Blended Learning An Experiment on Students’ Attitudes

The findings of a number of recent empirical studies on blended learning support this pedagogy claiming many advantages such as the facilitation of independent and collaborative learning experiences. This study compares the attitudes towards blended learning of undergraduate students in the UAE before and after a full course exposure to blended learning, comparing results to the attitudes of students in a traditional course. An experimental research design was chosen for this research study, specifically a two-group pretest-posttest research design. Results show that exposure to blended learning serves as a trigger for changing students’ attitudes towards blended learning in a positive manner and that lack of exposure does not change student’s attitudes.

Blended Learning

The findings of a number of recent empirical studies on blended learning support this pedagogy claiming many advantages such as the facilitation of independent and collaborative learning experiences. This study compares the attitudes towards blended learning of undergraduate students in the UAE before and after a full course exposure to blended learning, comparing results to the attitudes of students in a traditional course. An experimental research design was chosen for this research study, specifically a two-group pretest-posttest research design. Results show that exposure to blended learning serves as a trigger for changing students’ attitudes towards blended learning in a positive manner and that lack of exposure does not change student’s attitudes.

Pengaruh Perceived Usefulness dan Perceived Ease of Use Terhadap Attitude Toward Using E-Wallet pada Mahasiswa Selama Pandemi COVID-19

Penelitian ini dilatarbelakangi oleh dampak pandemi COVID-19 yang meningkatkan transaksi di berbagai e-commerce. Metode pembayaran di berbagai e-commerce platform sudah jarang menggunakan uang tunai karena digantikan dengan menggunakan e-wallet untuk mengurangi kontak fisik. Penelitian ini menggunakan Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) sebagai landasan teori. Penelitian ini menguji pengaruh perceived usefulness dan perceived ease of use terhadap attitude toward using e-wallet pada mahasiswa selama pandemi COVID-19. Jenis penelitian yang digunakan adalah penelitian kausal. Populasi yang akan digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah seluruh mahasiswa Universitas Ma Chung. Sedangkan untuk sampel yang digunakan adalah mahasiswa S1 Program Studi Manajemen dan mahasiswa S2 Program Magister Manajemen Inovasi Universitas Ma Chung dengan jumlah sebanyak 62 responden. Variabel dalam penelitian ini diukur dengan menggunakan skala Likert. Penelitian ini menggunakan uji validitas, uji reliabilitas, uji asumsi klasik, dan uji hipotesis. Berdasarkan hasil penelitian, perceived usefulness tidak berpengaruh terhadap attitude toward using mahasiswa dalam menggunakan e-wallet. Selain itu, perceived ease of use berpengaruh positif terhadap attitude toward using mahasiswa dalam menggunakan e-wallet. This research is motivated by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic which increased transactions in various e-commerce. Payment methods on various e-commerce platforms have rarely used cash because they use e-wallet to reduce physical contact. This study uses the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as the theoretical basis. This study examines the effect of perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use on students' attitudes towards using e-wallet during the COVID-19 pandemic. The type of research used is causal research. The population that used in this research was all students of Ma Chung University. Meanwhile, the samples used were students of the Bachelor of Management Studies Program and students of the Master's Degree Program in Innovation Management at Ma Chung University with a total of 62 respondents. The variables in this study were measured using a Likert scale. This research uses validity test, reliability test, classical assumption test, and hypothesis test. Based on the results of the study, perceived usefulness has no effect on student’s attitudes toward using e-wallet. In addition, the perception ease of use has a positive effect on student’s attitudes toward using e-wallet.

EFL Saudi Student's attitudes toward peer feedback activities in a writing class

PurposeThis study aims to examine Saudi female students' attitude toward peer feedback activity in writing classes with a list of questions for the students to follow during the activity, and to investigate the challenges that may prevent the use of such activity in Saudi EFL classes.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a mixed-methods to ensure the credibility of the data and obtain clear descriptions about the topic. The study instruments are (1) Writing Essays, (2) Writing Checklist, (3) Questionnaire and (4) Semi-structured interview. The data were analysis with SPSS and o 10 software.FindingsThe study results indicated that students had a positive attitude toward peer feedback with a checklist in EFL writing class. For instance, their second written essay (post) has improved and has fewer mistakes than the first one. Also, most of the participants stated that peer feedback has improved their writing quality and has enhanced their writing awareness of their weaknesses and mistakes. Moreover, the interview had highlighted the main challenges that could affect using peer feedback in writing class. Finally, the results indicate the efficiency of peer feedback with a checklist in similar teaching contexts.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focused on a small number of participants (30 students). Besides, the study dealt with students at university level only and the study focused on female students.Practical implicationsBased on the study finding, it is recommended that peer feedback should be integrated in all EFL writing classes at all levels. Based on the study finding, it is recommended that peer feedback should be incorporated in all EFL writing classes at all levels. Using checklist can help the students to become more independent learners and in time they will be able to correct their own mistakes.Originality/valueThis paper fulfills an identified need to identify how integrating peer feedback activity in writing class can improve the students' writing performance and help them to be independent learners.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Regarding Biomedical Waste Management as Per 2019 Rules among Nursing Students

Introduction- Biomedical waste is of global subject today. The biomedical waste (management and handling) rules came into existence in 1998 with the latest amendment being made in 2019. Methods- This descriptive cross-sectional study was carried among 163 nursing students to assess the knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding biomedical waste management as per 2019 rules using total enumeration method. Nursing students who had clinical exposure >6 months and willing to participate were included in the study. Nursing students who were in their 1st academic year were excluded. The questionnaire was divided into four components assessing knowledge, attitude, and practices regarding biomedical waste management. The obtained scores of participants were converted into percentages and categorized as excellent (> 70%) and poor (< 70%). Results- Mean age of participants was 21.54 + 2.49 years with the majority being female (81.6%) and studying in B.Sc. nursing (59.5%). Majority of participants had poor level of knowledge in various domains of biomedical waste management like awareness (78.5%), color coding (84.7%), biomedical waste disposal methods (92.6%), and universal precautions (97.5%) except for biomedical waste hazard symbol (15.3%). About 95.1% of participants had overall poor knowledge regarding biomedical waste management. Nearly 76.1% and 74.2% of participants showed positive attitudes and safe practice patterns respectively. Conclusion- Although nursing student’s attitudes and patterns of practice were excellent yet they had an unsatisfactory level of knowledge related to recent amendments in biomedical waste management rules, 2019. Regular teaching and periodic monitoring of practices regarding biomedical waste are highly recommended. Key words: knowledge, attitude, practices, biomedical waste, nursing students.

Using Brain-Breaks® as a Technology Tool to Increase Attitude towards Physical Activity among Students in Singapore

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of classroom-based Brain Breaks® Physical Activity Solution in Southeast Asia Singaporean primary school students and their attitude towards physical activity (PA) over a ten-week intervention. A total of 113 participants (8–11 years old) were randomly assigned to either an experimental (EG) or a control group (CG), with six classes to each group; the Brain Breaks® group (EG: six classes) and the Control group (CG: six classes). All EG members participated in a Brain Breaks® video intervention (three–five min) during academic classes and the CG continued their lessons as per normal. The student’s attitudes towards PA in both research conditions were evaluated using the self–reported Attitudes toward Physical Activity Scale (APAS), applied before and after intervention. The effects of the intervention on APAS scores were analysed using a mixed model analysis of variance with Time as within-subject and Group as between-subject factors. The analysis revealed evidence in support of the positive effect of classroom video interventions such as Brain Breaks® on student’s attitudes toward benefits, importance, learning, self-efficacy, fun, fitness, and trying to do their personal best in PA. The Brain Breaks® intervention provided a positive significant impact on students in Singapore. This study also revealed that interactive technology tools implemented into the school curriculum benefit students in terms of health and education.

Students' Characteristics Influence Readiness to Use Mobile Technology in Higher Education

The purpose of the current study was to explore students' characteristics that influence student's readiness to use mobile technology at An-Najah National University in Palestine. The researchers used a quantitative approach to achieve the purpose of the study. 214 students from different schools were participated in the study. A descriptive and one-way ANOVA to test the hypotheses were used in data analysis stage. The findings of the study revealed that the availability of technology is an important factor to use mobile technology in higher education, as well as the student's capability to use mobile technology for her study. Furthermore, student's attitudes towards mobile technology integration plays crucial role in student's readiness to use it. Higher education institutions could benefit from the findings of the study through designing capacity building programs for students to encourage them to use the mobile services inside and off campus. The limitations of the study were depending only on one tool for data collection from one university which could raise doubt about generalizing the findings to another context.