EMPLOYMENT READINESS AND STUDENT TEACHING PERFORMANCE OF COED SENIORS

The study was conducted at the Eastern Samar State University Main Campus during the second semester of the school year 2018 to 2019. It aimed to determine the employment readiness of the respondents in terms of their personal skills; instructional skills; and management skills. It also intended to describe their student teaching performance in terms of their average grade in Student Teaching in the Elem/Sec Schools subject; and to determine whether there is significant relationship between these variables.. Likert-type questionnaire was used to gather data as well as secondary data and employed both Descriptive and Inferential statistics for the analysis of the gathered data.. The findings of the study revealed that the respondents’ employment readiness were interpreted as “Much Skilled”. It also reflected that 95.6% or majority of the senior students were excellent in their teaching performance. Further results reflected that there was no significant relationship between employment readiness in terms of personality skills and instructional skills components of the respondents and their student teaching performance but a significant relationship between employment readiness of the respondents in terms of management skills and their student teaching performance. The results of the study implied that COED senior students are ready for employment and that they have developed the necessary skills for teaching and can excellently practice the techniques , skills, and positive attitudes in teaching in preparation for the real world of teaching profession as reflected in their student teaching performance. These findings also implies that student teachers’ skills in managing classroom activities, efficient planning and organizing can highly influence their outlook and preparedness towards the teaching profession .Hence, student teaching curriculum must be enhanced towards improving the management skills of students.

Assessment of Pharmacy Students’ Satisfaction towards Pharmacotherapy Lectures Delivered at the University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia

Background. Quality healthcare can be assured by fostering quality teaching-learning process. Students are well-equipped to judge the quality of the teaching-learning process. Consequently, students’ satisfaction should be considered for the improvement of quality teaching. Objective. The study aimed to explore how far the University of Gondar (UoG) provides quality pharmacy education based on the perspective of students using the validated Instructional Skills Questionnaire (ISQ). Methods. A cross-sectional survey was conducted on May 2018 GC on 105 pharmacy students at the University of Gondar, Northern Ethiopia. Data were collected using the suspected demographic information and the validated Instructional Skills Questionnaire (ISQ). Data were entered into IBM SPSS Statistics® version 25, and the results of the analysis were described using descriptive and inferential statistics. A letter of ethical approval was obtained from the ethical review board of the University of Gondar prior to data collection. Results. More than half (58.6%) of the participants were female, and 85.1% of the subjects aged between 21 and 25 years. The highest students’ satisfaction was in the ISQ dimension of explication (58.03%) followed by instruction (56.13%) and comprehension (52.78). Student’s T-test showed that extension (night-shift) students have a higher average satisfaction score (3.54 ± 0.34) compared to regular (day-shift) students (3.31 ± 0.41) (t (103) = 2.422, p = 0.017 ). Similarly, fourth-year students showed higher average satisfaction (3.54 ± 0.33) as compared to fifth-year students (3.28 ± 0.42) (t (103) = 3.41, p = 0.002 ). Conclusion. In the present study, a higher students’ satisfaction was obtained about explication (58.03%) among seven ISQ dimensions, while students’ satisfaction related to activation was minimal (49%). Students’ satisfaction related to the learning outcome was found to be relatively high (67.23%). The study also showed that there is a significant difference in students’ satisfaction within the different study programs and years of study. Hence, the instructors should work to improve students’ satisfaction, thereby increasing the number of qualified professionals in the market.

Perceived instructional requirements of hard skills trainers and soft skills trainers

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate whether hard-skills trainers and soft-skills trainers have different perspectives regarding the instructional skills and knowledge they require. Design/methodology/approach From the previous training literature the authors used 14 items covering relevant instructional knowledge and skills in a questionnaire which was applied online. Following an exploratory factor analysis a one-way multivariate analysis of variance [MANOVA] was conducted with the training content being the independent variable and the training requirements being the dependent variables. Findings Soft-skills trainers and hard-skills trainers differed in the variety of instructional methods and in their emphasis on interpersonal relations and interactions, group management and communication. Those trainers with train-the-trainer certificates did not differ significantly from those who did not have them. Trainers with a university degree in educational science/psychology were more likely to teach soft skills than hard skills but did not agree more with the relevance of instructional skills and knowledge than those without such a degree. Research limitations/implications The authors note that the results reflect the subjective perceptions of instructional requirements by trainers rather than objective requirements which would need to be tested by other means. Practical implications This study has a range of practical implications including the importance of skill and knowledge content and that of the trainers' perceptions in determining the extent to which what is learned is transferred into day-to-day work. Originality/value Previous literature has given little attention to the content of training and it has been unclear how this might affect learning and its transfer.

Transforming faculty development programs from face-to-face to blended/hybrid environments

Faculty development programs are critical to the success of the learning and teaching process in higher education. With the rapid development of blended courses there is a need to transform the face-to-face faculty development programs to blended programs. The transformation requires instructors to examine new teaching methods and techniques, and obtain new skill set to ensure the success of the learning process and students’ engagement in the new environment. Blended teaching is not just about transferring part of the training course online, but involves creating online activities that engage learners and complement the face-to-face activities. The role of the instructors changes from lecturer to facilitator of learning, coach and collaborator. Through participation in blended learning environments, instructors could experiment the new teaching strategies in a collaborative and safe environment. This paper presents the process, benefits and challenges of transforming the Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) for instructors from a three-day twenty four hours intensive format to four-week blended format. The Instructional Skills Workshop is peer-based training in which participants interact and present lessons in small groups to develop effective instructional skills through the use of constructive feedback strategies. Strategies associated with the re-design process which is based on the instructional design theories and principles will be presented. The paper presents data from formative and summative evaluations on communication, instructional skills and course design. The recommendations will address best practices that could be used to transform many faculty development programs from face-to-face to blended formats. Keywords: Hybrid, Online, Blended Teaching, Blended Learning, Faculty Development Programs, Instructional Skills.

Enhancing Language Assessment Skills among Faculty Members in Saudi EFL Context

In Saudi higher education, assessment has shifted to incorporate intended learning outcomes rather than merely textbook content. Subsequently, faculty members unwillingly participate in high-stakes competitive and harmonized assessment in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) courses during the preparatory year (PY). These challenges emphasize the importance of need-based training for faculty members. Accordingly, this context-specific study scrutinized faculty members’ needs as well as the impact of a training program on engaging the participants and on fostering language assessment skills (LASs) among them. In so doing, an action research design used pre- and post-questionnaires and included a training portfolio to collect data from 31 faculty members. The study first identified those needs as instructional skills, design skills, and educational measurement skills. In the context of professional development, the researchers designed a training program based on those reported needs. During training, the participants expressed their satisfaction with the language assessment. After the training, the participants greatly improved their LASs. The paired tests indicated that the faculty members increased their instructional skills, design skills, and skills of educational measurement. Further research is recommended for enhancing LASs among EFL students.

Determining characteristics of teachers, students and educational managers in the 4.0 educational context

The objective of the study is to identify the characteristics of school administrators, teachers, and students in the 4.0 educational context. The study used research method from a qualitative perspective, using a basic qualitative research model. The study participants consisted of 10 lecturers selected according to the snowball method. The study data were collected through a semi-structured interview. Content analysis techniques will be used to analyze the data. We hope that the Education 4.0 revolution can be realized in Vietnamese education system. As a result, open access, personal education, idea transformation, digital integration into education, open learning environments, lifelong learning, discovery education, and multidisciplinary education are the main components of educations 4.0. It has been found that the key qualities expected from the students of Education 4.0 are interpersonal skills, technology skills, study skills, and personal style. The main qualities expected from the teachers in educations 4.0 are technology skills, instructional skills, lifelong learning skills, and personal style. Finally, the main qualities expected from school administrators in Education 4.0 are instructional skills, technology skills, learning skills.

Does Coaching, Mentoring, and Supervision Matter for Pre-Service Teachers’ Planning Skills and Clarity of Instruction? A Meta-Analysis of Experimental and Quasi-Experimental Studies

During the practicum, pre-service teachers (PSTs) practice instructional skills such as lesson planning and clarity of instruction. Different approaches to assisting PSTs with coaching, mentoring, or supervision have been developed to improve PSTs’ instructional skills during the practicum. We conducted a meta-analysis based on quasi-experimental and experimental control group design studies. The results showed a small and significant overall effect on instructional skills (d = .41). Cooperating teachers’ or supervisors’ cognitive modeling (i.e., making cognitive processes explicit in demonstrating teaching-related practices) of lesson planning and teaching practices based on the cognitive apprenticeship framework was a significant moderator (d = .89).

The Significance of Parental Involvement in the Development in Infancy

The earliest years’ experiences of children can ensure their future success, and parenting is noted to be an influential factor (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Lamb et al., 2002). Many researchers theorized that parental involvement could encourage children to actively engage and improve their academic achievement in schools (Epstein, 2018). However, less attention was paid to the significance of parental involvement in infants’ development. This paper explores the role of parental involvement in infants’ development by reviewing and discussing abundant relevant studies. This study recommends that parental involvement should be considered as an affluent resource and a useful tool because it could provide rich information about infants’ individual needs and positively help infant teachers to improve their instructional skills.

Developing Effective Instructional Skills: The Master Educator Program at SUNY Buffalo State

With higher education facing budget cuts and declining enrollment, instructor effectiveness continues to be crucial, particularly in a state of increasing workloads with restricted resources. However, the dilemma of how to develop effective instructional skills while still maintaining a research agenda stems from a larger contradiction within professional disciplines; teaching is essential to the profession but holds a devalued position compared to research. It is not enough for educator to recognize that teaching and research are mutually reinforcing, universities must also recognize and support this reality. Understanding that we must learn to be good instructors, even as teaching is devalued, led our School of Professions to reflect on how we can develop strategies for becoming effective educators while still fulfilling our research (and service) agenda. With the Master Educator (MEP) program, our school is developing internal talent via instructional coaching between our School of Education (SOE) and our School of Professions (SOP). Research indicates that traditional forms of professional development are not effective. In turn, research on instructional coaching in K-12 setting has indicated a much higher implementation rate than traditional approaches to professional development; however, to our knowledge, there have been no attempt at implementing instructional coaching at the university level. The MEP is the first program to implement this practice at the university level.