Moemoea: A digital tool to train secondary school student resilience and motivation for success

<p>Secondary school students in New Zealand have been underachieving in recent years, with one of the largest performance gaps between high and low performing students in the OECD. With an overrepresentation of Māori, Pasifika and low socioeconomic students in this low performing group, this research explores an innovative solution and presents a business case of Moemoea- a digital tool to train resilience and self-motivation to support student success. Disruption of jobs with automation in future workplaces from rapid technological advancement requires workers to be proficient in digital literacy, resilience, and self-motivation. The literature suggests that these skills lead to improved confidence and academic outcomes and were the same capabilities required beyond school, in the new digitally focused work environment. This research interviewed 14 Māori, Pasifika and low socioeconomic secondary school students, collecting first-hand experiences of resilience, motivation, and resources that support successful academic outcomes at school. The research findings identified an untapped opportunity between high digital skills and access to technology and a lack of student motivation and resilience levels to harness this advantage to improve student learning. Government ministries are identified as a likely customer because they are the entity currently addressing the performance gap between high and low achievers in New Zealand secondary schools. The findings and business case demonstrate the feasibility of investment in the research and development of both Moemoea and other possible solutions to poor performing students.</p>

Moemoea: A digital tool to train secondary school student resilience and motivation for success

<p>Secondary school students in New Zealand have been underachieving in recent years, with one of the largest performance gaps between high and low performing students in the OECD. With an overrepresentation of Māori, Pasifika and low socioeconomic students in this low performing group, this research explores an innovative solution and presents a business case of Moemoea- a digital tool to train resilience and self-motivation to support student success. Disruption of jobs with automation in future workplaces from rapid technological advancement requires workers to be proficient in digital literacy, resilience, and self-motivation. The literature suggests that these skills lead to improved confidence and academic outcomes and were the same capabilities required beyond school, in the new digitally focused work environment. This research interviewed 14 Māori, Pasifika and low socioeconomic secondary school students, collecting first-hand experiences of resilience, motivation, and resources that support successful academic outcomes at school. The research findings identified an untapped opportunity between high digital skills and access to technology and a lack of student motivation and resilience levels to harness this advantage to improve student learning. Government ministries are identified as a likely customer because they are the entity currently addressing the performance gap between high and low achievers in New Zealand secondary schools. The findings and business case demonstrate the feasibility of investment in the research and development of both Moemoea and other possible solutions to poor performing students.</p>

Youth Deliberate Self-Harm: Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Vulnerability Factors, and Constructions and Attitudes Within the Social Environment.

<p>Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is defined in this thesis as the intentional, culturally unacceptable, self-performed, immediate and direct destruction of bodily tissue that is of low-lethality and absent of overdose, self-poisoning and suicidal intent. DSH is a serious mental health problem among young people internationally (Hawton et al., 2006; De Leo & Heller, 2004) and is associated with multiple maladaptive psychological and social outcomes (D'Onofrio, 2007; Hawton et al., 2006). This thesis utilised secondary school student (N=2068), teacher (N=109), guidance counsellor (N=8), and university student (N=2063) populations to assess factors relating to interpersonal and intrapersonal vulnerability to DSH, and how DSH is received and understood within young peoples' environment. Study 1 presents psychometric analyses, descriptive statistics and basic inferential statistics of surveys developed for secondary school student and university student populations. These surveys measured history of DSH and multiple correlates of DSH behaviour. Assessing the psychometric qualities of these surveys informed their later use in developing regression models of DSH in Study 2. Study 2 assessed predictors and functions of DSH behaviour using a variety of samples and methodologies. Study 2.1 presents cross-lag and structural equation models of DSH, where the most consistent direct predictor of DSH was low self-esteem, which was proximally impacted by internalising symptoms, and more distally by alexithymia and low mindfulness. Study 2.2a investigated functions of DSH, and how this related to psychological wellbeing. Engaging in DSH for emotional relief or control was associated with the poorest wellbeing among females (i.e. higher rates of DSH, sexual abuse and bullying), while engaging in DSH for multiple reasons was associated with the poorest wellbeing among males (i.e. higher rates of DSH, bullying, abuse history, and low resilience). Study 2.2b qualitatively investigated reasons given for youth DSH by secondary school students, university students, and secondary school teachers using content analysis; DSH was most often attributed to emotional issues (e.g. externalising emotional pain). Study 2.3 assessed the relationships between DSH, emotional experience, self-defeating thoughts, coping strategies, and substance abuse over a six week period with a sample of university students. DSH was linked to having more self-defeating thoughts and general negative emotional experience, as well as having more negative, and less positive, emotions during salient events. Study 3 investigated social responses to DSH through interviews with eight secondary school guidance counsellors (Study 3.1), and a survey study on stereotypes and attitudes towards DSH (Study 3.2). A thematic analysis was conducted on the interview transcripts, indicating that DSH was commonly viewed as immature, attention seeking, abnormal and dangerous. The interviews suggested stigma in secondary schools towards DSH and fear and resistance around engaging the issue. The stereotypes and opinions survey was conducted with secondary school students, teachers and university students to assess common stereotypes of self-harmers, and willingness and confidence to help youth who self-harm. DSH was viewed negatively by all sample groups. Many participants felt unable and incompetent to help youth who self-harm. Across youth samples lifetime prevalence rates for DSH were consistently in the range of 39-49%. Overall the findings suggest that DSH is heterogeneous, with numerous possible factors contributing to vulnerability. Knowledge from this thesis can be applied to prevention of DSH (e.g. assisting youth with internalising symptoms and low self-esteem), intervention (e.g. teaching emotional coping strategies) and increasing social awareness and understanding to counter stereotypes and thereby ease disclosure.</p>

Youth Deliberate Self-Harm: Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Vulnerability Factors, and Constructions and Attitudes Within the Social Environment.

<p>Deliberate self-harm (DSH) is defined in this thesis as the intentional, culturally unacceptable, self-performed, immediate and direct destruction of bodily tissue that is of low-lethality and absent of overdose, self-poisoning and suicidal intent. DSH is a serious mental health problem among young people internationally (Hawton et al., 2006; De Leo & Heller, 2004) and is associated with multiple maladaptive psychological and social outcomes (D'Onofrio, 2007; Hawton et al., 2006). This thesis utilised secondary school student (N=2068), teacher (N=109), guidance counsellor (N=8), and university student (N=2063) populations to assess factors relating to interpersonal and intrapersonal vulnerability to DSH, and how DSH is received and understood within young peoples' environment. Study 1 presents psychometric analyses, descriptive statistics and basic inferential statistics of surveys developed for secondary school student and university student populations. These surveys measured history of DSH and multiple correlates of DSH behaviour. Assessing the psychometric qualities of these surveys informed their later use in developing regression models of DSH in Study 2. Study 2 assessed predictors and functions of DSH behaviour using a variety of samples and methodologies. Study 2.1 presents cross-lag and structural equation models of DSH, where the most consistent direct predictor of DSH was low self-esteem, which was proximally impacted by internalising symptoms, and more distally by alexithymia and low mindfulness. Study 2.2a investigated functions of DSH, and how this related to psychological wellbeing. Engaging in DSH for emotional relief or control was associated with the poorest wellbeing among females (i.e. higher rates of DSH, sexual abuse and bullying), while engaging in DSH for multiple reasons was associated with the poorest wellbeing among males (i.e. higher rates of DSH, bullying, abuse history, and low resilience). Study 2.2b qualitatively investigated reasons given for youth DSH by secondary school students, university students, and secondary school teachers using content analysis; DSH was most often attributed to emotional issues (e.g. externalising emotional pain). Study 2.3 assessed the relationships between DSH, emotional experience, self-defeating thoughts, coping strategies, and substance abuse over a six week period with a sample of university students. DSH was linked to having more self-defeating thoughts and general negative emotional experience, as well as having more negative, and less positive, emotions during salient events. Study 3 investigated social responses to DSH through interviews with eight secondary school guidance counsellors (Study 3.1), and a survey study on stereotypes and attitudes towards DSH (Study 3.2). A thematic analysis was conducted on the interview transcripts, indicating that DSH was commonly viewed as immature, attention seeking, abnormal and dangerous. The interviews suggested stigma in secondary schools towards DSH and fear and resistance around engaging the issue. The stereotypes and opinions survey was conducted with secondary school students, teachers and university students to assess common stereotypes of self-harmers, and willingness and confidence to help youth who self-harm. DSH was viewed negatively by all sample groups. Many participants felt unable and incompetent to help youth who self-harm. Across youth samples lifetime prevalence rates for DSH were consistently in the range of 39-49%. Overall the findings suggest that DSH is heterogeneous, with numerous possible factors contributing to vulnerability. Knowledge from this thesis can be applied to prevention of DSH (e.g. assisting youth with internalising symptoms and low self-esteem), intervention (e.g. teaching emotional coping strategies) and increasing social awareness and understanding to counter stereotypes and thereby ease disclosure.</p>

Secondary School Socioeconomic Status and Athletic Training Practice Characteristics

Context: Socioeconomic status (SES) is a significant predictor of morbidity and mortality across health outcomes. Limited information exists on how school SES impacts athletic training practice when a certified athletic trainer (AT) is present at secondary schools. Objective: To describe contact frequencies and service rates provided by ATs for injuries among secondary school student athletes and how these differ by school SES. Design: Cross-sectional study Setting: Athletic training room (ATR) visit days and AT services were collected from 77 secondary schools. Schools were separated into three school SES groups: affluent (n=31), average (n=29), and disadvantaged (n=17). Patients or Other Participants: Secondary school student-athletes participating in 12 boys' and 11 girls' sports who visited the ATR during the 2014–2015 through 2018–2019 academic years and received athletic or non-athletic injury care. Main Outcome Measures: Contact frequencies expressed as ATR visit days per injury, AT services per injury, and AT services per ATR visit day. Rates for service type utilized were expressed as the total count over reported athlete-exposures. Results: ATs documented 1,191 services. Affluent and average SES school communities provided greater contact frequencies for injury related care compared to disadvantaged school communities, particularly by AT services/injury (7.10±13.08 versus average: 9.30±11.60 and affluent: 9.40±12.20; p=0.020). Affluent school communities provided greater rates of services in five of the eleven service groups reported. No significant differences were observed among school SES groups in therapeutic exercises. Conclusions: Our findings reflect that AT practice characteristics may differ by school SES, but these differences do not appear to result in less medical care. Given the complexity and widespread effects of SES, future investigations should utilize a complex method to determine SES as well as aim to identify how SES may impact secondary school student athletes outside of AT practice characteristics.

Interlanguage in recount writing text on 8th grade secondary school student

This study attempts to analyze interlanguage production made by ten eight-grade students who were enrolled in one of the secondary schools in Jakarta. Interlanguage happens when a learner talk in the target language but their linguistic framework is still the source language (any prior language they knew beforehand). It is intended to explore kinds of interlanguage that occur in their recount writing and to explain the potentials of why the errors emerge in their recount writing. The data of the study requires one recount text writing produced by the participants of this present study. This study employed a qualitative research design and it was specifically presented using a descriptive case study. Furthermore, document analysis is employed as the procedure of collecting data when analyzing the writing. The result of the study showed that based on students' recount writing, the interlanguage is detected from the way they formed passive sentences, incorrect verb agreement, unparalleled sentences, and L1 to L2 translation. In that sense, it can be concluded that interlanguage happens due to L1 tendency which still dominated the students' minds when producing the target language. Thus, the students should be assisted to practice the correct rules of English in their writing, especially in recount text to prevent any possible fossilization.

Perceived Strategies for Curbing Examination Malpractice Among Secondary School Students in Nigeria

Aims: The study examined perceived strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school students in Nigeria. Study Design: The design adopted for this study is descriptive survey design. Place and Duration of Study: The target population are 1182 junior secondary students identified to be verbally victimized. The duration is between June 2021 and August 2021. Methodology: The target population for the study comprised 398,275 senior secondary school teachers in Nigeria (Fact sheet: Research Statistics and Planning Unit of the Ministry of Education, Awka, 2021). The sample for the study was drawn from the accessible population of 6342 secondary school teachers in six education zones of the state namely Aguata, Awka, Nnewi, Ogidi, Onitsha and Otuocha. The sample for the study was drawn using the proportionate stratified sampling technique. The subjects were stratified based on the educations and further the simple random sampling of lucky dip was used to select 634 (372 experienced and 262 less experienced) secondary school teachers for inclusion in the study. The instrument was structured toa 4-point response option of Strongly Agree (4), Agree (3), Disagree (2) and Strongly Disagree (1). The instrument was validated by two experts, and the reliability of the instrument was established using Cronbach alpha method with the reliability coefficients 0.78, 0.80 and 0.81. Arithmetic mean was used to answer the research questions, standard deviation was used to determine the homogeneity or heterogeneity of the respondents’ ratings. On the other hand, the t-test for independent sample was used to test the null hypotheses at 0.05 level of significance. Results: At 0.05 level of significance, the cluster mean of the respondents rating was 3.28 This mean score indicates that teachers agreed that preventive strategies curbs examination malpractices among secondary school students. The cluster mean obtained was 2.73. This indicates that the respondents agreed to corrective strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school students. The cluster mean obtained was 2.73. This indicates that the respondents agreed to corrective strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school students. Data reported relating to hypotheses 1 reveals that the significant value is greater than the alpha value 0.05, hence there is no significant difference in the mean rating of teachers on preventive strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school students in Nigeria based on years of experience (0-5 years and 6 years and above). Data reported relating to hypotheses 2 shows that there is a significant difference in the mean rating of teachers on corrective strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school student in Nigeria based on years of experience (0-5 years of experience and 6 years and above). Similarly, data presented relating to hypotheses 3 revealed that the significant value is greater than the alpha value 0.05, this means that there is no significant difference in the mean rating of teachers on motivational strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school student in Nigeria based on years of experience (0-5 years and 6 years and above). Conclusion: Based on the findings of this study, teachers agreed that preventive strategies, corrective strategies, and the respondents also agreed to motivational strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school students. There is no significant difference in the mean rating of teachers on preventive strategies, while there is a significant difference in the mean rating of teachers on corrective strategies for curbing examination malpractice. Finally, there is no significant difference in the mean rating of teachers on motivational strategies for curbing examination malpractice among secondary school student in Nigeria based on years of experience (0-5 years and 6 years and above).