Sofia School No. 138, located in Sofia, the capital city of Bulgaria, is a public school with high recognition in the local community, and in 2012 the Confucius Institute in Sofia established a Confucius classroom in the school to teach Chinese to learners under 18 years old. This paper examines the spread of Chinese culture among the school's student body through questionnaires and interviews, taking the phenomenon of "Chinese language classes are cold" as a starting point. The study found that Confucius Institutes have played a very important role in spreading the Chinese language and Chinese culture around the world by offering Chinese language classes and organizing cultural activities, and they have been effective to a certain extent. However, the existing means of cultural dissemination, especially in comparison with Japan, has considerable disadvantages, such as the low utilization of mass media channels and the limited impact generated.
The descriptive study aimed to determine the motivational factors and educational performance of graduate students in an online environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a survey questionnaire, data were gathered from 140 students pursuing a master’s degree in a private higher educational institution in the Philippines during the School Year 2021-2022, which served as the final respondents of the study. Results revealed that the student’s motivational factors during the pandemic were described as having much influence while most of the respondents obtained their educational performance in their master’s degree as very good. Motivational factors were significantly correlated to the educational performance of the respondents based on their GWA. The study suggests that students should be motivated to pursue graduate education, especially in the dimension of social stimulation. Graduate school professors should also understand and be able to assess the degree of motivation of their students in their every-week classes, in which they will be able to contribute affirmations, inspiration, and drive to their students. Further, it is also recommended that students must be inspired to excel and obtain excellent grades in their graduate education.
Challenges may be considered as one of the ingredients in the successful management and supervision of schools, reports, and accomplishments. Not to deny that the district and division supervisors are also experiencing these challenges even before the new normal. This study aims to investigate the challenges experienced by the district and division supervisors on the reports and accomplishments from the schools. This utilized phenomenology as a research design where data was gathered online and face-to-face from the 10 purposively sampled supervisors using a semi-structured interview guide. Results revealed that there were challenges experienced by them on the reports and accomplishments in terms of quality, efficiency, timeliness, and other factors. They have addressed these challenges considering the same parameters through constant consultations, focus group discussions, and learning action cell sessions. The implications to the strategic planning and direction of the supervisors in the Curriculum Implementation Division (CID) brought by these results are reflected together with conclusions and recommendations in the full paper.
This descriptive research aimed to determine the faculty competency and satisfaction on the available resources in the private higher education institutions in the Philippines in the conduct of research. Using a self-developed survey questionnaire, data were gathered from 35 college faculty that served as final respondents of the study. Results showed that the respondents’ average age was 44.63 years old, majority were females, married, college degree, earning a monthly salary of 10,001 – 15,000, had 1-10 years of teaching experience and attended 1-2 seminars/trainings related to research. The research competency of the respondents indicated that they were competent relative to the conduct of research in terms of technical aspects, producing major parts of research paper in introduction, review of related literature and studies, methodology, results and discussion, summary, conclusions and recommendations, and including the other parts. Satisfaction of the respondents on the availability of facilities and resources relative to the conduct of research were found to be slightly satisfied.
This research aimed to explore and analyze the implementation of educational policies in scout extracurricular activities at State Vocational Schools in Gorontalo City. The study employed a qualitative method with a phenomenological approach. The study was done through action in the field and phenomena observation with the object studied by direct interaction. The results showed that in the implementation of educational policies in scout extracurricular activities, there were still some vocational schools in Gorontalo city that had not included all classes in scouting activities; besides, the coaches and budgets were relatively inadequate. The results of interviews showed that some classes did not join the scouting activities in the current year because the activities had been taken last year Furthermore, the infrastructure to support activities was still limited. This indicated that this scout extracurricular activity must be supported by efforts to make improvements. Thus, this study provides an effort to construct a model for implementing activities in determining human resources and financial resources. As a result, scout supervisors can be fulfilled in schools and can achieve well implementation of educational policies on scout extracurricular activities.
Teaching is an important process of teacher-student verbal interaction, which plays a significant role in improving students' academic performance and enhancing their healthy physical and mental development. In order to investigate the influence of teacher-student verbal interaction on secondary school students' learning efficacy and to understand how teachers' language affects adolescents' self-efficacy, this paper adopts questionnaires and interviews founded on Satir's iceberg theory to gather data on teacher-student relationships and their learning efficacy from eight secondary school students in four regions, including Fujian and Sichuan. Quantitative analysis is conducted by SPSS 26.0 to study the effect of teacher-student verbal interaction on secondary school students' learning efficacy. The study indicated that positive and good verbal interactions could enhance adolescents' learning efficacy. Teachers can utilize Satir’s iceberg theory to touch the psychological world under the iceberg and assist students in enhancing their learning efficacy through more accurate verbal behaviors.
This article examined the effectiveness of the EFL and ESP curricula in Afghanistan universities. Specifically, it provided an overview of the current state of English programs and learners' and instructors’ feedback on their learning and expectations. The data was collected via survey questionnaires and interviews with three groups of people. The first group is 300 Afghan EFL and ESP learners and instructors from seven different state universities of different provinces in Afghanistan who took part in this study. These universities include Nangarhar, Kandahar, Herat, Sayed Jamaluddin Afghan, Shaikh Zayed, Balkh and Kabul Education Universities. The second group is the university authorities and officials of the Ministry of Higher Education who participated in this survey. The third group of the participant is 20 EFL and ESP learners and instructors and 10 EFL and ESP curriculum planners. For the purpose of collecting data, a well-developed questionnaire was created. The collected data were analyzed by using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS version 23). The result revealed that the participants had a somehow positive attitude toward teaching and learning English as a foreign language. Also, it suggested that the students, as well as their instructors, have a low degree of a positive attitude toward the teaching system and curriculum.
This paper ought to revisit the place of language anxiety of learners in the context of second language acquisition. Specifically, the researcher dealt with its four components: communicative apprehension, fear of negative evaluation, test anxiety, and anxiety in the English classroom. These components have greatly impacted language learning based on the recent research conducted. Also, this paper untangled various findings coming from language experts to support the finding of the study. It is also worth noting that this paper would end with implications of the results generated from the responses of participants. They used a standardized research instrument adapted from Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) originally developed by Horwitz, Horwitz, and Cope (1986). The researcher used Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) to treat the data. The findings were presented using the necessary tables and figures. It ended up with general implications and recommendations on how stakeholders could lessen the learners' high level of anxiety in a second language classroom.
In Saudi Arabia, there are several school types where children go and learn both English and Arabic: (i) Public (government) and Quranic schools; (ii) private schools where Arabic is the medium of instruction with an intensive English course; (iii) international schools where English is the medium of instruction, and one course is allocated to Arabic and Islamic Studies. This study surveyed a sample of parents to find out the number of hours allocated to English; kinds of textbooks used and whether parents consider them sufficient; parents’ views of their children’s proficiency level in the different English language skills; which language is stronger in children: English or Arabic; which language children use in communicating with their siblings, parents and relatives; the effects of learning English (L2) on Arabic (L1); and the optimal age for starting to learn English. Results showed that at government and Quranic schools, students take 1-2 hours of English a week which parents think are insufficient. At private schools, hours allocated to English vary (between 5-10). At international schools, English is the medium of instruction in all courses. Most parents prefer that children start learning English in kindergarten or first grade. English is the stronger and preferred language for international school students. Private School students have a good command of English and Arabic. Arabic is the stronger and preferred language for Government and Quranic School children. Some parents think that the textbook used at Government School are good, but some teachers are incompetent in their instructional techniques. Some Public Schools (in remote areas or small towns) are understaffed which results in reducing the teaching hours from 2 to 1 hour per week. Parents’ views on the status and quality of foreign/second language education in each type of elementary school in Saudi Arabia are reported in detail.
Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) is a promising approach to English language teaching that has the potential to enhance English language learning outcomes in Kuwaiti higher education institutions. However, it is important to consider the Kuwait-specific factors that can influence its effectiveness. This study investigated the effectiveness of TBLT in Kuwait and the Kuwait-specific factors that can influence its effectiveness. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with the selected educators. The study involved 12 educators from Kuwait's higher education sector. Participants were purposefully selected based on their experience in TBLT implementation to ensure that their insights and experiences aligned with the research focus. The study's findings suggest that TBLT is an effective approach to teaching English in Kuwait. Students who participated in the study reported that TBLT helped them improve their English language skills in several ways, including improved communication skills, increased fluency and accuracy, developed critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and increased motivation and engagement. The study also identified a number of Kuwait-specific factors that can influence the effectiveness of TBLT. These factors include learner characteristics, teacher perspectives, and curriculum design. It is important to design TBLT tasks that are appropriate for all learners' needs, provide teachers with training and support to help them implement TBLT effectively, and align the Kuwaiti curriculum with the principles of TBLT. The study concludes with recommendations for promoting the effective implementation of TBLT in Kuwaiti higher education institutions. These recommendations include providing TBLT teachers with training and support, aligning the Kuwaiti curriculum with the principles of TBLT, designing TBLT tasks that are appropriate for the needs of all learners, and conducting further research to investigate the long-term effects of TBLT on English language learning outcomes. Finally, the study's findings have implications for educators in Kuwaiti higher education institutions. By understanding the effectiveness of TBLT and the Kuwait-specific factors that can influence its effectiveness, educators can promote the effective implementation of TBLT and enhance English language learning outcomes for Kuwaiti students.
This paper aims to explore the extent to which Moroccan EFL secondary school teachers use feedback as a form of formative assessment. It also aims at identifying the main challenges that render such practice difficult. Feedback is crucially important in the learning-teaching process. It is considered a key strategy of formative assessment. Despite the existence of several studies that recommend the use of formative assessment, it has not been properly addressed by research in the Moroccan educational system. Thus, exploring the Moroccan EFL teachers’ feedback practice can provide a clear picture of the opportunities and challenges of its implementation in the Moroccan context. The study follows a quantitative research design in which data were collected from 100 EFL secondary school teachers through questionnaires. Results revealed that the majority of teachers implement feedback as a formative tool to assess their students. However, they reported that workload, lack of time, and school regulations are the main obstacles which render formative feedback practices challenging. The findings will benefit policy makers, practitioners, researchers, and teacher trainers as well.
One of the stages of assessing skills in mathematics is using a performance appraisal instrument, scoring guidelines, and analyzing the quality of the instrument. Mathematical performance assessment tests are carried out through practical methods to assess the learning process on matrix material. This research develops a math performance assessment test on maple application skills, especially on matrix material. The performance assessment test includes using the maple application to understand concepts and solving matrix problems that are carried out before and during the process of practical activities using the maple application. Based on the results of the research analysis obtained, aspects of how to open maple applications in general, there are few mistakes made by students. They include the use of pallets, typing directly, the use of linalg without mistakes, the use of the evaluatem command without, and the correctness of the work.
Writing reports and correspondence are just some of the tasks that technical assistance (TA) providers do as they accomplish their day-to-day duties and functions. This study investigates errors found in the documents written by the TA providers including coordinators, master teachers, head teachers, school heads, district supervisors, and division supervisors considering Error Analysis (EA) Model by Carl James (1998). The data were taken from 94 soft copies of purposively collected and classified documents according to types. Results revealed that the topmost written documents based on percentages as used in this study are memorandum, narrative reports, and letters although there are still others in accordance with their mandates and job descriptions specifically on their respective Key Results Areas (KRAs). There were errors identified in the written reports and correspondence of the TA providers in the sentence level which revolve on (1) grammar – which highlighted points pertaining to preposition, article, agreement, verb, pronoun, noun, redundancy, determiner, quantifier, sentences, and adjective, (2) punctuation – mainly revolved on comma, hyphen, colon, and other punctuations, (3) capitalization – that falls on changing or checking, and congruency on the capitalization of words, and (4) spelling – words from the sentences were marked check, change, and correct spellings. There were also errors in the paragraph level under (1) development – which errors generally include inconsistencies of the expected patterns, formats which were not in accordance with relevant issuances, reports were merely collected from the concerned persons, thoughts within the reports need to be polished for clarity, reports also need to be rechecked considering the flow and organization of ideas, and mechanical aspects, (2) coherence – connection of thoughts from the paragraph before and after paragraphs, and use of transitional markers (TM) to connect ideas, (3) unity – word/s change, join or merge, replace, and separate which is sometimes a result of typo errors, and (4) point of view - written in lower positions' point of view, and improper use of 1st, 2nd and 3rd persons. The writing skills enhancement program and activities offered to the TA providers, the conclusions and recommendations on the basis of the results are presented in the full paper.
This article aims to give a comprehensive guide to planning and designing vocabulary tests which include Identifying the skills to be covered by the test; outlining the course content covered; preparing a table of specifications that shows the skill, content topics and number of questions allocated to each; and preparing the test instructions. The test should meet several criteria as the instructions should be brief and clear; the questions should cover all kinds of skills, tasks and exercises covered in the classroom and textbook; the test items should require the students to perform tasks at the phoneme, grapheme, affix, word, phrase and paragraph levels. The questions should test student’s ability to think, apply, infer, connect, and synthesize information, not mere recall, and should not use exact sentences and examples from the textbook. The test should have as many production questions as possible. It should have adequate discrimination power; should be reliable and valid; and should be a power and a speed test. In addition, the article describes the optimal test length, when to give the tests during the semester and the test duration. It describes the test paper format; how the tests are scored, marks allocated for each question type and whole test, using whole marks, not fractions; deducting points for spelling and grammatical mistakes. After scoring the answer sheets, the instructor returns the marked answer sheets to the students, shows the marking system and goes through the questions one by one, gives the correct answers and mentions the common errors. Follow-up issues such as calculating the test validity, reliability, and discrimination power, using the test results for diagnosing weaknesses and providing remedial work are given. The effects of the proposed test model on learning outcomes and students’ views are also given.
This paper explores the policy and quality assurance discourse in social work undergraduate academic education ensuing at the Social Work Unit at Fourah Bay College, University of Sierra Leone, following the recent reengineering approach due to the Covid-19 pandemic and technological polarisation. Regrettably, final year social work university pre-service social work student’s practicum or internship evaluation could not be finalised. The practicum or internship is a critical component in social work education as it engenders professional transformation, thought and development. Unlike other academic modules, which could be downright via online and distance education, the practicum or internship, being a practical undertaking in a classroom atmosphere, accorded unique challenges. The research question that the paper addresses is: How would certification of social work students be finalised when this time-tested evaluation had not been done? The paper employs content and discourse analysis to unwrap the philosophical and professional discourses being promoted by faculty in order to appreciate how they are likely to regulate succeeding management of social work education. The discourse is that the emerging ‘current normal’ should not trade-off the quality assurance structures that evolved consequently.
A class blog was created and used as a supplement to in-class EFL writing instruction for freshman students. Topics that focused on current global events such as Ramadan in Islamic countries, the Tsunami in Japan, the Royal wedding, and refugees in Europe were posted by the instructor. The students were required to look for videos, photos or articles related to the assigned event and write a short paragraph (blog post) that describes the photo, summarizes the video and article content, or talk about the event in their own words. They also had to write their reaction to the event, and post comments and feedback on their classmates’ blog posts. The students worked on their blog posts individually, in pairs or small group. Comparisons of the posttest scores of students who blogged about current global events and those who used paper-and-pencil assignments on the same topics showed significant differences in writing improvement in favor of the blog group. In addition, students in the blog group had positive attitudes towards the blogging activity. They enjoyed interacting and collaborating with their classmates and reflecting on their own writing in response to the feedback and comments they received from other blog members. Blogging about current global events proved to be effective in raising students’ global awareness and enhancing their writing skills in EFL.
Between the uncertainty of a global pandemic, the unfamiliar territory of fully remote education, and the detrimental effects of related crises on the educational system, emerging research on pandemic pedagogy have underscored the universal presences of 1) anxiety in students and teachers, 2) decreased communication opportunities, and 3) challenges with communication technologies –all of which have been found to affect students’ communication behaviors in their remote classes. Learner reticence –students’ inadequate ability in self-expression usually manifested in reluctance to engage in classroom discourse– remains one of the biggest instructional communication challenges most teachers face today. Recent pandemic-related changes in learning delivery have put students at an even bigger disadvantage in terms of self-expression, participation, and discourse since the majority of the difficulties they experience in remote learning involve and are affected by their resources’ capacities to sustain communication with their teachers and classmates. This study investigated the self-perceived experiences of learner reticence of Filipino higher education students. With phenomenology as the main method of inquiry, all participants disclosed experiences of reticent behaviors in their remote classes during the pandemic; individual and personality-based factors were found to contribute the most to the students’ experienced reticence. The participants’ narratives also gave rise to insights on teacher immediacy and interpersonal communication in remote classes.
Teaching towards self-regulated learning (SRL) is complex and involves the development of skills and sustained motivation. This study examined teacher candidates’ (TCs’) identification of supports and constraints for their self-determined motivation to develop SRL practices. Findings from one case within a qualitative, longitudinal study of four teacher candidates enrolled in a teacher education program (TEP) focused on SRL in Canada are presented. Supports and constraints for this TC’s self-determined motivation in relation to her development and implementation of self-regulated promoting practices are identified and discussed from the perspective of SRL and self-determination theory. The data analyzed included: a questionnaire, interviews, documents, and in-class observations. The finding reveals detailed descriptive codes and categories for SRL and management practices, as well as codes related to TCs’ motivational constraints and affordances for their development of SRL practices.
This study aims to investigate EFL pre-service teachers’ perceptions of technological knowledge development during field teaching practice. Data were collected by using reflections of twelve EFL pre-service teachers in the English Education Department. This qualitative study focuses on the perceptions of EFL pre-service teachers based on the concept of the TPACK framework, especially Technological Knowledge (TK). The result of the analysis showed that EFL pre-service teachers tended to have a positive perception regarding the necessity of their technological knowledge implementation while conducting the field teaching practice in the classroom. Through a thematic analysis method, the data were analyzed qualitatively, and five themes emerged from this study, i.e., the basic technological knowledge of EFL pre-service teachers’, the easiness of EFL pre-service teachers’ in operating technology, the EFL pre-service teachers’ mastery of technological skills, the importance of using technology in teaching, and the importance of having technological knowledge. This study implies that teacher educators should raise the EFL pre-service teachers’ awareness of their technological knowledge development and help pre-service teachers gain a good understanding of technological knowledge.
The aim of this research is to examine the effective use of pictograms in the Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State, Nigeria. A simple sampling technique was used to select twenty-five (25) nursery and primary school teachers in four (4) schools, a questionnaire was used to collect data, and a simple percentage and chi-square (x) were used to analyze the data. The result reveals that there is a significant difference between children taught with pictograms and the children taught without them. It is therefore suggested that all the pre-school teachers and caregivers should use pictograms to teach the learners for a better understanding and effective learning, the government should provide instructional materials (pictogram) for public schools, and private school owners should provide the necessary instructional materials needed, and teachers and caregivers should use pictograms effectively for a better result.
This study examined different materials and articles that are connected with the experiences, observations, and insights of the researchers. They analyzed the current challenges and changes in the implementation of early childhood programs that affect the lives and learning of children. Through critical analysis of the materials and introspection of their own reflections and insights, the researchers were able to come up with conclusions and insights that could help educators, administrators, social workers, and volunteers to have a clear picture of the situations, contexts, and challenges being faced by those who have direct engagement with children. Moreover, trends, issues, and problems were also discussed so that researchers of this paper could offer sound and sustainable proposals that could identify the needs and diversities of children and the programs suitable to the existing needs and diversities.
The covid 19 pandemic has greatly affected the whole world including the education spectrum. In this study, the researcher described the realizations, challenges, and coping strategies of teachers on the sudden shift of classes to online teaching during the pandemic. It also aimed to propose an assistance program to improve the experience of teachers in online teaching. It was conducted using a qualitative phenomenological research design where the researcher interviewed 8 college instructors in an extension campus using a validated interview guide. The following themes emerged in view of their realizations on the sudden shift to online teaching: Realizations on the Use of Technology, Realizations on the Effectiveness of Online Teaching, Realizations on the Teachers’ and Students’ Safety.The following themes were unveiled in view of their challenges on the sudden shift to online teaching: Technological Challenges, Students’ Concerns, Work From Home Set Up. The following themes were disclosed in view of their coping strategies on the sudden shift to online teaching: Provision of Consideration for Students and Study for Instruction. The following themes sprouted in view of the Proposed Assistance Program on the sudden shift to online teaching: Technical Assistance and Teachers’ Welfare.
The purpose of this study is to examine the speaking needs and effective learning strategies of first-year Master's students at the Faculty of Science, Dhar El-Mahraz, Fez, Morocco. With a lack of focus on speaking skills in the Moroccan formal education system, the research goal is to address the gap in oral vocabulary proficiency. 30 students participated in the experimental study. The objectives of the paper were to: (1) identify the speaking needs of the Master's students, (2) determine the effectiveness of current learning strategies for improving oral vocabulary use and pronunciation, and (3) suggest strategies for improving intercultural competence. To achieve these objectives, research questions were formulated, and a methodology was designed to collect and analyze data from the participants. The findings of the study revealed that speaking skills are often neglected in Moroccan formal education, especially in the teaching and learning process leading to difficulties in using relevant oral vocabulary and accurate pronunciation. The results suggest the need for specific communication courses to adopt amplified strategies and improve students' ability to communicate effectively and proficiently with English speakers from different cultures. Based on these findings, some strategies will be suggested for teachers in similar contexts to implement for successful results and enhance students' speaking competencies.
General education of humanities has been implemented in China’s colleges and universities for nearly 30 years, but so far, there are not many studies on the teaching of general education courses of humanities, among which the study on improving the teaching effect of general education courses of humanities, especially the study based on empirical evidence, although is very necessary, is even rarer. In order to explore the approach to improve the teaching effect of general education courses in humanities, in the past 9 semesters at South China University of Technology, a research-oriented university in China, the author of this paper carried out teaching exploration in a total of 14 large classes, and 23 small classes taught by himself, with 3094 undergraduate students enrolled, in three general education courses of humanities, namely "Anglo-American Literature and Culture", "Selected Readings of English Poetry", and "Tasting Chinese Classics in English", by implementing four teaching modes in classroom teaching: topic+interactive, topic+non-interactive, non-topic+interactive, non-topic+ non-interactive. It is found that topic-centered interactive small class teaching achieves the best teaching effect. At the same time, surveys and investigations conducted by the author of this paper on the teaching of general education courses of humanities at South China University of Technology demonstrate that interactive small class teaching taught by teachers with professor titles achieves optimal teaching effect. It can be thus concluded that the topic-centered, interactive small class teaching taught by a professor is the best approach to improve the teaching effect of general education courses of humanities in a research university. It is expected that the findings of this study will serve as a reference for other research universities in China to improve the teaching effect of general education courses in humanities.
Education for International Understanding can provide practical paths for Chinese language teachers, teaching materials, and pedagogy to tell China's stories well. In order to improve the dissemination effect of Chinese stories in teaching Chinese as a foreign language， We started with teachers, teaching materials and teaching methods and obtained the following results from the research: Chinese language teachers should improve their intercultural communication skills and become practitioners of international understanding education and tellers of China's stories; international Chinese language teaching materials should be developed by The Framework of Reference for Culture and Society Chinese in International Chinese Language Education and seek to integrate Chinese stories and local stories based on international understanding education; The Chinese pedagogy should gradually adopt a "Concept-based Teaching and Learning" pedagogy to promote the construction of learners' conceptual framework and help them understand China's stories.
