ethanporcaro/eric-fulltext-meta huggingface dataset:
Learner Attrition in an Advanced Vocational Online Training: The Role of Computer Attitude, Computer Anxiety, and Online Learning Experience
Author: Stiller, Klaus D.
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Student Attrition,Advanced Courses,Online Courses,Vocational Education,Computer Literacy,Academic Aptitude,Computer Attitudes,Anxiety,Learning Experience,Cognitive Processes,Difficulty Level,Dropouts,Video Technology,Job Training,Employees,Small Businesses,Comparative Analysis,Questionnaires,Likert Scales,Negative Attitudes,Scores

Online learning has gained importance in education over the last 20 years, but the well-known problem of high dropout rates still persists. According to the multi-dimensional learning tasks model, the cognitive (over)load of learners is essential to attrition when dealing with five challenges (e.g. technology, user interface) of an online training (Tyler-Smith, 2006). The experienced load might depend on learner characteristics. The study explored the extent that learners dropping out from a vocational video-based online training about media design for employees of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises differ from working learners' online learning experience, computer attitude, and computer anxiety. The data were collected from 72 of 128 registered employees who completed a questionnaire before starting the course to analyze differences between the dropout group (submitted no solutions to online training tasks; n = 19) and the active learner group (submitted at least one of 13 task solutions; n = 53). No differences were found in online learning experience, but the dropout group reported more negative attitudes towards computers and a higher level of computer anxiety than the active learner group.
Open and Distance Learning: Cultural Practices in Nepal
Author: Pangeni, Shesha Kanta
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Distance Education,Foreign Countries,Technology Uses in Education,Educational Technology,Higher Education,Open Universities,Web 2.0 Technologies,Educational Methods,Socialization,Online Courses

Nepali education culture is dominated by face-to-face tutoring. It has a long history starting from the Gurukul culture to the present formal schooling. Emerging practices of using technology in education have been promoting online learning as a form of distance education and gaining popularity. This paper focuses on digging out the contextual reality of open and distance learning (ODL) practices in Nepal beginning with an analysis and the author's personal impression of the context. Core focus is placed to explore and discuss different thematic issues such as &quot;modes of learning associated education culture/tradition,&quot; &quot;flexible learning for Nepali students,&quot; &quot;ODL as a pedagogical tool for teacher education&quot; and &quot;implementation of ODL in Nepal&quot;. The author's personal reflection, literature review, and insights from learning theories are meaningful to enrich the discourse. The paper concludes showing the promising future of ODL in Nepal as an option to traditional mode of education. In addition, attention is drawn on the need of Open University and role of existing universities for the successful implementation of ODL in Nepal to adapt acculturation of online learning by respecting the need of the new generation of learners at the age of Internet culture.
Self-Assessment Quiz Taking Behaviour Analysis in an Online Course
Author: Ozarslan, Yasin
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Self Evaluation (Individuals),Online Courses,Undergraduate Students,Educational Technology,Technology Uses in Education,Tests,Scores,Student Characteristics,Statistical Analysis,Student Attitudes,Gender Differences,Student Surveys,Foreign Countries

Self-assessment is vital for online learning since it is one of the most essential skills of distance learners. In this respect, the purpose of this study was to understand learners' self-assessment quiz taking behaviours in an undergraduate level online course. We tried to figure out whether there is a relation between self-assessment quiz taking behaviours and final exam scores or not. In addition, we investigated how self-assessment quiz taking behaviour differs with respect to learner profile. In line with this purpose, 677 students' 6092 test events across Project Culture course on Sakai CLE LMS were analyzed. For the analysis of the quantitative data, one-way ANOVA, Chi-Square test of independence, independent-samples t-test and descriptive statistics were utilized. The results revealed that learners who attended self-assessment quizzes regularly had higher final exam scores than others who did not attend those quizzes. Also, they were more satisfied with the course than others study field. In addition, learners who attended self-assessment quizzes regularly had a higher degree of perceived learning. However, number of attempts to those quizzes does not have an effect on final exam scores. On the other hand, a statistically significant relationship was found between attempt number and gender in favour of female learners.
Identification of, and Academic Provision for High-Ability Science Students: What Does the Literature Say?
Author: Burrell, Matthew
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Science Education,High Achievement,Ability Identification,Literature Reviews,Academically Gifted,Student Needs,Educational Practices

Over the last two decades, education in Australia and New Zealand has focussed on improving student underachievement in schools. There is concern that this focus is having a negative impact on meeting the needs of high-ability students, including those who are potentially high-ability science students. It appears the freedom the national curriculum gives schools to identify and then provide for high-ability science students is problematic, and there is no clear picture emerging of how schools are identifying and providing for the learning needs of these students. This review of literature identifies tools teachers may choose to use to identify high-ability students in science such as using a range of characteristics combined with evidence of students'substantive, procedural, and epistemological understandings of science ideas.The means of meeting these students' needs is considered within the extant literature, with curriculum acceleration identified as the preferable approach to making appropriate academic provision for high-ability science students.
Geometric Error Analysis in Applied Calculus Problem Solving
Author: Usman, Ahmed Ibrahim
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Mathematics Education,Mathematical Applications,Geometry,Calculus,Problem Solving,Error Patterns,Accuracy,Visual Aids,Visualization,College Freshmen,Mathematics Tests,Success,Mixed Methods Research,Data Analysis,Mathematical Formulas,Mathematics Skills

The paper investigates geometric errors students made as they tried to use their basic geometric knowledge in the solution of the Applied Calculus Optimization Problem (ACOP). Inaccuracies related to the drawing of geometric diagrams (visualization skills) and those associated with the application of basic differentiation concepts into ACOP solution were reported. A test instrument was used to collect quantitative data, while qualitative data were generated using follow- up interviews (stimulated recall). The targeted samples were freshmen students who registered for Calculus I in the department of Mathematics at a University in south eastern region of the United States of America, USA. The study indicated that students had achieved a very low success rate on the ACOP solution process, immediately after receiving/completing instruction on the optimization in their calculus I class. In general, they failed to integrate basic geometric competences required in the ACOP solution. Qualitative evidence from students' test performance indicated that failure to visualize geometric diagrams from word problems tended to preclude them getting the required formula. The overall finding of the research was that students face structural and procedural setbacks that ultimately led to a worsening of the ACOP solution process.
Executive Functions in the Context of Complex Learning: Malleable Moderators?
Author: Schwaighofer, Matthias
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Executive Function,Learning Processes,Instructional Effectiveness,Cognitive Ability,Short Term Memory,Individual Differences,Definitions,Attention,Inhibition,Academic Aptitude

Executive functions are crucial for complex learning in addition to prior knowledge. In this article, we argue that executive functions can moderate the effectiveness of instructional approaches that vary with respect to the demand on these functions. In addition, we suggest that engagement in complex activity contexts rather than specific cognitive training paradigms may enhance executive functions and yield practically relevant transfer effects to other cognitive abilities. We develop several hypotheses and principles for how to improve executive functions in these contexts. For future research, we suggest to systematically investigate the moderating role of executive functions in learning environments with varying degrees of instructional support and varying context characteristics. We identify potential factors influencing the improvement of executive functions to be considered in a systematic research program.
Diagrams Support Revision of Prior Belief in Primary-School Children
Author: Koerber, Susanne
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Prior Learning,Beliefs,Evidence,Preschool Children,Grade 2,Elementary School Students,Visual Aids,Age Differences,Attitude Change,Foreign Countries,Teaching Methods

The reluctance of children to revise their prior beliefs is a prominent phenomenon in the reasoning literature. One way to facilitate belief change is offering explanations, and this study examined whether highlighting (counter) evidence with diagrams leads to belief revision to the same extent. Altogether 134 preschoolers and second-graders (5- and 7-year-olds, respectively) were presented with either counterintuitive data or explanations, both refuting a strong commonly held belief concerning the relation between two variables (e.g. eating carrots improves vision). In the explanation condition, we presented children with an explanatory underlying mechanism for the unexpected causal relation (e.g. spinach and carrots contain the same amount of vitamin A, with both improving vision). In the diagram condition, children were presented with empirical data displayed in a bar graph (non-covariation), which also disconfirmed the initial belief. In both age groups and both conditions we found significant numbers of belief revision with high certainty ratings concerning the new belief. Belief change was more pronounced in second-graders, who in addition showed significantly more changes in the diagram condition than in the explanation condition. These findings suggest that the perceptual saliency of (counter) evidence helps children to correctly evaluate hypotheses, which supports changes in their prior belief.
Why Not Start with Quarks? Teachers Investigate a Learning Unit on the Subatomic Structure of Matter with 12-Year-Olds
Author: Wiener, Gerfried J.
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Grade 6,Preadolescents,Nuclear Physics,Instructional Effectiveness,Feasibility Studies,Followup Studies,Semi Structured Interviews,Science Teachers,Teacher Attitudes,Faculty Development,Adoption (Ideas),Student Attitudes,Scientific Attitudes,Science Process Skills,Problem Solving,Outcomes of Education,Middle School Students,Foreign Countries,Content Analysis,Scientific Concepts,Intervention

This paper describes the second in a series of studies exploring the acceptance of the subatomic structure of matter by 12-year-olds. The studies focus on a novel learning unit introducing an atomic model from electrons down to quarks, which is aimed to be used at an early stage in the physics curriculum. Three features are fundamental to the unit's design: conveying the central role of models in physics, focusing on linguistic accuracy, and the use of novel typographic illustrations. An initial study saw the iterative redesign and retesting of the unit through 20 one-on-one interviews with grade-6 students. Findings indicated broad acceptance of most of the unit's key ideas, hinting that the unit's final version is plausible for 12-year-olds. Subsequently, the research was focused on the perspective of teachers to gain insight into their evaluation of the unit's adequacy and didactic feasibility. Therefore, the current follow-up study was designed to introduce the proposed unit to grade-6 students. This time, instead of education researchers, 13 teachers conducted a set of 17 one-on-one interviews. The teachers had been introduced to the learning unit and the research method during a professional development programme. Our analysis showed that the unit's key ideas were broadly accepted by all the students, who adequately used them for problem-solving during the one-on-one interviews. Overall, the documented results validate our findings from the initial study and indicate that the learning unit is adequate and well-suited for a broad evaluation in the classroom.
In-Service Training Argumentation Application for Elementary School Teachers: Pilot Study
Author: Alkis-Küçükaydin, Mensure
Date: 2016-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Inservice Teacher Education,Elementary School Teachers,Persuasive Discourse,Pilot Projects,Foreign Countries,Program Evaluation,Needs Assessment,Program Development,Program Effectiveness,Curriculum Development,Semi Structured Interviews,Educational Change,Training,Science Curriculum,Case Studies

Science Course Curriculum was revised in Turkey in 2013 and some methods and strategies were suggested to be included such as argumentation. This study includes the evaluation of in-service training applied as pilot study for introducing argumentation to elementary school teachers. The study consists of applying needs analysis, preparing and applying programme and then evaluating the effectiveness of in-service training programme. After the application we made suggestions for main implementation according to the findings of pilot study.
Competing Visions of Education in Timor-Leste&apos;s Curriculum Reform
Author: Ogden, Laura
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Curriculum Development,Educational Quality,Educational Policy,Theory Practice Relationship,Educational Attitudes,Work Environment,Access to Information,Comparative Analysis,Elementary School Curriculum,Language of Instruction,Instruction

Timor-Leste's independence in 2002 marked the end of centuries of foreign control. Early post-independence education reforms successfully increased school enrolments and rebuilt education infrastructure, however, teacher qualifications and student outcomes have remained poor. The current Curriculum Reform, initiated in 2013, aims to improve educational quality in the first six years of schooling by adapting international best practices to the Timorese context, fundamentally reshaping the curriculum's approach to language, content and pedagogy. Located at the intersection of current debates in the anthropologies of education and international development, this paper examines how diverse educational actors in Timor-Leste translate Curriculum Reform policy into practice. The research draws on two months of ethnographic fieldwork in the capital, Dili, and on the author's professional experience as editor of the Curriculum Reform. The key finding is that, while all actors share a common goal of creating a quality education system that contributes to Timor-Leste's development, school and reform staff translate policy into practice in inconsistent ways. The paper argues that these inconsistencies are the result of the actors' divergent visions of education, their working conditions, and their unequal access to information about the reform. These factors are compared across the reform pillars of language, curriculum content, and pedagogy for those who create policy (reform staff) and those who are tasked with implementing it (school staff).
Effects of Multiple Choice Options in Mathematics Learning
Author: Große, Cornelia S.
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Mathematics Instruction,Multiple Choice Tests,Word Problems (Mathematics),Problem Solving,Hypothesis Testing,Student Attitudes,Teaching Methods,Grade 8,Foreign Countries,Pretests Posttests,Prior Learning

In recent years, the ability to use mathematics flexibly in everyday situations is increasingly accentuated, and mathematics education gives more and more attention to problems with realistic contexts. However, it is reported very often that learners have substantial difficulties in connecting mathematics to real situations. In order to solve complex and authentic problems embedded in real situations it is necessary to find translations from verbal descriptions to mathematical notations and to interpret mathematical results with respect to the real situation. In the present work, it was tested experimentally whether translation and interpretation competencies are fostered by presenting multiple choice options from which the learners have to select the correct one. While benefits of translation answer choices emerged, interpretation answer choices did not support learning. However, when the learners were asked to rate how much they liked the problems, opposed results were obtained, indicating that objective learning outcomes and subjective scores did not correspond. Possible reasons for the inconsistent and to some extent unexpected learning outcomes and for the divergence between objective results and subjective statements are discussed.
&quot;We Were the Real Teacher&quot;: Outcomes of an International Practicum in the Solomon Islands for Australian Preservice Teachers
Author: Cinelli, Renata
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Preservice Teachers,Practicums,Elementary Education,Professional Identity,Self Esteem,Cultural Awareness,Educational Strategies,Qualitative Research,Case Studies,Student Surveys,Student Attitudes,Undergraduate Students,World Views,Professional Autonomy,Faculty Development,Cooperating Teachers,Barriers,Student Experience

International teaching experiences are touted as an opportunity for preservice teachers (PSTs) to grow both personally and professionally, including increased cultural awareness, self-efficacy, independence, and enhanced key teaching attributes. The study reported in this paper explores the outcomes of a four-week international practicum in the Solomon Islands for Australian undergraduate primary PSTs. Survey responses of 27 PSTs who undertook placement in 2014, 2015 or 2016, in either an urban K-12 Catholic school or a rural K-6 primary school in the Solomon Islands are reported. Findings indicate that participants experienced substantial development in teacher identity, classroom confidence, cultural understanding, and in their strategies for supporting students who speak English as an additional language. PSTs also reported that their worldview was impacted as a result of their exposure to this Global South Country. The minimal resources, limited access to education, and general lack of privilege in the Solomon Islands contrasted to their Australian context. The implications of these findings, in regard to the responsiveness of teacher education in engaging PSTs in this more global-focused education, are also considered.
Challenges Pre-Service Teachers Face When Implementing a 5E Inquiry Model of Instruction
Author: Enugu, Ramya
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Preservice Teachers,Program Implementation,Inquiry,Teaching Models,Science Instruction,Methods Courses,Lesson Plans,Semi Structured Interviews,Peer Teaching,Observation,Data Collection,Coding,Grounded Theory,Teaching Methods,Time Management,Classroom Techniques,Pedagogical Content Knowledge,Theory Practice Relationship,Preservice Teacher Education,Field Instruction,Cooperating Teachers

This study examined the challenges that pre-service teachers faced when implementing inquiry and their perspective on how to overcome them. The data sample was 55 pre-service teachers (PSTs) enrolled into two sections of a science methods course in a private university in North Texas. The data sources consisted of inquiry-based lesson plans, PST interviews, peer teaching observational notes, and field notes to investigate those challenges. The data were coded through designed rubrics for lesson plans and peer teaching sessions and were analyzed using the constant comparative method. The results of this study showed that PSTs faced several challenges regarding the science content and the teaching method. The PST face main challenges with the &quot;explain&quot; and the &quot;elaborate&quot; phases of the 5E. They also faced challenges difficulties with managing the time to teach the 5E model, and mapping the lessons to the different parts of the 5E model. The results also showed several solutions such as having solid science content through engaging in different experiences, and having more practice with the 5E lesson planning. We discuss the implications of this study for teacher education programs.
Experiences of Bhutanese Teachers in Wellbeing Leadership Roles: Contextual Realities of Implementing a Whole-School Approach to Student Wellbeing Promotion
Author: Jamtsho, Sangay
Date: 2017-00-00
Type: Journal Articles
Subjects: Foreign Countries,Teacher Leadership,Well Being,Secondary School Teachers,Qualitative Research,Program Implementation,School Culture,Teacher Attitudes,Administrative Organization,Teacher Administrator Relationship,Power Structure,Educational Change,Interviews

Schools are ideal sites for the promotion of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that enhance personal as well as collective wellbeing. Schools engage in numerous programs and activities to promote the wellbeing of students. Despite indications of positive effects of a whole-school approach, reports find that implementation is challenging because these programs typically require fundamental changes to the ways in which schools operate and are organized. Although they are key implementers, the experiences and challenges that middle-level leaders in schools face when working towards a whole-school approach has been rarely reported. This qualitative study explored the perceptions and experiences of key implementers in implementing a whole-school approach to student wellbeing promotion in secondary schools in the small Kingdom of Bhutan. Findings suggest that they face numerous challenges in implementing a whole-school approach to student wellbeing that revolve around culture and context.