Factors Influencing the Choice of Music Studies in Malaysian Public Universities

Introducing music in the early childhood can help influence students to have a positive attitude in pursuing music in a higher level of education. Examining the developmental aspects of the decision to continue music studies among undergraduate music students is necessary in order to determine which factors had the most influences. This study investigates factors influencing choice of music studies among undergraduate music students in Malaysian public universities namely institutional factors, academic factors, financial factors, and personal/social factors. A survey method was adopted, and 489 respondents were chosen using proportionate stratified random sampling to answer the questionnaire. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). The finding showed that academic factors was ranked as the most influential factor on choice of music studies among music students. The results on inferential statistical analysis using independent-samples t-test and the One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) test showed that there were significant differences on factors influencing choice of music studies between ethnicities, universities attended, and instruments played. It is hoped that the findings will be beneficial to students, educators, and the university music programmes. Educators will also have access to the most up-to-date information in order to come up with strategies in encouraging students to study music.

Analyzing the Influence of The Secondary to University Core Courses Alignment

The student success in the first year, is influenced, among the other things, even by academic factors: college readiness, core curriculum in high school, cognitive, etc. The alignment analysis of the some core courses between university and high school, is the main objective of this article. The qualitative method and student questionnaires, are used to carry out this analysis. The results obtained indicate the influence of curriculum alignment on classroom teaching and student success for three core courses: Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry, on the first year. Using the regress analyze, some linear relationships are found, either for two classroom teaching and student success indicators as well. Based on these results, we emphasize the necessity for a greater student support during the transition from high school to university, in order to foster student success. This study was conducted in engineering study field, but it can be used in the other fields as well.

Preparing Future Human Resources in Language Learning: EFL Student Teachers’ Voices’ Academic Stressors

Preparing good and skillful human resources in language learning is avoidable, particularly for the country like Indonesia which is still a developing one. The intent of this qualitative study in the case study tradition was used to explore what the academic factors that made EFL student teachers as future human resources feel stressed in English language learning at one public university in Jambi, Sumatra, Indonesia. We adopted a qualitative case study approach. Using a convenience case strategy, we interviewed EFL student teachers. The primary data for our study were collected through the face-to-face interviews. The interviews were conducted in English, audio-taped, and directly transcribed verbatim. The interviews data were analyzed through reading line by line all the transcriptions to find major themes. We found eight salient and interweaved themes led EFL student teachers as future human resources feel stressed in English language learning including (1) internal and external factors of choosing English as a major,(2) pleasure and displeasure feeling in studying English in university, (3) positive and negative responses to the lecturers in studying English, (4) positive and negative influences of friends in English major, (5) feeling about academic activities (credits, assignments, subjects and examinations) (6) feeling about discussion or presentations, (7) the most pressure or stress issue during the learning processes, and (8) dealing with the stressors. The findings of this study shed light on our understanding of the academic factors that made EFL student teachers as future human resources feel stressed in English language learning.

Non-academic factors influencing the development of empathy in undergraduate nursing students: a cross-sectional study

Background Empathy is described as a core competence of nursing. There is abundant research evidence supporting that empathy varies according to personal characteristics and targeted training. The aim of this study was to characterize non-academic factors (personal and environmental) influencing the development of empathy in undergraduate nursing studies who are not receiving a targeted training in empathetic abilities in their nursing schools. Methods A cross-sectional study was performed in the three nursing schools located in Cusco city, Peru (two private and one public). The Jefferson Scales of Empathy, Attitudes toward Physician-Nurse Collaboration, and Lifelong Learning, the Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults, and the Scale of Life Satisfaction, were applied as the main measures. Also, information regarding gender, nursing school, and age, were collected. After psychometric properties were assessed, all measures were used in the development of a multivariate regression model to characterize factors of influence in empathy. Results In a sample composed by 700 undergraduate nursing students (72 males and 628 females), a multivariate linear regression model was created. This model explained the 53% of variance of empathy and fitted all conditions necessary for inference estimations. Teamwork abilities, loneliness, age, sex, subjective well-being, and nursing school, appeared as factors influencing the development of empathy in patients’ care. Conclusions Findings have indicated that, in absence of a targeted training, individual characteristics and characteristics associated with social and family environments play an important role of influence in the development of empathy in nursing students. These findings are also in consonance with others previously reported in different cultural settings including high-, middle- and low-income countries.

Trends in Integrated Islamic Schools in Rural Areas: Background and Parent's Orientation in Choosing SDIT as an Alternative to Elementary Schools in Boyolali

<p align="center"><strong>Abstract</strong></p><p>This study aimed to explain the trend shifting of elementary schools in the Boyolali District. Some of the questions that would be answered through this research were: 1) Why did SDIT become a trend in rural areas? 2) What were the motives and orientations of parents in choosing SDIT as an alternative primary school for their children? The study of this theme was conducted using a qualitative research approach. Data were collected through observation techniques, in-depth interviews, and document analysis. The data obtained were then processed and analyzed in six stages: transcribing the interview data, labeling all the data obtained, categorizing the data into cognate themes, narrating the data by comparing and contrasting, interpreting the data, and finally drawing conclusions. The results of this study found two main conclusions: 1) The development of SDIT trends in Boyolali was directly proportional to the increasing of the religious awareness of the community, which was driven by the massive development of socio-religious foundations representing various theological concepts, where the foundations felt that they needed to establish Islamic schools as media to regenerate and maintain the continuity of their respective theological concepts. 2) Beside that, not only the theological and academic factors (quality of education), but also the economic and the children's independence factors were the motives and orientations of parents in determining the choice of primary school for their children.</p>

A Study on Gender Differences in Workplace Communication across Organizations

Communication is an important aspect of human existence. It has a huge impact on the functioning of any organization. Organizations progress if there is close and greater coordination among both genders. The present study was conducted at Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Odisha. Socio-academic data on 120 employees of three different types of organizations, viz. Government, NGO and Corporate, taken at random were included in the present study. This is an empirical study on gender differences and their effect on workplace communication in various organizations. The objectives of this study are to find out the gender differences in communication in different workplaces and analyze the effects of socio-academic factors like age, qualification and experience on gender-related communication. The study findings depict qualification and gender was found to be dependent across the organizations with ?2 estimate of 8.542. More employees were found to be engaged under moderate qualifications from both genders. The age and experience of employees were revealed to be independent of the gender of employees in the present study. The distribution of males recorded significant dependency of age and organization with ?2 value of 20.081 revealing a higher frequency of higher age group employees in government and non-government institutions in comparison to corporate. Both the new entrants and highly experienced females had lower communication abilities than their male counterparts. However, in the middle part of employment, the females showed an edge over males with regard to this variable. Females in the age group of 31 to 40 years recorded significantly better organizational communication than their male counterparts.

AN INVESTIGATION ON ROLE OF STRESS ON ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF STUDENTS

The purpose of the study is to investigate the role of stress upon academic performance of students. Stress is faced by each individual in academic, professional as well as daily routine life. The current study has identified different sources of stress which might be controlled to enhance academic performance of students. For this purpose cross-sectional design survey approach was conducted from two different universities from the different faculties. The development of scientific knowledge in current study is based on the positivism philosophy. The non probability convenience sampling technique was used. Population of the study was students from public and private universities. 210 students have participated in the study. Cronbach alpha, correlation and regression were used for analysis of data. SPSS 25 was used. Findings of study revealed that scale adopted from past studies was found reliable and there is significant positive relationship between factors of stress and academic performance of students. It was also found that academic factors were most dominant factors which played significant role in affecting students’ performance. This study is original contribution and has extended the body of knowledge of stress and student academic performance.

Health, Neighborhoods, and School Readiness from the Parent Perspective: A Qualitative Study of Contextual and Socio-Emotional Factors

The objective of this qualitative study was to address existing gaps in the literature by gathering parent perspectives on both health and school readiness in regard to neighborhood context, specifically parents’ perceived level of neighborhood safety and support, on physical health and the behavioral and cognitive domains of school readiness. Focus groups were conducted with a total of 28 parents or caregivers whose children attended Early Head Start/Head Start Centers or who received Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) services in New Orleans, Louisiana during fall 2015. Parents discussed concepts of school readiness, neighborhood, the intersection between the two, and parental stress; however, few expressed a clear connection between their concerns about safety, their own stress, and their child’s readiness for school. Disparities in both health and school readiness exist between both racial and socioeconomic groups in the United States, and this study offers a unique and enhanced understanding of the impact of non-academic factors on the well-being and development of young children.

The Role of Non-Academic Service Quality in an Academic-Oriented Context: Structural Equation Modeling amongst Parents of Secondary Education Students

In the education sector, the academic factor is considered the primary focus when assessing the service quality of schools. However, the traditional approach to service quality proposes that the supplemental indicators of quality are just as important in meeting customer expectations. As parents of secondary school students are not directly involved in the academic service of the school, non-academic factors (e.g., administrative quality [ADQ] and physical environment quality [PEQ]) can be considered alternative service quality indicators, subsequently affecting their satisfaction and loyalty. Using data obtained from a survey questionnaire with 230 parents of secondary education students in Vietnam, this study examined non-academic service factors as antecedents of parent satisfaction and loyalty. Results of the exploratory factor analysis (EFA) yielded two factors under the non-academic service dimension: PEQ and ADQ. Results of the structural equation modeling (SEM) showed that while PEQ affects loyalty both directly and indirectly, ADQ affects loyalty only indirectly through satisfaction. Implications for stakeholders, including school principals and policymakers, have been drawn from the findings of this study.

Student Campus Placement Prediction Analysis using ChiSquared Test on Machine Learning Algorithms

Every higher education institute aims to provide the best career opportunities for their students as part of the outcome based education system. In India, campus placements for students while pursuing their 4th year of engineering is a predominant factor since the reputation of any institute largely depends on reputed recruiting companies visiting campus and the number of placement offers being given to eligible students. Hence, campuses offer personality development training to their students just before the commencement of the placement season while students try to maintain a minimum CGPA which would ensure their eligibility to apply for companies of their choice. The purpose of this paper is to predict a student’s chances of obtaining a pre-placement offer while still in campus on the basis of various academic and non-academic factors. The dataset used for the prediction analysis consists of student related aspects such as their university seat numbers, academic grades and personality training parameters. The training models have been designed using the WEKA tool and in addition to supervised machine learning classification algorithms, Chi-squared tests has been implemented on the dataset to only obtain those attributes that might be the highest requirement for campus placements of students.