This research aims to describe secondary school students' functional thinking in generating patterns in learning algebra, particularly in solving mathematical word problems. In addressing this aim, a phenomenological approach was conducted to investigate the meaning of functional relationships provided by students. The data were collected from 39 ninth graders (13-14 years old) through a written test about generating patterns in linear functions. The following steps were conducting interviews with ten representative students to get detailed information about their answers to the written test. All students' responses were then analyzed using the thematic analysis software ATLAS.ti. The findings illustrate that students employed two types of approaches in solving the problem: recursive patterns and correspondence. Students favored the recursive patterns approach in identifying the pattern. They provided arithmetic computation by counting term-to-term but could not represent generalities with algebraic symbols. Meanwhile, students evidenced for correspondence managed to observe the relation between two variables and create the symbolic representation to express the generality. The study concludes that these differences exist due to their focus on identifying patterns: the recursive pattern students tend to see the changes in one variable, whereas the correspondence ones relate to the corresponding pair of variables.

School quality has become a guiding concept that increasingly shapes educational planning and school development. For many decades, it has been a topic of significant interest, resulting in a wide-ranging and diverse research field. However, it is far from clear how school quality should be defined, what it should encompass, and how it influences student performance. The goal of this scoping review is to examine the existing evidence of the relationship between characteristics of school quality and student cognitive output/ student performance in secondary school. More precisely, it aims to (a) identify, (b) categorize, and (c) examine and evaluate the effects of characteristics of school quality affecting student performance and teaching characteristics in secondary school. In order to achieve these aims, we selected, clustered, and analyses 37 articles. The process was conducted by the research group through regular meetings, discussions, and consensus decisions. Our findings contribute to the comprehensive body of literature by identifying the following dimensions: aims and strategies for quality development, leadership and management, professionalism, school culture, and resources. Furthermore, the review revealed that although the field of school quality has been extensively researched, it lacks consistency, with many different operationalisations and definitions, making comparisons and syntheses challenging or even impossible. We believe that clear operationalisations and definitions are crucial to achieving comparability. Additionally, to achieve a standardized understanding of school quality and establish the categories internationally, uniform, theoretically sound, and content-related definitions of each category are necessary.

Logical-mathematical intelligence is highly needed to ease students’ understanding of mathematics concepts. Therefore, it is necessary to delivery an innovative teaching approach to enhance students’ logical-mathematical intelligence. This study aims to investigate the use of mathematics comics to increase the logical-mathematical intelligence of junior high school students in urban and rural schools. This study employed a quantitative approach with a pretest-posttest control group design. The population of this study were seventh-grade students from a junior high school in Banda Aceh (urban areas) and a junior high school in Aceh Besar (rural areas), Indonesia. The samples of this study were two classes (experimental and control) from each school which were selected randomly. To collect data, we used a logical-mathematical intelligence test and analyzed it by using t-test. This study shows that the use of mathematical comics in urban schools can improve mathematical logical intelligence. However, there was no improvement in students' mathematical logical intelligence in rural schools. Therefore, this study showed that using mathematics comics in different school conditions yield different results in logical-mathematical intelligence. The findings suggest that other learning innovations are required to improve students' logical-mathematical intelligence in rural areas.

The study aims to point out direct and indirect correlations between others' roles on career self-efficacy, and career self-management. This research uses a multifactor correlational model, samples were 342 students. The research instruments are Career Self-Management Self-Efficacy Scale (CEDLE-Scale), Career Decision Self-Efficacy (CDSE Short-Form), and Role Model Influence Career Decisions Scale (RIMICDS). Data were analyzed using path analysis with AMOS 23. The findings show that 1) the variable of others' role directly influences career self-efficacy; 2) career self-management directly influences the career self-efficacy on career self-efficacy; 3) others' influence on career decision directly influences the career self-management, and 4) others' role on the career decision indirectly influences self-efficacy moderated by career self-management. Support, guidance, and inspiration from others will ease someone in deciding on a career. Guidance for managing a career will improve career self-efficacy. It will then positively contribute to the self-confidence to pursue the career.

A virtual-based disaster learning model was created to enhance understanding of COVID-19 disaster mitigation following the characteristics of elementary school students because the high number of child deaths brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic served as the driving force behind this research. The virtual-based disaster learning model had been deemed valid, but more study is required to ascertain its impact on primary school pupils' comprehension of COVID-19 disaster mitigation. This study sought to determine how the virtual disaster learning model affected elementary school pupils' understanding of COVID-19 disaster mitigation. This study was a quasi-experimental investigation. Non-equivalent control group design was the type of experimental design employed. The t-test showed that students who studied using virtual-based disaster learning models and those who used conventional learning had different average levels of understanding of COVID-19 disaster mitigation. According to the findings, primary school children who learned using virtual disaster learning models had higher scores than students who used conventional methods. This finding revealed that virtual disaster learning models could improve understanding of COVID-19 disaster mitigation. The results of this study's implications can be applied as a different approach to enhancing elementary school kids' comprehension of emergency planning for COVID-19.

Environmental damage must be taken seriously. Strengthening human attitudes to preserve the environment is the keyword, and strengthening the aspects of knowledge about the environment must be pursued. However, a scientific basis is needed that shows that it is true that strengthening the aspects of knowledge about the environment can improve a person’s attitude toward preserving the environment. The purpose of this research is to find the relationship between a person’s knowledge and their behavior in preserving the environment. By defining the general picture of the relationship between knowledge and attitudes, future accurate educational policies can be taken in the context of environmental protection. This research is a meta-analysis of correlation types. The inclusion criteria for selecting the data are as follows: studies published from 1999 to 2022 in English, analyzed by correlation analysis, have descriptions of many samples and correlation indices, and published in Google Scholar-indexed journals. Based on this inclusion criteria, 23 studies were selected containing 36 relevant sets of research data. The results showed that there was a correlation between knowledge and a person’s attitude toward the environment (.37). Assuming a 95% confidence level, the real score ranges from 0.26 to 0.48. The publication bias test using the trim and fill method showed that none of the data contained biased publications, so the meta-analysis results could be declared valid. Now, there is an urgency to expand environmental education to encourage the development of good attitudes by the community toward the environment.

This study aimed to find the Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Modern Test Theory (MTT) item parameters of the Differential Aptitude Test (DAT) and examined their comparability of them. The item parameters being studied are difficulty level and discrimination index. 5.024 data of the result sub-test DAT were documented by the Department of Psychology and Guidance and Counselling bureau. The parameter of classical and modern test items was estimated and correlated by examining the comparability between parameters. The results show that there is a significant correlation between item parameter estimates. The Rasch and IRT 1-PL models have the highest correlation toward CTT regarding the item difficulty level. In contrast, model 2-PL has the highest correlation toward CTT in the item discrimination index. Overall, the study concluded that CTT and MTT were comparable in estimating item parameters of DAT and thus could be used independently or complementary in developing DAT.

In the future, vocational students will face all changes and developments in technology and information. In this context, students' digital literacy skills need to be trained to adapt to the demands of the world of work. This article aims to present the results of a study on factors that can improve the digital literacy practice for vocational students as a roadmap for digital learning in the current era. The sampling technique used purposive random sampling of 8 Vocational Schools in East Java Province, Indonesia. The number of respondents in this study amounted to 355 second-year students. The study has found that online learning, motivation, and technology introduction are influenced by students' digital literacy practices, while teacher readiness and infrastructure must be mediated by online learning. The findings in this study indicate that collaboration from various parties is needed from teachers, school administrators, and policymakers in planning learning that focuses on students' digital abilities.

Motivation is essential in shaping how much a student is interested in learning and also affects how much students will learn from a learning activity or how much students' ability to capture the information presented by the teacher. Well-motivated students will produce a vibrant learning atmosphere and a better success rate. This research aims to determine whether the motivating active learning in physical education (MALP) model can help kids in elementary school develop their capacity for critical thinking. The design used is experimental. The research subjects were grade 6 elementary school students representing five sub-districts in the Tasikmalaya district. One elementary school was taken from each sub-district through a probability sampling technique using the cluster random sampling approach. The total sample taken was 137 people. The results of the study prove that applying the MALP model can greatly influence improving the critical thinking skills of elementary school students. The result of the study is proven by the significance test using the paired sample t-test; the results obtained from sig. (2-tailed) of .001< .05. So applying motivating active learning in the physical education model influences increasing elementary school students’ critical thinking skills.

This study aimed to investigate the effect of character teaching on college student socioemotional character development. The study was conducted at IAIN Pontianak, Universitas Tanjungpura and Universitas Muhammadiyah Pontianak. The sample was 1284 students, 388 male and 896 female. Partial least square-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) data analysis using SmartPLS was used. The findings reveal that character teaching has a significant and positive effect on college student honesty, prosociality, respect at home, respect at school, self-control, and self-development. This study suggests that colleges/universities ensure that lecturers supervise student assignments, seriousness and discipline, check students’ attendance strictly, give course assessment samples, and grade their assignments on schedule. At the end of the conclusion, implications and suggestions are given.

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education has been successfully implemented in many countries around the world, including Vietnam. Admittedly, it appears that Vietnamese teachers are encountering several obstacles and challenges as they adopt STEM education in their classrooms. The purpose of this study was to use the Delphi method to figure out the obstacles and challenges that teachers in six northern mountainous provinces of Vietnam encounter when teaching STEM education. As per research findings, teachers confront 11 obstacles and challenges when integrating STEM education in their classrooms, including: Teacher competency, time consumption in lesson planning and guiding students to produce STEM products, teachers' beliefs regarding STEM education, inflexible programs, insufficient facilities, examination pressures, lack of timely rewards and encouragement for effective teachers, teachers’ self-funding teaching STEM, students’ competence, students’ cultural, economic and social background, and disagreements from student’s parents. These findings assist administrators and teachers in developing future strategies for successfully implementing STEM education in Vietnam.

This article examines the influence of the university environment and learning programs on students' entrepreneurial intentions and attitudes, considering the moderating roles of entrepreneurial self-efficacy and locus of control. The empirical analysis employs a multilevel (hierarchical) linear model, utilizing responses from 713 students across 30 universities in Kazakhstan who participated in the GUESSS 2021 project survey. Our findings reveal that students' entrepreneurial intentions are directly influenced by entrepreneurial self-efficacy and locus of control. However, the locus of control is also indirectly influenced by the university environment and learning program. The learning program's effect on both entrepreneurial aspirations and attitudes is mediated by self-efficacy. Locus of control, conversely, negatively affects both entrepreneurial attitudes and intentions in program learning. The study's results underscore that student entrepreneurship is shaped by personal factors such as self-efficacy and locus of control, alongside the university context. Interestingly, the findings also indicate interdependencies between these factors, further influencing students' entrepreneurial intentions and attitudes.

This study aimed to compare and examine the effectiveness of interactive STEM learning and paper-and-pencil STEM learning in terms of mathematical literacy skills of elementary school students. This research is of a quasi-experimental type with a non-equivalent pretest-posttest control group design. Sampling was carried out on the elementary school populations in Bengkulu and South Sumatra Provinces in two stages. In the first stage, schools in rural and urban areas were selected, and in the second, classes in each school were randomly selected. The selected sample consisted of fifth-grade students of the Public Elementary School of Terawas, Musi Rawas, with an experimental class A (n = 20) and an experimental class B (n = 19), as well as fifth-grade students of the Public Elementary School of Bengkulu City, with an experimental class A (n = 25) and an experimental class B (n = 22). Data collection was conducted using mathematical literacy skills tests in reference to the PISA and Minimum Competency Assessment (level 1–3). Data analysis was performed using descriptive and inferential statistics; it employed an independent t-test for the comparative testing and an N-gain test for testing the effectiveness of STEM learning. The results showed that there were differences in math literacy skills between interactive STEM and paper-and-pencil STEM for students in urban schools, but not significantly different for students in rural schools. General STEM learning was effective in increasing the literacy of elementary school students, and interactive STEM in particular demonstrated the highest level of effectiveness in the urban school.

The purpose of this research is to strengthen pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) in designing laboratory activities based on small-scale chemistry approaches. This research is action research involving 60 trainee teachers with stages that include (a) Reflect; (b) Plan; (c) Act; (d) Observe; (e) Reflect (2nd); (f) Plan (2nd). Qualitative data were collected through (a) Questionnaires reflecting on experiences in practicing chemistry learning and responses to the importance of learning, (b) a Portfolio of chemistry practicum design, (c) documentation of the process of carrying out design, implementation, and practicum evaluation activities, (d) field notes, (e) reflection sheet, and (f) Portfolio of follow-up plans. The data is displayed through the R computation system with data pre-processing stages in the teacher's reflection text which includes basic cleaning, case folding, normalization, stemming, and deleting meaningless words. Display data in the form of word clouds, frequency expression diagrams, and tabulations. Descriptive narratives are used to analyze the documentation obtained in the action process. The teacher group demonstrated performance in implementing small-scale practicum activities. Teachers are increasingly skilled in modifying conventional laboratory equipment, minimizing the amount of chemical use, minimizing waste disposal, and increasing efficiency in the duration of practicum implementation. The follow-up plan for this activity includes quality improvement in aspects of (a) skill in using laboratory equipment, (b) understanding of chemical concepts, (c) equipment availability, materials, and work procedures, and (d) implementation of chemistry practicum.

During COVID-19 in Athens, Greece, 535 general education and 170 special education teachers were tested for computer use self-efficacy, ICT competence, and computer attitudes. Demographic and occupational factors impacted computer attitudes and computer use self-efficacy. The GCAS and GCSES showed that general and special education teachers liked computers. Teachers were computer-savvy and confident. Computer attitudes boosted computer use self-efficacy. Computer self-efficacy is strongly linked with computer attitudes, subscales of confidence and affection and moderately linked with cognitions about computers. Age, position, and ICT training substantially influenced computer attitudes and computer use self-efficacy. ICT-trained teachers had improved their attitudes and computer use self-efficacy. Computer self-efficacy and attitudes about computers did not change for special education teachers, but computer confidence increased. Except for those under 25, younger teachers demonstrated higher computer self-efficacy than older ones.

The study focused on generational differences in teachers’ professional competencies (interaction styles, teaching styles and didactic competencies) and motivation for the teaching profession. A total of 462 teachers (20 students with at least a bachelor’s degree; age: M = 43.36, SD = 11.05) participated in the study. The Questionnaire on Teacher Interaction (Slovak version), the Slovak Teaching Style Questionnaire, the Didactic Competencies Questionnaire and the Scale of Motivations for Choosing Teaching as a Career were administered. Teachers were divided into generations (Baby Boomers, born up through 1964; Generation X, born 1965 – 1980; Generation Y, born 1981 – 1996; Generation Z, born 1997 and later). The main finding of the study was that there were significant generational differences in professional competencies but no differences in motivation for the teaching profession. On the other hand, there were strong preferences for the leadership, helpful, student-teacher responsibility, understanding interaction styles and the supporting teaching style. Baby Boomers were also knowledge-oriented, Generations X and Y also goal-oriented, and Generation Z also preferred a managerial style. From didactic competencies, Baby Boomers were best in self-reflection and the realization of teaching; Generations X and Y were best in self-reflection and maintaining a positive classroom climate, and Generation Z was good in the realization of teaching.

Mathematical confidence and critical thinking are essential in preparing preservice teachers. Thus, this study explored the perceived confidence and critical thinking levels in mathematics of elementary and secondary preservice teachers. A descriptive-correlational-comparative research design was employed, with a sample of 107 randomly selected preservice teachers enrolled in the Bachelor in Elementary and Secondary Education programs of a state university in West Philippines. The study used arithmetic mean, standard deviation, Spearman’s rank-order correlation, and independent samples t-test to analyze and draw conclusions from the data. The findings revealed that the preservice teachers have high confidence and critical thinking skills. Their program significantly correlates with their perceived critical thinking and confidence level. Besides, the preservice teachers’ confidence levels and perceived critical thinking skills significantly correlate. Further analysis found significant confidence and critical thinking differences favoring the secondary over the elementary preservice teachers. These findings provide insights that would benefit mathematics educators in providing priority programs to enhance the preparation of future math teachers.

The teaching of speaking in English as a foreign language (EFL) classes in the Province of Aceh did not rely on the suggested techniques and methods. This teacher-designed technique, which was mainly textbook-based, has left an unpleasant learning experience among students. Therefore, we conducted a quantitative research study to experiment with how students responded to contextual teaching and learning (CTL) to see the effect of transitioning from a teacher-established method to a systematically planned learning approach and compare how students progressed over time. The experiment was carried out by teachers who had received assistance in preparing the lesson and practicing the lesson plan. The six-meeting experiment was conducted in 11 small classes, with a total sample of 132 students. The student improvement after the first four meetings (cycle 1) was compared using inferential statistical analyses with that after eight meetings (cycle 2). The results show that the student’s achievement significantly improved in the first cycle and continued to improve, although at a lower rate, in the second cycle. This result suggests that CTL can be used to transition from a traditional teaching method to a more established method in EFL teaching. Therefore, teachers need help planning their teaching and practicing how to implement the teaching plan accurately.

21st-century learning requires teachers and students to integrate literacy skills, scientific literacy, mathematics, reading, writing, and technology in the learning process. Students must have initiative, discipline, responsibility, confidence, motivation for independent learning, and the ability to think critically about the problems presented. This study aims to determine students' autonomous knowledge and critical thinking abilities (CTA) using mobile learning technology (MLT). This research is a quantitative study involving 83 students from four junior high schools in the city of Mataram. The data collection for independent learning and students' CTA was carried out by giving tests and non-tests to students. The test conducted was a written test in the form of a description of 10 questions covering indicators of CTA. The non-test was conducted by giving a student learning independence questionnaire with as many as 15 statements, including five indicators of learning independence. This quantitative research data analysis uses the Rash modeling application with the help of Ministep software. The analysis results show that the learning independence of male and female students in the four junior high schools obtained a percentage of 77.38% in the “good” category. Each indicator of learning independence accepts a percentage above 70%, which is in the excellent category. Meanwhile, the CTA of male and female students from the four junior high schools obtained 75.28% in the “good” category. Each indicator of CTA also gets a percentage of more than 70%, meaning that each indicator is in a good category.

The need for early comprehension of scientific concepts in elementary school students is crucial. However, studies have indicated that some students lack a fundamental understanding of such concepts, highlighting the importance of effective teaching methods to improve scientific literacy at an early age. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the ability of Project-Based Learning in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM-PjBL) to improve students' scientific literacy, knowledge, and application of foundational scientific principles. A quasi-experimental methodology was employed, involving 22 female and 26 male fourth-grade elementary school students as participants. The study administered a Scientific Literacy Test (SLT) treatment to the students, followed by unpaired and paired t-tests to examine the impact of the STEAM-PjBL model on their scientific literacy skills. The results showed that STEAM-PjBL improved students' scientific literacy skills significantly more than traditional instruction. The experimental group outperformed the control group in the post-test, indicating the effectiveness of STEAM-PjBL. Therefore, the study recommends the adoption of the STEAM-PjBL model by elementary school teachers to improve students' understanding of fundamental scientific concepts.