Correlational analysis of adult students\u27 self-directed learning readiness, affective learning outcomes, prior electronic learning experience, and age in hybrid and online course-delivery formats

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How learning improves workforce skills and qualifications : lessons fromTyne and Wear

This research study will examined three learning approaches which the UK government uses to improve the workforce skills and qualifications in North East region of England. These learning approaches are Life-Long learning (Basic Skills), E-learning (Leardirect) and Work-Based Learning. This study is focused on the education and training policy in England that serve the improvement of workforce skills and qualifications at national, regional and local level in England. It will examined the lessons which can be learned in Tyne and Wear as a model of best practices of policies in England, and their applicability in to adult learning in Egypt. The objectives of this research are: Firstly to examine the contribution of learning/training to achieving the objective of "building an adaptable and highly skilled workforce" in the Regional Economic Strategy (RES) 2003-2006 for the North East region in England. Secondly, to develop recommendations and ideas from the best approaches used in England to be implemented in Egypt to improve workforce skills and qualifications. This study is divided into two main parts. The first part is conducting a research which is examines how the government bodies and its partners work together to improve the workforce skills and qualifications in Tyne and Wear in the North East of England by using learning through different approaches,. The second part illustrates the situation in Egypt and suggests project ideas to be implemented based on learning lessons and case study from England. This research study involves a qualitative research methodology. Secondary source data was examined at the national, regional and local levels. Interviews were conducted with the stakeholders of organisations at the local level. The study examines the roles of a range of organisations and networks, and the mechanisms they use for understanding learning needs, the development of learning approaches, and the way these organisations reach local people, and affect their skills.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo

Mobile educational technologies currently used as a means to enhance teaching and learning in a privileged high school

Technology continues to progress due to the enormous growth of wireless technologies and mobile computing. Mobile devices such as handheld computers, smartphones and mobile phones are integrated into the daily lives of many people irrespective of their age, nationality or gender. These devices are embedded with computer functionalities and their ease of use and mobility functionality enable the people to use and move around with the mobile devices everywhere they go; the sophistication of these devices fascinates many learners thus they are fluent in using digital technology. The aim of this thesis is to describe how these devices are being utilised for learning purposes using the qualitative data collection method, to use the FRAME model to evaluate the usefulness of mobile digital technology and to also understand the educator’s role in the mobile age. This thesis explores the relationship between education (what is being taught), society (individual learners and their learning preferences) and technology (mobile tools used for learning), conceptualising the learner’s perspective. The research findings indicate that learners in the case study are enthusiastic about mobile educational technology, fluent in using digital technology and they prefer pen and paper for taking notes. The outcomes of this study suggest that although mobile technology has the potential to enhance teaching and learning, educators need to put more emphasis on providing technology-rich learning activities to empower high level of student involvement and take into consideration the learner’s learning preferences towards learning using mobile technology.College of Engineering, Science and TechnologyM.Tech. (Information Technology

Relationship Between Sense of Coherence and School Connectedness Among Online Public High School Students

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between sense of coherence and school connectedness among online public high school students. The connection students make with their school can affect their well-being based on the stress they perceive from the school and its environment. The variables of interest were the sense of coherence score and the school connectedness score. A bivariate correlational research study was performed to determine if there was a significant relationship between the two variables. The sample was 83 high school students enrolled in an online public school. Each completed the Sense of Coherence – Orientation to Life Questionnaire (SOC-13) and the School Connectedness Survey. Data was analyzed using the Pearson’s Product Moment r to examine the relationship between the two variables. Results of the study found a negative correlation between the sense of coherence score, sense of coherence comprehensibility score, sense of coherence manageability score and school connectedness score. No correlation was found between the sense of coherence meaningfulness score and school connectedness score. Recommendations for future research include examining different populations and socioeconomics of the participants. A qualitative study is also recommended to examine motivation and academic support. This study will help online public high school administrators and faculty understand students like those enrolled in their schools and develop programs to help promote school connectedness and reduce stres

Faculty and student attitudes and experiences of blended learning in postgraduate programmes: a case study in an Irish university

While technology has undoubtedly increased the breadth and depth of access to education, shifts of this magnitude need reconstruction of approach from faculty and administrators in higher education to rethink the pedagogy for the twenty-first century learner who require such skills as critical thinking, problem solving and the ability to communicate through different media where the face-to-face lectures still dominate teaching practice. In this exploratory study, a case study approach was used to investigate the implementation of blended learning with a group of students on their postgraduate programmes and explore the influence blended learning is having on both faculty and student experience. This study explores the challenges and benefits of a holistic approach to digital learning for a modern university. In conducting this study, the TPACK model of Mishra and Koehler (2006) and the Multimodal Model by Picciano (2009) form the basis of the conceptual frameworks adopted as these were deemed the most relevant frameworks because of their pedagogic dimension. The themes identified included the need for face-to-face interaction, course structure, induction and providing adequate support. Challenges arose due to isolation with the physical distance between the instructor and students, using technology to communicate on forums, workload, lack of training, time management issues and the ongoing need to provide a variety of assessment methods and subsequent feedback. Blended learning is endorsed as a strategy that helps to create a more integrated approach for both instructors and learners. What also emerged was that a holistic, seamless and well integrated blended learning approach using pedagogically appropriate models and more active learning, provided faculty the opportunity to engage students in a richer, deeper, and more meaningful context. Overall, students valued this learning and assessment strategy and viewed the online environment as an inclusive space in which to collaborate and share ideas where they had the option to share knowledge and interact with each other beyond the confines of the classroom where the significance of the pedagogy takes priority over and above the efficiency aspect. This study concludes that blended learning can be considered as an efficient approach to distance learning in terms of students’ learning experience where pedagogy transcends technology. The evidence would suggest that effective blended learning does not entail merely ‘toying with technology’ and adapting it into pre-exiting courses where it may serve no pedagogical value. The relationship between content, pedagogy and technology is fundamental, thus, the implementation of powerful blended learning may necessitate changes in pedagogy and the relationship between students and educators

The investigation of using wiki technology to support self-regulated learning in the academic context at Princess Nora bint Abdul Rahman University, Saudi Arabia

Technology has become a major focal point in the modern learning environment. Web 2.0 is being increasingly widely employed in university education and has the potential to improve the quality of education. For optimum benefit to students’ learning practices, web 2.0 technology needs to actively foster regulation skills among students. Self-regulated learning skills (SRL skills) potentially offer a shift from traditional teacher-centred to learner-centred approaches. Wiki technology, as a form of web 2.0 technology, has the potential in education to foster such an approach to learning. The thesis investigates how a wiki can be utilised to enhance self-regulated learning among a cohort of female students attending higher education in Saudi Arabia.The study was primarily motivated by the lack of studies investigating SRL skill enhancement in wiki–assisted learning in higher education, in Saudi Arabia, where the education system largely relies upon teacher-centred learning. This study, therefore, was an effort to potentially improve SRL skills among students attending Princess Nora University (PNU) in Saudi Arabia, with a view to the results being applicable to teaching and learning in similar contexts. The first two objectives of this study were to explore the potential of a wiki as an enhancer of executive function and evaluation skills and to explore students’ attitude towards using wiki as a learning environment. The third objective was to explore students’ perceptions of wiki learning and its contribution to the enhancement of SRL skills. A single case study was administered before and after use of a purpose-designed wiki for an Education Technology module taken by a cohort of female students at PNU. Quantitative data was collected by a questionnaire triangulated with qualitative data gathered in interviews. The findings revealed that after using wiki, students felt that six of the eight SRL sub-skills listed under executive function and evaluation skills had, on the whole, improved significantly.Students generally reported extremely positive attitudes towards learning with wiki technology. They perceived that the reflective nature and the design of the wiki tasks, together with the pages and guidance given by the tutor, may have supported the development of SRL skills, increased their overall motivation to learn and improved their independent learning processes. Overall, this study sought to discover information on a relatively new area to Saudi higher education and acts as a stepping stone to further research into students’ perceptions of wiki technology and its effect on SRL skill enhancement. There is, of course, an opportunity in the future to measure actual SRL skill levels to corroborate the promising results which may, given the reader’s discretion, be viewed as transferable to similar cultural and study contexts

The epistemological beliefs of undergraduates towards Information Science

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonIn the past four decades considerable efforts have been taken by higher education to understand learner’s differences and learning. Learners have different levels of learning ability associated with their different learning motivations, attitudes and thoughts which are built through years of studying at university. The more the researchers understand the learner's differences the better results they will achieve in covering all levels of learning abilities providing the effective learning for learners. The focus of this study is about studying learning thoughts of academic learners which are scientifically called as the epistemological beliefs. Studying the epistemological beliefs from different angles is important to explore its vital role in learning development. The main aim of this study is to investigate the general and specific epistemological beliefs of undergraduates who study information literacy modules as part of information science. The study focuses on the influence of the independent variables (gender, major and academic level) and the interactions between the independent variables and information literacy on undergraduates’ epistemological beliefs. Two questionnaires are used to measure the general and specific epistemological beliefs of the undergraduates; the Schommer Epistemological-Beliefs Questionnaire (SEQ) and the Discipline-Focused Epistemological Belief Questionnaire (DFEBQ). The participants in the study are undergraduates from the College of Education at Kuwait University. SPSS is used to test the internal consistency of the data against the questionnaires. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) is used in order to analyse the data. The study confirms that undergraduates hold both general and specific-domain beliefs while they hold more general beliefs in their first year in the college they develop toward more specific domain beliefs in the fourth year. A final result shows that the undergraduates specific domain beliefs – rather than their general beliefs – are more affected by the variable of previous knowledge of information literacy, as well as a clear impact of the interaction between the independent variables but is not so clear on the general beliefs