scholarly journals Exploring writing apprehension amongst Afrikaans-speaking first-year students

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Olivier ◽  
Jako Olivier
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Academic Literacy ◽  
Writing Apprehension ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Writing Evaluation ◽  
Linear Relationships ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Additional Support

Writing apprehension relates to a reluctance to write or even fear of writing and little research has been done on this phenomenon in the South African context, especially in terms of compulsory academic literacy and academic linguistic modules. This article aimed at determining the nature of writing apprehension in these two modules in terms of the Daly and Miller’s Writing Apprehension Test (DM-WAT), essay marks and gender at a South African university. The DM-WAT was conducted with two groups of first-year students. An exploratory factor analysis was administered and this led to the identification of four distinct factors which are also associated with related aspects in the literature: positivity towards writing, negativity towards writing, evaluation apprehension and selfefficacy and writing. It is evident that in the context of this study, the chosen instrument could not be used to measure writing apprehension, rather the four identified factors. No linear relationships between essay marks and the identified constructs were clear. Also a practical significant difference between genders was found in terms of the identified constructs. Significantly, students in the compulsory academic literacy module showed a greater tendency towards apprehension in terms of the four identified factors than students from the linguistics module. The chosen instrument could be used to gauge the identified factors. Writing in compulsory academic literacy modules should be taught through individualised student-centred methods, affective support and reflective instruction, positive personal feedback, with additional support through counselling as well as effective modelled writing behaviour from lecturers.

scholarly journals The relationship between self-efficacy and reading proficiency of first-year students: An exploratory study

2015 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi A.N.Y. Boakye
Keyword(s):  
Reading Instruction ◽  
South African ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Academic Literacy ◽  
Reading Proficiency ◽  
First Year ◽  
Tertiary Institution ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Affective Factors ◽  
The Relationship

Self-efficacy, which is the belief about one’s ability to perform a task successfully, has been widely acknowledged as important in learning. This affective factor, though not explicitly evident, has been said to play an important role in academic performance. However, its role in reading development has not been widely investigated. To determine the relationship between self-efficacy and reading proficiency, a study was conducted with first-year students in a South African tertiary institution. Students’ self-efficacy levels were elicited through a questionnaire and their reading proficiency was obtained through the Test of Academic Literacy levels (TALL), which essentially assesses reading proficiency. An analysis of variance showed a robust relationship between reading self-efficacy and reading proficiency for this cohort of students. Regression analysis conducted with other affective factors showed self-efficacy as the best predictor of students’ reading proficiency. Results are discussed as they relate to previous research and recommendations are made to include the development of self-efficacy in reading instruction.

Computer Ownership and Usage as Predictors of Computer Literacy of South African Students

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (6) ◽  
pp. 638-664
Author(s):  
Pieter Blignaut ◽  
Engela Dednam ◽  
Tlholohelo Nkalai
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Computer Literacy ◽  
First Year ◽  
African Students ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Software Applications ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Diverse Backgrounds ◽  
The University ◽  
Better Than

Most of our first-year students were born after 1995 and belong to the generation of “digital natives”. They are perceived as being comfortable with technology and active on social media for a large part of every day. However, students at the University of the Free State (ufs) come from diverse backgrounds and the typical characteristicsof their contemporaries do not necessarily apply to them.Students completed questionnaires about their experience with and exposure to various software applications before commencement of the first computer literacy module at the mentioned institution. Students’ performance in three formal assessments during the semester were used as dependent variable to determine whether prior ownership and exposure to computers gave them an advantage over their peers who did not have access to computers.Students owning a computer or who had access to someone else’s computer performed significantly better than those without access to a computer. The Internet andmsWord were found to be among the most used applications prior to entering a university, and they also proved to be predictive of the performance of students in a computer literacy module throughout the semester. The amount of usage did, however,not make any significant difference with regard to the students’ performance.

scholarly journals Creating Significant Learning Experiences for Clinical Reasoning by Physical Therapist Students

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lois Stickley
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Clinical Reasoning ◽  
Curriculum Design ◽  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Physical Therapist ◽  
Learning Experiences ◽  
First Year ◽  
Clinical Decisions ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Significant Difference

Background: Clinical reasoning skills are embedded in all aspects of practice. There is a lack of consensus and standards for curriculum design and teaching methods of clinical reasoning in entry-level education of health professionals. Purpose: The purpose was to describe a process of designing one comprehensive, planned sequence of four courses to create significant learning experiences for clinical reasoning for Doctor of Physical Therapy students. Method: Fink’s design process was used to develop four clinical decision-making courses to ensure a close alignment of learning goals, feedback and assessment, and learning activities to engage students in practicing components of clinical reasoning. Student outcomes were measured by self-efficacy ratings for clinical reasoning in a practical exam for first-year students and by ratings of performance by clinical instructors for third-year students. Results: 41 first-year students ranked their confidence in making clinical decisions both before and after a midterm practical. A paired t-test found a significant difference (.05t40 = -6.66, ρ=0.00) in the mean ratings of students from the pre-practical assessment to the post-practical assessment about confidence in making clinical decisions. Third-year students received ratings that met or exceeded expectations on five audited skills from the Physical Therapist manual for the Assessment of Clinical Skills (PT MACS), both at midterm and at the final assessment. No significant differences between midterm and final ratings on any of the selected skills were found using a Chi-Square Test of Independence (α=.05). Conclusion: The four-course sequence was designed using four themes: patient-centered care, models of practice, and evidence-based practice, and ethics/legal issues. This paper offers specific details about how one method of teaching clinical reasoning meets the current trends in education and health care for accountability and meaningful outcomes. Students gained practical knowledge and skills in the components of clinical reasoning and decision-making by participating in active and engaging significant learning experiences.

scholarly journals Study On The Use Of Oral Drills And Role-Play Method In Improving Students’ Interactive Speaking Achievement

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 24-45
Author(s):  
Kelvri L. Sinambela ◽  
Debora Chaterin Simanjuntak
Keyword(s):  
Experimental Method ◽  
Quantitative Research ◽  
Role Play ◽  
P Value ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Post Test ◽  
Experimental Group

This study examines whether the use of Oral Drills and Role-Play method could improve students’ interactive speaking achievement. This study used quantitative research using pre-experimental method with one group pre and posttest design. The study was conducted in SMP Advent II, Setia Budi, Bandung. The participants of this study were 30 students from the first year students at SMP Advent II Setia budi, Bandung as the sample and they were grade VII at SMP Advent II Setia Budi, Bandung. This study used one experimental group as the sample. A pre-test and post-test were done. The experimental group was given treatment (Oral Drill and Role-Play Method). The data gathered was then statistically calculated and analysed. According to the interpretation, if p Value (Sig.) ≤ 􀟙 (0.05) then HA is accepted and H0 is rejected and If p Value (Sig.) ≥ 􀟙 (0.05) then H0 is accepted and HA is rejected. After calculating the data it was known that the p-value = 0.000 lesser than alpha 0.05. Result of the study showed that there is a significant difference in improving students’ interactive speaking achievement after using oral drills and role-play method.   Keywords: Interactive Speaking, Oral Drills, Role-Play Method

scholarly journals Autonomous English Language Learning Beyond the Classroom: Indonesian Tertiary Students’ Practices and Constraints

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (10) ◽  
pp. 194-213
Author(s):  
Daflizar Daflizar
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
English Language ◽  
Autonomous Learning ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
First Year ◽  
English Language Learning ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
English Major ◽  
Attention To Students

. In response to the interest in learner autonomy in recent years, educational research has been increasingly paying attention to students’ out-of-class autonomous learning activities. This study aims to (1) describe the extent to which Indonesian tertiary students engaged in autonomous English language learning outside the class, (2) explore their perceived constraints in practicing autonomous learning, and (3) examine whether there are any significant differences in the autonomous learning activities between female and male students and between the English major students and non-English major students. Employing the explanatory mixed-method design, a total of 402 first-year students completed a questionnaire, and 30 of whom were interviewed. The questionnaire data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and non-parametric tests, and the interview data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The results showed that the students did engage in several out-of-class English learning activities, however many of the activities were more receptive than productive. The interviews echoed the questionnaire results, and the students claimed that they were not autonomous in their learning due to several constraints. The results also revealed that there is no significant difference in the level of practice of autonomous out-of-class activities based on gender but a significant difference was found concerning majors of study. Practical implications for the Indonesian context are put forward.

scholarly journals THE EFFECT OF BLINDFOLD GAME ON STUDENTS’ VOCABULARY ACHIEVEMENT AT SMP NEGERI 13 KENDARI

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 200
Author(s):  
Andi An-Nisaa Arfin ◽  
Kamaluddin Kamaluddin ◽  
Wa Ode Fatmawati
Keyword(s):  
Junior High School ◽  
Alternative Hypothesis ◽  
First Grade ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Comparison Research ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Post Test ◽  
The Difference ◽  
Vocabulary Achievement

The purpose of conducting this research is to examine the difference NGain scores between students who learn vocabulary with Blindfold Game and students who learn vocabulary without Blindfold Game at the first year students of SMP Negeri 13 Kendari. The samples of this research are the first grade four (VII-4) and the first grade three (VII-3) which consists of 27 students for each class. This research is conducted in comparison research design that consists of experimental class (VII-4) and controll class (VII-3). The data of this research are collected by giving pre-test and post-test in two classes (VII-4 & VII-3). The result shows that there is an improvement of the students’ vocabulary achievement. Independent samples t-test shows that, there is a significant difference in the Ngain scores for experimental class ( M = 60.08,  SD = 9.36 ) and controll class ( M = 20.41, SD = 14.56 ), t (52) = 11.904, p (0.000) < 0.05. Therefore, it can be concluded that the value of Sig (2 tailed) is lower than the significance α value (0.000 < 0.05). In other words, alternative hypothesis (H1) is accepted and the null hypothesis (H0) is rejected. It means that the Blindfold game can enrich students’ vocabulary achievement for Junior High School Student.

scholarly journals The Influence of Teaching Vocabulary by Using Picture

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 159
Author(s):  
Hanik Nuzulimah
Keyword(s):  
Control Group ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Post Test ◽  
The Subject ◽  
And Control ◽  
Data Analysis Result ◽  
Experimental Group ◽  
Better Than

This paper attempts to explore whether there is significant difference of achievement in vocabulary between students taught by using pictures and those are not. The subject of this study is the first year students of SLTP Muhammadiyah Simo Susukan, Semarang where the sample contains 50 students that is divided into experimental group (with treatment) and control group (without treatment). The data is gathered from participants’ score obtained from pre test and post test. Using t test as technique of data analysis, result shows that students taught by using pictures perform better than those are not. It means that there is significant difference between the two groups. Keywords: Vocabulary Teaching; Picture

scholarly journals Assessment of knowledge, attitude and skills towards e-learning in first year medical students

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (11) ◽  
pp. 4119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monali Hiwarkar ◽  
Onjal Taywade
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical Training ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Learning Modalities ◽  
Conventional Teaching ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Education In India ◽  
E Learning

Background: With digitization the e-learning modalities are being increasingly used by medical students. These often help the first MBBS students to overcome limitations of conventional teaching methods like didactic lectures. However, e-learning is not official part of medical education in India and the awareness about its use among medical students need to be evaluated. Aim and objective of the study was to assess the extent to which MBBS first year students use e-resources for learning as well as to assess knowledge, attitude, skills and habits of first MBBS students towards e-learning.Methods: A questionnaire of twenty five questions on various aspects of e-learning was administered to the first MBBS students at two medical colleges. The data generated from responses was compiled and analyzed on SPSS to get insight on various aspects of e-learning.Results: Out of 236 students surveyed 77.97% were aware about the academic websites related to first MBBS subjects. 90.68 % accepted that e-learning helped in understanding topics, 84.32% recommended conventional teaching to be supplemented with e-learning. However there was no statistically significant difference between responses from two groups i.e. female and male students (p>0.05).Conclusions: The majority of first MBBS students use e-resources for learning various topics in anatomy, physiology and biochemistry. The e-resources have made a positive impact on overall learning especially anatomy. e-learning can supplement conventional teaching in the first year of medical training.

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