CHALLENGES RELATED TO COMPUTER PROGRAMMING EDUCATION IN SAUDI ARABIA

The economic development of countries depends upon their technological competitiveness. Computer technology is a major component of technology. More the people are competent in computer technology, the greater the chance of economic development. Saudi Arabia is no exception to this common view. Although computer education was started in Saudi Arabia in 1984, the progress had been slow for a long time. However, now, with the implementation of Vision 2030, there is a high focus on elevating the skills of the Saudi workforce to the global levels. Computer technology has a big role in this regard. The full implementation and achievement of developing computer skills among the Saudi workforce are affected by many issues and challenges. This paper reviews these challenges and issues and the possible solutions offered for some of them, using published literature. A systematic review methodology was utilised for this research. A total of 29 papers were shortlisted and reviewed. Challenges were noted both in learning and in teaching sides. Despite cultural segregation of gender, women are increasingly enrolling in computer programming courses due to government support, family influence, and a stable workplace. Needs and demands on computer skills are rapidly changing with time. This necessitates frequent updating of computer curricula. Many problems are faced by freshers and their seniors. Lack of knowledge in problem-solving affects their ability to construct algorithms and codes and variables for their programming. This is aggravated by a lack of feedback on errors. Other challenges include inadequate practice, inadequacies of time allocated for labs and tutorials, poor quantity and quality of homework, poor selection of instructors, discouragement by universities on computer use, lack of competency of instructors to motivate students, and absence of quality assurance and monitoring. Solutions have been suggested for some of these like 3D animation software like ALICE and automatic assessment. Teaching challenges include workloads due to large classes affecting individual attention to weak students and the need to address students’ problems listed above. Common problems both students and teachers need to be solved through further research. Specific computer programming needs of healthcare professionals, hard of hearing students are to be addressed by implementing specific solutions. Some research in the future will also be helpful. The above challenges can be addressed by adapting solutions from research to the Saudi Arabia context

Impact of digital divide on students performance in computerised UTME in Nigeria

In Nigeria, the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), a large-scale university admission examination, was fully computerised in 2015. However, knowledge gap and digital divide are prevalent in developing countries, which may impact students’ performance in computer-based tests (CBT). To this end, this study investigates ICT-related individual differences (computer familiarity/experience, CBT anxiety and CBT attitude) among secondary school students taking UTME and its effects on their performance on the test in Osun state, Nigeria, considering their locations (rural/urban) and school types (public/private). The study adopted a quantitative survey for data collection from final-year secondary school students who registered and took 2021 UTME. The study’s findings revealed significant variations in the access and use of computers among students taking UTME. It was found that all students from private schools had prior computer experience, whereas 11% of students from public schools had not used a computer before. Within the group of students without prior computer experience, 63% were from rural public schools. Furthermore, computer familiarity positively correlates with students’ performance in UTME. For instance, students who have taken CBT at least six times before UTME have significantly better performance than those who have not taken CBT at all. However, CBT attitude and anxiety before and after the examination were moderate and had no significant relationship with test performance. We conclude that affordable and easily accessible ICT facilities and CBT practice centres should be provided to students, especially those in disadvantaged areas, to ensure the fairness of UTME to all candidates

Digital Literacy of English as a Foreign Language Students and Teachers in the Context of Vietnamese Universities

The proliferation of novel technologies has facilitated the contribution of information and communications technology (ICT) to education, revolutionizing the education system and equipping students with necessary skills for the digital era (Aydin, 2021). To meet the international and global trends of learners’ foreign language proficiency and digital competence, the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) has initiated national projects on English as a foreign language (EFL) learning and instruction with the integration of technology. Consequently, Vietnamese higher educational institutions have invested in and provided more facilities for students to participate in e-learning, blended learning, or flipped learning, as well as to collaborate and interact with one another on digital platforms while creating additional resources. However, the digital literacy (DL) of students and teachers is a major concern because the investment in technologies in education is only effective if they are digitally competent to integrate technology into the teaching and learning process. In the Vietnamese educational context, few studies have attempted to evaluate student and teacher DL levels, even though DL significantly affects the application of digital technologies in the EFL context (Alavi et al., 2016). Accordingly, the current research, comprising four cross-sectional sub-studies, examines Vietnamese student and teacher DL in an EFL educational context. The results should provide insights into the direction of ICT integration. The first study aims to validate a computer-assisted language learning (CALL) attitude-adapted questionnaire, which is one part of the DL questionnaire, and to differentiate between online and paper administration modes. Exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, measurement invariance analysis, and Rasch analysis were conducted to explore and assess the factor structure of the CALL instrument and to specify the equivalence between two versions of the questionnaire. The construct and item levels of the questionnaire did not differ significantly between the two administration modes. Thus, the instrument can be used with online and paper questionnaires to measure Vietnamese tertiary students' attitudes toward technology integration. The second study investigates the DL levels of non-English majors at Vietnamese universities. An adapted questionnaire is used to assess students' digital knowledge and their perceived skills, their attitudes toward the use of digital technologies, and the frequency of use of technology applications in English learning. The reliability of other parts of the DL questionnaire was confirmed in this study. According to the findings, most Vietnamese students can access digital technologies at home and at school. Students achieve an adequate level of DL, and their technological skills range from low to average. Male students tend to use technologies more extensively than female students, despite the fact that females are more aware of the benefits of digital integration in learning. Discrepancies also exist among different year groups. Freshmen possess the highest levels of technical skill, while seniors have the best digital knowledge. Despite their positive attitudes toward technology, students do not use it extensively when learning English. The third study aims to measure DL among English majors at Vietnamese universities using self-developed subjective and objective instruments. There is a positive level of DL achievement according to the subjective assessment and a moderate level of DL achievement. However, the gap between the results of the two types of assessment is not significant despite participants' estimates that their DL is higher than their actual achievement. In addition, despite the low path coefficient value, the appraisal evaluations of participants have a positive effect on their achievement. The fourth study is conducted to evaluate the DL of EFL teachers in Vietnamese universities using an adapted questionnaire and in-depth interviews. The study found that most of the teachers assess themselves as having a good level of DL. The qualitative data from in-depth- interviews partly contribute to the quantitative data because they strengthen the result from the questionnaire and provide a more comprehensive understanding of teacher DL in their teaching context. In the case of gender difference in DL level, male teachers’ DL is better than their female colleagues’ though the difference is not significant. Furthermore, the study indicates that age, gender, and experiences of using digital technologies do not significantly impact teacher DL, but teachers’ working environment and their digital technology usage have an impact on their level of DL. The research suggests certain implications for English teaching and learning with technology and provides suggestions for future research

Understanding Motivation to Learn English: A Comparison of Urban and Rural Students at a Saudi Arabian University

Proficiency in English is an important component of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030. While upholding Arabic language the Saudi Arabia (SA) government is reform ing the educational system to improve students’ achievements Explicitly stated in the V ision is a clause dedicated to uplifting the educational standards to enable SA to compete with the world on an equal footing. Although there is no explicit plan to improve English instruction, there is increasing need to teach English for competitive innovation and for considering national reform initiatives in an increasingly global world world. The Saudi government has spent billions of dollars offering incentives to international institutions to enter into partnership s with SA universities enabling them to of fer joint programmes in undergraduate and postgraduate studiesstudies. Despite the aspirations of the government, Saudi students English language proficiency remains slower to develop . Some studies in other jurisdictions have attributed the l ack of English proficiency to low motivation. T h is thesis addresses the problem of low motivation in the S A context . It reports on a mixed methods investigation of motivational factors that affect language learning in urban and rural SA contexts ; exploring the potential that rurality is related to motivation

Digital literacy : an investigation into perceived competencies of open distance learning students in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa

The aim of this study was to investigate and describe the perceived digital literacy competencies of Unisa Open Distance Learning students in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The association between the socio-demographic variables of the students and their perceived digital literacy competencies was statistically tested. The study examined whether there is a statistically significant relationship between the independent variables: attitudes towards digital technology for academic purposes, usage of the Learner Management System and attendance at regional digital literacy workshops, and the dependent variable, perceived digital literacy competencies. A quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional survey design was adopted using a census sampling method. The study concluded that the majority of students have high self-perceived digital literacy competencies. Statistically significant positive relationships were found between attitude towards digital technology for educational purposes, usage of the Learner Management System and attendance at regional digital literacy workshops and perceived digital literacy competencies.Educational Management and LeadershipM. Ed. (Education Management

Penerapan Metode Blended Learning Untuk Meningkatkan Fungsi Kognitif dan Self-Efficacy Pada Peserta Didik SMA Negeri 2 Wonogiri

Penelitin ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui peningkatan kemampuan fungsi kognitif, dan mengetahui peningkatan self-efficacy dalam proses pembelajaran menggunakan metode blended lerning Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian tindakan kelas (PTK). Penelitian ini dilaksanakan dalam dua siklus, dengan tiap siklus terdiri dari perencanaan, pelaksanaan, observasi, dan refleksi. Kriteria inklusi subjek penelitian adalah peserta didik kelas X MIPA 5 SMA Negeri 2 Wonogiri tahun pelajaran 2021/2022 dengan jumlah 36 peserta didik yang terdiri dari 12 peserta didik perempuan dan 24 peserta didik laki-laki. Sumber data berasal dari kolaborator, peserta didik, dan peneliti. Data kemampuan fungsi kognitif diperoleh menggunakan instrument kemampuan fungsi kognitif, sedangkan data self-efficacy diperoleh dari angket skala self-efficay. Teknik analisis data menggunakan teknik analisis deskriptif dengan persentase. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukan bahwa penerapan metode blended learning dapat meningkatkan kemampuan fungsi kognitif dan self-efficacy. Peningkatan kemampuan kognitif terlihat dari hasil siklus 1 yang mencapai 69,44% menjadi 80,56% pada siklus 2. Kemudian untuk tingkat self-efficacy pada siklus 1 dihasilkan 80,56% pada tingkat sedang, dan 19,44% pada tingkat redah. Artinya, tidak ada peserta didik yang mencapai tingkat self-efficacy tinggi. Akan tetapi pada siklus 2 dihasilkan 5,56% pada tingkt tinggi, 86,11% pada tingkt sedang, dan hanya 8,33% padatingkat rendah. Hasil tersebut menunjukan bahwa penerapan metode blended learning dapat meningkatkan kemampuan fungsi kognitif dan tingkat self-efficacy di atas 80% keberhasilan. Penelitian ini diharapkan ada tindak lanjut yang dilakukan oleh guru untuk meningkatkan kompetensi guru agar menjadi guru yang lebih profesional

The impact of usability, social and organisational factors on students' use of learning management systems in Saudi tertiary education

Advances in e-learning have reshaped universities worldwide. Universities place great emphasis on technology-enhanced learning development and are investing significantly in information technology infrastructure. However, in spite of this effort and investment, it seems that instructors and students do not fully benefit from learning technology, and more often Learning Management Systems (LMSs) remain underutilized. This is evident in Saudi higher education where LMSs have recently been introduced. Understanding the factors affecting the use of LMSs and prompting their engagement are therefore crucial to the success of such platforms. This study aims to fill this gap by examining usability, and organisational and social factors affecting the students’ intentions and use of LMSs in Saudi tertiary education. To this end, a theoretical framework was proposed that combined perceived usability attributes with the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) variables to identify the impact on students’ intention and use of the LMS. Furthermore, the study examined the moderating effect of demographic characteristics (gender, age, experience, and training) on the model’s proposed relationships. This study used a quantitative approach to validate the proposed model and test the research hypotheses. A cross-sectional survey method was adopted to collect the data. Using the probability multi-stage cluster-sampling technique, the empirical data were collected from five state universities in different regions of Saudi Arabia. The data were coded, cleaned, and preliminarily analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) package. In total, 605 responses were usable for testing the measurement and structural model, employing partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique and SmartPLS software. The results reveal the significant drivers of student use of LMS and the moderating effect of demographics on the proposed relationships. The results confirm that the study model is valid and reliable to indicate the key factors that influence the use of LMS. The dimension of social influence emerged to significantly influence the students’ usage behaviour. The performance expectancy was affected by information quality and the system interactivity whereas the effort expectancy was influenced by system navigation, system learnability and instructional assessment. The statistical analysis reveals that six associations were moderated by the four proposed personal characteristics. In the light of the findings of this study, recommendations were put forward to universities to gain insights into the best way to promote e-learning system popularity and acceptance among students