In this research, the influence of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic on 9th grade students’ mathematics achievement is analyzed through quantitative and qualitative methods. A posttest only with control group design was used to compare the mathematics marks of 9th grade students from the previous school year (before the pandemic, control group) and the current school year (during the pandemic, experimental group). Seventy-three students from a public high school in Spain attending class on alternate days participated in the study. Three focus group sessions were held with students, and five semi-structured interviews were conducted—two with teachers and three with students’ families. Results show statistically significant differences in students’ mathematics achievement, with students enrolled in 9th grade the previous (pre-pandemic) year outscoring their peers currently enrolled in 9th grade (during the pandemic) by 22.17%. An overall negative effect size of Hedge’s g = -1.11 was reported. Although significant statistical differences between groups were reported for both male and female students, the effect was 42.31% larger for male students (Hedge’s g = -1.11) than for females (Hedge’s g = -0.78). The qualitative information supported the quantitative results. Changes in educational settings, students’ lack of motivation, monotony, and students’ level of responsibility were qualitatively reported as factors that may explain this phenomenon. The main conclusion of this study is that the COVID-19 pandemic may be significantly and negatively affecting 9th grade students’ mathematics achievement.

Reflective learning in community-based education (CBE) activities requires the role of a supervisor. The ‘intensive supervision’ based on Kolb's experiential learning can provide guidance for facilitating reflection on CBE experiences through discussion. Accordingly, supervisors must receive training on providing constructive feedback sessions to assist students in reflecting. This study aimed to determine the effect of training on facilitating reflection using experiential learning methods based on the concept of 'intensive supervision' for CBE supervisors. The study design used a training program evaluation with the Kirkpatrick model of levels 1 and 2. The training on facilitating reflection was divided into workshops and mentoring sessions based on the experiential learning cycle. The questionnaire was developed to assess tutoring performance before and after the training based on the perceptions of supervisors (n=10) and students (n=43) and observers' observations during the supervisor tutoring. Descriptive and comparative data analyses were employed. The trainees showed positive reactions to the training. The students’ and supervisors’ perception questionnaires showed a significant difference in the performance of the supervisors who were assessed before and after training. Our results indicated that most of the supervisors’ ability to facilitate reflection changed following the ‘intensive supervision' method. This training helps supervisors learn how to become facilitators and students to feel more assisted in the learning process.

Regardless of varied lingua-cultural ideologies enriching the theories of communicative competence (CC), the four CC dimensions (e.g., linguistics, sociolinguistics, discourse, and communication strategies (CSs)) still become the main cores of English speaking (ES) classrooms. Of the four dimensions, CSs seem to be the most technical which deserve to be persistently studied. Hence, this study aimed to probe into ES lecturers’ performances of CSs, their efforts to improve students’ CC, and the impacts of their efforts on students’ learning according to students’ perspectives. Two ES lecturers and 10 students at a university in Indonesia were purposively selected to be the participants. They were observed and interviewed according to the study’s purposes. This study uncovered various CSs performed by ES lecturers according to several contexts, such as to understand spoken texts, to understand spoken recorded texts, and to overcome temporary communication difficulties. Various ES lecturers’ efforts were also revealed according to their functions to improve each dimension of CC. Most students perceived the lecturers’ efforts positively due to the impacts on their motivation, self-efficacy, collaborative skills, and metacognition. However, few students echoed negative perceptions about a lecturer’s native-speakerism-endorsed effort due to lingua-cultural issues. Implication, limitation, and recommendation are discussed.

Evolution is one of the most difficult and controversial topics. Scientific knowledge of evolution should belong to general knowledge of people, it should be the part of their natural science knowledge or biological education because it is the basis for accepting or refusing of other important topics such as genetical modification, global climatic change and others. Our aim was to analyse the inclusion of evolution in the teaching process in Slovakia in the subjects of history and biology and the associated potential threats to the formation of misconceptions. We measured the level of knowledge and understanding of evolution and evolutionary processes among high school graduates (N = 200). In doing so, we hypothesized that graduating high school students who have received evolutionary education achieve higher levels of both knowledge and understanding of evolutionary processes compared to those who have not received such education. We hypothesized that interest in science and acceptance of evolution would also positively influence levels of knowledge about evolutionary phenomena and understanding of evolutionary processes. Having used research, we claimed the impact of interest in natural science. We suggest to include the evolution as a main topic of biology into education through exploration- oriented teaching.

This study expounds how the analysis of move and transitivity in the method, result, and discussion sections contributes to the advancement of novice writers’ writing skills by providing a writing pattern applied when composing research articles. To this aim, a qualitative approach with descriptive technique is employed to encapsulate and explain the phenomena being studied. The data are the method, result, and discussion sections of research articles (RAs) drawn from top tier journals categorized as language and linguistics and analyzed based on macro structure (move and steps) and micro structure (transitivity). The results indicate that 11 moves and 38 steps discovered, in detail, these consist of three moves and 15 steps in method, four moves and 10 steps in result, and four moves and 13 steps in discussion. As for the successions of the move steps, few inter-move step shifts observed. This is in contrast with the outer-move step shifts that commonly occurred. Meanwhile, the outcomes of the transitivity analysis suggest that there are six processes revealed including material, relational, verbal, mental, existential, and behavioral consecutively with material dominating and behavioral the fewest. The results of the present study may supplement the teaching materials reside in English for a research purpose.  

Online learning is an obligation in teaching and learning activities during the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Game-based learning is a solution in improving student learning outcomes. This research aims to determine the level of acceptance of gamification in terms of Gamification quality (GQ), instructor characteristic (IC), and technology anxiety (TA). The target respondents were students taking information systems courses based on enterprises resources planning (ERP) Gamification. The sample used is a census. That is, the entire population is taken as a sample. A total of 93 students filled out the online questionnaire. Then, data analysis using Structural Equation Model - Partial Least Square (SEM-PLS). Student satisfaction (SS) and perceived ease of use (PEOUG) are the most influences. PEOUG is also the construct that has the most significant relationship impact, especially with the perceived usefulness (PUG). Meanwhile, two constructs do not significantly impact TA on PUG and PUG on Intention to use gamification (INTG). The obligation of students requires students to ignore the impact and function of gamification. The results of this research also show that technology acceptance model (TAM), the constructs IC, TA, and GQ have a positive effect on PEOUG. Then PUG and PEOUG can positively affect SS.

The government has imposed social restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, affecting the education sector, including the early childhood school. Distance education offers different methods from the conventional methods, as the students are expected to gain the same skills, including critical thinking skills. Therefore, teachers must provide distance learning innovations using relevant learning media, such as multimedia-based learning. This research aims to assess the efficacy of multimedia learning in early childhood distance learning. This research is a quantitative model with a quasi-experimental pretest and posttest design. The data collection technique utilized questionnaires given to 30 samples of early childhood children. The data were statistically analyzed using SPSS software. The results confirmed that multimedia-based learning for distance learning could develop critical thinking skills in early childhood children during the COVID-19 pandemic. The results of this study offer exploration of learning strategies to improve children’s critical thinking.

The current study investigated the mediation effect of emotional reactivity and cutoff between attachment styles and interpersonal problems. The gender differences were also determined. A sample of (N = 200) students living in hostels of two universities of Lahore was used. There were (N = 100) female in the sample. The average age of the participants was 22.3 (SD = 1.46). The results of the study showed a significant relationship between close attachment style, emotional reactivity and cut-off, and with subscales of interpersonal problems like too much aggressive, too much caring, too much dependent, socially inhibited, hard to be involved, and hard to be supportive. Similarly, anxious and dependent attachment style showed significant relationship with emotional reactivity and cut-off and with subscales of interpersonal problems of hard to be sociable, hard to be assertive, hard to be supportive, hard to be involved, too aggressive, much caring, too open and too much dependent. The mediation analysis using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) revealed that emotional reactivity and cut-off showed partially significant mediation between attachment styles and interpersonal problems. Women showed more interpersonal problems as too open and too much caring compared to men living in hostels. The findings of the study have significant implications in the social structure of relationships in hostels, particularly in South Asian cultural context.

Character education is urgent in passing down the ethical and moral values in the cultured community life. The local cultural values are a source of ethics and moral education for elementary school students. The school keeps taking an essential role in cultivating the local values through online character education during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aimed to analyze the effect of implementing online integrated character education and parental engagement in local cultural values cultivation outcome. The method of this study used an exploratory sequential mixed method design. Collect qualitative data using interview forms, observation, documentation, and quantitative data using questionnaires and portfolios. Qualitative data interpretation used content analysis, and inferential analysis used multiple linear regression. Results revealed that parental engagement, teachers’ performance, and online learning obstacles affect local cultural values cultivation outcome in character education partially and simultaneously for sixth-grade students in Padang City. We suggested teachers improve character education management based on local cultural values by building good synergy and collaboration between them and parents to cultivate noble character behavior among students.

COVID-19 pandemic forces training for principals to be conducted online. This study aims to evaluate the context, input, process, response, study, behavior, and outcome to determine the effectiveness and make recommendations for training. The approach used in this study was a mixed method with a concurrent embedded design and a qualitative method as the main method. The subjects of this study were the principals, committees, and instructors. Data were collected through interviews, observations, and questionnaires and analyzed using Miles and Huberman's model, descriptive analysis, and a t-test. The results show that e-training is effective in context, input, and process. Response, learning, and attitude assessments prove that knowledge, skills, and attitude have improved. Participants will be able to implement the experience gained and impact school quality improvement. This study contributes to the combination of the two evaluation models proven to produce a complete result. The study for the e-training recommends needed assessment before the training, the activity before the training to acquire the skills in using the learning management system, and the monitoring and evaluation after the training.

Nowadays, Peruvian physicians commonly give oral medical reports to a patient´s family in English. For this reason, this research seeks to demonstrate the effectiveness of an Intervention Program for improving oral skills through role-playing activities, one hand, and, on the other, it aims to discover the kind of motivation, both goals in 40 students belonging to the Medicine Faculty of Universidad Nacional de Piura. This study has two parts, in the first quantitative phase, it measured the level of oral skills in these students, through an oral pre-test. After that, the students participated in an intervention program consisting of role-playing activities where the doctors usually use radiography to explain a medical condition. Then, the students were evaluated on their oral skills using an imaginary hospital situation similar to the pre-test. In the second part, the qualitative phase measured the Motivation of these students using the Attitude Motivation Test Battery (AMTB) in addition, a semi-structured interview could support the findings obtained in the aforementioned survey. The main findings were the improvement of oral skills and both Integrative and instrumental motivation in these students thanks to role-playing activities application.

The pandemic case has shifted away from face-to-face teaching to online blended learning. This phenomenon certainly causes various problems in the world of education. The online blended learning is good when applied with good internet connections and complete facilities. However, it differs from Indonesian coastal students who do not have supporting facilities. Therefore, this research aims to analyze the experience and readiness of Indonesian coastal students. It determines the facilities of the process using qualitative research with a phenomenological approach. Purposive sampling was used to collect data from 25 students living in coastal areas in Aceh, Indonesia. Furthermore, in-depth interviews were used to obtain instruments and techniques for data collection, observations, field notes, and audio-visuals. Data analysis was carried out qualitatively by reducing, displaying, drawing conclusions, and verifying data. The data processing was conducted using NVivo 12 plus software. The kappa coefficient is used to check the accuracy of the data since there was no bias during coding. The analysis results show that Indonesian coastal students are not ready to conduct the online blended learning process. Furthermore, it is recommended that future research focus on coastal students’ development. A Hypothetical Learning Trajectory design should be created to assist in independent learning and lessen their readiness.

Academic failure and school dropout, or early school leaving, are two of the situations that most concern countries and educational institutions worldwide, because of their prevalence and also their economic and social implications. Despite this prominent role that academic failure and school dropout have in societies, there seems to be no consensus on the literature on their conceptualization, definition, and relationship. Moreover, it is frequent to observe how both concepts are confused or overlap in the scientific literature and how many authors avoid defining these constructs, using them indistinctly. Therefore, this work analyses whether educational research considers them as two different concepts or if they are used indistinctly. For this purpose, 2,051 keywords from 450 articles were subjected to a systematic review and classified into the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) thesaurus´ descriptors. The results reveal statistically significant differences in the descriptors according to the type of paper to which they correspond (academic failure or dropout). Thus, academic failure is associated with sociocultural, personal, and academic factors, while dropout is linked to employment and educational trajectories. These differences evidence that, although academic failure and school dropout refer to closely related educational problems, there are remarkable differences between them and between the treatment given to each of them in the scientific literature. Therefore, they should be considered as two different concepts. For all this, keyword analysis has proved to be a relevant element for the study of the structure of knowledge, allowing to clearly establish the differences between the two closely related concepts.

Learning activities are conducted to help students achieve optimal academic achievement. This research aims to optimize student academic achievement through a learning process that integrates comprehensive formative assessments, including formative tests, self-assessment, peer assessment, and the initiator of creating summaries or concept maps that are given to students in a structured manner at the end of every lesson. The research method used was a quasi-experimental method with a 2x2 factorial design. Students enrolled in the biology education program of the basic physics course for the 1st semester of the 2019 academic year participated in this study. The participants were 66 undergraduate students divided into two classes. Thirty-four students in the experimental group were in class A, while 32 students in the control group were in class B. Data were collected using a learning outcome test instrument to measure academic achievement, which was tested at the end of the semester. Data were analyzed using a two-way ANOVA. This study concluded that a learning process that includes comprehensive formative assessment significantly affects students' academic achievement. These findings support the theory that formative assessment provides feedback, correction, and improvement in student learning.

Research is considered a vital component for propelling progress and development. This study aims to investigate the effects of problem-based learning (PBL) in the teaching of research methodology and statistics courses on improving research writing skills and enhancing course achievement. It also projects an action plan model for the effective implementation of PBL in the instructional aspect. The study utilised a positivist research paradigm based on action research design using the technique of content analysis. Employing a universal rubric, 45 proposals of graduate programme students enrolled in the College of Education at Minia University in North Upper Egypt were subjected to content analysis to rate students’ skills in writing research proposals before and after the delivery of the course. The students volunteered to participate in the study after they were given a synopsis of the aims and procedures. Students’ achievement was assessed through a test consisting of 90 items, developed primarily for this purpose at the end of the second semester in the academic year 2018–2019. The post-content analysis revealed a significant improvement in scientific research skills, with a considerable difference between the pre- and post-achievement scores. It is imperative to consider the feasibility of using the PBL approach in teaching research methodology and statistics courses for graduate students. The study recommended the adoption of PBL in undergraduate programmes as well as in high school education.

The most crucial factor influencing inclusive education is the preparation of educators for their professional activities. The aim of this study was to create and present a model for developing the professional competences of pre-service social educators in the context of inclusive education. The model reflected its main components: aim, objectives, methodological approaches, principles, technologies, study conditions, forms of training and stages of implementation (preliminary, main and final). The model introduced for professional activity in the conditions of inclusive education in the university's study process has the following characteristics: expediency, integrity, internal unity and consistency. The distinctiveness of the presented model lies in the possible application of taught subjects, such as the Inclusion in the Educational Environment module developed by the authors, educational internships and research work of students (RWS). Furthermore, the model is functional, based on a systemic and student-centred approaches and the principle of continuity of learning, i.e., lifelong learning (LLL).

The purpose of this study was to explore the factor structure of a measurement and to evaluate its internal reliability. Overall, 525 math-majoring elementary school teachers volunteered to participate in this study by answering online survey questions via Google Form. These samples were randomly partitioned into 262 participants for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and 263 observations for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The EFA tended to largely prefer a four-factor solution, which was proven to explain over 68% of the variation in the data. Awareness, effectiveness, engagement, and opportunity were the provisional labels for these hidden variables. The CFA results verified and validated the four-factor model, with all test measures exceeding the specified thresholds, suggesting an acceptable and excellent fit. The results of this study, on the one hand, provide four key areas for realistic math teachers, educators, and policymakers to discuss as opposed to examining individual indicators, and on the other hand, they serve as a foundation for interested researchers to conduct additional analyses, such as multivariate linear regression or complement for cluster analysis.

This study explored the effects of collaborative writing strategies on students' writing skills and self-efficacy. The study used a mixed methods design combining quantitative and qualitative approaches. Several instruments were used in data collection, including questionnaires, writing tests, writing assessment rubrics, and semi-structured interviews. The participants were randomly divided into two groups: the experimental group and the control group, which comprised 62 students. Data from the questionnaire and writing tests were analyzed using one-way MANOVA and MANCOVA tests, while interview data were explored using thematic analysis techniques. Participants were randomly divided into two groups: the experimental group and the control group. The results showed that collaborative writing strategies could improve students' writing skills and self-efficacy. Moreover, the qualitative results showed that most students responded positively to using these strategies to improve their writing skills and self-efficacy.

This study aims to identify students' styles of career choices. The second aim is to investigate what factors influence career choice style. The third aim is to determine whether all students of education programs want to become teachers one day. This research model is a relational model that uses multinomial logistic regression. The research population was Universitas Negeri Semarang (UNNES) students of education programs from five faculties in 2018. The number of people in the population was 4,531, and the participants were 220 students. The data analysis consisted of the multinomial logistic regression method. The results showed that the model met the requirements for use. Factors affecting career decisions are gathering information, locus of control, decision-making speed, and aspiration of an ideal career. Career choice has five styles: rational, intuitive, spontaneous, dependent, and avoidant. Accordingly, the spontaneous style is most commonly used by students. The other result shows that the factor that most influences students in choosing a style is pursuing an ideal career.

This qualitative study is part of a feasibility study conducted by State University of Malang (SUM), Indonesia, to determine stakeholder needs for a study program specializing in managing bilingual education. The study participants included one SUM lecturer who held a managerial position in the division of SUM laboratory schools and twelve teachers/leaders of bilingual schools in some cities in East Java and South Sulawesi. Data were collected using an online questionnaire and in-depth interviews with two selected participants. The results indicate issues related to teachers' English competencies, materials development, and integrating an internationally-oriented curriculum into the national curriculum. Teachers' low English competencies prevented them from conducting teaching and learning bilingually and developing instructional materials in appropriate English. In addition, the combination of national and international curricula was identified as the biggest challenge for bilingual schools. The teachers/leaders were never trained to manage the bilingual program. They learned based on their experiences, and it took years to figure out how to manage bilingual programs successfully. Therefore, the establishment of a new program of study is needed.