An Exploration of Factors Contributing to Service Longevity at Asia-Pacific International University

Problem In educational institutions of higher learning, turnover is seen as a double-edged sword that brings both benefits and problems. While turnover allows the opportunity to bring in a new employee who may be able to benefit the institution more than the one being replaced, the process of finding a replacement tends to be costly in terms of time, energy, and financial resources. As a young institution, Asia-Pacific International University (AIU) found turnovers challenging in more than one way because of its lack of stability in areas such as finance and human power. It could benefit from a clearer understanding of what contributes to service longevity among its workers. Purpose of Study Since it is essential to study retention in the context of one\u27s institution, this study was conducted to explore the perceived factors that contributed to employees\u27 long-term ii service at AIU. In other words, the study sought to understand why employees served for a decade or more at this institution. Methodology This study adopted a qualitative case study design using narrative inquiry to answer its research question. The participants were carefully selected for several reasons. First, the participants had to be current university employees during the survey. The participants were identified based on the length of their employment at AIU. Semi-structured interview questions were used to collect data. The interviewer prompted responses from participants based on pre-planned questions worded per the research objectives. The participants were involved in lengthy, in-depth conversations regarding their service at AIU. The researcher employed cross-case analysis to understand the experiences that enabled the nine employees to serve beyond a decade. Results The answers to the research questions were divided into five categories based on the interview questions. The categories were as follows: (a) reasons for serving at AIU, (b) elements appreciated at AIU, (c) intentions of leaving, and (d) the reasons to remain. In each category, themes or factors were identified. The themes of reasons for serving at AIU included Personal and Organizational Compatibility, Personal and Environmental Fit, Family Influence, and Positive Connection. For elements appreciated, the first two themes were similar to the first two in the reasons for serving. Two other themes under elements appreciated were Gratification and Workplace Relationships. In the area of challenges, the themes were Workplace Spirituality, Support from Others, and Mental Response. All participants had turnover intentions at one point in their long-term service. Such intentions were caused by Work-related Challenges, Greener Grass Issues, and Family Situations. One of the work-related challenges was the adjustment to new leadership or change in relationship with a colleague who had been put in a leadership position. The last category of reasons for remaining at AIU was the following themes: Affirmation, People Factor, Family Benefit, and Shift in Perspectives. Conclusions The factors contributing to the service longevity at AIU were a combination of variables in the forms of personal and organizational compatibility, personal and environmental fit, gratification, and workplace relationship. Long-term employees exercised workplace spirituality in dealing with challenges, received dedicated support from others, and assumed positive mental responses. When they thought of leaving, they prayerfully reflected on the intention and asked for divine guidance in their decision-making. A combination of factors neutralized the turnover intentions—the restoration of courage, a renewed sense of purpose and mission, family benefits, and a shift of perspective that led to the appreciation of blessings associated with serving at the institution

Thai Students’ Motivation To Speak English Outside The Classroom at Asia-Pacific International University

The purposes of this study were to explore the factors that motivated and those thatdiscouraged students from speaking English outside of the classroom at Asia-PacificInternational University, Mauk Lek Campus. The university offers undergraduate programsin both English and Thai medium. The majority of Thai students who were enrolled in bothprograms notably lived in the University dormitories, which exposed them to students from32 different countries, yet were still hesitant to speak English.Using the convenience sampling method, 197 students were selected to participate in thisstudy. A descriptive quantitative method and a self-administered questionnaire were used tocollect the data.The findings reveal that motivation for speaking English outside the classroom was mainlyfor instrumental motivational reasons (M=4.17, SD=0.59), followed by integrativemotivational reasons (M=3.74, SD=0.67). Less clear reasons were intrinsic motivation(M=3.41, SD=0.75) and extrinsic motivation (M=3.32, SD=0.82) motivations. The study alsoreported that factors such as inadequate vocabulary to speak effectively, insufficientknowledge of English grammar, and inability to speak English fluently and continuously,were perceived as hindering them from speaking English outside the classroom. Lastly, thestudy found statistically significant differences at the 0.05 level in instrumental motivation,intrinsic motivation, and extrinsic motivation when compared with gender, faculty, classstatus, program of study, and period of learning.The recommendations for future research threefold: to study learning approaches to a varietyof vocabularies which would enhance students‟ communication outside of the classroom; tostudy participants from other nationalities; and to use a larger sample using other types ofsampling and data collection methods

FACTOR ANALYSIS OF E-LEARNING USAGE

Due to the recent event, happening around the world, the E-Learning approach has continued to increase at a rapid pace at universities and institutions. However, eventhough the use of e learning has grown and the e-learning progress is high and give strategic positioning, the question remain is that how the current user look at the usage of e-learning in their learning process. There are still many challenges in E-learning implementation and process  The study use factor analysis method using SPSS in this study, Descriptive statistic, factor analysis, KMO & Bartlett’s test, rotated component factor are utilized in this study to have test battery outcome. The study uses 23 sample from Asia-Pacific International University in Thailand. With respondend from Indonesian students and lecturer. The results shows that factors in the analysis of e-learning usage at Asia-Pacific International University. The following are factors the approval of respondent of the e-learning usage in the university that helped them: System Visibility, Material Relevance and Depth using E-Learning, Support Class Learning, and System Connectivity, Help Option & Documentation, System Design, Appearance & Color, Error & Shortcut & System Repair Guide. These factors is the result of the study that was divided in three components they are   “System Support,” “System Design,” and  “System Repair.” Thus, the features shown in the results such as system support, system design and system repair can help management in maintaining and enhancing e-learning program

Reading Habits and Their Influence on Academic Achievement Among Students at Asia Pacific International University

In this study reading habits have been correlated with academic achievement. Students whohave developed the habits of reading academic and non-academic materials develop theircomprehension of concepts, critical thinking skills, and verbal fluency and ultimately havebetter academic outcomes. This quantitative study examined reading habits and theirinfluence on the academic achievements of students at Asia-Pacific International University,Mauk Lek, Thailand. A convenience sampling method was utilized to select 250 individualswho responded to a survey questionnaire, A Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS)was used to analyze the data. A multiple regression and Correlation Matrix analysis checkedthe influence of reading habits on academic achievement. Among the five variables, the studyconfirmed that the purpose of reading has a significant relationship with academicperformance. Furthermore, the findings indicated that the majority of the respondents valuethe importance of reading. However, the respondents had low reading habits. The studyrecommends that policymakers in universities should develop plans and for increasingstudents‘ reading habits. This includes providing resources to encourage students to take upreading. In addition, administrators should develop strategies for teachers to create activitiesthat can promote reading habits, which would, in turn, improve students‘ academicperformance

The Effect of Parental Support on Academic Performance Among Students at Asia-Pacific International University

The purpose of this study was to determine the influence of parental support on college students’ academic performance of Asia-Pacific International University (AIU) in Thailand. The research aimed to investigate the relationship between parental support and academic achievement among Thai and International students at AIU in Thailand.   In addition, the study sought to find out the level of parental support among Thai and International students at AIU, and the differences in parental support. Using stratified sampling, ,60 undergraduate students aged between 17 years to 25 years old from five Asia-Pacific International University (AIU) dormitories were selected to participate in this study. A survey instrument for data collection consisted of a demographic questionnaire and a Likert-scale questionnaire.  The data were analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows, Version 21.  An independent samples t-test was used to determine the differences between Thai and International students on parental support. Spearman rho correlation coefficients between parental involvement variables and cumulative grade point averages (CGPA) were reported. The findings revealed that academic performance cannot be adequately explained by parental support. Findings of this study also showed that although there is positive influence on the family relationship between the parents and students at the college level, it does not adequately explain academic performance among students. The present study was an attempt to inform college administrators and educators of the importance of parental support at the university level. Therefore, the main recommendation is that,  college administrators should look into how parents support their college students and establish strategies for encouraging emotional and social parental support to children in college...For further research necessary to consider the varying impacts of parental support within the lives of the children, such as investigating the impact of having little or no parental support

The Relationship between Social Skills and Learning Achievements of Business Students at Asia-Pacific International University

This research aims to examine the relationship between social skills and learning achievements of business students at Asia-Pacific International University. A total of 67 Thai students studying in the Faculty of Business Administration, Asia-Pacific International University, participated in this study through self-administered questionnaire. The majority of respondents were 62.7% female students and 31.3% senior students. The results showed that there was a positive correlation between the overall social skills and learning achievements (r = 0.797). For the sub-dimension of social skills, there was positive correlation between social skills in emotion and expression and learning skills (r = 0.552). The other sub-dimension of social skills such as communication skills, thinking and commenting skills, listening skills, analytical and problem solving skills, activity skills showed marginal positive correlation with learning skills. The findings have suggested that the business students should focus on strengthening the social skills and dispositions to increase learning achievement performance

The Correlation between Students’ Academic Achievement and Ethical and Moral Activities Involvement in a Christian Institution

This study investigates the correlation between students’ academic achievement and their involvement in ethical and moral activities. The sample of the study was 472 students from Asia-Pacific International University, Thailand, who were enrolled in different programs in the second semester of the academic year 2013-2014. Data were obtained from the internal software created by the IT department at Asia-Pacific International University called SARRA (System for Administration, Reports, Requests and Academics). Data were analyzed using One-way ANOVA to examine significant difference between students’ academic achievement and their participation in ethical and moral activities. Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient (Pearson's r) was used to analyze the correlation between students’ academic achievement and their ethical and moral activities involvement. The study revealed that there was a statistically significant difference between students academic achievement and their involvement in ethical and moral activities at a = 0.05. The findings of the study also revealed that there was also a statistically positive correlation between students’ academic achievement and their involvement in ethical and moral activities (r-value = 0.447, p-value = 0.000 at a = 0.01)

Administration Courses in an International University Setting

This paper analyzes perceived usefulness, perceived easy-of-use, and levels of computer proficiency as factors that may affect the attitudes towards the use of Moodle by international students in Business Administration courses at the Asia-Pacific International University in Thailand. The theoretical framework for this paper is based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) that specifies the causal relationships between the factors mentioned and actual usage behavior

Managing Organizational Structure for University Advancement: An Assessment at Asia-Pacific International University

Organizational structures are important factors because they help organizations ensure that they are designed to accomplish their institutional mission and vision. The aim of this study was to look at organizational structures and how they affect university advancement. The study used a correlational design for analysis, and convenience sample technique was used for respondents selection (n = 34). Findings indicated that a flat, matrix and organic organizational structures were the better suited structures for university advancement. There were statistically significant relationships between University Advancement’s marketing factor and the matrix organizational structure (r =.461, p = 0.006); marketing and the flat organizational structure (r=.385, p = 0.025); the fundraising university advancement and the matrix organizational structure (r =.410, p=.016); alumni with the matrix organizational structure (r =.400, p =.019) and with organic organizational structure (r =.438, p =.010). It was concluded that organizational structures have significant positive influence on university advancement.  Recommendations include further studies to include more institutions, increased institutional focus on university advancement and its functions, and instituting a collaborative environment with a flat, organic or matrixed organizational structure

Effectiveness of Moodle E-learning for Students Enrolment of GENL 1101 ‘Learning Resources and Skills’ at Asia-Pacific International University

The objectives of this research were 1) to study the level of student satisfaction and learning in the classroom using Moodle e-learning, 2) to compare the differences between personal factors and the effectiveness of teaching and learning through Moodle e-learning, and 3) to apply the results of the study as a guideline for the development of decision-making to choose whether to use the blended learning model using Moodle e-learning. The population and the sample groups were 103 first year undergraduate students at Asia-Pacific International University. Questionnaires were used to elicit student responses. The statistics used in the research were mean, standard deviation (SD), t-test, and one-way ANOVA. The results of this study show that students’ level of satisfaction with teaching and learning in the classroom using Moodle e-learning is at a moderate level. When comparing the differences, it was found that the satisfaction level of the students with different genders and ages with teaching in the classroom using Moodle e-learning is not different. However, it was found that students from different fields of study had different levels of satisfaction with statistically significant level of 0.05. The study showed motivation of learning both in and out of classroom in used of Moodle program in order to benefit the study