The analysis of Iran universities’ 2003-2004 entrance examination to detect biased items

Item bias or differential item function (DIF) refers to the situation in which the probability of correct responses to an item for examinees with equal ability measured by test but belong to different groups are not equal. The existence of bias in items decreases the validity of the test. In this study the range of item difficulty among surveyed groups, has been used as a method for detecting the item bias in Persian literature subtest as part of the Entrance Examination to Universities of Iran in 2003-2004. For this purpose, report cards of 5000 (each group of 1000 examinees) participants in this examination from three provinces i.e. Yazd, Azerbaijan Sharghi and Kurdistan as sample groups were analyzed using the computerized program, BILOG-MG. Out of 25, two items, numbers 9 and 10 showed bias between gender groups and both were in favour of female group and were identified as biased items. Of this number, four items numbers 2, 7, 9, and 12 showed bias among linguistic groups

Self-awareness and social change in higher education

This research examines the development of self-awareness in students as they strive to adapt themselves to their current environment. The significant social factors that immerge include; culture, religion, language; economic status, family integration and work experience. Also considered are the relationships of students with teachers and classmates in a more restricted academic context, a third concern is the theme of autonomy and how students adjust themselves to their field of study. Overall, these findings reinforce the important role of self-awareness as it helps students develop in an educational setting

The Role of Education in Transforming the Potential Social Skills of College Students

<p>This study advances “transformation” as the role of education in changing individual lives, and offers it as central to a theoretical framework that enables one to understand college education and the development of students in institutions of higher learning. Using a qualitative analytical approach, with in-depth field interviews, this research proposes a model that clarifies the process by which students are transformed into fully potential individuals as a consequence of their college experience. Education transforms both societies and people in a particular direction by shaping and reshaping their patterns of thoughts, means of problem solving and ways of life. This will then contribute to further individual and social transformation. This study finds that the process of education enables significant changes in students by contributing to the social skills that transform their identity and ultimately their society.</p

The elements of social development: the social experiences of Malaysian college students at an institution of higher learning

This article examines the process of social development experienced by college students that brings new knowledge and a model for social development in sociology of higher education. Findings from 15 in-depth field interviews reveal that there are four main elements in the social development experienced by this group of students. The process begins with the self-awareness by students of their social condition both in past and present situations. The second element is their adaptability, where students come to understand how to interact within their circumstances and are able to find new ways to adapt to their environment. This is followed by the third element, responsibility, where students become responsible to the degree that they possess leadership abilities; thoughtfulness, independence, supportiveness and determination. The last element is potentiality, which is important in helping students progress to a higher stage of life by actualizing their full potential

Kaitan Antara Kepimpinan Kerja Berpasukan Pengetua Dengan Kepuasan Kerja Ketua Panitia di Daerah Kluang

Penyelidikan kuantitatif ini bertujuan melihat kaitan kepimpinan kerja berpasukan pengetua dengan kepuasan kerja ketua panitia di sekolah menengah di daerah Kluang, Johor. Bagi mengukur kepimpinan kerja berpasukan, soal selidik Teamwork KSA (Stevens, 1993) yang telah digunakan oleh Shamsuddin (2002) dan telah diubahsuaikan serta Teori Dua Faktor oleh Herzberg (1966) telah digunakan. Kajian rintis melibatkan 25 orang ketua panitia di SMK Canossian Convent, Kluang, Johor telah dijalankan bagi menentukan konsistensi dalaman instrumen. Seramai 300 responden dari 20 buah sekolah menengah di daerah Kluang yang terlibat dalam kajian ini. Dapatan kajian menunjukkan kepimpimpinan kerja berpasukan pengetua berada pada tahap sederhana tinggi. Daripada kelima-lima ciri kepimpinan kerja berpasukan, ciri komunikasi adalah tertinggi, nilai min 3.72. Diikuti oleh ciri penetapan matlamat dan pengurusan prestasi, nilai min 3.70, penyelesaian masalah secara kolaberatif (3.60), penyelesaian konflik (3.45) dan perancangan dan penyelarasan tugas (3.39). Dapatan kajian menunjukkan terdapat kaitan antara kepimpinan kerja berpasukan pengetua dengan kepuasan kerja ketua panitia. Katakunci: Kepimpinan, kerja berpasukan, pengetua, kepuasan kerja, ketua panitia Abstract: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between teamwork leadership among principals and the job satisfaction of the head of panels in Kluang, Johor. Two sets of questionnaires were modified from Teamwork KSA Test (Stevens, 1993) used by Shamsuddin (2002) and the Theory Two Factor founded by Herzberg (1966). A number of 25 head of panels from SMK Canossian Convent, Kluang, Johor were involved in the pilot study to determine the instrument internal consistency which showed a high level of reliability with the Alpha Cronbach value of 0.9728. 300 head of panels from 20 secondary schools in the district of Kluang were involved in this study. The research findings revealed that the teamwork leader possessed relatively average high level of Teamwork KSA. From five aspects teamwork leadership, the communication aspect showed a mean of 3.70, followed by aspect goal setting and performance management (3.70), aspect collaborative problem solving (3.60), conflict resolution (3.45) and planning and task coordination (3.39). Another finding showed that the teamwork leadership among principals were significantly related with job satisfaction of head of panels. Keywords: Leadership, teamwork, principals, job satisfaction, head of panel

Kesan latihan perguruan ke atas faktor pemilihan perguruan

Kajian ini bertujuan untuk meninjau faktor-faktor pemilihan profesion perguruan dan kaitan dengan tahun pengajian pelajar Fakulti Pendidikan, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia. Kajian ini melibatkan 221 orang sampel dari pelajar tahun 1 dan tahun 4 yang mengikuti kursus pendidikan di sini. Instrumen yang digunakan adalah set soal selidik untuk menjawab persoalan kajian yang dikaji oleh penyelidik. Data telah diproses menggunakan perisian Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) versi 11.5 untuk mendapatkan nilai min, peratusan dan kekerapan kajian. Hasil dapatan kajian menunjukkan nilai min keseluruhan bagi setiap faktor-faktor pemilihan profesion perguruan, iaitu prestij (4.00) minat (3.76), ganjaran (3.58), persekitaran kerja (3.59) dan faktor yang paling rendah ialah faktor pengaruh (3.09). Kajian mendapati hanya satu faktor sahaja yang meningkat, iaitu faktor pengaruh, faktor prestij tidak berubah dan faktor minat, persekitaran kerja dan pengaruh menunjukkan penurunan setelah mendapat kursus pendidikan di sini. Di akhir kajian ini, pengkaji telah mengemukakan beberapa cadangan kepada pihak-pihak terbabit agar dapat mengambil langkah-langkah menangani masalah yang timbul hasil daripada kajian ini. Diharapkan kajian ini dapat menjadi sumber rujukan kepada para pelajar dan pihak-pihak berkenaan