by Nguyen Duc Hanh
Original Research
Currently, quality assurance and quality accreditation are the very important tasks and the top concern for higher education institutions, because universities can achieve the goal to meet the needs of learners, the community and society on the educational and training quality to enhance the position of the university through quality assurance activities. Standards of quality assurance & quality accreditation are the best measurement for the level of quality education services. Quality assurance can help detect limited issues to adjust and overcome before implementing. The application of quality assurance and quality accreditation is the secret behind the success of most higher education institutions in the world and therefore the quality assurance and quality accreditation are concerned by universities in Vietnam in general and local universities in particular, especially universities in the most disadvantaged regions of Vietnam. This study discusses some of the theoretical issues of quality assurance and quality accreditation, the relationship between quality assurance and quality accreditation with the objectives, quality level and application of higher education in Vietnam, and at the same time provides some recommendations to help increase the application of quality assurance and quality accreditation in higher education institutions in Vietnam.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 524-529. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-13
Pub. Date: July 29, 2019
3496 Views1541 Downloads1 Likes
by Nwani-Grace Ugwu and Solomon Okechukwu Mkpuma
Original Research
The study was carried out to find out the extent that teachers of English in secondary schools in Ebonyi State validate their test items. To guide the study, three research questions were formulated and one null hypothesis was postulated and tested at 0.00 level of significance. The design of the study was the descriptive survey. The population consisted of all the teachers of English in all the government-owned secondary schools in the three education zones of Ebonyi State. Purposive sampling technique was used to select 367 teachers which made up 50% of the entire population as sample. A 22-item researcher-developed questionnaire entitled Test Item Validation Questionnaire (TIVQ) was constructed, validated, trial tested and used to elicit data from the respondents. Data obtained were presented and analyzed using mean and standard deviation to answer the research questions and t-test statistical tool was used to test the hypothesis. The study revealed, amongst other things, that majority of the teachers of English in public secondary schools in Ebonyi State do not validate their test items before administration. The researchers recommended that test item review committees be set up; training programs should be provided for teachers of English and that there should be strenuous supervision of academic activities in secondary schools in Ebonyi State by both internal and external authorities.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 518-523. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-12
Pub. Date: July 26, 2019
4072 Views1566 Downloads1 Likes
by Sumailah A. Sabbagh
Original Research
The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate the supportive classroom environment habits used by mathematics teachers for essential stage in Jordan. The research questions for the present study are: 1) What are the supportive classroom environment habits used by mathematics teachers for Essential Stage in Jordan? 2) Is there a significant difference at level (0.05≥α) in the means of supportive classroom environment habits (SCEH) teacher used with respect to teacher education? 3) Is there a significant difference at level (0.05≥α) in the means of supportive classroom environment (SCEH) teacher used with respect to teacher experience? To answer the questions of the study, (7) schools were selected from Amman, and (10) female teachers participated in the study, who were observed in the natural setting during math classes. The researcher built a study instrument using theoretical background related to mathematical classroom environment (SCEH). The psychometric properties for (SCEH) were verified. Each teacher has been observed (5) times, and each observation was coded, analyzed and reported using (SCEH). The process of collecting data continued about 2 months during the 1st semester of the academic year (2018-2019). The results revealed that the percentage of positive habits of the classroom environment did not exceed 50%, but less in all domains of the study except for the domain “Safe environment to participate and the domain “support student motivation and self- esteem’ were the last with the percentage 39.6. This research recommends that school mathematics teachers adopt more supportive classroom environment habits to improve student’s success; such as supporting problem solving, high expectation for all the students and support students’ motivation and self-esteem.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 509-517. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-11
Pub. Date: July 22, 2019
3989 Views1594 Downloads
by Oluyinka Dania and Ayodeji Matthew Adebayo
Review Article
Background: The School Health Program (SHP) contributes to overall goals and purposes of health and education of the school-age children who constitute about 23% of Nigerian population. Its effective implementation is enhanced by school health policy which provides the standards/guidelines for its practices and procedures. The National School Health Policy (NSHPo) in Nigeria was adopted in 2006 to achieve these purposes. Several studies had reviewed different components of the program in different aspectsparts of the country with varying findings but no countrywide report exists. It is essential to ascertain the present state of the SHP implementation in Nigeria by pooling available relevant studies for evidence-based decision making. The purpose of this review paper is to synthesize available information on implementation of the program across Nigeria for the purpose of policy review and program improvement. Methods: A comprehensive review of relevant literature was done to identify the implementation of the SHP across the country. Relevant implementation drivers were also reviewed. Results: The implementation of SHP across the country was sub-optimal. Conclusion: The SHP in Nigeria has largely remained at policy level with minimal implementation. Recommendation: There is a need to re-establish or strengthen the program in the country. There is also a need to review and redefine stakeholders’ participation for effective coordination. This may call for policy review and/or change.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 499-508. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-10
Pub. Date: July 14, 2019
6875 Views2132 Downloads1 Likes
by Nazlee Siddiqui, Khasro Miah and Afreen Ahmad
Original Research
The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between synchronous peer to peer interaction (PPSI) and student engagement in postgraduate management units in Bangladesh. Understanding of this association focused on outcomes of engagement with learning materials and workplace relevant learning. This study utilized an interventional and convergent parallel mixed methods research design. A PPSI intervention, involving teamwork of five students from working and non-working status, was applied on 80 students in two different management units. The intervention was followed by a survey on student’s perception of the association between PPSI and student engagement, which received 80% response rate. Content analysis was applied to the qualitative survey data while quantitative data were analyzed with SPSS software. Participant profile were 60% female, 95% below the age of 30 and 71% having work experience. The study found a significant positive association (r =.53) between PPSI and student engagement in postgraduate management study in Bangladesh. Peer to peer interaction helped students to collect different viewpoints, engage with learning material and practice workplace relevant skills. However, success of PPSI is influenced by factors such as task design, student’s attitude toward teamwork and ease of use of technology. This study is first of its kind to explore the in-depth relationship between PPSI and student engagement in an education setting in a developing country. It could open avenues for further research on designing and implementation of PPSI for student centered and work relevant learning, across developed and developing countries.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 491-498. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-9
Pub. Date: July 10, 2019
3057 Views1069 Downloads
by Zhang Mengmeng, Yang Xiantong and Wang Xinghua
Case Study
Learning of science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics (STEAM) have been recognized as key levers in the progress toward high quality preschool education for all kids. STEAM activities can be an effective platform for providing rich learning experiences and cultivating problem-solving ability that are accessible to kids. Firstly, the characteristics of the STEAM curriculum design in kindergarten are analyzed. Then, this paper constructs the STEAM curriculum design model and explains how the procedure of model is implemented in preschool education. Finally, the case for providing rich learning experience and kids' problem-solving ability in the context of STEAM education is designed. The construction of the STEAM curriculum model in kindergarten is to promote the smooth development of STEAM education in China.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 485-490. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-8
Pub. Date: July 10, 2019
3751 Views1556 Downloads3 Likes
by Gourish Chandra Mondal and Palash Majumder
Original Research
Ecofeminism, like the social movements it has emerged from, is both political activism and intellectual critique. Bringing together feminism and environmentalism, ecofeminism argues that the domination of women and the degradation of the environment are consequences of patriarchy and capitalism. Any strategy to address one must take into account its impact on the other so that women's equality should not be achieved at the expense of worsening the environment, and neither should environmental improvements be gained at the expense of women. Indeed, ecofeminism proposes that only by reversing current values, thereby privileging care and cooperation over more aggressive and dominating behaviors, can both society and environment benefit. This article considers the heritage of ecofeminism as a multiply braided political praxis and an intellectual position. It examines key critiques of earlier perspectives, before exploring its more recent developments. It considers its relationship with, and potential to enhance other feminist and environmental approaches, particularly those concerned with feminist political ecology and environmental justice.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 482-484. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-7
Pub. Date: July 08, 2019
3101 Views1344 Downloads
by Sophie Briquet-Duhazé
Original Research
Our study investigated how primary school teachers assimilate the results of their internet research and which practical tools they use in the classroom. We wanted to determine what first year primary teachers access in terms of websites and online resources when preparing their French language (as a first language) classes and sequences. We collated 95 questionnaire responses from students preparing for their primary school teaching examination and from trainees who had already passed this examination and are now teaching classes unsupervised throughout the academic year. The results showed both similarities and differences between the cohorts. This information is helping us to build the DIDACFRAN website, the goal of which is to reduce primary school pupil learning difficulties by proposing research results and tools for the class.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 471-481. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-6
Pub. Date: July 02, 2019
5435 Views1634 Downloads
by Blaine E. Hatt, Nancy Maynes and Anna Liisa Mottonen
Original Research
Newly certified teachers in the province of Ontario, Canada encounter a series of hurdles imposed by Regulation 274 before they qualify for full-time employment in the profession. Provincial Faculties of Education and US border colleges, which were certifying Ontario teachers, graduated an unprecedented number of newly certified teachers. Between the years 2006 - 2015, the annual surplus of newly certified teachers in the province reached 7,800. Faced with the results of heavy over-certification and underemployment of teachers brought on in large part by lax government control and seemingly unrestricted access to teacher education programmes, the provincial government initiated an ill-conceived reaction and introduced legislation, known as Regulation 274, to staunch the flow of newly certified teachers. In addition to Regulation 274, the government launched a plan-of-action that resulted in changing the one-year teacher education program to a two-year program while cutting the number of seats available within Faculties of Education to one-half post 2015 numbers. Regulation 274, characterized at the time by the Premier, as an “over-correction”, required newly certified teachers, beginning in 2015, to be subject to policies and standards that restricted their immediate entry into the rank and file of classroom teachers. While the trend in supply and demand has favoured employment opportunities for Ontario teachers since 2016, Regulation 274 is still in effect. Given the restrictions of 274 and the added expense of another year of specialized education, this study sought to identify the job-seeking behaviours and plans, in the current employment climate of the province of the first cohort of graduates from the two-year program in a northern Ontario university, exiting in 2017. Employment prospects and other social factors were found to influence employment decisions of these new teachers.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 463-470. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-5
Pub. Date: July 02, 2019
3288 Views1532 Downloads
by Jerome Cranston
Original Research
This article describes how a deliberate commitment to use a research-based framework of teaching effectiveness can be combined with existing hiring practices to yield better outcomes from the teacher screening and selection process. The author proposes that when school leaders apply a well-developed and agreed-upon framework of teaching effectiveness – one that reflects the expectations of what it means to be effective in a local school context - that the result will be a better hiring process than many of those currently employed. In the end, such a process means that those who demonstrate the greatest promise of being effective in the classroom will be more likely given the opportunity to teach.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 455-462. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-4
Pub. Date: July 02, 2019
4177 Views1710 Downloads
by Julia Rheaume, Jim Brandon, J. Kent Donlevy and Dianne Gereluk
Original Research
This instrumental case study examined the perspectives of 43 middle school administrators on effective middle level education to inform the evolution of a teacher education program in central Alberta, Canada. Analysis of data gathered through an online survey and focus group interviews yielded three merged findings on salient elements of the middle school concept and the key competencies required of effective beginning middle level teachers, including: (a) teaming and developmentally responsive practices are deemed essential middle school concepts; (b) effective beginning middle school teachers should demonstrate professional knowledge and skills, including the ability to create learner-centred, inclusive environments; and (c) effective beginning middle school teachers should possess certain dispositions, especially those that promote positive, productive relationships. These findings and the implications arising from them are contributing to the evolution of the teacher education program at Red Deer College and may be of benefit to teacher educators seeking to develop more responsive programming in other settings.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 445-454. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-3
Pub. Date: July 02, 2019
3510 Views1435 Downloads
by Jane Iloanya
Original Research
Teaching and learning in contemporary education systems are experiencing a paradigm shift. There is a move from the traditional teacher-centred teaching, to student-centred education. Outcome-based education is a process of curriculum design that starts with a clear picture of what is important for students to be able to do, then organizing curriculum, instruction, and assessment to make sure that learning ultimately takes place. At the centre of outcome-based education is the learner. How best can the learner learn? What is the role of the teacher in making sure that learning takes place? How do we prepare teachers for the successful implementation of outcome-based education? How do we take care of every learner’s needs? These are pertinent questions that this paper addresses. The study was carried out in Botswana using a qualitative research approach. Semi-structured interview questions were adopted to collect data from twelve teachers purposively selected from three technical colleges in Botswana. Relevant documentary analysis was used to augment the data that was collected through semi-structured interviews. Findings of the study revealed that different stakeholders understand the role of teachers in the implementation of outcome-based education differently and that teachers should be adequately prepared if outcomes-based education is to be implemented successfully in Botswana. The study concludes that the teacher recruitment exercise in the 21stcentury should be geared towards hiring teachers who are equipped with the necessary skills needed for teaching 21st century learners.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 439-444. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-2
Pub. Date: July 02, 2019
3236 Views1475 Downloads2 Likes
by David Jack and Judith Nyman
Original Research
Satisfying the demand for qualified French as a Second Language (FSL) teachers has been a persistent challenge in Ontario schools for many years. This article reports on research conducted with all publicly funded English-language school boards and hundreds of FSL teachers to better understand the recruitment, hiring and retention of such teachers. This research is part of a three-year project that involves multiple stakeholders in the FSL teacher supply pipeline collaborating to implement workable solutions to this long-standing issue.
American Journal of Educational Research. 2019, 7(7), 428-438. DOI: 10.12691/education-7-7-1
Pub. Date: July 02, 2019
4170 Views1348 Downloads