Factors that contribute to obesity problem among UTHM catering student

Negative perception by the society and the hospitality industry toward the disabled people is very high and it has to be changed and this parties should be given opportunity to work in this industry. Rosli, et al (2011) states the acceptance in the small and medium industries towards the disabled is at moderate level. However, in 2005, Ministry of Higher Education Malaysia (KPTM) has initiated Polytechnic Ibrahim Sultan, Johor Bahru conduct a pioneer program to produce graduates with disabilities (OKU) with hearing impairments for a career in the hotel industry. Related to the situation, some lecturers were sent to attend sign language courses for the preparation for the program, some facilities were updated to fit their needs. To this present Polytechnic Ibrahim Sultan, Johor Bahru has produced hundreds of OKU graduates. It is hope that the graduates produced from this program could reduce the number of foreign worker working in the industry. Dependence on foreign workers should be reduced because there are almost 2.6 million people with special needs in Malaysia. Some of them have been able to pursue their studies to diploma and Bachelor degrees. Through the development of education they are participated in, it is hoped that they will also contribute to the country's economy. The Government of Malaysia is in the effort to transform employers' perceptions towards this group to be more positive. Thus, several initiatives or benefits had been made by the Government of Malaysia to attract more government link companies (GLC) and private firms to hire people from this group. However there are also some challenges and obstacles faced by the industry in accepting these graduates at their company. Taheing (1996) states that in its study it has been able to identify problems that limit the employment of disabled persons including physiological factors, disability due to defects, occupational types, gender factors, workplace environment, personality, illness and other disabilities. This is a challenge and obstacle faced by the employer in hiring the disabled graduates in their industry. Therefore, the industry is highly concerned with the selection of highly capable employees in helping to increase profits to the company

Climbing the Great Wall: Linking Teacher Beliefs and Learning Styles in Cross-Cultural Teaching - Observations from cross-cultural teaching in Mainland China

Scholars have suggested separate relationships between culture and learning styles, and between culture and teaching beliefs. In this essay I suggest that interrelated relationships between culture, learning styles and teacher beliefs may exist. Drawing on personal observations from cross-cultural teaching experiences in Mainland China, the essay illustrates how culture, learning styles and teacher beliefs inform each other and how they might be combined into an inclusive framework. Such a framework could aid in identifying and overcoming challenges from cross-cultural teaching and cross-cultural learning. The observations shed further light onto the on-going debate of how Chinese learn. The essay concludes with directions for future research for further development of the framework and our understanding of cross-cultural differences in the classroom

The Effect of Student Learning Styles on the Learning Gains Achieved When Interactive Simulations Are Coupled with Real-Time Formative Assessment via Pen-Enabled Mobile Technology

This paper describes results from a project in an undergraduate engineering physics course that coupled classroom use of interactive computer simulations with the collection of real-time formative assessment using pen-enabled mobile technology. Interactive simulations (free or textbook-based) are widely used across the undergraduate science and engineering curriculia to help actively engaged students increase their understanding of abstract concepts or phenomena which are not directly or easily observable. However, there are indications in the literature that we do not yet know the pedagogical best practices associated with their use to maximize learning. This project couples student use of interactive simulations with the gathering of real-time formative assessment via pen-enabled mobile technology (in this case, Tablet PCs). The research question addressed in this paper is: are learning gains achieved with this coupled model greater for certain types of learners in undergraduate STEM classrooms? To answer this, we correlate learning gains with various learning styles, as identified using the Index of Learning Styles (ILS) developed by Felder and Soloman. These insights will be useful for others who use interactive computer simulations in their instruction and other adopters of this pedagogical model; the insights may have broader implications about modification of instruction to address various learning styles.Comment: 6 pages 2 tables and 1 figur

Musical styles as communities of practice : challenges for learning, teaching and assessment of music in higher education

The last three decades have been marked by significant expansion of music education within higher education, the outcomes of which can be seen in the increased numbers of students studying music and in the diversity of activity and purpose within music courses. This article interrogates the relationship between stylistic diversity and music provision, specifically in relation to teaching and assessment, and considers music styles as examples of 'communities of practice' into which students may be inducted through formal and informal means

Teaching psychology to computing students

The aim of this paper is twofold. The first aim is to discuss some observations gained from teaching Psychology to Computing students, highlighting both the wide range of areas where Psychology is relevant to Computing education and the topics that are relevant at different stages of students’ education. The second aim is to consider findings from research investigating the characteristics of Computing and Psychology students. It is proposed that this information could be considered in the design and use of Psychology materials for Computing students. The format for the paper is as follows. Section one will illustrate the many links between the disciplines of Psychology & Computing; highlighting these links helps to answer the question that many Computing students ask, what can Psychology offer to Computing? Section two will then review some of the ways that I have been involved in teaching Psychology to Computing students, from A/AS level to undergraduate and postgraduate level. Section three will compare the profiles of Computing and Psychology students (e.g. on age, gender and motivation to study), to highlight how an understanding of these factors can be used to adapt Psychology teaching materials for Computing students. The conclusions which cover some practical suggestions are presented in section four

Individual learner differences and distance language learning: an overview

No abstract available

A Holistic Social Constructionist perspective to Enterprise Education

Purpose – Drawing on the Gestalt approach this article proposes a holistic framework for enterprise education (EE) research based on Social Constructionism, illustrating how the latter supports research into experiential learning in EE in 7 UK Higher Education (HE) pharmacy schools. Design/ Methodology/ Approach – This paper is based on a qualitative empirical study involving educators in UK Higher Education Institution (HEI) pharmacy schools in semi-structured interviews, and investigates the delivery of EE through experiential learning approaches. Social Constructionism is proposed as a suitable underlying philosophical paradigm. Findings – A Social Constructionism paradigm, which adopts relative realism ontology, transactional epistemology, and Gadamer’s Hermeneutic Phenomenology, offers a relevant, multi-perspectival philosophical foundation for EE research, supporting transactional relationships within contexts of multiple possibilities. Research limitations/implications – Social Constructionism does not necessarily support the individualistic paradigm, as advocated by Constructivists; and the values associated with the former encourage a more collaborative and cooperative approach different from the latter. Practical implications –The paper supports the understanding that applying experiential learning through inter-disciplinary and inter-professional learning is regarded as an approach beneficial for educators, institutions and learners, within the context of EE. Originality/ value – This paper offers a holistic conceptual framework of Social Constructionism that draws on the ‘Gestalt Approach’, and highlights the harmony between the ontological, epistemological and methodological underpinnings of Social Constructionism. The paper demonstrates the relevance of the proposed framework in EE research within the context of an empirical study, which is different in that it focuses on the delivery aspect of EE by considering the views of the providers (educators), an hitherto under-researched area. Paper type – Research paper Key words: Enterprise education, research philosophy, Social Constructionism, relative realism ontology, transactional epistemology, Gadamer’s Hermeneutic Phenomenology, Gestalt approach

Modelling factors for predicting student learning outcomes in higher education

This paper presents a heuristic model of student leaning as a means to understanding the scope of factors to be considered in making predictions about student learning. It is underpinned by a review of a wide body of literature. The model is drawn from Price and Richardson’s 4P model (2004) that considered factors in improving student learning and argues that the same issues apply to predicting student learning outcomes. It builds upon existing research into learning and teaching. It is an articulation and an extension of Dunkin and Biddle’s (1974) model, the Biggs (1985) original Presage-Process-Product model and research by Prosser and Trigwell (1999). The model has four main groups of factors: presage, perceptions, process and product. The presage group contains personological and situational factors such as context. Perceptions include how students conceive learning, how teachers conceive teaching, and the context. The process group of factors incorporates approaches to learning in students and teachers approaches to teaching. The model is presented as a basis for engaging in future research in a holistic manner that may bear further fruit in predicting student learning

Implementing personalizing approach in teaching academic writing

Udostępnienie publikacji Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego finansowane w ramach projektu „Doskonałość naukowa kluczem do doskonałości kształcenia”. Projekt realizowany jest ze środków Europejskiego Funduszu Społecznego w ramach Programu Operacyjnego Wiedza Edukacja Rozwój; nr umowy: POWER.03.05.00-00-Z092/17-00

Teaching and Learning in First Year Seminars

This Journal of Information Technology Education article compares the relative successes of three different teaching techniques in seminars for a first year university course. This paper tests to see if there is one overriding approach that enables all students to learn effectively in seminars or whether different students benefit from different teaching techniques. Educational levels: Graduate or professional