaching in Higher
Education, 1(1), 7-44.
Larsen, C., Walsh, C., Almond, N., & Myers, C. (2017). The “real value” of field trips in theearly weeks of higher education: the student perspective. Educational Studies, 43(1),110-121.
Lavie Alon, N., & Tal, T. (2015). Student self-reported learning outcomes of field trips: The
pedagogical impact. International Journal of Science Education, 37(8), 1279-1298.
National Research Council. (NRC). 2000. Inquiry and the national science education
standards. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
Rebar, B. M., & Enochs, L. G. (2010). Integrating environmental education field trip
pedagogy into science teacher preparation. In The inclusion of environmental
education in science teacher education (pp. 111-126): Springer.
Spronken‐Smith, R., & Walker, R. (2010). Can inquiry‐based learning strengthen the links
between teaching and disciplinary research? Studies in Higher Education, 35(6), 723740. doi:10.1080/03075070903315502

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Contact email: prempree.dua@kmutt.ac.th

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Metacognitive Awareness, Motivational Beliefs and Mathematics Performance of JuniorHigh School Students: An Investigation of Mediating Effects
Janina C. Sercenia, De La Salle University-Manila, Philippines
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
Metacognition and motivational beliefs are crucial components of self-regulated learning.
Effective learners are expected to exhibit the ability to plan, evaluate, regulate, and control
their attitudes and behaviors during the learning process. Thus, this study investigatedwhether students’ motivational beliefs significantly mediate the relationship between
students’ metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance. The study was conducted
on 146 junior high school students. Quantitative data were obtained using online survey
questionnaires on metacognition, motivational beliefs, and achievement test on mathematics.
The study utilized descriptive correlational research, and the mediating effects were
investigated using a set of regression analyses. Results showed that the respondents have
above average metacognition in terms of metacognitive knowledge (M=3.80, SD = 0.38) andmetacognitive regulation (M=3.79, SD = 0.36). Students’ motivational beliefs components
were described as above-average except for the test anxiety. Students also showed very good
performance in Mathematics. Furthermore, correlation analysis showed that metacognitiveawareness (r=0.369, p<0.01) and extrinsic goal orientation (r=0.326, p<0.01) were highly
significant with respondents’ mathematics performance. Regression analysis also revealed
evidence of the partial mediation effect of extrinsic goal orientation between metacognitiveawareness and mathematics performance. These findings indicates that external goal
orientation plays an important role in metacognitive awareness and mathematics
performance. Extrinsic goal orientation causes changes in both metacognition andmathematics performance. The results also emphasize that educators should consider the
motivational beliefs and metacognition of students in mathematics.
Keywords: Metacognition, Motivation, Mathematics Performance, Mediation

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Throughout the years, Mathematics has always been perceived as one of the most challenging
courses. Researchers assume that it is imperative to establish the factors that influence
students' attitudes towards learning mathematics, what promotes learning mathematics, andwhat hinders the process of learning mathematics. Braza and Supapo (2014) states that one ofthe problems that can inhibit student mastery of math concepts and skills is the lack ofmastery of basic concepts, skills, and procedures. This would be alarming in the K to 12
Curriculum, in which Mathematics lessons are arranged in the spiral matter. Failure tounderstand the basic concepts might probably bring difficulty in learning higher mathematics.
Teaching instructions and practices have also been the factors that educators have been
studying as it also affects learning. However, Kleden (2015) argues that students' academic
success is determined when they can self-evaluate and comprehend their cognitive abilities.
These outcomes are highly variable. Therefore, it is imperative to explore the cognitive andaffective attributes that impact the learning process.
In recent years, the success of Filipino students in mathematics subjects has prompted
concern. The low performance and decreasing literacy rate of Filipino students' mathematicalskills have been emphasized in several local and international assessments. This was evident
from the recent result of the International Student Assessment Program (PISA). Based on the
result released last 2019, the Philippines ranked second lowest in mathematical literacy. The
country scored 353 in mathematics, below the Organization for International Cooperation andDevelopment (OECD) average of 487 points. According to the Third International
Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) reported that the Philippines ranked as 39th out of
41 participating international countries (as cited in Cordova & Tan, 2018, p.103). Moreover,
the National Achievement Test results in 2019 reveal that Filipino students are not equippedwith the ability to do mathematics. Pagtulon-an and Tan (2018) cited that most schools andacademic institutions failed to reach the criterion set by the National Educational Testing andResearch Center (NETRC). In different local test administered in different divisions in thePhilippines also shows the same challenges. Moreover, different institutions implement
various strategies such as online distance learning, modular learning, and blended distancelearning to assist the learners and adapt to the ongoing crisis. It is another struggle forlearners to cope with the new normal. Students must be motivated, know how to manage theirstudy time and environment effectively, and be aware of the critical role of knowledgeable
others in their learning.
Numerous studies demonstrate the importance of students' metacognition and motivational
beliefs in their academic achievement. Effective learners are expected to demonstrate theability to plan, monitor, regulate and control their learning processes concerning theirattitudes and behaviors. Hence, to engage successfully in learning, students must have good
metacognition skills. It can also be noted that academic success is reliant on students' innate
academic motivation which guides students in their learning and personal growth activities(Abdelrahman, 2020). In education, it has a major impact, particularly for students of juniorand senior high school. Student's academic emotions can potentially impact academic
achievement because it increases the affective attributes of student so that academic
achievement of students can be improved with such motivations. Also, several studies havebeen conducted to probe student metacognition and motivational belief toward academic
performance. Prior studies concluded that metacognition is related to mathematics
performance (Desoete, Roeyers, & Buysse, 2001), and the student motivation is the factor
that directs students' attitude towards the learning process. The findings of Öz (2016) showed

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showed that the components of metacognition are both predictors of academic motivation.
For instance, Tian, Fang, and Li (2018) evaluated the participation of students in selfregulated learning on the impact of metacognitive knowledge on the performance ofmathematics. Results showed that metacognitive knowledge, self-efficacy, and inherent
motivation could predict mathematical performance. Skaalvik, Federici and Klassen (2015)
added that self-efficiency and motivation in mathematics could affect motivated behavior
such as initiatives, determination, and the quest for assistance through intrinsic motivation inmathematical learning. Based on the results generated, metacognition influences
mathematical performance indirectly by its own efficiency and its intrinsic motivation. With
these findings, it was found that studies have been formulated with regards to the effect ofmotivational beliefs in metacognition and mathematics performance. Several components ofmotivational beliefs significantly affect the relationship between the two variables.
Relative to this condition, the role of both metacognition and motivational beliefs in thelearning process has been identified. The two concepts might necessarily intertwine. This
study aimed to determine the relationship of the two constructs of self-regulated learning:metacognitive awareness and the respondents' motivational beliefs. Specifically, the study
will investigate the mediating effect of motivational beliefs on the relationship between
metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance. The study will significantly
contribute to understanding the needs, interests, and skills of the students. Specifically, thestudy sought to answer the following questions.
1.
What is the level of metacognitive awareness, motivational beliefs, and mathematics
performance of the respondents?
2.
Is there a significant relationship between metacognitive awareness, motivational
beliefs, and the respondents' mathematics performance?
3.
Is the students' motivational beliefs a significant mediator between the relationship ofmetacognitive awareness and the respondents' mathematical performance?
Methods
Research Design
The study used a descriptive correlational research method. The correlational research designis also used in the study. In this study, the correlation analysis focused on finding therelationship between metacognitive awareness, motivational beliefs, and the respondents’mathematical performance. This study also determined whether the respondents’motivational beliefs mediate the relationship between metacognitive awareness and the
respondents’ mathematical performance.
Instrument
This study utilized an online questionnaire, which consisted of an adopted inventory andachievement test in mathematics as an instrument. These were both administered throughgoogle forms, a survey administration software. The “Metacognitive Awareness Inventory(MAI)” adopted from Schraw and Dennisons (1994) was used to determine the respondents’
metacognitive awareness. The “Motivated Strategies for Learning Questionnaire (MSLQ)” ofPintrich & DeGroot (1990) was used to determine the motivational orientations of thestudents. In this study, the motivational components of MSLQ was only used, which was also

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modified in mathematics class. The last part of the questionnaire involves the mathematics
Achievement test which assessed the students’ mathematics performance.
Participants
The participants of the study was consisted of 146 junior high school students from a publicschool. The mean age of junior high school students is 13.76 with a standard deviation of
0.11. Specifically, most of the respondents were 14 years old (27.40%), and only two
respondents (1.37%) was 17 years old. Moreover, more than half of the respondents werefemales (60.96%), and there were only 57 (39.04%) were males. In terms of the grade level,
most of the respondents were Grade 7 students (26.71%) and Grade 8 has the lowest numberof the students (21.92%).
Data Analysis
The researcher used various statistical tools for analyzing gathered data that are aligned withthe study’s objectives. The respondents’ demographic profile, metacognitive awareness,motivational beliefs, and mathematics performance were described using frequency,
percentage, weighted mean, and standard deviation. Moreover, correlational analysis involves
Pearson’s r and regression analysis determine the significant relationships, the possible
predictors, and the mediating effects of the three variables. Different regression analyses
were used to tests the mediation effect. The study used the Baron and Kenny (1986) four-step
approach using regression analysis. The first step involves testing whether metacognitiveawareness predicts the students’ mathematics performance. The second step includes
determining if metacognitive awareness predicts motivational belief. The third step involves
exploring whether motivational beliefs predict students’ mathematics performance. And thelast step focuses on testing complete mediation across the variables.
Results
Respondent’s Metacognitive Awareness, Motivational Beliefs and Mathematics
Performance
The respondents' level of metacognitive awareness was “above average metacognition,” (M=
3.79, SD=0.35) which indicated that the levels of metacognition of individual respondents
did not vary from the mean. Also, their metacognitive knowledge (M=3.80, SD = 0.38) andmetacognitive regulation (M=3.79, SD = 0.36) were both described as “above averagemetacognition” (refer to Table 1).
Table 1. Level of Metacognitive Awareness of the Respondents
Metacognitive Awareness
Metacognitive Knowledge
Metacognitive Regulation
Overall

Mean
3.80
3.79
3.79

SD
0.38
0.36
0.35

Description
Above average Metacognition
Above average Metacognition
Above average Metacognition

The mean score for each subscale of the respondents' motivational beliefs is ranged from 3.53
to 4.02. The respondents’ results are over 3.41 for each subscale of all the components of the
motivational beliefs indicating that the respondents were described as having above-average
motivational beliefs except for the test anxiety (refer to Table 2).

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Table 2. Motivational Beliefs of the Respondents
Motivational Beliefs of the
Respondents
Intrinsic goal orientation
Extrinsic goal orientation
Task ValueControl of Learning Beliefs
Self-efficacy
Test Anxiety

Mean

SD

Description

3.80
4.02
3.81
3.85
3.53
2.26

0.56
0.61
0.51
0.48
0.59
0.70

Above Average
Above Average
Above Average
Above Average
Above Average
Below Average

The achievement test results shows the students’ mathematics performance. The students’mean scores on the achievement test was 34.88 (69.75%), described as “very good” remarks.
Grade 7 students had the highest mean score of 36.26 (72.51%), followed by the Grade 9
students with a mean score of 34.76 (69.52%), Grade 10 mean score was 34.41 (68.81%), andgrade 8 students got the lowest mean score of 33.88(67.75%). They were all considered tohave a very good performance for their first quarter on mathematics.
Relationship between Metacognitive Awareness, Motivational Beliefs, and Mathematics
Performance
Correlation analysis showed that metacognitive awareness (r=0.369, p<0.01) and extrinsic
goal orientation (r=0.326, p<0.01) were highly significant with respondents’ mathematics
performance. Also, the students’ task value (r= 0.170, p<0.05) was correlated withmathematics performance. The following results suggest a potential direct and indirect effectof metacognition on mathematics performance and some motivational beliefs components.
Table 3. Relationship between Metacognitive Awareness, Motivational Beliefs andMathematics Performance
Variables
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
1.
Metacognitive1
awareness
2.
Intrinsic.587** 1
3.
Extrinsic.580** .415** 1
4.
Task Value.488** .578** .594** 1
5.
Control of learning.447** .340** .391** .311** 1
beliefs
6.
Self-efficacy.479** .516** .293** .673** .214** 1
7.
Test Anxiety-.319** -.249** -.333** -.052 -.314** -.062 1
8.
Mathematics.369** .131 .326** .170* .137
.134 -.154
1
Performance**. significant (p<0.01)*. significant (p<0.05)
Test for Mediation Models
This study's main objective was to investigate whether motivational beliefs are a significant
mediator of the relationship between metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance.
Several steps were performed to examine the mediating effects using the Statistical Package
for Social Sciences (SPSS). Sets of regression analysis were tested, exploring the mediation

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variables of the relationship between metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance.
Following the Baron and Kenny’s (1998) approach, a set of regression analyses wasundertaken, and four conditioned were examined.
The first condition involves examining whether metacognitive awareness is significantly
related with mathematics performance. A simple regression analysis was performed todetermine whether the metacognitive awareness of the respondents predict mathematics
performance. The result shows that the model was significant, R2=0.136, Adjusted R2=0.130, F(1,145) = 22.761, p<0.001. The metacognitive awareness is a positive predictor ofmathematics performance of the respondents, (β =0.369, t(1,145) =4.771, p< 0.001). The
coefficient of determination R2 = 0.136 means that about 13.6% of the variance of the
respondent’s mathematics performance is explained or accounted for by their metacognitiveawareness. Hence, the remaining 86.4% is explained or accounted for or by other variables
included in the model. These findings also indicate that students who have highmetacognition tend to have outstanding mathematics performance. Thus, the first condition
was satisfied.
The second condition includes examining the association of the independent variablemetacognitive awareness) and the possible mediator (components of motivational beliefs). A
series of simple regression analyses were performed to determine whether metacognitiveawareness predicts motivational beliefs components. Result shows that the regression model
for metacognitive awareness and intrinsic goal orientation is significant, R2= 0.344, Adjusted
R2= 0.340, F(1,1445) = 75.611, p < 0.001, which indicates that the metacognitive awareness is apositive predictor of intrinsic goal orientation (β =0.587, t(1, 145) =8.695). The coefficient
determination R2 = 0.344 means that about 34.40% of the variance in the intrinsic goal
orientation is explained or accounted for by their metacognitive awareness. The model is alsosignificant for metacognitive awareness and intrinsic goal orientation, R2 = 0.337, Adjusted
R2 = 0.332, F(1,1445) = 73.149, p < 0.001, indicating that the metacognitive awareness is apositive predictor of extrinsic goal orientation, (β =0.580, t(1, 145) =8.553). The coefficient
determination R2 = 0.337 means that about 33.70% of the variance in the extrinsic goal
orientation is explained or accounted for by their metacognitive awareness. The results also
shows that the model for metacognitive awareness and task value is significant, R2 = 0.238,
Adjusted R2 = 0.233, F(1,1445) = 45.091, p < 0.001, which indicates that metacognitiveawareness is a positive predictor of task value of the respondents, (β =0.488, t(1, 145) =6.715).
The coefficient determination R2 = 0.238 means that about 23.80% of the variance in the
respondent's task value is explained or accounted for by their metacognitive awareness. In
terms of the respondents metacognitive awareness and control of learning beliefs, the modelis also significant, R2 = 0.200, Adjusted R2 = 0.194, F(1,1445) = 35.957, p < 0.001, indicatingthat metacognitive awareness is also a positive predictor of the students’ control of learning
beliefs, (β =0.447, t(1, 145) =5.996). The coefficient determination R2 = 0.200 means that about
20 % of the variance in the task respondent's control of learning beliefs is explained or
accounted for by their metacognitive awareness. Moreover, metacognitive awareness andself-efficacy model is significant, R2 = 0.229, Adjusted R2 = 0.224, F(1,1445) = 42.778, p <0.001, which denoted that metacognitive awareness is a positive predictor of the students’
self-efficacy, β =0.479, t(1, 145) =6.541). The metacognitive awareness of the respondents
explains 22.9% of the variance in students' self-efficacy. Finally, a significant model was also
found on metacognition and test anxiety, R2 = 0.319, Adjusted R2 = 0.102, F(1,1445) = 16.318,
p < 0.001, which states that metacognitive awareness is a negative predictor of test anxiety,(β =-0.319, t(1, 145) -4.040,p<0.001). The metacognitive awareness of the respondents explains

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31.9 % of the variance in respondents' test anxiety. These findings indicate that all of the
respondents' motivational beliefs satisfied the second condition.
The third condition examines the possible mediator (components of motivational beliefs) thatpredicts the dependent variable (mathematics performance). Since the respondent's
metacognitive awareness was found to be significant with all of the motivational components,
all of the effects of these variables were tested. A series of simple linear regression was
conducted to determine whether the components of motivational beliefs predict mathematics
performance. Results shows that the model is significant with extrinsic goal orientation andmathematics performance, R2 = 0.107, Adjusted R2 = 0.100, F(1,1445) = 17.170, p < 0.001,
indicating that extrinsic goal orientation is a positive predictor of mathematics performance,(β =0.326, t(1,145)=4.144). The extrinsic goal orientation explains only 10 % of the variance inthe respondents' mathematics performance. Also, the model for task value and mathematics
performance is significant, R2 = 0.029, Adjusted R2 = 0.022, F(1,1445) = 4.299, p = 0.040,
indicating that task value of the respondents is a positive predictor of mathematics
performance, (β =0.170, t(1,145)=2.074). The task value beliefs of the respondents explain only
2.9% of the variance in mathematics performance. Hence, extrinsic goal orientation and task
value satisfied the condition and tested for the mediating effects.
The last condition implies that the mediation is supported if the mediating variable's effectremains significant when regressed with the independent variable. Also, it must be satisfied
that the predictor's effect on the dependent variable must be less when regressed with themediator than regressed without it. A multiple regression analysis was conducted todetermine the possible mediators of mathematics performance. Results show that the model issignificant, R2 = 0.155, Adjusted R2 = 0.144, F(1,1445) = 22.76, p < 0.001. Mathematics
performance was significantly predicted by extrinsic goal orientation (β =0.169, t(1,145)=1.789)
when extrinsic goal orientation was regressed with metacognitive awareness. This result
supports the mediation hypothesis.
Table 4. Multiple Regression Analysis
Mathematics Performance
Step Independent Variables
Adjusted
R2t
R2
1
Metacognitive Awareness 0.155 0.144
2.876
Extrinsic Goal Orientation
1.789
1Metacognitive Awareness 0.137 0.125
4.222
Task Value-0.150

β

Sig

0.271
0.169
0.376
-0.013

0.005
0.046
0.000
0.881

However, task value is not a significant predictor of mathematic performance when regressedwith metacognitive awareness. Furthermore, the effect of metacognitive awareness onmathematics performance was significant when regressed with extrinsic goal orientation (β=0.271, t(1,145)=2.876,p<0.01). A reduced absolute size was also found on the effect ofmetacognitive awareness on mathematics performance when regressed with extrinsic goal
orientation. Hence, partial mediation of extrinsic goal orientation was found on therelationship between metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance. Approximately
15.5% of the variance in the mathematics performance was accounted for by the predictors.
Figure 1 shows the summary of the regression analysis.

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Figure 1. Extrinsic Goal Orientation as mediator between Metacognitive Awareness andMathematics Performance
Discussion
As the study quested to describe the respondents' metacognition, findings revealed that the
respondents have above average metacognition. Students with above-average metacognition
have shown concentrated attention, research intentionally, make study plans, correctly
measure their results, and ask questions to ensure comprehension (Sperling, Miller &Murphy, 2002). This also indicates that the respondents are highly aware of how they think.
Students with high metacognition are aware of their knowledge of the task, subject, thinking,and self-management consciousness of associated cognitive responses. Meanwhile, findings
also found that the students have above the average mean in terms of the motivational beliefs
components. Also, the students have below average test anxiety. This result indicates that the
respondents are not highly test-anxious. Test anxiety occurs among learners if theyexperience substantial disagreement between their current behaviors and their progress ontheir desired goal (Carver & Scheir, 1991). Findings also showed that the respondents havevery good mathematics performance. Their good mathematics performance revealed that they
can perform mathematics tasks for the first quarter.
A significant positive correlation was found on metacognitive awareness and extrinsic goal
orientation with respondents' mathematics performance. Also, task value and test anxiety
were related to mathematics performance. These findings indicate that students with highmetacognition tend to have high mathematics performance. This result is similar to Youngand Fry (2008), which revealed that if the students have well-developed metacognition, they
will excel academically. Extrinsic goal orientation is also highly correlated with mathematics
performance. This implies that students who are externally goal-orientated tend to have highmathematics performance. Students who are predominantly motivated by external factors
such as having high grades, comparing with others, seeking recognition or rewards inmathematics studies tend to have high success in mathematics. Task value beliefs are also
related to mathematics performance. This indicates that students' perceptions of theattractiveness of a particular task or content in mathematics class are related to theirmathematics performance.
The foremost aim of this study was to examine the mediating effects of motivational beliefs
between the relationship of metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance. A seriesof regression analyses using Baron and Kenny's (1986) approach was utilized to determine
the mediation effect of the motivational components. The overall results of regression
analysis provide evidence of the partial mediation effect of extrinsic goal orientation on therelationship between metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance. Partial
mediation is seen as the metacognitive awareness that has both direct and indirect effects onmathematics performance. This result indicates that external goal orientation plays animportant role in metacognitive awareness and mathematics performance. Extrinsic goal

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orientation causes changes in both metacognition and mathematics performance. These
results also emphasize that teachers should consider the extrinsic goal orientation of students
in mathematics subject which is useful to adopt metacognition more actively and effectively.
These findings contradict the study that metacognitive knowledge exerted its effect onmathematics performance through the indirect mediating effect of self-efficacy and intrinsic
motivation (Tian, Fang, & Li, 2018). The study found that extrinsic goal orientation do not
mediate metacognition and mathematics performance. Similarly, Eklides (2011) demonstratethat self-efficacy is the complexly linked with metacognition. Moreover, the study also foundthat metacognitive experience has a direct effect on mathematical problem-solving
performance (Ozcan, 2016). Lai, Zhu, Chen, and Li's (2015) study indicated that anxiety inmathematics has an adverse impact on mathematical problem solving through metacognition.
The only non-cognitive construct that had a direct influence on mathematical problemsolving success was metacognitive activity; it also mediated the effects of self-efficacy,
motivation, and performance anxiety in mathematics. Motivation and anxiety in mathematics
have had an indirect effect on the performance of mathematical problem solving through selfefficacy (Ozcan & Gumus, 2019). Also this result suggested that external goal-orientation
should be taken into consideration as it has direct and indirect effect on mathematics
performance.
Conclusion
The findings of this study shows the crucial role of metacognition and motivational beliefs
among students’ mathematics performance. It is therefore recommended that teachers plan
activities in which students can develop their awareness and reflect on their thoughts. It issuggested that teachers use educational strategies including providing explicit instruction inboth metacognitive regulation and metacognitive knowledge, and activities that make student
beliefs and conceptions visible to support metacognition. It is also suggested that teachers
implement strategic practices that improve their skills academically and improve some of
their affective attributes. It is important that every students must develop holistically.
Mathematics teachers should implement teaching strategies that will strengthen the students’performance. Mathematics teachers should provide activities and learning tasks to assist theirstudents in a deeper understanding of mathematics concepts. With these results, it can benoted that the following construct are crucial in mathematics class. The results suggested thatthe following construct needs to strengthen inside the mathematics classroom associated withmathematics performance. Teachers should provide appropriate learning experiences thatmight help in improving mathematics performance. The result of this study were gathered
based on the Baron and Kenny (1986) approach of testing the mediation. This approach has
dominated the mediation analysis within social science research. However, experts argued
that this strategy holds many limitations. Therefore, the relationships indicated in this paper
need to be tested and further studies with more enormous or disparate samples need to be
carried out. In addition, the study’s findings should not be generalized due to the limited
scope of the study. The students who are involved in this study may not represent all the adultlearners as this was also limited to mathematics class. Finally, additional variables whichwere not included in this study may confuse the associations between various variables using
different measures within this study. With the following results, the future researchers areadvised to make further related research to affirm the findings of this study.

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References
Abdelrahman, R (2020). Metacognitive awareness and academic motivation and their impact
on academic achievement of Ajman University students. Procedia-Social and
Behavioral Sciences, 174, 560-567.
Baron, R.M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social
psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173-1182.
Braza, M & Supapo, S. (2014). Effective solutions in the implementation of the K to 12
Mathematics Curriculum. Sainsab, 17, 12-11.
Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (1991). A control-process perspective on anxiety. In R.
Schwarzer & R. A.Wicklund (Eds.), Anxiety and self-focused attention (pp. 3-8).
London: Harwood.
Cordova, C. C., & Tan, D. A. Mathematics proficiency, attitude, and performance of grade 9
students in private high schools in Bukidnon, Philippines. Asian Academic Research
Journal of Social Science, 5(2), 103-116.
Desoete, A., Roeyers, H. & Buysse, A. (2001). Metacognition and mathematical problem
solving in grade 3. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34, 435-449.
Eklides, A. (2011). Interaction of metacognition with motivation and effect in self-regulated
learning: The MASRL model. Educational Psychology, 46, 6-25. Doi:
10.1080/00461520.2011.538645
Kleden, M. A. (2015). Analysis of self-directed learning upon student of mathematics
education study program. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(20), 1-6.
Lai, Y., Zhu, X., Chen, Y., & Li, Y. (2015). Effects of mathematics anxiety and mathematicalmeta- cognition on word problem solving in children with and without mathematicallearning difficulties. PloS One, 10(6), e0130570.
MacKinnon, D. P., Krull, J. L., & Lockwood, C. (2000). Mediation, confounding, andsuppression: Different names for the same effect. Prevention Science, 1, 173-181.
Öz, H. (2016). Metacognitive awareness and academic motivation: a cross- sectional study inteacher education context of turkey. Procedia - Social and Behavioral
Sciences,232,109 – 121.
Ozcan, Z. C. (2016). The relationship between mathematical problem-solving skills and selfregulated learning through homework behaviors, motivation, and metacognition.
International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 47(3),408–420.
Ozcan, Z. C., & Gumus, A. E. (2019). A modeling study to explain mathematical problemsolving performance through metacognition, self-efficacy, motivation, and anxiety.
Australian Journal of Education, 63 (1), 116-134.

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Pagtulon-an, E., & Tan, D. (2018). Students’ mathematics performance and self-efficacy
beliefs in a rich assessment tasks environment. Asian Academic Research Journal ofMultidisciplinary, 5(2), 54-64.
Pintrich, P. R., & de Groot, E. V. (1990). Motivational and self-regulated learningcomponents of classroom academic performance. Journal of Educational Psychology,
82(1), 33–40. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.82.1.33
Schraw, G., & Dennison, R. S. (1994). Assessing metacognitive awareness. Contemporary
Educational Psychology, 19(4), 460–475. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1994.1033
Skaalvik, E., Federici, R., & Klassen, R. (2015). Mathematics achievement and self-efficacy:
relations with motivation for mathematics. International Journal of Educational
Research, 72, 129-136.
Sperling, R. A., Howard, B. C., Miller, L. A., & Murphy, C. (2002). Measures of children's
knowledge and regulation of cognition. Contemporary Educational Psychology,27(1), 51–79.
Tian, Y., Fang, Y., & Li, J. (2018). The effect of metacognitive knowledge on mathematics
performance in self regulated learning framework-Multiple mediation of self efficacy
and motivation. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1-10.
Young, A. and Fry, J. D. (2008). Metacognitive Awareness and Academic Achievement inCollege Students. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 8(2), 1-10.
Contact email: janinasercenia@gmail.com

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Speaking Anxiety: Japanese Students in the EFL Environment
Lidija Eliott, Nagoya University of Foreign Studies, Japan
Miriam Guadalupe Vasquez, Nagoya University of Foreign Studies, Japan
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Abstract
The present study was carried out as a means of investigating and understanding the nature andsources of speaking anxiety in the EFL classroom. In order to determine which speaking
activities students find to be the most anxiety producing, a qualitative questionnaire wasadministered. Participants consisted of 140 Japanese students in the first and second year of
university. By obtaining a deeper insight into anxiety causing activities, instructors can better
address this issue. The findings in this study indicated that students believe speaking activities
such as presentations and conversations to be the greatest cause of anxiety. Interestingly,
students find the practice and preparation to be among the most helpful tools for helping themmitigate feelings of anxiety. Based on findings, authors will offer recommendations forpossible activities to be used in the classroom. These activities may help students mitigate
feelings of anxiety, in order to help learners become more communicatively competent, which
may lead to greater self-confidence, thereby helping students achieve their language learning
goals.
Keywords: Speaking Anxiety, Language Learning, Activities

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Language Anxiety is defined as “the feeling of tension and apprehension specifically associatedwith second language contexts, including speaking, listening, and learning” (MacIntyre &Garner, 1994). Because this type of anxiety is the result of a combination of factors intrinsic tolanguage learning, it is considered a situation-specific form of anxiety (Horowitz et.al, 1986).
This type of anxiety is measured by three inter-linked components: communication
apprehension (the fear of communicating with others), fear of negative evaluation(apprehension by evaluation of others, and test anxiety (performance anxiety due to fear of
failure) (Horowitz et.al., 1986).
Because speaking is a significant part of language learning, language anxiety typicallymanifests itself in situations where spoken language production occurs (Dewele, 2002;
Woodrow, 2006).
Thus, speaking anxiety is a major hurdle learners must overcome in the language classroom(Öztekin, 2011; Wang & Chang, 2010). When speaking, feelings of anxiety cause negative
learner perceptions such as feelings of self-doubt, or shyness when communicating orally
before peers (Mayer, 2008). In addition, it has been found to cause problems related to selfconfidence and self-esteem as learners often engage in self-deprecating thoughts, such as “I’mstupid” or “I can’t do this,” which affects a learners ability to see themself as a successful
learner (Pappamihiel, 2002; Kalra & Siribud, 2020). These components have a significant
negative effect on learner perceptions of “self” and beliefs about language learning, which inturn affect learner achievement and performance levels in the target language (Young,1991).This threat to a learner’s sense of self, can result in a learner feeling discouraged or losing
faith in their abilities, refrain from participating in classroom activities, and potentially giving
up the effort to learn the language (Na, 2007, as cited by Awan et.al., 2010).
In addition to learner perceptions of “self,” anxiety can also affect a learner’s appraisal ofclassroom situations. Anxiety may result in a learner perceiving certain activities asthreatening, which can negatively affect the learning process (Pappamihiel, 2002). Student
perceptions are influenced by their fears of making mistakes, fears of leaving a bad impression
on others, or fears of disapproval by others (Aydin, 2008). Thus, those who experiencespeaking anxiety do not feel confident when required to speak in the target language, preferring
to remain silent. Unfortunately, the longer students are exposed to anxiety causing activities,
the more likely to become “fossilized,” and the more difficult to overcome (Tercan & Dikilitas,
2016).
Research Questions
1.
2.

What specific classroom activities provoke anxiety in the classroom environment?
What classroom activities help mitigate language learning anxiety?

Rationale
According to Horwitz (need to mention the original year, need to mention the original year, as
cited by Guess, 2007), although foreign language anxiety typically affects 28 to 30 percent ofEuropean language learners, and around 33 percent of U.S. learners, it affects 40 to 43 percent
of Asian learners. In Japan, speaking anxiety among learners is typically due to student fearsof ‘taking risks’. This fear often means that students are unlikely to speak until they are called

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Official Conference Proceedingson (Koba et al., 2000). According to Yoshida (2010), this tendency of Japanese students toremain silent has been attributed to cultural features such as: maintaining harmony andavoiding direct opposition. In addition, Japanese people tend to be indirect in theircommunication, they often interpret feelings and convey their intent via nonverbal
communication. Thus, understanding these cultural factors are crucial to understanding wherelearner anxieties stem from. With this understanding, teachers can assess the best tools to utilize
to foster student success.
Methodology
Participants & Setting
Participants consisted of 140 first and second-year English majors, at a Japanese university.
Class sizes ranged between 17-25 students, between the ages of 18-21. The study was
performed within a mandatory four-skills English course, which participants must enroll in aspart of their degree requirement. Participation was fully voluntary, and students were advisedthat data collected would be confidential, and participation would have no bearing on course
grades. The study was conducted mid-semester, during the spring of 2021.
Data Collection
The study adopted a qualitative survey design to assess both learner experience, and student
beliefs about language learning anxiety. A questionnaire, written solely in English, consistedof twenty-one items, and was developed as the instrument for data collection (see APPENDIX
A). The twenty-one questions consisted of general background information; student
perceptions about their communication ability; and learner experience and beliefs.
Results
Causes of Anxiety When Expressing Self in English
When asked about general feelings of anxiety when expressing themselves in the target
language, seventy percent of students admitted to feelings of anxiety. Having ascertained thenumber of students that generally experience feelings of anxiety in the classroom, students
were then asked about the causes of these feelings. Based on the results, the majority of students
feel anxious about speaking in English because of a lack of confidence, or because they feelthey lack the vocabulary or other language skills necessary to express themselves.
Among the responses were comments such as: “I realize I can't speak English well" [Rikuto],and "My English is not good enough to express myself perfectly, and I'm afraid of being
misunderstood by someone" [Kyoka]. Another student stated they were feeling unsure of the“correctness” of their grammar. Finally, a striking example that encapsulates a common
sentiment shared by many students is, "I'm unable to articulate my views precisely." Because
individuals understand how to communicate effectively in their native language, attempting tofind the appropriate words or phrases in English may be incredibly unpleasant and anxietyinducing.

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Component of English that Causes the Most Anxiety
Theme

Code

Responses Percentage

Partof Speaking
English thatcausesthe Vocabularymost anxiety

80

57%

52

37%

Listening comprehension

40

28%

Grammar39

27.6%

Pronunciation

18

13%

Table 1. Which Part of English Causes You the Most Anxiety?
The result shows that oral communication and lack of vocabulary are one of the biggest
stressors in the target language. Students are also hypersensitive to their grammar andgrammatical faults, as learning correct grammar is a major priority in junior high and highschools. Additionally, it is intriguing that listening to the teacher and comprehending theirpeers, as well as not understanding their listening activities, are included in replies. All of thesefactors contribute to the nervousness and anxiety they experience in the classroom.
Anxiety Producing Speaking Activities
In order to understand stress inducers, our survey delved deeper into the reasons students
experience anxiety and the activities that cause them the greatest discomfort.
Theme

Code

Responses Percentage

Anxiety
Producing
Activities

Public Speaking

51

36%

Conversations

39

28%

Table 2. What Speaking Activities Cause You the Most Anxiety?
Results support prior research showing that learners with high levels of anxiety are more likely
to think and behave in ways that are not connected to the task, thus undermining theirperformance, (Sarason, Sarason and Pierce, 1990; Spielberger, 2013). Hence, students arelikely to obtain a lower grade. Finally, students expressed that their greatest concern is thedread of the audience, which is tied to peer sentiments toward the speaker.
Causes of Anxiety in Speaking Activities
It is important for teachers to understand causes of anxiety in speaking activities so that they
can make the necessary adjustments to help students overcome their anxieties and improvetheir English proficiency.

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Code

CausesAnxiety
Speaking
Activities

Responses Percentage

of English Skills & Vocabulary
in
Negative Emotions

70

50%

38

27%

Table 3. How/Why Do These Speaking Activities Cause You Anxiety?
Based on results, the majority of students experience negative feelings when they participate
in speaking activities. According to Emi, "I worry about whether the other person will
understand what I'm saying." Or another student Yuki wrote, "Because when I don't know what
I want to say, I became panic." While 27 percent of students stated they lacked sufficientlanguage knowledge (vocabulary and skill), this was the primary source of their speaking
concerns. Another student commented that, “Because I care too much about grammar and I`mstill having trouble listening to native English” [Yuria], or according to Ayano “English words
do not come out.” Each of these factors can result in making them feel more stressed while
speaking English.
Activities Helpful/Useful to Language Learning
With regards to student beliefs about activities that are helpful to the language learning process,student responses centered around speaking, reading/writing/vocabulary, and listening
activities.
Theme

Code

Responses Percentage

UsefulSpeaking
Activities for
Language
Reading, Writing, and Vocabulary
Learning
Listening

81

57.8%

20

14.3%

12

12.1%

Table 4. Activities Helpful/Useful to Language Learning
Speaking
Although respondents find speaking to be among the most anxiety inducing activity in language
learning, they also find this activity to be the most useful to the language learning process. For
students, speaking activities are not only helpful for improving all language skills as a whole,
but they offer the practice needed to better express themselves in the target language.
Comments such as: “Speaking is contained the skills of listening comprehension, grammar,
pronunciation, and vocabulary, which means all we have to improve our English levels or skills
is speaking and doing conversations” [Kazuki] or “Through these activities, I can practicelistening to person’s thought, telling my opinion and comparing it with mine” [Sakura], werecommon among respondents. In addition, students often see speaking activities as a source ofconnection to other cultures or people around the world: “Because it allows us to connect withpeople all over the world” [Ryousuke].

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Reading, Writing, and VocabularyWith regards to reading, writing, and vocabulary, students find that learning vocabulary is an
essential base if seeking to develop language skills. According to one respondent: “because
learning vocabularies makes me reading English sentences easy and it expand the width of
expressions in English. And if I speak much English in daily lives, I could speak English morenatural and tell others my all feelings and ideas like speaking Japanese” [Miku]. This was asentiment that several students expressed, as they consider vocabulary to be a key feature inlanguage learning, therefore they found activities such as reading to be helpful to vocabularyacquisition.
Listening
Finally, students also noted that listening activities were useful to the language learning
process. Some students find that these are helpful to understanding a speaker on a deeper level.
“Because if I will be good at listening and hearing, I am able to understand what a speaker says
or how a speaker thinks when I talk to people even if I can't express my opinion well” [Yuki].
While others stated that listening to native English speakers assists them in learning “natural”
speech patterns. “Because I can learn about natural English conversation” [Haruka].
Strategies to Reduce Anxiety
The final section of the questionnaire focused on strategies students themselves use in reducing
learner anxiety. Based on results, there are four main strategies learners utilize.
Theme

Code

Responses Percentage

Strategies for Practice & Preparation
Reducing
Anxiety
Positive Attitude

50

35.7%

30

21.4%

Improve Vocabulary/Language

28

20%

Asking for Help/Support

6

4.3%

Table 5. Strategies Used to Reduce Anxiety
Practice & Preparation
According to the findings, students felt that practice and preparation were helpful in reducing
anxiety. Comments such as: “Before beginning to speak, I try to organize my thoughts”[Takuma], “I get used to it by increasing the chances of talking” [Kirari], and “I communicate
in English more actively, and I get used to speak in English” [Haruto] were among the
responses given. Students find that practice and preparation not only helps them to organize
their thoughts, but it allows them to get used to speaking in the target language, which increases
their level of confidence, thereby mitigating levels of anxiety and encouraging them to be moreproactive.

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Positive AttitudeStudent strategies for maintaining a positive attitude were among the most interesting resultsin this study. Although students cited the ‘fear of making mistakes,’ and ‘lack of confidence,’
as the greatest sources of anxiety, they also maintained that not worrying about mistakes, andapproaching an activity with a confident attitude, were key to reducing anxiety. Comments
such as: “ I try to speak a lot and I don’t mind mistakes” or “I’m not afraid mistakes,” and“To be confident” or “ Keep smiling,” were common.
Improve Vocabulary/Language & Asking for Help/Support
Finally, students cited both improving vocabulary, as well as asking for help, as helpful
strategies for reducing anxiety. Because students find the inability to express their opinions dueto the lack of the necessary vocabulary, as a great source of anxiety, it is unsurprising that
improving vocabulary is seen as a useful strategy in mitigating these feelings. And in situations
where students have difficulty expressing their views, they find great comfort in receiving
support from their fellow classmates. Thus, having a supportive environment in which students
feel at ease asking for assistance is beneficial.
Limitations
The key drawback of this study was the participation size. While the insights acquired are
valuable, the study might benefit from a larger study size. In addition, data was collected froma single survey conducted in the middle of the first semester, so a study conducted over a longer
period of time, and with regular surveys, may have produced deferring results. Finally, allsurvey questions were written in English, prompting students to submit their answers in
English. Had students been provided with a questionnaire that offered Japanese translations,
not only would it ensure that participants fully understood the intent and meaning of thequestion, but it may have encouraged participants to provide more thorough responses.
Recommendations
Given the results of the study, authors offer two potential strategies for helping mitigate student
anxiety in the classroom. The two recommended methods include using humour, and/or usingmusic in the classroom. Both of these strategies are useful in helping students relax, thereby
reducing speaking apprehension. This has the potential of encouraging the learner to speak
more, and in so doing, increase their linguistic performance. In addition, using humor and/ormusic in the classroom can foster an enjoyable learning environment, which could play a
critical role in overcoming tension and uneasiness, therefore making students more receptive
to learning. As a result, these activities may help in building group cohesion, bridging thelanguage gap, and making the learning process more successful.
According to Berk (2002) humor is vital for the two most essential ingredients in education,
namely the lecturer-student relationship and engaged learning. Humor creates a positive
relationship between teachers and students, it reduces stress and tension in the classroom,
facilitates learning, supports good retention, develops creativity, and streamlines teaching in
general. Mistakes are a natural part of learning, thus to build an environment where mistakes
are accepted rather than feared, humour can be a helpful tool. As Pretorius, Koen & Schall(2020) stated “When students are smiling, they will be more motivated to engage in learning”.
Thus, by incorporating humor in lessons, by assigning groups to create a funny joke in English

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and share it with the class, by tasking students to find a joke online and translating, or evendisplaying a funny sitcom in English will infuse the classroom with a sense of humor thatstudents will appreciate and pique student interest in learning.
With regards to music, this activity can be used in several ways. The first is as a form of icebreaker. When students are reluctant to speak in class, the instructor could play music and ask
students to speak over the sound of music to ensure their speaking partner can hear what they
are trying to say. Students often find this activity amusing, quickly building a sense of
comradery with their partner (due to a shared moment of humor), allowing them to set asidesome of their apprehensions about speaking in the target language. The second method of usingmusic in the classroom is using it during discussion periods as general background music. This
allows students to focus on their speaking partner and conversation, instead of classroom
sounds (or lack thereof) around them.
Conclusions
This study showed that students are anxious about speaking activities such as presentation andconversations. In addition, students are concerned about their grammar accuracy, vocabulary
usage, pronunciation, and meaning to be understood when speaking English in the classroom.
Interestingly, activities students find the most anxiety inducing are also thought to be the mostuseful in language learning. However, students find that practice and preparation helps them toreduce these anxieties. Although the classroom environment will never be anxiety-free, anawareness of the activities that cause the most anxiety can help instructors try to mitigate theseanxieties. While it is unreasonable to expect instructors to be able to control all anxiety
producing factors, it is important to recognize the complexities that are at play in a foreign
language situation, as they may be more nuanced than expected. Both humor and music may
not only help teachers create a positive and effective learning environment but also serve as asource of enjoyment. By reducing anxiety and tension, students can take on further risks andchallenges in their language learning.

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References
Awan, R.-un-N., Azher, M., Anwar, M. N., & Naz, A. (2010). An investigation of foreign
language classroom anxiety and its relationship with students’ achievement. Journal ofCollege Teaching & Learning (TLC), 7(11). https://doi.org/10.19030/tlc.v7i11.249
Aydin, S. (2007, November 30). An investigation on the Language anxiety and fear ofnegative evaluation among Turkish Efl learners. Online Submission.
https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED512266
Berk, R. A. (2002). Humor as an Instructional Defibrillator: Evidence-based Techniques in
Teaching and Assessment. Virginia: Stylus
Dewaele, J.-M. (2002). Psychological and sociodemographic correlates of communicative
anxiety in L2 and L3 production. International Journal of Bilingualism, 6(1), 23–38.
https://doi.org/10.1177/13670069020060010201
Guess, A. (2007). Overcoming Language Anxiety. Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved October 15,
2021. Retrieved from:https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2007/06/29/overcominglanguage-anxiety
Horwitz, E. K., Horwitz, M. B., & Cope, J. (1986). Foreign language classroom anxiety. The
modern language journal. Vol. 70(2), pp. 125-132
Koba, N., Ogawa, N., & Wilkinson, D. (2000). Using a community language learning
approach to cope with language anxiety. Retrieved from: http://iteslj.org/Articles/KobaCLL.html
Kalra, R., & Siribud, S. (2020, January 30). Public speaking anxiety in the Thai EFL Context.
LEARN Journal: Language Education and Acquisition Research Network. https://so04.tcithaijo.org/index.php/LEARN/article/view/237845
Mayer, D. P. (2008). How to Help Your Child Deal With Separation, Tests, Homework,
Bullies, Math Phobia, and Other Worries. New York: Amacom Books
MacIntyre, P. D., & Gardner, R. C. (1994). The subtle effects of Language anxiety on
cognitive processing in the second language. Language Learning, 44(2), 283–305.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-1770.1994.tb01103.xÖztekin, E. (2011). A comparison of computer assisted and face-to-face speaking assessment:
performance, perceptions, anxiety, and computer attitudes (Unpublished master’s thesis).
Bilkent University
Pappamihiel, N. (2002). English as a Second Language Students and English Language
Anxiety: Issues in the Mainstream Classroom. Research in the Teaching of English, 36(3),327-355. Retrieved July 27, 2021, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/40171530
Pretorius, J., Koen, M., & Schall, R. (2020). Using intentional humour in a higher-education
classroom: connecting with, and building on Lovorn and Holaway. The European Journal of
Humour Research, 8, 146-165

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Sarason, B., I. Sarason and G. Pierce (1990), “Traditional views of social support and theirimpact on assessment”, online article, Retrieved from:https://www.researchgate.net/publication/232474109_Traditional_views_of_social_support_and_their_impact_on_assessment
Spielberger, C.D. (ed.) (2013), Anxiety: Current Trends in Theory and Research, Academic
Press, London, UK
Tercan, G., & Dikilitas, K. (2016, January 23). EFL students' speaking anxiety: A case fromtertiary level students. ELT Research Journal.
https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/eltrj/issue/5485/74474
Wang, L. J., & Chang, H. F. (2010). Applying innovation methods to assess English speaking
performance on communication apprehension. Belt Journal, 1(2), 147-158. Retrieved from:https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/25529836.pdf
Woodrow, L. (2006). Anxiety and speaking English as a second language. RELC Journal,
37(3), 308–328. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688206071315
Yoshida, K., (2010). Coping with Anxiety in the Foreign Language Classroom: JapaneseStudents on Study-abroad Language Courses in the UK. Language and Culture: The Journalof the Institute for Language and Culture. 14. 59-80. Retrieved from:http://doi.org/10.14990/00000494
Young, D. (1991). Creating a Low-Anxiety Classroom Environment: What Does Language
Anxiety Research Suggest? The Modern Language Journal, 75(4), 426-439.
doi:10.2307/329492

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Appendix-A
QuestionnairePart A: Background Information
1.

Name

2.

Sex
a.
b.
c.

Female
Male
Other

3.

School Yeara.
First-Yearb.
Second-Year

4.

University Major
a.
EIBEI
b.
English Communication

5.

At what age did you start learning English?

6.

What is the second foreign language you are learning?
a.
Arabicb.
Chinesec.
Frenchd.
Germane.
Indonesianf.
Italiang.
Koreanh.
Portuguesei.
Russianj.
Spanish
k.
Thai
l.
Other

Part B: Communication Ability
1.

How confident do you feel expressing yourself verbally in Japanese?
a)extremely confidentb)confidentc)a little confidentd)
not very confidente)no confidence2.

How confident do you feel expressing yourself verbally in English?
a)extremely confidentb)confidentc)a little confident

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not very confident
no confidencePart C: Learner Experience & Beliefs
1.

Does your teacher affect your language learning experience?
a.
Yes
b.
No

2a.

Do you ever feel anxious/nervous when expressing yourself in English?
(If yes, please answer question 2b)2b.

If you answered “Yes” to question 2a, please share why?

3a.

What speaking activities cause you the most anxiety?

3b.

How/Why do these speaking activities cause you anxiety?

4.

Which part of English causes the most anxiety?
a.
speakingb.
listening comprehensionc.
grammard.
pronunciatione.
vocabulary

5.

What activities are the most useful to you for learning English?

6.

How/Why are these activities useful?

7.

What strategies do you do to reduce your speaking anxiety?

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Supporting Students in a Changing Educational Climate:
A Systems Engineering Case Study
Stephen G. Barker, Cranfield University, United Kingdom
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Abstract
Whilst the coronavirus pandemic has posed andragogical and pedagogical challenges to
educational establishments in how they restructure courses to permit continued delivery in an
online world, it has also caused significant disruption to students, not least in terms of how
they have maintained their ability to continue to study and learn. A significant element in thisis how student learning preferences such as experiential/practical or traditional lecture-based
study have been served or disrupted by the revised delivery mechanism(s). This isparticularly the case where the subject matter is management or engineering-related, andrequires a great deal of interaction and collaborative multi-stakeholder work. Where thecourse is being taught at level seven, and therefore requires self-directed learning, this is evenmore the case. This paper considers those student learning preferences in this light, andstudies the extent to which teaching andragogy has been modified to utilise activities whichsafeguard learning styles and facilitate continued effective learning. To do this, different
learning styles and preferences are analysed, and a study is made of how these were satisfied
in pre-pandemic education, using a Systems Engineering MSc course as a case study.
Practice during the coronavirus pandemic is then considered to gauge how effective changes
to course delivery made necessary by the situation were in supporting learners during thisperiod and facilitating their further study and progression toward their desired qualification.
Successes and failures are described, and conclusions are reached on how learning
preferences can be better supported andragogically on an ongoing basis.
Keywords: Andragogy, Supporting Students, Systems Engineering

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
The coronavirus pandemic which began in 2019 (WHO, 2021) caused several problems forthe education sector. In the United Kingdom, as in the rest of the world, measures wereintroduced in March 2020 to attempt to control the spread of the coronavirus. Principally,
these were (UK government, 2020):
1.
Requiring people to stay at home, except for very limited purposes.
2.
Closing certain businesses and venues.
3.
Stopping all gatherings of more than two people in public.
From a university perspective, the challenges presented by this centred around how to keep
operating, doing consultancy, delivering educational offerings, and continuing to research inorder to remain viable financially. From a course delivery perspective, the focus became‘how can we continue to deliver education and training under pandemic conditions?’. The
main obstacle in this respect was to devise a method of being able to facilitate teaching andlearning that did not involve face-to-face (F2F) delivery. Whilst lessons could be learningfrom other education providers whose delivery mechanism had always been predominantly at
distance, such as the UK Open University (Open University, 2021), certain courses rely oF2F delivery to realise the full learning potential of the student and their wider cohort,allowing them to fully explore the topic area. Systems Engineering is one such topic, andBarker (2021) explored the difficulty in maintaining delivery of such a course, using
Cranfield University’s Systems Engineering MSc and apprenticeship (Cranfield University,2021) course as an example. One of the andragogical challenges was found to be that as a UK
level 7 (UK government, 2021) course, “the focus must be on activities that allow students to
explore the use of concepts in situations which are as realistic and reflective of real-world
scenarios as is possible” (Barker, 2021). With systems engineering, this is particularly
challenging due to the multidisciplinary, highly interactive nature of the topic. Although theessentials of the topic could be delivered through lectures and supervised exercises (Bligh,1998; Bonesso et al., 2015; Garside, 1996) packaged either as live online taught sessions or
voiced over slides hosted on a virtual learning environment (VLE) platform, inculcation ofinteractive hands on experience, and experiential learning more generally, essential to level 7
learning and as advocated by Pugsley & Clayton (2003) and Illeris (2007), proved to be amore difficult problem to solve. This was a key issue as it was also central to the student
learning experience, and with that in mind, the needs of the students and how they may besupported in their learning journey was an important consideration when planning therevisions to educational delivery made necessary by the coronavirus pandemic. Set against
the measures introduced to combat the coronavirus, students faced a number of difficulties,
such as studying and working from home whilst balancing this against family life, and otherfactors such as the worries and psychological pressures imposed by ‘lockdown’. In particular,
Coronavirus measures posed the following difficulties to students in respect of continuing tostudy:•No F2F study possible, and being unable to access onsite university facilities•
Students were called away from study for work purposes or family matters,
meaning that their studies were interrupted•
The time that students were able to spend on study was reduced, and•A dependency on their own IT infrastructure meant that students sometimes
experienced connectivity issues and were thus unable to access online resources or join live
taught sessions

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This paper will consider how the Cranfield Systems Engineering MSc course team went
about supporting students in the face of these difficulties, tuning delivery mechanisms tomaintain the learning experience, and continuing to meet student expectations. The needs andexpectations of the student learning experience is first considered, before the methodologicalapproach to refining the teaching andragogy and supporting students’ learning is described,
and results are stated. Conclusions and further work are then evaluated.
Student Needs and Expectations of Learning in an Online World
In order to understand how to better support students, it is important to understand theirneeds, and that these in turn are influenced by individual circumstances, motivations, andexpectations. Before we examine these, however, it is useful to set out how students were
supported in pre-coronavirus times. Generally, from an academic perspective, students areallocated a mentor to whom they can turn with any queries about the course, or any
difficulties that they might have with course material. Students can also make recourse to the
Course Director with any queries or complaints, and can consult with the student
administration team to discuss marks or matters of progression through modules and thewider course. From a pastoral perspective, students can talk in confidence to the Flexible
Education Coordinator – a member of the course team dedicated to solving student problems– or can speak directly to the Student Support team based within the academic school. Any
issue raised by a student is treated with utmost confidence. A more complete summary ofthese support paths is provided at table 1 overleaf. During the pandemic, theses services
remained available to students, albeit virtually rather than F2F, and the nature of support
offered was varied due to the pressures experienced by students in what were quite unique
circumstances. In order to examine how student needs changed – and therefore therequirement to support was altered, it is necessary to consider the circumstances in which
students found themselves – or in this context “blockers” and other factors affecting student
learning – as well as student motivations and expectations.
The literature describes a number of potential “blockers” to student learning. Ehrhardt &Archambault (2020) argue that the attitude and disposition of students is a critical factor,
whilst Palmer et al (2017) list conceptions of learning and knowledge; pedagogical design ofmodule and course; relationships, socialization and collaboration; interaction; accessibility
and perceived ease of use; clarity of purpose and approach to task; student agency andautonomy, and quality content as being key factors to consider. Wilson (2012) highlights
time available to learn or study as being important, whilst age is cited by Truluck et al (1999).
Kolb (1984) and Shneiderman (1998) point to how individuals learn as being a central factor,
and this is corroborated by the work of Honey and Mumford (1982) on leaning styles. All of
this has to be set in the context of ensuring the required quality (QAA, 2014) and right levelof learning (Bloom, 1979). These works suggesting blockers to student learning broadly
support experiential findings based upon delivery of the course over a number of years.
Importantly, many of these factors were impacted, or exacerbated, by the coronavirus
pandemic.
Support Path
MentorModule Leader

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Support offered(Primarily)
Academic
Academic

Queries about course material, any issues or difficulties
with course progression etc
Queries regarding individual module material orassessment

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Course Director

Academic

Student
Administration
team
Flexible
Education
Coordinator
Student Support
team
Information
Technology
Library support
team

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Queries about the course either directly, or elevated fromdiscussions with mentor or module leader;Complaints about course or marks awarded
Queries with regard to progression, marks, or process

Pastoral

Problems other than academic in nature usually coursebased

Pastoral

Problems likely to be of a more serious nature other thanacademicIssues with information technology generally, and online
university resources in particular
Obtaining library references and sources, study support

IT
Library

Table 1: Support Available to Students Pre-Pandemic
In addition, there are the blocking factors which have been found to be particular to thecoronavirus pandemic. Savage (2021) writing in The Guardian newspaper online discussed
the rise in loneliness and mental distress due to being required to work from home, whilst
Ellis (2021) writing in CEO Magazine suggested that working away from the office createdmore pressure as people felt the need to prove themselves more, and were thus working
longer hours. Student feedback showed that this psychological pressure was only
compounded by the need to balance family life against work and study, as schools were also
closed due to the pandemic, and this resulted in less time to study, and a reduced ability to
study in a structured manner. Moreover, reliance on personal IT infrastructure caused issues
with study as identified earlier in this paper. Such is the phenomenon that the UK National
Health Service offered advice on how to look after mental wellbeing whilst working at home
(NHS, 2021). Blockers to student learning can thus be summarized as follows:•
Work and family pressures•
Psychological factors•
Potentially limited by lack of IT infrastructure•
Not able to learn in preferred way•
Individual learning style•
Preference for particular teaching/learning method – i.e, taught lectures,individual research task, group workshops etc•
Potential lack of access to facilities•
Individual learning preferences•
Technology enhanced learning (TEL) seen by some as more restrictive thanF2F activities•
Need to maintain standards of educational offering
Based this thinking, and building upon experience of delivering the course, it might bepossible to suggest factors which influence learning. These are described at table 2:
FactorType of influence

Age

Age may relate to a preference for F2F learning, or ease of
adoption of online learning techniques
The greater the level of experience, either in theExperience of the individual

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workplace or with the subject matter, the more likely theindividual might be to be able to conceptualise,rationalize, and reflect upon concepts and issues
Length of time out of education If out of education for a period of time, the individual ismore likely to require increased guidance, and could be
reluctant to put forward their own view
Learning style and preference
A preference for formally taught methods, or for lessstructured workshops will affect how an individual learns
Inclination to learn/Motivation
The reason for study could affect an individual’s
determination to succeed, and to adapt to revised teaching
and learning andragogy
Level of previous qualification
Individuals without previous qualifications, or withrelatively low-level qualifications, are likely to exhibit apreference for more formal teaching methods
Table 2: Factors Influencing the Ability to Learn
Truluck et al (1999) suggests that with age, learning preferences alter; there is a tendency
toward hands on application, perhaps when combined with knowledge gained throughexperience. This would suggest a leaning toward a preference for F2F learning with anemphasis upon interaction and the ability to bring experience to bear on real life case studies
in workshop conditions. At the same time, evidence suggests that older individuals are lessinclined toward IT-based solutions (Henshaw et al, 2012; ONS, 2019), and as a result of this,it might be suggested, could be less accepting to online learning. Conversely, the ONS (2019)research shows that younger adults are more likely to embrace IT, and might therefore be
more comfortable with online-only learning. Experiential learning (Kolb, 1984; Kayes et al,
2005; Hawtrey, 2007; Siberman, 2007) is deemed to be a key facilitator to learning, allowing
individuals and groups to share experiences, learn from experience, and bring experience tobear on problem situations, and again this might lend itself more toward F2F learning than
online study.
Experience of delivering the course suggests that those who return to study after a periodaway exhibit a preference for more formalised or structured teaching method techniques,
whilst Garside (1996) and Fry et al (2009) demonstrate that individual learning styles andpreferences affect how an individual learns. Methods such as MBTI (Briggs-Myers et al,2003) tend to support this by suggesting that individuals can be “typed” asIntroversion/Extroversion, iNtuition/Sensing, Feeling/Thinking, and Perception/Judging, andthat this dichotomy can be used to inform understanding of how an individual might learn,
and what their preferences might be. Honey and Mumford (1982) produced a categorizationof learning styles, detailed at table 3 below, which further suggested that preferences dictate
how individuals learn.
Classifier

Descriptor

Activist

Responds most positively to learning
situations offering challenge, to include newexperiences and problems, excitement andfreedom in their learning
Respond most positively to structured
learning activities where they are provided
with time to observe, reflect and think, andReflector

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allowed to work in a detailed manner
Theorist
Respond well to logical, rational structure
and clear aims where they are given time formethodical exploration and opportunities toquestion and stretch their intellect
Pragmatist
Respond most positively to practically
based, immediately relevant learning
activities, which allow scope for practiceand using theory
Table 3: Categorisation of Learning Styles (Honey and Mumford, 1982)
Finally, experience suggests that where an individual either does not have a previous
qualification, lacks experience in the subject matter, or possesses a qualification which might
be considered relatively low-level, then they will expect for formal instruction in the topic
with guided exercises and worked solutions, and this might again indicate a preference for amore structured teaching method.
Student Motivations and Expectations
The motivation of students is an important factor in their will to succeed at studying andcompleting the course. Motivational theory as set out by the likes of Herzberg (2017),
Maslow (1943), and analysed by the likes of Pardoe (1990) and Bassett-Jones and Lloyd(2005) sets out a hierarchy of motivational factors, ranging from core needs to self-fulfilment.
It can be argued that if the need is sufficiently important, such as a pre-requisite forpromotion, or professional membership for example, then the student will be moredetermined to achieve the qualification, and thus more ready to adapt to changing
circumstances and constraints, than they would if the course was merely being undertaken forthe purposes of continual personal development, and its completion held no intrinsic
consequence.
Student Expectations are another key factor when considering how support of their studies
needed to evolve in the face of the pandemic; expectations vary with the individual, but
discussions with students showed that despite a need to change the delivery mechanism of thecourse, there was still an expectation that quality would be maintained to the required
standard (QAA, 2014), and that variety of teaching methods will still cater for individual
study and learning preferences. Thus, the concept of ‘blended learning’, utilizing a mix offormal lectures and exercises, and more informal and unstructured workshops and research
activities to maintain student interest and enthusiasm (Ramsden, 2003) previously utilized,
needed to be adapted and maintained in an online educational environment. Barker (2014)
researched student expectations for both education and training in pre-coronavirus times, andthese are shown at table 4. It became evident that in discussions with students that broadly
these remained true of any adapted delivery mechanism to facilitate continued teaching
through the pandemic.
Training
Delivery Structure
Format

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Structured, highly regulatedLessstructured,
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Teaching style
Formal instruction
Debate, peer workshop
Interaction
MinimalExpression of opinion
Lecturer view
Taken as authoritative
Challenged through debate
Personality “type”
Untailored
Tailored
Table 4: Student Expectations of Learning Experience (Barker, 2014)
It can be noted that should the course have been training rather than education in nature, theprocess of adapting to online-line only delivery would theoretically have been simpler as thehighly-structured nature of training would have loaned itself more readily to tightly-packaged
online live sessions, mixed with voiced-over presentations and bounded exercises withworked solutions. An educational offering at level 7 (UK government, 2021), however,needed to maintain the interactive unstructured workshops that would stimulate debate,
exploring different possibilities, and facilitating the reflection vital to the understanding ofcomplex issues (Biggs and Tang, 2007). Having considered student needs and theirimplications for course study support, along with motivations and expectations of study, we
will now focus on the process of affecting the necessary change to implementing revisions tothat support.
Methodology and Application
After initial discussions with the Systems Engineering MSc course team, it quickly became
clear that it would be necessary to review the existing course structure, summarised at table 5
overleaf, and evaluate how much of the delivery mechanism could be transferred directly
online, and how much would have to be altered or redesigned. How the revised educational
offering could be facilitated would then have to be addressed, before viewing the intended
revised delivery mechanism through the prism of student expectation as discussed above toensure that it could maintain relevant educational standards (QAA, 2014) and meet student
needs. The last step of the approach would be to agree the final shape of the andragogicalstructure, and to put in place revised student support mechanisms. Thus, the methodology forundertaking the process of revising the course offering was as described below.
1.
Review existing course structure and identify alterations necessary to facilitate onlineonly delivery
2.
Plan how the revised offering could be facilitated3.
Consult on how this could be made to meet with student expectation
4.
Revise the andragogical course offering
5.
Put in place the necessary student support mechanism
It was noted that discussion with students would be needed regularly throughout the process,and that feedback would need to be sought before, during, and after module delivery toenhance the learning process as far as was possible.
Teaching Mechanism
1. Introductory module

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Lectures

Intended Purpose

Understanding of basic
principles
Tightly-specified exercises Reinforcement ofunderstanding
Worked examples
Demonstration of issues
Prescriptive assessment
Application of models

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Lectures

Key principles

Exploratory exercises
Managed workshops

Testing of concepts
Experiential learning;peer-to-peer learning
Judgemental application,
exploration of issues

Open-ended assessment
3. PG Diploma modules

Short interactive taught
sessions
Individual researchGroup workshops
Reflective assessment

4. Capstone workshop
moduleShort interactive brief

Exploration of key issues
Investigation of issues andeffect on workplace issues
Student-led applicationand critical evaluation
Individual reflection on
issues and outcomes
Brief explanation of task

Student-led group
workshop

Exploration of real world
problem solution across a
project lifecycle
Reflective assessment
Group presentation &portfolio; individualreflection on issues andoutcomes
Table 5: Summary of Pre-Pandemic Systems Engineering Msc Course Structure
The process by which the course was modified for online delivery is set out in Barker (2021),
but broadly it was recognised that interaction with students would be vital, and so live
sessions where possible would be key to providing necessary understanding and support, andthese could be supplemented by voiced over presentations and bounded, well-defined
exercises to illustrated key points and develop that understanding. The more unstructured
elements required in order to meet relevant standards and level 7 capabilities proved to be
more of a challenge, but it was thought that by using case studies to provide a realistic
setting, and challenging students to apply their learning and experience I a semi-guided way
facilitated by Q&A sessions and ‘thought bombs’ that experiential learning could be fosteredin a problem-based scenario.
In adopting this blended strategy, online learning could be facilitated by replacing F2F
sessions with ‘live online’ taught sessions, revised to be shorter and more impactful than
traditional lectures so as to facilitate student learning given the blockers identified earlier inthis paper. Bounded exercises could be replicated by hosting them on a virtual learning
environment (VLE) and supporting them with live Q&A sessions. Research tasks could bemanaged in the same way, with the provision of increased feedback and ideas intended togenerate debate amongst the cohort, whilst more unstructured workshops could be facilitatedby setting up group areas on the VLE, and managed group ‘online chat rooms’ to foster peerto-peer study and learning.

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This was placed in the perspective of student expectation through both group and individual
discussions. Communication was recognized as vital to the process, and ideas were worked
through with the cohort to ensure understanding and buy in, whilst individual discussions
were held with students to allay concerns, and understand their particular needs and issues
when studying at distance. Students were encouraged to speak to staff as relevant (see table1) as often as they felt as necessary, and additional mentor slots were made available tosupport students as was needed. Bespoke teaching slots were also made available to cater for
student learning styles. So, for example, students who identified as theorists in Honey and
Mumford’s 1982 classification of learning styles, or who had been out of education for aperiod of time, were able to book additional teaching sessions to review and discuss taught
ideas, whilst pragmatists were likewise encouraged to discuss their ideas for practicalapplication. Were students were concerned at the increased use of IT, they were offeredsupport in ensuring that they understood how to connect with, and access, resources.
Moreover, live sessions were recorded so as to afford the maximum level of flexibility tostudies in managing their studies given the pressures of lock down. In a similar vein, course
material was made available earlier than previously to give students more time, and to allow
additional time for understanding and asking of questions.
Consultation with students agreed that this provided a basis to proceed, and the offering wasthen developed as described in Barker (2021). Feedback and experience prompted regularreview and update to the delivery mechanism both at module level, and across the wider
course.
In addition to the course-based support described in the above paragraphs, tutorial sessions
were offered by administrative and support staff to ensure that students were aware of any
revisions to processes, and to make sure that the learning process and progression were madeas smooth as possible. Students were also encouraged to seek pastoral help should they feelthat they needed it, and additional slots were made available specifically to deal with this.
Apprentice students were also offered more time with academic and support staff tounderstands how the revised andragogy for delivery would affect their studies, and to guidethem in respect of their apprenticeship path as a result.
Results and Outcomes
As mentioned earlier, the process of delivery and student support was modified and refined inline with student discussion and feedback, and as experienced of the revised mechanism wasgained. The key outcomes are outlined and summarized below:•
Take up of learning offerings improved•
Greater student involvement was witnessed•
Improved feedback from students increased and demonstrated approval of the revisedcourse offering•
Maintenance of desired level of quality in teaching and learning•
No reduction in assessment performance•
More coherent module- and course-level educational offering•
Dissemination of practice and outcomes led to enhancement of other educational
offerings

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Conclusions and Further Work
This paper describes the efforts of the course team for Cranfield University’s Systems
Engineering MSc to ensure that students continued to be appropriately supported throughchanges to the andragogical strategy caused by the coronavirus/Covid-19 pandemic. Blockers
to study are analysed in the context of the required andragogical changes, and student
motivation and expectations are also considered. The pre-coronavirus structure of the courseand support arrangements are also presented, before the methodology for implementingchange to the support strategy is described, and its application is discussed. Finally, outcomesare stated.
The work detailed in this paper was highly iterative, and that allowed errors or unsuccessful
ideas to be quickly corrected. It was found that different students had contrasting attitudes toonline-only teaching, and that continued communication before, during, and after the process
of module- and wider course-teaching was essential in allowing students to understand ingood time what would be expected of them, how they would be taught, and how they would
be supported. Flexibility of teaching and support offerings was also important in the light ofpressures placed upon individuals due to coronavirus measures such as working from home.
The resulting support structure has been largely successful in use, and has been received wellby students as results and outcomes suggest. Pleasingly, no significant drop in student
performance in assessment was evidenced.
It must be noted that despite successful implementation, this study covers a limited number ofstudent cohorts, so further work and application needs to be done before the process can bedeemed an outright success. Moreover, with additional time to reflect and gather feedback, it
is expected that other ideas for improvement will be identified and implemented. A further
task will be to propagate ideas and achievements across other courses more fully.

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References
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Cranfield University (2021) “Systems Engineering MSc” by Cranfield University:
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Henshaw, H., Clark, D. P., Kang, S., & Ferguson, M. A. (2012). Computer skills and internet
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Silberman, M. L. (Ed.). (2007). The handbook of experiential learning. John Wiley & Sons.
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56. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26420534

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Analysis of French Grammatical Errors Using Surface Strategy Taxonomy:
A Case Study of Thai University Students
Kanjanaporn Piyathum, Silpakorn University, Thailand
Siriwut Chamtakong, Silpakorn University, Thailand
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Abstract
This study was aimed to investigate the grammatical errors made by Thai university students
and to find out the causes of grammatical errors in French writing. The participants in study
were 16 third-year Thai students majoring in French of the Faculty of Archaeology, Silpakorn
University. Purposive sampling was used to select the participants. The research instrument
was the written final exam of an elective course for French major entitled French for Thai Art
of Living and Culture of which five open-ended questions were comprised. After conducting
the identification, the grammatical errors of the participants were analyzed and classified
through the concept of surface strategy taxonomy and the linguistic categories of grammaticalerrors. The descriptive statistic including frequency and percentage as well as the content
analysis were employed in this study. The research findings revealed three significant main
points: 1) There were a total of 643 grammatical errors based on surface strategy taxonomy inwhich the frequency of misformation was the highest at 58.94%, followed by omission
32.19%, addition 7.93%, and the lowest percentage was shown in misordering 0.93%. 2) In
terms of linguistic categories, the most apparent errors were found in word forms 22.55%,
subsidiary in verb forms 18.35% and articles 16.95%. The error in subjunctive mode was theleast likely to be found only 0.62%. 3) The causes of grammatical errors were found to beinterlingual interference, English Interference, and intralingual interference.
Keywords: French Grammatical Errors, Surface Strategy Taxonomy, Error Analysis, Thai
University Student

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Error analysis in foreign language learning is much important as it helps find different casesof learners ‘mistakes, limits or problems while learning the target language. The found results
were brought into solutions as well as errors’ reduction. Besides, language learners’ error
analysis could contribute to in-depth comprehension on the language learning process. It
could be useful for instructors and curriculum conductors who work on the development ofteaching media, books, manuals and materials together with the improvement of teaching
technics in order to be more responsive to learners’ limits, needs and specific characteristics.
Nevertheless, it should be noted that foreign language teaching in this modern era does not
perceive learners’ error as a negative factor but as a common process by nature that every
learner has to experience (Sritong, 2015; Saengklaijaroen, 2018).
Error analysis is always raised as a co-point within contrastive analysis in order to derivedifferences between mother tongue and second language or foreign language of learners andto predict possible errors that could occur (Sritong, 2015: 105). Furthermore, one of the
popular used concepts for analyzing and grouping errors is surface strategy taxonomy (Dulayet al., 1982). It is currently brought into application especially among grammatical error
studies.
Grammar is served as a key tool to achieve the correct sentence and the efficient
communication. Thus, grammar is considered as an interesting issue and is taken into accountby scholars aiming to develop the pedagogy of a foreign language. However, during the past
decade, there were quite few studies about French grammatical errors of Thai learners.
Moreover, among their relevant cases, the other previous studies were mostly related to somegrammatical errors for example Srisawangsap (2017) investigated errors in French adjective
use of the second-year university students while the other study of Charoensit (2019) analyzed
errors of French grammatical structures on “modes et temps” among first year university
students. Hence, it could be concluded that French grammatical errors study regarding Thailearners still reveal a knowledge gap in research. This study aimed therefore to analyze
French grammatical errors under the concept of surface strategy taxonomy in the context ofThai university students learning French as a foreign language. This analysis covers every
main category of grammar. In addition, causes of errors including pedagogical implications
were also proposed at the end of this study.
Objectives of the Study
1.
To identify and classify grammatical errors made by Thai university students in
French writing.
2.
To find out the causes of grammatical errors in French writing.
Theoretical Background
Error Analysis (EA)
Error in linguistic means the use of a language that its native speakers consider as a mistakeand incomplete knowledge (Richards and Schmidt, 2002) while Waelateh et al. (2019)concludes “EA is an operation in which the errors made by someone in speech or in writing
are detected, recorded and interpreted and information on the specific difficulties thatsomeone has in speech or writing English sentences.” Richards and Schmidt (2002) divided

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errors into 2 types: 1) Interlingual Error which means the errors transferred from learners’
mother-tongue such as those of grammar, vocabulary or pragmatics, and 2) Intralingual Error
which means the errors caused by ignorance of target language’s rule restrictions, incomplete
application of rules and false concepts hypothesized. In part of Tongwanchai (2015), he
indicated his objectives of errors analysis comprised of 1) to find out how good is learners’
language knowledge 2) to find out what ways learners employ to learn such language and 3)
to collect data on significant difficulties in language learning that could contribute tolanguage teaching as well as teaching media preparation.
Surface Strategy Taxonomy
James (1998) conceived the definition of “taxonomy” as a science that regards categorization.
This term must possess certain constitutive criteria. Within language error analysis, there aremany types of error taxonomy. However, surface strategy taxonomy (Dulay et al., 1982;
Sritong, 2015) is mostly used as a concept to apply in study.
Surface strategy taxonomy focuses on the study of the form distortion that are divided into
four following sorts:
1.
Omission is an absence of an item that makes a sentence incomplete and causes a
problem on the comprehension of such sentence. Mostly, learners frequent such mistake ingrammatical morphemes more than in content morphemes that express the meaning for
instance the omission of article, verb to be or –ing form after the verb that makes the sentencegrammatically wrong.
2.
Addition is a presence of an unnecessary item in a sentence. Such case is divided into
three kinds: 1) double marking for example “We didn’t went there.” 2) regularization such as
the use of past form of the verb “eat” in “eated” and 3) simple addition such as general
misspelling cases not linked to those of double marking or regularization.
3.
Misformation is the error that occurs by the use of wrong form of the morpheme or
structure. It is comprised of three kinds: 1) regularization errors such as “himself” malformed
into “hisself” and “children” into “childs” 2) archi-forms that happens in the selection ofsubject pronoun for example, “Give me that. Me hungry.” 3) alternating forms that is caused
between learners’ vocabulary knowledge and their grammatical developing process. This
leads into confusion during the use of the language such as the use of “they” instead of “it”,“he” instead of “she” or the misconception of part of speech like between “her” and “she”.
4.
Misordering is the incorrect placement of a morpheme or group of morphemes forexample, “He is all the time late.” “All the time” is placed in the wrong position. Anotherexample, “What Daddy is doing?” there is a misordering between “Daddy” and “is”.
As this taxonomy presents clear criteria, the researcher could study errors and categorized
them following the aimed target.
Methodology
Target Group
Using purposive sampling, the target group of this study was 16 third year students majoring
French in the Faculty of Archaeology, Silpakorn University, Thailand and enrolled in French
for Thai Art of Living and Culture course during the 2nd semester of the academic year 2020.
This group of students had acquired experience in French language study for 5 years: 3 years

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in high school and 2 years in university. Besides, they had accomplished at least four coursesof French grammar study at the university level.
Research Instrument
The used instrument for data collecting of this investigation is the final exam subject test of
French for Thai Art of Living and Culture course, which includes five questions with theallotted time of 1.30 hours. The use of dictionary was not allowed during the exam.
Data Collecting and Analysis
The researcher collected the data from his own 16 course final exams that were corrected byresearcher team. All found errors were sorted by four surface taxonomy criteria: 1) omission2) addition 3)misformation and 4) misordering. Furthermore, the categorized errors were thenanalyzed and discussed according to nine linguistic categories of grammatical errors (Sritong,2015) as follows: 1) verb forms 2) word forms 3) preposition 4) articles 5) agreement ofmodifiers of nouns 6) sentence fragment 7) subjunctive mode 8) subject-verb agreement and9) word order. The analysis was conducted by using descriptive statistic including frequency
and percentage. Content analysis was also employed.
Results and Discussion

Percentage

Total

Misordering

Misformation

Addition

Types of errors

Omission

According to 16 subject tests, the study result following surface taxonomy found in total 643
grammatical errors. Those of misformation were revealed 58.94% as the most. Its subsidiary
was orderly shown by 32.19% of omission, 7.93% of addition and 0.93% of misordering.
Considering among grammatical categories, the errors in word forms occurred the most as
rated in 22.55% while verb forms showed 18.35% and articles 16.95%. The least was shown
0.62% in subjunctive mode (see Table 1). Moreover, by cross analysis, the errors associatedwith word forms occurred the most in the categories of omission, addition and misformation
whereas misordering co-appeared only with word order.

Verb forms
26
10
82
0
118
18.35
Word forms
40
15
90
0
145
22.55
Prepositions
39
7
33
0
79
12.29
Articles
39
5
65
0
109
16.95
Agreement of modifiers of nouns
33
7
57
0
97
15.09
Sentence fragment
26
5
11
0
42
6.53
Subjunctive mode
0
0
4
0
4
0.62
Subject-verb agreement
4
1
37
0
42
6.53
Word order
0
1
0
6
7
1.09
Total
207
51
379
6
643
Percentage
32.19
7.93
58.94
0.93
100.00
Table 1: Frequency of Grammatical Errors Classified by Surface Taxonomy and Grammatical
Categories

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This following part presents examples of errors for each category.
1.

Misformation

Example 1: « Le brahmane invite le génie protecteur à la maisonnette aux esprits qui faire
face à l’est. » This sentence shows misformation at the verb « faire » that is not conjugatedfollowing the noun or the subject in front of it. According to French grammar, the first verb
must be conjugated in harmony with subject. This error corresponds to verb forms ingrammatical categorization. The correct sentence should be « Le brahmane invite le génie
protecteur à la maisonnette aux esprits qui fait face à l’est. »Example 2: « Le premier fois de Wai, c’est pour montrer le respect au Bouddha.» Thissentence possesses an error of structure at « le premier fois » as the use of the words’ gender
does not correspond to its modified noun. In French, a noun has its gender and its modifiers
such as article and adjective must be formed in accordance with its. This error relates toarticles and agreement of modifiers of nouns. Thus, the correct sentence should be « La
première fois de Wai, c’est pour montrer le respect au Bouddha. »2.

Omission

Example 3: « Normalement, on peut trouver le Nam Prik est la sauce brune. » This sentence
still lacks of a relative pronoun, which is the subject of the subordinate clause and modifies
the word « Nam Prik ». Following French grammatical rule, the word « qui » must be used tocomplete the missing part. This error relates to agreement of modifiers of nouns. Thus, thecorrect sentence should be « Normalement, on peut trouver le Nam Prik qui est la sauce
brune. »Example 4: « Le Khon est la danse masquée qui est origine indienne. » This sentence isclassified in the omission group as there is an absence of the preposition « de » in front of theword « origine ». In French, it is the expression « être d’origine + adjective of nationality ».
This error is linked to the use of prepositions. Thus, the correct sentence should be « Le Khonest la danse masquée qui est d’origine indienne. »3.

Addition

Example 5: « La croyances de Krathong est tenue pour que les mondes se font pardonner parla déesse de l’eau. » In this sentence, three errors are found regarding addition andmisformation. The first one is the word « croyances » with an unnecessary additional « s ».
As it is preceded by the definite article « la », which is singular and its verb is conjugated insingular form, this noun does not need « s » that is a sign of plural. The word « les mondes »that signifies « people » is usually used in singular form. Thus, its article should be « le » andthere is no need to put « s » at the relevant noun. These two errors are linked to noun forms ingrammatical categories. The last point regards misformation. The word « pour que » must be
followed by subjunctive mode. Hence, the conjugated verb « font » must be « fasse » that is
also singular instead. The correct sentence should be « La croyance de Krathong est tenue
pour que le monde se fasse pardonner par la déesse de l’eau. »Example 6: « La bougie et les bâtons d’encens dans les Krathongs ne sont pas éteintes. »This sentence has its error at the word « éteintes » in which there is no necessity to put « e »before « s ». This word is in « participe passé » or past participle form that must correspond

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to its subject according to French grammar. The subject in this sentence is comprised of two
nouns, which are different in terms of gender as « bougie » is feminine singular while« batons » is masculine plural. In this case, the subject is considered as masculine plural.
Thus, « participe passé » or past participle must correspond to the masculine plural noun byrepresenting only « s » at its end. This error is associated with subject-verb agreement.
Therefore, the correct sentence should be « La bougie et les bâtons d’encens dans lesKrathongs ne sont pas éteints. »4.

Misordering

Example 7: « Un match dure cinq minutes : pour se battre trois minutes et pour faire une
pause deux minutes. » In this sentence, the ambiguity appears because of its misordering.
This error involves word order in grammatical categories. The correct sentence should be «Un match dure cinq minutes : trois minutes pour se battre et deux minutes pour faire une
pause. » When the words are rearranged, the sentence becomes smoother.
Example 8: « Dans le passé, il y avait beaucoup de secret recettes pour chaque maison. »This sentence shows the error at the word « secret », which is considered as an adjective. In
general, adjectives are placed at the back of noun in French. The word « secret » should bethen placed after the word « recettes ». Apart from that, the error is also linked to agreementof modifiers of nouns. As the word « recettes » is a feminine plural noun, the adjective« secret » should be modified into « secrètes » in accordance with it. Hence, the correctsentence should be « Dans le passé, il y avait beaucoup de recettes secrètes pour chaquemaison. »According to the demonstrated findings, it could be discussed that the ranking of errors ineach category of French grammar discovered in this study corresponded well to the one of
Jiamin et al. (2020). His result revealed that in the use of English prepositions, Chinese
students committed most of their errors in terms of misformation followed by omission,
addition and misordering respectively. The study indicated that the causes of prepositional
errors were found to be interlingual interference, intralingual interference, and insufficient
input of the target language.
Moreover, the study of Sritong (2015) showed the same kind of findings. In other words,
Thai students leaning Spanish committed grammatical errors in terms of misformation as themost followed by omission, addition, misordering respectively. Its results reflected the causesof errors that came from 1) interference from L1 and L2 and 2) difficulty about coherence
and cohesion of student’s writing ability.
Considering from linguistic categories of grammatical errors, the most common errors were
found in word forms while their subsidiaries occurred in verbs forms. Both forms of errors
appeared in taxonomy of misformation as the most. These findings are different from those of
Sritong (2015) showing that Thai students who learned Spanish committed most of the errorcases in verbs forms and word forms as the second most. In terms of verbs forms, themajority of errors were found from verbs’ conjugation, omission and wrong tenses.
Meanwhile, those in word forms were detected from the missing of some consonants andvowels, which malformed words.

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Conclusions
The results of this study revealed that word forms in French caused the most obstacles for
Thai learners. The cause of such problem might be due to the French particularity in terms of
its nouns that must change form following their gender and number. Among French nouns,
the genders are sorted by masculine and feminine. In several cases, we could make amasculine noun into feminine by modifying the last part of the word. Most nouns could be
added “s” in order to make them plural. By the way, there are also many nouns that could bemade plural apart from adding “s” or even need to have their form totally changed. Although,such modification has its rule, there are still several exceptions. As this special characteristic
does not exist in Thai language, there are numerous cases of wrong usage among Thailearners. Besides, the errors in word forms were committed by misspelling or using English
spelling ways instead of French. This factor reflected the influence of English that Thai
students learn as the first foreign language. The occurrence of numerous errors in word forms
might be due to learners’ needs of nouns use more than other kinds of word in writing.
In terms of subjunctive mode, it was found as the least among errors. Such result wascompletely different from the finding of Charoensit (2019) indicating that the most numerous
error made by students majoring in French was le subjonctif présent. This point could be
explained that the research instrument of Charoensit (2019) was the exam that assessed
directly French grammar and in which the questions regarded precisely subjunctive mode
while for the one of this study, the sample group had autonomy to form their own sentences
as well as to select grammar use for their answers in the exam. Thus, according to thefindings of this study, it could be stated that the sample group does not have goodcomprehension and could not frequently make sentences in subjunctive mode. As a result, theuse of such structure appeared quite few in the exam and brought into the least finding of its
errors. It could be implied that subjunctive mode should be given importance and emphasized
for the competency development in French grammar usage.
One important limitation of this study is that there are still quite few studies on grammaticalerrors between French and Thai. Hence, the comparison regarding its results with other works
could not be conducted yet.
The Causes of Grammatical Error
According to the results of this study, the causes of errors were shown as follows:1.

Errors Caused by Interlingual Interference

Interlingual interference, also called native language (mother tongue or L1) interference is themain cause of grammatical errors in foreign languages that occurs in every linguistic study(Patiyasevi, 2018; Saengklaijaroen, 2018; Chamtakong, 2019; Charoensit, 2019) including
this one. Such interference is caused by the different grammar between L1 and L2 or foreign
language as well as could lead into negative transfer. In other words, learners take up thegrammatical knowledge of L1 to use in the writing of L2 or foreign language. Brown (2000)
stated that for language learners, before the system of the second language became familiar,
the native language was the only reliable linguistics system upon which they could use forreference in the early stage of learning a foreign language. Therefore, when a learner wants toexpress his complex ideas, the thoughts in the mother tongue would inevitably interfere his
communication. For this study, Thai and French are originally and topologically different.

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Hence, it is possible that a learner uses the sentence structure or grammar of his familiar
mother tongue in French communication and could be led into language errors.
2.

Errors Caused by English Interference

English interference is another factor that causes French grammatical errors (Srisawangsap,2017). The majority of university students in this generation had started learning English
since their kindergarten level while French was debuted only in high school level. Thus,
learners are more familiar with English. Sometimes, they use English structure or grammar in
French communication. Although both languages possess some common parts or similarities,
they have certainly also some differences. This results errors in French grammar usage ofThai learners.
3.
Errors Caused by Intralingual Interference or Intralingual Errors or Influenceof the Target Language
Intralingual interference is also another factor that was found from the analysis of this study.
According to Ellis (2015), the errors were caused by the influence of the target language
during the language learning process. In other words, such errors were originated byincomplete learning of L2 rules. In terms of French language, it is well known that its
grammatical rules are very difficult and complicated. Once learners are lack of the exact
knowledge of French grammatical rules and its exceptions, it could lead into errors(Patiyasevi, 2018; Saengklaijaroen, 2018; Charoensit, 2019). This could be portrayed inovergeneralization of the rules and deviant structures production in French writing. Besides,
some expressions might have similar structure but they are different in meaning. This makes
learners conceive sentence ambiguity and makes readers grasp difficultly the main idea ofsentence (Jiamin et al., 2020).
Pedagogical Implications
In the following part, this study put forward implications of error analysis as well as somesuggestion about French teaching and learning.
1.
As the influence of mother tongue is the main factor that affects the target language
and causes errors, the reduction of interlingual interference could be a very useful guideline
for learners. Instructors could explain the differences of grammar between L1 or target
language, which means Thai and French in this regard, in order to make learners realize such
point and take it into account when conducting writing or various kinds of communication.
Furthermore, instructors including educational institutes should create an environment for
French learning in order to form a foreign language sense.
2.
In regards of errors caused by intralingual interference, instructors could bring founderrors to develop into parts of content for pedagogical management by attributing additional
in-depth explanations as well as relevant lessons to errors and learners’ problematic topics.
3.
Encouraging learners to participate in learning process and to correct their own
mistakes could contribute more efficiently to the development of learners’ writing skill.

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Suggestions for Further Research
The current study was brought into some recommendations as follows:1.
The study could be investigated in a larger scale of sample group in order to conceive
a clearer picture of errors. The subjects can be selected from different universities andchosen from different grades.
2.
As this study analyzed the data from students’ writing works, errors analysis in
French speaking could be further investigated in the future.
3.
Additional studies about communication contexts such as formal and informal
communications, the decency of vocabulary use in different situations regarding occasion andculture in communication should be conducted as only the accuracy in grammar does notmake communication achieve objectives.

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References
Brown, H.D. 2000. Principles of Language Learning and Teaching. New York: Pearson
Education.
Chamtakong, S. 2019. “Problems in Writing French of Thai Students Learning French as a
Foreign Language.” In Proceedings of ISER 231st International Conference on
Education and Social Science (ICESS-2019), pp. 11-14. Tokyo, Japan, October 2627, 2019.
Charoensit, J. 2019. “An Analysis of Errors in Using French Grammatical Structures on“Modes et Temps” of the First-Year Students in French Major of the Faculty ofArchaeology, Silpakorn University.” In Proceedings of the 6th National Conference on“Directions and Trends of Thai Teacher Preparation”, pp. 591-594. Faculty of
Education, Srinakharinwirot University, Bangkok, Thailand, July 5, 2019.
Dulay, H., M. Burt and S. Krashen. 1982. Language Two. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Ellis, R. 2015. Understanding Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University
Press.
James, C. 1998. Errors in Language Learning and Use. London: Longman.
Jiamin, W., S. Liangprayoon and S. Payaprom. 2020. An Analysis of Prepositional Errors in
English Writing Made by Chinese EFL Students. Graduate School Journal Chiang Rai
Rajabhat University 13 (2): 63-85.
Patiyasevi, N. 2018. An Investigation of Grammatical Errors in Business Email Writing ofUndergraduate Communication Arts Students, Silpakorn University. Veridian EJournal, Silpakorn University 11 (3): 815-833.
Richards, J.C. and R. Schmidt. 2002. Dictionary of Language Teaching & Applied Linguistics.
London: Longman.
Saengklaijaroen, W. 2018. A Study on Grammatical Errors in English Writing and English
Writing Strategies of Liberal Arts English Major Students, Yala Rajabhat University.
Veridian E-Journal, Silpakorn University 11 (3): 538-554.
Srisawangsap, P. 2017. Analyse des erreurs de l’emploi des adjectifs qualificatifs dans les
productions écrites des étudiants de deuxième année de FLE à l’Universitéinternationale de l’Assomption, Bangkok, Thaïlande. Bulletin de l’ATPF 40 (1): 6473.
Sritong, C. 2015. Grammatical Errors in Surface Strategy Taxonomy: A Case Study in
Spanish Writing Course for Thai University Students. Humanities and Social Sciences
32 (1): 103-130.
Tongwanchai, F. 2015. Error Analysis of Tenses in KKU Spanish Major Students’
Conversations. Humanities and Social Sciences 32 (2): 113-138.

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Waelateh, B., Y. Boonsuk, E.A. Ambele and F. Jeharsae. 2019. An Analysis of the Written
Errors of Thai EFL Students’ Essay Writing in English. Journal of Social Science andHumanities Research in Asia 25 (3): 55-82.
Contact email: acheoguy@gmail.com

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Paragraph Writing Instruction for University Students
Minako Inoue, Health Science University, Japan
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Abstract
As the emphasis is placed on students’ practical abilities in English, the communicative
approach, which focuses on students’ “productive abilities,” has been encouraged in Japan.
However, this approach has resulted in a low level of basic writing skills, which are often
associated with insufficient vocabulary and grammatical knowledge. Considering the current
practices of writing instruction in junior high and high school, students translate word byword, following grammatical rules. They have little experience in free writing projects inwhich they describe their ideas or thoughts. Even under such circumstances, paragraphwriting has gained popularity at the tertiary level. It is often reported that writing paragraphs
is difficult for many college students. This research was conducted as a preliminary study toserve as a foundation for building effective writing instruction. To plan, implement, andevaluate appropriate writing instruction, a needs analysis should first be performed. This
study involves 83 first year and 93 second year college students. The questionnaires are
aimed at examining their knowledge and experience of English writing. The data are
analyzed through SPSS, providing descriptive and correlational analyses. The results revealthat most students have inadequate knowledge of sentence components, which hinders theirconstruction of paragraphs. Moreover, most have not had any free writing experience in thecourse of their education. This study suggests that before writing a paragraph, students should
participate in numerous free composition activities designed to involve their cognitive andsocial knowledge.
Keywords: Paragraph Writing, Needs Analysis, Paragraph Writing Instruction

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Introduction
The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in Japanemphasizes the need to enhance English language education in accordance with globalization
trends. The Course of Study for English Education (the curriculum prescribed by MEXT) has
been tailored to promote students’ practical abilities through a communicative approach.
However, recent nationwide English testing targeting 60,000 third-year junior high school
students revealed that less than 30% met the English proficiency standards set by MEXT.
Moreover, in the written section of the test, approximately 20% students scored zero. The useof a communicative approach has thus resulted in students having poor skills in basic reading
or writing, often associated with a lack of vocabulary and grammar knowledge. The Benesse
Corporation (2016) also reported that writing instruction is insufficient. Similarly, Kamoshita(2010) argued that students’ limited vocabulary and grammar knowledge hinders their ability
to form sentences that express their ideas or thoughts. The new Course of Study for English
Education has been successively implemented from the elementary to high school
curriculums in 2020, focusing on strengthening students’ “productive abilities.” The English
curriculum is designed in keeping with the growing need for the written skills that are
integral to international communication.
English Writing Instruction in Japan
Previous studies have reported that junior high and high school students are trained totranslate English word for word, while ensuring that they follow the rules of grammar(Kobayakawa, 2011; Matsuda, 2019). Kobayakawa (2011) analyzed writing tasks in highschool textbooks and found that these were mainly controlled and fill-in-the-blank translation
tasks. Nakagawa (2017), who studied the features of paragraph writing tasks in Japanese
senior high school English textbooks, found that they focused mainly on grammar activities.
Therefore, students have limited free writing experience enabling them to describe their ideas
or thoughts during the junior high or high school years. In contrast, paragraph writing has
gained popularity at the tertiary level. Nakagawa (2017) reports that college writing
textbooks varied from English composition at the sentence level to writing multiple
paragraphs and academic essays. The gap between high school and college writing
instruction thus causes serious issues: College students often report difficulties in writing
paragraphs, and many students at the tertiary level lack the understanding of paragraphs orconcepts of paragraph structure. They often confuse the concept of “danraku,” which isdefined as “a major division in a long passage” (Shinmura, 2001) and which has unclear rules
or requirements, with that of “paragraph,” which follows specific rules of formation.
Additionally, some studies have shown that Japanese writers experience difficulty in using
connectors, and revisions that include feedback often lack instructions. Therefore, it is crucial
that supportive writing instructions be developed to bridge the gap between high school andcollege writing instruction. As Oi (2014) emphasizes, it is important to implement writing
instruction that can serve as a bridge between sentence-level writing and paragraph writing.
The literature review found that university students find it difficult to write a paragraph.
These students have limited knowledge of English grammar, vocabulary, sentence structure,and paragraph writing. This study presents paragraph writing instruction designed based on aneeds analysis targeting students with low proficiency in a small private university.

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Purpose of the Study
There are two purposes of this study. First, it presents the results of a needs analysis thatformed the basis of the design of the paragraph writing instruction; and second, it describesand discusses the implementation and evaluation of the paragraph writing instruction.
Context and ParticipantsThis study was conducted in an English writing course at a four-year university that targets
students aiming to work in fields of rehabilitation and welfare. Their English proficiency is
considered quite low. About three-fourths of the students entered the university without
taking any English exams, and the placement test confirmed that over half were
underprepared. English is a required course for the first- and second-year students, which
includes the content-based ESP (English for the specific purpose) approach. In this context,
paragraph writing instruction is allocated to 2 sessions.
Methods
To achieve the first purpose, a survey and sentence quiz were administrated as described
below.
Aims include: ① To identify students’ experience and perceptions of writing and ② to
identify students’ knowledge of sentence and paragraph writing.
The sample included 91 first-year students and 82 second-year students.
Survey: The questionnaire was administrated in two parts. The first part consisted of 12questions, including multiple-choice questions, items scored on a Likert scale, andopen-ended questions, to gain information on students’ perception and experience. The
second part included a quiz designed for the recognition of sentences. Here, 12 English texts,
including 4 sentences and 8 phrases, were presented to the participants. These sentences
examined the students’ understanding of sentences and phrases. In the survey analysis, SPSS
was used to describe the numerical presentation, distributions, frequency, and correlations.
For the second purpose, the process of designing the paragraph writing instruction,
instruction was implemented in two sessions, an overview of students’ work andself-evaluation of the instruction.
Conclusion
The current study introduced paragraph writing instruction based on a needs analysis. The
results of the needs analysis and the process of design, implementation, and evaluation of thestudents’ product and of the instruction are described in the following section. The paper
concludes with a discussion and the implications of the study.
Results of the Needs Analysis
The followed figure (Figure 1) shows students’ perception of English writing.

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Figure 1: Aversion to Writing
Students responded to questions about any negative feelings, including being uncomfortablewriting English, lacking confidence in English writing, or disliking writing. Close to 80%
claim that they have such negative feelings toward English writing.
The following two charts (Figure 2) show students’ experiences of free writing and paragraphwriting activities.
Free writing exerience

Pargraph writing experience

Figure 2: Students’ Writing Experience
The left chart shows students’ experience with free writing activities. Over half (56%) had not
had experience of such activities in previous levels of education, while 44% claimed that they
had free writing experience where they were required to create a sentence (instead of merely
providing a translation). The second chart, regarding paragraph writing experience, showsthat 8% had experience of such an activity, and 47% reported that they did not know what aparagraph was.
The following figure (Figure 3) shows students’ experience of writing product feedback.

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Figure: 3 Feedback
Among students who were involved in the writing activities, only 19.5% submitted theirwriting product to the teacher. Among them, 22.4% said they had received some sort of
feedback on their writing.
The following two tables (Table 1, Table 2) show the results of correlational analysis.

Feeling of
Aversion
Experience
Correct
Incorrect

Feeling of
Aversion Experience
Pearson correlation
1.486**
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
N
174
174
**
Pearson correlation .486
1
Sig. (2-tailed)
.000
N
174
174
Pearson correlation
-.123
-.131
Sig. (2-tailed)
.107
.085
N
173
173
Pearson correlation
.128
.110
Sig. (2-tailed)
.092
.150
N
173
173

Correct
-.123
.107
173
-.131
.085
173
1
173
-.141
.064
173

Incorrect
.128
.092
173
.110
.150
173
-.141
.064
173
1
173

** p < .001
Table 1: Correlational Analysis 1
As evidenced in Table 1, a moderate correlation (−.486, p < .001) was also found between
students’ aversions toward English writing and their experience of writing. When students do
not have free writing or paragraph writing experience, they develop a feeling of aversion
toward writing. In contrast, no correlation was found between their feelings toward writing
and the sentence quiz results or between their writing experience and quiz results.

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Understanding
Correct Incorrect of paragraph
Correct
Pearson correlation
1
-.141
-.134
Sig. (2-tailed)
.064
.080
N
173
173
173
Incorrect
Pearson correlation -.141
1.128
Sig. (2-tailed)
.064
.094
N
173
173
173
Understanding of Pearson correlation -.134.128
1
paragraphSig. (2-tailed)
.080
.094
N
173
173
174
Paragraph
Pearson correlation -.065.089.528**
writing
Sig. (2-tailed)
.394
.246
.000
experience
N
173
173
174
** p < .001
Table 2: Correlational Analysis 2

Paragraphwritingexperience
-.065
.394
173
.089
.246
173
.528**
.000
174
1
174

As evidenced in Table 2, a moderate correlation (−.528, p < .001) was found between
students’ understanding of a paragraph and their paragraph writing experience. However, nocorrelations were found between students’ understanding of paragraphs and their sentence
recognition quiz scores, or between their paragraph writing experience and the results of thesentence recognition quiz.
Sentence Quiz Results
In the sentence recognition quiz, students were asked to find four examples that could have asentence structure. None of the students chose all correct answers; 12.6% chose threesentences, followed by 28.7% who chose two. Also, 75% of the students consideredimperative sentences with exclamation marks to be phrases, and 91% considered one-word
imperative sentences to be phrases. Moreover, 54% thought the phrase “while he was looking
for her” was a sentence.
Designing Paragraph Writing Instruction
Based on the findings of the needs analysis described above, the following points were taken
into account when designing the writing instruction.
1.
A majority had low English proficiency and many students did not possess theknowledge of sentence structure. Therefore, the activities should include easily readparagraph examples with simple sentences. Students also need practice to create sentences. In
addition, the use of PowerPoint is necessary since some low-proficiency students need to see
the written forms of all English terms for a clear understanding.
2.
Close to 50% of the students did not know what a paragraph is. Therefore, theinstruction has to deal with the basics of paragraphs, including the structure and componentsof paragraph and their roles, and simultaneously teach the use of connectors.
3.
Students need to explore several examples of paragraphs, as the concept is new tomany of them.
4.
Various kinds of exercises should be prepared to enable students to apply their new
learning in practice.

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5.
Since they had not experienced feedback on their writing, they had little revisionexperience. To address this with a step-by-step approach, a check sheet that describes all
requirement points should be prepared. Through pair work and the teacher’s feedback, theyshould learn how to revise their exercises.
6.
Maximizing learning within the limited hours allocated for paragraph writing
instruction should be considered. Involving homework and feedback from an instructor
outside the classroom should be included.
Implementation of the Instruction
The following is the implementation procedure of the paragraph writing instruction.
1st Session
1.

Explain what the paragraph is. (use PowerPoint and handouts)
ØShow examples of various paragraphs
Ø
Explain organization
Ø
Explain components (topic, supporting, and concluding sentences) and theirroles
ØIntroduce connectors

2.
Provide pre-writing activities (have students explore various kinds of exercises toconstruct their basic knowledge)
ØReading sample paragraphs aloudØ
Find the components (topic, supporting, and concluding sentences) of aparagraphØ
Create a topic sentence, supporting sentences, and a concluding sentence inexample paragraphsØ
Create missing sentences to complete a paragraphØSentence scrambles to complete a paragraphØPractice using connectors
Ø
Write a topic sentence for the paragraph writing topic “My summer
vacation”
Homework
Students have to write a paragraph in the following manner.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Create the topic sentence (1 sentence)
Consider supporting sentences (3–4 sentences)
Write (a) concluding sentence(s) (1–2 sentences)
Organize a paragraph using connectors.
Think of an appropriate title for the paragraph.

Then they should make a copy of their assignment for peer review, which will be used in thesecond session.

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2nd Session
Peer Review
Provide a check sheet for paragraph writing that students can go through following
step-by-step processes to check (evaluate) a paragraph. This includes organization,
components, connectors, vocabulary, and grammar
Have students read through a check sheet
Pair work for review (use the copy made for homework)
Provide scaffolding (monitor activities/provide suggestions/answer students’ questions/givethem feedback. etc.)
Students revise and submit the final version.
After the 2nd Session
Providing teacher’s feedback
After the class, students’ paragraphs were evaluated and feedback is provided.
Students’ paragraphs were returned and they were encouraged to submit their revision if they
wished.
Evaluation of Students’ Assignments and the Writing Instruction
Students’ Assignment
It seems most students could write a paragraph with every component. They followed therules while organizing their paragraphs with all the necessary components. However, a few
students faced problems with the format, beginning each sentence on a new line. A few
students also had very little understanding of the connection between the topic sentence andthe concluding sentence, and introduced new ideas in the last sentence. Some students wereable to use appropriate connectors, while others had difficulty using them. Other points noted
included 1) some use of translation software that created awkward sentences, and that 2)
many students’ writings were ordinal, followed similar patterns, and showed little creativity.
As a result, their paragraphs were developed logically, but were not attractive.
Activities
Prewriting activities involving various kinds of exercises are believed to enhance students’
understanding of the paragraph and its components and organization. Application andrepeated use of their knowledge in different forms are believed to enhance theirunderstanding.
In terms of the peer review activity, students were actively engaged in paired feedback.
Reviewing others’ work using a checklist allowed students to go through step-by-step reviews.
They could therefore examine if their own or their partner’s work fulfilled the requirement

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for a paragraph. They also checked grammar and spelling, and questioned the instructor when
they were not sure. Such activities can thus promote their audience awareness as well as
recognition of the importance of revision.
Discussion
Designing paragraph writing instruction requires careful examination to a needs analysis toenable the instruction to match students’ skills, knowledge, and previous experience. The
needs analysis performed for this study revealed that most students seem to have inadequate
knowledge regarding sentence components, thus making it difficult for them to distinguishbetween sentences and phrases. Moreover, most students had not experienced free writing
earlier in their education. In terms of paragraphs, about half of the students claimed to never
have heard of the word “paragraph,” whereas only 8% of students had paragraph writing
experience in previous educational settings. Therefore, the paragraph writing instruction first
introduced the basics of the paragraph, its organization, its components, and their roles.
Concurrently, students were asked to explore various kinds of paragraph samples to recognize
the components and structure of paragraphs.
The sudden introduction of paragraph writing to students with low English proficiency levelmay not be adequate or effective in improving their writing skills. Many students may noteven be able to produce sentences with which they can express their thoughts or ideas.
Therefore, in pre-writing activities, sufficient opportunities should be given for students topractice producing sentences. These activities are believed to help students build the basic
skills required to write sentences and gain knowledge regarding vocabulary and grammar. In
such pre-writing activities, students activate their learned knowledge of sentence andparagraph building, and the application and repeated use of their knowledge in different
forms are believed to enhance their understanding.
In terms of peer review activity, using a check sheet could help students go through thestep-by-step reviewing process. While reviewing their works in pairs, students can also bereassured about their own production by thinking whether it meets the criteria. During thisprocess, students also learn how to recognize readers and understand their responsibilities as
writers. Careful monitoring of each group activity should also be done. Providing appropriate
and effective scaffolding, including giving advice and answering individual questions, is key
to improving students’ writings.
Implications
Overall, the instruction seems to have yielded successful results, with most students acquiring
the knowledge and skills to produce a paragraph. This paragraph writing instruction involves
a step-by-step approach and a learner-centered approach. Students are actively engaged invarious activities throughout the sessions. However, the following two issues arose when
examining students’ work. First, some students exhibited difficulty in using effective
connectors that could produce better paragraphs. Therefore, introducing more activities inwhich students can consider and practice the appropriate and effective use of connectors
should be prepared. Second, it was also found that many writings were ordinal, followed
similar patterns, and showed little creativity. As a result, even though the paragraphs weredeveloped logically, they were not attractive. Therefore, it is a critical challenge to understandhow to involve students’ cognitive and social knowledge in writing instruction.

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References
Benesse Educational Research & Development (2016). Research on English instruction injunior high and high school. Retrieved fromhttp://berd.benesse,jp/lobal/reserach/detail.php?id=4776
Hinds, J. (1990). Inductive, deductive, quasi-inductive: Expository writing in Japanese,
Korean, Chinese and Thai. In U. Connor & A. Jones (Eds.), Coherence in writing (pp.
81-109). Alexandria, V A: TESOL.
Kamoshita, K. (2010). An Empirical Study on Teaching Second Language Writing to
Beginner-leveled College Students. Bulletin of Tokyo Polytechnic University. Vol.33(2), 55-61.
Kobayakawa,M (2011). Analyzing Writing Tasks in Japanese High School English
Textbooks: English I, II, and Writing. JALT Journal - Issue 33.(1)Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology MEXT. (2018). The
Course of Study. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
Nakagawa, H (2017). Analysis of Paragraph Writing Tasks in Japanese High School English
and College English Writing Textbook. Bulletin of Hiroshima Graduate School of
Education. No.2 (66). 103-110
Oi. K. (2014). Current English education- Integration of theory and practice. Research on
Writing. Japan Society of English Language education (ed.).124-127
Shinmura, I. (Ed.). (1998). Koojien (5th ed.). Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten.
Yasuda, S., Ohi, K., Itatsuki, Y. (2014). Writing instruction at tertiary education in Japan.
ABAET Journal, 18, 55-78.
https://www.mext.go.jp/en/policy/education/elsec/title02/detail02/1373859.htm

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The Use of a ClassPoint Tool for Student Engagement During Online Lesson
Eng Ying Bong, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore
Chandrima Chatterjee, Singapore University of Technology and Design, Singapore
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Abstract
Teaching online can be quite different than in the classroom where instructor can physicallyinteract with the students. With the aim to encourage student engagement and learning, asynchronous Classroom Response System called ClassPoint was implemented together
through live video conference platform for some first-year undergraduate courses in SUTD as
it allowed real-time interaction between the instructors and students. ClassPoint allows
instructors to quickly integrate interactive quizzes in their existing Microsoft PowerPoint slides
and deliver these questions without the hassle of switching to another application during
teaching. Since ClassPoint was only developed in 2015, there is limited literature available onits effectiveness as an engaging tool during lesson. In this study, instructors’ and students’experience in using ClassPoint in both physical and virtual lesson was examined. This paper
will share some of the benefits and drawbacks of using the ClassPoint tool compared to other
CRSs and its operating system compatibility. Survey results showed that more than 80% of thestudents’ participants felt that ClassPoint was an effective platform to promote students’
engagement and participation in class. All instructors’ participants agreed (60% agreed and
40% strongly agreed) that students tend to respond more frequently to interactive quizzes
delivered via ClassPoint than reply verbally in class. Overall, the instructors and students
enjoyed the use of ClassPoint as it does promote student engagement during both online andphysical lessons.
Keywords: Classroom Response System, ClassPoint, Student Engagement, Online Lesson

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Introduction
In every classroom, there are students who always have their hands raised to participate, andthose who are hesitant to engage. It can be difficult to bring students who are reluctant to add
their voices into discussions especially during online lesson. The use of Classroom Response
System (CRS) with clicker technology has been a popular teaching strategy to facilitate student
engagement, offering instant and formative assessment during class (Fies & Marshall, 2006;
Kay & LeSage, 2009). Its rapid feedback on students’ response allows instructor to monitor
and access students’ understanding on the lesson content instantaneously (Caldwell, 2007).
Thereby giving the opportunity to the instructors to elaborate on the concepts students did notunderstand. Recent advancements in technology and device accessibility have made it easier
to implement CRS in the classroom. Technologies now include mobile devices and computer
based CRSs such as Kahoot!, Mentimeter, Learning Catalytics etc. A CRS allows instructors
to key in questions to the system before the lesson and deliver them during lesson which
students can answer using their own electronic devices. Most of the CRS allows anonymous
response which helps to motivate shy and hesitant students who would otherwise not participate
in class activity. According to Burns (1985), students’ attention span lasts approximately 20
minutes, and therefore, introducing CRS in between lessons could also help to break up longpresentation and process the content they just learnt.
Students tend to engage less in online learning environments than in face-to-face learning
environments primarily due to the absence of physical connection between instructors andstudents (Cho & Cho, 2014). The physical disconnection between instructors and students
presents deficiency of rich communication that drives student to participate efficiently andpersistently in online lesson (Leeds et al. 2013). Digital platforms can create additional
communication barriers between the instructor and student by not being able to engage througha person’s body language and facial expression. At Singapore University of Technology and
Design (SUTD), Learning Catalytics has been used to facilitate learning of some undergraduate
courses. While this interactive response tool has been quite effective in monitoring students’attendance and class participation, it requires instructors to access an additional platform to
input and deliver the questions which can be quite inconvenient during classroom recitations.
This challenge escalated further during the Covid-19 pandemic with the sudden shift from faceto-face teaching to virtual lessons. With the aim to mitigate some of these challenges during
online teaching, an alternative CRS called ClassPoint was integrated in some first-year
undergraduates courses at SUTD together through live video conference platforms. Students
can join ClassPoint without the need to download any software or logging into the Learning
Catalytics platform. In this study, we examined the instructors’ and students’ perspective on
the effectiveness of ClassPoint tools in promoting student engagement with instructor in theclass.
Methods(A)

Overview of ClassPointClassPoint is a Classroom Response System that can be embedded in Microsoft PowerPoint
allowing users to turn their existing slides into an interactive presentation and seamlessly
deliver quiz questions within PowerPoint without the hassle of switching to another application
during teaching. ClassPoint includes several mode of questions, including multiple-choicequestion, short questions, quick poll to name a few. In addition, ClassPoint has features thatenable instructors to add unlimited whiteboards during slide show as well as annotate the slides,

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the students can use either their smart-phone or computer-based devices to participate in thequizzes as well as follow along the instructor slide-presentation. They need to use the browser,
http://classpoint.app, enter the classcode and create a username that would be used throughout
the lesson. The use of ClassPoint in SUTD for some courses is a supplement to the traditional
teacher-centered lecture setting that promote student engagement by allowing the students todemonstrate their learning progress and knowledge in a fun and interactive way. In someundergraduate courses in SUTD, students’ responses are not counted as part of the course
assessment. In contrast, there are some undergraduate courses, where students’ responses tothe quizzes counted towards participation points and attendance.
(B)

Protocol for measuring the Effectiveness of ClassPoint

For this particular study, ClassPoint was used for a mathematics course designed for the firstyear undergraduate students at SUTD. Students were informed of the use of the ClassPoint
application at the commencement of the course. At the start of each class, ClassPoint’s classcode was provided to students to join and participate during the cohort class lesson. Students
were encouraged to join and participate in the embedded quizzes or polls. Delivering lesson
materials, ClassPoint participation, in-class polls, homework, assignments and tests for thecourses were carried out as normal, without any intervention from this study. There were twosurveys conducted for this study in order to receive students’ as well instructors’ perspectiveon the effectiveness of ClassPoint. Both the surveys were voluntary in nature.
(1)
An anonymous online questionnaire survey was conducted with instructors who havethe experience in using the ClassPoint for their class. The invitation for this survey was not
only extended to the mathematics instructors but also to instructors for other courses who haveused this tool.
(2)
An anonymous online questionnaire survey was conducted with students at the end of
the term. Some of the students had the privilege of experiencing ClassPoint in other courses as
well, and have indicated that in the survey.
Results and Analysis(A)

Students’ Perception: Usage of ClassPoint

A total of 46 students participated in this study. 37 students (80% of the participants) have had
experience using ClassPoint in both online and face-to-face class mode; while the remaining 9
students only have had experience of ClassPoint conducted in either one of the class modes.
In an open-ended survey question, students had to indicate CRS they have used besides
ClassPoint and explain which one they prefer. Only 43% of the participants indicated that they
have used other CRS. This is a low percentage considering CRS has commonly been used at
higher education institutions (Mu & Paparas, 2015). This batch of student participants camefrom pre-university, which is a plausible reason as to why they were not exposed to CRS aspart of the assessment tool used in classroom. However, 82% of the participants havepreviously used Kahoot! while the remaining 18% used Quizizz, Padlet and Socrative. Kahoot!
is an online gamified assessment tool that is fast paced and resonates like a game which allows
teachers to assess student’s progress in a “game” (Licorish et al. 2018). However, gamification
type of questions is not for every student. One student expressed her preference of ClassPoint
over Kahoot! ‘as the competitive nature of Kahoot! ruins the joy of learning’. A few otherparticipants also preferred ClassPoint because “it feels less like a game’, which subliminally

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makes them answer the questions more seriously than rushing through it. This supports
previous studies that not every student will enjoy game-based learning (Jones et al. 2019).
Having said that, 69% of the participants prefer ClassPoint compared to other CRS they haveused and 13% of the participants felt that there is no difference in the various CRS they haveused as long the instructor incorporates the questions in a way that is interactive. The remaining
18% do not find ClassPoint a better CRS compared to the other contemporary ones.
(B)

Students’ Perception: The Effectiveness of ClassPoint on Student Engagement

In the Likert scale questions for the student’s survey, the students’ responses were evaluatedas indicated in Table 1. The main purpose of using ClassPoint in our lesson is to encourage
students and instructors’ interactivity during class. In Q3, 35% of the participants strongly
agreed and 41% of the participants agreed that they have experienced greater interaction andengagement with their instructors when ClassPoint is used as a quiz tool during lesson. About
11% were neutral about this and 13% disagreed. When students were asked if ClassPoint has
motivated them to participate in questions and polls more often in the class (Q4), up to 87% ofparticipants agreed (54% agreed and 33% strongly agreed). In Q5, a total of 81% of theparticipants (37% strongly agree and 44% agree) felt the interactive quiz questions inClassPoint has helped them to self-evaluate how well they were learning during the lesson
while only 4% disagreed. This result indicates that ClassPoint helps students better gauge theirlearning progress through answering the interactive quizzes. In another question, students wereasked on whether running ClassPoint in a lesson has made the class livelier and interesting
compared to a class conducted without ClassPoint (Q6). The survey response indicated that69% agreed or strongly agreed while 24% chose to remain neutral. A small percentage ofstudents disagreed with this view. In response to Q7, 24% of students answered neutral. This
reflects that the use of ClassPoint has not helped in engaging these students in class. However,there is still a large section of students (37% agreed and 17% strongly agreed) who foundthemselves more engaged in listening to instructor’s presentation or respond promptly to thequestions delivered using ClassPoint from their own browser.
Strongly
Strongly
Disagree Disagree Neutral Agree Agree

Questions
Q3. I experienced greater interaction andengagement with my peers and instructors
when ClassPoint is used as a quiz tool in
the class.
Q4. The ClassPoint has motivated me toparticipate in questions and polls more
often in the class.
Q5. The interactive quiz questions inClassPoint helped me to self-evaluate how
well I was learning the course material
during lesson.
Q6. The lessons are lively and interesting when
instructors run the class using ClassPoint
than a class without the use of ClassPoint.
Q7. ClassPoint’s display slide allows me tofollow along and pay more attention to
instructors’ presentation, live annotations

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9%

4%

11%

41%

35%

4%

7%

2%

54%

33%

2%

2%

15%

44%

37%

4%

4%

22%

39%

30%

9%

13%

24%

37%

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and respond promptly to the delivered
questions easily using my own browser.
Table 1. Likert Scale: Student’s Survey(C)

Instructors’ Perception: The effectiveness of ClassPoint on Student Engagement

There were 6 instructors who participated in this study, excluding the two authors of this paper.
Instructor participants have used or are using ClassPoint as a tool to promote student
interactivity during lesson. Participants were posed two Likert scale questions on students’participation and response frequency to the interactive questions delivered via ClassPoint(Figure 1). The first question asked if ClassPoint enhances student engagement in class. Noneof them disagreed with this question. About 67% of the participants agreed (33.3% agreed andstrongly agreed) while 33.3% answered neutral. In the second question, instructors were asked
if students tend to respond more frequently in the posted short questions than respond verballyin class. Interestingly, all the participants agreed (60% agreed and 40% strongly agreed) that
ClassPoint has greatly improved the frequency of student’s response to the questions comparedto their verbal response in the class. These two results strongly suggest the effectiveness ofClassPoint in promoting in-class participation. Finally, instructors had to compare the efficacy
of ClassPoint with other CRS they may have used previously. About 33.3% agreed that
ClassPoint has indeed has encouraged students to be more engaged and interactive during classthan other CRS, while 16.7% disagreed. These outcomes suggest that the use of ClassPoint has
aided and complemented student engagement in both in-class participation and interactivity.

Figure 1. Likert Scale Questions on Instructor’s Perspective on Student Engagement with theUse of Classpoint.
(D)

Instructors’ Perception: The use of ClassPoint

With so many CRS available in the market, it is equally important to highlight instructor’s
perception especially in the usability and functionality in adapting ClassPoint in their existing
lesson material amid to more potential home-based learning. Majority of the instructors foundit easy to incorporate existing PowerPoint slides into interactive quizzes using ClassPoint(Figure 2). However, one instructor strongly disagreed with this view. Based on the survey
results, this participant commented on the drawback of ClassPoint to be not compatible withPDF (Portable Document Format like Adobe Acrobat Reader)”. As mentioned earlier,

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ClassPoint only works in Microsoft PowerPoint which means instructor who uses otherdocument format to teach found it irrelevant. Two-thirds of instructors (66.7%) found that thelesson are more lively when ClassPoint is used because they can modify or add questions
seamlessly in response to student’s understanding. However, a small percentage disagreed orchose to remain neutral. In response to a follow up questions with regards to accessing students’
understanding via the multiple choice questions and short answer mode in ClassPoint, majorityof them agreed (40% agreed and strongly agreed) while 20% answered neutral. In addition, all
the participants (80% agreed or strongly agreed and 20% neutral) enjoyed the convenience ofconducting interactive quizzes and collate students’ responses using ClassPoint without theneed of switching to another application. About 5 out 6 instructors indicated that they would
continue using ClassPoint. These results indicated that instructor perceived ClassPoint as aneffective tool in terms of its usability to incorporate in their class to improve students’ learning
dynamic.

Figure 2. Likert Scale Questions on Instructor Perspective on the Use of Classpoint.
Discussion
Instructors perceived ClassPoint to be easy to use, and to have a positive impact on student
engagement and interactivity. Due to its accessibility, affordability, and its user-friendly
capabilities, teachers can feature a fun and unique student response system that is more enticing
to the students compared to other CRS. The main advantage of using ClassPoint as part of aninteractive quiz tools during lesson is that the users could easily create and deliver the questions
using their existing PowerPoint slides without switching to another application. It also provides
real-time analytic results and allows instructor to adjust instructional strategy to enrich student
learning experience during class. It is a convenient alternative compared to other CRS that runs
in a separate platform where the questions would have to be uploaded before class and makes

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adding or modifying the questions during lesson a hassle. Based on the analysis of the results,
ClassPoint would improve the frequency of student’s response compared to verbal response in
the class. ClassPoint also offers a diverse selection of features to help engage students throughinteractive quizzes like, slide drawing, word cloud questions and image upload. Users also
found the ‘Pick-a-name’ function very useful to prevent picking the same students response to
their questions too often and provide more opportunity to get other students involved in theclassroom conversation.
ClassPoint also has an option to turn questions into a game by using the “competition mode”,
where students’ name and scores are presented in a leaderboard. However, instructors involvedin this study did not use this function. Interestingly, one student pointed out he/she was gladthat the instructor did not implement this option as it eases the pressure of competing with thepeers and could have spent the time focus on answering the question correctly. This observation
is synchronous with previous studies (Yien et al. 2011) which found that game-based
educational tools are better suited to smaller classrooms with elementary and high school
students rather than university students who have to achieve specific learning outcomesthrough intentional learning. Having said that, there are still some students and instructor who
enjoyed gamified CRS as it is more fun and keeps the students motivated to participate in aform of competition. Through this study, it is evident that striking a balance between fun andlearning is vital to effectively using ClassPoint as a valuable CRS in the classroom which
Licorish et al. (2018) also agreed for the use of game-based student response systems in
education.
There were some challenges with using ClassPoint as a platform to conduct interactive quizzes
for the main user aka instructor. The primary limitation is its compatibility with different
software and operating systems. As of now, ClassPoint is not compatible with MacOs and iOS
versions of PowerPoint. Instructor who often uses MacOS or iOS devices to annotate slides
during teaching would not be able to integrate ClassPoint. Since it is only compatible with
Window 7/8/10 and PowerPoint Office 2013/2016/20165, instructors using other forms of fileformat for example Adobe Acrobat Reader found cannot use ClassPoint for their lesson.
Despite having an option to save and review students’ responses, 33% of the instructor
participants highlighted the challenge in capturing individual students’ score in response to thequizzes. Unlike the Learning Catalytic, ClassPoint does not have the option to collate students’
responses in a summary format of the responses for each questions asked or view results in raw
data version to see detailed responses from each respondent. It will indeed be highly convenient
if instructors are able to consolidate individual student’s performance on all the questionsdelivered. Besides, it will be beneficial if ClassPoint has a feature whereby instructors canmonitor student participation rate in a click of a button rather than manually check theindividual responses on each questions.
Conclusion
This paper presented instructors’ and students’ experience in using ClassPoint for some of thefirst-year undergraduate courses in SUTD. Survey results showed the use of ClassPoint as aninteractive quiz tool desirable for students. It provides greater student-instructor interaction andengagement during class. More than 80% of students agreed that ClassPoint has motivatedthem to participate more often in class and helped them to self-evaluate their learning progress
during lesson. Instructor could also monitor students learning progress from the real-time
analytic results to adjust instructional strategy, for example adding in more follow up questions
seamlessly within PowerPoint slide without switching to another application during lesson.

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The main challenge for the user beside its compatibility is its difficulty in capturing individual
students’ score in response to the quizzes. Overall, students and instructors enjoyed using
ClassPoint as it brings out the lively dynamic of the class.
In conclusion, the use of ClassPoint for in-class interactive response tool is effective inencouraging student engagement and attentiveness. Instructor should strike the balance inincorporating fun and learning with the use of ClassPoint for university-level students.

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Reference
Burns, R. A. (1985). Information impact and factors affecting recall. Annual National
Conference on Teaching Excellence and Conference of Administrators, Austin.
Caldwell, J. E. (2007). Clickers in the large classroom: current research and best-practicetips. CBE Life Science Education, 6(1), 9–20.
Cho, M. H., & Cho, Y. (2014). Instructor scaffolding for interaction and students’ academic
engagement in online learning: Mediating role of perceived online class goal
structures. The Internet and Higher Education, 21, 25–30.
Inkoe (2021). Interactive classroom quiz in PowerPoint. http://www.classpoint.io (lastaccessed Dec 2021)
Fies, C., & Marshall, J. (2006). Classroom response systems: A review of the literature.
Journal of Science Education and Technology, 15(1).
Jones, S. M., Katyal, P., Xie, X., Nicolas, M. P., Leung, E. M., Noland, D. M., & Montclare,
J. K. (2019). A ‘KAHOOT!’ Approach: The Effectiveness of Game-Based Learning
for an Advanced Placement Biology Class. Simulation & Gaming, 50(6), 832-847.
Yien, J. M., Hung, C. M., Hwang, G. J., & Lin, Y. C. (2011). A game-based learning
approach to improving students’ learning achievements in a nutrition course. The
Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 10(2), 1–10.
Kay, R. H., & LeSage, A. (2009). Examining the benefits and challenges of using audience
response systems: A review of the literature. Computer and Education, 53, 819–827.
Leeds, E., Campbell, S., Baker, H., Ali, R., Brawley, D., & Crisp, J. (2013). The impact ofstudent retention strategies: An empirical study. International Journal Management
Education, 7, 22–43.
Licorish, S. A., Owen, H. E., Daniel, B., & George, J. L. (2018). Students’ perception of
Kahoot!’s influence on teaching and learning. Research and Practice in Technology
Enhanced Learning, 13(1), Article 9.
Mu, H., & Paparas, D. (2015). Incorporating the advantages of clickers and mobile devices toteach Economics to non-economists. Cogent Economics & Finance, 3(1), 1099802.
Ratson, P. A., & Bego, C. R. (2021). Student and teacher perceptions of a classroom response
system: Demographic comparison in a first semester calculus course. 2021 ASEE
Annual Conference, 32712.
Suchman, E., Uchiyama, K., Smith, R., & Bender, K. (2006). Evaluating the impact of aclassroom response system in a microbiology course. Microbiology Education, 7, 311.
Contact email: engying_bong@sutd.edu.sg

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Relationships between Japanese University Students’ Interest in Computer Programming,
Their Logical Thinking, and IT Literacy
Harumi Kashiwagi, Kobe University, JapanMin Kang, Kobe University, Japan
Kazuhiro Ohtsuki, Kobe University, Japan
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Abstract
Increasing emphasis is being placed on strengthening personal ability for computer
programming. However, students have different levels of readiness and consciousness tolearn programming. When promoting computer education, it is imperative that the curriculum
be designed, considering students’ backgrounds and awareness of computer programming.
This study examines the relationships between Japanese university students’ interest incomputer programming, logical thinking, and IT literacy. A questionnaire study with 118
Japanese university students suggests the following findings on the students in humanities.
(1) More than 60% of the liberal arts students are interested in computer programming, which
is more students than we expected; (2) it is important for students in humanities to focus on
designing a program that motivates them; (3) their computer software experiences may
slightly influence interest in computer programming. Although further investigations areneeded, the preliminary indicators from this study suggest that the curriculum flow, in which
general information literacy classes are introduced before computer programming classes, is
expected to reduce liberal arts students’ psychological resistance to programming andpromote their readiness and consciousness toward it. Furthermore, we hope to investigate therelationships between students’ interest in computer programming and their future careerplans by targeting the students in humanities.
Keywords: Programming Education, Student Interest in Computer Programming, LogicalThinking, IT Literacy

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
Increasing emphasis is being placed on strengthening personal ability for computer
programming. Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology(MEXT) (MEXT, 2018) explicitly mentioned fostering information literacy, including theability to think logically as a way of programming in elementary and secondary education.
Computer programming became a mandatory subject in Japan’s elementary schools in 2020
(MEXT, 2020). The National Center for University Entrance Examinations (2021) alsoannounced that the subject “information” was planned to be introduced into the Common
Test for University Admissions in 2025, and exam sample questions were published andexplained (Mizuno, 2021). These measures aim to train a new generation by equipping themwith advanced information and technology skills.
On the other hand, students have different levels of readiness and consciousness to learn
programming. Particularly, university students did not go through such a mandate, and they
have varied experience and knowledge regarding computer programming. It should beconsidered how to adapt instructions for different populations. In order to plan and implement
effective instructions, it is critical to have a better understanding of students.
To meet this challenge, this study examines the relationships between Japanese university
students’ interest in computer programming, logical thinking, and IT literacy. We conducted
a questionnaire study with 118 Japanese university students to investigate the following
research questions:1.
How is students’ interest in computer programming? Is there any difference
depending on the faculty?
2.
Is students’ interest in computer programming related to their logical thinking
attitudes? Is there any difference depending on the faculty?
3.
Is students’ interest in computer programming related to their personal computer
experiences? Is there any difference depending on the faculty?
Below, we first describe related studies, then provide the methods of the present study,
deliver its results, and discuss its findings. Finally, we present our conclusions andrecommendations for further studies.
Related Studies
Nowadays, fostering human resources based on information technology is globally demanded
regardless of whether the student is in a humanities course or science (MEXT, 2018). In
response to these demands, the development of teaching plans and training materials forcomputer programming is being promoted (MEXT, 2019). Efforts related to computer
programming education are being promoted at elementary schools nationwide, and various
practical reports are being made. For example, programming activities for mathematics andEnglish classes are introduced in a case report (Shimabuku, 2021). Programming activities
using a one-board microcomputer were proposed in science classes (Kato, Matsuda, Ueno, &Hamada, 2019). Programming education in elementary school is conducted within various
existing subjects. In junior high school education, students learn programming formeasurement, control, and interactive content, and in senior high school education, they learn
programming, including algorithms (Kanemune, 2019). At the junior high school level,
Noguchi and Ogura (2020) investigated the systematic curriculum for programming
education, taking science as an example. Shinkai & Sumitani (2008) developed the learning

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support system for introductory programming courses and they succeeded in a preliminary
evaluation experiment for technical college students.
On the teacher’s side, many elementary school teachers are expected to be worried aboutteaching programming. To deal with this problem, training programs for teachers who are
unfamiliar with programming education are being proposed. For example, a training programis proposed in which training sessions are conducted multiple times in a short time
considering the actual working conditions of the respective schools (Kawasumi, Ito, Kuroha,& Kobayashi, 2019). In the research case by Yasukage & Shinch (2018), elementary school
teachers gained confidence in practice and contributed to promoting programming education
through the teacher training course. On the student’s side, Kobayashi and Nakagawa (2019)
revealed the changes in the consciousness of students on “thinking and expression” inprogramming education at the elementary school level through three categorized educational
practices. Another research reported on the educational practices in elementary schoolmathematics classes using a block-based visual programming language called “Scratch” andnon-computer programming (Kuroha, Ito, Kawasumi, & Kobayashi, 2021). The results
indicated that learning content has become more established than in conventional educational
practice and that students’ motivation and interest in programming have increased.
Given the varying levels of readiness and consciousness as well as the experience andknowledge regarding computer programming, we considered it important to design the
curriculum taking into account students’ backgrounds and awareness of computer
programming. From this point of view, we explore the relationships between Japanese
university students’ interest in computer programming, logical thinking, and IT literacy.
Methods
ParticipantsThis study’s participants consisted of 118 first-year students in three classes at a university inJapan (i.e., 40 in Economics class, 39 in Global Human Sciences class, and 39 in Engineeringclass). Table 1 shows the number of students and their respective majors. These students
completed a questionnaire, the questions of which are displayed in Table 2.
Data Collection and Analysis
A questionnaire was administered to gather subjective responses from students about theirinterest in computer programming, logical thinking, and IT literacy. Table 2 shows thequestionnaire items. Responses were scored on a five-point Likert Scale (i.e., 1 point forStrongly Disagree, 2 points for Moderately Disagree, 3 points for Neutral, 4 points forModerately Agree, and 5 points for Strongly Agree). Through a Wilcoxon rank-sum test anda correlational analysis, we attempted to investigate how the variables were distributed andrelated to one another.

Class
A
B
C

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Table 1: Number and Major Field of Participants
Grade
Major Field
Number of Studentsst
1 yearEconomics
40
st
1 yearGlobal Human Sciences
39
1st yearEngineering
39

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Table 2: Questionnaire Items
Regarding Students’ Interest in Computer Programming, Logical Thinking, and IT
Literacy
Q1. I am good at thinking things in order.
Q2. I am good at thinking things logically.
Q3. I often use Microsoft Office applications, such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Q4. I am interested in computer programming.
Results and Discussion
We investigated research questions on students’ interest in computer programming, and therelationships between their interest in programming and other items. Here we analyzed thewhole tendency of the questionnaire results. The results of the questionnaire responses arelisted in Figure 1 to Figure 4. The percentage of participants who chose the five options in therespective questions is shown in these figures. Q1 in Figure 1 and Q2 in Figure 2 concern
students’ logical thinking, Q3 in Figure 3 concerns their computer software experiences, andQ4 in Figure 4 concerns their interests in computer programming.
First, we will look at how the participants showed agreement with Q1 and Q2, that is, theirlogical thinking attitudes. According to the results of Q1 in Figure 1, a total of 60% of theparticipants in class A showed agreement (i.e., “I am good at thinking things in order.”). In
class B, a total of 56.4% agreed with Q1. In both classes, around 60% showed agreementwith Q1. Meanwhile, a total of 76.9% in class C showed agreement with Q1. From the resultsof Q2 in Figure 2, a total of 55% of the participants in class A agreed (i.e., “I am good atthinking things logically.”). In class B, a total of 56.4% agreed with Q2. In both classes, alittle less than 60% showed agreement with Q2. Meanwhile, a total of 74.3% in class C
agreed with Q2. Regarding student logical thinking attitude, more participants in science(class C) than those in humanities (class A and B) show positive responses, as expected tosome extent.
Next, we will look at how the participants showed agreement with Q3, that is, their computer
software experiences. According to the results of Q3 in Figure 3, a total of 37.5% of theparticipants in class A showed agreement (i.e., “I often use Microsoft Office applications,such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.”). In class C, a total of 41% agreed with Q3. In bothclasses, around 40% showed agreement with Q3. Meanwhile, a total of 64.1% in class B
agreed with Q3. Regarding computer software experiences, it did not matter if theparticipants were in science or humanities. Regarding Q4, we will discuss this in thefollowing section.

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Figure 1: The Percentage of Participants Who Chose the Respective Options in Q1.

Figure 2: The Percentage of Participants Who Chose the Respective Options in Q2.

Figure 3: The Percentage of Participants Who Chose the Respective Options in Q3.

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Figure 4: The Percentage of Participants Who Chose the Respective Options in Q4.
RQ1: How is students’ interest in computer programming? Is there any difference
depending on the faculty?
Concerning RQ1, we will analyze how the participants showed agreement with Q4, that is,their interests in computer programming. Here we used Wilcoxon rank-sum test on the dataof Q4 to analyze whether two classes are different from one another in a statisticallysignificant manner at the 0.05 level.
We first calculated the average scores of the responses by a five-point Likert Scale for therespective classes to investigate student perceptions overall. The average scores for the threeclasses were 3.5 (class A), 3.7 (class B), and 4.4 (class C). The average score of class C washigher than those of class A and class B. From the results of Figure 4, a total of 94.8% of theparticipants in class C showed agreement with Q4 (i.e., “I am interested in computer
programming.”).
Then by using the Wilcoxon rank-sum test on the data of Q4, we analyzed whether thefollowing two classes, class A and class B, class A and class C, and class B and class C, arestatistically different. The results indicated that class A and class C (p=0.0006) and class B
and class C (p=0.0158) are statistically different, while class A and class B (p=0.5319) arenot.
These results suggest that participants in science have significantly higher interests incomputer programming compared to those in humanities.
At the same time, from the results of Q4 in Figure 4, a total of 62.5% of the participants inclass A showed agreement. Also, in class B, a total of 61.5% agreed with Q4. In both classes,
more than 60% of the participants showed agreement with Q4. The results indicate that more
students than we expected have interests in computer programming. These results suggest theimportance of designing a program that motivates liberal arts students when considering a
program for computer programming.

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RQ2: Is students’ interest in computer programming related to their logical thinking
attitudes? Is there any difference depending on the faculty?
We investigated how students’ interest in computer programming was related to their logicalthinking attitudes. To analyze the data related to RQ2, we calculated Spearman’s rank-ordercorrelation coefficients between Q1 and Q4, also Q2 and Q4 from the questionnaire.
*Correlation represents statistical significance at the 0.05 level.
Table 3: Correlations among Questionnaire Items.

The results of the correlation coefficients between Q1 and Q4 in the three classes indicated inTable 3 (class A: rQ1Q4=0.22, class B: rQ1Q4=0.20, class C: rQ1Q4=0.26) show that no
significant relationship exists between students’ interest in computer programming and theirlogical thinking attitudes. Meanwhile, the correlation coefficient results between Q2 and Q4
only in class C in Table 3 (rQ2Q4=0.35) show a significantly weak positive relationshipbetween students’ interest in computer programming and their logical thinking attitudes.
However, the correlation coefficients between Q2 and Q4, both in class A (rQ2Q4=0.23) andclass B (rQ2Q4=0.03), are not statistically significant.
Regarding student logical thinking attitude, there is a weak relationship between interest incomputer programming and logical thinking ability only in the Engineering class. The results
suggest that students’ logical thinking may slightly influence interest in computer
programming.
RQ3: Is students’ interest in computer programming related to their personal computer
experiences? Is there any difference depending on the faculty?
We also investigated how students’ interest in computer programming was related to their
computer software experiences by calculating Spearman’s rank-order correlation coefficients
between Q3 and Q4.

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The results of the correlation coefficient between Q3 and Q4 only in class A in Table 3(rQ3Q4=0.37) show a significantly weak positive relationship between students’ interest incomputer programming and their computer software experiences. However, the correlation
coefficients between Q3 and Q4, both in class B (rQ3Q4=0.07) and class C (rQ3Q4=0.19), arenot statistically significant. Regarding computer software experiences, there is a weakrelationship between interest in computer programming and computer software experiences
only in the Economics class. The results also suggest that students’ computer softwareexperiences may slightly influence interest in computer programming.
From these suggestions, it is important to design a curriculum in which students take general
information literacy education before learning computer programming. This curriculum flow
is expected for students to become more interested in computer programming.
Findings
As for considering students’ backgrounds and awareness of computer programming, it is stilla work in progress. However, the preliminary indicators from this study suggest important
findings on the students in humanities. From the questionnaire results, more than 60% of thestudents in humanities have an interest in computer programming. Regarding students’interest in computer programming and their logical thinking attitudes, the results also showthat no significant relationship exists among students in humanities. These results suggest theimportance of focusing on designing a program that motivates liberal arts students rather thansticking to whether they have logical thinking abilities. Furthermore, regarding computer
software experiences, the results show a weak relationship between interest in computer
programming and computer software experiences in the Economics class. It is suggested thatstudents’ computer software experiences may slightly influence interest in computer
programming. From these suggestions, if general information literacy classes are introduced
before students learn computer programming, this curriculum flow is expected to reduce
liberal arts students’ psychological resistance to programming and promote their readinessand consciousness toward it.
Limitations and Recommendations
The current study has certain limitations. It was conducted with only three classes, a small
group of students. More studies are needed to target a larger number of students. Also, logicalthinking ability is subjectively evaluated by the students themselves in this study. Objective
evaluation is needed to measure logical thinking ability. Furthermore, the preliminary
indicators from this study suggest that students’ fields of study and future career plans must
be considered when designing and implementing computer education. We hope to investigate
the relationships between students’ interest in computer programming and their future careerplans.
Conclusion
In order to promote computer education, the curriculum must be designed considering
students’ backgrounds and awareness of computer programming. This study examines therelationships between Japanese university students’ interest in computer programming,
logical thinking, and IT literacy.

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The results of our preliminary study suggest the following findings on the students inhumanities. (1) More than 60% of the liberal arts students are interested in computer
programming, which shows that more students than we expected have an interest; (2) it isimportant to focus on designing a program that motivates them; (3) their computer softwareexperiences may slightly influence interest in computer programming. The curriculum flow,in which general information literacy classes are introduced before computer programmingclasses, is expected to reduce their psychological resistance to programming and promote
their readiness and consciousness toward programming.
As a continuation of this study, we could examine these relationships by targeting thestudents in humanities. The preliminary indicators from this study suggest that students’
fields of study and future career plans must be considered when designing and implementing
computer education. We hope to investigate the relationships between students’ interest incomputer programming and their future career plans.
Acknowledgement
This work was supported by JSPS Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research Number
JP19K03030.

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October 21, 2021) (In Japanese)
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School Courses of Study, Chapter 1 General Provisions.
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Kanemune, S. (2019). Programming Education and Tools for K12 Schools in Japan. IEICE
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Conducive to Programming Education at Elementary School in Line with the Actual
Conditions of Working Schools. Proceedings of 8th Annual Conference of JapaneseSociety of Digital Textbook, Vol.8, 93–94 (in Japanese).
Kobayashi, Y., & Nakagawa, H. (2019). A Study of Changing in Consciousness of Students
on “Thinking and Expression” in Programming Education at Elementary School:
Focusing on Education Practice That Tried to Categorize Three. Journal of Japan
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Practices in Elementary School Mathematics Classes Using Scratch and NonComputer Programming. Journal of Japan Educational Research Society of the AI era,
Vol.3, 19–24 (in Japanese).
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the Common Test for University Admissions - Its Background and Sample Test
Questions. IPSJ magazine, 62(7), 326–330 (in Japanese).

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National Center for University Entrance Examinations. (2021). 2025 Exam Subjects for the
Common Test for University Admissions.
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Breaking Boundaries of Prison Design for Architectural Design StudioSunaree Lawanyawatna, King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand
Martin Schoch, King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand
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Abstract
In collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Thailand
Institute of Justice (TIJ), design tasks for a prison design are carried out within a second-year
studio course of a Bachelor's program in architecture to improve the students sociallyoriented design skills and train their critical understanding towards solving designs problems
via an open, integrative approach to learning. The tasks aim to offer creative solutions that
improve human living conditions and inspire inmates to improve their social behavior andattitude towards life. The mixture of learning experiences in direct contact with experts,
specialists, and those affected are intended to strengthen the knowledge base, empathy, andsincerity in the decision-making process to address and improve social issues in connection
with the design. In a stepwise approach, studio learning is intensified by the students'
collaboration with stakeholders and existing design-related social issues. According to thestudents' design results, the proposed designs imply greater awareness of social issues and anunderstanding of human-centered needs, documenting the student's aim to improve thecurrent situation of prisoners. In addition, the disseminated public results, conflicting with thewidespread public opposition towards improving prison conditions, helped students develop
their critical thinking and reasoning skills towards others. Future improvements in teaching
will include exploring a wider range of relevant, critical, and socially-oriented aspects ofarchitectural design tasks and expanding collaboration and engagement with the respective
individuals and groups.
Keywords: Architectural Design Education, Social Design Aspects, Design Teaching
Collaboration, Creativity in Design

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Introduction
Becoming "social change agents" is one of King Mongkut's University of Technology
Thonburi's (KMUTT) key missions in producing successful university graduates (KMUTT,2017). Such competency describes how the learned subjects form the basis on which
graduates contribute to solving existing societal challenges, thus leading to the mutual
success of the individual graduate and society itself. In university-level teaching, the methodsof strengthening such competency of social change leadership are manifold, yet they dependon the course content themselves. For instance, looking at the universities' School ofArchitecture and Design (SoA+D) and their design courses, one way to highlight social
aspects is to create assignments that address and conflict with such issues. For encouraging
social engagement, another approach is to have students work with realistic scenarios andexpose them to the respective stakeholders to experience the given situation.
Prisons are suitable examples for exploring prevalent social facets, thus suggestingthemselves as an architectural design task. In Thailand, prisons currently face the challengeof overcrowding (Kittayarak, 2010), with recidivism of drug-related offenses recognized as asignificant cause (O'Connor, 2019). With a 266% occupancy rate in 2015, in some situations,
up to 40 detainees share a cell accounting for less than 1.2 sqm for males and 1.1 sqm forfemale inmates (FDIH, 2017). In contrast, the standard minimum requirement for individuals
suggests at least 3.4 sqm for an inmate (Nuttall & Jurisic, 2016). Given overcrowding, inmany situations, global guidelines for managing prisons with minimum requirements for
safeguarding humanitarian rights or health and hygiene standards are not achieved (UN,2016). However, they can also lack development as sufficient funds are required to correct
the clean-up to improve the current, undesirable circumstances. These include poor
conditions due to the tropical climate, such as adequate ventilation and protection fromoverheating (FDIH, 2017). In addition, public opinion also limits efforts to improve prison
design, especially when proposals focus on fair or humanized treatment. Prison quality isoften of little concern to the unaffected public, and it is unlikely they would consider
supporting improvements. Accordingly, when planning new prisons or renovating existing
facilities, it appears necessary to take international guidelines into account, learn frominnovative case studies (Ireland, 2017), and understand the local context.
In collaboration with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Thailand
Institute of Justice (TIJ), SoA+D established an education-based alliance to design prisons topropose and discuss possible solutions and develop future design strategies between 20182020. It was decided to employ the architecture program's second-year studio design courseand create project assignments that have students explore social-oriented and human-centeredmethods into prison designs, gain a critical perspective, and practice sharing that
understanding with others by creating alternative examples for prison design in Thailand. Aspart of the assignments, it was suggested that students consider a guide to prison design
provided by the ICRC, which also agreed to share its universal knowledge of prison
management and design with students in a lecture class and provide advice and feedback on
student design via its experts. Representatives from the Ministry of Justice (MOJ), the Thai
Institute of Justice (TIJ), and the Ministry of Justice (DOC) also provided expertise andsuggestions. In addition, they assisted with the work on actual prison design tasks for existing
prison facilities, such as Nakhon Nayok Prison, a women's prison in Ratchaburi Province,
Thailand, and refurbishing an existing prison Thonburi.

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Accordingly, this research seeks to investigate educational methods for teaching architecturaldesign concerning socially-oriented issues to encourage students to develop a criticalunderstanding of existing contemporary societal issues and discover their relevance inarchitectural design. In addition, a collaborative approach is tested by inviting all experts toparticipate in the teaching schedule to encourage students to learn current societal problems
and their circumstances and discuss possible solutions with relevant stakeholders. In such asetting, students are expected to learn to address these in their designs by employing a socialoriented design approach and communicating their suggestions appropriately, thus, enhancing
the social issue awareness and creatively integrating it in the design process.
Body
With the realization of studio design tasks following certain teaching/learning activities
sequences, instructors gradually introduced social aspects relating to prison design. Usually,
students follow a procedure to solve fundamental problems of a project by answering related
aspects in interconnected subgroups, such as respective spatial planning requirements. In
conversation with their lecturer, the students then reacted by synthesizing a reflection of the
problem description through the creative design process and visualizing a design proposal. To
introduce social design aspects, establish their significance and relevance to the design task,
and allow collaborators to participate in the design process, additional interference steps were
integrated as teaching/learning activities. They included the visit of an existing operating
prison facility in Thailand with interviews of detainees and correctional officers. The visit
was followed by lectures on prisons' current situation and condition in Thailand,
introductions on international standards, and guidelines from architects and engineers withexpertise in prison design. In addition, ICRC presented safety and hygiene-oriented
guidelines by a water & habitat coordinator and a legal advisor. In later charette sessions, thestudents' design schematics were then presented and discussed with the prison's architect andengineers to advise and consult on safety measure issues. Final design proposals wereshowcased to the entire team of instructors and guests such as the prison's director from thedepartment of correctional facility (DOC), the representative from the Ministry of Justice(MOJ), Thailand Institute of Justice (TIJ), International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
The students presented their work to discuss their ideas and received final comments andsuggestions from experts that joined and followed the design process. Their work was
publicly exhibited as part of the school's year-end of year exhibition and reported on in
newspapers and magazines and via social media channels, including interviews and screening
on public television channels (Chanel 3 and IPTV) and publication via print (Art4d, Aday,
Bangkok Biz News, and Way) and their social media channels. Selected students andinstructors also received a scholarship to attend and present to "ACCFA: Asian Conferenceof Correctional Facilities Architects and Planners in Sri Lanka (2018) and Tokyo (2019).
At the end of the course, a project exhibition and a final evaluation with guests fromcooperating institutions took place; Representatives spent a day with students, attending
design presentations, and discussing ideas and feedback on the projects. The final project
proposals highlighted various study results, such as improving the gathering areas or meeting
relatives. Much of the work was also aimed at disrupting the characteristic appearance, forexample, by covering steel bars or walls with shading elements or stimulating pattern designs
or by alluding to green elements. In addition, lighting, natural climate elements, and materials
symbolize acceptance, optimism, and the desire to soften the overall picture and soften the
overwhelming institutional appearance. Several factors for social circumstances andenhancements for human detainees were identified. Examples include student efforts to

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improve the convicts' situation, such as common places for social contact or green spaces toreduce stress and anxiety. Another unique acknowledgment of the students' interest in thesocial design component was the assessment of prisoners' human rights, which are expressed,
for example, in consideration of enough space needs per prisoner or the necessity to keep
personal things. Finally, students investigated and questioned the existing practice of rigorous
incarceration versus a more positive approach to supporting prisoners in achieving
acceptance, social inclusion, and behavioral transformation. However, a central observationis that the students' proposed solutions do not always correspond to prisons' conventional,
primarily security-oriented planning criteria. Instead, they highlight conceptual efforts toimprove prisons' human and social situation, which eventually evolved into inspiring design
solutions. The analysis of the results has revealed many methods for taking greater account of
human-centered social design. The student work seemed less function-oriented but
emphasized more social aspects in the design. The most striking difference between
traditional designs and student ideas was that many proposed focused very little on relevant
functional aspects.
Conclusion
According to the instructors' comments, school conduct changed, exhibiting interest in guest
opinions and subject knowledge. Furthermore, the student's understanding and perspective ofprison design evolved with learning and expressing interest in the topic participating in
discussions, and willingness to express their thoughts. According to the instructors, theprimary events that prompted new perspectives were the real visit to a prison facility and theinterviews with detainees and correctional personnel. In addition, lectures from specialists
and other professionals piqued the students' interest in human needs. The students alluded to
the Mandela Rules and the Bangkok Rules when presenting their concepts and goals during
the final presentations. The instructors also saw a shift in the students' perceptions about
design. Many students viewed inmates as 'users,' consequently incorporating theirrequirements into the design, thus showing empathy and commitment to improving theinmates conditions. This contrasts with how prisons are often designed when prison wards'
imprisonment characteristics and safety are prioritized.
The invited guests were impressed by the students' work, design development, active
participation, and enthusiasm for the subject. While the ICRC representatives generally
welcomed the proposed solutions and suggestions to improve detention conditions, they
accepted them as a valid starting point for future discussions. Representatives from the TIJ
and DOC also praised the presented designs as intriguing ideas for people looking to improvetheir lives. They were also excited by students' willingness to show large interest in theotherwise stigmatized subject, to work on it sincerely and maturely, and discuss possible
improvements openly.
In addition to the cooperation partners, the public media were invited to follow and report on
the event: Aside from the final presentation, TV stations (Channel_3, 2019; ThaiPBS, 2019)
digital and print magazines (ADay, 2019; ICRC, 2019; Kerdsup, 2019) showcased selected
works and interviews with lecturers, guests, and students. As their broadcasts andpublications drew widespread public attention, discussions, and debates erupted on social
media, primarily over whether Thai society should pay attention to prisons and theirconditions and whether they should be used for punishment or rehabilitation. The public's
reactions to the presented student projects were also positive; however, opposing comments
were made (ADay, 2018).

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Integrating social issues into architectural training is an important part of architectural designtasks in training. A prison design task was assigned to bachelor students to improve theirsocially-oriented design and thinking skills and integrate an open approach to learning andpublic engagement. Furthermore, the task aims to provide architectural solutions that improve
the human conditions of prisons and inspire inmates to develop their social behavior andattitude toward life to strengthen the students' knowledge base and clarity in decisionmaking. In collaboration with ICRC and TIJ representatives, a stepwise approach wasdeveloped to gradually provide students with different sources of information and learning
experiences through contact with professionals, experts, and affected individuals during thedesign development process. The analysis of the results was based on instructor feedback on
the evaluation of design proposals, their presentation, discussions with stakeholders, and thestudents' self-reflection. The conducted teaching methodology engaged the design studio inexisting, design-relevant social issues, with proposed designs implying greater awareness andunderstanding of people-centered needs.
Instructors agreed that students' designs successfully improved the prisoners' current
situation. They were able to address relevant debates and discuss them critically and in thecontext of their proposals with others. The contentious topic and collaboration with relevant
partners encouraged students to think critically, discuss human-centered problems, anddesign alternatives to functional fulfillment. The commitment and cooperation withinternational and local expertise also turned out to be an essential component. Experts andguests also supported the result positively. In addition, the presentation of the students' work
showed a positive attitude, an increase in the analytical attitude towards the design problem.
Furthermore, students' positive attitudes demonstrated their interest in deliberating anddiscussing such issues and their willingness to change their position and attitude in response
to social media. The results' public accessibility, combined with the prevalent public stigma
against improving the conditions of convicted offenders, aided the students in developing
their reasoning skills toward others.
Acknowledgements
The studio involved the following instructors from the School of Architecture and Design at
the King Mongkut University of Technology Thonburi: Wirote Tessalee, Valairatn
Gasemsin, Sukhumarn Thamwiset, Akarapon Nampeeti, Kisnaphol Wattanawanyoo, M.L.
Atithep Kashemsant, Korn Kunalungkarn. Further, the following students were used: Suthira
Tupthave, Kiratikorn Chotanawid, Theethach Chayapiwat, Passanee Patamawisuts,
Piangkwan Setthakorn, Chidchaya Detchaloemwong, Pakkapol Sawangteerawat, Plengbhorn
Chartnarin, Phoopha Thongrak, Nonthakan Borsin, Passanee Patamawisut, Puwadol
Boonsong. The studio collaboration was realized with representatives of the International
Committee of the Red Cross (Thailand), the Bureau of Strategy and Planning of the Thai
Ministry of Justice, the Thai Department of Corrections, and the Thonburi Remand Prison.

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References
ADay. (2018). Future Prison Design. A day magazine. Retrieved fromhttps://www.adaymagazine.com/articles/draft-future-prison-design-icrc
ADay. (2019). Women Prison Design. A day magazine. Retrieved fromhttps://adaymagazine.com/female-prison-design-2019
Channel_3 (Producer). (2019). KMUTT Students Design Women Prison. Retrieved fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEP5MjMC6pk
FDIH. (2017). Behind the walls: A look at conditions in Thailand's prisons after the coup.
Retrieved from https://www.refworld.org/pdfid/58b593dd4.pdf
ICRC. (2013). Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Habitat in Prisons: Supplementary Guidance.
Geneva: International Comitee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
ICRC. (2018). Towards Humane Prisons: A Principled and Participatory Approach to
Prison Planning and Design. Geneva: International Commitee of the Red Cross(ICRC).
ICRC (Producer). (2019). Thailand: Architecture students work on building humane andhealthy prisons. Retrieved from https://www.icrc.org/en/document/thailandarchitecture-students-work-building-humane-and-healthy-prisons
Ireland, J. (2017). How Other Cultures Have Developed Virtually Conflict-Free Prisons andReduced Recidivism.
Kerdsup, P. (2019). ICRC x SoA+D Women Prison Design. art4d. Retrieved fromhttps://art4d.com/2019/06/wrap-up-14-06-2019?fbclid=IwAR0llpNxbVN3nQUaUEyf11hFtYODIJf4hRxe1nJEFiOEjFNW3ayQmGBi0k
Kittayarak, K. (2010). Responding to prison Overcrowding: Another Attempt from Thailand.
Paper presented at the Twelfth United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention andCriminal Justice, Salvador, Brazil.
KMUTT. (2017). KMUTT Strategy Plan 2017-2021. King Mongkut University of Technology
Thonburi (KMUTT). Retrieved fromhttp://202.44.8.55/thai/abt_history/info_report/strategic-plan-2017-2021.pdf
Lueth, P. L. O. (2008). The architectural design studio as a learning environment: aqualitative exploration of architecture design student learning experiences in design
studios from first- through fourth-yea (Doctor of Philosophy). Iowa State University
Iowa State University.
Nuttall, G., & Jurisic, P. (2016). How To Build A Humane Prison, United Nations Office for
Project Services (UNOPS). Retrieved from https://www.unops.org/news-andstories/insights/how-to-build-a-humane-prison

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O'Connor, J. (Producer). (2019). Drugs leave Thai prisons chronically overcrowded with
87% of female prisoners jailed for meths. www.thaiexaminer.com. Retrieved fromhttps://www.thaiexaminer.com/thai-news-foreigners/2019/09/07/thai-prison-systemovercrowding-drug-population-thailand-government-justice-seminar-rehabilitation/
Women Prison Design. (2019). ThaiPBS [Mobile application software]. Retrieved fromhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EPMisXdFVw
United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (Nelson Mandela
Rules), (2016).
Contact email: sunaree.law@gmail.com

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Improving EFL Students’ Argumentative Essay Writing Self-efficacy through Knowledge
Building Based Instruction
Li-Jen Wang, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taiwan
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
Argumentative essay writing is essential for English as Foreign Language (EFL) students but
complicated and challenging to learn. Besides the difficulties, students often do not have belief
in their argumentative essay writing skills. One approach that may facilitate students'
self-efficacy
isknowledge-building-based(KB-based)
instruction
basedonknowledge-building pedagogy. The KB-based instruction aims to provide a comfortablelearning environment with the online collaborative working platform (Knowledge Forum)
where students feel safe contributing their ideas needed for writing argumentative essays. This
study aimed to see if EFL students can improve their self-efficacy of English argumentative
essay writing after implementing the KB-based instruction. The participants who were
university non-English major freshmen (n=66) were divided into the control group (n=34) withthe conventional writing instruction and the experimental group (n=32) with the KB-based
instruction. The questionnaire of English Argumentative Essay Writing Self-Efficacy (AEWS)
with five dimensions was adapted from the Self-Efficacy for Writing Scale (SEWS) (Bruning
et al., 2013), which was administered to the 66 participants before and after the study. The
statistical results indicated that the two groups did not significantly differ in terms of the"ideation," "conventions," and "self-regulation" (p>0.05); however, significant differenceswere found in terms of "argument writing ideation" and "argumentative essay writing
self-regulation (p<0.05)." The results suggested that the KB-based instruction could improvestudents' self-efficacy on argumentation due to the KB-based instruction did create anenvironment where students could generate ideas collaboratively and comfortably.
Pedagogical implications and future applications were also discussed.
Keywords: Self-efficacy, EFL, Knowledge Building, Argumentative Essay

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Introduction

In the global knowledge economy era, learners must develop abilities helping them succeedin academic contexts or workplaces (Zhang, 2013). These abilities include collaboration,effective oral and written communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving (Chan, 2010;
Gut, 2011; Kong, 2014; Wagner, 2018). Thus, many nations nowadays pay more attention todeveloping these abilities for their citizens (Wagner, 2018). Due to the limited domestic
demand markets, Taiwan has more and more chances for citizens to participate ininternational trades and collaboration or communication that are involved with other people
from other countries. In these contexts, the common communication language is usually
English (Cook, 1999; Crystal, 1997; Doan, 2013; Dong, 2012). Therefore, improving
students’ English ability in international communication has been an important goal forcontemporary English education, especially for nonnative English speakers (Canagarajah,
2014; Sharifian & Marlina, 2012; Zia, 2018). As a result, in Taiwan, training students to beequipped with the abilities mentioned above is needed in the global knowledge economy.
Among the abilities needed in academic contexts or workplaces, argumentation plays acritical role in developing critical thinking and developing a deep understanding of complex
issues and ideas (Deane & Song, 2014). As Kuhn (1991) argued, argumentation is a thinking
skill essential to idea formulation, problem-solving, and sound judgment in writing. Many
researchers have also noted the importance of developing students’ argumentative essay
writing skills (Ne’meth & Kormos, 2001; Rapanta et al., 2013; Toulmin, 1958, 2003; Wolfe,
2011). Previous researchers have explored the relationship between students’ English writing
self-efficacy and writing performance. The results have shown that high writing self-efficacy
beliefs are relevant to better writing outcomes (Bruning et al., 2013; Pajares & Johnson, 1996;
Pajares, Johnson & Usher, 2007). However, the research mentioned above was mainly
conducted in the K-12 education context and western countries. Very little research on
English argumentative essay writing and its relationship with self-efficacy in higher
education was conducted in eastern countries, especially in Taiwan. Therefore, how higher
education students’ argumentative essay writing and their writing self-efficacy related to theirwriting performance in Taiwan may be an important issue.
In order to help EFL learners to overcome the language barriers and argumentationdifficulties when they write argumentative essays, some researchers have examinedargumentative writing with the help of computer-assisted language learning (CALL). The
adoption of CALL for English writing has been proved beneficial (Warschauer & Healey,1998), such as online blogs (Ducate & Lomicka, 2005; Kathpalia & See, 2016), online
discussion forums (Du & Wagner, 2006; Luehmann & Tineli, 2008). However, the findingsof the previous studies showed that participants might increase their content knowledge withthe assistance of CALL, but they do not attain higher levels of argumentation in their writings(Hall & Davision, 2007; Xie, Ke & Sharma, 2008). To date, researchers are still finding
appropriate teaching approaches to help learners gain higher argumentation quality.
Because argumentation is one kind of collective idea refinement, it emphasizes supporting
ideas with evidence, warrants, backing, and rebuttal of counter-arguments (Jonassen & Kim,
2010). That is to say, the central part of argumentation is idea generation. The idea-centeredknowledge-building pedagogy may be a potential approach to train students’ argumentation
skills to address this issue. In the past two decades, knowledge-building pedagogy (i.e.,
educational practices based on knowledge building theory) has been widely and increasingly
adopted in many educational settings. Due to the main features of knowledge building, it may

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be a promising teaching approach for helping learners improve the quality of argumentation.
However, most contexts of the empirical studies of knowledge building were in science,
mathematics, and geography (Chan & Chan, 2011; Moss & Beatty, 2006). To date, very few
studies of English have addressed the critical issue mentioned above. Therefore, as one of theinitial attempts, this study tried to examine if knowledge building-based instruction(KB-based instruction) can be used as a practical teaching approach promoting university
EFL (English as Foreign Language) learners’ self-efficacy of argumentative essay writing.
2.

Literature Review

2.1 Knowledge Building Based Instruction
In the past two decades, knowledge-building pedagogy (i.e., educational practices based on
Knowledge Building theory) has been widely and increasingly implemented in manyeducational settings. More and more relevant empirical studies in knowledge building
pedagogies have been conducted in different settings (e.g., Gan, Hong, & Zhang, 2010; Hong,2011; Hong & Sullican, 2009; Hong & Scardamalia, 2014; Aalst & Chan, 2007; Scardamalia,
2002, 2003; Scardamalia & Bereiter, 2003, 2006; Zhang et al., 2009). Regarding the
instructional design, most of the KB studies only used knowledge-building pedagogy rather
than integrating knowledge-building pedagogy with domain-specific instructional strategies.
In addition, it was found out that most of the reviewed studies used “Knowledge Forum” asthe primary research platform.
In the last few years, various technologies and tools have also been developed that can offer
opportunities for computer-supported knowledge exchange (Cress, Kimmerle, & Hesse, 2006;
Kimmerle, Cress, & Hesse, 2007), as well as for computer-assisted learning and collaborativeknowledge building (Bryant, 2006). Scardamalia, Bereiter, and colleagues created the
networked knowledge-building environment, Knowledge Forum, to support
knowledge-building
communities.
Knowledge
Forum
is
a
platformwithtechnology-enhanced knowledge-building pedagogies. It provides a multimedia-basedknowledge space for community members to contribute ideas and rise above their early
understandings (Hong et al., 2014; Hong & Chiu, 2015; Sun, Zhang, & Scardamalia, 2010). It
is designed to support high-level knowledge processes and discourse that help learners togenerate and improve their ideas (Hong & Scrdamalia, 2015).

Figure 1: Screenshot of Students’ Discussion on Knowledge Forum

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2.2 Argumentative Essay Writing Self-efficacy
Besides assessing argumentative writing, some researchers also pay attention to the learners’
self-efficacy in English writing. Bandura (1977) defined self-efficacy as one’s belief that heor she can perform a specific task successfully. Bandura (1992) believed that If one has lower
self-efficacy, one does not have confidence in his/her abilities; however, one with higher
self-efficacy feels more confident of overcoming difficulties he/she may have. That is to say,students with higher self-efficacy are more likely to work harder and are persistent infinishing assigned tasks (Bruning & Horn, 2000; Zimmerman, 2000). Before 1990, English
writing research focused more on the cognitive processes involved in students’ skills. After
1990, the emphasis of English writing research has moved from cognitive processes tostudents’ “thoughts and beliefs.” The later research revealed that students’ self-efficacy plays
a significant role in English writing (Pajares & Johnson, 1995; Schunk, 2003). The constructof self-efficacy plays a significant role (Hashemnejad, Zoghi, & Amini, 2014). In brief,
previous research has shown that high writing self-efficacy beliefs are relevant to better
writing outcomes (Bruning et al., 2013; Pajares & Johnson, 1996; Pajares, Johnson & Usher,2007).
In the past three decades, researchers of English writing have developed tools with different
dimensions for measuring writing self-efficacy. These measures include the relationshipbetween university students’ writing self-efficacy and performance concentrating on writers’
writing mechanics (McCarthy et al., 1985), the relationship among university students’
writing self-efficacy, outcome expectancy beliefs, and writing achievement (Shell, Murphy,& Bruning, 1989), the younger students’ writing self-efficacy, outcome expectancy beliefs,
and writing achievement (Shell et al., 1995). The results of these early studies all suggested
that writing self-efficacy positively affects students’ writing performance. Recently, the latest
integrated model of writing self-efficacy has been proposed and proved successfully to
predict students’ writing performances (Bruning et al., 2013). The model has three main
dimensions: ideation, conventions, and self-regulation.
Ideation
Bruning et al. (2013) argued that the writers’ beliefs about generating ideas are significant
dimensions of writing self-efficacy. Idea generation is the first key element to successfully
composition (Flower & Hayes, 1984).
Conventions
After generating writing ideas, the next step is to express the ideas in writing. The way of
expressing ideas is through language mechanics or conventions (Fayol, Alamargot, &Berninger, 2012; Flower & Hayes, 1981). In English, the conventions would include spelling,
punctuation, capitalization, and structured sentences, which may provide the frames within
which writers can express their ideas successfully (Bruning et al., 2013).
Self-regulation
Having ideas to write and using appropriate mechanics to organize the ideas is essential towriting. However, some researchers argued that they are not enough (Zimmerman & Bandura,
1994; Zimmerman & Kitsantas, 2007, Bruning et al., 2013), more attention needs to be given
to the writers’ judgment about cognitive and linguistic features in the writing process (Hidi &ISSN: 2186-5892

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Boscolo, 2006).
From the above literature review, most English writing self-efficacy research has proved that
self-efficacy positively affects students’ writing performance. However, as noted, most of thecontexts were in western countries, there is a lack of research about writing self-efficacy
beliefs, especially in the Taiwanese EFL context. In addition, the main topic and the model
developed is the general English essay writing self-efficacy. Few studies have examined therelationship between self-efficacy and argumentative writing performance and extended thethree-dimension model to examine university writers’ self-efficacy of argumentation writing.
Thus, the present study tried to develop an instrument of English argumentative essay writing
self-efficacy adapted from the previous general English essay writing self-efficacy.
2.3 Research Questions(1) After completing knowledge building based instruction, what are the changes of students’
self-efficacy of argumentative essay writing?
(2) Does any interaction between the knowledge building based instruction and students’
self-efficacy of argumentative essay writing?
3.

Methodology

3.1 Participants and Research Design
The participants came from two classes, the experimental group (n =32) and the control
group (n=34), based on two different knowledge-building-based instructions implemented inthis study. They were from different departments and institutes in the same university. All ofthem were native speakers of Mandarin Chinese and had been learning English for nearly six
years or above. The participants were enrolled in the general English course focusing on
reading and writing taught by the researcher who had had the experience of adopting KB
instructions at the university level for over four years. The students in the two groups met
once a week for 2 hours, and the whole duration of the study was 18 weeks. In this study,
both groups used an online discussion platform, Knowledge Forum, with knowledge-building
pedagogy helping them generate ideas, assume agency, and foster a community regarding thewriting topics in the general English course.
This study adopted a quasi-experimental method, and the participants were divided into theexperimental and the control group. As shown in Figure 2, the participants (n=66) weredivided into two groups according to the two different knowledge-building-based instructions.
The two groups first took the pretest and received a mini-lesson regarding the introduction toknowledge building and the basic operations of Knowledge Forum (2 weeks). Then the twogroups finished two phases of knowledge-building learning activities (KBLA1 and KBLA2)
and within the middle test. Finally, they took the posttest. The details of theknowledge-building-based instruction are explained below.

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Figure 2: General Research Design of this Study
3.2 Knowledge Building Based Instruction
After the pretest, all experimental and control groups participants were divided into smallergroups in phase 1 (from Week 3 to Week 8). This study's knowledge-building-based
instructions include the introduction to knowledge building and Knowledge Forum. The maindifference between the two instructions was the KB learning environment. The two groups
adopted the same KB learning environment (fixed small-groups), where participants mainly
discussed and collaborated with the members within the group. At the beginning of phase 1,
all students were introduced to knowledge building theory and the basic operations ofKnowledge Forum at the beginning of the study in week 3. Once the two groups all haveexperienced the knowledge building process and become acquainted with Knowledge Forum
operations, besides the regular textbook lecture in each week, both groups then started
building their knowledge on Knowledge Forum with the topic used in the pretest: "How tosolve the power shortage issue in Taiwan?". With the features of the Knowledge Forum andthe knowledge-building elements taught in class, students regularly discussed the topic in andout of class. They helped each other within the small group to generate and improve ideas forreaching a consensus. They were also required to attend discussions collaboratively, and eachsmall group was also required to do oral reports of their knowledge-building discussion
progress in class (individual and group reflections) weekly. At the end of the first phase, eachparticipant needed to finish an oral report with their group members and an English
argumentative essay individually based on the ideas generated within the small group in
Knowledge Forum in the first KB learning activity (KBLA1).
Before moving to the second phase, the participants took a middle test in week 8. One of theitems of the middle test was argumentative essay writing. Students had to finish two English
argumentative essays. The topics of the two argumentative essays were: “How to solve the

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power shortage issue in Taiwan?” and “What are the pros and cons of GMOs? How canpeople use GMOs appropriately?” The first essay in the middle test was one of the artifacts
from the first KB learning activity, which then was compared with the essay written in thepretest. The second essay in the middle test was the “pretest” of the English argumentative
essay before finishing the second KB learning activity. A mini-lesson with reading materials
and GMO videos was also given to all participants before conducting the second phase.
In phase 2 (from week 10 to week 17), the students in the control group still used the fixedsmall-groups while the students in the experimental group adopted the opportunisticcollaboration environment where all students were in one community. Both groups built theirknowledge with the same topic: “What are the pros and cons of GMOs? How can people use
GMOs appropriately?” As aforementioned, the two groups adopted different KB learning
environment settings. The experimental group adopted opportunistic collaboration, which did
not use the fixed small-groups setting. That is to say, the whole group members started withthe same shared, top-level goal (i.e., What are the pros and cons of GMOs? How can people
use GMOs appropriately?). The participants in the experimental group elaborated sub-goals(i.e., different perspectives concerning the GMOs) as their works proceeded (Zhang et al.,2009). Unlike the control group, the participants in the experimental group in the second
phase were responsible for the growth of all views; no one was assigned to work in specificKnowledge Forum views. Daily, the participants were free to explore any problem from any
view. After the two groups finished the second phase, they were required to finish the posttest
in Week 17.
3.3 Data Collection and Data Analysis
In order to explore university students’ self-efficacy of argumentative essay writing, a revised
model called Argumentation Self-Efficacy Writing Scale (ASEWS) was adapted from
Bruning et al. (2013) in this study. Bruning et al. (2013) argued that the SEWS might havepotential utility for research. It provides minimal information about the sources of students’
writing self-efficacy beliefs. The original SEWS consists of 16 items corresponding to thethree categories of writing-related experience: ideation, conventions, and self-regulation andthree focal dimensions (ideation, conventions, and self-regulation) aiming to predict thewriting achievements from the affective experience (Bereiter& Scardanakuam 1987; Pajares& Johnson, 1996; Schunk & Zimmerman, 2007). In this study, besides the items of SEWS,
two more dimensions related to argumentative essay writing were adapted and added to
explore the students’ argumentative ideation and self-regulation (For the details of the items,
please refer to Appendix 5). The participants rated their English argumentative essay writing
self-efficacy on a 0 to 100 scale ranging from no confidence to complete confidence(Bandura, 2006).
Bruning et al. (2013) found out that the internal consistency of coefficients of the threesubscales (ideation, conventions, and self-regulation) of original SEWS was between .80
and .91. and .90 for the total scale. The two added subscales (argumentation ideation andargumentation self-regulation) added to the instrument used in this research have also beentested. Their internal consistency of coefficients was .94 and .90, respectively, all exceeding
the threshold of .50 for attitude and preference assessments (Tuckman, 1999). The overall
reliability and validity of the 28 items were further tested. Regarding the reliability,
Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was .96, more significant than the recommended value of .60(Bagozzi & Yi, 1988). As for the validity of the 28 items, the loading values ranged from .61
to .79, which were statistically significant and greater than that of the recommended value

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conducted to explore the changes in students’ overall improvement of self-efficacy ofargumentative essays. Then a one-way ANCOVA was conducted to determine a statisticallysignificant difference between the experimental and control group.
4

Results

4.1 Students’ Overall Improvement of Self-efficacy
Table 1 displays the comparison results of the students’ perceptions of self-efficacy ofEnglish argumentative writing before and after the two knowledge-building learning
activities. A paired-samples t-test was conducted in five dimensions: ideation, argumentation
ideation, conventions, self-regulation, and argumentation self-regulations. First, there was asignificant difference in the scores for students’ perceptions of self-efficacy of English
argumentative writing on Ideation (M=50.9, SD=12.81) and after the two KB learning
activities on Ideation (M=67.7, SD=16.92); t (65) = -9.33, p<.001. Next, there was asignificant difference in the scores for students’ perceptions of self-efficacy of English
argumentative writing on Argumentation Ideation (M=51.5, SD=13.38) and after the two KB
learning activities on Argumentation Ideation (M=70.73, SD=19.02); t (65) = -9.34, p<.001.
Then, there was a significant difference in the scores for students’ perceptions of self-efficacy
of English argumentative writing on Conventions (M=58.2, SD=16.33) and after the two KB
learning activities on Conventions (M=63.6, SD=15.14); t (65) = -2.62, p<.05. And then,there was a significant difference in the scores for students’ perceptions of self-efficacy ofEnglish argumentative writing on self-regulation (M=56.4, SD=16.90) and after the two KB
learning activities on self-regulation (M=63.5, SD=17.49); t (65) = -3.36, p<.01. Finally,
there was a significant difference in the scores for students’ perceptions of self-efficacy ofEnglish argumentative writing on argumentation self-regulation (M=53.1, SD=15.11) andafter the two KB learning activities on argumentation self-regulation (M=69.2, SD=19.28); t(65) = -8.26, p<.001. The results implied that the students believed that they had more
confidence in improving their ideas, arguments, conventions, self-regulation, andargumentation self-efficacy in the argumentative essay writing tasks after finishing the two
knowledge-building learning activities.
Table 1: The results of paired samples t-test of the five dimensions in the ASEWS
M
SDtp
Dimensions
Ideationpretest50.97 12.810-9.33*** .000
posttest
67.78 16.920
Argument Ideation
pretest51.54 13.328-9.34*** .000
posttest
70.73 19.021
Conventions
pretest58.23 16.330-2.62*.011
posttest
63.69 15.145
Self-regulations
pretest56.44 16.906-3.36**.001
posttest
63.56 17.492
Argumentpretest53.19 15.116
self-regulations-8.26*** .000
posttest
69.28 19.280*p<.05 **p<.01 ***p<.001

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4.2 The Effects of Knowledge Building Based Instruction on the Two Groups ofStudents’ Self-Efficacy of English Argumentative Essay Writing
A paired-samples t-test was conducted to compare the five dimensions of the self-efficacy ofEnglish argumentative essay writing before and after implementing the two KB learning
activities. As shown in Table 2, regarding the experimental group, there were significant
differences in the scores for Ideation before (M=54.8, SD=11.69) and after the
implementation of the two KB learning activities (M=80.1, SD=11.28); t (65) = -10.7,
p<.001. Argumentation Ideation before (M=56.5, SD=12.27) and after the implementation of
the two KB learning activities (M=84.6, SD=12.88); t (65) = -12.3, p<.001. Argumentation
self-regulation before (M=57.5, SD=11.59) and after the implementation of the two KB
learning activities (M=82.0, SD=14.28) ; t (65) = -10.0, p<.001. Similar results were also
found in the control group. As shown in Table 2, there were significant differences in thescores for Ideation before (M=47.2, SD=12.88) and after the implementation of the two KB
learning activities (M=56.1, SD=12.48); t (65) = -4.7, p<.001. Argumentation Ideation before(M=46.8, SD=12.71) and after the implementation of the two KB learning activities (M=57.6,
SD=12.48); t (65) = -4.0, p<.001. Argumentation self-regulation before (M=49.1, SD=16.98)
and after the implementation of the two KB learning activities (M=57.2, SD=15.32); t (65) =-3.5, p<.001. It is noted that there was also a significant difference in the scores for
Self-regulations before (M=49.4, SD=16.68) and after the implementation of the two KB
learning activities (M=59.9, SD=17.57); t (65) = -3.6, p<.001 in the control group. The
results implied that the students in both experimental and control groups have reflected intheir beliefs about their abilities to generate ideas or ideas related to argumentation and havelearned how to manage their anxieties and emotions that can accompany argumentative essay
writing.
Table 2: The Results of Two Groups of Students with the Paired Samples T-Test
GroupsExperimental Group (n=32)
Control Group (n=34)
Dimensions
M
SD
t
p
M
SD
t
p
Ideation
Pretest 54.8 11.69
47.2 12.88-10.7*** 0.00
-4.7*** 0.00
Posttest 80.1 11.28
56.1 12.48
Argument
Pretest 56.5 12.27
46.8 12.71
Ideation-12.3*** 0.00
-4.0*** 0.00
Posttest 84.6 12.88
57.6 13.78
Convention Pretest 61.7 14.25
54.9 17.65
s
-1.9
0.58
-1.7
0.09
Posttest 67.5 16.43
60.0 13.02
Self-regulati Pretest 63.9 13.82
49.4 16.68
ons
-1.1
0.25
-3.6*** 0.00
Posttest 67.4 16.81
59.9 17.57
Argument
Pretest 57.5 11.59
49.1 16.98
Self-regulati-10.0*** 0.00
-3.5*** 0.00
ons
Posttest 82.0 14.28
57.2 15.32***p<.001
In order to understand the effects of the two KB learning activities on the two groups ofstudents’ perceptions of self-efficacy, a One-way ANCOVA was conducted to determine astatistically significant difference between the control group and experimental group on the

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five dimensions in the self-efficacy of English argumentative essay writing controlling for thepretest. As shown in Table 3, the adjusted means of the posttest were then further analyzed,
excluding the effects of the pretest.
Table 3: Adjusted Means of the Two Groups of Students’ Self-Efficacy of English
Argumentative Essay Writing
Dimensions
Experimental Group
Control Group
Ideation
78.91
58.36
Argument Ideation
82.61
59.55
Conventions
66.28
61.24
Self-regulations
63.58
63.54
Argument
79.50
59.65
self-regulations
Before conducting the One-way ANCOVA, the homogeneity of regression coefficients
within groups was also tested. As shown in Table 4, the p values of the five dimensions weremore remarkable than .05, and there were no significant differences. Thus, the null
hypothesis was accepted. The coefficients of the covariant (the pretest of the five dimensions)and the dependent variables (the posttest of the five dimensions) will not be different about
the independent variant (KB learning activities).
Table 4: The Test Results of the Homogeneity of Regression Coefficients within Groups
Dependent Variables F
df1
df2
p
Ideation
.164
1
64
.687
Argument Ideation
.193
1
64
.169
Conventions
.104
1
64
.748
Self-regulations
.040
1
64
.843
Argument
.097
1
64
.757
self-regulations
Table 5 shows the results of the two groups of students’ analysis of covariance. The results
showed a significant effect of the opportunistic collaboration structure on the overall scores(F=17.611, p=0.000) in English argumentative essay writing self-efficacy after controlling forthe pretest. In addition, there were significant effects of the opportunistic collaboration
structure on Ideation (F=57.528, p<.001); Argumentation Ideation (F=49.503, p<.001); andArgumentation Self-regulation (F=39.859, p<.001) in the ASWES after controlling for thepretest. However, there were no significant effects on Conventions and Self-regulation. It was
revealed that after the two KB learning activities with different structures (experimentalgroup=opportunistic collaboration; control group=fixed small-groups), the experimentalgroup had more confidence to generate ideas and ideas related to argumentation, had more
confidence to manage the anxieties and emotions during their argumentative essay writing
tasks. However, the results also suggested that the two groups had no difference in theconventions (mechanics) or self-regulations after using different knowledge-building learning
structures.

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Table 5: The Results of the Two Groups of Students’ Analysis of Covariance
Dependent
Sum
of df
Mean
F
p
Squares
VariablessquareIdeation
6421.271
6241.27
57.52*** 0.000
Argument Ideation
7599.6317599.63
49.50*** 0.000
Conventions
401.661
401.662.14
0.148
Self-regulations
0.02
1
0.02
0.00
0.993
Argument
5988.7915988.2639.85*** 0.000
self-regulations
Overall
2201.5212201.52
17.61*** 0.000***p<.001
5.

Discussion

5.1 Students’ Overall Changes of Argumentation Self-efficacy Writing
The results derived from the questionnaire in this study were analyzed quantitatively by
adopting a paired samples t-test. As for the ideas generation (ideation and argument ideation)
dimensions, Bruning et al. (2013) have argued that they showed the writers' judgments of
their ideas' availability, quality, and ordering. The findings in this study revealed that after the
students experienced the two KB learning activities, they had more confidence to generate
more ideas or ideas for their argumentative writing. The finding is also consistent with thethree KB principles: Real ideas and authentic problems, improvable ideas, and idea diversity
which were proposed by Scardamalia (2002). Students have more confidence in identifying
their problems, treating their ideas as improvable artifacts, and understanding the ideas
surrounding them, including the opposing ideas. The third dimension in ASEWS is
self-efficacy for writing conventions. Conventions refer to a set of generally accepted
standards for expressing ideas in writing in the target language (Fayol, Almargot, &Berninger, 2012). Conventions provide the structures within which writers direct their ideas
effectively (Bruning et a., 2013). This study showed that overall, students believed in more
confidence in using the writing conventions. Regarding the self-regulation dimensions(self-regulation and argument self-regulation), they reflected the writers' confidence indirecting themselves successfully in the writing tasks (Zimmerman & Bandura, 1994;
Zimmerman & Kitsantas, 2007). As Bruning et al. (2013) have discussed, self-regulation
skills are needed because writing can be difficult and tedious. If writers have betterself-regulation skills, they might have the ability to manage the anxieties and emotions that
accompany the writing. This study also revealed that the students perceived betterself-regulation skills after they experienced the KB learning activities.
5.2 The Effects of Knowledge Building Based Instruction on the Two Groups ofStudents’ Self-Efficacy of English Argumentative Essay Writing
In order to understand the effects of the two KB learning activities on the two groups ofstudents’ perceptions of self-efficacy, a One-way ANCOVA was conducted to determine astatistically significant difference between the control group and experimental group on thefive dimensions in the self-efficacy of English argumentative essay writing controlling for thepretest. The results showed a significant effect of the progressive knowledge building setting
on the overall scores in the self-efficacy of English argumentative essay writing after
controlling for the pretest. The experimental group with the progressive knowledge building

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setting, especially the opportunistic collaboration environment designed in KBLA2, showed
more confidence than the control group with the conventional setting. As Zhang et al. (2009)
proposed, the opportunistic collaboration led to more pervasive, flexible, and greater
knowledge advances. Students in this setting may have more chances to generate ideas. The
major findings in this study also revealed that students in the progressive knowledge building
setting had a higher level of confidence in ideation and argument ideation than students in theconventional setting. It should also be noted that there were no significant effects on
conventions and self-regulation. The experimental and control groups students might notdiffer in their confidence in the lower-level process. This situation deserves more attention
from knowledge building and EFL educators. The finding implies that students believed they
had higher confidence in their argumentative essay writing in several dimensions, but not theconventions dimension. The result may suggest that more research may be needed to help
students improve their confidence when writing argumentative essays.
6.

Conclusion

Argumentative essay writing has been gaining more and more attention. This study is the firstattempt to adopt knowledge-building-based instruction to see if learners have higher writing
self-efficacy. The findings in this study may validate the effects of knowledge-building
pedagogy and its instructions on the higher education argumentative essay writing courses.
The findings may also offer some suggestions to the English educators or researchers.
Although the present study has yielded findings with theoretical and practical implications,its design is not without flaws. First, not everyone is familiar with the knowledge-building
process. The biggest challenge is finding evidence that can be adapted to their arguments.
Second, students’ informal reasoning abilities are not well trained. A more detailed course
design should consider training students’ informal reasoning before conducting the KB-based
instruction. The present study has demonstrated that KB-based instruction benefits students’argumentative essay writing self-efficacy. However, the relationship between theirself-efficacy and essays performance was not discussed. Further research is therefore
warranted in the relationship.

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setting, and self-evaluation. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 19(2), 159-172.
Schunk, D. H. & Zimmerman, B. J. (2007) Influencing children’s self-efficacy andself-regulation of reading and writing through modeling. Reading and Writing
Quarterly, 23, 7-25.
Sharifian, F., & Marlina, R.(2012). English as an international language: An innovative
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as an international language (pp. 140–153). Bristol: Multilingual Matters.
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Wolfe, C. R. (2011). Argumentation across the. Written Communication, 28(2), 193-219.

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Zhang, L. J. (2013). Second language writing as and for second language learning. Journal of
Second Language Writing, 22, 446-447.
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Contact email: tommywang@nycu.edu.tw

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Public Service Announcement In Indonesia and Malaysia: A Semiotic Analysis
Fahrur Rozi, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
Lulu April Farida, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
Stephani Diah Pamelasari, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
Intan Permata Hapsari, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
Hadziq Najmuddin Purwanto, Universitas Negeri Semarang, Indonesia
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Abstract
The purpose of this study was to analyze how public service announcements: social media andnewspapers were applied in Indonesia and Malaysia. The method of this study used aqualitative research approach. Social media and newspapers were analyzed as the objects ofthis study. The researchers used documentation and observation in collecting data and used
Barthes’ theory to find out how the public service announcements were used. The result of thisstudy shows that public service announcements are communicated in Indonesia and Malaysia
have some similarities and differences. They can be seen from languages, contents, colors,models, media, designs, and places of public service announcements. This paper presents ananalysis framework and rarely do any studies defy such attempts critically.
Keywords: Semiotics Analysis; Public Service Announcement; Publishingiafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
The public announcement seems purposeful and beneficial to inform the societies toward thesignificant information. Therefore, the public service announcements are advertisements
published in local newspapers, social media, broadcast on local radio, public facilities,
television, or sent as mailings to announce public comment periods for EPA decisions andmajor project milestones. Public service announcement is not meant to be used to provide
updates on site progress or to inform or educate the public about specific site activities. A
public service announcement has to present a simple, clear message in a conspicuous place(Wang and Lund 2020).
A service of the public announcement which is supported with representative pictures or
captions functioned to bring a serious subject to the attention of the audience; a public-interest
message that is freely shared by the media to enhance public awareness (Leksono et al. 2020).
Furthermore, PSAs (public service announcements) have progressively become a part of ourdaily lives. These messages, aimed at correcting social behavior patterns and bringing public
notice to particular societal ills, may be found almost everywhere (Malenova 2018).
Likely, Studies on public service announcements have been conducted (Jolani, et al., 2017;
Puppin, 2020; Trubyk, 2010: and Weber, 2013). Jolani, et al., (2017), views the semiotics
aspect as an essential aspect of preparing new structures for mass media programming,
including public service announcement. the study examined the semiotics of constructive
elements and factors of public service announcement on a radio channel focusing on health.
Additionally, Puppin (2020) examined environmental public service announcement as an
essential yet underused aspect for environment-related communication in China. The
environmental public service announcement uses an array of culture-related elements asintertextual reference or visual metaphors to promote awareness of wildlife protection.
To be expected of semiotic agreement on publics, Trubyk (2010) and Weber (2013) reported
the design of the campaign and found that the interpretation of both the marginalized at-riskand law-abiding subject position is working within the public service announcements.
Similarly, Matulewska and Wagner (2021) describe semiotics for public signs should be
relatively simple to understand and sufficiently substitute written signs.
The focus of the present study involves recent research relating to the identities and functionsof languages in public service announcements. Signs used in the public area for public service
announcements involve the use of images or icons that communicates meaning to the public,
however, the meaning is not the sign itself. Therefore, This paper first gives a diachronic
overview of Malay and Indonesia policy leading up to the present situation, then analyzes thecollected data in social media and newspapers. Thereafter, the survey is presented, including
examples of Public Service Announcements.
Based on the phenomenon that occurred, this research comprises a semiotic examination of
texts applicable to public service announcements in Malaysia and Indonesia. Based on thisreverberation, the researchers chose to apply the ideas from Barthes' semiotic theory, as astructure for the examination of the signs chosen as samples of public service announcementsthat are utilized in both countries.
To serve the supportive thought and notion, the researcher investigated and cited numerous
references which are relevant and significant to highlight the topic selected.

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Language Policy and Practice in Malaysia and Indonesia
To support nationality, Malaysia's government implemented several language policies topromote the national language for several decades. The government permeated the new system
of schools which was categorized into two types of schools in 1957, they were national andnational-type schools. The national school was employing the Malay language as the medium
of instruction as supported by the government, while the national-type schools used othervernacular languages like English as the instruction medium (David, Dealwis, and Kuang2018). However, in the Indonesian education system, English is not taught as a second language
but is taught as a foreign language. Indonesians have their official language and that is Bahasa
Indonesia or the language of Indonesia. Most Indonesians speak one of more than 700
indigenous languages; That is the reason why Indonesians use English as a foreign language.
Besides, English is only accepted on the surface level such as high-class society but resisted at
the cultural and psychological levels. People who stay in rural areas do not speak English. They
use their mother tongues for communication (Zein et al. 2020).
In accordance with language practice, semiotic in some countries sometimes supports language
qualities established to give information. As academics have worked to provide a more nuanced
understanding of these landscapes, this field has increasingly been referred to as Semiotic
Landscape studies (Goebel, 2020). Purposefully, Advertisements for public services are theproduct of cultural construction involving the representation, creation, and implementation ofideas in society. The government, authorized parties, commercial or non-commercial groups,
or institutions may issue public service advertisements to achieve a social or socioeconomicaim (Agustia and Subratha, 2021).
Language Use in Public Service Announcements
Public service announcements (PSAs) are designed to inform and educate the general public inorder to effect social change where this sign could be easily found in public.
Social Media. Videos, sounds, photographs, articles, and other forms of media are used tomake social networking service adverts as appealing as possible (Agustia and Subratha, 2021).
Social media is widely used, and it is becoming increasingly intertwined with a variety ofsocietal domains (van Dijck and Poell, 2015). Some references are then read; Paek et al (2011);
Maidin et. al (2019); Jerome et al (2021). Maidin et. al (2019) at the first examined the public
perspective of public service announcement by Malaysian government through social media.
Upon this study to find out whether the public are aware announcements made by thegovernment, it was found that people are well informed and aware of social media PSAs
eventhough they do not follow the government’s account.
Newspapers. Newspapers in Public Service Announcement are considered substantial where
the Newspapers serve as a source of news, education, entertainments, communal ambitions,social controls, and language trainings, among other things. The use of language in a
newspaper's news article can be deduced from both shape and content of the text, written
quickly and dynamically in order to attract, impress, and pique reader's interest (Muhammadiahand Hamsiah, 2020). Newspapers have an important role in raising public awareness; Semiotics
is used in newspapers to infer meaning and ideology from the use of signs and symbols (Sattar
et al. 2020). Additionally, The language used for the Public Service Announcement was both
Arabic and English and the topic was regarding forest and natural preservation was reported in
the study under Mliless (2019).

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Barthers’ Semiotic Theory. The study of semiotic or symbol could be interpreted as the study
about signs which semiosis is the study of sign processes, which are any action, behavior, or
process involving signs, where a sign is defined as anything that communicates meaning to thesign's interpreter that is not the sign itself (Muhammadiah and Hamsiah 2020). Consequently,
it concerns how people understand and how they sign and symbols to make meaning(Mohamed et al. 2019). In a semiotic sense, signs take the form of words, images, sounds,
gestures, and objects (Sattar et al. 2020). Besides, Saussure stated that a linguistic sign is not alink between a thing and a name, but between a concept (signified) and a sound pattern(signifier). The model of Saussure’s (1959) sign can be shown in the following:
Figure 1: Saussure’s model of sign (Adopted from Chandler: 2007, p.33)

In concern with linguistic, Roland Gerard Barthes (1915-1980) continued and developed
Saussure’s theory about signs. Moreover, Barthes explored the essence of the sign system that
goes beyond the rules and grammar for organizing the meaning of complex texts, hidden, anddependent on the culture, i.e., denotation and connotation are two main determinations of thistheory. Connotation and denotation are two principal methods of describing the meaning ofwords. This idea is known as the “order of signification”. Barthes’ semiotic theory is as follows:
Table 1: Sign Map of Roland Barthes (Adopted from Ananda: 2019, p.25)
SignifierSignified
Denotative Sign
byConnotative Signified

Connotative Sign
In short, Barthes’ theory explanation is concluded as follows: 1) denotation is the interaction
between signifier and signified in the sign, and between sign and referent (object) in the reality;and 2) Connotation is the interaction that occurs when a sign is related to the feeling or emotionof the reader of their cultural value. Furthermore, a sign is more open in its interpretation of
connotation than denotation.
MethodThe research used a qualitative approach to practically serve the objective data.
Methodologically, this research employed Evaluative research where it belongs to qualitative
research concerned with issues surrounding how well does it work (Ritchie & Lewis, 2003).
As long as the method is procedurally used evaluative approach, this research aims to 1) to
identify the factors of intervention and the effects of taking a subject of the study; 2) to examine
the nature of the groups’ requirement, and 3) to explore a range of organizational aspects ofintervention and the context of intervention. A recommendation is significant to be publicly
served. Darlington & Scott (2002) presented several procedures to write recommendations after
evaluation research: 1) All aspects of evaluation are fair; 2) The possible phenomenon must be

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reported before serving the information; 3) different sources are possibly needed; 4) A good
relationship must be kept; 5) a context-based and realistic are a must for serving therecommendation; 6) setting a limitation is hoped, and 7) the recommendation is easily
understood. The data of the research were from the public service announcements on social
media and newspapers implemented by Malaysia and Indonesia. The techniques of collecting
data were documents and observation. As Creswell (2012: p.223) stated: a valuable source of
information in qualitative data can be documented. Documents consist of public and private
records that qualitative researchers obtain about a site or participants in a study.
Conclusion
Semiotic of Public Service Announcements Used in Indonesia
Some phenomena are discovered to realize the theory of semiotic in certain publicannouncements such as social media and newspapers.
Social MediaSocial media, generally, is claimed as computer-based technology that facilitates the publicwith ideas, thoughts, and information via virtual networks and communities. By design, social
media is internet-based and gives people quick electronic communication of contents. Besides,
the following table represented a sample of 15 announcements published on social media foundby the researchers:
No Signifier(Picture)
1.

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Table 2: Semiotic Analysis of PSA in social media of Indonesia
Types of
Verbal Sign Non-Verbal Signified
Connotative
Announcem
Sign
Analysis(Denotative)ent
Education Language Color: Blue, This is to inform Color: the blue
Information Features:light blue
students from both and light blue
Indonesian andcolor resembles anounphrases,
Picture:foreign students bright and casual
noun,
Someonecurrently studying atmosphereverbs,
presenting in Indonesia
emotive
into a group, regarding the
Picture: Someone
someoneoccasion to sign presenting into alanguagehanding over up for the Baligroup resembles
Sentencea paper, a Democracy
the conference
folderStudents
itself,structure:someone handing
Imperative, organizer
Conference III
Declarative
over a paper
resembles theadmission process,the folder
organizer
resembles therequired
documents

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Based on table 2, it can be seen that numerous announcements posted on social media are put
on platforms popular to Indonesian netizens. The more common the social media platform
used; the more netizen might see the PSAs posted. The PSAs on social media also use verbal
signs on their announcements supported with relevant pictures. The findings showed that bothdenotative and connotative expressions are typically employed.
Newspapers
Newspapers usually contain promotions, products, goods, services, jobs, and/or events madeby producers or initiators which are delivered through media to public. Announcements aredesigned and customized creatively to get people interested in buying and using the products
or services. The same principle goes with PSAs an announcement to get readers’ attention. The
researchers analysed twenty samples of the announcement which were written in thenewspapers; yet, the following table represented some of announcements on newspapers.

No.
1

Table 3: The Semiotic Analysis of Indonesian newspapers
SignifierTypes of
Verbal
Non-Verbal Signified(Picture)
Announcem
Signs
Signs
(Denotativ
ente)
Healthy
Smoking
A. colorfulThisannouncem doesn’t
picture (aannounceent
protect
man withmentagainsthisannounces
Covid-19.
cigarette)that
Smoking is symbolizes smoking
deadly.
how often
routineMore than 8 publicdoesn’tmillionpeopleprotect
people die
consumesomeoneeach year as various
froma result ofcigarettes.
coronaviru
tobacco use.
s dangers
People with B. theunderlying
boldedhealth(yellow)
conditions
informationsuch asis used tohearthighlight
disease,the stressedwhich canpoint ofbeinformation.
exacerbatedby smoking, C. the markare at higher or sign
risk ofcirclesevere(colored
covid-19.
with red)signifies thevitalprohibition

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Connotative
Analysis
A. Thisannouncem
ent has a
purpose to
inform thepublicreaders
especiallyfor those
who aresmoking
where thiscustomdoesn’t givethem a safe
fromCovid19.
B. torepresent
the dangers,
the writer
gave thesymbol red
color
supportedwith thecircle whichmeans thisicon
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D. thelogo/icon
writtenWorld
HealthOrganization (WHO)
represented
the official
company
who isauthorizedtodeterminetheinformation

danger ofprohibition.

An announcement on table three used text and picture without any variation of color on the
background. Besides, PSAs in Indonesia are delivered through some media.
Semiotic of Public Service Announcements Used in Malaysia
Several services which publicly announced to public in Malaysia can be found on social media
and newspapers.
Social MediaThe researchers found several announcements established on social media in Malaysia. Social
media serves communication, community-based input, interaction, content-sharing, andcollaboration-focused websites and applications. Here are some findings related to social media
posts; the sample is a representation:
No.
1

Table 4: The Semiotic Analysis of PSA in Malaysian Social Media
SignifierTypes of
Verbal
Non-Verbal Signified
Connotative(Picture)
Announcem Signs
Signs(Denotative Analysis
ent)
Ministry of Language
Color:
Malaysian
The color
HealthFeatures:
Black andcitizens
selection
Information noun
white;
should take resembles anphrases,
The objects mental
enlighteningnoun,
are sky blue healthsalutation
verbs,and pink on issues
message.
emotivesome parts
seriously,
languageof the object and ask for The man
and thehelp iflooking down
Sentencedeclarativeneeded.
andstructure:
sentence.
resembles
Declarative,
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Imperative

Picture:A personclosing hiseyes whilelooking
down andsome
crayonscratch on
his head.

havingmental healthissues

The researchers analysed 15 samples of announcements sent to some public accounts of social
media where this application commonly produced a significant declaration to be consumed byreaders. The placement of PSA on social media of Malaysia is interesting, clear, and good forpeople. The language used English with some Malaysian spellings.
Newspapers
Newspapers are appropriate or suitable to declare written expression to readers. This functioned
to gain the readers’ attention toward the information highlighted. The following information
represented announcements found on newspapers:
Table 5: The Semiotic Analysis of PSA In Malaysian Newspapers
No.

Signifier(Picture)

1

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Types ofAnnouncem
ent
Weeklyannouncem
ent

Verbal Signs
I, Tan Sri
Dato’ Kam
Woon Wah(NRIC
No.29112910-XXXX)
do hereby
irrevocably,
unconditionally, andirreversibly
declare andstate that I
had
DISOWNEDAND
DISINHERITED my son,Dato’ Sri
Andrew Kam
Tai Yeow(NRIC No.
620202-10-

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Non-Verbal
Signs

Signified(Denotative)Capital Letter Announce
Of The Title
ment‘Announcem about
ent’
someonewhorevealssomething

Connotative
Analysisa. Thisannouncem
ent is about
someonenamed TanSri Dato’
Kam Woon
Wah whoconfess that
he haddisownedanddisinherited
his son andgrandson.
b.
Emphasizin
g the title so
it can be
more eyecatching.

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XXXX) andhis daughter
Hannah Kam
Zhen Yi(NRIC No.
911130-14XXXX)
It is shown that PSAs in Malaysian newspapers are put on newspapers page visibly where thereaders could see it clear. Twenty announcements were analysed in this research.
Similarities and Differences between Semiotics of PSAs in Malaysia and Indonesia
After announcements have been displayed on numerous tables, researchers distinguish publicannouncements from both countries in certain spots.
Social MediaThe similarities of PSAs on social media in Malaysia and Indonesia; the announcements arevery clear, concise, and brief messages. Both PSA posts on Indonesian and Malaysian social
media emphasize how to deliver such a piece of detailed information in the simplest way
possible. While for the differences of PSAs on social media in both countries are on images
and colors. PSA posted on Indonesian social media has a background image with various
cheerful colors while PSA on Malaysian social media sometimes posts creepy atmosphere toraise public awareness regarding their safety. An example of this kind of PSA is those PSA
posted by the Malaysian Police Force.
In addition to the theory used, this report is in line with how the analysis runs such denotativeand connotative that extremely functioned to determine the context of messages. The
announcements published through social media generally inform an entertainment that isdesigned impressively. A periodical publication offering textual information about current
events that are typically typed in black ink on a white or grey backdrop.
Newspapers
it is seen that PSAs in Indonesian newspaper have various colour, using charts, figures, andimage to ensure readers’ understanding and perhaps catching reader’s attention. Indonesia
newspaper announcements use simple language. While, PSAs in Malaysia newspaper areusually using text only without any variation of colour on their background and do not use
some images. Moreover, both countries also use very minimal non-verbal signs. The language
style in both countries’ PSA is quite the same. Photos are present to provide the context ofnews. Large fonts are used for the headline and white background made it easy to read, Public
service announcements made by announcers in any country or a particular area should makepublic or people get the information. Public service announcements posted on social media andnewspapers in Malaysia and Indonesia are already appropriate for societies to receive either
announcement or message.
It could be suggested that this research could, furthermore, be the object of formal sources toacknowledge the study of semiotic for teachers and students. For further researchers, theISSN: 2186-5892

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findings in this study are not fully perfect and need further investigation. Even though, thisstudy can be a reference for other researchers who wish to use semiotic analysis by using
Barthes’ theory. It would be better if other researchers replicate this study by comparing otherlanguages, texts, and cultures of other countries.
Acknowledgements
I offer my deepest gratitude to the many people who extended great help during this research;
to Prof. Dr. Fathur Rokhman, M.Hum, the Rector of Universitas Negeri Semarang, Dr. Suwito
Eko Pramono, M.Pd, The Head of Research and Community Service Institure for financing
this research, Prof. Dr. Azidan Bin Jabar as a research partner from Universiti Putra Malaysia,
and to all others whose names I could not mention for without their collective efforts, thisresearch would not be a success.

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Contact Email: frozi@mail.unnes.ac.id

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Education Resilience in Facing Pandemic Covid-19 (Study Case: Batam City, Indonesia)
Noviyanti Soleman, Khon Kaen University, Thailand
Said Muammar Bayukarizki, Universitas Sulthan Thaha Saifuddin, Indonesia
Afifah Faradila, Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji, Indonesia
Khalil Gibran, Universitas Batam, Indonesia
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Abstract
The pandemic covid-19 in Indonesia had an impact on the education system. The Ministry of
Education has produced the policy regarding the acceleration of coronavirus spread prevention
in form of policy Number 3/2020 and Ministerial Order of 36962/MPK.A/HK/2020 byconducting online learning. The use of technology will be needed to support the policy.
However, many problems have existed in the community, such as internet accessibility,
inadequate facilities and infrastructure, human capacity, and capability in using technology,
limited student interaction, lack of enthusiasm in learning, and other economic factors. The
problem exists because of the process of transition in the learning process. The research aims
to analyze the phase of transformative learning which occurs in Batam city and how it works.
The author uses Mezirow phases of Transformative learning analysis which consists of adisorienting dilemma, a self-examination, a critical assessment, recognition, exploration,planning of a course of action, acquisition of knowledge, provisional trying of roles, thebuilding of competence self-confidence, and a reintegration. A mixed method was conductedwith the method of explanatory design using sequential phase. The primary and secondary data
was used to answer the research question which taken through survey and questionnairetechniques to the sampling. The analysis is using multiple regression for quantitative andqualitative descriptive analysis by model of transformative learning. The results obtained thatthe phase of transformative learning in Batam city still not reach reintegration due to many
obstacles. Meanwhile, there are possibilities to reach the reintegration of the learning process.
Keywords: Digitalization, Education, Pandemic Covid-19, Transformative Learning

iafor
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Introduction
The emergence of the coronavirus in Indonesia since early 2020 has an impact on education.
Various policies from the government Republic of Indonesia issued to adjust the situation andconditions. One of the policies in the field of education is through the Circular of the Ministerof Education and Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia Number 3 of2020 concerning Prevention of Corona Virus Disease (Covid-19) in Education Units andAttachment 36962/MPK.A/HK/2020 regarding online learning and work from home to preventthe spread of Corona Virus Disease (Covid-19). Refer to the circular letter from the Ministryof Education and Culture, Research and Technology, the learning process is changing to beonline learning.
The implementation of online learning policies requires of technology. The development oftechnology that facilitates virtual meetings without distance and time restrictions becomes analternative for learning process during the pandemic. In this case, technology has an importantrole as a medium of interaction to facilitate the transfer of knowledge between teachers andstudents. 1 Some of the social media which can be used for online learning are Google
Classroom, Google Meet, WhatsApp, YouTube, and Zoom. 2 In addition, the presence oftechnology has a good impact on digital transformation in the education sector.3
The use of technology in online learning sometimes found the problems, either for teacher,
student, or parents. That is why those actors need good collaboration.4 Problems experienced
by student, teacher, and parents such as mastering technology, additional work for parents,
communication or interaction, and unlimited working hours for teacher as they have tocommunicate and coordinate with student and parents. 5 The problems are in theimplementation of digital learning, learning models adjusted to the situations, learning
strategies, to the level of accuracy in the selection of learning media.6 Adequate structure andinfrastructure are also needed in online learning, such as uneven internet networks, network
stability, and internet quota price.7
The report shows that many students encountered challenges and obstacles in online teaching
and learning activities.8 During the learning process, the students found lack of interest due to1

Salsabila, U. H., Sari, L. I., Latif, K. H., Lestari, A. P., & Ayuning, A. (2020). Peran Teknologi Dalam
Pembelajaran Di Masa Pandemi Covid-19. Jurnal Al-Mutharahah: Jurnal Penelitian dan Kajian Sosial
Keagamaan, 17(2), 188-198.
2
Pitaloka, A. D. (2020). Pemanfaatan Sarana Prasarana dan Peran Teknologi Informasi sebagai Solusi
Pembelajaran Daring di Masa Pandemi Covid 19. Cetta: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan, 3(3).
3Astini, N. K. (2020). Tantangan Dan Peluang Pemanfaatan Teknologi Informasi Dalam Pembelajaran Online
Masa Covid-19. Cetta: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan, 3(2).
4Mulyadi. (2021). Pembelajaran Daring Bahasa Inggris Pada Siswa SMP: Sebuah Tantangan Pembelajaran.
Journal On Teacher Education, 2(2).
5Purwanto, A., Pramono, R., Asbari, M., Hyun, C. C., Wijayanti, L. M., Putri, R. S., & santoso, P. B. (2020).
Studi Eksploratif Dampak Pandemi COVID-19 Terhadap Proses Pembelajaran Online di Sekolah Dasar.
EduPsyCouns: Journal of Education, Psychology and Counseling, 2(1).
6Arikarani, Y., & Amirudin, M. F. (2021). Pemanfaatan Media dan Teknologi Digital Dalam Mengatasi
Masalah Pembelajaran Dimasa Pandemi. Edification Jurnal, 4(1), 93-116.
7
Surahman, E., Santaria, R., & Setiawan, E. I. (2020). Tantangan Pembelajaran Daring di Indonesia. Kelola:
Journal of Islamic Education Management, 5(2), 89-98.
8
Prijowuntato, S. W., & Wardhani, A. M. (2021). Analisis Kesan, Tantangan, Hambatan, dan Harapan
Pembelajaran Daring di Era Pandemi Covid 19. Jurnal Inovasi Pendidikan Ekonomi, 11(1).

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the feeling of loneliness. 9 Students also complained that during online learning, learning
activities were dominated by assignments rather than material delivery.10 Students' learning
motivation is disrupted due to lack of mastery of technology, difficulty in accessing theinternet, lack of supporting facilities, and a less conducive environment.11
Besides students, the challenge comes from the teacher. During online teaching and learning
activities, teachers are required to innovate for the material delivery as some students have
limited economic conditions and are unable to adjust the facilities needed in online learning.
As for many teachers who are in remote areas or who are much older in age, they find it difficult
to adjust to existing learning, because they have limited ability to operate technology.12
The role of parents is very important to replace the teacher's position in accompanying
children's learning. However, it is not as easy as imagined, many parents complained about
various things. Based on the survey conducted by the Tanoto Foundation regarding Distance
Learning on 332 school principals, 1,368 teachers, 2,218 students, and 1,712 parents, it was
found that 34% of parents of junior high school students admitted that they were tired ofhandling children's abilities and concentration, 24% had difficulty understanding the material.
children, 28% find it difficult to explain children's material.13
Through all the existing problems, it shows that Indonesia still having difficulties in online
learning. Researchers from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences said that after one year of online
learning, Indonesia was still having difficulty adapting to online learning. 14 Therefore, theauthor aims to analyze the transformative learning phase in Batam City Junior High School, as
during online learning Education in Indonesia including Batam City experienced an
unexpected transition, so an analysis based on transformative learning theory is needed to findout what phase it has reached.
Theoretical Framework
Transformative learning is one of the theories about transformation in learning where students
can adapt to existing circumstances. This theory was originally developed by Jack Mezirow.
According to Mezirow, a person's learning process is not applying an understanding that waspreviously believed to be in an ongoing situation. So that he defines transformative learning as"an orientation which states that the way students interpret and reinterpret what is felt by thesenses is to seek meaning and learn".15

9

Yunitasari, R., & Hanifah, U. (2020). Pengaruh Pembelajaran Daring terhadap Minat Belajar Siswa pada Masa
COVID 19. EDUKATIF: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan, 2(3).
10Sudewo, B., Gojali, M., & Raditya, A. (2021). Dampak Kegiatan Pembelajaran dan Penugasan Siswa Saat
Pembelajaran Daring. Lentera: Jurnal Pendidikan, 16(1).
11Juliya, M., & Herlambang, Y. T. (2021). Analisis Problematika Pembelajaran Daring dan Pengaruhnya
terhadap Motivasi Belajar Siswa. GENTA MULIA: Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan, 12(1).
12Hakim, M. F. (2021). Peran Guru dan Orang Tua: Tantangan dan Solusi dalam Pembelajaran Daring pada
Masa Pandemic COVID-19. Riwayat: Educational Journal of History and Humanities, 23-32.
13
KOMPAS. (2020, November 15). Hasil Survei: Berikut 3 Masalah Orangtua Dampingi Anak BDR. Retrieved
from KOMPAS.com: https://edukasi.kompas.com/read/2020/11/15/143509971/hasil-survei-berikut-3-masalahorangtua-dampingi-anak-bdr?page=all
14
Santoso, Y. I. (2021, July 30). Peneliti LIPI sebut pembelajaran daring belum berjalan maksimal, ini
alasannya. Retrieved from Kontan: https://lifestyle.kontan.co.id/news/peneliti-lipi-sebut-pembelajaran-daringbelum-berjalan-maksimal-ini-alasannya-1
15
Mezirow, J. (2018). Transformative Learning Theory. In Contemporary Theories of Learning (2nd Editioned., p. 15). Routledge.

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Simply in the learning process, the student is not only looking for current situation, but also
reflect the previous situation. Throughout the evaluating previous understandings and changing
their views by the process of critical reflection. The student will be able to criticize their past
understanding in the present, so that they can understand themselves and learn for the better.
The key to transformative learning theory is understanding past perspectives, the ability to read
structures, understand and accept new perspectives. In transformative learning theory there are
10 phases that students follow in changing their understanding and views after getting some
information, including a disorienting dilemma; a self-examination; a critical assessment;
recognition; exploration; planning of a course of action; acquisition of knowledge; provisional
trying of roles; building of competence self-confidence; a reintegration.16

A
reintegrationA
disorienting
dilemmaA selfexamination

Building ofcompetence self
confidence

A criticalassessment

Provisional
trying of roles

Recognition

Acquisition ofknowledge

Planning ofa course ofactionExploration

Figure 1. Phase of Transformative Learning Theory
Based on the diagram above, the stages of transformative learning have 10 phases:
A Disorienting Dilemma
According to the Cambridge dictionary, dilemma is a difficult situation for someone to choose
between two different things. The phase in which the learner finds that what is currently foundis different from his experience so that there is a dilemma in himself to consider what he found.
-A Self-Examination

Merriam Webster dictionary refers self-examination as a condition for someone to do
introspection. students begin to self-examine their previous understandings and whenassociated with newly perceived dilemmas.

16

ibid

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A Critical Assessment

A critical stage where students review comprehensively and accept that previous
understandings are not appropriate and are open to receiving new information.
-

Recognition

The students realize that they are not alone in the process of change, and everyone experiences
the same thing.
-

Exploration

In the process of transformative learning, students can find out online learning that suits theirskills.
Planning of A Course of Action
Once students understand how beliefs about transformative, offline learning into online
learning, they begin to plan action. The plan is to prepare the type of learning needed in online
learning.
-

Acquisition of Knowledge

This is where the real learning takes place as learners carry out their plans further intransformative learning. They do exploration, act in preparing online learning.
-

Provisional Trying of Roles

Students are able to make their own decisions and have confidence in themselves. Whilefollowing the transformative learning phase, students want to move forward and try tounderstand all the changes that are taking place in online learning.
-

Building of Competence Self-Confidence

Self-confidence means trusting in your own judgment, capacities, and abilities. At this stage,
students build confidence in the newly discovered information.
-

A Reintegration

This phase allows the learner for their successful integration into life based on a newperspective (transformative offline learning to online learning). Students are fully prepared ifthey continue to do new online learning in the future.
Research Method
The study uses a mixed method, namely quantitative and qualitative. Mixed method has theability to capture and explain the phenomenon of the complexity of the teaching and learning
process. Quantitatively, the effect of a learning method will be measured and qualitatively will

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explore how students perceive learning strategies, influencing factors, and changes in students'
thinking.17
The research uses explanatory design using sequential phases. Where researchers use
quantitative methods to measure attributes, then continue qualitative methods to deepen
findings. 18 Quantitative methods were used in student surveys, while qualitative methods wereused in teacher and parent interviews. primary data is taken through survey techniques andstructured interviews, while secondary data is taken from reports, journals, news, and books
related to the research topic. Quantitative data analysis using the SPSS for iOS application withmultiple linear regression methods and descriptive test. The variables tested were students'
understanding of the material, mastery of technology, interest, and level of self-confidence ofstudents as the independent variable and e-learning as the dependent variable.
A total of 110 students, 33 parents, and 10 teachers were selected by simple random samplingin all junior high schools in Batam. The number of junior high school students in Batam Cityis 48,067 and the number of teachers is 2,787. So that the research results can be generalized,
the number of students who are used as samples is representative whose size is determinedbased on the Slovin formula. The following is the determination of the student sample size
using the Slovin formula:𝑁𝑛=
1 + 𝑁 (𝑒)*48.067𝑛=
1 + 48.067 (0.1)*
n = 99.79 à rounded to 100
n : sample size
N : populatione : error tolerance
10% for big population
Therefore, the sample taken by the researcher is 110 because it has been added up with a biasof 10%.
Result
The multiple linear regression on variables of student’s understanding, mastery of technology,
student’s interest, and student’s level of confidence shows significant result towards variableof e-learning. The significance value was 0.000 or less than 0.05, so it can be concluded thatsimultaneously the variables of student’s understanding, mastery of technology, student’s
interest, and student’s level of confidence affect the of e-learning process with a significancelevel of 95%. Here are the results of the Multiple Linear Regression test:
FvalueFtableSig.
Regression 6.202
2.46
0,000
df1 = k – 1= 5 – 1 = 4
df2 = n – k = 110 – 5 = 105
Table 1. the Results of the Multiple Linear Regression Test
17

Ponce, O. A., & Maldonado, N. P. (2015). Mixed Methods Research in Education: Capturing the Complexityof the Profession. International Journal of Educational Excellence, 111-135.
18
Ibid

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The significant influence shows the transformation of learning proses in the junior high school
Batam City. Therefore, further analysis is needed to find out in depth about the transformation
phase of learning that occurs in junior high schools in Batam City. Based on Mezirow's theoryof transformative learning, there are 10 phases in the transformation of learning as follows:-

A Disorienting dilemma

The phase where the student finds that what is currently found is different from theirexperience, so there is a dilemma to be consider. The presence of the Covid-19 pandemic in
early 2020 makes the Ministry of Education and Culture, Research and Technology Republicof Indonesia have to take quick steps in reducing the spread of the coronavirus by issuing asocial restriction policy through online learning. The unexpected change caused shock
experience for students, teacher, and parents.
Based on the survey results, as many as 57.6% of students agreed that they experienced shockat the beginning of e-learning during the pandemic. It is supported by the results of teacher
interviews who admit that the dilemma occurs because the process of teaching and learning
activities completely has changed. So that teachers experience difficulties in supervising
students, less study time, changes in children's attitudes who become less disciplined, lack ofstudent interest, digital literacy for teachers and students, and the adjustment process.
The results of interviews with parents of students found that 58.3% did not agree with thedilemma when starting online learning. The contributing factor is that the involvement of
parents in teaching and learning activities takes place indirectly, besides that the technologicalfactor in the case of parents of junior high school students in Batam is not too affected. The
digital literacy of parents of junior high school students in Batam City is not bad compared toother areas as digital literacy is important for parents in facing the risks of online learning.19-

A self-examination

After experiencing the dilemma of changing learning methods, the student will enter the stageof self-examination for their previous understanding. Thus, they will easily determine whether
to accept the presence method or reject it for their own reasons. Usually, students will begin tounderstand the current situation and reflect on themselves with the existing situation.
As many as 87.3% of junior high school students in Batam City admitted that they understand
why online learning is needed in the midst of pandemic. It is shows that junior high school
students in Batam City clearly know the dangers of the Covid-19 pandemic for health. Parents
and teachers also agree to the implementation of online learning because the need for educationis very important for children, on the other hand the pandemic is hard to stop. So, the policy tocontinue to do learning with a qualified method is very much needed.
However, teachers and parents do not denial that the problems arise in the midst of online
learning. The results of the interviews show one of the main problems, namely the student's
understanding was reduced. The reason is because there are many challenges exists, decrease
student involvement, and disruption of student learning opportunities.20
19

Purnama, S., Ulfah, M., Machalia, I., Wibowo, A., & Narmaditya, B. S. (2021). Does digital literacy
influence students’ online risk? Evidence from Covid-19. Heliyon, 7(6).
20Hill, K., & Fitzgerald, R. (2020). Student Perspectives on the Impact of COVID-19 on Learning. AISHE-J,
12(2).

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A critical assessment

The critical stage which the students review comprehensively and accepts that previous
understandings were inaccurate, they are open to accept new method. In the case of online
learning in Batam City, it focuses on how students understand the dangers of face-to-facelearning in the midst of a pandemic. As the possibility of transmission of the covid-19 virus
becomes higher if face-to-face learning is carried out. The following graph is the survey resultof junior high school students in Batam City regarding the understanding of the dangers offace-to-face learning.

Don’t
Know
33%
Agree
54%
Disagree13%

Figure 2. Survey on the Dangers of Covid-19
The diagram shows that 53.7% students agree if face-to-face learning is dangerous to be carriedout during the pandemic. The same thing also happened to the results of teacher interviews
who preferred online learning rather than face-to-face learning. The opposite analysis is shownby the large percentage of students' answers that do not know compared to disagree. It is showsthat there are doubts and doubts about learning methods that are in accordance with the
COVID-19 pandemic situation.
The parents had doubts in choosing online learning over face-to-face learning. The reason is
because of the learning effectiveness, besides other solutions such as vaccines and theimplementation of health protocols are considered solutions for face-to-face learning. A similar
study was also experienced by Sumini, which found that parents have an important role inonline learning and have an effect on student learning outcomes, unfortunately student learning
outcomes are still below average because the role of parents which differ with role of teachers
as the learning process before pandemic.21-

Recognition

The government implements online learning based on the Circular of the Minister of Education
and Culture, Research and Technology Republic of Indonesia Number 3 of 2020 concerning
Prevention of Corona Virus Disease (Covid-19) in Education Units and Appendix
36962/MPK.A/HK/2020 which recommends that educational institutions apply online
learning. This circular applies to all education units in Indonesia, so it can be said that almost
21

Sumini. (2020). Pengaruh Peran Orang Tua dan Pembelajaran Daring Terhadap Hasil Belajar Siswa Pada
Masa Pandemi Covid-19. Cetta: Jurnal Ilmu Pendidikan, 3(3).

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all schools apply online learning. In such cases, students will enter the recognition stage or
realize that the process of change experienced is also experienced by others.
However, the survey results 53.6% of students admitted that they did not know if online
learning was also carried out in other schools. The reverse statement was made by parents andteachers, almost all of them admitted that they understood and were aware of the online
learning policy by the Ministry of Education and Culture, Research and Technology. It showsthat students do not have an interest in knowing more about the ongoing situation. But they
still try to adjust to the situation without take part in dealing with what other schools areexperiencing.
-

Exploration

In the transformative learning process, students can find out online learning suitable to theirskills. Increasingly, students are exploring to find out more about newfound learning, as online
learning. At this stage, students will find new things that have never been found before.
The case of online learning at the junior high school level in Batam City, 92.7% of students
agreed that after online learning they were able to operate online learning media, 86.4%
admitted that they had mastered the features of online learning, although some of them stillneeded parental help. In helping students' learning process, parents strive to provide facilities,
as well as improve digital literacy to accompany their children. Online learning also helps
parents to increase emotional relationship with the student also monitoring students’development, although it is not entirely possible for parents who have busy schedules or workoutside the home.22
Exploration has not been done by students, but also teachers and parents. Not only can parents
accompany their children, but their digital literacy will also increase. Meanwhile, teachers havea positive impact on mastering technology in learning which may have been difficult before.
A number of teachers admit that the development of science and technology is much better
than face-to-face learning.
-

Planning of a course of action

In the transformation stage, students build trust, confidence and understanding about the online
learning. Thus, they will tend to plan the future steps by including their acceptance of the online
learning. If it turns out to be difficult to adapt, students will prefer to stick with the previous
learning method.
The survey results show that 25% of junior high school students say they don't really mind thetrend both online and face-to-face. Meanwhile, 34.5% are more likely to choose face-to-facelearning than online, with the main reason is concerns over the Covid-19 pandemic. If thecovid-19 pandemic is no longer exist, the students will prefer face-to-face learning rather than
online.
Similar results were also shown from parent and teacher interviews. 95% of parents tend tochoose face-to-face learning compared to online because of the effectiveness, students
22

Susanti, L., Maula, L. H., & Pridana, R. E. (2020). Peran Orang Tua Terhadap Pembelajaran Dalam Jaringan(daring) Pada Masa Pandemi Covid-19. Jurnal Persada: Jurnal Pendidikan Guru Sekolah Dasar, 3(3).

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understanding, interaction between teachers and students which not hampered, children's
psychomotor development is better, students' enthusiasm for learning is increased, learning
focus and absorption of knowledge is no longer hampered. Although the teachers said that there
was a positive impact from online learning, but they were more concerned with understanding
students in the absorption of knowledge and the effectiveness of learning as our country's goal
is to educate the nation's life. Research on the study of online learning in junior high schoolsfound that there are still a number of solutions needed for teachers and students as actors inteaching and learning activities so that later they can do online learning without problems.23-

Acquisition of knowledge

Once students understand about the transformative of face-to-face learning into online learning,they begin to plan actions and find out more about the knowledge and capabilities of the newlearning method. This stage will be carried out if students feel they need the ability andknowledge to be used in the future. In the case of online learning during the Covid-19
pandemic, can be interpreted that student are starting to have more interest in knowing andpracticing online learning methods even though they are outside the pandemic.
50% of students admitted that they had an interest in learning more about online learning, as
well as teachers and parents who were curious to learn more about online learning. This is dueto the technology mastery factor which became much better after the online learning process.
-Provisional trying of roles

While the transformative learning phase, students want to move forward and try to understandall the changes that are taking place in online learning. Various knowledge that has beenobtained, will try to be applied to their life. In terms of online learning in the covid-19
pandemic, students will show how skilled they are in using online learning media. As many as
75% of students admit that they already have the ability to operate online learning media
independently and have understood online learning procedures and 6% admit they have notbeen able to, the rest are still unsure or sometimes they are not. From these results, it can besaid that junior high school students in Batam City on average have the ability to use adequate
technology.
Interviews with parents also showed that the students were now able to use online learning
media and some of them had above average digital usage skills. The same thing is also
experienced by teachers who now have the ability to operate online learning media much better.
-

Building of competence self confidence

At this stage students build confidence and use the newly learning method. Although the
majority of students admitted that they had adequate technology use skills, only 58% felt
confident in continuing to use it. Likewise, teachers who already have adequate skills in
operating learning media, but only some teachers feel confident to use them. Some of them still
feel that communication, networking and learning effectiveness problems are still hampered.

23

Gisella, I., & Thesalonika. (2021). Kajian Pembelajaran Online Berbasis Zoom di Sekolah Menengah Pertama
Pada Masa Pandemi Covid-19. Seminar Nasional Pendidikan Program Pascasarjana Universitas PGRI
Palembang. Palembang: Universitas PGRI Palembang.

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A reintegration

The phase allows students for their successful integration into life based on a new perspective(transformative face-to-face learning to online learning). Students are fully prepared if they
continue to do online learning in the future even though the pandemic has ended. Reintegration
is a sign that the learning method has undergone a transformation to a newer direction.
With all the capabilities they have, as many as 40% student admit that they do not agree if
online learning is still carried out in the future. Meanwhile, 30% admitted that they were still
unsure about their choice and 34% agreed to use online learning media completely. The parents
also all chose to use the old method of face-to-face as well as most of the teachers. This refers
to the readiness that is still needed if online learning is to be used for a long period of time.
Transformative Learning Theory Analysis
The process of transformative learning from face-to-face to be online learning using online
media has been passed through various phases but not succeeded yet in achieving reintegration.
In the early stages, or a disorienting dilemma, it was proven that teachers, student, and parents
experienced shock at the beginning when the online learning policy was implemented. The
second phase is self-examination, student, teacher, and parents understand that during apandemic, learning is needed in accordance with pandemic conditions, namely online learningthat does not harm many parties. The third phase or critical assessment shows that students,
teacher, and parents understand that online learning is a solution during a pandemic which very
dangerous. The fourth or recognition phase shows that online learning is a Ministerial policy
which all educational institutions must comply with. The fifth stage is exploration wherestudents, teachers and parents show their efforts to find out more about online learning such as
using learning media, using browsers, and others.
The sixth stage showed the results that students, teachers and parents chose not to prepare
further plans regarding online learning. However, the next stage process, namely theacquisition of knowledge, has been successfully passed by teachers, students, and parents
which can be seen in the digital mastery ability which has increased to be much better and 50%
of students showed interest in exploring online learning. The next phase can be carried out wellby students, teachers, and parents because of the habit that gives 75% of students the ability to
be independent in operating online learning media and have understood online learning
procedures. Even though they have been able to use online learning media, parents, teachers,
and students still lack the confidence to apply new learning. The last stage clearly shows that
there is no reintegration for now.
Conclusion
Based on the results of the research above, it can be concluded that:
The learning process in junior high school of Batam City shows a transformation. It isevidenced by the results of multiple linear regression tests which show a significant impact
from students' understanding, mastery of technology, student’s interest, and level of confidence
towards e-learning learning.
In the sixth stage, namely planning of a course of action, it is clear that students, parents,
and teachers choose not to plan further online learning actions. These results indicate that there
is a tendence to persist with the old method. The new learning method can be applied properly.

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Based on transformative learning theory analysis, it can be seen that junior high school
in Batam City has not yet entered the reintegration stage but is stuck on planning of action.
Both parents, teachers and students chose not to plan further about new learning methods
during this pandemic. so that the reintegration process is hampered.
Acknowledgement
The research was supported by Vice Mayor of Batam City Amsakar Achmad, S.Sos., M.Si,
Education Department of Batam City, and funded by Putra Siregar PsStore and Future
Education Batam.

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References
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Pengaruhnya terhadap Motivasi Belajar Siswa. GENTA MULIA: Jurnal Ilmiah
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Mezirow, J. (2018). Transformative Learning Theory. In Contemporary Theories of Learning(2nd Edition ed., p. 15). Routledge.
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Pitaloka, A. D. (2020). Pemanfaatan Sarana Prasarana dan Peran Teknologi Informasi
sebagai Solusi Pembelajaran Daring di Masa Pandemi Covid 19. Cetta: Jurnal Ilmu
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Ponce, O. A., & Maldonado, N. P. (2015). Mixed Methods Research in Education: Capturing
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Purwanto, A., Pramono, R., Asbari, M., Hyun, C. C., Wijayanti, L. M., Putri, R. S., &santoso, P. B. (2020). Studi Eksploratif Dampak Pandemi COVID-19 Terhadap
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said.m@rmutsvmail.com
fifaradila@gmail.com
ibamkg@gmail.com

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Disability-Specific Measures and Roles of Disabled People’s Organizations in Supporting
Persons with Disabilities and Families during COVID-19 Pandemic
Arunee Limmanee, Thammasat University, Thailand
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Abstract
This qualitative study aimed to analyze disability-specific measures and the roles of Disabled
People’s Organizations (DPOs) in supporting persons with disabilities and families. The
subjects selected by means of purposive technique which consisted of 42 members of 7 DPOs
and were divided into 3 groups of 14. The data were collected by focus group discussion toreach saturation. The data were analyzed by means of content analysis. Finding revealed that
supporting measures provided for people in general could not meet the needs of persons withdisabilities. For example, the Community Isolation (CI) center is not accessible for persons
with disabilities. Moreover, persons with certain types of disabilities need to stay with family
members or caregivers but their families or caregivers are not allowed to stay at CI centers ifthey not infected by COVID-19. To solve this problem, DPOs that represent persons with eachtype of disabilities, with cooperation of the hospitals and their network organizations, set up
CI centers to support their own members. The services at CI centers included freeaccommodation, foods, and medical care. With the advocacy of DPOs, the government
launched disability-specific measures. Then DPOs monitor and evaluate the measures to ensurethat they can meet the needs of persons with disabilities and families. They also givesuggestions to the government concerning the revision and implementation of disabilityspecific measures and policies related to COVID-19.
Keywords: COVID-19, Persons with Disabilities, Disabled People’s Organizations, Measures,
Policies

iafor
The International Academic Forumwww.iafor.org

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Introduction
The World Health Organization (2020) declared that Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
was a pandemic. Up till now, the Pandemic has spread all over the world, affecting lives of
millions of people including vulnerable groups such as children, persons with disabilities, theelderly and those living under poverty line. Persons with disabilities are facing more challenges
in dealing with the situation due to their limitations. For example, persons with mobility
disabilities cannot avoid touching the seat when they try to sit. Wheelchair users cannot wash
their hands because they cannot get close to the sinks, or the sinks are too high. For persons
with visual disabilities, it is difficult for them to avoid touching handrails when they walk up
or downstairs. When they are guided by sighted people, they have to hold on to the guide’s
elbow, making it difficult to avoid physical contact (WHO, 2020). Persons with disabilities
living in rural areas even face more challenges as they already have limited access to healthcare services. They, therefore, have more difficulties to access preventive care and treatment
during COVID-19 Pandemic. Some of them are not vaccinated because they cannot go tohealth care units that provide vaccination. Moreover, some support systems are not accessible
for persons with disabilities. For example, the Community Isolation (CI) supports those whoare infected by COVID-19. CI Centers provide free meals, medication and accommodation for
COVID-19 infected persons. However, these places are not accessible for persons withdisabilities. In later stages of the Pandemic, the government provided one CI Center for persons
with disabilities who are infected by the Pandemic at Sirindhorn Science Home. But it isobviously insufficient for more than 2 million persons with disabilities in the country. Besides,
persons with different types of disabilities need different kinds of support. These factors cause
more challenges to persons with disabilities and their families than those without disabilities.
As Thai citizens, persons with disabilities and their families are eligible for the measuresprovided by the government in response to COVID-19. The example of the measures such as
reduction of required contributions to the Social Security Fund (SSF) for employers andemployees, reduction of electricity and water bills, income compensation of 5,000 baht permonth for three months for workers not covered by SSF, emergency loan of 10,000 baht perperson at 0.1% monthly interest, Lowering the interest rate of state-owned pawnshops of
0.125% a month for two years.
Nevertheless, not all of these measures can meet the needs of persons with disabilities as theyneed more comprehensive measures that can respond to the needs of persons with all types of
disabilities. Therefore, the disabled people’s organizations (DPOs) play an important role in
the advocacy for persons with disabilities. The Disability Thailand is an umbrella organization
which consists of 7 representative organizations of persons with 7 types of disabilities i.e.,
mobility, visual, hearing, learning, psychosocial, intellectual disability, and autism. It
represents persons with all types of disabilities. So it initiated specific relief measures for
persons with each type of disabilities. It organized meetings with the associations of persons
with all types of disabilities to collect the challenges that persons with disabilities and families
face due to COVID-19. Then it had dialogue with the authority in charge, Department of the
Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, concerning the needs of persons with disabilities
and families. It also submitted an official letter suggesting the measures to be provided by thegovernment to relieve the challenges that persons with disabilities face during the Pandemic.
Objectives of the Study and Methodology
This qualitative study aimed to analyze disability-specific measures and the roles of DPOs in
supporting persons with disabilities and families. The subjects consisted of 42 members of 7

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DPOs which were representatives of persons with 7 types of disabilities as categorized by the
Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Act. They are either persons with disabilities orparents/caregivers (in case of persons with intellectual disabilities and autism). The data werecollected by Focus Group Discussion with 42 members which were divided into 3 groups of
14. The data were analyzed by means of content analysis.
Result of the Study
The study revealed that even though Thai persons with disabilities are eligible for the relief
measures provided by the government, these measures do not always meet their needs. Official
and unofficial complaints are submitted through DPOs which are their representative
organizations. Some DPOs such as the Association of Persons with Physical Disabilities inThailand has local offices at the provincial and district levels where members are taken care ofby the representatives who are also persons with disabilities selected by the members in thatprovince or district. Some persons with disabilities do not know what services are available forthem and their families during COVID-19. So the disability representatives at local branches
provide information for their members and inform them about their rights and then report to
the Executive Committee that acts as an advocate for its members. All 7 representative
organizations of persons with disabilities, together with Disability Thailand, collected allcomplaints and suggestions from their members and submitted an official letter to the
Department of the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities, which is the authority in charge.
The content of the Letter is as follows:1.
The government must ensure that persons with disabilities and families or caregivers
get vaccinated.
2.
To guarantee that the emergency loan of 10,000 baht can reach all persons withdisabilities in need. In order to do so, unnecessary step(s) should be waived. For example, thehome visits should be cancelled because during the Pandemic, travelling is limited or evenprohibited in some areas.
3.
The disability allowance from 800 to 1,000 baht must be available for all persons withdisabilities regardless of ages or other conditions. All complicated unnecessary regulations
must be revised.
4.
The “Half-Half” Project should be accessible to persons with disabilities as well. In
order to ensure that 2 million of persons with disabilities can access the Project, there shouldbe special Application for them so that they do not have to struggle because registering for the“Half-Half” Project is complicated and time-consuming. Besides, it is troublesome for those
who do not have strong internet signal. Having separate Application for them can reduce thisissue.
5.
For “Rao Chana” (We win) Project, the emergency allowance of 7,000 is to be given
to those who are eligible according to the regulations. However, there are still many persons
with disabilities who do not get the allowance even though they are qualified because theycannot access the Application on smartphones. So there must be an option for them to get theallowance in cash.
6.
The government should work closely with DPOs. It should set up committee/working
groups which consists of members from DPOs, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), andstakeholders to launch and implement relief measures.
7.
Promote employment of persons with disabilities in the government sectors. The
employment quota for government bodies should be 50:1, not 100:1 as it currently is.
8.
There should be programs to upskill and reskill to prepare persons with disabilities for
new jobs according to the “New Normal” way of life.

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9.
The government should work with the local authorities and Disability Service Centers
to ensure that all persons with disabilities in need can receive the emergency grant of 2,000
baht allocated from the Fund for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities.
Aside from the existing relief measures, the additional measures proposed by Disability
Thailand have been launched but some are still pending. During the Focus Group Discussions(FGD), representatives from DPOs gave comments and suggestions to the disability-specificmeasures that have been launched by the government as follows:1.
An emergency grant of 1,000 baht. Members of FGD mentioned that the amount of
the grant is too small compared with the 5,000-baht grant provided for people in general.
Although some may say persons with disabilities are also entitled for this 5,000-baht grant, in
reality not so many of them can access this grant. That is why DPOs recommend that there be
another channel for them to receive an emergency grant. However, the 1,000-baht grant is notallocated from the government budget. It is from the Fund for Empowerment of Persons with
Disabilities which is derived from employers that do not hire persons with disabilities
according to Article 33 and 34 of Persons with Disabilities Empowerment Act which states
that: Article 33 Employers, entrepreneurs and government agencies shall employ persons withdisabilities to work in the positions suitable for them in proper proportions to the entire numberof the employees in their work places in the ratio of 100:1. Article 34 Employers orentrepreneurs who do not employ persons with disabilities at the proper proportions asmentioned in Article 33 shall send money to the Fund for Empowerment of Persons with
Disabilities. The Fund is administered by the Department of Empowerment of Persons with
Disabilities, with the objective to support persons with disabilities who are self-employed asinterest-free loans and to support programs and activities for employment promotion such as
vocational training programs. However, the DPOs decided to allocate part of this Fund for the
emergency grant because, if they wait for the government budget, it cannot promptly respondto the needs of persons with disabilities as it takes time for bureaucratic process. Due to theexpense for the emergency grant, the amount of the Fund is getting smaller, resulting in lessbudget for vocational and employment promotion programs for persons with disabilities. So
they suggested that the government allocate enough budget as an emergency grant for all
persons with disabilities in a timely manner.
2.
Postponement of Disability Loan payback. Individuals with disabilities can makeloan for self-employment in the maximum amount of 60,000 baht without interest and have to
pay back within 5 years. For those who want to make loans with higher amount, it will beconsidered case by case. However, the loan shall not exceed 120,000 baht. As for group loan,
the maximum amount is 1,000,000 baht. The government authority in charge, withconsideration of the difficulties that persons with disabilities face during COVID-19, offersthat they do not have to pay back the loan for 12 months. But according to the opinions of
persons with disabilities and families/caregivers, the postponement does not help because thetime of installments is not extended. Even though they do not have to pay back the loan for 12months, they have to pay back the remaining amount within the remaining years, which resultsin higher installments in later years. This can be more difficult for them in the future. Whatthey recommended was that, aside from the 12 month-postponement, the maximum payback
time should be extended from 5 years to 6 years.
3.
Emergency loan of 10,000 baht. Aside from loan for self-employment, persons withdisabilities or family members/caregivers can make an interest-free loan at the maximum
amount of 10,000 baht. They can pay back within 5 years and can start paying back from theISSN: 2186-5892

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second year. The difference between this emergency loan and regular self-employment loan isthat the emergency loan does not require guarantor and also requires no home visit for those
who already make loan for self-employment. Persons with disabilities said that the “noguarantor” policy is helpful for them because finding a guarantor is always a challenge. But
they think the home visits should also be waived because during the Pandemic, the travel isrestricted. So home visits have to be postponed. This can delay the approval of the loan andpersons with disabilities may have to wait. So there should be no home visits to shorten theprocess and make it more accessible to those in need.
4.
Increase of disability allowance from 800 baht to 1,000 baht. In Thailand, persons
with disabilities who carry disability I.D. cards are eligible for monthly disability allowance inthe amount of 800 baht. However, the disability allowance is not automatically given to all thatcarry disability I.D. cards. They have to submit the request and go through a process in orderto get it. So there are some persons with disabilities who do not receive this allowance because
they did not submit the request. DPOs have been encouraging the government to increase theamount of the disability allowance but the proposal has been postponed for years. When the
Pandemic occurred, DPOs think it is a good opportunity to propose to the government again.
Finally, the government agreed to increase the disability allowance from 800 baht to 1,000 baht
per month. However, the increased amount is not given to all persons with disabilities. The
government made complicated rules of eligibility. Only those under 18 who carry disability
I.D. cards shall receive the increased amount automatically. For those who are over 18, theyneed to have the following qualifications: having disability I.D. cards; currently receiving
disability allowance; and having social welfare cards. This is difficult for many persons withdisabilities because in order to get social welfare cards, they need to apply through thegovernment Application which is available on mobile phones or computers only. In reality, notall persons with disabilities have mobile phones or computers. Even though they do, some find
it difficult because they are not good at technology especially those with old ages. So DPOs
still work with the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities to make theincreased amount of disability allowance available for all persons with disabilities. “We justhalf succeeded. We can fight for our friends to get more allowances but it is still not available
for all. Not all of us can get it” An FGD member from the Association of Persons with
Disabilities in Thailand said.
5.
Vaccine Quota for persons with disabilities. At the early stage of COVID-19
Pandemic, vaccines were scarce. So the majority of persons with disabilities were notvaccinated. Realizing that persons with disabilities, due to their health conditions, are more
vulnerable to get infected and might be seriously sick if they get infected, DPOs consulted withthe government through the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities,
Ministry of Public Health and other related Ministries and finally the government allocatedvaccines especially for persons with disabilities and families or caregivers on the condition thatone person with disabilities can get one dose for him/herself and another one for a family
member or caregiver. In addition to persons with disabilities and families or caregivers, thequota was also given to those who work with persons with disabilities including government
officials. Some people in the FGD mentioned that too many people from the government
received the vaccines from this special quota. “Too many government officials got the shots.
They should give priority to persons with disabilities and families. They (the government
officials) have more opportunities to get vaccines than us”, said a representative from the
Association of Persons with Disabilities in Thailand. There was the 2nd phase of vaccine quota
for persons with disabilities. In this phase, families and caregivers were not eligible. “Thisdoesn’t make sense. I have to take care of my son who have intellectual disability. If I’m

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infected, then he will be infected too, of course.” A mother who has a son with intellectual
disability said. However, the problem of vaccine availability is getting less serious as there aremany more doses coming. Now it is much easier to get COVID-19 vaccines.
6.
Community Isolation (CI) centers for persons with disabilities. At the early stageof the Pandemic, there were no CI centers for persons with disabilities, making it very difficult
for those who were infected. DPOs then took an initiative role to have CI centers for persons
with disabilities. The government agreed with this proposal and set up a CI center for persons
with disabilities. However, one center was not enough. Besides, this center also accepted
persons without disabilities who were infected, making it crowded and inconvenient for
persons with disabilities. The facilities of the center are limited to persons with mobility
disabilities only. There were no Braille and other facilities for persons with visual disabilities
and no sign language interpreters for persons with hearing disabilities. “After getting infectedby COVID-19, I was sent to that center which was located in the university complex. There
were no facilities for blind people and the staff did not understand how to support us. I wastold to do private things like urinating on bed (in the bowls) even though I could walk. I told
them I could go to toilet by myself. What I needed was just somebody to guide me to the toilet.
But they didn’t listen to me. They insisted that I had to do everything in bed because I was
sick.” A woman with visual disability shared her experience during the discussion. Moreover,family members and caregivers were not allowed to stay at the center if they were not infected.
“It’s impossible for children with autism or intellectual disabilities to stay away from parents.
How can they stay in the center alone?” A parent who has a child with autism said. It is also
impossible for persons with severe disabilities who need 24-hour care to stay alone at thecenter. “I need 24-hour care. I can’t live without my PA (personal assistant). Can they provide
me a PA for 24 hours? Even though they can, I’d prefer my PA because she knows how to
support me. I don’t have to tell her what to do step by step.” A man with profound mobility
disability said. In order to solve this issue, DPOs decided to support their members by setting
up CI centers for persons with each type of disabilities. With cooperation from their networkorganizations, they partner with other organizations and hospitals to set up their own CI centers.
For example, the Association of Parents of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities partnered with
Rajanukul Institute which is a hospital for children with intellectual disabilities to set up a CI
center for persons with intellectual disabilities where they can stay with their parents or
caregivers. The Association of Persons with Disabilities in Thailand partnered with a hospitaland a hotel to provide a hospitel for persons with mobility disabilities who get infected. Hosptel
is facility where people who get infected but not seriously sick (Green and Yellow Groups)
stay. Accommodations, meals and medication are provided for free. The term “hospitel” is acombination of two words, hospital and hotel. Several hospitels have been set up in the year
2021 but none of them can facilitate persons with disabilities. That is the reason why DPOs
have to set up hospitels and CI centers to support their members. They also provide
transportation for persons with disabilities to go to the hospitals, hospitels and CI centers.

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Figure 1: Community Isolation Center for Persons with Mobility Disabilities

Figure 2: Community Isolation center for persons with intellectual disabilities
7.
Other suggestions. From the focus group discussion, members of 3 groups gavesuggestions which include:

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7.1
The government should respond to the Pandemic in a timely manner. It should reducethe bureaucratic process and adjust to the changes. Some rules and regulations should be
revised to keep up with the situation.
7.2
When making decisions concerning persons with disabilities, the government must
listen to the voices of persons with disabilities and their representative organizations. They
should work closely to ensure that the relief measures can truly support persons with disabilities
and families.
7.3
The existing relief measures for general people should be reviewed to make sure that
persons with disabilities and families can benefit.
7.4
All relief measures should be comprehensive so that everybody can benefit including
those in vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, women and persons with disabilities.
7.5
Disability-specific measures are as important as general measures and persons withdisabilities should be able to benefit both, as a Thai citizen and as a person with disabilities.
7.6
Families of persons with disabilities should be supported during the Pandemic. Someof them lost their job due to COVID-19 and face economic crisis just like others. Job
opportunities and financial support are needed.
7.7
Medical support should include mental health promotion to reduce stress.
Related Ministries should work together. Disability matters are not only under
7.8
responsibility of the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security but it involves other
Ministries as well.
Conclusion
COVID-19 Pandemic has proved that DPOs in Thailand are strong as they play important roles
in maintaining quality of life and wellbeing of persons with disabilities and families which arehighly affected by COVID-19 in various ways, from health to financial issues. The study showsthat many measures were initiated by them and their quick response was helpful. The
government, therefore, should listen to their voices and work closely with them so that it canissue the relief measures that truly respond to the needs of persons with disabilities andfamilies. Furthermore, comprehensive and proactive measures should be issued and effectively
implemented. It should also reduce bureaucratic works in order to keep up with the fastchanging situation and render services to those in need in a timely manner.

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Taearak, P., Pitakkamonporn, S., Posayanonda, T., Sirithai, N., Ornchai, S., Rubporndee, K.,
Aosan, P. (2020). Guidelines for discussion on empowerment of CSOs to combat
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Contact email: wongsalena@hotmail.com

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Insights into Students’ Online Learning Experiences During COVID-19 Pandemic:
Shaping How We Do Education Moving Forward
Narangerel Tsedendamba, Mongolian National University of Education, Mongolia
Otgonsuren Gungaarentsen, Mongolian National University of Education, Mongolia

The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
Teaching and learning have transitioned entirely into an online mode in response to COVID19 pandemic in Mongolia. Online education in and of itself is not new to Mongolian higher
education sector. However, transitioning into 100% online mode within a space of a monthand continue doing so since February 2020 has been a challenge. This article presents aninsight into Mongolian National University of Education students’ experiences with online
learning using Microsoft Teams. The findings reveal that the Microsoft Teams provided
similar learning experiences to on campus face to face learning in terms of working ingroups, participating in lectures and seminars, and communicating with peers and teachers forsome. For others, however this same experience was not achievable given their circumstances
associated with rural location, poor quality Internet connection, costs of technology, buying
Internet data, and other personal and family situations. Despite the challenges, of the 87
students who were involved in the study 57% of them were satisfied with the online learningmode but 36% were not satisfied. The qualitative findings were mixed: some noticed
improvements in their independent learning skills and use technology and preferred online
learning, some reported preference towards a blended learning for better interaction withpeers and teachers. This insight into students’ experiences with online learning is valuable inshaping how we do higher education moving forward.
Keywords: COVID-19, Online Learning, Higher Education, Future Education

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Introduction
COVID – 19 pandemic created many challenges in how we do education all around the world
including Mongolia (Crawford et al. 2020; Lkhagvasuren 2021; UNESCO, 2020). In thecontext of Mongolia, like in many other countries, in February 2020 educational venues wereclosed down for certain periods of time to minimize the spread of the COVID – 19 virus andreduce infections. Mongolian National University of Education (MNUE) had to respond to
this change very quickly with little time to plan for 100% online learning and teaching mode.
In other words, due to this extraordinary circumstances, the university made the decision toclose down first following the government advice and then discuss the ways around how wewould do teaching and learning online.
Before the pandemic, MNUE used to do education largely on campus with little capacity to
do online learning. On campus teaching and learning were focused on active student-centeredlearning, with emphasis on team work, collaboration, peer learning and support, andlaboratory learning. Due to this sudden transition to 100% online teaching and learning,teachers had to change their approach to teaching and students their approach to learning.
The authors of this paper work as lecturers in the School of Humanities and Social Sciencesof MNUE, English language department. The authors teach English language to future school
teachers. Most of the student population of the school are from country Mongolia. Due to the
lockdown, these students who were living in the capital city where their respective campus
was located had to travel back to their home countries or remote villages.
This article aims to capture an insight into students’ experiences with online learning andhow effective the use of Office 365 Microsoft Teams was, particularly in relation toexperiences associated with use of technology, learning environments, and student
engagement when learning online.
Literature Review
Online learning is a technology-mediated teaching and learning approach which has been
researched extensively in the field of Educational Technology for the past decade or so.
Garrison (2017) points out that this technology - mediated learning is rapidly changing how
educational institutions do teaching and learning. Online learning or e-learning is defined as“an innovative web-based system based on digital technologies and other forms ofeducational materials whose primary goal is to provide students with a personalized, learnercentred, open, enjoyable, and interactive learning environment supporting and enhancing thelearning processes” (Rodrigues et al., 2019, p. 95). This definition shows that if educational
institutions are offering online learning to their students, it needs to mimic the campus
delivery mode in a sense that the teaching needs to be student-centred and students need to beprovided with interactive engaging materials that help them better their learning and study
goals. Because it is delivered online, the digital technologies need to be enabled and provided
regardless where the locations of the students are.
In their 2018 paper, Shailendra et al. stated that online education and its various modes has
been growing steadily worldwide due to the high use of technologies, wide utilization of theInternet, and increasing need from workforce to suit the needs of digital economy. It wasestimated that online education is going to become the main form of education by 2025
(Shailendra et al, 2018). Many universities were increasingly running their education in some

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blended modes (both online and on campus), progressively shifting their focus more towards
online education.
But this was in 2018. When the pandemic hit hard and fast in the early 2020, mosteducational institutions were not ready for the rapid transition to fully go into online learningmode. For example, the students from country Mongolia living in remote areas or from low
socio-economic backgrounds do not have sufficient access to the Internet and technologies
needed to study online (Lkhagvasuren 2021). These situations created enormous challenges
to students and their families. This situation made students to experience inequality anddiscrimination (Lkhagvasuren 2021). It was also found that students may experience
psychological disorders and anxieties in relation to fear of falling behind (MNUE &UNICEF, 2020).
To put this in perspective, there are 320 small villages in Mongolia which comprises 96.6%of the country. These villages have fibre optic cable connections or 3G or 4G/LTE Internet
connections. About 92% of the village population use Internet, while approximately 48% ofhouseholds own computers (Main Development Trends of Mongolia for 2021-2025). Whilethe data show higher percentage of the population use the Internet, this does not mean thatthey have access at their finger tips. Affordability of the Internet data and computer posesignificant barriers to students’ education (UNDP Mongolia’s Accelerator Lab Team, 2021).
To resolve this issue, there is an urgent need to supply students with fast Internet connection,
computers and deliver education and content that is suited to online learning (Lkhagvasuren,2020). This is dependant on Information and Communication Technology infrastructure,human resources, and program renovations which means that Mongolian government andhigher education institutions have a lot to do (Lkhagvasuren, 2020).
According to the Vision 2050 Long Term Development Policy, “The Government aims tocreate and develop equal opportunities for the quality and inclusive education for everyone”(Main Development Trends of Mongolia for 2021-2025). To achieve these goals, legal
arrangements have already been made for digital and distance learning for the first time in
Mongolia (Lkhagvasuren, 2021). For example, higher education institutions have been using
management information systems and other software to deliver online education during the
pandemic. However, more work needs to be done to continuous training processes, andensure every student has the opportunity for the quality and inclusive education(Lkhagvasuren, 2021).
Theoretical framework
The theoretical framework that was used to inform the development of this research andunderstand students’ experiences with online e-learning is Community of Inquiry.
Community of Inquiry is one of the widely used theoretical framework in the studies about
online learning or e-learning is Community of Inquiry (Garrison, Anderson, Archer, 2010).
This theory is about the people who constitute the community, for example teachers andstudents who aim to develop knowledge and ideas, build meanings, and do research (Garrison
et al., 2010).
Personal reflection and shared discussion are common amongst these communities and thesuccess of this processes is dependant on how teachers engage students in learning
environments that are interesting and engaging (Thomas, Wes & Borup, 2017). In other

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words, what knowledge a student develops is dependant on the learning environment or thecommunity of inquiry. Students need to be provided with learning environments that help
them to take responsibility for their own learning, enable them to negotiate meanings, andquestion their current understandings about ideas and develop new ones (Thomas et al.,2017). Three key components of his theory were particularly relevant to the context of thisstudy:a.
Students working in groups and feel sense of belonging as this helps them tocommunicate openly with trust (Thomas et al., 2017; Shea & Bidjerano. 2009; Shea &Bidjerano, 2012).
b.
Teacher facilitation in helping students think cognitively, make meaning and keepinterested in learning (Arbaugh, 2013; Rubin, Fernandes, & Avgerinou, 2013).
c.
Focus on reflection, discussion, and critical thinking to help students make meaning
and confirm meanings (Ke , 2010; Kim, Kwon,& Cho, 2011; Zhan & Mei, 2013; ).
This shows that for teaching and learning to be successful in the context of Community ofInquiry, learning environments need to be set up to enable students to work in groups inwhich they feel comfortable to discuss ideas openly without feeling fear or shame, students
need to be provided with content that is well designed to meet their learning needs, andteachers need to be capable in facilitating the content so that it is helping students to makemeaning through cognitively challenging activities. These three key concepts of Communityof Inquiry have been tested successfully in different educational contexts of e-learning(Stenbom, 2018; Yu, & Richardson, 2015).
Participants, Research Method and Data Analysis
A total of 87 students ranging from 18-22 years of age participated in the study. The students
were studying in their first year of primary education at the MNUE. 3% of the students weremale and 97% were female students. 71 students experienced online learning for the first timeat the time of participating in the study and only 16 students had prior experience with theonline learning which was outside their university learning. Most of the students were fromcountry Mongolia.
Data were collected using online survey method called Google Forms. This was used tocollect data about students’ approach to online learning, challenges associated with online
learning, learning environments and their perceived engagement. Online survey is aconvenient way to collect data from a large cohort answering the same questions (de Vaus,
1995) and it is one of the widely-used survey methods (Walter, 2010). It is convenient in asense that different types of data on different topics can be collected electronically fromdifferent respondents (Jansen, Corley & Jansen, 2007) in a short time and at little or no cost
(Czaja & Blair, 2005).
The online survey was hosted on Google Forms. The online survey link was sent to thestudents to collect the data. Students completed the surveys voluntarily and the respondents
were anonymous which meant non-identifiable.
Data analysis aimed to find meanings in data (Patton, 2012) or in the context of this study tounderstand how the online learning impacted on students’ learning and engagement. Google
Forms is a user-friendly tool that automatically analyses data itself and provides a meaningful
data that are easy to interpret.

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Findings
The findings from the study are arranged in three categories: use of technology, learning
environment, and student engagement.
Use of technology: 1% of the students owned desktop, 9% owned laptops and 90% of thestudents reported using their mobile devices to participate in online learning. It was reported
that 32% of the devices worked well, 49% reasonably well, and 18% did not work well or the
students frequently experienced technical issues.
Of the 87 students, 10% of them reported that they managed to continue with their studies
regardless of disturbances outside of their control. However, overwhelming 90% of thestudents reported constant difficulties including issues with the Internet connection, software
being down, power outage, difficulties with concentration due to daily distractions in thehousehold, the size of their mobile devices did not allow to see some pages of the content
materials, and costs associated with purchasing Internet data was high.
Regardless, 69% of the students were happy using the Office 365 Teams recommended by
the University. The platform enabled students to communicate with others, work in groups
face to face, watch recordings of the lectures, use resources which were readily available on
the platform, and they were easy to use. On the other hand, 9% of the students did notexperience similar engagement with the Teams due to their slow Internet or lack of it, having
no access to microphones and cameras, high costs to purchase Internet data, and their mobile
devices did not support some of the applications used in Teams. Only 1% of the students
found the online learning mode was ineffective and they preferred on campus face to facelearning.
Learning environments: Of the 87 students 29% were from the capital city, 6% resided in
the centre of provinces, and 40% of the students lived in village centres, 22% were fromremote villages, and 3% had to go to the top of mountains so that they can connect to theInternet to study. 7% of the students described their learning environments satisfactory, 74%
manageable, and 20% unsatisfactory.
Face to face interactions in the online learning space was reported as very important by 36%of the students. Whereas 63% reported as important and 3% viewed it as not as important. It
was also found that 81% of the students communicated with their peers via Facebook, Teams
chat function, and exchanged messages via their mobile phones for the purposes of sharing
subject information and study tips. The students also reported that they were communicatingwith their teachers using the same mediums in addition to emails.
Students also rated the class contents designed by the teachers. 2% of the students found thecontent excellent, 45% thought that it was of good quality and 47% average and 6% said it
was of poor quality. 36% of the students found that the help they received from their teachers
were timely and useful but 55% reported that it could be improved. Majority of the students
or 76% found the online learning enabled medium level productivity and 57% enjoyedlearning online.
Student engagement: During the period of online learning, students studied 8-9 different
subjects or 13-14 credit hours. On average, they were spending anywhere between 5-10 hours
daily on their studies. Some of the side effective of studying online were dry eye, and neck

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and back pain. On a positive note, a large number of students reported that they saw
significant improvements in their independent learning skills, time-management, technicalskills and troubleshooting, and online communication skills.
Last but not least, 41% of the students preferred on campus learning mode as they reported
that the on campus face to face learning helps them to better engage with learning, connect
with teachers, more productive, learn better and develop deep understanding under teachers’
supervision, and engage with peers. Another 49% of the students found no significant
difference in terms of engagement and learning quality though with some differences: online
learning promotes more independent learning skills and time-management whereas on
campus learning promotes better engagement with teachers and peers. Therefore, thesestudents preferred both the online and on campus learning modes moving forward.
Discussion and Conclusion
The findings show the student satisfaction with online learning drastically varied around useof technology, learning environment, and student engagement. Though there were noticeable
advantages to online learning including improvement in independent learning skills, timemanagement skills, better engagement with peers and sometimes teachers, the bigger pictureof the findings reveal that one aspect of online learning cannot be successfully achieved
without the other.
For example, without having access to affordable Internet and technology, it is virtually
impossible to deliver good quality education and engage productively in learning. This is theultimate bridge between the teaching and learning in an online space. Mongolian higher
education sector and MNUE have to make significant improvement in this space. As was
mentioned earlier, it is promising to know that to develop equal opportunities for the quality
and inclusive education for everyone, the Mongolian government has made legal
arrangements for digital and distance learning (Lkhagvasuren, 2021). However, more needs
to be done in relation to implementation of these amendments. As was suggested by Palvia etal (2018), telecommunications infrastructure with focus on high speed Internet has toimprove.
To achieve success of true community of inquiry, it is important how teachers engage
students in online learning environments so that the learning is interesting and engaging(Thomas, Wes & Borup, 2017). Data show that more work need to be done in this space too.
This is in line with what was suggested by Palvia et al. (2018) in that online education quality
also has to improve to the level of how on campus face to face learning is conducted with
better engagement both between teachers and students, and peers with each other. This
indicates teacher training or professional development for teachers on the topic of online
learning and community of inquiry is essential.
Overwhelming number of students reported issues around having access to affordable
Internet and technologies. This shows that MNUE has to assist students from country
Mongolia or low socio-economic backgrounds to have access to technologies. Many
universities cooperate with technological companies to provide computers and equipment tocreate campus working and learning environments. They need to extend their cooperation tomore online learning context and design a program to better assist and supply students inneed with computers and necessary equipment for learning from remote locations.

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Such insights into students’ experiences with online learning is valuable in shaping how we
do higher education moving forward. More likely, like the rest of the world, Mongolia will bedoing more of online learning that on campus learning. Mongolia and Mongolian higher
education need to have a thorough strategic planning in place to create better online learning
experience for students and for teachers.

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References
Arbaugh, J. B. (2013). Does academic discipline moderate CoI-course outcomes relationships
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Crawford, J., Butler-Henderson, K., Rudolph, J., Malkawi, B., Glowatz, M., Burton, R., et al.
(2020). COVID-19: 20 countries’ higher education intra-period digital pedagogy
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Czaja, R., & Blair, J. (2005). Designing surveys: A guide to decisions and procedures. (2nded.). London: Sage.
de Vaus, D. (1995). Surveys in social research. St Leonards: Allen & Unwin.
Garrison, D.R. (2017). E-learning in the 21st century: A community of inquiry framework forresearch and practice. (3rd ed.). New York: Routledge.
Garrison, D.R., Anderson, T., & Archer, W. (2010). The first decade of the community ofinquiry framework: The Internet and Higher Education, 13(1-2), 5-9.
Jansen, K. J., Corley, K. G., & Jansen, B. J. (2007). E-survey methodology. In R. A.
Reynolds, R. Woods & J. D. Baker (Eds.), Handbook of research on electronic
surveys and measurements (pp. 1-8). Hershey: Idea Group Reference.
Ke, F. (2010). Examining online teaching, cognitive, and social presence for adult students.
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Kim, J., Kwon, Y., & Cho, D. (2011). Investigating factors that influence social presence andlearning outcomes in distance higher education. Computers and Education. 57, 1512–
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Lkhagvasuren, M. (2021). Pandemic challenges and digital perspectives for Mongolia’s
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Main Development Trends of Mongolia for 2021-2025. (2020). Annex-1 to the Resolution-23of the Mongolian Parliament.
Mongolian National University of Education (MNUE), UNICEF. (2020). Outcomes of thestudy on socio-psychological issues and risks.
Palvia, S., Aeron, P., Gupta, P., Mahapatra, D., Parida, R., Rosner, R., & Sindhi, S. (2018)
Online education: Worldwide status, challenges, trends, and implications. Journal of
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Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods. (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage.
Rodrigues, H., Almeida, F., Figueiredo, V., & Lopes, S.L. (2019). Tracking e-learning
through published papers: A systematic review. Computers and Education, 136, 87–
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Rubin, B., Fernandes, R., & Avgerinou, M.D. (2013). The effects of technology on theCommunity of Inquiry and satisfaction with online courses. The Internet and Higher
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Shea, P., & Bidjerano, T. (2009). Community of inquiry as a theoretical framework to foster‘epistemic engagement’ and ‘cognitive presence’ in online education. Computers andEducation, 52, 543–553.
Shea, P., & Bidjerano, T. (2012). Learning presence as a moderator in the community ofinquiry model. Computers and Education, 59, 316–326.
Stenbom, S. (2018). A systematic review of the Community of Inquiry survey. The Internetand Higher Education, 39, 22–32.
Thomas, R.A., West, R. E., & Borup, J. (2017). An analysis of instructor social presence inonline text and asynchronous video feedback comments. The Internet and Higher
Education, 33, 61–73.
UNESCO. (2020). Education: From disruption to recovery 2020.
https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse
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Bridging the digital divide in Mongolia.
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Walter, M. (2010). Surveys. In M. Walter (Ed.), Social research methods. (2nd ed., pp. 151183). Melbourne, Victoria: Oxford University Press.
Zhan, Z., & Mei, H. (2013). Academic self-concept and social presence in face-to-face andonline learning: Perceptions and effects on students’ learning achievement andsatisfaction across environments. Computers and Education, 69, 131–138.
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The Practice of Teaching Java Programming Language to Undergraduate Students

Weijun Chen, Tsinghua University, China
The Asian Conference on Education 2021
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Abstract
The paper presents our practice of teaching java programming language to undergraduate
students at Tsinghua University, China. The biggest challenge is the design of the course toimprove students’ programming ability.The course consists of two parts: the class lectures
and the after-class exercises, both are designed deliberately. The purpose of the lectures is tohelp the students understand the kernel ideas of the object-oriented programming (OOP) andlearn the common used java classes. OOP is difficult for many students, therefore we useddifferent methods to make the process smoother. For example, Tony Stark and his armor in
the movie “Iron Man” are presented when interpreting the storage of the superclass object
and the subclass object. The java class library is an important component of the language
which contains exceptions, input and output streams, files, graphics user interface, threads,
network programming, etc.The most important part of the after-class exercises is a
programming project. Learning by doing is probably the best way to get familiar with a new
language. The students are required to write a complete program (generally a computergame) using java individually. In such a project, all the technologies learnt in classroom areused and combined together. The games written include Tetris, Snake, Battle City, etc.This
course has been taught for 6 years at Tsinghua and about 740 students were enrolled totally.
These students were from different majors. The examination results and the programs theywrote indicate that they achieved major improvements after the course.
Keywords: Java Programming, Course Design, Ability Development

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Introduction
Java is one of the world's most popular programming language, it is widely used in software
industry. For example, Elasticsearch is a real-time distributed search and analytics engine. It
allows you to explore your data at a speed and at a scale never before possible. Many famous
websites such as Wikipedia, StackOverflow, Github, Facebook, Quora, LinkedIn, Netflix areusing Elasticsearch to search all kinds of documents, and this powerful search engine isdeveloped in Java.
We provide a Java programming course for undergraduate students at Tsinghua University,
China. It is an optional course for anyone interested in studying Java programming. The
students are required to have basic prior programming experience before taking this course.
For example, they know how to write a procedure to solve a practical problem in the C
language. The course is given in one semester of sixteen weeks, and in each week, there is
one three-hour lecture and one three-hour lab session. Generally there are more than 70
students in the class, they are from different majors such as materials science andengineering, chemical engineering, hydraulic engineering, mechanical engineering,
automotive engineering and building science & technology. The textbook used isIntroduction to Java Programming, which was written specifically for this course by theauthor of this paper.
The course consists of two parts: the class lectures and the after-class exercises, both ofwhich are important in learning Java language. The class lectures tell the students the basic
ideas of the object-oriented programming and help them to learn the common used Javaclasses. The after-class exercises give students the opportunity to practice the theory andskills learned in the classroom. Learning by doing is particular important when you try to
study a new programming language.
The author of the paper (Shi, 2012) have taught the course for several years and find that it is
not an easy job. Firstly, the students are from different majors and they have few (if not zero)professional training before taking the course. For example, the code they write may becorrect functionally, however they are in bad programming styles and can hardly beunderstood by other programmers. This situation can lead to serious problems when many
programmers cooperate with each others to complete a software project.
Secondly, the course is an optional one for the students and they may not spend as much timeon it as their major courses. A programming course is always tough enough because it has a
lot of homework. The students need to write source code on computer and any small mistakes
will make the program fail to run correctly. Therefore, it will take a student lots of time tocomplete the course. However, many students have their major courses which are also toughenough at the same semester and it is obvious that these courses will have priority when time
is limited.
Thirdly, the students enrolled in this course may have learnt how to write programs instructural programming languages (such as the C language), but few of them have any idea ofthe concept of the object-oriented programming. They are often confused by the difficult
OOP concepts such as Abstract, Encapsulation, Inheritance and Polymorphism. A common
situation is that a student can write a function to solve a particular problem, but he doesn’tknow how and why to combine several functions with a couple of variables to make a class.

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Therefore, it is a great challenge for us to provide better service to the students when teaching
this course, we need to design the course carefully and elaborately.
Class lectures
The purpose of the class lectures is to help the students understand the kernel ideas of theobject-oriented programming and learn the common used java classes.
Topics covered in the course include:l Introduction: history of Java language, the Java platform, structure of a Java program,Java IDE (Integrated Development Environment)l Java language basics: variables, constants, data types, expressions and operators, the if
statement, the switch statement, the for loop statement, the while loop, the do-while loop,
the break and continue statements, one-dimensional arrays, two-dimensional arraysl Java OOP: classes and objects (defining classes, using classes, methods, references,
static types), access control (public, protected, default, private), method overload, storage
management, inheritance (parent and subclass), polymorphism (override, methodbinding, abstract classes, interfaces)l Exceptions: what is an exception, why use an exception, try-catch structure, throwsl Input and output: byte streams, char streams, buffers, files
l Graphic User Interface (GUI): the Graphics class, the Color class, the Font class, Swingcomponents (containers, basic controls, layout manager, event handling)l Thread: process and thread, Java thread, data sharing between threads, thread mutex andsynchronization, thread scheduling and priorityl Network programming: principles of computer networks, URL(Uniform Resource
Locator), TCP(Transmission Control Protocol) programming, UDP(User Datagram
Protocol) programingl Object collections: collections, List interface (ArrayList, LinkedList), generic types, Set
interface (HashSet, TreeSet), Map interface (HashMap, TreeMap)l Android programing: mobile application development, the Android operating system, theAndroid IDE, develop an Android applicationl Writing solid code: coding conventions (naming, comments, error handling, style andlayout), program debugging, test cases development
These topics can be divided into three parts. The first part discusses the Java language basics,
i.e. how to write a computer program in Java language. As we know, when James Goslingand his colleagues invented the Java language 30 years ago, they thoroughly studied andcompared the C/C++ language, therefore, this part of the Java language is quite similar to thatof C/C++.
The second part is Java OOP, which is the core foundation of the course. Every Javaapplication is a combination and interaction of different kinds of classes. Furthermore, every
programmer need to use the libraries implemented by the language system when developing apractical software project and the libraries provided by Java are also in the form of classes.
However, students often have difficulty in learning the OOP part of the Java because it isabstract and hard to understand. Therefore, we have to try our best to teach the students using
all kinds of valid methods.

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The third part is commonly used Java class libraries. To become an experienced Java
programmer, it is very important to get familiar with these libraries. We don’t have to build asoftware system from scratch, we can build it on top of the existing components.
The methods
To make students understand the contents of the class lectures easier, various of methods areused.
The first method is to propose analogues in life for those abstract concepts in theory. When
students see those difficult concepts, they may feel that it is hard to understand. But when
they see these visual examples, they know what it means immediately.
For example, in class we will introduce the memory storage of objects. Given a superclassand a subclass, if we construct a subclass object, on the one hand this object is anindependent and complete object, on the other hand there is also a superclass subobject
hidden inside it. When the students read this paragraph, generally they will get totallyconfused. Then we will show them the Figure 1.

Figure 1: Onion and Iron man.
In the Figure 1, we can see an onion. Onion is a vegetable that is composed of several layers.
If you skin the outside layer of an onion, the remaining part is still a complete onion that has
the same shape. Another example is the ironman from the film “Iron Man”. Ironman is asuperman that can fly and fight, actually he is a man named Tony Stark who is wearing a suitof armor.

Figure 2: the Man and IronMan class.

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In figure 2, we defined a Java superclass named Man and a derived subclass named IronMan.
Now if we create an IronMan object, then there is also a Man object existing in it. Just likethere is always a man (Tony Stark) existing in the ironman.
The second method is being humorous in class. In a certain sense, studying is hard and boring.
If a student has listened to the lectures for a long time, he or she will fail to concentrate moreon the work. Therefore, it will be helpful if we can attract the students’ attention by saying
something funny now and then. For example, logical operators are used to combine twoboolean operands together and there are three logical operators: && (AND), || (OR) and ^(XOR). Figure 3 demonstrates the truth tables of these operators.

Figure 3: Truth tables of three logical operators.
It is obviously that these tables are boring and hard to remember, so we can show them inanother way. Figure 4 is a picture we found on the Internet, it is named as “boolean hairlogic”, which means the result hair of A and B’s logical operators. For example, B has amoustache while A hasn’t, therefore, A && B doesn’t have one.

Figure 4: Boolean hair logic.
The exercises
As we know, learning by doing is probably the best way to get familiar with a newprogramming language. The after-class exercises of this course include two parts: weekly
assignments and a programming project.
In each week, we will have a three-hour lecture that covers one of the course topics. After
that, the students are required to finish weekly assignments which are generally two or threeprogramming problems. The purpose of these assignments is to help the students review what
they have learned in class.

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The most important part of the after-class exercises is a programming project. The students
are required to write a complete program (generally a computer game) using Java
individually. In such a project, all the technologies learnt in classroom (classes, exceptions,GUI, multi-threading, network programming, etc.) are used and combined together.

Figure 5: A general architecture of Java GUI games.
For a typical computer game, animation is the core foundation of the whole system. Lots ofthings are moving such as tanks, planes, guns, etc. However it is not easy to implement GUI
animation especially for beginners. In Figure 5, we proposed a general architecture of JavaGUI games, with which the students can realize any kind of GUI animation they want.
Typically there are two types of moving in a computer game, one is called self-driven, whichmeans that type of object will move by itself. This can be implemented with Thread or Timerclass in Java. The other moving is caused by user’s movements such as pressing a keyboard
key or a mouse button. This can be implemented with the event model. Both types of moving
will lead to the value changes of the data structures in memory. And there is an independent
painting module (generally the painComponent() function of the JPanel class) that is
responsible for refreshing the screen.

Figure 6: Games written by students.

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During the past semesters, the students have written different types of computer games suchas Snake, Tetris, Battle City, etc., which is demonstrated in Figure 6.
Conclusion
We began to teach this course 6 years ago and about 720 students were enrolled totally.
These students were from different majors and they only had basic programming experience
before taking this course. The examination results and the programs they wrote indicate thatthey achieved major improvements after the course was over.
The grading policy of the course is: weekly assignments (30%), programming project (40%),
final exam (25%) and class participation (5%).

Figure 7: students’ grades in the last semester.
Last semester, 40 students were enrolled in the course, and Figure 7 shows their final grades.
23 students (57%) got A or A- and 15 students (37%) got B+ or B. On the other hand, there
was one student who failed the course. The reason is he didn’t complete the programming
project before the deadline.

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References
Shi K. L., Chen W. J., Zhang L. and Luo L. J. (2012). Kaleidia: A Practical E-Learning
Platform for Computer Programming Courses. In Proceedings of the Canada International Conference on Education (CICE-2012), June 18, 2012, University of Guelph,
Canada.
Contact email: cwj@tsinghua.edu.cn

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Designing an Online Simulation Board Game with Realistic Patients and Dynamic
Electrocardiogram Situations for Learning First Aid Abilities
Pai-Ching Lee, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Zi-Xuan Wang, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Huei-Tse Hou, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
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Abstract
Due to the pandemic of COVID-19, many physical first aid courses have been converted toonline courses. However, first aid courses emphasize providing realistic situations thatfacilitate the learner's ability to make accurate and immediate judgments and decisions
according to patients’ conditions. This study aims to develop an online educational board
game,- Heartbeat Moment (beta) with a contextual and authentic learning environment using
Google Jamboard application for learning first aid abilities. By providing simulated dynamic
electrocardiogram data and descriptions of the patients’ conditions to create an authentic
environment and improve the ability to make correct decisions on the treatment methods
according to the patient's condition. The learner also asked to decide the treatment sequencebased on the electrocardiogram and clinical conditions of each patient card and adhere to theprinciple of priority treatment for emergency and severe cases. Through our preliminary
analysis, it is found that. Although the progress in learning outcomes is limited (there was no
significant difference between the scores of the pre-test and the post-test), the level of learnerengagement is high. All learners were analyzed for their flow status and technology
acceptance. The results showed that the overall flow and game acceptance were significantly
higher than the median (the median in a five-point scale =3). A high level of flow means thatthe learner is fully engaged in the learning activity and demonstrates a high level ofconcentration, which is critical to first aid learning and may facilitate objective analysis anddecision making for the patient's condition.
Keywords: Simulation-Based Learning Online Educational Game, Board Game, Acute Care,
Dynamic Electrocardiogram, Decision-Making

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Introduction
Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, many first aid courses were then converted to online
courses. However, the first aid courses pay great attention to authenticity and practicality, sothat students are familiar with the actual situation and respond immediately after practicing to
improve the treatment rate of patients. Many studies showed that first aid courses for nursing
staffs in simulated situations with setting up real scenes and repeated simulation exercises toimprove the quality of nursing patients is very important (Abelsson, Rystedt, Suserud &Lindwall, 2016 ; Kosoko, Glomb, Laba, Galapi, Shah, Rus, & Doughty, 2019).
Simulation games allow learners to learn problem-solving skills in the game, and apply actual
situations through repeated operations and reflection on whether the decision is correct or not.
Simulation games based on situated learning theory improve learners’ learning transfer in realcontexts (Hou, 2015; Hou & Li, 2014; Brown, Collins, & Duguid, 1989) and may increase
students’ learning motivation, academic performance and problem-solving ability ( Huang,
He, & Wang, 2020 ; Sung, Hwang, & Yen, 2014 ; Faizan, Loffler, Heininger, Utesch, &Krcmar, 2019).
Misinterpretation of the electrocardiogram (ECG) may lead to inappropriate clinical decisionmaking, leading to undesirable consequences (Viljoen, Millar, Manning & Burch, 2020;
Bogun et al., 2004) and even patient death. Simply teaching ECG courses without casesharing may hinder students from coordinating clinical situations and heart rate presentations,
thereby affecting the speed of ECG interpretation and the quality of treatment for patients(Jablonover, Lundberg, Zhang, & Stagnaro, 2014; Graham, Jivendra, & Makani, 2015).
There are few simulation educational online gamification activities for ECG teaching courses
recently. Therefore, our research team (Mini Educational Game development group in eLearning Research Center, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology,
NTUSTMEG) applied Google Jamboard to develop an online simulation board game,
Heartbeat Moment (beta version).
Each learner has 3 pages of Google Jamboard. The emergency area on the first page contains
3 cards of the patient to be treated. After scanning the QR code on each patient card, theelectrocardiogram of dynamically display will be shown, as well as the description of thepatient's condition (including vital signs and chief complaints) (Figure 1).The second page
has the treatment drugs and equipment may be needed by the patients (Figure 2), and the third
page has the observation area or the death area for the patient cards according to the treatment
results (Figure 3). At the same time, there will be 3 patient cards randomly entering the firstpage for emergency treatment. A total of 12 patients need to go through 4 levels. The bell willring every 3 minutes. The learner must decide the treatment sequence based on theelectrocardiogram and clinical conditions of each patient card, and adhere to the principle ofpriority treatment for emergency and severe cases. Each player has three opportunities to callan expert, who will provide clues and tips to help the player pass the level according to thecurrent situation. If learners do not deal with the severe illness first, patient will be declareddead. The purpose of game-based learning activity is to facilitate students to assess theclinical condition of the patient based on their own prior knowledge and cultivate the correct
decision-making ability.

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Figure 1 The emergency area on the first page

Figure 2 The second page has the treatment drugs and equipments

Figure 3 The third page has the observation area or the death area
Research Purposes and Questions
This study aims to explore students' learning performance, flow and game acceptance during
the game. The research purposes of this study are as follows:
1.
2.
3.

To explore learners’ learning performance of online simulation board gameTo explore learners’ flow of online simulation board gameTo explore learners’ game acceptance of online simulation board game

MethodParticipants in this study were 12 adults (1 male, 11 female) in Taiwan, and they were all
emergency room nurses. Each participant uses a personal computer to participate in learning

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activities. In the analysis of learning performance, the contents of pretest and the posttest
were the same. The test was designed referring to the case of investigating the Advanced
Cardiac Life Support,10 items in total. The questionnaire contains flow and game acceptancescales. To evaluate the learners’ flow, this study applied Kiili (2006) flow scale which wastranslated and revised by Hou and Li (2014). The flow scale includes two dimensions,
namely the flow antecedent and flow experience. All scales were scored on a five-point
Likert scale, a total of 22 items, and reached a very high degree of consistency (Cronbach's α= 0.91). Regarding the acceptance, the study adapted and revised Davis’s (1989) The
Technology Acceptance Model items. There are 8 items including usefulness, ease of use,and game elements. Cronbachs’α=0.89 reached high degree of consistency. Learning activity
procedures were as follow: first learners had the pretest (10 minutes), and played the game
(30 minutes). Then, after the gameplay, there were the posttest (10 minutes) and the flow andgame acceptance questionnaires (10 minutes).
Results and Discussions
For learning performance, a Wilcoxon signed rank test was used to compare the results
showed there was a no significant difference in the score for the pre-test and post-test (Z=1.127, p=.26). The result found that the learner’s performance was not enhanced
significantly. The possible reason is that the learners may only tried to imitated the behaviors
or process of their predecessors in working places, but did not know the principle oftreatment. Therefore, learners cannot answer the correct answer in the tests because they do
not understand the real reason for treatment. As for the flow, the overall flow score (M=4.34),
sub-dimension flow antecedent (M=4.29), and sub-dimension flow experience (M=4.38)
showed the high flow scores. The result of flow was analyzed by one sample t test, and theresult showed that all dimensions were significantly (p<0.05) higher than the median (medianof the five-point system = 3). Learners were very engaged in the game.
The result of game acceptance was analyzed by one sample t-tests., and the result revealed
that usefulness (M=4.80), ease of use (M=4.53), and game elements (M=4.61), were alsosignificantly (p<0.001) higher than the median (the median in a five-point scale =3).
Learners had a high degree of acceptance of the game, and considered it is helpful and easy tooperate for learning.

pre-test
post-test*p < .05

Table 1 The Mean and Standard Deviation of Learning Performance.
M
SD
Z
Sig.
56.67
23.87
-1.127
.26
60.00
25.23

Table2 The Mean and Standard Deviation of Flow State Scores.
Dimensions
M
SD
Flow antecedents
4.29
0.66
Challenge
4.21
1.01
Goal
4.67
0.54
Feedback
4.29
0.78
Control
4.42
0.85
Playability
3.88
1.05
Flow experience
4.38
0.42
Concentration
4.60
0.47

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t
6.74***
4.14*
10.76***
5.72***
5.79***
2.90*
11.53***
11.82***

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Time distortion
Autotelic experience
Loss of self-consciousness
Overall Flow*p < .05, ***p<.001

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3.83
4.73
3.80
4.34

1.07
0.39
1.23
0.46

2.69*
15.32***
2.22*
10.13***

Table3 The Mean and Standard Deviation of Technology Acceptance Model, TAM State
Scores.
Dimensions
MSDt
usefulness
4.80
0.40
15.65***
ease of use
4.53
0.52
10.15***
Game elements
4.61
0.53
10.56******
p<.001
Conclusion
This study developed an online simulation board game, Heartbeat Moment (beta version) andlearners were all involved and engaged in the game and considered that this game could assist
their learning and easy to use. However, the learning performance was not significantly
improved. It might be that learners only imitated behavior without in-depth understanding thereal reason for treatment.
This online educational board game is closer to the actual clinical situation, and thesimulation of authenticity may be helpful to the learning practice. The online simulation
board game promotes learners’ flow and repeat the exercises. For the future study, design
cognitive mechanism to help learners understand the reason behind the treatment should beconsidered. Empirical study with control group needs to be conducted to deeply investigate
the effectiveness of online educational board game.
Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the projects from the US Air Force Office of Scientific
Research (AFOSR) project (20IOA038) and Ministry of Science and Technology, Republicof China, under contract number MOST- 107-2511-H-011 -003 -MY3, MOST-108-2511-H011 -003 -MY3.

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References
Abelsson, A., Rystedt, I., Suserud, B. O., & Lindwall, L. (2016). Learning by simulation inprehospital emergency care - an integrative literature review. Scandinavian journal ofcaring sciences, 30(2), 234–240. https://doi.org/10.1111/scs.12252
Bogun, F., Anh, D., Kalahasty, G., Wissner, E., Bou Serhal, C., Bazzi, R., Weaver, W. D., &Schuger, C. (2004). Misdiagnosis of atrial fibrillation and its clinicalconsequences. The American journal of medicine, 117(9), 636–642.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2004.06.024
Davis, F.D. (1989), “Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of
information technology”, MIS Quarterly, Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 319-340.
Faizan, N., Loffler, A., Heininger, R., Utesch, M., & Krcmar, H. (2019). Classification of
Evaluation Methods for the Effective Assessment of Simulation Games: Results froma Literature Review. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENGINEERINGPEDAGOGY,9, (1), 19-33. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijep.v9i1.9948
Graham, F., Jivendra, G., & Makani, P. (2015). Teaching the interpretation ofelectrocardiograms: Which method is best? Journal of Electrocardiology, 48(2), 190193.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jelectrocard.2014.12.014.
Huang, X., He, J., & Wang, H. (2020). A Case Study: Students’ Perception of a Collaborative
Game-Based Virtual Learning Environment. 2020 6th International Conference of the
Immersive Learning Research Network (iLRN), 46-53.
Hou, H. T. (2015). Integrating cluster and sequential analysis to explore learners’ flow andbehavioral patterns in a simulation game with situated-learning context for science
courses: A video-based process exploration. Computers in human behavior, 48, 424435.
Hou, H. T., & Li. M.C. (2014). Evaluating multiple aspects of a digital educational problemsolving-based adventure game. Computers in Human Behavior, 30, 29-38
Jablonover, R. S., Lundberg, E., Zhang, Y., & Stagnaro-Green, A. (2014). Competency inelectrocardiogram interpretation among graduating medical students. Teaching andlearning in medicine, 26(3), 279–284. https://doi.org/10.1080/10401334.2014.918882
Kosoko, A. A., Glomb, N. W., Laba, B., Galapi, C., Shah, M. I., Rus, M. C., & Doughty, C.
B. (2019). Evaluating a Novel Simulation Course for Prehospital Provider
Resuscitation Training in Botswana. The western journal of emergency
medicine, 20(5), 731–739. https://doi.org/10.5811/westjem.2019.6.41639
Kiili, K. (2006). Evaluations of an experiential gaming model. Human Technology: An
Interdisciplinary Journal on Humans in ICT Environments.

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Sung, H., Hwang, G., & Yen, Y. (2014). Development of a Contextual Decision-Making
Game for Improving Students' Learning Performance in a Health Education
Course. 2014 International Conference of Educational Innovation throughTechnology, 54-61.
Viljoen, C. A., Millar, R. S., Manning, K., & Burch, V. C. (2020). Effectiveness of blended
learning versus lectures alone on ECG analysis and interpretation by medical
students. BMC medical education, 20(1), 488. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-02002403-y
Contact email: hthou@mail.ntust.edu.tw

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An Exploratory Study on Racial Experiences and Resiliency of Foreign Medical Students
Gina Lynn S. Salazar, University of Perpetual Help System Dalta, Philippines
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Abstract
Medicals students aspire to gain a degree in a foreign land and encounter new experiences in
the host country. The aim of the study was to explore the lived racial experiences of foreign
medical students. A qualitative phenomenological approach was utilized by the researcher.
Foreign medical students (N=15) participated in an open ended interview questions. Thematic
analysis showed that the participants defined racism as being judged based on skin color, race,and caste. Moreover, the results showed that the participants’ were hurt, sad, angry anddisappointed resulting to emotional distancing. They sought family support though open andconstant communication. Likewise group of friends provided the sense of safety and security
inside and outside the educational environment. Participants handled their experiences
cognitively by avoiding negative thoughts and staying positive; and behaviorally by being
passive, staying calm and ignoring people who discriminate them. They reached out, madefriends with other people and assimilated the host culture. The racial experiences of theparticipants in their educational environment helped them to become resilient and focused on
their goal.
Keywords: Racism, Resiliency, Foreign Students, Lived Experiences

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Introduction
It is quite ironic and perplexing in today’s time when you view what is going on in the world.
Since before the issue of ‘racism’ brought about drastic consequences to the lives of people allover the world. Just when one think that we have evolve to a better unified future globally,
the underlying existing social behavior shows its evil head again. Any type of social behavior
or actions with unusual awareness of such social negative actions is very prominent all over
the world. The reality of racism is an element of the representation of the social world and is
the characteristic of the mainstream that makes it work. Groups are founded with the selfinterpretation where the central myth underlies prejudices that are rationalized andinstitutionalized. From the phenomenological perspective, racism is a phenomenon of negativesociality.
The steady rise in the number of international students in higher education has been a growthin the research dedicated to the international sojourn, defined by Ward, (2015) as temporary
between-culture contact. Given the economic dependence of universities on the fees frominternational students, it is important that there is a clear understanding of the issues facing
them if an optimum service is to be delivered, so that student retention is improved and positive
word of mouth helps to increase recruitment. Increased numbers of international students in
British higher education and intensified competition for their recruitment both nationally andinternationally have put pressure on institutions to improve their product.
Encounters with racism and the international student experience by Brown and Jones (2013),
surveyed 153 international postgraduate students, 49 had experienced some form of abuse. In
most cases, this took the form of verbal abuse though racism manifested physically for nine
students. Strong emotional reactions were reported, including sadness, disappointment,
homesickness and anger. There was a consequent reluctance to return to the UK as a leisure
tourist or to offer positive word of mouth to future students. The aim of the study was to gauge
the incidence of racism visited on a cohort of international students in England and to explore
its impact on the student experience.
Truong and Museus (2012) conducted semi-structured interviews with 26 participants who
experienced racism and racial trauma in doctoral study. They presented a taxonomy of how
doctoral students of color cope and respond to racism in their programs. Participants reported
using a variety of approaches to maintain their well-being and negotiate relationships within
their programs, such as utilizing support networks, avoiding racist environments, transferringout of their programs, seeking interventions, and documenting and filing complaints.
According to Salahuddin and O’Brien (2011), if, when confronted with racism, a person canmaintain pride and strong self-esteem, and avoid harmful outcomes such as depression andsocial dislocation, they can be said to exhibit resilience. Pyke (2010) have identified that muchof the harm of racism comes from its internalization by those who experience it.
Development, change or any movement involving intricate process of cultural, linguistic,social, psychological, and geographical changes across culture may result to traumatic
experiences. Accommodating and assimilating the shift and merging of cultures includes
conflict of cultural beliefs of groups, language or communication barriers or difficulties andperceived notions of prejudices and discriminations. It is a two-way and multidimensional
process of various level of change in behavior, values, and interactions resulting from culturalexperiences.

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Every once in a while the effects of racism is felt thru to some events or experience that reminds
how damaging or hurtful the experience is to all especially students. Researchers from time totime have studied and documented the influence and effect of racism on the human psyche.
Cultural bigotry and judgement are happening everyday even right now including schools. It
happens distinguishably between minority and majority members of a community. The
consequences of the experiences of racial discrimination are very severe from the range ofpsychological mental health to physical health or even death.
Thus, the experiences the students encountered evidently gives rise in utilizing their coping
mechanism in order to function more effectively in school to reach their goals. Students
experience great anxiety and distress when targeted. Feelings of fear, low self-esteem, lack ofconfidence, low academic performance and depression are experienced.
Theoretical Framework
Critical race theory (CRT), created by Bell and Freeman, an organizing framework useful inunderstanding human behavior and social processes relevant to racial group categorizations
and racial stratification. The theory examines the oppressive dynamics of society to inform
about individual, group and social transformation. It places race at the center of the analysis
and provides a critical perspective on how racial stratification continues to influence the livesof racial/ethnic minorities.
Cognitive-relational emotion theory (Lazarus & Folkman), where the qualitative data aregathered and describe, particularly the relationship between the person and the environmentthat is appraised by the person as taxing or exceeding his or her resources and endangering his
or her well-being.
Resilience theory of Norman Garmezy states that, someone with great resilience is notnecessarily someone who is extremely brave despite adversity, it is someone who is able toshow functional adequacy despite the emotional turmoil.
The distress is associated with the feelings of being rejected, isolated and ostracized. The
victim being targeted cannot do anything – color of the skin and hair, difference in size or
shape, their religious belief or cultural heritage/background. The attacker develops at the samea sense of false pride when it comes to superiority. The ironic situation is that teachers andparents are unaware of the cruelty and distress, or misery being felt and inflicted to the student.
The purpose of the research was to explore, acknowledge and draw a mind map of theparticipants’ experiences with racism and how it has affected their cognitive, affective andbehavior, how they coped and became resilient from their experiences.
Statement of the Purpose
The researcher wanted to know the following:
1.
2.
3.
4.

What were the thoughts of the participants about their racial experience?
How affected were the participants of the experience?
What were the reactions of the participants on their racial experiences?
How did the participants’ handled the racial experiences?

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The research study was to provide a qualitative examination of the lived racial experiences ofthe foreign medical students and to lay hold of and describe the phenomena of racism to havean understanding and describe what it is like to be a foreign medical student and how the racial
experience is handled and resilience they develop due to the experience.
Methods
A qualitative phenomenological approach was utilized in the study. It was used to distill data,
determining broad patterns to conduct a more thematic granular research and analysis. It used
an interview as an instrument to gather the racial experiences and coping styles that developed
the resiliency of the participants from the experiences.
A researchers-made open-ended interview questions were open ended questions used to gather
the needed data for the categories and themes. The qualitative data helped to gather detailed
views of the participants.
Thematic analysis as defined (Saldana, 2015; Boyatzis,1998) was used as a means to gain
insight and knowledge from data gathered. The method enabled the researcher to develop a
deeper appreciation for the group or situation being researched. By using thematic analysis todistill data, the researcher determined broad patterns to conduct a more granular research andanalysis. Themes from the data gathered and not imposed or predetermined.
The participants of the study were the foreign medical students of the University of Perpetual
Help System DALTA. The sampling criterion for the qualitative research was purposive. 15
participants with ages ranging from 20-23 years old were picked to participate in the interview
who are studying Medicine Program.
Findings
Racism was defined by the participants as a discriminative form of behavior towards
differences in race, religion, culture, color, etc. Stereotyping based on one bad experience from
one individual has been generalized towards the whole race. Participants felt stereotyped
particularly with the odor and the behavior or some. They felt hurt, disappointed and angry.
The racial experiences have been taken deeply that it affected the participants cognitively,
affectively and with that their behavior towards the experience has been ignorance, letting it
pass and avoidance.
Biases, discrimination and unfair treatment of professor was consistently mentioned by theparticipants. These participants were my students during their bachelor degree and they were
bubbly, participative, and very active in class and around the university. It was quite refreshinghandling foreign students. Learning their culture, beliefs and practices were an eye opener tome as a researcher. To become more effective with them I had to learn from them as they wellalso learn from us.
All participants resorted to ignoring the racial experiences. “Ignorance is a bliss,” as they say.
To me this is the key to the resiliency of the students. Whether ignoring, letting it go andavoiding racial incidences these reactions guided the students developing their resiliency
towards racism.

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Table 1: Themes
Theme #1
Subthemes
Transcript“It’s not my fault I’m like this, I was
made like this…I didn’t choose to be
like this. I’m very happy of who I am. It
doesn’t matter what others think of me. I
accept myself.” P9
CognitiveSenseof“I know and I stand to what I believe
Identity
in….the way you live and what we live
The mental or psychological stateby like rules, culture and religiousof the lived racial experiences
practices.” P1
which the participants goes
through that caused to question
their sense of identity, heritageand culture. At the same time“…I have no problem accepting andutilizing these inherited customs
correcting as I must. It is anleading them to stay positive andinconvenience to them and to the
optimistic towards their goal.
country that I have inhibited in…..I
Staying Positive must adapt to the cultural norms andexpectations.“ P4

Theme #2

Subthemes

Affective

Emotional
Distancing
The emotions that theparticipants felt with their lived
racial experiences, facing thesurge of feelings such as sadness,anger, disappointment andconfusion that they have neverfelt before. This brought the
avoidance or emotional
detachment, resulting in seeking
Seeking
support from family members
Supportand friends within their race.

Theme #3
Behavioral

Subthemes

Responses of their behavior
Staying Calm
towards the lived racial
experiences manifested to theway they react to the encountered

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Transcript“……I feel hurt and I ask myself why,but I keep it to myself and shake thefeeling off so it will not affect me.” P1“…I didn’t feel good at all…. I feel a
bit sad and you do feel fear ….I justignore those racial slurs and remarks.”
P2“…. I go with my friends, talk to myown kind especially to my family. ….It
helps me feel close at home and safe andsecure no matter how far they are….I
stick to my group of friends to feelsafe.” P11
Transcript“Like I said…I don’t pay attention… I
just keep my cool and continue doing
what I’m doing.” P10“… making jokes.. out of any smallthings….just to keep up to finish theThe Asian Conference on Education 2021

situation such as staying calmand collected ignoring theexperience/s. Also challenging
the racial experiences by not
responding directly or reasoning
out. Keeping their angry
thoughts inside or by simply
dissociating themselves with thesituation.

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ordeal …. we don’t want to make a fuss.
“ P7

Challenging
Racism

“I try to protest it as much as I can, butpeople tend to overpower you. So
sometimes it becomes useless.” P12“… raise my voice against it no matter
how strong the other side of theargument is. P15

Resiliency

Transcript“….there’s just lots of diversity….you have to talk to
How the participants coped
them…and to understand them.” P2
and handled their lived racial“I don’t give it much thought….” P3
experiences have contributed“I have been able to overcome and actually portray myself
highly to the development ofalone not as an Indian as an individual as supposed to an entire
their resiliency in ordercountry” P4achieved their goals. By“…..I ignore because I know that those people don’t have abeing understanding to thebroad perspective…..” P6
diversity, not giving much
“Frankly I just let it go .….not going to stay in this country for athought to the experiences,long time…..so probably I’m not going to experience it again so
not being offended, letting gojust let it go.” P8of the angst, being positive“To be positive. To get rid of negative thoughts.” P14
and getting rid of the“I don’t get offended when I talk in English cause I tried. The
negative thought.
accent is different, but the thing is I try.” P13
Discussions
Racism, what does it mean to each participants’, since the term encompasses a wide range ofdefinition depending on the situation based on the race, color and religion, where people feelthey are superior towards others. presented at the moment. It can fuel present situation or
precipitate situations that has laid dormant before. It can be beliefs that characterizes theabilities attributed to a person or people. Racism has been used to discriminate individuals tofoster fear or hatred influencing how we relate to other people.
Migrating from one’s culture to another culture that is quite alien with communication barrier,lack of accessibility such as food, place of worship ad being alone without a family member
nearby affects the well-being of the impressionable young adult that can lead to detrimental
outcomes to their mental and physical health.
The participants of the research are the foreign international medical students who have beenin the university since their bachelor programs proceeding to medicine. Interviewing theparticipants individually gave them a sense of security and confidentiality about their identity.
They were a little bit more comfortable in sharing their experiences once they felt secure. Their
willingness to share the experiences was a way for them to relate their racial experiences andsomehow get some answers to their question brought about by the encounters.

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The participants acknowledged that they have felt emotions like they never felt before when it
came to their racial experiences. Sadness, disappointments and especially anger wereexperienced. The racial experiences of the participants is supported by the study of Brown andJones (2013). They felt hurt to the way they were treated, being neglected, rejected and avoided
within the campus even though they tried to communicate and associate with the local(Filipinos) concerning their studies among other things. They think they are misunderstoodand not given a chance to be known individually but instead stereotyped based on the badexperiences the locals had with some other foreigners. These results is supported by Salahuddin
and O’Brien (2011) and Pyke (2010).
The racial experiences had been taken deeply that it affected the participants cognitively,
emotionally and with that their behavior towards the experience has been ignoring theincidents, letting it pass and avoid situations that lead to the experience/s.
They coped by avoiding probable racial experiences, seeking support from families and friendsof the same race, staying calm and positive and with their perseverance, resiliency wasdeveloped so as they can reach their goals. The experiences developed hardness within theparticipants. Sadness was first felt then hardness inside. It shows that the racial experiencesdeveloped the participants’ road to resiliency. The way they cope and handled the situation
successfully. One also stated that the reason for ignoring the racial experiences was because
they are only here temporarily and stay together within their own network to feel secured andbe safe. They will be going home once they graduated. As this result is supported by Truong
and Museus (2012).
The racial experiences that the participants shared were mostly concentrated within the campus
since their daily routine revolve around the campus including living within and around theuniversity. College life according to them was supposed to fun filled activities associated withthe academe, but it seems that the local does not want to involve them with the college
activities. No recognition and importance were given as part of the academe making them feel
inferior. They have understood the situation so they also expect some unbiased consideration
to their situation. They do not demand priority but rather fair and unbiased treatment.
Conclusions
Based on the results and discussions, the following conclusions were derived. All participants’concept of racism is form of treating another person based on race, color and culture. Being
discriminated due to the difference from one another. Some were not easily forthcoming withpersonally experiencing racism, but slowly shared their experiences by citing instances of racial
experiences.
Learning more about the diversity of cultures of the foreign students will help the institution
prepare themselves in catering the academic needs of the students as well as their social needs.
Repeated racial experiences should be prevented to prevent further mental and physical healthproblems. Further, activities and accommodations should be available since the students
resides within the campus and the surrounding area which is close by to the university. These
repeated experiences will affect the students mental and physical health. Hatred and fear
developed due to the repetition of the experiences is detrimental to one’s capacity to function
fully.

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Acknowledgement
I would like to thank my parents Mr. Vicente and Dr. Luz S. Salazar for their undying
encouragement and support. May God Bless their Souls. The participants who made thisresearch possible and colleagues who nudge me to go on. And last but not the least the
support and guidance my dearest friends have given me especially the research help of Dr.
Ma. Lea A. Ronda. Thank you so much is the most simplest way I can express my utmost
gratitude.

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References
Bell, Derrick A. And We Are Not Saved: The Elusive Quest for Racial Justice. New York:
Basic Books, 1987. Expansion of the "Civil Rights Chronicles."Boyatzis, RE. 1998. Transforming Qualitative Information. Thematic Analysis and CodeDevelopment. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage; 1998.
Brown, L. & Jones, I. (2013) Encounters with racism and the international student
experience, Studies in Higher Education, 38:7, 10041019, DOI: 10.1080/03075079.2011.614940
Clarke, V. & Braun, V. (in press, 2013) Thematic analysis. In A. C. Michalos(Ed.),Encyclopaedia of quality of life research. New York: Springer.
Freeman, Alan D. "Legitimizing Racial Discrimination through Antidiscrimination Law: A
Critical Review of Supreme Court Doctrine." Minnesota Law Review 62 (1978):1049ff. Illuminating examination of role of Supreme Court in achieving social justice.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1987). Transactional theory and research on emotions andcoping. European Journal of personality, 1(3), 141-169.
Masten AS, Nuechterlein KH, Wright MO. Norman Garmezy (1918-2009). Am Psychol.
2011 Feb-Mar;66(2):140-1. doi: 10.1037/a0021246. PMID: 21299255.
Pyke, Karen . 2010. “An Intersectional Approach to Resistance and Complicity: The Case of
Racialized Desire among Asian American Women”. Journal of Intercultural Studies
31(1): 81–94
Salahuddin, N. M., & O'Brien, K. M. (2011). Challenges and resilience in the lives of urban,
multiracial adults: An instrument development study. Journal of Counseling
Psychology, 58(4), 494–507. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0024633
Saldana, J. M. (2015). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (3rd ed.). SAGE
Publications.
Saldana, J. M. (2015). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (3rd ed.). SAGE
Publications.
Saldana, J. M. (2015). The coding manual for qualitative researchers (3rd ed.). SAGE
Publications.
Saldaña, J. (2015). The coding manual for qualitative researchers. Sage Publications
Truong, K. A., & Museus, S. D. (2012). Responding to racism and racial trauma in doctoral
study: An inventory for coping and mediating relationships. Harvard Educational
Review , 82 (2), 226-254.
Ward, C. (2015). Beyond Culture Shock. Routledge, 2015.
Contact email: glynn2368@icloud.com
ginalynn.salazar@perpetual.edu.ph

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Design Innovation Practice School: The Experiential Learning Platform
Nimit Mengveha, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand
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Abstract
This article describes the ongoing study of designing and developing the undergraduate
program in Design Innovation of King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi. The
design-based research methodology has been applied to investigate the attempt in curriculartransformation in addition to routinized curriculum revision practices. The concerns related tocareer readiness of graduates or competency gap are widely addressed from employers’
perspectives in various business sectors with their expectations toward academia. Meanwhile,
several national higher-education policies are likely to react to this qualitative dilemma as for
instance by introducing the outcome-based education rationale into action. Correspondingly,
Design Innovation Program has aimed for transforming not only theoretical aspect but also to
the new paradigm of the curricular ecosystem, then carried out design-based research with aseries of approaches including stakeholder’s feedback collection for program analysis,
pedagogical prototype testing, and formative evaluation to design curriculum structure
including program learning outcomes, teaching and learning approach, student assessment. In
conjunction with professional and academic partners internationally, work-integrated learningwith cross-cultural learning could play major roles to create efficient learning experiences. As
a result, the program has launched Design Innovation Practice School, the experiential
learning platform, in which partner’s workplace shall be arranged more academic than typicalinternship or apprenticeship approach to bridge the gaps of industry’s demands, and tochallenge the status quo in higher education administration. However, the academia-industry
consortium model is to be created to sustain long-term relationships with mutual benefits.
Keywords: Design Innovation, Experiential Learning, Practice School, Work-Integrated
Learning

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Introduction
Industrial Design Program (IDP) was established in 1999 during the period of recovery after
the outbreak of the crisis in Thailand especially in the industrial production andmanufacturing sectors. The program emphasized developing students’ competencies more
toward designing products with the human-centric design philosophy. Afterward, theevolution of UI/UX design has become the driving factor that brought curriculum into the eraof digital transformation with the trend of the design industry which significantly diversified
to the digital platform and service design. Until 2020, IDP’s journey had arrived at its crucial
turning point for the transformation to be “Design Innovation Practice School: The
Experiential Learning Platform”
Methodology
The design-based research methodology (Amiel & Reeves, 2008) has been applied inaddition to the routinized curriculum revision practices due to nowadays disruptive moments
realized by the program revision task force. The program’s minor change may not be able toserve the business sectors and social needs or even the upcoming generation of learners. The
task force decided to align the design-based research by combining the backward curriculum
design process (Wiggins & McTighe, 2006) with the program’s experiment to develop its key
teaching and learning strategy by academic-industry collaboration as a series of approaches toallow for the flexibility along with the curriculum development (Barab & Squire, 2004). The
backward curriculum design is part of the outcome-based education’s approach which isprimarily concerned with students’ culminating capabilities at graduation time and centers
curriculum and assessment design around higher-order exit outcomes (Spady & Marshall,1991). Starting with the program’s self-review, the stakeholders’ needs and feedbacks
towards the current curriculum or graduates are acquired as the inputs for designing the
program learning outcomes. Several forms of research included the satisfaction surveys tostudents and graduates, the focus-group interviewing workshops to academic staff, alumni,
employers, and program’s design business partners, and the academic & professional experts’suggestions. Correspondingly, the program development task force brainstormed for the newprogram and course structures likewise the program learning outcomes, the assessment
approaches, and the teaching and learning strategies.
To elaborate on the program’s self-assessment, the key teaching and learning strategy had
been continuously developed from an internship, the intended-learning opportunities as thestudents’ outreach activities, to more collaborative partnerships with the design industry andbusiness sectors. The opportunity became the strength of the program to let students involvewith real-condition design projects since the basic knowledge and skills were instilled in thefoundation years. In other words, the program attempted to prototype the work-integrated
learning in association with the design academic and industry partners throughout thesemester by integrating several courses into workplaces. Nevertheless, the supervision ofacademic staff was arranged and coordinated with workplace supervisors, and recently, theexperiential learning model (Kolb and Kolb, 2017) has been set as the new paradigm for the
program to prepare the graduates’ readiness in design innovation businesses.

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Figure 1: Development of Teaching and Learning Strategies from Industrial Design to Design
Innovation Program
Results
The program has launched Design Innovation Practice School, the experiential learning
platform, in which partner’s workplace shall be arranged more academic than typicalinternship or apprenticeship approach to bridge the gaps of industry’s demands. The learning
process whereby knowledge is created through the transformation of experience (Kolb andKolb, 2017) has been planned to be mainly in industry partner workplaces with assigned fulltime academic staff supervision to achieve the key program learning outcome –professionalism. Meanwhile, the knowledge and skills of the curriculum are evolved from thesingle discipline in design and are currently characterized to be more multidisciplinary
comprised of art & design, business & entrepreneurship, technology & innovation with a corephilosophy in human-centric design in order to let students develop their design
entrepreneurial mindset. And for another key program learning outcome – global citizen
mindset, the program strategically aims to manage international collaboration with academic
networks internationally for multicultural outlook enhancement. The learning assessment
approaches also need to be aligned with different learning scenarios. The academic staff’s
supervision as site director will be responsible for peer assessment with partner supervisor
while co-facilitating student learning with professional context and environment. The
learning modules could potentially be designed and built in either online or physicalplatforms to serve more learners’ diversity with their particular assessment criteria for each
module learning outcome. And to assess students’ global citizen mindset within theinternational activities and workshops, the program expectation is to be aware of andunderstand the wider world in similarity or difference of cultural contexts through hands-on
experience.
The concept of the experiential learning platform was derived by consolidating the program’s
strengths and key findings from stakeholders’ feedbacks. In clarification, networking withindustries and design business has been one of the significant resources for the program tocontinuously improve the project-based learning approach which is quite similar in generaldesign study programs, then considerably evolve into the best practice regarding theopportunities provided for students to be parts of the real business contexts in research anddesign. Some design projects have been commercialized in domestic and some even ininternational markets. In addition, another kind of learning opportunity with high satisfaction
from students is the international inbound-outbound seminar and workshop. The intensive
week is always co-organized with the academic institution abroad several times a year.

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Students and academic staff among these collaborative activities can learn and share theircross-cultural experiences together with also the chance to experience worldwide. The
benefits of the international activities are not only the fruitful learning in cultural diversity
and communication, but also the soft skills including the higher-order thinking skills withleadership and teamwork in which the graduates’ characteristics are enhanced.

Figure 2: The framework of Design Innovation Practice School – The Experiential Learning
Platform.
Conclusion
The integration of the program’s missions among education, research, and academic service
seems to be the direction that will lead the program to success, but in fact, the implications
with several factors are still required to be administrated by not only within the program’slevel. Further research is expected to focus on two main areas. First, the students’ assessment
methods should be adopted and be congruent with the expected learning outcomes. The
practicality in assessing learners’ competencies within the different learning environments isneeded to be scrutinized and designed. And as importantly, the clarification in the academiaindustry relationship models should be carefully figured out to find their mutual benefits
along with this collaborative platform. Several issues are still waiting to be fulfilled suchproblem of why the business sectors need to contribute their resources for the student’s
learning, and/or how the program could manage the learning activities within the workplacein compliance with its curriculum.

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References
Amiel, T., & Reeves, T. C. (2008). Design-based research and educational technology:
Rethinking technology and the research agenda. Educational Technology & Society,11(4), 29-40.
Barab, S. A., & Squire, K. (2004). Design-based research: Putting a stake in the ground.
Journal of the Learning Sciences, 13(1), 1-14.
Guide to AUN Actual Quality Assessment at Programme Level. ASEAN University
Network, Version 3.0, 2015.
Jim Glassman (2001) Economic Crisis in Asia: The Case of Thailand, Economic Geography,
77:2, 122-147, DOI: 10.1111/j.1944-8287.2001.tb00158.x
Kolb, Alice Y. and Kolb, David A. (2017) "Experiential Learning Theory as a Guide forExperiential Educators in Higher Education," Experiential Learning & Teaching in
Higher Education: Vol. 1 : No. 1 , Article 7.
Spady, W. D., & Marshall, K. G. (1991). Beyond Traditional Outcomes-Based Education.
Educational Leadership, 49, 67-72.
Wiggins, G., McTighe, J. (2006). Understanding by design (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River,
NJ: Prentice Hall.

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Strategies of Selected HEIs in Addressing Challenges and Issues Inherent to Student
Mobility
Renelee M. Subsuban, University of Mindanao, Philippines
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Abstract
Internationalization initiatives in student mobility of selected higher education institutions(HEIs) in Davao region, Philippines certainly set the ground for an internationalization effort
to cope with the challenges of globalization. However, HEIs being an open system is not
immune to challenges and issues which might put the internationalization efforts of HEIs in
student mobility at risk and in the end might result in limited planning and long term policies
on regional internationalization process. As per experiences of the respondents in this study,
the concrete actions for change in order to manage the challenges and issues inherent to student
mobility includes non-academic endeavor: providing support in terms of budget andinfrastructure development and academic endeavors : aligning the curriculum to meetinternational standards, strengthening the curriculum to meet international standards,
establishing linkages and collaborations with foreign HEIs, aligning school calendar between
two HEIs, teamwork, and sharing of responsibility. Implications of these experiences to theory,
policy, and present practices of Philippine HEIs are also discussed.
Keywords: HEIs, Strategies, Student Mobility

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Introduction
The Philippines, just like the rest of the countries in the world is beset by increasingly uncertainchanges brought about by globalization (Abas and Imam, 2016). It is an irreversible reality ofhuman life and its impact has seeped into the educational sector and has challenged traditional
institutions (Tullao,2003). Ota (2018) and Rose and McKinley (2017) both cited globalization
which transfers people, goods and services, money, information, and ideas rapidly acrossnational borders, posit that globalization is having a major impact in the field of higher
educational institutions (HEIs). Due to globalization, many countries ensure that higher
education is able to provide both professional knowledge/skills and all-around attributes to thegraduates so as to enable them to face the diversified yet global demands of the 21st century
society (De Guzman, et al.,2017). As expected, the demands of globalization have added morechallenges to higher education as universities are being asked to help meet major international
challenges, to educate students in their disciplines with a sense of global competence andengagement, and to contribute to local and national economic perspectives (Morris, 2009). In
the Philippines, the country contends not only with local quality assurance measures but with
regional and international benchmarks. Moreover, world and Asia university rankings,
international accreditation and quality assessment, faculty and student exchange, research
publication and citation, and international networking and linkages have become essentialconsiderations that are inevitably transforming the academic landscape (Carillo, 2017). In
recent years, many countries have undertaken reform programmes in addressing thesechallenges. One way to address this globalization trend is to internationalize the higher
education institutions (HEIs). Thus, internationalization has become a key strategy for all
tertiary education systems in the world, and the Philippines is no exception (Gacel-Avila,
Bustos-Aguirre, Freire Jr, 2017). In the Philippine context, the internationalization initiativesof HEIs can be attributed to the country’s integration into the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) community. When the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) was formallyestablished in 2015, ASEAN countries became more open to each other in terms of products
and services mobility (Madula,2018). According to Cinches, et al., (2017), an in-depth
understanding of internationalization initiatives is essential for school management to sustain
internationalization effort.
Presently, student mobility is a leading cross-border internationalization activity both inboundand outbound mobility. It is expected to increase since ASEAN countries have adopted various
strategies and policies to stimulate student mobility so it is prudent to understand these diverse
activities since it has been observed that while student mobility may help Southeast Asia
improve its higher education, it can also cause conflicts and challenges such as brain drain andforeign dependency (Do and Pham,2014). In the Philippines, the country’s Commission on
Higher Education (CHED) has issued several Memorandum Order (CMOs) in order to guide
HEIs in their internationalization efforts especially when it comes to student mobility, but it
has not been without its share of challenges. To the researcher’s knowledge, selected HEIs in
the Davao region lacks baseline data on this matter especially as to how the HEIs management
addresses the challenges and issues inherent to student mobility. Thus, this study.
Theoretical Framework
This study is anchored on three theoretical underpinnings namely; Open-System theory,
Contingency theory, and Bureaucratic theory. The enumerated theories have certain common
aspects, it all stresses the need of an organization to change, to be flexible, and adapt amidst
changing circumstances. Also, the three theories complement each other by stating that the

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adaptability of the organization to changing circumstances is essential for a successful
management system. Applying these principles imply that System theory sees HEIs being partof a system as an adaptive system since it interacts between the external environment and thesystem’s subparts and the subparts themselves. This is supported by the loose coupling
perspective of the Bureaucratic theory which articulates that leaders of an organization must
be flexible and adapt to the present needs of society which in this study is theinternationalization as mandated by CHED. Internationalization of HEIs requires an integrationof an international, intercultural dimension into the teaching (learning), research and service
functions of an institution. Change needs to occur at these levels for it to be effective.
Contingency theory stresses that HEIs leaders must be flexible and that a leader’s style mustmatch with the present situation and adapt to the changing circumstances. This calls for a newleadership in order to triumph these challenges most especially that today’s higher education
is surrounded by uncertainty and challenges brought about by globalization. The institution andits people need to change and transform to the changing scenario.
Methodology
This study employed a qualitative approach using phenomenological research since the study
required a detailed understanding of a central phenomenon which is the cross-borderinternationalization initiatives particularly student mobility among the five (5) selected HEIs
in Davao region. Data collection in this study involved key respondent’s interview as sourceof primary data and document review as secondary data in order to extract information anddata relating to the selected HEIs student mobility activities. In the key respondent’s interview,a researcher made semi-structured interview guide was used. The responses of the 26 key
respondents during the actual interview provided mainly the qualitative information. The
respondents were the following: Vice President for Academic Affairs, Head of International
Office, Dean of the different colleges, and one accompanying Faculty per college. Purposive
sampling was used in choosing the identified key respondents.
In analyzing and interpreting the data gathered in this study, thematic analysis was done on
information gathered from interviews of the various key respondents. The responses verbalized
by the key respondents were transcribed into word documents. The process allowed forpatterns/themes to be identified and for comparison to be established with what the key
respondents said and how the concepts was understood.
At the onset of conducting this study, ethical issues were considered immediately by seeking
approval of the researcher’s adviser, Graduate School Research Coordinator, and the Dean of
the Graduate School to allow the researcher to gather data. Once approved, letters of approval
to conduct data gathering were secured from the President of the selected HEIs in Davao region.
Lastly, a letter of consent was secured from the identified HEIs key respondents before theactual interview and a certificate of appearance was also secured after the interview. Codes
were used to protect the identity of the selected HEIs and the various key respondents.
Summary of Findings
The findings of the study revealed that student mobility is not a new phenomenon anymore to
the selected HEIs respondents in Davao region. However, certain challenges and issues areaffecting the operation of student mobility in the region. As per experiences, the selected HEIs
have concrete actions for change in order to address the challenges and issues inherent to
student mobility. These strategies include non-academic endeavor such as providing support

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to student mobility initiatives in terms of financial (example: allotting budget for paper
presentation and travel funds), and infrastructure development (example: construction ofdormitory for international students). Meanwhile, the academic endeavors include thefollowing: a.) aligning the curriculum to meet international standards by adding foreign
language in the curriculum, b.) strengthening the curriculum to meet international standards byincorporating international practices into the curriculum such as the following: changing thegrading system from numerical to letter grade, international benchmarking, adapting the credit
transfer scheme, incorporating transcultural inputs in the courses, offering of new courses andconduct of on the job training (OJT) abroad, applying for international certifications, andfocusing on institutional programs considered as Center of Development (COD) and Center of
Excellence (COE), c.) establishing linkages and collaborations with foreign HEIs by attending
international activities, maintaining membership in international organization, andmemorandum of agreement (MOA) signing with partner HEIs abroad, d.) aligning school
calendar between two HIEs by changing school calendar from June to August to match withforeign HEIs, e.) teamwork between HEIs management and stakeholders by establishing good
relationship and full support between HEIs management and its stakeholders, and lastly, f.)internationalization is a shared responsibility as shown in the concerted efforts of all sectors in
the university and the collaboration and cooperation of the HEIs.
Conclusion
In this time of globalization and ASEAN integration the selected HEIs in Davao region,
Philippines has been engaging in cross-border internationalization initiatives particularly
student mobility. The academic and non-academic endeavors of the HEIs are concrete actions
for change in order to address the challenges and issues inherent to student mobility. The
implications of the experiences of the key respondents in this particular study to the theory,
policy, and present practices of Philippine HEIs are discussed below:
TheoryThe results of this study as to the lived experiences of the key respondents affirm the opensystem characteristics of an organization such as HEIs that it cannot seal itself off from boththe internal and external forces that affect the whole system. Due to globalization HEIs must
adapt to international standards by changing certain practices in our education system that may
not be appropriate anymore with the present need of the society. Likewise, the study affirms
Contingency theory that sees HEIs as organizations that adapt to developing sound strategicplans that will fit the current circumstance and do away with some “traditions” that are nolonger applicable in a globalized world. However, this study does not conform with the idea ofthe usual top to bottom management approach of the Bureaucratic theory. Instead, strategicplanning and decision making on the internationalization agenda of the institution must involve
teamwork and sharing of responsibility between the internal and external clientele of theinstitutions. In this study, a “decentralized” form of organization that is flexible and open to“top-down bottom up” approach seems to be the most ideal practice when it comes tointernationalization of higher education.
There had been numerous studies and literature conducted about cross-borderinternationalization initiatives among universities abroad but minimal when it comes to HEIs
in the Philippines and most especially in Davao region, Mindanao. The researcher finds nostudies yet on the lived experiences of the school administrators and accompanying faculty
who are involved in the internationalization initiatives of some selected HEIs in Davao region.

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Thus, this baseline study presents a different and additional knowledge to the existing body ofknowledge on cross-border internationalization of higher education specifically student
mobility.
CHED Policy
The CHED policy on internationalization of Philippine higher education gives a clear direction
for the HEIs efforts to internationalize but it should not end there especially that based on theexperiences of some key respondent’s certain aspects of the CHED policy is “not encouraging”
and not “internationalization-friendly.” There is a need to revisit/review the policy oninternationalization which will consider HEIs strengths and weaknesses, and with a support
mechanism to encourage HEIs to pursue internationalization initiatives such as student
mobility. The prospects of improving certain “imperfections” in the current CHED policies oninternationalization is viable as long as CHED has a deep understanding of the current strengths
and weaknesses of HEIs in the region in pursuit of student mobility.
HEIs PracticeThis particular research is a baseline study that focuses on the strategies of selected HEIs in
Davao region in addressing the challenges and issues inherent to student mobility. This study
contributes to the existing knowledge about cross-border internationalization specificallystudent mobility. Following the narratives of the key respondents, internationalization isessential in order to cope with the challenges of globalization. The diversity of inbound andoutbound student exchange activities in the region certainly set the ground for aninternationalization effort. The present practices of the HEIs in strengthening the curriculum tomeet international standards, establishing linkages and collaborations with foreign HEIs,
adapting to certain international practices, providing support in terms of budget andinfrastructure development, as well as promoting collaboration, sharing, and teamwork within
the institutions and its stakeholders are all good practices that must be continued andstrengthened. The university governance has given way to participatory management leading
to strategies for more cooperation and collaboration. These experiences are a reflection of how“resilient” and “flexible” the educators in Davao region that despite the challenges and issues
along the road of cross-border internationalization initiatives specifically student mobility, they
still adapt and change. The prospect of more student mobility collaborations and engagementsin the future between Philippine HEIs particularly in the Davao region and universities abroad
is very encouraging.
Acknowledgements
The author would like to extend her sincerest thanks and gratitude to the following individuals:
Dr. Perla E. Funa, Dr. Annabel J. Casumpa, Dr. Marleonie M. Bauyot, Dr. Sophremiano B.
Antipolo, Dr. Nilda J. Ginete, Dr. Melanie Jeane C. Galvez , and Dr. Velouna R. Perez for theirconstructive criticisms and recommendations, the late Father Francisco Glover, S.J. for his
financial support and all the HEIs key respondents in this study for their time and allowing theauthor to interview them.

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References
Abas, M. C. & Imam, O. A. (2016). Graduates’ Competence on Employability Skills and Job
Performance. Retrieved from http://iaesjournal.com/online/index.php/IJERE.
Carillo, C. D. (2017). Higher Education in the Philippines: In transition. QS Asia News
Network Report. Retrieved from http://qswownews.com/higher-educationphilippines-transition/
Cinches, M.F.C., Russell, R.L.V., Borbon, M. L.F.C., Chavez, J. C. (2017).
Internationalization of Higher Education Institutions: The Case of Four HEIs.
Retrieved fromhttp://www.researchgate.net/publication/317369846_Internati...ducation_Institutions_
The_Case_of_Four_HIEs_in_the_Philippines
De Guzman, M.F.D., Edano, D.C., and Umayan, Z.D. (2017). Understanding the Essence of
the Outcomes-Based Education (OBE) and Knowledge of its Implementation in a
Technological University in the Philippines. Asia Pacific Journal of Multidisciplinary
Research, 5(4), 64-71. Retrieved from www.apjmr.com
Do, T.T., & Pham, D. N. (2014). Academic Mobility in South East Asia: Challenges andOpportunities in the Coming Decades. International Education, 44(1),28-49,107-108.
Retrieved fromhttps://mail.yahoo.com/d/folders/1/messages/AGCyyiUP2nhVW_zfDAV- QEB692k
Gacel- Avila, J., Bustos-Aguirre, M., Freire Jr., J. F. (2017). In De Wit, H., Gacel-Avila, J.,
Jones, E.; Jooste, N. (2017). The Globalization of Internationalization. Emerging
Voices and Perspectives. ROUTLEDGE.
Madula, R. D. (2018). Internationalization of Philippine Higher Education and the ASEAN
Integration. Proceedings of the 125th The IRES International Conference, Beijing,
China. Retrieved from http://www.worldresearchlibrary.org/up_proc/pdf/168015350231811-5.pdf
Morris, B. J. (2009). Internationalizing the University: Theory, Practice, Organization andExecution, Journal of Emerging Knowledge Markets, 1 (1), 12. Retrieved fromhttps://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/jekem/vol1/iss1/12
Ota, H. (2018). Internationalization of Higher Education: Global Trends and Japan’s
Challenges. Educational Studies in Japan: International Yearbook (pp. 91-105).
Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1182868.pdf
Rose, H. and McKinley, J. (2017). Japan’s English-medium instruction initiatives and theglobalization of higher education. Higher Education, 75 (1), 1-19. Retrieved fromhttps://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-017-0125-1

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Tullao, J.T. (2003). Education and Globalization. In Cinches, M.C., Russell, R. L. V.,
Borbon, M. L. F., Chavez, J. C. Internationalization of Higher Education Institutions:
The Case of Four HEIs in the Philippines. Asian Scientific Journal, 12 (1),1.
Retrieved fromhttp://asianscientificjournals.com/new/publication/index.php/ljher/article/view/96 1/0
Contact email: bingmsd@gmail.com
zereleen_226@yahoo.com

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The Present and Future of Online Distance Learning: Trends and Challenges of Virtual
Teachers
Yongzhi Huang, University of the Cordilleras, Philippines
Maria Lenore B. Barcenas, University of the Cordilleras, Philippines
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Abstract
In response to sustain quality education during pandemic and the need to address the needs ofonline distance learning, this research aims to investigate what are the trends and challenges
virtual teachers experience after a year since remote learning has been implemented. Thisquantitative research was conducted through an adapted survey questionnaire most applicableto the study. The participants were Nursery to Grade 12 teachers of Baguio Patriotic HighSchool. The respondents were selected using purposive sampling method. The teachers wereasked about their experiences with online teaching, main challenges of switching toonline/distance learning, support that they need and their opinion regarding schools fully
reopening after COVID-19 pandemic. The study revealed that flexibility, innovation and awide range of tools are what teachers pleasantly experienced about online/distance learning.
However, keeping all pupils motivated and engaged was the main challenge for virtualteachers. With this, teachers need support and easy contact with experts, professional
development and more free resources and tools from education technology companies.
Teachers perceived that when schools fully reopen, online teaching will become integral toschool practices. For support from the school, the teachers requested continuous technicaltraining and education provide complete and adequate facilities including internet connection
and lessen recorded video lessons. Awareness on the trends and challenges of online distancelearning can be an eye opener to school administrators who are on the early stage of its
implementation and can give appropriate support and help.
Keywords: Distance Online Learning, Online Teaching, Remote Learning, Trends,
Challenges

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Introduction
Remote learning or distant learning has been the new normal for over a year now. The
education sector is taking this opportunity to reshape the way children are being taught. Oneof the most significant changes is the promotion of flexible learning in which there arelearning programs created based on the capacity of students, and schools.
On the first week of remote learning, students may understandably miss their friends inschool. After a week or two, they may start to show fatigue and lose interest in most classes.
They still may make good grades but may struggle in some subjects. Some may complain
about how they are finding it difficult to grasp concepts and the teacher just can’t make thingseasier for any of them. These may not be far from the Philippine experience. While somestudents in other parts of the world does not have to worry about a smart phone, a laptop orinternet connection, students and their teachers face the same long-term challenges that
remote or distance online learning presents.
A recent survey by the RAND Corporation (a nonprofit research company in the UnitedStates) has come up with the following findings:
1.
Learning has been slower for fully remote/ hybrid classes compared to in-person. Thisis because students fail to show up and/or fail to complete schoolwork. When students are notlearning or performing in the pace expected, lessons would tend to go slower, and teachers
need to put in more effort to get the students interested.
2.
There are students that are more likely to fall behind than others. The study found that
schools that have students who qualified for free, had reduced-price lunch, and schools that
had more students that were of color were more likely to offer remote learning than in-person
learning. In turn, these students are less likely to have access to a laptop or a computer andinternet services. There are also students who may be severely disabled and may experience
poverty or homelessness – and online teachers are not equipped to handle them. (Schwartz,
2020)
We have to understand that most teachers were not really trained to teach online. They needsupport on how to adapt curriculum, how to motivate students, how to push them to excel
academically, as well as how to assess if they are indeed learning. Most of all, we have tounderstand that in the face of the pandemic, teachers are also worried about their own healthand their loved ones.
As time goes on, and with not seeing the end of the pandemic soon, we come face to facewith the challenges of distance online learning. Guisinger (2020) stated in his article“Distance learning is a challenge because teaching and learning are complex. We all sense
this, but the devil is in the details.”
The purpose of this study is to create awareness on the trends and challenges we are facing as
virtual teachers of K-12 students. Much of what we – teachers, students, as well as parents are going through are practically new to us. While we are learning a lot, we are also making
mistakes along the way.
This study also aims to come up with solutions on how to make our new processes work for us
and our students in the face of our limitations. That while it is difficult, we believe that we canmake virtual learning work for our students.

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Methodology
The researchers used the quantitative descriptive research design to address the purpose of thestudy. The study aimed to provide trends and on-going challenges teachers engaged in
distance online teaching were experiencing and what can be done about it.
Convenience sampling was used in this study. Twenty-seven participants (n=27) from Baguio
Patriotic High School, a Filipino-Chinese private school, were asked to participate in thisstudy. The 27 participants consisted of 11 males (n=11) and 16 females (n=16). Their ages
ranges from 20 to more than fifty years old. Their number of years in teaching ranges fromless than three years to more than twenty years. All of them finished Bachelor’s Degree andtwo are Master’s Degree holder. All of the participants were teaching in different grade levels
and handled different subjects, from Pre-Kindergarten to Grade 12. Eighteen participants
spent less than 10 hours per week in actual online teaching, eight spent 11-20 hours and only
one participant spent more than 40 hours.
The instrument that was used for gathering data was a printed survey questionnaire. This
study adapted the Survey on online and distance learning. This instrument was developed by
School Education Gateway (2020). The questionnaire used was divided into two sections: (1)Background Information and (2) Opinions and Experiences in Distant Online
Learning/Teaching. The background information section asked about the participant’s
personal information (name, age, gender, highest educational attainment, number of years inteaching in the current school, grade level, subject taught and number of hours spent weekly in
actual online teaching). The second section consisted of six questions with multiple choices(except number 6 where they provide own answer):
1.
Thinking of your school, which statement best describe teacher’s experience with
online distance learning?
2.
As a teacher, what have you pleasantly experienced about online/distance learning?
3.
In your opinion, what have been the main challenges for teachers in switching toonline/distance learning? Choose up to five options.
4.
What would most help teachers to support online learning? Choose up to three
options.
5.
In your opinion, due to the current circumstances created by the COVID 19 virus,
when schools fully reopen, will online/distance teaching remain part of school practice?
6.
In your opinion, how can your school support further in online teaching?
Letters of permission were sent out to the school principal and participants regarding the data
gathering for this research. The data gathering was conducted for two days, August 24-25,
2021. The questionnaires were retrieved August 26, 2021 by one of the researchers with thehelp of the school principal.

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Findings and Discussion
These are the survey results gathered from the participants.
11.10%
14.80%

74.10%

They have extensive experience in online teaching
They have some previous experience with online teachingThis is their first experience with online teaching

Figure 1: Teachers' Online Teaching Experience.
Figure 1 shows the results of which statement best describes teacher’s experience with online
teaching. The findings show that 74.10% or majority have some previous experience with
online teaching. According to the Department of Education, private schools were allowed tostart earlier than public schools provided that they are strictly using only distance learningmodalities and there are no face-to-face classes. In June 2020, on the height of the COVID19 pandemic, DepEd issued a “non-negotiable requirement” to private schools and among the“non-negotiable” requirements prescribed for private schools are setting up own email
domains and educational platforms. In addition to this, both teachers and learners shouldhave the necessary resources to access the lesson. While most public schools in thePhilippines were preparing for modular distance learning, private schools started online
distance learning.

Flexibility
Innovation (freedom to experiment with teaching practices)
Wide range of tools
Engagement and enjoyment of pupils
Ease of Use
Customization (ability to personalize learning for students)
Accessibility (Platforms, materials, resources)
Increased autonomy, motivation, self-determination, selfUsefulness
Nothing
Others (Please specify)

17(20.7%)
16(19.5%)8(9.8%)
8(9.8%)
7(8.5%)
7(8.5%)
7(8.5%)
7(8.5%)
5(6.1%)
0(0%)
0(0%)
0

5

10

Figure 2: Pleasant Experience on Online Distance Teaching

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Figure 2 demonstrates results on pleasant experience of participants with online distanceteaching. Findings show that most of the participants experienced flexibility and innovation(i.e. freedom to experiment with teaching practice) with 20.7% and 19.5% respectively. The
new normal in education compels educators not just to come up with new ways of doing
things but also new ways of thinking. Teachers can design their own context and delivery
according to the needs and context of their learners. Research has indicated that teachers aremost likely to be satisfied when they are provided with flexibility in what, how, when, andwhere they teach (Archambault & Crippen, 2009; Bolliger & Wasilik, 2009; Hawkins et al.,2012; Kozma et al., 1998; Murphy & Rodríguez-Manzanares, 2008; Smith, 2000; Velasquez,
Graham, & Osguthorpe, 2013, as cited in Borup & Stevens, 2016).

23(16.3%)
22(15.6%)
18(12.8%)
17(12.1%)

Communicating with pupils
Converting activities and content into online distance12(8.5%)10(7.1%)10(7.1%)7(5.0%)
4(2.8%)
4(2.8%)
3(2.1%)
3(2.1%)
3(2.1%)
2(1.4%)
2(1.4%)
1(0.7%)
0(0%)
0(0%)

Assessing pupils’ learning and progress
Communicating with parents/guardians/caregivers
Time management and organization
Little direction or support given by the school
Involving pupils from socially disadvantaged homes
Involving disaffected/dissatisfied pupils
Others
0

5

10

15

20

25

Figure 3: The Main Challenge for Teachers to Switch to Online/Distance Learning
With years of experience in traditional instruction and face-to-face classroom setting, changes
at this rapid pace can be confusing even to the most experienced teacher. On Figure 3,
participants were given to choose their top 5 main challenges for switching to online or
distance learning. The most popular response or 16.3% of the participants have had
difficulties in keeping all the pupils motivated, followed by 15.5% who also experience
difficulties communicating with pupils. In a research conducted by Abramenka (2015),
student motivations towards online learning are enhanced with clear organization,communication, interaction and presence of the instructor. Students should be able tocontribute various perspectives and thoughts in an online setting, and in turn receive critique(Abramenka, 2015). The 21st century world is becoming increasingly digitized which isanother reason why it is important for academics to be more aware of the specifics of theircohorts and learners and find ways to engage with and support isolated learners (Gillet-Swan,
2017). The third on the list is teacher’s access to technology with 12.8% of the participants
and 12.1% find it challenging to convert activities and content in to online distance learning.
In an article by Beltran (2021) a teacher told Nikkei Asia “I start and end my day staring at a
laptop”. EDUCAUSE notes that teachers use digital technologies in their personal lives, butthat, when applied in classrooms, they encounter serious technical, logistical, andpedagogical problems (Johnson et al, 2016 cited by Mercader & Gairin, 2020). While mostteachers are still learning how to use different online learning platforms, there are also thosestruggling with poor internet connection and lack of gadgets/computers. The fifth main

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challenge for teachers is their student’s access to technology. Most students do not have theappropriate connectivity, device and digital skills required to find and use educational content
dependent on technology. According to UN, nearly 500 million students from pre-primary to
upper secondary school did not have any access to any remote learning—three quarters of
those lived in the poorest household or rural areas. This enormous digital divide shows how
connectivity has become a key factor to guarantee the right to education (UNESCO, 2021).

Professional development: quick courses on online
teaching

17(21.5%)

More free resources and tools form education
technology companies

16(20.3%)

Support and easy contact with experts (e.g., moreexperienced online-learning teacher, an ICT/technical15(19.0%)

Clear guidance from the Department of Education

13(16.5%)

Websites with lists of useful resources9(11.4%)

Video clips/lesson plans of good practice5(6.3%)

Webinars for teachers to share ideas and challenges

4(5.1%)

More educational TV programs by the national media
organizations

0(0%)
0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

16

18

Figure 4: Ways to Help Teacher’s Support Online Learning
Figure 4 demonstrates the results of the most helpful support to teachers on online learning.
The top 3 support that teachers need in online learning are professional development with21.5%, more free resources and tools from education technology companies with 20.3% andsupport and easy contact with experts with 19%. In a study by Simon (2015), many
participants reported having given thoughts to ways in which they could improve their online
courses. However, many of these ideas were tied to technology, and were systematicallyrejected due to time constrains, lack of technological knowledge, lack of available and usable
technologies, perceived lack of support, and doubts 123 about resulting educational benefits.
In the absence of incentive to experiment with new technologies, exemplary practices andactive support, teachers are not likely to take the risk to incorporate new technologies orpedagogies in their online courses. They are more likely to stick to familiar practices, evenwhen these practices are not fully satisfactory (Simon, 2015). While the problem of teachers’
indifference and resistance to technology is common, providing support through all of thesecan hopefully change their mindset. Acquiring the necessary skill is equally important as
having the technology to provide online learning.

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4(14.8%)7(25.9%)16(59.3%)0(0)School will be different: online teaching will become integral to school practices
School will be a little different, with more online learning than before
The school will return to its original practice with minor changes
The school will return to its original practice

Figure 5: Trends in Online/Distance Teaching When Schools Are Completely Reopened
Figure 5 shows the results on trends in online/distance teaching when schools are completely
reopened. Results show that most of the participants or 59.3% have selected “School will bedifferent: online teaching will become integral to school practices”. Those who are in the
education sector know that online learning is here to stay and thus the school has a very big
responsibility to shape its teachers and learners into that direction. Thus in the last part of thesurvey the participants wrote the following on how the school can support them further inonline teaching: (1) Education with incentives/trainings and seminars; (2) technical software
support; (3) lessen video lesson recordings/digitized video recordings; and (4) provide
digitized learning material, equipment/facilities including fast internet connection.
Conclusion
More than a year later since the start of the COVID 19 pandemic, Philippine schools continue
to tackle challenges in ensuring that quality instruction be delivered safely to students at
home. However, quality instruction has already been out of reach for many students long
before the pandemic. While many Filipinos see education as a way out of poverty, thenational government since the 1990s has given dwindling allocation to it, compared tobudgets for Public Works and Highways or Transportation or National Defense. The
pandemic has not only disrupted the delivery of quality education, but it has also magnified
the issues that have been plaguing it for a long time.
When teachers and students struggled with the lack of books, classrooms and other learning
tools, the onset of the pandemic has forced the Philippine educational system to go online at apurely untested and unprecedented scale. Of course, online distance learning is the safest
possible solution to continue learning. On an economic level, it could be a godsend as it
would reduce spending on daily commutes, packed snacks and lunches, and test papers.
Students and teachers do not have to get up early to catch jeepneys or buses to go to school.
You can actually “go to school” without taking a bath or getting into a uniform. This takes
into aside, of course, the main purpose of reducing contact to save the lives of teachers andstudents. From an administrative point of view, this could also be a good opportunity to

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implement innovative technology solutions such as High Touch, High Tech or the use of
artificial intelligence to improve leaning.
However, the implementation of the online distance learning solution has raised a lot of
issues with regards to access to technology, reliability of internet access, consistent computer
access, and ensuring regular online participation of students, on one hand. And on the other
hand, we have teachers who are also struggling with the transition to remote learning withinadequate technological training and preparedness to handle teaching online. Because
standing in front of the phone or laptop camera and broadcasting is not teaching. As our
teachers “painfully” find out, we have to do things differently.
So, should we go back to traditional face-to-face education once the pandemic is over?
Not so fast.
Even before the pandemic, there have already been plans to prioritize spending of theeducation budget largely on technology-based solutions – to make our students globallycompetitive. The onset of the pandemic only accelerated our need to transition to a model of
education that brings together the best of both traditional offline learning and e-learning – notonly here in the Philippines but in the entire world. This global pandemic is far from over, so
it is incumbent upon us to continue learning and innovating to minimize the despair anddisruption it has caused on our children’s education. The government should continue tosupport and fund technology-based learning solutions like online distance learning. Teachers
should be given continuous training on online engagement and troubleshooting. Access to theinternet should be made as universal as access to water and electricity. Education has neverbeen more important as these times when knowledge of facts and science can save your lifeand your loved ones. Focusing on improving the access and methods for online distancelearning could be the key to increased global competitiveness of our children.
Shakespeare once said, “There is no darkness, only ignorance”, online distance learning may
just be our light out of this long tunnel.
Acknowledgement
We are mostly grateful to our family for all the love and support they have given during the
conduct of this research. We would also like to thank all our professors at the University of
the Cordilleras specially our mentors in research Dr. Thelma Palaoag, Ronald Judan, Dr.
Jennifer Dindin and our dean, Dr. Ramir Austria. Finally, we would like to thank theprincipal and all the teachers at Baguio Patriotic High School, for without them this researchcannot be made possible.

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References
Schwartz. S. (2020, November 16). Survey: Teachers and students are struggling with
online learning. EducationWeek. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/surveyteachers-and-students-are-struggling-with-online-learning/2020/11
Guisinger, E. (2020, September 7). Distance learning? Virtual classroom? Online classes?
Illumination. https://medium.com/illumination-curated/distance-learning-challengesffe617e23edb
Borup, J. & Stevens, M. (2016). Factors influencing teacher satisfaction at an online charterschool. Journal of Online Learning Research, 2(1), 3-22.
School Education Gateway. (2020, August 6). Survey on online distance learning – results.
https://www.schooleducationgateway.eu/en/pub/viewpoints/surveys/survey-ononline-teaching.htm
Abramenka, V. (2015). Students’ motivation and barriers to online education. Grand Valley
State University, Allendale, Michigan.
Gillet-Swan, J. (2017, January). The challenges of online learning: supporting and engaging
the isolated learner. 10(1):20. DOI: 10.5204/jld.v9i3.293
Magsambol, B. (2020, June 1). Fast facts: DepEd’s distance learning. Rappler.
https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/things-to-know-department-educationdistance-learning
Beltran, M. (2021, August 9). Philippine children are left behind by poor distance learning.
NIKKEIASIA. https://asia.nikkei.com/Life-Arts/Life/Philippine-children-are-leftbehind-by-poor-distance-learning2
Mercader, C., Gairín, J. University teachers' perception of barriers to the use of digitaltechnologies: the importance of the academic discipline. Int J Educ Technol High
Educ 17, 4 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-020-0182-x
Simon, E. (2015, April 28). Teaching with web-based resources. edutopia.
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/teaching-with-web-based-resources-edwige-simon
United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization,(2020, April 21). Startling
digital divide in distance learning emerge. https://en.unesco.org/news/startlingdigital-divides-distance-learning-emerge

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The Development and Evaluation of an Online Educational Game Integrated with Gather
Town for Nursing Staff Learning
Wen-Lin Chen, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Pei-Ching Ngu, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
Huei-Tse Hou, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taiwan
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Abstract
Many on-the-job training courses for nursing education have been converted to online courses
due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, emergency and intensive training courses
emphasize the provision of real situations to promote learners' abilities in making accurate
observations and instant judgments based on patients’ situations. In this research, an online
educational simulation game called Emergency Room, which uses the Gather Town platform
and Google Jam board application to build virtual emergency room scenes and integrate patientcomplaints of differing severity, was developed. This game enables learners to establish how toevaluate the consciousness and muscle strength of critically ill patients and establish cognitive
scaffolding and peer scaffolding to improve the consistency of evaluation, providing acontextual and real learning environment. By providing a description of the patient's condition
in a simulated emergency room, the correctness and consistency of assessment ofconsciousness and muscle strength according to the patient's condition are expected to improveby playing the game. The trainees were also required to identify the principle of urgent
admission based on the main complaint and clinical evaluation of each patient, especially withregards to their consciousness and muscle strength. After preliminary analysis of the empiricalevidence, it was found that the learning effectiveness of the trainees was significantly
improved. The flow state and technical acceptance of all learners were also analyzed, and theresults showed that the overall flow and game acceptance were both higher than the median(median of the five-point scale = 3). Most of the learners also reported that using the game wasmore helpful for attaining problem-solving skills than not using the game.
Keywords: Simulated Learning, Online Educational Games, Level of Consciousness, Muscle
Strength, Physical Assessment

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Introduction
When the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic spread globally, more than 1.6 billion students wereaffected by the pandemic. Since the pandemic is a highly contagious virus, it is difficult toprovide physical learning places due to the risk of infection and spreading the infection tofaculty, staff, and students (Baran & Correia, 2014). Reducing clinical courses had a significant
impact on medical education, especially for medical students who wish to acquire certain
structured abilities and skills before starting their careers (Ferrel & Ryan, 2020). Educational
structure changed in many educational institutions due to COVID-19 pandemic (Hussein et al.,2020). Medical students need to acquire certain abilities through learning and participating inclinical and non-clinical activities. By using different communication and education
technologies, learners can learn with anyone anytime, anywhere, thereby expanding, andaccelerating learning (McClure & Williams, 2021); however, compared with physical courses,
an important problem is the lack of social interaction between learners on the online learning
platforms.
Our game research aims to explore how the online educational game integrated with Gather
Town promotes the effectiveness of remote simulation in clinical nursing education. The
online educational game integrated with Gather Town used in this study emphasizes situatedlearning, cognitive scaffolding, peer scaffolding, and game design elements such as virtual
peer interaction, medical scenarios, and clinical simulation in teaching activities. Situational
learning refers to that learning should be carried out in the context of the application of theknowledge learned (Lave & Wenger, 1991). Scaffolding theory refers to providing support andguidance to improve students' learning ability when learning content or skills (Wood et al.,1976). Vygotsky (1978) pointed out that learners can expand their "independent processing
capabilities" with the help of peers of capable people. Online games use medical scenarios may
enhance peer collaboration to assess the patient's coma scale and muscle strength, and thensimulate clinical handovers. The research purposes of this study are to develop an online
educational game integrated with Gather Town as well as explore learners’ learning
performance, flow state, game acceptance, and game anxiety of online educational gameintegrated with Gather Town.

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Figure. 3 Cognitive Scaffolding of the Game

Figure. 4 Learners Evaluate the Patients

Methods
The online educational game Emergency Room developed with Gather Town was designed
based on situated learning (Figure 1). After completing the pre-test questions, the assistant will
guide the nursing staff to play the game and enter the Emergency Room. Learners in this study
consisted of 12 nurses, divided into four groups to play games at different times. Eachparticipant uses a personal computer and microphone to communicate with others in Gather
Town through completing the learning activity. They must find three patients in the Emergency
Room who need to evaluate GCS and MP of the cases, and write down the scores in a Google
Jam board. In this process, learners have to apply professional knowledge and clinicalexperience to discuss with each other to form a peer scaffolding (Figure 2), and also can readreference books in Gather town as cognitive scaffolding. Learners evaluate three patients’
status to finish the tasks according to the patients’ description (shown as Figure 3). Once
learners complete the evaluation, they need to fill in the answers in a Jam board (Figure 4), andthe head nurse would reveal if they provide the appropriate evaluation of three patients.
To be able to analyze academic performance, the content of the pre-test and post-test are thesame. There are 4 questions in the exam. The four clinical head nurses of a medical center in
Taipei reviewed the questions for expert validity.
This study used Kiili (2006)'s Flow Scale to assess the flow state of learners, which wastranslated and revised by Hou and Li (2014). The flow state includes two dimensions of flow
antecedents and flow experience, and all scales are measured using the Likert five-point scale(1-5 points). The reliability measurement (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.931) shows a high degree ofinternal consistency. Regarding the acceptance, the study adapted and revised Davis’s (1989)
The Technology Acceptance Model items. There are 8 items including usefulness, ease of use,and game elements. The program of learning activities includes pre-test (10 minutes), game (30minutes), post-test (10 minutes), and finally the questionnaire (10 minutes).
Results and Discussion
In terms of academic performance, the Table 1 shows the result of the Wilcoxon signed rank
test that students’ performance has improved after playing online emergency room games(Z=-2.075, p<.001). By completing the game, the overall performance of the learner has been
improved. In terms of flow, based on the result of one simple t test, the overall flow status (M =3.73, t=7.205, p<0.001), the sub-dimension flow antecedent dimension (M = 3.54, t=3.57,
p<0.01) and the sub-dimension flow experience (M = 3.93, t=5.49, p<0.001) are all
significantly (p<0.05) higher than the median value (median fifth ratio = 3) (See Table 2). The

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results show that learners are deeply involved in the game. In addition, and the result revealed
that usefulness (M=4.15, t=5.55, p<0.001), ease of use (M=3.8, t=2.99, p<0.05), and gameelements (M=4.02, t=4.79, p<0.01), were also significantly (p<0.05) higher than the median(the median in a five-point scale =3)(see Table 3), which indicates that the game operation
process is simple, and easy for nursing staff to use.
Table 1 Mean and Standard Deviation of Learning Performance Pre- and Post-Test.
M
SD
Z
Sig.
Pre-test
3.97
1.82
0.038**
Post-test
5.24
1.75
**
P < 0.01
Table 2 Means and Standard Deviations of Flow State Scores.
Dimensions
M
SD
Flow antecedents
3.54
0.53
challenge
3.83
0.62
goal
3.70
0.62
feedback
3.25
0.54
self-control
3.54
0.94
playability
3.38
0.71
Flow experience
3.93
0.59
concentration
4.27
0.63
time distortion
4.21
0.84
Autotelic experience
4.31
0.67
loss of self-consciousness
2.92
1.20
Overall flow
3.73
0.49
* p<.05 ** p<.01*** p<.001t
3.57**
4.69**
3.95*
1.59
1.99
1.82
5.49***-.24
4.99***
6.81***
6.93***
5.21***

Table 3 Means and Standard Deviations of Game Acceptance Scores.
Dimensions
MSDt
usefulness
4.15
0.72
5.55***
ease of use
3.8
0.90
2.99*
Game elements
4.02
0.74
4.79*** p<.05 ** p<.01*** p<.001
Conclusions
In this research, an online educational game, "Emergency Room", which combined the chiefcomplaint of patients with simulation emergency ‘Gather Town’ environment was developed.
The aim of this research enhanced the contextual learning experience of nurses considering the
restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The results showed that the game helped
nurses to improve their evaluation skills, and increased their knowledge and ability to assesspatient limb and muscle strength. These preliminary findings indicated that combined online
educational games with a mechanism by simulate real situations can effectively improve thelearning of nursing staff. The results of flow analysis also showed the high level of engagementwith the game reported by all the nurses who participated in the study. Also, the game was easy
for learners to play. Future research could conduct a quasi-experimental design to compare the

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effectiveness of participants in the game with that a control group (who undertake, forexample, general online courses), and to further explore the assessment capabilities,
emergency response ability, and online learning motivation of nursing staff.
Acknowledgements
This research was supported by the US Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR)
project (20IOA038) and the Ministry of Science and Technology, Republic of China, undercontract numbers MOST-107-2511-H-011-003-MY3 and MOST-108-2511-H-011-003 -MY3.

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References
Baran, E., & Correia, A. P. (2014). A professional development framework for online teaching.
TechTrends ,58, 96-102. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11528-014-0791-0
Ferrel, M., N. & Ryan, J., J. (2020). The impact of COVID-19 on medical education.
Cureus,12(3),7492. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.7492
Hou, H. T., & Li. M.C. (2014). Evaluating multiple aspects of a digital educational
problem-solving-based adventure game. Computers in Human Behavior, 30, 29-38
Hussein, E., Daoud, S., Alrabaiah, H., & Badawi, R. (2020). Exploring undergraduate
students’ attitudes towards emergency online learning during COVID-19: A case fromthe UAE.Children and Youth Services Review,119,1-21.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105699
Kiili, K. (2006). Evaluations of an experiential gaming model. Human Technology: An
Interdisciplinary Journal on Humans in ICT Environments.
Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation.
Cambridge university press.
McClure, C. D., & Williams, P. N. (2021). Gather. town: Compass: Journal of Learning andTeaching, 14(2), 1232. https://doi.org/10.21100/compass. v14i2.1232
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind and society: The development of higher mental processes.
Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press
Wood, D., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal ofchild psychology and psychiatry, 17(2), 89-100.
Contact email: hthou@mail.ntust.edu.tw

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Challenges of Lesson Plan on Data and Chance with an Intervention of Video Analysis:
Preservice Secondary Mathematics Teachers
Yun-Zu Chen, Taipei Municipal Nanhu High School, Taiwan
Kai-Lin Yang, National Taiwan Normal University, Taiwan
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Abstract
The study aimed to investigate the effects of scaffolding on preservice secondary mathematics
teachers’ (PSMTs') lesson plans. A series of well-organized activities were conducted, which
included design, peer discussion, video analysis, microteaching, and revision. The theme wason data and chance. Video analysis aimed to bring new comprehension of effective teachingfor PSMTs. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four PSMTs to collect data.
Findings showed that PSMTs faced lesson planning challenges because of a lack of content
knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge in data and chance. As for the lesson plan
before video analysis, the challenges included predicting students’ behavior and estimating thetime needed in teaching. After video analysis, they showed their efforts to pursue effective
teaching when reflecting and revising their lesson plans. The findings suggested that video
analysis benefits PSMTs’ awareness of some features of effective teaching. Yet, more
scaffolding is needed in supporting their noticing, reasoning, and the pursuit of interactive
teaching involving the design of activities.
Keywords: Preservice Teachers, Lesson Plan, Video Analysis, Effective Teachingiafor
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Introduction
Ball, Thames, and Phelps (2008) proposed the importance of pedagogical content knowledge,
which is knowledge of content and students as well as knowledge of content and teaching.
Video analysis is a pedagogical tool to support teachers in noticing and reflection, which may
benefit the development of CK and PCK (Karsenty & Arcavi, 2017; Star & Strickland, 2008).
Our study is interested in employing video analysis to support preservice secondary
mathematics teachers (PSMTs) in lesson planning. Additionally, peer evaluation benefits
reflection in teacher preparation and thus improves the quality of the lesson plan (Etscheidt,
Curran, & Sawyer, 2012; Ozogul, Olina, & Sullivan, 2008). Therefore, we anticipate PSMTs
may benefit from both video analysis and peer evaluation.
Referred to literature, PSMTs faced at least three kinds of challenges in statistics teaching: lackof content knowledge, lack of pedagogical content knowledge, and lack of confidence instatistics teaching with and without technology use (Lovett & Lee, 2017). Task analysis,modification, and design are paramount in mathematics teacher training. PSMTs may findmore challenges in task modification and design than in task analysis (Lim, Song, & Kim,
2018). Similarly, PSMTs may encounter many challenges of lesson plans, including task
modification and design on data and chance. Considering the effects of video analysis and peer
evaluation on lesson plans, we investigated PSMTs’ challenges of lesson plans on data andchance before and after peer evaluation and video analysis. Therefore, we will explore thefollowing research questions:
1.
What challenges do preservice secondary mathematics teachers (PSMTs) encounter indesigning a lesson plan on data and chance?
2.
What challenges do preservice secondary mathematics teachers (PSMTs) encounter inpeer evaluation?
3.
What challenges do preservice secondary mathematics teachers (PSMTs) encounter invideo analysis?
MethodTwenty-nine PSMTs enrolled in a teaching methods course at a university located in the capital
city of Taiwan. The course had two contact hours per week over 18 weeks. The objectives of
the course were understanding the curriculum, analyzing textbooks, and designing lessons. The
practice of the lesson plan lasted for three weeks. In the first week, PSMTs set learning
objectives and transformed their CK and PCK into a 20-minute lesson plan on statistics. After
that, they did peer evaluation, which aimed to facilitate reflection and assessment of effective
teaching. In the second week, PSMTs worked in small groups on video analysis to bring newcomprehension of effective teaching practice. After that, PSMTs did a whole group classdiscussion on what they noticed and reflected. In the third week, PSMTs did micro-teaching
and lesson revision with other PSMTs of the same small group. A semi-structured interview
was conducted with four selected PSTs on their challenges and gains when planning andrevising lessons one week later. The interview lasted about 40 minutes for one PSMT. Thesefour PSMTs’ lesson plans and responses to the interview tasks constituted the study's data
sources.

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Figure 1: A Framework of Using Video Analysis to Prepare Psmts for Lesson Plan
Results
PSMTs encountered different kinds of challenges in various activities. The main challenge inthe lesson plan is transforming the knowledge of content, students, and teaching for predicting
students’ responses and estimating reasonable teaching time. In peer evaluation, PSTs
encountered challenges in proposing critical feedback for each other’s lesson plan because of
not knowing the features of good teaching. In video analysis, PSMTs displayed weakness in
CK and PCK, which may diminish the influence of video analysis on lesson plans and revision.
In lesson revision and micro-teaching, PSMTs felt it challenging to integrate the learning ofvideo analysis and peer evaluation into lesson revision. It may be due to a lack of understandingof students’ cognition in data and chance and the desire or capability to pursue interactive
teaching.
On the other hand, PSMTs learned a lesson on effective teaching from different activities. Twoof the four PSTMs used information and communication technology (ICT) to teach more
effectively from the lesson plan. PSTMs evaluated the feasibility of their peer’s lesson plans
and reflected on their teaching from peer evaluation. From video analysis, PSTMs viewed
activity-based learning as an efficient entry to develop concepts and noticed some features ofeffective teaching, such as teacher-student interaction. As a result, two of the four PSMTs
revised their lesson plans for more effective teaching. In sum, peer evaluation and video
analysis encouraged PSMTs to critically reflect on their lesson plans and recognize somefeatures of effective teaching.
Conclusion and Suggestion
The investigation explored PSMTs’ challenges in the lesson plan and found PSMTs’ lack ofconfidence in predicting students’ behavior. Though analyzing video analysis brought newcomprehension of effective teaching, it didn’t push all the PSMTs to revise their lesson plansor guarantee the success of the new transformation. The result may be due to PSMTs’ overstresson time efficiency and lack of motivation to pursue interactive teaching. Thus, PSMT may needmore scaffolding in noticing and reflecting on the features of interactive teaching (Lee, Lee, &Park, 2019), which may bring about a new transformation in the pursuit of effective instruction.
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the Ministry of Science and Technology under Grant MOST
107-2511-H-003-004-MY3.

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References
Ball, D. L., Thames, M. H., & Phelps, G. (2008). Content knowledge for teaching: Whatmakes it special? Journal of Teacher Education, 59(5), 389-407.
Etscheidt, S., Curran, C. M., & Sawyer, C. M. (2012). Promoting reflection in teacher
preparation programs: a multilevel model. Teacher Education and Special Education,35(1), 7-26.
Karsenty, R., & Arcavi, A. (2017). Mathematics, lenses, and videotapes: a framework and alanguage for developing reflective practices of teaching. Journal of Mathematics
Teacher Education, 20(3), 433-455.
Lee, E. J., Lee, K. H., & Park, M. (2019). Developing preservice teachers’ abilities to modify
mathematical tasks: Using noticing-oriented activities. International Journal of
Science and Mathematics Education, 17(5), 965–985.
Lim, W., Song, J. W., & Kim, D. J. (2018). Understanding preservice teacher skills toconstruct lesson plans. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education,
16(3), 519–538.
Lovett, J. N., and Lee, H. S. (2017), “New Standards Require Teaching More Statistics: Are
Preservice Secondary Mathematics Teachers Ready?” Journal of Teacher Education,
68(3), 299–311.
Ozogul, G., Olina, Z., & Sullivan, H. (2008). Teacher, self, and peer evaluation of lessonplans written by preservice teachers. Educational Technology Research andDevelopment, 56(2), 181.
Star, J. R., & Strickland, S. K. (2008). Learning to observe: Using video to improve
preservice mathematics teachers’ ability to notice. Journal of Mathematics Teacher
Education, 11(2), 107-125.
Contact email: math007@nhush.tp.edu.tw

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Curriculum Development in Industrial Design Education in transition: Challenges andissues in a Thai university
Bettizza Escueta, King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand
Pronyos Chattarakul, King Mongkut's University of Technology Thonburi, Thailand
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Abstract
In Thailand, it is widely accepted that development in education is lagging behind theprogress of the economy and industries. During the 2018 Transition Discussion in KMUTT,
Industrial Design (ID) education received a call to reconsider reforming the traditional
teaching style. Discussion among international scholars from the field formed the direction of
ID curriculum development study. Interviews of design experts from Japan, Singapore, andThailand, including parents, and students revealed that the present traditional teaching style,where students only complete the tasks assigned by lecturers, is no longer effective and that aholistic view of practice should be implemented. Therefore, the focus of education should not
be to produce graduates who serve a single job but to prepare universal persons who can learn
new things. It is very challenging for educators in the design field to pioneer a novel course
for design education. This study presents three challenging issues. First, Content-Based
Learning: integrated content-based learning would replace subject-based learning. Next,
Competency Development Visualization: taking on different roles would help students tovisually realize the competency development of their peers. Then they can reflect on theirdevelopment. Finally, Opportunity Provider: the perception of instructors is paramount.
Moreover, their role would not be exclusive to teaching and facilitating, but they would
systematically study the students’ development then classify and provide opportunities toimprove their competency. In this scenario, the knowledge ceiling of courses must be variedand dynamic.
Keywords: Curriculum Development, Design Education, Experiential Learning, Soft Skills
Development

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Introduction
Students’ and Parents’ Perception has Changed
It is widely known that technology has had a big impact on education. Specifically in higher
education, the source of knowledge is no longer coming from lecturers in the universities.
Many students are able to access a variety of academic resources. Technology evolution
allows students to be able to learn from whomever they want to learn from; students caneasily access knowledge anywhere at any time. Many students report that if they do notunderstand the lesson in the classroom, they just search another lecturer’s lectures from theinternet. VDO clips, PowerPoint presentations, and lecturer notes are always available. They
just select what they would like to study.
In February 2018, the expert review was conducted as a part of The First International
Conference on Design, Innovation, and Creativity in the Environment of Innovation District
Bangkok at Knowledge Exchange Building, KMUTT. The discussion among the lecturers ofdesign schools from Japan, India, Singapore, and Thailand suggested that the students'
perception towards education has changed. They have realized that knowledge andinformation imparted by lecturers in front of the classroom can be found elsewhere.
Moreover, there are instances that they can even find better explanation from other resources.
Some senior students mentioned that they think that they can get a better grasp of some
information when they do internship at the company. Relying exclusively on the lecturer or
setup project in the classroom cannot make them clearly understand some concepts. The
discussion also suggested that soft skills and ability to learn new things would be important
for the new generation of students who can access knowledge resources. This is echoed in anarticle published by Skills Future where they listed the new Critical Core Skills (CCS) withan increased emphasis on soft skills as part of the future work in the digital era. These arethinking critically, interacting with others, and staying relevant (Skills Future, 2021).
Referring to these observations, parent and student interviews were selected as data collection
tool to understand their perception of the changes in higher education. Ten parents and 15
students were systematically selected. Parents who are interested in education development
and involved in today's industry movement were considered as the right person to present
their vision of future education. The parent’s expectation plays the role of both influencing
and encouraging students to choose their education path, while students' experiences andgoals shape a different criteria from parent’s one to decide their study plan. Fifteen students
graduated from Thai schools, an international school in Thailand, and schools from othercountries, such as Canada, New Zealand, and Japan. An unstructured interview was
conducted for these groups of samples to encourage open-ended conversation. Interview
issues covered studying and working style, life-long learning, and career path development.
Parents and students were encouraged to present their opinion toward the future context
rather than today’s context. All of them agreed that the classroom is not suitable for today’s
generation of students because the classroom approach does not encourage interaction andhigh involvement activities. These activities, such as workshops, group discussions, orinternships, are more powerful to push students and lecturers to have more interactions. Theinteractive activities lead the students to share their opinion and also challenge both lecturers
and other students to continue their ideas and opinions onward. One student from a school in
Canada felt that he was more comfortable presenting his ideas when he studied there than in
Thailand. He also expressed that the classroom environment creates the sense of one-manshow with the teacher or lecturer standing in front of the classroom; therefore, students feel

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Official Conference Proceedingsthat their task is to listen to the person in front of the classroom while workshop or group
work seems to invite all participants to share their opinions.
Many parents reflected that people cannot be successful if they depend on just a single
discipline for their job. One parent suggested that undergraduate schools should give wider
opportunities to students to develop their career paths in the future. Soft skill development is
the key success factor for students to learn and work in the inter-disciplinary environment. In
the words of Nobel Prize winner James Heckman: "Soft skills predict the success in life
(Hyder, 2020)." Parents who have successful careers in the technology industry reflected thatwhatever students learn in the university will be outdated very soon. Students need good
fundamentals to ensure that they are able to learn new things every day. This opinion
supports the suggestion from many students. Students mentioned that much of the knowledge
they studied in high school is already out of date compared to the knowledge they found fromthe online platform. A student reported that she spent two months as an intern at one of theresearch units in Bangkok and felt that she can see the much bigger view of what she wasinterested in. This experience impacted her study point of view. She realized that she needs tolearn more than what she already studied at school. The classroom makes her stop learningwhen she finished the final examination but working in the professional environment makes
her study until the last minute to complete an assigned work. Indeed, education is a life-longprocess that starts with birth and ends with death.
To Develop Ability to Learn New Things
The interview of parents and students who are interested in education development and haveactively considered their study plan shows that knowledge is now all around. Students caneasily access the knowledge from a wide variety of quality resources. Technology evolution
has allowed people to connect to each other. Students have more choices to learn from theresources they prefer. The lecturers standing in front of the classroom are not the only sourceof knowledge. Therefore, the perception of students as to the role of university has changed.
Instead of providing knowledge, universities should encourage students to access knowledge
resources elsewhere. Students should also be encouraged to work with many kinds of people
in the business or industry. The analysis shows that the role of the classroom would betransformed into discussion sessions where students, lecturers, and guest experts share theirexperience of learning.
Another future scenario is the colony development may eliminate many careers and tasks. It
means that the knowledge and skill of some professions have to be developed or changed. For
example, in industrial design, freehand drawing skill is not important for the presentation
because computer rendering is more efficient in the task aspect. However, it is still very
important for communication, especially to communicate new ideas. Thinking framework
would be considered an important issue for design schools. Many design and innovation
firms have suggested that, in the future, the boundary of the profession might disappear.
People cannot work in a linear process anymore. Everyone would carry out the work from thestart to completion. Designers do not just take care of design while engineers are responsible
only for the engineering part. Everyone is a part of the interdisciplinary team. This isespecially true in the innovation area where technology has been rapidly and continuously
developed, so the team has to deal with the issues. Schools cannot teach all of thisknowledge. In this case, it would be nice if schools can train students to be able to learn newthings whenever they need. The role of lecturers, in this case, has to change from providing
very specific and singular knowledge to enhancing the ability to learn new things for

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students. In this scenario, the knowledge ceiling is not limited to the lecturer but the various
ceiling of knowledge from outside the classroom are counted as a collective source. Thisapproach also encourages sustainable life-long learning ability of students.
Discussion
Soft Skills Development
Basically, university has focused to develop hard skill. However, the technology development
allows all people, especially students to access unlimited knowledge resource. The public
review and open resource system play the major role to screen and correct the informationand knowledge. Many universities, institutions and also private sectors have provided theirresources and learning material to the public through online platform. The number of bothfree and subscribed online classes are rapidly enhanced. As a result, many students decide toignore classroom in the university and pay attention to anywhere/anytime contents. Manylecturers have adapted their teaching method to fit to the situation and students’ study style.
However, the working process in the business and industry has been developed as well. Hardskill and knowledge are easier to be accessed. Adult education and non-degree programs give
more opportunity to the people who would like to continue their education and also who
would like to gain more knowledge and skill set for their career growth. Many parents
showed very significant point of training in the university. Knowledge and hard skills are notas important as before. In fact, Hyder claims that near-future employment entirely relies onsoft skills and hard skills are comparatively being blue-penciled off daily (2020). Soft skill
would be much more important for students to be able to explore their career in the future.
The communication skill is needed to be trained in the university. Thinking framework may
be needed for students understand the changes and work with other people in the complex
situation. Ability to learn the new things is a significant qualification of people who work in
the creative industries.
Universities, therefore, should turn to focus developing students' soft skill. Thinking
frameworks such as critical thinking and logical thinking can support students to explore andpractice the right knowledge and hard skill in the online world. Soft skills development stillneeds to be trained by person. Online program can help and support soft skill development insome way but it would be efficient to be trained in person. Higher education should provide
platform for students to be able to explore the world as much as possible. The set up projectand situation that lecturers and students usually deal with in the part may not create the senseof learning because today they are all able to study the real case situation real-time. The
opinion and knowledge given by the lecturer is not the absolute truth anymore. The
cooperation with business and industries and real project would be brought to the workshop
or working environment. Students would be challenged to work with other people outside theuniversity. They can learn from working in the professional environment and also facilities.
This can make students realize the result of what they have learnt. To practice and develop
desirable soft skills is helped when students have the opportunity to work in real-time-realworld situational contexts and working in internships and other experiential practices helps
reduce this type of gap (MacDermott & Ortiz, 2017). This current scenario shows that
universities could create a high involvement learning environment. It changes the learningand teaching approaches. Soft skills would be trained during their cooperation and working
process. In the working situation, students should be able to realize what knowledge and skill
set they lack. Interestingly, this coincides with the report of a 2015 Hart Research survey of613 college students, where 74% of the students indicated that their higher education

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institution had done an effective job preparing them to have the soft skills necessary forworkplace success. It is only after entering the workforce that they recognize the importanceof acquiring these critical soft skills and once in the workforce, they may find theirorganization offering minimal or no training for developing these soft skills (Martin). This is
the moment that they can actually realize what they should learn more by themselves. It isdifferent from when they study in the classroom where lecturer gives the knowledge first
without assessing the students’ needs.
Experiential Learning Platform
The analysis also recommends that students should have a chance to work in a real situation
before graduation. Internship usually provides 1-6 months for students to work in theindustries before graduation. Experiential learning platform (ELP) is the platform groundedfrom this study. It is the cooperation platform that universities and industries have worked
together to encourage students to have working experience parallel in study time. Instead of
dealing with the set up project in the classroom, students in ELP would get the opportunity to
improve their soft skills, communication, thinking skills, etc. Then they are strongly
encouraged to learn by working in the professional environment.
Conclusion
To recap, the market scenario is changing very fast and this calls for educational institutions
to quickly adapt to the times. Before, students who had a brilliant academic record withadded work experience were well sought after by most of the corporate institutions. But today
hard skills and experience are not sufficient for the ingress and escalation in the corporate
world. Employers prefer to hire and promote those persons who are resourceful, ethical, andself- directed with good communication/ soft skills. The data from the interview supports thisand strongly recommends that the ability to learn new things is crucial for the future scenario.
Moreover, the rapid development in technology made students realize that knowledge isconstantly updated and replaced with new ones. This calls for a change in the classroom
dynamics where lecturers should encourage active involvement through workshops orinternships instead of relying solely on traditional lectures. Universities should provide
opportunities to improve the now vital soft skills and this is where ELP’s would be effective.
This paper then hopes to encourage lecturers and educational institutions to re-evaluate theirpractices and incorporate the suggestions earlier made.

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References
Hyder, H. (2020). Soft Skills: A Research Study on Outdoing Academics and Conquer theWorld. PJAAEE, 7805-7815.
MacDermott, C., & Ortiz, L. (2017). Beyond the business communication course: A
historical perspective of the where, why, and how of soft skills development and job
readiness for business graduates. The IUP Journal of Soft Skills, 7-24.
Martin, D. T. (n.d.). Review of Soft Skills Development Using the %Ws/H Approach
Resulting in a Realistic, Experiential, Applied, Active Learning and Teaching
Pedagogical Classroom. JBAM, 41-57.
Skills Future. (2021, February 27). Retrieved from https://www.skillsfuture.gov.sg/skillsframework/criticalcoreskills

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