Model Learning Approach pada Mata Kuliah Basic Aircraft Material (BAM) di Perguruan Tinggi Vokasi Indonesia

Mata kuliah Basic Aircraft Material (BAM) adalah bidang ilmu yang mempelajari tentang dasar-dasar pemeliharaan pesawat udara. Sistem penilaian yang dilakukan pada mata kuliah ini selain dari UTS dan UAS, juga berdasarkan 2 tugas yang dikerjakan, dan sikap Taruna selama mempelajari mata kuliah BAM. Sedangkan tuntutan pada mata kuliah BAM ini adalah Taruna dituntut untuk dapat menganalisis kasus serta melakukan praktek kerja. Agar Taruna dapat memenuhi tuntutan mata kuliah BAM tersebut, maka Taruna memiliki pendekatan yang berbeda-beda dalam belajar. Hasil penelitian ditemukan bahwa penbelajaran taruna dengan pendekatan belajar surface approach, sebesar 40% taruna menyatakan mata kuliah tersebut penting dan 60% menyatakan bahwa tugas yang diberikan merupakan beban dan hanya belajar denganberfokus pada sub pokok bahasan yang dianggap penting saja. Kesimpulan dengan metode pembelajaran ini, maka hasil pembelajaran taruna semakin meningkat.

Bioinsecticide Production from Cigarette Wastes

Tobacco, one of the most significant nonfood crops, is critical to agriculture worldwide. The tobacco processing business creates a significant amount of hazardous tobacco waste containing nicotine, and only a tiny portion of it gets recycled. Nicotine, the primary component of tobacco products such as cigarettes, is an alkaloid and can be used as an insecticide. This research aims to extract nicotine from discarded cigarette butts and utilize it as an insecticide. Extraction, emulsification, and efficiency testing on cabbage aphids are all part of the procedure. The initial extraction tests used a solvent combination of ethanol and methanol in various ratios, with a 3 : 1 ratio yielding the best results. Temperature (30–60°C), extraction length (4–6 hrs), and sodium hydroxide concentration (1–3 M) are the independent variables studied for extraction parameters, and the optimal conditions are determined using Design-Expert, response surface approach central composite design (RSM-CCD). In addition, artificial neural network (ANN) studies with MATLAB were used to accurately forecast extraction yield. The extracted product was evaluated using a gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and a UV/visible spectrophotometer. The ideal crude extract yield and nicotine content were 17.75 and 3.26%, respectively, at the optimal conditions of temperature 60°C, time 4 hrs, and NaOH concentration 2.83 M with desirability of 0.832. The nicotine extracted was emulsified by combining the crude extract with a combination of palm oil and surfactants. Density, viscosity, pH, flash point, and surface tension of the emulsified concentration were measured and reported as 1.01 ± 0.01 g/ml, 585.33 ± 2.52 mPa s, 9.37 ± 0.03, 87.96 C, and 34.10 mN/m, respectively. On the cabbage aphid, the emulsified concentrated extract performed best at a ratio of 1 : 100 (emulsified concentrated to solvent).

Business and Social Science Students’ Course Preferences and Learning Approaches

The study examines university students’ course preferences and their relations to learning approaches, apparently for the first time, to gain insight how different course designs are experienced by students with different learning approaches. The data includes students from two universities and fields: business (n = 467) and social sciences (n = 313). The attributes in preference measurement were selected on the basis of previous research and focus groups discussions and choice-based conjoint analysis was used. The learning approaches were measured using Experiences of Teaching and Learning Questionnaire developed by Entwistle and Ramsden. Social science students valued more interesting, challenging and time-consuming courses than business students, who valued more relevant and easier courses requiring less time. Social science students scored higher in the deep approach. The relationship between preferences and approaches was strikingly similar in the two universities: strategic students prefer relevance and deep learners challenge in both universities. An exception was that interesting courses were related to deep learning among social science students, and to the surface approach among business students. Further studies should extend our understanding of what interesting means to different kinds of students. The results give tools to design courses that enhance students’ learning and offers new insights to learning approach research.

The Short-Term Reliability of Metaphors as an Assessment Method

Metaphors are assumed to be a means of accessing implicit aspects of cognition. Metaphors, therefore, have been increasingly used in educational science as an innovative tool to examine a broad range of constructs. However, there are both empirical findings and theoretical considerations suggesting that metaphors are also by experiences that are salient just in the moment of production of the metaphor. Therefore, we examined in a sample of N = 95 students and professionals whether the metaphors of learning and the underlying conceptualization of learning that influence whether students adopt a deep or a surface approach in learning remained stable across 3 weeks. Results showed that although the sources on which the metaphors drew were subject to change, the underlying conceptualization of learning remained stable. However, there were no differences in the stability of metaphors in both groups. It be can concluded, therefore, that metaphors can be used as an indicator for underlying constructs such as the understanding of learning.

The Comparison of Students’ Self-Assessment, Gender, and Programming-Oriented Spreadsheet Skills

Previous research proved that teaching spreadsheeting from a programming perspective is much more effective than the widely accepted tool-centered surface approach methods. Spreadsheeting as an introductory programming approach allows students to build up schemata leading to contextualized, concept-based problem-solving. Furthermore, it provides tools for real-world problem-solving in other disciplines, and supports knowledge-transfer to database management and “serious” programming. The present study provides the details of a nationwide testing of Grades 7–10 students on how they evaluate their spreadsheet knowledge, which classroom activities form their self-assessment values, and the results of three spreadsheet tasks evaluated by the SOLO categories of understanding. The comparison reveals that most students’ spreadsheet knowledge is pre-structural. On the other hand, they assess themselves much higher, which is primarily based on the number of activities carried out in classes. Traces of conscious problem-solving and knowledge-transfer within the scope of spreadsheeting are hardly detectable, while knowledge brought from mathematics is recognizable. In general, we found proof that the pieces of knowledge remain unconnected, not allowing students to reach the relational level of understanding and build up long-lasting knowledge.

Associations between occupational therapy students’ academic performance and their study approaches and perceptions of the learning environment

Background Relationships between students’ academic performance and their employed study approaches have been studied extensively. However, research using study approaches and learning environment factors as concurrent predictors of academic performance is sparse. There is a need to disentangle the potentially interrelated influences of individual and contextual factors on students’ academic performance. Objective This study aimed to increase the understanding of the associations between occupational therapy students’ academic performance, and their approaches to studying, perceptions of the learning environment, and sociodemographic characteristics. Method A cross-sectional study was designed, and 174 first-year students completed the Approaches and Study Skills Inventory for Students and the Course Experience Questionnaire, in addition to background information. Data on grades were collected from the data registries of each education institution, and associations were analyzed by multiple linear regression. Results None of the learning environment scales were associated with grades. Adjusting for all variables, better exam results were associated with being female (β = 0.22, p < 0.01) and having higher scores on strategic approach (β = 0.31, p < 0.001) and lower scores on surface approach (β = -0.20, p < 0.01). Conclusion The study suggests that students with a desire for obtaining good grades ought to use strategic study behaviors and avoid using surface approach behaviors. While it is important to ensure good quality of the learning environment for a variety of reasons, the learning environment did not contribute significantly to explain the students’ academic performance.